Guiyi Fei Tang

Chapter 541 Reluctant
"Beep--"

"Crack, crackle, crackle!!"

On the 24th day of the twelfth month of the tenth year of Hongwu, with the arrival of the cold winter, the Han soldiers who entered the Nanzhao territory to fight were becoming more and more comfortable.

Gao Pian was well aware of the severity of the miasma in Nanzhao, so he wanted to push the battle line as far as possible to Tuodong City before the weather got hot.

It took Gao Pian two months to finally lead his army 300 li south and completely surround Shengma City, which was only 150 li away from Tuodong City.

On the hillside, Gao Pian, dressed in a brocade robe, held a monocular telescope and gazed at the battlefield.

Shengma City is located on Shengma Mountain, which is surrounded by mountains. Behind the mountain is a plateau lake called Qingshui River by the Nanzhao Kingdom, and in front of the mountain are tens of thousands of acres of hilly farmland.

At present, the Han army's camp occupies most of the tens of thousands of acres of hills. The army is attacking Shengma Mountain from above, while the laborers are using the farmland to grow vegetables to help the army become self-sufficient.

"The Nanzhao Kingdom is not as terrifying as described in the 'Book of the Barbarians'; it is at least better than Annam and Lingnan."

Standing behind Gao Pian, Wang Jian looked at the laborers cultivating the land in the valleys and hills, and couldn't help but say:
"Even in the dead of winter, it's still so warm that we can even grow some vegetables to supply the army."

"To the east there are millions of acres of valleys and plains. If we occupy this area, we can relocate more than 100,000 people to cultivate this land and provide food for tens of thousands of soldiers."

Wang Jian's words resonated with the generals behind him, while Gao Pian, without turning his head, said:

"It's still winter, so let's save these things for summer. Tell the laborers to cut down all the forests in the plains and hills to build houses and villages, so that when the court relocates people there, it will also prevent miasma from spreading along the forests after summer."

After all, Gao Pian had been guarding against Nanzhao in the southwest for ten years, and had secretly found out a very clear picture of the general situation of Nanzhao.

Admittedly, although Nanzhao may seem wild and undeveloped, it is actually a region with countless valleys and plains crisscrossing its mountains and rivers.

These valleys and plains, ranging from tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands of acres, were where Nanzhao fed its more than two million barbarians.

Compared to the present-day Han Dynasty, Nanzhao's agricultural technology was already ahead of many countries around the Han Dynasty. After all, Nanzhao had twice invaded Chengdu and plundered hundreds of thousands of people and artisans from the Chengdu Plain back to Nanzhao. Therefore, the water conservancy projects and agricultural technology of Nanzhao's cities were quite advanced.

In addition, their technology in porcelain, lacquerware, and hemp silk was also excellent, which enabled them to monopolize the Silk Road route to India.

In the northeast of Nanzhao, millet and wheat were cultivated, while the remaining valleys and plains were mainly planted with rice and mulberry and hemp. The average annual yield per mu ranged from one shi in the mountains to two shi in the river valleys.

It can be said that as long as one controls a plain, it is not a problem to support an army of thousands or tens of thousands. Therefore, before launching the attack, Gao Pian was already confident and knew how to send troops to build cities after pacifying Nanzhao, so as to expand Nanzhao.

“Woohoo!!”

"Uuuuuu——"

While Gao Pian and Wang Jian were talking, a thunderous cheer came from the distant Shengma Mountain, clearly indicating that the easily defensible city of Shengma had been captured.

"The army will rest for two days, and then continue south at dawn on the third day. After capturing Tongqi City, we will be only one step away from taking Tuodong City."

When Gao Pian saw the bustling scene on Shengma Mountain, he immediately knew that Shengma City had fallen. He then gave instructions to Wang Jian and others, while he went down the mountain and rode back to the military camp at the foot of the mountain.

After the fall of Shengma City, Yang Jisi, who concurrently served as the military governor of Tuodong, could only retreat to Tuodong City. At the same time, he reinforced Tongqi City and the passes and fortresses behind Tongqi City, and sent a fast horse to report the unfavorable situation of the war in the east to Yangjumei City.

Three days later, as the Han army marched south, You Shilong of Yangjumei City also received a memorial from Yang Jisi, Duan Zongbang, Yang Qiuqing, and others.

All three memorials reported defeats, with the Nanzhao army suffering over 20,000 casualties and morale plummeting.

Faced with these three memorials, You Shilong appeared outwardly calm, but his fists, hidden in his sleeves, were already clenched tightly.

"Your Majesty, there are only a few days left until the New Year. The weather will start to warm up in as little as half a month."

