Chapter 800: How many people have returned from the battles in history?
Chi Le Chuan, at the foot of the Yin Mountains.
The sky is like a dome, covering the entire area.
The sky is vast, the wilderness is boundless,
The wind blows the grass low and you can see cattle and sheep.
A desolate and melodious song rang out across the vast land. In front of us was an endless grassland with sparkling rivers winding through the grass. On the side were thousands of galloping cavalrymen, and the earth seemed to be shaking.
Murong Chengguang sighed slightly, "The folk songs of the north are always more poetic and beautiful after being composed in the south. The song sung by the Xiongnu three hundred years ago, 'The loss of Mount Qilian makes my livestock unable to reproduce, the loss of Mount Yanzhi makes my married women lose face' is also like this."
Luo Chengzhi silently savored this desolate song, holding the reins tightly with his right hand and said: "I still prefer the ancient war song. I will share my robes with you even if I have no clothes. When the king raises his army, I will sharpen my spear and sword, and share the same hatred with you."
The Central Plains marched towards the grassland in large numbers, mobilizing hundreds of thousands of troops. The Xianbei tribes were naturally not blind. Although they were shocked by the sudden action, they decided on their response in a moment. The Central Plains were not friendly, so they had no choice but to fight them.
…
Gurgle gurgle~
The grassland was rich in grass and water, and the war horses were gulping down the clear river water. Luo Chengzhi held the reins of the war horse in his hand, and kept stroking the tired war horse to relieve its discomfort.
Once you enter the grassland, you will find it vast and boundless, stretching ten thousand miles from east to west and seven thousand miles from north to south. The tens of millions of people here are just a drop in the ocean. All you can see are towering mountains and vast desolate plateaus. Even if you follow the river and pass through the dense forests in the mountains, you won't see a single Hu person.
Here there is only endless marching, and then heading straight to those places that the Hu people find difficult to give up, such as the beautiful land under the Yin Mountains!
The Central Plains army that entered the grassland encountered unimaginable difficulties, especially the armies of Han and Liang. The armies of various countries began to suffer heavy casualties and escape during their march across the grassland. From the time they attacked outside the border, the thousands of miles of road were littered with ashes from the burnt corpses of the allied forces.
Information on the grassland was naturally not smooth. Luo Chengzhi received a battle report sent seven days before entering the two countries in Hetao. "The Han and Liang coalition forces fought a battle with 100,000 Xianbei cavalry on the bank of the Yellow River. Both sides suffered heavy casualties. The Xianbei cavalry retreated, and the Han and Liang coalition forces rested on the north bank of the Yellow River.
The Yan cavalry is attacking the Dugu tribe on the left wing of the Xianbei. The Xianbei royal court at the foot of the Yin Mountains has not moved. However, seven days have passed and we still don’t know what has happened. Our army must move forward quickly and attack the Xianbei royal court.”
Luo Chengzhi would never have imagined that the Han-Liang coalition forces were still stationed on a hill less than ten miles away from the Yellow River. There were countless corpses on the banks of the Yellow River, most of which were soldiers of the Han-Liang coalition forces.
Anyone who came could see that the Han-Liang coalition forces suffered an extremely tragic defeat here, so tragic that they didn't even burn the corpses to prevent the plague.
After the vanguard of the Han-Liang coalition crossed the Yellow River, another group of Hu people on the south bank of the Yellow River burned the remaining ships. The flames rising into the sky frightened the Han-Liang coalition.
The most crucial thing was that food and grass could not be transported. The Han-Liang coalition forces tried to counterattack on the south bank, but they were shot like hedgehogs and burned to ashes. Some of them who rushed over were defeated by the ambushed Hu people on the south bank.
There were tens of thousands of combat soldiers, auxiliary soldiers, and civilian laborers who were trampled to death. The remaining army fought and retreated on the north bank and rested halfway up the mountain.
The Hu people tried to continue the attack and annihilate the nearly 10,000 elite troops guarding the mountains, but in this position, the powerful bows and crossbows of the Han and Liang coalition forces made them completely give up this idea.
