Bayinbuluke Prairie, also known as Yuledus Grassland, has a grassland area of 350,000 hectares, and the usable pasture exceeds 300,000 hectares. It is the largest grassland in the Western Region.
Zhu Dadian, a cabinet scholar who was on an imperial mission to the Western Regions, rode his horse and looked at the Yuledus River Basin in front of him. The grassland was flat and rich in water and grass. It was a treasure land integrating mountains, basins and grasslands.
"Kundulun Wutaishi has such a good pasture, but he is still not satisfied." Looking at the galloping horses and countless cattle and sheep, Zhu Dadian could only sigh that Kundulun was really blinded by greed.
Not satisfied with such a treasure land, they still have to compete for the position of King Khan.
This prairie once belonged to the Chagatai people, then to the Yarkand people, then to the Turghut people, then to the Durbot, Huite and then Junggar people, and then to the Heshuote people. His
The last owner was the late Qinghai Heshuote Gushi Khan Tulubaihu, the brother of Kundulun Utaish.
After he went to Qinghai, this treasure land was left to his brother Kundulun Utaishi, and Yinli was given to his nephew Eqirtu. Eqirtu, who was originally a nomadic Tacheng area, also reached an agreement with Junggar Batur Khan.
The area around Tacheng, which was originally owned by the Turghut people, was given to the Junggars, while most of the Seven River Basins east of Lake Balkhash were given to the Oqirtu, especially the most precious Yinli and Suiye Valleys.
When Turghut was squeezed out, Gushi Khan also took most of the Heshuote to Qinghai-Tibet, which gave the Oirat Alliance, which was originally crowded in the north of Tianshan Mountains, fighting for pasture and constantly fighting among themselves, a breather, especially Turbot and Hui.
After Te was divided, the remaining Junggar and Tianshan Heshuote actually still had plenty of territory.
It's just that such a beautiful prairie as before can't let Kundulun Utaish settle down. Back then, he and Dulbert and other Taiji nomads were nomadic in the Qihe Basin. The territory was not so large, and they had to compete with the Kazakhs.
For pasture, they have to compete with Junggar and others for pasture.
"Women of the right age were given to the border guards as wives and concubines. Old women, young men and women were given to the officers and soldiers as slaves. The rest of the young and strong, with titles of Taiji or above, and those with hundreds of officers and above, were beheaded. The rest were taken to Yongning Pagoda.
Slave with the armored men!”
Zhu Dadian looked at the subordinates of Kundulun Utesh of the Lut Khanate who had been defeated and captured by the Ming army in the Western Regions, and waved his order unceremoniously.
On that day, on the Yuledus Prairie with the beautiful blue sky and white clouds, more than a thousand people were directly beheaded. In addition, thousands of people were captured as slaves, more than 40,000 people.
Although the deputy khan of Jorut defeated his nephew Oqiltu Chechen Khan on the battlefield and even captured Yinli, he unexpectedly lost all his elite troops in the end and left his nest to be completely destroyed by the Ming army.
The Ming army has been inactive for more than half a year, and people have even mistakenly thought that the Ming army is a sleeping sick cat. They have forgotten that in fact, the Ming army in the Western Region is just a tiger pretending to sleep.
After Kundulun Wutaishi captured Yinli, he and Chu Huer joined forces with Kazakh soldiers to besiege Tacheng and Bohuosi. Unexpectedly, Yanqi's Ming army suddenly attacked him along the Yuledus River.
Khan tent, killed on the prairie.
In the past six months, he had recruited vassals everywhere, and as well as his original troops, he had left more than 10,000 tents on the grassland. Without the main elite, he was caught off guard, and one tribe after another was attacked and destroyed.
Kundulun Wutesh went to Tacheng and Bohuoxi. He also left his son to guard the newly occupied and assigned treasure land in Yinli. He also left his son to guard the family in his hometown Yuledus Prairie.
, his wife stayed behind with their young son, and kept a close eye on Baicheng and Aksu in the southwest to prevent Oqirtu from making a comeback from there.
