Chapter 251: Taking Control of Khwarazm (Part 2)

The Samarkand palace’s massive dome-shaped meeting room was filled with tension. Kings from various Sogdian states gathered there—Kang, Shi, Dongcao, Xicao, An, Dongan, Mi, He, Shi, and Xiaoshi. Some countries sent both their main kings and deputy kings.
Except for King Teli of Shi and King Sheahu of Dongcao, the other kings all appeared worried. These kings were beneficiaries of the Abbasid rule; they obeyed them, provided food and soldiers for their armies, and hid in their palaces when the people rebelled, too afraid to lead them. Now that the Tang army had defeated the Abbasid forces and nearly wiped them out, they felt uneasy. Despite King Teli’s attempts to reassure them, they remained anxious.
“Everyone, please be quiet!”
King Teli of Shi stood up and said, “Please listen to me for a moment.”
The room immediately fell silent. Shi was the closest to the Tang army, so every word of King Teli’s caught everyone’s attention.
“Last night, I asked General Li: If the Tang army defeats the Abbasids and recovers Khwarazm, will the imperial court treat us Sogdian states as before?”
“What did he say?”
Everyone leaned forward eagerly, waiting for his answer. Even King Shaofen of Kang lost his usual arrogance and looked at him humbly. This was indeed the matter that concerned them most. Although the Abbasid forces had been temporarily repelled, once their situation stabilized back home, they would surely return. What would the Sogdians do then?
In the past, the Tang court mostly appeased the Sogdian states, offering little actual support, which led to their gradual conquest by the Abbasids. What would happen next? The kings were conflicted—they hoped the Tang army would help them resist Abbasid invasions at any time, but they also wanted the Tang court to treat them as before, not imposing taxes or interfering in their internal affairs, acting merely as a nominal suzerain.
Seeing everyone staring at him, Teli felt somewhat proud. Among the Sogdian states, Kang had always been the leader, with its words representing the will of the Sogdians. Although Shi had a large territory, its distance from Khwarazm made it regarded as a barbaric foreign land, like a son born out of wedlock who couldn’t take a central position in the family. But now was different—he returned to the Khwarazm states as a victor, his 20,000 troops having participated in the Battle of Talas.

He cleared his throat and continued, “General Li told me that in the past, when the Arabs launched their eastern campaigns, the Tang Dynasty was unable to send troops to defend itself, resulting in all the countries in Hexi falling to the Arabs. Therefore, the imperial court plans to change its strategy and station troops in Hexi.”
In fact, Teler didn’t know much. Li Qing’an had only told him about the decision to station Tang troops in Hexi; he was unaware of the plan to establish a joint council. Still, everyone breathed a sigh of relief. As long as the Tang troops were willing to station themselves in Hexi, it was a great comfort to them.
“What about arranging our own troops?”
“Do I need to pay taxes to the imperial court?”
The kings discussed fervently, and the meeting room was filled with noise. Just then, someone outside shouted, “General Li, the governor of Anxi, has arrived!”
The room instantly fell silent. The door opened, and first, nearly a hundred fully armed Tang soldiers entered. Soon after, Li Qing’an came in with several civil and military officials.
The kings stood up, looking anxiously at this governor of the Tang Dynasty who had defeated the Arab armies.
Li Qing’an smiled as he walked to his seat and waved at everyone, saying, “Let’s introduce ourselves one by one! There’s no need for the kings of Shi and Dongcao.”
The king of Kang stood up and bowed respectfully, saying, “Honorable General Li, I am Shao Fen, the king of Kang. Please allow me to represent the Sogdian countries and express our stance first.”
“Go ahead.”
Shao Fen sighed and said, “The Sogdian countries used to be prosperous, rich in gems, gold, and silver. Trade along the Silk Road made our people wealthy and our treasuries full. But since the Arabs launched their eastern campaigns, our people’s wealth has been plundered. Nine out of ten Sogdian merchants have lost everything. Countless people have been killed or captured and sold as slaves. Our population has halved, and even our royal treasuries have been looted. We also have to bear heavy taxes—over 80% of our revenue goes to taxes. This year, it’s even worse. Abu Muslim demands that we prepay three years’ worth of taxes. If we refuse, we’ll all be beheaded. While we were in despair, the armies of the Heavenly Khan arrived, defeated the Arabs, and saved us from disaster. On behalf of the nine Sogdian countries, I express our deepest gratitude to General Li.”
Li Qing’an nodded slightly and then smiled at King Teler of Shi, saying, “King, please introduce the others here to me.”
Teler was overjoyed and quickly stood up to introduce them to Li Qing’an, “This is Goropuro, the king of Xicao. This is Ye Jie, the king of Anguo. This is Lobobo, the king of Shi…”

