The five hundred and seventieth chapter war and (2)
Shan Yuting of the Xiongnu is currently in Longcheng, the resting place of his ancestors.
At this time, Longcheng, the ancestral land of the Xiongnu, had not been moved away. (Note)
Still in his old hometown of Makunan.
If we want to judge based on the geography of later generations, it should be in Inner Mongolia.
This place is surrounded by mountains and rivers and is rich in water and grass. It was one of the most important religious and political centers of the Huns.
According to tradition, every year in May, all the leading figures of the Xiongnu Empire would worship their ancestors in Dragon City, gather all tribes, offer sacrifices to the gods of primitive shamanism they believed in, and pray for the blessings of their ancestors and gods.
bless.
Usually, before May, the Huns would make preparations for various ancestor worship and god sacrifices in Dragon City.
At this moment, the military minister Chanyu led the main force of his royal court and was stationed here, making various preparations for worshiping ancestors and gods.
It should be pointed out that the Huns, like most of the grassland nomads, and the Han people in the Central Plains at this time, shared the same totem worship: dragon. (Note 2)
Moreover, the dragons in the Central Plains and the dragons in the grassland are generally similar in appearance.
They are all Yinglongs with double wings on their backs, scales and spines, large and long heads, thin necks and large bellies.
However, in China, the dragon is deified as a symbol of imperial power.
In tribes such as the Xiongnu, dragons are still gods.
And it is a totem god highly worshiped by primitive shamanism.
Second only to the sun and the moon.
The name of Dragon City, the ancestral land of the Huns, is also because it is said that the ancestors of the Huns once witnessed a giant dragon flying into the sky here. Therefore, the subsequent Xiongnu chanyus all buried themselves here after their deaths.
Over time, a city was formed near Dragon City.
It’s just that this city is time-sensitive.
Usually, it is deserted in autumn and winter, and flourishes in spring and summer.
Until the reign of Shanyu, the elder, he wiped out all the tribes in the entire grassland and defeated all challengers. The Huns became the overlord of East Asia.
It was only then that the Huns began to settle some settled populations in Longcheng.
These people are often old Hun nobles and priests.
It can be regarded as a symbol that the Huns have initially emerged from ignorance and begun to move toward civilization. In the past, the Huns could die when they were old.
No one cares about retirement care at all.
And the reason why there is such a change.
It's also funny to say.
Because such changes were born under the stimulation of the Han Dynasty.
Back then, when the old Shang Shanyu and Emperor Xiaowen, Taizong of the Han Dynasty, were in power.
The Bank of China said that as the first traitor in history, he was responsible for dealing with the Han Dynasty envoys.
To put it simply, it's just talking.
At that time, the relationship between the Han and the Xiongnu was roughly equivalent to the relationship between the American Empire and Soviet Russia in the twentieth century.
Two big guys, both wanted the other to die.
But after weighing the opponent's physique, they unanimously gave up the idea.
Since a full-scale war cannot be fought, we have no choice but to talk.
In the field of rhetoric, the Han Dynasty had an overall advantage.
Grasping the Huns' many unconventional places, they sprayed heavily.
Although the Bank of China said that his eloquence was good, he forced some of it back.
But just like Maozi, the Huns also know shame.
After being sprayed, of course things will improve.
This Dragon City has settled some old and weak nobles, instead of letting these old men die like in the past, which is one of the improvements.
Of course, only nobles, and even great nobles, can enjoy such preferential treatment.
As for herdsmen and slaves?
Then I can only laugh.
At this time, the Xiongnu nobles who had settled in Longcheng for a long time included the two younger brothers of Shanyu Laoshang of the previous generation and the two priests from the Modun period.
These people, even if they are military officials, must treat each other with courtesy, or at least show their dignity.
These elderly people need to be consulted symbolically on many questions.
At this moment, in Shanyu's royal tent, the military minister, like a good student, asked several elders sitting below him: "The whereabouts of the Yuezhi people have been determined. They are in this name."
