Zhutian: Starting from the Space-Time Merchant

Chapter 252 The Khan's Dance Troupe

"Sweat! Sweat!"

Jieli, who was fast asleep, stopped snoring and opened his eyes with displeasure.

"What's up!"

Princess Yicheng nudged him. "Morobi has arrived. He says he has something important to report."

"What important thing could happen at this hour?"

Still grumpy from waking up, Jieli got up, put on his shoes, and went to the front tent.

Morobi, the commander of the Golden Knife Guard of the King's Tent, bowed respectfully and said, "Great Khan, who is all-powerful, your humble servant reports to you."

"explain."

"The camp is flooded!"

Upon hearing this, Jieli was so angry that he wanted to draw his sword.

"It's raining outside!"

He shouted, "Of course the camp is full of water! Are you still half asleep?"

"The all-powerful Great Khan!"

Morobi hurriedly explained, "There's too much water in the camp."

"The rain outside won't bring that much water."

Jieli was really angry.

He picked up his jewel-encrusted sword and strode out of the tent.

As soon as I stepped out of the tent, I saw the rippling water before me.

He rubbed his eyes hard and looked again by the light of the torches held up by the golden-sword guards outside the tent.

A collapsed tent drifted slowly by in the distance.

Within the camp, shouts of men and neighing of horses, along with the mooing of cows and bleating of sheep, filled the air.

The precious sword in his hand fell to the ground, and Jieli Khan's face was full of disbelief.

"How can it be?!"

Such a terrible rainstorm could not possibly occur on the grassland.

At this level, they probably wouldn't even have knees left.

He was completely baffled.

"Where did the water come from?!"

As dawn broke, the wind stopped and the rain ceased.

The dark clouds dispersed, and warm sunlight streamed down.

The entire area extending for tens or even hundreds of miles along the riverbank has become a vast swamp.

In the deepest parts, even people and horses are submerged up to their necks.

"Wow, that's a lot of sweat!"

Morobi rode his horse across the water, saying, "The water comes from upstream and has been flowing continuously."

With bloodshot eyes from staying up all night, Jieli immediately looked towards the Tang army camp located on the high ground in the distance.

He gritted his teeth and said, "That's ruthless!"

Without a doubt, so much water could only come from the upstream river.

No wonder the Tang army built camps on high ground; they had long planned to use water attacks.

This is the difference between fighting a war at home and fighting a war abroad.

In the Central Plains, unless it were a ruthless and insane person, who would dare to breach the dike of the Mother River?

At this time, the area within a radius of hundreds of miles centered on Jieli's royal court was almost entirely submerged in water.

Many drowned people and livestock floated on the water like that.

The waterlogged tent, exposed to the sunlight, emitted a foul stench that made one want to vomit.

For the various Turkic tribes, it wouldn't be an exaggeration to call it an apocalyptic disaster.

"Whoo~~~"

Jieli breathed a sigh of relief, comforting himself, "At least the Tang army can't get through now."

"We'll leave as soon as the water recedes a bit!"

"Great Khan!" Morobi shouted, startling Jieli.

Already in a bad mood, Jieli turned around and glared angrily, wishing he could kill this jinx.

Upon seeing Morobi, he raised his hand in terror and pointed into the distance.

Looking in the direction the finger was pointing, one could see large numbers of soldiers rushing out from various Tang army camps located on the high ground in the distance.

The Tang army, organized by fire, carried inflatable boats and assault boats, and threw them directly into the water after descending the high ground.

They climbed onto the boat, rowed vigorously with their oars, and plunged into the water.

The Turkic tribes who witnessed this scene were all dumbfounded.

In the swamps where the water is knee-deep on average, riding a horse is out of the question; you simply can't run.

The bow and arrows are unusable; they've been soaking in water for ages and are ruined.

The only thing that could be used was the weapon in his hand.

However, the Tang soldiers on the ship were armed with bows and crossbows, constantly shooting arrows and killing one Turkic soldier after another.

If you get a little closer, you'll hear various long weapons beckoning you.

Some Tang soldiers even brandished their oars and smashed things.

The Turks, who fought by wading, even had difficulty getting close to the Tang army.

Amidst the rising and falling screams, large numbers of Turks fell into the water.

The blood stained the water, and from a high vantage point, it gradually formed a vast red ocean.

The morale of the Turks collapsed.

In this kind of environment, there's simply no chance of winning.

The already demoralized Turks quickly began to collapse.

They fled desperately toward Yinshan, struggling to move forward through the water with heavy steps.

However, the accumulated water and mud greatly hindered the progress of the journey.

Every step was extremely difficult and strenuous.

Hundreds and thousands of kayaks and speedboats crisscrossed the area, constantly reaping the lives of the struggling Turkic people.

"That felt great! That was so satisfying!"

Holding a lance, Cheng Zhijie stood on the assault boat and occasionally stabbed people.

"This is even easier than hunting!"

It was indeed simpler than hunting; the fleeing Turks didn't even have the ability to fight back.

They cried and shouted as they struggled desperately toward the distance.

However, they were frequently overtaken by Tang army ships and capsized in the water.

On the viewing platform, Lin Dao yawned.

I stayed up all night last night and won over 10,000 bolts of raw silk. The price was exhaustion.

On the contrary, Li Erfeng was full of energy.

Losing some silk while playing cards is nothing to worry about; the Tang Dynasty produces these things every year, so as long as Zihou is happy.

The miserable state of the Turks before his eyes was the source of his excitement.

