After the main general of the Talas defenders, Sayyid ibn Humed, was killed in battle, the Arab soldiers were blocked on their way back to the city by the cavalry led by Che Guangqian.

Their wills were broken and they were powerless to turn the tide, so they finally laid down their weapons and surrendered to the Tang army.

However, the Tang army did not stop the pursuit, and many fish still slipped through the net and tried to escape by taking advantage of the darkness.

If they keep heading south and escape the poisonous water, they will be able to escape.

Among the soldiers who believe in the Arab religion, there are always those who are unwilling to submit.

This kind of people are also the targets that the Tang army wants to hunt down and kill. Anyone who resists stubbornly will be killed without mercy!

The Jade Rabbit gradually moved westward, and the Golden Crow rose from the east.

After a night of pursuit, the generals led the cavalry back to report, and the battle outside the city of Talas came to an end.

Li Xuan ordered the dispatch of 5,000 cavalrymen to monitor the city of Talas, while the troops rested on the spot and cooked meals.

After regaining our strength, we will launch the final attack.

Li Xuan received news that there were still a thousand Shiguo soldiers guarding Talas City.

Last night Li Xuan ordered the Shi Kingdom soldiers in Talas City to surrender, promising that they would not be treated unfairly, but their orders were rejected. The Shi Kingdom garrison commander even shot arrows at the Tang army's envoys.

This means that the defenders of Talas want to fight to the end!
The soldiers of the Shi State refused to surrender and showed a determination to live and die with the city of Talas. A big reason for this was because of Gao Xianzhi's massacre in the city of Zhezhi.

At the beginning, Gao Xianzhi deceived the Shi Kingdom, then arrested the king of the Shi Kingdom, massacred the old and young in Zhezhi City, and looted the gold, silver and treasures of Zhezhi City.

Even some of the countries in Central Asia did not trust the Tang Dynasty because of this, let alone the Stone Kingdom, which hated the Tang Dynasty to the core.

In their subconscious minds, the Tang army would definitely carry out another massacre in the city and kill their parents and children.

Therefore, not only the one thousand Shiguo soldiers were guarding the Shiguo, but also the Shiguo people in the city volunteered to defend the city.

A day later, the Tang coalition forces regained their morale, and the infantry and cavalry marched towards Talas City together.

The camp under the city was empty, and all the Shi Kingdom soldiers were defending the four city walls.

The city of Talas was built of stone walls and was nearly two meters high.

Such a city was nothing in the Tang Dynasty, but for the Transoxiana region, it was a fortified city.

Li Xuan disliked attacking a city, because attacking a city was always a bad idea. But at this time, Talas City had to be taken by force.

They needed food and grass from Talas City, and they also needed to be free of worries and open up all the routes between Suiye City and Talas City.

In Li Xuan's plan, Talas City would be isolated to the north of the Sogdian states, and it would be best if it could become a Han city with a large number of Han immigrants.

As long as we build water conservancy projects here, the soil will become suitable for farming.

On the contrary, it is not easy for the Han people to enter the core areas of the Sogdian and Tocharian countries.

In the main tent of the Tang army under the city of Talas, Li Xuan chose the tactic of attacking the city of Talas.

In the previous Battle of Talas, the Tang Dynasty killed or captured more than 80,000 people, and the Tang coalition forces suffered 15,000 casualties, most of whom were from the Transoxiana coalition, the Gelulu coalition, and the Turgesh tribes.

But for the Hu tribe, which was affiliated with the Tang Dynasty, the victory in the shocking battle made them ignore the insignificant casualties, and they admired General Tian's command ability and his unparalleled bravery even more.

"Judge Feng, how many catapults can we mobilize?"

Li Xuan asked Feng Changqing.

"Replying to General Li, due to the difficulty of marching, we only have 20 catapults, and they are all small vehicles. We are still in the area of ​​Shuijian City." Feng Changqing replied to Li Xuan: "Should we have someone assemble the catapults and push them over now?"

"No need!"

Li Xuan shook his head after hearing this. A few small catapults were of no use in siege.

