Chapter 180: Sun Khan’s Fall, Turmoil Rises In The Eastern Capital
“Report, Great Governor!”
“Kereit Tribe army crossed Yudu Jin Mountain and encountered our army near the Drag River.”
“Li Dahu and Li Erhu, the two Myriad Household Commanders, led troops in a night assault, killing over three thousand Kereit Tribe soldiers.”
In Tannu Uriankhai, Li Xiao soon received the battle report from the Drag River battle.
Without much hesitation, he gravely ordered: “Pass the order to all divisions of the First Division: assemble immediately and prepare to head south.”
“Pass the order to the Fifth Myriad Household Commander Li Sanhe: lead troops to garrison Tannu Uriankhai and clear out all resistance within the territory.”
Although the main force of the Naiman army had been eliminated, some scattered soldiers had escaped, occasionally harassing the Jin Prefecture Army, which was endlessly annoying.
Moreover, some hidden Naiman Tribes had not been found.
These meticulous tasks were assigned by Li Xiao to Li Sanhe.
From now on, the population and grasslands of the Naiman Tribe all belonged to Jin Prefecture.
Li Xiao planned to appoint Li Sanhe as General of the Western Sea Protector Army, to garrison the territory east of Golden Mountain and west of Yudu Jin Mountain.
“Understood!”
After the personal guard left, Li Xiao went to a small tent not far away.
Although it was almost noon, Guerbiesu, who had been tormented by Li Xiao for most of the night, had just gotten up and was dressing.
“This concubine pays respects to the Great Governor.”
Seeing Li Xiao enter, Guerbiesu hurriedly stood up to greet him.
Moreover, she had specifically learned a few phrases of Chinese language from Hutu, with a strange accent, but the meaning was understandable.
But before she finished speaking, Li Xiao grabbed her and roughly threw her onto the bed.
Then he grabbed her head and pressed it down directly.
“The convoy escorting Baibuhua will arrive at the main camp soon. Come with me later to see him.”
“Woo woo woo~”
Li Xiao shook her head up and down a few times, treating it as her agreement.
Soon after, a cavalry team of one hundred twenty men arrived at the main camp.
They not only escorted Baibuhua back, but also brought back all the women and supplies captured by Da Hu and Er Hu along the way.
And at this moment, Baibuhua was extremely disheveled. Originally a two-hundred-jin fat man, now his cheekbones were clearly visible on his face, his belly was flat, extremely gaunt, but also very weak.
“Get down.”
Baibuhua was tightly bound with ropes all over his body and was roughly pulled off the horse by the soldiers.
But the moment he struggled to get up from the ground and lifted his head, his expression instantly froze in shock, his legs went soft, and he trembled all over in fear.
Only to see that on a flagpole in the main camp hung not a battle flag, but a dried human head.
“Tuoteboluo~”
Baibuhua said in extreme terror, his voice trembling.
After all, they were blood brothers. Even though Buyiru Khan’s head was already dried up, he still instantly recognized him.
“He really died!”
“Hehehe~ woo woo~”
Slowly, his eye sockets reddened slightly, and his mood sank.
Although by a twist of fate they had been enemies for half their lives, the brotherly bond remained, and Baibuhua had never wanted to put him to death.
Now, with Tuoteboluo killed, all that remained in his heart was grief and fear.
Tuoteboluo was after all the Naiman Great Khan, yet the Jin Prefecture Army killed him without hesitation.
Could he still hope for them to show him mercy?
Thinking that he would end up the same as Tuoteboluo, Baibuhua’s heart filled with unending terror, his legs unable to move.
“Great Governor, the bandit leader Baibuhua has been brought.”
“Bring him in!”
Soon after, Baibuhua was brought into Li Xiao’s large tent.
But the instant he looked ahead, his expression became even more shocked and angry.
On the tiger skin chair that originally belonged to him sat a young man.
