After Xiahou Ninghan arrived at Zijin Pass, he didn't know whether it was a coincidence or whether he really lost his strength. The Turks' attack also completely stopped.
Yun Qianxue simply withdrew the troops another thirty miles, set up camp in a down-to-earth manner, and told Li Jiangyao that she would not leave.
At the same time, the Blood Guard Division sent to sneak attack Sheng Yuguan encountered a big problem and ran back angrily.
Not long after, the Zhenjiang First Army, the Fourth Army, and the Sixth Army, led by Xu Youchang, arrived at Zijin Pass. At this point, the entire defense line has turned the corner and is impregnable.
The four main forces of the Zhenjiang Army firmly defended the two passes, marking the complete recovery of Western Xinjiang. Thousands of miles of rivers and mountains have returned to the Holy Tang Dynasty, and there are no more invincible bandits in the ghost desert!
Xiahou Ninghan had never been to Western Xinjiang before. Now that the war situation was calming down and Li Jiangyao warmly invited him, he decided to stay temporarily and take advantage of this rare opportunity to appreciate the exotic scenery.
At the same time, she was also curious to see how Li Jiangyao would manage this vast territory next.
Needless to say, we need to cut off tyranny and recuperate. These routine operations go without saying. Xie Tanzhi, Situ Wushou, and Ma Mu are all masters in this field. With the strong support of the Shenhua family and Persia, the Zhenjiang Army successively issued a series of policies on reducing taxes and taxes, encouraging farming and animal husbandry, and re-opening the Western Continent. Shangdao's policies were deeply supported by princes and people from all over the world.
And now there is another thorny problem before Li Jiangyao: how to deal with Gema Khan and his Yakut Army.
After the repeated blows of the Western Xinjiang War, and the loss of soldiers and generals in the defense of Zijin Pass not long ago, the Yelun tribe's troops, which once numbered as many as 120,000, now have less than 10,000 left.
Gema was so heartbroken about this that she hid in the house all day and secretly wiped her tears.
Regarding their fate, the opinions within the Zhenjiang Army and the kings of the various Western Xinjiang vassal states were basically the same.
Everyone believes that although Gema abandoned the dark side and surrendered to the Xinjiang Army in the final stage, the numerous crimes he committed against Western Xinjiang are countless. If they are not severely punished, it will not be enough for the people to be angry.
Of course, Xie Tanzhi, Xu Youchang and others also had some reservations: after all, they had negotiated face-to-face with the Metropolitan Protector, and they could not break their promises or go back on their promises. And a very important point is that Zijin Pass did not fall into Tanli's hands, which was equivalent to preventing the Zhenjiang Army from paying heavy casualties in capturing the two passes, which must be considered a great contribution to Gema.
Because of this, Li Jiangyao said that he would still follow the previous agreement between the two parties and treat the Yakut Army well.
However, this kind treatment is not exactly understood by both parties.
Gema Khan's idea was to issue passes and necessary horse food as soon as possible to allow them to return to the Turkic Empire in the Western Continent. Now that the domestic troops are empty, it is a good opportunity for him to regain his strength and show off his talents.
However, Li Jiangyao didn't think so. The so-called good treatment is to ensure the safety of all the soldiers of the Yakut Army, but it does not promise to let Gema and others go home.
"You won't let us go? Then...then the Great Protector will still support us?" Gema was a little depressed.
Li Jiangyao chuckled: "It's a good idea, but I don't have anyone to support me yet. I'll give you a piece of land in Western Xinjiang, and lend you three million kilograms of grain and 20,000 cattle and sheep. You can support yourself."
Ge Ma was stunned: "Doesn't this mean going to jail?"
"Otherwise, what do you want?" Li Jiangyao rolled his eyes at him, "For all the bad things you did when you were the governor, even jail is considered light!"
Ge Ma planned to protest on the spot, but when he looked at Xu Youchang, Du Jian, Heishan and others standing behind Li Jiangyao, he immediately swallowed back the words "fuck you" and said with a flattering smile: "Dadu Protector" , please have mercy. Although I am guilty, I still have a little merit. The sons and daughters are indeed homesick..."
Li Jiangyao waved his hand and interrupted Gema: "We are all smart people, so I might as well make it clear. I keep you here not as a punishment, but because I can't let you go back now! The Turks are marching eastward. Although A lot of legions have been mobilized, but according to the intelligence sent by Persia, the tribes in your country still have spare strength. Your brother, Duke Belen, is the best example. If you are allowed to go back now, I am very worried that there will be The second batch of Eastern Expeditionary Army!"
"I swear to God, I promise I won't..." Gema said anxiously.
However, Li Jiangyao still did not let him continue: "Your guarantee is useless, and your oath is even less reliable. The best way now is to stay as a hostage. On the one hand, I do not restrict you from communicating with the Yelun tribe. Do you want to Let them do whatever they want in the Western Continent; on the other hand, I will block the Golden Clan here and prevent them from going back to trouble you. When the time comes and you behave well, I will not only let you go, but also I promise to provide you with support so that the Yelun tribe can have the opportunity to become the ruling tribe of the Turks."
Ge Ma knew in his heart what the other party meant by "the time is right" - Ashina's army and the Eastern Expedition army were completely wiped out by Shengtang.
