Book Synopsis
Book Tags
Donation Rankings
Comment
0 Comments
You May Also Like
墨書 Inktalez
Asena Lier sat upright on the Tiger Skin Couch, her boots resting on the massive tiger's mouth, coldly observing the commotion among the soldiers in the tent. They were arguing fiercely, their words heated and gestures exaggerated, almost ready to come to blows.
The source of this debate was none other than the tall scholar standing solemnly in the tent, Murong Hanzhu, the personal aide of Princess Guanghua and a strategist accompanying the army.
The brothers were divided sharply, and it was particularly disheartening for Asena Lier that the cause of their disagreement was a genuine Han person. This scene made it impossible for her to feel pleased.
As a member of the Royal Family of Jue, Asena Lier had brought troops to join the Tuguhun. Although she was also a general, Asena Lier wielded significant influence, which was why the King entrusted her with the important task of launching a surprise attack on Ganzhou.
Asena Lier despised the Royal Family of Kaiyuan because they prided themselves on being descendants of wolf mothers, lacking both courage and strategy while constantly dreaming of expanding their territory and challenging the prestige of the Tang Dynasty—an endeavor as futile as striking a stone with an egg.
Her response to Nuohebo's call to raid Tang Territory stemmed from her deeper hatred for the Tang Dynasty, which had taken away her brother Asena Sher along with hundreds of thousands of their people.
Her brother had already been granted titles and honors, and those he took with him had been settled by the Tang Kingdom in Lingzhou, living in peace and prosperity. Meanwhile, she found herself stranded in the Tuguhun, mingling with bandit herders—an utter disgrace for someone of royal blood!
She wanted to trample upon Tang Dynasty soil and its military and civilians, but not for those brainless individuals in Kaiyuan; rather, she aimed to prove to her brother that his choice had been a mistake!
No matter how powerful or fortified Tang Dynasty cities might be, they could not withstand the charge of wolf-blooded warriors. The Turkic wolf clan was noble and proud; they could bow to stronger enemies only after shedding blood in battle. Even if they bowed, it would be merely to gather strength for the next fight!
She looked down upon the Murong Family and could not tolerate Murong Ge'erhe's humiliating actions. To obtain military intelligence, Murong Ge'erhe had even allowed his son to assist in Tang People's schemes by sending Rouran slaves to Chang'an to commit murder. Failing at that was one thing; he even attempted to capture an underage girl but ended up failing repeatedly—utterly disgraceful!
Consequently, she had repeatedly sidelined Murong Ge'erhe until he was ultimately ousted from the military core. However, Tu Han proved equally incompetent; having lost Zhangye, he inadvertently benefited Murong Ge'erhe by consolidating his troops and regaining influence.
Especially notable was Murong Ge'erhe's son, Murong Xiao. After several failures, he had transformed into a fierce general who always sought to lead in battle, amassing significant military achievements and reputation that made others wary of underestimating him.
Murong Hanzhu played an indispensable role in this resurgence of the Murong Family.
Although Princess Guanghua shared Asena Lier's disdain for the Tang Dynasty, even so, Asena Lier did not wish for Murong Hanzhu to interfere with her military affairs. Others might be unaware, but throughout the Tuguhun were Asena Lier's informants; how could she not know about the nauseating affair between Murong Hanzhu and Guanghua?
According to the information provided by Murong Hanzhu, Qibi Helix has already dispatched troops and is about to arrive in Ganzhou for support. Asena Lier, who shares the same lack of backbone as his elder brother Asher, does not have a favorable opinion of Qibi Helix either. However, he cannot allow Murong Hanzhu's military reputation to rise.
If they split their forces to intercept Qibi Helix's reinforcements, Li Jing within Ganzhou City will undoubtedly take the opportunity to counterattack. This would render nearly two months of siege meaningless. In such a case, a single piece of intelligence from Murong Hanzhu would overturn all of Asena Lier's efforts over the past two months, leaving him with no face as a general.
With this in mind, Asena Lier snorted coldly. After a sudden silence fell in the Main Tent, he slowly deliberated: "The military supplies in Ganzhou City are about to run out. At such a critical moment, it is not suitable to split our forces to intercept Qibi Helix. We only need to send more scouts to patrol the surroundings and prevent them from launching surprise attacks on our rear camp, cutting off communication between Qibi Helix and Ganzhou City. Other issues will resolve themselves naturally. Once Ganzhou falls, the gates of the nation will be wide open, and the Tang Dynasty will surely be thrown into chaos—this is the perfect opportunity for us!"
"General! Opportunities must not be missed!" Murong Hanzhu quickly advised. However, Asena Lier sneered and stared at Murong Hanzhu, asking, "Are you questioning my decision?"
Murong Hanzhu felt a chill in his heart and immediately bowed his head, repeatedly saying he dared not oppose. He then left the tent and returned to his own quarters, feeling dejected. He discussed this matter with Murong Ge'erhe and his son, both of whom believed that Ashina was worried about the Murong Family growing powerful, which was why they opposed sending troops to intercept. This left them feeling extremely frustrated.
Later that night, Murong Hanzhu visited Guanghua's tent. After some warm exchanges, he recounted the events of the day.
In their eyes, both Guanghua and Murong Hanzhu believed that the value of the Xuanwu Gate Incident far outweighed that of Ganzhou City.
