novelhk Chapter 60 Tolui, the Entrusted Son, and Yang Kang's Uprising
Chapter 60 Tolui, the Entrusted Son, and Yang Kang's Uprising
The Mongol-Jin War ended, and the army returned north.
Just as spring was arriving, Ögedei Khan suddenly fell seriously ill with an unprecedented disease.
The illness came so suddenly and so violently that it almost took Ögedei's life, leaving him lying in bed on the verge of death.
Every doctor said that Ögedei wouldn't live more than a few days. It was as if Ögedei had lost his composure in the face of life and death, and even placed his hopes on the prayers of a shaman.
The healer claimed that Ögedei was cursed by a demon and could only be cured if his closest relatives drank holy water and took on the calamity for him.
But at this time, who was Ögedei's closest relative?
Only Tolui!
Tolui stared in shock at his brother lying on the bed. He hadn't expected that Ögedei would actually target him, and in such a seemingly respectable way.
By this time, Ögedei's position as Khan was already secure, and his strength was beyond Ögedei's ability to contend with.
Although he held most of the military power, he was currently in Ögedei's camp with only two or three servants by his side.
Tore then realized why Yang Kang, though just a man, could be so unforgettable to his father, the Khan.
The power of an army and the bravery of an individual are different forms of violence in the world, but any form of violence, regardless of its mechanism, will bring about absolute power.
The awe and shock that the latter can bring is incomparable to that of the former.
At least, if he had Yang Kang's power right now, Torre believed that Ögedei would never dare to play such tricks on him.
But he no longer had many options.
"My father and the Eternal Heaven have appointed my brother to rule Mongolia, and my brother's life is the life of Mongolia."
"As your brother, I am willing to bear the calamities of fate in your place."
Tolui accepted the bowl of holy water with a livid expression.
He drank it down in sorrow, then turned and left without a second thought.
After leaving the main camp, Tolui immediately rushed to his own camp.
Before he died, he insisted on seeing his wife and sons.
After gritting his teeth and rushing for three days straight, the dying Tolui finally dragged his poison-soaked body to see his son and wife.
"Sorhughtani, I am sorry, I am sorry to my children."
"I have to go now."
Despite the excruciating pain, Tolui anxiously gave his instructions.
He knew he didn't have much time left. Enduring the poison to rush home was already his limit. He no longer had the strength to make his final arrangements. Before his wife and children could even sigh, he hurriedly continued speaking.
"My brother Ögedei is so cold and ruthless, I fear that after I leave, you will also suffer at his hands."
"Sorhughtani, forget about the wealth, the lands and the army. Take the children and go to Shandong immediately to find my Anda Yangkang General."
"Only he can protect you."
"For Hua Zheng's sake, he... he will definitely protect you."
Tolui spoke in despair, spitting out a mouthful of blood, and collapsed in front of his wife and children, losing his breath.
Tolui's children and wife collapsed in grief before his body, weeping uncontrollably.
Möngke angrily drew his sword, intending to summon the army, but was stopped by Sorghaghtani Beki. The nine-year-old Kublai Khan slowly stood up, looking with a hateful and resentful gaze in the direction where Ögedei was.
When news reached Yang Kang that Tolui had died and that Sorghaghtani Beki was leading Tolui's sons on a swift journey to Shandong, Yang Kang slammed his fist on the table and stood up, addressing Yang Miaozhen, Yelü Chucai, and others.
"Jinqing, Miaozhen, go and make preparations."
"The opportunity we've been waiting for has arrived."
A month after Tolui's death, Ögedei, who had been on the verge of death, miraculously recovered.
It seems that his younger brother really pulled him away from the fate of death, and he began to play and enjoy himself with great vigor.
He knew, of course, that Tolui's wife and children had fled to Shandong, but by this time Ögedei had become hopelessly arrogant.
He simply issued an order for Yang Kang to send Tolui's wife and children back to Mongolia, and then forgot about the matter.
Unable to bear the sweltering heat of midsummer, Ögedei Khan led a group of imperial guards to the Guanshan camp alone to escape the heat.
