Just before the end of the First War of Liao and Jin in the Central Plains, Zhang Zhao's military campaign to annex the Gaochang Uighurs continued.
In November of the seventh year of Tianfu, Anxi was much colder than the Central Plains.
But even in such a season, the Gaochang Uighur army had to be dispatched.
Because Jielipijia received news like a bolt from the blue.
Chen Huiyao, the governor of Tingzhou of Gaochang Uighur Khanate, led more than 70,000 soldiers and civilians of Yinzhou to seek refuge with Liang.
Liang State took Chen Huiyao as the vanguard, combined with 20,000 soldiers from Yinzhou and Liang State, marched westward and captured Puchang City.
Jielibiga felt extremely regretful at this moment, not that he regretted not taking the title of Heavenly King, but that he did not make up his mind earlier to move the Chen family in Yinzhou.
In fact, since Zhang Zhao unified Hexi Longyou and before Jieli Bijia’s father, Wu Muzhu Khan, died of illness, the Gaochang Uighur clan, that is, the clan members of the Pugu family, were considering moving the Chen family to
Towned.
Because the Chen family is not only Han Chinese, but also a wealthy family with inherited heritage among the Han people, they have a strong sense of belonging to the Central Plains.
Historically, it was during the Dazhong Xiangfu reign of Zhenzong of the Song Dynasty, that is, after 1008 AD, that the Chen family had no records.
There is a high probability that either the family leader died in the religious war between Gaochang and Karakhan, or he was completely assimilated.
This persistence is not simple. At this point in time, the Han style in Anxi and Hexi was completely destroyed.
The Jin Kingdom of Khotan was attacked and destroyed by the Kara Khanate. During the period of the last Jiedushi Cao Xianshun, the Guiyi Army had been completely controlled by the Shazhou Uighurs and was about to be annexed by Xixia.
You must know that the Chen family is not a prince like the Khotan Jin Kingdom and the Guiyi Army. They are just a family attached to the Gaochang Uighur Khanate. It is not easy to persist until this moment.
At least during the reign of Emperor Taizong of the Song Dynasty, they could still speak Chinese, wear Hanfu, still had the imperial edict of the Tang Dynasty in their hands, and could excitedly chat with the angels from the Central Plains court who came from the east. This proved that they still remembered their identities.
And this persistence is the source of the Pugu family's uneasiness about the Chen family.
If Zhang Zhao didn't rise like in history, it wouldn't matter.
Because the Gaochang Uighurs themselves are Uighurs with a strong Chinese culture, the Chen family does not appear to be too unusual among the Gaochang Uighurs.
But it's different now, because with Zhang Zhao, the real king of the Han people beside the Pugu family, no matter what, the Chen family definitely hopes to join Zhang Zhao.
However, it is not that easy to move the Chen family's town, because Gaochang Uighur is actually a "joint venture".
Back then, Pu Gujun was able to expel Tubo from Yinbeiting and other prefectures, not just by relying on his own strength.
He relied on Zhang Yichao to draw part of the troops from the Guiyi Army to fund him to capture Yin Beiting.
The ancestors of the Chen family were the Han Chinese who followed Zhang Yichao in the army. It was under Zhang Yichao's dispatch that the Chen family supported and followed Pu Gujun in attacking westward.
After the conflict between Pugujun Zili and the Guiyi Army, it is very likely that the Chen family received a secret order from the Tang court and stayed among the Gaochang Uighurs.
Because no matter how you looked at it at the time, the Chen family, which had lived in Yinzhou for hundreds of years, had no reason not to follow Zhang Yichao, but to follow Pugujun, a Uighur.
So the most likely possibility is that the Tang court, out of consideration for weakening the Guiyi Army, sent envoys to persuade the Chen family not to return to the Guiyi Army, but to stay among the Gaochang Uighurs.
Ten years ago, Zhang Zhao went to Khotan to seek refuge with Li Shengtian, but met Di Luoda's servant Gu Cheng who ambushed him in Puchanghai.
