At the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty

Page 526

It is lucky to be born in a big country, but miserable to be born in a small country.

It was so in the past, it is so now, and it will remain so in the future.

So someone Guo wants a Greater China, not a chaotic world of division.

The number and energy of the Linzi camp are limited, Guo Peng first needs to unify, and then expand to the outside world.

Obviously, the Western Regions cannot be counted among the achievements of the unified war, so naturally the news lagged behind.

Later, with Zhang Fei and Cao Ren's advances in Liangzhou, Guo Peng needed to further infiltrate the Western Regions, and sent Linziying spies to the Western Regions to investigate the situation of the countries in the Western Regions.

Hit first or comfort first, this is very important.

Open up the countries of the Western Regions, sell some products with excess production capacity in the Wei Empire to the Western Regions, and earn some foreign exchange, and introduce some local special products from Central Asia, and there may be some windfalls.

For this trade route, this silk road that solves involution, Mr. Guo has been coveting for a long time.

As the emperor, he not only has to clean up those ghosts and monsters, but also is responsible for making the cake bigger, increasing the total wealth of the society, and redistributing it properly.

Only in this way can we leave more room for future generations.

Therefore, the Western Regions must be developed.

The strategy of returning to the Western Regions must be implemented.

After the decision was made, someone Guo began to write the imperial edict.

He ordered Zhang Fei to start from Liaodong and go to the northwest to serve as Cao Ren's deputy. Under Cao Ren's leadership, he gradually penetrated into Wuwei County and began to attack Wuwei County.

At the same time, Guo Peng also ordered Cao Ren to prepare for the substantive occupation of the four Hexi counties.

Now you can start moving.

The time is indeed almost up.

Before, Guo Peng asked the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to sort out a lot of information about the management of the Western Regions by the emperors of the Eastern Han Dynasty.

Beginning with Emperor Guangwu Liu Xiu, the Eastern Han government's attitude towards the management of the Western Regions has always been negative and passive.

Basically, if there are some setbacks, they will give up the Western Regions. They only want to preserve the thirteen prefectures of Han, and they don't care about the others.

That's why there are three links and three unique things and the eventual loss of the Western Regions.

The weakness and powerlessness of small government and the disadvantages of controlling resources are clearly visible.

During Liu Xiu's period, Liu Xiu was busy stabilizing the country, because he unified the world too quickly and became emperor. After succeeding to the throne, he faced huge problems, internal and external troubles, and he had more than enough energy for the Western Regions.

At that time, more than a dozen countries in the Western Regions sent protons into Han to request Liu Xiu to go to the Protectorate of the Western Regions, but Liu Xiu refused.

Indeed, during Liu Xiu's period, he really didn't have much time and energy to manage the Western Regions. It was not easy for him to manage his one-acre three-point land well.

There are powerful people inside and the Xiongnu outside. Liu Xiu is really difficult.

After more than 30 years of fighting wits and courage with Haoqiang, Liu Xiu died of old age, leaving a relatively stable and relatively abundant country to his son Liu Zhuang, Emperor Ming of the Han Dynasty.

After Liu Zhuang inherited the throne, because the country was stable, he didn't need to look forward and backward like Liu Xiu, so he learned from Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty and started the management of the Western Regions.

In this way, the historical curtain of the Eastern Han Empire's three connections and three uniquenesses to the Western Regions was opened.

From Emperor Han Ming to Emperor Han An, the Eastern Han Empire waged a century-long struggle against the Northern Huns in the Western Regions. During this period, they failed three times, abandoned the Western Regions three times, and made a comeback three times.

During this period, the contributions of Ban Chao, Ban Yong and his son can even be said to have played a decisive role.

If it weren't for the personal charm and strong personal ability of Ban Chao and Ban Yong, who stabilized the Western Regions with almost empty hands and white wolves, there would be more than three connections and three uniquenesses between the Eastern Han Empire and the Western Regions.

Since Emperor Ming, the Eastern Han Empire has had a dispensable attitude towards the Western Regions. It doesn't pay much attention to the Western Regions, and it doesn't think that operating the Western Regions can gain much benefit.

Giving up three times and starting over three times will easily consume the credibility of the Central Empire in the hearts of the small countries in the Western Regions.

This is really dangerous. The game of Wolf is not fun at all, unless all these small countries are really wiped out and the Western Regions are formally controlled.

However, it is not impossible for Guo to understand the thinking of the Eastern Han government.

According to the rules of tribute, after the small countries in the Western Regions pay tribute, the Central Plains Empire needs to reward them with more things. Sometimes even if they come empty-handed, they can return with a full load.

For some stinky and shameless small countries, paying tribute is like a white wolf with empty gloves, and you can earn real money back with a little scrap of copper and iron.

