Han Khan

Chapter 53, Plunder

Yesterday, the Jin Han came so fast that the slave tribes and villages outside the city had no time to react, and the Jin Han people quickly surrounded Yizhou City.

Except for some clever and courageous leaders who led their tribes and fled into Yizhou City when the Jinhan people were fighting with Anpolla, there were only a few who fled to Yizhou City.

There are many slave tribes, clans and villages of Yizhou outside the city today. They have not been able to flee into the city for refuge, nor have they any way to enter the city because pastures and water sources restrict them tightly, and coordination between the various tribes is still required, which is extremely cumbersome!
These people outside the city had almost no weapons or armor, which meant they had no ability to defend themselves.

So, early this morning, Zhang Sheng ordered twenty centurions and two guards to go out and plunder nearby tribes and villages.

The Gobi Desert, oasis and the banks of the Black River beside Yizhou City were flat and open, with a panoramic view. Zhang Sheng sent out more than 2,400 cavalrymen, led by captured guides, and it was difficult for any tribe to hide their whereabouts.

At noon, the centurion Hailat came to report that a small fleeing tribe was defeated, more than 700 people were beheaded, and more than 10,000 livestock were seized.

Zhang Sheng didn't care about the truth of the beheading number, nor did he bother to care about the life and death of the plundered tribes.

All that matters is that the captured livestock can be used to supplement military supplies and reduce food consumption, and the captured people can be used as cannon fodder for sieges, all of which are beneficial.

"Your Highness, Commander Boniek sent a military report that he had successfully raided a Chuyue tribe and an Adie tribe near the city of Nazhishou. A total of more than 600 enemies were killed, and no one escaped. More than 400 prisoners of war, more than 1,000 elderly, women and children, and more than 30,000 cattle, sheep, horses and camels were captured." The scout commander Yan Zhi excitedly walked into the tent and reported the good news to Zhang Sheng.

Hearing this news, Zhang Sheng nodded with satisfaction and said with a smile: "Well done! Let's continue with this strategy!

Those Hu chieftains and Chen family in Yizhou neither dare to send troops to fight nor surrender, so we don't need to worry.

Anyway, we now have more than 20,000 people in the Jinhan tribe, and we will survive by eating their cattle, sheep, and food. Let's see how long they can endure."

Then, Zhang Sheng turned around and told Yan Zhi: "As for these spoils of war and the captured people, cattle and sheep, as usual, you must warn the centurions and guards not to steal them privately.

First send them all back to the camp for centralized custody, and after we successfully capture Yizhou, we will make reasonable distribution. "

Yan Zhi immediately replied respectfully: "As you command! I will definitely follow your orders and handle these matters properly."

He knew very well how much Zhang Sheng valued military discipline and would never tolerate anyone violating the rules.

Therefore, he would personally and solemnly tell all the centurions and commanders of the guards to remember Jin Han's military discipline.

Zhang Sheng never thought of relying on cavalry to attack Yizhou City.

There is no need to do so. The number of soldiers in the city will definitely not exceed one thousand.

Jin Han's guards, plus the new centurions armed with looted new equipment and weapons, now total more than 5,000 people who can participate in the battle, but they are all cavalry. However, the cost of forcibly attacking the city is too high, which is not a good idea.

Although they did not attack the city, it did not mean that they had no other options. The two thousand cavalrymen of the Guards and the three thousand cavalrymen of thirty centurions could plunder the villages and scattered tribes outside the city. It was a piece of cake for them to do so in the Gobi oasis where there was no strategic location to defend!

It doesn’t matter whether the enemy comes out of the city to surrender or comes out to fight, I will just continue looting.

We will slaughter the tribes, clans and villages that support you, and rob your cattle, sheep and property. Even if you eventually run out of food and retreat, you can return with a full load. By heading north, you can not only obtain replenishment of supplies, but also a large number of people. What can you do?

Now it no longer matters whether Yizhou is attacked or not, but the soldiers are unwilling to give up the treasures in Yizhou city.

Upon hearing His Highness' plan, all the centurions and guards were very excited. Now they just had to act according to the plan.

Looting the property of the people and besieging the enemy to attack the reinforcements were the only two things he could do. Whether Yizhou City could be captured was not important. Zhang Sheng's Jinhan Army had never cared about the gains and losses of a city or a place. The key was to destroy the enemy's manpower and dampen their morale.

Since the time of the Centuriae, the Jin-Han people have been the best at defeating the enemy in field battles. If the enemy is unwilling to fight in the field, there is no need to force it. You should find another way to force the enemy to fight in the field.

....................................

"General Chen, the barbarity of the Guiyi Army outside the city is comparable to that of the Khitans in Jinshan.

Seeing that we were defending Yizhou, the Guiyi Army had no intention of attacking the city. All the equipment we prepared to defend the city was useless. The slaves outside the city were all abducted by the Guiyi Army, and the cattle, sheep, and wheat were also taken away! "A Huigu leader, who had just returned from patrolling the city, said to Chen Yunde with a worried look on his face.

Under the city wall, there were piles of various defense equipment and hot oil. Every time he inspected here, the Uighur leader wanted to curse. Rather than leaving cattle, sheep and food outside, which would be looted by the Guiyi Army bandits sooner or later, it is better to let more in. "I am afraid that those who came this time are not the Guiyi Army. The Tang people will not be so barbaric and unreasonable in battle. These people outside the city are probably bandits, or they are Tang people and Tibetan soldiers who escaped from Gaochang and Anxi. Judging from their large number of elite soldiers, their morale is high.

