Chapter 174: Conferring the title of pillar of state, rewards to generals

After three days of rest at Baitinghai and the recovery of the troops, Li Xuan ordered the Lintao Army and the Chishui Army to set off back to Hehuang to prepare for the offensive against Tubo.

The two armies re-selected good horses as reserve horses.

All injured soldiers, no matter how serious their injuries were, would first recuperate in Baiting Shouzhuo City.

Some of the captured horses, cattle and sheep were left at Baiting to guard and nourish the wounded.

Another part of the soldiers who came from Hexi were taken back to the pastures in Hexi, and would be rewarded to the entire army after the next major battle.

All the captives captured this time were also escorted to Hexi, where they would contribute to the construction of Helong and work hard to cultivate the land of Helong in the future.

As for the captured horses, they will be distributed later. There is no time to distribute them to the troops now.

"General Li, we have lived in the Tang Dynasty for generations, and we are no different from the Tang people. If you want to use troops against Tubo, we are willing to serve you!"

After An Sishun brought Fu Dianan and others to Li Xuan, Fu Dianan bowed to Li Xuan on behalf of the various Hu tribes in Hexi.

"Since you are willing to serve the country, follow us back to Hehuang! After the war, I will reward your tribe!"

Li Xuan glanced at Fu Diannan and nodded.

In this battle, Lintao and Chishui temporarily lost more than 5,000 combat forces.

Although it will not cause too much impact, the difficulty of the battle will increase.

The combat effectiveness of the various Hu tribes in Hexi is average, but they can follow the Chishui Army as the Qinghai troops to intimidate Tubo.

The cavalry increased from 20,000 to 30,000, making it more deterrent.

"Thank you, Li Shuai."

After receiving Li Xuan's reply, Fu Di Nan and other Hu leaders expressed their gratitude.

Only by actually participating in the battles of the Tang army could they feel Li Xuan's bravery and decisiveness.

The peerless grace of the man leaping on a horse and holding a spear was deeply engraved in their minds.

Such a person is like a god, and they dare not show any disrespect to him.

Li Xuan was also the Helong Yafan Envoy, able to manage the various Hu tribes.

All the tribes wanted to be valued by Li Xuan.

Li Xuan also ordered Bai Ting Shouzhuo to double the number of cavalrymen to patrol the border, and he would provide Bai Ting Shouzhuo with 500 additional war horses.

In addition, Li Xuan also ordered the Ningkou army, which was located across the desert near the Juyan Sea, to be strictly inspected.

If anything happens, report it immediately.

After everything was ready, the army went south along the Macheng River to Guzang City.

Li Xuan wanted to replace a batch of armor for the soldiers and repair the damaged weapons in the treasury of Guzang City.

The journey home is not as urgent as the journey here.

When arriving at Guzang, Li Xuan ordered the Helong counties to open the roads and allow passage through Yumen Pass and Yangguan.

But the border remains under martial law.

In a short period of time, Tubo will not know that Huihe has been defeated!

……

Yu Dujun Mountain, Ekun River, and the Uighur royal court.

After a long journey, Mo Yanchuo finally returned to the royal court.

He was in a very miserable state, and looked nothing like the high-spirited man he was when he led an army of 50,000 southwards.

When Guli Peiluo received the news that the cavalry in the parade were almost wiped out, his eyes went dark and he fainted.

After waking up, his health was even worse.

At one point he thought his beloved son was dead and burst into tears.

Several incompetent sons were also ready to compete for the position of Khan's successor.

Until a few days ago, he received news that Mo Yanchuo was still alive, and immediately sent the guards to bring Mo Yanchuo back to the royal court.

He was afraid that someone would harm Mo Yanchu because of this.

"Great Khan, I have let you down. I am guilty."

After entering the tent, Moyanchu ran to Guli Peiluo's seat, knelt down with a plop, and looked guilty.

It’s not that he cannot fail, but he cannot accept total defeat.

