The majestic Jinshan Mountains extend from northwest to southeast, stretching for thousands of miles, going straight into the desert. In the blue sky, there are light clouds floating, and under the clouds are the shining snow-capped mountains. At the foot of the snow-capped mountains are forests, pastures, and valley tundra.
, lakes are scattered throughout it, and rivers rush through it.
Spring has arrived, the severe cold has subsided, everything has revived, and the foothills are obviously a little more lively. Snow leopards and antelopes are galloping in the mountains, and squirrels and birds are looking for food in the jungle.
Since ancient times, relying on the Jinshan Mountains, there have been a large number of tribes who have hunted and herded here to survive and develop. The Turks who once dominated the northern part of the country made their fortunes east of Jinshan. They eventually took over the banner of overlord from Rouran and participated in the same movement.
The struggle for hegemony in East Asia between the Sui and Tang Dynasties.
Over the past few hundred years, it has risen and fallen several times. In recent decades, it has also been a dependent territory of the Khitan Liao Kingdom. At the same time, a new grassland force is also developing and growing in a low-key manner. These are several groups composed of Uighurs, Dadan and
The tribe composed of descendants of Gasi was called the Nianbage Tribe within the Liao Kingdom, and was also the origin of the Naiman Tribe in history.
Of course, they are still very weak, but because they are located in a remote location, close to mountains and rivers, and have abundant forest and pasture resources to draw from, their development, although slow, is growing.
The disputes between Han and Liao did not involve them. The Han army went on an expedition with light cavalry and fought bloody battles in Mobei. During the chaos, they were one of the few tribes that was not affected. Instead, they took the opportunity to recruit and annex some tribes who fled from the east.
The remaining units have been further expanded.
At the southeastern foothills of Jinshan Mountain, in the lower reaches of the Yizhi River (Irtysh River), in a valley with dense tree shades, there is a tribe stationed there. As far as the eye can see, there are hundreds of large and small tents.
This is a tribe of about 2,000 people. Judging from the many tribes around Jinshan, large and small, the scale is not small. More importantly, this tribe is special. They are all young and strong, and they are built around the camp.
The tight and strong stockade fence highlights its specialness. Around the stockade tower and in the center of the camp, there are several flags standing facing the wind.
Whether it is the Xuan flag or the military flag with the characters "Liu", "Yang" and "Wang", they all look a bit worn and full of blood, but no matter the bloodstains or knife marks, they do not hide their noble temperament.
This tribe, which is very different from the local tribes, is obviously the remnant of the Mobei Han army.
Last year, after their defeat at Wugushan in Mobei at the hands of Liao Privy Councilor Yelu Xian, the Han army withdrew westward.
Under the fierce pursuit of the Liao army, most of the Han army was scattered, perhaps killed at the hands of the Liao army, or lost in the vast grasslands. Finally, the Han army gathered in Zhenzhou City of the Liao Kingdom, gathered the defeated troops, and regrouped.
However, the Liao army was pursuing urgently, and before it could gain a firm foothold, the Mobei ethnic coalition forces commanded by Yelvxian were already approaching. Unfortunately, Yang and Wang had no choice but to abandon the soldiers who had been separated and had not returned, and continued to retreat westward until
I had to block the Royal City of Divination before I could take a moment to breathe.
However, under the command of Yelu Xian, the Liao army launched a very determined pursuit, and soon the pursuers arrived again. They suffered a new defeat, the enemy was strong and we were weak, and the situation was critical. Under this situation, Wang Yansheng and Yang Ye
After some urgent discussions, we found a way out.
Going south through the desert to return to the Han Dynasty, this option was simply abandoned. In this tense situation, there was no adequate preparation. Returning south, faced the interception and killing by the Liao army. Even if they made it through, they would still have to face the harsh environment of the desert and Gobi.
Circumstances, this is no different than taking death.
As for the guerrillas in Mobei, they were sitting still and waiting for death. Therefore, without much hesitation, Yang and Wang decided to go west to survive, just as Li Chongju had guessed from his investigation.
After a short period of preparation, before the Liao army's pursuit division arrived, Yang Ye and Wang Yansheng led their troops all the way west to Jinshan. The subsequent results proved that this decision was made correctly, and it also allowed the expeditionary Han army to
The ending of destruction where the soldiers escaped.
Yelvxian, the commander-in-chief of the Liao army, naturally hated this Han army that boldly marched northward and penetrated deep into Mobei, causing chaos in Mobei. He wanted to get rid of it quickly. Faced with the expeditionary army's repeated retreats, he pursued them closely.