He thought for a moment and felt that Li Jiangyao's proposal was indeed a solution acceptable to both parties under the current situation, so he nodded helplessly: "Okay, since the Protector of the Capital is kindly trying to persuade us to stay, we can't ignore the good and the bad. As long as we have food, If you don’t want to go hungry, it doesn’t hurt to stay in Western Xinjiang for a while.”
Li Jiangyao placed Gema in a small basin in the Fourth Army's defense area. This place is located on the border of Jingjue Kingdom, surrounded by mountains and lush water and grass. Only a small mountain pass to the east is accessible. The Shenhua Army set up a fortress outside the mountain pass and stationed two thousand soldiers and horses, symbolically taking care of the Yakut Army.
As soon as Li Jiangyao had settled the matter with Gema and the others, he received new information from Nilin Division. After reading the secret letter, he couldn't help but frown, and quickly ordered someone to invite Xiahou Ninghan to come over.
Not long after, Xia Hou Ninghan arrived. Unexpectedly, Lian Ji, who looked jealous, came with him. This girl is watching Xia Hou Ninghan very closely now, for fear that she will be alone with Li Jiangyao.
Li Jiangyao and Xia Hou Ninghan were also helpless about this, but they were too lazy to break up with Lian Ji. As soon as they met, Li Jiangyao made an exception and handed the confidential intelligence letter to Xia Hou Ninghan. While asking her to read it, he said in a deep voice: "The situation is more serious than we previously expected!"
Xiahou Ninghan hurriedly read the contents of the secret letter, her eyebrows suddenly stood up, and she was trembling with anger: "These damn beasts!"
Lian Ji was very curious and couldn't help but ask: "Who are you angry at? Such a big anger. Jiang Yao, what happened?"
Li Jiangyao sighed: "Luoyi."
"Luoyi? What happened to Luoyi?" Lian Ji was a little puzzled: "Could it be that it was captured by the Turks?"
Li Jiangyao patted Xiahou Ninghan's shoulder gently, telling her not to be too sad, and at the same time sighed: "It might be better if it was captured by the Turks."
-
Dongdu, Luoyi.
This city at the center of the whirlpool of war has spent a long period of peace.
It was hard for the people living in Luoyi to imagine that after the fall of the imperial capital, not even a single battle occurred in their important Central Plains area, which was occupied by rebels and closely watched by the two major forces of the Turks and the Holy Tang. Pass.
The god of luck favored us like this, which can be called a miracle of war.
Especially before the Xuanjia Legion left, they filled in the moat, demolished the city gates, smashed the city walls and wall stacks, and burned down the granary in the south of the city. A completely undefended city became safer.
No one, be it the Turks or the prince's soldiers, wanted to come here easily.
The entire city of Luoyi woke up from the original state of fear and trembling, and suddenly realized the unique good luck in itself, so it logically returned to the peaceful and prosperous days of the past.
"This is a place where dragon energy gathers, and the sky is full of gods and Buddhas watching over it!"
The old people sitting on the roadside basking in the sun all said this, and it gradually became a belief in the hearts of the people in the city: We, Luoyi, are the chosen land, and the flames of war are all around us!
Pedestrians on the street are still crowded as usual, and the shops on both sides continue to do brisk business. The bustling scene makes people here almost forget that there is still a war outside.
Of course, merchants traveling from north to south would bring news of wars from time to time, but to the people of Luoyi, these were just things to talk about after dinner, just for fun, so it didn’t matter.
Among them, the most concerning rumors were not what happened to the prince, what happened to the King of Huaiyang, or what happened to the late emperor's funeral held in the imperial capital, but what happened in Zhongmu County, not far from Luoyi, where monsters hurt people.
For a time, there were different opinions about the Zhongmou tragedy.
Some people said that the whole county was suddenly attacked by monsters, and all six to seven thousand people were killed in just one morning. The death was extremely miserable; but some people soon came out to refute, saying that it was impossible for so many people to die at once, and that at most it was only Only two to three hundred people were injured; some people analyzed that this was not actually a monster, but a Turk disguised to disturb the hearts of the people of Shengtang.
Because no one has ever seen a man-eating monster with his own eyes, and in the chaos of war, the connection between Luoyi and Zhongmou has long been interrupted and cannot be verified. Therefore, most people don't really believe this. At most, they go home and talk about it in a more embellished way to scare their wives and tease their children.
The people of Luoyi lived a peaceful life until that night.
That night when the moon was like a hook.
Uncle Cao, who works as a watchman, has been doing this job for three generations, and is currently a veteran in the Luoyi government office. The young people in the city who know how to watch are either his disciples or his disciples and grandsons.
Uncle Cao was happy tonight. An apprentice who had changed his career to business came to see him. The two of them had a few drinks, the apprentice went home, and the old man went to work.
Uncle Cao banged his clapper and walked forward, taking out a few orchid beans from his arms and stuffing them into his mouth. Occasionally he would hum a little tune, which was very pleasant.
As he was walking, a group of people suddenly appeared in front of him. Uncle Cao thought it was his eyesight and quickly rubbed his eyes with the back of his hand. Although Luoyi does not impose a night curfew like the imperial capital, it is rare to see so many people during the third watch.
"Hey, what do you do?" The old man greeted as he walked forward: "You stay up late at night and run around in the streets..."
However, before he could finish his words, the guy at the front rushed to the side, and a fishy stench hit him at the same time.
Uncle Cao was startled and saw the man's face clearly through the light of the lantern.
Evil ghost!
The evil ghost with ulcers all over his body and bleeding pus and blood!
