The Tibetan king would hold an annual meeting with his ministers, and if he was in a good mood, it was not uncommon for him to hold several meetings in a year.
Whenever he wanted to make trouble, all the ministers in the vassal states would set off for the holy city: Lhasa.
The only purpose of their alliance was to ensure the legitimacy of the Tubo Zamp.
Using blood oaths and ancient rituals to prove the king's uniqueness was also an important ceremony for them to sign the contract and swear allegiance to the king.
Songtsen Gampo's influence in Tubo was unmatched, and his grandson Mangsong Mangtsen, after inheriting his glorious legacy, and especially with the assistance of Ludongtsen, put the entire Tubo royal family in an extremely stable and secure situation.
The Tibetan army seemed to be a replica of the Tang army, but only in a general sense.
If we really study the organization of the Tubo army, we will find that their cohesion and loyalty have nothing to do with the country, but only with the people.
Just like the ministers of the vassal states were only loyal to the Tibetan king, not to Tibet, the hierarchy under the monarchy made many officials know the king but not the Tibetans.
Tubo had sixty-one Dongdai troops, just like the Qianhufu of the Tang Dynasty, and each Qianhu was under the command of the next higher level Ru.
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Tubo was divided into seven Rus, each commanding 60,000 households. As the royal family, the most powerful family in the empire, different numbers of people would be drawn from each Ru every year to form the royal army, which was the direct force of the Zamp, while the rest were under the command of the seven Rus.
Therefore, in Tubo, apart from the Zamp and the prime minister Lu Dongzan, the most powerful and most likely to overthrow the Tubo regime were the seven aristocratic classes that ruled over the seven Rus.
Some people also call them the "Seven Kings of Tianchi". They were scattered around the city of Lhasa and were granted fiefs by the Zamp like princes. They were in charge of the army in their hands and fought on the battlefield to stabilize the Zamp's royal family and expand the territory.
Strategies such as instigation of rebellion and alienation are completely useless for Tubo, which is now thriving and has a relatively complete and stable political system.
The people's faith in the Zamp is as clear and pure as the sky here. Their thoughts are also simply loyal to the great god Songtsen Gampo.
Li Hong sat in the tent, listening to the reports from Liebao, Jingzhe and Hengqiao, and slashing the ground back and forth with the sword in his hand. He didn't believe that Tubo was like a solid iron plate with no cracks at all.
"Are you sure we haven't found someone who can be used by us?" Li Hong's tone was very light, as if he was afraid of alarming someone.
But the faces of the two Cheetahs were pale. In two years, they had not succeeded in inciting a rebellion, even for a very important figure in Tubo.
However, their greatest achievement was a great accomplishment without having to use their brains, which was the assassination of Tibetan generals above the rank of a thousand households.
Nowadays, Tubo generals with more than a thousand households are so nervous that they are always guarded by large numbers of soldiers when they go out or come home. They have become national treasures of Tubo.
"The loyalty of each of the Seven Tianchi Kings is beyond our imagination. No matter money, beauty, or power, there is no way to make them have the slightest thought." Liebao and Jingzhe knelt on the ground and said with their heads down.
His Royal Highness the Crown Prince gave them the maximum power, but in the end, apart from assassinating many Tibetan generals together with Heng Qiao of "Jingwei", they had no other merits.
This made them feel very ashamed when facing Li Hong's inquiries, and they felt that they had let down His Highness' trust and expectations of them.
"Do you know Chidu Songjie?" Li Hong took out a list from his arms. In addition to the names of the Seven Kings of Tianchi, there was also a name called Chidu Songjie.
In response to Li Hong's questioning, the three of them looked at each other, then nodded in unison and said, "Master, I know this person."
"Tell me about him." Li Hong watched Bai Qi walk in leisurely from outside. His black fur looked even brighter, like silk, making people want to hold him in their arms and caress him.
"Sir, Chidu Songjie was a minor prime minister of Tubo, only one level lower than the current prime minister of Tubo, Garzangzhuo. He was also a powerful figure in Tubo. I heard that he was very difficult to deal with, but extremely loyal to the Zamp." Liebao looked solemn and said cautiously.
"In addition to the Zamp, the Tibetans have the Grand Chancellor, then the Junior Chancellor, then the Internal Chancellor, the General Chancellor, and so on. Chidu Songjie has been suppressed by Lu Dongzan for many years. Now after his death, he is suppressed by Lu Dongzan's second son, Gal Zangzhuo." Li Hong stroked Bai Qi who was sitting at his feet and continued, "Heng Qiao, you can go to Luoshui and try to contact Chidu Songjie."
Li Hong was able to obtain information about Chidusongjie because Bai Chun secretly delivered the intelligence to him through a caravan after he entered Tubo.
However, Chidu Songjie is just as Liebao said, he is extremely cunning and suspicious and cautious.
So far, only Bai Chun had had brief contact with him, and he didn't get any promise at all.
