novelSusiti Chapter 57 Li Chengqian: Tuoba Chici, why don't you surrender to Tang?
Chapter 57 Li Chengqian: Tuoba Chici, why don't you surrender to Tang?
"Yes," said Pharmacist Eri with a look of shame.
"Didn't your sister have a pack of wolves and a snake formation? Even they were no match for them." Tuoba Chici asked, looking puzzled.
"They killed almost all the wolves and snakes."
"What?" Tuoba Chici and Princess Guanghua were both shocked when they heard this, because they had witnessed the power of wolf packs and snake formations.
"The men under the Crown Prince of the Tang Dynasty are all very capable, not like ordinary people. Moreover, they have designed a crossbow that can fire three arrows at once with high accuracy."
It is said to come with some kind of aiming device or something.
"They also have two hundred cavalrymen under their command, all of whom are well-trained. If you push them too far, it's hard to say whether you can dodge their crossbow bolts," said Yakushi Eri.
Princess Guanghua, Xiaoqing, and Xiaobai had all witnessed the power of those crossbow bolts, and they still felt lingering fear when they thought about it.
Princess Guanghua said, "Those crossbow bolts shattered our Sacred Flame Token Formation!"
"Even the Sacred Flame Array is no match for them?" Tuoba Chici looked at the expressions of the three of them and felt a little uneasy.
The physician Hui Ri continued, "Since ancient times, when two countries are at war, they do not kill envoys. How much more so when Li Chengqian is the crown prince of the Tang Dynasty?"
In my opinion, you should treat them with courtesy and invite them into the tent to hear what they have to say.
Because her younger sister was in someone else's hands, Pharmacist Eri had no choice but to say this.
"Alright, considering he gave me a copy of 'Han Feizi,' I'll listen to you," Tuoba Chici said, raising his voice. "Brothers! Listen up! Put away your bows and arrows, make way for the Crown Prince of Tang to come to the Dangxiang as an envoy!"
"Yes, sir!" Although the five thousand cavalrymen under Tuoba Chici were also a little dizzy, who dared to disobey the king's orders?
Tuoba Chici dismounted and approached Li Chengqian, bowing and saying, "I am the ruler of a small country and am unfamiliar with the etiquette of a great nation. Please forgive any offense I may have caused!"
Li Chengqian dismounted and returned the greeting with courtesy: "When I was in Chang'an, I had heard of your great name. I am honored to meet you today."
"I never expected Your Highness to be so young, handsome, and wise. You truly have the demeanor of a crown prince of a great nation. Please come with me to the main tent for a drink, and we can discuss the book 'Han Feizi' further."
"That's excellent!"
Tuoba Chici hosted a banquet for Li Chengqian, Su Wan, and others in the main tent.
Princess Guanghua sat next to Tuoba Chici, looking at Li Chengqian with a good eye.
Looking at Princess Guanghua's composed demeanor, Li Chengqian thought to himself, "This woman is no simpleton. That night, she actually took off her clothes in front of me. If I hadn't been cautious, I would have almost fallen for her trick. Could it be that Tuoba Chici didn't object to her undressing in front of other men?"
Tuoba Chici repeatedly offered toasts.
Li Chengqian put down his wine cup: "I heard that you Tanguts originally lived in the place where the Tuyuhun people now live. Later, the Murong family came and forcibly occupied your land. So you had no choice but to migrate to the Hequ region."
Unexpectedly, another Tibetan group from the highlands arrived, and they seized your city, further squeezing your living space.
Li Chengqian's words struck a chord with Tuoba Chici.
Tuoba Chici sighed: "We Tanguts are kind by nature and dislike fighting with others. We are always humble and yielding. We originally lived well in the Hexi Corridor area. Unexpectedly, the Murong clan led the Tuyuhun people from the Northeast and seized our homeland."
Later, Tibet also inexplicably grew powerful.
They have also seized a significant amount of the land we occupied.
"When I came here, my father said that whether it is a nomadic people or an agricultural people, our Great Tang will treat them all equally. If you are willing to submit to the Great Tang, you will receive the protection of the Great Tang and no one will bully you anymore."
"This—," Tuoba Chici was moved after hearing this, "but on the one hand, last time when Li Tai came, I listened to my subordinates and ordered five hundred of their guards to be captured. How can he not hold a grudge against me now?"
On the other hand, we have already reached an agreement with Tuyuhun to unite against external threats. How can I go back on my word?
