The Ming Dynasty had no advantage in the war against Tibet.

After Timur's cavalry inflicted heavy damage on the Northern Yuan cavalry, they became more and more arrogant and domineering.

The Ming army was well-equipped with firearms, just like a turtle shell, but the cunning thing about Timur's cavalry was that they did not cause any trouble for the Ming army.

Let your army stay here, and I will just plunder everywhere.

The Ming army’s main tent.

Dozens of generals were discussing the matter.

"Duke, the Timurid cavalry is too arrogant now. They often send small groups of cavalry to harass our army. When our army is ready, they immediately retreat. They are just like rats."

"It's really frustrating to fight a battle like this. I'm afraid I have all the energy in my body but nowhere to use it."

The person who spoke was Kong Shengxiong, who had once served under Xu Da and was a general from the Zhongshan King faction.

Of course, when Xu Dacheng became famous, he was just a small soldier at the gate, but now he is a general.

Upon hearing this, Xu Huizu frowned and did not answer.

After arriving in Tubo, they found that things were far more troublesome than they had imagined. These Timurid cavalrymen were extremely cunning. Except for the last encounter when they came to rescue the Northern Yuan cavalry, they had never fought against them again.

The Ming army headed east, and Timur's cavalry headed west.

The Ming army went west, and Timur's cavalry went north.

In terms of movement speed, the Ming army naturally had no way to catch up with the cavalry and could only watch Timur's cavalry running around, which made many generals feel very depressed and passive.

"Duke, we can't go any deeper. The supply in the rear was attacked by Timur's cavalry a few days ago. If we hadn't prepared in advance, the loss of food and grass in the rear would have been huge."

"If we go deeper, the supply lines behind us will be lengthened, and Timur's cavalry will have more opportunities."

"They want to trap us here in Tibet."

An older general stood up and bowed.

Xu Huizu bowed in return and said, "General Zhang is right. Nowadays, many local chieftains have secretly surrendered to Timur's cavalry. They provided them with our route, so they were blocked by the enemy."

"According to reliable intelligence, Timur's cavalry dispersed a part of their cavalry and headed to the Western Regions, where they are slaughtering and looting people in an attempt to disrupt us."

"The Crown Prince has issued an order to have the Ming cavalry go out from the Nine Borders to the Western Regions to intercept and kill. We will have to wait for some time."

"The important goal of our army now is to maintain the suppression of Timur's main force. Once our Ming cavalry successfully defeats them in the Western Regions, we can surround and kill them from two directions."

General Zhang was a general who followed Xu Da very early on. He was unknown in history, but even though Xu Huizu was the Duke of Wei, he had to give him some respect.

Xu Da's title of ever-victorious general should be attributed half to the efforts of his subordinates.

Kong Shengxiong said: "Duke, what's going on with those Northern Yuan cavalrymen? Our court has given them so much money and food, are they just watching the show?"

"They were so high-spirited when they came here, but after losing the battle, their morale has dropped completely. Now they don't even dare to fight Timur's cavalry."

Xu Huizu was silent for a moment and said, "Don't count on it for now."

Kong Shengxiong didn't understand and asked, "Why can they watch the show there?"

General Zhang couldn't bear to watch it anymore and said, "General Kong, you really can't read. You should at least listen to the news from the capital."

"The imperial report from the capital has clearly stated that a railway line will be built from the capital to the nine borders. Once completed, our Ming army will be able to reach the important towns in the nine borders in just two or three days."

"The Northern Yuan Dynasty is already arguing a lot. They say that while helping us fight Timur, the Ming court is secretly taking precautions against the Northern Yuan Dynasty."

"The envoys from the Northern Yuan Dynasty have already set out for the capital, demanding that the Ming Dynasty immediately stop building the railway to the nine borders."

Kong Shengxiong chuckled and said, "I am a reckless man, please don't mind, Duke."

He really didn't know about this.

Under this situation, we still have to guard against the Northern Yuan cavalry in Tubo.

If the imperial court fell out with the Northern Yuan Dynasty, these cavalry might attack them again.

"Then our money and food were given away for free, right?" Kong Shengxiong couldn't help but say another sentence.

Xu Huizu said, "It's OK. It's just a part of the deposit. After receiving the news, the court has stopped transporting money and food to the Northern Yuan cavalry. If these Northern Yuan cavalry don't withdraw soon, the cost will be even greater."