With each introduction, the kings immediately stood up to pay their respects to Li Qing’an, who nodded in return one by one. Only after all introductions were done did Li Qing’an speak to the group, “King Teler has already conveyed my intentions of peace to you all, so I won’t beat around the bush. Now I’ll discuss the plans for the future.”
Silence filled the conference room. No one expected Li Qing’an to get straight to the point without any preliminary pleasantries or hints. King Shaofen of Kang Country was even more uneasy. Just now, Li Qing’an had taken away his leadership role and let King Teler of Shi Country do the introducing. He sensed something was wrong—could it be that Shi Country would replace Kang Country as the leader of the Sogdian confederation?
“To defend against the Persians from making a comeback, our Tang Dynasty will establish a military garrison in Hexiang, with six thousand troops stationed there.”
As soon as Li Qing’an finished speaking, the conference room erupted in discussion. Six thousand troops? That seemed a bit too few. Li Qing’an waved his hand to silence the chatter and said coldly, “No one is allowed to interrupt me while I’m speaking!”
The room fell silent again, with no one daring to speak.
“I believe that to resist the Persian invasions, it’s not only necessary to have the support of the Tang Dynasty but also for you to have your own resolve to resist and unite as one. If the Sogdian countries unite, they have millions of people and a combined army of hundreds of thousands—what should be a powerful nation. Yet why were they easily conquered by the Persians? The reason is that you fought separately, allowing the Persians to defeat each of you one by one.”
At this point, Li Qing’an paused and looked at the group. Seeing that everyone was deep in thought, reflecting on his words, he nodded and continued, “Of course, I’m not asking you to merge into one country—that’s not realistic. I know there’s a loose alliance among the Sogdian countries, but it exists only because you share the same ethnicity, and its purpose is merely to improve relations between neighboring countries. It’s just a formality. Therefore, I ask that you form a formal alliance and establish a joint council system, just like today, where kings or their representatives can meet regularly to discuss matters. And this joint council must have certain powers—what powers? Military authority and the right to conduct foreign negotiations. In short, each country will no longer have its own army; all armies will be centralized and commanded by the joint council. This is to ensure that when the Persians invade, there will be enough strength to resist them.”
“But, General!”

Finally, someone couldn’t hold back and spoke. It was Goloroboro, the king of Xicao, the smallest of the Sogdian states. He stood up and said, “Please forgive me for interrupting the great general. For example, since our Xicao has no army, isn’t it unnecessary for us to attend this joint meeting?”
This time, Li Qing’an wasn’t angry. He smiled slightly and said, “Xicao having no army was a thing of the past. In the future, no country will have armies anymore. There will be no difference between them. But Xicao still has to bear military expenses, so it must also attend the joint meeting. You have the right to express your opinions just like other countries.”
Goloroboro was overjoyed. He immediately agreed to this plan. In fact, Xicao was a vassal state of Kang, with all its internal affairs determined by Kang. Goloroboro himself was merely a puppet. He now understood Li Qing’an’s intention: by attending this joint meeting, Xicao could break free from Kang’s rule.
Not only Xicao but also other small Sogdian states that had long been oppressed by larger powers—such as Mi and He, two other vassal states of Kang; Dong’an, a vassal state of An; Dongcao, a vassal state of Shi; and Xiaoshi, a vassal state of Shi—all agreed. This way, they could stand on equal footing with the larger powers.
However, the three major powers—Kang, An, and Shi—were directly affected. They knew well that allowing this so-called joint meeting to control the armies would essentially deprive them of their military authority. Nominal control would lie with the joint meeting, but in reality, the armies would only be deployed during wars, at which point they would still be under the control of the Tang army, effectively putting the Sogdian armies under Tang’s control as well.
King Teler of Shi was also deeply worried—would his army survive?
At that moment, Li Qing’an continued, “Of course, in addition to regular armies, there must also be a small internal military force to suppress bandits and capture robbers. The size of this force can be temporarily set at five thousand men, under the command of the leader of the joint meeting. The troops can be temporarily drawn from Shi’s army.”
This was Li Qing’an’s concession—taking away the main tree while leaving a few branches, but even these branches were to benefit Shi.
King Teler of Shi was overjoyed. He finally understood what Li Qing’an meant by offering compensation. Having Shi’s army serve as the internal force meant that Shi would gain control over the joint meeting, effectively replacing Kang as the leader of the Sogdians.

