Chapter 240: Zanpu persuades Li Xuan to rebel, the source of the Yellow River

The ruler and pearl had not yet reacted and was held in Li Xuan's hand like a chick.

"Be brave, I am Zamp!"

After being stunned, Chidai Zhudan struggled in Li Xuan's hands. He had been a Zamp monk for more than 40 years, living a life of luxury. How could he have suffered such humiliation?

The "Zan" in "Zanpu" means majestic and strong; and "Pu" means real man.

Put them together to make a strong man.

According to the philosophy of Yungdrung Bon, the Zamp is a god who came from heaven to rule the world.

Just like the emperor in the Central Plains, it means that the king's power is granted by God.

In Chidai Zhudan's heart, he is a sacred and majestic king who should not be offended like this!

"Li Shuai Tianwei!"

"Li Shuai Tianwei!"

When Li Xuan raised the ruler and pearl pill, the Shen Ce guards raised their spears and swords and let out long shouts.

The Chishui Tiaodang and the cruising cavalry who arrived later also stopped their horses and raised their swords and guns to respond to Li Xuan's power.

The sound drifted far into the valley, startling the sky and stopping the clouds.

Li Longji issued an edict stating that anyone who captured a ruler and wore a pearl would be granted the title of king of a different surname.

All the soldiers in the army believed that only General Li could capture Chidaizhudan.

General Li's bravery and command were the key to victory in this battle.

The surrendered kings and ministers trembled in the snow. Such shouts made them shudder.

Every Tang army soldier shouted without sparing any effort. They could hear their enthusiasm and admiration for Li Xuan from their voices.

With Li Xuan around, they are not afraid of anything; with Li Xuan around, they dare to fight anything.

No one can match this prestige.

"Li Xuan, put Ben Zanpu down quickly."

Chidai Zhudan shouted in shame and anger. He could not help but cover his face as he was being displayed like a commodity.

"You can't even bear this, how can you go to Chang'an to see the saint?"

Li Xuan threw the ruler and pearl pill on the snow and said lightly.

Since both Chidai Zhudan and Li Longji were monarchs for decades, the grievances between the two can be traced back to a long, long time ago.

When he was young, Chidai Zhudan was arrogant and conceited, and he often used rude words when communicating with Li Longji.

Therefore, when Li Longji met with the Tibetans at Chiling, he almost disagreed and openly refuted Tibet's request for peace: "The Tibetan king had written to me in the past, and was disrespectful and rude. I want to punish him, so how can we make peace?"

Fortunately, after Huangfu Weiming's repeated persuasion, Li Longji reluctantly sent an envoy to Tubo.

Such peace is destined to be short-lived.

The historical Chidai Zhudan has many similarities with Li Longji.

For example, there were also two prime ministers who were in power for nearly twenty years, one was named Moluqiongsangwoermang, and the other was named Li Linfu.

He was also unparalleled in governing the country in the early period, but incompetent in the later period. The military orders and political orders formulated by Chidai Zhudan laid a solid foundation for the growth of his descendants, and Li Longji created the unprecedented Kaiyuan Prosperity.

Both of them were ambitious, but the national strength of the Tang Dynasty could support Li Longji to show off his military prowess, while the national strength of Tubo did not allow Chidai Zhudan to be ambitious.

One was forced to flee south in panic during the An-Shi Rebellion, and the other was killed directly in Beicha City during the "Molang" Rebellion.

The difference is that Chidai Zhudan has a good son, Trisong Detsen, who is comparable to Songtsen Gampo.

Not to mention that Trisong Detsen is too young now. Even if he is older, he cannot turn the tide when every household has men dying or being captured.

Unless there is no war in the next ten years and the most suitable opportunity is found during the Anshi Rebellion.

"Li Xuan, kill me!"

Chidai Zhudan said with his head held high.

When he thought about going to Chang'an, Chidai Zhudan's face became extremely ugly.

Although we always hear about the prosperity of Chang'an, that was the prosperity created by Li Longji.

He was the king of a great country, but he went to the Tang Dynasty as a prisoner. He seemed to have seen the expression on Li Longji's face when he saw him.

If that were the case, he would rather die.