"At that time, the snakes, insects, rats and ants hiding in the mountains will all begin to revive, and the 30,000 Han troops who entered Tonghai will surely not fare well."

"Right now, the main concerns are Gao Pian in the east and Zhang Wu in the north."

"Furthermore, how should we deal with the more than 200,000 people resettled in Tuodong City? Most of them were kidnapped from Jiannan Road."

“If we leave them in Tuodong, they might settle down there to support the Han army’s continued westward advance once the Han army occupies Tuodong.”

"I believe that all the Han people in Tuodong City should be relocated to Yangjumei City, tens of thousands of Han people in Yangjumei City should be relocated to Yongchang, and more than 10,000 Han people in Yongchang should be relocated to Ruanhua City (Tengchong)."

Inside the Wuhua Tower, Fan Cui, who had been promoted to Qingping Official, offered his suggestions, but You Shilong hesitated:
“The road to Ruanhua City is not easy to travel. If these 10,000 Han people are to migrate to Ruanhua City, I am afraid that thousands of them will die.”

Most of the Han people who were able to be settled west of Tuodong City were artisans with some skills and their families.

Many people died during the relocation of them from the Chengdu Plain to places like Yangjumei City. It was only with great difficulty that they were able to reproduce for two generations and recover some strength. Now, another large-scale war is about to begin, which makes You Shilong quite reluctant.

Fan Cui shook his head and said, "Your Majesty, those who can be kept in our hands are the people of the court, and those who cannot be kept are the enemies."

"If the Han army gets help from these people, the court will definitely be in big trouble."

Faced with Fan Cui's suggestion, You Shilong was somewhat indecisive. After thinking carefully, he said, "The Tongqi River originates from over a hundred li east of Tuodong. There are five passes of varying sizes, twenty-four stone fortresses, and three mountain cities. It is not so easy to conquer."

"I intend to personally go to Tuodong. If the Han army's strength is indeed unstoppable, then I will immediately order the army to relocate the people and retreat."

"Your Majesty is wise." Fan Cuixie bowed decisively and saluted.

Even though they had already relinquished their imperial titles, they still used terms like "Your Majesty" and "I" to refer to themselves, since the Han Dynasty couldn't possibly know the content of the discussions inside the Five-Flower Tower.

Moreover, there are many others who have done the same, and the peace negotiations between Nanzhao and the Han Dynasty have not yet been finalized, so there is no need to be bound by these matters.

With that in mind, You Shilong began to muster the five thousand elite cavalry of Qiyang Jumei City and led them toward Tuodong City.

"Crackling..."

In the brief interval between the white horses, only a few days had passed, and the sound of firecrackers had already resounded throughout the Central Plains.

The tenth year of Hongwu's reign came to an end, and You Shilong led his army to Tuodong City on the eighth day of the first lunar month.

He did not linger in Tuodong City, but after a short rest, he went to the front line.

"put!"

"Boom boom boom——"

Several miles away, Tongqi City, standing on a hill, was being bombarded by the Han army. Two hundred cannons were raining down shells on the city as if they were free.

Even if it was built with the same stone walls, it couldn't withstand such a fierce bombardment, not to mention that this was already the eleventh day of its assault.

On the stone fortress on the hillside south of Tongqi City, You Shilong, clad in armor, could only gaze at the distant Tongqi City with his naked eyes, his brow furrowed.

How many soldiers does Tongqi City have?

Seeing his frown, Yang Jisi, who was standing behind him, could only bite the bullet and reply, "I have deployed three thousand troops, but given the current situation, we can only hold out for two or three days at most."

"Can they break through?" You Shilong asked again, and Yang Jisi shook his head: "The Han army numbers in the tens of thousands, of which more than ten thousand are cavalry."

"Although our elite cavalry are brave, the horses they ride are Tibetan horses, while the Han army's horses are the Hexi Corridor horses, which are the offspring of the Ferghana horses from the Western Regions and Han horses."

"Even if our elite cavalry comes out to relieve the siege, they will soon be entangled by the Han army's elite cavalry, and the Han army's cavalry and infantry will immediately follow up, forming a battle formation to deal with our army with firearms."

"At present, including the elite cavalry brought by His Majesty, our army has a total of only 43,000 archer infantry and 8,600 elite cavalry. It is not advisable to take any risks."

After Yang Jisi explained the situation, You Shilong did not mention the rescue of the besieged troops again, but frowned and asked, "How many soldiers has the Han army lost since the start of the war?"

"This..." Yang Jisi didn't know what to say. Seeing the anger on You Shilong's face, he forced himself to say, "In my estimation, it's probably no more than four or five thousand."

