I, Liu Bian, Sanxing Han Dynasty

Chapter 552 Coming out in full force
"What's the situation? How does Hu Changshi respond?" Yanqi King Long An asked his minister Beiliu who had just returned somewhat anxiously.

Beiliu was considered the confidant of King Yanqi and knew what King Yanqi was worried about. He answered truthfully: "Hu Changshi only said that he was going to meet the general of the Han Dynasty with the food and grass sent by the Kingdom of Qiuci. He didn't say anything else."

King Yanqi became even more anxious after hearing this. He asked, "When Hu Zhen came, I promised to provide him with a batch of food and grass. Did he mention it when you went to see him?"

Bei Liu replied: "Your Majesty, I went to see Hu Zhen this time, but he did not mention anything about this. He went to Qiuci and his attitude towards our country was obviously different. There must be something wrong!"

King Yanqi was also troubled by this. Thinking of how Hu Zhen had used the land of Cheshi to tempt him, King Yanqi could not help but think that if Hu Zhen agreed to some conditions from King Qiuci in exchange for Qiuci sending troops...

Especially now, Hu Zhen didn't even want the food and fodder that he originally wanted to support - King Yanqi understood that the Han army had come from afar, and there were no soldiers stationed in the Western Regions to provide them with food and fodder like before, so supplies must be scarce.

Both countries had more than 20,000 soldiers, and Yanqi and Kucha were neighboring countries. As one can imagine, the relationship between them was not so friendly.

If the Han people agreed to a condition of Qiuci that was unfavorable to Yanqi, once the Han army defeated the Xianbei people - after all, according to past experience, the Han army had always won more than it lost when facing the Xiongnu, even though it was often at a disadvantage in terms of numbers.

So when the Han people truly control the Western Regions, how can he reap the rewards if he hasn't even sent out food and grass?
Thinking of this, King Long Hui of Yanqi immediately summoned his ministers and talked about the current situation.

Generally speaking, Yanqi was divided into two factions. One faction was pro-Xianbei because Xianbei was close enough, and the other was pro-Han because Han's control of the Western Regions could bring more commercial benefits. At most, they would ask them to send hostages, but those were not their sons anyway.

But in fact, these two factions were deliberately established by King Yanqi, and he played the role of a referee in the middle, and he was like a non-stick pan once something happened.

Therefore, the ministers of Yanqi were able to discuss the issue sincerely - "Kucha must have ulterior motives! Maybe they have already tried to sow discord between our country and the Han Dynasty in front of Hu Zhen. If the Han people are in charge of the Western Regions again in the future, then if Yanqi does nothing, won't we be bullied by Kucha using the power of the Han people?"

"It's not certain whether the Han army can win. What if they lose?"

"Besides, there have been more than one case in the past where Han people voluntarily left. How can we be sure that they will not leave this time?"

"We have mobilized so many troops this time, how can they leave so easily..."

Bei Liu looked at the ministers who were arguing. He thought of the current situation of the Han Dynasty that he had heard from the merchants who came to the Western Regions and Hu Zhen, and said, "The road to Luoyang for tribute was cut off because of the rebellion of the Qiang people. But now, according to the merchants who come and go, the Qiang people who once rebellious are now very peaceful."

"However, I also heard that there is a rebellion within the Han Dynasty and they are busy suppressing it!"

After Beiliu finished speaking, someone asked, "According to what you said, the Han people will leave soon, right?"

Bei Liu replied: "No, it is precisely because the Han people still sent troops under such circumstances and mobilized so many troops to attack the Cheshi Kingdom and the Xianbei people that I concluded that the Han people would not leave easily."

After hearing Beiliu's conclusion, everyone from the King of Yanqi down felt that it made sense.

But some people still questioned: "What if the Han people lose?"

Beiliu seemed to have figured it out. He suggested, "Your Majesty, I think we should not worry too much at this time of change. Instead, we should help the Han people when they return to the Western Regions. Even if the Han people are defeated in the end, our country can only offer a heavy gift to the Xianbei people to apologize, and then talk about the Han people forcing us with troops... If the Xianbei people want to attack our country, even the Kingdom of Kucha will not sit idly by!"

After hearing this, King Yanqi thought for a long time and finally made up his mind.

He was unwilling to pay any price at first, but now he had no choice but to pay it.

He said to Bei Liu: "You will lead 5,000 soldiers... no, 7,000 soldiers to follow Hu Zhen and fight against the Xianbei!"

Beiliu took the order and left.

When the King of Yanqi saw him off, he thought of the situation when he said goodbye to Hu Zhen before - "Yanqi is already a big country in the Western Regions, but looking at the whole world, it is not commendable... Of course, I am not saying that being an official in Yanqi is not good, but if you look beyond Yanqi, you can have a broader vision!"

On the other hand, Xu Huang and Zhang Fei were based in Haitou City within the territory of Shanshan State, and they mobilized troops from nearby countries.

