unclear

Chapter 892 Battle of Khotan
After the battle, the army was responsible for cleaning up the battlefield, counting the number of people, and treating the wounded. Abash led the Eight Banners Army to entertain guests, inviting or capturing the emirs of various local tribes and their families to have a tea party with the emperor.

There were two themes in the meeting. First, the owner of southern Xinjiang would change, and the Ming emperor would have the final say. After the change, a string of oases and towns from east to west would benefit, and countless Ming merchants would come to sell a wide variety of fresh goods.

During the trip, they would rent a house from locals, who would provide them with food and drink and pay them for it. When they left, they would also buy the local dried fruits, copperware, silverware, and handicrafts, which were abundant in the area, and this was another huge source of income.

These benefits will naturally be distributed to the cooperating ethnic groups first, so who intends to cooperate and who does not intend to cooperate must first express their position in the name of Allah and have it recorded.

The tribes willing to cooperate stayed where they were and continued to live, and then the land, houses, livestock, and wells of the families who did not cooperate were divided. They no longer needed them, and the dead did not need these things, and the wood and flames would help them ascend to heaven.

Second, take out the horses, camels, food and fodder that are not needed temporarily and make them available to the army. Don't be afraid, it's not robbing, nor is it taking for free, it's buying, using the bright silver and gold coins to buy at the local price.

As for whether these silver and gold coins can be circulated, don't worry. Once the army conquers Yarkand and Kashgar and sends the Khans and the emirs who hold opposing attitudes to heaven, they will soon be circulated.

We held meetings as we marched, but it didn't affect the marching speed much. The main reason was that the resistance we encountered was too weak. If we didn't hold meetings, we could have marched a few days faster.

But good luck always runs out. No matter how hard they tried to blockade it, the news that the Ming army suddenly appeared in southern Xinjiang and advanced westward with great momentum eventually reached Yarkand City.

So, outside the city of Khotan, it was no longer the tribal armed forces wearing various fur coats and holding various weapons. The Khanate army neatly arranged three square formations, with a total of more than 3,000 people, 50% of which were cavalry, 30% were heavy cavalry, and 20% were musketeers.

On both sides of these three phalanxes, there were two to three times the number of tribal armed forces, which were slightly higher in number than the southern army; in terms of quality, the Khanate's regular army, dressed in uniform black helmets and armor, also appeared to be more combat-effective than the light cavalry of the Eight Banners Army.

After twenty days of living together day and night, Gulandam gradually relaxed his vigilance and was transforming from a easily frightened little white rabbit to a chirping parrot. Every day when he sat in the carriage, he was either asking questions or eating various candies, and his mouth was never idle.

Hong Tao didn't mind having a companion to talk to during the trip, and she was pretty, even with a veil on. Wang Chengen was happy too, as he was the one who brought out the candy. Even though he didn't understand what was being said, he still used gestures to communicate, which showed that human beings' love of beauty is natural.

But some people were very unhappy, such as Gekko who knew Mongolian. Originally, he could ride a camel with the warrior camp, listen to everyone talking, and not be restrained all the time. How comfortable it was. But because he had to be an interpreter for Gulandam, he had to ride in the same carriage with the emperor, and every move had to be strict, which was very uncomfortable.

"The ones wearing helmets, armor on their upper bodies, shields and iron bones are the Yingshaji camel soldiers; the ones holding long spears and even their horses are armored are the Yarkand heavy cavalry; the ones wearing Atushtumak and jackets are the Kashgar musketeers. The others are soldiers from various tribes, some use bows and arrows, and some use scimitars."

At this time, she was standing on the roof of the carriage, skillfully holding up a telescope to observe the front, explaining as she went along. Gecko squatted on the roof with no hope in life. Not only was his telescope taken away, but he also had to prick up his ears to listen carefully, and then translate loudly to the emperor in the carriage. This life was simply unbearable!
"Jinsuo, do you want to go to heaven with me?"

Although Hong Tao never said it, he was a man of few words and had seen the inner thoughts of the gecko from its expression. It was normal for young people to be active and playful, as long as they did not delay their work, they were good. So they must be rewarded, and the reward must be huge, which ordinary people could not reach. "…Your Majesty! Are you going to get on the hot air balloon?" Upon hearing this, Jinsuo's expression immediately brightened up, and there was no trace of melancholy.

"Ran Ye... bring her along and put on more clothes. After you talk to her, don't cry. If she annoys me, just throw her down!"

"Your Majesty, that servant..." Some were happy and some were sad. Wang Chengen's face immediately turned bitter when he heard the emperor's arrangement.

He had ridden in a hot air balloon before, more than once, so it was nothing new, but if the emperor wanted to go up, he had to follow. But that thing only allowed six people to go up, the emperor, Jinsuo, Gulandam, plus a pilot and two lookouts, well, it was full.

"You don't understand Mongolian. Take the time to get my spear. It may be useful later."

Hong Tao had no intention of making any special arrangements, so he removed a lookout and took Wang Chengen up. Work is work, and entertainment is entertainment. They can be done together when they do not interfere with each other, but the priorities must be clearly distinguished.

Hot air balloon? Yes, it is a hot air balloon, which is very similar to the hot air balloons of later generations. It is made of linen and silk, and the outer layer is coated with vulcanized rubber liquid. It is lighter than leather and has better air tightness.

Soon after the rubber vulcanization process was successfully developed, the hot air balloon was produced by the rubber factory, but it had never been put to use and was at most used to train lookouts. This time, Hong Tao finally brought it out and used it in actual combat.

As the black ball slowly rose higher and higher, the army of the Yarkand Khanate in the distance was obviously in turmoil. Especially the tribal troops on both wings, many people put down their weapons, took off their helmets or hats, prostrated themselves on the ground and began to pray.

Obviously, this huge black ball was released by the Ming army. Although it is not clear what its purpose is, it definitely does not look good. It may be a devil released from hell. If you want to defeat it, you must be pious enough.

"No cannons!" But they were wrong. The big black ball had neither evil magic nor strong destructive power. It only had one function, and it was a particularly despicable one: peeping.

The lookout standing in the hanging basket holds a large telescope used by the navy, and can see 5 kilometers away from a high altitude in the plain area with normal lighting. You can't see what the people look like or what they are holding in their hands, but you can see clearly how many people there are, what kind of soldiers they are, and what formation they are in.

"Swish, brush, brush... brush, brush..."

The lookout holding the telescope shouted out the result, and the other lookout began to wave the two small flags in his hands, using different body movements and flag colors to convey the information from the front to his own generals.

(End of this chapter)