Great Han Empire

Chapter 388

"The Journey to the West"

Author: Scarlet Coral
Chapter 23 A Hundred Years of the Western Regions
The sixth day of October is the fifth day since Bai Hechou, the Prince of Qiuci, arrived in Chang'an, and it is also the day for him to face the saint.On this day, he got up early.

With the help of attendants, he is fully dressed and talented.To show the court's solemnity on this matter, Prime Minister Li Wei personally came to the place where he was staying, said some condolences to Hechou, and rode with him on horseback, cleared the way as a state guest, and walked to Weiyang Palace.Along the way, many people in Chang'an got up early, set up various food stalls on the side of the street, and started their day's work in the morning mist.Bai Hechou watched and listened, feeling very fresh, and thought in his heart: "After all, it is the capital of the kingdom of heaven! The people are so diligent and prosperous, but I don't know if the people of Kucha will be able to enjoy this happiness in the future?" He thought of Kucha Regarding the situation in China, my heart tightened, and I glanced at Li Wei, and couldn't help but ask:
"Your Excellency, what is the holy will for us and other states in the Western Regions?"

Li Wei smiled slightly and replied: "The emperor summoned the prince today to ask him what he thinks about the affairs of the Western Regions."

"The prime minister has high authority, and the emperor trusts him deeply. I don't know what the general will is?"

"Prince, you know that the emperor will be arrogant tomorrow, and he will be arbitrary in many things..."

"Heavy ministers of the public line are always by the side of the emperor. I hope that he can solve the confusion of He Sorrow."

"I caress first."

"That's all right! Hechou thanked the Prime Minister on behalf of the people of the Western Regions." Bai Hechou said happily.

"However, Guishuang's thieves are very powerful now, and combat is still the top priority."

Bai He said sadly, "As long as the big man treats our people in the Western Regions kindly, we are all willing to die for the big man and fight Guishuang together."

"Hehe, that's good, that's good. We'll discuss it carefully after the prince has met the emperor."

Bai Hechou's heart was agitated: "It seems that the emperor is indeed the lord of holiness!" He was the one who immediately saluted Li Wei and said: "

"Baihe is anxious to repay His Majesty's grace!"

Li Wei didn't make a sound, and admired the prince of the Fanbang very much in his heart.He felt that although Bai Hechou had a strong personality, he was loyal, knowledgeable about current affairs, and thoughtful, and he was a talent to be created.

They dismounted outside the east gate of Weiyang Palace and entered the imperial city.In the Han Dynasty, the Prime Minister's Mansion was built on the east side of Weiyang Palace. For the sake of confidentiality, no one who was not a member of the Sangong Jiuqing or the Prime Minister was not allowed to enter without summons. Therefore, Li Wei could not invite Bai Hechou to sit in the mansion, but he went to Honglu Temple to rest. It's convenient, it's just past Dongmen Fudao and Zongzheng Mansion, but it's too far for the servants to come out to announce the imperial edict and enter the palace to see him, so Li Wei sat with him in the deserted front hall court room (today is not a day of regular court) and chatted , Waiting for the eunuch to deliver the decree.

After about a meal, a servant came out from the inside, saying that the prime minister and Prince Qiuci would meet at the Chengming Hall as soon as possible, and they hurriedly adjusted their clothes and followed the eunuch into the palace.When they walked from the west side of the front hall, through the Youshun Gate, and outside the Chengming Hall, Emperor Liu Shuo was already waiting on the couch.There are eunuchs holding umbrellas and fans behind the imperial couch, and there are many court ladies standing on both sides.Two tall brass crane censers with a height of one person are emitting thin smoke, and the hall is full of strange fragrances. Outside the hall, there are two rows of golden-armored guards, and the guards of honor in their hands are shining golden in the morning sun. .Li Wei entered the hall first, and Bai Hechou had carefully learned the etiquette from Dahonghe and the officials in the Taichang Mansion before meeting him. Outside the door is paved with white marble, waiting for questions.Hearing the edict from the servant telling him to enter the hall, he got up quickly, bowed his waist and climbed up the steps from the left. After entering the hall, he saluted again, not to mention not daring to raise his head.

Although it is not uncommon for Liu Shuo to meet the chieftain Hu in the past few years since he has been in power, but this is the first time that Liu Shuo has summoned the royal family of the Western Regions alone.In his heart, he very much hoped that the national policy of the Western Regions he had decided could get support from this well-regarded Prince of the Western Regions.For a while, Liu Shuo didn't speak, but looked Bai Hechoutong up and down.The prince of Qiuci, who was born prominently, is proficient in martial arts, and is familiar with various cultures, gave him a very good first impression: Bai Hechou is only 19 years old this year, similar to the emperor, with a handsome face and fair skin, high nose and deep eyes, and a lower chin A little pointed, looking thin, with hair tied and crowned according to the Han Dynasty, and with the Confucian uniform of a big Han, he looks like a Confucian scholar, not like a general of the Hu nationality who is good at riding and shooting, and can take the lead in charging.But with his sword eyebrows, sharp-edged face, and broad forehead, he has a calm and resolute look.After looking at Bai Hechou who was kneeling in front of him with his head bowed, the emperor said:

"Wang Shi went west, and Qing and the whole country supported him. He made great achievements, and now he has worked so hard to meet him thousands of miles away. His loyalty and diligence are commendable. My heart is very happy."

