"Scorched earth? It seems that Gao Chang has already prepared for this! "Hou Junji looked at the empty ranch and could not help but snort coldly.
The Tang Army had traveled seven thousand li to attack Gao Chang, so the burden of provisions was extremely heavy. Although they had compressed dry rations, the Tang Army's provisions could only last for about a month at most. Eating the enemy was the most important strategy of the Tang Army. But this time, it was obviously Ju Wentai. Xue Wanjun frowned and said, "Ju Wentai has always been ambitious. Since he dares to provoke the Tang Dynasty, he naturally has long been on guard against this move of the Tang Dynasty."
"It's a pity that having ambition will only harm Gaochang! Our army's provisions are enough to last for a month, and Gao Chang's city can resist our army for a few days. "Hou Junji sneered.
"Report! Gao Chang's envoy is here! "Suddenly, a scout hurried over and delivered a military report to Hou Junji.
"Gao Chang's envoy?" The generals could not help but be stunned.
Hou Junji laughed and said, "It seems that Ju Wentai really can't sit still. Then let's hear what he has to say."
Soon, Gao Chang's envoy, who was neither servile nor overbearing on the surface, flashed his eyes, revealing the panic in his heart.
"Greetings, generals of the Celestial Empire! Gao Chang and the Tang Dynasty have always been friendly. I wonder why the Tang Dynasty has sent troops to attack Gao Chang for no reason? Aren't they afraid that the countries of the Western Regions will be disappointed? "Gao Chang's envoy said in a threatening manner.
Although he knew that the envoys would not be killed in a war, when he saw the 100,000 troops of the Tang Dynasty, the confidence in his heart suddenly disappeared.
Hou Junji stared at Gao Chang's envoy and sneered, "Attacking Gao Chang for no reason? For no reason at all, Gao Chang intercepted the Tang envoys sent by various countries in the Western Regions, blocked the Silk Road, and even disregarded His Majesty's order by sending troops to attack Yanqi for no reason. His Majesty gave him a chance to go to Chang 'an to defend himself, but he claimed that he was ill and did not advance. Today's disaster can be said to be Gao Chang's own fault, he cannot blame the Tang dynasty. "
Gao Chang's envoy hurriedly explained, "Misunderstanding, these are all misunderstandings. Gao Chang has never intended to offend the Tang dynasty. My king is indeed seriously ill and has fainted on the ground not long ago. It is really inappropriate for him to travel thousands of miles to Chang 'an."
"Don't you think it's meaningless to talk about this now? Speak, what message did Ju Wentai send you? If it's just this nonsense, you can go back. "Hou Junji waved his hand.
Gao Chang's envoy's face stiffened and said, "My king said that Gao Chang is willing to be on the same side with the Tang dynasty forever and is willing to abide by the Tang dynasty's silk system. He also asked the Tang dynasty to cease their troops to avoid harming the harmony."
"If Gao Chang had been so tactful, we wouldn't have had to travel such a long distance and let 100,000 soldiers suffer like this." Hou Junji sighed.
Gao Chang's envoy's face lit up. He handed over a tray and lifted the silk cloth. Immediately, a tray of dazzling diamonds greeted the generals' eyes. Each diamond was comparable to the one given to Ashina Khoru.
"We certainly won't let the generals suffer in vain. This is a little gift from my king. If the Tang dynasty stops their troops, my king will definitely reward you generously and give you a valuable gift to the Heavenly Khan." Gao Chang's envoy said respectfully.
Hou Junji watched Gao Chang's envoy show the diamonds worth tens of thousands of gold to the generals. When he turned to Meton's side, he couldn't help laughing and said, "It's really ridiculous. You want to bribe Mo Jiu with something produced by the Mo family? This is the biggest joke in the world."
The generals couldn't help but laugh. Diamonds were indeed very valuable and had been hyped up to a sky-high price. However, diamonds were produced by the Mo family's village. Mo Jiazi had seen all kinds of diamonds, so how could he be tempted? Gao Chang had made a big joke this time.
"Mo Jiazi from the Mo family's village!" Gao Chang's envoy was shocked. Obviously, he had heard of Mo Jiazi's reputation.
