As soon as Ashina's words were finished, a soft discussion immediately sounded in the big tent.

He raised his hand to stop everyone's whispering, and continued to say aloud: "Whenever Shengtang ushers in an era of political stability and centralized imperial power, it only takes a short time for them to accumulate great strength and begin to find all kinds of just, but in fact absurd excuses, eyeing and stretching out their claws for the nations and countries around them. Especially those who have the ability to threaten them, Saint Tang will never be soft-hearted, let alone soft-hearted! Ladies and gentlemen, your ancestors in the Western Xinjiang may feel the same way, right? You say, 'Do I have half a lie?' ”

The old king of the Peerless Kingdom even coughed and wheezed, and replied angrily: "The Great Khan is right! The eighth, eleventh, and twenty-third emperors of the Holy Tang Dynasty sent troops to the western frontier three times, killing ghosts and deserts, and corpses piled up like mountains and blood gathered into a sea. The five previous kings before and after our Elite Kingdom all died under the saber of the Holy Tang! These accounts, in the exquisite history books, are clearly remembered one by one! More recently, just more than 20 years ago, Li Chengwen, the last emperor of the Holy Tang Dynasty, gathered an army of more than 400,000 tigers and wolves, carried out the edict of 'slaughtering the country', and committed a lot of atrocities in the western Xinjiang, I will never forget! Can't forget! ”

Hearing this, the important ministers and generals of the Turkic side stood up one after another, and shouted in unison: "The hatred of the country and the family will not be forgotten for generations!" ”

Their indignant looks, as if the Holy Tang army had killed not the 36 countries in Western Xinjiang, but the Turks.

Facing the slightly stunned kings of the Western Frontier, Ashina waved his hand lightly and said with a smile: "Now you should understand, right?" The reason why we mobilized the people to crusade against the Shengtang was not to plunder the wealth of the land, let alone to create my personal great achievements and leave a name in history. What I hope for is to be able to completely subjugate that evil nation, so that they no longer have the ability and opportunity to enslave and oppress the weak country; I hope that the people in this world can live freely and freely from now on, and they will not be worried all day long because of Shengtang's ambition. Of course, this also includes Western Xinjiang. ”

This generous statement, though not very inflammatory, succeeded in resonating with the kings of the Western Frontier because of its specious sophistry examples. For them, the most serious problem in Shengtang is probably the interpretation of the word "conquest".

In the history of the ghost desert in Western Xinjiang, there were not no other foreign invaders, and the Turkic people in front of them were also one of them. Before the Tang Dynasty, the early Turkic khanates ruled the land for a hundred years.

In the face of powerful military conquest, each nation has its own way of coping. Either they rise up and never give in; Either compromise and concession, secretly playing; Either they are obedient and willing to be slaves.

One way or another, it makes sense.

And the true wisdom is what our ancestors constantly told future generations: time is the best weapon.

A long history, a drop in the ocean. As soon as the time comes, all those rulers who ride on their heads will disappear. The difference is only whether it is two years or two hundred years.

But no matter how long it takes, as long as you are willing to persevere, it is equivalent to victory. Because, after all, you are still the same you, and you have not changed for generations.

However, the "conquest" of Shengtang broke this truth - after a long time, you may not still be the original you.

The people of Shengtang are indeed very kind, and even sometimes seem very soft, but deep down, they have a kind of resilience and rigidity towards civilization.

Whether they stand beside you or ride on your head, with the passage of time, the splendid civilization of the Central Plains, which is soft on the outside and strong on the inside, will gradually assimilate the spiritual core of other peoples, so that you will unconsciously integrate into them and become them.

Although there are still differences in appearance and language, in the end, only the difference in appearance and language remains.

This astonishing assimilation of civilization, combined with the strength of the country and the mighty army, has a more subtle and terrifying impact on all nations and vassal states than pure conquest by force.

If you think about it carefully, it is really not a fluke to develop from a small Jinhe tribe to a huge empire with a vast territory, which has not only stood for hundreds of thousands of years, but also has become stronger and stronger and more proud of the world.

Because of this, the Turkic Great Khan Ashina was deeply afraid of Shengtang and was determined to conquer it completely.

People can understand the reasons why he started the war from the perspective of their own habits. Conquest, indeed, means endless land, wealth and glory. But at the same time, everyone cannot deny that the powerful civilization represented by the Holy Tang Dynasty has always been a terrifying existence for foreigners.

The use of force to conquer the Holy Tang and completely tie up the hands and feet of the Eastern civilization may be the most reassuring and desirable result for all those who fear him.

The key question is, can Shengtang really be conquered by force?

The kings of the Western Frontier sitting in the tent actually didn't care much about this issue. Whether the Turks conquer Shengtang or Shengtang defeats the Turks, this is the gods fighting, as little ghosts, they can't decide anything at all.

