"Oh?"
Not just Gao Xianzhi, but all the Anxi generals in the hall brightened at Wang Chong's words. No one had ever heard Wang Chong's theory of war before, and even Gao Xianzhi found it refreshing, let alone the others. Only Wang Yan and Wang Fu, who had long since grown accustomed to it, showed little reaction.
"Lord Protector-General speaks wisely. Water is impermanent, momentum is impermanent. I didn't think that Milord would be able to comprehend the principles of the art of war from the everyday sights and sounds of nature!"
Cheng Qianli praised Wang Chong, his heart filled with sincere admiration.
Wang Chong's understanding of the art of war was completely different from any of the generals of the Tang Dynasty. It was very difficult to believe that a seventeen-year-old youth could possess such a high level of understanding of the art of war!
"Vice Protector-General's praise is too much!"
Wang Chong only faintly smiled, not the slightest bit proud, nor was he overly humble.
As the publicly acknowledged War Saint of the Central Plains, although he had still not recovered his cultivation level, there were very few people in the world who could compare to him in terms of the art of war. Even Dalun Ruozan was actually imitating the art of war he had used in the southwestern war!
"Leave Dalun Ruozan to me, but there's still Abu Muslim. If Dalun Ruozan plans to move at night, Abu Muslim will definitely not let go of this chance. Not only that, based on my understanding of Dalun Ruozan, he will definitely send a letter to Abu Muslim warning him to be careful of us. "
Wang Chong said.
"Leave this matter to me."
Gao Xianzhi took it without hesitation. He had a smile on his face and looked very calm.
"After all, he's been fighting with Abu Muslim for so long. No matter what he wants to do, the Anxi Protectorate army can make him return empty-handed. In addition, we can use this opportunity to probe the Arabs and understand what they have up their sleeves! "
As the God of War of the Western Region, Gao Xianzhi had his own pride. Perhaps Gao Xianzhi was still lacking in strategic planning, but when it came to leading troops into battle, Gao Xianzhi was not inferior to anyone. The two commanders of the Tang Dynasty quickly came to an agreement. Wang Chong would deal with Dalun Ruozan while Gao Xianzhi would deal with Abu Muslim.
Following that, the two Commander-in-Chief of the Tang dynasty, together with the generals in the hall, discussed the specific actions and details for a long time. After the discussion was done and there were no problems, they quickly made a decision. All that was left was to wait for nightfall.
…
As time slowly passed, the Western Turks, the Arabs, the Ouzan, and the Tang dynasty maintained absolute restraint after the battle. At some point, the sky had darkened.
"Ziyad, what did Baghdad say? Hadn't the caliph already agreed to dispatch the Mamelukes? Why have the Mamelukes that should have appeared a month ago still not appeared! "
To the west of the City of Talas, in the brightly lit Arab camp, the Governor of Iron and Blood, Abu Muslim, was seated on an enormous throne forged from gold and black iron, looking at Deputy Governor Ziyad.
"Lord Governor, I've already sent letters several times. Based on the news from the rear, it seems like another uprising has broken out in Khorasan. Those rebels have colluded with the Sassanid nobles and are stirring up trouble there. The caliph places great importance on this matter, so he has sent the Mamelukes to suppress the uprising. "
Ziyad bowed.
Abu Muslim's thick brow imperceptibly creased at these words. The Sassanid Dynasty was an empire that Arabia had once conquered, and it was also the strongest foe the Arabian Empire had encountered in its expansion. Khorasan was the eastern territory of the former Sassanid Dynasty.
Although Arabia had already conquered the Sassanid Dynasty, there were still many remnants of the Sassanid Dynasty that had escaped, occasionally staging revolts against Arabia. Of these, Khorasan was the fiercest region of resistance. This had always been a sore point for the Caliph, so he had always fiercely suppressed it.
When Abu Muslim had become Governor of the East, he had also harshly suppressed that region, but he hadn't expected for long before another uprising had broken out.
"Have we still not captured those Sassanid nobles?"
Abu Muslim frowned, a sharp light flashing through the depths of his eyes.
"Not yet. Those fleeing Sassanid nobles are very cautious, and they have a large number of Khorasani helping them. It's very difficult for us to capture them. The Caliph has already sent Governor Hiero to oversee this matter, and Khorasan has been plastered with posters, but as usual, it will be very difficult for us to capture them. In addition … "
Ziyad hesitated for a moment, then glanced at Abu Muslim.
"I just received word from the Caliph that His Majesty is extremely dissatisfied with our progress at Talas!"
"Buzz!"
Ziyad's words immediately silenced the tent, all the Arab officers lowering their heads in an oppressive atmosphere. In Arabia, the Caliph's decree was the decree of God, and no one dared to defy the Caliph. The Caliph had never cared about the losses suffered by the governors in battle, nor did he care about how many of their subordinates had died.
