At the end of Qin, I became a son of the plane

Chapter 680: Want to kill the last Seleucid general
On November 53, the 11rd year of the Han calendar, in the Seleucid Empire, the central army tent of the Xiongnu.

Zhang Ying's negotiations failed as the two sides had too many differences. A telegram announcing the suspension of the negotiations was sent to the front-line commander, and Junchen immediately convened the Xiongnu's top leaders for a meeting.

Yu Shan, the Xiongnu prince who had just arrived at the front with a batch of arms, was woken up by his men just after he lay down and hurried into the central army tent. Not knowing the situation yet, he looked at the serious expressions of his father and other generals and said in surprise: "Could it be that Zhou Yafu led the allied forces to attack from Damascus?"

Now the only threat to the Hun army is the main force of the allies in Damascus.

The military official mocked, "If that coward Zhou Yafu dared to lead a large army to fight, I would not have summoned all the generals."

Junchen was well aware of Zhou Yafu's difficulty. The Xiongnu was caught in such a dilemma because of Zhou Yafu's strategy, but he was not convinced of Zhou Yafu's ability to lead troops. In the eyes of the monarch and his ministers, if Zhou Yafu led his troops to fight head-on with their army, even if he was defeated, Junchen would still be convinced of his military talent.

But now Zhou Yafu put a turtle shell in front of him, relying on the powerful industrial capacity of the Han Dynasty, and armed the Seleucids to consume his army and attack his food supply, while he himself hid in the rear, trying to take advantage. Junchen was not convinced at all. Zhou Yafu was fighting in a rogue way.

Rather than fighting to the death, Junchen would rather have a decisive battle with the allied forces. If he wins, he wins, and if he loses, he loses. He doesn't have to be in a dilemma like he is now.

Xia Jie, the Xiongnu general, handed Yu Shan the battle report from Chang'an. Yu Shan was surprised after reading it and said, "Did the negotiations break down?"

The military official said angrily: "The Han emperor has no sincerity in the negotiation. Not only does he want our army to leave the Seleucid Empire, but he also wants us Xiongnu to pay 60 billion war reparations. This is simply treating us Xiongnu as servants of the Han people."

From this telegram, Junchen did not see any respect from the Han emperor for him as the Chanyu. He would not and dared not sign such a traitorous treaty.

Yu Shanyou said in panic, "Father, there are more and more guerrillas in the rear. These guerrillas have demolished railways and blown up bridges on a large scale. Half of the reinforcements that can come to the front line are consumed on the road. Moreover, these guerrillas are getting stronger and stronger. There are probably hundreds of thousands of guerrillas in the Seleucid Empire. It seems that our army is attacking, but in fact, the Seleucid rebels are also surrounding our army. Why don't we retreat?"

Xia Jie immediately said: "We cannot retreat. If we retreat, how can we explain to the Xiongnu people in our country? They are still waiting for news of our victory."

Junchen also wanted to retreat at this time, but it was obviously not him who could give this order. The Huns worshipped the victor, and the people could not accept a failed Khan. He now regretted rashly launching this war.

So Junchen looked at the other generals and asked, "Do you think we should withdraw?"

The Xiongnu generals said in unison with expressionless faces: "We will follow the Chanyu's lead."

They didn't want to take the blame, and they couldn't take it. In the military operations over the past six months, the Hun army suffered more than 1 casualties, minus the casualties of 3 Seleucid puppet troops. These casualties accounted for one-third of the Hun army in the Seleucid Empire. If there hadn't been continuous reinforcements from the rear, the war would have been over. Not only did they spend all the money they collected from the Seleucid Empire in the early stage, but the Huns also paid more than 20 billion in military expenses. With the casualties compensation, 30 billion might not be enough. Now that they admit defeat, not to mention the war reparations, these expenses are enough to seriously damage the Huns.

Junchen said with an unpleasant expression: "Then we can only continue to fight."

Xia Jie said: "Now the only way for the Xiongnu to break the impasse is to capture Antioch and force Zhou Yafu, a coward, to fight a decisive battle with our army. As long as we destroy the main force of the allied forces, we will have the bargaining chips to negotiate peace with the Han emperor."

Junchen thought about it and decided that this was the only way for them to end the war in a dignified manner. So he looked at his son Yu Shan and asked, "How much military equipment did you bring this time?"

