93 Battle of Thousands of Miles
◎Huo Qubing: Those who call me daddy will not be killed!◎
Huo Qubing and Huo Yan and his men galloped for hundreds of miles, breaking into any tent they saw, killing any people they saw, and eating any meat they found.
Huo Qubing's march was as fast as lightning, and he could not carry too much baggage, let alone any supplies for clearing out the Xiongnu. Therefore, there were only two outcomes for the Xiongnu: surrender or be killed.
This was considered the outer reaches of the Xiongnu. The Xiongnu along the way were all small tribes, and they knelt quickly. Some tribes were even willing to send people to guide Huo Qubing. Of course, those who were unwilling had all gone to meet their Changshengtian.
Huo Qubing liked people who were sensible, so he took the Huns and left.
The Huns led the way quickly, and it was another complete victory.
Huo Yan cut off a bunch of bloody left ears from the pile of dead bodies and hung them on the horse.
Huo Qubing marched so fast that he had no time to count the troops, so he could only record the merits by cutting off the left ears of the Huns.
Huo Yan finally understood why the soldiers were all rushing to follow him. This trip was not in vain for anyone, even he had three ears.
After dividing the ears, Huo Qubing led the surrendered Huns and Huo Yan and his men westward without a moment's rest.
Huo Yan followed beside him, as if he had returned to the past. It was as if his brother had a navigation device on his body, and his reactions were faster than his compass which could only point north and south, and the local Xiongnu people.
When he met his brother in the Xiongnu territory, he would not think about anything else and just follow his brother. Whatever his brother said was what he would do.
"The Huns are easier to kill than sheep."
Huo Qubing was fully focused on his journey, and like an arrow shot from a bow, he would not look back easily, but he would occasionally say something and wait for Huo Yan beside him to answer.
Huo Yan pretended not to notice the Xiongnu leading the way cowering, and took a sip of wind with his mouth, saying, "General, you are invincible!"
As soon as he said this, the Han army officers and soldiers in front who could hear him all laughed, and the atmosphere became lively. In fact, they were not very old, about the same age as Huo Qubing. They were usually like a group of lively monkeys, and now they did not change their nature, showing their white teeth with joy.
Fortunately, they were on a forced march, otherwise a group of people would have joined in.
Huo Qubing turned his head slightly. The heavy Han army flag beside him undulated and billowed, casting a large shadow over his face, as if he had become one with the banner. Huo Yan could only see that his cheeks seemed thinner, and in his slightly sunken eye sockets there seemed to be a blazing fire, a scorching heat that reflected the thousand-mile-long Qilian Mountains. "Of course!"
The Champion Marquis of the Han Dynasty, invincible in battle and unstoppable in attack!
When Huo Yan heard the response from the steady general in front of him, he was very arrogant and turned his face slightly to the side, fearing that Huo Qubing would see the tight corners of his lips.
[Roar, sharpen your sword and attack the Huns!]
[Bingbing, Bingbing, the Hun’s father is here!]
…
Huo Yan followed Huo Qubing westward, and in the evening, they finally saw the torches of the Huns.
The stars were dotted around not far away, making it a perfect spot to shoot arrows and burn the tent.
It was obvious that Huo Qubing was also very satisfied. He reined in his horse with one hand, his eyes cold and sharp, and raised his hand slightly.
The eight thousand knights at the back received the order and acted quickly, putting grease-soaked arrows on bowstrings and lighting torches, without making a single unnecessary sound throughout the process.
Countless rockets streaked across the night sky like meteors, accompanied by whistling winds, and almost instantly poured down towards the Hun camp.
The Xiu Pu tribe's tents were instantly engulfed in flames. Flames shot up into the sky, licking the tents greedily. The crackling of burning wood, the snapping of wood, the bleating of sheep, and the screams and cries of the people mingled. The sudden blaze startled the sleeping King Xiu Pu awake, and he broke out in a cold sweat. He turned over and rushed out, the entire night sky ablaze.
