Taiheiki

Chapter 332 The Art of War
“I have heard some things!” Mother Asong nodded. “You came for that child?”

"That's right!" Gongsun Hao laughed. "Let me put it this way! I'm here on the orders of Zhang Wen, the newly appointed General of the Southern Xiongnu, carrying the imperial pardon for him!"

"A pardon?" Asongmu looked puzzled. "What pardon?"

"It's a pardon for Xiutuge's crime of rebellion!" Gongsun Hao laughed. "He defied the Han Dynasty and committed an unforgivable crime. But the current Empress Dowager is benevolent and has issued an edict that as long as he is willing to disband his troops and return, all his past crimes will be forgiven and forgiven. Not only that, but he will also be rewarded; he will be recruited to Luoyang as a court official to serve as a guard for the emperor!"

"What reward?" Asongmu asked.

"You've been recruited to Luoyang as a court official to serve the Emperor!" Gongsun Hao repeated, "This is a rare honor! Only someone deeply trusted by the Emperor could enter the court as a court official and serve him."

"Oh, the reward you're talking about is making that child stand guard for the Han chieftain?"

“This—” A vein throbbed on Gongsun Hao’s forehead: “You can’t say that. He’s the Emperor of the Han Dynasty, not some Xiongnu chieftain. And it’s not just about standing guard; there are many other things involved. Most importantly, the treatment of this official is extremely generous. Not only do they receive a salary, but they are also frequently rewarded. If they do well, they can be promoted to various high-ranking positions, something many Han people would kill for!”

"Hehehe!" Asongmu laughed. "Although I haven't read many books, I know that 'Shanyu' originally meant 'Son of Heaven,' which is the same as 'Son of Heaven' for the Han people. So what's wrong with me saying that the Son of Heaven is the Han people's Shanyu? As for the benefits you mentioned later, they may be for the Han people, but Xiutuge is a Xiongnu. The Xiongnu are descendants of wolves and deer, who live on the grasslands and rely on herding, hunting, and plundering for a living. If, as you say, he stays in the palace all day on guard duty, relying on stipends and rewards, no matter how well he eats or dresses, what difference is there between him and a walking corpse?"

"Enough!" Gongsun Hao's patience finally ran out. He snorted coldly, "What do you know, woman? If Huturge continues like this, he'll only have one way out: death! Men, keep an eye on her. Don't let her escape, and don't let them harm her!"

"Here!"

Facing the approaching armored soldiers, Asong Mumu did not resist. She stood up and said, "I am just an ordinary woman, and at this age, I don't care whether I live or die. But if you want to use me to hold Huturge hostage, then you underestimate me and you underestimate him!"

"That old bastard, he's shameless! He's like a rock in a latrine, stinking and stubborn!" Gongsun Hao cursed inwardly. "He really thinks he's some kind of reincarnation of Modu Chanyu! It's only because the court is wary of Tan Shihuai that they don't want to go to war. Otherwise, if they really wanted to fight, they would have slaughtered a hundred Xiutuges. Men, pass down the order: everyone keep their eyes wide open and don't let the word slip. The court has a reward: whoever beheads a Xiutuge will be rewarded with a million coins and granted the title of Marquis within the Pass!"

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"What kind of trap do you think the Han people will set?" an attendant asked somewhat nervously.

"I don't know!" Huturge's body rose and fell with his mount. "But even if it's a den of poisonous snakes, I have to go. If I don't even care about the mother who raised me, how can I lead the Huns back to the grasslands?"

“That’s true, but a dead man can’t lead the Xiongnu!” The follower sighed. “If I’m not mistaken, the Han people have definitely set up an ambush. Their crossbows are very powerful!”

"Hehe!" Hugh Turgene laughed. "Don't worry, you know what? When I was very young, my mother had my fortune told, and do you know what the result was?"

"what?"

“I will die peacefully in my bed!” Hugh Turge said. “So you don’t need to worry. Mother is very accurate. Many people have come to her for help, and I have never heard anyone say that she is inaccurate!”

"Really?" The attendant was skeptical. Just then, an unusual flapping sound of bird wings interrupted their conversation. It was autumn, and many waterbirds gathered in this marshland, hunting and gathering strength before the ice froze, preparing to migrate south for the winter. This time and place were precisely where birds congregated. As they approached a marshland, the sudden flapping of wings overhead revealed flocks of storks flying low, so low it seemed a spear could easily swat them down. The birds flew and cried loudly, as if they weren't heading to the reeds, but rather that some unexpected event had forced them to scatter.

