Datang: Just been appointed as the crown prince, the counterattack system is here

Chapter 366 No one but the Crown Prince can ride roughshod over us! [Seeking monthly votes]

"What did you say?!"

Li Ji stared blankly at the soldier who had reported the news, as if he had misheard.

Meanwhile, generals such as Zhang Gongjin also rushed to the scene upon hearing the news.

But then the soldier who reported the news cautiously cupped his hands and said, "It's true, General! Commander Pei, in alliance with the Turks and Khitans, has breached Yudujun Mountain!"

"How can this be!?"

Before Li Ji could respond, Zhang Gongjin interjected with a look of astonishment, "They only have less than 30,000 men, and they haven't mobilized any siege machinery. Even their artillery is still in the camp. How did they manage to break through Yudu Army Mountain?"

“Yes! Unless they can fly, how could their small force possibly break through the defenses around Yudu Military Mountain?” A general behind Zhang Gongjin said with a questioning look.

But the soldier who reported said with great certainty, "There is no mistake. I personally rode there to confirm. There are flames and shouts of battle in Yudu Army Mountain. It is definitely not them fighting in the civil war, because what I heard was our people shouting!"

"This"

Upon hearing this, Zhang Gongjin and the others fell silent instantly.

I thought to myself, "How is this possible?!"
Pei Xuan and his men numbered only 30,000, and most of them were musketeers. How could they possibly breach the Xueyantuo royal court, which had an army of hundreds of thousands?!
This is harder than climbing to heaven!
However, they had no choice but to believe it.

Because it was such a serious matter, the soldier who reported it would certainly not dare to deceive them.

Therefore, they couldn't help but turn their attention to Li Ji.

Li Ji took a few deep breaths, and after a while, he calmed himself down before asking in a trembling voice, "How did Pei Xuan and the others manage to break through Yudu Army Mountain?"

"To be honest, General, I don't know the truth yet, but I heard thunder rumbling inside Yudu Army Mountain, which I guess is the sound of firearms. It seems they must have used firearms to break through Yudu Army Mountain."

"Oh, by the way, there are also many hot air balloons with flashing flames in the sky above Yudujun Mountain."

"What!?"

Upon hearing this, the generals were instantly struck dumb.

Although the soldier who reported the incident didn't know what was going on, they were military commanders, and they understood what was happening after hearing just a general outline.

This must have been Pei Xuan using the advantage of the hot air balloon to drop a large amount of explosives onto Yudujun Mountain.

In other words, they really did fly into Yudujun Mountain and successfully breached it!
This is incredible.

Thinking of this, the generals couldn't help but look at each other, bewildered.

Even Li Ji couldn't help but sit back down behind the desk, feeling somewhat dejected.

It turns out that I had underestimated Pei Xuan and his musketeers all along.

If I had known Pei Xuan was capable, why would I have gone through all that trouble?
Why not just hand over the task of attacking Yudujun Mountain to Pei Xuan's musketeers?

Now, things have turned out badly. The Xueyantuo have been wiped out by Pei Xuan and his men, but he, as the commander-in-chief, has done almost nothing.

That's incredibly embarrassing.

Could it be that the Crown Prince sent Pei Xuan to the Xueyantuo battlefield not to assist him, but to make him assist the Crown Prince?
Thinking of this, Li Ji's expression changed repeatedly, and finally he sighed helplessly: "No matter what, let's go. Even if we can't secure victory, helping to clean up the battlefield will be helpful!"

After saying that, he looked up at Zhang Gongjin and the others, then looked at Xue Wanche and said, "General Xue, thank you for making this trip!"

"Hehe, it's no trouble at all. This humble general will take the order and go assist Commander Pei and the others!"

Xue Wanche smiled, then bowed and left the military tent.

Compared to Li Ji's miscalculation and Zhang Gongjin's arrogance, he always held Li Chengqian and his people in high esteem.

After all, if Li Chengqian hadn't recommended him to Changsun Wuji, he wouldn't be where he is today.

Although Pei Xuan was not well-liked in the army, his relationship with Pei Xuan was still quite harmonious.

This is also the main reason why Li Ji chose him instead of Zhang Gongjin and others.

Meanwhile, throughout the Xueyantuo royal court, chaos and panic were almost everywhere caused by Tang army air raids.

