Chapter 175: The one who killed the Zanpu was made a king of a different surname, and ambushed from all sides
After confirming the baggage and logistics with his subordinates, Li Xuan felt relieved.

These are the foundations of victory.

When the soldiers learned that each of them could get more than one kilogram of fine wine, they danced with excitement.

No general has ever rewarded ordinary soldiers like this.

Although the military regulations set by Li Xuan were strict, the bold soldiers felt that warriors should abide by such regulations.

But Li Xuan was extremely generous in his rewards. After each battle, he would apply to the court for large amounts of money and silk.

The Jiedushi's treasury would also give silk money as a reward to soldiers who had made meritorious services.

The soldiers heard the story of Li Xuan punishing the "traitor Wang Yu" in Chang'an.

Wang Yu's behavior towards military families made the soldiers hate him to the core, and they were very happy to see him demoted.

Even a newly enlisted soldier would be proud to serve under Li Xuan.

The soldiers are now in high spirits and have confidence in victory.

Because their head coach is the unrivaled Li Xuan.

In the next four days, Li Xuan inspected the military camps in Hexi and Longyou to boost morale.

Regardless of his status, he talked to the soldiers and asked about their well-being.

Li Xuan also personally inspected the arsenal and arrows of each army.

At the same time, subordinates and local officials in Hexi and Longyou were also preparing for military operations.

Huangshui City was very busy, and officials and soldiers could be seen everywhere.

Even ordinary people knew that General Li was going to use military force against Tubo.

If they could recapture Shibao City in this battle, their land in Hehuang would be liberated.

Many people fled from the fertile countryside in front of Chiling to Huangshui and Shanzhou.

Exposed to the Tibetan cavalry, the land there was completely uncultivable.

To this end, some people took the initiative to participate in the operation of transporting food and fodder, doing their best to help.

Women and the elderly prayed at home for the Tang army to win a great victory.

……

In the early morning of the day before departure, Li Xuan summoned all military envoys, deputy envoys, and mid- and low-level generals for a meeting.

At this military meeting, Li Xuan plagiarized a poem "Seven Quatrains of the Frontier" to boost morale.

Fubo only wishes to return with his body wrapped in a bag, why should Dingyuan enter the pass alive?

Mo Qian returned to Haiku, still leaving an arrow to shoot at Tianshan.

Li Xuan would never quote sad poems about "longing for home after a long garrison", nor would he write a more negative chapter about "weariness of war and seeking peace".

This poem expresses that soldiers should serve their country by dying on the battlefield like Ma Yuan did, and there is no need to return to Yumen Pass alive like Ban Chao did.

Not only do we have to annihilate the enemy completely, but we also have to garrison the borders so that the enemy dares not invade.

Although the generals were not well educated, they were excited by the several allusions in the poem.

Even masters of frontier poetry such as Gao Shi and Cen Shen felt that Li Xuan's poems were inspiring and could boost morale.

"The Tubo people have repeatedly invaded our territory. We can no longer tolerate this. Following the order of the Saint, we will attack the Tubo people and recover Jiuqu. Even if it is freezing cold, we must not retreat..."

After reading a poem, Li Xuan began to read out the details of the expedition to the generals.

He also told the generals about Li Longji's "System for Conquering Tubo".

"The Tibetan clowns have frequently invaded our borders, destroyed our towns, and captured our border people." Li Longji used almost cursing words to call the Tibetans, which showed his hatred for his brother-in-law Chidai Zhudan.

At the end of the edict, Li Longji made a generous promise: "Those who can capture the Tibetan king in Hexi, Longyou, Anxi, Jiannan and other armies will be given the title of king of a different surname; those who can capture the great general will be given the title of great general; those who can capture the second rank or below will be given the title of general and lieutenant general. Regardless of official rank, the rewards will be the same. Immediately announce it so that everyone will know!"

Once this edict was issued, Li Longji would certainly keep his promise. Even prisoners who had "made meritorious service while serving their sentences" in the army could be conferred the title of "Prince" as long as they could kill Chidai Zhudan.