The Tang Dynasty is now a vast country with a sparse population, not to mention Tibet, which is located on the "Roof of the World" on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau.
Since entering Tubo, Li Hong's more than 20,000 troops have not encountered any effective resistance so far.
Occasionally, they would encounter some small tribal armed forces, with numbers ranging from a few dozen to two or three hundred. After one charge, they would be defeated by Li Hong's cavalry and lose their combat effectiveness.
Just like the small waves splashed by Li Hong's cavalry along the way, they could not pose any threat to Li Hong's cavalry that had been prepared for more than two years.
But as they went deeper and deeper, the number of Tubo soldiers increased. Fortunately, they had two guides, Jingzhe and Liebao, who had traveled around Tubo for nearly two years.
Therefore, Li Hong did not suffer any loss due to his unfamiliarity with the terrain. On the contrary, the previous encounters caused the careless Tibetan soldiers to suffer a lot of losses.
The seven kings of Tianchi each had a royal city, a fiefdom, and each was in charge of a group of Tibetan soldiers and horses.
Judging from the maps drawn by Jingzhe and Liebao, it seems that the Tibetan holy city of Lhasa is placed in the middle, just like the arrangement of the Big Dipper.
These eight cities are basically the most prosperous and largest cities in the Tubo territory. The rest of the small tribes are either dependent on it or suppressed and surrendered.
In short, in this area guarded by several large tribes such as Ali, Shannan, and Nagqu, the Tibetan Zamp was like a god and was worshipped by everyone.
Zedang, the royal city of Nie Chizan, one of the seven kings of Tianchi, is also the first Tibetan general to bear the brunt and will have the first decisive battle with Li Hong.
Wufawutian and Quan Yi were both in the tent, and under the command of Li Hong, their eyes were fixed on the rough map.
Every terrain, every nomadic tribe, even the smallest valley, etc., were carefully analyzed by Li Hong in great detail.
This was the first time that Li Hong started to set up field fortifications. Even Lawless could see a trace of solemnity and caution on Li Hong's face.
Over the past few years, they have followed His Royal Highness the Crown Prince in many small-scale battles, but this is the first time they have built fortifications.
After Li Hong arrived thirty miles outside of Zedang City, he began to build fortifications in this open area to lure in the enemy's positions, fortifications to annihilate the enemy, and fortifications to block the enemy's breakout and provide reinforcements.
Li Hong dug trenches on the wide and flat grassland, which made Wufawutian wonder what the use of them was. Even Nie Chizan, one of the seven Tianchi kings in the opposite Zedang City, was confused.
This perfect battlefield for cavalry assaults was dug by the Tang Dynasty generals like a canal for irrigation. But it is still far away from the Jiqu River. Why did they dig these trenches?
Nie Chizan stood on the top of the city wall and watched. The excellent weather made his vision extremely clear. He could even vaguely see the Tang Dynasty cavalry running back and forth.
Looking at the short-legged horse, Nie Chizan couldn't help but show disdain. Does this short-legged horse think he can beat their tall horses?
A team of about a dozen cavalrymen left a trail of dust on the plain, and then quickly entered through the gate of Zedang City.
After a while, Tibetan soldiers on horseback appeared on the top of the city wall and said to Nie Chizan, "There are about 20,000 Tang cavalrymen. Just like the last time we checked, they have not moved at all, as if they are waiting for reinforcements."
"We will attack tonight without waiting for Si Chizan's reinforcements. With 20,000 troops, we are enough to defeat them. But we have to pay tribute to the warriors of the Tang Dynasty. This is the first time they have invaded our Tubo territory." Nie Chizan was very relaxed, as if when the sun rose tomorrow, those Tang Dynasty soldiers outside the city would be killed by them or become their slaves.
The Tang cavalry was not good at fighting on the plateau, and their war horses now looked short and small, and could not withstand the impact of their Tibetan horses.
If he cannot defeat these people with the 50,000 men in his hands, he will have to give up the title of one of the Seven Heavenly Red Kings.
During the comfortable day, it slowly basks in the sun, away from people's sight.
The hazy night, accompanied by a cool breeze, forced people to wake up and start resisting the long cold night.
The tents of the Tang army on the plain were brightly lit, but no one knew how they got the food and supplies.
This place is remote, but looking at the appearance of the Tang army, it doesn't look like they are coming from a long expedition at all. They have plenty of food and fodder, and it seems as if they just came out of a city.
Fifty thousand cavalrymen drove out of the city gate silently, and then the wide city gate slowly closed.
Under the leadership of Nie Chizan, the Tibetan soldiers did not charge immediately, but marched slowly until they could clearly see the brightly lit tents of the Tang Dynasty and even the soldiers walking at the door. Only then did they begin to silently deploy their formation like a tide, preparing to attack the Tang Dynasty's garrison camp.
Nie Chizan looked at the still unaware Tang camp and sneered, "Is the Tang commander a pig? We have come here, and they still don't know it."
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