They were on every possible precaution, but they didn't expect that the Ming army never took action when they should have taken action long ago, and suddenly took action when they were relaxed.
Previously, the Ming army in Yanqi sent troops to garrison in Kuqa, and even at the request of Eqirtu, they also sent troops to garrison in Baicheng in the northeast of Aksu to guard the important military castle Yanyangou Castle to the north.
This ancient road can directly cross the Tianshan Mountains and enter the Yinli River Valley.
The Yanqi Ming Army even dispatched troops to the Tianshan Post Road newly built by the Ming Army, and went to Wusu to reinforce the garrison.
However, the several movements of the Yanqi Ming Army were all to strengthen the defense and garrison in the castle military town on the left and right Yi Road, and there was no intention of taking the initiative to attack.
Who would have thought that Yanqi had no soldiers or generals, but the dignified old manager personally led his troops to kill him.
What is even more unexpected is that the soldiers he leads are many and mixed.
There were cavalry from Monan Ordos, Chahar, Tumote, and even the two Khans sent by the Xilin Gol Protectorate and the Horqin Protectorate of Eastern Mongolia who had newly surrendered to the Ming Dynasty.
There are also men and horses from the Jurchens in Haidong, and even from the Sauron tribe of Ningyong, Qudumei, Hezhe, Feyaka and other tribes.
There were also tribal soldiers such as Dahuer who were summoned by the crown prince to the Lingbei Province established in the newly conquered Hulunbuir after the Northern Expedition to eliminate the Jianlu puppet court.
There was even a battalion composed of musketeers from Korea and Japanese rogue warriors, as well as a chieftain battalion from Annan and Burma.
These barbarian soldiers from all over the world were selected elites from all over the world. After being supplemented by the Ming Dynasty's equipment, they were transferred to the Western Regions to cooperate with the Ming army to guard the Western Regions.
Thousands of people from various tribes were divided into battalions and became Zhu Dadian's secret trump card for the success of this raid. These people were very brave and brave in fighting. Although they came from different tribes, they worked well together under the unified command of the Ming Dynasty.
Okay, infantry and cavalry coordination, infantry and artillery coordination.
The artillery support of the Ming army, coupled with the superb archery skills of the Sauron people, the Eastern Mongolian cavalry such as Horqin, Ujumqin, and Haoqit were very good at riding. The Korean musketeers were very skilled in using muskets, and the Japanese ronin samurai camp
The pig attack tactic is very scary. Annan and Burmese mountain infantry are very fierce, as well as those blond, blue-eyed and big hook-nosed Western mercenaries...
The combination of these people swept across the grassland.
Every time a tribe was conquered, Zhu Dadian directly divided the captured people, cattle, sheep, etc. into two. The fighting soldiers were rewarded with half, and the other half was returned to the public. There were rewards for bravery in battle, rewards for beheading captives, and rewards for capture, even if they were injured.
All are rewarded. Under this style of play, those Barbarian Emperor allies are very motivated.
This chapter is not over yet, please click on the next page to continue reading! In a short period of time, all the troops in Kundulun were raided.
"Mr. Ge, we won a great victory. No one escaped."
A Ming army general reported happily.
Zhu Dadian stroked his beard on his horse and said, "There will definitely be some fish that slip through the net. Send more light cavalry to pursue them and intercept them as much as possible."
After the great victory, the generals all suggested taking advantage of the victory to pursue the victory. Of course, there were also the civilian officials accompanying the army, joining the army and some generals who believed that the treatment of Kundulun Utesh's tribe was too harsh. They should kill less and caress more, kill a few Taiji, and then leave the rest.
No matter.
They should still let the cattle graze in the same place, or recruit three to five thousand people to form a new army and take them to conquer the rebels. This is also a plan to draw fuel from the bottom of the cauldron of the remaining troops.
But Zhu Dadian ignored them and killed more than 1,000 of his 40,000 men. The remaining marriageable women were all given to the soldiers as wives and concubines. The remaining old and weak were given to the soldiers of the Western Regions as slaves.