The Hu people began to spread the news, trying to surround and attack the reinforcements. When the army behind the vanguard came to rescue, the Hu people who had been prepared for a long time set up several ambushes.
There were also brave generals in the Han-Liang coalition army, who eventually broke out of the ambush and encirclement of the Hu people, built a floating bridge across the Yellow River, and connected with the vanguard troops stationed in the mountains.
On the mountain with deep trees and dense forests, countless soldiers were lying here, holding their bows and crossbows tightly in their hands even when they were sleeping. The dense forests here greatly hindered the attack of the Hu cavalry. Naturally, they were not as good as the Han and Liang states that had been in the Central Plains for a long time in infantry combat.
Xiao Yan personally braved the arrows, and when the Hu people saw that they could not gain any advantage, they simply retreated. Looking at the corpses all over the mountains and fields, his face became more gloomy than ever before.
After calculating the losses, Xiao Yan felt his hands trembling and said, "No wonder the Luo family wanted to gather all the countries in the world to fight against the Hu people. It turns out that the Hu people are so powerful.
If such a powerful Hu people go south, it will only be a matter of time to destroy Wei and Yan. How can Han resist if the Hu people drink from the Yellow River? How can Daliang resist if they drink from the Yangtze River? "
In a short period of time, Xiao Yan realized the crisis of the entire Zhu Xia world. Unknowingly, so many geniuses had emerged among the Hu people. During this war, he realized that the commanders of the Hu army were quite extraordinary.
…
As the night fell, the bright moon hung high in the sky, illuminating the hazy sky and earth. By the clear river reflecting the moonlight, Luo Chengzhi was leading his men to confront the Hu people under the bright moonlight.
In front of him was the leader of the Murong tribe, one of the two strongest tribes among the Xianbei at this moment. The Xianbei people were also very excited about being able to block the Luo army here. They had originally planned to look for the Yan army and launch a surprise attack from behind, but they never expected to encounter the Luo army.
After Luo Xizhi's adjustments, more than 20,000 people aged 15 and above from Winter City went on the expedition. Although they were marching quickly along the way, there were sufficient doctors and only one-tenth of them were unable to fight due to illness or injury, so there were still 20,000 people able to fight.
What Luo was facing were the armies of Murong and part of Tuoba. All Xianbei people were soldiers, and the most elite among them were naturally the armored men from each tribe. The rest of the light cavalry and archers served as tactical coordination. The army surrounding Luo was no less than 100,000. As for those who received the news and rushed over, no one knew how many more were there.
Murong He rode forward, looking at the Luo family's army that was ready for battle, and said loudly: "Honorable Luo family master, I am honored to meet you by the grace of King Su, the emperor. I wish you peace and happiness. Our Great Xia has never invaded the Luo family, so why did you lead your army here?"
Luo Chengzhi's dull voice sounded, "Since you mentioned the Su King, then I will answer your question. Xia and Yi cannot coexist, and the kingly way cannot be partial. You have unified the grasslands, invaded the Western Regions, and burned down the temples. You will definitely enter the Central Plains. Instead of doing that, why don't we come to you first and nip you in the bud."
Murong He laughed out loud upon hearing this and said, "Our Great Xia never intended to burn down the temple. It was the chief priest of the temple who ignited it himself. As the saying goes, Xia and Yi cannot coexist. Your Excellency is truly a forgetful person.
When I was studying classics, I heard that the predecessor of Guiluo clan was Zhou clan. The Zhou clan were the people of Western Rong, the surname Jiang were Qiang people, the Zhongshan were Baidi, the Lingnan Jiaozhou were Yueyi, the Emperor of Yan State and I were of the same origin, all of us were Guixia.
Why do you look down on us northerners today? Moreover, you can see from my clothes, my words, and my actions that I value Chinese customs and have no barbarian customs. Why do you despise me as a barbarian?"
