Controlling mountains and rivers since the Warring States Period

Chapter 359 The Battle of Mobei (Part 2)

Amidst fervent anticipation,
Wei Qing led the Han army out of Dingxiang to attack the Xiongnu.

Wei Qing personally led his troops and achieved great results, encountering the Xiongnu one after another and beheading 20,000 of them.

According to traditional customs,
Wei Qing ordered these spoils of war to be piled up to form a mound of jingguan (a type of pyramid), which made a significant contribution to the fertile soil of the grassland.

However, the Xiongnu people found it difficult to accept such goodwill.

Their lives, though like grass, spring forth in spring and wither in winter...

But even after the grass withers and disappears in the winter snow, its roots remain embedded in the soil, waiting for its revival in spring.

If the heads of the Xiongnu were cut off,

And why should a new one grow back and continue to thrive?
then,

Wei Qing's actions on the grasslands instilled fear in the Xiongnu, who would try to flee at the mere sight of the Han army's banners.

Battles between the Han and the Xiongnu
The outcome of the final victory is increasingly tilting towards the former.

However, the Xiongnu Chanyu Yizhixie was not willing to accept this outcome.

Although he was no longer young, he had only been the leader of the Xiongnu for a few years.

Yi Zhixie,
He was the grandson of Modu Chanyu, who besieged Emperor Taizu of Han (Liu Bang), and a descendant of Laoshang Chanyu.

When he was born, the glory of Modu Chanyu had not yet faded, and the power of the Xiongnu reached its zenith under his father's rule.

that time,
The Xiongnu frequently breached the Han Dynasty's border defenses and raided southwards.

Countless treasures and people,
Accompanied by the hooves of the people drawing their bows, they were seized and taken to the desolate northern grasslands, becoming provisions for the Chanyu and his relatives to enjoy themselves.

How wonderful that is!

Yizhixie deeply missed that radiant appearance and believed that this was the true glory of the Xiongnu people.

But gradually,

That brilliance has faded.

The Han Dynasty in the south had a new emperor.
His elder brother, Junchen Chanyu, also took over the power passed down from their father and became the new leader of the Xiongnu.

Under the rule of Junchen Chanyu,

Under the diligent governance of the Han Dynasty emperors who never forgot their humiliation,
Yizhixie witnessed firsthand the changes in the power dynamics between the Han and Xiongnu.

The number of times the Xiongnu horses trod across the Great Wall border during their southward raids decreased.

The treasures they plundered from the Han people were dwindling.

Even ten years ago,

Junchen Chanyu underestimated the enemy and advanced recklessly, falling into the Han people's trap, leaving many of his warriors behind in a place called "Mayi".

He fled back in a sorry state, and his figure was witnessed by Yi Zhixie.

The news that followed in the next few years was that the Han people had invaded the Xiongnu royal court and seized the Hetao region where the Xiongnu were grazing.

Previously, Yizhixie had vaguely sensed the change in Han-Xiongnu relations, but now he could be said to be facing the impact of the Han army directly.

He was shocked, terrified, and then filled with intense anger.

What makes the Han Chinese stronger than the warriors of the grasslands?
Why did the Han people occupy so much land and wealth?

Why were they unwilling to obediently offer their beauties and wealth to the great Xiongnu every year?
Daring to resist

That Han Chinese is guilty!
As for Junchen Chanyu, who was defeated by the Han people and fled south in panic, he was even more pathetic!

It is because of this incompetent leader,
Only a powerful Xiongnu could have fallen so low!
Therefore,
After Junchen Chanyu died, Yizhixie quickly defeated his nephew and declared himself Chanyu.

He was ambitious and wanted to make the Xiongnu great again.

then,

He was embarrassed to discover that he had no way to deal with the Han army, which had undergone a complete transformation.

The Han people are becoming increasingly proactive.
Each attack launched against the Xiongnu penetrated deeper and deeper, leaving the skilled horsemen and archers completely unable to withstand the onslaught.

