The court debate continued from morning until evening, the debate reaching an unprecedented level of intensity. At dusk, a golden carriage draped with dragons emerged from a corner of the Imperial Palace. On the carriage, The King of Song was deeply concerned.
"Your Highness, did the matter at Talas not go smoothly?"
The old butler asked in concern, his hands tucked into his sleeves. In the past, The King of Song had also had times when things did not go smoothly in the court, but he was rarely as worried as he was now.
"Mm."
The King of Song nodded, not hiding anything from the old butler.
"Your Highness, be at ease. Nothing will happen to Talas. King Qi also opposed it in the past, but didn't it still pass?"
The old butler consoled.
"Haaah!"
The King of Song couldn't help but give a long sigh.
"If it was just King Qi stirring up trouble and inciting the ministers to oppose in court, things would be much simpler. But this time is different. The one opposing is not King Qi. He is only assisting from the side. The ones truly opposing are the civil officials of the Tang Dynasty! "
Buzz! The old butler was stunned by these words, and he instantly fell silent. Even though the old butler rarely paid attention to matters of the court, he knew that this was a political struggle that was even more ferocious than a factional struggle. If the one opposing was not King Qi, but the civil officials of the court, then the nature of the matter would be completely different.
He heard The King of Song's solemn voice.
"The Tang Dynasty has enjoyed decades of peace. The people are getting more and more used to these peaceful days, and they are getting more and more disgusted with war. I am only worried that this is only the beginning."
… …
The debate in the court grew more and more intense, and as it grew, the name of Arabia became more and more familiar in the streets and alleys of the Tang Dynasty. The names of Arabia, Ouzan, the Western Turks, and Talas appeared more and more frequently in the restaurants and tea houses.
While the entire capital was still discussing the alliance between Arabia and the other two countries, a falcon with golden claws flapped its wings and flew like a bolt of lightning to the northeast of the Tang Dynasty. Several days later, in the Andong Protectorate headquarters in Youzhou, Zhang Shougui was seated cross-legged on the ground. He extended a hand and took the letter from the capital. It was quiet in the tent. All the civil and military officials in the surroundings had their eyes focused on the man who was like a god in the northeast of the Tang dynasty.
"Haha, what a bunch of cynical scholars. Without soldiers on the campaign, how could the Tang dynasty be at peace? That brat at Talas has miscalculated. If he had lost this battle, the Imperial Court might have immediately mobilized soldiers, but he just happened to win. Now, it's easier said than done."
"Milord, the matter of Talas is currently causing a ruckus in the capital. In their letters, Wang Chong and Gao Xianzhi say that the Arabs have four hundred thousand soldiers and are about to reach Talas. Moreover, if they win, an endless stream of soldiers will follow. Does Arabia really have that many soldiers? How true is this matter? "
At this moment, Deputy General Zhao Kan of the Andong Protectorate army spoke from behind him, an extremely respectful expression on his face.
"Of course it's true!"
To his surprise, Zhang Shougui didn't even need to think before confirming.
"When I was stationed in Longxi, I heard that the Arabs have fierce personalities and love war. They've already conquered many countries to the west of the Cong Mountains. At the time, I also sent people to gather some intelligence and learned that the rumors were true. Thus, I concluded that one mountain cannot hold two tigers, and that in the future, Arabia and the Tang dynasty will inevitably fight! The Imperial Court believes that Gao Xianzhi and that brat are exaggerating, but I know that they don't have the courage. The crime of deceiving the sovereign is no small matter! "
The Youzhou generals in the tent were all dumbfounded.
The current Talas was so far away that the Imperial Court was shrouded in fog as to what was going on there. No one had expected that, even though it was so far to the northeast, their Protector-General would know it like the back of his hand. But they quickly realized what was going on.
"Haha, given Gao Xianzhi and Wang Chong's current state, they definitely don't have more than sixty thousand soldiers. If it really is as they say and the four hundred thousand Arab soldiers arrive, won't they be doomed without reinforcements from the Imperial Court?"
"Hmph, who can be blamed for this? Gao Xianzhi is just a junior, and his experience and martial arts can't compare to our Milord's. But after just a few victories, he dares to call himself a War God, thinking that he can stand on equal footing with Milord. He doesn't even think about how he can compare to Milord's achievements. And that brat, just because he's from a clan of ministers and generals, he dares to talk back to the Protector-General in the capital. Truly arrogant to the extreme! Now that Talas is in danger, I'd like to see just how they'll be able to fight against Milord in the future! "
"Hahaha, this is called asking for it!"
… …
The generals in the tent were all sneering as if they were waiting for a good show. Neither Gao Xianzhi nor Wang Chong were good people to the Andong Protectorate army. Gao Xianzhi had never had much respect for Zhang Shougui, and Wang Chong had even killed Ashina Sugan in the capital, causing the Protector-General to lose face. Thus, no one had a good opinion of these two.
Zhang Shougui sat in the tent, one hand on the table as he silently smiled.
"Reporting!"
At this moment, a voice rang out. Before he could finish speaking, a messenger from the Andong Protectorate rushed into the tent with a letter in his hands and got down on one knee.
