Big man: I am the Champion Marquis!

Chapter 175 Coming out in full force
Huo Xian was thinking seriously about the upcoming war, wondering whether some unexpected things would happen next.

Chen Ju and others were also busy. General Huo Xian didn't care about his armor and weapons, and his subordinates would take care of these things.

Feng Wu came over happily and whispered, "Sir, if you really need a heavy cavalry charge, take me with you."

Huo Xian laughed, "Why, I'm going to charge the enemy, and you won't follow me?"

Feng Wu said quickly, "My Lord, I am not a heavy cavalryman! I will only be wearing light armor when the time comes, how can I be as good as you. My Lord, go and tell Uncle Chen to let me follow."

Chen Ju was elusive, whipping him with a horse whip, "Get lost! The Lord took your age into consideration and spared you from involvement, but you are still not satisfied! Just bring Old Seven and the others with you this time, and follow us!"

Feng Wu dared to be so playful with Huo Xian because of the age difference and Huo Xian's good temper. But in front of Chen Ju and others, he was like a mouse meeting a cat and dared not bargain at all.

Seeing Feng Wu leave in disgrace, Chen Ju said, "These guys have become bolder. They are all very ambitious after winning battles in recent years. In my opinion, they just didn't fight tough battles with the general."

Huo Xian couldn't help but complain, "Uncle Chen, don't say that in front of me. I know the Xiongnu now are not as strong as before, but at least I have defeated them."

Chen Ju was not embarrassed at all, "I only won one game, and I won with the general, so it doesn't count!"

Huo Xian suddenly felt that it made sense. Even though he had won several times, he could not be said to have led the army to defeat the Huns alone.

Huo Xian was silent for a moment before he said, "So this is really the first time I lead an army to fight the Xiongnu alone. I have to be more cautious in this battle, otherwise it will be difficult."

Chen Ju smiled and said, "Sir, I think the Xiongnu and Cheshi are all the same. As long as you lead the army, you will surely win a great victory."

We must certainly be optimistic, but we must also be cautious. These things really cannot be treated carelessly. After all, these are seemingly 'quasi-decisive battles' in nature.

Zhang Gui'an came and asked directly, "Grand Marshal, I request your permission to go to Wusun with the imperial seal. I must ask the Kunmi of Wusun to explain clearly the matter of the Xiongnu sending troops!"

Huo Xian was silent for a moment before he said, "Don't rush over too early, come back in seven days. There's no need for Lie Jiaomi to give an explanation, but this trip must be more impressive, and there's no need to be too friendly."

When Han envoys went to Wusun in the past, they were relatively restrained because they knew that this was a relatively powerful force that the imperial court was trying to win over.

But it is different now. What Wusun is doing now can be said to be "treacherous", and it can even be said to be supporting the Xiongnu.

If they don't give a reasonable and convincing explanation now, the Han people will definitely not let it go. Naturally, there is no need to continue thinking about being friendly everywhere.

You need to be tough when you need to be tough. If you give in everywhere, you may be seen as weak and vulnerable in the eyes of others. You cannot be too polite to Wusun now.

In the past, the Han Dynasty almost always responded to the requests of the Wusun, but now they have raised a group of ungrateful people who are impossible to tame. This is naturally very infuriating.

After Zhang Gui'an left, Huo Xian said to Chen Ju, "Go and see how Yiqiu Hou is preparing. I will go to inspect the various tribes in the afternoon, so you should also prepare."

The war is coming soon, so Huo Xian will naturally be more fully prepared. Not only does he need to be prepared, but the army also needs to be fully prepared so that they will have a chance to deal with the upcoming war.

Everything seemed to be proceeding in an orderly manner, and the entire army seemed to be well prepared. Everyone knew what they should do and would not be in a panic due to emergency military situations.

When they arrived at Li Ling's camp, Huo Xian saw that there were many obstacles at the entrance of the valley. "So, now we are thinking about not letting them rush out easily."

Li Ling immediately replied, "Reporting to the Grand Marshal, I think the most urgent task is to fight the Xiongnu, and the Qi people may rush out of the valley on time, so I can only resort to this last resort."

Huo Xian said with a smile, "This is not a bad idea. This is the way to go now. It is important not to let Qie Mi cause more trouble."