"Four or five thousand?" Upon hearing this, You Shilong's anger flared even more, and he couldn't help but rebuke, "The Han army has only forty or fifty thousand on the battlefield. If four or five thousand were really killed in battle, how could they still have such vigor?"

If the Han army were to suffer a loss of even ten percent of its troops during its long expedition, its morale would inevitably plummet. You Shilong had experienced this firsthand when he led an expedition to attack Xichuan.

Judging from the current state of the Han army, it doesn't seem like they've lost a tenth of their troops, so it's no wonder he's so angry.

Seeing that he was angry, Yang Jisi dared not speak, while You Shilong coldly snorted:
"Continue to have the laborers build more cities and passes. Even if each city or pass only causes the Han army to lose a few hundred men, the court can still accumulate small losses to let the Han army know the strength of the Nanzhao army!"

"Yes……"

Yang Jisi nodded hurriedly, but he dared not say that if they really held the pass, Tuodong's more than 50,000 troops would eventually be lost here.

Even if the Han army is defeated, once they recover and launch another attack, the situation facing Nanzhao will likely be even worse than it is now.

Even without him saying it, You Shilong understood that Nanzhao was a small country with few people. If they really exchanged several times the number of troops for twice the number of casualties of the Han army, Nanzhao would inevitably collapse in the end.

But he was helpless. He simply couldn't have imagined that just a few years ago, Nanzhao was attacking the Han Dynasty, but now the Han Dynasty was sweeping Nanzhao away.

The loss of Tuodong, Tonghai and other places is a foregone conclusion. Now he can only hope that Zhao Nuomei can persuade Liu Jilong to establish a relationship between the two countries as ruler and subject.

As long as Nanzhao did not perish, he would always have the opportunity to recover these lost territories.

Thinking of this, You Shilong walked down the mountain with a gloomy face, while the Han army continued to bombard the city with cannons, trying to destroy the last line of defense of Tongqi City.

Two hundred cannons roared in unison, while the blacksmiths in the camp melted down the many weapons captured by the Han army into cannonballs and then polished them to a smooth finish.

For the next two days, Gao Pian bombarded Tongqi City with two hundred cannons until the city wall collapsed. Only then did he send Yang Shihou, Wang Yanzhang and others to lead troops to attack Tongqi City from below.

At dusk that day, the shouts of battle within Tongqi City ceased, and the Han army's banners were planted atop the city walls. Gao Pian, along with Wang Jian and others, ascended Tongqi City and stood within its walls, overlooking the city and its surroundings.

"This city is quite good. It can be used as a military fortress. If a powerful enemy attacks, we can gather the people to hold it."

"Several villages in the north have been relocated by the southern barbarians, leaving behind more than 100,000 mu of arable land for cultivation, as well as 200,000 to 300,000 mu of wasteland and slopes for reclamation, which is quite good."

"His Majesty once said that the navy has repeatedly set sail in search of crops from the far east."

"If those crops were available, these slopes could be cultivated into farmland, and this place would be suitable for establishing a county."

In his excitement, Gao Pian couldn't help but recount what he had discussed with Liu Jilong, which piqued the curiosity of Wang Jian and the others.

"Is there really land in the Far East?"

Wang Jian couldn't help but ask, and Gao Pian nodded: "Since Your Majesty has stated that there is land, then it must exist."

"However, the sea route is dangerous. I heard that the navy has sent three groups of troops to explore eastward, but only one group has split up and returned midway. There is no news of the rest."

Upon hearing this, everyone gasped and put aside their thoughts, while Gao Pian said to Wang Jian:
"Your Majesty, our army is about to recover the southern barbarian lands and expand eastward, gaining over a million acres of arable land."

"Yes!" Wang Jian replied, but then added hesitantly, "But our army has not yet recovered the entire territory of Tuodong."

"The memorial will arrive in about a month, by which time our army will have recovered the entire territory of Tuodong."

Gao Pian answered without hesitation, and then looked at the mountains and valleys south of Tongqi City, as well as the faint outlines of passes and stone fortresses that could be seen.

"Order the three armies to rest and regroup tomorrow, and then march south again in two days. This time, we must take Tuodong City in one fell swoop!"

"Yes!!"

Under Gao Pian's military orders, the Han soldiers were given another rest. As the Han army continued to advance deeper into the enemy territory, only 50,000 of the 200,000 civilian laborers could remain stationed behind the main force. The remaining 150,000 had to continuously transport supplies from Zhuti to the front lines.

As the grain continued to arrive, Wang Chongren, who served as a clerk in the army, also found Gao Pian.

