Chapter 397: Eagle Captain Luo Wuji
In the Changle Palace, there was a scene of peace and prosperity. The palace maids danced to the music with graceful and elegant movements, waving their sleeves. Inside the palace, the walls were made of gold and silver, and the corridors were decorated with beautiful jades. There was no longer the humiliation of the early days of the Han Dynasty.
The Han Dynasty had a strong foundation and fought three or four major wars with the Huns in ten years. Regardless of victory or defeat, both sides fought bloody battles. To put it more bluntly, the so-called difference between victory and defeat was who cleaned up the battlefield last. In fact, the number of casualties was almost the same.
Wei Qing's fame rose so quickly because his gains each time exceeded his casualties. There was even one time when all his soldiers returned without any loss, which was a huge achievement.
After three rounds of drinking, Luo Jing said to Liu Che and Wei Zifu, who were sitting at the top, "Your Majesty, since you ascended the throne in the first year of Yuanshi, you have fought against the Xiongnu many times, and the general Changping Hou has defeated the Xiongnu many times. I want to congratulate you.
A single tree cannot grow into a forest, a stream cannot form a lake or sea, and talented people cannot accomplish great things without a group. The general has the demeanor of a famous general in ancient times, but there has been no major progress in the war between the Han Dynasty and the Huns in the past ten years. This is because there are not enough talented people.
I am worried about this, so I want to recommend someone to you."
What Luo Jing said hit the nail on the head exactly. In the past ten years, because the battlefield was on the grasslands south of the desert, the cost of money and food was relatively low. The key point was that except for Wei Qing, no one else could produce any results that satisfied Liu Che.
According to Liu Che's idea, I am a natural born saint king who has received the revelation from the Su Wang. The Su Wang Emperor once slew the barbarians with a sword in his hand, killing all the way from Haojing to Xuhuai, from west to east, leaving millions of corpses, just like chopping melons and vegetables.
The Supreme Emperor Suwang is the Supreme Saint King. Even if I am not as good as the Supreme Emperor Suwang, I can't be worse than Qin Shihuang. Back then, Qin Shihuang sent Meng Tian to repel the Huns for more than 700 miles, making the Hu people dare not go south to graze their horses. As a result, I, the great emperor of the Han Dynasty, actually allowed the Huns to occupy the south of the desert for so many years?
Don’t I have any face?
But Liu Che had no choice. There was obviously no problem with the plan he had made, and the gap in fighting power between the Han army and the Huns was not that big. But what could he do if he got lost and missed the deadline as soon as he left the border?
He was the emperor, but he couldn't lead the troops into battle himself. Fortunately, he had Wei Qing, otherwise it would have been really embarrassing.
Now Luo Jing was willing to bring up this topic, he must be very confident, Liu Che immediately said: "Oh? Recommend someone? Please tell me, Marquis Dong'e."
Luo Jing said, "I have a cousin named Luo Wuji, who is the posthumous son of my second uncle. Your Majesty may not have heard of my second uncle. My second uncle followed the order of King Zhaosheng and went to the far west, to a place thousands of miles away, and never appeared in the Central Plains.
However, my second uncle was a man of both civil and military talents, and Wu Ji inherited his abilities. King Zhaosheng praised him for having the abilities of his ancestor Duke Wu, and designated him as the next head of the Luo family.
Wu Ji was a man of great spirit. He could use a heavy bow and a horse lance. Looking around in the dark night, it would be as if it were daytime. He could look up at the stars and know the direction. Standing on the grassland, he could tell the directions of east, south, west and north. He was good at cavalry and could shoot the bow to both sides while on horseback. No matter how the horse galloped, he was as steady as a rock while sitting on the horse.
He is truly a cavalry commander who is rare in the world, and a general bestowed by the Emperor Suwang to accomplish great things for Your Majesty."
Luo Jing is truly a minister of literature and art. This description made Liu Che's heart waver, as if he had seen a heroic young man. He especially liked the name Luo Wuji.
"Luo Wuji?"
When Liu Che heard what Luo Jing said, he couldn't help but look at the queen Wei Zifu and laughed. Wei Zifu said, "Dong'e Hou, your majesty and I have a nephew named Huo Qubing, who is similar to your cousin."
Although Huo Qubing often entered the palace and was the queen's nephew, he had not yet achieved anything, so Luo Jing naturally did not know about the existence of such a person.
Liu Che also noticed the next head of the family that Luo Jing mentioned, and asked curiously: "Dong'e Hou, when King Zhaosheng died, your cousin was probably only five or six years old. How did he decide the succession position at that time?"
Luo Jing said, "Your Majesty must know that the succession of the Luo family was decided by our ancestors. Wu Ji is a rare genius in the Luo family. From the moment he was born, he was determined to become the head of the Luo family. This was decided by King Zhaosheng."
The Luo family has always supported the inheritance of the eldest son, but the Luo family also praises the act of abdicating the throne. After all, this has happened many times in the Luo family's thousand-year history.
Liu Che was startled when he heard this, and his respect for Luo Wuji increased. He even had to be extremely cautious with people related to King Zhaosheng. He said in deep thought, "Since he was recommended by the Marquis of Dong'a and is the son of the Luo family, he has outstanding abilities and good morals. He is exactly the talent that the Han Dynasty needs.
General Wei Qing has just led his troops back to Chang'an for rest and recuperation, preparing to rest until the beginning of next spring.