Chen Huiyao, who was not yet the governor of Yinzhou at that time, mobilized nearly a hundred soldiers to protect Pu Gucheng when he left.
Why does the Chen family, which has only tens of thousands of people under its rule and only twenty to thirty thousand core members, have hundreds of sets of armor?
There is only one possibility. This was a reward given to the Chen family by the Tang court after they obeyed the order and stayed among the Uighurs in Gaochang.
The Chen family was not only left by the Tang Dynasty among the Gaochang Uighurs in order to weaken the Guiyi Army, but it was probably also a nail in the Tang Dynasty's influence on the Gaochang Uighurs.
Therefore, although times have changed and the Tang court is no longer there, the Chen family cannot simply be regarded as subordinates of the Pugu family. They should be shareholders of the Gaochang Uighur Khanate.
And such shareholders also existed in large numbers in the Gaochang Uighur Khanate.
After all, Pugujun did not rely on his own ability to pull together a team to defeat Tubo and regain Yinbeiting, but integrated the Western Expedition team of the Guiyi Army to conquer this country.
It was because of this that Jielipijia had to be careful with the Chen family, and the Chen family was not helpless to fight back.
However, the determination and speed of Zhang Zhao's actions, as well as the determination of the Chen family to surrender, exceeded Jie Lipijia's expectations.
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Puchang City is a bit more dilapidated than what the merchants said. After all, these merchants were considering it from the perspective of being able to house people, while Feng Hui had to consider it from a military perspective.
In Feng Hui's opinion, Puchang City is a city that is very popular among merchants.
Because the surrounding walls are in dilapidated condition, the residential houses in the city are relatively intact and there are still many people.
When there are more people, business will be more active, buying and selling will be more convenient, and accommodation and food will be more convenient and cheaper.
In addition, the city wall was quite damaged, so it was easy to evade some taxes. All one had to do was sneak away through a certain gap while the tax collectors were not getting up.
But for the army, this is too scary. There are too many people, and cleaning up the residents in the city is a troublesome task.
If they don't clean it up, who knows who they are targeting? Moreover, the city wall is damaged everywhere and cannot be defended at all.
So Feng Hui and Chen Huiyao discussed it after arriving in Puchang City. They simply robbed the residents of Puchang City, demolished their houses, and transported the wood and stones to the former Chiting Shouchu City of the Tang Dynasty, five miles northeast.
Although this Shouchuo City is basically abandoned, the walls are still basically intact.
Moreover, there is also Chiting Peak in Chiting City. There is a well on the peak, which was dug by the Anxi Army of the Tang Dynasty in the past.
The more than 5,000 of them need to save some money and don't have to worry about drinking water for at least a month or two.
The view of Chiting City is extremely broad, and the Nanhu Gobi Desert where it is located stretches as far as the eye can see. In the entire area, Chiting Peak, where Chiting City is located, is the only high point.
This is also the direct reason why the Chiting Guards Association was established here in the past. No matter who wants to pass through these places with low shrubs, they can't escape the sight of the soldiers at the top of the city.
The population of Gaochang Uighurs is approximately 400,000, but Jielibijia probably doesn't know the exact number.
Its land area is the three states of Tingzhou (Urumqi generation), Xizhou (Gaochang), Yinzhou (Hami), and the territories of Yanqi and Qiuci (Kucha) in the Tang Dynasty.
After the Chen family in Yinzhou was eliminated, only Tingzhou, Xizhou, Yanqi and Qiuci were left.
Well, it can be said that Tingzhou is gone now, but Jielipijia doesn't know yet that he has been made a dumpling.
Before Jielibijia arrived at Chiting City, thousands of Gaochang cavalry had already arrived outside Chiting City. They approached and tested the strength of the Liang army without overestimating their capabilities.
Feng Hui sneered and directly dispatched three thousand infantry troops to form an array outside the city.
The overjoyed Gaochang cavalry fought around for an hour, leaving hundreds of dead bodies behind, and then fled in panic. They still dare not come over, but just watch Feng Hui's troops from a distance.
