"I, the Persian Khalid ibn Barmak, dare not offend the heavenly army, so I lead my 70,000 infantry and 4,000 cavalry to surrender to the great heavenly general! I hope you can forgive my disrespect!"

Khalid ibn Barmak held the marshal's flag and saluted Li Xuan to apologize.

The Arab soldiers had left the camp, dropped their weapons and surrendered to the Tang army.

He made it clear that he was not pretending to surrender, so as to avoid misunderstanding by the Tang army.

This is a complete surrender!
When Li Xuan led his subordinates to that station, the whole aura was different. The majesty of being the center of attention made Khalid ibn Barmak know at a glance that this young man was the Heavenly General!
Central Asia, West Asia, and even the Western Roman Empire all knew this famous title.

"Your Excellency is wise and has turned from darkness to light. You will definitely be in a high position."

Li Xuan asked Khalid ibn Barmak to stand up and was very satisfied with his surrender.

This surrender saved Li Xuan a lot of time and reduced casualties among his soldiers, bringing a perfect end to his time in West Asia.

He could free up his troops, retreat to Anxi, and recruit soldiers to make up for the shortfall.

Li Xuan had received a message from Yan Zhenqing in Qiuci that tens of thousands of Han people had traveled from the Central Plains to Anxi, wanting to join Li Xuan's army and win military merit.

Li Xuan asked Yan Zhenqing to register those valuable human resources and provide them with money and food if they had difficulties, so as to prevent them from leaving in disappointment.

It was almost the twelfth year of the Tianbao period, and history had changed beyond all recognition. Li Xuan was far away from Chang'an and had no idea about the specific politics.

I don’t know what An Lushan’s plan is.

It is also unclear to what extent the conflict between Yang Guozhong and An Lushan evolved.

Perhaps An Lushan had already subdued the Xi and Khitan tribes, won over the Tongluo, Shiwei, and Mohe tribes, strengthened his troops, and it is possible that he had launched the uprising in advance.

"Thank you, General Tian! I have always been loyal and will do my best to assist the King of Persia and destroy the Black Arabs. I will obey General Tian's orders immediately, no matter what it takes!"

Khalid ibn Barmak bowed again to express his loyalty to Li Xuan.

Everyone knows that Pushang's power comes from General Tian.

At the command of General Tian, ​​even the Persians did not dare to support Pushang.

Every inch of land controlled by Pushang was conquered by the Heavenly General.

The Sassanid Empire has been restored, but Pushan is very old. Although he has two sons, how much power Pushan can eventually get depends on the attitude of General Tian.

Therefore, the opportunistic Khalid ibn Barmak spoke very artistically and expressed his loyalty to Li Xuan.

"The black-clad gluttons eat centipedes, and they will not die without stiffening their bodies. Our army has been running back and forth for more than a year, and the division is old and the soldiers are tired. We need to ask the saint for rewards for the soldiers, and promote the officers and soldiers. The soldiers also need to rest for a year or two to replenish the lost troops. This is the only way to ensure the morale of the army and win every battle."

"The Sassanid Empire had just been restored, the official system was incomplete, the people had no sense of belonging, the soldiers had no training, and the country was not like a country."

"The Silk Road is now closed and trade is blocked. I will immediately order the Silk Road to be reopened and connected to Persia's trade, so that Persia can recover initially."

"South of the Caspian Sea, there is no defense, and there are many Persians there, we can persuade them to surrender..."

Li Xuan did not say much about Khalid ibn Barmak's compliments.

He stated in advance that it was impossible for the Tang army to march westward at this time.

Talk of expanding westwards again in one or two years is just rhetoric.

When the An Lushan Rebellion came, Persia could only wait quietly and serve as a barrier in the river to guard against the Arabs.

"General, I'm sure Abu Abbas is already in a state of panic. You only need to give him a slight push and the Arab Empire will collapse. Wherever your might passes, all the towns will surrender."

Khalid ibn Barmak said to Li Xuan while calculating in his mind.

The time was right as the Arab Empire was under attack from the Roman Empire.

Since he had already betrayed the Abbasid family and the General Tian had promised him the position of Prime Minister of Persia, he naturally wanted the Black Caliphate to be destroyed as soon as possible.

This way he can feel at ease!

