Chapter 160: Confronting the Four-Nation Alliance
Tang Tuan deliberately kept them in suspense, enticing Su Jingzhi and Wei Wanlan to guess, but the Regent King merely swept him with a glance from those profound eyes for a moment, and Tang Tuan instantly lost the nerve to joke.
Tang Tuan hurriedly confessed: “Ashina Shali disappeared without a trace, no corpse was found. We made inquiries all over the Turkic territory. When we finally got wind of him again, his cavalry unit had indeed crossed the Aibugai River. He went to Tuyuhun.”
Tuyuhun was another neighboring country bordering Great Wei.
Once, when Wei Wanlan was lectured by the Regent King, he had been forced by the Regent King to read the Compendium of Mountains and Rivers. The border areas depicted in it, adjacent to the frontier, were the Western Regions nationsāGaochang, Tuyuhun, Tubo… all of them were there.
Wei Wanlan, half-reclining in the dragon bed, nodded.
Tang Tuan continued, “The King of Tuyuhun, Murong Bohan, received the fleeing Turkic Khan. The two were originally hostile, but hearing that Great Wei basically controlled the entire Turkic territory, Murong Bohan actually took Ashina Shali in.”
Wei Wanlan pressed, “What happened after that?”
Tang Tuan answered, “Tuyuhun then went north to ally with Gaochang, and west to ally with Tubo. Adding Ashina’s original cavalry troops, they formed a four-nation alliance claiming to be four hundred thousand strong. They are assembling troops to help Ashina Shali restore his nation!”
In plain English, Ashina found helpers. Four hundred thousand helpers.
Their goal was the same: they would not allow a powerful nation to exist in the East.
Hearing this number, Wei Wanlan was deeply shocked. Four hundred thousand people meant four hundred thousand Pokemon. It would take some effort to catch them all.
He knew the expeditionary army claimed to be two hundred thousand strong to the outside world.
Breaking into Turkic territory inevitably incurred losses. Incorporating surrendered foreign generals and Turkic soldiers could fill some vacancies.
But no matter how one compared the troop strengths, it was two against one. It would require every soldier to… uh, catch at least two Pokemon each?
Wei Wanlan visualized little monsters fighting in his head. Thinking about it, he felt it was a disadvantage. Then he remembered he could remotely control the puppet Little Emperor in Chang’an, and asked, “Should Zhen call for more people too… We can mobilize the full power of Great Wei and bring another two hundred thousand.”
One Pokemon per person would do!
But as he was thinking, the back of his head was gently scratched by Su Jingzhi: “No need.”
He just liked this confident aura of his, although Wei Wanlan didn’t know where this confidence came from.
“Tuyuhun wants to stand out; they should take advantage of our unstable foundation and drive straight in along the Iron Mountain line.” Su Jingzhiās knuckles were still resting behind Wei Wanlan, moving from the back of his head to the nape of his neck, massaging until Wei Wanlan narrowed his eyes.
“They waited for several days, not for an opportunity to fight, but for allies. This shows that Tuyuhun doesn’t want to lose troops alone, so they united with Gaochang, Tubo, and other countries to join in.”
“So seemingly four nations, but each harbors their own ulterior motives. No one is willing to give their all. Just a rabble. Four hundred thousand is probably just an inflated number.”
Cao Cao’s army at the Battle of Red Cliffs claimed to be eight hundred thousand strong!
He learned in history class that Cao Cao was bluffing.
Wei Wanlan thought about it and felt his anxiety drop sharply. Maybe it would become two people catching one Pokemon.
He heard the Regent King calmly arranging: “With the four-nation alliance attacking together, it saves Great Wei from conquering them one by one. Itās perfect to thoroughly intimidate the Western Regions nations outside Great Wei’s borders. Tang Tuan.”
“This subordinate is here!”
“The enemy troops want to cut off our retreat. Their massive force gathering surely intends to attack Iron Mountain as well; they want to trap us to death in the Royal Court.” Su Jingzhi paused and said, “Go issue the order. We will return to Iron Mountain to await them.”
“Orders received!” Tang Tuan left.
Wei Wanlan asked, “What about the Royal Court?”
He worried Su Jingzhi would suddenly drop a line: This King is going to war again, you wait for me in the Royal Court… Leaving aside the participation points he wouldn’t get, the key was that he would be uneasy and worried. He didn’t want to stay in the capital of an enemy nation they had just conquered.
