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Chapter 898: Politics is not about fighting and killing
"Immediately send someone to give this letter to Du Wenhuan and deliver it to Guazhou."

How to help Bakhti's son take over the position of Beg, including cleansing the hostile family forces in Khotan City, was completely handed over by Hong Tao to Huang Taiji's Eight Banners Army. The army did not enter the city at all, but only camped outside.

He then wrote two letters to Wang Chengen, who arranged for the Warrior Battalion to be sent to Ruoqiang. The plan had to change again. The northern army would continue to stay put, while the southern army would change from raiders to occupiers, so the manpower and ammunition reserves had to be strengthened as soon as possible.

At this time, the complex terrain of southern Xinjiang became a double-edged sword, which would not only delay the speed of the attackers but also slow down the pace of the defenders. It would be a long process for Latif Khan to lead his troops to return for support.

In addition, with the possible intervention of Bukhara and the Kazakh Khanate, the planned decisive battle might not take place in the eastern city of Turpan, but in a city in the west, thus giving time to adjust the plan.

At the same time, Hong Tao also realized that he had made another big mistake. He should not have allowed the Eight Banners Army to join the Southern Army, but should have replaced them with the Tumed Mongolian cavalry led by Ombu.

At the beginning, we only considered the combat effectiveness and the marching issues under the harsh conditions of the plateau, and ignored the ethnic composition and historical continuity within the Yarkand Khanate.

If we had known earlier that the Khans here still claimed to be descendants of Genghis Khan, and allowed the authentic descendants of the Golden Family to become relatives with them, some problems might have been easier to solve.

Unfortunately, there is no regret medicine in the world, and we can only adapt to the situation and make up for it as much as possible. There are at least two months before the arrival of the Ombu Mongolian cavalry. During this period, we can't wait in Khotan. Yarkand and Kashgar, the two political, cultural and economic centers of southern Xinjiang, must be taken first.

The army rested in Khotan for three days, mainly waiting for the Eight Banners Army's cleansing operation. After that, one Eight Banners Army 500-man squadron and three Army -man squadrons were left behind, and the entire army set out westward to Yarkand City, more than miles away.

On the day when Hong Tao led his army to leave Khotan, the hall of the Khan's Palace in Yarkand was crowded with people. Dozens of emirs, beks, and chieftains gathered together. Most of them came from Yarkand and Yingshaji, and a few came from Kashgar. There was only one topic on the agenda: how to deal with the aggressive Ming army.

After the fall of Ruoqiang and Qiemo, Khotan fell into the hands of the enemy. The news of the heavy losses of the Khanate army was brought back by the soldiers and officers who escaped by chance, and the people in Yarkand city immediately panicked.

As the "national teacher" of the Yarkand Khanate, as the Khan was currently on an expedition, Shadi Khoja had to personally come forward and summon the emirs, beks, and chiefs of various ethnic groups to discuss how to deal with the impending invaders.

At the meeting, some people suggested sending envoys to negotiate with the Ming army. If money could be used to buy a ceasefire, that would be the best. Others thought that the Ming army was coming aggressively, and the Khanate was in a state of internal weakness, so giving money might not work. The best way would be to temporarily avoid the limelight and withdraw the main force to Kashgar.

But no matter whether they were the war faction, the peace faction or the escape faction, they all encountered opposition to varying degrees. The interests and demands of each ethnic group were different, and soon the discussion turned into a quarrel.

"Quiet, quiet... Yarkand City must not be occupied by the pagans. This is the will of the prophet! As long as we can hold out for a month, the Khan will lead his troops back to support us, and reinforcements from the Bukhara Khanate and the Kazakh Khanate will also arrive!
There are not enough troops in the city, but every citizen of the Khanate is a warrior of Allah, and now is the time to prove their piety! Emirs, let the boys and men in your families go to the city walls and prepare the artillery. Allah is with us! "

Seeing that the discussion did not produce a result that everyone could agree on, Shadi Hezhuo became a little impatient. Yarkand City was the base camp of the Shadi family. As the saying goes, people are worthless when they leave their hometown. It would be very harmful to the family's interests to retreat to Kashgar City without any resistance. According to the description of the defeated soldiers, the Ming army that attacked Ruoqiang, Qiemo, and Khotan only had a few thousand people. Even if they were strong in combat, they would be exhausted after a long raid. If they could rely on Yarkand City for full defense, they might not be powerless.

As for the details such as the sharpness of firearms and the ability to kill people from a hundred steps away, they were automatically filtered out. The Khanate army also had musketeers, and their power was indeed great, but they had too many limitations and could not be considered a decisive force that could influence a war.

In addition, with the support of the city walls, the archers who were high above were more conducive to defense than the musketeers. As one side gained strength while the other lost strength, there was no obvious advantage or disadvantage in terms of weapons between the two sides.

If they can hold Yarkand and wait for the Khan to lead his army back for support, the Shadi family will definitely be the dominant family in the future political and religious landscape of the Khanate. The pros and cons are already clear: if they fight, they will gain both fame and fortune; if they retreat, their prestige will be greatly reduced.

"I will personally go out of the city to negotiate with the Ming army, but if you want to stop the hungry wolves from eating sheep, you have to make sure they are well fed. Now that the Khan is not here, the money can only be raised by everyone present.

The Shadi family donated 10 fish scales, 100 dinars, rubies, and a plate of jade. Everyone, please show generosity, Allah will watch over you! "

Politics is not about fighting and killing, so the two options of war and retreat are not enough. Peace talks must also be a very important means.

The messengers heading to Turpan, Bukhara and Kazakhstan have been on the road for half a month. It is estimated that they can hold on for another one to two months at most before the rescue army arrives.

Before that, if he could use some money to make the invaders hesitate for a while, and when the reinforcements arrived and rescued Yarkand City, his own achievements and reputation would rise again.

However, this money to be paid to the invaders could not be paid by the Khanate, nor could it be taken out of the Shadi family's pockets, but had to be borne by every noble of the Khanate.

If he could persuade the invaders to charge less, the rest would naturally go into his pocket. In other words, while increasing his reputation, he could also make a fortune.

Are you afraid of being exposed later? It's too naive to think so. Didn't I say that the Khan family doesn't have to pay! The capital was saved and no money was lost. Will Latif Khan pursue it? As long as the Khan didn't lose anything, the losses of other families were not worth mentioning.

When war breaks out, someone will always suffer losses. In fact, the ultimate losers are not the nobles, who can use various methods to get back all the losses from farmers, shepherds, merchants, and craftsmen, or even more.

The most unfortunate are the common people. In peacetime, they work like slaves, diligently and uncomplainingly to create wealth for the Baiyi masters, while they themselves live frugally and suffer poverty for generations. When war comes, they have to take up arms and become cannon fodder in the name of defending their homes! Anyone who dares to say no is considered a traitor.

(End of this chapter)