Thus, during the border incident, as it had taken place in the region overseen by the Beiting Protectorate, An Sishun had been forced to intervene.
And with the Arabs, the same reasoning applied.
Chapter 1825 - The Generals Gather! (II)
Chapter 1825: The Generals Gather! (II)
Translated by: Hypersheep325
Edited by: Michyrr
After the years and months of collaboration and opposition, it was truly hard to say if Wang Chong and An Sishun were friends or enemies. It would be one thing if Wang Chong had been like Fumeng Lingcha, only thinking about rising to higher and higher positions of authority and seeking personal gain. An Sishun would have shown no mercy to such a man. But alas, Wang Chong was not.
If one looked back on Wang Chong’s career, any ordinary person, when faced with situations like the war of the southwest or the Battle of Talas, where one was heavily outnumbered and had a high chance of death, would back away in fear or try to buy time. In the aftermath, they would probably submit memorials to court with various excuses and difficulties.
But Wang Chong was different. Even though he knew that only death awaited and that the chances were grim, he heedlessly charged into the fray. This was not something a man who was only anxious for personal gain would do. Moreover, in these situations of almost certain defeat, Wang Chong had managed to win.
One after another, he had defeated those foes who had vastly outnumbered him, leaving the bones and blood of his enemies strewn across the battlefield to serve as the foundation for his heroic reputation and the building blocks for his path to nobility!
An Sishun asked himself and knew that he could not do such a thing.
Putting aside his discrimination against the Hu, An Sishun understood that he was no match for Wang Chong’s talent in the art of war. While Wang Chong also had various ‘flaws’, he was definitely one of the most talented and outstanding leaders of the Great Tang and could make any officer revere him.
After all that had happened, An Sishun truly found it hard to say what his relationship with Wang Chong was.
“Wang Chong, we finally meet!”
Outside the City of Steel, in front of Zhangchou Jianqiong, Gao Xianzhi, and all the others, An Sishun arrived with the Beiting Protectorate army and was the first to speak.
His few words were bursting with a variety of emotions.
The two of them had worked together several times, but their actual meetings were few and far between, and not once had they fought alongside each other.
It was so quiet that one could hear a pin drop.
Everyone knew of the relationship between Wang Chong and An Sishun. He had even joined Fumeng Lingcha in censuring Wang Chong and seeking his execution. There was a real fear that these two Great Generals might start fighting each other, throwing their side into chaos before the Arabs even attacked.
“Haha, General An, thank you for your assistance in the border incident!”
To everyone’s surprise, Wang Chong put on a gentle face, smiling as he rode over to An Sishun and bowed.
An Sishun didn’t know much about Wang Chong, and the information he had gathered only described Wang Chong’s battle record. But Wang Chong knew much about An Sishun. Although the Beiting Protector-General had various problems, such as the inevitable desire to promote Hu over Han, he was not a petty man who would place his personal grudges over the public good when danger was imminent.
Just like Big Dipper Great General Geshu Han, An Sishun could speak proficiently in the Tang language, and while the two were born as Hu, they had both been immersed in the Tang culture. They were both proper and proud Great Generals!
“Protector-General’s words are too much. This was only this An’s duty! There is no need for thanks!”
An Sishun’s eyes flashed in surprise as he replied.
Whoosh!
Upon hearing ‘Protector-General’, Zhangchou Jianqiong, Gao Xianzhi, and Abusi all sighed in relief. Wang Chong had been granted the title ‘Nine Provinces Protector-General’ by the Sage Emperor, and when An Sishun addressed Wang Chong as ‘Protector-General’, he was implying that he would accept Wang Chong’s orders and would also not bring up old quarrels at this time. This was wonderful news for the other generals.
“Great General, please come inside!”
Wang Chong extended a hand in invitation, and An Sishun swiftly led his army into the City of Steel.
Any one of the five titans who had gathered here would be enough to shake the region, and their combined presence in the City of Steel had the northwest in a state of unprecedented tension. All the foreign kingdoms felt this pressure. The King of Foreign Lands alone was enough to turn over the entire northwest, and these four additional titans had boosted the Great Tang’s force to a frightening level.
War could break out at any moment!
Finally, the last of the titans arrived—Crown Prince’s Junior Guardian Wang Zhongsi.
Before the Rebellion of the Three Princes, Wang Zhongsi offended the First Prince and was banished to Siam, far on the empire’s border. Returning to the capital in itself was extremely time-consuming, let alone gathering and equipping an army.
