Dark Sand: My Players Are All Actors

"Giddy up!"

Li Hongyun happily spurred his horse, continuing to dash forward.

Yet, at that moment, a minister resembling a civil official spoke from horseback, "The strength of the bandits is formidable. Your Majesty, you first detained the envoy Shi Sili, and then you engaged the grand army with only six men, thus putting yourself in grave danger. I believe this journey is far too perilous. Your Majesty must not underestimate the enemy and walk into the jaws of death with the honor of commanding ten thousand chariots!"

Li Hongyun glanced at him, recognizing the man as Xiao Yu, a prominent minister from the early years of the Liang Dynasty and one of the six companions on this journey.

Among the other five were notable ministers like Gao Shilian and Fang Xuanling.

As someone who had seen the standard answer in history, Li Hongyun laughed heartily, unconcerned.

"You may rest assured, I have considered everything!

"The reason why the Turkic people dare to march upon us, reaching the outskirts of Chang'an, is because they know our nation is in trouble, and I have just ascended to the throne, they assume that I cannot defend against the enemy.

"If we show weakness and shut our doors in defense, it would be equivalent to exposing our fear to the Turks. Then, they will surely unleash their soldiers to burn, kill, and loot everywhere, and once that happens, things will become uncontrollable.

"Now, I am riding out alone, seemingly in contempt of them, before displaying our military might and the posture for a decisive battle. The Turkic people, deep in the heart of our Liang territory, must surely be fearful.

"Watch carefully; we shall subdue the Turks in one fell swoop!"

Li Hongyun's speech was essentially the original words of Emperor Taizong of Liang, so he spoke with great confidence.

Actually, even before Emperor Taizong of Liang had met with Jie Li Khan on the banks of the Wei River, Jie Li Khan had already sent the envoy Shi Sili to meet with Emperor Taizong.

Shi Sili was also an intriguing character, a chieftain of the Eastern Turks and a trusted general of Jie Li Khan.

That Jie Li Khan sent him to meet Emperor Taizong in Chang'an showed great trust in him and was also a way to probe the reality of the situation.

After meeting Emperor Taizong, Shi Sili declared, "Jie Li Khan and Tulikhan have already led an army of a million to come."

His words were clearly brimming with boasting intent.

But Emperor Taizong directly scolded him, "I had personally agreed with your Khan to make peace, and we have before given you much gold and silver. Yet you betray our alliance and charge deep into our lands! You are Rong Di people, but you should also possess a human heart. How can you forget my kindness to you, boasting about your strong troops and horses? I should execute you right now!"

Shi Sili was immediately terrified by the imperial might, begging on his knees for mercy.

Later, ministers like Xiao Yu advised Emperor Taizong to send him back according to etiquette, but Emperor Taizong believed that the Turks sending envoys to boast was already an excessive act. Sending him back without action would show weakness and make the Turks believe the Liang Dynasty feared them.

Thus, Emperor Taizong imprisoned Shi Sili and then proceeded to the banks of the Wei River to meet with Jie Li Khan.

After the pact at the Wei River was established, Shi Sili was released and returned north to the Turks.

Later, as Li Jing extinguished the Turks and Shi Sili had high prestige among the Turks, Emperor Taizong ordered him to persuade them to surrender, gradually becoming a famous general of Liang. He even married Emperor Taizong's sister and joined Li Jing in battles against the powers of Tuguhun, Tibet, and Xue Yantuo.

In fact, from the detention of Shi Sili, it was evident that Emperor Taizong had already decided to play tough with the Turks and force them to retreat using a "display of an empty fort" strategy.

And the series of actions at the Wei River was a clear implementation of this central idea.

Now, Li Hongyun was about to continue with this strategic play, following Emperor Taizong's strategic thoughts.

After Li Hongyun finished speaking, he spurred his horse forward, arriving at the banks of the Wei River.

At that time, there was a makeshift bridge on the Wei River, and the Turkic's two hundred thousand strong soldiers were arrayed on the northern bank, their banners fluttering in the wind.

Li Hongyun arrived at the bridge and shouted at the Turks across the river, "Jie Li! We had long established a covenant and agreed to peace. Why then have you brought troops to invade our borders today? You are Rong Di people but should still have a human heart. Such betrayal of the covenant, what face do you have to lead the Turks!"

His words were full of heroic spirit and commanding authority.

After speaking, the sound of horse hooves roared behind him.

The Liang Army's cavalry galloped rapidly, forming ranks as well at the bank of the Wei River.

Banners flying, the troops in perfect order!

In Li Hongyun's heart, a feeling of great valor naturally arose, "This is how a true man should be!"

However, the Turkic people across the Wei River showed little reaction.

Li Hongyun furrowed his brow, sensing that something was amiss.

According to historical accounts, at this moment, Jie Li Khan should have been overcome with shame, at a loss for words, and the Turkic cavalry should have shown fear on their faces.

As for the chieftains of the smaller tribes brought by Jie Li Khan, they would even cross the Wei River to pay homage to Emperor Taizong of Liang.

But none of these events were happening.

The Turkic cavalry on the other side of the river didn't respond at all; instead, the thunderous sounds of their horses' hooves approached, and the 200,000-strong army unexpectedly started the battle without any warning!

Li Hongyun was immediately baffled.

Huh?

That's not how the script goes!

The Turkic people acted as though they didn't regard Emperor Taizong of Liang at all. Seeing the opposing emperor rashly approach the front lines, they launched an attack directly!

After a brief moment of astonishment, Li Hongyun angrily led his soldiers into battle with the Turkic forces.

The combat prowess of Emperor Taizong of Liang was indeed off the charts. Li Hongyun, on horseback with bow drawn and arrow nocked, felled the Turkic cavalry one after another.

However, there was still a significant difference in the strength of their forces. After a fierce battle, Li Hongyun was forced to retreat to Chang'an City with his troops.

And the moment he returned to Chang'an City, the historical snapshot's timeline froze.

This challenge was declared a failure.

…

Back to square one.

Li Hongyun's brows were tightly knit, somewhat unable to understand what had gone wrong.

In history, the record of the Alliance at the Wei River wasn't especially detailed.

Thus, Li Hongyun only knew that Emperor Taizong of Liang had put up a grand front before the supposed million-strong Turkic army, leading to the establishment of a treaty and the withdrawal of the Turkic troops.

But the Turkic forces this time seemed not to play by the rules, acting completely like reckless youths.

"It's strange; these Turkic people acted as if they had never heard of Lord Qin's formidable reputation, which is unreasonable…"

Li Hongyun quickly grasped the crux of the problem.

The tactic of Emperor Taizong's intimidating an enemy into submission without a fight hinged on a critical premise: his immense prestige on the grasslands.

That's why, upon his arrival, the chieftains of the smaller tribes would cross the river to kneel in homage.

But this time, not only did the chieftains not show up, even Jie Li Khan hadn't spoken to him.

It was an outright display of disregard.

"Could it be that Emperor Taizong's reputation on the grasslands has been forcibly stripped away by the game?

"If that's really the case…"

Li Hongyun harbored a suspicion.

He shifted his gaze to other options like "the fifth year of Wude" and "the sixth year of Wude."

"Could it be that I must complete these tasks first to rebuild Emperor Taizong's prestige in the hearts of the Turkic people?"

With this speculation in mind, Li Hongyun selected the "the fifth year of Wude" option and began the trial again.