Fools don't come to pay tribute.

But in Guo's opinion, operating the Western Regions to open up trade routes is an excellent way to make a big cake. In this era when the sea routes are not smooth and difficult to sail, the importance of the land Silk Road is self-evident.

It is really interesting to do business with distant countries and earn foreign exchange.

Transferring the excess domestic production capacity and exchanging it for real money, as long as the scale is scaled up, it is far from being comparable to the things that are rewarded.

Unfortunately, not many people see this.

Chapter 935 .940 Five Return to the Western Regions Strategy

Ban Chao and Ban Yong saw this, so the father and son followed suit.

With a fearless attitude and extremely high double merchants, they repeatedly took advantage of the contradictions among the countries in the Western Regions to find the most beneficial balance point for the Eastern Han Empire, and maintained the influence and control of the Western Regions for the Eastern Han Empire. The smoothness of the road.

Moreover, they used the troops of the Western Regions to fight the Northern Huns many times, driving the Northern Huns one after another, and tried their best to drive the Northern Huns out.

However, the snipe and the clam competed, the fisherman benefited, the Eastern Han Empire was in decline, and the century-long Han-Qiang War exhausted the country's power before the Yellow Turban Rebellion.

Prior to this, the Eastern Han Empire desperately stabbed the Northern Huns to death with the last sword, and then basically died of their own breath. As a result, the countries in the Western Regions were liberated.

This is tantamount to two powerful bosses fighting each other and dying together, and the younger brothers below are free.

From Emperor Han'an onwards, the Eastern Han government's control over the Western Regions went from bad to worse.

There is no longer an excellent leader with strong personal charm and personal qualities like Ban Chao and Ban Yong that can make the Western Regions obey, and the Eastern Han government's suspicion of Ban Yong's behavior of questioning Ban Yong also made the Western Regions lose trust in the Eastern Han government.

Shi Wang Jing, the governor of the Western Regions, was killed by the Khotan Kingdom, and the Eastern Han Empire could not send troops to conquer.

The King of Cheshi Hou Guoxin established by the Eastern Han Empire was opposed by the powerful officials in the country, and the Eastern Han Empire could not stop it.

Shule civil strife, the Eastern Han Empire sent people to conquer several times, but they could not win or intervene.

After one failure after another, the prestige accumulated by the Han Empire in the Western Regions from the Western Han Dynasty to the early Eastern Han Dynasty was exhausted.

In this way, in the later period of Emperor Ling of the Han Dynasty, the chaos in Liangzhou cut off the communication between the Western Regions and the Han government. After the Yellow Turban Uprising, the Eastern Han Empire could not protect itself, let alone rule the Western Regions.

In other words, from the seventh year of Guanghe to the third year of Yande today, during a total of 20 years, the Western Regions have long ceased to be under the control of the Central Plains Empire.

They have become independent countries one by one, disobeying the orders of the Central Plains Empire, no longer obeying their suzerain country, and playing with themselves, having a good time.

He was as happy as a two-hundred-pound child.

The Silk Road is not isolated due to some special needs, and the economic exchanges are still the same. There are always business travelers who can magically appear in the two places, bring their respective specialties back to their respective countries, and earn high profits.

Guo was very upset about this.

You guys are making money, aren't you?

Dare not to pay taxes? !

Therefore, after someone Guo wiped out the Liangzhou warlords during the Jian'an period, he ordered Wei Jun to occupy all the roads from Wuwei County to the east of Liangzhou. Toll tax.

Then you are not allowed to go deep into the Central Plains, and you can only do business with the Central Plains Business Travel in the market stipulated by Hanyang County. It is impossible to go deeper.

Someone Guo wants to tell the countries in the Western Regions that the Central Plains has a new master.

At the same time, someone Guo also complained about the Eastern Han Empire.

If it weren't for the fact that the Han Empire left so much mess and asked Guo to clean up and wipe his ass, Guo would have sent troops to the Western Regions to tell them what is since ancient times.

But fortunately, after several years of recuperation and preparations for farming, the four counties of Liangzhou have accumulated a considerable amount of food, fodder and ordnance. Eyeing.

Yongzhou, as the general logistics base, was also well prepared under the governance of Chen Gong. The food and grass piled up like a mountain, and the treasury was filled with ordnance supplies and the standard five baht money as military pay, just waiting for the war to start.

After owning the three major horse breeding farms in Liangzhou and Bingzhou Youzhou, plus the equipment of the three cavalry artifacts, in a few years, the number of cavalry in the Wei army has expanded from 7 before the establishment of the Wei state to 17 today.

Over the past few years, [-] cavalry joined the Wei army's battle order, which greatly improved the mobility and combat effectiveness of the Wei army, and also greatly improved the logistics support.

