Han Dang is stronger

Chapter 528 Defensive Counterattack
It was more than half a month after Jicheng was breached that Xiang Kang personally led an army of [-] to Yandi to join Xia Shuo, Tao Xi, and Gongsuntong's former counter-insurgency army.

Originally, Xiang Kang didn't need to come to Yandi anymore. He only needed to issue a few orders from the rear and adjust the personnel and government affairs of Yan Kingdom to finish the affairs of Yandi. However, after careful consideration, Xiang Kang decided to take The 4 troops came to Jicheng to personally deal with the aftermath of the Yandi battlefield, but the more than [-] Qi army led by Zhujishi turned around and retreated to Qidi halfway, which was a waste of time.

When Xiang Kang arrived in Jicheng, needless to say, the generals and soldiers of the Han army lined up to greet him. The scene was extremely grand, and countless people in Yandi also came to see Xiang Kang's demeanor as a tyrant. He took it for granted, and went through the necessary cutscenes very skillfully, and then ordered to reward the three armies, set up a banquet in the imperial camp, and celebrated the victory of this counter-insurgency war with the Han army civil and military.

Xiang Kang sometimes has a quick temper. After drinking for three rounds and drinking happily, Xiang Kang rewarded Xia Shuo, Tao Xi, and Gongsun Tong with two thousand households each for their great contributions. , and Gongsun was named Prime Minister of Yan, and Tao Xi was named Taiwei of the State of Yan, in order to reward them for their brave fighting and quickly put down the rebellion.Gongsun Tong and Tao Xi were both warriors, and they didn't expect that Xiang Kang would hand over the real power of the Yan Kingdom to them. Naturally, they left the meeting quickly after being overjoyed, and thanked Xiang Kang.

"You two lovers, please get up quickly." Xiang Kang took the two new generation generals, Gongsun Tong and Tao Xi, with his own hands and said, "I will hand over the real power of the Yan Kingdom to you." You, in addition to rewarding you for quickly suppressing the rebellion, the more important point is that I trust you, I believe that you will be able to fulfill my next entrustment, change the original situation in Yandi, and prepare for our next strategic plan .”

"Please order, Your Majesty, I will swear to the death to complete the mission assigned by Your Majesty!" Gongsun Tong and Tao Xi replied in unison.

"You don't need to swear to death, it's not that serious." Xiang Kang smiled and said, "The mission I entrusted to you is also very simple, that is, to control the border trade in Yandi for me, and block every smuggling of prohibited goods as much as possible. Don’t let our cloth, salt, and ironware be smuggled to the grasslands at low prices by those traitors who harm the country and benefit themselves, and implement our national policy of fighting the barbarians of the Xiongnu through trade.”

"Gongsun Xiangguo, Tao Taiwei, this is also what our Majesty is most concerned about." Chen Ping next to him interjected: "Before this, although Lord Guangwu controlled the border trade in Daijun and Yanmen, but The country of Yan has always been a big hole. All kinds of prohibited goods necessary for the Xiongnu are smuggled to the grassland almost every day, resulting in the loss of our taxes, and it is difficult to implement the national policy of forcing the Xiongnu to sell horses, so you two took over the government affairs of Yandi After military affairs, we must put the fight against smuggling and the blockade of border trade first, so that the national policy of our Han court can be truly implemented."

"Don't worry, Your Majesty, don't worry, the Prime Minister." The impatient Tao Xi immediately said: "From tomorrow onwards, I will issue a strict order. Who in the army of Yandi dares to smuggle contraband, or cover up those traitors and profiteers to smuggle contraband. All those caught are buried alive! Their families are all reduced to slavery!"

"Severe codes are used in troubled times to combat smuggling. Severe punishments and strict laws are indeed essential." Xiang Kang rarely praised tyranny and severe punishments, and then said: "But too hard is easy to break, Tao Aiqing, you can't just use force and severe punishments to solve the problem." The question is, how to manage the border trade well, you and Gongsun Aiqing should use your brains more, and you should discuss more with Zhaoshe Aiqing, Zhai Aiqing and other people who are familiar with the situation in Yandi."