Wei Wanlanās hand involuntarily placed on his belly. Zhen still has stomach trouble recently. If the Regent King makes him stay alone, he’ll cry.
Su Jingzhi: “You forgot there is someone else who is dead set on guarding the Royal Court for you. Apart from befriending Great Wei, he has no way out.”
Who is it?
The name suddenly jumped into Wei Wanlan’s heart. But as the Emperor, he didn’t want to appear too far behind the Regent King. Wei Wanlan tentatively asked, “Is it Antang?”
Ashina Shaliās youngest brother.
“You enfeoffed Antang as a King, uniting the Wei army with the existing Turkic troops. We saved his mother, and moreover, if the four-nation alliance really fights back, will Antang survive?”
So Antang absolutely could not betray Great Wei right now.
Wei Wanlan tried hard to operate his dragon brain to barely keep up with the train of thought. He realized that this time he would be following the army the whole way.
Wei Wanlan: “Zhen will definitely not hold everyone back!”
Su Jingzhiās lips curled into a warm, composed smile: “With the Red Coat Cannon and the winter supplies, counting these two things, Your Majesty has done enough to go down in history.”
Wei Wanlan, who was about to go down in history, nodded like a chick pecking rice: “Then, then, then, Zhen must continue to carry it forward, hoping to do even better…”
Su Jingzhi handed over the warm tonic soup.
“Nurse your health first.”
Afternoon.
The decree enfeoffing Ashina Antang as King Shunyi was promulgated.
From this point on, the Turks became a vassal state of Great Wei in name.
But in practice, the living habits of the Turkic nobles were not changed, nor were the burdens on the common people increased. As for the Turkic slaves, they were absorbed in large numbers into Great Wei to become soldiers, shedding their generational slave status, shedding tears of gratitude to the Wei Emperor.
There was a phenomenon of fleeing slaves in the Royal Court now.
Mainly because being a soldier for Wei Wanlan was definitely better than being a slave for Turkic nobles.
But to stabilize the situation in the Turkic lands, even if Wei Wanlan wanted to help all the slaves, he couldn’t issue a decree restoring their freedom. Reform had to be taken step by step; wait until he thoroughly defeated the alliance.
“The army departsā”
The horn sounded, and the Wei army set out.
When packing up to leave the Royal Court, the army carried dried meat, cheese, and kumiss given to them by the Turkic people… as a response to the charcoal, medicine, winter clothes, and other supplies brought by the Wei army earlier.
Many soldiers expressed that they had never seen relations between two countries change from stabbing each other to exchanging gifts so quickly in their lives; the change was so fast it was unbelievable.
Bringing up the rear of the army were the two Red Coat Cannons.
When this thing was fired once in the Royal Court, the Turkic people mistook it for winter thunder, a sign from heaven, causing panic. Even the Grand Shaman came out to pray and offer blessings.
Wei Wanlan originally wanted to decree mass production of the Red Coat Cannon, but constrained by time, no casting molds could be made locally. So they could only temporarily bring the two Brother Cannons along for use. “Regent King Super Fierce Version” and “Regent King Destruction Version” would be the ancestors of the Wei military firearms world from now on.
The Little Emperor stood up in the military carriage and looked back.
The dense, scattered felt tents of the Royal Court were getting farther and farther away. Some Turkic people waited for the army to go far before chasing out to wave at them. Antang supported his mother; behind them were his wife and daughters, also bidding farewell to the Wei army with Turkic etiquette.
Antang’s mother’s face couldn’t be seen clearly, but her posture showed she was advanced in years. Thinking of her age, having to compromise while her son wasn’t around, being deliberately humiliated by Ashina Shali time and again, one couldn’t help but sigh with sympathy.
The Great Wei army disappeared at the end of the snowy field.
…
“Mother, the wind is strong. Son will escort you back to the tent to rest.”
Antang said this, his hand already supporting beneath Lady Yinyue’s arm. Mother and son both had titles now.
Lady Yinyue wore a sheep-horn hairpin on her head. As she moved, the silver tassels at the bottom of the hairpin flickered. She looked like a middle-aged beauty:
“Mother only has you, one son. Our reunion is already a blessing from the gods. My son, having just ascended the throne, may not convince the masses. You must act carefully in the Royal Court. If there are matters you cannot decide or that might be overstepping, you cannot act on your own; you must report to the Great Wei Emperor.”
The Great Wei Emperor was only eighteen, very young, his face looking even younger than his actual age.