Needless to say, the largest Shanshan State killed the Xianbei envoys after the Han army arrived and supported the Han army wholeheartedly. In fact, since the destruction of Loulan, the predecessor of Shanshan State, Shanshan State has always been the starting point for the Han Dynasty's westward expansion.

After more than a month of conscription, Xu Huang had gathered a Western Region coalition force of more than 5,000 people. Even the southernmost Kingdom of Khotan in the Western Region sent more than 1,000 cavalry to join the battle after hearing the news of the arrival of the Han army, but they have not arrived yet.

Just as Xu Huang and Zhang Fei were calculating food and manpower and preparing to take the initiative to attack the Cheshi Kingdom, they suddenly received news from Shanshan King Bi - the Xianbei people and the Cheshi Kingdom took the initiative to send troops to attack.

According to the information sent back by the spies from Shanshan State, both sides sent out nearly 40,000 troops this time!
Almost everyone came out.

These 40,000 soldiers, placed in the Western Regions, are truly a terrifying number, especially since most of them are Xianbei people with full combat effectiveness.

At least the King of Shanshan was extremely panicked when facing Xu Huang and Zhang Fei.

Zhang Fei noticed this and said nonchalantly, "It's just 40,000 people, nothing more than chickens and dog ears!"

He asked the King of Shanshan, "Have you ever heard of the saying that one Han can defeat five barbarians?"

The King of Shanshan nodded repeatedly like a chick pecking at rice.

Zhang Fei said, "Then please do the math, my lord. We have 7,000 elite Han soldiers, but we can defeat 35,000 barbarians, right?"

The King of Shanshan was stunned, but when he saw Zhang Fei looked confident, he nodded subconsciously.

Zhang Fei saw this and laughed out loud: "If we add the coalition forces of all countries, wouldn't it be equivalent to 40,000 troops? If we also count the reinforcements that have not yet arrived here, who do you think has more troops, my lord?"

Zhang Fei's words were loud and clear, and very pleasing to the ear.

At least after listening to Zhang Fei's calculation method, King Shanshan's mind was filled with Zhang Fei's calculation method. Although he felt that something was wrong, when he thought about it carefully, it was actually very reasonable.

During this period of time, he has seen many comparisons between the Han army and the Shanshan soldiers. His evaluation of this can be summed up in three words: There is no comparison!

……

Although Zhang Fei spoke loudly in front of the King of Shanshan, he was still very cautious when facing the attacking army of 40,000.

After all, family members know their own business. Among the 7,000 troops, 1,000 are responsible for logistics and can only be called miscellaneous soldiers. The other 5,000 are mostly county soldiers. Although these county soldiers in the border areas sometimes have to face the threat of Xianbei in the north and Qiang people outside the Great Wall in the south, their combat effectiveness is stronger than that of the county soldiers in the interior, but it is hard to say what the situation will be when facing the Xianbei.

Essentially, the ones that Xu Huang and Zhang Fei could rely on were the 1,000 elite soldiers directly under the command of the Protector of the Qiang Cavalry Captain - just like the General of the Household who was sent to the Xiongnu and the Protector of the Wuhuan Cavalry Captain, their equipment was half iron armor and half leather armor.

As professional soldiers, Xu Huang and Zhang Fei had not seen any wars in the past few years, so they often trained their troops. In Zhang Fei's opinion, the elite troops under his command could fight ten to one, let alone five. Unfortunately, there were only a thousand of them.

Xu Huang said to Zhang Fei: "Now, the King of Shanshan is so worried just by hearing the news that the Xianbei people have sent troops. I don't think this is an isolated case. Although the surrounding countries have sent reinforcements to help, these reinforcements are very afraid of the Xianbei people." "Only if our army officially fights the Xianbei people and wins the battle can we calm the hearts of the coalition forces of various countries!"

Zhang Fei laughed and said, "Gong Ming and I think alike! Although the Xianbei have come from afar, our army is mainly composed of cavalry. If we choose to defend the city, we will be tying our own hands!"

They are going to fight a battle with the Xianbei people in the field!
Xu Huang said: "In this case, Yide will lead the elite troops of our army, and I will lead another 5,000 soldiers as the central army. As for the coalition forces of various countries, we will wait for Hu Changshi to return and let him lead them as the flanks. After all, he has been operating in the Western Regions for several years and has more prestige than us in the Western Regions."

Moreover, there are some good talents among the county soldiers.

For example, a few years ago, Lü Qian from Taishan County of Yanzhou, Li Qian from Shanyang County, and his nephew Li Dian were exiled to Liangzhou to guard the border by the order of General Huangfu Song.

These were talents discovered by Xu Huang and Zhang Fei during the march.

The next day, Xu Huang and Zhang Fei, who had reached an agreement, announced to the coalition forces of various countries that they would take the initiative to attack the Xianbei people.

After the initial panic, the coalition forces of various countries were not so afraid for a while under the influence of the powerful Han army.

They set out from Haitou City to the north, and on the way they encountered the army of Khotan coming from the south and reinforcements sent by the King of Yanqi. As a result, the coalition forces became more powerful.