"I can see from your eyes that you don't want to die. Go to Chang'an and dance for the saint. If the saint is happy, he may spare your life."

Li Xuan knew that Chidai Zhudan wanted to survive.

The more powerful a person is, the more he fears death. Like Li Longji, even though he knew that immortality was unattainable, he still pursued the illusory theory of immortality.

"Humph! Wishful thinking."

Chidai Zhudan snorted and said to Li Xuan, "The general is the governor of four towns, commanding hundreds of thousands of soldiers and horses, and has great prestige. As long as you cooperate with Tubo, you can also become the emperor. You Han people have a saying that when the birds are gone, the good bows are put away, and when the cunning rabbits die, the good dogs are cooked. I have read your Han history books and often feel sorry for the endings of Wu'an Jun and Huaiyin Hou. The general is still so young, if he does not seize the opportunity, he may not even have the chance to die of illness like Guanjun Hou."

After being arrested by Li Xuan, Chidai Zhudan's mind became clear instead. He tried to persuade Li Xuan with kindness, hoping to find a way out of a deadly situation.

He knew that Li Xuan had captured many Tibetan prisoners.

If these captives were returned, Tubo would still have strength.

So he wanted to lure Li Xuan into rebelling against Li Longji.

"My loyalty to the Tang Dynasty is witnessed by the heavens and the sun and the moon. Don't you think it's ridiculous to say such words to a loyal minister?"

Li Xuan sneered. In his opinion, the beast with the ruler and pearls still fought hard.

After the war, he didn't mind talking to Chidai Zhudan for a few more words.

"I thought the general was a smart man, but he is actually extremely stupid. Dalon Jiongsang is a wise man. He is sure that the Emperor of the Tang Dynasty will kill you sooner or later. Even if he favors you now, he will drag you to be buried with him when he dies."

Chidai Zhudan was also laughing at Li Xuan.

Before, they thought that if they waited for some time, Li Longji would become suspicious of Li Xuan.

But who would have thought that Li Xuan’s attack would be so ferocious!

Year after year, in spring and summer, people prepare their troops and horses; in autumn, when the horses are fat and healthy, war is bound to break out.

There was no chance for Tubo to catch its breath.

It took Tubo two years and thousands of miles to mobilize troops and prepare 330,000 soldiers.

The surprise attack on Fuqi City, the surprise attack on Chaka, the cavalry battle, the battle at Dafeiling, the battle at Dafeichuan, the battle at Dafeichuan Ancient Road, the surprise attack on Wuhai City, the Wuhai cruise battle, the Huashixia battle...

There were large battles and small battles, and the final result was that 330,000 troops were completely wiped out.

Chidai Zhudan thought he was right and Li Xuan would not have a good ending.

But rebellion can bring good results. Li Xuan must have this ability.

"If the ruler wants his subjects to die, they must die. Loyalty, filial piety and etiquette have been in place since ancient times. How can you understand that?"

Li Xuan naturally wouldn't care about the ruler and pearls. Sooner or later, he would annex Tubo.

"I will give you all the old lands of Tuyuhun, Dangxiang, Tongjia and Subi. With this, you will have a strong army and will surely succeed. When necessary, Tubo will also lend you a helping hand."

Seeing that Li Xuan was not interested, Chidai Zhudan became anxious. He really couldn't understand what Li Xuan was thinking.

He had made it clear that this was his last chance.

"Those are already considered my Tang Dynasty. Ruler, belt, pearl, and elixir, just accept your fate! If the saint doesn't kill you, you can watch the Tang Dynasty prosper in Chang'an!"

“Be sure to watch carefully!”

Li Xuan patted Chidai Zhudan's shoulder, and his words were full of hidden meanings.

"Li Xuan, you are stubborn and will not die a good death."

Chidai Zhudan could see that Li Xuan was as politically savvy as those generals in Han history books.

"You are afraid of death. Today I captured you, you should thank me." Li Xuan was not angry, but said slowly.

"Are you confused?"

Chidai Zhudan's words also became aggressive.

"If I don't capture you, you will surely die when you return to Luoshui, and you won't even be able to return to Luoshui City!"

Li Xuan said firmly.

The nobles of Tubo were all tough guys. The people in the country complained about Chidai Zhudan's actions.