His clothes were disheveled and his face was filled with fear. Some Xiongnu soldiers wanted to pick up weapons to resist, but they found that the fire spread too quickly and the thick smoke made it impossible for them to open their eyes and choke them to breathe.
Clusters of flaming arrows fell from the sky, like a punishment from heaven. The night wind carried the hot aroma of roasted lamb, followed by shouts of killing, and two teams of light cavalry rolled over like a black whirlwind.
Led by Huo Qubing, the Han cavalry charged forward, their mighty column bearing the Chinese character "Huo" (a Chinese character for "Huo") fluttering behind them like a spirit-calling banner. The horses' hooves trampled through the flames, their treads hammering at the hearts of the Xiongnu, and the horns of death rang out once more!
The Xiongnu, who often invaded the people on the Han border and plundered the land every year, cried out as they were driven out by Huo Qubing and his men like livestock, and fled westward in a tumbling and crawling manner.
"It's the Han army, ha ha!"
Hala, an ominous evil spirit.
"Don't panic!" the Xiongnu leader shouted. "Don't panic. The Han people don't have many soldiers. Use your bows and shoot back..."
Before he could finish his words, he heard a sound of an arrow behind him. An arrow flew towards his face like a meteor chasing the moon. He could hardly restrain himself and stayed where he was, his body shaking like a sieve. The arrow pierced his forehead and splashed blood.
His body collapsed to the ground, and tongues of flame kissed the hem of his clothes. His suddenly blurred vision ended with the young man in front of him. He was standing on a horse, stepping on the fire and glancing down at him condescendingly.
His eyes were sharp and he had the demeanor of a god.
He came with thunder and fire, wrapped in Tengri's wrath, and brought punishment from God.
Huo Qubing fired three arrows in succession, commanding the wolves behind him to respond and drive the flock of sheep. The Han army was like a sharp steel knife, dividing and encircling the fleeing Huns.
The Huns fled and shouted, and were harvested by the Han army like wheat.
There is no way to ask for help from heaven, and no way to complain to earth.
The Huns will remember today, just as the Han people will always remember the shameful yesterday!
Huo Yan stood beside him, lowering his bow.
He could understand the Xiongnu language, and he didn't like the way these people called him, so it was reasonable for him to tell them to shut up.
Huo Qubing seemed to smile, drew his bow and shot the loudest arrow in the throat of the person in the crowd, then shook his head with an indifferent expression as if saying "You didn't even hit the target".
"Anyone who surrenders to the Han will not be killed!"
At Huo Qubing's clear shout, Zhao Po Nu and his men laid down their weapons in front of the Huns who knelt and surrendered. At this time, all the Huns who could escape fled, and about three or four of them hung their heads and tied their necks, becoming obedient surrender soldiers.
The battle was over before dawn, and the Huns were beaten more obediently than sheep.
Huo Qubing calmly raised his hand to withdraw his troops. It was almost dawn and they needed to rest and replenish their supplies.
The remaining Xiongnu troops treated Huo Qubing like a god, serving him like a father, always at his beck and call and giving him whatever he asked for.
Huo Yan knew clearly that the Huns had been defeated.
Unlike the Chinese people who mainly rely on agriculture, the Huns lived by following water and grass, which also meant that they were easily exterminated. Once they were driven out, they could never come back.
As a modern man, Huo Yan understood ethnic integration, but since he traveled to the Han Dynasty, he witnessed the powerlessness of the marriage alliance at a young age. The Huns slaughtered the people in the border areas, resulting in a large number of innocent people being killed, houses being burned, and livestock being looted. His hatred for the Huns grew like the wind.
In addition to repaying tooth for tooth and blood for blood, and making the Huns pay off their blood debt, otherwise the people who died in the border areas in the past hundred years will never rest in peace, and the future men of the Han Dynasty will never stand up straight!
Each generation has its own affairs. The Han Dynasty today wants you Huns to kneel down and call us daddy!
At daybreak, after replenishing three days' worth of dry food, Huo Yan took a ginseng pill and mounted his horse again, crossing the Fox Slave River with Huo Qubing.
