Tang Dynasty, my wife Wu Zetian

Chapter 518 Pei Xingjian's Plan
In early February, Pei Xingjian and his entourage arrived in Laizhou.

For safety reasons, they stayed in Laizhou for half a month until the experienced seafarer confirmed that there were no storms at sea before boarding a warship and heading towards Yingzhou Island.

The warships were very cautious in their navigation. Whenever there were slight waves at sea, they would stop at the nearest island to rest and repair. Therefore, when they arrived at Yingzhou Island, it was already late February.

The Protectorate General of Yingzhou was originally the Chikushi Asakura Palace, located ten miles off the west coast of Kyushu Island.

After disembarking, it took less than half an hour to reach our destination on horseback.

Throughout the journey, Pei Xingjian did not mention his plan to attack the Mohe people. It was not until the second day after arriving at the Yingzhou Protectorate that he invited Gao Kan and Zhao Chiman to explain his plan to them.

"General Gao, General Zhao, I'm sure you both understand the mission His Majesty has entrusted to us this time?" Pei Xingjian sat at the head of the council hall, his gaze sweeping over his two deputies.

The two spoke at the same time: "Attack the Mohe and take Yingzhou Island!"

Pei Xingjian nodded and said, "That's right. However, there are considerable difficulties in achieving this strategic goal. Do you two know where the difficulties lie?"

Zhao Chiman glanced at Gao Kan, who smiled and said, "General Zhao, please don't stand on ceremony, please speak first."

Zhao Chiman nodded and slowly said, "The Mohe are a vassal state of the Tang Dynasty. They did not detain the Tang envoy, did not miss the All Nations Conference, and did not provoke any trouble on the border. Our Tang Dynasty has no legitimate reason to attack them."

Pei Xingjian asked, "In General Zhao's opinion, how can we obtain a reason to send troops?"

Zhao Chiman had already thought about this issue on his way here.

The fact that the emperor's target was clearly the Mohe, yet he attacked Silla first, is a hint that the emperor wanted to achieve his goal of waging war against the Mohe through Silla.

With this in mind, the answer becomes obvious.

“We can incite an alliance between Silla and the Mohe, then send troops to Silla to lure the Mohe to attack, thus giving us an excuse to attack them.”

Pei Xingjian praised, "That's right. When His Majesty was in Chang'an, he kept putting pressure on the Mohe and Silla in order to bring them together in an alliance."

At the time, the Mohe people were suspicious and deliberately let the Shiwei people spread rumors that the Tang Dynasty was going to attack the Mohe, in order to test the truth of the matter.

Li Zhi's response was to appoint Pei Xingjian as the Protector-General of Yingzhou, which was a deliberate hint to the Mohe that the Tang Dynasty intended to deal with the Mohe.

Only by making the Mohe people feel threatened will they form an alliance with Silla, and then we can lure them into attacking us.

Zhao Chiman said, "Protector, I understand your plan, but there is one thing I am very worried about. If the Silla people take the initiative to retreat to Yingzhou Island, we will have no reason to take action against Silla."

Pei Xingjian waved his hand and said, "We'll talk about that later. What I want to ask now is, what is the second problem we face when we take action against the Mohe?"

Zhao Chiman frowned, while Gao Kan smiled but remained silent.

“It seems General Gao already understands.” Pei Xingjian looked at Gao Kan.

Gao Kan cupped his hands and said, "This humble servant is merely making a guess. Please correct me if I am wrong."

Pei Xingjian gestured for him to speak: "General Gao, please speak."

Gao Kan said, "The Mohe are geographically remote, making it more difficult to wage war against their homeland than against Goguryeo. Moreover, they can hide in the forests to the north at any time."

The original meaning of the word "Mohe" is "people of the forest". The later word "Jurchen" also means forest. Therefore, it can be seen that the Mohe people originally lived in the forest.

Later, they gradually left the forest, learned some nomadic culture and some agricultural culture, and combined them with their own fishing and hunting culture to form a unique tribal group.

The Tang Dynasty's attack on the Mohe was never easy; it required crossing not only the Liao River but also the Hei River.

