Zhutian: Starting from the Space-Time Merchant

Chapter 368 The Millennial Troubles of Central China
"This is really something!"

Even the majestic little pig, radiating imperial power, was astonished as it stared at the projection on the screen.

"The world's great wonders."

"There are so many strange people in the world."

"Blonde hair, blue eyes, and skin as dark as charcoal~"

“They even have red ones.” Lin Dao, who was playing the projector, casually replied, “There’s also the ancient land of the Yin and Shang dynasties on the other side of the sea.”

"The world is vast, Your Majesty, you must seize every second."

He was showing a violent, aesthetically pleasing TV series called "Spartacus".

It vividly depicts the scenery of the distant Roman Empire.

Having acquired a globe and watched many projections introducing the world, the little pig truly witnessed for the first time just how vast the real world is.

"Do you want the banner of the Han Dynasty to be planted all over the sunlit land?"

"Do you want each of your sons to receive a large fiefdom?"

"Do you want everyone in the world to become your subjects?"

"Do you want to become the true emperor of the world?"

Every question Lin Dao asked struck a chord in the little pig's heart.

As an emperor, his personal life was already at its peak.

What he pursued was fame and territorial expansion.

To conquer the world and become the emperor of all races is an achievement that is absolutely unprecedented and unparalleled.

Moreover, he could also distribute these vast tracts of land to his future sons.

Although the little pig implemented the "Yangmou Tui Enling" (a policy of granting favors to the emperor) and dismantled the feudal states of the early Han Dynasty.

But when it happens to you, your thoughts are naturally different.

He also wanted to allocate a large tract of land to his future sons.

Where did the land come from?

Grab it!

As the video ended, the little pig shook its neck and stood up.

"Master Lin, this great battle in the northern desert depends entirely on you."

He had made up his mind to eliminate the Xiongnu as soon as possible.

Only in this way can we free up our hands to conquer the world.

As for whether or not Lin Dao can handle the logistics, there are naturally solutions.

"General Wei Qing led his troops out of Dingxiang."

"General Huo Qubing led his troops out of Youbeiping."

"All military supplies and provisions were transported to Dingxiang County and Youbeiping County by Master Lin."

The piglet took a compromise approach.

Lin Dao placed supplies along the border, greatly shortening the logistical supply time.

Meanwhile, the forest road will accompany Huo Qubing on his expedition, providing various supplies along the way.

"The gold, silver, jewelry, silk fabrics, leather and other items captured in this battle have all been handed over to Master Lin for disposal."

In addition to the spoils of war, the little pig also spent a large amount of gold and raw silk from the national treasury to purchase food and military supplies.

He doesn't care about spending money as long as he can win.

Gold, you just need to mine and refine it.

As for raw silk, it's even simpler. Almost every household in the Han Dynasty grows mulberry trees and raises silkworms, producing a large amount of raw silk every year.

Before setting off, Little Pig specially invited Lin Dao to have a drink.

For one purpose only: to cultivate Taoism and seek immortality.

"I'm even praying for it myself."

Lin Dao could only shrug at this, saying, "However, there is one very important point that Your Majesty must remember."

The little pig, holding a wine glass, immediately said seriously, "Please enlighten me, Daoist Master."

"Whether cultivating Taoism can lead to immortality, I am not yet clear."

"One can seek immortality from the Buddha, but not from him."

“There are countless Buddhist sects that do not engage in production, deceive the good, are extremely vicious, and harbor filth.”

“If we allow them to live, we will surely not be able to attain immortality.”

The little pig was puzzled by this statement: "The Han Dynasty has no Buddhist sect?"

"Here." Lin Dao pointed to India on the globe. "The Buddhist sect is here now. They will come to the Great Han Dynasty later."

“They themselves do not engage in production, yet they extort money from the people.”

"When we delivered rice to them, we were beaten and verbally abused; all they cared about was money."

"Such villains must not be allowed to live!"

"If Your Majesty conquers this place..."

At this point, Lin Dao gestured, "Make sure it's cleaned up thoroughly!"

Seeing that Lin Dao was speaking seriously, the little pig, whose expression had become serious, nodded vigorously.

"How dare they waste food!"

"Rest assured, Daoist Master, once I have taken this place, I will surely rid the world of this scourge!"

Dingxiang County.

Tens of thousands of Han soldiers raised their arms and shouted, "Victory! Victory!"

They witnessed firsthand how Lin Dao conjured something out of thin air, producing a mountain of grain right before everyone's eyes.

This incredible scene filled everyone with excitement and boosted morale.

With divine assistance, victory in this battle is assured!

Before leaving, Huo Qubing, under Lin Dao's guidance, left Li Gan behind and sent him to fight alongside his father, Li Guang.

Later generations, because Sima Qian, Li Guang's grandson-in-law, manipulated the pen, led many to believe that Li Guang was wronged.

In reality, this man suffered many defeats and was even captured alive by the Xiongnu, but he always managed to escape, which is why the Xiongnu jokingly called him the Flying General.

Not only did they get lost during the battle, but this also delayed military operations, allowing the Xiongnu Chanyu to escape the battlefield—a tragic event that has haunted them for millennia. If Li Guang's abilities were due to personal skill, then his sons were simply incompetent.

Li Ling disobeyed military orders and led his troops out without authorization, resulting in the annihilation of his entire army.

After surrendering to the Xiongnu, he served them wholeheartedly and fought fiercely against the Han army.

Li Gan was even more out of the question. He followed Huo Qubing and became a marquis, but because of his father's shame and suicide, he took his anger out on Wei Qing, causing a huge uproar.