This man had broad shoulders and a narrow waist, his bronze skin gleaming coldly, thick black hair tied back, eyes like a hawk, scanning the crowd with an innate sense of oppression.
No need to think, this man was none other than the Great Governor of Jin Prefecture, Li Xiao.
This was still his first meeting with Li Xiao. Though shocked by Li Xiao’s youth, at this moment he wished he could devour him alive.
Only because sitting in Li Xiao’s arms was none other than Guerbiesu.
In the past, she had been dignified and reserved in front of Baibuhua, but now her cheeks were flushed, her eyes smiling.
Seeing this scene, Baibuhua’s pupils suddenly contracted, his breathing instantly stopping.
“Guerbiesu.”
But then he powerlessly lowered his head.
He had long been prepared for defeat, and understood what Guerbiesu would face after falling into the hands of the Jin Prefecture Army.
When this scene appeared before him, he had no choice but to accept it.
“I am the Sun Khan of the Naiman Tribe. I want to see Xiao Simo.”
“I am willing to lead the Naiman Tribe to surrender to the Sixth Courtyard Department Great King of the Liao State,” Baibuhua said gravely.
But what came was Li Xiao’s foolish laugh: “Baibuhua, look at you now. Truly laughable.”
“The Naiman Tribe is already destroyed. What qualification do you have to surrender to my Great Liao?”
He had a vendetta with the Naiman People.
The rebellion of the three Geluolu divisions in Jin Prefecture back then caused Li Dahai and dozens of male laborers in Hexi Fort to die in battle.
And behind that rebellion were the Naiman People supporting them.
Baibuhua had even supplied the Geluolu People with one hundred sets of heavy armor, which was a direct factor in Li Dahai’s death in battle.
And now, the three Geluolu divisions of Jin Prefecture had been eliminated. Da He Chu Luo Duo, who had deceived Li Dahai into covering the rear and dying in battle while he himself fled, had also been turned into a human swine by Li Xiao and died miserably.
Now, the Sun Khan had also fallen into his hands.
The vengeance for Li Dahai and the young and strong men of Hexi Fort was finally fully avenged.
“Can’t even protect your own woman, what kind of man are you?”
“Living is just wasting grain.”
“Go out and keep your brother company.” Li Xiao said in a cold voice.
Many Huaxia emperors liked to imprison enemy leaders in the capital city, and during major festivals, drag them out to mock and humiliate them, thereby showcasing their great military achievements and satisfying their arrogant mindset.
But Li Xiao did not care about such things.
What he wanted was territory, population, women, wealth.
As for this fool Baibuhua, keeping him around was just an eyesore.
Hearing that Li Xiao really intended to kill him, the Sun Khan’s facade completely vanished, and he began to panic.
His trembling voice said: “No~”
“I am the Sun Khan. You cannot kill me.”
“You already have the Naiman Tribe. I am irrelevant to you. Please, spare me.”
“You like Guerbiesu. I can give her to you.”
“You like gold, silver, and jewels. I am willing to offer you my treasured luminous pearls, the finest Persian carpets, the best war horses, all of them.”
“As long as you spare my life, I will do anything.”
Saying this, he looked toward Guerbiesu and shouted hoarsely: “We swore before Ahala to be together for life. Have you forgotten all that?”
“Help me beg him to spare me.”
Hearing this, Guerbiesu’s delicate body trembled slightly, a flash of barely perceptible panic in her eyes.
Li Xiao looked down at Baibuhua, shaking his head inwardly.
He could not help but think of the historical evaluation of the Sun Khan.
Cowardly and afraid of death, weak and incompetent yet arrogant and conceited.
This evaluation was very accurate. No matter how Baibuhua pretended on the surface, when his life was at stake, all pride vanished.
Crying and kneeling on the ground begging for mercy was truly unsightly.
“You are not as brave as your brother.”
“At least, when he was killed, he was still cursing me,” Li Xiao said indifferently.
