Big man: I am the Champion Marquis!

Regarding Huo Shan going out to fight, Liu Che felt that there were some things he didn't need to worry about at all.

If you don't suffer any loss when you are young, you will not suffer any loss when you grow up. If you can't stand being wronged in front of your family, you will not be wronged when you go out to fight.

This is what Liu Che understood about Huo Shan. He also understood that going out to fight would definitely not be easy, but Huo Shan would try his best to avoid suffering so much.

The most important thing is that Huo Xian is a general who knows how to fight. The Han army will not have an easy time after the expedition, but the enemies of the Han army will also have a hard time at that time, because there is a high possibility that they will have no way to survive.

Liu Che looked at Huo Xian with a smile and said, "I will arrange for the troops to go out in a few days. I will give you 50,000 cavalry and 80,000 infantry. You will lead the army out of Shuofang."

Huo Xian was beaming with joy. Shuofang was the northwest part of Hetao and Houtao in Inner Mongolia, which was also the western half of Jiuyuan County in the Qin Dynasty.

Liu Che had relocated people to Shuofang, Wuyuan, Shangjun and Beidi counties many times, and dug canals, established military farms and garrisons, and built the Great Wall and fortresses. This was also the main location where the Han army attacked the Huns several times.

As for the 50,000 cavalry and 80,000 infantry, this was also within Huo Xian's expectations. The army was originally planned to be at least 100,000 strong, and now the number has neither exceeded nor decreased.

Seeing Huo Xian's happy look, Liu Che said, "I originally wanted to give you an extra 20,000 cavalry, but Li Guangli and Zhao Po Nu are hard to reassure, so I can only give them an extra 10,000 cavalry each."

This was also what Liu Che was thinking. At that time, Li Guangli would be needed to leave Jiuquan and lead 20,000 cavalry and 30,000 infantry. The importance of this army was self-evident.

Zhao Po Nu needed to lead 30,000 cavalry and 10,000 infantry out of the city of surrender, and the three armies would form a force to drive away the Huns.

Huo Xian smiled and said, "That's enough. It will be difficult for me to charge in this time. We have to fight this battle steadily and destroy the Xiongnu in one fell swoop."

Liu Che also nodded in agreement and said, "Although you can kill the enemy and gain merit by making a detour, this is far from enough."

The battle plan decided at the beginning was to destroy the Huns as much as possible, so if the tactics of roundabout and blitzkrieg were used, it would be possible to reach the heartland of the Huns and perhaps kill many of them.

However, this is inconsistent with the original strategy. The Han army is very determined this time, so it will inevitably be a large-scale strategic decisive battle in the end, which means that both sides will deploy large troops.

The mission of Li Guangli and Zhao Po Nu was not simply to contain the Huns' troops. These two armies were strong in both men and horses, and they were very likely to encounter the main force of the Huns.

Therefore, it is also important to prepare the troops adequately. Once they complete the mission, find the main force, or join forces with Huo Xian, the advantage of the Han army will increase.

The question is where will the Huns' troops gather? Even after making a lot of speculations, there are indeed several key areas worthy of attention, but the Huns might come up with some new tricks.

The Han army was unable to find the main force of the Xiongnu. This had happened in several previous expeditions against the Xiongnu. The Xiongnu had no real cities or capitals, and their royal courts moved everywhere.

Therefore, if the Han army wants to fight a decisive battle, the first thing they have to do is to find the main force of the Huns!
Liu Che also said with some regret, "If the general's health was still good, there would be no need to do this. It is unfair to you that you can't use the tactics you are best at."

"What's there to be wronged about?" Huo Xian laughed. "If the general could lead the army, I might only have 50,000 or 60,000 men. Now I have 130,000 men in one go. I don't know how happy I am."

Liu Che smiled and said, "If he can lead the army, then it will be two armies. By then, you will still have more than 100,000 soldiers and horses, but there will definitely be more cavalry."

This was Liu Che's regret. He couldn't let Huo Shan exert his full strength and couldn't let him let go. This was definitely a pity for a general who was good at leading cavalry on thousand-mile raids.

But there is no other way. There is no better candidate now, so Huo Xian can only lead the army.

Huo Xian was still quite happy. It seemed that more than 200,000 troops were mobilized, which was indeed the best troops in the whole country. However, this was not the limit.

The most important thing is that he has played a vital role in forming these three armies. The Han Dynasty no longer has a shortage of troops, and his contribution is enormous.