It would be better to let the Shenbi Crossbow and the Bo Zhang Crossbow suppress the city, and choose the Iron Armored and Brave Army to launch a strong attack.

The Tang army's battle outside the city of Talas was very successful. With a series of combined attacks, they wiped out the main force of the Arabs.

Only the Stone Kingdom soldiers were left.

As long as the Tang army is determined, they can easily capture the city of Talas.

And resolve the battle within an hour.

After all, there are too few defenders in Talas!
"General Li, the Shi Kingdom's garrison may be more than a thousand. I saw underage children and some women on the city wall. They are all soldiers guarding Talas City."

An inspector saw something unusual happening in Talas City and reported it to Li Xuan in his tent.

"It is true! The soldiers of the Stone Kingdom want to fight to the death."

Li Xuan was not very surprised.

The Shiguo soldiers have fallen into paranoia, and they are afraid that the ending of Zhezhi City will happen again.

I want to resist with all my strength and survive.

They hoped that the king in Zhezhi City would come to rescue them.

In fact, there were no soldiers in Zhezhi City.

All the troops of the Shi Kingdom were deployed in the Battle of Talas.

Perhaps they were still thinking that reinforcements from the Arabs would arrive.

"Report to General Li, Talas has become a city of thieves. Once we capture Talas, allow the soldiers to slaughter the city without restraint, and we will be able to capture it in half an hour."

Jia Chongguan, the garrison commander of Yutian, took the opportunity to ask Li Xuan for orders.

He believed that this was an opportunity for his Khotanese army to make merit. By destroying the city of Talas, the Tang Dynasty could intimidate the other countries in the Central Asia.

Let them know the consequences of going against the Tang Dynasty.

Just like the last massacre in Zhezhi City, rape and looting are what the expeditionary soldiers are most willing to do.

Little did they know that there were many generals from various river countries in the camp.

Including the Sogdian countries and Bukhara, all of them changed their expressions.

Shiguo was a Sogdian country, and Gao Xianzhi had slaughtered Shiguo before. Caoguo, Anguo, Kangguo and other countries also resented it.

Their rebellion against the Arabs does not mean that they did not hate the Tang Dynasty.

Because of that incident, they felt a sense of grief over the loss of a rabbit.

What made Cao Guo, An Guo and others change their views was that the Tang Dynasty changed its commander in Anxi, with Li Xuan replacing Gao Xianzhi!

The title of Heavenly General helped Hezhong eliminate some of the resentment towards the Tang Dynasty.

As early as when Li Xuan was the governor of Longyou, Li Xuan protected the interests of merchants, managed the Hexi Corridor, and did horse and cotton business with the Sogdians.

He was also friends with Sogdian merchants such as Kang Jiahong and Cao Tu Luo.

At the same time, he also exchanged letters with the King of Cao, Golubulu.

Li Xuan eradicated the evil caravans on the Transoxiana Corridor and reduced the wanton setting up of roadblocks.

In addition, General Li Xuantian's outstanding military achievements, his literary talent, and his deeds became famous through the Silk Road.

That's why the negative effects brought by Gao Xianzhi were buffered.

The countries in Central Asia already had some grudges against each other, and now Jia Chongguan actually proposed to massacre the city of Talas in public again.

However, the Tang Dynasty had a strong army and horses, and due to the reputation of General Tian, ​​the generals of the countries in Hezhong dared not speak out.

"How could General Jia say such a thing?"

Originally, Li Xuan wanted to ask other generals whether they had the same idea as Jia Chongguan, but he felt that this was inappropriate, so he turned to question Jia Chongguan.

He did not forget that Jia Chongguan spoke for Bian Lingcheng, and he also knew that Jia Chongguan was the garrison commander recommended by Bian Lingcheng.

It is undeniable that Jia Chongguan was brave and capable.

But when the superiors hire people, they don't look at your family background or your ability. They look at whether you listen to me!

The world is about to split, and with talented people everywhere, if Li Xuan's will cannot be implemented throughout the army, he is doomed to fail.

"I don't quite understand what Marshal Li means."

Jia Chongguan's heart skipped a beat. He thought he had said something wrong.

"Since you don't understand, resign from your post as the governor of Khotan and think about it carefully."

