The Villain's Counterattack

Chapter 543: Turkic reinforcements pay tribute

"Wei Dao'er's military advisor, Wei Shuwu, led two hundred cavalrymen and three thousand civilians to pay tribute of thirty thousand kilograms of seafood. We wish the Khan great victory and dominance over the grasslands."

"General Wu Ciren, under King Mantian, led three hundred cavalrymen and five thousand civilians to pay tribute with eighty thousand kilograms of fresh fruits, including dates, peaches, pears, and oranges. We wish the Khan great military success."

"Under the command of the two eagle generals..."

......

Emperor Yang Guang of the Sui Dynasty was trapped in Yanmen City. Shibi Khan led hundreds of thousands of Turks to attack but failed. Wu Zun Bi Xuan was led out by a mysterious person at night and returned at dawn. After that, he did not show up again and guarded Khan's central military tent. The Turkic army fought for more than ten days and suffered tens of thousands of casualties. Yanmen City was damaged everywhere but it still did not fall, which made Shibi Khan very angry.

At this time, rebels continued to come to the territory of the Sui Dynasty to pay tribute, either food and meat, or seafood and fruits. Except for weapons and horses, they had basically all the other things. The purpose of these people was very clear: Yanmen County.

Since ancient times, grassland tribes have invaded the Central Plains primarily for plunder. During the unsettled times of the grasslands, few nomads attacked or seized territory, likely because nomads were not strong at attacking or defending cities; guerrilla warfare was their forte. As the Shibi army attacked and besieged the Sui Emperor, he felt a certain trepidation. After all, the might of the Sui Dynasty had been deeply ingrained in people's minds since his father's time, and this operation was of great importance to him.

Victory would establish prestige and lay a solid foundation for the Turks to dominate the grasslands.

If they are defeated, their prestige will be lost, but the Sui Dynasty will remain the same, the grasslands will remain the same, and the wolves around the Turks will rise up.

But as an invader, he can afford the losses. As long as the war does not spread to his hometown, even if he is defeated this time, he can make a comeback quickly next time. The thing that is most in demand on the grassland is soldiers.

The premise is that one's own troops will not be severely damaged.

For Shibi Khan, who had not yet truly dominated the grassland, the territory of the Sui Dynasty was not important to him. He only cared about the wealth and the huge influence that the defeat of the Sui Emperor would bring him. He had no intention of occupying Yanmen County for a long time. It was in his best interest to give it away or sell it at a high price.

"Thinking of exchanging such a small profit for the vast Yanmen County is wishful thinking." Shi Bi sneered, and suddenly a faint arc appeared at the corner of his mouth: "Since you are here, don't leave. Using Han people to attack the city is always more cost-effective than using my own soldiers. Pass on my order, these friendly forces will attack the city tomorrow. Whoever arrives first will take Yanmen."

Shibi Khan played a trick and did not say whether it was Yanmen City or Yanmen County, but the difference between them was worlds apart.

The constant battles of attack and defense were exhausting, not to mention the constant lack of success. This greatly sapped Shi Bi's enthusiasm. He no longer held out hope of capturing Emperor Yang Guang alive from Yanmen City in a short period of time. It took only three days to go from directing the battle in person to commanding it remotely, and another three days to wait for news from remote command at the main camp.

Shibi was a Khan, but he was not a truly invincible commander. In this respect, Dun Yugu did better than him.

Shi Bi was always afraid of the Sui Dynasty, but the wolf nature of the grassland tribes meant that they could not always be dogs. Moreover, as more and more Han people fell into the grasslands, he understood more and more about the Han people. Internal strife existed not only among the nomadic peoples of the grassland tribes, but the Han people were more adept at it.

"Khan, Wei Dao'er and King Mantian's men have been fighting over siege equipment, and many have been killed."

"Khan, the Yingyang Generals are threatening the civilians under Wei Daoer's command, hoping to subdue them and use them as pawns."

"Khan, King Mantian's men secretly visited Lord Dunyugu, crying..."

"Khan, the Eagle and Yang will send dozens of chefs to befriend the rear camp..."

"Khan..."

