Chapter 1200: Borrowing the Road through Yinshan Mountain

Chapter 1200: Borrowing the Road through Yinshan Mountain

The Western Wei Dynasty and the Turks established diplomatic relations very early, and this can be regarded as one of Yuwentai's most proud diplomatic achievements. Not only did the Turks rise rapidly and replace Rouran, they also put considerable pressure on the Eastern Wei and Northern Qi.

However, maintaining this diplomatic relationship is not without cost. Needless to say, the marriage of the Western Wei princess to a Turk. In the early years, the Western Wei Dynasty also made many concessions to the Turks. For example, Yu Wentai took in the remnants of Rouran, but was forcibly taken away by the Turks. Thousands of people were directly killed outside Chang'an City, which can be described as extremely domineering.

In addition, every time the Turks traveled to and from Guanzhong, there were often thousands of people in the mission. Most of them were dignitaries and dandy children in the Turkic country. They came to enjoy the prosperity of Han Dynasty, traveled through the prefectures and counties, and came to Chang'an. Behind the city, there were even more arrogance and many atrocities.

However, in order to maintain the friendly relations between the two countries, the Western Wei Dynasty did not dare to strictly supervise this. Instead, it tried its best to meet the requirements of these Turkic envoys, and entertained them with money, words, wine and delicacies.

This situation did not change until Li Tai entered Guanzhong, especially the capture of Turkic Mugan Khan in the battle of Yinshan, which completely dispelled the arrogance of Turkic, the emerging overlord of the grasslands, in front of the Western Wei Dynasty. Since then, his madness has subsided. All the requirements and regulations put forward by the Western Wei Dynasty were respectfully implemented and strictly observed. There were fewer disputes between the two sides. Even if there were any small frictions between them, the Turks also learned to digest them on their own.

Regarding the visits of Turkic envoys, the Bafu also made corresponding regulations. They should not exceed three times a year and must be within the specified time range. Each envoy must apply to Wuyuan Dingbiancheng in advance. The size of the mission is also limited. There should be no more than 150 people. After entering the country, they must strictly abide by the marching route arranged by the Western Wei Dynasty. Once they deviate from the established route, they may be killed by the local defense army at any time.

Today's Western Wei Dynasty is far from powerful enough to allow the prying eyes of its neighbors, especially a guy like Turk who is already ambitious, so he should hide and be on guard. Restricting the exchanges and requirements of Turkic missions is also part of the obedience training.

This time the Turkic envoy arrived. In fact, as early as the beginning of the army's triumphant return, the Lingzhou General Administration received the request from the Turks and reported it to the Bafu. However, Li Tai had been busy with internal affairs and personnel issues and had no time to pay attention to it until a few days ago. Only then did he approve the Turkic envoys to come and see him.

This time the Turkic mission also strictly followed the regulations of the Western Wei Dynasty. The mission staff was only over a hundred people, and most of them were servants and grooms who accompanied the team to transport gifts and take care of the horses as gifts along the way.

This time the Turks envoy was a young man in his early thirties instead of the previous Meng Yehu, but the relationship between the two was not shallow. This young man was the son of Meng Yehu and the Damu Special Qin of the Turks. Because Meng Yehu died of illness before, his son came to the south as an envoy.

"Damu Teqin, under the tent of Wu Zun Khan, has been ordered by King Khan to pay homage to the king!"

Although he is younger, this Damutqin is more proficient in the language and etiquette of the Han people than his father. This is certainly because young people have stronger learning abilities, but the key is that the last fiasco caused these Turkic dignitaries to I no longer dare to be arrogant and contemptuous of the Western Wei Dynasty.

Li Tai is quite satisfied with this change. At least the communication between each other is smoother, and there is no need to arrange special translators to transmit the words from China.

"Damu is so diligent that you don't need to be polite. In the past year, your father Meng Yehu did not use his age and worked tirelessly to travel between the two countries to resolve the disputes between the two countries and restore border harmony. It is a pity that destiny was true and he passed away suddenly. Fortunately, he has an heir to carry on his legacy. , recount your old achievements, and be a good envoy for the good relations between the two countries. I hope you can live up to the legacy of your ancestors and assist Wu Zun Khan with all your heart, so that our two countries can continue to have good relations with each other!"

Li Tai smiled and said to Damutqin. Although it was just a series of polite words, Damutqin listened carefully and thought carefully for a while before digesting it. After that, he quickly bowed and thanked him, and then stood up and took his seat.

Next, Damu Teqin talked about the main reason for joining the envoy, which was that the Turks wanted to launch an attack on the Northern Qi Dynasty, so Wuzun Khan sent an envoy to ask the Western Wei Dynasty for its opinion, and hoped to get help from the Western Wei Dynasty.