Xu Huizu actually had a headache at this moment.

Because Timur has not been settled yet, the Ming Dynasty may fall out with the Northern Yuan Dynasty again.

The imperial court has already issued a clear order to build railways to the nine borders, and it will definitely not stop because of the Northern Yuan Dynasty.

Moreover, any discerning person could see that the imperial court’s intention was very clear, which was to increase the number of troops in the nine borders, suppress the grassland, and even launch an offensive.

Compared with Timur, the Northern Yuan Dynasty was the most serious threat to the Ming Dynasty.

After all, Samarkand is too far away, and Timur can only make trouble in the U-Tsang area. No matter how powerful their cavalry is, they will be helpless once they enter the Ming Dynasty and encounter strong walls.

The Northern Yuan Dynasty was different.

Decades ago, they were still the imperial court in the Central Plains.

Now that the Ming Dynasty is growing in power, it is in the process of completely eliminating hidden dangers.

This made Xu Huizu suffer, as he was now caught between Timur and the Northern Yuan Dynasty.

Once the Northern Yuan Dynasty and the Ming Dynasty fall out, life will be difficult.

"Duke, given the current situation, it is impossible to pursue Timur. Even if we can catch up with him, if the Northern Yuan Dynasty joins forces with him, our army will be in great danger."

"I suggest that the army return to U-Tsang Prefecture immediately and wait for follow-up news from the imperial court and the Northern Yuan Dynasty. This will also ensure that we are invincible."

General Zhang spoke.

Kong Shengxiong couldn't help but ask: "Don't you care about Tubo anymore? Once we retreat, Timur's cavalry will certainly plunder and massacre here. Many chieftains have already secretly surrendered to us. If we leave, it will be like handing over the entire Tubo to us."

"No matter what, Tibet is a vassal state of the Ming Dynasty. If the imperial court blames us, what should we do?"

Faced with Kong Shengxiong's question, General Zhang remained silent.

Of course he cannot bear the responsibility, and the final decision lies in Xu Huizu's hands.

Xu Huizu frowned, of course he knew the situation.

Now we are in a dilemma.

At that time, a general stood up and said, "Duke, I think we should retreat. If we lose Tubo, we can take it back. But if the Northern Yuan defected, we would be almost powerless to fight back against the alliance between the Northern Yuan and Timur."

"Even our cavalry going to the Western Regions may be intercepted by the Northern Yuan Dynasty."

"Those Tibetan chieftains are on our side in public, but they work for Timur in secret. They don't know what's good for them. We should take this opportunity to make them wake up."

Xu Huizu needed a step, and now that someone had brought it to him, he naturally went down it.

He immediately said: "The lives of those chieftains are lives, and the lives of our brothers are lives, too. I can't let my brothers fall into danger for the chieftains."

"Pass on my military order, and set off today to return to U-Tsang Prefecture. If the court imposes any punishment, I will bear the responsibility alone."

Xu Huizu sighed in his heart and finally made the decision.

He also knew that if the Ming army retreated, Timur's cavalry would certainly carry out a massive massacre, but as the saying goes, a merciful man cannot command an army, so how could he put the Ming army's soldiers in danger for the sake of the chieftains and the people?

After Xu Huizu finished speaking, the generals present all stood up and bowed, saying, "I obey your command."

…

Cabest was the commander of Timur's army that attacked the Ming Dynasty.

He once led his army to conquer a large amount of land in the Indus River Basin. He was cruel, cunning and murderous by nature. He was a very famous general under Timur.

"Your Excellency, the commander-in-chief, the Ming army has started to move. They are afraid of the general's strength and are like a puppy in the water, so they chose to escape."

"The whole of Tibet will become our pasture. Warriors have already drawn their swords and are ready to slaughter those poor lambs."

Cabest was roasting mutton in the big tent. He cut off a piece with a dagger and put it in his mouth. Then he said with satisfaction: "The moment the hot lamb is cut, it is the most delicious. From today on, the warriors of Samarkand are the masters of the entire Tubo."

"Tell them that all lambs who are unwilling to surrender can be killed. We must let Timur's name resound throughout the Tibetan sky. We are the strongest warriors from Samarkand. Nothing can stop the impact of the warriors of Samarkand."

"Any enemy who dares to resist the warriors of Samarkand will be baptized in blood."