If there had been no Huo Xian, the 20,000 cavalry led by Zhao Po Nu would have been completely killed by the Xiongnu. If there had been no Huo Xian, Li Ling and his 5,000 men would have either been killed or captured by the Xiongnu.

Including Huo Xian's expeditions to Dayuan and the Western Regions, he greatly avoided Li Guangli's casualties.

Li Guangli was about to start his first decisive battle against the Huns in the true sense. In history, he had fought the Huns three times, and each time he killed and wounded a lot of Huns, but the losses of the Han army were basically the same.

It is no exaggeration to say that the other two armies now have a total of nearly 100,000 people, and at least half of them were saved by Huo Xian.

Thinking about this, Huo Xian became even more proud. The current strong army and powerful horses were the best affirmation for him.

Seeing Huo Shan's proud look, Liu Che couldn't help laughing. He might not know Huo Shan's "great achievements", but he was clear about some comparisons.

It was Huo Shan who rescued Zhao Po Nu's 20,000 cavalrymen, and everyone knew this. Li Guangli suffered heavy losses in his first attack on Dayuan, but things changed immediately after Huo Shan took over, and this was also obvious to all.

The Han army now has enough troops and horses, and this kid Huo Shan has indeed played a significant role.

The current Han Dynasty is stronger than the Han Dynasty of the same period in history. This has always been Huo Xian's point of view, and it is most intuitively reflected in the number of soldiers and horses.

As for the Arabian horses brought back, the promotion of the curved plow, the development of silage, or the use of horseshoes to reduce the loss of war horses, these are all direct or implicit helps.

Although the country was not at its peak of strength, Huo Xian also understood that if the Han Dynasty launched a decisive battle now, it would not cause the Han Dynasty's finances to completely collapse, etc., so he could calmly deal with the next decisive battle.

Liu Che was in a good mood. He looked at Huo Xian and asked, "I have been thinking about letting you go to Shuofang for a long time. Since you are going to force the Xiongnu to fight a decisive battle, your main force will definitely not be able to hide its whereabouts."

Huo Xian also understood this truth. "Your Majesty, the Xiongnu must have been prepared long ago. They probably started to retreat before I even got to Shuofang. I will just march all the way and see where they can hide!"

Liu Che nodded and decided that this time he would lead a large force to the border and prepare for a decisive battle with the Huns.

Including Li Guangli and Zhao Po Nu, the purpose of those two armies was to tie down troops or launch a decisive battle.

As long as they found the main force of the Xiongnu, it would be good. Finding it would naturally mean an opportunity. After all, the other two armies would not be short of soldiers and horses, and it would be difficult for the Xiongnu to swallow them all in one go. Even if they wanted to defeat these two armies, the Xiongnu would inevitably pay a heavy price, which might also create a certain chance for Huo Xian to win.

Liu Che then asked with a smile, "If we send troops this time, what else do you think we need to prepare?"

"I have already prepared what I should have prepared. I don't need to say much about cavalry. I like to use cavalry." Huo Xian was even more proud. "I fought before just to prepare for this fight against the Xiongnu."

Humility has never been Huo Xian's characteristic, but Liu Che still asked, "Then tell me, how come the previous battles were also preparations for today?"

Huo Xian said confidently, "Your Majesty, when I attacked Dayuan, I had to travel thousands of miles. The attack on the Western Regions also required a long journey. It is true that I used cavalry, but I also used a lot of infantry."

After hearing what Huo Xian said, Liu Che also felt that it made sense. In fact, during those two expeditions, the infantry had made the most achievements, but fortunately, he had not lost his specialty of being good at using cavalry.

Huo Xian continued to say proudly, "Now the general is also helping me practice the formation of the Wugang chariots. I will be more confident in setting up the formation and fighting the Xiongnu."

Liu Che nodded, and then said, "We must win a great victory, but we must also be careful not to cause too many casualties."

A merciful army is not suitable for war. Both Liu Che and Huo Shan knew that there would be casualties when going out to fight, and the decisive battle with the Huns meant that certain casualties were inevitable.

It seemed that as long as the Xiongnu were destroyed, even the greatest number of casualties would be acceptable. However, such a view was an extreme one, and neither Liu Che nor Huo Xian could accept it.

In the final analysis, it is an army of nearly 200,000 people. This is the basis for the Han Dynasty to continue to maintain its military advantage, and these people are basically young and strong.

If the casualties were too great, the Han Dynasty's national strength would be greatly weakened. It is not an easy task to raise more than 100,000 young and strong men, not to mention that these are soldiers with a certain foundation in military training.