The Caliph only cared about the results!
The failure to take Talas in more than two months had already incurred the Caliph's displeasure. If this situation could not be changed, Abu Muslim would soon be replaced.
— — Before this, many governors of the East had been replaced because of this reason!
"Talas will be taken! The Tang Dynasty will surely be defeated! "
After some time, when the atmosphere in the tent was so heavy that it was almost suffocating, Abu Muslim finally spoke. His voice was like steel, suffused with an unshakable will.
"Write a letter for me. Tell the Caliph that Abu Muslim will end this battle in two months and offer up the western territories of the Tang Dynasty as a gift to the Caliph! In addition, once the battle is over, I will start a bloody massacre and use the corpses of one hundred thousand Tang Dynasty soldiers to dispel His Majesty's dissatisfaction. After this battle, not a single one of them will return to the Tang Dynasty alive!! "
Abu Muslim's words immediately caused the atmosphere in the tent to become strange and scorching. Any warrior of the Arabian Empire who understood the name 'Abu Muslim' would understand what the word 'Bloody Butcher' signified.
Although this was a boundless terror to the enemies of the Arabian Empire, to the Arabs, whose mission was to kill and conquer, this was a source of excitement, stimulating the morale and fighting power of the entire army.
"Your subordinate will go!"
Ziyad sincerely said.
"That's right, there's one more thing. Although His Majesty has temporarily mobilized the Mamelukes to suppress the Sassanid rebel army, His Majesty has already agreed to two of Lord Governor's other requests. Those two special armies will appear at Talas tomorrow at the latest and await Lord Governor's orders! "
"Okay!"
At these words, Abu Muslim's eyes exploded with light, and his entire body was invigorated.
"Ziyad, I leave this matter to you. Tomorrow, we will end this battle once and for all!"
"This general will go!"
Flapflap!
As the group was in the middle of their discussion, there was the flapping of wings. Thwish! In the blink of an eye, a nimble and thin Azure Eagle closed its wings and shot out of the tent toward Abu Muslim, who was seated on his throne of gold and black iron.
This abrupt sight instantly attracted everyone's attention.
Seated on his throne, Abu Muslim's eyes flashed as he calmly extended a hand. That thin and small green eagle landed lightly on his extended index finger, motionless. Everyone could see a thin piece of snow-white paper on its leg.
"It's from Ouzan."
A hint of confusion flashed through Abu Muslim's eyes as he quickly removed the paper from the Azure Eagle's leg and began to examine it. As Abu Muslim examined it, the tent was quiet. No one spoke, not even Ziyad.
"Interesting! The Ouzan actually sent a letter warning us to be careful of the Tang people's disguises and sneak attacks. "
After reading the letter, Abu Muslim grinned and carelessly handed the paper to a swarthy Arab general.
"Although I don't think that anyone can ambush us, the Ouzan have good intentions. Nurman, take care of this and reply to them."
"Your subordinate will go!"
The Arab general called Nurman sternly said.
"In addition, the Ouzan and the Western Turks hope that we will work together to attack the Tang Dynasty at night. This matter is indisputable and in line with the interests of our Arabs. Nurman, gather your subordinates and get ready! "
Abu Muslim said.
"This general will go!"
Nurman excitedly replied, his eyes glimmering with killing intent as he quickly departed.
No one in the eastern Arab army was more adept at night raids than him. This was going to be a grand and bloody banquet.
… …
The sky hung low, and this seemed to be the last sunrise and sunset that all of Talas would see before the end of the year. As the sun sank below the horizon, the sky quickly darkened. Several hours later, the sky over Talas had completely darkened.
Plushplushplush! As the sky darkened, flames soared into the sky, illuminating the entire City of Steel on the eastern front. Everything within a radius of fifty zhang was illuminated. Soon after, the other City of Steel on the western front began to spit fire into the sky.
Two long streaks of fire pushed the warning line around the two steel defense lines forward.
At almost the same time, in the hills to the east, massive bonfires soared into the sky, their light even brighter and brighter than the two Steel Walls. These blazing bonfires created a wide defensive perimeter for the Ouzan and the Western Turks. And right behind them were the Arabs of the west.
One blaze after another, blazing and dazzling, illuminated the ice-cold city of Talas like a resplendent night sky.
— — Three forces, four empires, in the instant that night fell, they simultaneously made full preparations.
"Dalun Ruozan really did come prepared!"
Standing on the northeast corner of the City of Talas, Wang Chong held his hands behind his back and smiled as he gazed at the countless Ouzan and Western Turks in the distant hills.
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