Big man: I am the Champion Marquis!

Chapter 98 Certificate of Surrender

Zhao Anguo led a thousand cavalrymen into the inner city of Guishan City. He was not there to take over the defense, etc., but to supervise the nobles and common people in Guishan City to hand over the spoils.

Kunda was a little excited and said, "General, I think that black horse is quite good, I can present it to you!"

Zhao Anguo smiled and said, "Choose again. Your Excellency has always been picky. I'm afraid there are more good horses to choose from!"

Horses were led out one after another, and carts of food and grass were transported outside the city. No matter how reluctant the Dayuan people were, they could only accept their fate at this moment. If they didn't hand over these things, they would die.

It is unrealistic to fight to the death. If they really had such a resolute attitude, the nobles in the inner city would not have killed Wu Gua and asked for peace immediately after the Han army broke through the outer city.

Zhao Anguo also turned a blind eye to the fact that some of his soldiers hid some small spoils of war. The cavalrymen who followed him into the inner city this time were the original Jianzhang Camp cavalrymen, the 800 cavalrymen originally led by Huo Xian.

Outside Guishan City, Huo Xian was chatting and laughing with a fat Dayuan man.

This is the new king of Dayuan, Meicai, who was friendly to the Han Dynasty in the past and was also one of the nobles of Dayuan. Now he was elected as the king by the nobles of Dayuan and was recognized by Huo Xian.

So Huo Xian is now the Supreme King of Dayuan, and is already in the process of deposing and enthroning the king.

But no one thought there was any problem. Dayuan was just a small country with some strength.

If it is close to the Han Dynasty, then it can be destroyed directly. But if it is too far away, then kill the previous king and establish a pro-Han king, which is more in line with the interests of the Han Dynasty.

Huo Xian smiled and said to Mei Cai, "I will leave a lieutenant to cultivate the land in Luntai, south of Wusun. If there is any trouble in Dayuan, you can go there to ask for help, or escape there to seek asylum. When my army comes to help, not to mention Kangju, even the Xiongnu will be destroyed!"

Mai Cai said flatteringly, "General, you are so powerful that no one dares to offend you. This time when you return, I will send my eldest son to accompany you. Every year, Dayuan will pay tribute with three fine horses and a beautiful woman to serve you."

Perhaps this was not enough, so Mai Cai continued, "General, I have a daughter who is quite pretty and can warm your bed."

Huo Xian laughed and said, "I don't want to marry, but the king has the heart. Let's put it this way. After all, she is the daughter of the king, so we can't treat her lightly. After I return to the court, I will immediately petition Your Majesty to make the king's daughter a royal concubine, and we will be married!"

Mei Cai smiled happily, this was exactly what he hoped for.

If he were not weak enough, he would want to learn from the Wusun and ask the Han Dynasty to send a princess to be his concubine.

As for marriage, this kind of thing was not only common in the Western Han Dynasty, but also between the various city-states in Dayuan.

Gongsun Ao interrupted and said, "King, the general has chosen a horse before, but that horse is a bit fierce."

"General, don't worry!" Mei Cai looked at Huo Xian flatteringly and said, "I have sent someone back to the city to retrieve the good horses. There are many good horses in Guishan City, but they are not really divine horses. I know there is a divine horse in Yaoshashui City, which I can present to you!"

Mei Cai felt at ease selling out other nobles, as he became king by chance thanks to the Han. So it was only natural for him to please the Han.

Gongsun Ao asked curiously, "Oh? Is there anything better than the horses in the city?"

Mai Cai said quickly, "There are only more than 5,000 horses in the city, and only a few hundred of the best quality horses, and the rest are of medium and low quality. Each state still has good horses. The Lord of Yaoshashui City boasted several times before that he has a good horse. Now it is two and a half years old and can be used by the general to ride."

Huo Xian and the others were upset. The middle and lower-quality horses that Mei Cai mentioned were all good horses that were worth a fortune in the eyes of the Han Dynasty. Even the more than 5,000 horses in Guishan City were all Ferghana horses.

The horse he liked was one with light golden fur. The sunlight shining on the horse made it sparkle and was particularly dazzling.

Mai Cai continued, "It is rumored that the horse is a divine horse that often drinks from springs, and even after being captured, it is difficult for anyone to tame it."

In fact, Yaoshashui City Lord had to offer his horse, which was also one of the conditions for surrender.

Almost all the nobles of Dayuan were captured in one fell swoop, and the horses in the city were naturally spoils of war. It was not the turn of the Dayuan people to make any comments.

But those who led the troops to support Guishan City are now "guilty". If they want to leave Guishan City smoothly, they will naturally have to pay a certain price.

Therefore, according to the information provided by Mei Cai and others, the size of the city-state and the number of people in the city became the basis for the redemption of those Dayuan nobles.

Some people need to donate three horses, while others need to donate ten horses, and they cannot pass inferior goods off as good ones.

While Huo Xian and the others were still chatting and laughing, Li Guangli came hurriedly and said, "General, the troops are ready."

Huo Xian looked at Mei Cai and said, "Lord, it's up to you to capture Yucheng City."