The Xueyantuo soldiers had never seen such a scene before. They were so frightened that they were at a loss and could only instinctively run away.

Many soldiers were even trampled to death by their own comrades.

Yi Shi Yinan and Yi Shi Ye Mang, while dodging bomb attacks, shouted loudly in an attempt to stabilize morale.

However, their shouts were quickly drowned out by the sounds of killing and the explosions of bombs.

Seeing the tragic state of the Xueyantuo royal court, both Zhishi Sili and Dahe Kuge were shocked.

They hadn't expected Pei Xuan's plan to be so effective.

The musketeers, taking advantage of the height of the hot air balloons, continuously dropped bombs at the Xueyantuo royal court.

Each bomb that fell took the lives of several Xueyantuo soldiers.

At this moment, Yi Shi Yinan and Yi Shi Ye Mang had fallen into utter despair.

Looking at the soldiers falling around them and the Turkic and Khitan cavalry closing in from afar, they couldn't help but feel a sense of powerlessness.

They knew that the Xueyantuo were finished.

There is no hope left.

However, to their even greater despair, a disheveled soldier came to report that the chiefs of the Pugu, Uyghur, and Tongluo tribes had all led their men in scattering and fleeing for their lives.

They didn't even try to stop the Tang army's actions for the Xueyantuo.

"Damn it! Those damned traitors!"

Yi Shiye Mang gritted his teeth in fury and roared to the sky, "Does Heaven intend to destroy the Xueyantuo?!"

Meanwhile, Otoshi Io, who was standing to the side, gradually calmed down.

He said in a deep voice, "Although this attack came suddenly, the Tang army is not numerous. As long as we can find a way to gather a large army, we should be able to hold off the Tang army!"

"But Father Khan, in this chaotic situation, how are we supposed to gather a large army? We can't just shoot those things down from the sky, can we?!"

"Ok?"

Yi Shiyinan reacted for a moment and thought to himself, "That's right! As long as we shoot down those hot air balloons in the sky, the troops below will see them and their morale will be greatly boosted. Then, if I can stabilize the morale of the troops, won't the great thing be accomplished?"

"Hahaha!"

Having figured out the key point, Yi Shiyi suddenly burst into loud laughter.

The guards and Yi Shiye Mang standing to the side looked completely bewildered.

But then Yi Shiyi immediately said, "My son is right, let's shoot those things down from the sky!"

After saying that, he immediately said to his personal guards, "Go to the storeroom right now and bring out the city-breaking crossbows. Aim them at the hot air balloon in the sky and shoot it down for me!"

"Yes!"

Upon hearing this, the guards immediately rode away without saying a word.

At this moment, Yi Shiye Mang asked with surprise and uncertainty, "Will this work?"

"Whether it will work or not, we'll only know after we try. Go find a big drum right now, and as soon as we shoot the thing down from the sky, beat the drum to send a message!"

As Yi Shiyinan spoke, he gave the order again.

Although Yi Shiye Mang still harbored doubts, at this time, he could only trust his father.

So he quickly rode away.

Not long after, several guards appeared in front of a storeroom in the Xueyantuo royal court.

They hurriedly opened the warehouse door, went inside, and soon came out carrying several huge crossbows.

These crossbows were the Xueyantuo's siege weapons, and each one required at least ten people to move.

Normally, these crossbows are used for attacking cities, but today, Yi Shiyi will use them to deal with the hot air balloons in the sky.

After setting up the crossbows, the guards aimed at the hot air balloon that was closest to them in the sky.

"put!"

With a command, a huge crossbow bolt, accompanied by a whistling sound, shot towards the hot air balloon.

"Whoosh!"

The crossbow bolts were incredibly fast; they reached the hot air balloon almost instantly.

Surprisingly, the crossbow bolt only grazed the edge of the hot air balloon and did not shoot it down.

"Damn it! Shoot again!"

Upon seeing this, the guards couldn't help but curse, and then pulled the crossbows again, firing bolts into the sky.

However, after firing more than a dozen arrows, they still failed to bring down any of the hot air balloons.

These hot air balloons appeared to be made of special materials, making them not only lightweight but also sturdy, and completely impervious to their crossbow bolts.

