The hot strong man (28)
The main writer: Xianle Zhu Hui
In the fifth year of Yuanfeng in Han Dynasty (106 BC), the general Grand Sima Changping Hou Weiqing died, at the age of about fifty.
Although Wei Qing did not lead troops to fight in his late period, he was still crucial to the stability of the empire and military level. In the first half of his life, his sister made him successful, but in the second half of his life, he took on the burden of the entire family and even the entire empire. After all, almost all the imperial generals were guided, taught and promoted by Wei Qing, and every conquest and expansion of the powerful Han Empire against the barbarians was also immersed in his Han River and wisdom.
is the same as that, as it can be called the four pillars of the country.
and Liu Che lost his pillars, and was also extremely sad. He also saw that the imperial court was about to end, but no one succeeded him. He issued the "Hong Kong Talent and Talents and Others" , saying that "it is a great achievement, and it must be an extraordinary person." He wanted to widely absorb the "thousand-mile horses" of all classes in the world to restore the prosperous talent in the early days of Han Wu .
However, according to historical records, Emperor Wu did not summon any horses from the later period. At first glance, the court was filled with slanderous ministers and cruel officials, or they were timid and incompetent people. Finally, it developed to a large number of priests and charlatans who were appointed to travel to various places to seek immortality and medicine. If you want to live forever, you have to live for at least another five hundred years. But as a result, Emperor Wu of Han traveled everywhere, looking for gods all over the world, "the rewards he had used were more than one million pieces of silk, and the money was huge" ("Records of the Grand Historian") and built a large number of buildings to build buildings for gods (Note 2), threw a lot of money out, wasted on the road, and threw it in the water, which made corrupt officials and alchemy cheaper (Note 3), and killed the people, but his body was still sick all the time.
History has proved many times that if an emperor is addicted to becoming an immortal, he will lose his personality standards, lose the humanistic spirit, blur the boundaries of human nature, and ignore the basic restrictions of being a person, thus becoming a delusional person who is divorced from reality. This is true for Emperor Qin and Han Wu.
In addition, the corruption of the late court affairs of Emperor Wu was also related to Wei Qing's death. As mentioned earlier, Wei Qing was the Dinghai Sword of Emperor Wu's Dynasty, firmly controlling the empire's ship without bias. But once he died, the general of the inner dynasty would be hung in the air, which made Emperor Wu of Han a real dictator, and no one could challenge his authority. Such an absolute dictator is like a tiger walking in trouble, devouring people at any time.
What's worse is that after Wei Qing's death, Emperor Wu began to feel less and less secure. No matter how much power he had, he still burst out with doubts and anxiety from time to time. He longed to control, he longed to control his ministers and this empire in a comprehensive and thorough manner. He did not allow any deception or concealment, nor did he allow any confrontation or betrayal.
So, the entire court began to be perverted. Emperor Wu of Han became more and more violent and irrational, while the court officials became more and more trembling and cautious. But even so, five prime ministers lost their heads inexplicably, making this highest official position in the world become the most dangerous profession in the world. The cruel official Du Zhou even made a big statement: "The words of the master in the past were called law, and the words of the master today were called orders." It has the meaning of "two whatevers". According to historical records, during Du Zhou's tenure as the court guard, there were more than a thousand prisons in the Han Dynasty (Note 4) every year. In one case, dozens to hundreds of people were arrested, with a total of 160,000 to 70,000 people involved. The two thousand stone officials were imprisoned, and the total number of 2,000 officials were no less than 100. Most of them were falsely accused of being "unrighteous" political prisoners. Think about it, in this harsh political and judicial environment, where can we cultivate a "thousand-mile horse"?
, but Emperor Wu begged for a long time but didn't ask for a "thousand-mile horse", and he was still jealous of the Thousand-mile horses from other countries. However, this Thousand-mile horse was not quotes , but a real Thousand-mile horse, that is, the famous Western Regions Dayuan Kingdom Ershi City (now Hamat City, Uzbekistan Kingdom) treasured sweat-blooded BMW. Dayuan This country is probably the country built by the descendants of Greece Greek (Note 5). Their people "all have deep eyes, high noses, and beards". They are located in the present-day Pamir Plateau northwest Fei is called Ganna Basin. They are the connection point between Western Regions and Central Asia. They are the transportation hub of Kangju , Daxia , Wusun and other countries. The geographical location is very important, and the population is 300,000, and the size of the city is more than 70 cities. They are also considered to be a major country in the Western Regions. Although their strength is inferior to the strong tribes such as Huns , Dayuezhi , and Wusun, they are by no means comparable to small countries such as Loulan and Cheshi.
In the first year of Taichu of the Han Dynasty (104 BC), Emperor Wu Liu Che sent envoys Che Ling and others to hold a thousand pounds of gold, as well as a golden horse of the same size as the real horse, to Dayuan for a sweat-blooded BMW. In fact, Emperor Wu of Han did this not only for the purpose of seeking curiosity, but also for the purpose of improving the horse breeds of the Han Dynasty.
