Great Han Empire

Chapter 462
At the end of this month, the emperor convened a court meeting with all his ministers.

The Minister ordered Lu Zhi to report on the current domestic situation.The situation on the Xiliang battlefield is worrisome.It has been more than three months since the leader of the rebel army, Wang Guo, led the army to besiege Chencang. Although the school lieutenants Huangfuhong and Hu Zhen held firm, the small city of Chencang was already overwhelmed and in danger. And weather and other reasons, so far still stranded in Huaili City.

The Jizhou battlefield is currently progressing smoothly.The general led the army to attack all the way, defeated the strong enemy, and repelled the Yellow Turban of Heishan. Now the general's army is advancing towards Weijun. It is estimated that the Jizhou rebellion can be put down before the spring plowing in April.

The Qingzhou and Xuzhou battlefields are currently very difficult.Cui Jun, the governor of Qingzhou, retreated to Beihai after a series of defeats, and almost all the counties in the north of Qingzhou were captured by the rebels of the ant thief Sima Ju and Guan Cheng.Xuzhou Mu Taoqian lost to the rebels of Zhang Rao and Xu He, and has retreated to Pengcheng to hold his ground.However, the crisis in the Qingxu battlefield will be alleviated with the heavy snow and the imminent famine.Last year, the seven prefectures were flooded, and there was no harvest. Although the ant thieves looted a lot during the October riots, the food was not enough to support millions of ant thieves through the long winter.Once the food is exhausted, famine will follow, and if the ants and thieves do not withdraw, they will die.

The war in Youzhou has all ended, and the entire territory of Youzhou has been recovered.Liu Yu, the shepherd of Youzhou, successfully recruited the Karasuma people in western and eastern Liaoning.All the ant thieves were raped, and the leader of the ant thieves, Zhang Ju and Zhang Chun, fled to Xianbei for refuge.All objectives of the first phase of the Northern Xinjiang War have been achieved.

Zhenbei General Li Hong has led his troops back to Bingzhou.Although there was heavy snow in northern Xinjiang and the road was difficult, the soldiers overcame all difficulties and arrived at Juzhu Fortress within the scheduled time.Now Hun Hun Zhonglang General Qu Yi led the Duliao camp to station in Duliao River, Xiaowei Hengji and Kuangfengsha led Fengyun Iron Cavalry and Wuqi Battalion back to the Great Wall Fortress years ago.The main force of the [-] Yellow Turban Army in Hedong also entered the Beizheng Camp in Lishi City, Xihe earlier this month.The rest of General Zhenbei's army is currently stationed in Mayi City in Yanmen County.

According to His Majesty's will, since years ago, all the armies in northern Xinjiang have begun to rest and reorganize.Soldiers from the original Youzhou and Jizhou have returned home one after another.Now the soldiers of the Xianling tribe of the Qiang people have returned to Beidi and Anding counties successively, the soldiers of the Bailu tribe and Baishan tribes of the Wusuma people, and the soldiers of the Wuye tribe of the Xianbei people are on their way back to Shanggu County.The Huangzhong Qiang soldiers had to stay at Yanmen Pass because the Xiliang rebels occupied Hanyang and cut off their return home.Lu Zhi said that for the past two years, the Huangzhong Qiang soldiers accompanied General Zhenbei to fight north and south, and it was very hard work. They have not returned home for more than two years. How many of them can come back, so is His Majesty considering giving more rewards as a token of condolence?The emperor praised Huang Zhongqiang for a few words and ordered a heavy reward.

Lu Zhi went on to say that the rest of the tribes in northern Xinjiang will end at the end of February, that is to say, from the end of March, the war in northern Xinjiang can start at any time, and the army can go out to fight at any time.

