Mayi, Yuan Junzhang's camp.
As Yuan Junzhang waited, the weather became cooler and cooler. After all, it was already the 8th month.
On this day, in the army camp.
Just as Yuan Junzhang was training the soldiers, Dugu Qiong hurried back to the camp. He came to Yuan Junzhang's side and reported, "Daxingtai, the Turks are here. The one leading the troops is Xieli's right hand man, Zhi Sili. He led five thousand elite cavalry to attack the Gate of Yanmen with us. "
When Yuan Junzhang heard this, he frowned.
Five thousand elite cavalry!
Although this was not a weak force, but to attack the Gate of Yanmen, he felt that it was still too little.
Yuan Junzhang's face was solemn as he said solemnly, "Xieli purposely only sent five thousand. It seems like he wants us to send more troops. What he did is really vicious! His troops are not too much and not too little. On the contrary, we cannot have less troops. Dugu Qiong, didn't you try to convince Xieli to send more troops? "
"Haiz …"
When Dugu Qiong heard this, he sighed.
Yuan Junzhang said, "Why sigh?"
Dugu Qiong replied, "Daxingtai, it's not that I didn't try to convince him, but that after I went, I didn't have the chance to do so!"
Yuan Junzhang asked, "What do you mean?"
Dugu Qiong explained, "When I went to the Turk Imperial Court, I wanted to meet Xieli. However, Xieli didn't even want to see me and only accepted the letter. As such, even if I had a mouth, I couldn't argue. Xieli didn't want to see me and arranged for Zhi Sili, so I couldn't do anything. "
"Bastard!"
Yuan Junzhang gritted his teeth, "This Xieli really thinks that he's infallible!"
Dugu Qiong sighed.
Who asked them to rely on the Turks and their strength to not be enough?
If they had enough strength, just the Shuo Province alone would be able to block the Tang dynasty army and even suppress the Turks. They would not need to care about the Turks anymore.
The problem was that they couldn't do it.
After raging for a while, Yuan Junzhang was like a deflated balloon, "Since things have come to this, there's nothing much to say. Now, we can only cooperate with the Turks down south. Dugu Qiong, the Xiongnu people will send five thousand cavalry. How many people do you think we should send to participate in this battle? "
Dugu Qiong said, "Daxingtai, this humble one believes that in this battle, our military strength cannot be less than thirty thousand people."
"What?"
When Yuan Junzhang heard this, he raised his voice and said, "Our troops are stationed in Mayi, and we only have fifty thousand men in total. It's not worth it for us to take out thirty thousand people at once. "
After pausing for a moment, Yuan Junzhang continued, "You know what the Turks are planning. They want to use us to overcome the difficulties while they take advantage of us. If we send thirty thousand soldiers, won't we be letting the Turks take advantage of us? "
Dugu Qiong said with a straight face, "This humble one is naturally clear about Daxing Tai's misgivings. However, if we don't send enough soldiers for this battle, it will be difficult to conquer Gate Yan when the time comes. "
"Moreover, even if we conquer it, there won't be many soldiers left in the end. When it comes to dividing the food, I'm afraid we won't have much say. Even if we send fewer troops, Xieli may have something to say. "
"At that time, it will be difficult for us to deal with them."
Dugu Qiong said seriously, "Therefore, we'll send thirty thousand soldiers, no more, no less. It's a rather suitable number. With this number of people, the following matters will be easier to arrange. It won't be difficult to arrange. "
After Yuan Junzhang heard this, he was in deep thought.
Dugu Qiong's words made sense.
If they sent fewer troops and could not win in one go, his soldiers would have died for nothing. What was more problematic was that once Xieli looked into it, it would be difficult for him to explain. After all, the current Yuan Junzhang was relying on the Turks.
The moment he lost the protection of the Turks, Yuan Junzhang would not be able to defend Shuo Province and gain a foothold in Mayi.
Dugu Qiong did not try to persuade him anymore.
He believed that Yuan Junzhang could understand. After all, Yuan Junzhang was a strategist and knew how to weigh the pros and cons.
After thinking about it, Yuan Junzhang did not say anything more and said, "Since things have come to this, there is nothing more to say. Forget it, for this battle, I will personally go. We will send thirty thousand troops. Oh, let Gao Manzheng stay and take charge of Mayi. Dugu Qiong, you also prepare to follow me. I will immediately give the order to mobilize the troops. "
Gao Manzheng was Yuan Junzhang's subordinate and also a main general in the army.
"Yes!"
When Dugu Qiong received the order, he immediately went to make the arrangements.
Not long later, the sound of war drums rang out in the camp. The drums rumbled and reverberated throughout the army. The soldiers quickly gathered and gathered in the drill ground.
Yuan Junzhang was dressed in armor. After he arrived, he quickly moved thirty thousand troops.
His thirty thousand troops had both cavalry and infantry.
Five thousand cavalry.
Twenty-five thousand infantry.
