I rode and slashed unparalleled in the Three Kingdoms

Chapter 1082 The Fall of the Old Capital of Kushan
The Alan tribe by the Caspian Sea.

It is burning fiercely.

The ground was littered with the bloodied warriors and herdsmen of the tribe, while their leader was pinned to the totem pole in the center of the tribe by Ma Chao's spear, blood trickling down the ancient wood grain.

"The Holy Lord's Mandate is clear and bright; those who obey it prosper, and those who defy it perish!"

With a flick of his silver spear, Ma Chao sent Chief Alan's head flying high into the air before it landed in the roaring campfire.

"From this day forward, you are all subjects of our Holy Lord, subjects of the Great Han! Who dares to disobey—"

"Kill without mercy!"

This statement was both a declaration to the Alan tribe and a warning to all the nomadic tribes along the Caspian coast.

Having grown up in the Qiang tribe, Ma Chao was well aware of the nature of these barbarians.

As outsiders, they had to brandish their sharpest weapons to make these unruly nomadic nomads realize their power and understand the situation.

As expected, under the deterrent effect of Ma Chao's swift and decisive actions, the remaining tribes sent envoys to offer cattle, sheep, and horses as a sign of submission. Within just half a month, all the nomadic tribes on the eastern shore of the Caspian Sea had submitted, and the Han army's sphere of influence expanded to the entire Caspian coast.

Meanwhile, Zhao Yun led another detachment south, sweeping away the remaining Parthian forces along the eastern foothills of the Kopet Dag Mountains. His troops swept through several Parthian strongholds like autumn leaves in the wind, crushing all the defenders who tried to put up a stubborn resistance.

During the march, Zhao Yun unexpectedly rescued a group of Western Region merchants who had been captured by the Parthians. These people were mostly Sogdians who had been trading between Parthia and the Western Regions for generations. After Parthia went to war with the Han Dynasty, they became the target of the Parthians' revenge. Not only were their property confiscated, but their entire families were also enslaved and imprisoned in various border fortresses as forced laborers.

"Thank you so much, General, for saving my life!"

"We are willing to serve as the general's guides!"

The merchants, overwhelmed with gratitude upon regaining their freedom, offered to act as guides for the Han army and provide local intelligence.

With the assistance of these guides familiar with the terrain, Zhao Yun's advance proceeded much more smoothly. He soon joined forces with Bahram's Parthian Green Standard Army at the walls of Nisa, completing the encirclement of this ancient Parthian capital.
This was his original plan, but to Zhao Yun's surprise, this "unknown" barbarian general actually managed to conquer Nisa City all by himself.

Nisa.

On the ninth day of the agreed deadline, which was just as Zhao Yun's vanguard army arrived at the walls of Nisa,...

The red banners of the Han army were already flying atop the walls of Nisa, and the city gates were wide open. Bahram led the Parthian Green Standard Army in a welcoming procession. This Armenian lion, clad in full armor, his armor still stained with fresh blood, bowed respectfully to Zhao Yun with utmost spirit.
"General Zhao arrived a step too late, but I have fortunately fulfilled my mission and breached the city this morning!"

"oh?"

Zhao Yun sized up the middle-aged general before him, whose beard was still stained with blood, clasped his hands in a fist salute, and then whispered to the person beside him with a hint of emotion:

"I've heard that Nisa is the ancient capital of the Parthians, but I never imagined it would be so easily breached by this surrendered general."

Lieutenant Li Ji whispered, "General, you may not know this, but Bahram is renowned in the Parthian army. He once repelled a Roman army with a detachment of 30,000. Now he's leading his old troops to attack the city, and the defenders are mostly his former comrades. Naturally, they'll achieve twice the result with half the effort."

That's not entirely true.

After all, Nisa was extremely important to the Parthians. Although Vologasis VI hastily withdrew after ascending the throne, he dared not bear the infamy of abandoning his ancestral homeland. He left 20,000 troops there to strengthen the defense, hoping to delay the advance of the Han army as much as possible and prepare for the rear to gather support.

This is not arrogance, but rather because it is already early January and the deep winter in Central Asia is gradually approaching.

Throughout history, supplies have always been the most important thing in military campaigns. Although the Han army had captured the stronghold of Mulu City and seized a lot of their grain and fodder, the winter transport was inconvenient, and they also had to support three armies, so the pressure on supplies was not insignificant.

The Parthians, on the other hand, had their homeland at their backs. Although they lost their eastern provinces, their economic heartland, including the Iranian plateau and the Persian Gulf coast, remained untouched by the war.

