Chapter 262 Preparing for the Western Turks

The winter of the fourth year of Wude was destined to be a strange winter. Apart from the fact that the countries mentioned above did not have major wars, there is another thing that is quite confusing. This incident has become a mystery that has never been dispelled in the hearts of various researchers who studied the history of Wude in the early years of Wude. It has also become an eternal mystery in the vast sea of ​​Chinese history.

Shortly after the Liangzhou Legion controlled the Western Regions, the commander of the Liangzhou Legion, the King of Han of the Tang Dynasty had already left the Western Regions. This time, there was no written word left behind. Except for a few people familiar with the King of Han who knew that the King of Han had left, other people did not know that the King of Han had left the Western Regions. In other words, this matter itself could not be left in history, at least it would not be left in history in the form of official history.

Of course, ordinary soldiers also had doubts at this time. Liu Shan, the King of Han who had always been diligent in government and military affairs, never appeared in front of them again. For these ordinary soldiers, the generals who knew the reality could only fabricate various reasons. For example, the Western Regions had just been controlled, and the King of Han was still in contact with various countries in the Western Regions. However, these soldiers garrisoned in the Western Regions did not see King of Han. In the past, the King of Han often went out to patrol camps, and this patrol camp still maintained this kind of regular frequency. There was no exception to wind, rain, and snow. For example, the King of Han took advantage of the opportunity that the war was suspending at this time and might have gone to the Turkic grassland. Those who hold this idea think that Princess Sinan was still on the grassland, and it seemed normal for the King of Han to meet his pregnant wife. The King of Han was tired and went to bed. The King of Han went abroad to investigate and various reasons were told by the generals.

Anyway, there are many reasons, but most of the soldiers still have various doubts. The King of Han has never left the barracks and his army for a long time. How could it be that the King of Han will not appear in the barracks for a few months? Many people are sure that the King of Han will no longer be in the camp at this time, nor will he go to a certain place like those generals. However, those who have such speculations are still at the level of speculation. No one knows where the King of Han has gone, and even the generals who were told do not know where the King of Han has gone.

If these ordinary soldiers knew where the King of Han had gone at this time, they would be surprised that they might pick up weapons and rescue their beloved king.

Liu Shan did not go anywhere else, but went to several shipyards along the northern coast of the Tang Dynasty. This was also impossible. For the rush to build these large ships, Liu Shan had to personally arrive at the scene. Some core technologies and novel applications could not be explained clearly in drawings and language. After all, this era was still in the early Tang Dynasty. Many things that appeared in later generations had to be held by Liu Shan personally arrive at the scene and directed them personally. For example, the steam engine was not created by the craftsmen of this era based on a few drawings and instructions. Although there was no shortage of skilled craftsmen in this era, some things were not made by skilled craftsmen.

When Liu Shan went to these places, he naturally could not hide it from the officials of the Tang Dynasty. On the surface, Liu Shan was the King of Han personally appointed by the Emperor of the Tang Dynasty. It was normal for Liu Shan to appear in coastal cities of the Tang Dynasty. However, considering the specific background of this era and the subtle relationship of the King of Han and the Tang Dynasty, it was absolutely abnormal for Liu Shan to appear here.

And considering some of the things happening around us at this time, we can probably explain why Liu Shan was able to stay here at this time.

First, the Liangzhou Legion pressed towards the Liangzhou border, and then Liu Shan's envoy went to Chang'an of the Tang Dynasty to meet or attend the power center of the Tang Dynasty at this time.

Then, Liu Shan mysteriously disappeared.

This inevitably made curious people think that the Liangzhou Legion was pushed in so that Liu Shan could safely reach several coastal cities.

Later, the border of the northern Tang Dynasty pressed to the front line of the Great Wall, which could be understood as Liu Shan and the Tang Dynasty reached some secret conditions, and exchanged for some other things with the land that the Emperor of the Tang Dynasty dreamed of restoring, just like the possibility of building a ship along the coast. This should be possible for the early Tang court at this time. After all, it was extremely difficult to restore the boundaries of the previous empire in the chaos. Restoring the boundaries is not something that can be done in just one sentence, so how many soldiers need to bleed to death.

Looking at the relationship between King Han and the Tang Dynasty at this time, although the forces of the Tang Dynasty and Liu Shan were faintly confronted, there was never a direct conflict. Even in Hebei, Liu Shan took the initiative to give up the land in Hebei, allowing the Tang Dynasty to obtain a large area of ​​land without any effort. Even in the Liangzhou boundary under Liu Shan's control, the Liangzhou forces had never left their own borders, or in other words, the borders of Liangzhou, and there had never been any invasion of the Tang Dynasty borders.

Although this relationship cannot be said to be excellent, it has not reached the level of war. Moreover, Liu Shan’s King of Han was officially conferred by the court, and Liangzhou was also officially appointed by the court to the jurisdiction of the King of Han. At this time, when the land of China was not completely unified, it seemed impossible for the battle between the Tang Dynasty and the King of Han to really occur.