Upon hearing this, Li Chengqian and Su Wan exchanged a glance. Judging from Tuoba Chici's tone, he seemed to have the intention to surrender to the Tang Dynasty, but he still had reservations.
Li Chengqian said generously, "Last time, Li Tai's visit was just a misunderstanding. Some time ago, our Tang army also captured two hundred Tuyuhun soldiers, and we have returned them all this time. If you are willing, we can hand over these two hundred Tuyuhun prisoners to you, and you can release the five hundred guards. What do you think?"
Tuoba Chici looked at Princess Guanghua, who was a Tuyuhun person and naturally agreed: "That's very good, but aren't we losing too much by exchanging two hundred men for five hundred?"
Su Wan smiled and said, "Princess, every one of you Tuyuhun people is a hero, one of you is worth ten of them. How can you be at a loss? I think you've actually gained something."
When Su Wan said this, it was as if she was praising the Tuyuhun people.
A single sentence can often be worth more than a thousand troops.
"That's true," Princess Guanghua said to Tuoba Chici, "Your Majesty, I believe this is a feasible plan."
"Alright then, the prisoner exchange is settled. We'll send men to escort those two hundred soldiers back to Tuyuhun later."
Upon hearing this, Li Chengqian felt that he had resolved a matter, and fortunately, it had gone relatively smoothly.
Princess Guanghua then asked, "There is someone you have seen before?"
"Who is this person you're talking about?" Su Wan asked.
"We sent out a spy named Murong Nuohepen, who is my nephew. Where is he now?"
Upon hearing this, Li Chengqian and Su Wan's expressions changed, because that guy had been swept into the sky by the tornado and had already fallen to his death.
Su Wan thought that if she told the truth, Princess Guanghua would be furious, so she lied and said, "We have never seen the person you are talking about."
"Really? That's strange. He's been gone for more than ten days and hasn't come back yet."
"Don't worry, he might be back in the next couple of days."
Tuoba Chici then asked, "If I submit to your Great Tang, what kind of treatment will I receive?"
Li Chengqian immediately said, "Please rest assured about that. Putting aside everything else, you should have heard of the Eastern Turkic Khagan, Jieli Khan. Last year, after the Eastern Turkic Khaganate was defeated by Li Jing, Jieli Khan was captured by Zhang Baoxiang while fleeing and was taken to Chang'an."
Here, I'd like to digress a bit. The Eastern Turks and Tuyuhun were also allied, but why did the Eastern Turks suffer such a crushing defeat in the end?
That's because when the Eastern Turks were in dire straits, the Tuyuhun refused to come to their aid, using various excuses to avoid sending troops to their rescue.
Li Chengqian's meaning was clear: if the Tanguts and Tuyuhun formed an alliance, Tuyuhun would treat them the same way it treated the Eastern Turks should they encounter danger in the future.
Tuoba Chici was very clever and naturally understood Li Chengqian's implied meaning.
Li Chengqian continued, "Later, my father appointed him as the Right Guard General."
"If you submit to the Tang Dynasty, I will petition my father to grant you and Khagan Jieli the same treatment."
After hearing this, Tuoba Chici thought to himself that the Eastern Turks once had a million soldiers, and their strength was much greater than that of the Tang Dynasty. He hadn't expected that they were no match for the Tang army. He thought that if he surrendered to the Tang Dynasty, he could be appointed as a general like Jieli, which seemed like a good thing.
Tuoba Chici's face flushed red, and he was about to agree to surrender to Tang, when Princess Guanghua suddenly said, "This matter is of great importance, let us discuss it again."
Upon hearing her words, Tuoba Chici could only reply, "Yes, this is no small matter. Moreover, our Dangxiang tribe is not ruled by Tuoba alone. Please allow me to reconsider."
Li Chengqian also saw through the clues.
Although Tuoba Chici did not immediately agree to surrender to the Tang Dynasty, he gave Li Chengqian hope.
To avoid any unforeseen complications, Su Wan urged both sides to exchange prisoners after the banquet.
Upon seeing Li Chengqian, the five hundred guards knelt on the ground, their faces filled with shame. Some wept with emotion, saying, "Your Highness, we thought we would never see you again. We never expected you to come and save us in person!"
Li Chengqian comforted everyone, saying, "Victory and defeat are common occurrences in war, and this is nothing to worry about."
However, our Tang army is invincible!
I hope you will feel ashamed and then strive to improve!