Yu Shan said: "One hundred heavy artillery pieces, 130 million kilograms of gunpowder, 1 rifles, and 200 million rounds of bullets."

Then he said helplessly: "The domestic stockpile of munitions has reached the warning line. The front consumes munitions too quickly. Even if the domestic munitions factories are working in three shifts, they can't keep up with the consumption. The high priest asked me to save ammunition."

The enemies that the Huns faced before were semi-firearm armies. Although artillery and rifles became the main force on the battlefield, they still learned bows and arrows in terms of tactics. They fired a few rounds of artillery and a few shots with rifles, and then the entire army charged and ended the battle with bayonets. Daqinzhou had not yet completed industrialization, and almost no country could withstand these three axes of the Huns.

But now it is a battle between the world's number one industrial country and the world's number two industrial country. Killing with cold weapons has completely become insignificant in this war. In this war, both sides will fire thousands of artillery shells and consume tens of thousands of kilograms of gunpowder. A medium-sized battle will consume hundreds of thousands of bullets. These are just the ammunition consumption on the battlefield in one day. In the past, such a large amount of munitions was enough to fight a war involving tens of thousands of people.

The density of ammunition for both sides in this war far exceeded any war in history. The ammunition consumed by the Huns in destroying the Parthian Empire was less than one-tenth of the current amount, while the Huns' industrial capacity was about one twentieth of that of the Han Dynasty. In terms of consumption, they could not compete with the Han Dynasty.

Xia Jie said with an unpleasant expression: "If we want to break through Antioch, we must increase the artillery bombardment. How can we save gunpowder to break through this turtle shell?"

Junchen thought for a moment and said to Shan: "Go to Seleucia and gather the nobles of the Seleucid Empire. Ask them to recruit another 10 soldiers. If there is not enough gunpowder, use the soldiers to carry it. As long as we can conquer Antioch, it will be worth it even if all the young and strong men of the Seleucid Empire die."

Yu Shan said with a bitter face: "The Seleucids have already complained about our Xiongnu because of the heavy casualties in the previous war. Now we are recruiting another 100,000 troops. I am afraid that the Seleucids in the rear will all join the guerrillas."

The military official said: "Hold the gun tightly, the Seleucids will not dare to resist. In this situation, if we don't kill them, then my Xiongnu warriors will die."

Yu Shan said: "We Xiongnu only have 5 people in Seleucid, but now we have to arm 20 Seleucid troops. If the Seleucids rebel against us Xiongnu, what should we do?"

Junchen said: "Another 3 troops will be transferred from the country to the Seleucid Empire. You will be in charge of these people. Find a way to suppress the local guerrilla forces. We must not let them affect our war on the front line."

Yu Shan found that his father was like a gambler who had lost all his money and wanted to bet all his money, so he immediately persuaded him: "Father, if this happens, our Xiongnu army in Seleucus will almost double, and military expenditures will also double. I am afraid that the bonds issued domestically will not be able to support even half a year."

The Huns spent nearly 30 billion coins on the war with the Seleucid Empire alone. If they needed to increase the army, 20 billion coins would only be enough for three months of military expenses.

Junchen said coldly: "Now the Han Dynasty does not want to end this war. What we need to do is to force the Han Emperor to agree to negotiate."

Yu Shan said helplessly: "My son obeys your orders."

After receiving the order from the military minister, Yu Shan returned to Seleucia, summoned the local nobles and powerful people, and ordered them to find a way to recruit 10 new troops.

This made the Seleucid nobles look ugly. They originally sought people to protect their land, wealth and noble status, but now the Huns are not satisfied with plundering the civilians of the Seleucid Empire, and are still desperately plundering them. The Hun noble status promised at the beginning is worse than toilet paper. Now even the Hun nobles subscribe to bonds, not to mention the Seleucid nobles, who are not even qualified to subscribe to bonds. The Huns fought to protect their land, and it was not right for the Seleucid nobles to pay money and food. This was just taking advantage of their wealth for free.

"The unruly people in the countryside have been controlled by the guerrillas, and we have no way to recruit 10 troops!" The Seleucid nobles complained dissatisfiedly.

