Chapter 3543 Zan Po
Chahan City is located on the shore of Qinghai Lake. It was the place where the Han Dynasty stationed troops. It was previously controlled by Tuyuhun, but now it has fallen into the hands of Tubo.
The city is rectangular in shape, with two gates in the north and south for entry and exit, and tall watchtowers at the four corners.
Zanpo stood on the watchtower, letting the cold wind rustle her robes, and looked at the completely frozen Qinghai Lake in front of her with her hands behind her hands. Heavy snowfall for many days has covered the entire lake. The jagged ice surface that was originally torn by water currents and strong winds has been covered up, leaving a vast expanse of white as far as the eye can see. Only the snow that has been swept by the cold wind on the lake is dancing wildly between the sky and the earth. .
The Qilian Mountains rising from the sky are majestic and continuous.
The grass on the lakeside and on the plains and hillsides in the distance has been covered with snow. There is nowhere for livestock to find food, and birds are rare. It is extremely desolate.
But in spring and summer, the mighty Qinghai Lake can produce countless fish catches. Dozens of rivers pour into the lake from all directions. The surrounding fields are rich in water and grass, and there are flocks of cattle and sheep. Although the Gar family was exiled here due to Zanpu's suspicion, finding such a treasured place where they could rest and recuperate was considered a great blessing among misfortunes.
Relying on the richness of this place and recuperating for twenty years, the Gar family can support an elite army of more than 50,000 people. When the time comes, whether they cross the Qilian Mountains to form an alliance with the Tang Dynasty, or go north to show their strength to Luoxe City, It's enough to dominate one side, and no longer feel the resentment of being bullied by others!
"Young Master, a Tang Army scout has come to meet you."
A servant quickly climbed up the watchtower and came to Zanpo to report. The biting cold wind instantly penetrated the thick fur on his body, making him shiver. Seeing the fourth son of the Gar family wearing ordinary Tubo robes with a leisurely posture, I was filled with awe.
Only those who are physically strong and outstanding can withstand the severe cold. These are the real Tibetan warriors.
There was a trace of surprise on Zanpo's bearded face, and her thick eyebrows were furrowed: "Tang Dynasty scout?"
Many years ago, Zamp and his father had ambitious plans to invade the Tang Dynasty, so they had already sent countless agents to sneak into Chang'an and eavesdrop on information from all parties in order to steal intelligence during future wars. As early as many days ago, Chang'an Xizuo sent back news that the Guanlong clan headed by Changsun Wuji had assembled troops and entered Chang'an City brazenly to carry out military remonstrance.
Naturally, he passed the news to his father, intending to take advantage of the opportunity to send troops to seize the land west of Hexi, but his father flatly refused.
My father believes that the current military revolt in Chang'an is just a civil strife, but it will not shake the foundation of the Tang Dynasty's rule, and this civil strife will come to an end soon. If we invade and occupy the Hexi counties at this time, we will be successful for a while, but when the situation of the Tang Dynasty stabilizes, it will inevitably lead to violent revenge. By then, the Hexi counties will be lost again, and there will be no benefit. Especially now that there is a lot of suspicion towards the Gar family in Luoche City, and the relationship with the Tang Dynasty has been harmed, which has cut off the retreat, it is extremely unwise.
Po Zan was convinced, and she admired her father's wisdom even more. She seemed to be short-sighted as she could only see the immediate benefits, but did not know how to plan for the long-term situation.
But the war in Chang'an City is currently in full swing, and the Anxi Army is fighting fiercely with the Dashi Army in the Western Regions. How can the Tang people have time to worry about themselves?
After thinking for a long time, he turned around and walked down the watchtower and said to the servant: "Ask the scout of the Tang Army to meet me at the government office."
"Here!"
The servant went to inform the Tang Dynasty scouts, and Zan Po returned to the government office in the city alone. She asked someone to prepare a plate of mutton, fetched a pot of highland barley wine, and started drinking it herself.
After a while, a Tang Army scout came in with his servant, stepped forward to greet him, and said, "I am a scout from the Youtun Guards of the Tang Dynasty. On the order of my commander-in-chief, I have a letter for the general to read personally."
Po Zan chewed the meat and took a sip of highland barley wine. She frowned and thought for a long time before she remembered that the general "Youtunwei" was the Duke of Yue Kingdom in the Tang Dynasty...
Although Tubo has imitated the Han people in military and political aspects since Songtsan Gampo succeeded to the throne, the long-standing habits are still difficult to change for a while, especially the various designations of the Tang army are really messy in the eyes of the Tubo people. It is really troublesome to understand the leadership and status of each army and to deal with its frequently changing commanders.
It's not as simple as Tubo. The army of that tribe is named after its tribal leader. It's simple, direct, and easy to remember...
Zanpo put down the silver knife she was using to cut flesh, picked up the handkerchief on the side and wiped her hands, then took the letter handed over by the scout with both hands. No matter how unruly he was, no matter how little he regarded the Han people, he still knew that Fang Jun was a popular figure in the military and political circles of the Tang Dynasty. He had great power, not to mention that he had defeated tens of thousands of Tuyuhun's elite cavalry in the Battle of Bago. That was enough to make Po Zan respect him very much.
