Northern desert.
On the desolate and vast grassland, the weather was gloomy and dark clouds covered the sky.
The howling north wind swept across the grassland, carrying a biting chill and the pungent smell of sand and dust, making people involuntarily tighten their collars.
For the Turks who have lived on the northern grasslands for generations, making a living by herding and plundering the people of the border region, today is destined to be a day of sorrow.
Inside the camps of the Turkic Kereit and Naiman tribes, all was draped in white mourning clothes, and cries of grief filled the air.
In the Battle of Panlong Pass in northern Shuo, 100,000 Turkic cavalrymen were wiped out.
Among them, the Kereit tribe, ruled by Great Khan Timur, and the Naiman tribe suffered the heaviest casualties, with more than 50,000 Kereit and Naiman warriors forever buried at Panlong Pass in northern Hebei.
They are all great young men in their early twenties, and they will be the backbone of these two tribes for the next ten or even twenty years.
At this moment, they all became nameless ghosts outside Panlong Pass.
What dealt an even greater blow to the Kereit and Naiman tribes was that Timur, the Great Khan who had once led these two tribes to unify the northern grasslands, was also seriously injured in the Battle of Panlong Pass and remains in a coma to this day.
Timur's serious injury was undoubtedly the final straw that broke the morale of the Turks.
This plunged the Turkic Empire, which was composed of numerous tribes of varying sizes from the northern steppes, into the brink of collapse.
Timur's strategist, Khurel, has temporarily taken over the military and political affairs of the entire Turkic Empire and is racking his brains trying to figure out how to solve the current predicament facing the Turkic Empire.
At this moment, outside a large tent in the Turkic camp, soldiers in armor and carrying swords stood in great numbers, while Han Chinese doctors occasionally entered and exited the tent with fearful expressions.
"Report—"
"Your Majesty, the Khan has awakened and requests that you come to the main tent for a meeting!"
Suddenly, a Turkic messenger in a hurry appeared outside Khurlie's tent and loudly announced to him.
"What?"
Suddenly, Lie Teng stood up from his chair, not even bothering to think about how to save the collapsing building.
He hurriedly got up and ran out of the tent, asking as he went, "Has Dahan woken up?"
"That's good, that's good!"
As they were talking, Hurley hurriedly arrived at the tent where Timur was, and saw Timur who had just woken up from his coma.
At this moment, Timur's already sunken and thin face looked even older, as if he had run out of oil.
"Great Khan, you've finally woken up!"
Khurri knelt down before Timur's window, tears welling in his eyes, and continued, "Great Khan, you have been unconscious for a day and a night, which has worried me and the generals of the Empire to no end!"
Cough cough!
Lying on his sickbed, Timur coughed weakly twice and asked feebly, "Hurlie, where are we now?"
Hurley replied, “Great Khan, we have returned home to our own home on the northern grasslands. The people of the Kereit and Naiman tribes are all with you, Great Khan.”
Um!
Timur nodded slightly and asked, "Where is Chen Huai'an? He didn't lead his troops to pursue us onto the grassland, did he?"
Hurlie said, “Great Khan, rest assured, the Han dog Chen Huai’an and the Han army have not come after us. This northern grassland is our home. If Chen Huai’an dares to invade the northern grassland, Great Khan will not need to take action himself. The Eternal Heaven will deal with him!”
"This northern grassland is the home of our Turkic people, not a place where the Han dog Chen Huai'an and his Han army can run wild!"
Um!
Timur nodded again, agreeing with Khurel's statement.
After all, the terrain in northern Mongolia is complex and the climate is harsh and changeable. Finding Timur's camp accurately on the desolate grasslands is as difficult as climbing to the sky.
Moreover, this northern grassland is the home ground of Timur and his Turkic warriors, and Chen Huai'an's Iron Pagoda heavy cavalry may not be effective here.
With no external threats at present, as long as the internal problems are resolved, Timur can still maintain his position as the Great Khan of the Turkic Empire.
During this southern expedition of the Turkic army, no fewer than 50,000 young men and women from Han China were captured in the northern region, including more than 30,000 women of childbearing age.
Timur only needs to secure his position as Khan to pave the way for his grandchildren.
He now has enough women to bear children, and 20 years from now, among his grandchildren, there will surely be a capable and brave warrior who can once again lead a Turkic army of over 100,000 to march south and avenge his crushing defeat at Yumu River and Panlong Pass at the hands of Chen Polu and his son.
