The seventh day of the ninth month, the capital.
Although Li Jing didn't adopt Xun Yu's plan, he still reported the matter to the imperial court. His purpose was to ask the imperial court to make early preparations.
Due to the fact that the Mongolian Empire had never acknowledged Great Xia's status as the legitimate Hua Xia Empire, the relationship between the two countries had always been rather stiff. Perhaps Li Jing was a little worried that he would be stopped by the Mongolian army if he really wanted to borrow the path in the future.
This problem could only be solved by reporting it to the imperial court.
The war with Tubo was the biggest event in Great Xia during this period of time. Regardless of how big or small it was, Ouyang Shuo would be the first to report it to him. Ouyang Shuo finished reading Li Jing's memorial and said, "It's time to investigate Mongolia's background."
"Guards!"
"Here!"
"Invite Grand Herald Zhang Yi over."
"Yes, sir!"
After a while, Zhang Yi hurried to the imperial study and bowed. "This subject greets Your Majesty!"
"Be seated!"
After Zhang Yi sat down, Ouyang Shuo said: "Official, send someone to Halla and Lin."
"Your Majesty, may I ask if you have any orders?"
Ouyang Shuo nodded and stretched out his index finger. "First, reiterate to Genghis Khan that during the Mongolian expedition to the west, the empire will not attack the Mongolians. This promise will always stand. "
This was a promise, but it could also be seen as a threat.
Speaking of which, the war between the Mongolian Empire and the Persian Empire had already been going on for half a year, and the victor had yet to be determined. Based on the intelligence from the Asian Division of the Black Snake Guards, the Mongolian Empire had already taken down 12 cities. The further west they went, the more obstructions they would face, and it would be difficult for them to continue.
If nothing unexpected happened, the Mongolians should be withdrawing their troops soon and ending their first expedition to the west.
If Mongolia returned from the western expedition, they would have to face the threat of Great Xia. Even though only half a year had passed, the situation in the Chinese plains had changed drastically.
Great Xia unified the Central Plains, from the Liaojin Province in the east to the Xihai Province in the west. They built a complete line of defense in the north, and they had more than a million soldiers stationed there. It was an existence that the Mongolian Empire could not fight against.
How to deal with the relationship with Mongolia was already on Ouyang Shuo's desk.
A high-ranking minister suggested that as soon as the Tubo war was over, the imperial court should immediately send troops to Mongolia to attack and destroy it. If the Imperial Court fought with all its might, it would not be too difficult, and they would definitely be able to emerge victorious in a single battle.
After the war against Western Xia, the Ten Months Natural Disaster, and the Western Expedition, the Mongolian army went from 1.8 million to less than 1.3 million. Even though their territory had expanded, their strength was declining.
Besides, the Mongolian Empire spanned from the east to the west, and its territory was vast. They could not take care of both the front and the back, and even with the speed of the Mongolian cavaliers, they could not rush to the east to provide reinforcements within a short period of time.
How was Mongolia going to fight against Great Xia?
It was not difficult to take down Mongolia, but how were they going to govern it after they took it down?
The Mongolian Empire was a typical nomadic civilization and had a vast territory. If they wanted to govern it well, they had to rely on the Mongolians and give them a certain degree of autonomy.
In history, all the dynasties that could subdue the nomadic tribes were only able to make them pay tribute.
In the game world, it was impossible for Great Xia to overthrow them and start all over again. They could not wantonly cultivate the land and forcefully turn Mongolia into an agricultural civilization. From the perspective of the Empire's needs, it was necessary to preserve such a large farm.
This also meant that it was not good to be too forceful against the Mongolian Empire. If Great Xia really mobilized their armies and killed their way through the Mongolian Plains, it was hard to say when the Mongolian Plains would be able to recover.
However, if they did not fight, Genghis Khan was not someone who was willing to lower his head.
This caused Ouyang Shuo a lot of trouble, and he could not think of a plan that would satisfy both sides. Even Zhang Liang and the other strategists could not think of a safe plan.
This was why it had dragged on until now.
Ouyang Shuo had also considered this when he made a promise to Genghis Khan not to take the initiative to attack the Mongolians.
"Second, make a request to Genghis Khan. Ask the Mongolian Empire to unconditionally open up the Ogedei Khanate to our army during the Tubo War, and we can use it at any time."
