Chapter 339 Two-pronged approach (Part 2)

Five old men followed Luo Qiming into the tent. They were the leaders of the moderate Shiites of Samarkand and Bukhara. Today, the Tang army lifted the martial law and allowed people to gather. They gathered together to discuss future countermeasures. Unexpectedly, they were suddenly surrounded by the Tang army and brought them to the barracks. Although Luo Qiming had already comforted them with kind words and expressed his willingness to discuss the situation in the river with them, they were still a little nervous. If the negotiations were not completed, what would their fate be?

After entering the big tent, Li Qing'an was already waiting in the tent. He had just slept for a while and was much better. He had already received the news in advance. The Muslim he was waiting for was sent by gentlemanly. When he saw Luo Qiming bringing five old men in, he smiled and praised: "Eunuch Luo is so fast."

Luo Qiming bowed and said regretfully: "Actually, I have already mastered their information, but I have been constrained by many unfavorable factors, which prevented me from starting negotiations."

Li Qingan knew that he was referring to Li Fei Yuanli's toughness, so he said, "I don't need to mention the past. From now on, I will do it according to my ideas."

Luo Qiming turned around and accepted Li Qing'an to the five people: "This is General Li, the governor of Anxi, who came to solve the crisis in the river from Shuye."

The news that Li Qing'an had arrived in the river was still highly confidential. The five old men did not arrive to see them, the governor of Anxi. They were extremely shocked. They looked at each other face to face and immediately stepped forward and bowed to salute, "Supreme General, we are always looking forward to your arrival and relieve our deep pain."

Li Qing'an nodded and said, "I came to Hezhong to solve the crisis in Hezhong. I came with sincerity and had no prejudice. I hope you don't have any concerns, speak freely with me, and find the best and fastest way to calm the matter. I don't want to be forced to use force."

Li Qing'an talked in Turkic language, and everyone could understand it. They could also feel Li Qing'an's sincerity and even more understand the determination behind Li Qing'an's words. If the crisis cannot be resolved by peaceful means, he would use force. The five old men expressed their opinions: "Of course we hope to resolve the crisis as soon as possible. This afternoon we will hold a meeting to discuss countermeasures. It is our dream to be able to discuss solutions with the general."

"Okay! Please sit down for everyone."

Everyone sat down one after another, and Li Qingan did not exchange greetings. He said straight to the point: "First of all, do you want to ask everyone, do you welcome the Tang Dynasty or the Abbasid Dynasty? Of course, there is no third choice."

The third choice is that no one welcomes the two empires. Li Qing'an first denied this possibility. Five old men looked at each other and they selected the most prestigious representative to answer this question.

"I will first introduce myself to the general. My name is Borodo. Everyone calls me Lao Boro. I am a doctor and have been practicing medicine for fifty years."

Luo Qiming next to him added with a smile: "Lao Bodu is the most famous doctor in the river. He has superb medical skills and enjoys a lofty prestige among the people in the river."

Li Qingan smiled, "Very good, you continue."

The old doctor named Borodo sighed and said, "To be honest, we hate the Abbasid dynasty extremely. They betrayed the original agreement and did not make Sharik a caliph, but instead stole the caliphate. He then brutally suppressed the Muslim uprising in the river. His actions were unforgivable. However, the Tang army favored the Zoroastrians in the past year and helped them demolish the mosques. This also made us suffer. We most hope to go back forty years ago, when the countries in the river were vassal states of the Tang Dynasty, but the Tang Dynasty did not interfere in our internal affairs. That has always been what we longed for."

"But have you ever thought that it was because the Tang Dynasty did not care about your internal affairs that the great cannibals continued to expand eastward and annexed you. In fact, it was impossible to go back to forty years ago, when you were in the cracks between the two empires and had no choice."

Li Qing'an was also very frank, and he continued: "In order to defend the expansion of the Abbasid army into the Hezhong area, the Tang Dynasty must station the heavy army in the Hezhong area. Of course, I am also reflecting. I admit that the Tang army favors Zoroastrians was the main cause of the expansion of the Hezhong crisis, but this was not my original intention. For this reason, I have dismissed Li Fei Yuanli's position. In the future, General Bai Xiaode will take charge of the Hezhong army, and the Hezhong army will be stationed with the Han army of the Shi Kingdom. It turns out that the army will be transferred to Tochar."