"how?"

Gao Pian put down his brush, frowned, and asked Wang Zhongren, who nodded in response:
"Of the 800,000 shi of grain in Zhuti, only 240,000 shi remained. Fortunately, 130,000 shi were transported from Rongzhou and Qianzhong after the autumn harvest."

"In addition, Jiannan Road and Shannan West Road have each dispatched 800,000 shi to Zhuti, and it is estimated that about 300,000 shi will arrive by mid-February."

"Given our army's current consumption, if we can capture Tuodong City in early February and begin to rest, we should still have about 200,000 shi of surplus grain, enough to supply the 100,000 soldiers and civilians on the front lines for two months. The imperial court will need to deliver at least 100,000 shi to last until the summer harvest."

"By the time of the summer harvest, the wheat that our army has planted with laborers along the way should yield 200,000 shi (a unit of dry measure), enough to sustain the army until August."

"also……"

It took the Han army three months to advance from Zhuti to Tongqi City, but after capturing these places, it only took the laborers fifteen days to reach the front line by car, and thirty days to travel back and forth.

A horse-drawn carriage can carry 600 catties of supplies, of which 400 catties are grain. However, 40% of the supplies are consumed by the laborers driving the carriages back and forth, leaving only 60% to reach the front lines.

This is still a distance of 450 li. If we were to reach Tuodong City, the cost would increase even further. This is why Gao Pian believed that attacking Nanzhao would take at least a year and a half and at the latest three years.

Liu Jilong had stored 800,000 shi of grain in Zhuti, but in just three months since the start of the war, more than 500,000 shi had already been consumed.

Gao Pian appeared relaxed, but the pressure on his shoulders was not light, and the pressure from the four southwestern routes supplying the army was even greater.

For ten years, the four southwestern provinces had not experienced any major battles, focusing mainly on defense and domestic warfare, and naturally accumulated a considerable amount of money and grain.

However, before the war even started, each region had already transported four million shi of grain to the front lines, but only less than two million shi actually reached them.

Two million shi of grain may seem like a lot, but when faced with the consumption of 500,000 soldiers and civilians, this amount of grain can only barely last for seven or eight months.

As the war began and the Han army advanced deeper into enemy territory, the time that the food supplies could last was constantly shortening.

If the rear hadn't started transporting grain again, the Han army's food supplies would have lasted only until they captured Tuodong City, after which they would have had to retreat due to running out of food.

Now that we have grain being transported from the rear, if handled properly, it should be able to sustain the army's continued land reclamation in Tuodong.

Thinking of this, Gao Pian got up and paced back and forth in the tent, as if talking to himself:
"If we capture Tuodong City and then send all the laborers back to their respective provinces, the grain transported to Tuodong will surely be enough to sustain the army until the autumn harvest."

“What I am worried about now is that the chieftain will relocate more than 200,000 people, or he may leave the people behind but plunder their food and take it away.”

"If that's the case, our army will need to take care of more than 200,000 people. At that time, we will probably need to mobilize more than a million laborers to transport grain, and only one-tenth of the grain will be delivered to Tuodong to feed them."

"The southwest will be exhausted as a result, and it will take several years to recover..."

"However, as long as we can feed the more than 200,000 people in Tuodong City, our army can harvest nearly a million shi of grain during the summer harvest. Even if most of it needs to be used to feed these people, there will still be a summer harvest later."

"One shi of rice from the people of Tuodong is equivalent to ten shi of rice from Xichuan!"

Transporting grain from Xichuan to Tuodong, even using the Minjiang and Yangtze River waterways, would still require traveling thousands of miles by land. The minimum transport was ten shi (a unit of dry measure), and it would be considered good if one shi could be transported.

Even with supplies replenished by various prefectures and counties along the way, the consumption along the route was still enormous.

After this battle, Nishikawa is likely severely weakened and will need several years to recover.

"This matter must be reported to His Majesty; it is not something I can decide on my own."

After Gao Pian finished thinking, he took the initiative to walk to the main seat, sit down, and pick up a brush to begin writing a memorial to the throne.

As the ink dried, he handed over the memorial and ordered Wang Chongren to send it to Luoyang.

Wang Zhongren carried out the arrangements as instructed, but after submitting the memorial, he couldn't help but look at Gao Pian's tent, and then at the distant mountains and rivers of Nanzhao.

He only left Gao Pian's tent when the patrolling soldiers arrived. As Gao Pian had planned, the Han army continued its offensive towards Tuodong City.

"put!"

"Rumble--"

When the cannons fired at Shiguan, two hundred large and small iron cannonballs crashed into the stone gate, and the seemingly solid parapet shook and shattered in an instant, leaving countless cracks.