Among them, the young and strong ones were all taken to the northeast to be slaves to the border guards.
The reason for not keeping the young men in the local area and sending them to the far northeastern border is because immigrants from the Ming and Han dynasties are still a minority in the Western Regions. Therefore, it is necessary to draw out the firepower and transfer the young men among the captives to minimize future troubles. This is the same as
The emperor's original strategy for dealing with the rebellion was the same as when he returned to another place.
It is also a practical consideration for young women to marry soldiers and soldiers stationed in the Western Region as wives and concubines. These people are young and in the labor force and cannot have children. They are not as threatening as the men in Oirat. Moreover, after giving birth to children, Chinese and Yi marry. According to the rules of the Ming Dynasty,
If one parent is Xia, then the child is Xia, and they are the people of the Ming Dynasty. They must receive Chinese cultural education and learn Han customs and etiquette. This is essentially the basic mode of conquest in this era.
Conquer by force, add colonization and assimilation, basic operations.
The Spanish, Portuguese, Dutch, French and British are all like this.
The Ming Dynasty now recruits some young and elite warriors from the surrounding barbarian tribes who have surrendered, and transfers them to various parts of the Ming Dynasty to fight for the country in battalion units. In fact, it is not a way to weaken the strength of the barbarians, as it has taken away the young and elite warriors.
Warriors also used them to conquer barbarians with barbarians. Furthermore, during the battle, these barbarian survivors would slowly learn the Ming Dynasty's Chinese culture, language, writing, customs, rules, and even receive rewards and promotions for meritorious service. When they left
His own tribe was surrounded by Ming people, and slowly under the influence of the environment, he was no longer the barbarian he was before.
When he intermarryed with other tribes and gave birth to children, their second generation grew up in an environment that was even more separated from the original tribe and no longer belonged to that tribe at all.
"The saint is very kind and generous to all those who surrender, but they are so rebellious. They will not be forgiven lightly and will be killed and severely punished."
"Forgiving them is not my business, my mission is to eliminate the rebels!"
"This great victory in annihilating the Kundulun Wutaishi tribe was achieved by our Ming Dynasty imperial camp, the patrol camp of Anxi Province, the towns in the Western Regions, the militiamen of the disciples, and the Mobei and Modong.
Qingkang, Mongolia, Haidong and Haixi Jurchens, as well as Annan, Burma, Korea, Ryukyu, Japanese and other vassal states had thousands of soldiers and horses. Each of them would first reward a young woman. Those who had no wives would be given as wives, and those who had wives would take them back.
As a concubine, the one who has done a great job can be given a few more."
"Half of the property such as cattle, horses, camels, and sheep will be distributed among the soldiers."
As soon as Zhu Dadian announced such a generous reward, both the Ming and barbarian armies cheered excitedly. No one would reject it, whether it was women, horses, cattle, sheep, or furs. They could sell them for exchange if they couldn't use them.
What about silver?
Especially those barbarian armies, barbarians, their productivity is backward, and their lives are naturally not good. Now that they have such an amazing harvest in the first battle in the Western Region, who wouldn't be overjoyed.
"Next, we will take advantage of the victory to pursue. While Kundulun Wutesh and Chu Hu'er are going to besiege Tacheng, Bohuoxi and other places, we will continue our efforts and capture Yinli."
"There are two roads from here to Yinli Valley. Which one should we take?"
"The main road follows the Tianshan Road expanded by the Ming Army in recent years, which is generally the route of the Duku Highway in later generations. It goes north over the Tianshan Mountains and enters the Nalati Grassland on the Gongnaisi River in the upper reaches of the Yinli Valley. This route only needs to cross between the two grasslands.
There is Mount Elinghabilga in between. After crossing this mountain, it has been a smooth road on the grassland.
Another way is to take the Wusun Ancient Trail, which starts from the Bayinbulak Prairie to the southwest, crosses the Karakul Mountains and reaches Kuqa, which is the ancient Qiuchi Kingdom, and then goes northwest to Baicheng in Aksu. To the north of Baicheng there is
The ancient castle of Yanyangou is the secret passage through which the Wusun Kingdom, who originally lived in Zoukuo, Hexi Province, migrated westward into the Yinli River Valley in ancient times.
