Hengdao Sixteen Kingdoms

Chapter 684 Conquest

"In the battle of Qiuci, more than 27,000 Hu people were killed, and more than 21 people in total were captured, including King Bochun, Nalong and other princes of the Western Regions of Qiuci. The Hu people trampled on each other, robbed and killed, and the number of dead was no less than 30,000. The man had more than 23 livestock, 780,000 shi of wheat and millet, and mountains of gold, money, and silk. It was countless! General Lu Guang captured three thousand craftsmen, monks, scholars, doctors, dancers, and musicians from Qiuci. The rest."

Lu Qing excitedly read the good news.

Li Yue has long been indifferent to the series of great victories.

If Murong Chui were defeated, it would be unbelievable.

This battle also established his status as the second-largest figure in Daliang's military circles. He was worthy of Li Yue's regard for him back then, and he was already one of the two sharpest knives in Daliang.

Another person who performed well in the Battle of Kucha was Lu Guang.

He led the Xuanjia Army to drive away the defeated army, and took advantage of the chaos to enter Kucha City, bringing the war to a quick end.

Otherwise, with the food in Kucha City, Bochun could persist for a long time.

He entered the city, calmed down the chaos immediately, seized the treasury, and controlled the craftsmen, bachelors, doctors, etc., showing his extremely high vision.

What is the most valuable thing these days?

Of course it is people, especially craftsmen, bachelors, and monks.

Throughout the Western Regions, Qiuci occupies an important position in culture and art. In the history of the Tang Dynasty, many Hu Lehu dances were introduced from Qiuci.

As for Zhang Hao, Liu Laozhi, Zhuge Kan and others, they are as brave as ever, killing enemies invincibly and performing normally.

"Congratulations, Your Majesty!" Everyone in the hall was overjoyed.

"This merit is not due to me alone, your names will also go down in history!"

Li Yue personally understands that there are three pleasures for men, one is women, and the other is conquest, but in essence they are all conquests.

By capturing Qiuci, Daliang would have a foothold in the Western Regions.

Gaochang and Haitou only controlled the chokepoints in and out of the Western Regions, and did not count as in-depth.

Qiuci is different. According to Murong Chui's memorial, this place is the largest oasis in the Western Regions, with flocks of cattle and sheep. The land is fertile and can support an army of 20,000 people.

Twenty thousand elites are enough to sweep through most of the Western Region.

Many so-called countries don't even have a population of 20,000. If they can provide 2,000 troops, they are considered powerful.

But there is nothing we can do about it. The desert Gobi has broken up the geographical plates and made it impossible to connect them as a whole.

The only unsatisfactory part of this battle was that Yue Banguo ran away.

This country was founded by the Northern Xiongnu. It was expelled by Dou Xian during the Han Dynasty. The Xiongnu Northern Chanyu crossed the Jinwei Mountain and fled westward to the grasslands under the jurisdiction of Kangju. In history, Yueban was once so powerful that it competed with Gaoche and Rou. Ran, Yanda, and the Northern Wei Dynasty competed for the Western Region,

Geographically, the environment south of the Tianshan Mountains is harsh, dominated by the Gobi desert.

But north of the Tianshan Mountains, this is not the case. There are many excellent pastures.

The Seven Rivers Basin and the Hezhong area have always been the richest pearls in the Western Region. Even in later generations, these areas were extremely rich, counting money on their abundant resources.

Whether it is for defensive necessity or to defend Qiuci and Gaochang, this hidden danger must be eliminated.

In the past, there were worries about lack of food and grass and supply difficulties, but now with the supplement from Qiuci Kingdom, food and grass are no longer a problem.

It's not easy to come here this time, and of course we have to accomplish everything in one battle.

The huge impact of this battle was gradually reflected in the following more than a month.

Among the thirty-nine countries in the Western Regions, except for Qiuci, which had been declared destroyed, more than thirty other countries sent envoys to visit Guzang one after another.

There is an endless stream of various specialties from the Western Regions, one after another.

There are more than 1,300 beauties selected from various countries alone...

This made Li Yue feel deeply depressed. Could it be that in their eyes, Emperor Liang was just a womanizer?

Li Yue felt that the unfeminine persona he had built over the years had collapsed.

But there are more than 1,300 people. Even if the wind and water change, and the wind and water change, and they don't rest for a day, it will still take four or five years... After four or five years, everyone will be sucked dry...

Fortunately, Li Yue always knew how to exercise moderation and kept more than thirty people who met the aesthetic standards. The others were prepared to reward meritorious soldiers as wives and concubines.

Alone Better Together.

Most of the envoys were princes, royal brothers and other important ministers of a certain country, and they made a profound self-examination in front of Li Yue.

Even Zhuohu, Suwen and other countries who participated in the Kucha rebellion sent people, but Li Yue drove them back and asked them to wash their necks, prepare for their funeral, or simply commit suicide.

There is no principled benevolence and no deterrence.

Since you dare to send troops to meet Daliang's swordsmen, you will be punished as necessary.

Li Yue had already spoken to Guzang before, saying that he wanted to destroy his country and destroy his species. You have no words to say.

When you come out to hang out, you must be trustworthy. If you say I will kill your whole family, I will definitely kill your whole family.

However, although the Hu coalition forces were defeated, Liang Jun also suffered a lot of casualties. More than 3,700 people were killed and 4,100 were injured. The rest lost a finger, an ear, and a knife on their body. As long as they could stand up, They were all considered minor injuries and were not included in the calculation.

The righteous and powerful tribes in Liangzhou were not included in the statistics.

This is equivalent to the loss of combat effectiveness of 8,000 people.

Therefore, the Western Expedition army is still resting and reorganizing.

What made Li Yue laugh and cry was that before Li Yue could take action, Yanqi, Shule, Khotan and other countries formed an auxiliary army and took the initiative to attack Zhuohu, Wensu, Weitou and other countries on behalf of Daliang.

The people who know you best are always your own people.

The most cruel to one's own people is one's own people.

In less than half a month, these thorny countries were defeated, and they massacred the city themselves without Li Yue's orders.

After finishing the work, the women and children were sent to Kucha one by one.

The attack was ruthless, even more brutal than the Black Cloud Army...

But in the process, they reaped many benefits.

For Li Yue, the result was not bad, as the soldiers were spared the pain of conquest.

But a new question arises: whether to actually occupy these areas where the country has been destroyed.

Li Yue asked people to get a map of the Western Regions, with the locations of all countries marked on it.

South of the Tianshan Mountains, except for Qiuci and Shule, there is basically no need to occupy other areas. First, they are remote and the roads are inconvenient. Second, they cannot support the army and cannot cultivate.

In fact, all problems can be boiled down to one point: the cost of governance is very high.

In this way, it is not difficult to understand that when the Han and Tang Dynasties managed the Western Regions, they only controlled key areas.

It was very hard for the Han army to control the Western Regions. It took them hundreds of years to guard the border and gain the land of Gaochang and Haitou City.

"From today on, we will restore the Protectorate of the Western Regions in Qiuci, and march to the west. Those who wish to stay will be given fields, pastures, slaves, and houses, and all taxes will be waived!"

For this land in the Western Region, there is no need to expect to pay taxes. It would be good if it can be self-reliant and does not consume the food of the Central Plains.

A conqueror must behave like a conqueror.

Li Yue had no interest in imitating the Han Dynasty's military garrison in the fields. Although it was stable, the effect was too slow. He simply let the soldiers become the military aristocracy of the Western Regions. From now on, they would only be responsible for two things, fighting, giving birth to children, and continuing the Chinese incense.

Farm and herd, and let the slaves come.

(End of this chapter)