Luo Chengzhi originally thought that this would be a direct war, but he did not expect to encounter such a thing. The Xianbei nobles seemed a little dissatisfied and gave a lot of reasons.
Luo Chengzhi believed that Murong He's words were sincere. He believed that Murong He sincerely wanted to become a Han Chinese, and become a Zhuxia citizen under King Su.
This is a kind of cultural confidence!
The civilization of the various Chinese states is so magnificent, the civilization of the various Chinese states is so brilliant, the civilization of the various Chinese states is like the bright sun, attracting all the barbarians in the world.
During the hundreds of years when the Han Dynasty was at its peak, too many barbarians came to Chang'an, Luoyang, and even Zhaocheng, and never wanted to leave.
No one wants to go back to a world without civilization.
No one wants to go back to that dark world.
The nature of barbarians is like that of wild beasts. This is because their way of survival is the law of the jungle, not because there is anything wrong with their genes or blood.
As long as Luo Chengzhi agreed to Murong He now, Murong He could even kneel under the flag of the Phoenix King, kneel in front of the Temple of the Su King, and sing the most ancient sacred hymn, and Luo Chengzhi was sure that Murong He would definitely sing it.
This is Zhuxia!
No matter how powerful the Xianbei are now, the banner of civilization is always in the hands of the Xia people. They regard themselves as Xia and will never allow themselves to be called barbarians. That would be the greatest shame.
But Luo Chengzhi looked around at the Xianbei army, and saw that they were still acting like barbarians. He shook his head and said, "If you are willing to surrender today, my Luo family can crown you with the crown of the Xia Dynasty, but this is impossible. You will not be willing, and the Xianbei nobles will not agree.
You asked why I called you barbarians. It's very simple, because all the people under your command are barbarians. Not to mention that you are a Han Chinese, even if you are a Han monarch and all the people under your command are barbarians, he will inevitably become a Hu Chinese.
You love Han culture now, but that is because you are no longer alone. One day, in order to get close to your soldiers and your people, you will have to wear Hu clothes, speak Hu language, and do Hu things. That is inevitable.
If one person is for Xia, it is not Xia. Only if the whole country is for Xia, it is Xia. There will be no Xia on the grassland. There will be no soil for Xia on the strong grassland. Xia will not be born in a strong military empire. If I don't interrupt you and kill the powerful Xianbei, Xia will never come to this land. "
Luo Chengzhi's voice was not very intense, he could even be called calm, and he spoke to Murong He in a voice as gentle as warm water, but Murong He could no longer keep the smile on his face.
He is a very smart man. He has contributed to the current strength of the Xianbei. Naturally, he can understand what Luo Chengzhi says.
Luo knew everything clearly. He knew the current situation of the Xianbei and the Han people. He even approved of the sinicization of the Xianbei and was willing to acknowledge it. But it wasn't possible!
Luo believed that as long as the powerful Xianbei Xia Kingdom still existed, it would be impossible for the lowest-level Xianbei people to be assimilated into the Han culture. How could millions of people gathered together, living on the grasslands and surviving in a nomadic way possibly be assimilated into the Han culture?
Murong He took a deep breath and asked in a deep voice: "Your Excellency wants to defeat the entire Daxia, and then completely erase the name of the entire Xianbei tribe in order to achieve the goal of sinicization. It's really cruel."
Luo Chengzhi asked calmly, "Do you care about the Xianbei clan name?"
Murong He shook his head and said, "Of course I don't care. In my Xia country, there are even some nobles who are ready to change their surnames to Han surnames. I, Murong, originally have a Han surname, so I don't need to change it. Your Excellency, can't you see that my Great Xia is also actively sinicizing? After more than a hundred years, whether it is the grasslands or the Central Plains, the whole world is Han Chinese. Why are they targeting my Great Xia so much? Did we do something wrong?"
Luo Chengzhi slowly put on the helmet in his hand, and his tone finally became sonorous, "The integration of the Hu and Han may be God's will, just like the thousand years of integration during the Bang Zhou period, but do you know how many people died in Bang Zhou?
