Love Affairs in Chang'an - Chapter 466

Chapter 466 Sudden Appearance of Wolf Nature
Qingluo Plain was filled with smoke and gunpowder. There were countless large craters on the ground, and fresh blood stained the snow that reached his knees red. The huge Tibetan army villages burned everywhere, and thick smoke billowed for dozens of kilometers. Troops of Tibetan prisoners were escorted by Tang soldiers and walked out of the camp.

Hou Junji rode his horse through the barracks, his face tense and his eyes as cold as ice. A group of prisoners had been taken by his side. He looked sideways and saw that a few of them seemed to be Han Chinese. He raised his hand and pointed at them with a whip, “Bring those two over.”

The personal guard stepped forward and brought the two Tibetan prisoners who seemed to be Han Chinese over.

“Are you Han Chinese?” Hou Junji asked.

“Yes, we are the captive citizens of the Great Tang. The Tibetans used us as serfs to graze and plant us. When war broke out, we went to the barracks to feed our horses and serve the Kunlun cavalry as knights. Every Kunlun cavalry was served by slaves. There were three or four more.” One of them answered with trepidation in Chinese. It was indeed an authentic Kansai accent.

Hou Junji squinted his eyes at them, his gaze piercing into their hearts like a blade. He judged carefully that the two of them did not seem to be lying.

“Don’t be afraid, I won’t kill you. After verifying that your true body can prove that you are abducted Han people, I will let you return to your homeland and reunite with your relatives.” Hou Junji said.

“Thank you, General! Thank you, General!” The two slaves knelt on the snow in joy and kept kowtowing.

“Get up. I’m going to ask you, why are there only this few old and weak soldiers and servants in Qingluo Yuan camp? Where are Gaer Qinling’s main force, the Kunlun Cavalry?” Hou Junji asked.

“This … this lowly person is just a servant who feeds the horse boiling water. I’m not too sure.” One of them replied, “I only know that in the middle of the night about three days ago, there was a big commotion in the barracks. Most of the troops turned to the southwest direction of Jishi Mountain.” The next day, before dawn, the steward’s general had us fire-headed coachmen mount horses and run around the barracks with flags in our hands. It was midnight and we were running back and forth with torches, but it didn’t tire us to death. ”

“Bluffing, secretly crossing the barn!” Hearing this, Hou Junji’s heart had completely understood and was completely cold.

Previous bad premonitions and guesses had now been verified.

Since Hou Junji was ordered to lead the army to guard Da Feichuan, Gaer Qinling had never stopped provoking and attacking Da Feichuan. Although the Tibetans suffered two consecutive defeats, they still had 150 thousand troops left, and Gaer Qinling, the main force of the Kunlun cavalry, was still in charge. Just relying on the strength of fifty to sixty thousand troops in his hands, it was truly difficult to contend against. As a result, he followed Qin Mubai’s instructions and strictly guarded the camp to defend instead of attacking, allowing time, cold and hunger to wear away the fighting spirit and strength of the Tibetans.

During the cold winter, heavy snow sealed off the mountain and grain transportation was difficult. In fact, not only the Tibetans, but also the entire Lanzhou had always been short of grain. According to Qin Mubai’s plan, when the ice and snow melted and the grain path was clear, he would shrink his troops and gather enough grain to fight the Tibetans head-on. Moreover, in the cold winter season, the Tang army’s ability to fight in the field would be greatly reduced, far inferior to the Tibetan cavalry that were accustomed to ice and snow.

All these factors, “defending instead of attacking” tactics are reasonable, at that time he Hou Junji himself did not raise any objections. Although he was eager to make contributions, he also expressed his approval of Qin Mubai’s tactic.

However, he still made a mistake in the end.

Gaer Qinling, who had suffered heavy injuries, looked like a wild beast that had been angered to the point of being furious on the surface. He continuously fought provocatively and even braved the might of the Divine Martial Cannon to send troops to attack Da Feichuan, and without exception, he was beaten back.

Such a crazy offensive seemed to confirm Qin Mubai’s expectation that Golmud’s surprise attack would succeed. The Tibetans had lost their grain and supplies, so they had to rush to capture Dafeichuan, otherwise they would really die in this harsh winter. Unexpectedly, behind the crazy attack, there was a sinister scheme-Gaer Qinling abandoned his forty to fifty thousand troops as if he had lost his arm to survive, letting half of them defend the village and half continue to provoke Da Feichuan, in order to contain and paralyze the Tang army; In the dark, he led his elite Kunlun cavalry around the southwest and climbed over the snow-covered Stone Mountain!

By the time Hou Junji discovered that he was cheating, it was already too late. Although he immediately led the army to attack, and with the support of the Divine Martial Cannon, he defeated the remaining Tibetan soldiers in half a day, and took down the Qingluo Plain military camp, Gaer Qinling and his nearly 100,000 Kunlun cavalry had disappeared without a trace.

…

Hou Junji had almost thought of the consequences. He personally came to the vicinity of Jishi Mountain and found traces of a large number of cavalry moving here. Looking up, one could see boundless mountains of ice and snow and dangerous peaks towering into the clouds.

