Chapter 183 The Battle of Jiuqu begins, Nan Jiyun pretends to be an enemy and charges into the battle

"Inform the whole army, if we win this battle, all slaves will be turned into common people of Dongdai. Common people of Dongdai who have made contributions will be awarded certificates with iron or bronze inscriptions, those who have made great contributions will be awarded certificates with silver or Polomi inscriptions, and those who have killed a great general will be awarded certificates with gold inscriptions. The spoils of war, including slaves and livestock of Tuyuhun and Bailang Qiang, will all be divided among the warriors..."

Shang Zanmo suppressed his anger and ordered the messenger to pass the order to the soldiers.

His identity was the Jiuqu Jiedushi established by Tubo.

In important areas, Tubo imitated the Tang Dynasty and established military towns with Jiedushi and military envoys.

However, the Jiedushi of Tubo had far less power than that of the Jiedushi of the Tang Dynasty.

As a slave state, Tibet actually did not have many free people counted in its household registers.

But Tibet had many slaves.

Every free citizen household could own a certain number of slaves.

Superior slaves can also own middle-class slaves.

The middle-level slaves would also be rewarded by the lower-level slaves.

Even slaves of lower rank would be granted slavery after they had performed meritorious services.

The top-down system of royal family, nobles, aristocrats, free people and slaves was implemented to the end.

Whenever Tubo was fighting a tough battle, they would promise to turn slaves into free people.

This also made the Tibetan slaves who were not wearing armor fight desperately for the so-called status of free people.

What the good families of Tubo pursued was to achieve merit and become nobles.

The nobles hoped to become truly powerful and even be favored by the king and marry into the royal family to become a noble clan.

It was because of such a complete military merit system that Tubo had such strong combat effectiveness.

Shang Zanmo is definitely not his real name, but a political name translated from Chinese.

Starting with the word "Shang" also means that he must be from the Shang clan.

After Shang Zanmo's promise, the morale of the Tibetan soldiers was high and they no longer felt panicked by the rebellion of Tuyuhun and Bailang Qiang.

Although Shang Zanmo was not clear about the situation at Hongji Bridge, he lied to the soldiers that General Meilu Dalun was coming with reinforcements.

Make the military more stable!

The Tibetan camps were densely packed, and their military formations were different from the Tang Dynasty's "fish scale formation".

With the same number of 20,000 infantrymen, the area occupied by their array was three times that of the Tang Dynasty.

There was a distance of more than ten feet between each team.

There are also many warriors holding "big swords" among them.

These Tibetan sword soldiers are often composed of the most elite warriors. They are best at fighting on foot, luring the enemy into the battle formation, and then chopping the enemy down.

……

"The Tubo people are brutal and cruel, and they are hated by the gods and people, and they have no civilization. The great Tang Dynasty is virtuous and broad-minded, and it is willing to fight a war of justice. At the critical moment, you have chosen the light instead of the dark, which is a wise move. Your previous assistance to the tyrant will not be investigated. I will report to the saint and give the Bailang Qiang King a legitimate title. If you cooperate with the Tang Dynasty in this battle and make meritorious contributions, you will all be rewarded. There are many Tubo slaves, food, cattle, sheep, horses, camels and other livestock in this Jiuqu land!"

Dang Jian and Chang Qing killed the Tibetan supervisors and officials in the Bailang Qiang army, took their heads, and came to pay a visit to Li Xuan.

Li Xuan felt that this was an unexpected surprise, so he tried to comfort Bailang Qiang.

Originally thought that only Jiuqu Tuyuhun could be subdued, but now with the addition of 5,000 cavalry from Bailang Qiang, 18,000 infantry and 3,000 cavalry from Tubo, they will have no way to escape even if they had wings.

And it is more conducive to subsequent use.

"We thank the Marshal and submit to Tubo. We have no choice but to do so. Although we are barbarians, we admire the Celestial Empire and look forward to the arrival of the heavenly soldiers in Jiuqu day and night. The loyalty of our Bailang Qiang will be as unshakable as Jishishan Mountain and as clear as the Yellow River..."

Dang Jian bowed to Li Xuan again to express his loyalty.

He is the son-in-law of King Bailang Qiang, so he can represent King Bailang Qiang.

Ever since the Battle of Lishui north of Jiuqu, King Bailang Qiang realized that something was wrong.

Seventy thousand Tibetan and Tuyuhun soldiers crossed the Li River and were completely annihilated by the 20,000 infantry and cavalry of the Tang army.

Coupled with Tubo's exploitation of the tribe, King Bailang Qiang knew that Tubo could no longer intimidate Jiuqu.

When Dang Jian and Chang Qing saw the legendary Li Xuan with their own eyes, they knew that their choice was right.