I don't know how many people will die in the fusion led by your Xianbei Xia Kingdom, but these mixed barbarians under your command are all beasts who kill without blinking an eye. My Luo family will never allow these people to enter the Central Plains.
If integration is the will of heaven, if destiny is unstoppable, if blood is destined to flow everywhere, then you should bear the bloody price. Let the Hu people use their own blood to buy their descendants the opportunity to enter civilization! "
This is the final declaration!
Murong He was silent.
War is the biggest contradiction in the world. When the contradiction is irreconcilable, war will break out. Luo Chengzhi used the simplest words to tell Murong He why even though the Xianbei nobles also wanted to assimilate to Han culture, this war would still happen.
Because any integration will come at a huge cost!
The Qin State tried to integrate the people of the six states, but failed and collapsed. It took the Han Dynasty hundreds of years to succeed.
When the State of Yan just returned from Liaodong, how many conflicts were there between the people who migrated from Liaodong and the local people?
There are too many to count.
How many people died?
There are too many to count.
It took so many years for the people to integrate together and become Yan people. Only at this point was Murong Chengguang able to lead the Yan army to fight east and west.
How much energy did Murong Chengguang spend in order to accommodate the newly joined Hu people? Even the Yan State, which was so experienced, still had such a difficult time. What about the Xianbei and Xia State?
The entire Luo family could foresee what a bloody future that would be, and that was exactly the future that the entire Luo family was trying hard to avoid.
The initiative must be in our own hands. Integration is possible, but the price will be borne by the Hu people, and the bloody future will be borne by the Hu people. The Central Plains will always be a peaceful paradise, but the grassland will be covered with blood.
The warriors of Zhuxia may shed their blood on the grassland, and the Luo family may shed their blood on the grassland, but if it can be exchanged for the lives of one million, five million, ten million, or even twenty million people in the Central Plains.
Is there any greater cause in the world than this?
If the civilization of the Central Plains could always prosper, with towering skyscrapers, exquisite buildings, delicate and gorgeous music, chess, poetry and painting, as well as magnificent poetry, as long as these things can continue to rise to prosper, what does it matter if they die on the vast grassland?
These things may be too far away for many people. Most people struggle for three meals a day and work hard to survive. These things are too lofty, but Luo doesn't think so.
These things are the essence of civilization. A farmer's son cannot be a farmer forever. If a farmer's son ascends the White Jade Palace or the Golden Hall one day and sees only devastation and a blank space, how can he be proud of the Chinese people from the bottom of his heart?
Just like the Hu tribe, when they were slaves, they ate goat milk cubes, and when they became tribal chiefs, they ate mutton, and there was always that smell of mutton. When they were slaves, they released one sheep, and when they became tribal chiefs, they released a flock of sheep. It was still the same when they climbed to the top. How could their mentality not collapse?
How can you not yearn for it when you see the countless extremely beautiful things in Zhuxia?
Murong He was wondering why Luo Chengzhi was so sure that he would not agree?
Then he knew the reason. It was very simple and vulgar, and even made Murong He, who considered himself noble, feel that something should be despised, and that was power.
With the power to control hundreds of thousands of troops and the power to control the lives and deaths of countless people, no Xianbei noble would sacrifice his power for the so-called great cause of the Xia Dynasty. The war broke out because no one was willing to sacrifice. Everyone believed that he was right based on his own position.
Just as there are two ways to love in this world, one is "letting go for her good is love", and the other is "getting her good is love", most people, especially those in power, are almost all the second type.
If one does not strive for power, power will slip away from him.
Thinking of this, Murong He finally understood everything. For the Luo family, this was a war to the death. Only the complete defeat of the Xianbei could stop the war. Not only that, but the war could only end when most of the Hu people, at least the men, died.
Murong He raised the lance in his hand and said loudly: "My noble man from the Luo family, I understand it completely. In this case, let us use the swords and spears in our hands to decide the final victory and see who will be the leader of this world. Let's see whether the surnames of the royal families in the Central Plains are more noble, or whether Yan, Murong, Tuoba, and Dugu are more noble after thousands of years!
