On the occasion of rebirth Zhou Sui

Chapter 332 Worry

On the fourteenth day of the first month of the second year of Renshou (AD 602), Cui Qiji followed the order of his father Cui Che and arrived at Kumoxi first.

Ah Huigeye, who came to greet him, said loudly:

"I haven't seen you for a long time, my dear brother, but when we meet again today, we are still as glorious as ever."

Cui Qiji dismounted from his horse, handed the reins to his attendants, and faced Ah Hui Geye with a smile on his face:

"Thank you, my dear sworn brother. I'll be waiting for you."

Ah Huigoye asked:

"I wonder where Mr. Yan has gone now."

Cui Qiji replied:

"My grandpa is leading the troops behind. According to the itinerary, we can arrive in two days."

The two Xianghuo brothers exchanged pleasantries for a few more words. On the way to the king's tent, Cui Qiji asked:

"My grandpa's army is approaching. May I ask my sworn brother, how prepared is King Xi now?"

Ah Huigeye smiled and said:

"Don't worry, dear brother. After the edict from the Emperor of the Sui Dynasty was delivered, my father has been recruiting soldiers and horses from various tribes. Now, west of the Laoha River, there are no less than 120,000 Xi people on foot and horse."

Cui Qiji felt relieved after hearing this and asked again:

"What's the situation in Khitan now?"

Ah Huigoye said truthfully:

"All the five Khitan tribes have migrated to the east of Laoha River, and they are also waiting for Duke Yan to arrive."

Cui Qiji nodded secretly. Sure enough, my grandfather has worked hard to manage Northern Xinjiang in the past few years, and now all these grassland tribes are very obedient.

The two were talking and walking, and Ah Huigeye suddenly said with emotion:

"Let me say that Duke Yan is a great benefactor to our Xi clan, and it is our duty to obey his orders.

"There is no need to promise to the Khitans and Turks that we, the Xi people, will jointly carve up Goguryeo in the future.

"If there is no profit motive, we Xi people will disobey Duke Yan's order."

Cui Qiji knew that Ah Huigeye had said this deliberately in front of him.

This was just a blank check. Although Cui Che boldly promised to destroy Goguryeo in three years after seizing Liaodong City, he was sure that Yang Jian would not survive that day.

It was just an excuse to stay in Yandi.

Kumo Xi, the Khitan and other barbarians were so active in sending troops and even providing their own livestock because they wanted Yang Jian's reward after the war.

Liaodong City is like a thorn in Yang Jian's heart. If he can pull out this thorn, the reward will be less.

As for Cui Che's remarks to Kumo Xi, the Khitan even promised to share Goguryeo in the future. He was also thinking about the day when he would launch a war of annihilation against Goguryeo, and sent these barbarians to act as pawns.

However, in Cui Qiji's view, given the previous example of Gao Jiong's disastrous defeat, these barbarians were still convinced that my grandfather could seize Liaodong City. Such enthusiasm was somewhat outrageous.

'It seems that I still underestimated my grandfather's prestige among the Monan tribe.'

After thinking for a moment, Cui Qiji said seriously:

"My grandfather once taught me that it is not the behavior of a gentleman to repay a favor with kindness.

"Prince Xi and his sworn brother felt that my grandfather had been kind and righteous in the past, and they repaid him with fists. Qiji was also deeply moved.

"But King Xi has worked hard to mobilize troops for this purpose, so how can he comfort the soldiers without any benefit?

"My grandpa's promise of huge profits to King Xi is not because he has a relationship with King Xi, but because he is thinking about King Xi and the long-term friendship between the two families."

Ah Huigeye said in shame:

"It's because I'm stupid and can't understand Duke Yan's good intentions."

With that said, he took the place of his father Ahui Lusu and expressed his stance to Cui Qiji, saying solemnly:

"Don't worry, dear brother, I, the soldiers of the Xi clan, will fight to the death for Duke Yan and capture Liaodong City!"

Cui Qiji smiled and said:

"Qiji definitely believes what my sworn brother said."

Although there are many speculations among the Sui army that the number of Hu and Han soldiers Cui Che recruited this time will not be much less than that of the Liaodong War.