Although Li Xuan's appearance was not as good as in the legend, but at this station, he was like a thousand-foot-high mountain, making them look up to him.

He was only six feet tall, but he was as strong as ten thousand men. From Li Xuan's temperament, they felt that Li Xuan must be like this!

The personal guards behind Li Xuan, each wearing a mask, stood still amid the flying snowflakes.

Iron and snow made Dang Jian think that these were the sharpest of the sharpest soldiers. There was no comparison with the Bailang Qiang cavalry.

Moreover, Li Xuan's commitment and promise made them feel at ease.

"Where are the Bailangqiang infantry?"

Li Xuan took out the map of Jiuqu and asked Dang Jian and Chang Qing.

"Reporting to the Marshal, our army should still be about 150 miles south of the Ningsai Army of the Tang Dynasty. It will take another two days to reach Wanxiu City."

Dang Jian replied to Li Xuan, and he pointed out an approximate location based on the marching speed of his own infantry.

"The Bailang Qiang infantry, there is no need to come. Just rush towards Hongji Bridge. Help our army guard Hongji Bridge and Shudun City."

Li Xuan instructed Dang Jian.

By the time the Bailang Qiang infantry arrived, perhaps the more than 20,000 infantry and cavalry of Tubo would have been defeated.

It would be better to go and stabilize Hongji Bridge and Shudun City.

At the very least, one thousand heavy armored infantry and one thousand crossbowmen on the east side of the bridge can be sent to the west side of the bridge.

"Follow the Marshal's orders!"

Dang Jian accepted the order without hesitation.

He had sent orders to the King of Bailang Qiang and the infantry troops to kill the Tibetan officials and guards stationed in Bailang Qiang.

Open the bow without turning back the arrow!

Now that we have surrendered to the Tang Dynasty, we must first do our utmost to drive Tubo out of Jiuqu.

After about an hour and a half, the Tuyuhun cavalry had almost killed all the Tuyuhun nobles.

Other Tuyuhun nobles either fled back to the Tubo camp or fled westward.

Prepare to return to the Jiuqu tribes of Tuyuhun to make arrangements.

But when the fight came, those nobles were like paper tigers facing the agitated Tibetan soldiers and civilians.

As long as they control the infantry of the Jiuqu Tuyuhun tribes, they will be able to bring the Jiuqu Tuyuhun tribes to a perfect end.

After defeating the Tubo infantry, Murong Xihao led the Jiuqu Tuyuhun cavalry to subdue the Jiuqu Tuyuhun infantry.

Everything was ready at 2:45 in the afternoon.

"Reporting to General Li, General Nan has been detouring for more than 20 miles. When will he rush forward?"

A scout asked Li Xuan.

"Go inform General Nan and tell him to start the charge!"

It was almost time and the snow was falling heavier.

Li Xuan prepared to order an attack.

"Marshal, let our Bai Lan troops lead the charge."

Dang Jian took the opportunity to ask Li Xuan for help, hoping to make a contribution.

He knew that the Tang army's heavy cavalry would never sit idly by.

"The Bailang Qiang cavalry will wait to the west of the Tibetan camp, and then attack when the Tibetans are in chaos."

Li Xuan refused Dang Jian's request.

Although the Tibetan army's formation was not as rigorous as that of the Tang Dynasty, the Tibetan commander's methods of deploying troops were not necessarily sophisticated.

But Li Xuan insisted on winning with minimal losses. There was no need to waste troops, even those of the Bailang Qiang.

Afterwards, Li Xuan ordered the Tuyuhun cavalry in Jiuqu to pursue the Tubo elite cavalry of less than 3,000.

Even if they could not annihilate these elite cavalry, they would not be allowed to hinder the Tang army's tactics.

"General Wang, follow the plan and use the light cavalry and elite cavalry to attack the Tibetan formation in turn."

Li Xuan gave orders to Wang Nanyi.

"As ordered!"

The king rarely bowed and accepted the order.

"General Geshu and General Murong, use slingshots and crossbows to attack the northern part of Tubo. Draw Tubo's attention to the north."

Li Xuan gave another order to Geshu Han.

Although the catapult is used for siege, the stones flying from the air will cause great deterrence to the Tibetan soldiers, and can also be used in conjunction with the crossbow to undermine the morale of the Tibetan soldiers.

"As ordered!"

After receiving the order, Geshu Han quickly made arrangements.

The Ji Shi Army's crossbows and catapults are all ready.

A total of fifty crossbow carts and thirty catapults were pushed one hundred and twenty steps away from Tubo.

The Tibetan soldiers couldn't help but feel afraid when they saw these "big guys" appearing.

"It's just a few dozen catapults and crossbows. Why should you be afraid?"

Shang Zanmo doesn't have any back pain when he talks while standing.