"It's good that you're back, it's good that you're back...Call me Ata."

Guli Peiluo stroked Moyanchuo's back to comfort him and asked him to call him "father".

This shows that he will not blame Mo Yanchu.

"Ata..."

After Mo Yanchu knew what Guli Peiluo meant, he looked at Guli Peiluo and saw that he looked even older. He burst into tears and patted his chest, blaming himself: "He is too powerful, and the child is too stupid. If I had thought that he would come from the wind and sand, at least I could have saved the army."

This time, he was defeated miserably. His 50,000 cavalry were surrounded and annihilated by 40,000 cavalry, or to be exact, 30,000 elite Tang troops.

Since ancient times, how could such a thing happen on the grassland?
"This is Li Xuan. I learned some battle situations from the defeated soldiers. Even if I go, I will fail. His subordinates are all charging forward on two horses. No one would expect such a speed, and they rushed out from the wind and sand. He is truly an enemy of ten thousand people. The so-called bears and tigers are nothing..."

Guli Peiluo sighed and said slowly: "Alebu has been following me since he was fifteen years old and has made great contributions to the establishment of the Uighur Khanate. I hope he will be captured by Li Xuan instead of dying in battle..."

"Ata...if Aleb is captured, we will buy him back for 10,000 gold coins."

Mo Yanchu felt even more upset when he thought of Aleb who had covered his return.

He said this more to comfort Guli Peiluo, because both father and son knew that Aleb would never give in.

Mo Yanchu witnessed with his own eyes Li Xuan charging into the battle line and killing the enemy, and the cavalry were knocked down one by one by the iron spear in Li Xuan's hand.

I'm afraid that thousands of people would be killed in that afternoon.

How could Aleb be a match for Li Xuan!
"Ah! It must be so."

Guli Peiluo sighed again.

"Don't blame yourself. Even if the whole army is wiped out, I have no regrets at all. I grew up in the Han area and heard a story."

Guli Peiluo patted Mo Yanchu's shoulder and asked him to stand up, then he said: "More than a hundred years ago, there were two heroes in the Central Plains, Wang Shichong and Dou Jiande. When Li Shimin unified the Central Plains, he attacked Wang Shichong. It had nothing to do with Dou Jiande in Hebei, but Dou Jiande gave his full support."

"Li Shimin captured the two kings in one battle, and later questioned Dou Jiande, 'I am conquering Wang Shichong, what does it have to do with you? How dare you cross my territory and challenge my army?' But Dou Jiande replied, 'If I don't come here myself today, I'm afraid you will have to go a long way to take them.'"

"How similar! But we are much better than Dou Jiande. We still have our foundation and hundreds of thousands of soldiers. The grassland tribes will complain about this defeat, but no tribe can threaten the Khanate."

"We will send ambassadors, carrying gold and jewels, to ask for peace with the Tang court. We will do the same as Gou Jian, the hero of the Central Plains, who slept on straw and ate bitter food."

"There's something wrong with Li Xuan. Something will happen to him sooner or later. I may not be able to see it, so you have to wait and see."

When the Huihe people came south for a military parade, Li Xuan immediately sent troops to launch a surprise attack, obviously without seeking the consent of the Tang emperor, or in other words, "kill first and report later."

From that moment on, Guli Peiluo no longer regretted going south for the military review, but was sad about the complete defeat.

"Kid, remember this!"

Mo Yanchu nodded heavily.

"Wang Zhongsi sent troops to attack a tribe north of Yinshan Mountain and abducted all the tribe members. Not long ago, there was a report that the Shuofang Army and the Hedong Army stationed troops at the gorge, with their spearheads pointed directly at the grassland. However, I guess that with Wang Zhongsi's character, he will not take the initiative to attack, but will instead intimidate the Uighurs to stop sending cavalry south."

"We have finally achieved some strategic goals in this battle. It is already winter, and the Tang army will no longer attack Tubo. By next year, the eight castles of Tubo will be completed."