Li Xuan dismissed Jia Chongguan from his position as garrison commander because of a disagreement.

Eliminate Bian Lingcheng's influence in the Anxi Army.

Other subordinates and commanders had no choice but to offer some silk money to Bian Lingcheng.

However, Jia Chongguan actually spoke up for the eunuch Bian Lingcheng when Li Xuan was confronting Bian Lingcheng, and Li Xuan has been feeling resentful about it ever since.

At this moment, the generals, subordinates, and various Hu generals in the big tent were all shocked.

After all, Jia Chongguan was the garrison commander of Khotan and one of the main generals in the army.

At this time, Ma Lin, Lai Zhen, Hun Yu, Li Siye, Che Guangqian, Bai Xiaode, Wei Boyu, Hao Tingyu, Lun Weizhen and others were not as well-known as Jia Chongguan.

When it comes to decision-making, only the commander-in-chief has the final say.

Therefore, Li Xuan's dismissal of Jia Chongguan from his position due to a disagreement caused shock.

Although they won a great victory, this was obviously not the ultimate goal of the Tang army.

Rewards and punishments should be given after the war, not now.

Only the generals of the countries in Hezhong felt very happy.

"If I have made any inappropriate remarks, Marshal Li can punish me, but I will not be convinced if you dismiss me from my military post."

The one who reacted most strongly was Jia Chongguan.

He finally realized that it was inappropriate to say such things in front of the River Kingdoms.

But he was fighting for the Tang army and had made military achievements the day before, so he was unwilling to be suddenly dismissed.

"Leading troops to fight is not the same as leading beasts to eat people. The benevolent and righteous army of the Tang Dynasty benefits all races wherever it passes, so it is respected by all races. Don't you know why Talas City is resisting so stubbornly?"

Li Xuan rebuked and asked Jia Chongguan back.

Ever since the war, Li Xuan has been disgusted with massacres, especially the killing and rape of the elderly, children, women and children.

What he meant by leading beasts to eat people was not what Mencius said.

And its surface meaning.

The general led a group of brainless beasts, wandering in the wilderness, trying to "eat people".

Since ancient times, some soldiers have been described as leading beasts to eat people, which is very appropriate.

Once a person releases the beast in his heart, he will fall into the abyss of desire.

Those soldiers who shout "rob money, rob food, rob women" will sooner or later backfire.

Just like the guards of the late Tang Dynasty, they were like beasts.

The reason why Jia Chongguan was dismissed was not just because he was Bian Lingcheng's man.

More importantly, Li Xuan wanted to take advantage of the momentum accumulated from the two wars to make an example of someone else!
If the Anxi Army is not contained at this time.

Among them are the Anxi Army, which contains many Hu people. After entering the Central Plains, they will definitely massacre Han people and rape Han women.

Just as Du Fu recorded, "I heard that there were murders on the Han River, and most of the women were officers."

Li Xuan never thought that the soldiers of this era were noble, so in the process of managing the army, he based it on "rewarding meritorious service."

Li Xuan would give rewards several times the usual amount to anyone who made contributions.

One may even become rich and powerful because of his military achievements.

Soldiers who violated military discipline were also severely punished.

Combined with Li Xuan's power, the soldiers were respectful of him.

The Battle of Suiye River and the Battle of Talas have established Li Xuan's absolute prestige in the Anxi army.

This allowed Li Xuan to whip Jia Chongguan before the battle was over.

Looking at the people in the big tent, they all have different expressions.

Li Xuan's old subordinates, such as Che Shensai, Zhang Xing, Lu Jiong, etc., all knew Li Shuai's character and military rules.

Never intended to offend.

The moment Jia Chongguan mentioned the massacre of Talas City, Che Shensai knew that Li Shuai was going to be angry.

Li Shuai is just decisive in killing, but he is not violent at all.

If he has a violent temper, he cannot become a prime minister and be loved by the people everywhere.

The subordinates also know the seriousness of the matter. Those who kill entire families when they get too powerful will definitely be manipulated by political veterans.