But the possibility of this is too small, after all, Chidai Zhudan was a great ruler who had been in power for decades.

The last time he came to Jiuqu Qinghai, he led a total of 400,000 troops.

These words made the hundreds of generals present feel excited.

"Even if you don't get this kind of merit, don't worry too much. As long as you get merit in killing the enemy, breaking through the enemy's formation, being the first to climb the mountain, capturing the flag, guarding, tactics, and rescue, I will approve it one by one and reward you. Even if you are a small soldier, you can be promoted to a general or a general. You generals will also be promoted to generals, generals, and generals in this opportunity."

As the commander-in-chief, Li Xuan made a promise to the generals.

After all, Li Longji's rewards were too fantastic, and the rewards and punishments in the army still depended on the Jiedushi.

"We will fight to the death to drive the Tubo away..."

The generals responded to Li Xuan in unison.

"For this battle, our army will be divided into three battlefields. I have appointed General Gao, the military commander of Longyou, as the deputy ambassador of the Helong campaign. When we have eliminated the Tibetan strongholds on Chiling except for Shibao City, General Gao and General An will lead the Anren Army, Heyuan Army, Zhenxi Army, Baishui Army, Momen Army, Weirong Army, Dadou Army, Yumen Army, Doulu Army, Moli Army, Ningkou Army, Jiankang Army, Suihe Shouzhuo, and the infantry of the Chishui Army, a total of more than 70,000 soldiers, to the east pass of Chiling, including 3,000 archers, 2,000 crossbowmen, and 5,000 infantry. The rest will be deployed in Jixin Valley, 30 miles away from Shibao City, to form a defensive formation."

"When our army enters Jixin Valley and deploys its troops, Tubo will definitely think that our army is attacking Shibao City. They will definitely do their best to break through the army we have deployed and lift the siege of Shibao City."

"The deputy ambassador of the Helong expedition, Li Guangchen, and the deputy ambassador of the Chishui Army will lead light cavalry, elite cavalry, and heavy cavalry, totaling more than 17,000. The Hexi Huihe, Sijie, Qibi, Hun, Qiang and other tribes will lead 10,000 cavalry to follow the assignment. When the battle of Jixin Valley begins, they will lead the cavalry across the Huangshui River to the edge of Qinghai. The specific matters will be explained by the Japanese commander in person tomorrow."

"In this battle, I led 7,000 Tuyuhun infantry, the Jishi Army and the Lintao Army to raid the Jiuqu area..."

Only then did Li Xuan formally issue strategic instructions to all the troops, allowing soldiers from each side to participate in the battle.

But in theory, the task undertaken by the Chishui Army cavalry was lighter. They only carried Li Xuan's big banner and "deterred but did not actively seek battle."

If the strategy is to be accomplished, their military achievements will naturally be indispensable.

The generals looked at each other, whispered to each other, and knew their tasks.

Even the soldiers in Jixin Valley felt tremendous pressure.

Because if the East Pass of Chiling was wider, it would not be easy to defend and difficult to attack.

And there are many forks.

The real fortress is Stone Castle.

Jixin Valley can just prevent the Tubo reinforcements from entering Hehuang from the branch road of Dongshankou.

However, the defense in Jixin Valley was too large. Although the terrain was rugged and flat, the narrowest part still required defenses of several miles.

In rugged areas, you can deploy fewer troops, but in flat areas, you need to guard them with heavy troops.

Li Xuan wanted to keep Tubo in the dark, not knowing whether Shibao City had been breached.

Then they had to deploy a large number of cavalry in Qinghai.

Finally, at Jiuqu, Tubo was dealt a fatal blow.

"As long as we take down a dozen strongholds on Chiling Mountain and guard Jixin Valley, Shibao City will become an isolated city."

"Tomorrow, the Dadou Army's cavalry will serve as the vanguard and march quickly to Jixin Valley, and the rest of the cavalry will follow soon. Before that, the troops must select their best and take down all the Tibetan garrisons on Chiling Mountain."