If the Tang Dynasty could fully absorb Goguryeo and recruit soldiers from Goguryeo to attack the Mohe, it would be much easier.

Unfortunately, Goguryeo has been under Tang Dynasty rule for less than five years, and the people's hearts are not at peace. It is not enough to serve as the foundation for Tang Dynasty's foreign conquests.

Furthermore, Goguryeo and the Mohe fought for a century but failed to eliminate the Mohe because the Mohe could always escape into the forest.

This is similar to the Tocharians fleeing into the mountains; no matter how strong the Tang army was, if they couldn't find the enemy, they couldn't eliminate them.

Once the Tang army withdraws, the Mohe people can emerge from the forest and reclaim the territory captured by the Tang army, rendering the Tang army's efforts futile.

Pei Xingjian praised, "General Gao's words hit the nail on the head. If we want to deal with the Mohe, we cannot cross the Black River and make a long and arduous journey to fight them. We must lure them to attack us first, so that we can wipe out their main force!"

Gao Kan and Zhao Chiman exchanged a glance and both nodded.

Pei Xingjian looked at Zhao Chiman and said, "Now I can answer what General Zhao just said. You are worried that the Silla people will migrate to Yingzhou Island, and then we will not be able to wage war against them, is that right?"

Zhao Chiman replied, "Yes."

Pei Xingjian said slowly, "General Zhao, do you think that His Majesty's single order can make the Silla people abandon their homeland where they have lived for hundreds of years?"

Zhao Chiman hesitated for a moment: "They may not leave immediately, still harboring illusions. However, as long as the Tang army presses in and wins one or two battles, they should stop resisting to the end!"

Pei Xingjian said, "Then do you think they might ask the Mohe people to attack the Goguryeo region to divert our troops and launch a 'besieging Wei to rescue Zhao' strategy?"

Zhao Chiman said resolutely, "Absolutely not. Even if they asked, the Mohe people would never agree."

Pei Xingjian smiled slightly: "What if we lose?"

Zhao Chiman was startled, but then he realized what was happening.

"Are you trying to deliberately lose the battle?"

Pei Xingjian said slowly, "If you want to take something, you must first give something. Our battle plan this time is divided into two parts."

"The first part is to lure the Mohe people to attack and annihilate their main force. To achieve this, we cannot allow the Silla people to land on the island immediately. Therefore, we must lose our first battle against the Silla people. Only in this way can we strengthen Silla's determination to resist and also give the Mohe people the courage to attack us."

Zhao Chiman frowned and said, "Even if the Mohe dare to attack, it will probably only be a probing attack, and it will be difficult to destroy their main force." Pei Xingjian said, "That's right, so if they come to attack Goguryeo, they must lose at the beginning. They need to stimulate the ambition of the Mohe people and make them want to annex the entire territory of Goguryeo. Only in this way can they be destroyed."

Upon hearing this, both Gao Kan and Zhao Chiman frowned.

Gao Kan said in a deep voice, "Protector Pei, the reason why our Tang warriors have won every battle is not only because of their strong fighting power, but also because they have never been defeated, so their morale has always been at its peak."

"If we suffer several defeats, it will inevitably lead to a decline in morale and embolden the Mohe people. I fear that the situation will get out of control, and we may not only fail to defeat the Mohe, but also lose Goguryeo."

Zhao Chiman said, "That's right, there are indeed risks."

Pei Xingjian laughed and said, "Generals, rest assured, I would never stoop to such a pointless endeavor. When I say 'defeat,' I don't mean to send my Tang soldiers to defeat."

After hearing this, Gao Kan and Zhao Chiman exchanged a glance.
They were all seasoned veterans, quick to grasp concepts.

After the Tang Dynasty conquered Baekje and Goguryeo, there were also Baekje and Goguryeo soldiers who surrendered in the army.

Pei Xingjian was planning to send the Baekje army to attack Silla, and the Goguryeo army to deal with the Mohe.

In this way, even if they lost the battle, it would not have a negative impact on the Tang army.

However, a new problem has arisen.

“Protector, the Silla and Mohe people aren’t stupid. Instead of using the Tang army, we’re sending Baekje and Goguryeo surrendered soldiers to deal with them. Won’t the enemy be suspicious?” Gao Kan asked.