Liu Dan and Cen Shen, who had been following Li Xuan, knew that Li was a very qualified strategist who never showed his emotions. He would not harm his political enemies and would only rely on evidence to convict them.

Jia Chongguan's suggestion to massacre the city was brainless.

At the same time, Anxi's main generals Zhao Chongye, Bi Sichen, Cheng Qianli and others were very scared.

Gao Xianzhi had done this kind of thing when he led the Anxi Army, so when Jia Chongguan said this, he instinctively agreed.

If Li Xuan had asked them directly after Jia Chongguan finished speaking, they might have nodded in agreement.

Fortunately, Li Xuan did not ask them directly, allowing them to escape danger.

Just like Li Xuan’s question, why did the Stone Kingdom defenders in Talas City resist so stubbornly?

Faced with tens of thousands of Tang troops besieging the city, normally the Hezhong states would not have the courage to live and die with the city! Everyone knew that it was the Anxi army that massacred Zhezhi City, which made Talas City have the determination to perish together with it.

Jia Chongguan was Bian Lingcheng's man, although the generals did not like him.

But they all felt a new will coming upon them all.

The King of Tianshui of the Tang Dynasty and the Heavenly General of the Western Regions.

With such a heavy load, no matter how unruly the soldiers were, they would not dare to mutiny or rebel.

Li Xuan and his personal guards could defeat any army in Anxi.

What's more, Anxi's Jinglüe Army and Great Wall Army all follow Li Xuan's lead!
I would rather die than let my friend die. Jia Chongguan was the first to speak out, and Cheng Qianli, Bi Sichen and others did not dare to plead for him.

Feng Changqing, who had a say, supported Li Xuan's decision.

Gao Xianzhi's massacre of Zhezhi City was the most unsuccessful act of the Tang Dynasty since its expansion into the Western Regions.

The Tang Dynasty wanted to control Hezhong and pacify the various ethnic groups there, which was its top priority.

Capturing Jia Chongguan, who was planning to massacre the city, made the various states in Hezhong understand that Li Xuan was different from Gao Xianzhi.

For the sake of the countries in Central Asia, he dared to dismiss the commander-in-chief at the critical moment.

Facts have proved that Li Xuan's behavior was correct, and the countries in Hezhong were deeply moved.

This is a truly benevolent and righteous army, with the power of a heavenly general and the heart of a god.

This is ten thousand times better than the food.

After they return, they must spread the word of General Tian in the country.

The country, whose faith was already in disorder, thought that it would be better to believe in the real Heavenly General than to believe in the Arab religion.

In their view, the military power of the Heavenly General is no different from that of a god.

"I know I was wrong, please forgive me, General Li!"

Jia Chongguan didn't dare to look Li Xuan in the eye. He wanted to apologize and admit his mistake, and he felt extremely regretful.

"People must be responsible for their own actions. My order has been issued and cannot be changed! I will report to the Saint after the war!"

Li Xuan took a tough stance and refused to accept Jia Chongguan's admission of guilt.

He never changes his mind once he has spoken.

"General Li, I will make up for my crime and make up for my crime."

Jia Chongguan was still unwilling to give in.

"Fork it out..."

Li Xuan became impatient and ordered Jia Chongguan to be taken out of the tent.

Li Xuan's personal guards stepped forward, and under the gaze of everyone, Jia Chongguan was dragged out of the tent.

He did not resist, Li Xuan was as hard as iron.

Now, Jia Chongguan can only go to Julan City to ask for an audience with Bian Lingcheng, hoping that Bian Lingcheng can explain the situation for him.

"General Wei, you will temporarily take over the post of the garrison commander of Khotan!"

After a moment of silence in the big tent, Li Xuan looked at Wei Boyu.

Wei Boyu was only thirty years old, with a square face and extraordinary majesty.

He was originally from Anyi, Hedong. He was born strong and learned skills since childhood.

During the period from the end of Kaiyuan to the beginning of Tianbao, as frontier poems were widely circulated in the Tang Dynasty, the mystery and customs of the Western Regions attracted many aspiring people.

During this period, countless aspiring men embarked on the journey westward.

Ma Lin, Wei Boyu, Hao Tingyu, Li Siye, Xue Cuo and others are among the best.