Unbeknownst to him in the East, Yang Kang's army was already fully prepared for battle.
Early June, Yidu.
Yang Kang secretly ordered the blockade of Dengzhou Port, and eighty warships, fully equipped and ready to depart, crossed the sea in three batches under cover of night.
Each ship has two levels. The lower level has horse mangers nailed in, and the warhorses are secured with ropes and covered with thick grass to prevent slipping. The upper level is for living quarters, and only guards are allowed on the deck.
The first batch of twelve ships carried over six hundred imperial guards and personal guards.
The second batch consisted of twenty-four ships, carrying four thousand elite cavalrymen.
The third batch consisted of forty-four ships, carrying five thousand infantry and cavalry, as well as supplies and arrows.
The sea crossing is only two hundred li, and can be reached overnight with a favorable wind.
On the 8th, more than 10,000 troops arrived in Liaoyang.
Yang Kang did not linger there, but instead turned west into the foothills of the Greater Khingan Mountains.
They traveled by day and hid by night, concealing their troops in the valleys and streams during the day and galloping at night.
The Imperial Guards were divided into front and rear scouts, three miles apart, and would blockade any Mongol nomadic tribes they encountered.
Those who escaped were pursued by ten riders for a hundred miles, leaving no survivors.
In the face of war, there is room for seemingly hypocritical pity.
After years of internal training, the soldiers of the World Society have become physically stronger than ordinary people.
Their stamina was comparable to that of the Mongol cavalry, not to mention the 150 Dragon Cavalry Imperial Guards. With the enhancement of the Dragon Elephant Prajna Kung Fu and the Nine Yang Divine Skill, they could travel a hundred miles a day with their armor and all.
What needs encouragement is simply the horsepower; the entire army marches eighty li every day.
From setting sail from Dengzhou to approaching Guanshan, it took no more than twenty-five days.
In July, Yang Kang's army arrived at the southern foot of Guanshan Mountain without anyone noticing.
The sweltering heat of midsummer is unbearable, but Guanshan, as the summer retreat of the Mongol Khan, is indeed the coolest and most comfortable place to stay during the summer.
The summer nights on the grasslands are cool and comfortable. People who drink don't feel hot until late at night, and they can't wake up until the sun is high in the sky the next day.
A thoroughly enjoyable banquet had just ended, and Ögedei Khan was still suffering from a hangover.
This new emperor of the Mongol Empire lacked nothing.
Ögedei's strategies, methods, and even personal bravery were all commendable. Although he could not be compared to a monster like Yang Kang, his bravery was unquestionable throughout Mongolia.
Ögedei Khan, who was almost perfect in every way, had one flaw that wasn't really a flaw: he was a heavy drinker.
Admittedly, for a monarch, this can only be considered a bad habit, not a flaw.
But when a long-planned enemy is already lurking beside you, baring its fangs, it becomes a fatal weakness.
Outside the Guanshan camp, the soldiers on guard in the distance had already noticed something was wrong.
News of the enemy attack spread immediately, but no one expected it to be Yang Kang's army.
Although Ögedei's advisors and generals had long advised him to be wary of Yang Kang in Shandong, and Ögedei had already made preparations.
He had even planned to lead a large army in the autumn to truly subdue Yang Kang, a general whom even his father Genghis Khan had not truly subdued.
But what he didn't expect was that Yang Kang would come to him first, even though he didn't go to him.
The sounds of battle cries suddenly echoed through the mountains and fields into the camp. The guards hurriedly woke Ögedei from his hangover. The severe headache made Ögedei sway, but his years of experience on the battlefield made him realize that something was wrong.
"Who are they? Where did these enemies come from? Are they Möngke and his men?"
"Or who?"
Ögedei was still clutching his head, not yet in a daze, when suddenly one of his men, covered in blood, fled into the tent in a disheveled state.
"Great Khan! It's the Prince Consort... it's Prince Consort Yang Kang!"
"He's come to avenge his Andatolei!"
The soldier's voice trembled with fear.
"What did you say???"
"Yang Kang? How could he possibly be here?"
Ögedei asked in utter shock.