"Yes, sir!" the guards replied.
Li Chengqian temporarily handed over the five hundred guards and the two hundred cavalrymen he brought to Su Gui for command.
night.
Princess Guanghua summoned Fatong to her tent and questioned him repeatedly.
Fatong had no choice but to tell the truth: "Murong Nuohepen is already dead."
"How did he die?" Princess Guanghua asked in surprise.
Fatong then recounted the experience of encountering the tornado and said, "Aunt, this cannot be blamed on the Crown Prince of the Tang Dynasty."
Princess Guanghua, filled with resentment, said: "Do you know why everyone else is fine, but Murong Nuohepen died?"
That's because Murong Nuohepen was tied up, so he was killed by the fall after encountering the tornado. Otherwise, how could he have died?
Therefore, it is clear that Li Chengqian was the real culprit!
No, I have to kill him!
Avenge my nephew!
And you, don't forget, you are a Tuyuhun person. How can you not distinguish between insiders and outsiders and speak for the Tang Dynasty?
If the Tanguts surrender to the Tang Dynasty, they will help the Tang Dynasty to deal with our Tuyuhun. Do you want your grandfather and your father to be killed by them?
What they say is all one-sided; they only speak of the principles of the Tang Dynasty and never speak of the principles of our Tuyuhun.
Back then, when Li Yuan wanted to attack Li Gui, our Tuyuhun helped him send troops. Do you know how much your grandfather paid for this? How many of our Tuyuhun soldiers died?
The Tang Dynasty had already forgotten all of this.
The Tang people used people to face forward, but not to face backward.
Didn't you realize that their goal was to divide and conquer, then defeat them one by one, and finally annex the entire Western Regions?
Even if we, the Tuyuhun, don't fight against the Tang Dynasty now, we'll be dealt with by them sooner or later.
"Aunt, that's not how it is. I think you may have a misunderstanding about the Tang Dynasty. Li Shimin was the Heavenly Khan, and he treated the people of the Central Plains and the barbarian lands equally."
Li Chengqian is very kind and loves peace. I think that it is the right choice for our Tuyuhun to get along well with the Tang Dynasty.
Why would we want to invade the borders of the Tang Dynasty?
All of this was the work of King Tianzhu. His actions will only plunge Tuyuhun into an abyss of no return.
"The Eastern Turks were so powerful, yet they were ultimately defeated by the Tang Dynasty. Are we, the Tuyuhun, even more powerful than the Eastern Turks?"
Upon hearing this, Princess Guanghua was furious: "You have disappointed me greatly. How could you say such a thing?"
"As long as we, the kingdoms of the Western Regions, unite as one, no matter how powerful the Tang army is, they will be unable to defeat us. But if we attack each other, fight amongst ourselves, and fall apart, the consequences will be unpredictable."
"Aunt, no matter what, you can't attack the Crown Prince of Tang and his men again. They now have seven hundred soldiers under their command, and Su Gui is highly skilled in martial arts and extremely difficult to deal with. If you're not careful, you might end up harming them instead."
After being persuaded by Fatong, Princess Guanghua finally gave up her idea of assassinating Li Chengqian.
Following the directions given by Fatong, Princess Guanghua sent people to find Murong Nuohepen's body.
Li Chengqian's main tent.
Tuoba Chici was quite kind; he arranged a large tent for Li Chengqian on his own.
Li Chengqian fell into deep thought. He could see that Tuoba Chici was already somewhat tempted and intended to surrender to the Tang Dynasty. However, Princess Guanghua was the daughter of Fuyun Khan, and she naturally did not want to see Tuyuhun isolated. Therefore, she did not want the Dangxiang to surrender to the Tang Dynasty.
This is not a good situation.
At this moment, the screen of the strategy simulator displays:
[Host, to resolve this issue, this system can provide you with two solutions.]
"What plan?"
[Option 1: Kill Princess Light.]
Li Chengqian shook his head: "No, Princess Guanghua is the woman Tuoba Chici loves. If we kill her, Tuoba Chici will be heartbroken. How could he possibly serve the Tang Dynasty then?"
[Second option: Please seduce her with your beauty and get into bed with her. She will then do whatever you say.]
Upon hearing this, Li Chengqian cursed, "These are the two plans you offered? Get the hell out of here!"
[Received! This system is giving you another rating: "Honest advice is hard to swallow!"]
