Chapter 194 Champion
Qin Sheng and Qin Huaishu didn't know what Fenglangjuxu meant, but when they heard the words "top honor", their expressions became more serious.
There are so many military generals, how many of them can receive such an honor?
I'm afraid I'm the only one like this.
Chu Yian even saw a little light rising in Qin Sheng's eyes, and he looked like he was completely interested in this story.
The corners of her lips curled up. Qin Sheng usually looked mature in front of her, and only acted childishly in front of Qin Huaishu.
It turns out that he is so interested in the stories of military generals.
Clearing his throat, Chu Yian continued, "In 202 BC, Liu Bang ascended the throne and established the Han Dynasty."
"Although Liu Bang was the founding emperor, his life was not easy at all. The Xiongnu in the north would attack the Han Dynasty from time to time."
"Liu Bang personally led 300,000 soldiers to the battlefield, winning victory after victory. He became complacent and pursued his victories all the way, only to be ambushed by a 400,000-strong Xiongnu army."
"Liu Bang was trapped for seven days and seven nights, and the founding emperor nearly died. Although he managed to escape, he was completely traumatized by the Xiongnu."
"At that time, the Han Dynasty had just experienced the Chu-Han Contention, people's livelihood was in decline, and the treasury was empty."
"The Xiongnu were strong in both men and horses, and Liu Bang knew that he could not defeat them no matter what."
"So the idea came up to have his and Empress Lü's only daughter marry the Xiongnu. Empress Lü pleaded with him in every possible way to prevent the princess from being sent there as a marriage."
"But the Han people have to offer countless gold, silver and jewels to the Xiongnu every year. It's extremely humble."
"After Liu Bang's death, the Han Dynasty went through the reigns of Emperor Hui, Emperor Wen, and Emperor Jing, all of whom also faced the threat of the Xiongnu."
"Whenever there was any sign of trouble from the Xiongnu, the court officials would think of sending jewels and princesses as a gift to avoid war."
After a moment of silence, Chu Yian pursed his lips and said, "Actually, we can't blame the Han. They really can't win the battle, and they are really poor. They can only use this method to gain a short-term peace, and then quickly promote the horse policy and horseback archery."
"The emperors were also determined to build a cavalry strong enough to resist the Xiongnu and wash away the humiliation."
"Sixty years passed in a flash, and Emperor Wu of Han, Liu Che, ascended the throne. The national strength of the Han Dynasty also underwent earth-shaking changes."
"The treasury was full, the army was strong, but the Xiongnu had become even more formidable. After sixty years of development, they had reached their peak."
"In terms of territory and military strength, the Xiongnu were no less powerful than the Han Dynasty."
"However, the Xiongnu Chanyu probably didn't expect that his opponent this time would be Liu Che. Liu Che is not only outstanding in ability, but also has an eye for choosing a wife that is far superior to that of ordinary people."
"Emperor Wu of Han's empress was named Wei Zifu. She was originally a slave girl in the Marquis of Pingyang's mansion, of very low status, but he took a liking to her and took her into his harem. Later, he even promoted her to empress."
Chu Yian paused for a moment and couldn't help but interject, "Perhaps from the perspective of people at that time, Wei Zifu was lucky enough to rise from a slave girl to become the queen of a country and the mother of the country."
"But from the perspective of our descendants, it wasn't Wei Zifu who got lucky, it was Liu Che who got lucky in marrying Wei Zifu."
"Because Wei Zifu not only had a younger brother named Wei Qing, but also a nephew named Huo Qubing, she could be considered the most powerful dowry in history."
"Huo Qubing's original status was very low. He was the illegitimate son of a minor official in Pingyang County and the illegitimate child of Wei Zifu's sister who was conceived before marriage."
"But he was brought into the palace at the age of two, and Emperor Liu Che raised him as his own son. Even the name Huo Qubing was given by Emperor Liu Che."
"Like many other young masters, Huo Qubing loved to play, fish, hunt birds, ride horses, and shoot arrows. But he was different from those young masters."
"Keep your mouth shut, don't talk too much, and be courageous."
"Liu Che was particularly fond of him and appointed him as a minister when he was a teenager. Although he had no power, he was able to stay by Liu Che's side all the time."
"Liu Che later became so fond of him that he even wanted to teach him the art of war himself."
Huo Qubing, however, believed that strategy alone was the key to success in war and that there was no need to learn the ancient art of war, so he rejected Liu Che's offer.
"Maybe Liu Che also has the domineering boss syndrome. The more he is rejected, the more excited he becomes, and he likes Huo Qubing more and more."
"When he was eighteen, Huo Qubing said he wanted to go with his uncle Wei Qing to fight against the Xiongnu, and Emperor Liu Che agreed."
"At that time, Huo Qubing had never been to the battlefield. Liu Che probably thought that accompanying his uncle on this expedition was just to let him have fun and gain some experience. Once he had experienced the cruelty of the battlefield, he would return and would no longer think about fighting."
"Liu Che also gave him 800 cavalrymen, all of whom were skilled warriors and veterans of the battlefield."
"Although Liu Che likes Huo Qubing, he didn't get carried away. He gave him these 800 men just for fun. Don't take them too seriously."
"But no one expected that he would lead these 800 men to achieve such an astonishing victory."
