The Qin army could directly attack the hinterland of Zhao State from the north of Zhao State to the south, avoiding the disadvantage of attacking the Taihang Mountain fortress from the front and losing a large number of troops.
Since then, the situation in Zhao State has been greatly unfavorable. It lost its strategic terrain advantage and was instead seized by the Qin State, resulting in a comprehensive blow to the entire Zhao State.
King Zhao had to divide his troops to defend against the enemies from Dai County in the north. The troops of the Taihang Mountains on the front battlefield became thinner due to the withdrawal, and the defense line suddenly became precarious.
In order to deal with this unfavorable situation, King Zhao had to ask for help from his good friend, the Wei State in the south.
Because to the north of the Zhao State is the Yu State, which is powerful and cannot be offended by the Qin State. To the east is the State of Yan, with Yu State at its back. King Yan is the number one younger brother of Yu State, so Qin State is unlikely to make any move.
Needless to say, South Korea in the south of Zhao State is even related by marriage to Yu State, so it is impossible for it to become the target of Qin State.
Then there is only one Wei State left, which is weak and surrounded by enemies.
And Wei really needs an ally to share the pressure from its surroundings. Otherwise, Wei alone will not be able to survive in this troubled world for long.
Therefore, after receiving Zhao's request for help, Wei did not dare to delay. Instead, he quickly assembled a group of troops again, numbering about 50,000, and went north to Hengshan County of Zhao to deploy defenses.
However, although Qin State obtained Daijun, its footsteps stopped, and instead of pursuing the victory, it launched a more violent offensive against Zhao State.
The battle lasted for more than half a year, but because we were on the offensive side, we did not have an advantage in terms of geographical location. The original 300,000 Qin troops now only have 120,000 left, but the attack is no longer possible, and they can only barely maintain the current results.
On the contrary, although the Zhao and Wei coalition forces are now at a disadvantage on the battlefield, because they are on the defensive side, their forces are relatively well preserved.
In Hengshan County, north of the capital HD, the Zhao and Wei coalition forces have 150,000 troops, stationed in important towns in the county to guard against the Qin army's southward march.
As for the Taihang Mountain line to the east, there are still 150,000 Zhao and Wei coalition troops stationed. With the passes as support, 100,000 people are enough to tightly defend the entire Taihang Mountain front.
With such a strong military force, it would be difficult for Qin to easily overthrow Zhao.
The reason is that the Qin State suffered a lot of losses in such a long war, and coupled with the previous chaos caused by Liu Bang and others, the loss of strength was too great.
Nowadays, the population of the entire Qin State, including the newly annexed Dai County, is only about 3.8 million people, of which only 350,000 troops are left.
With such a small number of soldiers and horses spread across Qin's vast territory, they can only maintain Qin's rule, but they are powerless when they want to attack other countries.
However, Qin did not have the strength to break through the strong defense line formed by the Zhao and Wei coalition forces and disintegrate this powerful enemy in the east. But Qin can find other people to do it for him.
Therefore, Qin's lobbyists actively appeared in the courts of Han and Yan, the two paradises in the Warring States Period, and the kings of countries that had not been affected by the war for several years.
As expected by Qin, these two were indeed tempted by what Qin said, and they became deeply greedy for the territories of Zhao and Wei.
After several years of recovering its strength, South Korea's troops finally expanded to as many as 150,000. This time, 100,000 troops were decisively sent to attack Hanoi County occupied by Wei.
It didn't take long before Hanoi County, which had been suffering from war for a long time and the people were forced to live in dire straits, yearned for the peaceful life of the people in their home country, South Korea.
Without South Korea taking the initiative to attack, the defenders of Hanoi County killed their general and surrendered to South Korea.
As a result, South Korea captured Hanoi County without spending a single soldier, and expanded its 100,000-strong army to 120,000, with great momentum.
Subsequently, Wei's Hedong County also completely lost contact with Wei and was surrounded by South Korea and Qin.
When the 120,000 Korean troops turned their guns and attacked him, the Hedong defenders also surrendered, and Hadong County completely fell into South Korean hands.
After this battle, South Korea occupied two counties, its territory doubled, its population reached 1 million, and it had 200,000 troops. Its strength became a first-class vassal state.
After the Wei State lost two counties, its territory was greatly reduced, and its military and population were also reduced too much. It completely shrank to the Central Plains again, and could only cling to its own place and survive.
The population of Wei has dropped to about one million, and its military strength is only 150,000. Its strength is at the bottom of the vassal states.
Zhao State in the north also lost Julu County under the attack of Yan State's 100,000-strong army. Only HD County, where the capital was located, and Hengshan County, where heavy troops were stationed, were not occupied by Yan State.
The population is only about 800,000, and the military strength is only 150,000. Like Wei, it is among the last vassal states.
Yan State's momentum has greatly increased, and it once again has six counties. Its population is approximately 1.5 million, but its military strength is still only 150,000. Its strength can be regarded as a second-rate vassal state.
April, the 11th year of the Emperor Yuan Dynasty.
After a long period of connection, the coalition forces of Korea, Yue, and Qi were built. An army of more than 200,000 people appeared in the eyes of the world, and their target was clearly Chu.
The Chu State was caught off guard and Nanyang County was captured by South Korea, and then Sishui County was captured by the Qi-Vietnam Allied Forces. The troops approached Shouchun, the capital, and the Chu State was shocked.
For the sake of his own safety, the King of Chu led the aristocratic ministers of the Chu State to evacuate the capital Shouchun, which was at the forefront. Instead, the capital was moved to Zhucheng, Hengshan County, where the county was mountainous and conducive to defense. Several generals were left behind to lead 50,000 Chu troops in Shouchun to resist the attack of 100,000 Qi and Yue allied troops.
At the same time, the King of Chu organized a large army to resist the Korean attack in Nanjun.
After some adjustments, the crisis of the Chu State's imminent demise was suddenly eliminated. Although the situation is still unfavorable, there is no longer any fear of national subjugation.
In May, Wei State wanted to avoid the situation where its current small territory was not conducive to strategic depth. Send 100,000 troops south to attack Chen County of Chu State.
The defenders of Chen County were weak, and they did not expect the Wei State to join the war. Therefore, Chen County fell in less than January and Wei won a complete victory.
The new capital of Chu State, which had just retreated to the rear and away from the battlefield, suddenly faced the threat of Wei State after losing the northern barrier of Chen County.
Fortunately, there is a natural barrier on the Huaihe River to the north of the capital, and we can rely on the river as a support to prevent people from directly attacking the vicinity of the capital.
In June, the Vietnamese army, which originally united with the Qi State to attack Shouchun City, the former capital of the Chu State, withdrew and returned after a long period of fierce attack, the loss of many troops and horses, and no results. In the same month, Qi State also withdrew its troops and turned to stick to the Sishui County it had just captured, preparing to digest this piece of fat.
In July, shortly after returning to the mainland of Yue State, the Vietnamese army suddenly attacked Lujiang County of Chu State before they had time to rest. The defenders of Lujiang County failed to defend themselves and were captured by the Vietnamese army within one month. Lujiang County once again returned to the arms of the Yue Kingdom.
(End of chapter)