Angry people and ambitious people will inevitably give it a try.

Li Xuan even believed that even without the Mo and Lang families, other nobles would have taken action against Chidai Zhudan.

I just don’t know whether the famous “Mashang Zhongbajie” will be in power as in history.

Li Xuan has never fought with this man, but he has the upper hand over Enlanda Zhalugong in politics, military, and even religion.

"I have been the Zamp for more than 40 years. When I succeeded to the throne, your father Li Shizhi was still playing in the mud. The people of the country are all convinced by me. Who would kill me? Who dares to kill me?"

Chidai Zhudan said this in a pretentious manner, but in fact, Li Xuan's words made him feel conflicted.

He was young and strong, and had not chosen a successor to the Zamp.

There will definitely be some fighting in the country. What will be the fate of the already weak Tubo?

If the Tang army transported supplies to the Baihai area, would they immediately attack Tubo in the following year?
Although Baihai is thousands of miles away from Luoshui and is very dangerous, with proper preparation, Li Xuan's ability is likely to capture Luoshui City.

"Haha, Zanpu, please wait and see. When your envoy arrives in Chang'an, he will pass on the news from home to you."

Li Xuan laughed.

After the Battle of Wujie, Tubo asked for peace and wanted to meet Li Longji with equal courtesy, but was flatly rejected by Li Longji.

In this war, Tubo was completely defeated and didn't even have the chance to ask for peace.

They were afraid that the Tang army would continue to attack, and most likely they would choose to submit to the Tang Dynasty, offering large amounts of gold, silver, and jewelry and stipulating annual tribute items.

Even if it means surrendering like the Uighurs.

Sometimes, surrender does not mean true obedience, but a chance to recuperate and make a comeback.

There are too many such examples throughout history.

"I do not believe!"

Chidai Zhudan just needs to grit his teeth and spit out these three words.

Li Xuan did not respond this time and waved to his guards.

Liao Zhengrong dismounted and bowed.

"The Tibetan king is in your hands. No matter where you go, make sure he is safe and sound. He is someone the saint misses."

Li Xuan instructed Liao Zhengrong.

He thought that once the battle was over, Li Longji would immediately ask him to return to Chang'an to present the captives, so as to show off his achievements to the people of the world and the hundreds of foreign countries. On the Silk Road, Tubo had always been considered a country that could challenge the Tang Dynasty.

In the present Tang Dynasty, in one battle, we destroyed 330,000 enemies, captured the Tibetan king, killed the Tibetan chief prime minister, captured dozens of Tibetan ministers, captured the Tibetan king Ye Ruruben, captured the Tuyuhun king, the Zhangzhung king, the Dangxiang king among the four kings of Tibet, captured the Tibetan subordinate king Tongjia, subdued the Subi king, beheaded the Tibetan marshal Nanang Shangjiesi Xiuting, and beheaded or captured dozens of Tibetan generals and subordinate princes.

In ancient times, there were only a handful of people who could compare with such brilliant achievements.

The main reason was that Tubo became too powerful after its flourishing development due to the warming of the snowy plateau.

Among the Hu people countries surrounding China, the only ones that can be compared are the Xiongnu and Turks during their heyday.

"As you command! I will escort the Tibetan king back to Huangshui City safely."

Liao Zhengrong took the order.

Chidai Zhudan saw that he was being held by Li Xuan's personal guards. He wanted to say something, but he couldn't. He could only lower his head, and his energy seemed to be drained away.

As for the other Tubo kings and ministers, Li Xuan asked about their identities and then asked Chishu Tiaodang to escort them back to Baihai.

Their tribe is being attacked by Gao Xiuyan and An Sishun.

By then, the Tang army will definitely obtain a lot of treasure.

"General Li, this is a golden arrow, just like the legendary golden arrow of the Zamp."

When the royal guard was taking off the armor of the Tibetan Guards, he saw a seven-inch golden arrow and immediately handed it to Li Xuan.

After the battle, any armor on the Tibetan corpses, even leather armor, would be taken off.

The lightest piece of armor weighs more than 30 kilograms, and the heaviest weighs even 50 or 60 kilograms. Even if it is not worn, it will be a large resource if it is recycled.

