To the west of Hangai Mountain, the Zabuhan River flows quietly. Next to the winding river is a grassland with rich water and grass, and white tents are like stars falling on the world.
White sheep, brown horses, vigorous boys, and beautiful girls are like a dream, full of peace, tranquility and vitality.
Just after a rain, it suddenly cleared up again, like a girl in love, the weather was uncertain.
Beside the river, a beautiful girl held a riding crop, raised her showy hand on her forehead, looked at the rainbow hanging in the sky, and shouted to the grassland not far away: "Batu, if you don't come, I will leave. ”
As if hearing the woman's voice, a horse came galloping in the distance. On the horse's back was a young man, carrying a long bow behind him. When he reached the woman's side, he suddenly reined in the horse, and the horse raised its head high. The hooves danced in the air. The young man held the reins and stared at the woman with a smile on his face.
Ulan Tuya narrowed her eyes and smiled: "Brother Batu's equestrian skills have improved again."
Batu smiled and dismounted, threw away the reins, and let the horse forage for food. He walked beside Ulantuya and said, "Yeah, let me tell you good news. I have passed the examination of the leaders. Now, You have to call me Batu Warrior."
Wulantuya suddenly flashed her big bright eyes, admiring: "I knew you could do it, you will definitely become a powerful warrior."
Batu laughed heartily and said with great pride: "Yes, I will definitely do it!"
Wulantuya lowered her head and asked with some worry: "I heard from my father yesterday that there is a possibility of going on an expedition again. Will you go too? I asked the people in the Huite Department and many of their men are preparing to go on an expedition. , Don’t be afraid of me and worry about hiding it from me.”
Seeing that Ulan Tuya was worried, Batu stopped and said seriously: "I won't hide it from you, you are the most beautiful flower I have ever encountered on the grassland. I will definitely tell you when I leave, and I will definitely look for you when I come back. But you can rest assured that there is not much danger in this expedition, and it is very likely that we will not be able to fight."
"Why?"
Ulantuya was a little confused.
Batu looked around and saw no one, so he whispered: "In April, you also met Tamerlane's envoys. They came to find the three leaders of Mahamu. In name, they wanted to marry each other, but in fact they In order to persuade the Oara tribe to cooperate with Timur in his eastern expedition and destroy the Ming Dynasty."
Ulan Tuya looked at Batu in surprise: "Timur wants to march eastward? Isn't he the war madman my father said he was?"
"Yes, it's him!"
The corners of Batu's mouth moved slightly.
Ulan Tuya looked a little ugly and said quickly: "The Ming Dynasty is not easy to deal with. I heard that the Tatar headquarters stayed near the Hetao and did not dare to return to the east grassland. If the Ming Dynasty is easy to deal with, with Arutai, The arrogance of people like Guilichi will not give up the pasture near Qiuba Mountain.”
Batu clicked his tongue twice and praised: "I can't believe that my Ulantuya is so smart."
"Who is yours!"
"Isn't it mine? Who else can compete with me for you? I will fight him on horseback!"
"Hmph, if you lose, don't you lose me? I don't deserve to be someone else's trophy."
Ulan Tuya blushed slightly.
Batu laughed loudly and pointed to the Altai Mountains in the distance: "Don't worry, I will only win, not lose."
Wulantuya was happy in her heart. After thinking about it, she couldn't help but ask: "Do the three leaders mean to help Timur attack the Ming Dynasty?"
Batu shook his head: "How can I know such a thing? But I know that Song Sheng of the Ming Dynasty led troops to station in Hami. I heard that King Zhu Di of Yan also led an army out of Jiayuguan, but I didn't know this Was it in Yiwu or Hami?"
Ulan Tuya asked with some confusion: "The Ming court army left Jiayuguan and arrived at Hami? Why does this sound so abnormal? Brother Batu, don't you find it strange? I have heard people say that the Ming court mainly Infantry is good at defending the city, but not good at cavalry. Timur's cavalry is famous all over the world. The Ming court would not know that they gave up Jiayuguan and chose to fight Timur in Hami. Isn't this seeking death? Could it be that Song Sheng and Zhu Di were stupid? Became a fool?"
Batu thought for a while, and it was indeed as Ulan Tuya said. It was weird for the Ming Dynasty to give up its geographical location and city gates. This kind of strategy of using one's own shortcomings to counter the enemy's strong points could only be done by a fool. Come out.
But is Song Sheng a fool?
But is Zhu Di a fool?
Batu had heard about these two people. Song Sheng was in the northwest of the Ming Dynasty, forcing the three leaders of Wala to shrink, and even asked for a title from the Ming Dynasty to express their surrender. Zhu Di played a beautiful "fueling tactic" in the Northeast. Using this tactic in front of the Tatars who were proficient in cavalry showed that the other party was an excellent cavalry commander.
These two people are very smart!
Batu shook his head and said to Ulantuya: "This kind of thing is not something we should consider. This is..."
Ulan Tuya interrupted Batu: "No, you are wrong! You must consider these. There are many warriors charging on the battlefield, but few have brains. I hope you can see through the problem with your eyes, I hope you You can put forward your own opinions, and only in this way can you win the attention of the leaders!"
Batu looked deeply at Ulantuya and nodded vigorously.
woo woo woo woo.
The loud sound of trumpets came from afar. Batu listened carefully and said to Ulantuya: "The leaders are gathering the army. I'm going to have a look. If we go out today, I hope you remember, I, Batu, will be your man, Ulantuya, wait for me."
The whistle blew and the horses galloped.
Batu got on his horse, looked at Ulantuya lovingly, then turned the horse's head and rode away.
Wulantuya chased a few steps behind and shouted: "Keep your word!"
Batu didn't say anything, he just raised his horse whip and walked away laughing.