In fact, Li Qing'an also knew that Li Fei Yuanli's explanation was reasonable. The army in the river was composed of tens of thousands of mine slaves liberated from Yincheng. They were almost all Zoroastrians and were oppressed in Yincheng. Therefore, their hatred for Islam was particularly strong. This is the main reason why Li Fei Yuanli favored Zoroastrianism. He needed to win over his subordinates, and these soldiers' private killing of Muslims are endless, and it is difficult to ban them. The Muslim people will naturally count these accounts on the Anxi Army and on the head of him Li Qing'an.

Therefore, while Li Qing'an transferred Li Fei Yuanli away, he also transferred this army to replace it with Han soldiers with fair positions, so that the conflict between the Tang army and the Muslims could be greatly eased.

The five old men looked at each other, and the decision announced by Li Qing'an surprised and delighted them. He stood up together and respectfully paid tribute to Li Qing'an: "We are so grateful for the General's decision."

"You're welcome, please sit down!"

Li Qing'an asked them to sit down and said sincerely: "I have made a gesture that the Tang army will no longer favor one side in the future. To be precise, the Tang army stationed in Hezhong to defend against the big food and try not to interfere with local affairs, so you don't have to worry about the future anymore. And I promise you that there will be no more demolishing the mosque. I will give equal treatment to Muslims and Zoroastrians, but these are things in the future. What I care more about is that now, the current situation must be calmed down, and I hope you can get your assistance."

At this time, an old man asked carefully: "General, what should the general do if the unrest cannot be calmed?"

Li Qing'an looked at them deeply and said slowly: "I don't want such a situation, but I have to consider the worst result. If you really say that, the turmoil in the river will never be calmed down, then I have to take the toughest measures to drive all the Muslims across the Amu River and drive all the Zoroastrians to Tochar. I will move 300,000 Han people to live in the river area, so that there will be no more riots in the river."

Li Qing'an's toughness caused the five old men to gasp. There were as many as one million Islamists in the river. If they drove them across the Amu River, they would all be slaves. I don't know where to sell them? Li Qing'an was obviously not talking about it. He came to the river in person, probably ready for the worst. At this time, Borodo stood up and said, "General, we will never leave our hometown. We will do our best to calm the crisis in front of us, but not all Islamists listen to our appeal. We are very worried about some of the more radical believers...."

Before he could finish speaking, Li Qing'an waved his hand and interrupted him, "I know what you mean. Don't worry, you are moderates, I will help you very much. As for radicals, or hardliners, I will not give them any chance."

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The five old men left, and Li Qing'an sat at the table and fell into deep thought. He had a real impulse and simply drove all the Muslims across the Amu River. All of them were finished. But reason told him that if he really did that, the river would fall into a long-term war. Doing that was undoubtedly welcomed by Dashi. Among the million Muslims in the river, at least 200,000 young and strong. Dashi would immediately arm them and give them swords to take back their homes. Then the Muslims and Zoroastrians fought for their homes for a long time. Finally, the Dashi army crossed the river, drove away the Zoroastrians and completely Islamized the river. This was not what he wanted to see. If he really did this, it would undoubtedly repeat the conflict between Jews and Muslims in later generations, but replacing the Jews with Sogdians is always an unsolvable knot.

Now that the conflict between the two religions has just arisen, there is still a chance to save it. At this time, Luo Qiming quickly walked into the tent, bowed and bowed and said, "General, I just got the news about King Kang's Palace."

"Have they plotted again?" Li Qingan asked.

"Yes! Kang, An, Shi, the King of the Three Kingdoms and the envoy of the Great Food discussed in the secret room for an hour, but the content was not yet known."

"I can guess it if I don't say the content!" Li Qingan sneered: "Abu Muslims gathered 40,000 troops west of the Amu River, and he was waiting for the turmoil in the river!"

"General, I suggest to arrest people now. Anyway, I know who the leaders of those hardliners are, so as not to change over time."

Li Qingan pondered for a moment, but still shook his head, "No! Wait a little longer, I will catch them all in one place."

