"You brought Zhao Ge 'er and Han Ge' er here?" Pang Xiao was pleasantly surprised. His two sons were almost four years old, but they hadn't been with him and Qin Yining for long. Thinking of the days when his family was separated from each other, Pang Xiao hated Li Qitian to the core.
Fortunately, Pan An was his father-in-law. Pang Xiao was very relieved to leave his children in his care.
"Because the Cao family was the first to scout out the situation, I left the children in the care of some spies. They followed closely behind the troops and were about half a day's journey behind us." Qin Huaiyuan turned around with his hands behind his back and looked at the battlefield that was nearing its end. He lowered his eyes and muttered, "Si Qin has been captured. The Tatan suffered heavy losses in this battle. I'm afraid they won't be able to invade the south for the next hundred years."
"That's right." Pang Xiao was in a good mood as he let out a long sigh. "Now, the people can live a stable life."
"This is all thanks to you and Duke Ding." Qin Huaiyuan smiled and looked at Ji Zeyu who was walking over quickly.
Ji Zeyu's eyes were filled with surprise, but after some thought, he could roughly guess what had happened. He wasn't angry because Pang Xiao had concealed the truth from him. After all, the situation in the court was truly tense. His family was finally safe in that kind of jittery situation. If he could protect them, he would naturally do his best to protect them. He couldn't reveal the slightest secret.
Ji Zeyu respectfully cupped his hands to Qin Huaiyuan.
Qin Huaiyuan returned the greeting and smiled. "Duke Ding, you're relieved that you've pacified the Tatan this time."
Ji Zeyu used to command the Dragon Legion to guard the northern border all year round. He was an old enemy of the Tatan. Now that he could personally see Si Qin captured and the Tatan defeated, the joy in his heart couldn't be described with words.
However, when he thought of Pang Xiao's situation, Ji Zeyu couldn't help but say, "The situation in the imperial court is not optimistic. After defeating the Tatan, the Emperor has no qualms about dealing with Pang Zhixi."
Qin Huaiyuan was surprised that Ji Zeyu would say this, but he also saw that the brotherly love between Ji Zeyu and Pang Xiao was not fake.
Qin Huaiyuan smiled in relief. It was Pang Xiao's good fortune to be able to make a friend like Ji Zeyu in this chaotic world.
"Don't worry, we'll think of a solution..."
Who was this person in front of them? This was Pan An... If he said there was a way, then there was a way.
.. Pang Xiao and Ji Zeyu nodded in unison.....
. Qin Huaiyuan was pleased and patted Pang Xiao's shoulder.
He didn't have a son, and Pang Xiao was his son-in-law. He treated Qin Yining very well, so he was no different from his own son. As long as Pang Xiao had any doubts, Qin Huaiyuan would naturally be happy to help.
As they spoke, a one-sided advantage appeared on the battlefield. The Great Zhou Empire's troops became more and more courageous as they fought. The Tatars had no way to retreat even if they wanted to. Even their escape route to the desert was blocked by the people brought by Qin Huaiyuan.
Surrounded by enemies, many people chose to give up resisting. Some even threw down their weapons and knelt with their hands raised high.
Pang Xiao and Qin Huaiyuan exchanged glances and ordered, "Those who surrender to Da Zhou will not be killed."
The soldiers immediately spread the word. The Tatan had already lost their fighting spirit. Most of them threw down their weapons and knelt down to surrender.
Ji Zeyu looked down for a moment and muttered, "We don't have enough food to feed so many people. It's not easy to keep these prisoners alive."
"It's not easy now. Keeping them alive is more useful than killing them. "Qin Huaiyuan looked at Pang Xiao as if he was testing him.
Pang Xiao thought for a moment and understood Qin Huaiyuan's intention. "Keep them alive and negotiate with the Tatan. Maybe we can get more benefits."
"For example, ask the Tatan to cede territory and pay compensation?" Ji Zeyu understood as well.
Pang Xiao nodded. "It's fine if they are willing to pay, but I think the Tatan won't be able to pay in their current situation."
"Won't be able to pay?" Ji Zeyu looked at Pang Xiao in confusion. It was as if he was asking what was the point of keeping them alive if they couldn't pay.
Pang Xiao smiled. "Yes, we can't pay them. These soldiers all have families and relatives. The Tatan is only a small piece of land, so these soldiers and horses naturally come from all over the country. If the imperial court doesn't want to spend money and gives up on these soldiers who fought for the country, how would their families feel? "
Ji Zeyu finally understood.
If that really happened, the Tatan ruler would make the hearts of the people turn cold. Once the hearts of the people turned cold, it would be irreversible in a short period of time. The Tatan's defeat and capture of the Khan were already a huge blow. The Tatan would definitely be shaken. When the people were uneasy, something like this would happen. The internal strife of the Tartars would probably erupt. At that time, the Tartars, who had lost a lot of their strength, would not be able to recover in 200 years, let alone 100 years, before they could offend the Great Zhou.
Ji Zeyu could already see the Tatan bowing down to Da Zhou. He felt a surge of joy in his heart.
There was another reason why Pang Xiao didn't say it out loud. These Tatan prisoners of war would help him establish his prestige in the future.
In the current situation, he would definitely have a battle with Li Qitian. It was hard to predict who would win and who would lose. If he kept these Tatan prisoners of war, he would also have some advantage in public opinion in the future.