"The Tubo had three major garrisons, namely Hongyan Fort, Changbao, and Yingshan Fort. These three forts were closest to the Hehuang River. Each fort had 300 to 500 Tubo soldiers and hundreds of war horses. Many Tubo scouts in the Tang Dynasty came from these three forts."

"The remaining thirteen forts have between dozens and hundreds of people. These forts are accessed through dangerous paths, so large-scale marches are not allowed."

"Which of these forts would you choose to capture?"

Li Xuan asked the generals to look at the map and select their elite troops to capture these garrisons.

Compared to stone fortresses, these garrisons are much easier to attack and have fewer troops.

It is because of Stone Castle that these garrisons can survive forever.

If we fail to capture the Stone Fortress, even if we take these garrisons, we will soon lose them.

But Li Xuan's strategic goal was to block any route for Tubo to cross the Chiling Mountains.

"General Li, I will select the sharpshooters, crossbowmen and armored troops to attack Hongyan Fort." Li Feiyuanli asked Li Xuan for orders.

"Yes! To ensure the strength of the troops, at least one thousand elite soldiers will be deployed for the siege. Hongyan Fort will guard the west mountain pass, and it is quite large. Bring three hundred powerful crossbows."

Li Xuan agreed.

"General Li, I will attack the fort."

"Reporting to General Li, I will attack Yingshan Fort."

Li Feishouyu and An Zhongzhang also each commanded a large fort.

"Thank you for your hard work, Generals! Long Fort has few soldiers and is low, so it is easy to attack. However, Yingshan Fort controls the northeastern pass of Chiling Mountain, so we need to deploy troops in the same way as when attacking Hongyan Fort."

Li Xuan also agreed to their request.

The most effective way to deal with this kind of small fortress is to suppress it with powerful crossbows, sharpshooters, and attack with armor.

Just like the Stone Fortress, history has proven that as long as half a month of continuous attacks day and night can always wear down the defenders inside.

They were just afraid of reinforcements from Tubo.

However, those garrisons built on high mountains and steep hills had no wide roads to provide support.

Afterwards, other generals were also willing to lead their elite troops to raid the small Tubo fort.

"After taking down the Tibetan garrisons, the 3,000 archers, 2,000 crossbowmen, and 5,000 infantrymen who stayed at the East Pass of Chiling Mountain were ambushed at these dangerous passes, especially the Northeast Pass and the West Pass that could accommodate the passage of the army, so that the Tibetans would not dare to rashly send people across Chiling Mountain."

Li Xuan gave orders to his subordinates.

Recruiting 10,000 people is something that must be done and will not have much impact on the overall situation.

The reason for doing this was that they were afraid that Tubo would send out a surprise attack and pass through the narrow mountain pass. Similar examples had been used by the Tang army and Tubo before.

Such mountain passes are also the most vulnerable to ambushes, so the Tang army must take precautions in advance.

"As ordered!"

The generals take orders.

"Do you have any objections?"

Li Xuan asked the generals present.

"Reporting to General Li, this morning, a colorful cloud appeared in front of my camp. The cloud suddenly turned into a dragon, soaring in the sky, turning the clouds and rain. I wonder what this sign is?"

At this moment, Gao Kai, the governor of Suihe, stood up and bowed to Li Xuan.

He actually said such an irrelevant thing at this time. The generals were also puzzled, why didn't they see it?

There were those who were resolute in their hearts, who sat calmly and thought that Gao Kai was talking nonsense.

But Gao Kai's identity was not ordinary. It was said that he followed Li Xuan to participate in the war to destroy the Turks and capture the Khan's confidants.

He was one of the few generals transferred from Shuofang.

"Is there such a thing?"

Li Xuan frowned and asked his subordinates: "Do you know what this means?"

"Replying to General Li, this is a very auspicious sign! In the 27th year of Kaiyuan, Tubo attacked the Baishui Army and the Anren Army. When our army came to support them, 'auspicious clouds appeared in front of the battle and white rabbits danced in the camp'. Once this auspicious sign appeared, our army won a great victory. Now the colorful clouds have turned into a dragon, which means that our Tang Dynasty has the momentum of a dragon. With the help of God, Tubo will definitely be defeated this time."

