When historians of later generations described the "Xijiang Rebellion" that occurred in the New Year of the Holy Tang Dynasty in 821, they often used the "Battle of Metasequoia City" as the starting point of the entire incident.
This was mainly because many important figures in the later Shengtang Dynasty and the Turkic Empire, especially the senior generals of the Zhenjiang Department, were involved at that time. Out of respect for these big men, and also taking into account their various influences on the events at that time, the Spring and Autumn Period written by historians has a unique look.
However, real history is not like this.
The "Western Rebellion", which affected the thirty-six kingdoms of the Ghost Desert in Western Xinjiang and even the Middle-earth world including the imperial capital, lasted for seven years, had actually been secretly brewing since the year 818 of the Holy Tang Dynasty.
The real outbreak of the great chaos started with the rebellion of Loulan and Shule.
After the Holy Tang Dynasty experienced three large-scale conquests against the ghost deserts of Western Xinjiang in history, the twenty-fourth generation emperor Li Shilun implemented a unified governance strategy and advocated the policy of "mainly appeasement and appeasement, supplemented by heavy military suppression".
Facing the thirty-six countries of Western Xinjiang with vast land and numerous ethnic groups, Shengtang set up missions and official and municipal offices, and arranged garrisons in important areas. The Western Xinjiang trade route that connected the east and west continents gradually flourished, and finally achieved stability outside the region and a prosperous economy. The goal.
All countries along the trade routes enjoyed autonomy. The Shengtang court only sent symbolic troops to protect the safety of the trade routes, and it abided by its duties and did not interfere in the internal affairs of the royal court of each vassal state.
In this way, it not only ensures the imperial influence of Shengtang in Western Xinjiang, but also enables peaceful coexistence with other countries and ethnic groups, and maintains the strategic tranquility of the western region of the dynasty.
However, not everything in the world remains the same forever.
In 799 of the Holy Tang Calendar, under the instigation of Shandu Yimo, the Great Khan of the Turkic Empire, twenty vassal states launched a rebellion that shocked Western Xinjiang through religious incidents. Emperor Li Chengwen quickly sent troops to quell the rebellion, and later set up a special Zhenjiang Protectorate to prevent the Turks from infiltrating and destroying it again.
As time went by, the relationship between the Holy Tang Court, the Zhenjiang Army and the Thirty-six Kingdoms of Western Xinjiang was quietly undergoing subtle changes.
Although the Zhenjiang Protectorate follows the old practice of not interfering in the internal affairs of the vassal, they are a powerful military presence after all, and no local force in the Ghost Desert of Western Xinjiang can completely ignore their role and power.
The long-term stationing of huge troops also allowed the will of the imperial capital to be extended to all strata in Western Xinjiang through the Zhenjiang Protectorate, exerting a decisive influence.
Gradually, the social status of the Shengtang people living in Western Xinjiang improved day by day. Whether they are court officials assigned here, wealthy businessmen who invest in business, or generals and officers in the Protectorate, they have gradually become a new aristocratic force in this vast land.
These people hold supreme power and control rare resources. At the same time, they continue to make friends with the leaders of various ethnic groups in Western Xinjiang. Sometimes, they can even influence the major decisions of some vassal courts.
Such changes have also created an extremely strong sense of crisis for some traditional local aristocratic forces.
Not only the local aristocracy, but also the ordinary people in Western Xinjiang really felt that a group of Shengtang masters appeared out of thin air above them, roaming the ghost desert and domineering.
Although for a long period of time, the Holy Tang court had no time to take care of the control of Western Xinjiang due to internal disputes. However, the 100,000-strong army that suppresses Xinjiang is by no means a display. As long as they are around, the local aristocratic forces in Western Xinjiang will never be able to get rid of the sharp sword hanging over their heads, and the days of bowing and obeying orders will still have to continue.
Until the appearance of the Turks.
In fact, much earlier, the Aral Sea Kergits, the ancestors of the Turks, were the rulers of this place.
