The hall was quiet. Each of Wang Chong's words was powerful and resonated in the minds of the people present. The somewhat oppressive and heavy atmosphere was infected by Wang Chong's enthusiasm, and the atmosphere immediately became spirited.
The Divine Prison Army, the Xuanwu Army, the Dragon Stallion Army, the Roaring Tiger Army … and the second wave of reinforcements from Qixi. Other than Wang Chong, no one knew the exact composition and numbers of these reinforcements. Not even Gao Xianzhi knew anything about the many soldiers Wang Chong had mobilized from the interior of the Tang Dynasty.
At the very least, Gao Xianzhi had never heard of the Xuanwu Army and the Divine Prison Army of the Imperial Army, nor did he know how formidable they were.
But Wang Chong, as the commander of this entire plan, understood this better than he did.
'Quality of soldiers, not quantity' was not just a saying, but a principle that Wang Chong had believed in his entire life.
Having lived two lives and experienced many things, he had become accustomed to fighting with fewer to defeat the many. The number of soldiers was very important, but the overall quality of the soldiers was the most important.
The reason that the Tang Dynasty had been able to use its six hundred thousand soldiers to conquer so many empires and forge a legend of unprecedented prosperity was precisely because of the powerful fighting power of its soldiers!
"Wang Chong, what do you think?"
Gao Xianzhi suddenly asked.
To Gao Xianzhi, the progress of this war had already surpassed his expectations. There were many things that he had never imagined would happen when he had attacked the Shi Kingdom. But Wang Chong was different. He was very young, but he had a deep understanding of war and its arrangements, including the plan for the reinforcements, like the back of his hand.
There was no question that the reinforcements this time had reached sixty thousand, and all of them were elites. This had all been specially prepared by Wang Chong before the start of the war.
"Heh."
Wang Chong chuckled, but he did not deny it.
"The Arabs are not as strong as we imagine. Although I can't be sure of the final result of this battle, there is one thing that I can be sure of. No matter what the Arabs want to do, they will suffer an unprecedented wound at Talas!"
With these words, Wang Chong's eyes hardened.
… …
Talas quickly entered a tense period of preparation, with all the soldiers entering the city for intensive training. The Divine Prison Army, Xuanwu Army, Dragon Stallion Army, and Roaring Tiger Army were all existences on par with the Iron Wall Army, but on the battlefield, what armies needed the most was cooperation.
While the reinforcements had arrived and the Arabs did not dare to attack, Wang Chong had the Divine Army, Divine, and other elite armies of soldiers, and began the most intense training. Wang Chong had personally taken over the training of the army. As the strongest War Saint of the Central Plains, it had been a very long time since Wang Chong had gone all out to train an army. Wang Chong placed great importance on this battle.
… …
Meanwhile, while Wang Chong was training his soldiers at Talas, in the distant Arab camp, Abu Muslim, Aybak, Osman, and all the other Arab commanders besides Qutaybah had gathered.
"What do all of you think of this war?"
Abu Muslim stood up around a long Arabic-styled table and looked at his comrades.
The tent was quiet, all of them silently gazing at the map of Talas on the table. Osman and Aybak had the most complicated expressions on their faces. In the past, they would have definitely scoffed at Abu Muslim's proposal. Aybak and Osman rarely used any special tactics to deal with infidel empires, and the Arabian Empire rarely used any sort of strategy, formation, or tactics in its wars with foreign enemies.
— — When one side's power reached a level where it could crush the other side, wisdom and strategy no longer mattered. Strength was the greatest wisdom and the greatest strategy.
"This empire is very difficult to deal with. It's probably much stronger than the Sassanid Dynasty that we destroyed. If I hadn't seen it with my own eyes, I would have found it very difficult to believe that they had someone who could compare to Qutaybah, and an old man at that."
Osman sternly said, a pensive look on his face.
"Not only that, the reinforcements they've brought seem to be extremely powerful, probably no weaker than the Anxi Protectorate army's Iron Wall Army. If all of them are this powerful, even if they only have around one hundred thousand soldiers, we will find it very difficult to destroy them as easily as we imagined, "Aybak sternly said.
Aybak sternly said. As the commander of the Mameluke Army and the most unique commander of the empire, Aybak rarely paid attention to the details of a battle, nor would he involve himself in a battle of this level. But the soldiers behind the steel defense line were so powerful that not even Aybak, the commander of the Mameluke Army, could ignore them.
