Wusun was one of the most important countries in the Han Dynasty that connected the grasslands of the east and west.
Their leader is called "Kunmo" or "Kunmi".
Initially, the Wusun people also relied on the Xiongnu and became their vassals.
But when they moved to the rich Ili River Basin and became increasingly powerful, they gradually got rid of the control of the Huns.
Their political center is in Chigu City, which is mainly engaged in animal husbandry and hunting. The horse breeding industry is particularly prosperous.
For thousands of years, they have always been an important area on the northwest frontier, guarding the east-west land transportation and an important area leading to Central Asia, West Asia and southern Xinjiang.
The night is dark.
In Chigu City, the capital of Wusun King, Wulian, King Wusun's younger brother, came to the palace late at night and reported something urgent to King Wusun.
"I have received a secret report that the Han army is coming to attack Wusun. The soldiers and horses have come out of the Yumen camp."
Wu Lian was also wearing a leather robe and his eyes were bright:
"After the Han army defeated the Xiongnu, I began to collect information about the Han army.
The general who led the Han army to the Western Regions before was named Huo Qubing, and he was a Han general.
The Xiongnu also hoped that I, Wusun, could lead the army to resist the Han people, so they sent people to deliver very detailed news. "
He added: "Huo Qubing had many battles with the Xiongnu. He was good at running and attacking with his troops. He was able to travel thousands of miles in a day, and he was accustomed to using surprise troops and surprises.
I suspect they have more than the 10,000 troops who came out of the Jade Gate on the surface. "
The Western Region was also the site of the Four Wars, and Wu Lianye had rich combat experience and was familiar with military affairs.
He thought and judged: "The Han army comes out of Yumen to attack Wusun. No matter how fast it is, it will take a week to arrive, but I guess there must be other soldiers and horses of the Han army who will come earlier than this team.
From now on, we will strengthen our defense. "
King Wusun is sitting in the bedroom of the palace, wearing a beige patterned one-piece robe.
The night wind blew from the window, and the candles in the hall were swaying.
His face is obscured by the changes in light and shadow, making it appear gloomy and highly three-dimensional.
"The first battle between the Han army and Wusun must be won, so that the Han will be more afraid of Wusun and not dare to raise troops easily."
"Brother Wang, don't worry, I'm sure to win in our place." Wu Lian was also a little excited about the upcoming war.
"What arrangements have you made?"
"Qiuci, Wensu, and Gumo are all close to the Han. If the Han army comes, they will most likely choose to go north from Qiuci and attack our Wusun border city, which will be more convenient for their supplies.
I have sent orders overnight to strengthen the defense of the border town. "
Wu Lian also said calmly: "Considering that the Han general Huo Qubing was willing to use strange methods, and that the Western Huns had surrendered to the Han, I asked the northern front to also strengthen its defenses.
If the Han army really uses surprise troops and chooses to come from the Western Huns along the northern route and kill them through the Alashan Pass in the north, we will also be prepared. "
King Wusun nodded.
He has always had great faith in his younger brother's fighting ability.
Wu Lian was also an invincible and famous general in the Western Regions. His commanding troops had many conflicts with the Western Huns. He also fought with other countries in the Western Regions and was victorious in every battle.
From his judgment of the incoming Han army, it can be seen that he was cautious and confident in using troops, and his reputation was well-deserved.
"The Han envoys who came to deliver the news were expelled by us just the day before yesterday. It is estimated that they have not left our Wusun territory at this moment. Since the Han army dares to attack our Wusun, let people chase them and kill the Han envoys to clarify their ambitions and encourage them. All ministries fight to the death with the Han army!"
After saying this, King Wusun stood up and walked to the bedroom: "Be more careful in this battle, and safety is the first priority. You will be responsible for arranging the rest."
…
Wusun is located in the northwest corner of the Western Region, a vast area south of Alashankou.
King Hunxie and King Tu, the commanders of the troops, dispatched troops from the Hunxie tribe of the Western Xiongnu in the dark of night, all the way to the west, and quickly advanced along the plains north of the Western Region.
