Because the Xiongnu attacked the border incidents mostly occurred in spring. Therefore, the villagers were unprepared. In addition, it has just fallen snow. The villagers stayed in the village. No one went up the mountain to chop wood or hunt. No one went to work. then. The entire village suffered a catastrophe. The village has 476 people. Except for 37 young women who were abducted by the Huns. The rest were killed. Nothing is spared.
Liangzhou at this time. Except for a few counties. The other local armies have not yet been reorganized. In many places, powerful private armies and Qiang tribes each act as defenses. After getting the news that the Xiongnu committed the side. The local governors who have long been accustomed to report to each other. Huang Zhong and Jia Xu, who were stationed in Long County, received the report. It is already two days later.
Huang Zhong's regiment had ten thousand cavalry. Although the number of this cavalry is small. But they all stayed directly after Pingding Guanzhong and Xiliang. It can be said to be the most powerful cavalry unit in the entire Han army. There is such a powerful cavalry in hand. Huang Zhong naturally cannot allow the Huns to run wild on his own land. then. Huang Zhong immediately ordered. Three thousand cavalry led by Wei Yan rushed to the scene of the accident. He then mobilized another 20,000 infantry for reinforcements.
As Jushou expected. The tactics adopted by these Huns cavalry was to grab and leave. Although Wei Yan marched fast. When I got there. The Xiongnu cavalry has long been gone. but. The situation in the village still surprised Wei Yan and his soldiers. Everywhere were slaughtered villagers. Those cruel Huns never let go of even the children under the full moon. Some women even fell naked in a pool of blood. Before dying, they were all subjected to inhuman rape.
The soldiers saw this. All eyes are split. They shouted to avenge the dead villagers. It has not snowed in recent days. There are still deep horseshoe prints on the snow. If you follow these hoof prints to track down. Maybe you can really find the camp of those Huns.
but. If it is really tracked down. It must be out of the border of the Han Dynasty. Liu Xin has strict requirements on military discipline. What's more, Wei Yan has also been blamed. There is no above command. Wei Yan didn't dare to chase across the border anyway.
On the one hand, Wei Yan ordered the remains of the villagers killed. At the same time, they sent people to the county government to retrieve the household registration records of this village. At the same time, they sent scouts to inspect the surrounding villages and towns. Inform the villagers to take precautions. Because of the complete household registration. Soon it was counted how many villagers were killed and taken into captivity in the Xiongnu attack on the border.
Jia Xu was originally from Liangzhou. The situation of the Xiongnu attacking the border is very clear. He keenly felt that it was unusual for such a thing to happen just after the winter. So I used a red feather letter. The emergency report arrived in Xiangyang.
When the cavalry brigade assembled by Liu Xin arrived in Liangzhou one after another. Huang Zhong has transferred 50,000 steppers to the border. Take down ten camps. A large number of scouts and outposts were dispatched. Prevent the Huns from harassing border residents again. The people in other villages on the border were also mobilized. On duty day and night. just in case.
The cavalry that Liu Xin assembled to Liangzhou was as many as 100,000. These cavalry belong to different legions. therefore. Liu Xin appointed Xu Huang as their temporary commander in chief. Xu Huang is Liu Xin's righteous brother. He was also one of the first generals to follow Liu Xin. Everyone naturally had no objections.
I heard that Liu Xin ordered a counterattack against the Huns. Both Huang Zhong and Wei Yan were excited. Get up immediately. He folded his hands and said: "General Xu. Liangzhou is the place where my Fifth Army is stationed. The Xiongnu dare to attack. It is incumbent on both of me. I would like to be the vanguard."
Zhang Fei yelled: "Hey. I have come here for thousands of miles. It's not the one who appreciates the scenery of Liangzhou. This is my first battle."
Xu Huang smiled and said: "You guys don't fight. The lord has already made arrangements before he leaves. This time the attack on the Xiongnu. Five ways go together.
The generals couldn't help being excited. If you divide the forces into five groups. Everyone has a chance. No wonder Liu Xin wants to transfer so many people here. in fact. If it weren't for Ju persuade them. Liu Xin wanted to come here for a while.
Xu Huang waved his hand. Shen Sheng said: "The lord has an order. The Xiongnu violated my borders. Killed my people. The crimes committed shall be refunded ten times."
The generals glanced at each other. Secretly calculated. They already know. This time the Huns harassed the border. A total of 439 villagers were killed. Thirty-seven women were taken abducted. In other words. They attacked this time. At least 4,390 Huns must be killed. Three hundred and seventy Xiongnu women were taken back into captivity. It is considered to complete the task. This order was given to Xu Huang by Liu Xin alone before leaving. Zhang Fei, Zhao Yun and others did not know.
Zhao Yun is kind. He said, "Second brother. Did the lord have any explanation. This time he attacked the Huns. It only killed young and strong men. It doesn't matter whether they are old or weak, women or children."
Xu Huang frowned. Said: "The lord means. This time I am not fighting head-on with the Huns. The main thing is to find their tribal settlement. Kill their males. Take their horses, cattle and sheep. Take the young women. Burn their tents. And a corresponding article and equipment. The lord said. This time the attack. Everyone is only allowed to carry dry food for five days. If you want food and grass, you can grab it from the hands of the Xiongnu tribes."
