Usurpation of Mongolia: My father-in-law is Genghis Khan

Chapter 226 An Astounding Bet, The Center of the World!
"What a courage!"

Mu'a Tugan sneered, "Genghis Khan once said that his descendants should not favor any particular religion and should treat people of all religions equally. Mura Zhuoke, are you asking us to disobey Genghis Khan's vows?"

The Chinese translation of "必力克" is "proverbs" or "sayings".

Besides leaving behind the "Great Yasa," Genghis Khan also left behind countless sayings on governance and administration, which are known as Bilik.

Of Genghis Khan's four sons, Chagatai was the most familiar with Genghis Khan's son, Bilik.

As Genghis Khan said, those who want to master the rules and laws of the Yasa, Bilik, and should follow Chagatai.
Theoretically speaking, if Genghis Khan truly possessed these biliks, the Mongols were obligated to obey them.

Although theory is theory and practice is practice, Mu'atugan, as the eldest son of Chagatai, closely resembled his father. He was a serious person who loved to study Genghis Khan's Biliq and followed it meticulously.

Mulazhuoke's words have directly touched Mu'atugan's sore spot!

Guyuk snorted coldly and said, "Back when I was in Iraq, some scholars from the True God Cult tried to persuade me to convert. At the time, I thought they were arrogant and ignorant, so I didn't bother with them. Now it seems that the entire True God Cult is courting death!"

He was determined to inherit Ögedei's throne, so he couldn't show any weakness at this time.

When victory is assured, would you really be willing to compromise with the enemy and lose face?
Mongke gritted his teeth and said, "You killed my men and you think surrendering is enough? After surrendering, you expect your ruler to convert? That's just wishful thinking!"

When Murajok came to sue for peace, he naturally brought Boruhuan's body with him and told the Mongols the truth.

Otherwise, what if the two sides had agreed on the terms, but the Mongols broke the contract after learning about Boluhuan's affair?
Although Boruhan has not yet become Möngke's right-hand man, as a former attendant of Tolui, he is already a very important member of Tolui's faction.

When Guyuk left Boruhan in Iraq, he intended to divide and weaken Tolui's faction.

Originally, thanks to the help of Zhao Shuo and Jochi, Tolui's faction took Iraq as its fiefdom, and Boluhuan was also brought back under the direct control of Tolui's faction.

Unexpectedly, he died at the hands of a noble member of the True God Cult.

How could Möngke not hate him to the bone?
Of course, there is another point: Möngke's mother was Sorghaghtani Beki, the "Mother of the Four Khans," who was a follower of Nestorian Christianity.

Möngke was deeply influenced by his mother and had no good feelings towards the True God religion, even harboring a deep aversion to it.

Zhao He said nonchalantly, "A woman can only give birth to a few children, but a man can make countless women give birth to children. Are there too few Mongols? Kill all your men and make your women give birth to children for the Mongols, then there will be more people."

Deeply influenced by Zhao Shuo, he always felt there were too many foreign races, not too few people under his rule. If the True God Sect remained obstinate, it would be a good opportunity to test the sharpness of his blade.

Orda, on the other hand, embodied the most typical Mongol aristocratic mindset, declaring, "Wherever my iron cavalry treads, all soldiers, civilians, and people who dare to disobey will die!"

"Did you hear that? The envoy of the True God Cult Alliance."

Batu looked at Muratjok and said, "You have no other choice but to surrender unconditionally!"

"Distinguished guests, please hear me out!"

Murazok became anxious and said, "Admittedly, a man can have many women bear children, but they still need to be educated. Your Mongolian men are always fighting on the front lines, where do they have time to take care of their children? Don't the children still need their mothers to educate them? By then, it's hard to say whether the children will accept Mongolia."

“Your King Zhao Shuo can use Han Chinese immigrants to populate the newly conquered territories. These immigrants do not require warfare; they can assimilate a place as soon as it is conquered. No one else can compare.”

“If this continues, King Zhao Shuo will inevitably grow stronger, while other forces will grow weaker. Your only option is to convert to the True God Cult… only then…”

Murajok's words were not without merit. However, as he spoke, his voice grew softer and softer, and he seemed hesitant to continue.

Because, astutely, Murajok noticed that the eldest son of the Khan was looking at him with increasingly cold eyes, as if he were a dead man.

Firstly, Guyuk and others did not believe that these children, being of Mongol descent, would not be loyal to the Mongols.

Indeed, Zhao Shuo's Eight Banners were powerful. But they believed that it was the Han people themselves who were powerful; even the Semu Eight Banners were based on Han Chinese commanders of a thousand men, so what did it have to do with the True God Cult?
Could it be that if the monarch believes in the True God religion, the True God religion's soldiers will be a match for the Han army?
Secondly, and most importantly, is unity.