After saying that, he immediately ordered his personal soldiers to say, "Let Bai Xiaode come to see me quickly."

After a moment, Bai Xiaode hurried in and bowed and said, "See General!"

Li Qing'an pondered for a moment and resolutely ordered: "Cancel the curfew and implement it immediately!"

It was getting dark outside, and Bai Xiaode was about to send troops to the streets to execute the curfew. Li Qing'an suddenly lifted the curfew again. Although he was surprised, they did not dare to ask more questions and immediately turned around to execute the order.

Li Qingan slowly closed his eyes. He needed a moment to rest and raise his spirits.

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The night slowly came, and the river was full of spring in late February. The wind was blowing from the dense river surface, and the night was no longer cold, and the Tang army no longer restricted people from going to the streets, but there were still few pedestrians on the streets. The unstable situation in Samarkand made the residents dare not go out at night, for fear of accidents. However, there were also pedestrians at night. They took advantage of the moonlight and were traveling in a hurry, with clear goals. Near the Palace of Kang, there were a few more pedestrians at night than elsewhere. The back door of the palace did not seem to be closed. At the door, the housekeeper of the palace stood anxiously. He visited the surroundings from time to time. At this time, two men in black hurried over in the night. The housekeeper of the palace hurriedly came up, "Come in!"

"Has everyone else come?" asked a man in black.

"All of you are here, that's all for you."

The housekeeper pushed open the back door of the palace, and the three of them flashed into the palace. The back door closed with a loud bang, and the door became dark and silent. At this time, a person flashed out of the alley opposite the palace. He looked at the list in his hand with the moonlight. There were already nine people. He immediately ran out of the city.

The palace was brightly lit, and in the wide conference room of the side hall, more than a dozen people gathered together, and an important meeting was being held. When King Kang made up his mind to follow the food, his efficiency immediately became extremely high. One afternoon, he sent his confidant to inform the Shiite leader of Samarkand. At the same time, the handwritten letter from King Anguo Ye Jie was also delivered to the Shiite leader of Anguo who lived in Samarkand. Nine people came that night, including six of them, and three

The nine people of Anguo are all leaders of Muslim hardliners. Three of them are representatives from Anguo, and the initiators and leaders of the Bukhara riots. Although these nine people come from different factions, they all advocate driving away the Tang army and restoring the Muslim rule in the river. From the time of the crisis in the river, they all acted on their own. It is precisely for this reason that Samarkand did not have as serious riots as Bukhara, but today they gathered together for the first time at the call of the king.

The conference room was filled with people, and everyone was whispering, communicating their own experiences of rebelling against the Tang army. A man who claimed to be the leader of the Allah Sect in Samarkand asked for help from Saif, who was sitting beside him: "More than a month ago, I sent four assassins to the Suye Sect to assassinate Li Qing'an. I hope they can succeed. As long as Li Qing'an is eliminated, Anxi will be in chaos and our opportunity will come."

Saif was very interested in the news, so he smiled and said, "Have you received any reports?"

The man quickly replied: "I received news from them in twenty days. They said that they had discovered the security loophole in the Thunder Ye official's government and they were waiting for the opportunity to assassinate Li Qing'an."

"Very good!" Saif patted his shoulder and encouraged, "If they succeed, His Majesty the Caliph will definitely meet you in person."

At this time, King Kang Guo, who had been silent, coughed twice, stood up and waved his hand and said, "Please be quiet!"

The conference room immediately became quiet, and Shaofen glanced at Saif with some smugness. He just wanted Saif to see his abilities. Although he had been undermined by the Tang army for nearly two years, his prestige was still there and it was revealed at critical moments. For example, now, these Muslim hardliners are obeying his command.

"Everyone, the Tang army has lifted the martial law. This is our opportunity. Today I will gather everyone to discuss launching a large-scale uprising in Kang State and completely driving the Tang army out of the river. Let me introduce it to you below."

He asked Saif to stand up and introduced him to everyone and said, "This is the special envoy of the Governor Abu Muslim, to assist us in launching the uprising."

Except for the two sitting next to Saif, they knew his identity, the others were the first time they heard about it. Everyone was stunned and a little happy, but some were unhappy, Abu.