This family, under Sima Qian's masterful pen, was portrayed as tragic heroes.

The true heroes, Wei Qing and Huo Qubing, were smeared and portrayed as treacherous officials.

This shows how despicable these Confucian scholars were when they wanted to ruin someone's reputation.

Sima Qian, Sima Yi, Sima Guang~
Hey!
The millennia-long affliction of China.

First, there's the pedantic scholar who plays with words; second, there's the wicked monk who wants money but not rice!
"You have returned victorious this time."

On the way to Youbeiping County, Lin Dao instructed Huo Qubing to "make a request to the Emperor of Han".

"Please speak, elder brother."

“There was a man named Sima Qian who was very suitable to enter the palace as a palace eunuch.”

Historically, the emperor intended for Huo Qubing to fight against the main force of the Xiongnu Chanyu's royal court.

However, due to a problem with the source of the information, a misjudgment occurred, and Huo Qubing was instead equipped with the main force of the Right Wise King.

However, in this time and space, the Battle of Mobei, which was originally supposed to start a few years later, was brought forward. The main force of the Right Wise King went to the north of Dingxiang County and ran into Wei Qing's army.

Huo Qubing, on the other hand, headed north into the vast desert, heading straight for the northern desert.

"Set up the tents properly."

"It's too hot at midday."

Li Gan was succeeded by Zhang Qian, the Marquis of Bowang.

Historically, this unfortunate fellow went on a military campaign alongside Li Guang.

The outcome of following Li Guang in the campaign against the Xiongnu was predictable.

As expected, they got lost and failed to arrive at the battlefield on time, allowing the Xiongnu Chanyu to escape successfully.

He was sentenced to death, but fortunately, he paid a ransom to save his life, though he was demoted to a commoner.

It was only after his second mission to the Western Regions that he had a chance to turn his life around.

In this time and space, Lin Dao, in order to take care of this explorer, specifically instructed Huo Qubing to exchange him for Li Gan.

Lin Dao's original words were, "Rather than letting that hothead Li Gan benefit, it's better to give the credit to Zhang Qian, this meritorious official."

From the perspective of the Central Plains, Zhang Qian was undoubtedly a meritorious official.

At this moment, the one shouting and calling out orders while riding back and forth on horseback was Zhang Qian.

After arranging for personnel to notify all departments, Zhang Qian wiped the sweat from his forehead and hurriedly led his horse into a sunshade.

Huo Qubing led no infantry on this expedition to the northern desert; his entire force consisted of cavalry.

The cavalry, numbering in the tens of thousands, formed a long column across the desert.

It was the height of summer, and the scorching sun was so intense it made people dizzy.

Therefore, they set off before dawn every day, rested before noon, and set off again before sunset until late at night.

It was midday, and all the troops were trying to avoid the sun.

They carried sunshades provided by the forest road, in groups of ten.

Moreover, each household receives three large buckets of purified water every day, one bucket for people to drink and two buckets for the horses.

Inside the RV, in the forest road with the air conditioning on, the door was opened.

The scouts who had gone ahead to scout boarded the vehicle and reported to Huo Qubing, who was drinking an iced beverage.

"General, there are cattle and sheep that have been dead for a long time in the oasis water source ahead."

"Understood." Huo Qubing turned to the side, took a can of drink from the refrigerator, and tossed it over. "Go and rest quickly."

"Here~"

Feeling the cool breeze from the air conditioner, the scout reluctantly left with his drink.

"As expected." Huo Qubing looked at Lin Dao and said, "Just as my brother said, the Xiongnu have indeed polluted the water source."

"This is a national war." Lin Dao shrugged. "At a life-or-death moment that determines the fate of a nation, naturally no means will be spared."

"Yizhixie's idea was simple: to cross the desert, one had to take a few fixed oasis routes."

"Water is the most important thing in the desert and Gobi."

“Pollution of the water source will greatly reduce the fighting capacity of the Han army.”

"Would you do the same thing if you were in my shoes?"

Huo Qubing nodded.

"meeting!"

The Xiongnu people were naturally aware of the Han army's large-scale military mobilization.

Yizhixie, who had previously fled to the northern desert, originally intended to lure the Han army away from the Great Wall and northward. Naturally, he would not let go of this opportunity to weaken the Han army.

“Yi Zhixie’s idea is very beautiful.”

Huo Qubing joked, "It's a pity he doesn't know that my brother has the ability to move mountains and overturn seas. Our army is not short of water."

Lin Dao looked at him and nodded slightly.

“Actually, even without my help, you can cross the desert and reach the northern desert.”

He told the truth.

Even if Yizhixie pollutes the water sources of the oases along the way.

However, the Han army in history still overcame tremendous difficulties and fought its way to the northern desert, bringing the Xiongnu people to the brink of collapse.

The strength and resilience of the Han army are truly unbelievable.

The Han army was so powerful for various reasons.

A crucial aspect of this was the Han Dynasty's system of awarding titles based on military merit.

No matter how difficult it is, as long as you make military contributions, you will be rewarded with honors, titles, and wealth. You will receive them all without any deception!
Compared to the Song and Ming dynasties, when soldiers were treated like cattle and beasts of burden, going into battle was an opportunity for Han soldiers to change themselves and even the fate of their entire families!
When the profits are big enough, who wouldn't dare to risk everything?

It is precisely because of this martial spirit that they were able to leave behind a vast territory for future generations.

If it were like Song Ming, who did not treat his soldiers as human beings...

Forget about the land, not even a single hair is left!
(End of this chapter)