Chang'an Tiance General's Mansion
Li Xiang came back from the south in a hurry, intending to lead his troops to the Western Regions quickly. Unexpectedly, he received a report of a great victory in the Western Regions, in which more than 5,000 cavalrymen of the Arab Empire and more than 30,000 rebels from various countries in the Western Regions were annihilated.
"Mo Lun is a skilled fighter. It's not surprising that he can fight like this. I've seen this old fellow before, and he's quite cunning. But Li Chengyi is a bit different. He's so young, yet he can keep his composure. It seems that our Tang Dynasty is truly full of talented people."
When Niu Jinda saw the battle report from the Western Regions, he was filled with regret. He originally thought that he had to send a general from Chang'an City, or let the Cheng brothers personally take the field, in order to resist the Arab Empire. He did not expect that these guys had already won, and this victory was not small.
If it were in other areas, 30,000 people would not be enough to say anything, but the Western Regions themselves are vast and sparsely populated, with almost a small city being a country, and all the troops added up to only two or three thousand people, so 30,000 people are not a small number.
"It seems we really don't need to go to the front lines. I originally thought they were waiting for us to clean up the mess. Your Highness has always said that the Arab army is powerful, so I kept it in mind. Now it seems that they are not that good. They haven't even deployed our frontline troops. All they have are the Gaochang troops."
Su Dingfang was also a little sad. He had finally found an opportunity and had discussed it with Li Xiang for a long time while drinking. He was about to go for a walk.
But now even the Tang Dynasty’s army in the Western Regions has not been deployed, only an artillery team has been deployed. If this is the case, why would it be necessary to send troops from the capital?
While the two were discussing this, Li Xiang also came from behind. This was also the official opening of the Tiance General's Mansion...
This is like a small court, specializing in handling military affairs of the Tang Dynasty. It can also be called the Military Affairs Office in later generations. Of course, after the discussion, it must be approved by the emperor.
"It seems that you all know that the battle in the Western Region was won. I did not expect it to turn out like this. It seems that the strange tree's thoughts were a bit serious, or perhaps our army's training is much better than before."
After receiving this news, Li Xiang was also a little surprised, and compared all the data in detail. Finally, he calculated that after these years of development, both the Tang army and the army under the Tang Dynasty, their combat effectiveness has risen to an extremely high level.
Although the cavalry of the Arab Empire is powerful, it did not have much advantage over our Tang army in the original period. Even if they won, it was a pyrrhic victory. Now that our combat effectiveness has increased so much, they have no chance even if it is a pyrrhic victory, especially since we have deployed artillery teams in the Western Regions.
The land of the Western Regions is too vast. If a large number of troops are stationed there, the annual military expenditure will be an astronomical figure. Therefore, it is impossible for the Tang Dynasty to station a large number of troops there. It can only station a group of artillery teams on the main transportation routes, and these artillery teams must move quickly.
This battle has made it clear to the countries in the Western Regions that the saviors you long for are nothing but a bunch of cannon fodder in front of the Tang army. As long as we want to deal with them, they will not have the power to turn things around.
"Your Highness, although the current crisis has been resolved, it's still rude not to reciprocate. If we let them go, we will still be on the defensive in the future. Since they have already provoked the war, we should just kill them directly."
Although Niu Jinda had a rough temper, what he said was serious. Since the Arab Empire had already entered my country's western region, it meant that they wanted to invade this area. This was just a minor setback, which would not make them give up this idea.
"I agree with what Old Niu said. As Your Highness said, since the Arab Empire's comprehensive national strength is comparable to that of the Tang Dynasty, their decision is unlikely to change easily. If we fail this time, they will only come back again. Instead of waiting at our doorstep, it would be better to destroy them. This will save us from having to be on guard against thieves every day, and the people will suffer from insecurity. The princes and nobles of the Western Regions have other ideas."
After Li Xiang's transformation over the past few years, not to mention the two generals in front of him, even the ordinary people of the Tang Dynasty are ready to destroy other people's countries.
Don’t say that you didn’t invade the Tang Dynasty. Even if your land is more prosperous, that is a reason for us to invade you. Now you have reached our border and are even trying to trick these vassal states on the border into causing trouble. If that is the case, we cannot let you off easily.
Li Xiang nodded in response to what the two said, but it was not suitable to launch a large-scale war with the Arab Empire at this stage. According to historical records, the Arab Empire should be in its heyday now, and it can easily mobilize an army of hundreds of thousands or even hundreds of thousands, and they are all Arab cavalry that come and go without a trace.
They should be expanding along the Mediterranean Sea, and we shouldn't need many troops. If we were to fight a war with the Arab Empire while still having Tubo and Tianzhu, it would not be in line with Li Xiang's international plan.
But now that they have entered the area under our rule, we must teach them a lesson. If we don't teach them a lesson, we don't know what these guys will do in the future.
"If Your Highness is worried, then we don't need to attack too deeply. It's better to occupy the Andong Governor's Mansion and wait and see what happens next. If they tolerate it, then we will occupy a lot of new land, which can be used as a western barrier for our country. But if they don't tolerate it, then we will continue to send more troops to the Western Regions."
Niu Jinda saw Li Xiang's hesitation and thought that there must be other things on our side. If there were no Tubo and Tianzhu, we could really have a decisive battle with them. If we win, the vast area west of the Pamir Mountains will be ours, and we can even advance to the Arabian Peninsula, which will be an area equivalent to another Tang Dynasty.
"That's a good idea, but General Molun's army might not be enough. Immediately send a message to Cheng Chuliang. Let him be the commander-in-chief, General Molun as the deputy commander-in-chief, and Li Chengyi as the adjutant. Lead 50,000 men to attack Samarkand and bring the Arab Empire's Anton Governorate to justice..."