At the same time, he still held a glimmer of hope that his son had not been killed by Abu Abbas and was waiting for him to go to Hashim City to rescue him.

"The further west you go, the stronger the resistance from the Arabs. Most of the people here are Persians, but near Iraq, most of them are Arabs, and that's where the Arab religion is."

"After marching for thousands of miles, we will be in trouble if the Arabs cut off the Tang Dynasty's food supplies. Leading troops in battle requires knowing when to relax and work hard. My soldiers' faces are full of fatigue, and they deserve their rewards. This is how I lead the troops. It is your responsibility to consolidate the new Persia."

Li Xuan continued to reject Khalid ibn Barmak.

War is no joke, and he is well aware of the madness of the faithful followers of the Arab religion.

The Arab Empire still has such a large population that the Tang army needs to be prepared before it can march straight in.

There were also governors who disobeyed the Arab Empire.

Even if Li Xuan reached Iraq, the Arabs would retreat to the Arabian Peninsula. Even if he conquered the Arabian Peninsula, the Arabs would retreat back to Egypt.

There was also the threat of contact with the Roman Empire.

Li Xuan knows better than anyone how long this journey is.

Don’t even think about completing it without three to five years of preparation.

The most important thing is that Li Xuan has his own plans.

His heart is in the Central Plains, not in West Asia. After the world is settled, Li Xuan will turn his attention to the west.

"I will obey the instructions of General Tian!"

After Li Xuan said this, Khalid ibn Barmak did not dare to say anything more.

Indeed, the new Persian dynasty had no foundation at all, and even if it forcibly replaced the Arab Empire, it would still lead to local separatism.

Li Xuan encouraged Khalid ibn Barmak a few more words.

Then orders began to be given to distribute the prisoners.

All Persians, or peoples south and east of the Caspian Sea, were handed over to the Sassanid Empire.

Organized into their own soldiers by Sassanid Persia.

The other captives, together with the soldiers captured in the battle with Abu Salamah al-Halal, totaled more than 50,000 people.

Li Xuan is going to invest these people in repairing the Qianquan Ancient Road.

In addition, another part of the land will be used to repair the ancient Congling Mountain Road.

It is a mountain road that starts from Shule Town, crosses Congling, and reaches the Tocharian region. The passage is full of twists and turns and is more dangerous than the Qianquan Ancient Road.

The food for the captives along the newly built ancient road was supplied by the Sogdian and Tocharian countries.

Because this road is very beneficial for merchants from these countries.

The Tang Dynasty provided prisoners and they provided food, which was very reasonable.

There are more than thirty countries and tribes in total, and if each country contributes a little, Li Xuan believes they will agree.

The Sassanid soldiers completed their reorganization and the army reached a total of 50,000 people.

Become a supporting force for the Tang Dynasty.

The defeat and surrender of the 120,000-strong army spread quickly to all provinces like a gust of wind.

The name of General Tian shook the world again.

The Tang cavalry began to leave Khorasan Province and besiege cities in other provinces.

Facing the heavenly army, there was almost no resistance.

All the way to the south of the Caspian Sea, the Alborz Mountains.

Even the important town of Ciyi (now Tehran) surrendered to the iron hoof of the Tang army.

This was the farthest point the Tang cavalry reached, but it was only the light cavalry led by Ma Lin.

The Ciyi had a treasure house, which was occupied by the Tang army's light cavalry.

Further ahead, Ma Lin was ambushed by a group of cavalry, but he quickly killed them.

Upon learning that they were the Governor-General of Azerbaijan's men, he immediately sent scouts to report to Li Xuan.

But Li Xuan did not let Ma Lin act rashly.

There is still a lot of resistance on the road, so the Tang army does not need to advance further.

The resistance of the single province of Topas south of the Caspian Sea was obviously greater than that of other provinces, but Ma Lin led two thousand light cavalry, with sufficient supplies, and came and went like the wind, which was enough to describe the response.

Ma Lin also contacted the surrendered Persians and ambushed and killed Governor Topasi, further establishing the Tang Dynasty's rule in the southern part of the Caspian Sea.

The Tang army only went on a light cavalry expedition and did not participate in the siege, but rather explored the way for the Persian infantry.

Also forced these city-states to surrender.