After saying that, Xiang Kang turned to Zhaoshe Tuowei and Zhai Xu who were next to him and said: "Zhaoshe Aiqing, I named you the false minister of Yan Kingdom, Marquis of Yuanshi, Zhai Aiqing, you are still the governor of Guangyang County, Marquis Hao, help Gongsun Ai Qing and the others have handled the affairs of Yan Kingdom well, and I will naturally reward you again in the future."

Zhai Xu and Zhaoshe who actually participated in the rebellion were overjoyed when they heard that, and hurriedly bowed to Xiang Kang, and Xiang Kang also sealed Li Liao as a Marquis of Thousand Households. Li Liao thanked him happily, and said cautiously: "Your Majesty, can I ask you one more question about my sister, who is the wife of the traitor Zang Yan? I wonder how Your Majesty plans to deal with it?"

Speaking of this, Li Liao quickly added: "Your Majesty, I know that the family members of rebels deserve death, and I shouldn't plead for my younger sister. It's just that I only have such a younger sister, and my mother always loves her. Because of this, the mother even knelt down to the servant, the servant really..., really..."

"Aiqing is begging me for filial piety, and I won't blame you." Xiang Kang said smoothly: "If I remember correctly, Aiqing, your sister seems to have only one daughter, right? The family of a traitor can't forgive, This is the law of the country, and I can't violate it, so let's do it, for your sake, Aiqing, I will save your sister and your niece from the death penalty, and accept them as palace slaves, so as to fulfill your filial piety, Aiqing."

My sister and niece don't need to be beheaded. Although they were punished as palace slaves, they still went to the palace as slaves. The basic necessities of life were actually much better than those of ordinary people. Of course Li Liao was overjoyed when he heard that, and quickly nodded to Xiang Kang again and again, His mother and sister thanked Xiang Kang repeatedly.However, Xiang Kang's kindness only goes so far. In order to warn future generations, even though Zang Tu's subordinates were merciful and did not kill the family members of Yan State who betrayed civil and military affairs, Xiang Kang still ordered the execution of all other family members of Zang Tu and his son. some innocents.

The matter was not over yet. On the second day, Xiang Kang received two more reports related to the rebellion in Yandi. He took Zang Tu's envoy to Guanzhong to meet Xiang Kang in person, so as to prove that he had absolutely no intention of treason.Xiang Kang, whose history is not so messed up, smiled when he heard it, and couldn't help saying: "No wonder he is the only king with a different surname who can escape Liu Laosan's butcher knife. He is really careful in doing things. Anyway, Liu Laosan can tolerate him, of course I also If you can tolerate him, let him continue to be King of Hengshan."

The second memorial was sent by Chu Prime Minister Feng Zhong. After being trapped in the Yimeng Mountains for nearly a month, Han Xin, suffering from hunger and cold, saw that there was no hope of going north to Yandi, so he had no choice but to go south and return to Chudi to find his old boss. Feng Zhong surrendered himself, but Feng Zhongnian didn't execute Han Xin immediately because of his past affection. He chose to write to Xiang Kang for instructions on how to deal with him, and he pleaded cautiously for Han Xin.In addition, Feng Zhong also presented a military book given to him by Han Xin, which was also compiled by Han Xin himself when he was living in Huaiyin.

After carefully reading Han Xin's book of war and deliberating for a long time, Xiang Kang still gave Feng Zhong a face, and ordered Han Xin to be taken to Guanzhong, and handed over to Zhang Liang's servant Sheguan Temple to take care of him, so that Han Xin could take the blame Helping the doctor of Pushefu organize and compile military books, and give Han Xin a chance to spend his life in obscurity—of course, if Han Xin still wants to play tricks, then Xiang Kang just wants to spare him again, and there is no reason to spare him again up.