"It should be possible to hold Li Xuan back for a while..."

Guli Peiluo said a lot of things to Moyanchuo again, trying to make him regain his confidence and wait for the opportunity.

"Don't worry, Ata. On the way back, I've figured it out."

Mo Yanchuo was indeed unwilling to accept this, but he did not become depressed because of it.

"Rest in the royal court for a while, and then you will go to the Tang Dynasty in person."

Guli Peiluo dropped another important news.

"Ata, my son has just been defeated by the Tang Dynasty..."

Mo Yanchu was very ashamed of this, and he was afraid that Tang Ting would take the opportunity to embarrass him.

"The Emperor of Tang cares about his reputation. You are an envoy, so he will not do anything to you. This will also show his sincerity. Whatever his demands are, and how much tribute should be paid every year, you must agree to it, even if it hurts the country. You must not give Li Xuan an excuse to attack us. At least we have to wait ten years until we completely unify the grassland."

Guli Peiluo could see through Li Longji's character, so he brought valuable gifts with him to the Tang Dynasty to apologize. Li Longji would definitely show his magnanimity in front of the envoys from other countries.

"My child obeys!"

Mo Yanchu thought about it and agreed.

The Huihe people need time now, so as not to give this vicious dog Li Xuan a chance.

Afterwards, the father and son stayed together.

The other sons of Guli Peiluo were very dissatisfied with this, but Guli Peiluo favored Moyanchuo, and they had no power and could not pose any threat to Moyanchuo.

Before, they were full of malice and hoped that Mo Yanchu would die at the hands of Li Xuan.

Only Moyanchu's sister, Gasi, was happy about her brother's return.

……

Changan.

Li Xuan rushed seven hundred miles to Chang'an to deliver Moyanchuo's golden armor, the wolf-head banner, and the "Congratulations on the Defeat of the Uighurs at Baitinghai" written by Liu Dan.

After Pei Kuan and Li Linfu arrived at the Qinzhengwu Building, they saw the golden armor and the wolf-head banner being erected, and Li Longji standing next to these two items.

"My two Prime Ministers, guess what this is?"

After Pei Kuan and Li Linfu arrived, Li Longji played dumb with them. A large banner with a wolf head and a wolf tail on top.

Golden armor is armor inlaid with gold and can only be worn by people of extremely high status.

Pei Kuan, who had served as the governor of Fanyang, recognized the two items at a glance, so he bowed and said, "Your Majesty, these are the wolf-head banner of the commander-in-chief of the Huihe army and the armor of the Huihe Khan or the prince."

"Snapped!"

"What the Prime Minister Zuo said is absolutely true."

Li Longji clapped his hands and praised.

After saying that, Li Longji handed the battle report to the two prime ministers for them to read.

Li Linfu was very familiar with this scene. Li Xuan must have defeated the Uighurs badly, and even the wolf-head banner and golden armor were sent to Chang'an.

Sure enough, the battle report first praised the emperor's grace, the sage's wisdom, and the fact that he was ordered by the emperor to fight, and praised Li Longji to the sky.

Then it begins to introduce the hardships of the soldiers' long-distance march, sleeping in the open air, especially walking for several days in the wind and sand in an extremely harsh environment.

That’s why we won a great victory by overcoming all obstacles.

The results of the battle were so dramatic that the Uighurs had no time to prepare before the Tang army broke into their camp.

Among them, Li Xuan arranged an ambush early and used light cavalry to lead the Uighurs to the ambush site.

A group of soldiers called "Modao Army" performed brilliantly in the ambush.

Only dozens of casualties were enough to stop the clash of thousands of cavalry.

"Those who meet Zhang Xing's sword will be crushed to pieces, and the generals and soldiers will all come out with long swords in hand, advancing like a wall. This Zhang Xing must be made a general."

Li Longji read out a passage from the congratulatory letter and suddenly felt that Zhang Xing, the Modao general, was extremely brave.