Previously, the Han army had only gathered at the entrance of the valley, acting as if they were ready to rush into the valley at any time. At that time, there would naturally be no obstacles at the entrance of the valley, which would bring various inconveniences to the march.

But the main conflict now is the Xiongnu, and the Qie Mi people are not worth paying attention to. It is better to block the valley entrance. Although it may take some time to clean up, it is not a big deal.

Li Ling pointed to the two sides of the valley and said, "My men have already cleared the two sides of the valley and prepared a lot of rolling stones and rolling logs. If the Mi people come out, they will be smashed to death or shot to death."

Under the leadership of Li Ling, Huo Xian carefully observed both sides of the valley and found that there was indeed "cross fire" and it was definitely not easy for the Mi people to pass through the bottom of the valley.

If you want to force your way through at that time, not only will you suffer heavy losses, but you may even be completely wiped out, because you are now in a dead end.

Huo Xian was very satisfied with the preparations made by Li Ling and others. "The Qie Mi people must have made an agreement with the Xiongnu people and will rush out when the time is right. You should leave a reliable lieutenant behind to stop them."

Li Ling said confidently, "Don't worry, sir. In addition to the ambushes on both sides of the valley, there are also soldiers guarding the valley entrance. The front row has halberds and shields, and the back row has bows and crossbows. They can't rush out!"

This is also Li Ling's confidence. The army he trained is extremely proficient in bows and crossbows. Although he believes that they are good at attacking and defending, he also admits that their defensive strength is better.

Not to mention the Qiemi people, even if he encountered the Huns, Li Ling was confident that he could hold back the large number of Huns with a small number of troops, as long as he was given enough arrows.

It's good to be confident. Without confidence, it's hard to have morale. Li Ling is not being arrogant. He has the ability to speak confidently.

This side of the valley is blocked, which is naturally the best thing. We don't have to worry too much.

Given the current situation, the Qimi people must have had contact with the Xiongnu before, so they adopted such a defensive posture. It is estimated that they had already agreed on the time to send troops.

There is nothing to worry about in the valley for the time being. What we need to focus on now is to prepare to find out the real enemy situation, the main movements of the Huns, etc.

Huo Xian was in a good mood. Everything was ready. Now he just had to wait for the war to come.

Zhao Anguo has already led his army to the front, heading straight for Wusun, preparing to clash with the main force of the Xiongnu. Once the main force is found, it will be the moment of the real decisive battle. The army has begun to prepare for the march, and some troops have begun to gather and camp outside the city. There are scouts everywhere along the way to avoid leaving any loopholes.

Suddenly, a scout came back, excited and nervous, "Grand Marshal, the Xiongnu army is coming along the river, and we have already found out that there are Xiongnu Youxian King's tribe, Ruju King's tribe, and Hujie King's tribe."

Huo Xian immediately looked at the map. The Xiongnu army was preparing to cross the valley along the Ili River and head straight for Jiaohe City. This seemed to be one of the most suitable routes.

Speaking of which, this is also in the Tianshan Mountains, and there are continuous mountains along the way. This also means directly cutting off the Han army's retreat and directly attacking the Han army's supplies.

The scout continued to report, "Grand Marshal, the Xiongnu army is very large, probably more than 30,000 cavalry."

Huo Xian became serious at this moment. More than 30,000 was the minimum. Now it seemed that the number of enemies would be increased to 50,000, 60,000 or even 80,000.

Huo Xian immediately spoke up and said, "Hurry up and order Cong Pihou to lead his army back to Jiaohe City, occupy the city first, and strengthen the city defense. The people in the city should also serve our army."

This will be a huge test, and Jiaohe City will become the focus of the two sides. Although Huo Xian thought that the Xiongnu might send out a large army, he never thought that it would be so many.

Originally, I thought having around 30,000 troops was very good, but I still underestimated the courage of the Huns. These people planned to wipe out the elite of the Han army in the Western Regions in one fell swoop.

Continuing to give orders, Huo Xian said, "Send the order directly, and have the Marquis of Haixi lead his troops out of the pass as soon as possible. First, the speed must be fast, and second, the speed must be steady. We must not be ambushed by the Xiongnu."

Now it is necessary to ask for help. The Huns have brought so many troops without any moral principles. Huo Xian will still feel some pressure. The troops he has now are not at an advantage.

