The Yecixi tribe was the first large tribe that Mai Tiezhang encountered when entering Shanshan. Their leader was the famous king Yecixi.
Tuyuhun is also a tribal country. Before Lu Kua, in addition to himself being the king, its official system only consisted of central chief officials, chief ministers, generals and other assistant officials. Since Lu Kua called himself Khan, the descendants of the royal family and meritorious nobles have been called "Khan". Kings began to appear. In terms of the local official system, chiefs were canonized as daming kings, small kings, famous kings, dukes, etc. according to the size of the tribes. Among them, the tribes controlled by the daming kings had about 10,000 households, and the tribes controlled by the small kings had about three to four thousand households. There are about a thousand households and named kings, and each tribal chief combines military and political power.
In fact, each tribe has not reached a certain scale. For example, the Yecixi tribe has only about 8,000 households, but it is already considered a large tribe in Tuyuhun. What the Khans of the past have cared about is whether they are loyal or not. As long as the tribes have a large number of households, If it's not too bad, it will usually be sealed in the big direction.
After Mai Tiezhang annihilated several small tribes, he rushed to the tribe of Dai Ming Wang Ye Cixi.
Although Han Liu was a Huhua Han living in Shanshan, his team of horse bandits were more ruthless than the Sui army. The reason is that his power was originally much greater than it is now, but he was later brutally encircled and suppressed by the Tuyuhun army. Today, he has less than 3,000 fighting men. Now with the help of the powerful army of Mai Tiezhang, it can be regarded as giving him a chance to take revenge. It's just that for a large tribe like Ye Cixi, there are at least seven or eight thousand string controllers. Even with the assistance of Mai Tiezhang's army, he did not dare to launch an attack.
However, the spies he sent reported that most of the young warriors of the Ye Cixi tribe had left. This news immediately aroused Mai Tiezhang's vigilance.
It was the middle of winter, and naturally there was no nomadic migration. Where else could the Yecixi warriors go, except to the border between the Sui Dynasty and Tuyuhun? Ye Ci learned that the tribe was empty at this time. Isn't it a God-given opportunity? If we don’t attack now, when will we wait?
Han Liu was a little uneasy at first, but after hearing what Mai Tiezhang said and being convinced that the main combat force of the Ye Cixi tribe had been summoned to the Yangguan area, he was immediately tempted. He also knew that this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. If he missed it today, he would There will never be a chance to fight such a large tribe again.
So the two sides hit it off and quietly went to the wild to learn about the tribe.
The Yecixi tribe is the largest tribe in central and northern Shanshan. They are stationed in the northeast of Puchanghai, surrounded by some hills covered with trees. Since this place is the heart of Shanshan, it is not afraid of invasion by foreign enemies, and the horse bandits roaming within the territory never dare to attack such a large tribe, so the precautions are relatively lax.
The scouts sent by Mai Tiezhang and the Korean warriors quietly approached the Yecixi tribe. They did not encounter a single outpost along the way. It was not until two miles away from the felt bag settlement area of the Yecixi tribe that ten of them were discovered. Patrolling sentry with hounds.
Everyone assigned targets, crouched in the grass, observed the target, and fired bows and arrows at the same time. They shot first the man and then the dog, killing him with one arrow. Then they moved forward and saw no sentry tower at all.
Mai Tiezhang and others approached on foot with their horses. Although the other party had no precautions, their small force could not handle so many tribesmen. Once they approached on horseback, the movement would be discovered by livestock and hounds. If the people in the tribe noticed it early, It is not easy to deal with them when they resist. After all, the old, weak, women and children in the grassland are also capable of fighting with a bow.
After receiving the reward, they speeded up. When they rushed to the front of the tribe through the snow, the sky was already bright, and a ray of light emerged from the thick and low clouds, illuminating everything in front of them hazy and blurred.
Han Liu looked at the felt bags, his eyes sparkling. He seemed to see countless cattle, sheep, treasures and women, while Mai Tiezhang was trying to figure out how to eat this big tribe.
