Chapter 228: Planning Step by Step

It had been a full ten days since the men sent by Dumoji had returned with any news. Even if they had encountered the Tang army, some survivors should have fled back. Yet not a single survivor was in sight. Anxiously pacing back and forth in his tent with his hands behind his back, Dumoji was as restless as an ant on a hot pan.

During the first Suiye War, Dumoji led his troops in retreat first, causing the Abbasid army to collapse. He fled to the Shi State but was driven out by its forces. Eventually, he hid in the Qianquan Mountains. When Qiyad attacked Suiye, he seized the opportunity to deceive Qiyad with flattery, leading his troops to guide the Abbasids. Acting as a lackey, he helped capture cities along the way. As a reward for his services, he gained control of Suiye City. The Shi State army lost the chance to take Suiye because it failed to stop Duan Xiushi from escaping.

The first thing Dumoji did upon taking control of Suiye was to exterminate his old enemies with the cruelest methods. Erwitelie was chopped into pieces by his own men and eaten, his wife and daughters were raped to death, and all the nobles of the Turkic tribes were killed; their wealth and women were plundered.

Next, it was the Han people’s turn to suffer. Most Han people had evacuated in advance through the Han-Tang alliance, but a small number who refused to leave due to attachment to their homes met tragic ends—killed and left without their possessions. All their houses were set on fire, and the entire city of Suiye was devastated by his army. Finally, Dumoji ordered that all Turks and Turkic tribesmen revert to traditional ways, forbidding them from living in houses and requiring them to live in tents instead. Those who disobeyed were to be executed. As a result, thousands of houses were abandoned, and the streets were filled with tents.

Due to decades of internal strife, the population of the Turkic tribes had declined from hundreds of thousands at their peak to only seventy or eighty thousand today. Yet Dumoji forced nearly thirty thousand of them into the army—almost half of the population. From sixty-year-old elders to fourteen-year-old boys, everyone was forced to carry heavy spears.

Their property and food were also under military control, with the army distributing rations at the minimum standard each day. This was one of Dumoji’s methods of controlling the army. Anyone who complained had their family’s rations stopped, using them as hostages to force soldiers to fight for him.

Dumoji’s greatest fear was the return of the Tang army. He already knew that Gao Xianzhi had been removed and replaced by his enemy, Li Qing’an. Beyond his hatred, this also filled him with dread. To prevent the Tang army from returning, he devised a plan to disguise himself as a Uyghur and attack the fortresses in Beiting. He sent his most trusted adopted son, Wupaimodagan, along with three thousand of his best troops. Yet they disappeared without a trace.

Dumoji already suspected that they might have been annihilated by the Tang army, which filled him with heartache—after all, they were his elite warriors who had always followed him!
“Governor, the envoy from the Abbasids has arrived!”
A report came from outside the tent. Dumoji had been appointed governor of Suyab by the Abbasids. Although he proclaimed himself Khan of Morien, he ultimately had to accept the title of governor. After all, a khan needed to be recognized by the Tang court, and now the Abbasids were his masters, so he had to accept their recognition.
“Let them in!”
Dumoji felt uneasy. After taking control of Suyab, he had purchased a large quantity of weapons, leather armor, and other equipment from the Abbasids, agreeing to pay in five installments. So far, he had only made two payments—the first with wealth seized from the nobles of Suyab, and the second with 300,000 sheep. The third payment was due at the beginning of the month, and the fourth payment was due in ten days. He simply didn’t have the means to pay. Could the arrival of the Abbasid envoy be to demand payment?
As he grew more anxious, the Abbasid envoy entered. There were three of them, and their identities were quite interesting. The leader was a civil official dressed in a black robe, with two small mustaches. He seemed shrewd and capable, wearing a belt and looking energetic, holding several scrolls of parchment in his hands. His energy frightened Dumoji—weren’t those scrolls the contracts for the weapons he had purchased?
The debt collector didn’t dawdle. Feeling guilty, Dumoji quickly turned to the second man. The second man was a military officer clad in full iron armor, holding a long spear. He was tall and imposing, with a thick beard and small eyes, giving him a fierce yet cunning appearance. The third man was in his sixties, with gray hair, also wearing a robe but without a belt, looking like a sack from head to toe. He held a copy of the Quran and seemed to be an imam.
Dumoji recognized the first civil official—he had come during the second debt collection attempt. His name was Mustafa. Abbasid names were mostly similar, revolving around a few names like Mustafa. The two who came for the second debt collection also went by this name. Dumoji couldn’t remember them clearly—tall and short—he called them Big Mustafa and Little Mustafa. The one who came today was Little Mustafa. Though short, he was more cunning than anyone else. He was the tax officer of Samarkand. Dumoji didn’t dare neglect him and quickly said with a smile, “Haha! I wondered why I felt so cheerful this morning—turns out it’s an old friend who’s come.”