In the south, Che Guangqian first led two thousand light cavalry to water their horses in the Persian Gulf. On the opposite bank of Che Guangqian was Cataraila (now Qatar).

They were not far from Iraq, but the Tang army only had light cavalry with one man on two horses to put pressure on the Arabs, while the other troops were resting on the border of Khorasan Province.

At the same time, he also covered the Persians' occupation of the town and collected "protection fees" from the nobles.

Even though Li Xuan already had a lot of money, he thought it was far from enough.

He also had a plan in mind, to create signs of a massive attack on Iraq, to ​​force the Caliph of the Arabs to be frightened and offer him the royal family's treasured gold, silver, and jewelry, as well as their dinars (gold coins) and dirhams (silver coins, the main currency).

Abu Abbas thought that the approaching light cavalry was a precursor to an attack.

In fact, before the Tang army's light cavalry arrived at Ciyi and drank water from the Persian Gulf, a major change occurred in the Iraqi region.

The story begins when the news of Abu Salamah al-Halal's arrest and Khalid ibn Barmak's surrender to the Tang army reached the city of Hashim.

This news was like a bolt from the blue for Hashemite City.

This meant that it was difficult to organize forces in the eastern part of the empire to fight against General Tian.

Even though the Tang army was still far away, the princes and nobles were already unable to sleep or eat, for they were afraid that when they woke up, the Tang army would be at Hashim City.

The Heavenly General is someone that makes people shudder at the mere mention of him.

Who can still win?

The governor who was close to Khorasan province had already fled to Hashim City with his confidants.

Abu Abbas was furious and lost his mind. He arrested the entire family of Abu Salamah Khilal and Khalid ibn Barmak and prepared to execute them.

But Abu Abbas did not know that he had been deserted by his friends and relatives. When his personal guards were about to carry out the order, they were killed by a group of unidentified men in black.

The empire suffered a series of disastrous defeats, and someone must be held accountable and atone for it to Allah.

Otherwise, rebellions would break out in various places before the Heavenly General attacks.

The only one who could take the main responsibility and calm the anger of the people, nobles, soldiers and believers was Abu Abbas.

All wars and defeats should be blamed on him.

This was a conspiracy by Abu Jalfar Abbas, a great ruler of the Caliphate.

He felt that his brother was no longer qualified to lead the Black Caliphate.

The state could collapse at any time, and the Caliph would have to die to atone for his crime. Abu Jalfar Abbas would have had little chance.

But the empire was defeated and Constantine V led the army in person, which gave Abu Jalfar Abbas an opportunity.

There were originally 50,000 guards near the city of Hashemite, but now 40,000 of them have headed north to Syria, and together with the reinforcements from Egypt and Libya, they are resisting the Roman Empire.

The commander of the 10,000 remaining Janissaries was eliminated by Abu Jalfar Abbas, who quickly took control of the Janissaries.

And Abu Jalfar Abbas also had his own confidants.

He thought that this was the best time to attack.

Although Abu Jalfar Abbas was as cruel as his brother, he was not as concerned about his reputation as his brother.

He knew that if he wanted to save the Black Caliphate, he had to make peace with General Tian at all costs, get a chance to catch his breath, and then repel the Roman Empire.

Abu Zhalfar Abbas sent a message to the nobles in the Iraqi region. All of these nobles resented Abu Abbas's incompetent rule and were willing to respect Abu Zhalfar Abbas as the new caliph.

When Abu Abbas went mad, Abu Jalfar Abbas led his troops into the palace.

The guards guarding the palace gate actually took the initiative to open the gate for the rebels.

Abu Abbas's cronies were either killed or captured by Li Xuan, or went to Syria.

There were still some stubborn ones who were secretly eliminated by Abu Jalfar Abbas. In such a huge palace, there were only a few people willing to work for Abu Abbas.

"Why is there the sound of swords and weapons?"

Abu Abbas was surprised when he heard the voice. It was impossible for the Heavenly General to attack at this time!
"Oh!"

When Abu Abbas was about to leave the palace to see, the door was pushed down and two palace guards covered in blood were lying on the door.

"How dare you! What do you want to do?"

Abu Abbas flew into a rage when he saw his guards rushing in with knives.

But the guards did not respond to Abu Abbas, but slowly made way.

Abu Jalfar Abbas appeared in Abu Abbas's sight, surrounded by a group of ministers.

