The Human Emperor c1-2382

by Huangfu Qi (皇甫奇)

  The Turkic youth instantly fell silent.

  He knew what the Black Wolf Yabgu was talking about. The Qixi Protectorate owned the largest armory in the Western Regions, perhaps the largest along the entire Great Tang border. After the Sage Emperor decreed its construction, this armory had played an enormous role in assisting the Great Tang in its western advance and in its expeditions to the north.

  Such was the massive size of the armory that its heavy ballistae alone numbered one hundred thousand, with the various kinds of armor and arrows being simply uncountable. However, although the armory was in Qixi, it did not belong to the Qixi Protectorate. The Qixi Protectorate was simply tasked with guarding it.

  This armory supplied the equipment for Anxi, Beiting, Qixi, and Longxi. The transfer of any equipment from it required a decree from the Sage Emperor, which meant that though the Qixi sat on a treasury, it had no right to use it.

  This was a point that the Western Turkic Khaganate could exploit.

  ______________1. The Khatun is the Khagan’s wife.↩

  Chapter 826 - The Qixi Armory, the Ideal Opportunity!

  Chapter 826: The Qixi Armory, the Ideal Opportunity!

  Translated by: Hypersheep325

  Edited by: Michyrr

  The Black Wolf Yabgu’s desire for that massive armory was not a one- or two-day affair, but during Fumeng Lingcha’s tenure, the armory had been tightly defended, with Fumeng Lingcha himself ready to set out at any moment, leaving the Yabgu with no opportunities to speak of. But now, with Fumeng Lingcha called back to the capital, and, according to the rumors, already in jail, the Western Turkic Khaganate had an incredibly rare chance.

  “…You saw yourself how it was in the last war with Beiting.” The Black Wolf Yabgu suddenly broke the silence. “Their equipment was far too astonishing. Rather than losing in a contest of skill, we lost to their massive amount of equipment, and all of Beiting’s equipment came from this armory. Thus, I’m sure you understand how important this mission is.”

  “Yabgu, be at ease. I will definitely handle this matter appropriately,” the thin Turkic youth said.

  “Mm.”

  The Black Wolf Yabgu nodded and sternly advised, “This matter is very important to you as well, so don’t mess it up. In addition, you can take all of Hulayeg’s wealth to bribe those Qixi Protectorate commanders. Have them move away the guards around the armory and let down their guard.”

  “Understood!”

  The Turkic youth excitedly left.

  ……

  Wushang, the City of Steel.

  Wang Chong was standing in front of a massive model of Qixi. In the center of this model was a massive hall, the Qixi Protectorate headquarters. But everyone’s gazes were not focused on the headquarters. Instead, they were looking at the nearby armory.

  Wang Chong stretched out his right hand and pointed at the armory on the model. “Based on what we know, the Western Turkic Khaganate has always wanted to deal with this largest armory in the northwest. In truth, even Ü-Tsang has wanted to do something about it. In the past, the presence of Fumeng Lingcha had always made them too afraid to do anything, but with Fumeng Lingcha now gone, the Qixi Protectorate is leaderless and rife with internal discord. This is an extremely rare opportunity for these two countries, and they definitely won’t let it go.”

  “Milord, how wise!” said Hulayeg from the side. Hulayeg already regarded Wang Chong as someone descended from the heavens. After all, he had experienced Wang Chong’s powerful predictive abilities several times. The attempted betrayal of his steward and that dangerous incident he had encountered in the Eastern Turkic Khaganate had made Hulayeg a wholehearted believer of Wang Chong.

  “Lord Marquis, should we send troops and strengthen the defenses?” Li Siye said, a frown on his face as he gestured at the armory. Although he had no idea where Wang Chong had gotten this information, Li Siye had never doubted him.

  “Haha, the exact opposite.”

  Wang Chong shook his head and chuckled.

  “To take, you have to give. Not only can we not strengthen the defenses, we want to weaken them. Only if we bait the potential attackers can we eliminate them and excise the hidden disease. If not, they will remain in the shadows, requiring us to guard against them at every moment and never get a good night’s sleep.”