Before Emperor Wu of Han, the northern horses in China were mainly Hequ horses, which were mainly produced in the bend of the Yellow River adjacent to Gansu, Qinghai and Sichuan, and should be military horses. It has a tall and thick body, good development of hind limbs, strong pulling strength, and can last for a long time, but it has low running speed, short legs and big ears, so it is mainly used to use horses. After Zhang Qian opened the Western Regions, Emperor Wu of Han discovered that the Wusun horses were much better than the Central Plains horses. These horses genus desert species systems have light germplasm characteristics, dry, flexible, and extremely fast (Note 6). When Emperor Wu of Han saw it, he was shocked to be " Tianma ", which made the envoy buy a large number of requests. But later, when he saw the bloody horses in Dayuan, he was galloping like flying. Emperor Wu of Han felt that he had never seen the world before, so he established a newcomer. It was announced that the Wusun Tianma would be renamed "Xiji Horse", and the title of Tianma was transferred to Dayuan Sweat Horse at a high cost, and a batch of Tianma was also needed to improve the Central Plains horse breeds (Note 7); in addition, Emperor Wu of Han sent envoys to Dayuan many times, with another purpose of introducing the high-quality forage there, alfalfa (Note 8), to help the Han Dynasty raise more and more good horses and other large livestock, and prepare for the next step of going deep into the northern desert to attack the Huns.
It's a pity that the people of Dayuan believe that the Han army could not do anything to them, so the King of Dayuan was very ignorant and could give you alfalfa seeds, but Tianma refused to sell it. Not only did it not sell it, but he also sent his subordinate King Yu Cheng (Note 9) to lead his troops on the way back to intercept and kill him and seize his property. Liu Che's real golden horse did not get a horse, but was wasted instead.
Emperor Wu was not angry this time, but was furious and furious. Money is a trivial matter, and the key is that it is hard to bear the face. The so-called two countries will fight and not kill the envoys. Moreover, the two countries have not fought each other. The Han Dynasty traveled thousands of miles away to conduct cultural and trade exchanges with Dayuan, but was treated like this. This is simply a naked provocation and insult to our Han Dynasty!
Emperor Wu of Han had enough. Over the years, the fools in the Western Regions, especially the northern countries, have never understood the power of the Han Dynasty. The Hun envoys held a token of Shanyu, and wherever they went, the Western Regions immediately provided food without slacking off. When the Han envoys, whether they eat or need a mount, they had to invest in the purchase, and they were often troubled and insulted. Where is the power of our great man?
Liu Che roared in the temple: This time I will never destroy Dayuan, I have no choice but to be a king or a person!
At this time, the envoy who had sent a mission to Dayuan Yao Dinghan was full of artillery and said, "Wan's soldiers are weak, and the Han soldiers are only 3,000. If you shoot them with a strong crossbow, you can capture them all."
Because of the previous incident of Zhao Ponu leading 700 cavalry to defeat Loulan, Emperor Wu of Han deeply agreed with this and appointed the late favorite concubine Mrs. Li brother and prince Liu Feng uncle Li Guangli as General Ershi, and sent 6,000 cavalry (that is, surrendered Hun cavalry) and tens of thousands of evil young men from the county and state to expedition thousands of miles to attack Dayuan!
This battle Li Ling did not participate in the battle because Liu Che, who was full of confidence, believed that this was a war of victory and Li Guangli did not need any help. This kind of credit for delivering to his home should be given to someone like Li Guangli. Wei Huo also came here like this back then.
But unfortunately, Li Guangli, like Wei Huo, are both relatives of the foreign countries, but their military level is thousands of miles apart. Wei Qing was born as a cavalry slave, and he rode his horse up the mountain and down the mountain like flying. He was extremely talented and humble and courteous, and was deeply loved by the soldiers. Li Guangli was a music and dance artist. He was born in a music family (Note 10). His younger sister, Mrs. Li, was a singing and dancing star. His brother, Li Yannian, was a famous songwriter, performer, singer, choreographer, musical inventor, and music director of Han Yuefu . He was an all-round musician. Although Li Guangli had average musical attainments, he had muscles and strength. Therefore, Emperor Wu of Han slapped his head and decided to let him learn from Wei Qing as a general and make achievements in the territorial realm!
However, Liu Che was wrong. He used a nepotism before, and accidentally trained Wei Qing Huo Qubing two legendary generals. So he was complacent and thought he could replicate the legend, but he didn't know that it was just a lucky person in the past. Not everyone in this world can cultivate a famous general. Music and military are two ways that are incompatible.
Of course, there is no problem with Emperor Wu’s strategic direction. No matter from the perspectives of politics, economy, culture and diplomacy, the Western Regions are a must-fight for the Han Empire, which is in the rising and advancing stage, and are also a must-fight for all powerful Central Plains dynasties to solve the border problems.