Guerbiesu lowered her eyelids, a complex expression flashing across her face, with guilt and helplessness.
But soon, she nestled into Li Xiao’s arms, as if seeking support.
Baibuhua had become the past.
Li Xiao was the man she could rely on from now on.
Thus, she took the opportunity to pledge loyalty: “Baibuhua, you have disappointed me too much.”
“In the face of great enemies, you are cowardly and afraid of death, without any responsibility. Compared to the Great Governor, you are just a coward!”
“You are not worthy to be my man, Guerbiesu.”
Hearing this, shock appeared on Baibuhua’s face, followed by mad cursing.
“Guerbiesu, I will kill you, you bitch!”
“I was so good to you before. For you, I could even give up everything, yet you betray me.”
“I’ll kill you.”
Baibuhua roared, his voice full of despair and hatred.
Seeing this, Li Xiao waved his hand, and the soldiers beside him rushed forward, dragging Baibuhua out firmly.
“Whores have no feelings, actors have no righteousness. Some women are born as femme fatales.”
“Only a fool like you would be completely deceived.”
Then, he turned to Guerbiesu with a faint smile: “Want to say a final goodbye to him?”
Guerbiesu’s face instantly tensed, shaking her head frantically: “No, no need.”
“This concubine’s heart now holds only the Great Governor, with no room for anyone else.”
Li Xiao smiled faintly and said no more.
This woman was not only heartless but also deeply scheming.
Keeping her around long-term would eventually cause trouble in the back courtyard.
Soon after, the Sun Khan’s head was chopped off and hung on the flagpole, accompanying Buyiru Khan’s head.
Good brothers should be together neatly.
Meanwhile, the Golden Armored Army troops left the camp in grand array, merging en route with the other troops of the First Division and one thousand black-armored heavy cavalry, totaling eight thousand troops, heading south to meet the Kereit Tribe.
On the other side, Sangkun held a gilded wine bowl, watching the graceful dance of Naiman women in the tent, a smug smile on his lips.
But when Bilerge Begi stumbled into the large tent, his smile instantly froze on his face.
“Your Highness!”
Bilerge Begi’s armor was shattered and tattered, blood seeping from wounds, he knelt with a thud, saying in a pained voice.
“Our division encountered a Liao Army night assault and suffered heavy losses.”
“What?”
Sangkun’s pupils contracted sharply, the wine bowl smashing to the ground with a “pa.”
“It was my negligence.”
“I didn’t expect the Liao Army to move so fast. Caught unprepared, we suffered a Liao Army night assault,” Bilerge Begi took responsibility.
Sangkun angrily questioned: “How many troops lost?”
“Only… only less than a thousand remain~” Bilerge Begi hesitated.
“Useless!”
“Five thousand vanguard army, and only this many left?”
He kicked over the carved low table in front of him, strode to Bilerge Begi, eyes blazing with fury.
“How was this battle fought?”
“Your Highness, the Jin Prefecture Army’s strength far exceeds our imagination.”
Bilerge Begi struggled to lift his head, face covered in blood and dust: “They all wore a special kind of armor, red and white in two colors. Our sabers, spears, bows, and arrows couldn’t harm them at all.”
“But the Jin Prefecture Army’s weapons are extremely sharp. This is a spearhead I seized at the cost of my life.”
“It can easily pierce our army’s leather armor.”
Saying this, he tremblingly presented a gleaming spearhead.
Sangkun took it and examined it closely. The spearhead had a three-edged shape, extremely sharp, with deep blood grooves, gleaming with a cold light under the candlelight.
Testing it on the leather armor commonly worn by Kereit Tribe soldiers, it pierced through easily.
Sangkun’s face turned extremely ugly: “Outrageous!”
“Why does the Liao Army have such sharp weapons?”
“And all wearing armor?”
Because of Jin Dynasty’s blockade of the grassland, the armor-wearing rate among grassland soldiers was very low.