Tuyuhun's power was also very feared by Tubo, but he was defeated by Fang Jun in one battle. Such a strong man should be respected by others and not show up in the enemy's camp.
What's more, Fang Jun's unparalleled achievements in defeating Bai Dao and overthrowing Xue Yantuo are even more awe-inspiring...
Open the envelope and take out the letter paper. Like the Hu tribes around the Tang Dynasty, most of the Tubo aristocrats practiced Chinese characters and spoke Chinese. Especially Lu Dongzan, who visited the Tang Dynasty several times as an envoy, highly praised Han culture and was determined to imitate it in Tubo, which increasingly attracted his own children. Invest a lot of energy in this area.
After reading the letter at a glance, Po Zan frowned and said nothing.
The letter stated that the remnants of Xue Yantuo were rebelling with the support of the Turks. The Hanhai Protectorate requested help from the Chang'an and Anxi Protectorate respectively, and begged to send troops to Mobei to suppress the remnants of Xue Yantuo. Since Chang'an was currently undergoing a mutiny and had no time to take care of Mobei, Fang Jun reluctantly gathered more than 10,000 troops from the Anxi army to go to Mobei to quell the rebellion. However, he was afraid that the troops would be insufficient, so he asked the Gar family to send elite troops to help.
He also stated that the Anxi army would wait in Liangzhou for three days. If Zanpo refused to go, he would not wait until the time came...
Po Zan was a little moved.
He didn't care much about whether Xue Yantuo rebelled, and even maliciously speculated that it would be better if the entire Tang Dynasty was in chaos. Naturally, he was unwilling to send his soldiers to travel thousands of miles to quell the rebellion on behalf of the Tang Dynasty. But Fang Jun's words in this letter made him unable to refuse.
"Please consider the friendship with the Tang Dynasty and send troops to help the Gar family"...
Fang Jun requested the Gar family, not Tubo!
This is fundamentally different. The latter regards the Gar family as a part of Tubo, or even Songtsan Gampo's eagle and dog lackeys, while the former treats the Gar family differently and even regards them as different from the Tang Dynasty. A force that can develop diplomatic relations...
The Gar family helped Songtsen Gampo unify the plateau, but now they are jealous and have to be exiled to Qinghai Lake. Isn't it because they cannot get the political status corresponding to their strength? If the Tang Dynasty was willing to regard the Gar family as a force equal to that of Tubo, this would have a decisive effect on the Gar family's foothold in Qinghai Lake and its independence from the Tubo power struggle!
Logically speaking, even if he agreed 100 times, the matter was serious and he would have to consult his father before making a decision. But Fang Jun was obviously very anxious, "wait for three days, don't wait until the time comes." If he did not arrive in Liangzhou by then, not only would he not be able to seize this excellent opportunity for Tang Dynasty to recognize the status of the Gar family, he would even let Fang Jun Jun had a rift because of this.
Although the East Palace is currently being besieged by the Guanlong rebels, the hundreds of thousands of troops from the Eastern Expedition are about to return to Guanzhong. As long as they wait until then, all the rebellions will immediately dissipate and the Eastern Expedition's status will be stable. As the minister of the East Palace, Fang Jun will be a giant in the Tang Dynasty in the future. He must not be offended...
So after just thinking about it for a while, Zanpo made up her mind: "I will compile a letter right now, and you will send it to Gongyue City immediately to submit to the Duke of Yue. I immediately ordered ten thousand cavalry, and immediately rushed from Dadou Valley into Hexi Province. Liangzhou, joined the Anxi Army and went to Mobei to assist Datang in suppressing the rebellion. The friendship between the Wugar family and Datang is deep-rooted, and they will do their best as long as Datang asks for it. "
Immediately, he compiled a letter and handed it over to the Tang Army scouts to send to Gongyue City. While he sent people to Luoche City to deliver a message to his father about the matter, he ordered his troops and horses, and set off at ten o'clock in the evening, heading straight for the big mountain in the Qilian Mountains. Dou Bugu.
*****
In Suzhou City, guard Hou Mochenfen looked at the battle report in his hand and said in surprise: "You said that the Anxi Army's more than 10,000 elite cavalry came all the way east and will soon arrive outside Suzhou City?"
The scout in front of him nodded and said: "It's absolutely true. There was no news in advance, but this group of cavalry all wore the clothes of the Hu tribe and carried the banners of the Anxi Army. They are obviously the Hu cavalry gathered under the Anxi Army."
Hou Mochenfen felt a thump in his heart. The Anxi Army suddenly headed east. Could it be that they were following Fang Jun's order to go to Chang'an to help the East Palace? He must pass this news to Chang'an!
He immediately wrote a letter and gave it to the scout, instructing: "I must hand it over to Duke Zhao personally. If there is any delay, come and see me!"
"Here!"
The scout accepted the order and immediately withdrew and went to Chang'an to deliver the message.
Not long after, another soldier quickly walked in and shouted: "General, the Anxi Army has arrived outside the city. They said they want the general to leave the city immediately to meet him. There is an urgent military order!" (End of Chapter)