Then Lu Zhi introduced the preparations for the Northern Xinjiang War in detail.Through the joint efforts of Zhengbei General's Mansion and Zhenbei General's Mansion, all kinds of materials such as food and military equipment needed for the Northern Xinjiang War have been basically prepared, and about 20 soldiers and civilians have also been recruited from the victims who moved to Bingzhou.Lu Zhi said that the Mintun in Bingzhou and the Juntun in Hedong both had a bumper harvest of grain last year. Although the output was not enough to meet their own needs, the pressure on Bingzhou's relief had been eased, which was very beneficial for the army to go out to fight.It’s just that these 20 civilians are far from enough to meet the needs of going out to fight, and another 40 to 60 civilians must be recruited, but Jinyang Zhonglang General Xu Rongshang said that the recruitment of these civilians will have to wait until the end of April and early May. It is after the end of spring plowing.This is absolutely not possible, His Majesty wants to urge Xu Rong to complete the recruitment of [-] civil servants by the beginning of March.

===

The emperor said that Xu Rong was worried that the deployment of a large number of elite peasants would seriously affect the spring plowing. I think his worries are quite reasonable.The population of Bingzhou is now increasing. Without food to feed them, the rear is unstable. If the rear is unstable, why fight?I agree with Xu Rong's statement, first to ensure spring plowing, and as for going out to fight, it will be a little later, so it won't affect the overall situation.

Sikong Liu Hong said that now that the Qingxu ants are rampant and the Xiliang rebels have not been defeated, the conditions for going out to fight are simply not met.If you want to go out to fight, you must first solve the domestic rebellion.We cannot say that if we have money and food, we can fight on three battlefields at the same time. This is purely misleading the country.The Xianbei people suffered consecutive defeats and suffered heavy losses, and then civil war broke out in order to fight for the kingship. The strength of Xianbei at this time is far from that of Xianbei in Tanshihuai's period. There is a world of difference between the two. It is easy to defeat them. In such a hurry?
Ma Rixun immediately retorted that Lord Liu only saw the weakening of Xianbei's strength, but did not see the huge threat posed by the Huren Alliance to us.In the past, we went out to attack the Xianbei people, and the Huns and Karasuma people helped us, but now?Now the Eastern Qiang people, as well as the Xiongnu rebels and the Xianbei people have formed an alliance, and the three-party coalition forces are fighting us together, and their strength has not diminished but has increased.

After the Xiongnu Shanyuting split, the Huns were divided into two parts across the river. Yufuluo's strength was limited, and self-protection was not enough. How can we have extra troops to help us?However, the Karasuma people in Youzhou have suffered serious losses in their continuous rebellion. Except for a few tribes in Dai County and Shanggu County, other Karasuma people such as Yuyang Youbeiping, Liaoxi and Liaodong have just been appeased. We don’t trust each other, of course Not to mention enlistment.If there is no help from a large number of Hu cavalry in the battle, it will still be difficult for us to defeat the Hu people.Once the heavy snow in northern Xinjiang melts and spring comes, everything will recover, and the vitality of the Hu people will quickly recover. However, because of our slow movement, we are reluctant to leave the frontier for a long time, and the army will lose the best opportunity to take advantage of the victory. Northern Xinjiang The difficulty of recovering Border County will be greatly increased.

Guang Luxun and Liu Bo said that the Taiwei had never fought in the frontier fortress, so he didn't know the situation there.On the prairie, winter is very long, and the heavy snow covering the prairie will not melt until around March, that is to say, we will not be able to go out until the end of April at the earliest.June is also the rainy season on the prairie. If there is enough rain, there will be heavy rain throughout summer and autumn. In this case, the Hu people will have a great advantage. They can come and go freely, but our pawns cannot.Therefore, going out to fight is not as simple as adults imagine. We must not only be well prepared, but also seize the right time.Back then, Sunset Plains suffered a big defeat, half of which was due to the heavy snow.If the heavy snow hadn't come earlier that year, we could have withdrawn at least half of the people.We went out of the Great Wall that time in August, when the rainy season on the prairie had passed, it was the best time to attack.