They were not interested in fighting; after all, what was the ultimate purpose of war if not for revenge? If they could achieve the Xuanwu Gate Incident now, it would be the greatest revenge without needing to expend so many lives on warfare and siege.
Moreover, Guanghua and Murong Hanzhu never considered themselves part of the Tuguhun. Although life was worry-free during this period and they were elevated above others, they still hoped to return to the land that rightfully belonged to the Sui Dynasty within their lifetimes.
To return to the Tang Dynasty, the Xuanwu Gate Incident was a crucial element. As long as Murong Hanzhu could return openly to the Tang Dynasty, he could use the Xuanwu Gate Incident to disrupt the entire court!
This was the desire of that figure behind the scenes in Chang'an, as well as that of many officials involved—both civil and military—and it was also the wish of Guanghua and Murong Hanzhu!
After much discussion, they finally gritted their teeth and made a decision. They immediately summoned Murong Ge'erhe and his son for a secret meeting. It was only after midnight that they each departed.
Upon returning to camp, Murong Ge'erhe had a private conversation with his son Murong Xiao for nearly half an hour. After all, this matter was significant; if they failed, they would lose any foundational leverage within the Tuguhun Army and could face severe repercussions—possibly even death!
However, if they truly succeeded, the Murong Family would inevitably return to the ranks of the kings. Even though the Tuguhun had suffered a defeat this time, the Murong Family could take advantage of the situation to rise to power. Everything was within Mr. Han Zhu's expectations, and how could he and his son not take the risk to try!
After making up their minds, the father and son summoned their trusted aides overnight and carefully issued orders. The main army was put on standby, ready to strike at any moment!
Qibi Helix was still unaware that his marching intentions had already been betrayed. The army moved swiftly; after a few days of hard marching, they finally reached the territory of Ganzhou.
The thousand cavalrymen dispersed in all directions. As long as they encountered scouts from the Tuguhun within the vicinity, none could escape detection. The information was tightly sealed. Seeing that they were finally about to reach Ganzhou City, the scouts ahead had already located the exact position of the Ashina Military Camp. Only then did they settle their horses, eat their fill, and rest well, waiting to strike at the enemy's rear.
However, the most crucial issue now was how to communicate their battle plan to Ganzhou City. Without cooperation from Ganzhou, it would inevitably end up like Princess Jinyang's rescue of Zhangye—before the city could react, the ambushing army outside would have already been largely encircled by the enemy.
Moreover, what puzzled Qibi Helix was that there seemed to be an unusually high number of scouts and cavalry encountered along the way, giving him a strong sense of unease.
But after thinking it over, unless the enemy could foresee the future, how could they possibly know his marching route in advance and set up numerous hidden sentries and scouts along the way?
This unease made Qibi Helix cautious and further solidified his intention to send a message into the city. That night, he convened a meeting in his tent to discuss this matter.
Although Qibi Helix had many Qibi People under his command, including some Tanguts, there was still some distance between them and the Turquoise Hu Man, unlike Princess Jinyang's close-knit Salarian and Rouran Slave subordinates.
“Alas... if only Princess Jinyang were here; her subordinates managed to send messages to Zhangye without incident...” Qibi Helix couldn't help but sigh.
Hearing their commander express such sentiments, his advisors kindly reminded him: “Actually, there are still people under Commander Xu who remain in our army...”
Qibi Helix's eyes suddenly lit up. When Princess Jinyang went to Ganzhou, she entrusted Princess Jinyang to him. Besides Li Wushuang, there was also a personal female Death Warrior who seemed to be Rouran People and a clever companion who could likely be of great use!
Thinking of this, Qibi Helix quickly instructed his guards to summon Moya. Since Caesar needed to protect Li Mingda closely, this old man was all that remained available.
He originally intended for Moya to clarify the situation of the Tuguhun warriors, so that his subordinates would have a general understanding and could be deceived into approaching the city.
Unexpectedly, after hearing about the mission, Moya volunteered to deliver the message into the city alone!
The generals in the tent saw that Moya was old and frail. Although there was a glimmer of wisdom in his eyes, they couldn't help but laugh. Little did they know that this old man had quite a temper; upon seeing their mockery, he angrily turned around and left.
Qibi Helix, however, was not easily fooled. He knew that Moya was not someone who would seek humiliation. Since he claimed he could do it, he must have his own confidence. But given the importance of the military situation, how could they trust such an old man?
As Moya reached the entrance of the tent, Qibi Helix quickly called out to stop him. Moya halted abruptly but did not turn back or respond to Qibi Helix. No matter how much Qibi Helix tried to comfort him, this stubborn old man refused to listen.
A captain near the entrance approached and reached out to grab Moya's shoulder, intending to pull him back. However, as soon as he touched Moya's shoulder, the black robe fell to the ground, revealing that Moya had vanished!
Everyone felt a chill rising from their feet up their spines, causing goosebumps to erupt all over their bodies, reaching their heads and making their scalps tingle. It truly felt like they had seen a ghost!
All eyes were drawn to the entrance of the tent when suddenly an aged and mocking voice echoed within: "General He Li, can you trust this old man now?"
Upon hearing this, everyone turned around and saw that Moya had somehow entered the tent and was now standing behind Qibi Helix!
Comment 0 Comment Count