There was also a group of literati who became subordinates and embarked on the path of offering suggestions and making contributions.

In history, Liu Dan, Cen Shen, Duan Xueshi and others all became famous in Anxi, but because of the appearance of Li Xuan, they first joined Li Xuan's camp.

After Wei Boyu conquered Anxi with a sword during the Tianbao period, he made many military achievements and was promoted to the rank of general.

After the Battle of Suiye River, Li Xuan promoted him to the deputy envoy of Yutian.

The Khotan army currently has two deputy garrisons, Wei Boyu and Hun Yu.

Hun Yu was young and had only served in the Anxi Army for a short time, so Li Xuan chose to promote Wei Boyu.

"I would like to thank Marshal Li."

Wei Boyu was excited and immediately stood up to express his gratitude.

He was originally just one of the many generals in Anxi. Since Li Xuan became the commander-in-chief of Anxi, in just three months, he was promoted to deputy envoy and then to chief envoy, becoming the commander-in-chief of an army.

He had no friendship with Li Xuan, nor did they exchange any gifts. He just performed outstandingly in the Battle of Suiye Water.

This made Wei Boyu so grateful to Li Xuan that he wanted to repay his service with his death.

He was not good at speaking and had no polite words, so he decided to let General Li see his loyalty on the battlefield.

The generals also admired Li Xuan's noble character and did not promote their own confidant Hun Yu, but instead promoted Wei Boyu.

"Grand Protector, our Ningyuan country is willing to serve as the vanguard and select warriors to Khotan City!"

The great general of Bukhara, Da, stepped out of the line, bowed to Li Xuan, and asked for orders.

Dachulie was equivalent to the Grand Marshal of the Army of Bukhara.

He called himself the Ningyuan Kingdom to express his closeness and uniqueness to the Tang Dynasty.

Because Ningyuan Kingdom was the name bestowed upon the country by the Tang Dynasty in the third year of Tianbao.

However, the people of Transoxiana and Bukhara still called themselves Bukhara.

Their language is like that, so it would be too awkward to call themselves Ningyuan Country.

The hatred between Bukhara and the Arabs has a long history. Thirty years ago, the Arabs entered Bukhara. King Adalada of Bukhara used a strategy to deal with the Arabs but failed. He was defeated and killed by the Arabs.

In the 27th year of Kaiyuan, Ashilanda Khan, the King of Bactria, sent troops to help the Tang Dynasty pacify the Turks and was named King of Fenghua.

Before this, the White Caliphate sent a governor to Bukhara, hoping to control Bukhara and strangle the key to the Silk Road, but failed.

From then on, Bukhara completely turned to the Tang Dynasty and became the most loyal country in Transoxiana.

The Tang Dynasty also married Princess Heyi to the King of Bakhchisar to show the closeness between the two countries.

"You are so brave! Soldiers of Bakhtin, attack from the south. I will send 500 strong crossbowmen to cover your siege!"

Li Xuan praised Zanda for listing a sentence.

"Grand Protector, my Cao State is also willing to select warriors to take down Talas City for you."

The generals of Cao State also asked for orders.

Immediately, the Sogdian states such as Anguo and Kangguo vied with each other to request to go to war.

Normally, the countries in the river rarely volunteered, but now they were infected by the charm of General Tian.

Even the Tocharian countries could not save their face and asked Li Xuan to give them a chance.

"The Sogdians will attack from the north, and the Tocharians will attack from the west. I will send archers to cover you!"

Li Xuan was very happy to see this.

With the help of the Hezhong countries to attract firepower, most of the Stone Kingdom defenders can be tied down.

"As ordered!"

The generals of various countries received the order.

They relied on their large numbers and were not afraid even if the Shi Kingdom fought to the death, because the Shi Kingdom had too few soldiers.

"As for the eastern wall, the Hanhai Army will attack it, and the attackers will all wear iron armor!"

Li Xuan gave instructions to Li Tian, ​​the envoy of the Hanhai Army.

"I will obey your orders!"

Li Tian accepted the order.

Li Tian is a veteran who is over 60 years old. Although his hair is all white, he is still in good shape.