Now the nobles of Seleucus have regretted bringing the Huns here. They thought they could be nobles of the Huns, but now it seems that they are not even as good as dogs. Dogs at least sprinkle some dog food, but now the Huns want to kill dogs for meat. They have lost their property, land, and slaves. There are endless guerrillas outside the castle. These guerrillas kill their servants, bewitch their serfs, and even attack their castles. The Huns who seemed invincible at the beginning cannot protect their property or even their lives. If there is a regret medicine to take, the nobles of Seleucus will definitely want to take it. If they had known this earlier, they might as well negotiate with those mud legs. After all, we are all from the same country.

But Yu Shan immediately shot the complaining Seleucid noble with his Confucian spear, and then snorted coldly: "This is not a discussion, it is an order. I want to see 10 young and strong men within two months. If the number is not enough, I will capture you to make up the number."

The Seleucid nobles were so frightened by this bloody scene that they dared not resist.

On January 54, the 1th year of the Han calendar, the Xiongnu Kingdom once again dispatched 15 troops into the Seleucid Empire.

On February 2 of the same year, under Yu Dan's ruthless suppression, the Seleucid nobles tried every means to capture 3 able-bodied men and brought them to Seleucia. Yu Dan gave these men simple training and used Hun soldiers as grassroots officers. Then 10 troops were responsible for maintaining the stability of the food supply route in the rear, and the remaining 5 troops came to the Huns' camp under the city of Antioch.

With the support, Junchen launched another fierce attack on Antiochus, as if he would not stop the attack until these 8 Seleucid soldiers were wiped out.

April 54, 4th year of the Han Dynasty. Outside the city of Antioch.

The Hun army's 300 heavy artillery pieces fired continuously. In just half an hour, they had fired tens of thousands of shells. The shells weighing hundreds of pounds made the sandbags in the Allied trenches fly everywhere, raising dust and filling the battlefield with smoke.

Xia Jie pointed at the Antiochus formation and said, "Soldiers, the first soldier to enter Antiochus will be rewarded with ten thousand gold coins and made a marquis of ten thousand households. If you want to make your wife and children famous, do it today. Kill them!"

"Kill!" When tens of thousands of soldiers from the two camps heard such a generous reward, they looked at the trenches in front of them with red eyes. Now this is not a place of death, but a treasure house full of gold and silver.

Tens of thousands of soldiers rushed towards Antiochus' position in a skirmish formation. They soon encountered obstacles of barbed wire, but the Hun soldiers in the rear cut the barbed wire with pliers, opened the passage and continued to charge forward. Soon these soldiers rushed to the first trench.

"Hurry, hurry, hurry, the enemy is coming." Allied Sima Zhou Jianyi shouted. One by one, allied soldiers quickly emerged from the rear trenches.

"Push the small cannon up quickly!" Under Zhou Jianyi's order, one small artillery cart after another was quickly pushed to the high ground and then pointed at the Hun soldiers who were constantly rushing over.

When the soldiers approached 50 meters, Zhou Jianyi shouted, "Fire!"

"Puff puff puff!" Hundreds of Gatling machine guns fired a torrential rain of bullets at the Hun army. The video of the Huns' charge was blurred. They had never encountered such a fierce bullet attack. In the hail of bullets from the Gatling machine, the soldiers had no time to react and were beaten to a bloody mess.

In less than half an hour, the two vanguard camps of the Huns were defeated, two captains were killed in the battlefield, and the casualties exceeded 2. The remaining remnants reacted and fled out of the battlefield.

Zhou Jianyi was also shocked to see the blood flowing like a river in front of him. After more than half a year of brutal war, he had seen too many such scenes. But it was the first time that such a bloody scene as today had occurred, where thousands of lives were lost in just half an hour. Then he looked at the Gatling machine gun in front of him with excitement. With this weapon, the Huns would not be able to break through their positions.

In the hidden command post on the front line, Liu Ruyi, the leader of the Antioch allied forces, saw the defeat of the Huns through a telescope. He was also shocked by Gatlin's strength and said, "Did we not understand the meaning of great mercy?"

These Gatling guns are the latest weapons developed by the Han Dynasty. It is said that the name was set by the emperor himself. It is called the Great Compassion Gatling Gun. It was developed by the emperor to end the war. Seeing the power of this Gatling gun, he finally understood why it was called Great Compassion. It defeated tens of thousands of people and killed thousands of people in half an hour. The hundreds of thousands of Huns’ troops were enough for this weapon to kill for a few days. This is a weapon that can end the war, isn’t it Great Compassion.

