Gao Xianzhi instantly fell silent.
In this battle, the giant ballistae had rendered great service. If they were destroyed, the morale of the army would suffer a significant blow. After all, no one knew if the Arabs had more inhuman forces at their command.
“It’s fine. Just leave this matter to me,” Wang Chong lightly said.
Others might not know what other inhuman forces the Arabian Empire had, but Wang Chong knew that the Behemoth Army and the Skyquaking Army were their two strongest forces. The Arabian Empire did not have the ability to transfer over any more inhuman forces in such a short amount of time.
“Senior Zhang, let’s proceed according to the old rules. Gather up the damaged parts from the two giant ballistae and use them to build another one. As for whether they can actually fire bolts, that’s no longer important. The most important thing is to raise the morale of the troops. In addition, although we know that building another giant ballista will be very difficult, the Arabs and Tibetans don’t know that. Building an imitation will at least have an intimidating effect,” Wang Chong confidently declared.
He now controlled the last Behemoth on the battlefield of Talas. In truth, there was no need to build another giant ballista so quickly.
Even if they could build one, they could take their time doing it.
“Understood! If this is the case, this old man can quickly build another one.”
Zhang Shouzhi nodded, understanding Wang Chong’s intention.
Previously, Wang Chong had used a pile of fake Tang ballistae to trick the Tibetans, and it was clear that he planned to use the same trick.
Rumble!
As they were speaking, a rumbling came from the hills, dust pluming into the air as an army began to withdraw.
“It’s the Tibetans!” Xue Qianjun said in delight, his face excited as the pressure from today’s battle was finally relieved. “The Arabs have retreated, and the Tibetans definitely saw this and decided to do the same.”
Rumble!
As this was said, the Western Turks also began to retreat.
Everyone was relieved and excited to see this. If the threat of the Turks and Tibetans was removed, the Tang would be in a much better position.
“It’s not that simple!”
Wang Chong shook his head, his brow beginning to crease as he watched the two armies withdraw. As he spoke, Wang Chong, Gao Xianzhi, Cheng Qianli, and Wang Yan began to stand up.
“Wang Chong is correct,” Gao Xianzhi agreed. “This battle truly did have an effect on the Tibetans and Western Turks, but whether it’s the Celestial Wolf Great General Duwu Sili, Huoshu Huicang, or Dalun Ruozan, none of them are people who easily give up.”
The withdrawal of these armies eased the pressure on the Tang, but Gao Xianzhi remained deeply suspicious.
“Remember, you can never claim a true victory unless you have truly defeated the enemy, and until you do, you can never let down your guard.”
Wang Chong slightly raised his head. In this aspect, he was in complete agreement with Gao Xianzhi. As highly-ranked Tang commanders, the two shared many points of agreement.
The surroundings fell silent as everyone watched the Tibetans and Turks leave. As Wang Chong gazed at the Western Turks, his brows rose and fell as if he was thinking about something.
“Wang Chong, what’s wrong?”
Gao Xianzhi immediately sensed something and turned his head.
“Something’s off,” Wang Chong said with a furrowed brow, and his words immediately had everyone’s attention.
“Wang Chong, what’s wrong? What have you realized?” Cheng Qianli asked. Although he hadn’t spent much time with Wang Chong, Cheng Qianli knew that this young Qixi Protector-General would never say anything without reason. If he said that something was off, then something must definitely have happened.
“I don’t know.”
Wang Chong slowly drew back his gaze.
“This isn’t my first clash with Dalun Ruozan, so I have an understanding of his style. The battle is over and the Arabs have lost, so for Dalun Ruozan to withdraw his army and wait for a better moment is completely in line with his way of doing things. But this Celestial Wolf Great General… I feel like there’s something off about him.”
“Duwu Sili?”
Gao Xianzhi and Cheng Qianli glanced at each other in surprise. The two had not expected Wang Chong to have placed his focus on Duwu Sili.
“Lord Protector-General, you have more experience than I do. Have you ever interacted with this Duwu Sili before? Do you have an understanding of him?”
