As the most pure-hearted person in Yun Ye’s eyes, He Shao’s courage was also purely audacious. Since Yun Ye had a Camel City, He Shao felt he must also have one. However, when he went to the Academy to purchase the Camel City construction blueprints, Master Yuanzhang struck him across the face with a writing brush. Not caring that his face was covered in ink, he ran away as fast as his legs could carry him, because he had already heard Master Yuanzhang roaring that he would hand him over to the Directorate of Waterways and ask just whose interests this merchant had taken to spy on the Great Tang’s military secrets.
Fortunately, Master Yuanzhang was only roaring. If he had actually done it, He Shao would probably have been separated from his head long ago.
Without an authentic Camel City, He Shao found a few Academy students to tinker together a Camel City for him. Although it only had five hundred camels, when leaving Yumen Pass it still greatly alarmed the Yumen Pass commander.
Sitting leisurely on the Camel City listening to music and admiring the extremely seductive performance of Persian dancers, He Shao was full of hope for this journey. On the other side of the desert, countless riches awaited him.
The Great Tang’s market had already been completely divided up. As a low-ranking noble, he could only get a few scraps and leftovers from this enormous market. If he wasn’t careful with his defenses, while those big sharks were wolfing down their food, they might just swallow him up as another piece of meat.
Although he was only forty-two years old this year, He Shao had already begun summarizing his life. Thinking of himself following Yun Ye wandering on the grasslands, he couldn’t help but move himself to tears.
To get rich, you must first eat bitterness! Therefore, He Shao believed it was very necessary for him to personally make this trip to the Western Regions.
The road to wealth was indeed arduous. Not long after sitting on the Camel City, he had already swayed his way to Luanshi City. As a result, Xu Jingzong believed the Camel City belonged to imperial secrets and couldn’t fall into merchant hands. He gave He Shao five hundred gold coins and requisitioned this simplified version of the Camel City—Yun Ye needed some supplies over there, and this thing was perfect for transport.
“How embarrassing! If the Camel City were really this shabby, Marquis Yun would have long ago been captured by the Turks for sacrificial offerings to heaven,” Xu Jingzong sighed sincerely as he watched soldiers loading cargo onto the Camel City.
He Shao didn’t have much objection to this matter—he understood the principle that helping Yun Ye was helping himself. However, he was very indignant about Xu Jingzong’s slander.
“This is already the best Camel City we could build. For this thing, I almost got sent to the Directorate of Waterways by Master Yuanzhang to be beheaded. Look, from Yumen Pass all the way to Luanshi City, it’s still intact. How can you look down on people?”
“I don’t know about other things, but I know one thing—your Camel City isn’t actually called a Camel City, it’s called a Camel Pile. Ten camels carrying one wooden frame, and the cargo loaded doesn’t even match what ten individual camels could carry. This is serious waste! Did you come to the Western Regions to get rich or to show off?”
“Of course I came to get rich. Does the Chief Administrator have any good opportunities to take care of your little brother?”
“It’s too early to talk about getting rich now. The empire’s crisis hasn’t passed yet. We need to help get through these difficult days. After the Western Regions completely quiet down, then we can discuss private matters.”
He Shao deeply agreed with Xu Jingzong’s words. After contributing two hundred gold coins in donations, he finally obtained exclusive operating rights for Luanshi City. As a transfer station for materials in the Great Western Regions, He Shao believed this money was well spent.
The further west they went, the more desolate it became. Yun Ye’s Camel City formed a long line marching across the Gobi. The water vapor evaporating from the ground made distant scenery become blurred. Fortunately, there was no worry about getting lost—all along the way were rotting warhorse carcasses. They had persisted from Kucha to here and could move no further.
Yun Ye knew Tu Shi’s main force was up ahead. If he quickened the pace, he could catch up to Tu Shi in less than five days. But Yun Ye maintained his current speed, neither fast nor slow—as long as he maintained a certain oppressive feeling, that was enough.
The scouts of both armies were in constant skirmishes. Guo Ping and Chen Shu had both gone down to the scout units. They were extremely interested in slaughtering Turks. Cheng Chumo was also continuously accumulating his own merits. For him, as long as there were battles to fight, anything was fine.
There was trouble on Wu She’s end. His divine light had recently weakened. The light it emitted was no longer snow-white brilliance—now it had turned dark red. Yun Ye knew the reason. Atomic fission all had decay cycles, not to mention this thing similar to a luminous pearl. The energy had been released almost completely, and it should become no different from an ordinary stone.
Wu She sat cross-legged in the dark red room, not knowing what formidable technique he was cultivating, but it looked eerie. Du Ruhui refused to be illuminated by this kind of light, believing it was inauspicious and that too much exposure might cause problems.
Wu She disregarded everything and continued his cultivation. Yun Ye didn’t say much either. Since this old man in his seventies had a pursuit, let him continue pursuing it. If life had no goal, Wu She would definitely collapse in the shortest time, and at that point, it would truly be beyond saving.
After marching continuously for seven days, upon encountering a new water source, Yun Ye ordered the Camel City to stop advancing. The reason was that the Turks had stopped. Yun Ye ordered scouts to transmit news of his arrival to Liu Fang, Han Zhe, and Xi Tong. They had been playing on their own for so long—it was time to rein in their behavior. According to scout reports, Xiao Miao’s Angel Army had now grown to a force of fifty thousand. After crushing the Lesser Balur, they were currently fighting within Tianzhu territory. Their intention was to break through Tianzhu and then enter the territories controlled by the Dashi people in the Far East.