The Han army cheered for their victory, while a general on the other side of the battlefield saw through a telescope that his army of tens of thousands was defeated in an instant. He was so shocked that he couldn't speak. He felt a darkness in front of his eyes and his whole body was dizzy.

"Chanyu, Chanyu!" Junchen's personal soldiers saw Junchen's condition and supported his body in panic.

Fortunately, Junchen recovered quickly and said, "I'm fine. Order the artillery battalion to counterattack."

Soon, the sound of shells cutting through the air was heard, and the Huns' artillery bombardment began. The shells bombarded Antioch's trenches like meteors.

Zhou Jianyi shouted, "Get away."

Then he hid himself in a bomb-proof cave.

Soon smoke and dust billowed on the battlefield, and a large number of Allied soldiers who had no time to dodge were killed by artillery fire. However, because of the protection of the trenches, the casualties were still under control. On the contrary, the Huns were unwilling to give up and continued to charge before the smoke cleared.

But the Allies did not tolerate the Huns. They kept firing their Gatling guns at crossfire, leaving the Huns' army with almost no way to defend themselves. These charging soldiers were not the elite of the Huns. They were originally Seleucids, and they were inadequately trained. They hated the Huns in their hearts, so it was naturally impossible for them to work for the Huns. In the previous wave, they were shot and killed before they even had time to react. This time, the soldiers knew the power of the Gatling guns, and they quickly collapsed after less than 3,000 casualties, and fled directly to the rear.

Even if the Huns' supervisory team kept firing, there was no way they could do anything. Their rifles could only kill a few people. A Gatling gun could not hold out for hundreds of people for more than 10 seconds. With the help of the Gatling gun, the density of the Allied firepower was more than ten times that of the Huns. The one-sided firepower gap once again defeated the two camps of Huns' soldiers.

Junchen was unwilling to give up and launched another round of attack, but it was not much different from the previous two rounds. The Hun soldiers were suppressed by Gatling machine guns before they could rush to the front of the enemy. They suffered two to three thousand casualties and collapsed again.

Now even Junchen felt sorry for his losses. Tens of thousands of soldiers were killed or wounded in less than a day of fighting. Even though most of them were Seleucids, he could not afford such losses. If he continued to fight like this, the 20 troops under his command would not last even a month.

In the next month, Junchen launched three more fierce attacks, each time without regard for casualties, and even developed a tactic of slow barrage, forcing the soldiers to charge before the artillery stopped firing. As for the death of the soldiers, Junchen did not care at all. These soldiers were death squads, and there was only one Hun soldier among dozens of people. He would not feel bad if all of them died. Moreover, following behind the artillery, although they might be killed by their own shells, they would die much less than being killed by the enemy's Gatling guns.

But this only increased the cruelty of the war. The Han soldiers would counterattack immediately after the artillery fire stopped. These soldiers were not the elite of the Huns, and their fighting will was not as strong as that of the Allied soldiers. The Allied soldiers, especially the Seleucid soldiers, had the belief of defending their country. They dared to counterattack under the Huns' bullets and directly kill the enemy.

After a month of brutal fighting, Junchen's side suffered 5 casualties, and the Allied side also suffered tens of thousands of casualties.

In such a cruel and bloody war, the allied soldiers could still hold on, but the puppet soldiers on the Huns' side could not. Such a bloody slaughterhouse was far beyond the imagination of these puppet soldiers. If they had such a firm will, they would have joined the guerrillas to drive out the Huns invaders. They would not help the tyrants to do evil here. Junchen still wanted to continue to oppress these puppet soldiers, but hundreds of thousands of puppet soldiers almost rioted. It was Junchen who shot thousands of puppet soldiers to suppress the riot, but it was this riot that made Junchen realize that even if he had the will to kill every last Seleucid puppet soldier, he would never surrender.

But the Seleucid soldiers would not sit idly by and watch themselves die. After tens of thousands of people died, they began to riot and could not continue to drive these soldiers to the front line. Junchen could only stop the attack and let the soldiers recover their morale. But Junchen did not know that his stop would become the last attack of the Huns.

(End of this chapter)