After dealing with these matters, Xiang Kang took some time to lead some Han court civil and military officials and went north to Shanggu County, crossed Zhangjiakou to inspect the grassland, visited the scenery of the grassland, learned about various situations on the grassland, and studied the next step. Huns' strategy of battle.

This is also Xiang Kang’s first visit to the grassland in his previous and present lives. The boundless green grassland refreshes Xiang Kang’s mind and makes Xiang Kang worried. Looking at the horizon in the distance, Xiang Kang said without thinking, "Maybe in my whole life, I'm afraid it will be difficult to see the scene of the Han army sweeping the grassland and completely driving out the Huns. The grassland is too big, and our national power has also been consumed too much in the civil war. I guess at least it will wait until my old age." I can’t walk anymore, and it’s not even possible until my son’s generation to confine the wolves to Xuxu, level Guyan Mountain, and drive those Huns and barbarians from the grassland.”

"Your Majesty's words are very true." Lou Jing next to him echoed: "For the Huns and barbarians, we can only prepare for a long-term hard fight. We must not try to achieve it overnight. That is absolutely impossible."

Xiang Kang nodded, thinking whether the two revolutionary harnesses, the stirrup and the Takahashi saddle, should be invented in advance, but Lou Jing said: "Your Majesty, I have always had an immature idea about the Xiongnu. As far as our national strength is concerned, it is definitely difficult to do so if we want to go to Guyan Mountain and attack Shan Yuting directly. The same is true for the Xiongnu. They don’t have this strength either, but if the Xiongnu just want to harass our frontiers and keep our frontier troops exhausted, it’s certainly not difficult to do so.”

"We need time to recuperate and restore our national strength. If the Xiongnu continue to harass our borders and force us to station heavy troops in northern Xinjiang for a long time, the situation will definitely be disadvantageous to us." Lou Jing continued: "So I think that our best It is better to find a way to ease the relationship with the Huns as much as possible, try to temporarily appease the barbarians of the Huns, and minimize the war conflicts with the Huns. This will not only greatly reduce our money and food burden, but also allow our frontier soldiers to disarm and rest , resume farming, and restore national strength at a faster rate."

"It's not like we haven't done this before." Xiang Kang said: "The last time I asked the Huns for peace, you were the one to do it. Have you forgotten what the attitude of the Huns and barbarians is?"

"Your Majesty, why don't we try again?" Lou Jing suggested: "Your Majesty suggests that in addition to seeking peace and goodwill this time, we might as well send another noble daughter of the royal family to marry the Xiongnu Shanyu. The Xiang family chooses a woman of suitable age and appearance, considers her a sister, and makes her a princess, and then sends the princess to the grassland to marry the Xiongnu Shanyu and form an marriage alliance..."

"Needless to say!" Xiang Kang very rarely interrupted his subordinates to offer advice, and said, "I will never do marriage, it's too embarrassing. And it's useless to do so, the Huns are cruel and untrustworthy, and want to beat us When we were together, we would definitely not care about any in-law relationship."

Lou Jing, the makers of marriage policy in history, refused to give up, and enumerated various benefits of marriage to Xiang Kang, but Xiang Kang firmly shook his head and refused to accept it. Sloppy also knows that the Han Dynasty he took over is not like when Liu Laosan founded the country. It was completely exhausted by the civil war. Both economic and military foundations are much better than when Liu Laosan founded the country, so Xiang Kang was resolutely unwilling. Adopt a kinship policy that will shame the Han people of later generations.

However, Lou Jing's persuasion also reminded Xiang Kang of an important event, and made Xiang Kang think in his heart: "If I remember correctly, Liu Laosan should have found out that he really couldn't beat the Huns after Baideng's siege." For those who were forced to marry, during the siege of Baideng, the Xiongnu dispatched all-powerful soldiers to surround Liu Laosan. That is to say, the Xiongnu may also dispatch the main force of the whole country to attack me. Could it be an opportunity?"