Speaking of this, Liu Shuo asked the eunuch to take out money, jade hu, sword, and mianfu, and give them to Bai Hechou.After Hechou thanked you, Liu Shuo went straight to the topic: "Now that the Western Regions are at the beginning of peace, a thousand wastes are waiting to be rebuilt. From Qing's point of view, how should we make decisions on the future affairs of the Western Regions?"

Hechou said: "Your Majesty Qi Zuo, the people outside the country are humble, and dare not talk about state affairs lightly. I hope that Your Majesty will treat the people of the Western Regions kindly."

"Your concern. After this battle, the Western Region will no longer be a vassal of the Han Dynasty. In my hands, it will become a state of the Han Dynasty and will be owned by the Han Dynasty forever." Liu Shuo stood up emotionally and said, "The people of the Western Region , from now on, they are the subjects of the Great Han, and I will naturally treat them equally, with no bias whatsoever."

"Your Majesty loves the people like a son, which is the blessing of hundreds of thousands of living beings in the Western Regions. Although the land in the Western Regions is large, the water source is scarce, the land is weak, and there is not much farming, and it is far inferior to the fertile soil in the Central Plains. There are many nomadic people, and the food and clothing are barely enough. Isn't it useless to the big man to increase the land tax?"

Li Wei said with a smile on the side: "There is no lack of agriculture, no work is disadvantageous, and no business is not rich. The Western Regions have transportation to the east and west, and trade with the countries in the far west can benefit greatly. Even if the land is insufficient, it can also benefit the country and people. Don't worry about it, prince, this matter is already under preparation."

"Since your majesty has already made a plan, I have nothing to ask for. I often feel humble and admire Wanghua. I implore your majesty to allow me to study in the Taixue."

"Qing is too modest. In the future, I will rely on Ai Qing for matters in the Western Regions." After comforting Bai Hechou a few words, the emperor said in a peaceful voice: "Ai Qing came all the way east to work hard on the pommel horse. Let's go to rest today." All right. As for the matter of entering the Imperial Academy, the prime minister will do the hard work. As soon as Aiqing is in Chang'an, it will be handled by the Shaofu according to the regulations of the county marquis."

Bai Hechou said nothing more, kowtowed and resigned.As soon as he walked outside the door, an eunuch came out and said that the emperor had given him food and wine in the Jinhua Palace, so he followed the eunuch to the east.As usual, rice with wine given by the Son of Heaven is a formality. There are only four kinds of boiled pork, beef, mutton, fish and meat. You can’t eat it seriously. , I have to kowtow again to thank you.But at that time, this incident was considered to be the special favor of the emperor, and it was also a rare honor as a foreign minister.Bai Hechou was familiar with the rituals of the Han Dynasty, so moved with tears in his eyes at this moment, he kowtowed to the north and shouted long live.

Kucha, he will attack the city.

His offensive and defensive battle in Gancheng has been going on for more than two months, and the situation has become more and more favorable for the big man.

In early October, the Western Regions gradually entered late autumn, and the cold north wind blowing from the Tianshan Mountains made the land boundless and bleak, and the military supplies of the Guishuang army outside the city became more and more difficult-there was no food and grass around the dry city. It can be collected, and the supplies from Shule City in the rear have gradually become unsmooth recently.Guishuang coach Jipu Nada knew very well that before winter, the army must either break through the city, or must withdraw to Shule to rest, otherwise there is a danger of annihilation in the winter.He made up his mind to make a last-ditch effort, and launched a new round of frenzied offensive against him in the first few days of October.Unlike the previous times when infantry was mostly used, Guishuang mixed a large number of light cavalry from nomadic tribes in this offensive, suppressed the city with cavalry and shooting, and finally successfully led the Han cavalry out of the city to fight.When the big Han iron cavalry cut through the Guishuang cavalry like a sharp blade, and rushed towards the Guishuang's main army, Jipu Nada took the opportunity to use his hole card-the war elephant troops that had swept Tianzhu.