From a purely political point of view, Li Tai should be happy to see the Turks adding insult to injury and launching an attack on Northern Qi, thus continuing to weaken Northern Qi's strength and making it difficult to cope with it.

But speaking from his own heart, Li Tai was actually not very willing to unite with the Turks to attack Northern Qi. Even though the relationship between the Western Wei Dynasty and the Northern Qi Dynasty was incompatible, it was still considered an internal confrontation, but the Turks were an out-and-out, real foreign enemy.

Moreover, the current era background, climatic factors and other aspects are conducive to the rise of the Turks. Once the vigilance and control over the Turks are relaxed, the growth of the Turks' power will enter an explosive period. In the absence of the unification of the Central Plains dynasty, the Turks have no natural enemies in the current time and space. The only thing that can limit the development of their power is their internal tendency to split.

From a national emotional point of view, there is an even greater lack of identity. Although the Gao family of the Northern Qi Dynasty is hard to describe at the moment, the middle and lower levels of his regime are still composed of Han people. It cannot be said that Li Tai never harmed the Han people during his rise, but while striving to achieve military goals, he also tried his best to avoid colluding with foreign invaders to harm the Han people, which he was even more unwilling to do.

But the will of an individual cannot ultimately transcend the limitations of the times, especially as the leader of a regime, he cannot be too subjective and emotional to blindly pursue any idealistic goals.

Under the current circumstances, the Turks proposed to attack Northern Qi, whether from their own interests or in the weak alliance relationship with Western Wei, there is no problem, and Li Tai has no reason to stop or oppose it.

He only worried that the Turks would be too powerful in the longer term, so he made some precautionary arrangements in advance. After all, if the Turks ran smoothly, after the Northern Qi was pacified in the future, it would be his turn to guard against the Turks' invasion in the south of the desert.

"Wuzun Khan has been very respectful in recent years, and I am also happy to see him beat the thief Qi and boast of his power in the south of the desert. It's just that the two sides just ended the battle not long ago. Although my division returned with a great victory, it was also exhausted. Even if we are willing to fight the thief Qi together this time, we are unable to continue fighting. We can only wish Wuzun Khan success from afar."

After a little hesitation, Li Tai spoke again.

After hearing this, Damuteqin was somewhat disappointed, but also quite fortunate. He was in the army during the battle of Yinshan that year, and he was deeply impressed by the strong fighting power of the Wei army. Moreover, the Wei army often won the battles with the Qi army. If they could go together, they would have a higher chance of winning this time. But if the Wei army really went out together, he was worried that their Turkic army might become a supporting role.

Let alone Damuteqin's tangled mood, Li Tai continued to say: "Although we can't go out together and fight side by side, we can help each other elsewhere. How many troops does Wuzun Khan want to send this time and what route to take? Tell me all these things in detail, and I can order the Lingzhou General Administration to cooperate more in the south of Yinshan."

After hearing this, Damuteqin smiled again. Taking advantage of the fact that the Northern Qi had just suffered a great defeat, sending troops to the south was something that they had already discussed within the Turkic people. The reason for sending envoys to the south to ask for instructions was of course because the Western Wei was now powerful, but another important reason was that they hoped to get help from the Western Wei.

Coming from the north of the desert to the south, there are usually two marching routes. One is to pass through the Yinshan Great Wall to enter the Hetao Plain, and then continue to invade the south. The second is to go east from the north of the Yinshan Mountains and go south from the Baidao to sweep the south of the desert.

Relatively speaking, the former route is more convenient than the latter route. Because after entering the Hetao Plain from the south of the Yinshan Mountains, you can get a certain amount of water and grass supplies along the way, and the people and horses can recuperate before making offensive plans. The latter route needs to pass through the endless wasteland. Once the enemy chooses to set up obstacles on the Baidao, the Turkic people and horses may not be able to break through the obstruction when they are exhausted, and the risk is greater.

Therefore, the Turks used to travel to the south of the desert through the Hetao area until they were tricked by someone in the Yinshan Mountains, and even the Khan at that time was killed directly.

In the following period, the Western Wei Dynasty further strengthened the control over the Hetao region. Although the emergence of Wuyuanding Border Town allowed the Turks to obtain Chinese materials more conveniently through border market trade, the Hetao region was no longer a place where their troops could enter and exit freely and wander around.

If the Western Wei Dynasty could allow the Turkic army to pass through and was willing to provide certain food and grass subsidies, this would naturally be the most ideal situation for the Turks. The Turkic army could fight in a better state, and at the same time avoid the Wei army directly competing with them for spoils.