Mahamu, Baltu Polo, and Taiping stood on a high place, inspecting the elites in front of them. Mahamu made some inspiring words, and then issued a military order: "Go out, target Weilu City!"
Fifteen thousand cavalry, led by Mahamu and Baltupolo, left Hangai Mountain.
To night.
Mahamu ordered a rest and looked at the stars in the sky with deep uneasiness in his eyes. Batu Polo didn't feel sleepy at all. He sat by the campfire and had no appetite at all.
Zhewuduo's vanguard returned and said to Mahamu and Batu Polo: "The news has been confirmed. The Ming Dynasty has indeed dispatched a large army from Nanjing to the northwest. The leader is King Zhu Di of Yan, and the forward is Xu Huizu, who has led The troops were stationed in Hami. It is rumored that there are 300,000 troops. The exact number is unknown, but it is estimated that the Ming court should not be able to guarantee the logistics of the 300,000 troops."
Mahamu's heart became even more depressed, and he looked at Tupolo: "Look, I will tell you that Emperor Jianwen of Ming Dynasty is not a weak person. He will definitely not just sit back and watch Tamerlane's eastern expedition and blindly defend. This The monarch's strategy is more powerful than we imagined. He calmly controlled Guazhou, Dunhuang, Hami, and Yiwu in just a few months without any trouble!"
Ba Tupolo lamented: "Hami and Yiwu, these are strategically important places. Guilichi wants it, the Tatar headquarters wants it, Yili wants it too, and we want it too! But in the end, It actually fell into the hands of the Ming court! Emperor Jianwen’s appetite is too big!”
Mahamu sat down, grabbed a piece of roasted lamb leg, and took a bite: "The question now is not who holds Hami. Mingting has Hami and Yiwu, and it is fully capable of crossing the Gobi and going directly deep into it." Going to the grasslands west of Hangai Mountain is a huge threat to us!"
Tupolo naturally knew this truth. In the past, there were Hami, Yiwu and hundreds of miles of Hanhai as buffer zones. Even if the Ming Dynasty wanted to attack Oara, it would take many days of marching, and it was impossible to do it without any news. But things are different now. They are too close to the grassland of Hangai Mountain. If they start from Yiwu and conduct a raid, they can reach the vicinity of Hangai Mountain in less than three days!
This distance and this time are too dangerous.
Tupolo sighed: "But if we agree to Timur and cooperate with him to attack the Ming Dynasty, disrupt the Ming court's rear, and cut off their supply lines, will we offend Song Sheng and Zhu Di, offend the Ming Dynasty, and make the matter unable to end? ?”
Mahamu lowered his head to eat the meat, his eyes full of struggle. The choice before him was too difficult.
Timur's eastward expedition was intended to destroy the Ming Dynasty. Did Oara cooperate or not?
If Timur cooperated with Timur to deal with the Ming Dynasty, and Timur finally controlled the vast land and had endless wealth and power, would he still tolerate Oara?
Yes, Timur may not kill him, but he will definitely not allow himself to control Oara again.
There is another possibility. Even if Oara cooperates with Timur, can Timur really win the Ming Dynasty? If, in case Timur loses, he can still withdraw to Samarkand, then what about Oara who has offended the Ming Dynasty? Where can he go?
I definitely can’t stay in Hangai Mountain anymore, but without Hangai Mountain, where else can Wala go? Heading north, into the freezing cold? Heading west, over the Altai Mountains and into the extreme west? Completely abandon the Mongolian grassland, just like the Huns who left the Qilian Mountains crying, leaving the Hangai Mountains crying?
This is not the result you want!
But without cooperating with Timur, after the Ming Dynasty drove away Timur, Song Sheng and Zhu Di held heavy troops. Will they take advantage of the powerful power of their victory over Timur to use their army to completely clean up Hangai Mountain?
Mahamu knew that the key to the problem was not whether he could cooperate with Timur to deal with the Ming Dynasty, but the fate of Oara after the Ming Dynasty won or lost.
Tupolo saw Mahamu's hesitation and persuaded: "Let me say, Timur is more dangerous than Ming Dynasty. You know, he is the same type of person as us. If Ming Dynasty is a hedgehog, then Timur is a hedgehog. Mu'er is a fierce tiger. If we don't take the initiative to provoke the hedgehogs, the hedgehogs may not come to prick us, but the tiger is different. He will not seize the opportunity. As long as he is hungry, he will eat all the meat he sees."
Mahamu raised his head and looked at Tupolo: "You have a deep fear of Timur."
Tupolo did not deny it: "If you carefully look at Timur's information, you will know how cruel and brutal a person he is. There are no less than a million bones buried under his saber. I still insist on myself. According to my opinion, we will just stay in Hangai Mountain and watch the fight between Ming Dynasty and Timur, no matter who wins or loses, we will not take part in it."
Mahamu shook his head bitterly: "Can Wala really stay out of it?"
After thinking about Tupolo for a while, he said, "As long as you want, you can."
Mahamu said nothing, only looked up at the night sky.
At dawn, Mahamu had just led his troops less than fifty miles away when he saw two horses running in front of him. Judging from their appearance, they looked like Mongolians.
Sure enough, the visitor's name was Sharifu, a Mongolian from outside Jiayuguan Pass.
Sha Rifu finally saw Mahamu, looked at the army behind Mahamu, and took out a letter from his arms: "The Ming Dynasty General Zhu Di appointed us to deliver a letter to the leader. This is the plan of leader Mahamu. Where to go?”
Mahamu took the letter and said while opening it: "It's nothing, just leading the troops around."
As the letter unfolded, Mahamu squinted his eyes, which made Tupolo a little anxious and asked: "What did Zhu Di say?"
Mahamu shook the letter: "I don't understand, I don't know Chinese characters..."