“Paying respects to the Crown Prince’s Junior Guardian!”
Outside the City of Steel, Wang Chong led the others in welcoming this man.
Wang Chong had an extremely respectful expression on his face as he greeted this Great General. Few could compare to Wang Chong’s current status in the empire, but Wang Zhongsi was still one of the Great Generals that he respected the most.
The previous War God of the Great Tang had spent almost his entire life on horseback, rendering great service for the empire. His only flaw was that his personality was too honest and forthright. The First Prince had exploited this, causing the man to retire at the peak of his career and end his life on the campaign trail.
If Wang Zhongsi had still been in the army, the Great Tang’s situation would not have been like this.
“There is no need for Your Highness to be polite. His Majesty has made you the Nine Provinces Protector-General, so for this operation, you have complete command.
“I have come here so that Your Highness may receive the soldiers of the Imperial Army, and to serve at Your Highness’s command. There is no Crown Prince’s Junior Guardian here, only Wang Zhongsi. There is no need for this courtesy,” Wang Zhongsi sternly said.
The faces of Zhangchou Jianqiong and the other Great Generals immediately turned respectful. Wang Zhongsi far surpassed these men in both record and character, and they could not help but respect him.
Wang Chong, however, knowing that Wang Zhongsi’s personality was the same as ever, only lingered on him for a few moments before turning to the orderly ranks of the armies behind Wang Zhongsi: Soaring Dragon, Sea Dragon, Xuanwu, Feather Forest, Imperial Forest…
All these soldiers were sharp-eyed and straight-backed, like a steel wall. As he swept his gaze over the army, he quickly spotted several familiar figures.
“King Song!
“Old butler!”
Wang Chong called out in surprise.
“Heh, I’ve already completely recovered. With this war in the northwest, I have a chance to contribute my strength, so how could I pass up this opportunity?”
King Song smiled as he came forward, the gray-robed old butler at his side.
“General Li, you come as well!”
King Song beckoned, and the crowd parted, allowing Great General Li to slowly step forward with the rolled-up Nine Dragon Blood War Banner in his hand.
Wang Chong quickly led the group into the City of Steel. Seven days later, Xue Qianjun arrived with the Wushang Cavalry and his two hundred thousand soldiers. With this, all the soldiers of the Great Tang had arrived.
At this time, the City of Steel contained Wang Chong, Gao Xianzhi, Zhangchou Jianqiong, Wang Zhongsi, Abusi, and An Sishun. There were also top-class experts like King Song, the old butler, and General Li. Besides t
hat, there was also an army of six hundred thousand elites, including the Big Dipper Army, the Dragon Stallion Army, the Wushang Cavalry, the Mo Saber Unit, the ballista army, the Divine Martial Army, the Azure Martial Army, and the Xuanwu Army, all of them battle-tested.
And after constant work and labor, three massive defensive lines had been established, each oriented in a different direction. They extended for nearly eight hundred li, and consisted of more than three hundred rows and twenty thousand columns.
Even if the Turks or the Tibetans attempted to attack from the sides, they could be easily fended off.
Moreover, the ‘beehives’ had been installed behind the first line of steel walls so that they could cover every angle. This was truly a mighty fortress.
The City of Steel and the area for several hundred li around it was covered in birds that constantly patrolled for any sign of activity, nothing escaping their gaze.
Besides the usual rock eagles, hawks, and hunting falcons, there were also many Goguryeon gyrfalcons.
In the Rebellion of the Three Princes, Old Eagle had killed Goguryeon Eagle King Kim U-Seok, at the same time obtaining the flute that he used to train and order his birds. With this flute, Old Eagle was able to command all the gyrfalcons, rock eagles, and other birds that Kim U-Seok had trained. These were the treasures Kim U-Seok had spent decades working on, and all of them became Old Eagle’s.
Kim U-Seok had trained these eagles in a special way so as to avoid someone being able to steal his flute and seize control of his birds.
But his defensive measures had been useless against Old Eagle, who easily removed his restrictions and brought all those birds under Wang Chong’s service.
……
“The Arabs have already gathered an army of two million in the Western Regions. While 3.8 million is an empty number, more than half of it is capable of fighting. Given how badly they outnumber us, we have a tough fight ahead!”
In the main hall of the City of Steel, the six major leaders—Wang Chong, Wang Zhongsi, Abusi, Gao Xianzhi, An Sishun, and Zhangchou Jianqiong—had gathered. Around them were various generals and titled generals.