Muslims brutally suppressed their uprising two years ago, and they are still suffering.

Saif heard that Saif deliberately mentioned Abu.

The sensitive name of Muslim, he glanced at Shaofen with some dissatisfaction, stood up and explained to everyone: "To be precise, I am the special envoy sent by the Abbas Caliph. Although we have had unhappiness in the past, for the sake of common Islam, we should hold hands like brothers and drive the Tang army out of the river. My dear Majesty the Caliph promises everyone that as long as the Tang army is driven away, we will demolish all the Zoroastrian temples and convert them into mosques."

"How will tax be collected in the future?" someone asked.

At present, the Tang army's commercial tax is 30 taxes, the cap tax is three dinars per person per year, and the land tax is one dinars per acre. It can be said that it is quite low. This is the only place where they can accept the Tang Dynasty. Unlike the Abbasid Empire, the Arabians in Damascus not only did not pay taxes, but also had annuity every year. They only had to take out 2.5% of the annual annuity as a zakat. Although the Muslims in their river converted to Islam, they still had to pay a heavy tax on population. When the tax was highest, they reached 30% of their annual income. This inequality made them extremely indignant. This was also the main reason why they resisted the Umayyad dynasty with Abbas. However, after the establishment of Abbas, they levyed the same taxes and even became even more severe. This made them deeply dissatisfied with the Abbasid dynasty.

Therefore, when Saif talked about the Abbasid Caliph, someone immediately raised the tax issue. Saif himself was a tax officer in Bukhara. Of course, he knew the secrets well and said sweetly: "His Majesty the Caliph said that if you can revolt and drive away the pagans, then the Muslims in the river area will be the heroes of the Abbasid Dynasty and will enjoy the same annuity as the Arabians and will no longer have to pay the population tax."

When everyone heard that there was no need to pay taxes, they were excited and began to discuss the uprising. Seeing that the time was ripe, Xiaofen discussed it with the three kings in a low voice and sought Saif's opinion. With Saif's approval, Xiaofen stood up and announced: "The uprising time is set at the same time when the sun rises three days later. Muslims in Samarkand and even Kang's Kingdom will hold a large-scale uprising at the same time. Do you have any opinions?"

Seeing that no one objected, Xiaofen said, "Okay, that's the official decision. Everyone goes back and notify their followers and must let everyone keep the secret."

As soon as he finished speaking, a sudden sound of running was heard outside, and a guard shouted in panic: "His Majesty the King, outside, countless Tang troops surrounded our palace."

"Ah!" Everyone was so scared that their faces changed drastically, and they stood up together. There was a chaos in the meeting. Everyone rushed to flee. Someone knocked over the candle and suddenly became dark. Xiaofen quietly pulled Saif in the dark. He had a secret passage to escape from the palace. The two quickly left the conference room from the side door and ran towards the secret passage. As for the king of Anguo and Shiguo, Xiaofen could no longer care about them.

Fires were shining outside the palace, and five thousand Tang soldiers surrounded the palace. They held torches in their hands and shone the night like day. In the middle of the team, Li Qing'an was wearing golden helmet and iron armor, riding on a high-headed horse. They stared at the palace gate indifferently.

At this time, Bai Xiaode came to report: "General, the exit of the secret passage has been found, and three hundred brothers are waiting there."

"Okay!" Li Qing'an pointed at the palace gate with a whip and ordered: "Attack the palace for me, those who resist will kill you!"

Five thousand Tang troops shouted and began to attack the palace. Two hundred people held a huge slamming wood and shouted slogans, "One, two, three!"

They used their strength together and rushed towards the gate. With a loud bang, the palace gate was knocked open, and thousands of Tang troops rushed into the palace like a flood, and the back door was also knocked open. Hundreds of soldiers rushed into the palace from behind, and the shouts of killing resounded over the palace.

In less than a quarter of an hour, nine Muslim hardliners who attended the meeting, An Guozheng King Yejie and Shi Guozheng King Naquru were all caught and tied up, and they all grabbed Li Qing'an's horse. In addition, the three sons of King Kang's Kingdom were also arrested, but King Kang's Kingdom Shaofen and the envoy of the Great Food were missing.
To be continued...