Tibet.

Chapter 1254: Uighurs Enter the Underworld
Since Youzhou was sold to the Khitan by Shi Jingtang in the Five Dynasties, it had been separated from the Central Plains for hundreds of years. It was not until the establishment of the Ming Dynasty that Youzhou finally returned to the imperial court.

In fact, since the Tang Dynasty conquered Goguryeo, many changes have begun to take place in Youzhou, and a large number of Goguryeo people were settled in Youzhou.

In addition, after An Lushan began to manage Youzhou, Youzhou became a paradise for roaming thieves from all over the world. Here, all charges could be cleared and they could start a new life with a legal identity.

Youzhou also became a paradise for the Donghu people. A large number of foreigners, including Goguryeo, Khitan, Xi, and Bohai, became professional soldiers here and settled their families here.

At the same time when the Tang army captured Hejian County and destroyed Li Baochen, the 120,000-strong Uighur army and logistical herdsmen also entered Youzhou from Juyongguan.

With the addition of Zhu Ci's 40,000 troops, the total force of Youzhou reached 160,000. Add to that the Khitan army and Goguryeo people who were eyeing them covetously, and Youzhou was like a burning furnace.
The dark cloud of war looms over Youzhou, and a war could break out at any time.

In fact, since the later period of An Lushan, the people of Youzhou have been living in constant war. A large number of people fled, and the population of Youzhou declined. The residents of Ji County, that is, the city of Youzhou, were less than 100,000, a 70% decrease from the peak of 300,000.

The Juma River in the south is the dividing line between Hebei and Youzhou, and it is also Li Ye's bottom line. He will never allow the Uighur army to cross the Juma River.

The gates of Youzhou City were wide open, and Zhu Ci personally accompanied Dengli Khan and 10,000 guards into the city.

There was a bustling atmosphere at the city gate with the beating of gongs and drums. On both sides of Fanyangmen Street, the central axis, every household was forced to burn incense and kneel down to welcome the Uighur Khan into the city.

The Uighur army slowly entered the city and marched in formation on the street of Fanyang Gate. Seeing the people on both sides trembling with fear and prostrating themselves on the ground, Dengli Khan was quite satisfied.

He smiled and said to Zhu Ci: "When my army destroys the Tang Dynasty, you can go to Chang'an to become the emperor, and Youzhou will belong to me. Is that okay?"

Zhu Ci smiled flatteringly and said: "If we can completely annihilate the Tang army, not to mention Youzhou, the whole of Hebei will be given to the Khan!"

"Okay! Let's make it a deal. Everything north of the Yellow River belongs to me!"

Zhu Ci's face changed slightly. The Hebei he mentioned refers to Hebei Province, not the entire north of the Yellow River. But on second thought, if he can get half of the Tang Dynasty, why bother about the land north of the Yellow River?
He quickly smiled and said, "Not only the gold, silk and women north of the Yellow River, but also Chang'an and Luoyang, I will give them all to the Khan!"

Dengli Khan laughed loudly and patted Zhu Ci on the shoulder. "General Zhu is really considerate. I hope you can remember what I said today. If you can fulfill your promise, I will ensure that your Zhu Dynasty will prosper and our two families will form an eternal alliance!"

"I will keep my word!"

Soon, the team arrived at the Palace of Prince of Yan, which was the imperial palace built by An Lushan for himself. Later, Shi Siming continued to repair it. The palace covered an area of ​​about 500 acres. An Lushan demolished the Taimiao and other buildings in Luoyang and transported the building materials back to Fan Yang to start construction.

Zhu Ci called himself the King of Yan, so this palace was called the Palace of the King of Yan. However, Zhu Ci did not live in it, so it remained empty. Dengli Khan was very satisfied with the palace, so he immediately asked Zhu Ci for it and renamed it the Khan Palace.

He arranged for the twenty or so concubines who came with the army to live in the palace, and he himself also lived there, enjoying the royal style.

That night, Zhu Ci ordered the slaughter of 100,000 sheep and the preparation of 50,000 jars of fine wine to entertain the Uighur army that had come from afar.