After the shelling ended, Yu Shilong rode up to inspect the situation at the stone pass. After looking at it with a gloomy face, he quickly mounted his horse and retreated to the second stone pass behind.

From Tongqi to Tuodong City, although it is only about fifty li, there is a stone-built pass five li wide from east to west every ten li, and there are three mountain cities and twenty-four stone forts on the left and right mountain peaks.

Catapults and winches were deployed in the stone fortress and mountain town, but they were completely useless.

The Han army's artillery fired from two miles away, which was just outside the range of the catapults.

Although the distance would reduce the power of the artillery shells, given enough time, the stone pass could still be breached.

Moreover, in addition to using light cannons to bombard the passes, the Han army also deployed forty heavy cannons to bombard the stone fortresses on the two mountains.

Even if only five or six shells hit the target in a round of bombardment, it would be enough to give the Nanzhao soldiers inside the stone fortress a hard time.

The Nanzhao army could only passively endure the attacks. Only when the city walls were breached and the Han army sent troops to launch a strong attack on the pass could they inflict casualties on the Han army during close combat.

However, the Han army was even more adept at urban warfare tactics.

In street fighting, the Han army used shield and spearmen in the front, long spearmen in the middle, musketeers in the rear, and garrison soldiers with hard bows at the end of the ranks.

Using this tactic, the Nanzhao army was forced to retreat step by step. Yang Jisi couldn't think of any way to break through the Han army's alleyway formation and could only imitate the Han army's alleyway formation to fight against them.

Lacking muskets, they deployed more archers, but archers were not easy to train, and each death reduced their numbers. Matchlock muskets, on the other hand, could be used by soldiers with minimal training. The Han army relied on artillery outside the city and a multi-unit street fighting formation inside to drive the Nanzhao army into a series of defeats.

However, with You Shilong personally at the front lines, the morale of the Nanzhao army was at an all-time high. Even when facing artillery fire, they did not perform as poorly as before, which surprised Gao Pian slightly, but he quickly guessed the reason.

"It seems that Chief Dragon has arrived. Otherwise, given the previous battles between the Southern Barbarians and our army, how could the Southern Barbarian soldiers have such courage?"

Gao Pian put down his monocular telescope, while Wang Jian grinned and said, "If that's the case, we'll have to see if we can capture him alive."

"Hehe." Gao Pian chuckled, clearly thinking the same thing.

"Rumble--"

The artillery bombardment continued, and the morale of the Nanzhao army gradually waned as it was unilaterally suppressed.

"If this continues, defeat is only a matter of time. Isn't there any way to stop them?"

Yu Shilong was furious as he watched his side being attacked unilaterally from the rear, but his anger had no effect.

Seeing Yang Jisi and the others lower their heads, You Shilong also realized that if Nanzhao had such powerful weapons, how could the Han army have driven straight in?

Thinking of this, he calmed down, knowing that it was only a matter of time before Tuodong was lost, and he couldn't help but recall Fan Cui's advice.

They could either relocate the more than 200,000 people near Tuodong City, or leave the more than 200,000 people behind but take away their grain and dump them on the Han army as a burden.

However, given the strength of the Han Dynasty, it would not be difficult to support these 200,000 people. At most, it would take a few months of hardship and cost several million coins and grains to feed them.

Once the summer and autumn harvests are complete, the Han army can directly recruit laborers from Tuodong and attack Yangjumei City.

Therefore, the only option left for You Shilong was to relocate all the people.

Thinking of this, Yu Shilong clenched his fists unwillingly, and finally sighed:

“Order Zheng Maisi to lead 5,000 troops to relocate all the people of Tuodong City and other cities to Yangjumei City and Yongchang City.”

"Your Majesty..." Yang Jisi began, somewhat unwilling, but after opening his mouth, he didn't know how to refute her, and could only leave helplessly.

Soon, more than 200,000 people from cities such as Tuodong, Jinning, Jiangchuan, and Anning, which were more than 60 miles away, were ordered to relocate to Yangjumei City.

For the army, forcibly relocating people within the city is easy, but relocating people outside the city is difficult.

The people inside the city only needed to close the city gates and search house to house. However, most of the people outside the city lived in the countryside. When they learned that the army was going to forcibly relocate them, they, who were already civilians, did not care whether they were Han or barbarian. They all took their belongings and fled to the surrounding mountains before the army arrived.

Panic began to spread in the cities and villages around Kunming Lake, and five thousand troops attempted to forcibly arrest the people scattered around the lake, a military order that was far too forced.