After seeing this, he immediately deployed the reserve troops to the north, so that when riots occurred in the north, the formation could be quickly stabilized.

Shang Zanmo was also very unsure.

They did not expect that the Tang army would use slingshots to deal with them.

It now seems that the catapults are a greater threat than the Tang cavalry.

He had already seen the weak-willed slaves, their bodies trembling.

The slaves kept their eyes on the catapults, ready to dodge at any time.

"Anyone who dares to evade will be executed on the spot!"

Shang Zanmo issued a stern military order.

If too many soldiers try to dodge the flying rocks, the formation will immediately fall apart.

The Tang army had a large number of cavalry.

Shang Zanmo sent a team of soldiers to supervise the battle, and anyone who dared to do anything wrong would be hacked to death.

"We are on the front line. Even if we are killed by the impact, our families will be rewarded. If we are killed because of hiding, it will be meaningless. Even the gods will not be able to see us after we die. Warriors, if you have no fear in your hearts, you will not be hit..."

The Tibetan general boosted morale among the troops.

Seeing the war supervision team looking at them eagerly, the Tibetan soldiers no longer dared to try to dodge the stones. They prayed for the gods' protection.

"General Geshu, aim and fire!"

Li Xuan gave orders to Geshu Han in front of the infantry formation.

When Geshu Han received the order, he immediately ordered stones to be loaded, aiming and firing.

The Tang army's catapults had long-range projection capabilities and high accuracy.

It usually takes fifty people to operate a catapult.

In Li Xuan's opinion, there is still room for improvement in these catapults. The catapults are composed of weights, brackets, cables and throwing arms.

There is a rotating bearing on its gun carriage, and a long pole is fixed on the bearing. This long pole is called a "tip" and is made of a very tough type of wood. It can greatly increase the launching distance and the power of the shells, and can also save manpower. Up to thirty long tips can be installed. The more tips there are, the heavier the power of the stone bullets fired and the longer the distance, up to several hundred steps.

The heavy object is generally made of stone or iron. It is lifted to a certain height through the combination of a bracket and a launching arm, and then thrown forward by the traction of a cable to achieve the purpose of attacking the enemy.

The working principle of the catapult is mainly based on the effect of gravity. When the weight is lifted to a certain height, it will slide down naturally due to its own gravity. When the cable is tightened, the weight will be restrained between the cable and the catapult arm. When the cable is released, the weight will slide down the inclined surface of the catapult arm and gain a certain speed before being thrown out.

"emission!"

After the special stones were loaded, Geshu Han gave an order and the catapult was fired.

"Whoosh..."

With a loud noise like thunder, huge rocks broke through the snow and whistled through the sky towards the Tubo formation.

“Crack!” “Puff!”

Whatever hit the car was instantly torn into pieces.

Those unlucky Tibetan soldiers were hit and turned into a bloody mess on the spot.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa..."

Spears were fired from the crossbow.

“Crack!” “Puff!”

Compared with the catapult, the crossbow has higher accuracy and causes greater damage.

Many Tibetan shields were destroyed.

"On top, on top..."

The Tubo supervisory team held knives and asked the soldiers in the rear to hold the line.

After one round, only twenty or thirty people were killed.

Whether it was the catapults or the crossbows of the Tang army, they needed to prepare for a period of time before they could be fired.

Li Xuan saw that the Tibetan soldiers showed obvious signs of panic and nodded slightly.

They only need to expend a little effort, and when the battle is over, the stones and spears can be retrieved and used again.

Just torture the Tibetan soldiers slowly!

Two thousand Jishi Army cavalry, a part of Jishi Army infantry, and seven thousand Tuyuhun Tuyuhun infantry guarded the soldiers to launch the catapults.

Five hundred elite Tang cavalrymen led the Jiuqu Tuyuhun cavalry and chased the Tubo cavalry.

The Tang army intended to drive them westward to avoid a collision with Nan Jiyun.

At this moment, one thousand Tang cavalry in the east, under the order of Wang Nan, rushed towards the Tubo soldiers.

"Rumble..."

The Tang army's light cavalry came in the wind and snow with great momentum.

This formation made the Tibetan soldiers forget that they were light cavalry.

All they saw were aggressive and fierce knights in the snow.

There was a spear nearly two meters long behind the shield, and the Tibetan soldier was holding the shield hard.

"Soldiers, don't be afraid. The Tang cavalry can't overwhelm us. We will win against the first wave of Tang cavalry!"

The Tibetan general encouraged the Tibetan soldiers on the front line.

As they got closer, the Tibetan soldiers held their breath.

But the Tang army's light cavalry in the distance were not attacking head-on, but were galloping towards the flanks of Tubo.

The closer the two sides get, the farther apart they become.

Until the Tang army passed by the corner of the Tubo formation dozens of steps away.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa..."