After careful consideration for a long time, an extremely bold idea suddenly appeared in Xiang Kang's mind, and then Xiang Kang suddenly turned to Chen Ping next to him, and said, "Mr. Yanshan, flatten Shan Yuting, but if the Xiongnu invades the south, we will also fight with the main force, and fight with the main force of the Huns on the border of the Han Dynasty, do you think we are sure of victory?"

Chen Ping quickly understood Xiang Kang's meaning. After careful consideration for a while, Chen Ping immediately said: "Yes! First of all, our weapons have a huge advantage, and we have a good chance of winning. The veterans of the war have just been disarmed not long ago, and their martial arts cavalry and archery are not yet unfamiliar. When they pick up their weapons again, they can become an elite soldier again. The war on the frontier for several months is a land victory. With these three victories, even if we are not [-]% sure of winning in front of the Xiongnu, we still have a [-]% or [-]% chance of winning."

After pointing out these three advantages, Chen Ping said: "In fact, Li Mu, the eldest father of Lord Guangwu, did just that. The First World War brought peace to the north for Zhao Guo for more than ten years."

"Then let's do this!" Xiang Kang made up his mind and said, "It's March now, and there is still plenty of time. Before this winter, we are preparing for a decisive battle with the main force of the Huns at the border, and at the same time trying to anger the Huns." Go south this winter, take the opportunity to fight a border decisive battle with them in defense and counterattack, and strive to fight for more than ten years of border security, so that we can rest in peace and restore our national strength."

"Your Majesty, if we can achieve this, we can achieve long-term border security without any kind of friendship." Chen Ping praised, and then said: "However, if we want to achieve this, it is not It's so easy. First of all, it is not so easy to completely anger the Xiongnu and let them go south this winter on a large scale as we hoped. After all, the current Xiongnu Shanyu is also a generation of heroes with great talent. Previously, in order to temporarily stabilize the Living in the Donghu tribe, he is willing to give away his wife."

"Think of ways. I believe that with your intelligence, Mr. Chen Ping, you will definitely be able to figure out a way to make the Xiongnu go south on a large scale this winter according to our wishes."

Xiang Kang habitually pushed the problem to Chen Ping, kicking the pasture that was already higher than his knees, Xiang Kang suddenly remembered something, and hurriedly turned to Zhaoshe who was accompanying him and said, "Zhaoshe She Aiqing, when the wind blows the grass and sees the cattle and sheep, when will the pasture grass grow taller than the cattle and sheep?"

"Reporting to Your Majesty, after the midsummer, it will be so tall." Zhaoshe hurriedly replied, "In autumn, the grassland gradually starts to wither and turn yellow. When the wind blows, the grass waves rise and fall, and you can see the cattle and sheep deep in the grassland. The scenery of the grassland was equally magnificent at that time, if your majesty is interested, you can come to enjoy the scenery of the grassland again in autumn."

"I definitely don't have time." Xiang Kang smiled wryly, and said again: "I didn't ask this, I just vaguely remembered that when our Central Plains army was fighting with the Huns army, we used the tactic of setting fire to the grassland in autumn. , I just don’t know if I remember correctly.”

"Your Majesty's memory is correct." Zhaoshe said hurriedly, "I heard that the Tyrant Qin army used this tactic when they were fighting Yiqu, burning the grassland so that the cattle and sheep of the Yiqu tribe could not get close. Food at the border, in order to limit the scope of activities of the Yiqu tribe."

"Then why didn't you use this tactic when you assisted Zang Tu's rebels in defending the frontier?" Xiang Kang asked.

"Your Majesty, forgive me." Zhao She said hurriedly, "We were afraid of angering the Huns and causing them to retaliate, so we didn't dare to use this tactic. Because the Huns regard cattle, sheep and livestock as their lives, if we cut off their rations, they will be killed." There will definitely be retaliation."

Xiang Kang laughed when he heard this, turned to Chen Ping next to him and said, "Mr. Chen Ping, look, isn't there already a solution? Let's do it like this. If you lead our counselors to think of more ways, I don't believe in provoking anger." Don’t let that barbarian Maodun.”

(End of this chapter)