"Zelfar, do you want to rebel?"

Abu Abbas realized that something was wrong and questioned Abu Jalfar Abbas.

This is his most trusted younger brother.

According to the tradition of the Caliphate, after the death of the Caliph, the throne would be passed on to his nephew.

Abu Jalfar Abbas was not eligible to inherit the throne of Caliph.

"When my brother passed the position of Imam to you, he made a mistake. You have failed Allah, the country, the people, and your brother's trust. You are no longer worthy of the position of Caliph. Please take off the crown and apologize!"

Abu Jalfar Abbas spoke righteously to Abu Abbas.

In his eyes, there was no longer a brother named Abu Abbas, only the Caliphate that was about to come to him.

If his brother had given him the position of Imam, the country would never have become like this.

He has been waiting for this day for a long time.

The leader of the Black Caliphate at the beginning of the uprising was Ibrahim, the patriarch of the entire Hashemite family and the Imam of the Legitimist faction, which means "leader".

It was just that Ibrahim was killed for his righteousness, and at a critical moment he handed over the position of the patriarch and Imam of the Hashemite family to his younger brother Abu Abbas.

The Abbasid family is a member of the Hashemite family.

As soon as the Black Caliphate was established, Abu Abbas changed the capital to Hashim City, representing that they were from the sacred bloodline of the Prophet and a huge interest group.

Abu Jalfar Abbas believed that he was also qualified to be the patriarch. If Ibrahim had looked up to him, the country would not have been torn apart by Abu Abbas.

"They are too stupid. I hired the wrong person. I have been very kind to you. Why are you disobeying me?"

Abu Abbas had lost his iron blood and only fear remained in his heart.

"You are to blame. Only if you apologize can the country have new hope. Draw your sword and kill yourself like a warrior. Don't force us to do it."

Abu Jalfar Abbas remained unmoved, his eyes full of coldness.

"I am the shadow of Allah on earth. Whoever dares to ban me is blaspheming Allah."

When Abu Abbas saw that his guards had betrayed him, he tried to use Allah to awaken the followers around Abu Jalfar Abbas.

"Me too!"

Abu Jafar Abbas just uttered the word.

It's enough to just say this to the people.

What's the point of saying this now?

The palace ministers around Abu Jalfar Abbas ignored the monarch to whom they had once sworn allegiance.

They are all thinking about themselves!

Even if General Tian is too powerful, he still needs a scapegoat.

Only the Caliph is worthy of this title.

"Zelfar, I can abdicate and pass the caliphate to you. For the sake of our brotherhood, please let me live in Hashim City!"

Abu Abbas knelt on the ground and begged his brother with tears streaming down his face, as if he was giving up his dignity.

"You value dignity the most. If you kneel here today, everyone in the palace will be chopped into pieces tomorrow."

Abu Jalfar Abbas could see that Abu Abbas was deceiving him and waiting for the guards to come to his rescue.

Only after Abu Abbas died, the guards and troops fighting in Syria would be obeyed by the governors of various places.

After he finished speaking, Abu Jalfar Abbas glanced at his left and right.

Two generals came forward with white silk and while Abu Abbas was still kneeling on the ground and had not yet stood up, they put it around his neck.

Abu Jafar Abbas was not given any chance at all.

Abu Abbas instinctively drew his sword, but three civil servants were quick to move around and hold down his hands and legs, while another civil servant grabbed Abu Abbas's hair.

As Abu Jalfar Abbas said, if Abu Abbas is not dead today, they will all be torn into pieces tomorrow.

Abu Abbas did not want to be respectable, so they helped him to be respectable.

Abu Abbas was unable to utter a word, his eyes bulged out, drool continued to flow from his mouth, he struggled with his limbs, but could not break free, until his face swelled up, his eyes became dull and empty...

This is not the end of the Caliph! His final destination is to meet Allah.

Before his death, Abu Abbas was not thinking about Abu Jalfar Abbas, who killed his brother and usurped the throne, but about his nightmare, the general...

The founding monarch of the Black Caliphate died more than a year earlier than historically recorded.

Gold will always shine, and the successor is still Abu Jalfar Abbas.