The Amu Darya River, four thousand miles away from the country of Dawan in the Western Region, is indeed preparing to attack the body... Elders, how do you think we, the great Huns, should deal with it?"
As long as there is a clear direction, it is not difficult at all to find the Yuezhi people.
Not to mention, the Dawan people actually hate the Yuezhi people to death.
Twenty or thirty years ago, the Xiongnu and the Yuezhi competed for the dominance of the grasslands.
After the defeat, the Yueshi moved westward to Pseudo-Shuihe.
During the migration process, the Yuezhi people severed the connection between Dawan and their mother country. (Note 3)
Until now, the Dawan people still cannot contact their mother country.
Moreover, in fact, Dawan has been suffering the bitter consequences of the Yuezhi's westward migration over the years: after a large number of nomads settled near the Amu Darya River were defeated by the Yue people, they broke into Dawan and fought with the Greek conquests of Dawan.
There was a war between the descendants of the descendants.
Of course the Dawan people hated the Yuezhi people.
Naturally, the Huns easily learned from the Dawan people where the Yuezhi people were and their current situation.
Sure enough, just as the information came from the Han Dynasty, the Yuezhi people had established a firm foothold in the Pseudo Water area west of Dawan, and became prosperous again, and even established a royal court.
However, the problem is: the Dawan people are unwilling to open their borders to the Xiongnu.
Definitely.
Although the Dawan people knew that the Xiongnu were powerful, opening their borders to the Xiongnu was no different from surrendering.
The Dawan people are not stupid. Who doesn't know that developing the country's borders and cities and allowing the Huns to enter and exit is tantamount to leaving their own destiny to the Huns to decide.
On the other hand, the Dawan people are very confident in the defense strength of their city.
The defense system of their city was derived from the Greek-style forts brought from Greece by their ancestors.
The defensive power of this kind of Uburg is very strong. After close observation, the Huns found that the fortresses on the border, such as Lundou and Yucheng, were very strong and had complete defense systems. If there was no shortage of food and water in the city, it would be enough for them to hold on for more than half a year.
.
What's even more troublesome is that ordinary small towns in Dawan also adopt similar castle designs.
The Huns, who lacked the ability to attack fortresses, were really helpless against these cities.
The only way at present is to use the fast mobility of the Huns' cavalry to bypass these fortified cities, attack them and save them, attack their core, and mobilize the defenders in the cities.
Having fought against the Han Dynasty for sixty years, the Huns have extremely rich experience in this regard.
After just summing it up, the Xiongnu decision-makers have already come up with several plans.
At this moment, the military officials were just saying hello to these old nobles and priests, and had no real intention to ask or adopt their opinions.
These old guys also know their roles.
The Chanyu allows them to retire in this ancestral land and still enjoy the treatment in the past. This is already a great gift.
I dare not ask for more.
One after another they said: "Everything is just the intention of the Great Chanyu. I am waiting for you to be old and decrepit, but I just bow my head..."
When the military officials heard this, they nodded with satisfaction.
In fact, he just wanted to test it out.
The traitor King Youxian was very popular among the older generation of Xiongnu nobles.
If the military officials want to advance westward, some of the stubborn old guys in the Munan area must be purged.
We can't let them cause trouble in the rear!
The lessons of the Xiongnu chanyus in the past dynasties told military ministers that war in the front is not terrible. Civil strife in the rear is truly fatal.
In particular, the Huns had a long tradition of regicide.
When they saw the old guys, they didn't dare to discuss the big affairs, so the military officials were relieved.
The energy and energy of these old guys have been exhausted, and it is impossible for them to make waves again.
In this way, he could concentrate on advancing westward and expand territory for the Xiongnu Empire.
When the military officials were complacent, suddenly, a young Xiongnu nobleman walked into the tent, saluted the military officials, knelt on the ground and worshiped: "Great Plow Guy Tu, King Xiutu, King Aries sent an urgent message:
When the Han army came out of the fortress, they killed a hundred and fifty of our herdsmen, captured hundreds of them, and wiped out all the cities along the Great Wall."