The army's cavalry couldn't capture them all, so they could only take the people to Tuodong to gather, pretend to have captured them all, and then escort these people to Yangjumei City and Yongchang City.

While You Shilong ordered the relocation, Li Yangchun's southern army advanced with unstoppable momentum. On the eighteenth day of the first month, Deng Yan and Zhang Guiba captured Jianshui, Shiping and other cities, and marched north to attack Tonghai.

Li Yangchun, Ge Congzhou, Pang Shigu and others led their troops along the Panjiang River (Nanpanjiang River) into the southern part of the Tuodong Governor's Office, where they subdued the three Wuman tribes of Shizong, Mile and Milu, and then attacked Datonghai to the west.

On the 20th day of the first lunar month, three of the five passes of the Tuodong gateway were breached, leaving only two passes and a mountain city still putting up a stubborn resistance.

Meanwhile, the weather was gradually getting hotter. The troops of Gao Pian and Zhang Wu in the north did not feel it yet, but the troops of Li Yangchun and Deng Yan, who were attacking from the south to the north, were in a bad situation.

On the 20th, Deng Yan fell ill on his way to attack Tonghai. Three or four out of ten of his troops collapsed due to malaria, and he had to retreat to Jianshui to rest and recuperate.

Li Yangchun's two-pronged attack turned into an isolated advance, but fortunately, Yang Qiuqing of Tonghai only had 30,000 barbarian troops. These barbarians were unarmored, and their matchlock muskets could kill them from a hundred paces away.

"Beep!"

"Crack, crackle -"

South of Tonghu Lake and north of the mountains, as the smoke from matchlock guns rose over the battlefield, 30,000 bare-chested barbarians, armed with blowguns, spears, and javelins, launched a chaotic attack on the Han army on the plains before them.

The eight thousand Han soldiers were all in a straight line, among whom three thousand arquebusiers stood in front of the vanguard, with five ranks taking turns firing at the barbarians charging towards them.

The javelins and blowguns of the barbarians did pose a considerable threat to the musketeers, but only if they could get close.

Smoke continued to rise, and the volleys of lead bullets kept killing the barbarians. Li Yangchun was stationed in the center of the army, with Ge Congzhou and Pang Shigu leading cavalry on the left and right wings, respectively.

The barbarian hordes surged forward like waves, and upon seeing this, Li Yangchun immediately waved his command flag.

"Uuuuuu——"

As the bugle sounded, four thousand Han infantrymen began to advance, while musketeers pressed forward in volleys.

Upon seeing this, Ge Congzhou and Pang Shigu each led five hundred cavalrymen to charge at the barbarian tribes from the left and right flanks.

The barbarian horde charged within thirty paces of the Han army, and the spearmen began to hurl their spears, which proved to be quite powerful.

"Humph……"

"Crack, crackle, crackle!!"

"Don't panic, keep pushing forward!"

The heavy javelins struck them, and many musketeers groaned and fell to the ground, where they were carried to the rear by the vanguard for treatment.

"kill!!"

Faced with the cavalry flanking them from both sides, the barbarians, like savages hunting mammoths, kept throwing javelins at the iron cavalry.

Ge Congzhou and his men had already fought against this group several times and knew their methods, so they harassed them with archery and mounted archery.

Relying on the greater range of the hard bow, groups of barbarians fell one after another in the formation, but Yang Qiuqing in the rear remained unmoved.

For Nanzhao, the barbarian tribes were nothing more than conscripted resources. As long as they could wear down the Han army, it was worth it to suffer hundreds or even thousands or tens of thousands of casualties.

The battlefield grew increasingly chaotic. The barbarian tribesmen watched as the Han musketeers pressed forward relentlessly, their pressure mounting as more and more of their own people fell around them.

Li Yangchun sat on horseback, surveying the battlefield. Seeing the barbarian formation falter, he immediately waved his command flag: "Advance!"

"Uuuuuu——"

The bugle calls continued to sound, and the cavalry of Ge Congzhou and Pang Shigu, who were originally riding and shooting, instantly changed their weapons to horse spears and charged towards the barbarian tribes who were surrounded by the Han army on three sides.

At the same time, the musketeers began to put their guns on their backs and take over the spears from the vanguard, allowing the vanguard's four thousand infantrymen to press towards the barbarian formation.

"Withdraw troops!"

When Yang Qiuqing saw the Han army launch a counterattack, he immediately ordered a retreat. The 30,000 barbarian tribes in front of him did not need his orders at all, because when they saw the Han army charge, they decisively began to flee to the rear.

In an instant, the battlefield transformed from an already overwhelming situation into a complete massacre.