The river water in spring and summer is turbulent, half a person's depth, and the surging river water hits the horse's body and the person's legs, but Huo Qubing moves forward, he is like a kite flying past without stopping, shaking off the water on the corners of his trousers and soft armor, and then continues to gallop.
If he advanced, the Han army advanced; if he did not retreat, the Han army did not retreat.
Huo Yan's boots were soaked with water and could not be shaken clean no matter how hard he tried. However, he was always meticulous and this time he just shook them. He did not say anything about changing his boots, but just gripped the reins more tightly and rode his horse to catch up.
In the next six days, he followed Huo Qubing and galloped all the way to recapture Yanzhi Mountain, an important pastureland and strategic location for the Xiongnu. He made several sharp turns and moves, but he just killed the Xiongnu. He picked out five large Xiongnu tribes and countless other small tribes, frightening the Xiongnu and making them flee in panic.
He also didn't know that during these six days, their Han army had fought for more than a thousand miles and became a sharp knife that pierced straight into the heart of the Xiongnu.
He fought in battles across three thousand miles, and his sword was once as powerful as a million soldiers.
Wang Wei's poem was written about a veteran general, and even has a hidden meaning later in the poem, but it is the most appropriate description of Huo Qubing at this time.
The young master of Chang'an came in armor.
Chang'an.
There has been no news or battle reports from Marquis Guanjun since he sent out his troops.
Although he knew Huo Qubing's abilities, Wei Qing was still so worried that he couldn't eat.
He couldn't even eat it, let alone others.
Especially since Huo Yan is also here this time, everyone is even more worried.
Liu Che paced back and forth in the Weiyang Palace, frequently requesting rituals before the statues and lamenting to Wei Zifu and Wei Qing that he had forgotten to spend more money on expensive amulets for the child. Wei Qing's eyes were filled with worry, and he had no intention of comforting Liu Che.
Liu Che knew that if anything happened to either Qubing or Huo Yan, Wei Qing would be the first to collapse. So, he put aside his worries and offered some words of comfort. But Wei Qing clearly didn't listen. The general simply said, "Waiting is too much. Next time, Your Majesty, please let me go too!"
Liu Che's eyes were red.
"Zhongqing, why don't I go too?"
Wei Qing calmed down and tried to comfort him.
What a joke! If Your Majesty goes to command the Huns, who will command the Han people?
Wei Zifu was also afraid, especially since Liu Che's constant nagging only intensified her fear. She was so scared that she tossed and turned, unable to sleep at night. She couldn't help but blame Liu Che in her heart for being so generous in the past, but now that he was serious, he didn't spend more money to bless her two children.
If he doesn't spend money, I will!
"God bless you."
She took Wei Chang, Liu Ju, Zhu Yi, Yang Shi, and Liu Ju also brought Huo Guang, Wei Kang, Wei Deng, Wei Buyi and Zhang He, a group of children, to worship the gods.
May God bless you, this is all your Majesty/father/uncle's fault. We forgot to spend money on you. Please bless your brother/child first, and we will make up the money.
You must show up, you must!
The news brought by Wei Zifu in the palace that Huo Qubing had disappeared after he went to war came quickly. The adults in the Wei family were afraid to sleep. They had nightmares every day about the death of their two children. They were so scared that over time, they dared not sleep unless they were extremely sleepy.
Wei Shao'er didn't go to the gathering either, staying at the Wei residence, waiting with the rest of the family for news of Huo Qubing's victory. As she waited, fear washed over her, and she burst into tears. The family couldn't dissuade her, and their anger was driven them to tears as well. They were just as worried as they had been the last time Huo Qubing and Wei Qing went off together. Wei Bu and Wei Guang were sent out to gather information, and they blocked Wei Qing's path daily.
Wei Qing was also worried. His eyes were dark blue, indicating that he hadn't slept well since Huo Qubing's death. After comforting Wei Bu and Wei Guang and asking them to comfort the Wei family, he wasn't done yet. After the court session, Sang Hongyang and the others who were blocking the Chengming Hall also needed comfort.