These war elephants that come from their own poison (in India today) have been domesticated by humans for more than two generations. They have undergone strict training since birth, washing their wildness, and taming them like war horses as adults.The war elephant is two feet tall and as heavy as a mountain. Its vital parts are wrapped in battle armor, and it carries a hut-like platform on its back. It is equipped with a spearman, an archer and a elephant slave (the war elephant is blindfolded when fighting. , all controlled by elephant slaves).In battle, apart from being assisted by two warriors on their backs, under the control of the elephant slaves, the impact and stampede of the war elephant itself are the most terrifying weapons. Ordinary cavalry and infantry cannot resist at all, and ordinary weapons are also useless. Unable to pierce the tough skin of a war elephant.This terrible weapon is a local specialty of Tianzhu, and was used by many princes during the civil war in the last years of the Mauryan Dynasty.After the Guishuang Empire established by the Dayuezhi people unified Beishendu, they continued to improve this arm and used it many times in battles with the Parthians in the West. They were proud of killing the Parthians greatly in field battles. cavalry troops.Although it has such outstanding combat power, the disadvantages of the war elephant troops, such as huge consumption, slow speed, and low adaptability, make it impossible to deploy in large quantities. This time, Guishuang's [-] army marched eastward, and there were only a hundred war elephants.

Although he was mentally prepared for the appearance of the war elephant, Ma Chao's Xiliang iron cavalry still suffered from a face-to-face encounter.After breaking through Guishuang's cavalry, the war elephants that had been quietly crawling behind the Guishuang infantry phalanx suddenly pressed against the Han army with overwhelming momentum.The forward knights of the Zhenxi Army couldn't hold back their feet, they kept bumping into the war elephants like a city wall, or were thrown out by the war elephants' long trunks, causing heavy casualties for a while.The forward general Ma Dai united his men and horses, and hit the war elephant fiercely with a shot. Be careful!" I saw an elephant soldier on the back of the war elephant stabbing from above.Ma Dai hurriedly dodged sideways, grabbed the spear and dragged it down.The bows and arrows of the Xiliang cavalry follow-up troops fell on the war elephants like a torrential rain, but the iron armor and mud-coated skin on the front of the war elephants have a high defense against bows and arrows, and this round of blows can only slightly hinder it. their steps forward.

"What a powerful beast!" Seeing this, the chief general Ma Chao hurriedly shouted to the soldiers around him: "Hurry up and blow the horns to assemble, don't force yourself into the enemy's formation."

"Woo~ woo woo!" The sound of a huge horn resounded across the battlefield, and the Xiliang cavalry stopped their advance and gathered towards Ma Chao's team one after another.When Ma Dai saw Ma Chao, he slammed his helmet on the ground and said, "Brother, this bastard is invulnerable, how can this be good?"

Fazheng looked at the approaching elephant array in the distance, and said in a deep voice: "Fortunately, this thing moves slowly. If I run on an iron horse, I think I won't be able to catch up."

"We suffered such a big loss and lost thousands of brothers and sisters. Could it be that we just ran back to the city in such a desperate manner?" Ma Dai shouted dissatisfiedly, "No, I brought my own soldiers to fight with these beasts. I can't lose the face of Xiliang Jianer!"

"Presumptuous! Shut up!" Ma Chao glared at his younger brother, then turned to Fazheng and said, "Xiaozhi means that our army uses the speed of the iron cavalry to bypass the group of beasts in front of us and directly penetrate the enemy's formation?"

"The general is wise, that's exactly what it is!"

The Xiliang cavalry reacted very quickly. Before the war elephants rushed to the front, they divided into several groups and ran away from far away, launching an offensive against the rest of the Guishuang army.After the war elephant succeeded in one blow, it had no use for it anymore, and could only go back and forth to support the formations of the Guishuang Army.However, the Han cavalry did not go deep into the battle for each attack, but used cavalry and shooting to make the Guishuang army lose blood continuously, wearing down the enemy's defense layer by layer.Except for the elite spear team, the Guishuang soldiers were not well protected. Under the rain of arrows from the Han army, casualties continued to increase, and morale was on the verge of collapse.

"These enemies are so cunning!" Looking at the rotten battle situation, Jipinada felt a deep sense of powerlessness in his heart.The invincible tactics of the Guishuang people in the long-term war for hegemony, such as spear arrays, city digging, catapults, and war elephants, have not achieved any results in front of this opponent.Not only is the opponent powerful, but they often see through their own strategies quickly.In the past, I only heard about how rich and vast the Eastern Dynasty of the Han Dynasty was, but I didn't expect it to be so good at fighting. Is this really an enemy that Guishuang can't deal with?
"My lord, the war elephant is exhausted! Let's retreat!"

The anxious voices of the soldiers on the left and right interrupted Guishuang’s coach’s thinking. Yes, it’s time to retreat. Maybe this year is destined to fail to take down Kucha, but our army has already occupied Shule and has the gateway to the east. Return In the country, we should exaggerate the results of the battle and take care of the close ministers. If we want to come to my emperor, we should confess to the past.After the beginning of spring next year, we will mobilize some more troops from the country and make more preparations. The outcome is not certain yet.Jipu Nada persuaded himself in this way, and his mood gradually calmed down. He waved his hands and said, "Back."

This retreat announced the end of the entire Battle of Gancheng, and also made Guishuang's army embark on a bloody return.

(End of this chapter)