After thinking for a long time, Mai Tiezhang moved to Han Liu, pointed forward, and said: "Chief Han, although this tribe has no defense, it is too big. With less than five thousand warriors, we can't do anything. Catch them all. If the herdsmen are allowed to flee to the south, it will definitely alert the Shanshan City defenders, which is not conducive to the next move. I want to know how long it is from here to Shanshan City?"
Han Liu thought about it seriously and said: "This is the Puchang Sea. If we go south along the Shanshan River, it usually takes three days. This kind of ghost weather will take even more time."
"Are there any tribes south of Puchanghai?" Mai Tiezhang asked again.
"Yes, there are, but they are all small farming tribes." Han Liu thought: "Every winter, they will run to Shanshan City to escape the wind and snow, using the city walls to resist the cold, and at the same time to avoid being attacked by wild wolves, horse thieves and other tribes .”
"That's easy to handle!" Mai Tiezhang breathed a long sigh of relief and said: "If we attack from the south, the herdsmen will run north. Even if some people flee south, there won't be too many. But now, they We were sleeping, our clothes were very thin, and we couldn't find the horses to escape in a hurry. If we walked for four or five days, we would freeze to death even if we didn't starve to death, and we might even be eaten by wild boars. This also made us Our whereabouts will not be discovered by the Shanshan defenders, which will help our next move."
"It makes sense." Hallyu nodded fiercely.
Mai Tiezhang continued: "What I mean is to rush directly to their main tent and seize their leader. Those ordinary herdsmen will definitely flee in a cavalcade without anyone to command them. We don't need to pay attention to them and just take the powerful ones." The powerful and wealthy families stay. What do you think?"
"I have no problem." Mai Tiezhang's words were in line with Han Liu's wishes. After two plans, the two groups of men and horses were divided into two and drew an arc around the middle of the south of the tribe. The soldiers got on their horses one after another. He drew his sword and waited for the battle order.
"Woo~~Woo~~~"
The desolate horn sound suddenly sounded, and the sound of hoofbeats was like dull thunder. More than four thousand cavalry rushed out, rushed into the camp of the Yesici tribe, and rushed straight into the depths.
"Kill! Kill! Kill!"
The sudden shouts of killing woke up the people of the Yecixi tribe. The cattle, sheep and horses were barking uneasily in the pen. As if in just an instant, countless tents were overturned, and the Sui army and horse thieves also set fire to the enemy tents. The flames shot into the sky, and the camp was in chaos. The herdsmen woke up from their sleep, and they had no time to put on their clothes and boots. On the ground, they stepped on the cold snow with bare feet and ran away, crying and begging for mercy, resounding throughout the camp.
Some young and strong herdsmen who woke up hurriedly picked up their swords and guns and rushed out of the felt tent. Countless knights galloped past their tents, swung their sharp swords and chopped their heads to pieces.
As soon as some herdsmen climbed onto their bare-backed horses, they were stabbed through with a spear. The spear-holder didn't even have time to withdraw the spear, so he pulled out his saber and cut off their heads, taking back the spear. The spear continued to kill forward, and the decapitated corpse slowly loosened its grip on the horse's mane and fell to the ground, being trampled to pieces by countless horses' hooves rushing from behind.
As for the tents that were not on the charge route, they were not spared. Some people were shot in the chest by arrows as soon as they opened the tent curtains and ran out to watch. A few people had the opportunity to reflect a few arrows, but they provoked others. The man became so ferocious that he came over with horses and killed all his family members.
"Those who surrender will be spared death and are not allowed to leave the tent! Those who surrender will be spared death and will not be allowed to leave the tent!"
The horse thieves led by Han Liu were well versed in plundering tactics. As they rushed forward to kill, they shouted loudly in Chinese and Xianbei, which are commonly used in Tuyuhun.
As long as the herdsmen huddle in their tents and have no contact with each other, they will naturally not be able to form a threatening combat team. The rest have nothing to fear, and they can just arrest them one by one later. As expected, the brutal killings caused the herdsmen to stop and look out through the gaps in their tents in horror.
Two groups of men and horses roared past the ordinary herdsmen's area, killing each other non-stop towards the rich area. This was easy to identify, as long as the size and gorgeousness of the tents could be seen.