Liu Dan immediately stood up and explained to Li Xuan.

The generals also heard it clearly.

Suddenly, many generals beat their chests and applauded.

Many people of this era believed in such auspicious signs, especially some Hu people, who believed in them firmly.

When the auspicious sign appeared and spread to the army, the soldiers felt that they could easily win merit in this battle.

The generals who guessed the deeper meaning could not speak out, and they shouted louder than the generals who were kept in the dark.

The military meeting ended after one morning.

The fine wine and fat sheep had been carried to the entire army, and they began slaughtering sheep and drinking from noon.

The Jishi Army and the 7,000 Tuyuhun troops that had arrived at the Jishi Army City also enjoyed this treatment.

This may have been the last feast for some soldiers.

Li Xuan was in the Lintao army, accompanying nearly 18,000 Lintao soldiers who were about to go to war with him, and 150 Shen Ce guards.

Although the soldiers were not able to drink to their heart's content, they had plenty of tender mutton, and this time there were also fragrant Hu pancakes and pickled cabbage.

It was not until sunset that Li Xuan returned to Huangshui City to rest.

The soldiers also went to bed early.

Li Xuan talked with Li Mi. Li Mi would not follow Li Xuan to Jiuqu in this battle. He did not eat meat or drink alcohol and could not stand the fast rush and bumps.

The strategy had been formulated, and Li Mi did not need to be accompanied. He was in the Jixin Valley area with Liu Shan, the magistrate of Longyou, Duan Xueshi, the secretary of Hexi, and others.

The chief judge Liu Yan was responsible for all logistical work, and the county soldiers from various counties cooperated with him.

After chatting with Li Mi for half an hour, Li Xuan returned to his house.

When Changli handed tea to Li Xuan, he told him that the previous songs had been sorted out.

Li Xuan immediately asked her to play it again.

This is the famous song "Ten Sides of Ambush" in later generations, and he likes to listen to this song the most.

It includes "fierce fighting between the two armies", "strength that can move mountains and courage that can overwhelm the world", as well as "tenderness and tragic grandeur".

Under Li Xuan's guidance, Changli quickly organized the music score.

Li Xuan would practice whenever he had the chance, and when he arrived in Chang'an, he would play it for Li Shizhi and Wang Wei, or Li Longji and Yang Yuhuan.

"General, some people in the city compare you to the bravery of the Overlord. The song you composed is called "Ambush from Ten Sides". It was composed before you went to war, which is a bit unlucky."

Changli was worried about this and did not play immediately.

"I never think of myself as Xiang Yu, and the Tubo will be heavily ambushed by me. Changli, let me listen to one more song before I go to war."

Li Xuan disagreed. Even though he asked Gao Kai to create a "good luck" sign, he didn't believe in that at all.

He simply listened to the song "Ten Sides of Ambush" again before going to the battle, and after many revisions, he saw whether it was the same as in his previous life.

"My slave understands!"

Changli had no choice but to go back to get the pipa.

After returning, Chang Li sat down in front of the couch in Li Xuan's house, immersed himself in it, and fiddled with the music with his jade fingers, and the notes rang out...

"Deng Deng..."

Changli’s playing skills are very high, and the solemn and murderous aura at the beginning is very powerful.

The sound was so loud that even Li Mi, who was in the mansion, was startled.

It was the first time he heard such a piece of music, and he couldn't help but put down his book and listen.

Changli played a five-string pipa, which was somewhat different from the pipa of later generations. The five-string pipa was more majestic, and it portrayed the wars, battles, and passion to the fullest.

As Changli was officially performed, there were sounds of gold, drums, swords and crossbows, and the sounds of people and horses fleeing.

Suddenly there was no sound, and after a long time, there was a sound of resentment that was difficult to understand, which was the sound of Chu songs.

Li Xuan heard Yu Ji's appearance again, that tearful scene.

And Xiang Yu's final tragic moment...

After listening to the song, Li Xuan still felt unsatisfied.