Their route was outside the Western Region and finally came to the north of the Wusunala Pass.
Going south from here, you can enter the northern part of Wusun.
Wu Lian also made accurate military decisions. He had considered the Western Huns who had surrendered to the Han in advance and anticipated the possible direction of the attack.
But he still misjudged two things. First, the journey took place earlier than he expected.
On the night when the Yumen camp sent troops, they had already reached Alashankou.
Huo Qubing had long seen through that Wusun would not surrender, so he made arrangements earlier than anyone thought.
After King Tutu and King Hunxie went to Chang'an to meet the emperor, they received orders to immediately return to the northwest and secretly dispatched troops and horses to reach the north of Alashankou at this time.
This was the first time that Huo Qubing used two Xiongnu kings as generals, so both King Hunxie and King Tutu tried their best to show off their troops, and there was no delay along the way.
At this time, the two men came to the north of Alashan Pass to station their horses under the night.
This is close to the westernmost border of the Xiongnu.
The wilderness is endless and the stars are lonely.
In the distance there were low hills and the faint howling of wolves.
Behind him is a Xiongnu army of ten thousand people, composed of Hunxie and Qitu with five thousand elite troops each.
"Wulian is also a general of Wusun. He has had many contacts with several of our ministries in the past. He is proficient in military affairs. We must deal with him carefully."
King Tu, the chieftain, sat on his horse and spoke in a mature and solemn manner.
King Hunxie, with long hair shawl, glanced around: "The secret order given to us by the Marquis said that we should come at the scheduled time, join another Han army, and attack Wusun together.
We have arrived on time, but why are there no traces of the Han soldiers and horses on the other side? "
King Tutu was also looking around.
There was no one in the wilderness, and there was no sign of other soldiers and horses around.
King Hunxie said again: "We came from the north of the Western Region, and we went all the way from Yumen to the west. On the surface, we were rushing to attack Wusun, but in fact, we were attracting attention and covering our march.
The real goal along the way to Yumen is Yanqi.
Huo Hou said that the third road that was going to join us came to Wusun via what route?
I thought about it for several days and still couldn't figure it out. King Chief Tu, you may be able to tell what route this third group of troops took? "
King Tu Tu shook his head and said: "I have personally learned how Huo Hou used his troops. They are often unpredictable and unpredictable. The other Han army is the key to defeating Wusun this time. How can I see through it?"
King Tu did not notice the presence of Han troops nearby, so he took out a green leaf with flowing texture.
This is a concentric lotus leaf. Huo Qubing asked them to contact another group of soldiers or report the progress of the march.
King Tutu immediately pushed the spiritual imprint on the leaf and contacted another group of soldiers.
The leaves soon had textures that glowed, and a response emerged:
"Come south!"
... King Eitu and King Hunxie both looked south.
Further south is the Alashan Pass. After passing the pass, you will enter the Ili River plain basin of Wusun.
"They came earlier than us and continued south past the Alataw Pass, which is the Aare Valley City on the northern border of Wusun."
King Tutu and King Hunxie discussed briefly and then led their troops to ride south, preparing to join another Han army.
They approached the area south of Alashan Pass in the early morning.
On the plains and highlands ahead, there is a fortress city.
The so-called fortresses were mainly built for military purposes and were generally small in scale.
The Aare Valley City is built with loess walls and was built based on the steep and towering terrain of the Alat Mountain Pass.
This fortress city occupies the highest position in the surrounding area, facing cliffs on three sides. It is the northern border city of Wusun. It is heavily defended and easy to defend but difficult to attack.
Although there were only three thousand defenders in the city, it was never breached after it was built.
King Hunxie and King Tutu led their troops and met another Han army in a dry valley.
The Han army seemed to appear out of thin air, with mist rising from nothingness.
Both King Hunxie and King Tutu were slightly refreshed.
This method of manifesting out of thin air shows that the Han army in front of him is the direct descendant of Huo Qubing, and he cannot imitate it even if he wants to.