He decided to give him a title of general of the Southern Ya Imperial Guards, just like Wang Nandi and Nan Jiyun, to show off his status.

"Congratulations to the Saint for getting a good general."

Li Linfu immediately congratulated him, although he knew that Zhang Xing was Li Xuan's subordinate. But the situation was irreversible, so he simply flattered Li Longji.

Besides, Liu Shan, that brat, will kill him sooner or later. Zhang Xing has already been "destroyed", which is exaggerated enough.

But the way Li Xuan is portrayed is simply godlike.

"When the battle array was completed, the general put on his horse armor and selected his personal guards to join the battle array. From noon to dusk, the three armies were completely defeated, and he killed a thousand men alone."

"The commander saw the great general Alebu go out into the battle, leaping on his horse and holding a spear, and striking a fatal blow. The enemy troops were defeated, and they rushed in with a loud shout, and their armor was completely destroyed."

Descriptions like these fully demonstrate how personal bravery determines victory or defeat.

What's more, the Uighurs were being attacked, surrounded, and surrounded again.

Of the 50,000 Uighur cavalrymen who marched south, only less than 2,000 escaped.

In military combat, this is considered a total annihilation of the army.

The ratio of prisoners beheaded to deaths was as small as ten to one.

Although Li Linfu hated Li Xuan, he had to admire Li Xuan as the best general of the time, whose bravery was rarely found in history books.

"It is said that the leader of the Huihe army was Guli Peiluo's successor, Mo Yanchuo. In order to escape, he used the trick of escaping from the trap and pretended to be a soldier. It is not important that he was not caught. The golden armor and the wolf-head banner are worth the same as his weight."

Li Longji believed that obtaining the golden armor and the wolf-head banner of the Uighurs was enough to rival the military achievement of capturing Mo Yanchu alive.

"The saint is wise. The Huihe have influence in the Western Regions. If we defeat them so easily, the Tang Dynasty will become more prestigious in the Western Regions. When General Li defeats Tubo, the Western Regions will surely send envoys to the Tang Dynasty."

Pei Kuan also bowed and said that he was supporting Li Xuan.

As a former commander-in-chief, Pei Kuan admired Li Xuan's way of fighting.

Every time, a great victory is achieved at a very small cost.

How can we sum it all up with just one word: brave?

"I am going to appoint Qilang as a pillar of state. What do you two think?"

Li Longji asked Li Linfu and Pei Kuan.

In fact, Li Xuan's military achievements could have earned him the title of Grand Pillar of the State long ago, but Li Longji thought that Li Xuan still had to fight a major war with Tubo, so he put the matter on hold.

"Your Majesty, General Li is the pillar and backbone of the country and deserves this title."

Pei Kuan replied immediately.

"Your Majesty is wise, and I agree with you!"

The situation was unstoppable, and Li Linfu had no choice but to accept it.

Li Longji was very satisfied. He sent someone to deliver an imperial edict to question Guli Peiluo and was waiting for Guli Peiluo's reply.

He then pulled Li Linfu and Pei Kuan to the map of the Tang Dynasty. He pointed at the map and said, "Qi Lang once said that China should own the entire Yellow River. Is that day coming soon?"

The Yellow River is the mother river of China. Since the birth of civilization, it has nurtured generations of Chinese people.

Since ancient times, the upper reaches of the Yellow River have never been owned by China.

When China under the rule of Li Longji can control the entire Yellow River, it will be an epoch-making achievement.

"With General Li here, not to mention the Yellow River, the upper reaches of the Yangtze River will also be controlled by the saint."

Pei Kuan took the opportunity to flatter Li Longji, but in fact he was also talking nonsense.

"I am looking forward to it!"

Li Longji did not aim too high, but just touched the area of ​​the source of the Yellow River on the map.

There used to be a country called Subi, which has now surrendered to Tubo.

……

After the morning court session the next day, the imperial edict appointing Li Xuan as the pillar of the country was sent to Huangshui at full speed.

