The great man will live forever

Chapter 55 World War II Hexi (returning with great victory)

The number of people surrounding Li Guang and Li Gan was already less than a hundred. A total of 4000 troops had been fighting for two days, and that was all that was left. Outside, there was a heavily besieged Huns army.

"Fight to the death!"

Even though he was exhausted, Li Guang's eyes were bright and he shouted loudly that at this moment, a hundred of them were worth a thousand troops.

For a moment, the Huns did not dare to step forward.

King Zuo Xian shouted: "Whoever can take Li Guang's head will be granted the title of protector, with a reward of one hundred taels and ten thousand cattle and sheep."

"Kill!"

For a time, the Huns' morale was high, and they rushed to press forward. Li Guang was in danger.

Suddenly, a Hun spy quickly came to King Zuo Xian on horseback, "Report, Your Majesty, we found a large number of Han cavalry approaching."

"what?"

"How many are they?"

King Zuo Xian was shocked.

"At least tens of thousands of people."

"How far is it from us?"

"Ten miles at most."

King Zuo Xian glanced at Li Guang from a distance, gritted his teeth and said: "Retreat!"

They now only have more than 3 people. Against an army of 2 people, the odds of victory are unknown. Even if they win, it will probably be a miserable defeat. Without soldiers, how can he restrain his tribe?
Once he suffers heavy losses, the grassland where the strong only respects the strong will be the end for him, the wise king of Zuo.

Finally, just when the Han army was exhausted and about to be completely annihilated by the Xiongnu, Zhang Qian finally arrived with the main army.

When the Huns saw this, they ordered to withdraw.

At this time, the Han army under Zhang Qian who came over was already exhausted and had no energy to pursue the Xiongnu anymore.

What's more, although the Han army suffered heavy casualties in this battle, it could be regarded as completing its role of containing the Xiongnu.

So Li Guang and Zhang Qian led their troops back to Youbeiping County.
……

Li Guang and Zhang Qian's side was not going well, as was Gongsun Ao, who was on the rear route to the west. The ten thousand troops he led were 1.5 times the size of Huo Qubing's army and were considered the main force. They agreed to meet up in the weak water basin and then raid the Xiongnu.

A total of [-] troops attacked the Huns from behind. The result is predictable. However, although the concept is good, the actual operation is very different.

The reason is very simple. Gongsun Ao was lost and he was playing magic tricks in the desert.

Gongsun Ao's route of dispatching troops started from the Xitao Plain in Beidi County, crossed the northern part of the Helan Mountains, crossed the Tengger Desert, passed between the Yabulai Mountains and the Langshan Mountains, and along the northern edge of the Badain Jaran Desert, arrived at It lives in the weak water basin south of Yanze.

Then go south against the weak water and fight all the way to the foot of the Qilian Mountains. Finally, according to the actual combat situation, you can attack the Hunxie King City if you advance, and you can follow the weak water to Juyanze when retreating.

As a result, we walked for half a month, circling back and forth in the Tengger Desert.

Liu Han and Huo Qubing waited for several days in the weak water basin in the south of Yanze, but they still didn't see anyone sent by General Gongsun to contact them.

Weak water refers to the Heihe River that originates from the northern foot of the Qilian Mountains, flows through the three provinces of Qinghai, Gansu, and Inner Mongolia, and finally flows into the Juyan Sea in Alxa, Inner Mongolia.

It is the second largest inland river in northwest China and the largest inland river in Gansu.Its downstream is called weak water, and it is also called Ejina River in Inner Mongolia.Ejina River means black water in Xixia language.

Heihe is the main source of industrial and domestic water for Zhangye, Linze, Gaotai, Jinta and many desert oases.It has a total length of 948 kilometers and a drainage area of ​​4.44 square kilometers.At the end of Weishui, there are the ruins of Heishui City of the ancient Xixia Kingdom. This city played an important military and political role at that time.

"What should we do? General Gongsun's people haven't arrived yet."

Liu Han had a bad feeling. If things went wrong this time, they would be alone again.

Huo Qubing gritted his teeth, "No wait, let's go, we have no choice."

In fact, they really didn't have much choice. They had to go back the way they came. They had nothing to eat or drink, so they had to fight.

"Then let's fight. Without them, we can still annihilate the enemy."

At this time, Huo Qubing's large army was tired of horses and dry food, and there was also insufficient dry food and food.Although he knew that if he continued to the Hexi Corridor, once he was besieged by the Xiongnu, there would be a risk of annihilation of the entire army.

However, Huo Qubing and Liu Han did not intend to retreat. They decided to advance alone and continue to complete the mission.