The soldiers who reported the incident shouted: "Follow your will, honorable commander. Our warriors will crush any enemy who dares to resist."

Cabest nodded and said, "Go, my dear sons of the grassland, and enjoy the fruits of victory."

Cabest was very excited about the retreat of the Ming army.

Previously they had been chased and attacked, and the Ming army's firearms were too powerful, so Timur's cavalry could not attack at all.

As long as there were a thousand men in the army, Timur's cavalry would have no way to charge.

Powerful firearms created a suppression force. Their muskets had a longer range than bows and arrows, and their artillery was more powerful and more numerous than Timur's army.

So Cabest can only be transferred continuously.

While providing them with intelligence, Tubo was also providing intelligence to the Ming army.

This also led to Timur's army not daring to stay in one place for too long.

The cavalry can move quickly, but the key is the slave army.

Although Cabest never cared about the casualties of the slave army, if all of them died, the logistical support of the cavalry would become difficult.

They can transport food, and when food is scarce, they themselves can serve as food.

After Cabest gave the order, all the cavalry began to cheer, and what was about to happen was a feast.

Not long after, another soldier came to report.

It was said that there was an envoy from the Northern Yuan Dynasty who wanted to meet him.

"Let them in."

Soon, three men in Mongolian costumes came into the tent.

He placed his hand on his forehead and saluted: "Eagle on the grassland, I have met a friend from afar. The glory of the same ancestors flows in our blood. We should not be enemies, but common allies."

In terms of relationship, it is true that both the Northern Yuan Dynasty and Timur belong to the bloodline of Genghis Khan.

But in fact, it can be seen from the difference in clothing that the Mongolian clothing of the Northern Yuan Dynasty is very orthodox, and while the Cabest looks roughly the same, there are actually huge differences.

Although Timur also claimed to be a descendant of Genghis Khan, he had actually become largely Turkicized.

However, Mongolian and Turkic have the same origin and the same underlying vocabulary.

There is not much difference now, and the dialects they speak to each other are similar to the dialects of the two regions in the Central Plains.

Cabest snorted coldly, "Since you are all descendants of the great Genghis Khan, why do you want to help the despicable Ming Dynasty? Just because they gave you bones, you are like hyenas, gnawing on the bones when you see them, betraying the glory of our great ancestors?"

"It is said that decades ago, you, the Northern Yuan Dynasty, were once the masters of this eastern land, but now you have to accept charity from your enemies."

Cabest's words made the Mongolian envoys feel greatly humiliated, but now they could only endure it.

The messenger in the middle stood up and said, "Friends from afar, the eagle flying high in the sky will occasionally be blinded by the wind and sand. The cunning Ming people used money and food to exchange for peace, making the warriors on the grassland lose their way."

"Now that we have seen through the Ming people's conspiracy, the Emperor of the Northern Yuan Dynasty apologizes to the Sultan of Samarkand and hopes that the wolves on the same grassland can unite to fight our enemies together."

Cabest also felt the same way.

Of course, he also wanted to join forces with the Northern Yuan Dynasty to attack the Ming Dynasty.

Compared to the poor Tubo, the wealthy Ming Dynasty is the place they most want to go.

The wealth there is far beyond what these chieftains can compare to.

Just as Cabest was about to speak, the counselor next to him came over and whispered something in Cabest's ear.

Cabest's eyes lit up as he asked, "The Ming Dynasty invented a flammable carriage that can reach anywhere in a few days, is that right?"

The greed in his tone was very obvious. In today's Samarkand, cement roads are being built everywhere, allowing their cavalry to move faster.

Pirmahem, who offered the secret recipe of cement, has become the most trusted person of His Majesty the Sultan and has gained more power.

If he could obtain the secret of the train and present it to His Majesty the Sultan, he would surely receive the most generous reward.

The messenger replied: "Yes, the burning carriage can only run on steel. The despicable Ming people are building a railway to the grassland. Once they succeed, they will be able to quickly reach the border of the grassland."

Cabest said: "If you, the Northern Yuan Dynasty, are willing to help me seize the secret recipe of the Ming Dynasty's burning train, I will lead the army, and the warriors of Samarkand will help you attack the Ming Dynasty."

The messenger replied: "This is difficult. The burning train is in the capital of Ming Dynasty. It is impossible for our people to get it."

Cabest smiled and said, "As long as you are willing to pay enough money, there are many people willing to work hard for it."