Chapter 47: Flying Sand (IV)

Having crossed the nameless valley and raced along the ancient course of the Pearl River, the 5,000 Tang troops had left Kuixi City far behind. Passing through unchallenged without a single battle was undoubtedly excellent news for the Tang army. After all, their goal was to join the main forces in Anxi near Talas, and any delay along the way could affect the outcome of the war. Thus, they avoided engaging in fights with the enemies’ scouts, instead striving to speed up their march and steer clear of various checkpoints.

As the commander of this army, Li Kuo faced a tough task. Although he had won the admiration of the Tianwei soldiers with his black sword and silver spear during the conquest of Suiye, these soldiers were not his own troops, so they were not as easy to command as those from the Tongwu Camp or Shule Army. This was not too concerning, as he could temporarily appoint officers from the Tongwu Camp as lieutenants or brigade commanders to better control the army.

What troubled Li Kuo the most was the attitude of his trusted subordinates like Pu Dachui. Due to disagreements over the use of poison, this top warrior from the Tongwu Camp first clashed with the commander he respected the most. With war looming, morale was of utmost importance. To strengthen morale, Li Kuo spoke rather harshly, leading Pu Dachui to mistakenly believe that Commander Li was overly lenient, willing to sacrifice his comrades to protect strangers from the barbarian tribes. As a result, the relationship between Pu Dachui and Li Kuo grew distant. Though he still pretended to respect the young commander on the surface, there seemed to be a barrier between them, making their interactions awkward.

Other key officers from the Tongwu Camp, such as Xianyu Yucheng and Dou Qing, also began to doubt Li Kuo to some extent. Out of military professionalism, they did not express their doubts openly. In their view, the world was ruthless, treating all things as insignificant. In such circumstances, only the strongest could survive; showing mercy to enemies would only harm oneself and one’s comrades. Although Commander Li insisted that his lenient attitude applied only to civilians, the soldiers of the Tongwu Camp still felt a sense of estrangement.

“Brother Kuo, it’s getting dark. Let’s go rest in that camp ahead!”
The oppressive atmosphere along the way was unbearable. Unable to bear to see Li Kuo’s worried expression, Zhang Yanji pointed toward a camp not far away and suggested they take a break.

Since they had abandoned Julan City and taken the ancient route along the Pearl River, their exact location could not be determined from maps. However, based on rough estimates, they were likely less than a hundred miles away from Talas City.

At this location, anything could happen, so everyone must be prepared to face any adversity.
“Hmm, then let’s rest there for the night. Pass my orders—have the entire army advance!”
Li Kuo let out a deep sigh and waved his whip firmly as he gave instructions.
This camp was likely built by the Tang forces in Anxi. Judging from its size, it could accommodate over ten thousand people, meaning there were at least two similar camps in the vicinity. With the camp foundations already laid, the Tianwei Army saved a lot of trouble. All that was needed was to tie the tent to wooden stakes and tighten the ropes, and the tent was set up.
Once the tents were erected and simple shelters like deer fences were placed, a basic military camp was ready for deployment. Although it lacked watchtowers, since the Tianwei Army was only staying for one night, it was sufficient to assign people to take turns patrolling at night.
After setting up the tents, it was time to start cooking. Wang Xiaochun found an existing well at the back of the camp and was about to send a soldier to fetch water when he was intercepted by Li Kuo.
“Dare you draw water from this abandoned camp at will?”
Li Kuo frowned and rebuked Wang Xiaochun loudly.
Wang Xiaochun curled his lips and said, “It’s fine. At worst, they might have put some poison in it, but it can’t kill anyone!”
“You!”
Li Kuo was stunned for a moment before sighing, “This isn’t the Nameless Valley. We’re already near Talas City. If you keep acting so recklessly, I’ll punish you according to military law.”
Wang Xiaochun felt aggrieved and stubbornly said, “Exactly! I’ve defied my superior. Please order the judicial officer to beat me severely with a military stick—better even to death! That way, no one will bother the governor anymore!”
“You!”
Seeing his childish behavior, Li Kuo was helpless. “Alright, I know you’re upset. I won’t hold it against you. But there are rules for everything; we can’t act on impulse. I’ll forgive you today, but if you do it again, go and face punishment from the judicial officer yourself.”
After saying that, Li Kuo turned and headed toward the main camp. After taking a few steps, he added, “Go fetch water from the mountain stream two miles away. That way, even poison probably won’t remain.”
For some reason, Wang Xiaochun felt disappointed and guilty. Had he gone too far by treating the governor like this? But then again, why couldn’t he understand his comrades’ feelings? Sigh, all he wanted now was for the governor to really beat him with a military stick—just to settle things once and for all!…
Li Kuo was deeply conflicted. On one hand, there were his comrades he shared life and death with, and on the other hand, so-called principles of benevolence and morality. Of course, he wasn’t a pedantic scholar who would cling to those rigid notions of righteousness.

