In fact, this is not to blame King Loulan for not having wisdom, but to blame it for being too weak.
This is what the so-called "weak country has no diplomacy" means.
It is a weak country, and its life and death depend on the whims of other countries. How can it have the leverage to negotiate terms with other countries?
There is no need for other countries to negotiate terms with weak countries.
Even if I negotiate terms with you, it's just a superficial show for others to see.
For example, Shen Bing and Prince Loulan spent so much time just acting for the Thirty-Six Kingdoms of the Western Regions.
If King Loulan was not fooled and did not jump into the pit, Shen Bing would directly send troops to "protect" King Loulan.
But of course, the Qin army gained a better reputation at this time.
Because the Qin army not only drove away the Xiongnu invaders for the Western Regions, but also sent troops to garrison with various countries in the Western Regions to ensure their security, and then also did business with various countries. Is there anything better than this?
At least Shen Bing kept his promise on the surface.
For example, he pulled the Qin army out of the city to garrison that night.
In fact, for the small town of Loulan, there is not much difference between having a city and not having a city, especially since a section of the city wall was blown down by the Qin army.
On the other hand, what can the Qin army do even if it is stationed outside the city?
Zhang Ke, who was named the "Loulan Protector", was leading a thousand ferocious Qin troops among them to stare at King Loulan. If there was any disturbance, he would cooperate inside and outside to turn Loulan upside down.
As for the more than 2,000 Loulan soldiers...the Qin army, which had "explosive bombs", did not take them seriously.
In addition, King Loulan also wanted to use the Qin army as instructors to train troops and build city defenses...
This was originally the intention of King Loulan. Even if he wanted to go back on his words, he could not do it because the "Loulan Protector" would give him advice at the right time, and it was not okay not to listen to the advice.
This does not mean that the "Loulan Protector" will use force, but if King Loulan does not do this, the Qin army will not be able to protect his safety, and may even withdraw from Loulan and let him face the Huns alone.
Then King Loulan would be embarrassed.
Are you going to be a faggot and turn to the Huns like before?
Although the Qin army withdrew from Loulan, they still had the ability to capture Loulan, and even if they had the courage of Loulan, they would not dare to do so.
Still stand on the side of the Qin army, and you will be beaten by the Xiongnu again...
So after much deliberation, in the end we had no choice but to leave the Qin army behind.
At this time, the Xiongnu had actually withdrawn from Loulan territory, but Loulan didn't know it.
Youxian Wang Xunxun ordered the withdrawal from Loulan.
Because the Huns only had this choice.
The Qin army's attack on Loulan was clearly seen by the Xiongnu cavalry who were wandering outside, and they immediately reported it to Xun Hao.
Xun Hao was so shocked when he saw the news:
"How could the Qin army destroy the city wall with firearms?"
"And three hundred steps away?"
"If this is the case, then how can my aunt guard it?"
At this time, Xun Hao was somewhat dubious about the information.
This was mainly because the weapons of the Qin army were beyond the scope of his imagination. If he could use a trebuchet, he could understand it, but if he pointed a few thick iron rods that would emit smoke and fire at the city wall, he could blow it down... That was Unheard of.
Another part of the reason is that Xunxun thought it was just his subordinates who were frightened by the Qin army's "Thunderbolt Fireball", so he made random remarks.
This was the case in ancient times, where distrust often arose because information dissemination was lagging behind.
For example, the Xiongnu wrote it on cowhide in Zhao characters and delivered it to Xunxu on a fast horse. There are many problems with the description...
Thick iron rods, emitting smoke and fire, roared against the city wall, and the city wall collapsed.
How can people who don't know the truth or artillery believe it after reading these words? The first thing that comes to mind may be witchcraft.
However, even if he didn't believe it, he still ordered all troops, including reinforcements, to be withdrawn.
Before, 20,000 reinforcements were sent to reinforce Loulan, but that was when Loulan was in the hands of the Xiongnu.
Loulan being in the hands of the Xiongnu means that the Xiongnu are not short of water, but the Qin army is short of water, so the survival and fighting of the 20,000 reinforcements is not a problem.
Who would have thought that the Qin army could capture Loulan within a few hours and firmly control it.
So the situation immediately changed: the Qin army was not short of water, but the Huns were short of water.
Therefore, there is only one possibility for the Xiongnu to win if they continue to reinforce Loulan...quickly attack and capture Loulan within a few days, otherwise the Xiongnu will have to withdraw due to lack of water.
It was almost impossible for the Xiongnu, who was not good at attacking by force, to capture Loulan where the Qin army was stationed within a few days, even though the Xiongnu's military strength was twice that of the Qin army.
So Xun Hao had only one choice, to withdraw his troops.
But Xunxu was unwilling to withdraw his troops from Gushi.
Although from the strategic goal point of view, the Xiongnu should withdraw their troops from Gushi.
The Xiongnu's original intention of occupying Gushi and Loulan was to prevent the Qin army from crossing the desert to obtain water and establish a foothold in the Western Regions.
The Qin army's occupation of Loulan meant that the Xiongnu's strategic goal had completely failed.
According to common sense, the Huns should return to the grassland, which is their battlefield, instead of continuing to garrison Gushi.
But Xun Yu was unwilling to give in.
The reason is as mentioned before, Loulan and Gushi are two very important countries. They can be said to be the gateways to the Western Regions.
It's okay that Loulan has been lost, but if I lose my aunt again...
The Xiongnu's access to the Western Region was cut off, which almost meant losing the entire Western Region.
Therefore, Xunxu planned to defend Gu Shi for a while. If he could not hold on, it would not be too late to flee north into the grassland.
In addition, Xun Hao also considered that the Xiongnu had an absolute advantage in military strength:
The Qin army crossed the desert and rushed to Loulan with only more than 10,000 troops, but the Huns had more than 90,000 troops... Originally 100,000, but 6,000 were wiped out in Loulan.
Of these 90,000 troops, 50,000 were stationed in Gushi, while the other 40,000 were led by Xun Yu and had been waiting on the flanks for fighter planes.
Xunxu didn't believe that the Qin army could not be defeated with such a ratio of troops!
In other words, protect my aunt.
This was not something that Xunxun could decide because it changed its strategic goals without authorization.
However, Xunxu's position is far from that of Maodun Chanyu. If he had to report back and forth, he would have lost the opportunity to guard the aunt.
So Xunxun decided to take matters into his own hands to protect his aunt.
He gritted his teeth and said bitterly to his subordinates:
"If we can't defeat the Qin army of ten thousand with ninety thousand troops, then we will be defeated by the Qin army even if we retreat to the grassland!"
All the subordinates expressed their approval:
"Our army will win this battle!"
"Ninety thousand versus ten thousand, if we can't win in a fight, we might as well die!"
"Even if the Shen Bing on this trip has extraordinary abilities, he will be killed by us!"
…
However, some subordinates still asked worriedly:
"But King Youxian."
"The Chanyu has an order that if we lose Loulan, we will abandon our aunt..."
Xun Hao interrupted his subordinates:
"At that time, Chanyu did not know that the Qin army only numbered ten thousand."
"I believe that if Shan Yu were here, he would also support us in fighting with all our strength!"
All the subordinates nodded in agreement, and all of them were gearing up for a big fight.