Chapter 433

Chapter 433

Can a strategist not ascend the throne? Side Story: The Western Regions Storm (2)

“Are you…” Ma Chao’s words got stuck in his throat.

Yu Fan’s ruthlessness lies in the fact that while he was dissuading Ma Chao’s thoughts, he even managed to insult himself, making it hard for anyone to refute him directly, fearing he might say something even more outrageous.

And if you really think about it, his words, though crude, do carry some truth.

Although Ma Chao grew up in Liangzhou, due to the Four Commanderies of Hexi being isolated beyond the Wushaoling Mountains, even he had never reached the other end of the Hexi Corridor.

Thus, even if the strength of the thirty-six kingdoms of the Western Regions was not much different from what he described, on this sparsely populated land, large-scale settlements, even those named as kingdoms, were quite limited in population. With the Han Dynasty’s influence here already waning, his plan to quickly traverse multiple regions through mobile warfare was not very feasible.

Moreover, their primary goal was not to annihilate the thirty-six kingdoms of the Western Regions and turn their people into subjects of Da Yong, but to defeat the potential enemy further west and drive them out of the territory.

His Majesty would never allow them to recklessly send troops just for the sake of achieving military merits!

The languages and cultures of the kingdoms within the Western Regions vary, divided into the southern and northern parts. Choosing Xu Rong as the main general to guard this place should have set the tone.

Rather than using force to conquer and decide the outcome in one battle, Qiao Yan preferred to use Da Yong’s military power against “external enemies,” such as the Northern Xiongnu and the Kushan Empire, while using a combination of kindness and authority to subdue the thirty-six kingdoms of the Western Regions, gradually assimilating them.

“Enough, let’s all say less for now.” Seeing Ma Chao’s momentum had waned due to Yu Fan’s teasing, Lu Yuan immediately spoke up.

“As General Xu said, the kingdoms of Cheshi are located on both sides of the Tianshan Mountains. If we, unfamiliar with the terrain, let one side escape north into the territory of the Northern Xiongnu’s westward migration, allowing the Kangju and Kushan to learn of our movements first, it would be unfavorable.

“Instead, let’s march through the southern regions and directly attack Shanshan. In the past, Loulan was caught between the Han and Xiongnu. The king of Loulan, being incompetent, sided with the Xiongnu and was killed by the Han court, which installed a new ruler who moved south to the foot of the Kunlun Mountains and renamed the kingdom Shanshan. Now, it should also belong to the territory of Da Yong!”

Take the southern route!

This was the choice Lu Yuan proposed.

This direction of advance, unanimously approved by the generals in Dunhuang, quickly formed a complete plan of action with the help of Dunhuang merchants and Western Regions guides.

The troop deployment records of the Han Dynasty’s Wuji Colonel and the Chief Official of the Western Regions had long been transferred from the Han government storehouses to Liangzhou, serving as reference cases for Lu Yuan and others in planning diplomatic relations with the various kingdoms of the Western Regions.

This military report was delivered to Qiao Yan a few days later.

The smooth passage of the drought in the second year of Yuanzhao had made the voices advocating for aggressive action in the court even more pronounced, prompting Qiao Yan to immediately decide after discussing the grain reserves in various government storehouses with the Grand Minister of Agriculture—

Send troops!

Along with this decision to send troops, another order arrived simultaneously in Liangzhou.

Duan Wei, a former general under Dong Zhuo, after receiving Qiao Yan’s permission to bury Dong Zhuo in Liangzhou, had prepared to permanently guard Huangzhong and station troops in Jincheng. He did not expect to receive an order from Qiao Yan to move north with his troops.

“Among the three bright stars of Liangzhou in the past, Duan Jiming spent his entire life struggling to find a foothold in the court, forced to ally with eunuchs to preserve his wealth and status, ultimately losing his integrity, being implicated and imprisoned, and dying with regret. General, you followed Dong Zhuo, attacked Luoyang, and led troops to Chang’an. It’s not hard to see that you were not truly aligned with Dong Zhuo. To be just a commandant of Jincheng is a great regret in life.