When the military officials heard this, they stood up with some instigation.
Han and Hungary had been in contact for sixty years, and there was not a single year without fighting.
Even last year, after the peace treaty between the two countries was signed, there were occasional gunfire incidents on the border. The cavalry of the two countries patrolling along the Great Wall always showed up and did stupid things on their own initiative.
However, under the control of the top leaders of the two countries, these conflicts turned into misunderstandings.
Moreover, when the two armies clashed, their skills were inferior to others and they were killed.
Neither the Han Dynasty nor the Xiongnu had the face to stand up for these guys.
But he takes the initiative to attack and kill civilians on the other side.
But it means war.
Especially the Han Dynasty!
In the history of the Han and Huns, there were several major wars. Except for the active invasions deliberately provoked by the Huns, the Han army only took the initiative twice to attack.
One was Pingcheng. Through the battle of Pingcheng, the new Han regime made the Huns understand that the Han people were not to be trifled with.
One time was in Henan. This time, Emperor Taizong of the Han Dynasty used the idiot King Youxian to attack Shangjun without permission and kill Han people, so he mobilized 85,000 troops and launched the Henan Campaign to completely drive the Xiongnu out of the Great Wall.
"What's going on?" The military official was furious.
At this critical juncture of the westward march, the military ministers did not want the south to fight a war with the Han people in which the outcome was unknown.
The Han army now is not the Han army it was when the city was pacified, or even the Han army five years ago.
As far as military officials know, the size of the Han cavalry force has nearly doubled compared to five years ago. There are a large number of new weapons and equipment, and the Han army on the front line of the Great Wall has even achieved full iron weapons.
This allowed the Han army to immediately distance itself from the Xiongnu army in terms of equipment.
Although the military officials did not think that after the Han people changed their clothes, the Huns would be unable to defeat them.
But the opponent's combat effectiveness has indeed increased.
Moreover, the Han army also had the ability to take the initiative to engage in cavalry chase battles with the Huns' cavalry in the wild.
Through small-scale contacts and frictions over the past few years, military officials have become convinced of this.
Therefore, if possible, the military officials did not want to antagonize the Han people in the south.
The weak kingdoms in the west, the feuding Yuezhi people, and the legendary rich Shendu Kingdom are the places he wants to conquer most now.
Of course, if the Han people really want to provoke the Huns.
The military officials did not mind mobilizing the army to teach their son-in-law a lesson and make him be more honest.
In this regard, the military ministers were absolutely confident that as long as they mobilized the tribes in the Munan area, they could gather one hundred thousand cavalry. These one hundred thousand cavalry would be enough to disturb the Han people's Great Wall defense line.
so what?
Which of the fortresses on the edge of the Great Wall is the easiest to chew on?
For a fortified city like Yunzhong, the Huns might not even be able to break the bricks on the wall without breaking a few teeth.
Therefore, neither party can negotiate a good deal, and the military officials are unwilling to do it.
He believed that the Han people were not willing to do such a thing.
Then, the answer is obvious.
The military minister almost subconsciously thought: There are some bastards who have done stupid things to annoy the Han people!
Han and Hungary have been in contact for decades and have a certain understanding of each other.
They all know where the other party's bottom line is.
Military officials know it very well. If the two armies are in conflict, the Han people will never be so irritable.
They would only be so angry if they killed their civilians and attacked their villages.
When Shan Yu was furious, no one dared to hide it.
The young nobleman knelt on the ground and replied: "Replying to support Li Gutu, he was a subordinate of Zuo Guduhou of King Xiutu. He led an attack on a Han Dynasty village. He killed some Han people and kidnapped others in the village.
…”
"Xiu Tu King?" The military officials sneered twice.
The Xiutu tribe was not a good person in the eyes of military officials.
This tribe used to be loyal to King Youxian.
As for the Zuogu Duhou, the military officials remembered that this man seemed to have followed King Youxian to invade Han twice in the past and gained a lot of benefits.
