Tiantang Splendid

Chapter 4822 Lost in Sangyu
War is the continuation of politics, so many times the victory or defeat on the battlefield is not the real victory or defeat. As long as the political goal is achieved, failure is sometimes also a victory, and conversely, even if you win, it is a complete defeat.

The situation of the Gar tribe was very dangerous, sandwiched between the two great powers of the Tang Dynasty and Tubo, with no room for maneuver. This was Songtsen Gampo's original intention, which was to expel the Gar tribe to the former territory of Tuyuhun to serve as a strategic buffer between Tubo and the Tang Dynasty. However, Lu Dongzan was a great man after all, and he turned to the Tang Dynasty without hesitation, causing Tubo's northern barrier to completely lose its effectiveness and the strategic decision to fail completely.

Songtsen Gampo was sitting in the palace of Hongshan Palace. The sunlight outside the window shone brightly on the golden roof and the wind blew the bronze bells jingling slightly. He was flipping through the battle report in his hand. His simple and cold face was calm and expressionless.

Sambuza sat at the bottom and helped to deal with official documents. He glanced at the Zamp from time to time and saw that the Zamp did not seem to be angry about the death of Lebuje and the fall of Naluyi. He first secretly sighed that the Zamp's level of qi cultivation was becoming more and more profound, and then he pondered for a while and understood the key.

Over the years, the Zamp fought wars in the south and the north to unify the plateau and destroyed countries such as Zhangzhung. He had two biggest helpers. One was Lu Dongzan, who formulated strategies and made plans for the Zamp, and the other was Chisang Yangton, who was powerful and had a strong tribe.

Although these two people were meritorious ministers of the Zamp, they also posed a huge threat: they both had powerful tribes.

When their interests are coordinated, these two people can make the Zanpu more powerful and invincible, but once their interests conflict, these two people will turn to support others or even establish their own army, which will shake the Zanpu's rule.

Now that Lu Dongzan's Gar tribe has been expelled, Chisang Yangton's family has become the only powerful one. Their expanding influence is very likely to lead to a conflict of interests between them and the Zamp, which has now evolved into an internal strife.

But now Lebujie died in Naluyi, and along with him were 5,000 elite soldiers of his tribe. This was a heavy blow to the entire Chisang Yangdun tribe. The tribe was much weaker than before, and it lost the qualification to bargain with the Zamp. In order to prevent retaliation from other tribes, it had to follow the Zamp closely and be more submissive and loyal than ever before.

The defeat at Naluyi had caused the Gar tribe to flourish and their morale was high. This was a huge crisis, but from another perspective, it was possible that the Zamp's control over Tubo entered an unprecedented new stage...

How do the Han people say this?

If we lose our horses, we can't know what a blessing is.

Perhaps... this was what Zamp had expected?
Sambuza shook his head, shook off the chilling thoughts in his heart, took out an official document and handed it to Songtsen Gampo: "Chisang Yangton has written again to request to lead troops to suppress Lunqinling. I wonder if we should agree to it?"

Songtsen Gampo took the document, read it, threw it aside, and shook his head, saying, "Nonsense! How can an important official who protects the foundation of the empire lead his army to leave Luoshui City so easily? The reason why Qinling captured Naluyi and Nuanquan was because Lebujie underestimated the enemy. Moreover, he took a risky tactic by attacking us by surprise. If he marches to Liemohai next, it will stretch the supply line. The long expedition will make it impossible for the army to make a surprise attack. What's the saying of the Han people? Lure the enemy deep into our territory, fortify our walls and clear the fields, and their army will be defeated by itself."

Sambuza nodded, and his guess became more certain. What is "luring the enemy deep into the territory, clearing the plains and fortifying the city", isn't this just letting Lun Qinling march straight in? Although the strategy of "luring the enemy deep into the territory" is correct, the enemy is Lun Qinling, and he has a fierce general like Bolun Zanren to assist him. I'm afraid that if one army goes out, it will be defeated.

Just look at who will go to stop Lun Qinling next, and you can confirm your guess...

"But we can't just let Lun Qinling march straight in, right? Please tell me who should we send to lead the army to fight."

Songtsen Gampo drank a sip of tea and said calmly: "Send a message to Subimojie, asking her to send out 10,000 troops to suppress Lunqinling."

Sambuza thought: As expected...

More than ten years ago, the king unified Tubo and conquered the Subi Kingdom south of Lhasa City. The country was rich with tens of thousands of households, well-trained soldiers and sufficient food. However, its king was incompetent. Songtsen Gampo personally led the army, and Lu Dongzan and Trisang Yangton each led the elite soldiers of their tribes to assist him, and they destroyed the country in one fell swoop.

In recent years, the Subi Kingdom has behaved relatively submissively, but its location in the upper reaches of the "Jiqu" has always threatened the city of Lhasa. Songtsen Gampo has always been thinking about how to weaken it, eliminate its threat and make it an aid, so that the entire "Weizang" area will be as solid as a rock.

Now the opportunity has finally come.

"I will send someone to pass the message right away... However, it will take time for the Suobi Kingdom to gather its army and collect food and fodder. It will be difficult for them to reach the front line in a short time. If Lun Qinling takes advantage of the situation to attack Liemohai, do we need to provide support first?"

Songtsen Gampo stood up and walked to the wall where the map was hung. His fingers extended from Dafeichuan, Naluyi, Ela Pass, Nuanquanyi to Liemohai, and then stopped at Huashixia. He tapped hard and said, "No need for reinforcements. Abandon Liemohai and let Lun Qinling march straight in. This may increase his arrogance. Then wait for the Subi army to gather and rush to the front line, and deploy defenses in the Huashixia area. At the same time, order the six Qiangri tribes to send 10,000 troops to cooperate with the Subi Mojie to garrison in Huashixia, and then fight Lun Qinling to the death there."