One reason the Great Tang valued the Western Regions and believed they could not be lost was Tibet, this major threat to the heartland. Unlike disputes with nomadic peoples, the Han people’s “expansion” was mostly because they couldn’t endure the slaughter, plunder, and harassment by surrounding peoples competing for territories that once belonged to them. It was only for the purpose of stabilizing the nation’s territory and eliminating future troubles that they mobilized large armies.
To defend Chang’an, they must occupy Hexi. To defend Hexi, they must control Qinghai. To control Qinghai, they must occupy the Western Regions to divide the forces of the Tibetan Empire, preventing them from concentrating forces to expand eastward.
Long ago, Li Er had discussed this matter with Ludongzan. He believed that as long as Tibet completely abandoned the Qinghai region, the Great Tang would completely abandon the Western Regions. The result was that Ludongzan flatly refused.
As the Great Tang’s national power grew increasingly prosperous, when Ludongzan planned to agree to the Emperor’s request, it was Li Er’s turn to flatly refuse. The current situation was very clear—the Great Tang needed the Western Regions and naturally also needed Qinghai. Li Er never spit out meat he had already eaten, regardless of whether he could still swallow it.
Conspiracies need time to ferment. Yun Ye planned to leave Tu Shi enough time to determine his own course. Helu’s entire force had turned toward Lesser Balur, tightly biting the Angel Army’s tail and not letting go, somewhat meaning to use the Angel Army as a pioneering giant axe. Due to its own composition, the Angel Army pretended to fall for it, continuously luring the Turks toward Dashi territories.
Liu Fang and the Great Elder, this pair of old foxes, were entangled with each other, restraining each other, and also depending on each other while fighting in unfamiliar lands. For this reason, Yun Ye believed his own forces shouldn’t intervene too early. Helu was the true king in every sense. If Tu Shi now wanted to return and reunite with his tribesmen, he couldn’t ignore Helu’s existence.
After all, during the time when he was losing troops and suffering defeats, it was Helu, not Tu Shi, who cared for all the Turkic women and children. The Great Elder, as the most prestigious elder within the Turkic tribe, stood firmly on Helu’s side. Combined with the Turkic’s greatest warrior Boma leading the most elite Golden Wolf Banner in unswerving loyalty guarding Helu, it left Tu Shi, who had long wanted to eliminate Helu, with no options.
Tu Shi needed to weigh gains and losses. Yun Ye was in no hurry. The longer he pondered, the greater the damage to him. Letting Helu take away the tribespeople was an unforgivable great error committed by Tu Shi. Now it was merely the bitter fruit revealing itself. Without the righteous cause of eastern conquest, he had no way to continue ruling the allied forces of various tribes. Scattering like birds and beasts was only a matter of time.
The Camel City no longer closed in, but cavalry under the leadership of Cheng Chumo, Chen Shu, and Guo Ping attacked the Turkic allied forces day and night without rest. Finally, on a clear evening, the remaining five thousand Xueyantuo people quietly left the main camp and plunged into the vast Gobi. When Tu Shi got dressed and grabbed his war blade preparing to chase the Xueyantuo people, the Tuyuhun Elder sorrowfully stopped Tu Shi’s action. At this time, dividing forces would be seeking death. Just let the Xueyantuo people leave.
Tu Shi stood on the Gobi for an entire night. At dawn, scouts told him that Xueyantuo corpses had been discovered fifty li away. He didn’t seem surprised at all. Turning back to the remaining commanders, he said: “Lambs that leave the flock will inevitably be devoured by wild wolves. This is what our ancestors passed down. Have the Xueyantuo people all forgotten?”
After saying this, Tu Shi looked at the enormous hot air balloon rising on the horizon and said to everyone: “The Tang people seem very much to hope we go on the western campaign. Although what the enemy likes, we should definitely oppose, but now we have no ability to oppose it. Do you know why Yun Ye stays far away there without coming?”
Without waiting for the commanders to answer, Tu Shi continued: “He’s waiting for us to collapse on our own. Last night the Xueyantuo people were the best example. He’s like a hungry wolf standing outside the sheep pen, constantly frightening us, making us feel fear in our hearts. After we lose our fighting strength, we’ll be at his mercy.”
“I originally intended to lead you into Shache Kingdom to completely annex this country, and then we would make long-term plans for the western campaign. Now we have no time. Yun Ye won’t give us time. Helu has taken away the tribespeople—you should go follow him. I really want to chop off the head of this troublemaking little brat. What a pity.”
The Tuyuhun Elder grabbed Tu Shi’s hand and asked urgently: “What are you planning to do?”
Tu Shi smiled and said: “If I don’t die, it won’t do. The blood debt of twenty thousand Tang people is on my body. He won’t allow me to escape easily. Only when I die will the remaining people have a chance to live.”
“I once cooked my consort right here and offered her to the Heavenly God. Unfortunately, the Heavenly God’s appetite is very large—he wasn’t satisfied. Now just place me on the altar. May he bless you to reach the west smoothly.”