  “Lord Marquis means that we should withdraw the defenses around the armory? But that armory is actually the possession of the imperial clan. We don’t have the authority to do such a thing, and perhaps not even the Qixi Protectorate does either,” Cheng Sanyuan said, his brow creased.

  “Haha, in the past, there was naturally no way, but there’s no guarantee now. The Qixi Protectorate is in chaos, dragons without a leader. This is the best moment for anyone who wants to try their hand.”

  Wang Chong grinned, his careless and confident smile as persuasive as ever.

  This truly was the case!

  The Qixi Protectorate was currently splintered into all sorts of factions, allowing a possibility of success in any sort of venture.

  “Xu Keyi, I leave this matter to you.”

  After taking part in the operation to find Fumeng Lingcha’s trusted subordinate, Xu Keyi was slowly growing more impressive, increasingly capable of holding his own. Although the Qixi Protectorate was currently in the hands of those Hu commanders, it still had quite a few Han commanders as well. With the right methods, one could use these Han commanders to influence the Hu commanders to withdraw the guards around the armory without much difficulty.

  “Yes, Lord Marquis! This officer will go!”

  Xu Keyi bowed and left.

  Flap flap!

  Just when Wang Chong had finished handling everything and giving his orders, the flapping of wings alarmed the gathered officers. Turning their heads, they saw a black messenger bird flying into the room through the window.

  “It’s a messenger bird from the capital!”

  The sight of this bird made everyone slightly pale. News from the capital was delivered by special birds, and the color of the bird corresponded to the urgency of the message. Black was used for only the greatest of emergencies.

  “What’s going on?”

  Wang Chong’s brow creased, belying the massive shock in his heart. At this moment, he truly couldn’t think of why a letter would be sent from the capital.

  “Bring it over!”

  A guard quickly took the letter from the messenger bird and respectfully placed it in Wang Chong’s hands.

  Wang Chong opened the letter, and the moment his eyes set upon it, he paled.

  “Li Siye, I leave this place to you. I need to return to the capital!”

  Wang Chong got up and left, quickly rushing past flabbergasted gazes and over the threshold. In the blink of an eye, he was gone.

  ……

  “What?! The Young Marquis of the Great Tang left his fief of Wushang and went to the capital?”

  On the distant Turkic steppe, within the golden tent, the Black Wolf Yabgu Agudu Lan had just received the news, and his eyes flew open as he leapt to his feet in disbelief.

  “Lord Yabgu, this news has been confirmed multiple times. The people we have tracking him followed him from Wushang all the way to Sand Pass and saw him leave in the direction of the capital,” a Turkic scout kneeling on the floor respectfully said.

  The Western Regions was home to a variety of Hu, and a Turk mixing in with the crowd here would stand out far less than they would in the capital of the Great Tang.

  The Black Wolf Yabgu leaned forward and sternly asked, “Have you found out the reason? Why would he choose to leave Qixi at a time like this?”

  Too sudden!

  The Black Wolf Yabgu was greatly astonished by Wang Chong’s departure, and his mind was in turmoil.

  There were only two people in Qixi that he feared. One was the old Protector-General of Qixi, Great General Fumeng Lingcha. That man was a crafty fox that was very difficult to deal with, and he was also extremely s
trong. The other person was that Young Marquis Wang Chong, who everyone seemed to be constantly underestimating.

  Unlike the people from other factions, Agudu Lan had met with the Ghost Eye Yabgu, and the information this Yabgu had brought back from the Mountain of God was different from the information brought back by any other party. That seventeen-year-old youth had displayed incredible talent on the southwestern battlefield. The Ghost Eye Yabgu had frankly stated that the number of people in both the Eastern and Western Turkic Khaganates that could compare to that youth in the art of war could be counted on one hand, maybe even just three fingers.

  This assessment had led Ishbara Khagan to decree that this Great Tang youth had to die.

  But though this youth was an incredible commander, his slightly weaker martial arts were his weak point, his fatal weakness. Agudu Lan had thought a few times about leading his forces down to the south, breaking past the defenses of the Qixi Protectorate and assaulting Wushang’s City of Steel with the intent of killing the Great Tang youth in a surprise raid.