"Surrender without killing!"

"Surrender and you will not be killed!!"

Ge Congzhou charged left and right amidst the chaotic barbarian army, shouting in broken barbarian language.

Some barbarians dropped their weapons and surrendered, but many more continued to flee for their lives.

"Withdraw from Tuodong City."

Seeing the unrest among the barbarians, Yang Qiuqing immediately realized that his plan to use the barbarians to wear down the Han army had failed, as the barbarians' ability to withstand pressure was ultimately lacking.

Faced with the devastating loss of thousands of men in less than 15 minutes of fighting, their collapse was expected, but the responsibility for losing Tonghai still made Yang Qiuqing's face grim.

He led over a thousand elite cavalrymen in a retreat, disregarding the lives of the barbarian tribes, and directly abandoned Tonghai City to the Han army.

Upon seeing this, Li Yangchun immediately waved his command flag: "Infantrymen, surrender! Elite cavalry, pursue!"

Under Li Yangchun's military orders, the Han army began to systematically subdue the various barbarian tribes. Liu Song rode forward and bowed to him, saying:

"Qie Biao, these barbarians don't understand Mandarin and are extremely savage. What's the use of trying to recruit them?"

In response to Liu Song's question, Li Yangchun pointed to the mountains to the south with his riding whip.

"Deng Langzhong fell ill with malaria, and three or four out of ten soldiers in the southern army also fell ill. This Han Chinese still could not adapt to these southern mountains."

"In comparison, these barbarians can enter the mountains as if they were on flat ground, and carry heavy loads of over 100 pounds with ease."

"If we can train them into an army, and given their familiarity with the various tribes, it will be much easier to encircle and annihilate the southern barbarians."

Li Yangchun's words gave Liu Song a glimmer of hope, but he then said with annoyance, "But the wives and children of these barbarians are all in the south. Will they betray us?"

"This is not something we need to worry about." Li Yangchun smiled, withdrew his hand, and, while shaking the reins, urged his horse toward Tonghai City, continued his conversation with Liu Song, who had followed him:
"If their tribal chief finds out they've been captured, what do you think will happen to their wives and children?"

"If they do not wish to join the army, then set up a literacy class to teach them Mandarin and writing, and give them land to cultivate."

"If they are willing to join the army, we will not only provide them with farmland and literacy courses, but also give them military pay so that they will know the benefits of being citizens of the Han Dynasty."

"Using barbarians to fight barbarians, and using Han people to control the land, this is the best strategy for governing the southern regions."

Li Yangchun's words enlightened Liu Song. After all, the migration of Han people was very costly, and it would be a real pity if they were conscripted into soldiers and died in the mountains.

However, if we recruit barbarians to fight and Han people cultivate the land, then in a few decades, the southern region will become the territory of the Han people since ancient times, and the barbarians will be consumed in the war.

"This plan is good, but what if there are too many barbarians in the army, and they rebel?"

Liu Song was quite worried about the barbarians usurping his territory, since such things had happened countless times during the Former Tang Dynasty.

Li Yangchun nodded and said, "I have also considered your concerns."

“We can use the barbarian tribes as short weapons and the Han soldiers as firearms.”

"They do not understand firearms, so they cannot use firearms to break through the city, while the Han army, though small, can easily break through the camp with firearms."

"Furthermore, it is permissible to allow Han men to marry women from the barbarian tribes, while barbarian men, unless they are meritorious officials, are not allowed to marry Han women."

“If this continues, the barbarians will inevitably join the army, and their bloodline will be diluted in a few decades or even a hundred years.”

Li Yangchun explained his plan in detail, leaving Liu Song speechless.

"If that's the case, after a hundred years, all the barbarians will probably become Han Chinese men, and even if there are still barbarians in the south, they won't amount to anything."

"Qie Biao's plan is truly somewhat..."

Liu Song didn't know what to say, but Li Yangchun calmly replied, "It's all for the sake of the Han Dynasty and His Majesty."

After a pause, he continued, "With the capture of Tonghai underway, our army urgently needs rest and reorganization."

"February is approaching, and after February, the number of snakes, insects, rats and ants will inevitably increase, and miasma will appear more frequently. We should not launch an attack lightly."

"Yes!" Liu Song nodded, he thought so too.

During their conversation, under the protection of guards, they entered the abandoned Tonghai City. Apart from a thousand or so elderly, weak, sick, and disabled people, the rest of the residents of Tonghai City had been forcibly relocated by Yang Qiuqing.

Liu Song was somewhat angry, but Li Yangchun didn't care and was even a little happy.