Mustafa also spoke Turkic, so he smiled and gave him a tight hug, saying, “My arrival may not necessarily be good news!”
“By no means! A friend’s arrival is always good news.”
Dumuzi grinned, but quickly started planning his next move. With the Tang army showing signs of moving westward, it was very likely they were aiming to crush Suiye. He could use this as an excuse to delay things. With this thought, he eagerly invited the three of them to sit down, but the general and the imam did not sit; instead, they stood behind Mustafa, as if they were his attendants. Preoccupied with repaying his debts, Dumuzi ignored them and quickly ordered horse milk tea to be brought in.
Before Mustafa could ask for money, he sighed and said, “The Tang army is mobilizing a large force. The main forces from Beiting have entered the five northern cities, while the Anxi army in the south has also left Lingshan Pass and is advancing toward Suiye. A major battle is imminent. I wonder if General Qiyad can assist me?”
He preempted the other party’s response. The Arab officer became interested and quickly asked, “How many troops does the Tang army have?”
Mustafa waved his hand, telling him not to speak. He opened the parchment scroll and pushed it in front of Dumuzi, smiling and saying, “War is not my concern. I am here on General Qiyad’s orders to collect two old debts: fifteen thousand dirhams that were due at the beginning of the month, plus the tax of ten thousand dirhams per month that Governor Dumuzi promised, which is now seven months overdue—totaling seventy thousand dirhams. There’s also a fourth payment due in ten days, also fifteen thousand dirhams. In total, that’s three hundred seventy thousand dirhams. General Qiyad says he needs this money urgently to suppress the rebellion in Khwarazm, as he’s short of funds. Please have it ready today, and I’ll take it back tomorrow.”
Dumuzi’s face turned as red as a pig’s liver. After a long pause, he awkwardly said, “A major battle is approaching in Suiye, and we’ve also spent a lot of money and resources. We really don’t have any money to repay!”
“No money?”
Mustafa’s expression changed instantly, and he said coldly, “You once assured General Qiyad that you would provide money and grain. That’s why General Qiyad gave you Suiye and sold you weapons. Now that you have Suiye and the weapons, you back out and claim you have no money. Are you trying to deceive us, the Arabs?”
There was a chilling tone in Mustafa’s voice. Dumuzi panicked and waved his hands frantically, “No! No! I would never dare deceive the Arabs. It’s just that after taking control of Suiye, I found some circumstances different from before, which is why I can’t repay the money. Please forgive me.”
“What’s different?” Mustafa’s tone softened slightly, but his face remained cold, without a trace of smile.