Seeing this, the guards couldn't help but feel somewhat discouraged.

But just then, a loud bang was heard, and then they saw a hot air balloon suddenly explode in the air.

"Success!?"

Upon seeing this, the guards couldn't help but cheer.

They never expected that they would actually shoot down a hot air balloon.

Meanwhile, Yishi Yinan and Yishi Yemang, who were watching from afar, were greatly encouraged upon witnessing this scene. They hadn't expected that this method would actually work.

Therefore, Eulshio immediately ordered all his guards to use crossbows to shoot at the hot air balloons in the sky.

For a time, the Xueyantuo royal court was filled with the sound of crossbow bolts piercing the air.

Meanwhile, hot air balloons in the sky were constantly being shot down.

This scene not only gave hope to the soldiers of Xueyantuo, but also to the fleeing allied forces of various tribes.

They never expected that the Xueyantuo would have a way to deal with the hot air balloons in the sky.

"Hahaha! Shoot! Shoot down these damn things!"

"Damn Tang soldiers! How dare they ambush us! We'll shoot them down with our crossbows!"

In an instant, the entire Xueyantuo royal court was filled with hopeful shouts.

Meanwhile, the fleeing allied forces of various tribes stopped their escape and began to wait for the Xueyantuo army to counterattack the Tang army, preparing to add insult to injury.

As for the Tang army, their morale was also greatly affected by the constant destruction of hot air balloons.

They never expected that the Xueyantuo would have a way to deal with their hot air balloons.

For a time, the Tang army's offensive gradually came to a standstill.

Seeing the changes on the battlefield, both Zhishi Sili and Dahe Kuge were shocked and turned to look at where Pei Xuan was.

Pei Xuan, standing on the hillside, seemed unsurprised that Xueyantuo had managed to shoot down some hot air balloons.

Because these hot air balloons were already at a very low altitude, he deliberately had the air force lower the altitude to ensure the accuracy of the launch.

Therefore, when Pei Xuan saw a hot air balloon being shot down, he immediately said to the messenger beside him, "Send a message immediately to have the air force ascend and drop poison gas!"

"Yes!"

The messenger immediately accepted the order.

Soon, a command drumbeat unique to the Air Force suddenly resounded through the night sky.

Immediately afterwards, the air force personnel who were operating hot air balloons to dodge crossbow bolts increased their firepower and climbed upwards.

At the same time, another air force officer dropped the latest poison gas bomb developed by the Academy of Sciences.

"Boom!"

As the poison gas bombs exploded, countless toxic fumes indiscriminately attacked the Xueyantuo soldiers below.

Even their warhorses were not spared.

Those Xueyantuo soldiers who smelled the poison gas immediately felt unwell, followed by dizziness, blurred vision, and difficulty breathing, and soon lost their fighting ability.

Even Yi Shi Ye Mang, who was initially excited about shooting down the hot air balloon, accidentally smelled the poisonous gas.

"Father."

Yi Shiye Mang clutched his throat, staring at Yi Shi Yinan with a ferocious expression, wanting to beg him for help.

But Yi Shiyinan was completely dazed, and was forcibly pulled away from the poisonous area by his personal guards: "Khan, let's go! This smoke is poisonous!"

"Ah! Damn Tang soldiers! How vicious!"

As more and more people fell in the poisonous fog, the entire battlefield once again descended into chaos.

Even the various allied forces that had stopped were struck by lightning and prepared to flee again.

But this time it wasn't so easy.

Because Xue Wanche's army had already blocked their path.

They have no way to escape.

"Kill--!"

Xue Wanche's army surged forward like a tidal wave, instantly routing the allied forces of the various tribes.

The Xueyantuo army, which had been painstakingly organized, was instantly defeated.

At the same time, the cavalry led by Shishiri and Ogakuge also flanked them from both sides.

"Great Khan! Tang reinforcements have arrived! We are completely surrounded!"

Upon hearing this, Yi Shiyinan felt even more desperate.

He knew that he had no way to escape.

In the end, during a fierce battle, Otoshi Io was shot through the chest by a stray arrow and died on the spot.

His personal guards also all died in the chaos of battle.

When Shishiro and Ogaku saw the body of Otoshio, they both breathed a sigh of relief.