"Wait!" Huturge stopped his men who were about to draw their bows and shoot. "They're fleeing like this; it seems something has happened!"

"Look, look up there!" The attendant pointed to the sky with his riding whip, and there was a white falcon flapping its wings, trying to swoop down on the flock of storks from the side.

"What a magnificent white eagle!" Hugh Turge exclaimed. "What an outstanding bird of prey!"

This majestic bird of prey drove the flock of storks upwards, then in a flash, it flapped its wings violently, soaring higher and dominating the flock from above. The storks were forced to spin and circle in the air, their wings beating rapidly, making a sound like a torrential downpour.

The storks emitted terrifying cries, stretching their necks and pointing their sharp beaks upwards, like a group of spearmen arrayed in a square formation resisting a knight's charge. The white eagle circled above, sometimes low, sometimes high, seemingly hesitant, wondering whether it should face those hundreds of sharp beaks and swoop down. Its white feathers, illuminated by the sunlight, shimmered like the sun itself, dazzlingly bright against the clear blue sky.

“This White Eagle knows military strategy!” Hugh Turgene laughed.

"Military strategy? White Eagle?"

“Exactly!” Hugh Turgene explained proudly, “Look, those storks are in such a well-organized formation. Don’t their long beaks look like Han Chinese spears? Although eagles are much fiercer than storks, there are far more storks than eagles. If the white eagle just charges down like that, even if it manages to kill one or two storks, the eagle will be seriously injured or even killed. But if the white eagle keeps circling above the flock like this, the storks can’t run away, and they can’t fight back. There will inevitably be strong and weak storks in the flock. As long as time goes on, the weaker ones will inevitably fall and flee first, breaking the formation. The stronger ones will also be unable to survive alone. Then the white eagle can hunt the storks at will!”

As they were talking, several white storks in the flock indeed landed on the reeds. This seemed to be a signal, and the once orderly flock of storks broke apart and scattered in all directions.

"Your Excellency is indeed right, this white eagle understands military strategy!" the attendant said admiringly. "In fact, the Han people also learned military strategy from birds and beasts!" Xiutuge laughed proudly, "Even if we Xiongnu people are illiterate, as long as we observe carefully, we can learn how to fight from birds and beasts!"

No sooner had Hugh Turgenev finished speaking than the white eagle had already chosen its target—the largest and most majestic white stork. It swooped down, and the stork, seemingly startled, fell into the reeds. The eagle then pounced on it, and just as the stork was about to become its prey, it suddenly let out several piercing cries. The stork flock, which had scattered and fled, suddenly regrouped and swooped down from all directions. The white eagle tried to escape, but its talons were already deeply embedded in the stork's body, and its beak was entangled with the stork's long beak, leaving it with no chance of escape.

In the midst of the panic, the white eagle was surrounded by white storks, dozens of long beaks rising and falling, and then a few mournful eagle cries rang out before silence fell.

"This—" The Xiongnu looked at each other, completely bewildered by this sudden turn of events. After a long while, they heard Xiutuge say, "Let's go and take a look!"

The group dismounted and waded into the reeds, where they found that both the white stork and the white eagle were dead. The once magnificent white eagle had more than ten wounds on its body, its feathers were disheveled and covered in blood, and it was no longer recognizable as it had been before.

"You all saw that, didn't you?" Hugh Turges sighed. "That's how battle is. Eagles are stronger than storks and know how to use tactics, but that doesn't mean the eagle is guaranteed to win. One wrong move and the outcome can be reversed. And this white stork, it used itself as bait to lure the eagle into a trap and kill its own opponent! That's how the Han people are—cunning and ruthless. One wrong move and you'll fall into their trap!"

"Does the Chanyu still want to go?" the attendant asked in a low voice.

“I’m not going!” Hugh Turgene sighed. “This is a warning from heaven, and I can’t ignore it. Even if I were to go, I can’t go now. Forget it, go to Mumu’s place and give her a message to the Han leader. Tell them to treat Mumu well and not to push things too far, or they’ll be the ones who suffer in the end!”

