In fact, Li Jue had not expected that the small country in the Western Regions was so weak. He only ordered his men to build a few ladders, and the city was easily breached.
Has no one in this place ever thought of building a ladder all these years?
When Yi Pi She Kui saw that Li Jue had brought back so many cattle, sheep and valuables, he excitedly stepped forward and hugged his good brother.
"Brother, you're amazing! You managed to recover so much tax revenue from Kucha!"
Upon hearing this, Li Jue smiled slightly and then flattered Yi Pi She Kui, the little Khan.
"This is all thanks to the Khan's great reputation; I dare not take credit for it!"
Upon hearing this, Yi Pi She Kui immediately objected and retorted.
"No, no, no!"
"I have no reputation whatsoever. It is all thanks to your excellent command that we have achieved such great success!"
After praising Li Jue, Yi Pi She Kui turned to the elders behind him.
"Elders, do you still think my ideas are too naive?"
Upon hearing this, Wu Nushibi and the others bowed in unison.
"The Khan is adept at recognizing and employing talent, a skill far beyond our reach!"
Yi Pi She Kui laughed heartily upon hearing this.
He invited Li Jue to serve as an official for two reasons: first, to express his gratitude for Li Jue saving his life, and second, to use Li Jue to keep these Turkic elders in check.
These Turkic elders wielded immense power, even to the point of being able to depose and install the Khan.
After all, the reason he, a shepherd boy, was able to become Khan was because they deposed the previous Khan, which made it his turn.
Therefore, after succeeding as Khan, he kept thinking about how to break free from the control of these elders.
The Turkic people were almost entirely composed of these elders' people; even his guards and maids were spies sent by these elders.
Left with no other choice, he had to seek outside help.
Li Jue was the best outside help. He had saved his life, they were about the same age, and he was very talented.
"I have made my decision. I will appoint the Shi Dakai brothers as Shi Da Khans and let them lead the 50,000 herders left behind by Yibi Dulu!"
"ah?"
Upon hearing Yi Pi She Kui's words, Wu Nu Shi Bi and the others were completely dumbfounded.
"Khan, you must not!"
"Mr. Shi Dakai is, after all, a Tang man. How can he lead us grassland herders!"
Li Jue also felt that the reward was too generous. The number of 50,000 herdsmen was not 50,000, but hundreds of thousands.
Having just arrived on the grasslands and only helped Yipi Shekui collect some taxes, he was given 50,000 tents of herdsmen. Even as an outsider, he felt this was excessive.
However, he was still very happy that Yipi Shekui valued him so much, which proved that his choice was not wrong.
Yi Pi She Kui snorted coldly upon hearing this.
“Our grassland officials don’t have salaries. If they don’t give them to our brothers, the herdsmen and common people, what will they eat and drink on the grassland!”
"Moreover, with my brother's abilities, he was able to be granted land and titles in the Tang Dynasty. If I don't show enough sincerity when he comes to our harsh grasslands, how can I live up to my brother's friendship!"
"That's settled then. From now on, those 50,000 herdsmen will be under my brother's command!"
When Wu Nushibi and the others heard Yi Pi She Kui say this, they could only shut their mouths in embarrassment, and then asked how the tax levied on Kucha should be divided.
This time, Yipi Shekui gave them face by directly entrusting the tax collection to Elder Wunushibi, allowing him to delegate responsibilities.
Upon hearing this, Wu Nushibi's expression softened slightly. Following the customs of the grasslands, he distributed a portion to each tribe and then gave the remaining half to the Khan.
He knew that the Khan had just ascended the throne and needed to reward his subordinates with wealth to win the hearts of the people, so he deliberately gave Yipi Shekui a little more.
Otherwise, strictly according to the rules of the grasslands, Yipi Shekui could only receive a maximum of one-third.
After the distribution of the wealth, Yipi Shekui personally hosted a banquet for Li Jue and presented him with maids, servants, tents, and so on.
Li Jue declined several times, but when he realized he couldn't refuse any longer, he reluctantly accepted.
As the banquet ended and everyone was leaving, Li Jue seized the opportunity to speak.
"Khan, haven't you given me too much?"
"If I were to take command of 50,000 herders as soon as I arrived, no one would be convinced..."
Yi Pi She Kui smiled slightly upon hearing this.
"Just keep it!"
"If I don't reward you with these 50,000 herdsmen, they will be divided up by those elders and become the private property of their tribe!"
"oh?"
Upon hearing this, Li Jue immediately realized that the matter was not as simple as it seemed.
Seeing that Li Jue understood, Yi Pi She Kui immediately explained to him helplessly.
“Our grasslands are different from your Tang Dynasty. We don’t have a unified court here. It’s basically a loose alliance of various tribes.”
"Elder Wunushibi and the others each have their own tribes, herdsmen, and pastures. They are first the chieftains of their own tribes, and only then are they my subjects."
"Therefore, I often can't control them."
"I allocated these 50,000 people to you simply because I didn't want them to divide them up. Once they divide them up, their strength will increase, and my presence as Khan will become even less significant."
Upon hearing this, Li Jue basically understood that he was Yi Pi She Kui's front man.
"Your subordinate understands. I am here to lead these 50,000 herders on behalf of the Khan..."
Yi Pi She Kui smiled slightly upon hearing this.
"It can't be said that they are ruling on my behalf. They are also your people, and from now on, their lives will depend entirely on your management!"
"Are you really going to take care of it?"
"certainly!"
"Didn't you always tell me that if you were given a county, you would govern it to become rich and powerful?"
"Now I'll give you a tribe with 50,000 tents, let's see if you're bragging, hahaha!"
Li Jue never expected that Yi Pi She Kui would remember his casual remark from years ago for so long.
"Thank you for your trust, Khan. I will do my best to lead them well!"
Along the way, Li Jue helped Yipi Shekui collect taxes from several small countries, thus solidifying his position among the Turks.
Even Wu Nushibi and others no longer held a grudge against him for leading 50,000 herdsmen.
Of course, the main reason was that he had figured it out and realized that Shi Dakai was just the Khan's agent, managing the 50,000 tented herders on behalf of the Khan.
Now that a new Khan has been established, and it was they who requested the Tang Dynasty to bestow the title, they really have no reason to change him again, so they can only let this Khan do whatever he wants.
Li Jue followed Yi Pi She Kui to the winter capital of Ying Suo Chuan, officially taking over his 50,000 herders and reorganizing and redistributing their grazing areas and the size of their tribes.
Just as Li Jue was making great strides on the grasslands, Li Shimin's desk was piled high with documents from the Western Regions.
"The Western Turkic Khan, Yipi Shekui, dispatched Shidakai to conquer three cities of Kucha in succession, forcing the Kucha ruler, Helibushibi, to resume paying taxes to the Western Turkic Khanate!"
"Khan Yipi Shekui once again dispatched Jieli Fashidakai, bypassing the Han Sea, and directly attacking Yanqi, forcing the ruler of Yanqi to pay tribute to the Western Turks!"
"Yibi Shekui Khan allocated 50,000 households of people to Shida Khan's command, appointing him as the King of the Western Expedition, with the intention of conquering Kang and Shi..."
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