Seeing the last wave of horse thieves roaring past, the brave herdsmen immediately called out their families after making sure that there were no more enemies behind them, hurriedly grabbed a few pieces of clothing, and fled toward the wilderness.
As long as someone takes the lead, others will follow suit. When someone sees someone escape safely, they are not intercepted or killed. Other herdsmen fled frantically.
Their actions are actually in line with the wishes of Mai Tiezhang and Han Liu. Their number is too small compared to the Yesi Xibu, which has more than 8,000 households. If so many herdsmen are gathered together, once they burst into violence, it will be impossible to suppress them. These bold and restless people will escape, and the remaining timid ones will be easier to control.
In order to meet their grazing needs, the nomads have to live very far apart from each other. Especially large tribes like Yecixi require a large range of pasture to meet their grazing needs, while other small tribes are worried about being invaded by Yecixi. They did not dare to enter their sphere of influence to graze their cattle, so Mai Tiezhang and Han Liu did not worry at all that these escaped herdsmen could find reinforcements.
The Tuyuhun people, who have been living in harsh environments all year round, are indeed very good at fighting. Even though the two groups of troops rushed to the core area at the fastest speed, when they arrived, they still encountered strong resistance from the young people who had gathered in a hurry to protect the tribe.
Even though they were suddenly attacked, after the initial panic, they still showed excellent fighting qualities. A group of young men with disheveled armor rushed to fight bravely and counterattacked frantically to buy time for other tribesmen to gather.
Mai Tiezhang and Han Liu know that they must not form a strong counterattack, otherwise they will fall into an endless battle. Even if they win in the end, it will be a tragic victory.
The two of them led the brave men and horses to fight desperately with these spontaneously formed combat teams. After all, these Tuyuhun people fought in a hurry. Their numbers, weapons, morale and will were not as good as the well-prepared enemies, and they were quickly killed and collapsed. .
"kill!"
The iron rod of wheat spurred the horse forward, and a spear pierced the chest of a big Tuguhun man. With the help of his arms, he was lifted up, spinning in the air like a windmill, and smashed into the oncoming few people. The Tuyuhun knights hit them off their horses.
The leading general fell to the ground with a "bang". When he looked up dizzy, he saw a tall horse appearing above his head. Two horse hooves as big as bowls were raised in the air, and a sharp spear stabbed at him. Come.
The blood on the tip of the spear magnified in his eyes. He closed his eyes subconsciously, and then there was a huge pain in his chest. The spear pierced his chest and nailed his whole body to the ground.
Mai Tiezhang held a spear in one hand and a rein in the other. Looking around, they saw that the situation in the camp was under their control. The herdsmen of the Yecixi tribe on the periphery were fleeing one after another, and the rich area was surrounded by them. Although There are still some who are stubbornly resisting, but it is no longer the case.
"King Daming, leave quickly!"
"King Daming, leave quickly!"
Tuyuhun Chinese and Xianbei language are both spoken, and mixed with Western languages and other languages, but the nobles generally speak Chinese, and these people speak Chinese. When Mai Tiezhang heard the words and looked around, he happened to see a group of Tuyuhun pushing a disheveled man. Get on horseback.
Mai Tiezhangxin said that these guards did not think about hiding in the crowd at this time, but shouted "Da Ming King" loudly. Isn't this deliberately reminding the enemy? How much do they have to hate their own Daimyo King?
Although he was thinking this in his mind, the spear in his hand was not affected at all. He charged forward fiercely and tried his best to kill all the guards.
The big man on horseback flipped the horse's head and was about to run away. Mai Tiezhang waved his arm, and the spear in his hand was thrown out as if it were a spear. The spear brought out a shrill scream, and "Puff" A sound penetrated the horse's ass, and the war horse whined, jumped suddenly, and pushed the man off its back.
. . . . . . . . .
Mai Tiezhang and Han Liu have formed a tacit understanding. People on both sides are performing their duties to deal with the aftermath. Some are escorting women to get food, while others are responsible for cleaning up the slaves in the tribe, distributing weapons and property to them, and inciting them. When they rise up to rebel, there are still people responsible for counting cattle, sheep, property, weapons and treasures.