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"What? Are you threatening me?" Gongsun Hao's face flushed red as he glared fiercely at the Xiongnu envoy kneeling on the ground. "A few Xiongnu fugitives dare to threaten my Great Han! How dare you!"

“Our master said that Mother has raised him, and if you Han people harm her, he will only seek revenge for her! If you do not harm her, he will remember this kindness and will need it someday!”

"Alright, alright!" Gongsun Hao weighed the pros and cons, suppressing his anger: "Go back and tell Hugh Turge that I won't take my anger out on an old woman, but he should be careful. If he falls into my hands, don't blame me for being ruthless!"

Against the backdrop of the autumn of the second year of Chongguang (170 AD), the incident concerning Huturge was merely an unknown episode in the affairs of the entire northern border. Only many years later, when people looked back on that autumn, did they discover that this little episode had become the root of so many major events.

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Luoyang.

The General's Mansion.

"Tan Shihuai divided his numerous tribes into three parts: the eastern part, extending from Youbeiping County eastward to Liaodong County, encompassing more than twenty cities including Fuyu and Huimo; the central part, extending from Youbeiping County westward to more than ten cities including Shanggu County; and the western part, extending from Shanggu County westward to more than twenty cities including Dunhuang County and Wusun. Each of the three parts was led by a leader who marched south! The border regions were engulfed in flames, and messengers were constantly on the move. This was a critical situation unseen for many years!" Huang Ping explained to the map.

Wei Cong remained silent for a long time before asking, "What about Zhang Huan and Zhang Wen? Haven't they made any moves?"

"The two have already stationed their troops in Youbeiping Commandery and Yunzhong Commandery respectively, forming a pincer movement between them! However, the enemy's strength is formidable, and our troops only dare to engage them in battle, not venture deeper!"

"Grand Commandant Feng, what do you think we should do?" Wei Cong asked.

"The army of Tanshihuai is strong and powerful, covering an area of ​​ten thousand miles. The number of archers is no less than 300,000. Few ancient Rong and Di tribes have ever been as powerful as this. In my opinion, we should mobilize the soldiers and civilians of the border counties to strictly guard the passes and fortresses, prevent them from advancing, and avoid reckless fighting."

"Stop their advance and avoid reckless fighting?" Wei Cong sneered, "From Dunhuang to Fuyu, it's tens of thousands of miles. How could we possibly defend the entire area?"

"General, if we are to wage war, we will need to increase our troops, which will require raising taxes and conscripting laborers! But right now, the treasuries of the border prefectures and counties are empty, and the central government is also short of supplies. This is really not a good time to wage war!"

Wei Cong snorted coldly. Feng Kun's reasoning was old news, but the problem was that it was also very powerful. To put it bluntly, north of the Yellow River, especially in the dry sparse grasslands north of the Yanshan Mountains, the outcome was always decided by horses, not numbers. The role of infantry was only to guard fortified passes and protect supply lines, while the real winners in open field battles were always cavalry (or mounted infantry).

Therefore, Li Ling led 5,000 infantrymen deep into the grasslands, directly attacking the Xiongnu royal court. He fought fiercely with the main force of the Chanyu for many days, but ultimately failed. However, this defeat was passed down as a legend in later generations. Without the support of cavalry, even the most elite infantrymen would be in a desperate situation when faced with the Xiongnu's army of horse archers who were not fully armored and had no stirrups. They would be unable to fight, unable to escape, and cut off from supplies and water.

To destroy Tan Shihuai's rule, at least 60,000 to 70,000 infantry and cavalry would be needed, and the number of horses supporting them would be at least 120,000 to 130,000 (infantry on the grasslands also ride horses). There would be even more donkeys and mules for transporting supplies. Wei Cong could produce strong soldiers and armor, grain, and copper coins, but he couldn't suddenly produce tens of thousands or hundreds of thousands of warhorses. These things either had to be raised domestically or purchased or conscripted from vassal states like the Southern Xiongnu; neither could be done hastily. Therefore, it's no wonder Feng Kun was so conservative.

“I know the General pities the people of the border regions!” Feng Kun sighed, “But warfare is no joke, especially against the Xianbei. Moving a large army consumes not only money and food, but also millions of laborers. If 10,000 troops go beyond the border, at least 100,000 laborers will be conscripted. It’s not just about winning or losing; if 100,000 people go beyond the border, it would be good if half of them came back alive. I beg the General to reconsider!”

(End of this chapter)