Chapter 68: The Monumental Barrier (II)

“Kill them all!”
Gao Xiuyan’s eyes were filled with malice as he pointed at the dozen or so Tibetan chiefs about a hundred paces away and gave a stern order.
The river mouth was the most important pastureland for the Tibetans in the southeast. Any mistake could attract the nearby garrison troops. For the safety of the army, not a single hint could be allowed to leak—these Tibetans had to be wiped out.
On the battlefield, it was either death or survival; there was no room for mercy! Gao Xiuyan’s personal bodyguard leader, Lei Fangrong, clasped his fists and rushed off to carry out the order. The nearly hundred Tang light cavalry arrived at the Tibetans’ side in just a few seconds, slashing and chopping down at them. The Tibetans had thought these troops were ordinary Tibetan cavalry passing by, so they had walked forward casually—only to find them to be the hated Tang invaders!
“Tang invaders! It’s the Tang invaders! Hurry and report to Si Jin—go now!”
These Tibetan chiefs usually used their power to oppress and scold herdsmen and Tang civilians on ordinary days. How could they possibly compete with nearly a hundred Tang soldiers? Realizing something was wrong, they turned and fled back to their original positions.
As the Tang cavalry closed in, one Tibetan man reluctantly reached for his sword at his waist. But he clearly underestimated the speed of the warhorse. A cold flash of steel appeared—before he could draw his curved sword, his head was severed in an instant.
“Ugh!”
One of the Tibetan chiefs saw the head roll beside him and felt nauseous, vomiting out everything he had eaten that morning.
“Don’t, don’t kill me!”
He curled up, holding his head, trembling uncontrollably. Upon closer listening, his speech was actually Tang dialect—though rough and awkward, everyone could understand his meaning.
“Tch, such a weakling!”
Lei Fangrong spat out a mouthful of phlegm and glanced at the Tibetan chief disdainfully.
“Keep him alive for now. Take him to Commander Gao.”
Lei Fangrong waved his hand impatiently, unwilling to look at this weakling any longer.
Before long, all the scattered Tibetans were caught by the Tang army, and their heads were cut off. The dozen or so Tang cavalry riders carried the severed heads back as proof of their mission.
When they arrived before Gao Xiuyan, Lei Fangrong kicked the Tibetan chief in the knee joint.
“Ow!”
In pain, the Tibetan man knelt down in front of Gao Xiuyan.
“How many Tibetan troops are stationed in this area?” Gao Xiuyan asked, stroking his beard.
“Huh? There are no troops here. The entire army is at Chiling. Where could there be any troops?” the Tibetan chief muttered, still holding his head.
“Be honest, you bastard!”
Seeing how cunning the Tibetan man was, Lei Fangrong drew his curved sword from his waist and pressed it against his neck.

“Stop, stop, let’s talk things over properly.”
The officer felt a chill down his neck and immediately begged in a sobbing voice, “There are only five hundred guards left in this generation; the rest have really all been sent to Chiling. I’m telling the truth—please don’t kill me!”
Gao Xiuyan waved his hand impatiently, ordering his men to take the Tibetan away.
“General Gao, there’s still this little brat!”
Lei Fangrong said with a bow.
Then he grabbed Wang Xiaochun like a chick and roughly threw him to the ground.
“Hm?”
Gao Xiuyan examined the young boy before him curiously, nodding frequently.
“What’s your name?”
“Wang Xiaochun.”
“Are you Tang?”
“No, I’m not a Tang bandit!”
“Dare you!”
Seeing the boy’s lack of manners, Lei Fangrong snapped and prepared to draw his sword.
Wang Xiaochun shuddered and instinctively stepped back.
“It’s fine!”
Gao Xiuyan waved his hand lightly, signaling his subordinates not to pay attention.
“Tell me, why refuse to admit you’re Tang? You look just like us, and even your speech is in Tang dialect—why deny your identity?”
“Tang bandits… all Tang soldiers are heartless devils. They kill anyone they see and burn down everything!”
The boy pouted, thought for a moment, and finally spoke up.
“Oh? Who taught you such things? Look, where do we show any sign of being fierce?”
“Anyway, that’s what they say. None of the Tang are good—my parents both say that!”
Annoyed, the boy raised his voice.
“Aren’t they also Tang? Why do they despise themselves so much?”
Gao Xiuyan grew increasingly displeased but forced himself to stay calm.
“They’re not Tang. They never admit they’re Tang!”
The boy stubbornly continued arguing.
“Enough! Take him away!”
Seeing no more useful information from Wang Xiaochun, Gao Xiuyan ordered sharply.
“General Gao, this subordinate thinks keeping this man might be useful,” Li Kuo said tentatively, bowing to Gao Xiuyan.
“Oh? What use is such a good-for-nothing? Let him continue being a lackey for the Tibetans—I think he’d be happier that way!”
Gao Xiuyan was furious, his tone laced with anger.
“Since the Tibetans raise many horses here, they must need horseherds. With a small population, they often use captured Tang people as herdsmen. There must be many Tang like Wang Xiaochun. If we recruit them into our ranks, they could be very useful.”
“Just them?”