But in fact, in Cui Che's Eastern Expedition, all five tribes including Du Suliu, Kumoxi, and Khitan were deployed in full force.

Among them, there are 80,000 Yandi cavalry, 5,000 Boling cavalry, 30,000 cavalry under Dusu Liu's command, 120,000 cavalry under Kumoxi, and 100,000 cavalry from the five Khitan tribes. In total,

There were a total of 335,000 Hu and Han soldiers on foot and on horseback.

There were even 35,000 more soldiers than the Liaodong War five years ago.

Of course, compared to Yang Guang's conquest of Goguryeo in the original time and space, it is still not enough.

It's just that the combat effectiveness of this huge Han-Hu coalition army is really mixed, especially the 100,000-strong army put together by the five Khitan tribes. Cui Che had already experienced this on the banks of the Xiliao River.

Kumo Xi had 120,000 infantry and cavalry, but only 30,000 cavalry could be driven. At least during this period, Kumo Xi and the Khitan's infantry could only be said to be a rabble.

But there was really no other way. Without the help of these cannon fodder, Cui Che could not bear to part with the elite cavalry he had painstakingly cultivated to dismount and attack the city.

These Sui army cavalry, besides suppressing the formation, Cui Che had other uses.

On the sixteenth day of the first lunar month in the second year of Renshou (AD 302), at dusk, 85,000 Sui army cavalry, together with 30,000 cavalry from the Six Divisions of Dusu, arrived in the Laoha River Basin, followed by vast herds of livestock.

Cui Che went down to the village along the river and camped for five miles.

After hearing the news, the eight Khitan chiefs crossed the river, and King Xi Ahui Lusu and his son Ahui Goye followed Cui Qiji to pay homage.

In the handsome tent, everyone gathered together.

Cui Che ordered the four concubines accompanying the army, Mu Xieli, Wang Miaorong, Yuchi Chifan, and Zhang Lihua, to appear and pour wine for everyone.

These barbarian chiefs all sat upright and looked away, lest Cui Che misunderstood. Their appearance was very similar to Cui Che's seriousness when facing Xiao Chen.

After three rounds of drinking, Cui Che said through his drunkenness:

"Cui was ordered by the saint to conquer Goguryeo so that he could have a happy reunion with you, but at the same time he was happy, but he was really uneasy."

Since there were Han Chinese, Turks, Khitans, and Kumoxi people present, Cui Che simply spoke in Chinese.

Da Hemohui has been studying Chinese language hard for the past two years. While others were still listening to the translator sitting next to him, he had already taken the lead in praising him and said doubtfully:

"The Duke of Yan is a famous general in the world. He has strong soldiers and horses. How can there be anything that can make Duke Yan worried?"

Everyone agreed.

Cui Che sighed:

"You all have your heart set on the Sui Dynasty, so you can come here in response to the imperial edict. Cui is very grateful.

"However, since ancient times, coalition forces have mostly been unable to achieve success. The reason is that they have many orders and are difficult to coordinate.

"Now that four tribes are gathering together, how can Cui not be worried about this?

"Since everyone is here today, how about we nominate one person to give orders to the coalition forces?"

Dahemo Hui is not the only one who is proficient in Chinese. Ah Hui Lusu stood up and said:

"Mr. Yan! I, Hui Lusu, have a bad relationship with you, but there is something I really cannot say that I am unhappy about.

"The purpose of our expedition is to serve the imperial court and wash away the humiliation of the Sui Emperor, not to fight for power.

"If there is anyone who can defeat Duke Yan with his skill in military warfare, Ah Hui Lusu will definitely support him. I really don't want to bow my head to you.

"But the truth is that none of you here, including myself, can hope that Duke Yan will take this important task. Who else can take on this important task except Duke Yan!"

"The life and death of an army of more than 300,000 people is really not a trivial matter.

"Since Duke Yan is worried about his orders, I, Hui Lusu, will put aside my old grudges today and swear an oath here.

"In this battle, the Xi clan must obey Duke Yan's military orders. If there is any disobedience, let me die under random swords!"

(End of chapter)