“What a ghost! Did Gaer Qinling and his Kunlun cavalry grow wings?” Hou Junji angrily cursed in his heart, “Even birds can’t fly on such a mountain and steep ice peak. How can cavalry pass through?”

Aware of the seriousness of the problem, the lieutenants whispered, “Stone Mountain stretches for dozens of kilometers. It is a natural military barrier.” In the past, there was a watershed between Tibet and Tuyu Hun, and the Central Plains’ military forces could reach this point almost to the end. “Now that Gaer Qinling has crawled over like a ghost and crossed a plateau and plain to the southeast, hundreds of kilometers deep, he will directly face the newly established prefectures and counties of the Great Tang in Tuyu Hun’s old land!”

“Gaer Qinling will definitely invade Taozhou!” Hou Junji frowned and said, “Because in the Songzhou area, there are tens of thousands of troops led by Yuchi Jingde, the chief marching officer of the Sword South Road.” Previously, it had been a battlefield. However, between the Songzhou Military Region and Taozhou Prefecture, there was a plateau ravine about several tens of kilometers away. Because of the rough road and bad weather, it was rarely inhabited, and it was almost an uninhabited region. Since Gaer Qinling was able to cross the Stone Mountain, he would definitely choose such a place to escape Yuchi Jingde’s spies and directly insert himself into the Taozhou Prefecture!

“If he were to take down Taozhou, then it would be a bad thing!” “Taozhou is one of the most convenient cities in the western border defense line of the Great Tang. After Gaer Qinling settles down here, he can advance in all directions. I’m afraid that he will harm the Central Plains by going deeper into the Guanzhong area!” The lieutenant general exclaimed in shock, “Taozhou is one of the most convenient cities in the western border defense line of the Great Tang.”

“I’m counting on General Yuchi to discover and snipe Gaer Qinling halfway!”

“What do you expect!” Hou Junji harrumphed angrily and said, “Who would send troops and horses to patrol the desperate plateau dozens of miles away when the mountains are frozen under the heavy snow?” Yuchi Jingde was just a fierce general who charged into the front lines, and he could not do such fine work. Moreover, even if he discovered it, he might not have time to save him! Since Gaer Qinling dared to go, he must be half-prepared for a fight. It would be strange if the tens of thousands of Chuanshu infantry under Yuchi Jingde were not devoured alive when they encountered the Kunlun Cavalry in that kind of place! ”

“Doesn’t that mean that Gaer Qinling has definitely succeeded in capturing Taozhou? Next, the Western Region and the Central Plains will suffer countless poisons!” The lieutenants on both sides complained bitterly, “We made a big mistake and let Gaer Qinling slip under our noses!”

“He will come back.” Hou Junji gritted his teeth and said word by word.

“Come back?” Everyone was shocked.

“Taozhou, it’s spread out in all directions. After a while, Gaer Qinling will definitely not charge towards Guanzhong. That would undoubtedly be courting death.” Hou Junji said, “His actions are to create chaos, attract and restrain the troops of our Great Tang border, and seek an opportunity to escape for himself.”

“Then why didn’t he just directly retreat from the Qingluo Plains to the plateau? Wasn’t the surprise attack on Taozhou superfluous?”

“He wants revenge.” Hou Junji closed his eyes and looked at the snow-capped mountains in front of him. He said in a deep voice, “The three consecutive defeats of Illusory Moon Valley, Dafeichuan and Golmud caused him to lose all his primordial energy. This is not only a military defeat, but it may also affect his status in Tibet and shake the Tibet national policy that this fanatical warlord has always advocated.” If he retreated like this, he might never be able to see him on the battlefield again. Do you think a hero like him would be willing? “In addition, after taking down Taozhou, he might have other schemes. It shouldn’t be as simple as revenge.”

Hearing Hou Junji’s words, the hearts of the generals were pressed against a huge boulder.

“General Hou, what should we do now?” ‘”Qingluo Yuan has already struck down, but apart from the prisoners of some old and weak soldiers, we have found almost nothing. How can we explain such a major dereliction of duty to Young Marshal Qin?”

Hou Junji slowly said, “This isn’t something that I can explain to ‘Young Marshal Qin’ anymore …”

The crowd was stunned-he was implying that His Majesty the Emperor would be held accountable in the future?

At this moment, Hou Junji’s expression gradually darkened, and he faintly had a layer of deathly gray aura. He thought in his heart, “I, someone, have to endure the humiliation of wandering around. It took me a long time to take over the military power and do something big, but I made the biggest military mistake of my life!”

I am already an abandoned soldier of the emperor and a victim of the court’s party struggle. If it weren’t for Qin Mubai’s daring use of me, I would have either died in Wuming in Liangzhou, the lonely old man, or been found an excuse to get rid of the root of the trouble in the future. Now that everything is irreparable, because of my mistakes, Qin Mubai will also bear the blame for improper deployment and improper employment, and Yuchi Jingde will also be implicated by me. The military’s power had finally recovered and raised its head in the court, and it would definitely suffer a heavy blow because of Hou Mou’s mistake this time!