  But Agudu Lan discovered that someone had come upon this idea and acted upon it even faster than he had. This man had been the Asura War God of Ü-Tsang, Dayan Mangban!

  When Agudu Lan heard that Dayan Mangban had died at the battle of the triangular gap, he had received a massive mental blow, and all the murderous intent had drained out of him. Although he had rarely met with this Asura War god, much less spoken with him, they were friends in spirit, both lions of the Qixi territory.

  Agudu Lan knew that his strength was comparable to Dayan Mangban’s, both being Brigadier Generals.

  If not even Dayan Mangban was a match for Wang Chong, Agudu Lan could never believe that he would have much of an advantage. At the very least, hoping to behead Wang Chong with a single lightning-strike blow was extremely implausible. This was why he had broken off the pursuit of Hulayeg when he heard that the merchant had fled to Wushang.

  “Milord, we have learned that it apparently has something to do with the Young Marquis’s second brother. Based on what we’ve found out, his second brother committed a crime, killed someone, and it apparently involves a princess. This incident took place very suddenly, so he was forced to return.”

  The scout continued to kneel as he subserviently gave the report.

  The second brother? Isn’t that the fellow called Wang Bei?

  Agudu Lan’s eyes widened in surprise as he began to think. He had long ago gathered all the available information on Wang Chong. Unlike the other factions, the Black Wolf Yabgu had been very thorough, so he even knew that Wang Chong’s second brother Wang Bei suffered from some sort of hereditary madness.

  After suffering a bout of this madness many years ago, he had been locked up in the imperial prison. He hadn’t expected him to suddenly be released.

  “Continue investigating! I need the veracity of this information confirmed as soon as possible!” the Black Wolf Yabgu immediately ordered. He was extremely cautious with regards to this operation, as he always was.

  With Fumeng Lingcha gone, Agudu Lan only had Wang Chong left to fear. Wushang was neither close nor far to the Qixi Protectorate. At the very least, if anything happened at Qixi, Wang Chong could quickly arrive with reinforcements.

  But if not even Wang Chong was there, then there was no one in all of Qixi that could give Agudu Lan pause.

  This was the best chance to strike against the Qixi armory!

  Chapter 827 - Ambush, the Black Wolf Yabgu!

  Chapter 827: Ambush, the Black Wolf Yabgu!

  Translated by: Hypersheep325

  Edited by: Michyrr

  The Black Wolf Yabgu didn’t have to wait for long. A few days later, a large eagle came flying from the direction of the capital like a bolt of lightning, crossing the Great Steppe to land within the Black Wolf Yabgu’s tent. There were only a few lines on the letter it delivered.

  ‘The information is accurate. Wang Chong’s second brother Wang Bei was released from the imperial prison several days ago and then suffered a bout of madness and began to randomly kill people on the street. The incident created quite a stir, and the Court of Judicial Review is already involved. In addition, this matter truly does involve an imperial princess.’

  Beneath these words were additional bits of related information.

  “Hahaha, good!”

  The Black Wolf Yabgu’s brow relaxed, all his worries swept away. He felt so energized and refreshed that he couldn’t help but roar with laughter, his voice resounding over the steppe.

  “The heavens are truly assisting me. Since we have this chance, there’s no need to wait for anything else. Pass on my order for the army to assemble. Tonight, we will completely destroy the Great Tang’s Qixi Armory!”

  The Great Tang’s massive armory had always been like a fishbone stuck in the throat of the Western Turkic Khaganate. The Black Wolf Yabgu had long desired to destroy it. This was not just some idea that he had thought up in the last two days, or even the last two years. Now, the time was right to realize his dreams.

  “Yes, your subordinate will go!”

  The guard quickly left.

  Rumble!

  Like a stone sending ripples through a lake, the Black Wolf Yabgu’s order caused the neighs of horses to rise from the steppe as countless Turkic warriors answered the call. At the same time, the black wolves howled as the pack gathered.

  In a flash, the steppe was tinged with the somber air that came before a battle.