Gao Xiuyan sneered. He truly couldn’t understand what Li Kuo was thinking. Not to mention that these so-called “Tang people” were emaciated, ragged, and of mediocre combat strength, their Tang dialect, laced with a strong barbarian accent, made them unreliable. Those who are not of our kind will surely have different motives. The Tang army had always relied on comrades of the same clan; since when had they started seeking connections with outsiders?
“If Commander Gao doesn’t trust them, he can assign them to my Tongwu Camp first. In half a month, I’ll surely show you their improved side,” Li Kuo said with firmness. These people spoke Tang dialect, and he couldn’t bear to see them all exhausted and defeated.
“Fine, I’ll go along with your plan. But I warn you—keep a tight rein on your new subordinates. If a rebellion arises because of these ‘Tang people,’ I’ll hold you accountable.” With those harsh words, Gao Xiuyan spurred his horse away.
After entering the Hekou Grassland, the Tang army easily took control of the area. There were less than five hundred Tubo troops in Hekou City, and upon learning of the approaching Tang forces, they chose to abandon the city and retreat. The Tubo people set fire to the city’s granaries and took away all the arrows and spears from the armory. In Gao Xiuyan’s words, the Tubo left him nothing but an empty city.
However, though the Tubo could burn the granaries and take the arrows, they couldn’t kill all the cattle, sheep, and horses in such a short time. Aside from taking away a thousand warhorses, many animals were left behind in the vast Hekou Grassland, much to the Tang army’s delight. After all, although they had been generously treated by the White Wolf tribe on the Dafeichuan Grassland, they were still guests then and didn’t want to burden their hosts too much. But this time was different—these animals were raised by the Tubo, and why not take them? With such a good opportunity, how could they resist?
As for the soldiers of the Tongwu Camp, they first had to incorporate those so-called “Tang people.” After all, their commander couldn’t stand seeing his compatriots suffer. What annoyed them even more was that those so-called Tang people kept calling them Tang bandits.
What did that mean? They had rescued them from the Tubo’s clutches—why were they being blamed?
This resentment lingered among the soldiers of the Tongwu Camp, causing great frustration. As the saying goes, hatred for one’s house extends to its birds. Along the way, they naturally mocked Wang Xiaochun, that brat.
If they wouldn’t acknowledge us as relatives, why should we go out of our way to please them?
This situation continued until the soldiers of the Tongwu Camp arrived at the Loントu Plains outside Hekou City.

On a flat piece of land about three square ping near the city at the river mouth, a cluster of shacks stood in disarray. They were called shacks because they were so messy that it was hard to even consider them as proper houses. Around two hundred such tent-like structures were packed closely together, all facing north and covered with thick furs. However, the openings of the shacks were gaping wide, and the furs were covered with colorful patches.

Structurally, unlike tents, these shacks had four wooden pillars for support, making them essentially permanent structures. According to Wang Xiaochun, they all lived in such shacks, with ten people sharing one, regardless of season.

The new recruits who had been mocking them before immediately fell silent, while the veteran soldier Tong Wu, who had been complaining in a low voice, shed tears from the corners of his eyes. No wonder they were reluctant to admit they were Tang people after enduring so much hardship.

Upon arriving at the shacks, Li Kuo let out a long sigh.

“How many people are there in total?” Li Kuo asked softly, placing a hand on his forehead.

Wang Xiaochun, clearly not afraid of Li Kuo, raised his head and said, “There are over 2,300 people in total, including more than 300 women and over 500 the elderly and weak.”

Li Kuo was shocked. Such a small city at the river mouth had so many Tang people. How many more refugees from Longyou must there be throughout Tubo?

“Could you call them out for me? I’d like to talk to them.”

Li Kuo tried to keep his voice calm so as not to scare the boy.

Wang Xiaochun puffed out his chest and said, “What’s difficult about that? I’ll call them all out right away!”

“Madam Wu, Old Man Sun, Brother Ergou—come out! The lord from the Great Tang is here to see us. Come out quickly! The Tang lord is going to give us a speech.”

Wang Xiaochun ran to the shacks and shouted again, “We’ve got a new master! We’ve changed masters! Come out quickly! We’re going to kneel and listen to the speech!”

Boom!

Hearing this, the “sacred tower” in Li Kuo’s heart collapsed instantly.