It's a pity, nobles of the Luo family, you Han people don't seem to have that many heroes and heroes. The number of geniuses in my Xia country is far greater than yours. In the past hundred years, the one favored by heaven is my Great Xia, and this world will eventually be dominated by my Great Xia. "
Luo Chengzhi smiled contemptuously, pointed his lance forward and shouted: "If it weren't for the blessing of heaven, what do you think the Xianbei would be? My Luo family is invincible in the world. With the protection of the Emperor Su Wang, my Luo family is fighting against heaven!"
ah?
Murong He didn't react at all. What did Luo Chengzhi just say?
How could there be someone in this world who dares to disrespect the Heaven? Even the descendants of the Su King should not say such things. That is the Heaven who controls the fate of countless people!
Dragons fight in the wild, and their blood is dark yellow.
Endless and brutal fighting started here, but it never stopped. No one was counting casualties here. The only thing they were counting was who would be the final winner. Facing the troops that kept joining in, the Luo family could not resist.
Just as Murong He said, the Hu people were favored by heaven and had many outstanding figures, especially brave generals who could charge into battle, who appeared one after another.
Although there was no super invincible general like Shi Min who was killed that day, there were indeed quite a few enemies. These people each led their troops to charge into the battle, making it difficult to resist.
Luo Chengzhi would certainly not be so foolish as to exchange 20,000 men for Murong He's tens of thousands of men. The biggest advantage of the army he led was their unity and their ability to endure tough battles.
Needless to say, the brave warriors are great. Although the morale of the other soldiers is not so bad that they cannot collapse, their willpower is definitely first-rate.
Luo Chengzhi holds the God of Four Seasons in his hand. This artifact cannot be used easily, but now seems to be the time. With so many troops and several powerful generals, even a decisive battle will not be more than this.
Luo Chengzhi was surrounded by a group of armored women from the Luo family.
Looking at the Luo army that was resting, and the Xianbei army chasing them in the distance, the sound of galloping horses could be heard from all directions.
Eventually the armies gathered at the foot of a hill.
This hill is not an easy place to defend but difficult to attack, but it is a high ground after all, so it can be said to be in a commanding position and can minimize the impact of the horses.
With the elite level of Luo's army, breaking out is a very simple matter. Not to mention an army of 100,000, even if it is 200,000, Luo Chengzhi can break out with the sharpness of his brave warriors.
The reason why he was unwilling to leave despite making so many sacrifices was because he wanted to accomplish more great things. With his ability as a brave warrior, it was no exaggeration to say that he could even launch a surprise attack and decapitate people if the battle situation was right.
"Set fire to this forest, mix poison in it, and then create a strong wind to blow the smoke and poison to the Xianbei army, which will inevitably cause chaos. Then our army will rush down and use a large force to attract the main force of the Xianbei in chaos. Then I will lead the brave warriors to rush straight to Murong He's big banner. If we can behead him and seize the flag, we will win this battle."
In war, it is important to have the right time, place and people. Among them, the right time, especially wind, frost, rain and snow, has always been something that military strategists cannot ignore. Even if the God of the Four Seasons cannot reach the level of King Zhaosheng, as long as he can bring about a gust of wind at the critical moment, he can change the situation of the war.
How many wars were ended in defeat due to the lack of this crucial celestial phenomenon. Luo Chengzhi originally did not want to use the God of Four Seasons as the loss of this artifact to his foundation was too great.
Except for King Zhaosheng, the input and output of other people were completely disproportionate. However, in the process of luring the enemy deep into his territory, he had already selected several locations suitable for surprise attacks. However, after observing the celestial phenomena at night, he found no suitable celestial phenomena for the attack.
There is no time to delay this any longer.
Either leave completely and look for next opportunity, or create the celestial phenomenon yourself. This is exactly what Luo Chengzhi is hesitant about.