At noon, things slowly calmed down. Both sides occupied the magpie nest and the best tent of the Yecixi tribe, enjoying the best food. Once they were energetic, they divided the spoils with great enthusiasm.
However, after the inventory was completed, Hallyu could no longer laugh. It was not that there was no gain, but that there were too many things gained.
Since the Tuyuhun system was founded, the taxation system followed the principle of "the state has no permanent tax, does not pay the expenses, and often collects wealthy businessmen to only take what is enough." This kind of uncustomized "take only what is necessary" tax system is more severe than the customized tax system. The taxes change hands through the chiefs of large and small tribes, so that all the income from the labor of the ruled falls into the hands of the chiefs and royal families.
Now that the wealth of the leaders of the Yecixi tribe was gathered together, even if it was divided into two, neither side could take away the countless cattle, sheep and property. Han Liu saw that many of the property had to be abandoned, and he felt heartbroken. Almost broken.
The owner of the king's tent owned by the lord Wang Yeci has changed, and Han Liu is walking outside, thinking about how to take away all the property. At this time, Mai Tiezhang was interrogating the original owner Ye Cixi in the tent.
"King Yecixi Daming, as far as I know, your tribe must have at least seven or eight thousand string controllers, but we met less than two thousand. Tell me honestly, even if the others went?"
Ye Cixi stared at Mai Tiezhang with a malicious look, without saying a word. Mai Tiezhang chuckled, looked at the detained Ye Cixi family, pointed nonchalantly at the four boys who were trembling with fear, and asked The soldier standing by ordered: "Drag these wolf cubs out and chop them down!"
"Wait a minute!" Ye Cixi suppressed his anger and said in a low voice: "The Great Khan ordered warriors from all ministries to gather at Dangjin Mountain Pass and Sansha City to defend the Sui army at Yangguan."
Mai Tiezhang leaned forward slightly and continued to ask: "You are so brave, you dare to provoke even the Sui Dynasty that dominates the world."
"It's not that we want to provoke the Sui Dynasty, but the Great Khan provoked the Sui Dynasty." Ye Cixi said coldly: "It is said that the Great Khan plundered the villages of the Sui Dynasty in order to establish his power when the Sui Dynasty was fighting the Turks. , kidnapped their wealth and women, this time the Sui Dynasty launched a comprehensive revenge against Tuyuhun, so all tribes had to send people to fight the Sui army."
"Oh?" Mai Tiezhang straightened up and asked pretending not to care, "Murong Fuyun, the son, plundered the wealth of the Sui Dynasty just to establish his prestige?"
"Yes!" Ye Cixi said swallowingly: "Our Great Khan provoked civil strife, killed the former Khan Murong Shifu, and became the Great Khan himself, but there are many people who oppose him. If we don't establish our authority as soon as possible, , he could not rule the tribes of Tuyuhun who had lost their hearts. Only military exploits and wealth could quickly gather prestige, so he encouraged everyone to plunder villages and merchants in the Sui Dynasty. Whatever they captured belonged to the tribe and did not need to be turned over. Everyone because of his order , after gaining wealth, it will naturally change from opposition to support.”
"So, you guys went too?" Mai Tiezhang felt a strong murderous intention in his heart.
"We can't cross Sanshaqi and Yangguan, and we can't go there." Ye Cixi said: "But the Sui Dynasty has now taken revenge, and we have to fight. Otherwise, how could there be only such a few warriors in the tribe?"
"In fact, the warriors of the tribe were also taken away?" Mai Tiezhang heard the strong complaint in his tone and understood that he was complaining about Murong Fuyun. Otherwise, their string controller would not have left the tribe. They won't take it away.
"Exactly." Ye Cixi replied.
Mai Tiezhang continued to interrogate: "How many people are there in Shanshan City now?"
"There used to be 20,000 people, but now 15,000 people have been taken to Sansha City west of Yangguan by Murong Zhao, the king of Tianbi." Ye Cixi is the local overlord in this area and knows the situation in Shanshan very well. Said: "Now there are only five thousand people."