Jielipijia rode in a precious carriage inlaid with gold and jade, pulled by six pure white BMWs. The roof of the carriage also had a nondescript imitation of the yellow Luogai umbrella from the Central Plains.
The composition of the Gaochang Uighur army was similar to that of the Khitan. The core was a divine military force with a certain amount of iron armor and a large amount of leather armor, totaling about 10,000 people.
They are similar to the left and right Pishi troops of the Khitan. They are usually stationed in Gaochang, the capital of the country. It is also these cavalry who go to Tingzhou to escape the summer heat.
There are also some local armies like the Chen family in Yinzhou, which are located in Qiuci, Yanqi and Yinzhou, with a number of about 20,000.
Now that the Chen family is gone, there are still about 15,000 to 6,000 people.
The families who control these local armies were all ‘shareholders’ when Pugujun established the Gaochang Uighur Khanate.
The last part is the tribal army which is huge in number but has average weapons and combat effectiveness.
Most of them were nomads of various ethnic groups who lived in the territory of the Beiting Jiedushi of the former Tang Dynasty who had surrendered to the Tubo people, as well as a small number of people from various tribes brought from the plateau by the Tubo people.
These people belong to the completely ruled class, but the rule of the Gaochang Uighurs is still much gentler than that of Tubo, which plays a part in slavery. Therefore, these people have almost become Uighurs within a few decades. .
They brought their own weapons, armor, and war horses. The Great Khan of the Pugu family only needed to provide them with daily food and grass, and had no salary. Their profits basically depended on rewards and plunder after victory.
This time, about 15,000 such armed herdsmen were recruited in Jielipijia.
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Xue Guizhong quickly climbed up to the sentry tower on Chiting Peak, reporting data continuously while asking Yang Guizhong under the tower to record it.
The three families of Yang, Zheng and Xue in Xinqiuci still maintain their naming methods to this day.
The descendants ranked by Gui are the next generation of Yang Shouli and others who were brought back by Zhang Zhao.
Most people of Yang Shouli's generation were subject to a difficult environment, and few excelled in either martial arts or literary studies.
Most people are now working as officials and petty officials in various states and counties of the Liang Kingdom. If they can go to a county to serve as a county magistrate, it is considered good.
The same is true in the army. The descendants of the three families of Anxi Army in New Kucha are basically junior officers and are not yet considered elite troops.
The only ones with relatively high positions in the military were those who were trained as gulams by the Kara Khanate along with Lu Sanlang and the others, and are now doing well.
However, those who stick to their seniority are not good, but those who return to their seniority are quite good.
They have always been recruited and trained by Zhang Zhao personally, and sometimes Zhang Zhao will personally give them a few lessons.
Seventeen-year-old Xue Guizhong and Yang Guizhong were the best among them. After counting the data, the two quickly went to report to Feng Hui in the city.
Feng Hui glanced at the two boys with admiration. For a general, ordering troops is a very important skill.
"This Jielipijia really thinks highly of us. Look, a total of thirty thousand people came!" Feng Hui said to Chen Huiyao beside him with a smile.
Chen Huiyao was also observing the military appearance in the distance, and he said while watching.
"In the past, when a certain father was alive, he once said to a certain person that none of the four sons of Lord Wu Khan had the appearance of a king. Only the third son had some ability to recognize people, but he liked extravagance and ostentation. So that's what he said!"
Feng Hui laughed after hearing this, "Your Majesty, you really have a sharp eye. As soon as we arrived here, Jieli Pika came with an army that would overwhelm the country before we could find out clearly.
Along the way, there were horses and horses dressed in fine clothes, and there was just a powerful chieftain, and the pomp and circumstance was as if the First Emperor was on a tour."
After saying that, Feng Hui's face became serious.
"My general orders, Guo Guangcheng and Chen Huiming each lead 500 cavalry as the left and right wings, Wu Jixing, Dunzhu, and Man Xiong each lead 600 people as the central army. Wear armor and leave the city. It is our turn to test the power of Gaochang's army.