Zhao Yun said in astonishment: "In this way, aren't we the same as those of the Huns."
Zhang Fei laughed and said, "Whatever you do. Big Brother has to do as Big Brother asks. Besides. He is only allowed to grab us by the Huns. Isn't we allowed to grab him."
The generals all laughed.
Xu Huang patted the table. He stood up and said, "What Yi De said is not bad. The lord said the same. Tooth for tooth. Use violence to control violence. Use blood to wash blood."
"Yes. Tooth for tooth. Use violence to control violence. Use blood to wash blood."
There was a roar in the big tent. Even Zhao Yun was angry.
Xu Huang raised his hands slightly. Said: "You generals. Follow the orders of the main generals. Five generals Zhang Fei, Zhao Yun, Wei Yan, Ma Chao, and Pound each draw 10,000 cavalry. They split their way to attack the Huns. Two generals, Huang Zhong and Sun Ce, respond to each other.
The generals all handed over the orders. But Sun Ce leaned back and said: "General Xu. The final general is willing to be a pioneer. Please be kind to the army."
Xu Huang's face sank. Seriously said: "Sun Ce. This is the arrangement made by the lord himself. Would you like to listen. Hmph. Xu Mou didn't want to personally mention the big axe. Ride the battlefield."
Sun Ce dared not say anything. He stepped back aside.
This time going out. It was indeed arranged by Liu Xin himself. People are always selfish. Sun Ce is now Liu Xin's son-in-law anyhow. Liu Xin didn't want to hurt Sun Ce. Send him to Liangzhou. to be honest. It was just for him to plate with gold. How could he rush to the forefront to take risks
Xu Huang saw no objection to the generals. Continue to say: "The lord has a strict order. One is not allowed to rape a woman. Two is not allowed to hide property. Three is not allowed to lose equipment. Any violation of the order will be handled by the army."
Give this order. The generals' expressions were all constrained. The first two are relatively easy to do. The last one is a bit difficult. But there is no alternative. Last time Zhang Liao lost four military horses in Xuzhou. It sounded a wake-up call to Liu Xin. Whether the four military horses were acquired by Liu Bei or Tao Qian, there was nothing remarkable. But once it was acquired by the Huns. That is to make them even more powerful. Not to mention these equipment. From stirrups and horseshoes to sabers and cavalry bows. Any one. Both can increase the combat effectiveness of the prairie cavalry to a new level. How could Liu Xin not be cautious.
Because I have witnessed the tragic death of those villagers. Wei Yan insisted on choosing the middle route. That is the direction in which the horseshoe prints on the snow extend. Get Xu Huang's permission. Wei Yan took ten thousand cavalry. With the first ray of sunshine in the morning. Embarked on a vast journey. These ten thousand cavalry all belong to the Fifth Army. They have stayed in Liangzhou for the longest time. Because Liu Xin's army has a tradition of helping the people. They also often help ordinary people to do something. The relationship with the local people is also the deepest. Therefore, he hates the Xiongnu attack on the border the most. and so. This team advanced very quickly. at dusk. They appeared in a valley. It can already be seen. The horseshoe prints around seemed chaotic. It shows that the camps of the Huns who attacked the Han border are not far from here.
Wei Yan raised his hand to restrain the team. Take out a cylindrical object from his arms. Rest on the eyes. Look into the distance. This is just produced by the research institute. It's called clairvoyance. In fact, it was a telescope made under the guidance of Liu Xin and Ma Yun. Because there is no glass. Therefore, the lenses on the clairvoyance are all polished with crystals. Naturally valuable. Only these senior generals can be equipped.
Of course. Said to be clairvoyant. It is impossible to really see thousands of miles away. but. Through this clairvoyance. Wei Yan could still clearly see a camp a few miles away. Several bonfires were lit inside. Many people are dancing around the campfire. Wei Yan turned his head and said, "Everyone dismounts and rests. Eat some dry food."
Every soldier carried a long cloth bag. Wei Yan is no exception. The cloth bag contained the dry food they carried on this trip. . Fried noodles. This age. Marching and fighting also need to bury the pot for cooking. but. For long-distance raids. Cooking in a pot is obviously not suitable. Liu Xin urgently needed to develop a marching ration for his cavalry. And Ma Yun happened to know how to make fried noodles. There will be a strong army in later generations. A bite of fried noodles and a bite of snow. Defeated powerful enemies armed to the teeth. Ma Yun's grandfather is a member of this army. When I was young. She did not listen to her grandpa telling stories of their time. Therefore, the impression of fried noodles is extremely deep.
Fried noodles are easy to make. Easy to carry. But Xu Huang only distributed rations for each person for five days. Because this attack is just to teach the Huns a lesson. He did not intend to fight for a long time on the grasslands. and. It's winter now. It is not easy for war horses to eat grass. Need to carry horse feed with the army. The carrying capacity of the horse is limited. In order to ensure the needs of war horses. Only to minimize the soldiers’ rations.
The soldiers only carried rations for five days. In other words. Two and a half days later. They must return to Dahan territory. but. All the soldiers hope to be able to kill farther. So they cherish this limited ration very much. Since departure. I was not willing to eat a little bit.