But he didn't let Changli play anymore. His eyes revealed the belief that he would win.

"General, you...will definitely return victorious!"

Chang Li said slowly as he left.

She had no right to say take care to Li Xuan and could only wish him the best in her heart.

"The time, the place and the people are all right. Don't worry about me."

Li Xuan laughed.

Chang Li Yingying bowed and left. Li Xuan rarely went to rest early.

……

The next morning.

"Woooo..."

At the sound of the horn, two thousand cavalrymen of the Dadou Army quickly rushed towards the Chiling Pass.

The four thousand Dadou infantrymen in the rear, carrying hundreds of chariots, marched quickly towards Chiling.

Then there are the cavalry from other armies...

At the same time, Li Xuan asked Wang Nanyi to lead the Lintao army.

In order to avoid being discovered by Tubo scouts, the Lintao army followed the same route as the Tuyuhun soldiers under Murong Xihao, starting from the Yellow River in Huacheng County to cross the river.

Most of the horses moved very slowly when crossing the river, so they entered Ningsai County first.

And directly stationed in Huacheng County.

When the time comes, Li Xuan will lead his personal guards to rush over and officially enter Jiuqu.

"General Xin, wear my armor, carry my banner, and sit at the edge of Qinghai!"

Li Xuan finally chose Xin Yunjing as his "stand-in".

At critical moments, Xin Yunjing could also command a team of light cavalry to fight.

As for the Zhenxi Army under Xin Yunjing, it is temporarily commanded by An Sishun.

"I will obey your orders!"

Xin Yunjing knew Li Xuan's plan, and he had to respond to Li Xuan's instructions.

He also knew that this link was extremely important.

With nearly 30,000 cavalrymen, if used well, it would be no problem to attract 50,000 Tibetan troops.

It not only reduces the pressure on Jixin Valley, but also allows the Tubo Jiuqu troops to leave Jiuqu.

"We must let the Tibetan scouts see you and the big banner behind you. This is the key to this battle!"

Li Xuan gave Xin Yunjing another reminder.

"You will finally understand."

Xin Yunjing accepted the order.

He knew that if he could hold back a large number of Tibetan cavalry, he would also have a lot of merit, and General Li would not treat him unfairly.

Xin Yunjing kept the essence in mind and never took the initiative to attack.

They harassed the Tibetan infantry and cavalry by using a "advance and retreat" formation.

With nearly 30,000 cavalry led by Xin Yunjing, it was impossible for the Tubo army to bypass Chiling and support Shibao City.

Xin Yunjing also selected two hundred elite cavalrymen, each of whom wore a cloak to impersonate Li Xuan's personal guards.

From afar, Xin Yunjing was wearing armor, with two hundred personal guards behind him, the banner of the commander-in-chief symbolizing Hexi and Longyou, and more than ten flags.

Following behind them were 17,000 Chishui cavalry and 10,000 Hu cavalry, forming a grand formation.

The Tang army followed the Dadou army and moved first. The cavalry and infantry of the various armies formed a long dragon, one team after another.

The spear in his hand flashed with frost, and the sharp edge of the sword was restrained when it was sheathed.

The archers with strong bows on their waists and quivers on their backs; the crossbowmen holding powerful crossbows with great momentum; the knights on horseback running in teams of fifty or five hundred on the side roads of the infantry...

The Lintao army marching eastward towards Huacheng County, equipped with Modao, heavy armor, and powerful crossbows, gave people great confidence just by looking at their formation.

The cavalry of the Chishui Army, led by Li Guangchen, Li Zhushi and Xin Yunjing, also went down the Huangshui River.

The sound of armor colliding with armor, the neighing of horses, the rumbling of chariots, the whistling wind, the cold weather, and the soldiers' breath turning into white rainbows.

Most of the Tang army soldiers gathered at the Chiling Pass.

The main force also split into many teams of about 300 people, which rushed on horseback to various small paths in Chiling, led by the most elite and powerful generals.

The long fortress located at the eastern entrance of Chiling Mountain was undoubtedly the first target to be attacked...

(End of this chapter)