Yizhixie, the Chanyu,
I felt nauseous and vomiting from the powerful and long-range bows and crossbows of the Han people!
Damn it,
How come Han Chinese are such good archers!

Damn it,
How could Wei Qing, a Han Chinese general, be so skilled and capable in battle!

"Those guys are complete trash!"

"So many warriors have been killed!"

"It seems I must come out of seclusion!"

Inside the royal tent,

After hearing the news that "how many more Xiongnu warriors have been turned away by the Han people," Yizhixie said with a firm gaze.

His subordinates then said, "Chanyu, are you going to lead us to personally confront Wei Qing's main force?"

"……Do not."

Upon hearing his subordinates' expectant calls, Yi Zhixie instinctively refused.

then,

He then straightened his expression, pointed to the sky and the ground, and said, "I will personally lead the army to attack the Han people's detachment!"

Against the main force,

He wouldn't dare say he could take it down directly.

In case of an accident
He only sat on the throne of the Chanyu for three years, how could he bear to give it up to someone else?
Therefore,
He needs an absolute victory!

In Han Chinese terms, that would be:
"You have to pick the persimmons carefully, only the soft ones!"

then,

Izhixie led tens of thousands of troops,
They surrounded the Han Dynasty's front and right armies, which numbered no more than three thousand men in total.

General Zhao Xin of the vanguard surrendered after being trapped.

General Su Jian of the Right Army broke through the encirclement and successfully escaped.

Yi Zhixie laughed heartily with satisfaction.

Looking at his haul, he said, "The Han people are nothing special!"

after that,

His subordinates quickly stepped forward, wanting to report their losses to him.

As a result, Yi Zhi glared at him, not allowing him to speak.

The Xiongnu Chanyu wanted to bask in the glory of his recent victory.

I don't want to hear any bad news that will upset him!

When this news reached Wei Qing,
Although I feel the same way.

However, Wei Qing did not idealistically reject the proposal.

Marching and fighting

It's only natural to be "meticulous".

after all,

Only when you know yourself and the enemy can you fight without danger.

How can you not ask or care if you're unhappy?
The gentlemen of the Xia people do not have the same "I think, therefore I win" mentality as the people of India!

He simply ordered the defeated general Su Jian to be escorted to Chang'an for the emperor's disposal, and then, referring to the map, began to deduce the next movements of the various Xiongnu tribes.

Huo Qubing, standing nearby, was eager to try.

He stepped forward and said, "Uncle, let me go!"

"I'll avenge you!"

Wei Qing said to him, "War is not something to be done on impulse."

"How can you order an attack recklessly just because you're angry for a moment?"

but,

Wei Qing did not completely refuse his nephew's offer to join the army.

He then said, "Take eight hundred cavalrymen and go around the surrounding area, capture a few Xiongnu prisoners."

Izhixie has already led his army out.

He needed to learn about the potential future actions of the Chanyu (ruler of the Xiongnu) through the Xiongnu people's words.

"okay!"

Huo Qubing happily agreed and turned to leave.

"and many more!"

Wei Qing watched his carefree and joyful figure as he walked away, and suddenly called out to him.

He walked over, patted his young nephew on the shoulder, and helped him fix the loose tassels.

"come back earlier!"

"Don't go too far."

"Ok!"

Huo Qubing nodded heavily.

He went out, mounted his Akhal-Teke horse, a tribute from the Western Regions' Jiaonan Kingdom, and waved to the soldiers.

"go!"

"I'll lead you to achieve merit!"

The eight hundred cavalrymen roared and followed Huo Qubing.

Liu Yong also joined them, trying to catch up with Huo Qubing, who was running faster and faster.

"Wait for me!" "Wait for me, brother!"

……

Huo Qubing was always very straightforward when leading troops.

His personality meant he never did anything underhanded or convoluted.