Xu Huang and Zhang Fei understood that the coalition forces' momentum was false. If they suffered a defeat, the coalition forces would probably scatter like birds and beasts at the first opportunity.

When the army reached the north of Puchang Lake (Lop Nur), the Han army and the Xianbei scouts began to meet and fight.

This scene was somewhat beyond the expectations of the Xianbei leader Mo Hou. He did not expect that the Han people would dare to take the initiative to attack.

On the other hand, after learning that the Xianbei were in front of them, the coalition forces, together with a thousand Han soldiers, surrounded themselves with carts transporting military supplies, and slowly advanced with spears and arrows. The chariot formation and the Han army on the side gave the coalition forces a great sense of security.

Xu Huang and Zhang Fei each led a cavalry, patrolling on both sides of the army, waiting for an opportunity to attack.

When they met for the first time, neither side wanted to retreat, and there seemed to be an attitude that the first battle would be the decisive one.

In this battle, the Han army and the allied forces of various countries numbered more than 20,000, and the Xianbei and Cheshi allied forces numbered 40,000.

One side formed a formation and marched, while the other side rode a mighty force, and they collided with each other.

The first to test the chariot formation were the Cheshi soldiers. The Cheshi soldiers were very aware of being cannon fodder. They held up their shields to protect the archers behind them and only dared to shoot at the soldiers in the chariot formation. They were willing to move forward only when the Xianbei people came and forced them to do so.

Then another volley of arrows came towards them.

Apart from other things, Shanshan, Yanqi, Khotan and other countries guarded the trade routes to the Western Regions. They were still very wealthy and had sufficient military equipment. Although the combat effectiveness of the soldiers was not great, it was not a problem for them to shoot arrows from behind a cart.

While the two sides were testing each other, Zhang Fei, with his thousand elite soldiers, gradually left the chariot formation and began to appear on the periphery, looking for the Xianbei people's weaknesses.

The terrain here is flat, and the movements of the army can be seen clearly.

Mo Hou noticed this scene and immediately pointed in the direction of Zhang Fei and ordered a general beside him: "Arodo, take two thousand cavalry and go get rid of them!"

Mo Hou had a good idea. If he sent out more cavalry, the other side might just run away.

Now he only sent out 2,000 cavalrymen, so even if the enemy ran away, it would not matter, as his troops would still have the advantage. If the enemy did not run away, then his Xianbei warrior A Luoduo would show them what cruelty was!
After hearing this, Arodo said, "Sir, I only need a thousand cavalry to defeat them!"

"Follow orders!" Mo Hou did not indulge the other party this time.

After Arodo led his troops away, Mo Hou turned his attention back to the front battlefield.

The other 5,000 cavalrymen remained close to the chariot formation to provide support. At the same time, Mo Hou also understood that there must be enemy supplies in the chariot formation.

Mo Hou immediately called the King of Cheshi, Ami Zha, and ordered: "Let your men go forward and open up a path for the Xianbei warriors to approach the enemy's chariot formation!"

The range of a cavalry bow is not as good as that of an infantry bow. If possible, Mo Hou would naturally not want to waste his own strength.

Ami Zha, who had considered this scenario as early as when he sent out his troops, had no way to deal with Mo Hou's request. However, when he arrived at the front line, he was accompanied by another older man, who was the former king of Cheshi.

He was bullied by the Xianbei people, so naturally he had people he wanted to bully.

Immediately, the soldiers belonging to the front of Cheshi were ordered to take the lead.

Mo Hou didn't pay any attention to this. Instead, he was happy to see this scene. He also took the opportunity to look in the direction of Arodo. Was he chasing the enemy?

That’s okay!

Then he turned his attention back to the front battlefield.

Seeing that they had finally broken through the cavalry charge with superior numbers and the front soldiers of the Che Division who were charging regardless of casualties, Mo Hou was happy and was about to give orders when he suddenly heard an urgent report - "Sir, it's bad, A Luoduo is dead."

"Where are the two thousand cavalrymen he took with him?"

"Only half of it has been escaped!"

Mo Hou suddenly became unhappy.

He looked in the direction where Arodo had left, and the nearly a thousand enemy troops that had disappeared had come back, waiting for an opportunity to look at his army.

"Sir, according to those who escaped, there are many cavalrymen wearing iron armor. They are definitely the elite of the Han people!"

Mo Hou thought for a moment, then pointed in Zhang Fei's direction and ordered, "Qi Li, I'll give you two thousand cavalry. Don't get entangled with them, just tie them up! The Han people have armor, but their cavalry and archery skills are definitely not as good as ours!"

Qi Li was also an arrogant Xianbei warrior, but when he saw that A Luoduo did not come back alive, he dared not boast anymore and just took the order and left.

After a long time, Mo Hou was winning victory after victory on the front battlefield, and the Xianbei warriors under his command had begun to kill the enemies in the chariot formation.

Just as Mo Hou was about to increase his investment, he heard an urgent report: "Sir, it's bad, Qi Li has been killed!"

(End of this chapter)