“This… Duwu Sili and I fight in different regions. We’ve never had many direct interactions, so I have never paid him too much attention.”
Gao Xianzhi’s brow creased in recollection.
“Based on what I know, Duwu Sili is known to outsiders as someone very hard to deal with. He gained his status as Irkin through cold-blooded means, killing the previous Irkin… That person was very famous amongst the Western Turks.”
Wang Chong’s brow furrowed even deeper, the strange feeling in his heart intensifying.
All fell silent as everyone stared at Wang Chong, no one daring to disturb him. Gao Xianzhi, Cheng Qianli, and Wang Yan also became pensive. However, unlike Wang Chong, they found it very hard to sense anything wrong about this simple retreat.
Wang Chong suddenly turned to Zhang Shouzhi and said, “Senior Zhang Shouzhi, could you recount again what you said before?”
Zhang Shouzhi was confused, but he hurriedly retold the story of the giant ballista’s destruction.
Everyone listened very carefully to his tale, but no one, not even Gao Xianzhi or Cheng Qianli, understood what this was for. They could draw no connection between Duwu Sili’s destruction of the giant ballista and Wang Chong’s strange feeling that something was off.
It was so quiet that one could hear a pin drop. Everyone had confusion in their eyes, but Wang Chong’s gaze was slowly beginning to sharpen.
“It’s wrong! Duwu Sili’s actions were strange!” Wang Chong firmly declared.
“Wang Chong, what have you discovered? What was off about Duwu Sili destroying the giant ballista?” Gao Xianzhi and Cheng Qianli hurriedly asked.
“It’s not a problem with the giant ballista, but a problem with Duwu Sili. Lord Protector-General, General Cheng, let me ask you, what do you think Duwu Sili’s goal was in crossing the second defense line alone?”
“Of course, it was to deal with…”
Cheng Qianli immediately opened his mouth, but when he was about to say the words ‘Wang Chong’, his voice stopped and his face froze.
“Have you realized?”
Wang Chong glanced at Cheng Qianli, knowing that he had understood.
“On the surface, Duwu Sili seemed to be coming for us, but throughout this entire battle, we didn’t even see him. This Duwu Sili is definitely strange. His objective was not us. He must have had another target.”
As Wang Chong’s mind cleared, his eyes grew sharper and sharper. Next to him, Gao Xianzhi’s eyes were also beginning to fill with worry. It would have been fine if Duwu Sili had been aiming at them, but if this wasn’t the case, then they had a real problem on their hands. Even worse was that the battle was already over. Regardless of what Duwu Sili’s goal was, he had probably already succeeded.
“Xue Qianjun! Pass on my order! Gather the army! Give it a thorough inspection! Focus particularly on the ballista soldiers and the Wushang Cavalry! I want every detail reported!”
Wang Chong’s gaze became piercingly cold.
Chapter 1000 - Duwu Sili's Ambition!
Chapter 1000: Duwu Sili’s Ambition!
Translated by: Hypersheep325
Edited by: Michyrr
In the distance, the Western Turks had long ago vanished. Meanwhile, Xue Qianjun quickly finished his inspection.
“Lord Marquis! It’s bad! Sir Chen Bin has gone missing! We’ve searched the entire camp, but we didn’t find him!’
“What?!!”
Wang Chong instantly paled at his words, and even Gao Xianzhi and Cheng Qianli looked over in consternation. Although they didn’t have a very deep understanding of Wang Chong’s subordinates, they did know the name of Chen Bin. He was the commander of Wang Chong’s ballista army, a role in which he was very proficient. Under his command, the same ballistae displayed a completely different level of power. He had an extremely important status in Wang Chong’s army.
Although he was not charging the enemy along with other Tang soldiers, many of the Arabs, Tibetans, and Turks that had died in this battle had fallen at his hand. He had truly rendered great service and was an extremely crucial individual.
The lack of this person would have an enormous effect on this Battle of Talas!
“Search again! Have you searched inside Talas, within the walls? And also… call over the ballista soldiers! And also Chen Bin’s guards. Do not even they know where Chen Bin is?”
Wang Chong’s voice turned harsh and severe.
“Yes!”