Yuan Junzhang led the thirty thousand troops and left the camp. Soon, he came to the official road and met up with Zhishi Sili. When Yuan Junzhang saw Zhishi Sili, Zhishi Sili raised his head and stood on the horse, looking down at Yuan Junzhang.
In Zhishi Sili's eyes, Yuan Junzhang was just a weakling relying on the Turks.
Yuan Junzhang did not say anything.
Both sides just looked at each other like that. The atmosphere became somewhat awkward, and there were even some undercurrents.
Zhishi Sili's eyes narrowed. He held the reins and said coldly, "Yuan Junzhang, seeing me, why are you not getting off the horse and kneeling?"
Yuan Junzhang's face twitched.
Get off the horse and kneel!
In any case, he was a dignified commander-in-chief who oversaw a region. Zhisu Sili might be the chieftain of the Zhisu Tribe, but Yuan Junzhang himself wasn't weak either.
Yuan Junzhang's face was solemn. "Chief Zhishi Sili, I belong to Khan Xieli. However, I don't belong to your tribe. I'm afraid it's not appropriate for Chief Zhishi Sili to force me. "
"Hahaha …"
Zhishi Sili laughed when he heard that.
His laughter was filled with disdain.
He looked down on Yuan Junzhang and wanted to use this opportunity to humiliate him. Most importantly, they were attacking Gate Yan in this battle. After taking down Gate Yan, it would definitely involve the problem of dividing the army rations. Therefore, Zhi Shili wanted to use this as an excuse to knock Yuan Junzhang down and let him know how powerful he was.
This was Zhishi Sili's intention.
Yuan Junzhang's face darkened, his heart filled with rage. He had never thought that Zhishi Sili would be so arrogant. However, Yuan Junzhang did not care about Zhishi Sili. He pretended not to hear anything.
He thought about how Dugu Qiong went to the Turkic King's tent to meet Khan Xieli. However, Xieli actually refused to meet Dugu Qiong. Such arrogance made Yuan Junzhang very unhappy.
He did not have a good impression of the Turkic people.
Zhishi Sili saw that Yuan Junzhang was playing dumb and snorted. "Yuan Junzhang, did you not hear what I said? Now, immediately, immediately, get off the horse and bow to me. Moreover, you must kneel down. "
Yuan Junzhang said, "Zhishi Sili, don't push me too far. If you push me too far, you won't get anything good."
Zhishi Sili raised his head and said arrogantly, "I'm pushing you too far. What can you do about it? Yuan Junzhang, you can establish yourself in Mayi not because of your own strength, but because of the protection of the Turkic Khan. If you don't understand this point and want to establish yourself in Mayi, then everything you have is like the moon in the water. Do you understand? "
At this moment, Yuan Junzhang was filled with grief and anger.
However, he was helpless.
Although he was humiliated by the Turkic people, at least he still had power and influence. In Mayi, he was still a local tyrant. However, once he was defeated by the Tang dynasty, he would eventually become a prisoner or even be killed.
Under the gaze of everyone, Yuan Junzhang's cheeks were already red. His eyes were wide open and filled with humiliation. He had never thought that such humiliation would fall on him.
It was extremely embarrassing.
At this moment, he felt what Liu Wuzhou felt. He also understood why Liu Wuzhou came to the Turkic Kingdom but left in the end.
Zhishi Sili looked at the scene in front of him with a faint smile.
He liked this kind of scene.
He liked to humiliate Han people like Yuan Junzhang.
Zhishi Sili waited patiently. Yuan Junzhang also sat on the horse and did not move for the time being.
Zhishi Sili saw the situation and said lightly, "Yuan Junzhang, if you don't lower your head now. I can guarantee that the five thousand cavalry under my command will immediately attack your soldiers. Soon after, the cavalry of my Turkic Khaganate will come and wipe you out. "
Yuan Junzhang's expression changed again.
In the end, he loosened his grip on the reins and jumped off the horse. His legs seemed to be filled with lead. He stood on the ground as if he did not want Yuan Junzhang to kneel. But in the end, Yuan Junzhang still knelt and kowtowed to Zhishi Sili.
This scene fell into the eyes of countless soldiers under Yuan Junzhang's command. The soldiers of Mayi clenched their fists, their faces filled with resentment. Zhishi Sili had humiliated Yuan Junzhang, which was equivalent to humiliating them.
Many soldiers wanted to draw their swords, but they were pressed down.
After seeing Yuan Junzhang kneel, Zhishi Sili did not say anything else. He said coldly, "Get up!"
Yuan Junzhang rose to his feet.
"Let's go!"
Zhishi Sili did not say anything else. He laughed and gave the order. The five thousand cavalrymen under his command also laughed loudly.
Yuan Junzhang's face was dark and cold.
However, he could not afford to offend Zhishi Sili. Especially in this battle, he had to borrow the strength of the Turkic people. In the end, Yuan Junzhang suppressed the anger in his heart and endured the humiliation. He led the troops south toward Yanmen Pass.
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