Pei Xingjian smiled and said, "Of course they will have doubts, but His Majesty and I have already discussed it and will make sure they dispel their doubts."

Seeing that he wouldn't elaborate, the two knew it was top secret and didn't press him further.

Gao Kan pondered for a moment and said, "To complete this battle plan, we need the cooperation of the Andong Protectorate, the coordination of the Xiongjin Governor's Office, and the support of Protector Liu and Governor Jiang..."

Pei Xingjian waved his hand and said, "Please rest assured, Your Majesty has already given them the order, and they will cooperate with us."

Upon hearing this, the two had no more doubts.

"So what do we need to do now?" Zhao Chiman asked.

Pei Xingjian was silent for a while, then said, "Although this battle plan has His Majesty's decree, it is hard to guarantee that Protector-General Liu and Governor Jiang will not have doubts, which may lead to mistakes in the details."

"Therefore, I hope that the two of you will go to Yingzhou and Xiongjin respectively and tell them the battle plan in detail."

Only then did the two understand why Pei Xingjian had patiently explained the battle plan to them in detail, and they immediately accepted the order in unison.

Pei Xingjian was a newly appointed Protector-General and was not familiar with the officials and affairs of the Yingzhou Protectorate.

Zhao Chiman spent a few more days helping him familiarize himself with government affairs, and also gave him a detailed introduction to the situation of the officials and the local Yi people.

Only after the handover was completed did he leave the Yingzhou Protectorate and take a boat to Xiongjin.

As for Gao Kan, he set off a few days earlier, heading towards the Andong Protectorate.

Zhao Chiman had always harbored a complex feeling towards Jiang Ke, a mixture of admiration and jealousy.

Every time I see Jiang Ke, he becomes like a hedgehog, appearing unruly and difficult to get along with.

Jiang Ke, however, appeared very magnanimous and never argued with him, seemingly more mature.

This is not actually a difference in personality between the two, but rather a difference in status.

Those in positions of power tend to be particularly tolerant of those of lower status; this is the composure of someone in a superior position.

Deep down, Jiang Ke never considered Zhao Chiman to be his equal.

In the battle against Goguryeo, Jiang Ke belonged to the southern army and participated in the supporting operations. His achievements could not be compared with those of Zhao Jiman. Now, Zhao Jiman's official rank is equal to his, and his reputation is subtly surpassing Jiang Ke's.

Only now did Jiang Ke truly regard Zhao Chiman as a rival, and his attitude towards him was no longer as mild as before.

"Brother Zhao, is there something you need for my sudden visit?"

Inside the back hall of the Xiongjin Governor's Mansion, Jiang Ke stared at Zhao Chiman with a serious expression.

Zhao Chiman said, "Brother Jiang must have already received His Majesty's decree."

Upon hearing this, Jiang Ke's expression turned grave, and he stared intently at him, his gaze sharp as a knife.

"His Majesty has decreed that the Xiongjin Commandery should deliberately suffer a defeat. Could it be that Brother Zhao suggested this?"

Zhao Chiman raised an eyebrow and said, "It wasn't me, it was Protector Pei Xingjian's plan."

Like Zhao Chiman before him, Jiang Ke was very dissatisfied with Pei Xingjian and said coldly, "Protector Pei must have a deeper meaning in doing this?"

Zhao Chiman did not hide anything and explained Pei Xingjian's entire plan to Jiang Ke in detail.

After listening, Jiang Ke remained silent for a long time before saying, "So that's how it is. No wonder His Majesty agreed to his plan. Rest assured, I will act in accordance with His Majesty's orders."

He was, after all, a seasoned general, and knew that Pei Xingjian's plan was sound; to deal with the Mohe, the only option was to lure them in.

Besides, Pei Xingjian did not order him to lead the Tang army to defeat, so he no longer objected.

The following day, Jiang Ke sent several envoys to Silla to urge the King of Silla to relocate to Yeongju Island.

At the same time, he dispatched Heukchi Changji to lead 15,000 Baekje soldiers toward Gwansan Fortress on the border between the two countries.

(End of this chapter)