All of them were in the midst of a serious discussion, surrounding a massive model that was ten feet wide and six feet long. Suiye, Qixi, the Turkic steppe, the Tibetan Plateau, the triangular gap… all of these features were present. Even the new Arabian fortress and its surrounding fortifications had been marked out in meticulous detail.
Chapter 1826 - Council! (I)
Chapter 1826: Council! (I)Translated by: Hypersheep325
Edited by: MichyrrWang Chong had gathered all his intelligence using the numerous birds under Old Eagle’s control!As Wang Chong had said many times, by knowing oneself and knowing one’s enemy, one could win one hundred out of one hundred battles.Before the battle had even taken place, he already had such detailed notes on the enemy locations, down to the exact number of soldiers at each position. From this, the other Great Generals had developed a vague understanding of Wang Chong’s art of war, and also understood that he had not reached his status through any fluke.“At present, with the cement road built by Protector-General, we’ve managed to save time and gather all soldiers and supplies in the City of Steel before they did. This is our sole advantage.“However, our opponent seems extremely cautious. If we had that many soldiers in our position, we would have already launched an attack, or at least attempted to sound the enemy out.“But the enemy seems to be only concerned with building fortifications and nothing more. This makes it extremely inconvenient for us to attack!”Gao Xianzhi gestured at the Arab positions on the model as he spoke.Gao Xianzhi had served as the commander for the Western Regions for many years and had fought with the Arabs before, so he had a greater right to speak on this occasion.During the Rebellion of the Three Princes, he had been called back to the interior, and in the end, the Anxi Protectorate army had been wiped out. This was a massive blow to Gao Xianzhi, and he had come to this battle with the intent of giving the Arabs a heavy blow to avenge his slain men.“‘Inconvenient’ doesn’t mean ‘impossible’! That Hierophant Khatabah hasn’t arrived yet. Can we not use the cover of the night to attack them? Even if we can’t kill many, we can at least deal a blow to their morale.“As they say, morale is greatest at the first beating of the drum, but it’s spent by the third beating. If we can deal them a setback, their fighting strength might plunge.”Zhangchou Jianqiong’s eyes were bright, and he examined the Arabian fortress on the model like he was a predator.In Zhangchou Jianqiong’s time in the southwest, there had been at least seven years without any war. His tenure had been so peaceful that one could say that there were no wars.Moreover, Zhangchou Jianqiong did not engage in many offensives, so many people thought that Zhangchou Jianqiong was a rather defensive and conservative Great General, little realizing that Zhangchou Jianqiong was actually an incredibly aggressive commander.‘Tiger of the Empire’ was originally a title that signified Zhangchou Jianqiong’s style of battle. When the Ngari Royal Lineage was at full strength and was constantly attacking the southwest, Zhangchou Jianqiong had always maintained an aggressive policy. That period had been the Annan Protectorate army’s most brilliant period. It was always on the offensive, creating traps and defeating wave after wave of Tibetans.But later on, the Ngari Royal Lineage, having taken its bitter medicine, no longer so aggressively raided the Central Plains.And because the Tibetan Plateau was lacking in oxygen, which had severe effects on the Annan Protectorate army, there was no way of taking land on the plateau.After making one assault on the plateau, Zhangchou Jianqiong gave up on the idea of occupying the Ngari Royal Lineage and decided to stick to protecting his region. This was what caused the people to mistakenly take the Tiger of the Empire as a defensive general.“It’s not that simple.” Crown Prince’s Junior Guardian Wang Zhongsi, standing to Wang Chong’s right, suddenly spoke. “Cavalry charges have the advantage in open areas, but our armies are primarily made of infantry.“Our greatest advantage is the defenses His Highness has erected around Wushang. If the cavalry try to force their way through, they’ll pay a heavy price. But if we leave our defenses while outnumbered, we’ll be the ones paying the heavy price.“In addition, perhaps you have not noticed, but the enemy has built their fortifications with a specific plan in mind. Here, and here… they’ve left open spaces where their cavalry can gather and charge.