Only the Naiman Tribe and Kereit Tribe had the ability to mine ore and forge a small amount of iron armor; other tribes could only wear leather armor.
Sangkun knew too well the combat strength gap between armored and unarmored soldiers.
Thus, Bilerge Begi’s news gave him a great shock.
Jin Prefecture Army all armored? How to fight this battle?
“Your Highness, the ones who attacked our vanguard were only a small number of Liao troops, about four or five thousand.”
“Perhaps this is the Liao Army’s elite, and the other troops are not like this,” Bilerge Begi guessed.
But Sangkun could not pin the fate of the Kereit Tribe army on such speculation.
He said gravely: “Pass the order to all divisions: halt the advance.”
“Scout the Liao Army’s specific situation clearly before making plans.”
Da Hu and Er Hu’s night assault had shaken Sangkun’s mentality greatly.
With roughly equal troop numbers, the Jin Prefecture Army had routed the Kereit Tribe army.
And if the Jin Prefecture Army was truly all armored, the Kereit Tribe was in trouble.
……
War between Jin Prefecture and the Kereit Tribe was imminent, and at the same time, the ice and snow in the Eastern Capital began to melt.
Xiao Simo wrapped in a thick fur coat, slowly walked out of the large tent.
Sunlight fell on him, but could not dispel the chill surrounding his body.
A cold wind blew, and he could not help but cough violently, his body shaking intensely, hands clutching his chest tightly, as if to cough out his five viscera and six bowels.
“Great King!”
A clear voice laced with worry called from behind.
Princess Consort Shu Lü Wujin, dressed in an exquisite brocade robe, hurried over with quick steps, her brows full of concern.
“The wind is strong outside. Your body is not yet recovered. Why come out?”
She extended her slender hand, gently stroking Xiao Simo’s back.
Xiao Simo waved his hand, trying to steady his breathing, voice hoarse: “No matter. Lying in the room too long, I’m almost a cripple.”
“The sun is good today. Coming out for a walk.”
Shu Lü Wujin followed behind Xiao Simo to the city wall.
Seeing his pale face and swollen eyes, Shu Lü Wujin’s eyes reddened slightly.
Back then, Xiao Simo was known as ‘capturing tigers up the mountain, catching dragons in the sea,’ the top warrior of the Great Liao State.
But now he was confined to his bedchamber day after day, accompanied only by medicine.
This situation pained Shu Lü Wujin immensely, but she could only grieve silently.
“The war between Jin Prefecture Army and Naiman Tribe has broken out. I wonder how it turned out.”
Xiao Simo stood on the city wall, tightening his coat, gaze piercing through heaven and earth, as if seeing the battlefield where Jin Prefecture clashed with the Naiman Tribe.
“Li Xiao is young, but brave and skilled in combat.”
“Moreover, after Your King’s campaign, the Naiman Tribe has become a homeless dog, no longer a threat.”
“I believe good news from Jin Prefecture will come soon,” Shu Lü Wujin comforted.
The situation in the Eastern Capital was not optimistic now.
Xiao Simo’s serious injury made the divisions in the Eastern Capital restless, and the royal court took the opportunity to repeatedly cross the Ili River to attack the Seven Rivers Basin.
Moreover, in the northwest, Kangli People often came south, raiding the tribesmen of the North Sea.
The only bright spot was in Jin Prefecture, where Li Xiao had successively quelled the rebellions in the Great Desert and Gaochang, and now turned to dealing with the Naiman People threat.
After victory in the Naiman war, Jin Prefecture’s army could be dispatched to the Eastern Capital.
The crisis would naturally resolve.
But Xiao Simo was not so optimistic. He extended his pale fingers, gently stroking the city wall, shaking his head: “Precisely because Li Xiao is brave and skilled in combat, I am uneasy.”
Shu Lü Wujin’s lips trembled slightly, not knowing what to say.