“Why not join the expedition to the Western Regions, achieve merits in battle, and let the name of the Duan family of Wuwei be recorded in history again.

“Your past allegiance to Dong Zhuo is a matter of the Han Dynasty. Now it is the era of Da Yong, no need to be bound by it.”

At the same time, Grand Commandant Huangfu Song was stationed at the Gaoping grain route to oversee the Qiang people in Liangzhou, ensuring that no one with ulterior motives would stir up trouble in Liangzhou after Lu Yuan, Xu Rong, Duan Wei, and others had passed through the Yumen Pass.

This also ensured that grain from Guanzhong, Jincheng military farms, and Wuwei military farms could be continuously transported to Dunhuang.

The issuance of these two orders was like a much-needed reassurance for the officials of Liangzhou!

For hundreds of years, the deep-rooted prejudice against Liangzhou officials and generals entering the central government had persisted. Although Qiao Yan’s early efforts to promote Han-Qiang co-governance and reopen the Silk Road had given hope for change—

The main general of Liangzhou, Xu Rong, was from Liaodong, and the regional governor, Lu Yuan, was from Yang Province. Among the court officials, those from Liangzhou were few and far between.

It was only with the issuance of this order that people began to see more clearly His Majesty’s determination to change this situation!

Duan Wei had once followed Dong Zhuo into Luoyang and, after Dong Zhuo retreated to Chang’an, became an important general guarding his barrier.

If Qiao Yan had not considered his efforts in farming in Huayin and his intention to protect the people, he should have been executed long ago, and there would have been no possibility of him being transferred to Jincheng later.

If even someone with such a background could get a chance to achieve merits or redeem himself through military service, then other Liangzhou generals, relying on their abilities, would have even more opportunities to rise.

As Qiao Yan said, Duan Wei’s allegiance to Dong Zhuo was a matter of the Han Dynasty.

He had already balanced his merits and faults, so why should the hope of being reused be stifled in the era of Da Yong?

And in this expedition to the Western Regions, many Liangzhou generals were involved. With Huangfu Song stationed in Liangzhou, it ensured the rear was secure, another guarantee from His Majesty to them.

Jia Xu, stationed in Qingzhou, couldn’t help but smile upon hearing about this deployment.

Didn’t he choose to follow Qiao Yan precisely because this Emperor offered a fair chance for Liangzhou people to compete with others?

Due to his early following and his indispensable contributions during the rise and fall of the royal enterprise, he now governed a region after the world had settled. His eldest son also had a position that would remain secure as long as he didn’t make major mistakes. But he still looked forward to seeing today’s scene!

Although His Majesty already ruled the world and was troubled by affairs from all directions, he clearly hadn’t forgotten any of his early promises, nor had he let down his ministers.

However… His Majesty’s excellent memory was occasionally not a good thing for his subordinates.

When the order to deploy troops from Liangzhou was issued in Chang’an, Jia Xu also sent a report on the management of Qingzhou to Chang’an, and subsequently received a response from Qiao Yan.

At the end of the formal text, there was an additional line—

Wenhe, in the early years, falsely claimed to be the grandson of the late Grand Commandant Duan Jiming to escape bandits. General Zhongming and Duan Jiming were brothers of the same generation. I wonder, as you prepare to lead the army, what advice you have to offer?

Jia Xu: “…”

Damn it!

Back then, he claimed to be Duan Jiong’s grandson to escape death, not to actually gain a grandfather, nor to make Duan Wei his elder!

Your Majesty, your mischievousness doesn’t need to go this far.





