Chu and Han contend for the throne

Chapter 145
"There are no less than 40 Huns who control strings?!" Bai Lixian lost his voice, "General, where do you start?"

"What?" Xiang Zhuang asked with some uncertainty, "Ziliang, don't the Huns have 40 cavalry?"

"Of course not." Bailixian shook his feather fan and said calmly, "I have gone deep into Mobei twice, and I know the details of the Huns. Now the Shanyu of the Huns is named Maodun, and he is indeed a man of great talent. Heroes, but the maximum population of the Huns is 80 million, most of them are women and children, and the maximum number of strong men is 20. How can there be 40 people who control strings?"

Having said this, Bai Lixian said again: "Moreover, the Xiongnu is composed of hundreds of tribes, large and small. They graze water and grass, and spread over a wide area. Only in late autumn every year, when the Xiongnu Shanyu inspects cattle and sheep, will they temporarily Gather in one place, and in normal times, even the Xiongnu Shanyu can muster [-] to [-] cavalry, which is already the limit!"

"So that's how it is." Xiang Zhuang suddenly felt enlightened when he heard the words.

The siege of Baideng in history happened in winter, that is, after the Xiongnu Shanyu checked the cattle and sheep, so Modu was able to pour the power of the Huns into the south, but it seems that Sima Qian still deliberately exaggerated the strength of the Huns. It is even more exaggerated to say that [-] cavalry of each of the four colors are deployed in the four directions.

But now it is only the first ten days of June, and there are still four or five months before late autumn.

In other words, if you go north to Jiuyuan now, you will face at most [-] to [-] Huns cavalry.

Xiang Zhuang said again: "However, even if there are only [-] to [-] Xiongnu cavalry, our army is still invincible."

The iron smelting technology of the Huns is very backward, and the weapons are very primitive. This is beyond doubt. This is also the main reason why the Huns were defeated by the Han Empire in their heyday.

In fact, there is always a generation gap in technology between farming civilization and nomadic civilization, which is an indisputable fact.

The siege of Baideng Mountain can also prove this point, because at that time Liu Bang had only a few thousand cavalry of the Han army under his command, while the cavalry of the Huns had at least 20 cavalry.

However, the Huns besieged thousands of cavalry with 20 cavalry, and the terrain of Baideng Mountain was not steep at all, but the Huns did not attack after seven days of onslaught. What does this mean?This shows that the Huns' ability to attack fortifications is very weak, and the biggest reason for their weak attacking ability must be the lack of sharp weapons, not the lack of brave warriors.

In fact, the living conditions of the Huns were harsh and harsh, and there was never a shortage of fighters who looked at death as home.

It's just that Xiang Zhuang will never underestimate the combat effectiveness of the Huns because of their primitive weapons.

In history, the Huns were able to hang over the head of the Han Empire like a haze for a hundred years. They were defeated by the Han Empire. After moving westward to Europe, they caused great shocks to Europe and directly led to the destruction of the ancient Roman Empire. It is not without reason. Although the technology of the Huns is backward and their weapons are primitive, they also have a sharp weapon that transcends the times - that is the stirrup!

Whether the stirrup was invented by the northern nomads or by the Central Plains people has always been controversial in later Chinese historians. One view is that the stirrup must and can only be used first by the nomads, but another view is that It is believed that nomads are peoples living on horseback, so the use of stirrups is not urgent. On the contrary, people in the Central Plains are more likely to invent stirrups in order to improve the combat effectiveness of cavalry.

Xiang Zhuang didn't know about the stirrup controversy, but he knew that in less than 20 years from Qin Shihuang conquering the six kingdoms to Liu Bang's establishment of the Han Empire, the combat effectiveness of the Huns has undergone a radical improvement, but it is indisputable. In fact, when Meng Tian attacked the Huns in the north, the Huns were still vulnerable, but when it came to the siege of Baideng, the Huns' front was no longer what the Central Plains people could resist, at least the Central Plains people were absolutely unable to defeat the Huns in field battles .

Of course, this is due to the regression of the civilization of the Central Plains. The newly established Han Empire is completely incomparable with the Great Qin Empire in its heyday in terms of population, military system, and military technology.

However, it is an indisputable fact that the strength of the Huns has surged within 20 years.

The strength of the Huns suddenly skyrocketed. There are only two possibilities. One is the population surge and the number of people who control strings has increased greatly; the other is the emergence of revolutionary weapons and equipment!

In just 20 years, the population of the Huns could not experience explosive growth, or even a negative growth, because at that time it was Maodun Dangchanyu who was continuing to fight against the powerful neighbors Donghu and Yuezhi.

Then there is only one possibility left, that is, the emergence of revolutionary weapons and equipment!

The Xiongnu were backward in technology, and it was impossible to create such a sharp weapon as the ring head knife, but it was entirely possible to invent the stirrup.

Stirrups are fully worthy of the title of "revolutionary weaponry". In the history of cavalry evolution, there has never been any weaponry like stirrups. Although simple, they have had a great impact on the combat effectiveness of cavalry. Even horseshoes It is also incomparable, because the horseshoe only improves the endurance of the cavalry.

Of course, what the Huns are using now is likely to be simple wooden stirrups, even if they are wooden stirrups, it is enough to revolutionize the combat effectiveness of the Huns cavalry!Although Xiang Zhuang was brave and good at fighting, he would never be arrogant enough to think that his [-] infantry could defeat the [-] to [-] Huns cavalry equipped with simple stirrups.