“If this king were healthy, all would be fine.”
“But this king’s time is not much longer,” Xiao Simo sighed faintly.
He knew his condition best.
His greatest worry was that once he passed away, Xiao Helun could not suppress the arrogant generals under him.
Would the Northern Frontier then fracture into four or five parts?
“Great King worries too much. Li Xiao is A Man’s husband and one you personally promoted, loyal to you,” Shu Lü Wujin said softly.
Xiao Simo shook his head faintly: “Even blood brothers can turn against each other, siblings can become enemies.”
“This king once trusted Xiao Lintta so much, yet he still betrayed this king.”
“Human hearts are the most unfathomable.”
“What this king means is not just Li Xiao; who among the others is not the same?”
Saying this, Xiao Simo suddenly smiled, turning to Shu Lü Wujin:
“If that day truly comes, this king would rather hope Li Xiao can suppress the others.”
“That way, you mother and son might still preserve your lives.”
Shu Lü Wujin cried, hand over her mouth, tears flowing silently, stubbornly shaking her head: “Great King, you will surely recover.”
“Don’t say such discouraging words.”
As the couple spoke, a guard hurried over, panicked: “Great King, Princess Consort, big trouble.”
“The Heir Apparent fell into the water.”
Hearing this, Shu Lü Wujin’s pupils contracted, her face losing color, body staggering, nearly falling.
Xiao Simo was equally shocked and angry, his bloodless face even paler, furiously asking: “How did the Heir Apparent fall into the water?”
“Where is he now?”
The guard’s voice trembled, sweat beading on his forehead: “The Heir Apparent was playing by the riverside. The ice suddenly broke. By the time we noticed, he had already fallen in.”
Hearing this, Xiao Simo was furious. Ice breaking—how so coincidental?
But now was not the time to investigate; first rescue the person.
“Prepare horses. To the riverside.”
The cold wind cut like knives, sunlight glittering on the broken ice.
Several guards were shivering as they pulled the soaking wet Xiao Helun from the water. His face was deathly pale, eyes tightly closed, lips purple-black, wet hair plastered to his face.
Shu Lü Wujin staggered to her child’s side, crying heart-wrenchingly: “My son!”
Seeing this, Xiao Simo was emotional, chest heaving violently, steps faltering, vision going black, nearly collapsing.
Eyes bloodshot, he roared hoarsely: “What are you standing around for? Fetch the physician quickly!”
Soon after, the physicians arrived. After checking, one knelt with a thud: “Great King, the Heir Apparent… his breath is weak. I’m afraid…”
“Shut up!”
Xiao Simo roared to interrupt, hair disheveled, eyes full of despair and anger.
“Quack doctors! If you can’t save my son, you’ll accompany him in death!”
Xiao Helun was his only legitimate son, on whom he had placed great hopes to inherit his legacy.
But reality dealt him a heavy blow.
Xiao Helun was too young to suppress the Northern Frontier’s arrogant generals, and now his life hung by a thread, uncertain.
Would Xiao Simo have to send off the black-haired one as a white-haired one?
His eyes reddened, fists clenched, suppressing rage, he roared lowly: “At all costs, save him!”
The physicians busied themselves frantically in treatment, as if heaven took pity.
After some time, Xiao Helun’s pale fingers twitched, he coughed slowly a few times, spitting out water.
“He’s awake! The Heir Apparent is awake!”
A nearby maidservant shouted joyfully.
Shu Lü Wujin wept with joy, hugging the child tightly: “My son, you’re finally awake. Don’t be afraid, Amo is here.”
Seeing his son awaken, Xiao Simo finally relaxed his taut nerves, exhaling deeply, just about to investigate thoroughly and root out the culprit behind it.
Then a wave of intense fatigue assaulted his body.
His vision gradually darkened, and he collapsed directly into the guard’s arms.
“Great King, Great King, how are you?”
“Quick, quick, treat the Great King!”