While Teler was overjoyed, King Shaofen of Kangguo’s face turned pale. Earlier, Li Qing’an had taken away his army. Though he was extremely dissatisfied, he dared not speak out—after all, Kangguo was a defeated country. But now that Li Qing’an wanted Shiguo to replace Kangguo as the leader of the Sogdians, he could no longer bear it.
“General, I disagree that Shiguo’s army should serve as the internal guard!”
Shaofen stood up, bowed deeply, and said, “The general said the joint conference should involve all Sogdian states. Then why is only Shiguo’s army part of the internal guard? Isn’t that too biased?”
Li Qing’an sneered, “I actually wanted Kangguo’s army to serve as the internal guard, but where is Kangguo’s army?”
Shaofen was stunned. His army had been taken to Talas by Abu Muslim—most had died or become prisoners of the Tang army, with only three hundred returning. He slowly sat down. Li Qing’an’s mockery made him realize a harsh truth: Kangguo was now a defeated country, and he had no right to bargain with Li Qing’an. Shiguo, on the other hand, was the victorious country, and it was only natural for it to become the leader of the Sogdians. At that moment, Shaofen’s heart was filled with bitterness.
“Enough. I declare the meeting over. Shiguo will serve as the first leader of the joint conference for three years. Shiguo will handle the details of the conference—this is your internal affair. As the representative of the Tang military, I won’t get involved. But as the suzerain state, the Tang should also have a say. Qiming!”
Li Qing’an called out. Luo Qiming stepped forward immediately. “Your servant is here!”
“Luo Qiming is proficient in the Sogdian language and is a civil official. Before receiving official appointment from the Heavenly Khan, he will temporarily represent the Tang in discussing matters related to Hexiang. To restore Hexiang’s prosperity as soon as possible, I hope everyone works together. If there are any difficulties or requests, they can be raised at the conference. I will report them to the emperor and try my best to meet your needs.”
……
Li Qing’an’s first meeting with the Sogdian states ended amidst anxiety and hope. Back at the camp, he immediately ordered Teler, the king of Shiguo, to be brought in.
Teler was still immersed in the excitement of becoming the leader of the Sogdians—it was like a lesser son taking control of the family’s power. It was Shiguo’s century-long aspiration, finally realized through him.
He entered the tent cheerfully and asked, “General, did you call for me?”
Li Qing’an smiled and said, “First, I congratulate Your Majesty on becoming the leader of the Sogdians.”
“I owe this to the general’s kindness. But the general said the term is three years—will I be able to serve another term?”

