The Three Kingdoms began with island farming

Chapter 637 Battle of Changping
To the north of the Kushan Empire, the Hindu Kush Mountains are adjacent to the Pamir Mountains, forming a natural barrier.

The Hindu Kush Mountains stretch from east to west, with an average altitude of over 5,000 meters and many glaciers and canyons.

In winter, snowstorms are frequent and mountain passes are often blocked; in summer, the weather is hot and dry, and water is scarce.

It was precisely because of this terrain restriction that Khwarezm and Kangju were able to become independent with ease.

This terrain is undoubtedly a huge challenge for marching.

The Khyber Pass, Wakhan Corridor and other passages are the only way to go south and north, but they are easy to defend but difficult to attack.

The Kushans built a large number of fortresses and beacon towers here early on.

Although there are differences in culture and military strategies, occupying dangerous places and building defensive facilities are undoubtedly common war instincts.

Yuan Shao and others were also helpless about this.

"Hussein, the northern commander of the Kushan Empire, is indeed a tough opponent." Xi Zhicai said with a slightly grim expression.

"Our vanguard was lightly equipped and advanced quickly enough, but Hussein, the veteran, was indeed calm and steady."

"They have set up a large number of beacon towers along the main canyon roads. Once they find our tracks, they will immediately report to the rear."

"The army he led also acted extremely quickly and immediately blocked the Khyber Pass. They also deployed a large number of archers to ambush us in a narrow canyon on the north side."

"If Xiahou Yuan hadn't been so cautious and responsive, the losses would have been huge."

Yuan Shao heard this, and although he was also upset, he said calmly, "It's as expected."

"The northern part of Kushan is full of natural dangers, almost the same as Yizhou. With this kind of terrain, as long as the enemy is a little more cautious, it will be difficult to force their way in."

"After all, the time given to us is indeed too short."

There are many key factors in marching and fighting, one of which is intelligence.

Intelligence is a prerequisite for all military operations, and in some special circumstances, its importance is unparalleled.

Like right now.

"If we had more time, we could find a path leading directly to Balkh in the Hindu Kush Mountains!" Xu You said with great regret.

Balkh was an important city in the north under the Kushan rule. It had a moat and towers, controlled traffic in the middle reaches of the Amu Darya River, and guarded the throat of the Hindu Kush Mountains.

Whoever controls this city will basically control the northern part of Kushan.

Hussein led 100,000 Kushan troops to garrison here, which was like an unshakable rock.

It is basically impossible to capture it head-on.

The best way is to launch a surprise attack.

However, the prerequisite for a sneak attack was that they could control a road that would not be discovered by the Kushans and would pass through the Hindu Kush Mountains and reach Balkh.

Unfortunately, in this year, Xu You and others have never found this road.

After all, the Kushan Empire was also half a commercial empire, with many caravans traveling back and forth between the north and the south.

In a naturally dangerous place like the Hindu Kush Mountains, the easy roads have already been discovered and built, and no one cares about the rest of the roads.

There are few people living around here, so even if I wanted to ask someone for directions, I couldn't find anyone. I had to find my way around on my own.

However, they were unfamiliar with the area, and in this place with constant natural disasters, dangerous terrain and endless mountains, even the spies under Xu You and others could only sigh in despair.

"Don't dream about it." Li Ru said dimly.

"You should have learned a lot about what kind of person Hussein is."

"He is one of the most senior generals in Kushan. Although he is old now, he has become more calm and experienced."

"If we take the initiative to attack, we may not be strong enough. But if we stay there, I'm afraid we really can't do anything to him. This veteran is too experienced."

When you understand your opponent, you will know how to fight the battle. Some tactics are simply ineffective against this kind of enemy.

"Our current situation is somewhat similar to the Battle of Changping during the Warring States Period." Xun Chen said suddenly.

"The opponent is a veteran who is like Lian Po, and he is assisted by another veteran."

"I'm afraid this bone is not easy to chew."

When talking about the Battle of Changping, people can't help but think of how Qin won this battle.

Yuan Shao and Cao Cao couldn't help but have a gleam of light in their eyes.

"King Xiaocheng of Zhao was a young and vigorous monarch, and so is the new king of Kushan. How similar are they?" Li Ru added.

Upon hearing this, all the ministers in the tent smiled knowingly.

"It's good to be young and energetic!"

"You have to hit the wall a few times before you can grow. We should give this new Kushan king more opportunities to grow."

In fact, when they first sent troops, Yuan Shao and others had no intention of conquering the northern part of Kushan.

Because given the circumstances at the time, they simply couldn't do it.

The natural barrier of the Hindu Kush Mountains cannot be broken through by ordinary means, and they cannot afford the cost of a brute force attack.

However, they still needed to send troops to divert the energy of the Kushans and buy time for the three southern kings.

After all, it has already happened, there is no point in covering it up.

Although sending troops is unlikely to be effective, if the stalemate continues, the opponent is likely to reveal a flaw.

Yuan Shao and his men did not have to worry about logistics and internal and external troubles. If they continued to waste time like this, it would be the Kushans who would suffer.

But now that Kanishka II is dead, everything is different.

As kings, Kanishka II and Potalaka had completely different styles.

The former was prudent and would rather do nothing, watching the Kushan Empire continue to decay. He did not dare to take action on his own for fear of making the situation worse, so he could only try his best to patch things up.

The latter was radical and could not tolerate the slow death of the Kushan Empire. He was determined to carry out drastic reforms, launch external attacks, and restore the Kushan Empire's former glory.

There is no difference between the two, and there is no right or wrong, it’s just a matter of whether it is suitable or not.

For the Kushan Empire at that time, no matter who was in power, they would inevitably face destruction, it was just a matter of sooner or later.

But for Yuan Shao and others, it was completely different.

Kanishka II is much more difficult to deal with than Bodhi.

I am not afraid of your ability, I am afraid of your inaction.

Yuan Shao really had no better solution than to defend the city and wait for a slow death.

After all, the Kushan people are different from the people in the Central Plains. They have persistent beliefs. Although there are many problems and hidden dangers, they will become extremely tenacious in this situation.

Given Kanishka II's style of doing things, the Kushans and Yuan Shao and others would most likely suffer losses on both sides, and would continue to waste time on each other, adding a lot of trouble.

But the tone is different.

This is not a man who would sit and wait for death. He would definitely take active action like King Xiaocheng of Zhao.

However, given the current situation of the Kushan Empire, facing cunning and experienced opponents such as Yuan Shao, it would undoubtedly be like Zhao Kuo facing Bai Qi, simply seeking death.

How could Yuan Shao and Cao Cao let go of such an opportunity that came right to their doorstep?

(End of this chapter)