Chapter 399: Extra chapter for leader Zhulan Baicai
Hetao is also known as Henan because it is located south of the Yellow River. After several attacks by the Han court and Wei Qing's several victories, the Xiongnu no longer had the greatest advantage in this land. Especially the King of Aries and the King of Loufan, who were closest to the Great Wall, were no longer as powerful as before after several attacks by Wei Qing.
Wei Qing's first goal in attacking the Xiongnu holy land of Longcheng was to defeat the main force of the Xiongnu royal court, thereby triggering a power struggle within the Xiongnu. His secondary goal was to cut off the connection between the Xiongnu Chanyu court and Henan, defeat the Baiyang King and the Loufan King, completely eliminate the Xiongnu threat to the Great Wall, and at the same time obtain a piece of excellent horse breeding land.
"As long as we can gain a foothold in Henan, we can use it as a foundation. After five years of gathering people, we can train a large number of war horses, and then attack the Xiongnu in the north. We can even cross the Yin Mountains, the North Sea, and the endless desert Gobi to attack the Xiongnu and completely drive the Xiongnu out of the south of the desert."
This is what Liu Che said when he was discussing the war against the Xiongnu with Wei Qing. This was his vision and plan for the Han-Xiongnu war, and Wei Qing was the executor of this plan.
After the Han army went out of the border, Wei Qing led the main force and marched day and night to give the Huns a big surprise. After several battles, Wei Qing knew that the Huns' Chanyu was an outstanding commander, and he had been diligently learning from the Han Dynasty's advantages over the years. It would be difficult to rely solely on sneak attacks, and a frontal war was a war of attrition. Wei Qing learned how to dispatch large troops in order to reduce consumption in a frontal war.
Large army camp.
Wei Qing began to assign tasks, and first the generals received orders. After all, it was impossible for an army of more than 100,000 to march together all the time. Han Xin, the Marquis of Huaiyin, had clearly stated in the military book that it was a taboo for a large army to be disorganized. Wei Qing ordered the generals and captains to lead their troops separately and obey the general's orders.
Then he looked at the Piaoyao Captain Huo Qubing and Yingyang Captain Luo Wuji and said thoughtfully, "You two are leading our elite troops and are most suitable to serve as scouts. Go and investigate the movements of the Xiongnu. Remember not to stray too far from the main army. If there is any change, the main army will withdraw and you will get lost on the grassland."
Wei Qing originally wanted to say the elite of the Han army, but when he remembered that the 300 most elite men led by Luo Wuji were Luo's private army, he changed it to the elite of our army.
He did not have any rigid combat targets for these two people. He could control Luo Wu Ji, but there was no need to do so. The emperor also hinted to him that he could let Luo Wu Ji play freely. Huo Qubing was his nephew, so Wei Qing also let him play freely. That is, he could go wherever he could make contributions, as long as he was around the army. This could be regarded as the love of an uncle for his nephew.
Wei Qing was such a person. He would help those who were close to him whenever possible. When Han Liang, Marquis of Huaiyin, and others drank together, he would often brag about it. Especially when he drank with Marquis Jiang, the first thing he would say was, "Do you know that last time someone followed Wei Qing and got a title of marquis? He will definitely be worshipped as a general when he comes back this time."
Marquis Jiang was so angry that his teeth were itching. If his father Zhou Yafu had not died of illness shortly after recommending him, how could he have given such a great advantage to the Marquis Huaiyin's Mansion?
At this point we have to talk about the two biggest impacts that Luo had on the Han Dynasty. The first was that the dispute over ancient and modern literature was directly eliminated. This feud between Confucian classics that lasted for four hundred years during the Han Dynasty, and even countless political events, as well as the origins of countless systems and policies, all originated from the dispute over ancient and modern literature. We will not discuss this for now.
Another major event is the change in the ranks of military meritorious officials. Since the early Han Dynasty did not experience the Lü Rebellion and there was no foreign vassal taking over, and since the Luo family established a series of feudal systems, the founding meritorious officials who should have lost their country in real history starting with Emperor Wen of Han are still as stable as a rock until now.
Historically, after Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty cultivated the Wei and Huo military merit groups through continuous wars against the Huns, he abolished the titles of hundreds of marquises under some excuses, greatly strengthening the power of the central government. But to be honest, this approach was too blatant and was an unreasonable zero-sum game.
This method gave the dukes and powerful people a feeling that once the royal family became strong, they would lose everything and would not even be able to become rich.
The emergence of this kind of thinking is very scary. There is nothing you can do when the royal family is strong, but once the royal family becomes a little weak, they will be attacked by everyone. Since you, the royal family, can do it on the first day, why can't we do it on the fifteenth? You want us to take a step back, that's impossible. It's either you die or I die.
To be honest, no dynasty is worthy of using this method, because the rise of local forces is inevitable, and the central government will eventually be unable to suppress them.
This method can only be used if the Luo family becomes the emperor and can suppress these powerful people forever by relying on the wise rulers of the family, the Luo family members who will not betray, and the clan members who suppress the local areas.
However, these have also changed in this world. The feudal system does not need the royal family to be the bad guy. The marquisates have KPI indicators. As long as they can meet the indicators, it means they are still useful to the royal family. The marquises have become bricks and can be moved wherever they are needed. There are rewards for completing the tasks, and if they fail to complete them or make mistakes, their fiefdoms will be reduced.