Huo Qubing would drink fine wine, enjoy delicious food, and indulge in unrestrained revelry in his tent, saying to his soldiers:
"Do you think I don't know that famous generals in ancient times sucked the pus and blood from their soldiers' wounds in order to unite the hearts of the people?"

"The reason I don't do such a thing is to tell you clearly—"

"There will always be bloodshed and sacrifices in war!"

"Sucking out pus and blood can only stop the pain temporarily and cannot fully make up for the losses you suffer on the battlefield."

"My job as a general is to lead you to victory and ensure that you will receive rewards and honor through victory!"

"The reason I can enjoy myself like this in the camp now is because I once made contributions on the battlefield!"

"If you want to achieve the same, then go and earn military merit!"

"Will there really be rewards for meritorious service?" a soldier asked the young general in front of him, whose eyes were full of vigor.

"Of course!"

Huo Qubing laughed and said, "Someone as wealthy as me, do you think I need your little reward?"

He readily agreed.

In subsequent training and battles, he did the same thing with the same gusto.

Those who make contributions will surely be rewarded.
Anyone who makes a mistake will be punished.

"What's so difficult about marching into battle and commanding soldiers to serve?"

"The difficulty lies in suppressing one's own selfishness and maintaining a completely fair system of rewards and punishments!"

When the famous generals in the underworld heard Huo Qubing's words, they also sighed with emotion.

"To understand such principles at such a young age, he is bound to have a bright future!"

"This uncle and nephew are truly outstanding individuals of our time!"

Xiang Yu, who was passing by, crossed his arms and let out a disdainful snort.

He said, "Back in my day, I was way better than this kid!"

"Then why are you here?" Meng Tian smiled disdainfully. "Besides, I've heard that the biggest problem with your defeat to Liu Ji was that you couldn't distinguish between rewards and punishments, leading to the disunity of your soldiers, right?"

"That's right. I remember Liu Ji saying that whenever you reward your subordinates, you hold the seal and treasure in your hands for a long time before gritting your teeth and handing them over, right?"

Bai Qi, who was standing next to him, also laughed.

Xiang Yu's face turned pale and then red.

He clenched his fists and remained silent for a long time before finally roaring and rushing off to seek revenge against Emperor Gaozu of Han.

Liu Bang, who was in Fengdu admiring the beauties with his grandson, was unaware of this. He just jumped onto the platform with a smile and danced with the other dead, as if he were about to be resurrected.

The soldiers who followed Huo Qubing on his expedition,

He was as happy as Emperor Taizu Gaozu.

Because the general they followed kept his promise, led them in a great battle, and made great contributions!
Huo Qubing, who had just promised his uncle that he would "never run away," disappeared on horseback after leaving the camp.

His horse's hooves never stopped, galloping across the grassland.

He Bo, nestled in the jar and adorned with Huo Qubing's body as an accessory, was also excited.

"Correct!"

"Just run!"

"Run to Dragon City!"

"Run to Mount Langjuxu!"

With the speed of ghosts and gods,

He will definitely achieve the feat of sealing the wolf's lair before Huo Qubing!

Although inside the jar, many sensations are blocked out.
However, He Bo can still infer the external situation based on the feedback from the jar.

he knows,
Huo Qubing was running, searching for traces of the enemy on the grassland.

Once their objective was clear, the team never stopped to rest...

"Ok?"

How did I end up here?

When a sense that even a jar cannot block occurs,

The clone inside the jar was startled.
While atop Yinshan Mountain, occasionally glancing at the battle on the grasslands, the Yellow River God, whose main focus was on capturing the pika that had stolen the fruits he had brought, was also taken aback.

In the blink of an eye, he arrived at the mountain range where he had once casually refined the materials, but then turned around and complained that the soil and water were scarce and not fun or beautiful enough.

Here,

It is a mountain range belonging to the grasslands, running from northwest to southeast.