Before Yiduhu sends someone to rescue us, we should hold on to Yizhou. Now the commander and his army have been annihilated, and there are no soldiers left. If we go out of the city to fight, it will be difficult for us to defend it with just our guards. "The only thing we can do is to hold on." Chen Yunde said, "We can only hold on."

After saying this, Chen Yunde sighed secretly. My mother shouldn't have gone out of the city to fight the bandits. Not only did she lose her life, but she also left Yizhou with no troops to attack the city, let alone take back the cattle, sheep and slaves.

Sadly, these Uighurs were ignorant of military tactics and were surrounded and attacked by the enemy, playing with them at their will.

The Chen family must defend Yizhou, otherwise the wealth and slaves outside the city will be taken away. The Chen family, with hundreds of people, and the wealth accumulated over the past hundred years will also be looted by the soldiers and bandits outside the city, and then everything will be destroyed.

Holding on to Yizhou and waiting for the arrival of Yiduhu's army would not only allow the Chen family to better integrate into the Uighurs, but it would also make it possible for the control of Yizhou to return to the Chen family.

Today's Uighurs are no longer nomads in the desert! They have long been accustomed to settled urban life, and have gained a wealthy and civilized way of life by levying taxes on conquered peoples such as the Tang and Sai people.

If the Pugu clan was still the tribe that was being chased by the Tubo and Khitans and was in constant fear, then running away might not be a bad idea. It is human nature to run away when you can't win.

However, the Pugu clan now owns many cities in the north and south of the Western Regions, as well as the benefits of east-west trade. If they escape, can they restore their former glory? Will the surrounding tribes, towns and villages still obey the orders of the Pugu clan?
It is not easy to become a powerful person in Yizhou. If Chen escapes now, it will be very difficult for him to restore his status and prestige in the future.

Therefore, Chen Yunde would definitely defend Yizhou to the death, and Biejia Yiduhu would definitely send a large army to support Yizhou.

The Chen family survived in Yizhou, how could they escape? Where could they escape to?

"I can never understand this fame..." Chen Yundegong suddenly sighed and smiled helplessly: "Several generations have been managing Yizhou and its surroundings. My Chen family's accumulation of a hundred years is all here. It's really hard to give it up!"

"Brother, why do you say that?" Chen Yunpeng was shocked and said hurriedly, "The Guiyi Army outside the city only has 3,000 to 5,000 soldiers and horses. How can they capture Yizhou City?"

"But if the property outside the city is plundered, what's the point of defending Yizhou?" Chen Yunde sighed, "Are you going to ignore the Uighur tribe, Tatar tribe, Tibetan tribe, Chen's farmland and Turkic tribe outside the city? Moreover, there are still many slaves of my Chen family who have not entered the city to avoid the war. Are you going to abandon them? How can my Chen family survive in Yizhou!"

"Brother, how about going out of the city to fight? How about fighting to the death?" The third brother Chen Yunque asked with his eyes wide open.

Chen Yunpeng, Chen Yunque, and many Uighur and Sai leaders all turned to look at Chen Yunde, as if waiting for his decision.

According to their custom, they should have gathered their forces and marched out of the city to fight the enemy to the death. Chen Yunde actually decided to defend the city, which was a bad idea.

"First send an envoy to the enemy camp outside the city to inquire about the conditions for the enemy's withdrawal." Chen Yunde said.

When these words were spoken, people were either disappointed, or relieved, or pondered, as if thinking about the possibility.

"These people are only after money and food. We should listen to their terms first, and maybe we can delay the war for a while. If we can wait for the troops from Gaochang and Beiting to come to our aid, there may be a turning point." Chen Yunde finally said, "If not, we can fight again."

The blade lightly passed by, blood gushed out, and the rider's body fell to the ground with a bang. After twitching twice on the grass, he was silent. The guard commander Boniek lightly urged the reins and caught up with another enemy. It was a Hu man who had just reached adulthood, holding a spear and galloping on his horse.

"Puff!" The man was seen sitting steadily on the horse, swinging his spear vigorously, but Boniek dodged it nimbly. Then he swung a fatal knife, and the sharp blade directly cut open the opponent's chest and abdomen. The intestines and flesh and blood splattered red on the warhorse and scattered all over the ground, almost cutting his chest in half.

"This is the thirteenth!" Boniec dismounted, cut off the man's head, and hung it under the saddle.

Near Yizhou, the remaining tribes of Shatuo and Tiele were trapped in Liugushui, more than 50 miles east of Yizhou. This place was originally a guard city built by the Tang Dynasty in Yizhou, but it was now occupied by the Hu people and used for grazing.

This tribe had seven or eight hundred households, a total of more than five thousand people, including more than two thousand men. But when they saw the Jin army cavalry rushing towards them, they did not dare to fight and only wanted to escape.

However, it was not easy to escape at this time. After their attempt was discovered by the Jin army, Boniek led a guard regiment of more than 400 elite cavalry and ten hundred light cavalry to catch up with them, fought a battle, defeated the enemy army, and killed more than 400 enemies.

Afterwards, more than a thousand Jinhan cavalry rushed into the tribe and started a massacre.

Now, the tribe was basically finished. Most of the men were killed or wounded, more than 3,000 women and children were captured, and more than 50,000 cattle, sheep, horses and camels became spoils of war for the Jin army.

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(End of this chapter)