Kucha City
This is the location of the Tang Dynasty's Western Regions Donghu Prefecture. Although the Tang Dynasty did not actually occupy the countries in the Western Regions, it stationed a small number of troops in various places to mediate conflicts between the countries. They also sent people to Chang'an to pay tribute, similar to the situation when Nanzhao was not occupied.
Although the countries in the Western Regions surrendered on the surface, many people still had other ideas and had been seeking the possibility of independence.
Unfortunately, the Tang army has been winning all the time, and various news keeps coming in. Both Fuso and Nanzhao are strong, but now they are occupied by the Tang Dynasty. Therefore, many people in the Western Regions don’t think too much about it, and it’s better to be content with the status quo.
Now there is frequent business travel between the two places, which not only brings many rare things from the Tang Dynasty, but also allows their goods to be shipped out, improving the lives of many people.
So most people have decided to submit to the Tang Dynasty, but there is still a small number of people who have lost their advantageous position in this change, so these people are always thinking about how to get rid of the Tang Dynasty.
They had no chance before, but now they finally found an opportunity. The Black Caliphate in the west has expanded to Samarkand and is not far from the Western Regions.
Originally, the countries in the Western Regions regarded the Western Turks as their saviors. Who knew that the Western Turks were too weak to compete with the Tang Dynasty? Moreover, when the Tang Dynasty attacked other countries, the Western Turks even sent troops to help. If we continue to place our hopes on the Western Turks, it would be pure nonsense.
The so-called Black Caliphate is actually the Arab Empire. According to previous historical trends, they did not expand here. It seems that because of Li Xiang's time travel, the strength of the Tang Dynasty increased greatly, which also made the empire on the other side feel the crisis.
This is the reign of the second caliph Abu Bakr, which is also the most aggressive period in the entire Arab Empire.
They also heard about the great power in the East through the merchants who came and went. The Caliph was very ambitious. He had already conquered all the small countries around him, so he wanted to expand eastward and see how powerful the Tang Empire, where gold was everywhere, was.
A year ago, his envoys came to the Western Regions, but it seemed different from the legend. Life in the countries in the Western Regions was not very good. After some inquiries, he found out that this was not the heartland of the Tang Empire, but just the border of the border.
So these people continued to move eastward along the Silk Road, and finally, after exhausting all their strength, they arrived in Chang'an, the capital of the Tang Dynasty.
The prosperity here surprised all the envoys. They couldn't believe that humans could build such a city. The common people on the streets were very wealthy, and the officials' clothes were extremely luxurious.
Of course, they also saw the mighty Tang army, but the long-term victories made them believe that they could defeat such a Tang army, so after the envoys returned, they immediately described the wealth of the East.
The Caliph of the Arab Empire also took this matter to heart and immediately began to conquer the East. They had been busy for more than a year and now they had finally reached the Western Regions...
Only a part of the people in the Western Regions countries welcomed them, and the rest continued to resist. After repeated defeats, they finally attracted the attention of the Western Regions Protectorate.
Originally, the countries fought against each other, but they all won and lost. The Tang Dynasty relied on their wars to slowly weaken them. But now the situation is a little different. News came from the west that a group of people in white robes had captured dozens of towns in a row.
If it were in the Tang Dynasty, dozens of towns would be nothing, but if it were in the desert of the Western Regions, these dozens of towns would be a huge force.
The ones guarding the Western Regions now are Xiao Shougui and the Cheng brothers. After receiving the report, the three did not dare to delay and left Cheng Chuliang to defend Gaochang, which was the western gate of the Tang Dynasty. They immediately came to Qiuci from Gaochang and sent people to report to the court quickly.
Li Xiang once told the people in the Western Regions that other enemies were nothing to be afraid of, but they had to pay close attention to a country called Dashi. If they showed up, they had to inform the court immediately and be on high alert and not be careless.
Li Xiang already knew from history books how powerful the Arab scimitar was. They were able to establish a great empire spanning the three continents of Europe, Asia and Africa. This was definitely not a joke. This country was also the Tang Dynasty's strongest rival in the world.
According to Li Xiang's original plan, he should first conquer the Kingdom of India, and then advance troops from the Western Regions and India at the same time, so that he could attack the Arab Empire from both sides. The plan was proceeding in an orderly manner, but he didn't expect that when you want to do something, people can't just stand there, and now they have already arrived in the Western Regions.
"Greetings to the Protector-General..."
Although Xiao Shougui temporarily took over the position of Protector-General, he was not stationed in the Western Regions, mainly because the area was too unsafe. Therefore, he was stationed in Gaochang, the Tang Dynasty's base camp in the Western Regions.
According to the court's order, Xiao Shougui should have returned to Beijing to take up his post, but after this incident happened, he immediately submitted a memorial to the court. Since His Highness attached so much importance to this matter, it must be a big deal. If other people were sent, if His Highness's plan was ruined, no one could bear the responsibility. After all, this concerns the western barrier of our Tang Dynasty.
So Xiao Shougui gave up the opportunity to return to Beijing, and came here in a hurry with Cheng Chumo and three thousand cavalrymen.
Xiao Shougui glanced at the person in front of him. A month ago, he had spread the news throughout the Western Regions that Lord Dunhou was going to inspect the Western Regions and ordered the kings of various countries to come to the Protectorate to pay homage to him.
"It seems everyone has heard about what's happening in the West. The orders of the Tang Dynasty have become so ineffective that nine of the thirty-six countries in the Western Regions are missing."
Xiao Shougui sneered. He originally thought that they had almost sorted out the Western Regions, but he didn't expect that with a slight change, these people immediately became different. Their minds began to become active. They said in the past that they would be loyal to the Tang Dynasty for generations. Is this how you are loyal?
"Your humble servants dare not..."
Although these people were kings of various countries, from the perspective of the Tang Dynasty, they were no more than county governors. So when Xiao Shougui spoke, these people all knelt on the ground. They were also terrified. The Tang Empire must not target them. Aren't they all here obediently?