“Whether I can be re-elected depends on whether His Majesty the King can persuade other kings to agree. In principle, I have no objection.” Saying this, Li Qing’an took a booklet from his desk—it was a detailed plan for the joint meeting written by Li Bi overnight. He had already read it and made some revisions. “This are the rules for the joint meeting. His Majesty the King may take a close look. If you have any suggestions, feel free to raise them. If not, it can be put forward for discussion and approval at the first joint meeting tomorrow, and from then on, these rules will be followed.” Teler took the booklet and flipped through it. As he had expected, Li Qing’an would never hand over full autonomy to them. Luo Qiming’s right to veto was clear evidence of this. Yet compared to the Abbasids, Li Qing’an was still quite lenient—for example, regarding taxes, aside from covering military expenses, he would not impose any additional taxes. The cost of supporting 50,000 troops would account for at most 30% of each country’s taxes, with the remaining 70% remaining with him. History has always been written by the strong. With their Sogdian kingdoms trapped between two powerful forces, what choice did they have? Teler sighed inwardly and said, “No need to make changes. I’ll submit it for voting tomorrow.” Li Qing’an nodded and said, “There are three more matters I hope you can address immediately.” “Please go ahead, General!” “The first is related to religion. I hope Zoroastrians and Muslims can coexist peacefully in the River Region. We are all Sogdian brothers; there’s nothing unforgivable. Zoroastrians must not be allowed to retaliate. If conflicts arise, it will lead Muslims to support the Abbasids in returning to the River Region. Do you understand the severity of this?” Teler agreed right away. In fact, seven out of the nine Sogdian kings had already converted to Islam. Even without Li Qing’an’s orders, they would strive to avoid conflicts. Li Qing’an continued, “The second matter is related to currency. Currently, the Sogdians use dirham silver coins. I have ordered Anxi to produce large quantities of Kaiyuan Tongbao silver coins. I hope you can enforce the use of Kaiyuan Tongbao silver and gold coins to replace the Abbasid currency.” Teler was somewhat confused and quickly said, “But Kaiyuan Tongbao silver and gold coins aren’t in use within the Tang Dynasty itself. What if Sogdian merchants take them to the Central Plains and they’re not accepted?” “If they’re not used within the Tang Dynasty, we need to find a way to make them acceptable. That’s the third point I want to mention.”

Li Qing’an smiled faintly and said, “You will post notices in various Sogdian cities tomorrow, stating that the Tang army is about to return to Chang’an. Those who wish to follow the Tang army to Chang’an for business can join us. As support for the restoration of power in Khwarezm, I can grant these merchants tax exemptions.”
……
That night, in the palace of Samarkand, King Shaofen of Kangguo invited King Yexie of Anguo and King Naqiu Ruo of Shiguo into the inner palace to discuss strategies with them. These three were the largest among the Sogdian states aside from Shiguo, each with a population of over a million and strong national power. Yet Li Qing’an’s system of joint councils had made them equal to the smaller states, filling them with frustration.
King Naqiu Ruo of Shiguo was somewhat timid and more rational; he disagreed with King Shaofen of Kangguo’s plan for a large-scale uprising.
“I heard that the joint councils allocate seats based on the amount of military funding contributed. We might get two to three seats, while the smaller states only get one. This shows our importance.”
“You’re really foolish!”
King Shaofen angrily rebuked him, “What’s that joint council anyway? It’s nothing but a tool for the Tang to control us Sogdians. Our armies have been taken away—our fate, whether to live or die, is decided by the Tang. Even if it’s just that useless tool, if it’s led by the people of Shiguo, can you accept that? Listen to me—launch a large-scale uprising to put pressure on Li Qing’an and force him to allow us to keep some army.”
“Forget it! What do you have to start an uprising with?”
King Yexie of Anguo downed a cup of wine and said sarcastically, “Do you know what happened when the Tang army entered the city today? The whole city’s people rushed out to welcome them. Do you know why? Li Qing’an is better than you. He’s promised to build temples, restore the statues of Ahura Mazda, and vowed not to mistreat Muslims. Li Qing’an has far more popular support than you. And you’ve already converted to Islam. Will the Zoroastrians listen to you if you call for an uprising? Besides, you played a role in suppressing the Shiites. If you try to incite an uprising, I doubt the Shiites won’t kill you first. Brother Shaofen, wake up! Stop talking nonsense.”
Shaofen’s fat face turned purple with anger. He snapped, “Then what do you suggest? Should we just let the Tang army control us?”
In truth, both King Naqiu Ruo and King Yexie understood that the ruler of Kangguo really hated not the Tang army—he probably didn’t have the courage for that. What he really hated was the people of Shiguo exploiting him under the guise of righteousness, making him do their bidding.

The two exchanged a glance and stood up together. “It’s getting late. We’ll take our leave for now. If you have any objections, bring them up at the joint meeting tomorrow!”
They walked away, and Shao Fen stared at their retreating figures before slamming her fist on the table. “I will never give up!”