"Overall, our greatest advantage is that we have the absolute advantage in cavalry. The Tang people's steel defense line makes it very difficult for our soldiers to display their true power, but it also restrains them. Without the steel defense line, their defensive capabilities will be greatly weakened. Thus, in the short term, as long as we still have the initiative on the battlefield, they won't dare to leave the defense line and attack. Thus, the initiative is still in our hands. "
Ziyad sternly said. As the Deputy Governor of the East, Ziyad was glad that he had been born into an empire built on horseback. Otherwise, he found it very difficult to imagine any other faction besides Arabia that could contend against this empire. Not only that, Ziyad had an intense feeling that the opponent they were facing at Talas was a powerful existence second only to Arabia, a true 'Second Empire'.
"It's already very difficult to judge the outcome of this battle. At the very least, until we understand the true strength of the Tang people's army, we can't launch an all-out attack. Right now, we have to wait for the Ouzan and the Western Turks to arrive. Although these two empires of the east aren't as powerful as our Arabia, their understanding of the Tang dynasty might be able to provide us with some unexpected guidance and assistance. "
Abu Muslim said.
He had already thought through the entire course of this battle. The Tang people were not as weak as imagined. Arabia needed to gather all its strength to utterly destroy them. Otherwise, it would be Arabia that faced the same predicament as the Tang people in the future.
"Although I've never met the Ouzan and the Western Turks, if you insist on waiting for them to arrive before starting the decisive battle, have you thought about how to explain things to Qutaybah?"
Osman's voice was loud and clear as he slowly turned his gaze away from the map of Talas and toward Abu Muslim.
Although Abu Muslim, Osman, and other top-class Arab governors had gathered for this night's meeting, Qutaybah had been left out. The dispute from the day was still fresh in their minds, so no one dared to offend Qutaybah. Qutaybah was a true battle maniac, and his retreat during the day had already left him extremely dissatisfied. If he had to stand here and wait for the arrival of the Ouzan and the Western Turks, no one would be able to imagine what he would do.
If Qutaybah were enraged, no one here would be a match for him.
Osman's words plunged the tent into silence. Qutaybah's existence was like the sun and moon in the sky. One could not raise their head, but they could not ignore his existence.
If Qutaybah insisted on attacking, not even Abu Muslim would be able to stop him. This was precisely the predicament everyone in the tent was facing.
"Boom!"
As everyone fell silent, the earth suddenly began to shake as the stomping of hooves came from the rear of the Arab army. All the Great Generals in the tent were stunned by this sound. They truly couldn't think of any other force that could appear in the rear of the Arab army.
Could it be …
Suddenly, a blurry thought flitted through Abu Muslim's mind.
"Reporting!"
At almost the same time, an Arab messenger rushed into the tent. Before he could clearly see who was inside, he immediately got down on one knee and bowed.
"Reporting to Lord Governor: a large army has been discovered outside. The other side says that they are our allies, soldiers belonging to the Ouzan and the Western Turks. Their commander is called Dalun Ruozan. "
"What?!"
Abu Muslim's face lit up with joy.
"Wonderful!"
With no time to explain, Abu Muslim strode out of the tent. Aybak and Osman exchanged glances with each other before quickly following him.
… …
At the same time, in the rear of the Arab army, a group of soldiers was galloping across a narrow stone bridge and galloping toward the Arabs.
Gallop!
A figure wearing an azure Confucian robe rode a tall highland steed across the bridge and toward the Arab camp.
"Haha, Huoshu, it seems like we're not too late. The Arabs and the Tang people have yet to engage in a decisive battle."
Dalun Ruozan lightly waved his sleeve as he gazed at the distant torches illuminating the Arab camp like stars in the night sky, as well as the towering city of Talas.
"Just as Milord predicted, it seems like the trenches and pits we ordered to dig were effective. The reinforcements of the Tang Dynasty arrived around two days later than expected."
A voice came from the rear as Huoshu Huizang rode up on Ouzan's divine steed.
Although he had lost to the Tang people and that boy called Su Hanshan in a direct battle, Dalun Ruozan had still succeeded in using the trenches and pits he had dug to stop the reinforcements of the Tang Dynasty, delaying their arrival and buying him enough time to circle around the rear. Although he had taken a large detour, Ouzan had not been late to this battle.
"Milord, look! The Arabs are moving!"
A slightly plump deputy next to Dalun Ruozan suddenly called out.
These words immediately attracted everyone's attention, and countless eyes turned to the north. There, the Arab army that had been so rigidly organized was suddenly beginning to stir. As everyone watched, the Arab army parted like a wave, allowing a stalwart figure to lead many Arab generals toward them.
"Haha, an old friend has come. Come, let's go and meet Abu Muslim!"
With these words, Dalun Ruozan urged his horse forward, leading the way in the direction of the Arabs.
On the other side, Abu Muslim looked on with a smile in his eyes.
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