After all, only when these barbarians are all relocated can the imperial court directly acquire tens or even hundreds of thousands of unclaimed lands, and then distribute the lands to the Han people who will migrate there in the future.

While he was controlling Tonghai, Gao Pian in the north was also launching a rapid and unstoppable offensive.

On the seventh day of the second month, with the Han army having captured the remaining fourth pass and mountain city, only a stone pass, about ten feet high and three miles wide, remained blocking their path.

"Let the cavalry rest well. If I am not mistaken, the barbarian army will retreat tonight. At that time, we can send the elite cavalry to pursue them."

"The last general takes command!"

After putting down the monocular telescope, Gao Pian gave instructions to Wang Jian and the others without turning his head.

Wang Jian bowed in agreement, and Gao Pian then turned his horse around and returned to the newly set up camp.

Shortly after returning to his camp, he wrote a memorial outlining how to govern Tuodong and summoned Wang Zhongren, ordering him to send the memorial to Luoyang.

Wang Chongren looked at the contents of the memorial in his hand, frowned slightly, glanced at Gao Pian inside the tent, and then walked to the tent door to instruct the guards:

"You may all leave now, and return after half a cup of tea."

"Yes……"

After dismissing the guards, Wang Zhongren returned to his tent and immediately saw Gao Pian frowning at him.

Wang Zhongren remained calm in the face of this, and instead said to Gao Pian, "King Gao, have you forgotten the deaths of Zhang Lang and Lin Ru?"

"..." Upon hearing this, Gao Pian's brows softened immediately, and he sighed:
"All that happened in the past was due to my own willful actions. If I had surrendered to His Majesty earlier, things wouldn't have come to this..."

Gao Pian was sixty-three years old; where would he find the thought of causing trouble? Moreover, Liu Jilong had treated him well; how could he possibly betray Liu Jilong?

"King Gao!"

Looking at Gao Pian, who appeared utterly dejected, Wang Zhongren said with a sense of disappointment:

"Now you have 250 light and heavy cannons, more than 10,000 musketeers and 200,000 laborers."

"As long as you summon generals Wang Jian and Yang Shihou to your headquarters, hold them hostage, and seize control of Tuodong, you can then use the strategic importance of Nanzhao and the power of its artillery to establish your dominance. Even if Liu Jilong attacks with an army of 100,000, you, Prince Gao, will be able to repel him. At that time..."

"And then?" Gao Pian looked at him with a complicated expression and asked, "And then?"

“I am old, and my forty-third son is serving in Luoyang, as are my other sons and nephews.”

"After seizing control of Nanzhao, I too turned to dust, and my vast empire was handed over to others..."

He paused here, seemingly unwilling to say anything hurtful, but having no choice but to.

"Wang Lang, do you want to take over Tuodong?"

"This humble general..."

Wang Chongren was speechless. It was impossible for him not to want to occupy Tuodong, but he knew he didn't have the prestige or the ability.

He didn't know why he had instigated Gao Pian to establish himself independently. Perhaps it was because he couldn't bear the news of the deaths of Zhang Lin, Lin Ruzhen, and others, or perhaps he couldn't accept that he was no longer being valued.

If it weren't for Gao Pian, he might still be a minor official in Luoyang, receiving a few hundred strings of cash in salary each year, with no real power, and only able to watch his descendants gradually become mediocre.

"This matter came from your mouth and entered my ears; do not mention it again in the future."

"If you feel that Zhang Lang and Lin Ru and the others have been wronged, I will use my military merits to ask His Majesty for a special favor, ensuring their wealth and honor for three generations."

"After this trip, do not have such thoughts again. I will also recommend you to His Majesty."

Gao Pian spoke earnestly, genuinely wanting to end the trouble, while Wang Zhongren remained silent before turning and leaving the tent.

After he left, Gao Pian sighed and lowered his head to continue dealing with military affairs.

As their conversation ended, a figure emerged from a corner not far from the tent, quickly found Wang Jian's tent, and entered it.

"how?"

Upon seeing the visitor, Wang Jian immediately put down his brush, and Tang Bing hurriedly bowed, saying, "It seems that Prince Gao has refused."

"They refused?" Wang Jian's face showed disappointment. At the same time, he picked up his pen and finished the memorial on the table. Finally, he blew the ink dry and handed it to Tang Bing.

"It has been sent to Luoyang. His Majesty must already know about this, but I cannot fail to report it."

"Yes!"

After Tang Bing received the memorial, he left the tent, while Wang Jian watched his retreating figure, shook his head, and turned his gaze to his own dagger.

"It's a pity that such a great achievement could not be accomplished..."

(End of this chapter)