This is the main force of the Turks!
Since the Turks destroyed the Rouran Khanate, they have become a sword hanging over the heads of the Chinese people.

For centuries, the damage inflicted on the Central Plains and the terrible oppression have weighed heavily on the hearts of the people of the Central Plains.

Now, the Turks, who had dominated the Central Plains for a century, are finally finished!
"Zihou is right."

"For tribes on the grasslands, people are the most important thing."

"Without people, any khanate will inevitably fall apart and perish."

With so many people lost at once, it is estimated that it will take the various Turkic tribes hundreds of years to barely recover.

Let alone the Tang Dynasty, even other tribes on the grasslands would not give them this opportunity.

Taking advantage of your illness to kill you is the mainstream trend of our time.

The only opposing viewpoint is probably held by Confucianism.

"Send the order!"

The triumphant Li Erfeng issued a reward: "Whoever captures Jieli will be rewarded with ten thousand bolts of silk and be granted the title of Duke!"

The soldiers, with their loud voices, shouted in unison to convey the emperor's orders.

Upon hearing this, the Tang soldiers who were chasing the Turks across the marshes were all filled with fervor, desperately searching for the whereabouts of Khagan Jieli.

Strangely, the Khan's tent was overturned, and even Princess Yicheng, who had tried to escape, was captured.

But they couldn't find any trace of Jieli.

When the news arrived, Li Erfeng was also puzzled.

"Could it be that Jieli ran away ahead of time?"

While he was puzzled, Li Shentong, who was standing to the side, quietly gave him a wink.

Following the gaze, they saw it was directed at Lin Dao, who was yawning.

"Zihou".

Li Erfeng stepped forward and asked, "Do you think Jieli ran away beforehand?"

"His men and livestock are all here, where can they run to?"

Lin Dao responded, "If you didn't run away last night, you can't run away now."

"As for the people, they're obviously hiding."

"Hide?" Li Erfeng turned to look at the endless marshland in the distance. "Where can we hide?"

Lin Dao laughed and said, "There's water everywhere, so of course we'll hide in the water."

"You shall arrange for people to search carefully within a three-mile radius of Jieli's golden tent, especially the areas where wooden pipes protrude from the water."

Upon hearing this, Li Erfeng suddenly understood.

"I see!"

Upon receiving the order, Cheng Zhijie and his men quickly turned their boats around and turned the waters near Jieli's Golden Tent upside down.

"Ok?"

Cheng Yaojin, his large eyes fixed on the water's surface, suddenly spotted a wooden pipe protruding from the water not far away.

The pipe wasn't big; it was only about half a foot above the water.

Cheng Zhijie was overjoyed and jumped off the boat, roaring as he pounced on the enemy.

The water splashed and churned as Cheng Zhijie roared and lifted Jieli, who was lying in the murky water, out of the water.

"You like hiding underwater, don't you?"

Cheng Zhijie, clenching his fists the size of a clay pot, first delivered two punches to Jieli.

Then they submerged him underwater.

When Jieli, soaking wet, was dragged to Li Erfeng, he was choking so badly that he was barely recognizable as a human being after swallowing a bellyful of dirty water.

"Jiali!"

Looking down at her with a disdainful gaze, Li Erfeng said, "We've finally met!"

This is a glorious moment that belongs exclusively to the victors.

Lin Dao saw this very clearly; he had experienced it himself.

The only pity was that Jieli was so choked that he couldn't stand it and kept coughing.

He failed to cooperate with Li Erfeng and stage a scene of submission.

Slightly disappointed, Li Erfeng ordered that the child be taken away for treatment and carefully looked after, to be brought back to Chang'an after the battle.

"Bring him back to Chang'an. Don't waste food feeding him; he'll just become a manure-producing machine."

Upon hearing Lin Dao's words, Li Erfeng smiled and asked, "What are your thoughts, Zihou?"

“We can teach him to dance, specifically a dance to celebrate the victory of the Tang Dynasty.”

Lin Dao raised an eyebrow and said with a smile, "From now on, every time you conquer a country, capture its ruler and bring him back to Chang'an to keep Jieli company."

"If the number of people becomes too large, we will organize a royal dance troupe."

"Whenever there are big banquets or celebrations during festivals, they are arranged to come out and dance to celebrate."

"This matter will likely be recorded in the history books."

"Future monarchs will surely take you as their role model and want to form a similar dance troupe."

"This is much better than that Heng... cough cough..."

Actually, the squatting dance is quite good, but it's not suitable for monarchs to dance.

It hurts the eyes.

Li Erfeng, stroking his thick beard, squinted and nodded repeatedly.

He had even begun to imagine the scene in his mind.

The whole city was decorated with lanterns and brightly lit.

Firecrackers burst across the night sky, bright and dazzling.

Countless civil and military officials sat on both sides, while a little further away were the bustling citizens of Chang'an watching the spectacle.

Li Erfeng, dressed in a dragon robe, sat upright behind the desk.

Through the swaying beads on the crown, I watched a group of Khans dancing in unison to the "Qin King's Battle Song".

At the end, all the Khans knelt down and bowed to him.

He shouted loudly.

"Having received the decree from the emperor, we march together to punish the rebellious minister. We sing the 'Breaking the Enemy's Formation' and celebrate this peaceful era!"

"Hahahaha~~~"

Li Erfeng couldn't help but burst into laughter.

He loved this scene so much!
In one word, cool!

(End of this chapter)