In just one night, the dramatic display of strength displayed by the various Han factions opened Shibi Khan's eyes. He realized his understanding of the Han was still insufficient, and hurriedly sent for the Imperial Preceptor, Zhao Deyan. Compared to the Turks, the Han were even more ruthless towards each other. Throughout the night, Wei Dao'er, Man Tian Wang, and the two generals, Ying Yang, engaged in a relentless struggle. Various tactics emerged, drastically reducing each faction's strength by a tenth. While most were merely injured, this also exposed to him the rampant and brutal nature of the internal conflict among the Han.

Although Zhao Deyan was the Turkic national teacher, his martial arts skills were not as good as Bi Xuan, and he was not a Turk. His ability to sit on the position of national teacher was inseparable from his wisdom and ability. More importantly, this person was the biggest helper for Shi Bi to ascend to the throne of Khan. His wisdom was extraordinary. When Emperor Sui conquered Goguryeo three times, other ethnic groups came to help, but the Turks ignored them. This was all thanks to this person.

The huge losses caused by the three expeditions to Goguryeo proved Zhao Deyan's extraordinary wisdom and far-sightedness. While the Sui Emperor weakened Goguryeo, he also weakened the combat effectiveness of the wealthy families and foreign ethnic groups of the Sui Dynasty. Only the Turks watched from the sidelines and took the opportunity to grow stronger.

During the Sui Emperor's northern tour, he was the one who strongly advocated a head-on blow to the Sui Dynasty, established the Turkic overlord status in the grasslands, and led the early preparations and later work. He played a great role in the Turkic's ability to quickly move south and capture the 39 cities of Yanmen County.

However, although Zhao Deyan was the imperial teacher, he was not a Turk after all. Seeing that 39 cities in Yanmen County had fallen and the Sui Emperor was trapped in Yanmen City, the Turkic nobles who wanted to take credit for the merits sent Zhao Deyan back to the grassland, under the pretext of staying in the rear to ensure logistics. This was what the Han people were good at, but the Turks were not good at it.

However, what happened next did not satisfy these Turkic nobles. After leaving Zhao Deyan, they had not been able to capture a single small city for half a month, yet they were too embarrassed to go back on their word and ask Zhao Deyan for help. As for Martial Master Bi Xuan, a figure like him, they could not easily invite him.

However, at some point, a rumor reached Qu Ao's ears, saying that he had the potential to become a grandmaster, and the many unique skills he created were the best proof of this. After all, it was not long ago that the free-hand warrior Ning Daoqi became a grandmaster by creating Sanda, Fu Cailin became a grandmaster by creating Yijianshu, and Bi Xuan became a grandmaster by creating Yan Yang Shengong. Qu Ao was a genius, and he was no ordinary martial arts master who created the Nine Changes of Condensation and the Thirteen Styles of Eagle Change.

From the Seven Turns of Wild Waves to the Eight Turns of Storms, Qu Ao achieved the renown of being the First Grandmaster of the Tiele tribe. He then progressed to the Nine Transformations of Condensation and the Thirteen Forms of Eagle Transformation, continuously accumulating strength and growing stronger, heading straight for the Grandmaster stage. Nine being the ultimate, if Qu Ao could maintain this momentum, he would surely break through the limit and achieve Grandmaster status. At this time, the Turkic Imperial Preceptor Zhao Deyan advised Shibi Khan to expand his power and dominate the grasslands. After accumulating strength, he achieved success in one fell swoop. His early strategy was to suppress the nomadic peoples of the grasslands, and Qu Ao became the target of suppression.

So when Qu Ao was killing people everywhere and building up his momentum, the Turks brought out their trump card, Wu Zun Bi Xuan, to cut off his path. Qu Ao was devastated and had no hope of becoming a grandmaster.

This rumor angered Feiying Qu Ao, the Tiele master who was ordered to assist the Turks in dealing with the Sui Emperor. He was furious. He did not dare to face Wu Zun Bi Xuan directly, and could not afford to offend the Turks, so he found the "culprit" Zhao Deyan. The two were injured in a fierce battle and had to retreat to recuperate. They missed a wonderful battle, which laid the groundwork for the defeat of the Turks.