Mei Cai knew it even better. His offering of horses and other things was not enough. The things in Guishan City were already spoils of war belonging to the Han Dynasty.

His token of allegiance was to help the Han Dynasty capture Yucheng City. The city that had caused the Han Dynasty's defeat last year must be captured.

Mei Cai would not object. He would not only take the city as a token of his loyalty, but also take it over after he took it. This was the only way to the Han Dynasty. Only by holding the two big cities of Guishan and Yucheng could he, the elected temporary king, sit firmly on the throne.

If Dayuan wanted to surrender, it was not enough to just hand over food, supplies, horses, and craftsmen, but it also had to provide a letter of surrender.

The token of surrender naturally means to conquer Yucheng City.

This is in the interests of Mei Cai, and he can take control of an important city. He can accept this.

As for attacking Kangju together with the Han Dynasty, many Dayuan nobles actually found it difficult to accept this.

Kangju was originally there to help Dayuan, but now it was being stabbed in the back. If Kangju was really attacked, it would inevitably lead to hostility between the two countries. Kangju was also a big country, and its strength was even slightly stronger than Dayuan.

However, Mai Cai and others also felt that if they could defeat the main force of Kangju in one go, it would not necessarily be a bad thing. The strength of the neighboring country would be weakened, and Dayuan would have more breathing space in the future.

Li Guangli was still a little obsessed with attacking Yu Chengcheng. He was defeated there last year and now he could avenge himself.

Huo Xian saw the new King of Dayuan leaving and asked with a smile, "Marquis Yiqiu, do you think this King of Dayuan is trustworthy?"

Gongsun Ao smiled and said, "I'm afraid this man is a bit cunning, nothing more than a person who curries favor with the powerful. But for our Han Dynasty, this is not a bad thing."

Although the situation may be stronger than people now, so Dayuan has to accept some harsh conditions. When the Han army retreats, these people may turn against us.

However, the Han army had shown their power. If they could break Guishan City once, they could break it a second time. If they fell out with the Han, they might trigger another expedition by the Han army.

The people of Dayuan had to consider these practical issues and also had to think clearly about the price they would pay for being enemies of the Han Dynasty.

Zhao Anguo came back and said, "General, I have killed Wu Gua's descendants."

Huo Xian was very satisfied with this approach, which could be considered as cutting the grass at its roots. Even if some Dayuan nobles were dissatisfied, this matter had to be done.

If Wu Gua's descendants stayed, the position of Mei Cai would be unstable, and Dayuan's position might be loosened. It would be more reliable to choose a Dayuan king who was flattering to the Han Dynasty.

Huo Xian thought about it carefully and asked, "How many horses do we have now?"

"We have 100 top-quality horses and more than 5,000 mid- and low-quality horses." Zhao Anguo said with a smile, "We have both male and female horses, and 900 horse slaves to train the horses. The tribes can send us 50 top-quality horses and 1,000 mid- and low-quality horses later."

Huo Xian was basically satisfied with this number. It seemed that the total number of horses was less than 7,000, which was nothing compared to the Han Dynasty's more than 600,000 horses.

But sometimes we cannot just look at quantity and not quality. These 7,000 horses are all Ferghana horses. Bringing them back to the Han Dynasty will allow them to continue to breed and improve the horse breed for the Han Dynasty.

Although not all the adult and sub-adult stallions and mares in Dayuan were wiped out, most of them were taken back by the Han army.

It would take more than three or five years for Dayuan to restore its herd of Ferghana horses. Without ten years, it would be difficult for them to have such a large herd of horses again.

Most of the excellent horses were taken away, and the Dayuan people had to ride some ordinary horses next.

Huo Xian smiled and said to Gongsun Ao, "If the Kangju people come quickly, we can still fight another battle. It's time to send people to transport the baggage. We should return in half a month at most."

The time window was getting shorter and shorter, and Huo Xian and the others had to consider returning to the army. This time, it had been a year since they came out.

This is the army led by Huo Xian and Li Guangli. They have been on the expedition for more than two years. By the time they returned to the Han Dynasty, the expedition would have lasted more than three years.

It’s not that Huo Xian doesn’t want to fight, but the soldiers have reached their limit. An army has been fighting outside for three or four years, and the soldiers’ endurance has long reached its limit.

Gongsun Ao smiled and said, "The Dayuan people have already escorted slaves to start transporting food. We don't have to worry about reaching the Congling Mountains."

Not only in the Pamirs, but also in the Pamirs, the Dayuan people did all the dirty work. To be more precise, it was the Dayuan slaves who did it.

This is a slavery country, so naturally there is no need to expect any human rights.

Huo Xian nodded slightly, "General Ershi will go and attack Yucheng City, and we will wait for the reinforcements from Kangju. If we can gain more, I'm afraid that many people will be awarded the title of marquis this time."

By then, Huo Xian felt that he should consider getting into trouble.

Gongsun Ao, Zhao Anguo and others also began to look forward to it. Although Dayuan seemed not to have been destroyed, it was essentially no different from a destroyed country.

The spoils of war are already rich enough, and with the many captured items, we will definitely be rewarded when we return to Chang'an.

But for generals, no one would complain about having too many military achievements!
(End of this chapter)