The addition of a large number of mules and horses has greatly improved the logistical radiation capabilities of the Wei army on land.

Longxi Horse Farm in Liangzhou, Yanmen Horse Farm in Bingzhou and Liaoxi Horse Farm in Youzhou have raised more than 80 war horses.

At present, this number is still increasing, and it should exceed 90 within three years.

The eunuch Xian Yuyin, as one of the only nine ministers in power today, personally sits at the Longxi Racecourse in Liangzhou, herding more than [-] horses, and has given Guo Peng great help in terms of war horses.

Guo Peng also helped Xian Yuyin a lot in raising war horses.

The funds are earmarked for special purposes, and funds for raising horses are specially set up, which are calculated separately from the national treasury and the internal treasury.

This independent fund for war horses allowed the transportation efficiency of the Wei Empire to take off.

Especially at the military level, the addition of more and more war horses allowed the Wei Empire's army to gallop across the battlefield at a speed that surpassed all armies of the time.

The time saved is incalculable.

Guo Peng placed in Liangzhou and handed over to Cao Ren the Northwest Corps with a total of 5000 people, the 5000 army of Hanyang Camp and [-] garrison soldiers.

It turns out that the number of cavalry in the Northwest Corps is around [-], which is the highest proportion of cavalry among the major corps.

But right now, the Northwest Corps has achieved a comprehensive cavalry.

Everyone is a cavalry.

Because of the equipment of the three cavalry artifacts, they not only have strong infantry combat capabilities, they can form an army formation when dismounted, and are proficient in infantry tactics.

The equipment of the three cavalry artifacts has greatly accelerated the speed of cavalry training and formation. From the first three to five years of work, it can now look good within a year, and the efficiency has been greatly improved.

The comprehensive cavalry of the Northwest Corps is also an achievement that Cao Ren is quite proud of. He mentioned this matter more than once in his performance to Guo Peng, expressing that he is very confident.

This time Zhang Fei was transferred, and the [-] particularly elite and fierce iron cavalry under Zhang Fei's command would also be transferred there, and Zhang Fei would continue to be in charge, join the Northwest Corps, and accept Cao Ren's restraint.

With the addition of such a new force, the total strength of the Northwest Corps will reach 5000, and it will be a breeze to restore all Liangzhou and promote the country's prestige.

Under the premise of such an abundant supply of war horses and transport horses, the Northwest Corps can even realize a comprehensive system of one man and two horses, and a logistics system of all mules.

Everything can be transported by animal power, which greatly enhanced the Northwest Corps' marching ability and logistical transportation ability.

It can be said that the Northwest Corps under Cao Ren's command is the most capable of long-term combat in the Guo Wei Empire.

The Grand Cavalry Legion is actually useless in Jiangnan.

The south of the Yangtze River is densely covered with water networks, densely covered with hills, broken plains, swamps everywhere, and there are many undeveloped primitive jungles, which are really not suitable for large-scale cavalry corps.

Therefore, the three major corps in the south of the Yangtze River are mainly infantry, navy, and troops that are good at mountain warfare.

The main cavalry are concentrated in Liangzhou, Bingzhou and Youzhou.

Such a corps under Cao Ren's command was prepared by Guo Peng for the Western Regions.

In the future, this powerful cavalry regiment will enter the Western Regions and establish its great reputation in the Western Regions.

Before that, Guo Peng needed to send enough spies to the Western Regions to get a comprehensive understanding of the specific conditions of the countries in the Western Regions.

Otherwise, if you don't know anything, what's the use of being blind?

20 years ago... No, according to the lag of information, this is already 40 years ago. The sea has changed, and the information of 40 years ago is really not very useful.

Chapter 936 .940 The Six Wei Army went to the four counties of Hexi

In order to better implement the strategy of returning to the Western Regions, Guo Peng decided to let the Northwest Corps advance westward.

Take the four counties of Xiliang, which are still in a semi-independent state, and build them into a further advance base, so as to extend their tentacles to the Western Regions.

When they are close at hand, use the army to promote the country's prestige and tell them that the king of the Central Plains is back.

The Western Regions have been a vassal of our Central Plains Empire since ancient times!

At that time, Mr. Guo really didn't believe that those small broken countries in the Western Regions would not come to pay homage to him.

Then it was logical to send the army to the Western Regions to establish military strongholds.

If something happens after that, the initiative will be in the hands of Mr. Guo.

Soon, Guo Peng's edict was sent to Liaodong and handed over to Lu Su, the governor of Pingzhou. After receiving the edict, Lu Su immediately called Yu Jin and Zhang Fei to announce Guo Peng's edict.

"What? His Majesty told me to go to Liangzhou?"