Because the Western Wei Dynasty and the Northern Qi Dynasty were irreconcilable, Damutqin did not doubt that the King of Tang would have any other plans, and passing through the Hetao region was one of the purposes of his trip, so he told the Turks about their plan to use troops this time.

The Turks had high hopes for this military operation, or they had great plans. According to Damutqin, they were ready to mobilize 100,000 troops, and their Mobei Khan Court and various vassal tribes would send troops to the south together, vowing to launch a thundering attack on the Northern Qi Dynasty.

"Qi is so audacious that it dares to resist the king's order. It is really courting death! The king's army has already struck hard at their country. Our warriors also hate their cruelty and evil. We are willing to break through Jinyang and capture the King of Qi to present to the king!"

Nada Mu Teqin was already gritting his teeth when he said this. He looked indignant and shared the same hatred for the enemy. He bowed to Li Tai and said, "If this battle goes well, we are willing to present all the loot to the king. The counties and prefectures in the south of the desert of Qi will never be at peace from now on. Our warriors are willing to be the vanguard of the king to fight against the enemy forever. We will not return until Qi is defeated!"

It would have been better if he hadn't said this. After he finished speaking, Li Tai's vigilance was immediately raised. Although he also knew that this was just an exaggerated statement made by the other party to please him, if the war really went well and he gained a lot from Northern Qi, it might not be impossible to come true.

As for the idea of ​​giving all the harvest to himself, it was just a lie. It was unreliable to expect the Turks to keep their promises, but Li Tai would find a way to force them to fulfill part of their promises.

In the later Tang Dynasty, a series of offensive and defensive arrangements such as the construction of the Three Surrender Cities successfully curbed the Turkic harassment activities in the southern part of the desert, which severely restricted the development of the later Turkic people and eventually caused them to fall apart.

But now the Western Wei Dynasty's control over the southern part of the desert is still very limited. At present, it only has the Hetao area in its hands, which is equivalent to the scope of the later Western Surrender Cities. As long as the Turks avoid this area, the influence and restrictions that the Western Wei Dynasty can have on them will be minimal.

After listening to the Turkic war plan described by Damu Special Agent, Li Tai spoke again: "Although there is some construction and reclamation in the south of Yinshan Mountain, it is still difficult to maintain the advance and retreat of such a large scale of troops. Fifty thousand troops stopped and stayed. It is already the limit that the current area can carry.

Moreover, in the midst of my country's economic war between China and New Zealand, the food and grass supplies that can be lost to borders are very limited. Although I am also happy to see that the Turkic army can defeat the bandit Qi, we must be frank in discussing matters before the war. We cannot pretend to be incapable of doing anything. Please also ask the special service to convey this situation to Wu Zun Khan, hoping that he can be considerate. "

Damutqin was naturally a little disappointed when he heard this, but because he was repeatedly warned before leaving to remain respectful, after hearing what the King of Tang said, he did not dare to make any further demands.

Specifically, what kind of convenience and assistance the Western Wei Dynasty could provide to the Turks naturally did not require Li Tai to consult with him personally. After the two sides met and finalized a rough plan, relevant officials would follow up.

Before Damutqin resigned and left, he said respectfully: "This time the envoy came, the Khan also asked the king if he was satisfied with Princess Hal's service? If it is because this woman is too vulgar to cater to His Majesty, With my heart, now that Ashina’s family has a woman, the Khan is still willing to offer it to the king to invite his favor and mercy!”

After Li Tai heard this, he waved his hand and said with a smile: "Thank you Khan for your kindness. Xue Ji is also very respectful and polite in the mansion now, and she is in harmony with everyone in the mansion. She doesn't need the Khan to marry her again."

"Since Princess Hal can win the favor of the king, why has she not been blessed with a child for the king so far? Everyone in our clan hopes that the king's heroic blood will give birth to a son as strong as an eagle and a tiger with the prairie princess!"

After hearing this, Nadamutqin hurriedly said: "It is the custom of our clan that if a woman marries another family but does not bear children for a long time, her eldest brothers will feel ashamed and have to sacrifice another woman as compensation. When will You will feel at ease when you give birth to children!”

After Li Tai heard this, his brows suddenly furrowed. His emotions were urging him to have a baby quickly. But you Turks are not Rouran, and we, Old Li, are not He Liuhun. How can you take care of the things in my bed curtains?

So he immediately looked solemn, and then said in a deep voice: "Since you have entered China, you have to follow our Chinese etiquette! Don't disturb the old customs of the Erhu tribe! Ashina women may be charming and entertaining, and their boudoirs are charming. Don’t ask!”

To be honest, even if the Turks offered a few more princesses, he would not reject them. But even if we are relatives, we can't have no sense of boundaries. If you interfere too much, you may become enemies!