Through this mountain path, they crossed mountains and rivers, traveled 260 miles, crossed the Tianshan Mountains from Qiuci and entered the Yinli Valley. They drove away the Dayue people who also moved from Hexi and established a settlement in the Yinli Valley.
Wusun Kingdom.
This road is very dangerous.
"After Kundulun captured Yinli, he sent troops to guard the mountain pass on the east side of the Alati Grassland. In addition, he also sent his son to lead troops to guard the mountain pass of Wushi, the main road from Yinli to Aksu. The ancient road to Wusun was dangerous.
It’s difficult to walk, and it’s snowing now. The mountain will be closed immediately, making it impossible to walk on the Wusun Ancient Trail.”
"No, the mountain has not been closed yet. You can still walk, but it is difficult to walk. There is no problem if you don't bring heavy artillery and only bring some light artillery. Whether it is Wushi's side or Alati's side, there are soldiers on both sides.
The more people and horses we need to defend, especially on the Alati side." Zhu Dadian looked at the map and said, "I think we should be surprised. The troops should move dangerously and cross the 300-mile Wusun Ancient Road to appear directly in the hinterland of the Yinli River Valley.
, annihilate the men and horses left behind in Kundulun Utaish from behind."
"In this season, it is very risky to cross the Wusun Ancient Road." A general said.
"War is an adventure."
"If the sons of Kundulun Utesh discover us, only a small number of soldiers and horses can block us in the mountains and prevent us from getting out. When we fall, we will be in a dilemma. It will be a disaster."
This chapter is not finished yet, please click on the next page to continue reading the exciting content! "I also have a back-up plan. Didn't Eqil Tuchechen Khan recruit more than 10,000 troops in Aksu? Let him lead his troops.
Fight back, march from Aksu Wensu along the Xiata Ancient Road to Yinli Zhaosuxiat Ranch, and make more noise. They are doing it in the light to attract Yin Li's attention, but we are doing it in the dark."
"This is called building a plank road in the open and crossing Chencang secretly."
Like the Wusun Ancient Trail, the Xiate Ancient Trail is also a shortcut across the Tianshan Mountains. It starts from the Xiate Ranch in Zhaosu in the north and ends in Wensu in Aksu in the south. It has to climb over 120 miles of dangerous terrain in the Tianshan Mountains, especially the main ridge of the Tianshan Mountains.
Climb to Hatamuzidaban, which is more than 3,600 meters above sea level.
Earlier, when Oqiltu was ordered to conquer the Yarkand south, he specially arranged for 70 families to dig ice ladders on the glacier. The ladder in Mongolian is Shatu, and Shat Ranch is the transliteration of Shatu, and its full name is Shatua.
Full.
When he sent troops to capture Aksu, and when he was defeated and retreated to Aksu, Oqirtu looked for this road. However, when he fled to Aksu, he had ordered people to destroy the Shatu Ice Ladder to prevent pursuing troops.
"Let Eqirtu build the Xiata Ice Ladder with great fanfare to attract the attention of the people left behind in Yinli. Let's cross quietly from the Wusun Ancient Road. This season happens to be when the Wusun Ancient Road is about to be blocked. They will definitely relax.
Be careful, if you build an ice ladder on the Xiata Ancient Road in the south, you will be led over, and we can just climb over it in one fell swoop."
Zhu Dadian was familiar with the art of war and was a master of strategy and tactics. He also had rich practical experience. This method of building a plank road to cross Chencang secretly was extremely impressive.
After hearing this, the generals all felt that this plan was feasible, convenient, and able to avoid enemy interception. It was sharp enough to penetrate behind enemy lines and pierce the heart. It was perfect.
The plan was decided. Zhu Dadian took paper and pen and wrote personally to the emperor about the victory of Yuledus Grassland. At the same time, he also reported his post-war disposition to the emperor.
It won't be long before he can report another victory to the emperor in the Yinli Valley!