"It's the Golden Arrow of Zamp!"

Li Xuan played with the seven-inch arrow and knew that it couldn't be a fake.

The Golden Arrow of the King runs through the history of Tubo since Songtsen Gampo and is the most precious token of the King of Tubo.

He presented the Golden Arrow of the Zamp to Li Longji, which was worth more than even a mountain of gold presented by local civil and military officials.

After cleaning up the battlefield, Li Xuan returned to Baihai.

This startled the soldiers and caused them to exclaim in surprise again.

Li Xuan was thinking about how to station troops in Baihai, Bayankala Pass and Xiangride.

Chidai Zhudan has now been captured, and many of the cavalrymen are from Hedong and Shuofang.

He must go back after the war. He can't intercept all the cavalry from Hedong and Shuofang.

Since it is a defensive operation, we need to dispatch border troops mainly composed of infantry.

In Li Xuan's opinion, as long as they firmly hold these three areas, the possibility of Tubo counterattack is low.

Baihai was a training ground for troops, with the Xiangride River and Bayankala Pass established as passes.

Bai Hai connects the two sections and can provide support at any time.

After some wandering and observation, Li Xuan decided to establish the Shenwei Army in Baihai, with 10,000 infantry and 5,000 cavalry, all of which were double-horse cavalry.

The Suirong Army was established at the Bayankala Pass, with 5,000 infantry and 2,000 cavalry.

The Dingrong Army was established on the Xiangride River, with 4,000 infantry and 1,000 cavalry.

Li Xuan planned to persuade Li Longji to recruit and expand rather than dispatch troops.

If recruited, it would be more in line with Li Xuan's future strategy.

He would recruit a group of people from the Tuyuhun, Dangxiang, Subi, Bailang Qiang and other tribes.

"Reporting to General Li, we have discovered a Tibetan Thousand Households near Xingxiu River. There are many winter and summer pastures there."

When Li Xuan was watching the situation of the mountains and rivers, Li Fei Shouyu reported to Li Xuan.

"The presence of a pasture means there are a large number of horses, cattle, sheep and camels. Send troops tomorrow to capture that thousand-household unit and make them submit to the Tang Dynasty."

Li Xuan replied to Li Fei Shouyu.

Xingxu River is located west of Baihai, close to Yugu Zonglie River and close to the source of the Yellow River.

Baihai was an important area of ​​Tubo, and a thousand households were set up around it to facilitate control.

Theoretically, a thousand-household unit has more than a thousand accounts of herdsmen.

The actual number varies.

Li Xuan also wanted to establish some pastoral areas near Baihai. The Tibetan Thousand Households in Xingxu River were just conquered and allowed to raise livestock for the Tang army.

The next day, Li Xuan personally led the cavalry to Xingxu River.

The Tibetan herdsmen there actually knew that the Tang army was in Baihai, but they had no way to escape and could only tremble in fear.

Because the Yugu Zongliequ River is close to the Bayankala Pass.

The Tang army controlled Baihai, Bayankala Pass, and Xiangride River, and there were scouts everywhere, but they had no wings and could not fly out.

Like most of the other thousand-household units, the Tibetan Thousand Household Unit in Xingxu River had almost no young and strong men left.

The men were all children less than five feet tall, and some old men who could only herd sheep.

Their families were captured and taken prisoner in several battles.

"Boom!"

Five thousand light cavalry of the Tang army walked on the snow to reach Xingxu River.

The boundless and magnificent mountains and rivers were no longer peaceful at this moment.

Teams of Tang cavalry spread out, dividing and surrounding the camp area.

Some people escaped from the pasture, but were still caught up by the Tang army.

Under the swords and guns of the Tang army, Qianhu Suo dared not resist.

Even though they hated the Tang army to the core, at the request of their elders, they put down their bows and arrows, slings, swords and spears.

The captain here went to Qinghai and never came back, and they lost their backbone.

Li Xuan ordered the soldiers not to harm the elderly, the weak, women and children.

They only robbed the Tibetan nobles in the Qianhu Suo and took away the gold, silver and jewelry.

