Xiang Yu fights the Three Kingdoms

Chapter 98
Xiang Yu just led his troops to the north, and not long after he went out, only a distance of tens of miles, he encountered a sandstorm, but the power of this sandstorm was not great, and the duration was not long, probably because there were black clouds in the north. The Sheath Ridge blocks most of the wind and sand from going south, so even if there is a wind and sand in the desert to the south, its power is relatively limited.

Xiang Yu was not in a hurry to go north. When the wind and sand hit, he ordered to camp in place. The wind and sand weather caused a sharp drop in visibility around him, and sometimes he couldn’t even see the sun. If you need the sun, of course, even if the direction of progress is slightly deviated, it is not a big problem, and you can basically reach the destination.

Wushaoling is the general name of a fairly long horizontal mountain range in the north. It is like a smaller and smaller version of the Qinling Mountains. Except for a section of Wushaoling at the westernmost end that is relatively high in altitude and is above the snow line all the year round, the rest is on the east. Most of the areas in Wushao Ridge are actually not steep, but the distribution of mountains in Wushao Ridge is very chaotic, and there are not many regularities, so it seems that there is not one best route, or there are many most suitable routes. The way forward, the thing to do is to try to follow the veins of the mountain.

If there are some guides who are familiar with the direction of the Wushaoling mountain to lead the way, many unnecessary detours can often be avoided, and Xiang Yu has indeed found several such people. The merchants who traveled between Wuwei and Wuwei, but when Han Sui launched the rebellion, the original commercial route to Xiliang was cut off, and many merchants were stranded by the Yellow River. They were also waiting for the development of the situation. If they are in a state of war, it is not easy for them to do business.

In addition to asking them about the route forward, Xiang Yu would also ask them about the local situation in Xiliang. Although Xiang Yu had learned a lot about the customs and customs of Xiliang in the conversation with Dong Zhuo before, but from these From the mouths of businessmen who have traveled to and from Xiliang all the year round, it is another feeling. Obviously, people with different identities have different feelings and personal understandings of Xiliang.

Since Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty opened the Hexi Corridor, the channel leading to the Western Regions, various commercial and cultural exchanges between the Central Plains and the Western Regions have not been interrupted. There are many goods that the Central Plains do not have or are in short supply in the Western Regions.

When Zhang Qian was sent to the Western Regions, he recorded the customs and geographical environment along the way in detail, which later became an important basis for Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty to understand and control the Western Regions. At that time, it was said that there were 36 countries in the Western Regions, and some of them were relatively large. Countries, such as Che Shiguo, as the vanguard of resolutely resisting the Western Han Dynasty, Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty also took care of it, and eventually disintegrated it into multiple small countries by force.

Wusun Kingdom is a large country in the Western Regions. Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty also bought a lot of good horses from Wusun Kingdom. Shanshan Kingdom, a country with abundant water and grass on the Silk Road, borders Dunhuang in the east and Qiemo in the west, and is located in the west of today's Lop Nur.

There is also Jingjue Country, a small country in the Western Regions that is famous for its ghost blowing lights, with a population of only a few thousand people. The number of countries in the Western Regions may actually be more than 36 countries, and many of them will die or new ones will emerge over time. s country.

At the same time, the concept of the Western Regions is also relative, because these countries in the Western Regions are mainly the main countries and regions that the Western Han Dynasty could involve, and the Anxi, Iran, the Middle East, Arabia and even Europe that went further west across Congling, in fact, It can also be regarded as the Western Regions in a broad sense, but they were too far away from the Han Dynasty when the information and transportation were underdeveloped in ancient times.

After Zhang Qian went on a mission to the Western Regions, he brought many unique agricultural products to the Western Han Dynasty. In the later Silk Road, these special products of the Western Regions also kept shining.

Such as grapes, onions, figs, pomegranates, carrots, parsley, cucumbers, garlic, walnuts, broad beans, sesame, watermelon, eggplant, garlic, coriander, alfalfa, spinach, brassica, courgette, peas, pepper, sugar, etc. They were all introduced from the Western Regions to the Western Han Dynasty, and some cooking methods such as cheese, Hubing, Qiang boiled stew, Hu Shaorou, Hu Geng, mutton intestines, etc. were also introduced from the Western Regions. The richness of food has made a huge contribution. At the same time, the Western Regions also have goods such as carpets, woolen fabrics, spices, and bloody horses. At the same time, the music, musical instruments, Hu dance and acrobatics of the Western Regions are also unique.

When these businessmen talked about the customs and culture of the Western Regions, they seemed to be like a few treasures. If you have the opportunity, you really have to go and see these things from the Western Regions.

Then the businessman talked about the beauties of the Western Regions, drooling while talking, as if the beautiful women of the Western Regions with slender waists and slight steps, light gauze and white teeth, clear water and bright eyes, looking bright and radiant, appeared in front of him.

Xiang Yu laughed out loud after hearing this, but said that if he had the opportunity, he would really go to see what the stunning beauties of the Western Regions looked like. When the businessmen heard that Xiang Yu was interested, they talked even more vigorously.

Time passed unknowingly, and the next day the wind and sand subsided completely, and Xiang Yu led the army to set off again. At this time, he had already made a plan in his heart, to lead the eight thousand soldiers and horses to wipe out all the Xiliang area first, In the future, if there is a chance to go further to the West, we will take down more countries in the Western Regions.

For Xiang Yu, Liangzhou is obviously a very good base area. It is rich in tall horses and excellent soldiers. Although the Qiang people and Hu people are relatively loose and free in nature, they are not easy to control in terms of military discipline, but Xiang Yu believes that with his ability to command the army , is able to suppress these Qianghu soldiers, and he will use them as a basis to fight in all directions.

In the next few days, Xiang Yu's troops advanced very smoothly, and they did not encounter any more severe wind and sand. They could see the sun in the sky every day. If they could see the sun in this early spring season, that would be enough It's a very happy thing.

Xiang Yu did not urge the troops to advance quickly, but moved forward in an unhurried manner. During this process, Xiang Yu also found that there were many cavalrymen of Han Sui wandering around him. They are all in a scattered state, and they should all belong to the type of scouts. It can be said that Xiang Yu's every move should be controlled by Han Sui.

Xiang Yu also knows this, so for him, it doesn't matter how fast he is going, because such a long distance cannot be covered in a day or two, so there is no difference between a few days earlier and a few days later, it is too much On the contrary, impatience will reveal more weaknesses, allowing the enemy to take advantage of it. Wuwei City must be heavily guarded. Before Xiang Yu leads his army to Wuwei City, he still needs to make full strategic arrangements for the upcoming battle.

(End of this chapter)