The lieutenant who led the Han army, holding a plan slip that concealed the plan from the sky, showed his traces and said:
"The Marquis sent a secret order, asking me to join forces with you here to break Wusun's northern line and push directly towards the direction of Chigu, the royal city. When Li Gan's troops from the southern line come over from Yanqi, they will join us from the east and the north at the same time. Send troops to attack Wusun King's capital."
The captain who spoke was wearing light armor, tall and strong, about twenty-five or six years old, and holding an extremely thick bronze Ma Shuo in his hand!
Those who can use this kind of copper are brave generals who trap the enemy on the battlefield.
Weapons like Shuo should have been available in the Han and Tang Dynasties, but in the current world, Ma Shuo existed in the Qin Dynasty.
After I entered the Han Dynasty, I heard that there were eight major captains under the Imperial Army. They were all young generals trained by Huo Hou. The Zhao Ponu, Chen Qing, and Fu Luzhi whom I had met before were all among them. The one in front of me should also be... Hunxie Wang thought.
King Chief Tu was looking at his surroundings.
He and King Hunxie contacted in advance and led a small group of soldiers to hide and join together. The large group of Huns were still waiting dozens of miles away.
And above the valley where they meet is the valley fortress city of Wusun.
"Has the Marquis ever told me how to break this fortress?" King Hunxie asked as he saw that the sky was getting brighter.
The young captain opposite said: "My name is Zhao Anji, one of the eight captains of the Forbidden Army under the Marquis. I have two thousand troops and come to join you. My people have already gone up, let's go up and have a look."
"Go up?"
King Hunxie glanced at the steep and almost vertical cliff, and the starry sky revealed a long line above the cliff: "You go up from here to attack River Valley City?
How did you get up there? "
King Hunxie and King Tutu followed Zhao Anji to the corner of the cliff on one side, and saw a strange scene.
Drill a hole in the cliff and insert a palm-width and finger-thick bronze plate, one step at a time, in a zigzag shape, like a ladder to the sky, extending to the top of the cliff.
The Huns had never seen the method used by the Han army to dig plank roads on the cliffs, and they were very surprised.
Is the Han army going to scale the cliff and attack the river valley city in this way?
King Hunxie looked at the nearest bronze plate inserted into the cliff, and asked in surprise: "How was this built?"
In the landforms of the northwest, the sand and soil may seem soft, but the rock walls have withstood tens of thousands of years of wind and sun and have remained standing. Some cliffs are as strong as iron and stone.
If you want to drill holes and insert copper plates, you have to climb up a hundred-foot-high cliff along the way, especially when there are Wusun soldiers stationed above. It is very difficult to stay hidden without making any noise.
This kind of omnipotent surprise attack method that goes deep behind enemy lines, climbs over mountains and ridges, is called special operations behind enemy lines in modern times.
In this current era, only Huo Qubing has the consciousness to train an elite force of the Forbidden Army and develop it in the direction of special operations.
The equipment and fighting concepts of this Han army were all ahead of this era.
Hunkie and King Tutu had never seen it before, so they were surprised.
"Our imperial army's usual training project involves digging cliffs to build plank roads. However, the earth and stone structure here is somewhat different from the mountain topography in our Han Dynasty, so it took a little more effort.
The mountain-climbing copper ladder inserted into the cliff was made by Mohist craftsmen according to Huo Hou's requirements. It has organic buckles inside. When it is inserted into the rock wall, the buckles will not loosen when they are opened. When taking it off, use a specific method to retract the buckle before it can be taken out. "
"Let's go up."
Zhao Anji stepped up on the copper plate with strength, carried Chang Shuo on his back, and using his hands and feet together, he climbed up the rock wall as quickly as an ape and disappeared from the sight of the two of them.
The small group of Han troops behind him also climbed up the cliff at an astonishing speed with the help of copper plates.
Just looking at the level of proficiency, one can tell that they practice climbing cliffs frequently.