There is an inn in the east of Youzhou City, called Shunfeng Inn. It is also quite famous in Youzhou City and can be ranked among the top five.

The innkeeper is called Wang Baofu, who is about 40 years old, short and fat, always with a smile on his face. At first glance, he is a businessman who is good at making money through harmony.

But in fact, Wang Baofu was an out-and-out intelligence scout of the Tang army. He had been in Youzhou for five years and had been responsible for collecting intelligence in Youzhou.

In the evening, a tall and thin man in a long gown got off an ox cart and came directly to the inn. The tall and thin man was Fu Yuangui, from Anyang, Xiangzhou. He was currently serving as the military officer of the warehouse of Fanyang Army. He was instigated by Wang Baofu three years ago and was loyal to Guanlong Army. Now he is loyal to the court. Fu Yuangui is the second-class core figure of the Fanyang Army civil servants. The first-class core figures are five staff members who control the political affairs, official power, finance, criminal law and transportation of Youzhou. Zhu Ci discusses everything with these five people.

Fu Yuangui is a trusted subordinate of Wang Zuyou, the financial aide among the five core members. Wang Zuyou tells him everything. Today, he got important information and immediately rushed to see Wang Baofu.

The waiter took Fu Yuangui directly to the backyard. Wang Baofu was writing a letter in the shopkeeper's room. The waiter poked his head out and said, "Boss, General Wang is here!"

"Please come in quickly!"

Fu Yuangui walked into the room and said with a smile: "The Huihe people are here, I think the shopkeeper will be very busy!"

"Fortunately, my first express letter has been sent."

Wang Baofu stood up and poured him a cup of tea, smiling and saying, "It's you who came over, there must be good news!"

Fu Yuangui picked up the teacup and sat down, saying, "Early this morning, Wang Zuyou conveyed an order to transport 200,000 shi of grain and other supplies to Yi County."

Wang Baofu hesitated for a moment and asked, "Zhu Ci's army is going to enter Yizhou. Will the Huihe army also come with them?"

Fu Yuangui nodded. "There are too many mountains in Yizhou, which is not conducive to cavalry combat. I estimate that the logistics of the Huihe army will enter Yizhou, and then Zhu Ci will send part of the troops to assist the Huihe army in combat."

"Any other important information?"

"Also, Zhu Ci's army has begun to gather and is expected to march south today. The same goes for the Huihe army."

Wang Baofu immediately wrote a second letter, gave it to a waiter, and asked the waiter to rush to Juma River to deliver the letter.

The news of Tian Chengsi and Li Baochen had already reached Youzhou, and even Zhu Ci had received the news that more than 200,000 Tang troops were deployed on the Juma River line. More importantly, Li Ye was also at the Juma River.

Dengli Khan did not care about the life or death of Tian Chengsi and Li Baochen. What he was interested in was that Li Ye was also at the Juma River. This news made him full of expectations.

The next afternoon, he personally led an army of 120,000 and marched south together with Zhu Ci's army of 30,000.

Yizhou became their important logistical base.

The Juma River was also the main battlefield between the Song Dynasty army and the Khitan army. However, the Juma River in the Song Dynasty was not wide. In addition, the Khitans managed Youzhou and had advanced technology. They had created various advanced technologies for crossing the river. Therefore, the Juma River was repeatedly breached by the Khitan army, and the war often broke out on the Song Dynasty side.

The Tang Dynasty had a warm climate and abundant rainfall, and the water volume of various rivers was far greater than that of later generations. The same was true for the Juma River, which was wider than that of the Song Dynasty and even later generations, and had a larger water volume. It was unrealistic to cross the Juma River directly on horseback, and a floating bridge had to be built.

The Juma River has an average width of thirty zhang, with the deepest water reaching three zhang, and is generally one or two zhang deep. The entire river is narrow in the west and wide in the east, with the water flowing rapidly on the west and gently on the east.

Therefore, the army would usually choose to cross the river in the middle part, where the water flow was not fast and was relatively gentle, the river was not too wide, and both banks were very flat, which was very suitable for cavalry to cross the river.

The focus of Li Ye's army's defense was also on the middle section of the Juma River.

(End of this chapter)