"Go away from the disease, don't you still believe it?"
Wei Qing was always gentle. Knowing that they were worried, he blurted out words of comfort.
Zhufu Yan and Dongfang Shuo both shed tears, especially Zhufu Yan, whose tears fell without any cost, "I don't want him to go, he wants..." Something unexpected happened.
Before he could finish his words, Dongfang Shuo slapped him across the face and spat, "Shut up, you damned bastard!"
Seeing Zhufu Yan covering his face, Wei Qing was about to stop the fight, but he saw that Zhufu Yan did not say anything and lowered his head.
Wei Qing put his hand down and instantly felt sympathy for Lord Father Yan.
Unexpectedly, Sang Hongyang wiped his eyes and held his hand, "It has strong healing power, which always makes people feel at ease. But Ah Yan has also gone. How could that child have seen the Xiongnu? General, please give me a definite answer, Ah Yan!"
He didn't say anything, but tears started to flow out of his eyes.
Regardless of whether they get along on a daily basis, they now act like parents who are about to lose their beloved son.
Wei Qing tried to comfort him awkwardly, "Qubing has always been like this. Don't worry, Ah Yan will be fine."
Everyone's tears flowed even harder, and they even cried out in public.
It's over, it's all over! Even the general can't give a definite answer, Ah Yan is in great danger!
When the wind blew, Mr. Jiang at the end of the crowd could no longer stand.
They had been through a lot in their lives, and one could imagine their mentality when they were able to work under Emperor Wu. But now, each of them was drenched like a drowned rat.
Ji An, who had not attended court for a long time, came down the stairs, looking straight ahead with his eyes high above his head. When he saw Wei Qing, he bowed slightly.
"General, I just got a Qin stele. He always complains about his ugly handwriting. Tell him to come see me in a couple of days." He glanced at the people around Wei Qing with disdain. "How disgraceful."
Everyone stared at this ignorant man with red eyes. Dongfang Shuo and Zhufu Yan retorted to each other. The two men, who had nowhere to vent their sorrow, used their verbal skills to the fullest, making Ji An so angry that his face turned blue.
When Zheng came, Ji An thought he came to rescue him and was grateful to him.
Unexpectedly, Zheng's words at that time made him almost unable to stand, just like Mr. Jiang.
Zheng Dang said to Wei Qing, "General, Ah Yan really followed Qu Bing!"
Wei Qing nodded.
Ji An's heart suddenly sank, and he fell limply on the stone steps. Fortunately, Wei Qing was quick and caught him. He then pinched his Ren Zhong point as Huo Yan had taught him, and he slowly woke up.
Lord Ji's head was buzzing, and he couldn't help but hold Wei Qing's hand and ask the question that everyone wanted to ask.
"I hope Ayan won't die at the hands of the Xiongnu!"
Wei Qing was silent for a moment, then pinched Ji An again and said word by word, "No, I will!"
His illness and Ayan will be fine!
【Author’s words】
Aunt: Bah, useless man, I’ll do it myself!!! You better be sensible, or else the Han people don’t believe in useless gods!
Wei Qing: Stop talking! I really don't want to pinch you anymore!
Mother: Wuuuuu, Qubing, wuuuuu, Ayan, there is not even a news, I am so worried!
Wei Bu Wei Guang: Still no news today, wuwuwu.
Everyone: Huo Yan! Are you your brother? Go challenge the Huns!
Qubing: What are you afraid of? What's the difference between the Huns and sheep? (Kicks the Hun King). Those who call me daddy won't be killed. [Sunglasses]
Ah Yan: Please, the person in front of me is my brother. My brother is the father of the Xiongnu people. In terms of seniority, the Xiongnu people have to call me Zhongfu. If he dares to hit me, my brother will kill him! ! Hum~ [rolling eyes]
Currently, the characters for "Qubing" are either Yuanxi or Shouzhi. Can you pick one? I'm torn, but it doesn't matter. I like both and plan to use the other for my next baby.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