Dumuzi hurriedly explained, “It’s like this. I know that many Han people in Suiye are extremely wealthy, especially since they have a Han-Tang Association that makes them as rich as nations. But for some reason, he somehow got wind of it in advance and fled a month before the Abbasid army attacked Suiye, taking all his money with him, ruining my plans…”
“That’s not right!”
Mustafa cut him off sharply, “You only bought weapons and equipment from the Abbasids after arriving in Suiye. By then you already knew you had no money, yet you still asked for too much out of greed. It’s clear you have no intention of repaying. Governor Dumuzi, I will report the truth to General Qiyad—no! I will report it to the Muslim governor.”
Dumuzi’s legs turned to jelly as he cried out, “My lord, it’s not that I don’t want to repay! I really have no money. I only have thirty thousand sheep—what am I supposed to use to pay?”
“Hmph! Thirty thousand sheep isn’t even enough to cover the interest.”
Mustafa snorted heavily and pondered for a moment before saying, “Well! Considering your loyalty to the Abbasids, I’ll go back and persuade General Qiyad to let Ferghana and Bukhara contribute a bit more. You can get another six months.”
Dumuzi was overjoyed and began to thank him, but Mustafa waved his hand to stop him. “I’m not done yet!”
“Yes! Yes!” Dumuzi fell silent, nodding repeatedly.
“General Qiyad is also worried that you won’t be able to repay, so he’s set two conditions for a delay.”
“Please tell me, my lord!” Dumuzi was already at his wits’ end. Even if it meant using his wife as collateral, he wouldn’t flinch.
Mustafa glanced at the two men behind him and slowly introduced them, “This general is named Sa’uda. He’s a favorite of General Qiyad and will serve as the military advisor for the Turkic people starting today.”
Though there was only a slight difference between ‘advisor’ and ‘commander,’ Dumuzi felt a chill. Qiyad was coming to take away his military power. Before he could speak, Mustafa pointed at the imam and said, “This is a disciple of the Prophet, from Damascus. His name is Abala. Starting today, he will preach in Suiye. You must assist him by any means necessary—within three days, all the people and soldiers in Suiye must convert to Allah.”
One wanted to take away his military power, the other his faith. Dumuzi was in extreme conflict. He didn’t want to agree, but he dared not refuse either. And if he agreed, he wouldn’t know how to explain it to his people.
“What, you don’t want to agree?” Mustafa stared at him fiercely.

“I, I…” Dumoji’s lips trembled as sweat rolled down his forehead. “Can I think about it?”
“There’s nothing to think about. If you don’t agree, I’ll leave!” Mustafa stood up and headed toward the tent exit.
As he reached the tent door, Dumoji’s hoarse and furious voice finally came from behind: “I agree! I agree to everything!”
A faint smile finally appeared on Mustafa’s lips.
…
The Arabs brought to Dumoji more than just a commander or a missionary—they brought an entire force, an invading army of fifty officers and thirty missionaries. Their goal was not only to control the Turgesh people physically but also mentally. This was Abu Muslim’s decision. With no time to send reinforcements to Suiye, he used the Turgesh people there to counter the Tang Dynasty’s western expansion. History played a cruel joke in Suiye: thirty years earlier, it was the Tang Dynasty that used the Turgesh to resist the Arabs’ eastward expansion, but now it was the Arabs using the Turgesh to fight back against the Tang’s westward advance.
But history does not repeat itself simply. The Tang army’s large-scale mobilization had ended, and they began a methodical offensive. Ten thousand Tang soldiers remained in Fengming City as reinforcements, led by General Duan Xiushi, to prevent the Turgesh from attacking the Tang forces from the rear and to guard against attacks from the Arabs in the north.
Meanwhile, twenty thousand Tang soldiers advanced slowly but steadily south at a rate of thirty li per day. The six thousand Anxi troops in Bohuan City, under the leadership of Li Fei Yuanli and Cui Qianyou, crossed Ling Mountain and approached Suiye. The Tang forces would attack from both sides, while the Turgesh people, under the command of Arab officers, responded actively. They adopted a strategy of attacking from the north while defending from the south, dividing the thirty thousand Turgesh into two groups: twenty-five thousand strong men were concentrated in the north to face the main Tang force, while the weak and old defended Helie City in the south, avoiding battle with the Tang forces in the south. Dark clouds of war hung over Suiye, and battle was imminent.
A hundred li south of Fengming City, the main Tang force had approached the Suiye Valley. Yet, instead of advancing further, they set up camp there. The area was flat with dense forests, fertile hills and grasslands. To the north were valleys and deserts, while to the south lay rolling mountains, with the snow-capped Altai Peak. Melting snowwater formed dozens of rivers, some of which flowed around to the Aral Sea, while most flowed into the Ili River. Abundant water and fertile land made this region the wealthiest part of Outer Suiye. More than a thousand years later, it became the capital of a country—Almaty.