Even if the Emperor is magnanimous enough to forgive me once again, can Eldest Sun Wuji let me go? What a good chance to kill someone! –If Taozhou is lost, the western border and the inland will surely suffer enormous losses. How many heads will it take to calm public opinion and public indignation with such an evil consequence? However, Qin Mubai was a rare hero in recent years, a young general that the Great Red Man and Emperor had focused on nurturing. Although Yuchi Jingde was implicated, he did not bear the main responsibility. In addition, he was one of the four great contributors to the Kaiyuan Empire and was deeply trusted by the Emperor. Right now, he was the mainstay in the limelight … Even if these two people were to be punished, the Emperor would definitely not ruthlessly kill them. At most, he would only punish them with a calm punishment!

…

After pondering for a long time, Hou Junji couldn’t help but close his eyes and sigh.

“This time, I will undoubtedly die. There will be no turning back!”

“General Hou, what did you say?” He didn’t hear it clearly and asked.

“Nothing.” Hou Junji regained his composure and said, “The Tibetan soldiers who were captured in Qingluo Plain just now don’t need to be brought back to Dafeichuan-execute them all on the spot!”

“Ah? General Hou wants to kill a prisoner?” The crowd was also shocked, “Or … all of them?”

Hou Junji narrowed his eyes and looked up at the sky. He said, “Pick out the Han slaves and give them some food to wrap around. Let them escape for their own lives!”

At this moment, he said in his heart, “This is also the last good thing that I, Hou, have done in my life!”

“But General Hou, the military law of our Great Tang is strict. We are not allowed to indiscriminately kill prisoners! Didn’t Major Marshal also solemnly warn General before he left …”

“This is a great sin, I will bear it myself!” Hou Junji shouted.

“Twenty to thirty thousand people!”

“If you dare to disobey this general’s order, chop it down now!” Hou Junji drew his saber.

The lieutenant general didn’t dare to say anything else, so he had to retreat to carry out the military order.

A gust of cold wind swept past, blowing Hou Jun’s battle robe to the point of covering his chest and face. He stretched out his hand and abruptly wrapped his battle robe behind him. His eyes were filled with hostility, like a lone wolf that had been starving for a long time, facing the flock of sheep–

“Bring out the Tibetan prisoners from the Great Feichuan in ten batches and kill them all! Not a single one of them will remain!”

“Yes” The crowd were all chilled, but they didn’t dare to say anything when they saw the sharp blade in his hand.

“Everyone, go get busy!” Hou Junji sheathed his saber and waved his hand at the generals. “Tomorrow, at this time, all 50,000 to 60,000 prisoners will be killed! Time is running out!”

The hearts of the generals jumped as they looked at each other and thought to themselves, Time is of the essence? What’s he doing in a hurry?

However, no one dared to ask, although Hou Junji led troops, especially good at training, and can share the hardships with soldiers, large and small battles often lead the way to kill enemies, coupled with clear rewards and punishments, he has quite prestige among the soldiers; However, in terms of temperament, Hou Junji was a rather aloof and arrogant person who was difficult to get along with. Moreover, he was ruthless in his words. The generals were truly afraid that they would ask him a few more questions and be ruthlessly slashed by him on the spot.

However, the thought of executing fifty to sixty thousand Tibetan prisoners made the hearts of all the generals go cold! At the beginning of the founding of the Great Tang, such a thing had never happened! Hou Junji, this is risking the world’s condemnation. Don’t tell me he doesn’t want to live anymore? Even if the Tibetans did not desperately seek revenge on him, the Tang court might not let him go!

The generals had all left, and Hou Junji was still standing at the foot of the mountain alone. Even the banner messenger and personal guard, who were holding the flag, did not dare to approach him ten steps away.

“If you die, then you’re dead. I have no scruples!” Hou Junji took a deep breath and smiled coldly. “In the past, I always lived under the protection and kindness of the emperor. I gave consideration to all aspects of law, but in the end, I lost to Eldest Sun Wuji.” Afterwards, I admired Qin Mubai’s loyalty and generosity, and obeyed his every word, even more so than the Emperor! Today, I want to be myself! “Do something that you’ve always wanted to do, but you can’t do, don’t dare to do, and don’t have the heart to do!”

“Even if I’m not afraid of death, what else do I have to fear!”

“I’m sorry, Your Majesty! What I’m going to do next may make you regret not killing Hou Junji and killing him!”

“Sorry, Qin Mubai! I once planned to stop trusting anyone in my life, except you. But now, I have to do something that I’m sorry for! But don’t worry, I won’t kill you no matter what! In addition, I might be able to lay the groundwork and create some convenience for you by doing a good deed with my bad intentions. I might even be able to repay your kindness and generosity! “If you can’t figure it out and you can’t breathe, treat it as raising a white-eyed wolf!”

“A wolf, after all, isn’t a dog!” Hou Junji couldn’t help but grin indifferently, “That’s what nature is. You should have thought of it long ago, right?”