"Lord Protector-General, the City of Talas has sent a letter. Milord, please look over it!"
"Buzz!"
As soon as he finished speaking, the entire tent was deathly silent to the point that a pin drop could be heard. Everyone turned to the messenger, and even Zhang Shougui couldn't help but raise an eyebrow and turn his head.
Talas was a land beyond the borders of the Tang Dynasty. Several months ago, no one would have known of its existence, but now, even the people in the distant Youzhou knew of it.
"Milord, what's going on? Why would Talas write to us at a time like this? "
To Zhang Shougui's right, a fierce-looking Hu dressed in a white robe suddenly creased his brow.
Unlike the others in the tent, he had a pair of snow-white eyebrows, and there was almost no one in Youzhou who did not recognize him.
Baizhen Tuoluo!
This was a famous general under Zhang Shougui's command, a fierce Hu general that Zhang Shougui had recruited from Youzhou, a Brigadier General! He was extremely capable of leading troops.
The other generals also silently looked at Zhang Shougui.
"Mm. Won't you know what they're plotting once you open the letter?"
Zhang Shougui grinned. As he spoke, he waved his hand at the messenger below.
Zhang Shougui quickly took the letter from the messenger and skimmed through it, his expression turning strange.
"Hahaha, interesting, interesting!"
Zhang Shougui's sudden roar of laughter gave everyone in the tent a fright.
"Milord, what's wrong?"
Baizhen Tuoluo said.
"Haha, truly interesting! That brat from the Wang Clan at Talas actually sent me a letter asking for reinforcements. He wants me to send an army to help him. "
Zhang Shougui heartily laughed.
"What!"
"Help them? How could that be? Have they lost their minds? "
"To think that they could think of asking our Andong Protectorate army to help them! Only if the sun rises from the west!"
… …
Everyone in the tent was dumbfounded by this news. They had only just mentioned Wang Chong and the people of Talas when they received a letter asking for reinforcements. This was far too ironic!
Zhang Shougui had a strange expression on his face, only faintly smiling as he passed the letter to Baizhen Tuoluo and the other generals in the tent.
"Zhao Kan, Baizhen Tuoluo, pass it around. Tell me, what do you think about this matter?"
Baizhen Tuoluo was stunned, and he subconsciously received the letter before circulating it with everyone in the tent.
"Milord, I think that there's no need to pay attention to this letter. The Imperial Court will handle the matter of Talas. It's not our place to speak. Moreover, Youzhou is very far from Talas. Even if Gao Xianzhi and that brat want reinforcements, it shouldn't be us, not to mention that Milord has a grudge against them. "
Baizhen Tuoluo immediately said as he looked at the letter.
Talas was currently in grave danger. No matter what, the Andong Protectorate army should not be the one Wang Chong was requesting for reinforcements.
"Zhao Kan, what do you think?"
Zhang Shougui faintly smiled as he turned to Deputy General Zhao Kan.
"Milord, this general shares Baizhen Tuoluo's opinion. This subordinate believes that there's no need to worry about this letter. We can just pretend that we never received it. "
Zhao Kan said.
Everyone in the tent nodded, clearly of the same opinion as Zhao Kan and Baizhen Tuoluo. Zhang Shougui and Wang Chong had always had a grudge, and Wang Chong's grandfather, Wang Jiuling, had even tried to impeach Zhang Shougui. If not for him, Zhang Shougui might have already become Prime Minister.
"Haha!"
Zhang Shougui lightly rapped his right hand on the table and then said something that left everyone dumbfounded.
"Zhao Kan, Baizhen Tuoluo, you've been with me for many years, and you've been Brigadier Generals for a very long time, but even now, you're still at that level. And that brat from the Wang Clan has already become Qixi Protector-General in less than a year. Do you know how you differ from him? "
"Milord!"
Everyone in the tent was dumbfounded. Zhao Kan and Baizhen Tuoluo were also dumbfounded. They had originally believed that the Protector-General had a grudge with the Wang Clan, so no matter how they looked at it, he wouldn't help them. But that was clearly not the case at all.
"I have a personal grudge with that brat from the Wang Clan and Wang Jiuling. If we were to meet in private, it wouldn't be excessive for me to kill them, but that brat from the Wang Clan is asking for my help on official matters, for the sake of the empire. If I were to put aside official matters for my personal reasons and refuse him, wouldn't that prove that I, Zhang Shougui, am narrow-minded, that I can't even compare to a grandson of Wang Jiuling's? It would also prove that Wang Jiuling's words were correct.
"Moreover, it's fine if nothing happens to Talas, but if something does, do you think that the Imperial Court and the Holy Emperor will know that we refused Wang Chong's request for reinforcements?"
Zhang Shougui said. His words silenced everyone in the tent, all of them dumbstruck. They had only thought about the grudge between the Andong Protectorate army and the Wang Clan, but they had never thought about this. After following Zhang Shougui for so many years, they had a vague understanding of the Holy Emperor's way of doing things. If this matter were to leak out in the future, it would be no small matter.
"But Milord, that brat has contradicted Milord many times. Are we really going to be threatened by him into sending troops?"
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