Sangbuza stood up and walked behind Songtsen Gampo to look at the map. Huashixia was hundreds of miles away from Naluyi, and the mountains were dangerous, the waters were bad, and the roads were difficult. If Lun Qinling drove straight in, it would inevitably lead to logistical supply difficulties, and he would be exhausted by the time he arrived at Huashixia. The Subi, Mojie, and the six Qiangri tribes had joined forces with more than 20,000 elite troops, and victory was certain.

But the opponent is Lun Qinling after all, a strategic genius that Tubo has rarely seen in recent years. It will surely be an extremely brutal battle.

The annihilation of Qinling and the heavy losses suffered by the Subi Kingdom and the six Qiangri tribes were exactly the strategic goal of Songtsen Gampo.

The powerful and ambitious Subi State and the six Qiangri tribes entrenched in Qiangtang have always been Songtsen Gampo's biggest concerns. On the surface, these tribes firmly support Songtsen Gampo and are his minions in conquering the plateau, but because of their own strong strength, they are naturally unwilling to be under someone else's control for a long time. As long as there is a slight turbulence in the regime of Luoshui City, these tribes may gather their armies to counterattack Luoshui City...

It was indeed a brilliant strategy to weaken the power of these tribes through Lun Qinling, forcing them to completely submit to the Zamp in order to protect themselves.

It seems that the Gar tribe's military action was exactly what the Zamp wanted...

"General, please stop. The Zamp is discussing military matters. Do not disturb him. General, General..."

The officials outside the door tried to stop him, but Chisang Yangton kept rushing in. When he saw Songtsen Gampo, he knelt on the ground and said loudly: "My brother has lost his army and humiliated the country, and lost the city and land. It is a shame for the tribe. I beg the king to allow me to lead the tribe's sons to attack Lunqinling and annihilate them all to wipe out the shame!"

Then he bowed his head to the ground and knelt for a long time without getting up.

Songtsen Gampo walked up to Trisang Yangdon, leaned down, put his hands on his shoulders and helped him up, and said gently: "You are my assistant, how can you go to the danger yourself? The battlefield is fierce and dangerous, what should I do if something goes wrong? Although Naluyi was lost, Lebujie died for the country, I will definitely give him a posthumous honor. As for Qinling's scabies, why do I need my ministers to take action? I have ordered Subi Mojie and the six tribes of Qiangri to jointly send troops to gather in Huashixia. No matter how powerful Qinling is, he will definitely die there, so you can rest assured."

Chisang Yangdun was somewhat stunned. He did not expect that the Zamp would formulate a battle plan so quickly, and it was so thorough, detailed and extremely reasonable. However, he was unwilling to accept the result: "Zamp, please understand. This is a shame for our tribe. We must wash it away with the blood of our tribe. Please take back your order and let me lead the army to resist the enemy."

He pleaded to go to war not only because Lebujie's defeat brought shame to the tribe, but also because the battle caused heavy losses to the tribe. The losses could only be compensated by defeating Lun Qinling and capturing his soldiers, baggage and weapons. If he allowed the woman Subi Mojie to join forces with the six Qiangri tribes to fight in Huashixia, Lun Qinling would undoubtedly be defeated. At that time, all the captives would belong to Subi Mojie and the six Qiangri tribes. How would he make up for his losses?

After suffering a severe blow, they are unable to obtain replenishment and recover their strength. The strength of the tribe has been greatly reduced, and their own voice has also been reduced accordingly. How can this be possible?
Songtsen Gampo patted Trisang Yangton on the shoulder, smiled warmly and kindly, and said, "Tuba may seem unified, but in fact, there is serious internal strife. Each tribe has different aspirations and is unwilling to remain dormant. Especially now that we are facing a powerful enemy, it is very likely to cause severe turmoil. Only if you stay in Luoshui City and assist me can we stabilize the situation. You don't want the great achievements we have created to collapse halfway, do you?"

Chisang Yangdun twitched the corners of his mouth and was unable to speak.

He understood what the Zamp meant. The Chisang tribe was now greatly weakened and no longer qualified to compete with the Zamp for power. They could only remain dormant under the Zamp's rule and serve as his lackeys as they had done in the past in order to maintain their wealth and glory.

But you are the king of Tubo, and everyone in the world knows that it was you who unified the plateau and made Tubo feared by the world. Even if my Chisang tribe pays a lot, who can recognize it?

But just as the Zamp said, the Chisang tribe today is no longer what it used to be. Either they behave themselves and be loyal lackeys, or they will be liquidated.

In the past, when he assisted the Zamp in pacifying the plateau, he killed countless people and exterminated countless clans. He was stained with blood and had enemies everywhere. If it weren't for the Zamp's protection, his former enemies would have rushed over and swallowed up the Chisang tribe...

This bastard Lebujie single-handedly ruined the good situation of the Chisang tribe!

"Since the Zanpu said so, I will obey your orders."

Chisang Yangton could only surrender helplessly. In the past, he and the Zamp had more of a cooperative relationship, but now it had become a completely subordinate relationship. This change in relationship made him extremely depressed, because it meant that he was not only a subject of the Zamp, but also had to be loyal to the new Zamp when the Zamp ascended to heaven in the future. The Chisang tribe would become a vassal of the Zamp for generations...