He and Li Xuan once went hunting together in Tianshan Mountains, and he witnessed Li Xuan's unparalleled archery skills. From that moment on, he was convinced by Li Xuan.

The Hanhai Army is an army of 10,000 people, many of whom are armored soldiers. He will definitely live up to Marshal Li's trust.

"After we capture Talas, anyone holding a sharp blade will be killed without mercy, regardless of gender, age or physical condition. However, anyone who disobeys military orders, rapes or plunders will be executed!"

Before attacking the city, Li Xuan emphasized military orders.

The old, weak, women and children who helped the soldiers defend the city of Talas hated the Tang army.

As long as they do not surrender, the Tang Dynasty coalition forces will focus on defending themselves.

"Please remember this, general!"

Even if the generals do not participate in this battle, they will warn the army.

In particular, the generals of the four Anxi towns must no longer act recklessly as they did before.

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

The thunderous drum beats were dull and intimidating.

The Stone Kingdom defenders in Talas City were all alert and uneasy.

From any direction, one can see the dense and endless Tang army. How can one not be frightened?

But they have no choice!

If they don't resist, the bloodshed in Zhezhi City will be their end.

Even if it was General Tian's promise, they would not believe it.

The general of the Shi State ordered his soldiers to prepare thunder stones and rolling logs, so that they could smash them down as soon as the Tang army attacked the city.

They have prepared enough thunder stones and rolling logs, which will definitely inflict heavy damage on the Tang army.

After the Tang army assembled the siege ladders, they attacked the city from all sides and approached the city of Talas under the cover of powerful crossbows.

When attacking a city, the powerful crossbow can aim at the enemies on the city wall to avoid accidentally killing its own attackers.

However, most of the Tang army's archers were able to shoot projectiles, so once the soldiers got on the siege ladders, they could not shoot randomly.

"Pfft!"

"Pfft!"

Although the archers did not cause many casualties, the damage from the crossbows was fatal.

The parapet of Talas City was low and could not effectively hinder the powerful crossbows of the Tang army.

When Bukhara, Sogdia and Tocharia climbed up from three sides, they were all hit by thunder, rocks and rolling logs.

However, the problem of too few soldiers in the Shi Kingdom emerged. When they were carrying thunder stones and rolling logs, they were unable to deal with the powerful crossbowmen of the Tang Army.

As a result, the powerful crossbowmen of the various armies got closer and closer, and finally shot at the Stone People on the city wall from thirty steps away.

Each round of crossbow arrows could kill dozens of Shi people.

Some of the Shi people were hit by arrows and hit themselves before they could even lift the thunder stone log.

Soldiers from various countries took this opportunity to reach the parapet. Some even climbed up the wall...

The Hanhai Army attacked the eastern wall even faster.

Li Xuan personally held a strong bow and shot the Shi State general who showed his head to death from a distance of 120 steps.

He and the sharpshooters and crossbowmen in the army tried their best to protect the Hanhai Army's armored forces.

The city wall was less than two meters high, and the Tang army's heavy armored infantrymen climbed the wall first without being hit by a few rounds of thunder, stones and rolling logs.

More armored infantry climbed onto the city wall and attacked the unarmored Stone People.

There is no point in the Shi people fighting desperately.

They were unable to cut through the Tang army's armor and could hardly cause casualties to the elite Tang army.

The Tang army drove the Shi people all the way to the city and supported the other three city walls.

While the soldiers went down from the city wall to block the way, all four gates were opened.

More Tang troops poured into Talas, announcing the city's fall.

Will can always be worn away.

In total, the Tang Dynasty killed nearly a thousand Shi people before finally forcing them to surrender.

Thinking that the Tang Dynasty would massacre the city, the Shi people had already surrendered.

However, the Tang Dynasty did not massacre the city, but only confiscated ironware and supervised the city of Talas.

At this moment, the people of Shi State realized that General Tian’s words of surrender were true, causing thousands of their lives to be killed and injured in vain.

Three days later, Li Xuan changed the name of Talas City to Xiyuan City.

This is a city prepared for the Han people!
(End of this chapter)