Chapter 242 Jingyang
What Jie Li Khan said also made sense. The Turks had been dealing with the Central Plains dynasties for many years. Both sides took turns to gain the upper hand and were committed to splitting the other side.

Therefore, the Turkic upper class was relatively familiar with the situation in the Central Plains.

But Tong Yehu said: "If we continue to fight, what can we gain? There are hundreds of thousands of Tang troops blocking us here and we cannot move forward. The road to the grassland is also being invaded from time to time.

We are alone and deep in the enemy's territory. We cannot take any more risks."

As the two khans expressed their views, the Turkic nobles below also expressed their opinions, and generally most of them were in favor of withdrawing the troops.

Although I didn't get the expected benefits this time, at least I didn't lose anything. I can just go back to the grassland and wait for the next opportunity.

But Jie Li Khan threatened: "Don't forget the lesson of the Sui Dynasty. If we give the Central Plains a chance to breathe, they will grow stronger in a very short time. By then, we will be at a disadvantage and have no choice but to surrender."

Tong Yehu didn't care: "But in the same way, they will soon fall into civil war. This is the fate of the Central Plains. We just need to be like wolves, lying dormant when they are strong, and taking a few more bites when they are weak.

At this time, Gelulu said to his Khan: "Great Khan, I have not accomplished my mission this time, and I am in such a mess. I hope to return to the grassland and the beautiful Qianquan City to recuperate."

Jie Li Khan frowned and said, "We haven't even won yet, but your people are eager to return to the rear. When did we Turks have such weak people?"

If it were someone else, Tong Yehu would have taught the boy a lesson himself without Jie Li saying anything, but Gelulu was his uncle after all, so he ignored Jie Li and nodded in agreement.

This also made the two Khans unwilling to talk more, because the benefits of going south were no longer obvious, and it was difficult for them to reach a consensus as they each had their own plans.

Tong Yehu was ready to withdraw his troops, but Jie Li wanted to delay it a little longer, keeping the Central Plains emperor's direct troops here. Perhaps those who contacted them would be able to turn defeat into victory.

In the final analysis, the two men had different purposes for sending troops. Tong Yehu was just dissatisfied with the Tang Dynasty for shaking the rule of the Western Turks in the Western Regions, and he did not want the Tang Dynasty to sit idly by and watch the Turkic civil war until both sides were defeated and take advantage of it.

Jie Li was deeply afraid of Li Jiancheng. The events of that year really left a deep impression on him. In addition, the Tang Dynasty was still supporting Princess Yicheng's son as the Turkic Khan, which shook the foundation of his rule.

Therefore, Tong Yehu, seeing that there was no benefit to be gained, wanted to retreat and continue to enjoy himself in the Western Regions, while Jie Li urgently needed to win prestige by defeating the Tang Dynasty.

So starting from the next day, Jie Li Khan was no longer stingy with his troops and took the initiative to order his subordinates to serve as vanguards to fight against the Tang army.

Upon seeing this, Tong Yehu was not in a hurry to leave. He calmly ordered his subordinates to hold the line and watched the two armies fight to the death with joy.

However, the two still sent spies south to investigate whether the Tang Dynasty was really gathering hundreds of thousands of troops. If not, then it would be fine. If so, they would have to retreat before this army arrived.

Their attention was all attracted by the troops in the south, but they did not notice that Li Jing, the Duke of Weiguo of the Tang Dynasty, quietly came behind them.

In order to prevent being discovered by the Western Turks, Li Jing only brought 20,000 people with him, and they marched in batches, with only a thousand cavalrymen around him.

Su Dingfang, the Ranger General, said, "Duke Wei, the Turks know that they are alone in the deep, so they have sent many scouts to guard against attacks from the rear. I'm afraid we have little chance, and our troops are too few."

Li Jing pointed out: "When we set up camp, it will be as solid as a rock, but when we withdraw, the flaws will be revealed. We just need to wait. As for the troops, they will be there when the time comes." In Xu Shiji's tent, the emperor's envoy arrived with a secret letter. After reading it, Xu Shiji burned it immediately: "Please report to your majesty. I will obey your order."

From the next day, facing the fierce offensive of Jie Li Khan, the Tang army began to show signs of fatigue, and began to lose more than win, and gradually retreated to the rear.

Later, the Turks discovered that the extremely brave generals of the Tang army inexplicably began to disappear, and were replaced by mediocre people.

The Turks tortured the Tang soldiers they had captured in the past few days, and seven or eight of them who were willing to speak were brought to the tents of the two khans.

"General Wang, General Du, and General Yang were all arrested by the general and shackled and taken back to the capital. It is rumored that they are plotting a rebellion. In addition to them, many other generals have been ordered to stay in the camp and wait for the imperial court's order."

After listening to this, Jie Li Khan laughed and said, "As expected, the people of the Central Plains are always like this. When facing a powerful enemy, they still focus on eliminating dissidents first."

So Jie Li Khan continued to intensify the offensive, and the Tang army could not bear it and retreated in a panic, leaving behind a large amount of baggage, which the Turks lacked.

It's a pity that not much food and fodder was left. According to the previous agreement, Jie Li, who contributed the most, swallowed up most of the food and fodder without hesitation, leaving only some leftovers for Tong Yehu.

After that, they marched southwards with great enthusiasm until they reached Jingyang, which was just a stone's throw away from Chang'an.

The thing that made Jie Li most happy was that the nobles in Chang'an finally resumed contact with him. As long as they could surround Chang'an, they would get everything they wanted!
Compared to Jie Li's greed, Tong Yehu had already realized that something was wrong and was ready to withdraw his troops back to the Western Regions. Anyway, he had already got the result he wanted.

But Jie Li said to him: "If you can't intimidate the Tang Dynasty, then you can't withdraw your troops calmly. It will be even more dangerous if you are chased and blocked on the way.

I have ordered my confidants to go back and gather troops to support us. I think you have also sent people to prepare.

We now have 200,000 soldiers and horses, and there are more than 100,000 soldiers and horses waiting to join us at the border. What conspiracy or trickery is there to be afraid of?"

Tong Yehu pondered for a moment and said, "What about the million-strong army that the Emperor of the Central Plains mentioned?"

Jie Li Khan laughed loudly: "Those troops are still far away. Li Jiancheng is afraid that they will mutiny, so he dare not let them gather together. He can only let his trusted men gather tens of thousands of them and wait until they have gathered a million before rushing over. We don't know when that will happen."

Tong Yehu still felt that it was inappropriate, but Jie Li’s recent spoils were so enviable that he also hoped to get some tangible benefits and return in glory to show off to the countries in the Western Regions.

So Tong Yehu no longer spared his troops, but the Tang army suddenly became much more resilient. However, neither of them cared too much. No matter what conspiracy or intrigue they had, large numbers of troops would not suddenly appear.

After all, war still depends on the combat effectiveness of the soldiers under their command. The two of them are naturally the elite among the elite, so they are very confident. The worst case scenario is that they have to abandon some soldiers to cover their retreat and retreat.

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(End of this chapter)