The second point was a little overbearing, and Zhang Yi's eyes narrowed.
As an envoy, it was a test of his diplomatic skills to perfectly convey the Mongolian Empire's request and also be able to adapt to the situation while infuriating the Mongolian Empire. He could also use clever words to appease the Mongolian Plains and achieve his goal.
Ouyang Shuo could have said it in a more tactful manner, but he did not because he wanted to test Genghis Khan. He wanted to see if this ruler of the plains was going to fight Great Xia to the end or if he could recognize reality and give both sides a buffer and a chance to negotiate.
It could be said that Genghis Khan's attitude on this matter, to a certain extent, would determine the strategy that Great Xia would use against the Mongolian Empire in the future.
Because of this, the requirement for the envoy to be sent was even higher. He had to be able to observe the words and expressions of the ambitious and ruthless Genghis Khan, and not be deceived by him.
If Genghis Khan was already very dissatisfied and only expressed it vaguely, or even with a smile on his face, and the envoy was deceived, it would bring a huge disaster to the Empire.
After hearing this, Zhang Yi did not hesitate and immediately said, "Since this is the case, I will personally make the trip."
"Then I will have to trouble you, my dear subject." Ouyang Shuo had the same intention. He smiled and said, "My dear subject, bring some gifts to Genghis Khan. It doesn't matter if they are generous, as a sign of friendship. In addition, you can also take this opportunity to observe Hara and Lin. Do you understand what I mean, my dear subject? "
"Your humble subject understands!"
Zhang Yi was very smart, and he naturally understood.
… …
Great Xia had not established diplomatic relations with the Mongolian Empire, so naturally, they did not have a Teleportation Formation.
Zhang Yi's trip this time had to be Teleported to Handan City, and then through Handan, he would be escorted by the Northern Borderline Army. If everything went smoothly, it would take at least five to six days to reach Hara and Lin.
During this period, the Tubo battlefield did not stop fighting, and the fighting became even more intense.
After each of the four armies of Great Xia captured a city, they finally had a stable forward base. More and more officers and soldiers had adapted to the altitude sickness and could fight normally.
This gave the commanders of the four armies greater confidence and courage.
In the first round of competition between the four armies, the Qin army was unparalleled, and the Tang army was collectively humiliated. The huge contrast stimulated the competition among each other, and they competed with each other to capture the second and third city.
This was especially so for the Tang army. This time, Cheng Yaojin and Yuchi Jingde each led a unit to attack two cities at the same time. This was to avenge their previous humiliation and regain their lost glory.
The Tang army was going all out, and naturally, the other three armies had no reason to relax.
Under such circumstances, the whole battlefield showed a lively scene of war from all sides, and the flames of war were burning everywhere. At every moment, the Xia army was either marching or attacking a city.
Such a fierce war also posed a greater challenge to the logistical support.
If not for Ceng Guofan and Du Ruhui personally supervising all sides, the provisions would probably not be able to continue. Even so, the frenzy at the frontline made the two ministers complain incessantly.
But no matter how hard it was, they did not dare to complain.
The soldiers at the frontline worked hard, risked their lives, and fought to be the vanguard. This was the scene that many emperors dreamed of. Who dared to drag the army down at this time?
If they really did that, His Majesty would not only reprimand them, but also might even punish them.
The two ministers had no choice but to pass the pressure layer by layer, from the two of them to the governors and the commanders of the army, and then down to the lowest level of the grain transport team.
This time, millions of labourers and soldiers suffered.
Looking down from the sky, the entire western part of the Xia Kingdom, on the network of countless official roads, could be seen endless grain transport carts, converging on the Tubo army.
That scene was indeed a rare sight in a thousand years.
The Xia army was going all out, but King Ashoka was not convinced. After learning that four cities at the border had successively fallen within a week, the proud King Ashoka did not hesitate and directly sent 500,000 imperial guards to the Tubo army.
At the same time, like the Xia Kingdom, King Ashoka also issued a national mobilization order to recruit millions of laborers to transport the provisions for the army to the Tubo territory.
Both dynasties were doing their best, and neither was convinced by the other.
At this time, the crazy behavior of the Ashoka Dynasty finally made the Peacock Dynasty and the Gudo Dynasty, which were both in India, unable to sit still and began to secretly meet.
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