If they can fight a few good defensive battles, using the fortified city of Nisa and the advantageous terrain of the Kopet Mountains to block the Han army, then they will definitely be able to slow down or even stop the Han army's advance.

But Bahram’s lightning offensive completely shattered this plan.

It turned out that Bahram knew he urgently needed to prove himself as a newcomer, so he adopted an extremely bold tactic.

He personally led 6,000 elite Parthian Green Standard Army troops, together with Yufuluo's Hunnic cavalry vanguard, to raid Nisa City day and night.

Based on prior intelligence, they sealed off the routes surrounding Nisa overnight, completely isolating it. Meanwhile, Bahram himself, using his own name and that of the Holy Lord Su Yao, attempted to sow discord and persuade the city's garrison to surrender.

The morale of the garrison on the city wall was already low due to the new king's retreat to the west. When they saw that the newcomer was the once-renowned General Bahram, the pressure of fear and uncertainty about the future caused many of them to waver in their resolve, even though the commander personally supervised the battle and held their ground.

Bahram immediately seized the opportunity, braving arrows and stones, and led the charge to attack the city.

The gunpowder obtained from Lu Su once again played a crucial role in this battle.

Bahram destroyed the east gate of Nisa by detonating a concentrated bomb, and then his army swarmed in, engaging in a bloody battle with the city's defenders.

In just two days, the outer city of Nisa fell.

Originally, the surrender of the inner city should have been a natural consequence of the fall of the outer city.

To Bahram and his companions' surprise, the inner city's commander was none other than the younger brother of Vologasis VI. This prince refused to surrender and gathered all the able-bodied men in the city within the inner city. Relying on the towering walls and sturdy fortifications, he stubbornly resisted and even declared that he would live and die with the city.

The amount of gunpowder they carried was limited, and they had used it all up in order to breach the outer city.

By this time, eight days had passed since his ten-day agreement.

"General Bahram, please have your men cease their attack for now."

Yufuluo Chanyu advised, "The scouts have reported that General Zhao Yun's vanguard will arrive here tomorrow."

"At that time, how could a mere few thousand remnants of the inner city be a match for the mighty Han army?"

"No!"

Bahram resolutely refused, his eyes flashing with determination: "Having already made a pledge, how can I entrust it to someone else? If I can't even take down a mere inner city, how can I face the Holy Lord?"

Having said that, he suddenly drew his scimitar, slashing a bloody gash in his palm, and ordered the entire army: "Pass on my order! The whole army will rest for half a day. Tonight at midnight, follow me to raze the inner city to the ground!"

The blood oath ignited the passion of the Parthian Green Standard Army soldiers. These former Parthian veterans, now under their new lord, had rediscovered their fighting spirit and eagerly volunteered for battle. Seeing that he was determined, Yufuluo ceased his attempts to dissuade him, instead allocating five hundred Xiongnu archers to assist in the siege.

It was the dead of night, dark and windy.

Taking advantage of the defenders' fatigue, the Green Standard Army launched a fierce attack on the inner city using siege ladders and other siege equipment built by dismantling the outer city buildings during the day.

Bahram personally selected three hundred elite soldiers and, under the cover of night, launched a surprise attack from the steepest northwest corner of the city wall.

Clad in three layers of heavy armor, he was the first to climb the cloud ladder, wielding an iron hammer and carving a bloody path through a hail of arrows and rolling stones.

As the first rays of dawn touched the walls of Nisa, Bahram, his figure covered in blood, stood atop the highest point of the inner city. In his hand lay the head of the prince who had refused to surrender, a head he held in his hand.

"The general is mighty!"

"Long live the Holy Lord!"

Long live the King of Kings!

With the prince's death in battle, the inner city's garrison completely collapsed, surrendering en masse. Bahram ordered the city gates opened, welcoming Yufuluo's Hunnic cavalry into the city, and quickly brought the situation under control.

Thus, the Battle of Nisa ended in a resounding victory for the Han army.

In this battle, the Green Standard Army suffered over 3,000 casualties but still managed to defeat 20,000 defenders, capturing over 10,000 heads.

Blood flowed through the city of Nisa, and more than 8,000 defenders surrendered, joining the Green Standard Army and increasing its size to 35,000 men.

More importantly, the fall of Nisa, the birthplace of the Parthian Empire, completely shook the Parthians' will to resist.

When the news spread, the eastern provinces of Parthia surrendered without hesitation, and all the land east of the Kopetd Mountains came under Han control!
(End of this chapter)