Doctor Guanglu Yuan Feng sneered, according to Mr. Liu, the war in northern Xinjiang will not start until August?In August, the water and grass are luxuriant, the cattle and sheep are fat, and the power of the barbarians is greatly strengthened. It is even more difficult for us to go out to fight.Since the Hu people can fight in winter, why can't we?Don't General Zhenbei have tens of thousands of Huqi?With these Hu cavalry fighting in front, and the infantry following, the army will be invincible.

Liu Bo said helplessly, my lords, we went out to regain the lost frontier counties, not to go on an expedition to the desert to kill the barbarians, and my lords must understand the difference between the two.There is a fundamental difference between a war aimed at occupying land and cities and a war aimed at driving away Hu people and killing Hu cavalry.Our goal in this outing is to regain the border counties, to recapture the city, and to rescue the enslaved people. We must be foolproof when we go out to battle, so preparation is the most important thing, and we must not rush.

Sikong Dinggong said that Master Liu said all he said was that he was still worried that the domestic rebellion would affect the battle outside the frontier and lead to the defeat of the Northern Xinjiang War.But judging from the current situation, it is more likely that the Xiliang rebellion will be put down as soon as possible.Master Huangfu said in the memorial that it is better to win without fighting than to win every battle.Although Chen Cang is small, the city walls are strong and well guarded, making it difficult to break through.Although the kingdom's military strength is strong, if it cannot be attacked for a long time, the rebel army must be exhausted.Lord Huangfu planned to launch an attack when the rebels were exhausted, in order to determine the first battle. He was absolutely sure to defeat the rebels before March.If the Xiliang rebellion is put down, all that is left is Qingxu ant thief.Master Lu has already said just now that because of the lack of food, the Qingxu ant thief will soon fall into famine, and it seems inevitable to withdraw his troops and flee to Mount Tai.Under the circumstances that both rebellions can be quelled, is there any worry about launching the Northern Xinjiang War in time?

The debate among the ministers in the court became more and more intense. When did the Northern Xinjiang War begin?

===

After Zhenbei General Li Hong returned to Longshan Camp, the first thing he did was to summon Xian Yufu, Xu Rong, Zhang Yan, Yang Feng, and the generals of the Hu tribe, Heng Ji, Kuang Fengsha, Nie Xiao, She Yingtong, Liu Minglu, Huanyang, to discuss the formation of the army. thing.

As early as the imperial court established the overall strategy for the Northern Xinjiang War, Huangfusong wrote to Li Hong several times to discuss with him the specific implementation methods of the Northern Xinjiang War.Huangfusong said, whether it is Huqi or the Yellow Turban Army, the independent existence of these armies is not only a threat to the Han Dynasty, but also a threat to the upcoming war in northern Xinjiang.Because Hu Qi belonged to different races, coupled with the hatred among the races, the contradictions between them were very serious. If this contradiction was not suppressed, the lack of trust and tacit understanding between the various ministries would bury the ground when they went out to fight. The worry of failure.He hoped that Li Hong would take advantage of the successive victories in the northern Xinjiang battlefield and when the morale of the generals of all ethnic groups was high, he would immediately rectify the army in northern Xinjiang, and strive to eliminate the barriers between the soldiers of all ethnic groups and tribes, reduce conflicts, and work together from top to bottom to lay a solid foundation for the northern Xinjiang war. The strongest foundation.

Li Hong and Xian Yufu also had this idea, and the two had often discussed this matter in Youzhou, and a rough army plan had already been formed.

The cavalry in the Zhenbei Army lost a lot in this year. The 3 people brought by Li Hong to the Youzhou battlefield lost about 8000 people (the 3 people included the 3 cavalry of the Huns), and Qu Yi brought them to Henan. The 6000 people on the battlefield lost about 2000 people, and Sheyingtong's hussars battalion also lost about [-] people in the counter-insurgency process in Hedong and Bingzhou.Now Liu Bao has returned to Meiji with the remaining [-] Xiongnu cavalry. In this way, with the addition of the Duliao Camp and the Black Leopard Yicong Camp, the Han Army in Northern Xinjiang still has [-] cavalry left.Li Hong intends to write to His Majesty to recruit [-] soldiers from the Xiongnu and Shanggu Karasuma to make up for the shortage of the cavalry army. In addition, he will select [-] infantrymen who are good at cavalry and archery to join the cavalry army and rebuild [-] cavalry.