Some generals don't care about the deaths and injuries of their soldiers for the sake of military merit. Huo Xian understands this, and Liu Che is also aware of this.

This is probably what is meant by "one general's success is the result of the sacrifice of thousands of soldiers", but in essence, this approach is definitely wrong. A qualified general should also consider his own losses.

"Don't worry, Your Majesty. I know what's going on." Huo Xian said with a smile, "I can't guarantee that I can bring everyone back, but the number of people I bring back will definitely be much more than the number of Xiongnu people I killed!"

Liu Che smiled and nodded, then said earnestly, "The Crown Prince has always been reluctant for me to send troops to fight, as he always feels that fighting a war will consume national strength. However, the Xiongnu is a mortal enemy, and we must destroy it."

Huo Xian also agreed and said, "After the Xiongnu is destroyed, the north will be stable. If it weren't for the great victory of the general and my father-in-law under your majesty's wise command in the early years, there would be no peace in the north today."

It is true that this is flattery, but it is also what Huo Xian really thinks.

If there had not been a series of great victories over the Huns in the early years, the Huns might have continued to plunder southwards. At that time, the soldiers and civilians on the border would most likely have been taken to the grasslands and become slaves.

If the Huns had not been defeated and dared not move south, more people in the northern border counties would have been forced to perform labor service, which would have greatly increased the burden on some people.

If the Hexi Corridor had not been captured, the Han army would not have had as many and better horses as it did now. Moreover, the Hexi Corridor also had great strategic significance for defending the Guanzhong area.

Some things cannot be achieved through negotiation and can only be won through fighting. This is also what Huo Xian has always advocated.

Liu Che looked at Huo Xian with expectation and said, "You should also know that the prince is a moderate and peaceful person. He can be a good king who maintains the status quo, but it is difficult for him to be enterprising."

There doesn't seem to be much of a problem with this statement. It is hard to say what choice Liu Ju will make in the future, but based on the current situation, he does look like a king who maintains the status quo.

Resting and recuperating might be something Liu Ju was better at, and he really didn't have much enthusiasm for expanding territory and gaining military merit.

Seeing that Huo Xian didn't speak, Liu Che smiled and said, "Only if I destroy the Xiongnu can he be at ease to restore the country's strength. I will do these things, he doesn't have the ability to do it."

Huo Xian was even more embarrassed, and said flatteringly, "Your Majesty, I am also a subject, how can I make irresponsible comments on the crown prince?"

"Are you afraid now?" Liu Che said with a smile, "You are not afraid of me, but you are afraid of the crown prince. You are really ridiculous."

Sometimes, Liu Che also found it very funny. Perhaps it was because he was too good to Huo Shan, so the child just didn't know how to be respectful.

Look at Huo Xian's series of actions. He would never use the methods he used on the emperor on Liu Ju.

Huo Xian also whispered, "Let's not talk about other things for now. Anyway, I have supported Your Majesty in destroying the Xiongnu since I was a child. His Royal Highness the Crown Prince has also said a lot about me, and I have not changed my mind over the years."

Hearing what Huo Xian said, Liu Che smiled and said, "That's right. If we don't take advantage of the current good situation to destroy the Xiongnu, the Han Dynasty will never have such an opportunity again. I should do these things even if I am cursed by the world."

Each generation has its own affairs to deal with, and Liu Che felt that he was a link between the past and the future. This was the responsibility that fell on his shoulders and it was his obligation.

After the reign of Emperor Wen and Emperor Jing made the Han Dynasty strong, he could naturally launch a counterattack against the Huns, sweeping away the humiliation that the Han Dynasty had faced with the Huns for nearly a hundred years and completely changing the offensive and defensive situation.

Weakening or even destroying the Huns, their mortal enemy, was what Liu Che believed he had to do, because everything seemed to be ripe.

Of course, in addition to the emperor's responsibilities and obligations, Liu Che's ambition is also included. He has always been an extremely confident person. He wants to have real great achievements and he hopes to have real merits.

So fighting the Huns and continuously expanding the territory were Liu Che's motivations, and he now seems to be doing well in these things.

As for the mess left behind, that was something that future emperors would have to deal with. Liu Che obviously did not think that an emperor should do everything.

It was Liu Che's determination to launch a decisive battle against the Huns, and his will would be implemented through Huo Shan.

Huo Xian was obviously in favor of war, and he had to defeat the Xiongnu once and for all! (End of this chapter)