Just when the Tibetan soldiers breathed a sigh of relief, the Tang army's light cavalry began to draw their bows and shoot at the Tibetan formation.

"Dang! Puff..."

Although the damage to Tubo was not great, at that moment, the Tubo soldiers' minds were shaken.

Immediately afterwards, the second team of Tang army light cavalry came rushing over.

"Don't be careless, they might really attack this time..."

The Tubo generals did not dare to relax at all.

"Boom!"

However, the Tang army still passed by the flanks of Tubo.

The same thing happened to the third team of light cavalry, the fourth team of light cavalry, and the fifth team of light cavalry.

The light cavalry did not stop as they marched away, but instead surrounded the Tibetan formation and surrounded the Tibetan soldiers more than a hundred steps away.

Snowflakes and dust flew together, and wherever the eye went, there were riders.

The Tibetan soldiers felt more and more oppressed.

"Can the despicable Tang army charge over here like a warrior?"

Shang Zanmo gritted his teeth when he saw this situation.

To the north, there were huge rocks and crossbows of the Tang army. He thought the Tang army was wearing out their patience.

Fortunately, they were determined. If their will was weaker, they would have been scared away by the Tang army.

"Marshal, the Tang army is charging again, and this time it seems to be cavalry!"

His subordinates ran to report to Shang Zanmo.

"The real and the fake, this is the Tang army's strategy. They are about to attack."

Shang Zanmo thought that the Tang cavalry would charge.

"Rumble..."

The Mingguang armor brought greater tension to the Tibetan soldiers.

In this atmosphere, they hoped that the Tang army would rush over and fight with them.

However, their wish was dashed, and the Tang cavalry still passed by them.

Just some arrows thrown from the cavalry formation.

A more solid encirclement is formed...

The same thing happened to the second team of cavalry.

At the same time, the Tang army's infantry in the north were no longer limited to using catapults and crossbows.

Thousands of crossbowmen and archers, under the cover of shields, fired missiles at the Tibetan formation.

The Tang army, including the Bailang Qiang cavalry, surrounded the Tibetan soldiers.

The Tibetan soldiers looked at this with despair.

There was a layer of snow on their spears, shields, chariots, and armor.

It is just like the saying "heavy snow covers the bow and sword".

Their hands holding the spears had already frozen, and the wind was like a knife, and the snow was like a sword, also destroying them.

My feet are frozen, my beard is frozen, and my eyes are blurred by the snow...

"Boom!"

At this moment, a group of cavalry from the south "charged" towards the Tang army.

There were a total of two thousand cavalrymen in this team.

They all wore chain mail, and the dozens of riders in the front seemed to be wearing chain mail armor.

In the falling snow, one can vaguely see the Tibetan military flag and some battle flags embroidered with leopards, lions and tigers.

They seemed unstoppable, unafraid of the thousands of Tang cavalry.

"Reinforcements..."

"Great, it's our flag, it's our armor!"

"These are our Tibetan cavalry. Could they be the Imperial Guards?"

"Having cavalry will surely relieve the pressure on our army."

……

After seeing this situation, the Tibetan infantry in the south finally showed excitement.

Unlike previous cavalry, the impact of the iron cavalry is unmatched by the light cavalry.

The Tibetan soldiers saw with their own eyes that more than a thousand Tang cavalrymen who were besieging them rushed to stop their "reinforcements"...

"Dang Dang Dang..."

The sound of metal and iron is endless.

"Woooo..."

Suddenly, the sound of Tang army trumpets could be heard from all directions.

After receiving the news, Shang Zanmo immediately ran to the southern front.

"Did the reinforcements from Dalun arrive so quickly?"

Shang Zanmo was puzzled.

But in such a short time, he had no time to think about it, because he saw a group of cavalrymen with disheveled hair and wearing chain mail had passed by the Tang cavalry.

It seems that he wants to enter the formation to make adjustments.

"Quickly remove the barricades and push the chariots away. Let our cavalry enter the camp."

Shang Zanmo shouted hurriedly.

He could not afford the responsibility if his own cavalry were injured by these obstacles.

The Tibetan infantry were finally able to move, clearing some of the obstacles in front of their formation and leaving a gap.

The chain mail cavalry were divided into several teams, ready to enter the battle through these gaps.

"Rumble..."

Amid the sound of horse hooves, the Tibetan infantry were on alert, ready to block the entrance at any time, ready to intercept the Tang cavalry.

Little did they know that these Tibetan cavalry were all played by the Tang army.

The leader was Nan Jiyun, a general under Li Xuan.

The Tang army knew what they were going to do. They remained silent, gripped their spears tightly, and their eyes were full of determination.

Hundred steps...

Fifty steps...

Ten steps...

When Tubo was completely unprepared, the Tang army broke into their ranks...

(End of this chapter)