Tibet

The war is over, and the massacre did not happen. Although Li Ye threatened Zaire and wanted to kill all the soldiers, in fact he would not do so. He had his own bottom line and principles, who should be killed and what should be killed. He had a standard in mind that people should not be killed.

All the Khazar soldiers in the city surrendered, and the Tang army took control of Bandar City at a slight cost of more than a dozen casualties.

The Tang army immediately found the wealth of the Khazar Turks in the treasury that was too late to transport away, including 6.3 million gold coins, as well as a large number of gold and silver vessels, gems, silks and porcelain.

At this time, the soldiers brought Zaire over, and Zaire said tremblingly: "His Royal Highness Rossini has escaped by boat!"

"I know. Including him who escaped in total, more than a thousand people were killed. Less than a thousand of you were killed. Three thousand people became prisoners of war. I let all the civilians who were temporarily requisitioned go home."

"Thank you, Governor Li, for your magnanimity."

Li Ye said lightly: "You should be grateful to Rossini for not taking away the wealth, otherwise Bandar City would have been a river of blood!"

Zaire lowered his head and did not dare to say anything. Li Ye took another roll of sheepskin and said, "I found this among Ashinabusa's belongings. This is proof that he owns Bandar City, is that right?"

Zaire sighed and said: "In fact, the eleven cities in the west are the territory of the Khazar Turks. We defeated Ashina Sabu's army, and the two sides finally negotiated. The Khazar Turks must leave the Khazar Turks." The Sakhanate, all their territory is owned by the Khazars, except for Bandar City. The agreement clearly states that Bandar City is his private territory. Before all the Khazar Turks evacuate, we He would not occupy the city, so he left all the family members of his army in Bandar City. However, the Khazars did not abide by the agreement. Governor Li also saw it. Not long after Ashina Sabu led his army, we occupied it. This city."

Li Ye thought for a while and then asked: "You said that the eleven cities in the west are the territory of the Khazar Turks. How many Khazar Turks are there? Didn't Ashina Sabu take them all away?"

Zaire smiled bitterly and said: "The Khazar Turks occupy 30% of the population of the entire Khazar Khanate, but not all Khazar Turks are willing to follow him to move eastward. In fact, most people are unwilling to leave. The only people willing to follow him were his 20,000 troops and their families, totaling 80,000 people.”

"There aren't that many people! I counted my army and found that there are less than 20,000 people. Where are the others? Were they sent away by Rossini?"

"The governor didn't know. A few days ago, hundreds of Khazar Turks fled back. They brought news that Ashina Sabu was killed in battle and the entire army was destroyed. This triggered panic in the city, and a large number of Khazar Turks headed west. After fleeing, only about 18,000 people were left in the end. These people are all natives of the city and have their own land and houses, so they are unwilling to flee."

Li Ye nodded and said: "Go back and tell your king that Ashina Sabu died under my sword, so all his properties belong to me, including this Bandar city. If your king wants to take back Bandar, , that means war, I am willing to join forces with the Abbasid army to destroy the Khazar Khanate, and I want the wealth, population and land of the Khazar Khanate to be owned by Dashi."

Zaire sighed, "I will tell King Bran."

Li Ye immediately released Zaire and all the prisoners of war. They rode towards the west without weapons or armor.

Li Ye renamed Bandar Xianhai City, and ordered Pei Xiu to lead a thousand soldiers to guard this farthest border town in the Tang Dynasty.

The reason for occupying this city is actually very simple. Bandar City is the private territory of Ashina Busha. After Li Ye killed Ashina Busha, the city belonged to Li Ye.

Emperor Li Longji of the Tang Dynasty gave him the title of king and allowed him to find a city in the Western Region as his fief. Li Ye was interested in Bandar City, and he changed its name to Aral Sea City.

If the Khazars recognized the Tang army's occupation of this city, then this city would become the western border city of the Tang Dynasty. Generally speaking, the Tang Dynasty's territory reached the Aral Sea in the west. On what basis? The best basis is urban control.