This system solemnly reminds you: When your negative reviews reach a certain number, the consequences will be severe!
Are you trying to intimidate me?
This system dares not!
"You will disappear from my sight immediately!"
At that moment, Su Wan walked in from outside the tent.
Her face was filled with worry: "Your Highness, Tuoba Chici is still unwilling to surrender to Tang. What should we do?"
"I am also considering this matter."
Su Wan crossed her arms, looking furious: "In my opinion, this is all Princess Guanghua's fault."
If it weren't for her intervention, Tuoba Chici would have already surrendered to the Tang Dynasty at the banquet today.
"Good things come to those who wait. We've managed to get our five hundred guards back, which is already quite good."
"We have to thank you and Xue'er for that book, *Han Feizi*."
Su Wan smiled and said, "Tuoba Chici is quite an oddball. I've heard of people who like beautiful women and people who like money, but I've never heard of anyone who likes a book to this extent."
People often say, "Of all professions, only studying is noble."
It is also said, "In books, you'll find beautiful women; in books, you'll find houses of gold."
I think there's nothing wrong with Tuoba Chici liking to read.
Moreover, the book "Han Feizi" is indeed a rare and excellent book; it's just that throughout history, many emperors have only grasped a superficial understanding and have not truly comprehended it.
"Do you like Legalist doctrines?"
"The various schools of thought, such as Legalism, Confucianism, Taoism, and Mohism, each have their own advantages and disadvantages. I should take their essence and discard their dross, and learn from their strengths to make them my own."
Su Wan nodded: "But what you said is useless. The most important thing now is to get Tuoba Chici to submit to the Tang Dynasty as soon as possible and to divide and weaken the relationship between Tuyuhun and the Western Regions."
"So, what's your opinion?"
Su Wan thought for a moment and said, "The Tanguts have eight tribes in total, namely:
The clans included Miqin, Tuoba, Xifeng, Fangdang, Yeci, Feiting, Wangli, and Pochao, among which the Tuoba clan was the most powerful.
Therefore, they elected Tuoba Chici as king. Of course, they couldn't refuse him, since he was strong and powerful.
However, the other seven tribes also have a say. If everyone unanimously agrees to surrender to the Tang Dynasty, then Tuoba Chici alone probably won't be able to refuse.
Upon hearing this, Li Chengqian's eyes lit up: "That's right, I had completely forgotten about it if you hadn't mentioned it. I'll go and visit the leaders of the seven tribes one by one now and see what they have to say."
Just then, Su Gui walked in from outside and reported, "The leaders of the other seven Dangxiang tribes have come to visit Your Highness."
"Is that so? I was just about to pay them a visit, but unexpectedly, they've come to see me on their own initiative. Please, invite them in!"
"promise!"
Before long, the leaders of the seven tribes entered from outside the main tent, knelt on the ground, and said, "We pay our respects to Your Highness."
Li Chengqian said, "Everyone, please rise!"
One of the tall, elderly men said, “I am the leader of the Xifeng clan. We have heard that the Heavenly Khan is broad-minded and treats nomadic and agricultural peoples the same. We are very grateful and have never dared to be an enemy of the Great Tang.”
It's just that Tuoba Chici married Fuyun's daughter, so he fell into Tuyuhun's trap and wanted to unite against the Tang Dynasty. We have absolutely no such intention.
We are all willing to surrender to the Tang Dynasty.
"Yes, we are willing to surrender!" The leaders of the other six tribes all said the same thing.
Li Chengqian was overjoyed: "Leaders of all tribes, rest assured, as long as you sincerely submit to the Tang Dynasty, the Tang Dynasty will never treat you unfairly. If the Dangxiang are established as a prefecture in the future, your titles and salaries will not be lacking."
These people were most worried about their own official positions, and they were all relieved after hearing what Li Chengqian said.
The leader of the Fangdang clan said, "At present, our biggest concern is that once we break off the alliance with Tuyuhun, Tuyuhun will definitely cause us trouble."
"If Your Highness can resolve this concern for us, we will unite and force Tuoba Chici to surrender to the Tang Dynasty. At that time, he will have no choice but to agree, whether he likes it or not."
Li Chengqian and Su Wan exchanged a glance, thinking to themselves that these people were quite cunning, unwilling to take any risks at all.
However, on the other hand, it's normal for them to have such concerns when it comes to life and death, because they know that the Murong clan of Tuyuhun are heroes for generations and are not so easy to mess with.