Therefore, the imperial court has no plan to go to war with the Huns at present. I have appointed Prince Wu Ji as the Eagle Commandant, and when the war starts, I will send Prince Wu Ji to lead thousands of people to attack.
Once you have made contributions, I can reward you as a general and let you lead an independent army. This is probably the most suitable way."
The position of colonel is very interesting in the regulations of the Han court. It can be said to be an ordinary middle-level military officer, but it can also be the starting point for a rise. For example, in the past, there were five colonels in the Northern Army. The generals could lead the army independently, and the colonels also had a lot of room for activities. Especially for Luo Wuji, even if he was a colonel, the number of soldiers he led and the power to make decisions were negotiable. He could not be an ordinary colonel who followed in the footsteps of the generals.
Although Luo Wuji was recommended, the rank of colonel was already the highest military position that Emperor Liu Che could give him. This was no longer the time when he was fighting for the empire, when one could be promoted directly from a commoner to a general. Even a foreign relative like Wei Qing had made many contributions and gradually reached the position of general.
If Luo Wuji wants to be granted a title of nobility or become a general, he still has to rely on his own hands to gain fame and honor. Unless he is crowned Duke Zhao now, no one will say anything if Liu Che directly appoints him as the general based on his title of Duke Zhao.
Not everyone can become an official directly under the recommendation system, and many are waiting for employment in the Recruitment Hall.
Luo Jing bowed slightly and said, "I would like to thank Your Majesty on behalf of Wu Ji."
…
Dong'a Marquis Mansion.
Luo Wuzhi took out the map of the Western Regions and looked at it carefully. This map was copied by his father Luo Zhongkan in half his life. It recorded in detail the mountains, rivers, deserts, passes and even the location of every oasis. The population that could be supported was recorded as well as the local customs and practices. This was a "Complete Strategy for the Western Regions". Even though decades had passed, the height and direction of the mountains and rivers could not have changed in such a short time.
Luo Wuji stroked him gently and murmured, "Don't worry, father. I will definitely conquer the Western Regions and bring that land under the rule of the Xia Dynasty."
If you want to penetrate the Western Regions, you have to defeat the Huns. From Guanzhong to the west, the current Hexi Corridor is basically inhabited by Huns tribes. King Xiutu and King Hunxie and others are entrenched there. These tribes are connected with the Youxian King's tribe, Youguli King's tribe and others. If you don't completely defeat the Huns, it would be a dream to want to extend your reach to the Western Regions.
Moreover, although the Western Regions themselves lack the strength to attack, they are more than capable of defending their territory. If the central court were to send an army of 200,000 or 300,000 to the Western Regions, that would be truly crazy. It is estimated that when crossing the desert Gobi, a large number of them would die due to the high temperature and unfamiliar climate and water.
Anyway, the conclusion that Luo Zhongkan came to after so many years in the Western Regions is that if one wants to minimize the cost of attacking the Western Regions, then it would be best to combine the elite troops of the Central Plains with the vassal troops of the Western Regions. But the problem is that once there is a change in the Central Plains, the Western Regions cannot be taken into consideration. History has proved this point countless times.
Ji Zhao also understood this, so he asked the Luo family to go to the Western Regions for garrison, because only the Luo family could produce elite soldiers in a relatively stable manner, and the Luo family had Zhaocheng as a stable base camp, where they could form their own caravans when advancing and collect taxes on passing businesses when retreating, which was enough to sustain the expenses of garrisoning in the Western Regions.
Luo Wuji's appointment did not cause any waves. The Luo family's strategy of avoiding the world was executed very well. When people mentioned the Luo family, everyone said they were awesome, but when they didn't mention them, everyone tacitly pretended that they didn't exist.
After Luo Ling's fall, Liu Che felt that the Luo family's influence had plummeted. They had gone from being able to replace the emperor at any time to being able to only threaten the emperor.
This is actually nothing.
To put it bluntly, the biggest threat to the throne was the empress dowager in the Weiyang Palace, because the empress dowager could depose the emperor on the grounds of unfilial piety, but the Luo family could not do that.
At that moment, Liu Che really felt as if the sky above his head was lifted up, and he truly felt the supreme feeling of being the son of God.
Luo Wuzhi picked up the appointment edict issued by the court again, and was appointed as the Yingyang Colonel. The colonel had 1,200 subordinates, all of whom were elite cavalry. Although the Han court did not have as many horses as the Xiongnu, it could still provide such a small number.
Luo Wuzhi gently stroked the words above with his fingers. This was his starting point. From here, he would conquer the Huns, open up the Western Regions, trample across the Yin Mountains, and spread the reputation of my Luo family beyond the borders!
The Huns were probably impatient to be beaten. The Han army had just rested in the early spring and had just finished spring ploughing, but soon they invaded the border again.
News came from the border that "the Xiongnu invaded Dai County, killed 1,200 people, and looted countless money and grain."
As soon as this news reached Chang'an, it instantly ignited everyone's anger again. The calls for the Huns to pay with blood instantly resounded throughout the entire Chang'an city. Wei Qing's several victories against the Huns in recent years had made the people of the Han Dynasty no longer afraid of the Huns.
Following the general to achieve great things and get promoted based on military merits has become a consensus among many people!
The conscription order was soon issued again. Luo Wuzhi, who had been staying in the Dong'a Marquis Mansion, knew that his time had come. He took out the armor made by his family and wiped it gently.
I’m not very satisfied with Luo Wuji’s title of captain. I’ve been thinking about it for a long time but can’t come up with one. Please help me think about it and I’ll change it.
(End of this chapter)
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