If the Khazars refused to accept the occupation of the Tang army and must take back Bandar City, then Li Ye would find a reason to launch a war. At that time, not only his Hezhong army would go out, but also the Beiting army and the Anxi army.

Li Ye and Pei Xiu walked to the head of the west city and looked at the sparkling Aral Sea. The Syr Darya River, which meanders thousands of miles, flows into the Aral Sea not far away.

"Is this the sea?"

Li Ye nodded, "Its area is equivalent to the Hedong Road. It can indeed be regarded as a sea. The Amu Darya River and the Syr Darya River flow into the east bank, so the east side is fresh water and the west side is salt water.

Thousands of miles to the west of it, there is another huge ocean called the Caspian Sea, which is equivalent to five sizes of it. The Khazar Khanate is to the north and east of the Caspian Sea. To the west of the Caspian Sea is the Great Qin Kingdom, also called the Eastern Sea. Rome, or the Empire of Constantinople, and south of the Caspian Sea was the Great Eating Dynasty. "

"What about the Aral Sea?" Pei Xiu asked.

Li Ye smiled and said: "The east and south of the Aral Sea are the territory of our Tang Dynasty and our sphere of influence. The Nine Kingdoms of Sogdia are located to the south of the Aral Sea. It will take us twenty days to get here from Suiye. This shows how vast our Tang Dynasty’s territory is.”

"Captain, is this Bandar City really your private territory?" Pei Xiu asked in a low voice.

Li Ye smiled lightly and said: "My ambition is not to be a small Bandar City. The Emperor personally promised me that I can choose any city in the Western Region and be granted the title of king, so I chose Bandar City. The emperor and the court have nothing to say, but I want to hand over this city to your Pei family!"

Pei Xiu was stunned for a moment, "Why?"

Li Ye smiled slightly and said: "The Pei family is my grandfather's family and my mother's natal family. Isn't it okay to give this city to your relatives?"

Pei Xiu still looked confused, "I really don't understand."

Li Ye smiled and said: "With such a vast land, the Pei family has never thought of establishing their own country in the Western Regions?"

"We never thought about it!"

"Now you can slowly start to think about it. In the future, not only the Pei family, but also the Dugu family and my wife's family will also support them in establishing a country in the Western Regions."

Seeing that there was no one around, Pei Xiu hurriedly whispered: "You can't talk nonsense, this is rebellion! You must never say it in front of others. Once you are accused, our Pei family will be exterminated."

Li Ye laughed and said, "Standing in front of such a vast sea, your mind and thinking are still so narrow. Feel it! Don't worry, I won't talk about it in front of anyone, including your grandfather, and even you. You can tell it yourself, but just remember one thing."

Li Ye said calmly: "This is my promise to the Pei family!"

Pei Xiu was silent for a moment and said: "In this humble position, I will definitely fulfill my duties faithfully and defend Aral Sea City."

Li Ye pondered for a moment and said: "Listen to me, I am not sure whether the Khazar Khanate will send troops to retake this city, so my request to you is very simple. You build two beacons on the west mountain and recruit Sogdians." Go to guard. Once you find the Khazar army coming, light the beacons immediately. Then you retreat south to Huoxun Kingdom, then go to Kang Kingdom, where our liaison office is, then return to Suiye. Don't fight them. Do you understand? ?This city is inherently flawed and cannot be defended."

"Captain, you mean the city gate?"

Li Ye shook his head, "It's not the city gate, it's the waterway. The opponent will definitely sneak into the city from the sea and cooperate with the inside and outside to seize the city gate. So when you see the beacons rising, you immediately retreat. You can't hesitate anymore. Do you understand?"

"I understand the humble position!"

Li Ye patted him on the shoulder and said seriously: "To be honest, I hope the Khazars will send troops to retake Bandar City. This gives me a reason to send troops. I believe I will come back one day and destroy the Khazar Khanate." .”