The messenger’s face showed a hint of nervousness. The marquis was rarely this harsh, but everyone knew that Chen Bin’s disappearance was no laughing matter.
The messenger quickly departed, and the entire army began to implement Wang Chong’s order. Gao Xianzhi, Cheng Qianli, and their own subordinates also did not just stand around. The result of the second inspection was soon produced, though no one wished to hear the result.
It had been confirmed that when withdrawing, Duwu Sili had taken a person with him, and this person was Chen Bin! Because Chen Bin had been injured while dealing with the Skyquaking Giants, he had been lying on the ground, mixed in with the wounded and dead. Thus, when Duwu Sili left with him, it had not attracted too much attention.
And when the majority of the wounded were moved into Talas and other heavily guarded areas, the ballista soldiers believed that he had already been taken into the city. Put together with the chaos of the battle and that everyone only had time to think about themselves, they did not have the time to notice these things. Thus, the fact that Chen Bin had been taken hostage remained undiscovered for a time.
This news was like a bomb exploding in everyone’s minds. The atmosphere instantly turned heavy, with people like Zhang Shouzhi all showing grim expressions.
“What I don’t understand is that Duwu Sili is the famed Celestial Wolf Great General, one of the three strongest Great Generals of the Western Turkic Khaganate. Why would he take Chen Bin hostage?”
The third-ranked commander of the Anxi Protectorate army, Xi Yuanqing, suddenly spoke from his position next to Cheng Qianli. He had only rushed over when he heard the news. His deepest impression of Chen Bin had been the scene when he was efficiently and callously cutting down the Arabs while commanding the ballista army.
Although his level of martial arts was not high, the abilities he had displayed left many stronger generals in the dust. But Xi Yuanqing still did not understand why the mighty Celestial Wolf Great General had taken Chen Bin hostage.
“Could it be that Duwu Sili took Chen Bin away to learn the secrets of the ballistae and create his own ballista army?” Xi Yuanqing said.
“Impossible!”
Xi Yuanqing was immediately interrupted by Zhang Shouzhi.
“Ballistae have always been one of the highest secrets of the Great Tang. A diagram is required to build a ballista. It’s not something that you can build just by looking at its exterior. If you did that, you would just get a giant iron crossbow at best. Moreover, that’s a matter to be handled by craftsmen, while soldiers are responsible for the actual fighting. Chen Bin might be the commander of the ballistae, but he doesn’t have the diagram on him. It would be impossible for Duwu Sili to obtain the secret of the ballistae from him.
“In addition, the ballistae required a high level of skill in forging and a complete system of smithing. This is not something a steppe empire like the Western Turks can realize. Even if they did get their hands on the ballista diagram, it would be useless in their hands! They wouldn’t be able to forge even one ballista!”
Zhang Shouzhi’s expression was firm. In the field of smithing, his authority was absolute. The construction of the City of Steel and the realization of the giant ballista both raised Zhang Shouzhi’s reputation to incredible levels, and he was an undisputed grandmaster of the field. This was particularly true with regards to the construction of the grand project that was the City of Steel. As he had overseen the entire project, he had achieved an almost divine status in the hearts of many craftsmen.
If he said that the Western Turkic Khaganate could not build a ballista even with the diagram, then this was the case.
“But what if the Western Turkic Khaganate cooperates with Arabia to build ballistae?” another officer of the Anxi Protectorate army asked.
The Western Turks, Tibetans, and Arabs were currently in a three-way alliance. Everyone feared a worst-case scenario where the Western Turks collaborated with the Arabs.
The Western Turkic Khaganate truly did lack the necessary skills to forge a ballista, but the Arabs were different. They were completely capable of such a feat.
“Not possible!”
Before Zhang Shouzhi could reply, Gao Xianzhi shook his head and rejected the notion.
“The Arabs are quite proud, and they only began to truly get into conflict with us and interact with ballistae for two months. During that period, the Arabs had not yet formed an alliance with the Western Turks. Their alliance is still newly-formed, with each side still doubting the other. This is definitely not a situation where the three parties trust each another enough to work together to build a ballista. Moreover, Abu Muslim is the style of commander who would prefer to see Duwu Sili leading an army to cooperate with the Arabs in attacking us, not a mere ballista diagram. Thus, this situation is impossible. At the very least, Duwu Sili doing something like this has nothing to do with Abu Muslim.”