"Send people to the Xiutu tribe. Tell King Xiutu that his Zuogu Duhou and his tribe will immediately support Li Gutu and set off for the west to report to King Zuoxian and prepare to participate in the attack on the Dawan people.
War!" The military minister made the decision coldly.
Taking the initiative to attack Han villages is tantamount to tearing up the peace treaty.
However, no matter how much he hates the Zuo Guduhou who acts without permission, or how much he hates the Xiutu tribe.
The military ministers could not impose any explicit punishment on the person directly responsible (the Xiutu tribe) and the Zuoguduhou who acted without authorization.
Not to mention using them to apologize to the Han people.
Not to mention, military officials cannot do such stupid things!
At that time, King Youxian broke the peace treaty without authorization and attacked Shangjun, killing the border residents, which eventually led to the Han-Hungarian war. The Huns completely lost their influence within the Han Dynasty and were all expelled from China.
But in the end, he was simply transferred to the west by his boss, Shanyu, to be responsible for attacking the Yueshi.
In terms of results, King Youxian not only did not punish him, but he was promoted.
Nowadays, the military ministers can only choose to transfer the provocative person away and send him to the west to prevent him from causing trouble again.
As for the Han Dynasty, they must also give an explanation.
Otherwise, if the Han Dynasty goes crazy and launches an attack on Hetao.
Although the military officials were not afraid of cavalry battles, the Huns were not afraid of anyone.
However, judging from the physique and strength of the Han and Hungarian countries, a war now would most likely turn into a war of attrition.
Hundreds of thousands or even hundreds of thousands of cavalrymen glared at each other on the border.
Why bother? At this time, the west had already robbed more than a dozen countries and brought back tens of thousands of slaves.
Moreover, starting a war with the Han Dynasty would make it difficult to shift the focus. It would not be of any benefit to the military ministers, and it would also give the tribes in Munan with double intentions the opportunity to strengthen themselves.
After thinking for a long time, the military minister finally made a decision: "Go and call Xu Bu Qediao Nan. In addition, didn't King Zuo Xian bring back some white slaves from Dawan not long ago? Send them together and let Xu
Xu Bu Qediao is difficult. He took these slaves and the credentials of Xu Bu Qediao to Chang'an to negotiate with the emperor of the Han Dynasty. The border trade must be restarted, and the two countries cannot go to war. In addition, Xu Buqediao was also called Xu Buqediao.
It’s difficult, get in touch with the Beihai Yan family. If something like this happens again in the future, the Beihai Yan family should fulfill her obligations and responsibilities as a descendant of the Great Huns!" (To be continued.)
ps: Note 1: Dragon City in the early Han Dynasty and the Dragon City that later appeared in the Han Dynasty are two different concepts. The former was the resting place of the Xiongnu chanyus after death. However, it was destroyed by Wei Qing during the reign of Emperor Wu, and Yuan Shuo Liu
Years later, the Xiongnu adopted Wei Lu's advice and shrunk their power. There was no royal court in the south of the country, so Longcheng moved to the place in Outer Mongolia recorded in the Han Book. The Han Book once recorded that during the reign of Emperor Zhao, Wu who submitted to the Han Dynasty
The Heng people once dug up the coffin of the Xiongnu Chanyu in Gulong City to retaliate. Note 2: Cui Hao of the Northern Wei Dynasty once said: All the Hu people in the West are dragon gods, so their meeting place is called Dragon City. This record shows that,
At least during the Northern and Southern Dynasties, the grassland nomads still used the dragon as a totem. A typical example is the Murong clan of the Xianbei people, who built a dragon city. Note 3: Dawan should be the independent kingdom of Bactria mentioned in Western history books
It was the Yuezhi's westward movement that gave him the opportunity to become independent. The so-called Kingdom of Bactria, commonly known as the Greco-Indian Kingdom, was an extension of the Seleucid Empire, also known as Hanshu.
and the Great Xia mentioned in historical records.