"Brother, don't hesitate any longer. There are more than 150,000 soldiers gathered here. If it weren't for my Luo family acting as bait, there would be no way that so many Hu soldiers would be able to catch up. In this terrain, if we attack, the Hu people will suffer heavy losses. Even if we can't destroy the entire army, it would be great if we can defeat tens of thousands of them or kill tens of thousands."
The Hu people have a small population, and implementing a killing tactic against them can quickly destroy the entire country. Even though the Xianbei was a semi-nomadic, semi-agricultural country, it still did not deviate from this category, especially the clans that came out of the Da Xianbei Mountain in Liaodong, which served as the core. Once their strength was reduced, the entire country would fall into chaos and its fighting power would certainly be greatly reduced.
Luo Chengzhi suddenly felt a warm hand grasping his hand. He turned around and saw that it was his sister. Her delicate face had not changed even after being exposed to the wind and sun. Her appearance was much more durable than Luo's daughter's. "Brother, let me do it. You charge the formation and I will offer sacrifices to the heavens. It's just like the game we played when we were kids."
Luo Chengzhi's eyes became moist almost instantly, and his thoughts involuntarily drifted back to his distant childhood. Luo Chengzhi had been good at martial arts since he was a child and wanted to be a general. The women of the Luo family basically dressed up as high priests.
"Brother, when I become the high priest, I will wave my divine staff and bestow upon you the blessing of the Supreme Emperor Su Wang. You will surely take my omnipotent sword and seize all victories. No one will be your opponent."
"With my sister around, no one can be my opponent."
"With my brother here, no one can bully our Luo family."
"Of course I am a man of my word."
Little Luo Chengzhi, carrying his even smaller sister on his back, held a wooden sword in the Luo Palace like a real general, chopping the wooden man into pieces.
"Brother! Brother!"
Louder and louder voices rang in Luo Chengzhi's ears. Luo Chengzhi wanted to speak, but his sister spread out her palms and said coquettishly, "Brother, give me the artifact."
Seeing his sister smiling in front of him, Luo Chengzhi felt more and more sad, but he still put the God of Four Seasons in his sister's hand.
“That’s it!”
When the God of Four Seasons fell into Luo Qingling's hands, it moved without wind and instantly spread Luo Qingling's tied hair apart, making it even more messy in the wind.
Luo Qingling had understood everything. She looked up at Luo Chengzhi and said with a smile, "Brother, prepare to lead the men to charge. Be sure to pay attention to safety. If we are lucky, if the Su Wang Shang Huang is still here, we will meet in the Kingdom of God. If we are unlucky, we will meet in the underworld."
Luo Chengzhi looked deeply at Luo Qingling, then looked down at the Hu people at the foot of the hill who had already started to clear a path up the mountain, intending to annihilate Luo's army in one fell swoop. He knew that there was no time left, so he turned around and left to reorganize the army.
The actions of the Luo family's army made Murong He very uneasy. He didn't understand why Luo Chengzhi wanted to lead his army into a desperate situation. He didn't think Luo Chengzhi was so stupid. Everyone who came out of the Da Xianbei Mountain had a full understanding of the Luo family, but now it has come to this point.
He couldn't help but recall the rumor that the former Chanyu died at the hands of Luo's sword. Many people in the Central Plains thought it was a rumor, but many people on the grassland had seen it with their own eyes and could confirm that it was not a rumor.
Could it be that the Luo family has such means again?
If the Luo family really has countless such means, why would they make such a huge sacrifice? Why not just destroy our Xia Kingdom?
Murong He tried to comfort himself frantically, but he felt more and more uneasy.
When something is abnormal, there must be something wrong!
The Luo family can't just sit there and wait for death. They must have some arrangements. Is it an ambush?
Murong He looked at the Xianbei troops all around him and suppressed the thought.
"It's on fire!"
Suddenly a loud shout attracted Murong He's attention. In the dense forest, a blazing fire was burning!
(End of this chapter)
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