“But if the Western Turkic Khaganate can’t make ballistae and Duwu Sili doesn’t plan to cooperate with the Arabs, why did he take Chen Bin hostage?” Xue Qianjun muttered.
His words cast a silence on the gathered officers. Chen Bin was the commander of the ballista army. If Duwu Sili had not taken him hostage for the ballistae, then what was it for? No one could answer this question.
“There’s no need to think about it anymore. If Duwu Sili didn’t come for the ballistae, then he could only be after one other thing: the Wushang Cavalry!” Wang Chong suddenly declared.
In Talas, the strongest and most effective forces the Great Tang had were the ballista army and the well-armed and -armored Wushang Cavalry. If it wasn’t the ballistae, then there was only one choice left.
“But, Wang Chong, wasn’t Chen Bin the commander of the ballista army? If Duwu Sili wanted to do something to the Wushang Cavalry, why would he take Chen Bin?”
Gao Xianzhi slightly frowned in confusion. The mighty Celestial Wolf Great General dominated the steppe and would not make such a low-class error. Gao Xianzhi was rather befuddled by this situation.
“…In addition, if Duwu Sili wanted to move against the Wushang, he would just attack. Even if he wanted the Meteoric Metal armor or Wootz Steel swords of the Wushang Cavalry, he wouldn’t need to take someone hostage.”
The Wushang Cavalry possessed unimaginable power, and as a commander, Gao Xianzhi could not have possibly failed to notice this. Moreover, Wang Chong had never hidden the secrets of the Meteoric Metal and Wootz Steel swords from him.
“This problem probably has its roots in the armor.”
Wang Chong’s lips curved into an almost undetectable and bitter smile.
“All the officers under my command are equipped with Meteoric Metal armor and Wootz Steel swords, with the generals possessing equipment of even higher quality. Duwu Sili isn’t familiar with the structure of my army, so he must have only noticed that the Wushang Cavalry were equipped with special armor, taking note of nothing else. As a res
ult, he took Chen Bin to be part of the Wushang Cavalry. As for Duwu Sili’s goal in taking a hostage, he’s probably after formation phenomena.”
Buzz!
Everyone had been confused at first, but the words ‘formation phenomena’ instantly made them understand. Gao Xianzhi and Cheng Qianli, who had a broad range of experience, particularly understood the weight behind these words.
Gao Xianzhi’s heart instantly sank. As a top-class commander, he only needed Wang Chong to say a little for him to swiftly understand the implications.
“This situation is looking rather bad. Formation phenomena are no minor affair,” Gao Xianzhi gravely said. “In truth, after this battle was over, I was planning to ask you about it. And it’s hard to blame Duwu Sili for desiring your formation phenomena. The Celestial Wolf Cavalry is one of the three most powerful cavalry forces of the Western Turkic Khaganate. If Duwu Sili could get his hands on the secret of formation phenomena and push the Celestial Wolf Illusory Formation to the highest level, he will be a powerful foe of our Great Tang, whether now or in the future. In addition, I don’t have much of an understanding of your subordinates, but there’s a matter I want to ask you. Chen Bin is the commander of the ballista army, so does he know anything about the Wushang Cavalry’s formation phenomena?”
“He knows.”
Wang Chong nodded.
“Before I formed the ballista army, he was actually one of the Wushang Cavalry’s officers. Although he doesn’t know every secret, he knows around eighty percent of them.”
“Wang Chong, the Western Turks are an empire of cavalry, and they use far more formations than we do. If Duwu Sili gets his hands on the secret of formation phenomena and spreads it through the Western Turkic Khaganate, you understand what that will mean. So if you will forgive me, let me ask another question. Given your understanding of Chen Bin, if Duwu Sili wants to get the secret of the formation phenomena from him, will he succeed?”
The Human Emperor c1-2382 Page 642