There is an old saying that the cunning rabbit dies, and the lackeys cook. The birds are gone, and the good bows are hidden. But at this time, the cunning rabbits are not dead, and the birds are not exhausted, and it is not time for the bows to be hidden.

At this time, the Turkic grassland also had a different scene. After suffering several severe losses, Princess Yicheng began to rush to fight and form a new army in the Turkic grassland. Although the people's livelihood on the Turkic grassland was withered at this time, the huge loss brought by the war made the production of the Turkic grassland face the brink of collapse, and even in the winter of that year, more than 100,000 civilians died in the winter famine.

However, at this time, the Turks increased their troops a large number of troops and recruited young riders, so as to relax the age limit of the army on adult men. The army that had just reached 200,000 was almost doubled and restored to the standing army of 400,000.

On the one hand, huge famine swept the earth like dark clouds, on the other hand, a large number of military expansions continued to shrink the young and strong labor force that existed among the people. This abnormal rule appeared in the Turkic grasslands in the early years of Wude, but did not burst out with any dissatisfaction or resistance from the people. It has to be said that Princess Yicheng was very good at creating momentum and situation in the use of the Western Turkic attack.

In any aspect, this is a manifestation of military military power. However, it is a civil war between the Qing army supported by the whole nation. Blood hatred and resentment made the entire Turkic grassland support the expansion of the army at this time.

After Liu Shan left, the Liangzhou Legion added a huge component to the armed forces under the throne of Han. The Western Regions Alliance was later called the First Army of Liangzhou Foreign Legion.

This army had a total of 70,000 people, and the countries in the Western Regions belonging to Liushan were sent to the specific national strength. All the officers of this army came from the Liangzhou Army and the Hebei Army, and all the soldiers came from the Western Regions.

And in the winter of this year, when Liu Shan was not in the military camp, all the armed forces under the Han King, including the Liangzhou Legion, carried out a major rectification.

This rectification first changed the army organization. All the previous units were abolished, and the simplest ten teams were used to use the system of ten teams and hundreds of teams. Each ten teams were one team, appoint a sergeant, and each ten teams were one team, appoint a captain. The ten teams were a sergeant, and appoint a captain. Finally, every ten teams were a regiment, also known as the legion, which was the largest organization of each armed forces in Liangzhou, a sergeant.

The second change is the change in the number of people belonging to each legion. The original Liangzhou legion was expanded, and all the newly added personnel were recruited from Liangzhou on the spot. The Liangzhou legion was expanded to 100,000. Its subordinates were two iron armored heavy cavalry corps, three crossbow cavalry corps and five light cavalry corps. The Liangzhou cavalry all remained unchanged during this large army restructuring.

Originally, the Hebei Legion reduced the Hebei Legion, and the reduced Hebei Legion organized fifteen infantry corpses, including two heavy infantry corpses, three archer corpses, and the rest were light infantry corpses. In addition to the infantry corpses, the Hebei Legion had three light cavalry corpses.

The original Turkic Legion remained unchanged and the organization of 100,000 people was still maintained. As a relatively special combat armament, this legion naturally belonged to ten grassland nomadic cavalry legions.

The lowest organization is the Western Regions Legion, which belongs to seven legions, two cavalry legions, one camel cavalry legion, and the remaining one is the light infantry legion.

The reorganized army of Liu Shan has a huge organization of 450,000, and when necessary, this army can be expanded.

In a blink of an eye, the four years of Wude have slowly passed. When the spring of Wude's fifth years came to the northern land, Liu Shan once again appeared in Dunhuang City, which belongs to Liangzhou.

At this time, the land under the Liangzhou Legion included the Liangzhou area and the Western Regions under the Tang Dynasty. Whether it was based on population, land and the reserves of various mineral resources, the places where Liushan belonged could be described as remote areas. It can be said that this was the land that the Tang Dynasty did not even want to see, and it was also the land that the dynasties in China were too lazy to even want.

However, as an armed force, the armed force to which Liu Shan belongs is really strong enough to be incredible.

The fifth year of Wude begins spring, February 2nd.

Three light infantry corps in Hebei and two light cavalry corps in Liangzhou remained in the territory of Liangzhou. The two infantry corps of the Western Regions are responsible for maintaining the quietness and peace of the Western Regions. The three cavalry brigades of the First Heavy Cavalry Legion belonging to the Liangzhou Legion and a full-mounted crossbow cavalry corps remained in Dunhuang.

The remaining army set out from Liangzhou and various parts of the Western Regions and rolled towards the north.

At this time, after a winter confrontation with the southern forces across the river, the Tang Dynasty had already begun to conduct tentative attacks on Jiangnan.

On the Turkic grassland, the torrent of Turkic cavalry began to advance northwest. This cavalry legion was full of revenge and had to use the scimitar in his hand to have the tempering that he had suffered in his first blood.

At the beginning of the fifth year of Wude, after a winter of silence, various forces began the next round of competition.
Chapter completed!