At this thought, two beams of hope shot out from Timur's cloudy eyes.
He asked again, "Hurlie, what was the reaction of the various tribes after the news of the Empire's southern expeditionary army's defeat at Panlong Pass reached the grasslands?"
Hurley hesitated for a moment, then said, "Reporting to the Great Khan, the situation is not optimistic!"
"When news of the army's defeat reached the northern desert, especially after news of the Great Khan's injury, the leaders of the various tribes began to stir."
"On the one hand, they are putting pressure on the Kereit and Naiman tribes, trying to secure more compensation for the soldiers who died in battle for their respective tribes;"
"On the other hand, they also showed a restless desire for the position of Great Khan. In short, they had different thoughts and ulterior motives."
"snort--"
Cough cough!
Timur was about to snort in protest when he accidentally aggravated the wound on his back caused by the halberd thrown by Chen Huai'an. The tearing pain made him cough involuntarily.
In a way, it's said that Timur's fate was not to die.
The tip of Chen Huai'an's halberd missed Timur's heart by only half an inch.
Otherwise, even if Bian Que were reborn or Hua Tuo were resurrected, they could not save Timur's life.
"Darling, calm down! Be careful not to aggravate your wound!"
Seeing that Timur was getting angry, the strategist Hurley quickly stepped forward to help him up and told Timur not to get angry, lest his wounds reopen.
With Khurri's help, Timur managed to sit up on the bed.
Then, with a cold look in his eyes, he said, "Have I not given these ungrateful wolf cubs enough over the years?"
As he spoke, Timur's tone suddenly turned sharp, and he roared, "Khurel, immediately convey my decree to summon the leaders of all tribes to my tent for a meeting!"
"I want to see which wolf cub is so eager to sit on this wolf-head chair under my butt!"
"Your humble servant obeys the decree!"
"Guards! Help me change into armor! The mere superficial wound inflicted by that brat Chen Huai'an's halberd is no match for my very bones!"
"Yes, sir!"
......
That night.
In the Great Khan Timur's tent on the northern grasslands.
Apart from the Kereit and Naiman tribes, the leaders (and deputy leaders) of the other seven steppe tribes gathered in the main tent to discuss the aftermath of the Turkic army's defeat in the southern expedition.
In the very center of the tent, Timur, dressed in traditional Turkic battle attire and wearing a helmet shaped like a wolf's tooth, sat upright on a wolf-head chair.
Standing on either side are the leaders (or deputy leaders) of the seven major tribes.
Timur, full of energy, said in a loud voice: "Gentlemen, the imperial army has suffered a defeat in this southern expedition, and 100,000 Turkic warriors have died on the battlefield."
"The person is gone, but the living remain!"
"What path should the empire take in the future? What should become of the more than one million Turks? Please feel free to speak your mind without any reservations!"
"Your Excellency Timur Khan, I believe..."
"......"
In an instant, the leaders of the various Turkic tribes inside the tent rose one after another, expressing their views in front of Timur and striving for the interests of their respective tribes.
The tribal leaders were all talking at once, and the sounds of their argument filled the large tent.
At the same time.
Under the bright moonlight on the northern grasslands, an unknown number of cavalrymen were traversing the night-covered plains.
The commander of the army was none other than Huo Qubing, the vanguard general of the Longcheng Northern Expeditionary Army, who was ordered by Prince Chen Huai'an of Jin to march north to conquer the Turks.
"Report—"
"Reporting to the General, a Turkic camp has been spotted ten miles ahead!"
At this moment, a scout from the Tiger and Leopard Cavalry rushed to report.
Upon hearing this, a smile finally appeared on Huo Qubing's heroic and resolute face. Heaven rewards those who persevere; he had finally found the Turkic camp.
At this time, Huo Qubing was completely unaware that he had stumbled upon the camp of the Turkic Khan Timur by sheer chance.
Even more unexpectedly, the leaders (and deputy leaders) of several major tribes of the Turkic Empire were also among them.
Acting on his instincts and intuition as a general, Huo Qubing immediately gave the order:
"Pass down the order: the entire army shall discard all baggage except for combat equipment and advance lightly to outflank and encircle the Turkic camp. Move out!"
"Your subordinate obeys!"
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