But Antang and his mother were both respectful to Wei Wanlan. Especially Lady Yinyue, being older, understood even more how hard it was to survive in chaotic times. Everything they had was given by Great Wei. To live a stable life in the future, they had to be cautious in everything.
Antang listened to his mother. A large man, nearly thirty years old, looked like a docile big dog when patted on the head by his mother, due to years of separation.
Antang said, “I contributed the complete map of the Turkic territory. I have about twenty thousand trusted troops fighting with me, currently supporting the Great Wei forces. Gaochang, Tubo, Tuyuhun… they sound like many people. Even without Great Wei, I would absolutely not yield.”
Mentioning only Ashina Shali, Antang’s eyes looked as if hundreds of knives were about to shoot out.
The two brothers had held a grudge for decades.
Antang cursed heavily: “He is a traitor, a coward. He brought more war upon us. I hate that I cannot roast his flesh and kill all his offspring.”
That hatred was caught by Lady Yinyue. Antang’s motherās brow jumped, pressing, “You killed all his children?”
“Now I am the Khan. Those are all bastards. Just like…” Just like Ashina Shali had insulted him for not being born of the main wife back then. Antang clenched his fist.
Winner takes all. The conflict between these brothers had long turned into a blood feud. Lady Yinyue couldn’t resolve it, so she could only instruct her son:
“If you want to be ruthless, do it cleanly.”
Antang furrowed his powerful brows.
Splashā
In the Khan’s activity area, there was a livestock shed filled with the smell of horse manure. A hawk perched on the highest point of the shed. A basin of cold water was dumped over a head.
“Get up!”
Ashina Hebo opened his eyes a slit. His clothes were completely soaked. Cold.
Yesterday Hebo killed his youngest brother, the day before was his ninth brother, and the day before that was his little sister… He used this submissive face to win Antang’s favor. To survive, he performed fratricide every day for Antang’s amusement.
The Wei Lord didn’t know of the existence of Ashina’s family.
It was unknown whose secrecy work was so good. Before Wei Wanlan entered the Royal Court, the Royal Court had fought into a mess. The Khan’s relatives, fearing retaliation, hid here and there, eventually falling into Antang’s handsāit would have been better to be detained by Wei Wanlan.
Now it was too late to say anything.
“Get up!!!” Antang’s trusted aide roared again, throwing the basin over.
A basin covered Hebo’s head, and his vision went black. He lifted the basin, looked down at the blood covering his body, his mind somewhat blank.
When killing his little sister, she screamed too miserably. He had to stab her throat a few times first. When the throat artery was cut, blood sprayed out, so his clothes got dirty like this.
“The Khan summons you. Tsk tsk, tell me, you’ve slaughtered your brothers and sisters cleanly. Who will die this time?”
Hearing these words, Hebo’s brow twitched.
The hawk on the roof of the horse shed hopped tap-tap, the fluttering sound entering Hebo’s ears.
Hebo’s eyes lit up again. He forcibly suppressed the fear that surfaced. He lowered his voice, forcing out a despicable, fawning smile, and said, “Actually, I still have a golden pearl on me, hidden in my tied hair.”
The Khan’s aide shifted his gaze to his braid but saw nothing: “Don’t play tricks!”
Hebo said, “Brother, I dare not play tricks on you. I’m giving you a chance to get rich. I can’t escape death anyway. Throw the wineskin over; I want to drink a couple of sips.”
Turkic men were fond of strong liquor; this request wasn’t excessive.
Seeing Hebo couldn’t cause any trouble, the aide snorted coldly, glanced at Hebo with even more disdain, and lowered his head to untie the wineskin at his waist.
But the instant his hands undid the leather buckle, someone leaped up from the firewood in the horse shedā
Ashina Hebo’s eyes flashed fiercely. He heavily knocked the aide into the snow, his two large hands tightly choking the aide’s throat. A person who could even kill his closest kin committed murder proficiently and indifferently.
The wineskin stopper popped open, liquor gurgling onto the ground…
The aide’s legs went from struggling and kicking to tensing up, then to stopping movement and becoming completely stiffāit only took a moment.
Having killed the Khan’s aide, Hebo put on his clothes. A fierce light flashed in his eyes, making him look like a beast that had just hunted. A hawk landed on his shoulder.
The hawk’s leg carried the posthumous edict for his succession.
He was the true Turkic Khan!
He wanted revenge!!
He wanted Wei Wanlan to die a horrible death and scatter Antang’s ashes to feed the dogs.
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