The Zhenbei Army originally had only 3000 infantry, and more than 1 casualties in Youzhou. Later, more than 3 people were recruited from Youzhou rebel prisoners to make up the infantry army.These 12 people plus the [-] Yellow Turban Army, the Han Army in Northern Xinjiang currently has a total of [-] infantry.However, it is very difficult to merge the Yellow Turban Army into the Han Army as a whole, and a lot of persuasion work is required.

Li Hong planned to build 35 battalions of the Eighth Army, with a total of 18 troops.

The cavalry army built three armies and nine battalions with 4000 people.One army has 8000 people, and one battalion has 6000 people.Each army has three battalions, and each battalion has three departments.

The central army was commanded by Qu Yi, the upper army was commanded by Yan Rou, and the lower army was commanded by Zhao Yun. (Zhao Yun's official position is not enough to lead an army, Li Hong intends to promote him to the position of general in the line of duty.)
The infantry army built five armies and twenty battalions with 10 people.An army of 2 people and a battalion of 5000 people.Each army has three battalions of infantry and one battalion of chariots.Each battalion has three divisions.

The central army was commanded by Xian Yufu, the front army was commanded by Xu Rong, the rear army was commanded by Yushi, the left army was commanded by Zhang Yan, and the right army was commanded by Yang Feng.

General Zhenbei has jurisdiction over six battalions with 6000 people.

骑兵黑豹义从营6000人。步兵虎贲营5000人。兵曹营5000人。斥候营3000人。战车营5000人。将军府亲卫营2000人。

Li Hong and Xian Yufu explained in detail the plan for reorganizing the army, and then had a long discussion with the generals of the Yellow Turban Army and the Hu tribe.Zhang Yan and Yang Feng didn't immediately agree, they said they would go back and discuss carefully with the commanders of the various ministries, so that the [-] soldiers could understand the intention of General Zhenbei to organize the army.Li Hong said that the two adults must clearly explain the relationship between the Northern Xinjiang War and the whole army to the young commanders of the Yellow Turban Army.This is not because I violated my original promise to annex the Yellow Turban Army, but for the victory of the Northern Xinjiang War and for the society of the Han Kingdom, I must do this.After the victory of the Northern Xinjiang War, the formation of the Northern Expedition Army will be cancelled, and the soldiers of the Yellow Turban Army will still return to their original places, as in the past.

The generals of the Hu nationality were not worried about the whole army. They followed Li Hong to fight everywhere.She Yingtong said that for the sake of safety, it is better for more than 1 Xianbei people to build an army alone. If the general regains the four counties and then marches northward to enter the Xianbei border, then we Xianbei people will stay and guard the border counties. Escort food and grass.

Li Hong said that if the Xianbei people built their own army, it would be even more dangerous once they reached the prairie. In my opinion, they should be dispersed and merged into various armies according to the original intention.Now there are 15 cavalry troops in each division, and there are soldiers from all ethnic groups. Even if they want to defect, it is difficult to cause too much harm to the tribe.

Li Hong sent the army plan for the Northern Expedition to the court.The emperor and the ministers discussed it carefully and passed it unanimously.It was the first time in the court that there was no dispute on such a big matter.

The emperor immediately decreed to approve the formation of the 35th Battalion of the Eighth Army of the Northern Expedition Army.At the same time, Li Hong was moved to be the general of the Northern Conquest, the Marquis of Pingxiang, who held the festival axe, supervised the military affairs of the three states and two counties in northern Xinjiang, and led the army to prepare for the battle outside the Great Wall.Xianyufu was moved to be the general who conquered captives, Xu Rong was moved to be the general to seek captives, and Qu Yi was moved to be the general who broke the captives.All three were named Tinghou.Moved Zhao Yun to Pinglu Zhonglang general.The rest of the soldiers were promoted to a higher level.

===

(End of this chapter)