At the same time, Li Longji rewarded Li Xuan with three hundred gold, twenty gold articles, twenty jade articles, and three thousand pieces of silk.

The Lintao Army and the Chishui Army continued to be rewarded generously, with the rewards coming from the Jingzhao Prefecture treasury.

For example, Zhang Xing was appointed as the General of Qianniu Guard, Xin Yunjing was appointed as the General of Youlingjun Guard, and Li Zhushi was appointed as the General of Youwu Guard.

An Zhongzhang, Li Feiyuanli and Che Shensai were appointed as Lieutenant Generals of the Imperial Army.

Let Li Fei Shouyu lead the imperial guards.

When Li Xuan led his troops back to Huangshui, Li Longji's edict was delivered urgently over a distance of seven hundred miles.

These news were sent to boost the morale of the army before the great battle with Tubo.

If Nan Jiyun, Zhang Xing, Xin Yunjing and other generals of the imperial guards make further achievements, they may be granted titles.

Even if it is a nominal baronship, it is a matter of honor for the family.

Although there were no rewards for his subordinates, Li Xuan would promote the ranks of Gao Shi, Liu Shan, Cen Shen, Yang Wan, Liu Yan and others by several levels after the war, and give them higher official positions.

Li Longji will certainly agree by then.

With such a resume, even if they do not serve as officials in the future, they can be demoted to be the governor of a county.

After arriving at Huangshui City, Li Xuan ordered the Lintao Army, the Chishui Army, and the Hexi Hu Army to rest for five days and get some extra sleep.

Five days later, in late October, the battle against Tubo officially began.

"Judge Liu, how are the soldiers' linen clothes prepared?"

After returning to the army, Li Xuan immediately summoned his subordinates.

"All soldiers are equipped with linen clothes, and marching tents that can withstand wind and snow are also fully prepared."

Liu Yan replied to Li Xuan.

"Judge Liu, how long can the food supply of hundreds of thousands of troops last?"

Li Xuan asked Liu Yan again.

"Reporting to General Li, I have ordered Jincheng, Longxi, Wuwei and other counties to transport 50,000 dan of millet to Jishijuncheng, Suihe Shouzhuo, and Shanzhoucheng, which can support the two armies until March next spring. There is also enough salt. The saint sent envoys to Helong to buy sheep and fine wine. Now the army has 50,000 sheep and 300,000 kilograms of fine wine."

Liu Yan reported everything to Li Xuan at once.

"On the eve of the battle, take 100,000 kilograms of fine wine and drink it freely. The remaining fine wine will be evenly distributed among the soldiers to keep warm. Except for the sheep that will be slaughtered and stewed when going to the battle, the rest will be equally distributed among the soldiers."

The winter in Qinghai is too cold. Taking this situation into consideration, Li Xuan decided to let the soldiers' water bottles be used as wine bottles, so that they could drink a few sips to warm themselves up before the battle.

Li Xuan considered that alcoholics would finish the wine, but after all, each person has a limited amount of wine, so they would not get drunk. The wine of this era is only slightly higher than the beer of later generations.

However, Li Xuan still asked Gao Shi to tell the soldiers not to drink all the wine before the snow fell.

Of course, if Li Xuan really encountered a drunkard who drank the alcohol secretly, there would be nothing he could do.

When fighting on the frontier, soldiers often carried their own drinks.

A general would not blame his soldiers for carrying alcohol.

For soldiers, drinking can not only add fun to their boring daily life, but also make them brave and strong, and bravely kill the enemy. It is a "good medicine" to inspire people and boost morale.

Wildness and bravery will be released in the moment of drinking.

"Alcohol is prohibited in the military" is not applicable in this era and environment.

Those who drink and make mistakes are often generals with beautiful women in their arms, rather than soldiers on the front lines of battle.

"As ordered!"

Liu Yan, Gao Shi and other subordinates received the order.

If this news reaches the army, the whole army will surely be excited...

(End of this chapter)