  ……

  It was the Zi Period, late at night. At the border of Qixi and the Great Steppe, what was once a heavily guarded place packed with soldiers was completely empty.

  “Hahaha, using wealth to avoid calamities, these fellows truly are reliable!”

  In the darkness, a rough and crude voice spoke in Turkic tongue and laughed, then the scout horseman quickly left. Suddenly, the earth began to tremble as hundreds upon thousands of cavalry began to emerge. At the very front of this army was a muscular figure, riding a mighty steed that was even taller than a man. This man’s hair and clothes were flapping in the wind, and his body exuded a wild and savage aura.

  “Keep up, everyone! Attack quickly to end a battle quickly! Anyone who falls behind or messes up will be punished accordingly once we return!”

  The Black Wolf Yabgu’s voice drifted through the darkness.

  “Hahaha, relax, Milord can do no wrong!”

  “We’re just setting a fire in Qixi and turning the place upside down.”

  “Hahaha, how can we just set a fire? We have to at least kill one or two people. Anyone who stops us will die! If we can’t even do this, we should just go back and suck our mothers’ milk!”

  The dark night was instantly filled with laughter as the cavalry galloped through the gap and headed toward the Qixi Protectorate. Behind them, the black wolves silently followed, their eyes shining with a dark green light. After entering through the steppe, they began to head northwest, taking care to keep a distance from Wushang’s City of Steel.

  The late-night winds howled across Qixi, drowning out much of the noise made by the horse hooves.

  The five thousand Turkic soldiers traveled through the night like ghosts, silently galloping in the direction of the Qixi Armory. Surprisingly, they encountered no lookouts or defenses. The many sentries and lookouts from Fumeng Lingcha’s tenure seemed to have utterly vanished. The Black Wolf Yabgu carefully inspected the surroundings before giving a satisfied nod.

  The wealth of the traitor Hulayeg had proved useful. The Hu commanders had taken these bribes and done just as expected, withdrawing all their sentries.

  As long as he could burn down the Qixi Armory, everything would be worth it.

  Rumble! The five thousand cavalry continued to ride through the blustery winds. Around an hour later, they finally spotted that massive building, looming over the horizon like some primordial beast, visible from several dozen li away. Even at this distance, it was still possible to sense an enormous and suff
ocating pressure. In the face of that massive building, all palaces and towers were like insignificant ants.

  The Qixi Armory!

  The sight of this massive silhouette only galvanized the Black Wolf Yabgu. This massive armory contained hundreds of thousands of various types of ballistae, suits of armor, sabers and swords, spears, and halberds. Ten-some years ago, the Black Wolf Yabgu had disguised himself as a merchant from the Western Regions and viewed it during the day. Just a glance of that magnificent scene had left him deeply shocked.

  The building had been constructed by the architects of the Imperial Palace. The outer walls were all built of metal and were extremely tough, with countermeasures against arson already being considered.

  …But this is futile. There is nothing in the world that can’t burn.

  While riding, the Black Wolf Yabgu glanced at the leather bags and wooden tubes hanging from the side of his horse, a harsh light in his eyes. They did not contain water, but Arabian oil. Each of his five thousand soldiers carried a few of these bags and tubes, and once they poured out the oil, even steel would burn.

  More importantly, the Black Wolf Yabgu had requested a Hu commander of Qixi to place a great deal of hay in the armory.

  “Everyone, follow me!” the Black Wolf Yabgu suddenly bellowed as he accelerated.

  The five thousand Turkic cavalry kicked up a cloud of dust as they closed the distance with the Qixi Armory. After thirty minutes, the Qixi Armory was very close, not even one thousand zhang away. In the distance, the guards at the armory gate seemed to have noticed them and were shouting.

  “Haha, it’s too late now!”

  A cruel and savage smile appeared on the Black Wolf Yabgu’s face. He was seeing the effect of his plans. The Qixi Armory still had some guards, but not even one-tenth of the usual force. Just these men alone were simply no match for his hand-picked Turkic elites.

  “It’s about time; kill them all! Destroy the Qixi Armory!”