However, under such circumstances, Abu Jalfar Abbas could not change his name to "Mansur", nor could he build "Baghdad", the pearl of the West. It is unknown when the "Palace of Wisdom", which is famous throughout the ages, would appear on the stage of history.
"We should negotiate with General Tian, ​​even if we have to empty the palace. We must stop him. We should not expect to get back the land he has occupied through negotiations. We can only avenge our past humiliation by preserving our strength. In the past, we started from the desert of the Holy City and achieved the glory of the empire. With the prosperity of Syria, Iraq, the Holy City, Egypt and other places, we will be stronger tomorrow."

Abu Jalfar Abbas sent out the envoys who had been arranged long ago to seek a ceasefire.

Cede land and pay compensation, and meet all of General Tian’s conditions.

Even if it meant submitting to the Emperor of the Tang Dynasty and paying tribute every year, it would not matter.

This was the forbearance of Abu Jafar Abbas.

If they asked for peace with the Roman Empire, they would definitely be asked to cede Jerusalem and other places. That would be too dangerous for the Arab Empire, like a sword hanging over their heads.

The Roman Empire and the Heavenly General, Abu Jalfar Abbas chose to fight the former and make peace with the latter.

After inheriting the throne of Caliph, Abu Jalfar Abbas immediately announced Abu Abbas's crimes to the world and claimed that he had committed suicide to ask for forgiveness from Allah.

Abu Jalfar Abbas also sent people to the front line to appease the soldiers fighting against the Roman Empire, promising them the position of Grand Emir and gaining the loyalty of the front-line generals.

The people's anger subsided a little because of Abu Abbas' death.

However, the governors of Azerbaijan and other places, as well as Abdullah in Egypt, were very dissatisfied with Abu Jalfar Abbas's succession, and they spoke out against Abu Jalfar Abbas.

Abdullah was the uncle of Abu Zhalfar Abbas. His contributions in the establishment of the Abbasid Dynasty were equal to those of Abu Zhalfar Abbas, so naturally he was dissatisfied.

He believed that he was in Egypt and that his nephew had stolen the position of Caliph.

The first thing he wanted to do was to recall the Egyptian soldiers on the Syrian front.

Abu Jalfar Abbas was in a very difficult situation and he hoped that the General would agree to make peace and give him room to maneuver.

When Abu Jalfar Abbas learned that the Tang army had sent light cavalry to Ciyi, he became more certain that the Tang army would advance westward.

Abu Jalfar Abbas was also prepared to go to Syria in person to fight against Constantine V.

The Arab soldiers in the Syrian region focused on defense and defended more than ten cities.

The aggressive Constantine V only captured three cities, and after the arrival of the Arab Guards, it became difficult to advance further.

The Arab Guards were mainly composed of heavy infantry and were unable to defeat the Tang army. However, they were still very fierce when dealing with the Roman army.

Both sides won and lost alternately, and Constantine V found it difficult to capture the city for a while.

The battlefield in northern Syria is in a tense situation.

During this period, Abu Jalfar Abbas's envoy arrived at the city of Abiwald in Khorasan province by express horse and asked to see the Heavenly General.

"Your caliph is quite powerful. He replaced Abu Abbas without making any noise."

Li Xuan was slightly surprised when he heard the news.

Abu Jalfar Abbas should be the greatest caliph of the Abbasid dynasty during the 500 years, Mansur!

The benchmark was Li Shimin of the Tang Dynasty, who, with his literary and military achievements, built the Arab Empire into the most powerful empire at that time, without a doubt.

What a pity! In this time and space, Li Xuan appeared.

"Saffah offended the Heavenly General, so he received the punishment he deserved!"

The Arab envoy replied to Li Xuan with a sincere look on his face.

His name was Abu Ayyub Sulayman al-Mauryani. He was a close confidant of Abu Jalfar Abbas and had the talent of a prime minister.

Abu Jalfar Abbas also promised to appoint him as the new vizier.

"Abu Abbas was the founding monarch, but his reign was so short. There may be caliphs whose reigns were shorter than his."

Li Xuan said meaningfully.

"Great General, our Caliph is different from Safaq. He longs for peace and is pious. The Tang Dynasty is the Celestial Empire. It should be magnanimous enough to forgive us and stop the war!"

The Arab envoy smiled slightly, complimented Li Xuan, and said that the new caliph was different.

(End of this chapter)