After all, the Han army had fewer cavalry and more infantry, and even if not all of the Huns were cavalry this time, most of them were probably cavalry, and their mobility was far superior to that of the Han army.

Naturally, we have to be careful at this time. Letting Li Guangli lead his troops to support us is not a shameful thing. It is something that must be done. We must be safe!

In addition to sending an order to Li Guangli to come to the rescue, it was also necessary to quickly report the military intelligence to the emperor. This time, Huo Xian had stirred up a hornet's nest and suffered the most violent retaliation from the Huns.

However, it is now completely understandable that the Huns thought so, and it is an opportunity that cannot be missed for them.

Huo Xian was a thorn in the eyes of many people, especially the Huns. After all, this young Han general brought them too much pressure.

Zuo Xian Wang was captured, and he went on several expeditions to wipe out the Xiongnu's former subordinates. All of this was intolerable to the Xiongnu.

If he continued to grow, it would be a nightmare for the Xiongnu. Even if the opportunity came now, because the Han army had left their territory, the Western Regions had the advantage of home court for the Xiongnu.

Huo Xian knew the Xiongnu's thoughts and did not think that such an approach would be in the Xiongnu's interest. If it were him, he would naturally do the same and not give the enemy any chance to develop.

Calling Gongsun Ao over, Huo Xian said, "We have found out the whereabouts of the Xiongnu people. I'm afraid there are too many Xiongnu people this time, at least more than 30,000."

Gongsun Ao also looked serious. "Grand Marshal, it seems that the Xiongnu has sent out at least 50,000 troops this time. I think there may be one or two other troops."

Huo Xian also nodded in agreement and said, "I don't know whether they are coming for me or for my army."

Gongsun Ao also joked, "I think we should prepare to deal with the Xiongnu together. You have also fought against the Xiongnu in the past few years. They must hate you."

Huo Xian thought about it carefully and said jokingly, "It may not just be me, but also my grandfather. If I were caught by the Xiongnu, I would definitely be beaten badly."

Gongsun Ao said confidently, "If you lose this battle, your fate will be very tragic. I think it would be a light punishment for you to sacrifice directly to the ancestors of the Xiongnu."

Huo Xian stopped joking and said, "I think this war is inevitable. But I don't think we need to worry. We are still confident of winning. We just need to prepare carefully."

After introducing some of the situations, Huo Xian said, "I will lead the cavalry first, and you will lead the army behind. We also need to keep an eye on Qie Mi's people, as there may be Xiongnu people who will show up with them."

Gongsun Ao naturally knew in his heart that this time the war had suddenly escalated, and this war would inevitably be a very brutal war, there was no doubt about that.

Huo Xian's caution was very necessary. Not only did he think so, Gongsun Ao also felt that caution was needed at this time.

"Grand Marshal, I think we should leave first." Gongsun Ao said, "In this case, we must directly fight the Xiongnu outside Jiaohe City. It is advantageous to reach Jiaohe City first."

Huo Xian also understood this and could not help cursing, "Our previous plans have been disrupted. If we had known this would happen, we should not have transported the baggage out of Jiaohe City."

Gongsun Ao smiled and said, "The Xiongnu have a big appetite. They not only want to take Jiaohe City, but also Yuanqu City and Luntai. They want to completely destroy us."

The Huns no longer needed to conceal their intentions at this time. Their idea was actually very simple, which was to completely swallow up the Han army in one breath.

It is not enough to swallow it all up. The goal is to completely drive the Han army out of the Western Regions in one fell swoop. This is an obvious situation that everyone can see.

Huo Xian didn't think there was anything wrong with his previous arrangements. It was just because he failed to anticipate the enemy and didn't expect the Huns to have so many troops.

Now we are once again making temporary adjustments, which is also very normal. This is how war works. Our own tactics are one thing, and the enemy's tactics are another, so we naturally need to make some adjustments constantly.

After some temporary adjustments, we need to start making arrangements, and the most important thing is that the army needs to start marching.

It was extremely necessary to hurry up, get to Jiaohe City before the Huns, and start arranging city defenses in advance.

Scouts are everywhere, some are there to call back troops, some are there to pass on information, some are there to convey orders from the generals. All of this needs to be done immediately, because the war is just around the corner!

(End of this chapter)