The history of Kegit is not much shorter than that of Shengtang. Hundreds of years ago, the Aral Sea Haggits were at their peak in Western Xinjiang. They stretched across the desert grasslands and occupied the intersection of the east and west continents. They were almost invincible.
However, great strength is often accompanied by unscrupulous arrogance.
The rulers of Kejit have never regarded the people of all ethnic groups in Western Xinjiang as "human beings". In their concept, those Western Xinjiang country bumpkins are a group of two-legged beasts who can be bullied at will.
With such arrogance, it is not difficult to imagine how miserable the fate of the people in Western Xinjiang will be.
Therefore, when the emperor of the Holy Tang Dynasty turned his attention to the west and the elite troops of the dynasty left Zijin Pass in the west, the people of Western Xinjiang saw the majestic appearance of the savior in their eyes.
Everyone held flowers, fruits, wine and delicacies, and while singing and dancing, they lined the streets to welcome the arrival of the righteous master of Shengtang.
Under the eager expectation of the ghost desert in Western Xinjiang, the saviors from the east finally succeeded in driving away the once arrogant Hajit people, bringing hope of rebirth to the thirty-six countries.
But unexpectedly, when everything was settled, the original savior suddenly transformed and unknowingly became the new ruler of Western Xinjiang.
The power of Shengtang began to quickly fill and replace the power space left when the Kegit people retreated. In the following hundreds of years, in order to consolidate its power in the Ghost Desert of Western Xinjiang and suppress the unwilling local people, the imperial capital launched many large-scale raids and conquests, killing mountains of corpses and blood. ocean.
This kind of behavior seems to be no different from the previous Kegit people.
At least, this is indeed the case in the eyes of many Western Xinjiang nobles who are dissatisfied with Shengtang and ethnic groups with Hakkait ancestry.
As a result, they began to miss their former master again.
The power of time is too powerful, powerful enough to wash away the long-lasting hatred.
Some foreign forces in Western Xinjiang began to send secret envoys one after another, and they frequently contacted the Turkic Empire in private, planning to use the power of Ashina Zhijin to one day get rid of the control of Shengtang.
The most representative ones are Loulan and Shule.
These two countries are very interesting. They hated Shengtang because of their political will and religious differences, but what they hated even more were their neighbors. Because many of the reigning kings in Western Xinjiang did not strongly oppose the rule of Shengtang like the heads of these two families.
From an objective point of view, at least Shengtang showed a considerable degree of respect and love for the countries in Western Xinjiang at the levels of the imperial court and the commander-in-chief of the Protectorate.
After all, this is the national policy set by the previous emperors, and Shengtang and Xijiang have been dealing with each other peacefully for many years. Except for a few black sheep who are riding arrogant in Western Xinjiang, I really don't see any need to go to war with each other.
Besides, if we really have to fight with swords, can you defeat the Xinjiang Army?
This common mentality of pursuing peace is what makes Loulan and Shule most dissatisfied.
That's often the case with people.
When a person wants to challenge some kind of authority or break some kind of routine, what he hates most is not the authority and routine itself, but other people who still insist on respecting authority and abiding by routine.
Therefore, when the New Year came in the year 821 of the Holy Tang Calendar, the Loulan and Shule Kingdoms, which had been suppressed for a long time, finally, with the secret support of the Turks, once again raised the banner of rebellion against the Holy Tang and challenged the entire Western Xinjiang Ghost Desert.
When later generations of historians and military strategists reviewed and studied this dusty history, they all unanimously discovered an important issue, which was the time when the rebellion broke out.
Logically speaking, winter in Western Xinjiang is not a good time to start a war.
The bone-chilling wind, the flying snow all over the sky, and the Gobi desert where dripping water turns into ice, any point means immeasurable danger for large-scale military operations.
However, the rebels chose such a time to launch the offensive. The only reasonable explanation is that Shengtang's powerful military force will also be firmly trapped by the bad weather.
In addition, the Turkic Iron Pigeon Army, the Ghost Alliance Horse Bandits, and the rebel parties hiding in various parts of Western Xinjiang greatly distracted the Xinjiang Suppression Army and soldiers from various countries through early harassment operations.