King Hunxie watched the Han army's tactics and was greatly comforted.
They had been defeated by the Han army before, but when they saw the elite Han army, they felt very happy and their defeat was not unjust. If it were any other Xiongnu tribe, they would also lose.
You just think someone can climb a cliff to fight, can you?
"You go first!" King Hunxie looked at King Eitu.
King Tutu asked, "Why don't you come?"
King Hunxie was slightly embarrassed: "I don't know why, but I feel a little dizzy when I climb high."
There is no such thing as being afraid of heights. Fortunately, King Hunxie's fear of heights is not serious.
He and King Eitu finally relied on their spiritual practice to climb to the top of the cliff.
The two of them climbed onto the cliff, and winding upward dozens of feet diagonally, they found the Wusun River Valley City at night.
And the location where they climbed up was separated from the high ground where River Valley City was by a six to seventy-foot wide canyon crack.
"Since you are climbing up, why don't you just climb the cliff on the side of the river valley city? Wouldn't it be easier?" King Hunxie asked in a low voice.
“If you climb directly on the opposite side, cutting the cliff to build a plank road will cause subtle vibrations in the mountain, which may alert the other party.
We mentioned during training that when climbing a cliff, you should climb to the side where there is no city to avoid being discovered by the opponent. " Zhao Anji explained.
Hooks and locks have already been set up above the cracks in the canyon.
Before King Hunxie and others came up, many Han troops had already climbed over and moved towards the river valley city.
When King Hunxie and a group of Xiongnu soldiers borrowed ropes to cross the cliff with difficulty, the gate of the river valley on the opposite side opened quietly and was controlled by the Han army.
At the head of the city, a group of Wusun soldiers fell silently into a pool of blood.
It seems that the Han army touched him nearby and cut his throat, but there was no movement at all.
This is the essence of special operations.
The Han army under Huo Qubing is still exploring special operations and is not yet mature.
But this team is destined to shine in the near future.
In the early morning, in the ancient city of Wusun Beihe, shouts of killing suddenly came out.
But the sound only lasted for a short time and then weakened.
At dawn, the Han army and the Xiongnu army merged, with a total of more than 12,000 people, and rushed towards Wusun territory in the south, rushing through and attacking.
Chang'an.
When he received the news that the Han army had entered Wusun territory from the north, Huo Qu was in the emperor's study.
Roshna, Qiuci, Gumo, several princes from Wensu and other people from the Western Regions were also there.
Roshna asked the question that everyone was wondering: "Where did Huo Hou's troops enter Wusun, break through its northern border city, and enter its territory?"
"They also went from the direction of the Western Huns, but the time is different from what you think. It has been almost a month since they entered the Western Huns."
Roshna said in surprise: "So long?"
"Wusun is located at the northwest end of the Western Region and is the richest area. If we ask them to give up their rich land and join the Han Dynasty for nothing, no one else will do it."
Huo Qubing said: "Since it is expected that Wusun will not surrender, we must fight in the future. During the battle in Hexi, we had plans for Wusun.
Later, after accepting the surrender of the Western Xiongnu, the Han army was asked to go to various places in the Western Xiongnu to meet the tribes that escorted them, and moved to Xiutuze. At that time, our Han army dispersed into the Western Xiongnu, broke into pieces, and then gathered south to wait for the opportunity. Close to Wusun. "
He added: "This battle is also a kind of training for them, as a test.
After entering the Western Huns, first survive in the wilderness, attack Wusun at the designated time, and complete the combat objectives. Therefore, they carry very little baggage, keep it secret, and are self-sufficient for the purpose of assessment. "
Everyone felt strange when they heard it.
To deal with Wusun's soldiers and horses, they took advantage of the migration of various Western Xiongnu tribes to lay down their roots.
At the right time, people and horses came out of the camp and there was a lot of traffic. Small groups of Han troops dispersed when they went out to greet and escort the Western Xiongnu tribes, so they could complete the arrangement without leaving a trace.
Ps: Please vote, please vote——
(End of chapter)