Even though Generals Yang and Wang led their troops to flee west, they still sent thousands of cavalry to continue the pursuit, hoping to annihilate them all. At the same time, they also sent envoys with orders to instruct the Nianbage tribes east of Jinshan to send troops to cooperate in the attack.
However, things went against expectations. At that time, Mobei was in turmoil, with tribes scattered and tribes alienated. Although Yelvxian relied on the lingering power of the Liao Kingdom for decades to unite the tribes, form a coalition, and defeat the Han army, but,
The mess was put down. Yelvxian had to put more energy on appeasing Mobei and could not pursue and annihilate the Han army with all his strength.
The Nianbage tribe had also begun to disobey the orders of the Liao Kingdom early on. They were unwilling to send out troops and wasted their tribe's strength in fighting the Han army. At that time, in order to cooperate with the Liao army's expedition to the Western Regions, they had
It suffered a loss once, and the result of that time was that it enriched the Liao court and destroyed their subordinate tribes.
In fact, they were very dissatisfied with forcing the Han army to go west and burning the war into their territory. The chasing Liao cavalry was also composed of Mobei cavalry. The battle of Wugushan, including the subsequent pursuit battle, these Mobei cavalry
The cavalry can be regarded as experiencing the combat capabilities and fighting will of the Han army. Although the Liao army won, their own casualties were not many at all.
Although the Han army fled westward in embarrassment, the threat was still there. Once provoked to fight back desperately, it would definitely be another bloody battle. And these Mobei cavalry were not willing to continue to consume the Han army, so they had the desire to pursue
Not high. Because it is unprofitable and the risk is not small.
In addition, the people's hearts in Mobei at that time were really confused and dispersed. The Han army's attack could be said to have completely destroyed the original Liao Kingdom's ruling system in Mobei.
The prestige of the Liao court plummeted, and its strength was damaged. Many tribes inevitably had dissent and began to have doubts about the rule of the Liao Kingdom. The tribes such as Zubu, Dadan and others who suffered heavy losses were waiting for support. Those who avoided disaster in time and retained their strength
Tribes are thinking about whether there is an opportunity to expand their strength. The leaders and generals who are pursuing them are also paying more attention to preserving their strength and are concerned about the interests of their own tribes.
The combined effect of many factors gave the expeditionary Han army a loophole to exploit and a chance to breathe. Both Yang Ye and Wang Yansheng were battle-hardened generals with a keen sense of smell. They were immersed in the situation and had a good understanding of the enemy's situation.
The changes and feelings are the most obvious.
After realizing that the pursuit momentum of the Liao army behind him was weakening, he felt somewhat reassured and had more room to think about where to go and how to get rid of the crisis completely.
According to Wang Yansheng's idea, he would rush in directly and seize a way out. In contrast, Yang Ye should be calmer and more rational. In his opinion, although he took the Jinshan route, he still had no idea about the local situation.
, the attitude of the Nianba Ge tribes is also unclear, and the slowdown in the rear pursuit also leaves them more room for adjustment.
Therefore, under Yang Ye's suggestion, although the remnants of the expeditionary force arrived at Jinshan, they did not go deep into the hinterland of the local tribes. Instead, they sent envoys to contact them while ensuring a safe distance to express their intention to use the road.
When the Nianbage tribe learned that the Han army was coming from the west, although they were extremely wary of the injured tiger, their attitude was ambiguous. After feeling the sincerity of the Han army, some of their hostility was somewhat eliminated.
After two contacts, an agreement was reached with the two Nianbage tribes in the southeast. They gave way to guide the way, and the price paid by the Han army was some cavalry and weapons, and some military supplies were obtained from transactions with them.
At the eastern foot of Jinshan Mountain, the Han army got a rare time to rest and recuperate. Afterwards, they decisively took a detour and took the mountain trails to the south of Jinshan Mountain. After all, north of Jinshan Mountain, the agreement with the Nianbage tribe was not so solid.
The army was worried about them, and the Nianbage tribe was also worried about the Han army, so they simply went south to Vietnam to get out of the danger circle.
After reaching the south of Yinshan Mountain, winter was already approaching, and to the south, across the quicksand, was the Western Region, which was not far away from their escape.
However, due to weather changes and unfamiliarity with geography and the situation in the Western Regions, they did not head south rashly, but chose to rest on the spot and build a camp to survive the winter.
When they evacuated from King Zubu City, there were still nearly 4,000 soldiers who fled all the way across the Jinshan Mountains. When they arrived at the southern foot to rest, there were only more than 2,500 people. After surviving the cold winter, as of the spring of the ninth year of Kaibao, all
There are only less than two thousand soldiers left.