Of course, they have also heard the proverb: Immortals fight, and imps suffer.

Choosing sides often means high risks and huge costs. The expulsion of the Shengtang forces here and the restoration of freedom in the Western Xinjiang and the conquest of the Shengtang Dynasty in the Western Xinjiang with the Turks are two completely different issues.

Where to go from here is still to be pondered.

The day after the banquet, the Prince of the Temple, Ronia, gathered the kings of the Western Frontier countries together to formally discuss the crusade against the Holy Tang. As allies, no one wants to stay out of the common enemy.

Alekjiang and they are all treacherous and cunning characters, so no one rushed to express their opinions, but just sat there quietly, listening to Ronia's will to convey the will of the Turkic Khan and assign tasks.

The first is military spending and food and grass.

The Turks dispatched a total of 17 legions, a full 550,000 troops. People eat horses and chew them, which is a huge burden. And this burden should be directly pressed on the body of the Western Xinjiang Alliance.

Previously, when the rebellion broke out in Western Xinjiang, the two sides had reached a secret agreement: as support, all the needs of the Turkic army that came to participate in the war would be shared by the Western Xinjiang countries.

At that time, Alekjiang, Tajikistan, Gelhan and others all felt that the Turks were thousands of miles away and desperately came to help us fight the Holy Tang, and then guarded the gate of the Western Xinjiang like a divine beast, resisting the counterattack of the Holy Tang, and it was natural to take care of food and shelter.

Therefore, the three legions of the northern and southern battalions, plus the iron pigeon army of Duolun, and the food, drink, and silver of 140,000 troops, the Western Xinjiang Alliance didn't even think about it, so it patted its chest and happily agreed.

However, the current situation is very different. Because of the eastward expedition to Shengtang, Ronia suddenly increased this military expenditure by more than six times, and the pressure that only needed to supply 140,000 troops was now directly 550,000, which immediately made the entire Western Frontier Alliance feel a little breathless.

You know, these kings in front of them still owe a lot of debts outside!

Faced with the astronomical apportionment of expenses, the kings of Western Xinjiang all felt bitter in their mouths and sour in their hearts. However, no matter how entangled, no one dared to stand up and object.

Even a soft snort, no.

The reason is very simple. The 550,000 Turkic heroes were standing outside, and with this power, it was enough to make all living beings in the world obediently shut up and let His Highness Roya rub and pinch it flat.

"Good. Since Your Highnesses are so well aware of the great righteousness and are all willing to fully support the great cause of the Eastern Crusade, then on behalf of the Khan and the Turkic soldiers, I would like to thank you all in advance. The Prince of the Temple, Ronia, said thanks, but there was no hint of gratitude in his tone. His demeanor was like greeting his own servant, calm and unpretentious.

Gerhan frowned slightly, and was about to whisper a few words to the Tajik next to him to exchange the dissatisfaction in his heart, but he didn't expect the old king of Shule to cough lightly twice, and said in a low voice: "If you don't want to die, don't talk nonsense!" ”

Gerhan was slightly startled, quickly straightened up, and looked back at the Prince of the Temple who was sitting in the center with the most respectful eyes.

I only heard Roya continue: "The issue of military expenses and food and grass, let's settle it like this first, and then ask His Royal Highness Alikjiang to discuss and discuss with you carefully, see how to implement it, come up with a specific plan, and submit it to the Khan's Imperial Palace." In this way, we move on to the second matter. ”

After asking for money, food and grass, he immediately asked for people.

The second request from the Turks was for the Western Xinjiang states to provide the manpower needed for the Eastern Crusade.

Ronald pointed out that the Holy Tang Dynasty had a vast territory and a large population, and in the case of full mobilization, it could casually recruit millions of soldiers, and if it wanted to completely conquer it, it would inevitably lead to a series of battles and countless casualties. In order to ensure the combat needs of the Eastern Expeditionary Corps, a large number of civilian laborers were very necessary, and they would undertake the auxiliary tasks of transporting materials, building equipment, constructing fortifications, etc., to ensure that the Turkic army could concentrate and exert its maximum combat power.

As for the concept of "huge quantity", how much does it mean?

Ronia gave a preliminary estimate of the answer: 800,000 people.

All the kings, including the Alekjan, were dumbfounded when they heard this. 800,000 young and middle-aged laborers from the Western Xinjiang countries left their hometowns and followed the Turks on an expedition to Shengtang? This is kidding us, isn't it?

But the words of the Prince of the Temple, Ronia, were not finished.

In addition to the large number of people, the Turkic side believed that it was necessary to send another 200,000 to 250,000 troops to the western Xinjiang as friendly troops to cooperate with the main force of the Eastern Expedition.

At this moment, the pot immediately exploded in the big tent.