But whether Jia Xu had any advice for Duan Wei, it obviously wasn’t that important. In November, the deployment of troops and supplies from all sides was already in place. With Ma Chao and Zhang He as the vanguard, Fu Gan, Xu Rong, and Ma Dai leading the central army, and Lu Yuan, Yu Fan, and Duan Wei providing rear support, a column of soldiers marched out of Yumen Pass, heading straight for the southern frontier! It had been several decades since the last time the Central Plains dynasty sent troops to the Western Regions. This was entirely different from Xu Rong and others’ “merchant” trips transporting cotton and fine horses. This was a full-scale military expedition in the truest sense! Inside Yumen Pass and Yang Pass, the land was still lush with water and grass. But as they passed through Yumen Pass and followed the long-neglected Han Great Wall and the Shule River valley westward, a mix of snow and crescent-shaped sand dunes blew sand directly into their faces. A desolate and vast scene lay before them. If snow could still fly in the Hu sky in August, how much more unbearable was the cold in November? If not for the cotton planted in Bingzhou, which had expanded countless times over the years, and the soldiers wearing double layers of cotton clothing, the losses for the Liangzhou troops in this expedition to the Western Regions would have been significant. Even with such cold protection, the challenges they faced were far from just the cold. Fortunately, they had compasses to keep from getting lost in the vast desert despite the sandstorms. They also had ample military rations and water storage equipment that could turn snow into water, ensuring their basic needs were met. Their warhorses, bred from Ferghana horses and local steeds, equipped with horseshoes, allowed the vanguard to traverse the terrain as if it were flat ground. “Since the Peacock River changed its course, the lakes and marshes around Lop Nur, created by the great rivers of the Western Regions, have shrunk significantly. If this continues, Shanshan will have to move further west,” the local guide explained to Lu Yuan. “But now we just need to follow this road to reach the city of Wuni.” East of Lop Nur, this desert oasis, lies the modern-day Lop Nor. It hasn’t yet reached the point where birds won’t cross, but as the guide said, the shrinking waters due to the Peacock River’s diversion have put immense pressure on the people of Wuni in Shanshan. Fortunately, Shanshan, once glorious as Loulan, is now the largest country in the nearby Western Regions. Neighboring states like Qiemo, Xiaowan, Ronglu, and Jingjue either obey Shanshan or the more western Yutian, but none dare to bully them. The northern stronghold of Cheshi, though no longer divided between the Xiongnu in the north and the Han in the south, remains fragmented and unable to reunite. Compared to Shanshan, it’s hard to say who is stronger. But today seemed different. The King of Shanshan was resting in his palace when a subordinate rushed in panic to report, “A great sandstorm is coming from the east!” A great sandstorm? What great sandstorm? Wuni, located in the most prosperous oasis of the region, was mostly green even in the depths of winter. But when he climbed the city walls, he saw that his subordinate’s words were no exaggeration. A thunderous noise from the east was approaching at an alarming speed, with dust rising in a way that was anything but ordinary. It looked just like a sandstorm before it reached the sky. But this was no sandstorm! As the figures drew closer, the King of Shanshan, standing atop the city walls, could clearly see that the dust was not a natural disaster but— Countless cavalrymen! Even as a king, he couldn’t possibly muster so many fine horses at once. He hadn’t seen such exquisite armor and weapons in years. These were not things that should appear in the Western Regions. The cavalry, now clear black dots, entered the oasis with a divine, overwhelming force. It was an enemy attack! In a voice trembling with fear, he shouted, “Quick… stop them!” The hostile intent was clear in their forceful advance. They couldn’t possibly be a merchant caravan stopping for rest. But how could the hastily assembled Shanshan soldiers, lacking in iron bows and arrows, possibly stop Ma Chao, Zhang He, and the others? In moments, the cavalry had devoured the patrols and reached the city walls under a hail of arrows. The King of Shanshan, who hadn’t seen such a scene in years, felt his legs go weak. It wasn’t that he was overly timid, but the enemy’s strength was terrifying! Hiding behind the city walls, he trembled as he asked, “Why have the Han envoys come like this?” Only the Han from the other side of the Hexi Corridor could attack Shanshan in such a manner. Certainly not Cheshi! It had to be the Han army. But then he heard the general below shout, “You are mistaken. We are generals under the Son of Heaven of Da Yong. The Han dynasty has fallen, and the Central Plains now belong to Da Yong! By His Majesty’s order, we are here to subdue the rebellious. Surrender now!”