“I sense that someone on the other side is trying to lure us into a trap. If we attempt a night raid, we’ll probably walk straight into an enemy encirclement.”His expression was grave as he pointed at the several openings in the Arab base, and his gestures immediately had everyone’s attention.Everyone soon focused on these gaps in the Arab defenses.In truth, they had already examined the Arab defense line several times, but not very carefully. But Wang Zhongsi’s prompting had them examine the layout in a different light, and they immediately noticed something strange.Yes!The Crown Prince’s Junior Guardian was right. There really was something bizarre about the layout of the Arab base.While the fortifications seemed packed, paths had been left between them for cavalry to charge. They even allowed for soldiers to rapidly close in on both sides.Zhangchou Jianqiong instantly fell silent. A night raid’s advantage came in catching the enemy off guard. If the enemy was ready, then such a raid was pointless.An Sishun also spoke. “I have some understanding of this Khatabah. In my early years, when I was traveling the world, I spent some time on the Arabian border and would occasionally hear tales about him.“This man is a holy hero to the Arabs, and unlike others, he came from an ordinary family. Originally, he was just a preacher, but after he entered the army, he quickly became the War God of the Arabian Empire.“He doesn’t have the usual arrogance of the Arabs, and he made his name with his intelligence, not his strength.“Moreover, he has many formidable Great Generals under his command that excel in both attack and defense. As we’re still outnumbered, it will probably be difficult to pull off any sneak attacks.“In addition, he is extremely skilled at training soldiers and has many kinds
of soldiers under his command. I might as well add that Qutaybah, the man the King of Foreign Lands defeated last time, was his disciple! Many of his training methods were learned from this Hierophant of Arabia!”It was surprising to everyone that An Sishun had been to Arabia in his early years, and it was even more surprising to hear that Qutaybah had been the disciple of the Hierophant.The name of Arab War God Qutaybah was one that all of the major generals here had heard about some time ago. Tongluo Great General Abusi had heard about him from Chuluohou, and from the injuries on his Tongluo Cavalry, he had been able to understand just how formidable that man had been.But the formidable Qutaybah had only been that man’s disciple. Abusi found it hard to imagine just how powerful the man himself was.“No matter who this opponent is, the Tongluo Cavalry will never back down, and we are confident that we can pierce through and rout any foe. However, we Tongluo are only ten thousand. Protector-General An, if it’s really as you say, then we are in for a tough battle!” Abusi sternly said, his brows creasing in concern.Qutaybah’s Revelation Army had been on par with his Tongluo Cavalry. If the enemy had even stronger forces, the Tongluo Cavalry wouldn’t be able to hold.“Heh, if it’s about Khatabah’s elite soldiers… just leave them to me!”Wang Chong suddenly chuckled, and everyone immediately turned to him, even Wang Zhongsi.Wang Zhongsi was truly rather astonished to learn that this man was so young, not even the age of twenty yet.Deep within the palace, Wang Zhongsi had still managed to hear much about Wang Chong, and he had been paying attention to him for some time. However, this was the first time that the old and young War Gods were fighting alongside each other!Wang Chong sensed the gazes of the crowd, but he did not explain his reasoning.He naturally had the strength to back up his daring words.In the Battle of Talas, the discrepancy in manpower had been too great, but that was then and this was now. Moreover, he had even won that battle.Now the entire strength of the empire was gathered, and he had capable and competent commanders like Zhangchou Jianqiong, Gao Xianzhi, An Sishun, Abusi, and Wang Zhongsi to hold the line. This was a force that Wang Chong could only dream of.As for Khatabah’s special soldiers, Wang Chong did not care very much.He had by now trained twenty thousand Wushang Cavalry, all of them equipped with Wootz Steel swords and Meteoric Metal armor. Even their horses had been armored. In both offensive and defensive power, they were incredibly formidable, and he was confident that they could rout any force.Moreover, the Wushang Cavalry increasing from ten thousand to twenty thousand also resulted in a qualitative transformation in strength. A charge from this force would be on a totally different level of power.Besides that, Wang Chong had the tens of thousands of soldiers in the Mo Saber Unit and the numerous men of his ballista army… No matter how strong Khatabah was, he was bound to fall back in defeat.“In addition, with regards to small-scale raids, there’s no need. In the art of war, direct methods are used for joining battle and indirect methods are used to obtain victory. When weaker, we should attempt riskier strategies, and if we’re stronger, we should attempt to directly break the enemy. This battle is for the fate of the Great Tang. I do not believe there is a need for us to divide our forces into raids to grind away at the enemy force.“This battle is truly a very risky one, but if we can meet the Arabs head-on and break them with pure strength, the Great Tang will have no more opponents on the continent. In the future, all the other countries will be cowed and intimidated, and the empire will enjoy a long peace. In the future, we might even be able to unite the entire continent!” Wang Chong firmly declared.Bang!
The Human Emperor c1-2382 Page 1116