"Wang Ye."
It was at this moment that Cao Yuqing walked over with quick steps. She cupped her hands in greeting when she saw Pang Xiao.
Pang Xiao hurriedly returned the greeting and smiled. "Aunt Cao."
Cao Yuqing was very satisfied with the way Pang Xiao addressed her. She smiled and said, "I caught some people in the crowd."
As she spoke, a spy had already brought Lu Heng, his wife, and Lu Heng's entourage over.
Lu Heng was in a sorry state. His clothes were torn all over. Bian Ruohan was in an even worse state. He didn't seem to be as high and mighty as before.
Pang Xiao held a long knife and looked at the person in front of him with a gloomy expression.
Lu Heng was pushed to the front. She exerted force and pushed the person to kneel on the ground.
Looking up at Pang Xiao, Lu Heng's heart was filled with mixed feelings. He quickly lowered his head.
"Wang Ye, how should we deal with this person?"
Pang Xiao looked down at Lu Heng. He then looked at Si Qin, whose eyes were about to pop out of their sockets, and sighed. "Bring them all back to the capital and let Your Majesty deal with them."
"Kill me if you have the ability!" Pang Xiao's words made Lu Heng very agitated. The head of the Lu family, who had always been a gentleman with an elegant temperament, was now like a mad leopard, struggling on the muddy ground. "Kill me!"
"Kill you? Even if you are guilty of treason, the only person who can deal with you can only be the Emperor. Since I have already captured you alive, I have no reason to take your life. Otherwise, do you think I would be willing to let you live? If it weren't for you, how could the battle have dragged on until now? If it weren't for you entering the Pass for your own selfish reasons, how could there have been massacres in all the cities and towns along the way from the northern border to the capital?
"I won't kill you. I will only put you into a prison carriage and send you and your henchmen back to the capital safely."
Lu Heng was suddenly shocked. He glared at Pang Xiao and said through gritted teeth, "You are really vicious!"
Which one of the cities and towns along the way from Tianmen Pass to the capital had not been plundered by the Tatan? Massacres had occurred from time to time. To this day, a large portion of Pang Xiao's troops were survivors from these cities that had been plundered.
It could be said that these people hated the Tatan to the bone.
As for him, the person who had led the Tatan to Da Zhou, they hated him even more!
If Pang Xiao put him in a prison carriage and paraded him through the streets, it would be a torture more unbearable than death!
Pang Xiao said in a low voice, "This can't be considered vicious. I am just escorting you back to the capital. "
Everyone knew that the truly vicious thing would happen at the end.
Li Qitian's method of dealing with Lu Heng would definitely not be gentle.
Lu Heng's group and Si Qin were all locked up.
The battle had come to an end.
While the soldiers were cleaning up the battlefield and counting the casualties, Pang Xiao and Ji Zeyu had already invited Qin Huaiyuan and the other strategists to gather together and discuss what to do next.
"Tatan's treasury is already empty and they have no leader. It is not impossible to destroy this country in one go, "Ji Zeyu said.
When the others heard this, they couldn't help but feel their blood boil. The hatred between them and the Tatan had already accumulated. Now that they had found an opportunity to eliminate this hidden danger, it was naturally a joyous occasion.
Qin Huaiyuan lowered his eyes and seemed to be in deep thought.
Pang Xiao looked at Qin Huaiyuan questioningly. "Father-in-law? What do you think? "
Qin Huaiyuan smiled. "I am no longer a member of the imperial court, so I shouldn't say too much at this time. I'm just giving you a suggestion. The final decision is still up to you. "
Pang Xiao nodded. "Father-in-law, please speak."
Qin Huaiyuan said, "I feel that it is easy to conquer Tatan, but have you all thought about what will happen afterwards? The Tatan people are naturally valiant and good at fighting, and they are the type of people who do not submit to control. Even if Da Zhou's army suppresses the border and obtains an overwhelming victory, how can the Tatan people really submit?
"If we turn most of the Tatan into a province of Da Zhou, then the imperial court will have to spend a lot of effort to control this place. In addition, the Tatan's geographical location has caused them to be poor. When the time comes, not only will the imperial court have to spend a lot of effort to control them, but they will also have to use a lot of money to feed the Tatan people.
"And if we don't conquer Tatan and use hostages to threaten them, we will be able to reap even more benefits. It will be a good way to make up for the losses caused by this war. When the time comes, the Tatan will pay tribute year after year, and they will become subjects every year. It will be a profitable business.
"In any case, Wang Ye has already beaten the Tatan to the point where they can't fight back for more than a hundred years. Whether or not we destroy the Tatan doesn't seem to be that important anymore."
Everyone nodded at Qin Huaiyuan's words.
Ji Zeyu also agreed. "It is exactly as you said."
Pang Xiao thought for a while, and couldn't help but look at Qin Huaiyuan with a questioning gaze. Qin Huaiyuan only smiled. It was impossible to tell anything from that perfect smile.
However, Pang Xiao knew that Qin Huaiyuan understood his gaze. The two of them once again had the same thoughts.
In fact, although there were some reasons just now, it was still more useful for them to leave the Tatan alone.
Returning to the capital this time was dangerous, and things were always unpredictable. If he couldn't defeat Li Qitian and had to return to Xiyue, the Tatan, which was separated from Xiyue by a desert, would become an important factor in expanding Xiyue's territory.
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