If someone else can do what you can't do, then give your fiefdom to the capable person.
This created a strange sight: some large counties were split into two small counties because there were two marquisates inside them.
In another county, there were two marquises, one was called the former marquis and the other was called the latter marquis. They were named in the order of their titles, which gave off a legitimate but sick feeling.
But the royal family doesn't care. This method allows them to supervise each other and report to each other if there is any unusual movement, thus highlighting the balance of power in a place.
The army is naturally an important occasion for the marquises to participate in the government affairs. The results of the war are there. The victors will be rewarded, and the losers will be divided according to the responsibilities. If the defeat is minor and the losses are not much, then the fiefdom will be reduced. This is like cutting flesh with a soft knife. If you lose a few more times, the fiefdom will be gone.
But if you win, you will be given more titles. The royal family is not stingy with fiefs. However, if there are too many households in the fiefdom, remember to report it to the court and divide it among your sons. This is called decency. If you don’t understand this decency, don’t blame the royal family for being ruthless.
Each of the rules is not a random cut, but has its own reasons and basis.
Moreover, as long as you don't commit serious crimes such as rebellion and treason intended to subvert the country, you will definitely be given many opportunities to make you lose your fiefdom. If you think about it carefully, the royal family is really nice.
Even if it is a rebellion or treason, except for the masterminds, most of the people involved will be exiled. If you behave well and make meritorious contributions, the royal family can restore your country according to the principle of survival of the fittest.
This is the restoration of the country!
If he doesn't remain loyal until death, people all over the world will criticize him to death. In short, the main point is to be reasonable.
This kind of reasoning was implemented very thoroughly during the reign of Liu Heng. Although Liu Che abolished some of them, as an emperor with great talent and strategy, he could still see the benefits of these systems, especially Zhou Yafu's performance, which made him less psychologically rejected them. Therefore, they were generally not abolished, but continued to be used.
Under this system, the marquises needed military merits more urgently than the emperor. In order to avoid war, Liu Heng had to appease the marquises and ensure that they would receive welfare benefits even if they had no military merits during his reign.
Under such a realistic situation, a talented commander like Wei Qing who could steadily gain military merit was naturally a popular commodity. Many marquises were so angry that they gritted their teeth and secretly collected negative information, waiting to stab Wei Qing and the Marquis of Huaiyin in the back after they fell.
But unfortunately, Wei Qing was a very stable man in charge of the army, and he commanded a large army like Han Xin. Even if he did not win a big victory, he would not lose. He was also extremely low-key and respectful. Although he was the emperor's brother-in-law, he was never arrogant or domineering. He was diligent and conscientious, and had an excellent reputation. There was no chance to find a way to attack him.
Wei Qing's personality makes him very comfortable with people who don't have very strong abilities. He is also very comfortable with people with outstanding personal abilities like Luo Wuji and Huo Qubing. He makes the best use of people and is simply a natural to be a commander.
Huo Qubing smiled and said, "Uncle, don't worry. I will never leave the army too far. I will definitely find out the traces of the Xiongnu. I will leave now."
As he said that, he threw his cloak around and walked out of the tent. Luo Wuji also clasped his fists and said, "General, Wuji is leaving too. I will come back to report to you after I get the spoils."
Wei Qing was a relatively traditional person, and he respected Luo Shi very much, especially since he was half of the Huaiyin Marquisate, so he was naturally close to Luo Shi. He clasped his fists and said in return, "Young Master, you can do whatever you want. I will hold off the Xiongnu army head-on. I wish you good luck in military affairs!"
"Thank you very much, General!"
Luo Wuji bowed to Wei Qing. He had great respect for this great general who had made many military achievements in fighting against the Huns. After standing up, Luo Wuji also left the tent directly.
As soon as he walked out of the tent, he saw Huo Qubing riding on a tall horse. He didn't go far away and seemed to be waiting for him. "Brother Wuji, I believe you will not simply go to investigate the traces of the Xiongnu. Are you willing to make a gentleman's bet? This battle will be judged by military merit. The loser will receive a jar of fine wine. If you lose, I will get Luo's fine wine. If I lose, I will get you the royal wine from the palace."
Just now in the tent, Huo Qubing said that he would never go far. Luo Wuji knew that it was impossible because Huo Qubing was the same type of person as him and would never do things according to the rules. When he heard about the bet, it was better to say that Huo Qubing wanted to make friends with him. He laughed out loud and said, "Captain Piao Yao is a warrior with the strength to penetrate rocks. There is no reason in the world for a warrior to refuse a challenge. I accept this bet. I will wait for Captain Piao Yao's wine at the Dong'e Marquis' Mansion."
"Hahaha."
Huo Qubing whipped his horse whip and rode away, leaving only a big laugh: "Luo's wine must be very sweet."
Luo Wuji smiled and shook his head. The spirit soldier led the horse over. Luo Wuji jumped on the horse and looked at the endless grassland. He shouted: "Eagle Captain, follow me to attack!"
There are more in the evening, and I will add more. Please give me a monthly ticket.
(End of this chapter)
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