Back then, he had also devised the ruthless plan to flood Jiuqu City, causing a huge uproar in the court. At that time, driven by his youthful arrogance, he always thought his actions were heroic and dismissed the criticism from the court officials. He believed those officials were nothing but pedantic scholars who had no right to judge his actions.

He also thought that so-called benevolence and the way of a king were nonsense!

But was that really the case?

After arriving in Anxi and witnessing Gao Xianzhi’s numerous battles in the Western Regions, he began to doubt his past actions. First was Xiao Bulu, then Shiguo, Tujishi… Any barbarian tribe that resisted to the death had its city mercilessly slaughtered by General Gao after its fall. It could be argued that since these tribal chiefs resisted desperately and angered the governor, revenge was justified after the city fell. But what did this have to do with ordinary people? How could such acts of mass slaughter fit the reputation of the Great Tang as a nation of propriety and the way of a king?

One might say it was to use force to intimidate those barbarian peoples so they wouldn’t dare to rebel again!

But did things really develop as General Gao had planned?

Of the thirty-six kingdoms in the Western Regions, almost all except Bohaina ended up turning to the Arabs! What was their excuse for rebellion? It was General Gao’s inhumane mass killings and the Tang army’s immoral plundering!

If the duplicity and treachery of those barbarian chiefs were considered beastly behavior, then what was the difference between the Tang army’s act of slaughtering all civilians in conquered cities to establish dominance and such beastly acts?

Using violence to suppress violence only fosters more violence; it never completely eradicates it! Perhaps such excesses remain hidden when you are strong, but as soon as you show signs of decline, all those once subdued enemies will turn against you!

Being strict and harsh in commanding the army is to give it an iron will and exceptional execution ability! It’s understandable to be fierce against the enemy—any hesitation or kindness in battle can cost your life. On the battlefield, there is no right or wrong, only strength and weakness!

But massacring civilians after battle is a beastly act that despises life! You think this will intimidate the barbarian people, but it only stirs the last remnants of anger in them, making them stand firmly with their own armies!

Since resistance means death and non-resistance also means death, why not fight to the end?

General Gao’s mistake was his excessive arrogance, an arrogance ingrained in his bones. He thought that because his troops were from a great nation, they could trample on others’ dignity at will, not realizing that this would only push those still hesitant barbarian tribes further away from the Tang Dynasty!

If he hadn’t destroyed the Stone Kingdom but merely beheaded its king, it wouldn’t have sparked such widespread resentment among the people. If he hadn’t allowed his subordinates to plunder the goods of the Hu tribes, the Battle of Talas wouldn’t have happened!
The Battle of Talas could have been avoided—it was he who pushed the Anxi army into a corner. Faced with such atrocities, the Hu kingdoms in the Western Regions had no choice. The Arabs reaped unjust benefits and acquired numerous mercenaries—all because of Gao Shuai’s arrogance!
Worse still, they didn’t understand even those he had personally trained as his trusted allies. Leading an army required a balance of firmness and kindness—being ruthless when necessary, and gentle when appropriate. Relying solely on violence would only lose the people’s support…
Taking a deep breath, Li Kuo closed his eyes tightly and rested for a moment. He was too tired; he had already embarked on a path with no turning back, one filled with doubt and disdain. He could only keep moving forward silently, responding with action.
“Brother Kuo, you still haven’t rested?”
Zhang Yanji approached Li Kuo cautiously, setting down a bowl of fragrant rice porridge beside him.
“Haven’t you rested either?”
Li Kuo smiled slightly and gestured for Zhang Yanji to sit down and talk. “You saw everything that happened today. Even Xiao Chun is a bit resentful of me.”
“Brother Kuo, don’t worry about it. He’s just harsh in words, but in reality, he respects you the most!”
Seeing Li Kuo bring up the matter again, Zhang Yanji quickly interjected. These days, Brother Kuo had been extremely worried about the military campaigns, which had even caused dissatisfaction among some of the soldiers. He absolutely couldn’t let Brother Kuo feel disheartened!
“Is that so? A true gentleman doesn’t flatter those above nor be arrogant with those below. By that standard, Xiao Chun could be considered a gentleman too.”