In fact, the [-] Chu infantry may not even be able to defeat the [-] Hun cavalry!

The reason is very simple, because the Xiongnu cavalry came and went like the wind and as fast as lightning, the Chu army could not catch up, let alone beat the Huns, but the Huns could launch endless attacks on the Chu army at any time and any place. It's like a pack of wolves on the grassland, even if they can't kill a large prey, they can drag you down and consume you little by little...

Facing Xiang Zhuang's question, Bai Lixian spread his hands and smiled and said, "General, let's not talk about whether we can win the battle against the Huns. The question now is, there is absolutely no need for our army to fight the Huns?"

Xiang Zhuang frowned, and said again: "Ziliang, Jiuyuan County has been occupied by the Huns. If we go north to Jiuyuan, how can we not break out with the Huns?"

Bai Lixian asked in astonishment: "How did the general know that Jiuyuan has been occupied by the Huns?"

"Why?" Xiang Zhuang was actually not very sure, and asked immediately, "Isn't that the case?"

"Of course not." Bailixian said, "Jiuyuan County has a high natural barrier, and the Great Wall stretches thousands of miles to protect the northern border. How can the Huns go south to herd horses?" After saying this, Bailixian said again, " To tell you the truth, the general, just returned from traveling in Jiuyuan more than a month ago, and Jiuyuan County is still under the control of the old Qin people."

"Old Qin people?" Wei Liao suddenly got up and said eagerly, "There is still Qin Jun in Jiuyuan?!"

The Great Qin Empire pursued a strict system of farming and warfare. The whole nation served the people in leisure time and served as soldiers in wartime. Therefore, wherever there are old Qin people, there are Qin troops!

Bai Lixian nodded and said: "At the beginning of the first emperor, General Meng led an army of 30 to attack the Xiongnu in the north and took all of the land in Henan. The first emperor conscripted hundreds of thousands of households from Guanzhong and Guandong to fill the border and set up 34 counties! When the riot broke out, Wang Li led 20 elite soldiers to go south, and in the following three or four years, the Kwantung army and civilians dispersed, but the old Qin people stayed."

Wei Liao was so excited that his old face was flushed, and he said anxiously: "How many old Qin people, how many Qin soldiers?"

Bailixian said: "There are always more than 3 old Qin people and more than 5000 Qin soldiers, but they are all cavalry."

"God's will, God's will!" Wei Liao was inexplicably excited, and immediately said to Xiang Zhuang, "General, these five thousand Qin cavalry are a gift from God to Da Chu. There is hope for Da Chu's revival!"

Xiang Zhuang was also moved, and turned his expectant eyes to Bai Lixian.

Bai Lixian shook his feather fan, and said calmly: "This old Qin people are led by the fake son of General Meng Tian, ​​Meng Ji, and I am a close friend of eight worshippers. I would like to enter the fortress alone for the general, and persuade Meng Ji to send troops. cast."

"Good!" Xiang Zhuang was overjoyed when he heard the words, and said happily, "If you get help from the dead, why worry about being in trouble?"

Xiang Zhuang couldn't be unhappy, if he could really get Mengji's five thousand Qin cavalry, it would be a blessing to Chu. With these five thousand Qin cavalry, he would no longer have to worry about the Han army's cavalry chasing after him. Yanmen, Daijun, and Shanggu have a smooth road, not to mention small tribes such as Baiyang, Linhu, and Loufan, and even the Huns are not afraid!

With the backing of five thousand Qin cavalry, even greater ambitions sprouted in Xiang Zhuang's heart.

If a large amount of corn, silk, cloth, jewelry, and jewelry hoarded in the Xianyang Palace, warehouses, and treasury are loaded into cars and transported along the straight road to Jiuyuan, can these materials urgently needed by the Hu people be used to transport them from Baiyang and Linhu? How about a large number of cattle and sheep, especially horses, in the hands of small tribes such as , Loufan, etc.?
If you have enough horses, after several months of intensive training, can you train all your [-] infantry into cavalry?Also, a few months is enough time for the accompanying blacksmith to equip each horse with stirrups. If enough ring swords are made, even the small-scale Hun cavalry will have to retreat, right?
Of course, Xiang Zhuang would never be so arrogant as to think that he could occupy Henan forever with this strength.

Xiang Zhuang knew very well that unless a large-scale human plague or horse plague suddenly broke out in the Mobei grassland, the Huns' large-scale southward movement was inevitable. The current Huns may not be as powerful as recorded in the history books, but they have regained the water and grass The rich and beautiful Henan land is more than enough, and I am afraid that no one can reverse this.

What's more, even if the Chu army blocked the advance of the Huns by virtue of the high-quee natural danger and the Great Wall, the old man Liu Bang in Guanzhong would never give up. It is the people who travel through the world, even if they have the ability to reach the sky, I am afraid they will not be able to withstand it. Therefore, such a stupid thing as defending Henan is absolutely unacceptable.

However, it is entirely possible to form a cavalry before the Huns go south in a large scale.

After all, there are at least four more months before the late autumn season when the Huns will use their troops on a large scale. Is it enough to build a big Chu cavalry in four months?

(End of this chapter)