As for the livestock, they were also confiscated. In the future, these herdsmen would raise livestock for the Tang army, and Li Xuan would ensure that they would not starve or freeze to death.

Due to different positions, Li Xuan could not treat Tubo the same way as Tuyuhun before conquering Tubo.

Li Xuan had already thought of ways to govern the Tibetans under his rule.

He had many captured Tibetan men under his command. Whether it was in Jiuqu before or in the north of Baihai now, the number of Tibetan civilians captured by the Tang army was estimated to be tens of thousands of tents and hundreds of thousands of people.

If there are family members alive in these tens of thousands of accounts, as long as they serve the Tang Dynasty well, we will release their men.

As for those Tibetan captives who were used as laborers, even if their families had no one to redeem them, they could be arranged to marry Tibetan women.

Among the Tang Dynasty captives, whether they were Tibetan slaves or Tibetans, they were all treated the same.

In this way, Tibetan slaves would be more likely to submit to the Tang Dynasty and be used by the Tang Dynasty.

Of course, this was only the initial control of the Tibetans north of Baihai.

Other strategies will be prepared in the future.

"Reporting to General Li, there are more than a thousand horses, old and young, and more than 110,000 cattle and sheep in the Qianhu Division, most of which are young."

After Gao Shi counted the number of livestock, he reported to Li Xuan.

"This thousand households is a purely nomadic thousand households, with a lot of cattle and sheep."

Many of the livestock were young, and the older ones were probably driven to Qinghai for food.

Many Tibetan thousand-household offices cultivated land while also being nomadic, which was more stable.

"The grass and water here are lush and rich. As long as there is no disease, the cattle and sheep will be plentiful."

Gao Shi said to Li Xuan.

Under the hostile relationship, Gao Shi saw nothing wrong in conquering the Tibetans.

Before, the Tibetans massacred the people in Dahua. If the Tang army let the Tibetans go, it would be stupid.

Li Xuan was already very kind. Before that, Huangfu Weiming went on a killing spree in Jiuqu, so he gave an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.

Regarding the captured Tibetans, Li Xuan always asked local administrators to ensure that they were well fed and clothed and not to abuse them. Violators would be severely punished.

As long as the Tibetans work hard and don't cause trouble, they can live well in the Tang Dynasty.

"Dav, a few years ago, I always wanted to see the source of the Yellow River, and now I have done it."

Li Xuan and Gao Shi came to Yugu Zongliequ together.

"The Yellow River is so majestic, but its source is so narrow. Is this the source of our endless life?"

Although the place was frozen, Gao Shi could still feel that it was within reach. If Li Xuan had not said so, he would not have believed that this was the source of the Yellow River.

The Han people had been searching for the source of the Yellow River as early as the time when Zhang Qian made his diplomatic mission to the Western Regions.

But they were wrong. At that time, the Han people speculated that the Yarkand River was the source of the Yellow River.

From the perspective of later generations, this is extremely wrong, as the Yarkand River is in the Western Regions.

But when looking for the source of the Yellow River, we naturally cannot walk upstream along the river, because there are many towering mountains blocking the way and it is impossible to get through.

For example, Doma is very close to Baihai, but there are many mountains between them.

So much so that some Han people arrived at Xingxu River but did not think it was the source of the Yellow River.

It is surreal to see a small stream as the mountains block the Yellow River Road.

In the eyes of the world, the Yellow River, which roars at any time and causes suffering to millions of people, must have a fantasy story at its source.

"The source of the Yellow River is just a few springs. These trickles of water have been washed and settled over a long period of time, and finally gathered into a surging river."

"Dav, we have to work hard!"

Li Xuan knew that Gao Shi would find it difficult to understand for the moment, so he said something meaningful.

"Li Shuai's breadth of knowledge is beyond the reach of my subordinates. I will definitely follow in your footsteps and witness your greatness!"

Gao Shi calmed down and bowed to Li Xuan.

He doesn't believe what others say, but he believes Li Shuai.

Li Xuan immediately asked his troops to record this major event.

On January 21st of the sixth year of Tianbao, Li Xuan, the governor of the Four Towns, explored the source of the Yellow River...

Including the formation of the source of the Yellow River and other details will be presented to Li Longji and the people of the world.

(End of this chapter)