"How many troops does Sansha have?"
"About 40,000! If we include the warriors from various tribes, there will be at least 70,000."
Mai Tiezhang nodded and continued to ask for information. Ye Ci learned that he was under the eaves and dared not bow his head, but he was not a leader and had limited knowledge of the deployment and combat missions of the Tuyuhun army. Mai Tiezhang asked several important questions in succession, but could no longer find any useful information. He glanced at Qian Jie next to him and said, "Okay, take them under custody and keep them under good supervision. This is not a place to stay for a long time. Everyone, please hurry up." Pack your belongings.”
"Yes!" Qian Jie agreed and led a few people to escort Ye Cixi and his family out.
"Brother Mai, what should we do now?" At this time, Hallyu next to him asked.
Mai Tiezhang thought for a moment and said: "You also heard what Ye Cixi said, the south is in a state of emptiness. Let's just go to Shanshan to kill."
Han Liu said in surprise: "Tuyuhun is a big country. If we are enemies of a big country, aren't we looking for death?"
"Who said they want to make the whole country of Tuyuhun an enemy?" Mai Tiezhang said with a smile: "Didn't he say that there are no young people from here to Shanshan? We still fought all the way, and their army has been The Sui army is restrained, so we have nothing to worry about. Even if the army retreats, it will be a long time later. And our profession is shady after all, and we are not the opponent of a country's army at all. If we stay in one place for a long time, we will definitely be wiped out by Tuyuhun. So the best way is to make a lot of money and run away. How come your power is so weak? Have you forgotten?"
When Han Liu heard this, he was speechless. The force left by his father was actually quite powerful. At its peak, there were more than 6,000 warriors. However, because he changed his residence from no fixed place to one, he suffered from Tuyuhun. The army attacked, and the power was weakening day by day.
He thought for a moment and then asked: "Then where are you going?"
"As far as I know, the Shashan area is the junction of Tuyuhun, Gaochang, and Yanqi. It belongs to the Sangui area. There are also some small forces there." Mai Tiezhang said: "After we conquer Shanshan City, we can go to Shashan in the west along the Beihe River. If we can't survive, we will surrender to the Sui Dynasty, and maybe we can make a great general."
Hallyu asked: "Is this your way out?"
"Yes!" Mai Tiezhang said: "Even if we can be thieves without any worries, what about our brothers' parents, wives and children? If we lose, they will definitely die. Even if we escape for a while, what will happen in the future? After all, You can’t be a thief from generation to generation, right?”
Mai Tiezhang's words touched Han Liu deeply. He had lived a life of running around with his elders since he was a child; while hiding in Tibet, his mother and the frail old, sick and disabled all died. Because of this , he led everyone to live in the Sansha Qian Oasis. However, after settling down, their nest was found again and again by the Tuyuhun army, and the number of soldiers also decreased with each interruption.
Seeing Han Liu's deeply touched look, Mai Tiezhang knew that his words had resonated with him. However, haste makes waste, so he did not directly reveal his identity, but hoped to be influenced step by step, step by step. They will lead him south. If they kill Shanshan City, he will not be able to leave Shanshan even if he doesn't want to.
So he stood up, stretched out, and said with a smile: "This is our side's decision. Leader Han doesn't need to take it to heart. We have been struggling all night. Let's rest here first, and then use our full energy and combat power to Go south.”
"Yes, yes, those who have been fighting and killing all the way should take a good rest." Han Liu nodded and asked: "When are you going to go south?"
"Afternoon!" Mai Tiezhang pondered for a long time and said with a smile: "I have to send some people to the south to find out the news, and I also have to send people to send good news to my 'family'. Haha, think about the countless people in Shanshan City The wealth makes me excited."
The military information revealed by Ye Cixi and his dissatisfaction with Murong Fuyun are by no means the fault of one person or one department. Perhaps the entire land of Shanshan thinks so. If this good news is spread back to Ganzhou, there will be an uproar. to a huge effect.
7017k