In fact, in the Western Region, Mo Jiazi's reputation was like the sun at noon. All the goods produced by the Mo family's village were very valuable in the Western Region. Whoever owned the goods of the Mo family's village represented wealth and status. At the same time, Mo Jiazi's reputation in the Western Region not only represented wealth, but also represented terror. During the Battle of Tuyuhun, Mo Jiazi predicted the Solar Eclipse in advance and used gunpowder to reverse Yin and Yang, which could be spread like wildfire in the Western Region. There were all kinds of legends and rumors.
Gao Chang's envoy couldn't help but smile bitterly. His Majesty had miscalculated this time. Of course, what Ju Wentai miscalculated was not that he used diamonds to buy Mo Jiazi, but the determination of the Tang dynasty. The Tang dynasty even sent Mo Jiazi, who was in charge of gunpowder, to Gao Chang. It was conceivable that the Tang dynasty was determined to win this battle.
Hou Junji waved his hand and said to Gao Chang's disheartened envoy, "Go and tell Ju Wentai that if he wants to save Gao Chang, let him give up resistance and tie himself up to leave the city. He will follow me to Chang 'an to ask for forgiveness from the Heavenly Khan. Perhaps he will be spared."
Watching Gao Chang's envoy retreat in embarrassment, Hou Junji glanced at the tray in his hand from the corner of his eyes. A trace of greed flashed in his eyes, but he snorted coldly in his heart, "Gao Chang is really rich. He wants to buy me with just a few diamonds. Once I defeat Gao Chang, all the treasures will be mine."
After Gao Chang's envoy left, Hou Junji said to the generals, "Now that Gao Chang has been prepared and sent people to ask for peace, what do you think our army should do now?"
Xue Wanjun cupped his hands and said, "General, Ju Wentai is not trustworthy. This person has been wavering between the Tang dynasty and the Western Turks. Now that our army is at the city gates, he will naturally ask for peace in a low voice. Once the Western Turks send reinforcements, he will definitely turn hostile immediately."
Niu Jinda echoed, "That's right. Not to mention that we are far away from the Tang dynasty and don't have enough provisions. The most important thing now is to solve the problem of provisions. If we delay for too long, I'm afraid our army will be extremely passive."
Hou Junji sneered and said, "Our army has traveled thousands of miles to come here, exhausted countless money and provisions, and experienced many hardships. How can we stop because of Ju Wentai's few words?"
"General is wise!" The generals agreed. At this point, the Tang dynasty was like an arrow on the bow that had to be shot. Only by conquering Gao Chang could they achieve their goal in this war.
"As for the issue of provisions, Gao Chang's cities have already prepared them for us. Ju Wentai thinks that Gao Chang can make the Tang dynasty retreat by defending the city with scorched earth and deserted earth, but he doesn't know that this is exactly what I want. As long as we break Gao Chang's city, it will save the Tang dynasty a lot of time to run." Hou Junji sneered and pointed at the city closest to the Tang Dynasty's army.
"Tian Tian City!" The generals looked at the map and couldn't help but frown.
Tian Tian City was the citadel of Gao Chang City. It was the only way to Gao Chang. Tian Tian City shouldered the heavy responsibility of protecting Gao Chang. Naturally, its city walls were strong and thick. It was a tough bone to break.
"Tian Tian City is not easy to fight!" Xue Wanjun recalled the military report about Tian Tian City and couldn't help but frown.
Hou Junji laughed and said, "If it was in the past, it would naturally not be easy to fight. But now, with the Firearms Supervisor here, how long can Tian Tian City last?"
Meton cupped his hands and said, "I will definitely do my best!"
Hou Junji said solemnly, "Don't do your best. We must take Tian Tian City. This war is not only about our army's provisions, but also our subsequent actions. If we can't even take down a small city like Tian Tian City, how can we take down Gao Chang City?"
Taking down Tian Tian City would not only raise enough provisions for the Tang Dynasty, but also give the Tang Dynasty a city as a base. They could attack and retreat, and they couldn't afford to lose it.
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