On the map, its mountain shape seems to point to the Yinshan Mountains, located north of the Yellow River's great bend.

Because the distance is not far,

Moreover, Yinshan had already taken over when He Bo was progressing through the Yellow River. Once he was promoted to River God, he would have the support of both a mountain and a river behind him.

This mountain range, which the Xiongnu called "Fuyangju Mountain," naturally could not escape the influence of the River God.

Although He Bo came here for a while and felt that "this place is too remote, it's a waste of time to come", he left quickly.

But for the convenience of travel
He Bo still managed to occupy a hilltop in the mountain range.

After all, for He Bo, who was already burdened with the weight of several large mountain ranges such as the Taihang, Qinling, and Yinshan,
It's just a small hill.

It's as easy as turning one's hand to get it!

However, precisely because the mountain was small and the place was remote, He Bo, who was philandering and liked to collect more mountains and rivers for himself, quickly forgot about it.

This mountain range is like the sorrowful woman who was taken as a spoil of war by the First Emperor and placed in the harem as a decoration:
“He stood still, gazing into the distance, hoping for good fortune. Some could not see it, and this continued for thirty-six years.”

But who could have imagined,
At such a moment,
The ghosts and gods it eagerly awaits will suddenly descend!

"Luckily, we cleared out a piece of land here back then, otherwise we really wouldn't have been able to get here."

He Bo stood on the mountain, looking down at the scenery below.

His gaze was distant, carried by the gentle breeze from the valley, and sent down to the fighters below.

And when the red flag with black patterns flutters in a different direction, the gentle breeze will turn back, telling the waiting spirits all the movements.

"what!"

"So they didn't run all the way to Wolf Dwelling Mountain after all!"

"When did this kid get there?!"

He Bo said in a low voice, a little regretful.

Fortunately,

The reason he gave Huo Qubing the jar containing the clones was...
Just in case —

Why? Because Langjuxu Mountain was just too far away from the Han Dynasty.

Even the spirits and deities who had already been scheming against parts of the mountains and rivers of the southern desert could not extend their reach there.

It's not like the Western Regions.

No merchants went there either.

Therefore, He Bo could only hope to hitch a ride with the Han army and have the Han soldiers give him a lift.

But as one can imagine...

Unless something major happened, the heavenly soldiers wouldn't have gone to Langjuxu.

After all, once is enough to desecrate someone's ancestral grave.

How can you dig it up again and again?
The Langjuxu Mountain is only suitable for burying people; it's completely unsuitable for farming!
He Bo could only wait in private, and if he got the chance, he would take the initiative to jump into that mountain and that river.

If you miss this opportunity, who knows when you'll get another chance to hitch a ride!
"Oh well, it'll happen someday anyway."

"I'm not short of a few years!"

As the war between the Han and the Xiongnu intensified,
He Bo believes that

When the Xiongnu royal court moved north, the Han army pursued them all the way to Langjuxu Mountain, where they were already quite close.

Only the clone inside the jar was disappointed.

He rolled around and cried inside.

"Why was Wei Qing able to reach Longcheng on his first expedition beyond the Great Wall? Why couldn't you have followed up by going to the ancestral tombs of the Xiongnu?"

"You brat, I had such high hopes for you!"

He originally thought,

After "sealing the wolf's lair", we followed the mountains and rivers down to the northeast of the Zhuxia continent!
While the main focus of their efforts was still on the west and south, and they hadn't yet made a move against Yanshan,
He went ahead of time, seized the mountain and designated himself as king...

He wanted to be ambitious too!

"Your ability to run around like this is nowhere near as good as your uncle's!"

He Bo, inside the jar, roared in anger.

unfortunately,

Huo Qubing didn't hear a word of it.

Only the general, far away in his tent, who was worried about the whereabouts of his nephew and the heir of the Liang King, suddenly frowned, feeling as if something was talking to him.

(End of this chapter)