Tang Army’s camp was located on a hill, surrounded by massive fences. A trench, a zhang deep and wide, was dug around it, filled with water from a river, and a suspension bridge was erected, creating a temporary fortress. Early that morning, Li Qing’an led dozens of generals to scout the area. He rode swiftly, with a giant eagle circling above him. It was the peak of spring, with herds of antelopes and deer running on the gentle slopes. Not far away lay vast forests stretching all the way to the foot of the mountains. What interested Li Qing’an most was that a large portion of these forests consisted of apple trees. During the Han Dynasty, apples from this region reached the Central Plains, known as “hongnai,” but they were nowhere near as magnificent as those here.

With great enthusiasm, he pointed to an open area by the water and mountains and said to his generals, “A fortress should be built here to guard the outskirts of Suiye and coordinate with Fengming City.”

Li Guangbi gazed for a moment before smiling at Li Qing’an and saying, “The terrain here is excellent—there are many rivers, a mild climate, and very fertile land. I suggest establishing a county here and relocating many Han people to farm it.”

Li Qing’an wasn’t expecting Li Guangbi’s ideas to be so radical, even going further than his own. He smiled and asked the generals, “What do you all think?”

Li Siyeh replied with a smile, “Let me add one more thing: let’s name this county Qing’an County. What do you all think?”

Everyone agreed. Li Siyeh’s flattery pleased Li Qing’an greatly. He said cheerfully, “The name Qing’an is good—meaning prosperity and peace. It’s perfect for a county name. It’s settled then. Once we capture Suiye, we’ll settle here, and this county will be called Qing’an County.”

At that moment, a cavalry rider rushed over and reported, “General, our scouts have spotted the enemy. They are less than twenty li from the entrance of Suiye Valley.”

“How many troops do they have?”

“About six thousand.”

“Six thousand?” Li Qing’an sneered disdainfully. Turning to the others, he said, “Since business has come to us, it’s time to get started.”

……

The six thousand cavalrymen of the Turkic tribes didn’t immediately charge at the Tang Army. They too had spotted the Tang forces’ main army. After rushing to the entrance of Suiye Valley, they slowed down. On the surface, it seemed the huge disparity in troop numbers made them hesitant to act rashly. But in reality, Moji and the commander Sauda had disagreements about how to deal with the Tang Army.

Sauda’s role in the Turkic army was akin to that of a military advisor later on; he held decision-making power over the Turkic forces. Sauda was in his early thirties this year, born into a family of warriors in Samarkand. He had mastered Persian martial arts since childhood. Unfortunately, he was captured by the forces of Qubad during an eastern campaign in his youth and became a slave. At the age of eighteen, he was bought by Ziyad’s father and became a servant to train with Ziyad. He won Ziyad’s admiration, was freed, and became his brother.

This time, Sauda was sent to guide the Turks in defending against the Tang forces. On the surface, it seemed to be to help the Turks retain Suyab, but his real task was to observe the Tang army’s tactics. Whether Suyab could be retained was not important to the Arabs; what mattered was to understand the enemy.

Sauda had extensive combat experience. He would test the Tang army in various ways—such as their tactics in small-scale conflicts, their deployment patterns in large-scale battles, and even their methods of siege warfare. The Turks were merely his test subjects. This time, he ordered only 6,000 men to go into battle, aiming to understand the Tang army’s combat characteristics in small-scale battles or when fighting in inferior numbers.

His unusual approach to deploying troops greatly displeased Dhumuzi. It was clearly a plan to send the Turks to their deaths. Dhumuzi also realized that Sauda had ulterior motives. He had endured patiently, but when facing the main force of the Tang army, he could no longer hold back.

Just as Sauda ordered preparations to attack the Tang forces, Dhumuzi made the opposite decision—securing the entrance to the Suyab Valley and refusing to launch an attack.

At the same time, the Tang army also did not attack first, patiently waiting for an opportunity to strike. The two armies reached a stalemate at the entrance to the Suyab Valley.