"At that time, Wei Qing had already recaptured the Hetao region, which had long been occupied by the Xiongnu, and eliminated the Xiongnu threat to Chang'an. Huo Qubing then asked Wei Qing to lead his 800 cavalrymen to attack the Xiongnu's rear."
Chu Yian stopped and looked at the two brothers of the Qin family in front of him.
Qin Sheng and Qin Huaishu were both generals, and they had a much more thorough understanding of military tactics and battlefield conditions than Chu Yian.
Naturally, he knew what it meant to go to the rear of the Huns with only 800 people.
Both of them couldn't help but frown.
Although Huo Qubing led cavalry, the Huns were also cavalry.
Can you really beat him?
Seeing Chu Yian stop, Qin Sheng urged: "Then what?"
Chu Yian blinked and continued, "Everyone thinks it's impossible to win, but Huo Qubing doesn't think so. As long as we are fast enough, we can win."
"So, on a battlefield fraught with danger, he led 800 light cavalrymen, galloping hundreds of miles day and night, and struck the Xiongnu's rear like lightning."
"The Xiongnu were stunned when they saw the Han soldiers appear. How could Han soldiers appear here?"
"Before I could react, I became a dead soul under the sword of the Han soldiers."
"In this battle, Huo Qubing defeated 10,000 Xiongnu and beheaded 2,028 of them, including many high-ranking Xiongnu officials, the grandfather and uncle of the Xiongnu Chanyu, and others."
Chu Yian stopped again. Eight hundred to ten thousand, the advantage is on me.
This battle alone was enough to shock the two brothers sitting opposite each other.
The hands in Qin Sheng's sleeves clenched into fists again, and even began to tremble slightly.
He stared at Chu Yian, the light in his eyes was brighter than ever before, and the expression in his eyes allowed Chu Yian to see it clearly at a glance.
That was the admiration that Qin Sheng, a fellow general, had for Huo Qubing, and there was also some yearning for him.
Chu Yian continued, "Huo Qubing's military achievements shocked everyone in the court, including Liu Che."
"Liu Che was so delighted that he made the 18-year-old Huo Qubing the Marquis of Guanjun."
"To be a marquis or prime minister, one naturally deserves a fiefdom. However, throughout the entire Han Dynasty, there was no place called Guanjun. Yet, Emperor Liu Che created one for him out of thin air. This is enough to show how much Emperor Liu Che loved him."
"After this expedition, Huo Qubing did not go to the battlefield for a long time. It was not because he did not want to fight, but because the Xiongnu changed their war thinking and stopped charging recklessly. They used military tactics instead."
"A Han general named Zhao Xin couldn't resist the Chanyu's temptation and rebelled."
"Zhao Xin, leveraging his knowledge of the Han Dynasty, orchestrated a devastating plot. He abandoned his traditional nomadic territories and retreated northward, all the way to the Mobei region, hoping to draw the Han army into a long-distance pursuit."
"When the Han army is extremely exhausted, they will take advantage of their rest and launch a counterattack. This way, they will surely annihilate the Han army."
"The desert is a huge area. As you know, there's little water in the desert, and the temperature is either very high or very low. If you're not familiar with the terrain, you'll be dead or injured if you try to cross it."
"With their plan in hand, the Xiongnu launched a cavalry attack on the Han border, killing many civilians before fleeing."
"The Chanyu is waiting in the rear of Mobei to recuperate and wait for the Han army to take the bait."
"When Liu Che learned that the Xiongnu had killed so many civilians, he was furious and immediately ordered his army to counterattack."
"But this time he didn't send General Wei Qing. Instead, Huo Qubing led the troops, appointed General of the Cavalry, and commanded 10,000 cavalrymen."
"This was Huo Qubing's second battle. Liu Che did not follow his army to the northern desert as Zhao Xin had expected. Instead, he sent Huo Qubing to attack the southern desert and the western part of the Yellow River."
"In Liu Che's view, since the Xiongnu have all retreated north, the decisive battle with them will inevitably take place in Mobei."
"He must deal with these unstable factors before the decisive battle."
"At that time, several Xiongnu princes controlled the Hexi region. They were the last Xiongnu force left in the south of the desert."
"In the future decisive battle, whether they send troops to cut off the Han army's retreat or attack the Han army's flanks, they will cause great trouble to the Han army."
Although Qin Sheng and Qin Huaishu were both generals, this is Chinese history after all, and it is not intuitive enough to express it only with words.
Chu Yian dipped some water and drew a simple map on the table, marking the approximate locations of the north and south of the desert, so that they could see the key at a glance.
Qin Sheng and Qin Huaishu could actually understand what was said, but they both took a few more glances at the simplified map.
Qin Sheng's eyes couldn't help but fall on the words Chu Yian wrote on the table. He was a little surprised, but he quickly withdrew his thoughts.
In fact, this also shows the gap between the Xiongnu Chanyu, Zhao Xin and Liu Che. They are not on the same level at all.
Otherwise, why would they think that as long as they planted the seeds of hatred, Liu Che would definitely send troops to pursue them relentlessly? Without considering other factors?
The best proof is that the development of facts was completely different from what Zhao Xin expected.
Zhao Xin only looked at the problem from the perspective of this war, but Liu Che had a longer-term vision and took the overall perspective.
Although the gap between the supreme commanders had determined the outcome of the war, Huo Qubing's performance was also crucial.
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