As a result, rebellions suddenly broke out in Loulan and Shule. The suddenness of the incident and their superiority in military strength immediately caught the Zhenjiang Protectorate by surprise.
When Duolun's coalition forces began to set off, preparing to assemble and march towards Daban, hundreds of miles away in the King's City of Shanshan, the sky-high fire was reflecting the entire night sky red.
The suffering of the people in Western Xinjiang has just begun.
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Alekjiang, King of Loulan, was playing with the "Nine Star Blade" and couldn't help but feel proud in his heart.
This famous sword in Western Xinjiang is forged entirely from Xuanming meteorite iron, combined with the blue flame quenching technique of the famous Persian weapons craftsman. It is light and tough, and can cut iron like clay.
The nine bright gems inlaid on the handle come from the nine great vassal states in Western Xinjiang. Each one is brilliant and priceless.
The Nine Star Blade was originally a token of the Western Border Kingdom Alliance. It was held by the leader of the alliance jointly elected by the kings of the nine kingdoms. It was of great significance. Later, Shengtang took over the Western Territory, and the previous kingdom alliance gradually withdrew from the stage of history. The Nine Star Blade remained in the hands of the last alliance leader and was passed down from generation to generation.
Now, this magical weapon has been obtained by Alekjiang, as if there is a god who is caring about it, so how can he not feel extremely happy?
Alek Jiang gently stroked the blood groove on the blade with his thumb, but his mind was full of the scenes that happened yesterday.
His uncle, King Nizi of Shanshan Kingdom, knelt in front of Alike Jiang and begged, hoping that his nephew would be noble and let him go.
"You have betrayed the great Nanjin Flower God, and also betrayed the honorable name of your ancestors. You are no longer worthy of possessing this Nine Star Blade!" Alek Jiang loudly reprimanded Niz in public, without saving any face for the old king.
"Child, I beg you," Old Niz cried with tears streaming down his face, raising his hands: "For the sake of your mother, let us go. If you like the Nine Star Blade, I can give it to you. There is no need to give it to you. Loulan and Shanshan are at war..."
"Hahaha, old man, I not only want the Nine Star Blade, I also want your kingdom. You have always been willing to work for the Shengtang people, didn't you ever think that such a day would come?"
After saying that, Alekjiang waved the scimitar in his hand and thrust it into his uncle's chest. Following his movements, the surrounding Loulan warriors also raised their swords and pounced on the Shanshan royal family who were kneeling in front of the palace gate.
Many of these people were the brothers, sisters, nephews and nieces of Alike Jiang's mother, and they were all considered blood relatives of Alike Jiang, King of Loulan. However, in his view, they were just a group of lambs waiting to be slaughtered.
The sudden fall of Shanshan Palace shocked the entire Western Xinjiang.
The Loulan Kingdom suddenly raised troops to attack Shanshan, which was beyond the expectations of many people. What was even more surprising was that the comparison of the strength of the two sides was so disparate that it was unbelievable.
In this sneak attack, Loulan almost used all the strength of the country, with a total of 100,000 infantry and cavalry mixed troops. In a short period of time, they successively captured the 17 city fortresses of Shanshan and the Zhenjiang Protectorate, and directly besieged the Shanshan Royal City.
At this time, the royal city had less than 5,000 guards.
In one day, Loulan's army destroyed, massacred, and burned the city. Nearly a thousand Zhenjiang soldiers who were assisting in the defense were beheaded by the enemy and hung on the flagpole outside the gate of Wangting City. Hundreds of the Shanshan royal family, including the old King Nizi, were also massacred.
Shortly after that, the arrogant Loulan army, under the command of King Alike Jiang, successively conquered the three kingdoms of Qiemo, Xiaowan and Pishan, and plundered 20,000 young men and women, as well as countless cattle and sheep.
At the same time, another group of rebels, the 80,000-strong Shule army, successively captured Yarkand and Wensu, also burning, killing, looting, and leaving nothing to grow.