The Five Khans are all one family. Although there are internal disputes, they are their own business. When did it become the place for outsiders to stir things up?
At worst, they can shift the conflict outwards, seize more land and people to distribute the benefits.

After Zhao Shuo's refusal to declare himself emperor, this matter had become a consensus among the Mongol nobles.

“Kill him!” Orda coldly uttered three words.

"Kill him!" Möngke echoed immediately.

"Following the example of Zhao Shuo's uncle, cut him in half at the waist!" Guiyou directly escalated the situation.

If Mongolia were to split, what use would it be for Guyuk to become the Great Khan?

"Cutting him in half is too lenient! You must know that before the Song Dynasty sowed discord, it wasn't even our enemy. My suggestion is to use the most cruel punishment Genghis Khan ever used: the wooden donkey torture!" Mu'a Tugan added fuel to the fire.

"Let's just skin them alive!" Zhao He said calmly. "From now on, any outsiders who try to sow discord within our Mongol territory will be treated this way!"

"Alright! Let's use the punishment of skinning them alive!" Möngke and Güyük said in unison.

They were all ambitious for the throne of the Great Khan and were eager to establish new rules and have their own Bilik (a powerful and influential figure).

Mu'a Tugan and Orda were indifferent, as long as Mula Zhuoke was subjected to torture, they nodded in unison and said, "Okay."

"Drag Murazok out!"

Batu's lips curled into a cruel and disdainful smile as he coldly ordered, "Execute the torture of skinning him alive!"

"Yes!"

A guard stepped forward, dragged Murazok away, and left.

"What kind of torture is skinning?"

"You cannot kill me! I am an envoy!"

"I am a great scholar of the True God Cult, I am useful to you! I am willing to surrender unconditionally!"

“Your treatment of me will provoke the wrath of all the people of the true God!”

"God! Unleash your wrath and burn these wicked heretics! They are not men, they are demons!"

……

Murad shouted, begging, threatening, and even cursing, in an attempt to save himself from his miserable fate.

However, how is that possible?

Now you're only thinking about unconditional surrender? Where were you before?
To the Mongols, scholars of the True God religion were not an asset but a liability. Historical records indicate that Hulagu Khan destroyed Baghdad and ordered scholars to be specifically targeted for execution because "the revenge of those who can write is the most terrible."

As for curses? Is the true god as powerful as the Eternal Heaven?

Soon, Murajok learned what skinning was—a cruel punishment where the skin was peeled off a living person. Even after being skinned, death wasn't immediate; one had to endure a long and agonizing ordeal. He now truly regretted taking this assignment. The Mongols were now brimming with confidence, wanting only servants, not any collaborators. The true god's kingdoms had no choice but to submit!

He deeply regretted his reckless words that had sown discord within Mongolia. Mongolia was far more united than he had imagined!

Of course, it's too late for Murazok to regret it now.

He wailed for a day and a night before finally dying.

He received a "gift" from the people and returned to Baghdad with the body of Murajok.

"This is outrageous! This is absolutely outrageous!"

When Kekubad I saw Muradok being skinned alive, he was absolutely furious!

After all, it was his idea to negotiate with the Mongols; he never dreamed it would turn out this way!
Even more crucially, given the Mongols' uncompromising stance, how will they treat these True God cult leaders next? After all, they were the ones who killed the captured Boruhuan.

"Murajok was unjustly tortured to death by the Mongols, and more unjust tortures await us. We have no choice but to fight!"

huh~~
Kekubad I removed his white robe, a symbol of nobility and piety, and cut his palm with a dagger, letting drops of blood fall onto the robe.

"I, Kekubad of the Sultanate of Rum, declare that from this day forward, we are irreconcilably opposed to the Mongols. We will fight to the last citizen of the Sultanate of Rum! Those who are willing to fight with me, let your blood drip here; this will be our banner of battle! This will be proof of our devotion to the true God!"

"I come!"

Camille followed closely behind, slashing his palm and staining his white robe with blood!
Next came the Sharif of Mecca, the Emir of Basra, the Chief of Uyuni, the Imam of Ibadi…

The blood of eighty-seven nobles of the True God Cult, large and small, fell on the white robe, staining it into a blood-red banner.

Next, the True God Cult's army was fully mobilized.

These True God cult nobles, of course, would not tell the ordinary soldiers the whole truth. They only told the soldiers that Murajok, representing True God, had surrendered to the Mongols, but was not only brutally rejected, but was also subjected to the torture of being skinned alive.

In other words, because of the Boluhuan incident, the Mongols refused the surrender of the True God Alliance and wanted to kill them all!
Not only that, they also told the soldiers of the True God Cult that things had come to this point, clearly a sign that the end times were coming. The True God would eventually reveal the greatest miracle, and only the warriors who fought bravely for the True God would ascend to Heaven.