So, under the guidance of the Xiaoyuezhi people, Huo Qubing and Liu Han's army set out again. They suddenly launched a fierce attack on the flanks of King Hunxie and King Xiutu from the north of Heli Mountain.

There were dozens of tribes, large and small, along the way, all affiliated tribes of King Hunxie and King Xiutu. They were as invincible as the autumn wind sweeping away fallen leaves.

"Your Majesty, the Han army is coming again?"

King Hunxie was shocked, "How did they come? How did they come here? Didn't I send people to guard Wushao Ridge? Did they fly here?"

Now he couldn't care less, he shouted, "Quickly, gather people."

……

"Kill!"

"Run!"

"retreat!"

In a great battle, the Xiongnu fled, and the Han army captured 6800 people, including King Shanhuan, King Jiju, King Huyutu, King Tu and the Five Queen Mothers, Shanyulan and 63 princes. 72 people, including generals, generals, captains, and captains, killed more than 3.5 people including the King of Han, and King Hunxie and King Xiutu escaped successfully.

The number of beheadings and prisoners was slightly higher than in history. It was Liu Han's joining that changed these.

The Han army lost three-tenths of its 2 men, leaving 3000 men.

By a river, Huo Qubing took out the wine and poured it into the river.

"Cuckoo!"

"This is the wine your Majesty has given me. Today, I will drink it with you, and I will collect it all from Hexi in the future."

As Huo Qubing spoke, he took up the river water and drank it, and thousands of soldiers followed suit.

Liu Han saw this scene and smiled happily. He didn't know that he had witnessed a famous historical scene again. This was the origin of Jiuquan in later generations.

Then, they swaggered back along the Hexi Corridor, passing through Tuge, Qiemo, and Dangtian. These tribes who were swept away for the first time climbed over the Gulang Gorge in Wushaoling, crossed Wuting against the river, and passed through Jincheng and Lingju. , crossed the Yellow River, crossed Gaolan Mountain, and returned to Longxi.

Last time, they were first chased by King Hunxie and then bitten by King Xiutu, almost wiping out their entire army.

This time, as they walked along the way, the gods retreated, and the sky and the earth turned pale. No one dared to pursue them, so they could only escape.

"It's cool! Haha." Liu Han was riding on the horse and laughing. He was really scared last time. Huo Qubing was injured. He commanded three thousand remnant troops and was chased by the Huns like dogs. If he wasn't careful, he would be killed. The army was destroyed.

"Next time, we will definitely capture the Hexi Corridor." Huo Qubing patted him on the shoulder. During the two battles in Hexi, the Xiongnu feared the Han people like tigers, which severely damaged their vitality. However, they have not yet completely captured Hexi, but they are not far away.

It is worth mentioning that Huo Qubing was extremely smart and Liu Han admired him very much. During the two battles of Hexi, he asked the soldiers not to embezzle the property and personnel of the captives. After the battle, he immediately announced the policy: "Those who surrender will no longer attack, and those who refuse will no longer attack." Only those who do not submit will continue to use force."

Since the Han army went deep alone, if they could not digest the prisoners on the spot, they would definitely bear a heavy burden.

Kill the prisoners. If the influence spreads, it will inevitably cause the Xiongnu tribe to resist to the death;
Don't kill them. The scattered Huns gathered together to form a fighting force. They did not distinguish between the army and the civilians and united in peace.

"Historical Records" records that the Xiongnu's combat characteristics are: "Advance when the advantage is good, retreat when the disadvantage is unfavorable, not shy to run away, only seek the advantage, and do not know the etiquette and justice. Therefore, in the battle, everyone strives for profit, and is good at luring troops to risk the enemy." . Therefore, when they see the enemy, they seek advantage, like birds gathering together; when they are trapped and defeated, they disintegrate and disperse."

The policy of differentiation and disintegration adopted by Huo Qubing allowed the Han army to attack lightly. Some tribes would serve as the vanguard of the Han army. Most of his generals were even Hun soldiers, which was very important for fighting in the vast desert.

This time, he accepted three more generals, Zhao Anji, Fu Luzhi, and Yi Jixuan. They were all little kings of the Huns and they surrendered this time.

In addition to his genius ideas, Huo Qubing is also very good at employing people, which is one of the reasons for his success.

"Drive!" Liu Han galloped on his horse, laughing indulgently.

"go home!"

The hardest part this time was not the battle, but the battle was easy. He didn't kill many people, all the work was done by his men. The hardest, most tiring and most terrifying part was crossing the desert. Thinking about it to this day, he still has lingering fears.

(End of this chapter)