They knew it was all over.

Then, they led their cavalry and followed Xue Wanche to reap the spoils of war.

Meanwhile, Pei Xuan was quietly watching all of this from a distant mountaintop.

Looking at the flames of the Xueyantuo royal court and the constant stream of good news, a satisfied smile appeared on his face.

He knew that he had finally proven himself worthy of Li Chengqian and the Musketeers. He turned to Zhang Ping beside him and smiled, "General Zhang, it seems our plan has been a great success. The Xueyantuo have been completely defeated by us."

Zhang Ping also smiled broadly and cupped his hands, saying, "This is all thanks to Commander Pei's skillful command; I was merely following orders."

Pei Xuan waved his hand and said, "General Zhang, you are too kind. Each of you deserves credit for our victory in this battle."

As they were talking, Xue Wanche, Zhishi Sili, and Dahe Kuge, leading cavalry, walked over, escorting a large number of prisoners and spoils of war.

Upon seeing this, Pei Xuan immediately went to greet them and said with a smile, "The three generals have worked hard."

Zhishi Sili and Dahe Kuge both bowed and said, "Commander Pei, you are too kind. We were able to defeat Xueyantuo entirely thanks to your brilliant plan."

"Yes, I'm just reaping the benefits; it's all thanks to you guys," Xue Wanche chimed in with a smile.

Pei Xuan laughed and waved his hand, saying, "Alright, let's stop praising each other and see how the battle went."

With that, he led Zhishi Sili, Dahe Kuge, and Xue Wanche to inspect the spoils of war.

Among the spoils of war were not only a large amount of gold and silver jewelry, but also countless cattle, sheep and horses, as well as all kinds of weapons and armor.

Looking at these spoils of war, Pei Xuan couldn't help but feel secretly pleased.

He knew that this battle not only made a great contribution to Li Chengqian, but also allowed the Musketeers to gain a firm foothold in the army.

From then on, no one dared to underestimate the Musketeers.

Thinking of this, he turned to look at Zhishi Sili and Dahe Kuge and asked, "Generals, what should we do with these spoils of war?"

"this."

Both Zhi Shisi and Dahe Kuge were slightly taken aback upon hearing this.

Xue Wanche pretended not to hear anything and remained silent.

In fact, Pei Xuan was not entitled to distribute these spoils of war, since the main general of the Xueyantuo battlefield was Li Ji.

But what can you do when someone is one of the Six Commanders of the Eastern Palace, and also the number one contributor to the destruction of the Xueyantuo?

Even Li Ji probably wouldn't have the face to steal credit from others, let alone these spoils of war.

So, after a moment of silence, Zhishi Sili took the lead and cupped his hands, saying, "Commander Pei, these spoils of war were obtained under your leadership, so naturally they should be disposed of by you."

Dahe Kuge quickly chimed in, "Yes, Commander Pei, you decide what to do."

Seeing this, Pei Xuan couldn't help but feel secretly pleased.

He knew he had made the right move.

By proactively asking for their opinions, not only did Zhishi Sili and Dahe Kuge become more convinced of the Crown Prince's loyalty, but Xue Wanche also saw the Crown Prince's attitude.

The people of my Eastern Palace have never been anyone's assistants; we are our own masters.

No one but His Highness the Crown Prince can ride roughshod over us.

Even a high-ranking general of the imperial court is not allowed.

Thinking of this, Pei Xuan smiled and nodded, saying, "Alright, since the three generals have no objections, let's distribute these spoils of war according to military merits."

Upon hearing this, both Zhishi Sili and Dahe Kuge were overjoyed.

They hadn't expected Pei Xuan to be so generous.

These spoils of war were priceless treasures, and their distribution according to military merit was undoubtedly a huge reward for them.

So they quickly cupped their hands in greeting and said, "Thank you, Commander Pei!"

Xue Wanche nonchalantly echoed, "Commander Pei is righteous!"

Pei Xuan laughed and said, "Alright, let's not stand on ceremony, let's go back to camp and celebrate."

After saying this, he led Zhishi Sili, Dahe Kuge, Xue Wanche, and his soldiers back to the camp in a grand procession.

With this, the Xueyantuo Khanate was completely destroyed!

(End of this chapter)