What else can we do?
Although news of the Mongolian army's immunity to impetigo had already spread within the True God Alliance, Zhao Shuo's reputation as the God's Calamity was further solidified.

However, the threat of death and the promising prospects temporarily relieved the True God Alliance of their fear.

"Fight to the death! Fight to the death!"

"Fight the Mongols to the bitter end!"

"An eye for an eye, avenge Murajok! Avenge our brothers in the True God Cult!"

"For the glory of God!"

"Complete the final test of the true God and ascend to Heaven!"

……

Countless true god warriors shouted wildly, and countless scarlet flags fluttered in the sky above Baghdad!

Although Baghdad's defenses are in a dilapidated state, having some defenses is better than having none, right?
Moreover, when Guyuk attacked Baghdad, he actually intended to establish Baghdad as his future base. Therefore, the two most magnificent buildings in the city, the Royal Palace and the Palace of Wisdom, remained largely intact and could be used for street fighting, becoming the residence of the allied nobles.

Thus, an army of about 200,000 men, along with 100,000 auxiliary troops, entered Baghdad, preparing for a final battle with the Mongol army.

A day later, the Mongol vanguard arrived at the gates of Baghdad. Three days later, a Mongol army of nearly 160,000 men had besieged Baghdad.

"Let's have a competition!"

Seven days later, after the siege equipment was completed, Batu's eyes gleamed with eager anticipation in the Mongol central command tent. He said, "Whoever breaks through Baghdad first will receive half of the spoils of this battle!"

"Okay." Guiyou immediately nodded in agreement.

Tayu doesn't actually value spoils of war much.

But he understood that this western expedition was not only a war for the Mongol army to expand its territory, but also a war for him to gain prestige in succeeding as the Great Khan of the Mongols.

If he could achieve the greatest military exploits and was also Ögedei's eldest son, he would have a 70-80% chance of becoming the Great Khan.

He had already captured Baghdad once, and his troops were all steppe warriors, so he was extremely confident that he could capture Baghdad again.

“Alright, let’s see who among us brothers is number one.” Mongke nodded slightly.

He also coveted the throne of the Great Khan and did not believe that his abilities were inferior to Güyük's. He also wanted to compete for the top spot and establish his prestige.

Mu'a Tugan looked at Möngke and Güyük, then at Batu, and said, "What? You all think you have victory in the bag? But there are many unpredictable things in battle. I may be the weakest, but that doesn't mean I can't be the first to charge."

It is obvious that Chagatai is the weakest, but Mu'atugan is not willing to be second best and is prepared to take the lead if necessary.

“We are five forces in total. Baghdad has four walls, so how should we allocate our troops?” Orda asked.

This matter has little to do with Orda, who had already made plans to hand over the position of successor to the Golden Horde to Batu, though he had some doubts.

"This is easy to handle."

Batu stood up, pointed with his riding whip at the huge map of Baghdad hanging in the central command tent, and said, “For the first three days, I will attack the west wall, Möngke will attack the south wall, Güyük will attack the north wall, and Brother Zhaohe will attack the east wall. If we cannot break through the city within three days, Mu'atugan will replace me. Three days later, I will replace Möngke. Three days after that, Möngke will replace Güyük. Then Güyük will replace Brother Zhaohe… and so on. What do you think?”

Mu'a Tugan nodded and said, "So, I actually got the better deal? Fine. After all, I'm the weakest one."

Guiyou then looked at Zhao He and said, "Zhao He, do you have any objections?"

Clearly, Batu valued Zhao He the most. Not only was the most difficult part of the eastern city wall entrusted to Zhao He, but he was also rotated out last.

After all, Zhao Shuo's army was renowned for its skill in siege warfare.

Since it's a competition, it would be fairer to weaken the side with the strongest innate advantages and strengthen the side with the weakest. Otherwise, it wouldn't be a competition between the eldest sons, but rather a contest of who has the best father.

However, Guyuk felt that Zhao He's army might not be as good at siege warfare as the steppe warriors, and that it would be too disadvantageous for them, so he probably wouldn't agree.

Zhao He raised an eyebrow slightly and said calmly, "I have no objection to the order of the siege. However, Baghdad is in ruins, and half of the spoils are not very meaningful. How about we use the Ayyubid dynasty as a wager?"

The Ayyubid dynasty, the most powerful Ayyubid dynasty, controlled what would later become Egypt, Syria, and parts of the western Arabian Peninsula.

It not only has abundant resources and a wealthy population, but is also located at the crossroads of the Eurasian and African continents.

Whoever controls this place controls the center of the world!

(End of this chapter)