First of all, although Hexi Corridor has the effect of blocking Guanlong, Hexi's geographical advantages are not absolute. Whether it is Yumen Pass, Yangguan in the west, or Juyansai in the north, nomadic peoples may pour in through these gaps, thus directly threatening the security of Chang'an, the capital. Therefore, China's safest geographical barrier is the Western Regions. Only by comforting the Western Regions and taking the long and towering and difficult to cross as the ultimate boundary, can the security of the empire be absolutely guaranteed. When Alexander the Great advanced to the west, he dominated the continent of Eurasia and Asia, but ended at the Pamir Mountains. There is no reason.
Secondly, since the Huns lost Hetao, Hexi and Liaodong , they not only lost a large amount of rich pastures, but also lost the grain supply in these agricultural areas. The livestock output in Mobei alone cannot nourish all the Huns. Then the Western Regions, which are both farming and animal husbandry, will become their final guarantee; otherwise, perhaps just a cold winter will cause the fragile animal husbandry economy of the Huns to collapse. In short, the Western Regions were just a flower on the cake for the Han Dynasty, but for the Huns it was a charcoal in the snow. If you get it, the Huns' economy will be completely locked down, and there is no other choice but to leave East Asia or surrender to the Han Dynasty.
To sum up, only by controlling the world island of the Western Regions, uniting its country, blocking the Huns, and then relying on the heart of Central Asia, can the Han Dynasty dominate the world and maintain the long-term stability of the empire forever. The so-called sweat-blooded horse is the good treasure that Emperor Wu of Han dreams of and is also a good excuse.
However, he had big problems in the specific preparation work.
Thinking back to the Battle of the North of the Demon Islands, Emperor Wu was preparing to send hundreds of thousands of infantrymen as logistics for years, which led to the great victory of Wei Huo. But this time, Dayuan was obviously 40,000 miles away from Chang'an (12,550 miles recorded in " Han Shu "), and its distance was more than twice that of the previous Mobei and Loulan. The way Yanze is a saline-alkali land that never grows in grass. It is known as the sea of death, which is a fear of explorers of all dynasties, and it also needs to cross the Pamir Plateau at an altitude of 4,000 meters. However, Emperor Wu's logistics preparations were very hasty. It was decided in winter and sent troops in the spring of the following year. Most of the countries along the way refused to provide military food. The Han army could get food if they conquered its city. If they failed for a few days, they had to leave to find the next city wall. As a result, the Han soldiers died of hunger and thirst during the march. By the time of Yucheng City, there were only thousands of Han soldiers left, and nine out of tens of them died before the war started. It can be imagined that there are many Han men who abandon their corpses along the way, which is terrible.
Poor bones by the Wuding River, they are still people in the dream of spring boudoir.These loyal and brave soldiers who served the country had become ghosts from a foreign land before they reached the battlefield. They were pitiful, sad, lamentable, hateful! The final result of
is imagined. Military rookie Li Guangli was defeated very naturally. Only his thousands of exhausted gangster soldiers, let alone attacking the capital of Dayuan, had just arrived at the border and were beaten to the fallen water by the guards of Yu Chengcheng . Not even a city could be built, let alone the whole country, Li Guangli saw that it was no longer possible to do anything, so he led the defeated generals back to Dunhuang in shame. It was still a dead march. Thousands of people retreated, and only one thousand left when he came back. He had no choice but to write in shame: "The road is long, there is too little food, and there are not enough people to defeat Dayuan. Please stop the troops and rest, and send more troops back."
Liu Che originally wanted his brother-in-law to achieve success and be honored as a marquis. Unexpectedly, Li Guangli was so unsuccessful that he had lost face in front of the people of the Western Regions. He was very annoyed and very unwilling to accept it. So he sent an envoy to Yumen Pass to block Li Guangli's troops outside the pass. Whoever dared to cross Yumen Pass would be killed without mercy! Now the expansion of the Han Empire has made the world boil and full of wings. It is impossible to let this group of defeated soldiers come back and show their shame and trigger public grievances.
. Logically, after such a big defeat, Emperor Wu of Han’s brother-in-law’s plan should have stopped, but Liu Che did not think so. Instead, he proposed to replenish troops and make contributions to Li Guangli’s crime. Although this is not in line with military law, no one in the court dared to raise objections. There is no way, my brother-in-law!
Note 2: Gongsun Qing, a scholar in Qi, told Emperor Wu of Han that "the immortals are good at living in buildings." Emperor Wu of Han obediently "broaden palaces" and built a large number of Wei Que, tall buildings and "Tongtian Stem Platform" to "inviting the dependents of immortals, gods and men" (see "Records of the Grand Historian, Fengshan Book").
Note 3: The case "Records of the Grand Historian": "I sent a car to the alchemist, and I was idle to ask for thousands of immortals." And "I sent a ship more and more, and asked thousands of people to ask for the sacred mountains in the sea to ask for the sacred people of Penglai."
Note 4: According to the late Qing Dynasty, Wang Xianqian "Supplementary Notes on the Book of Han": "Everyone who is punished by the imperial edict is called the imperial edict is called the imperial edict." That is, the place where the emperor detained the emperor to issue an edict to convict the criminals. At that time, the officials and officials in the court had all set up imperial prisons, also known as Zhongdu official prisons, with a total of 26.
Note 5: Some scholars believe that "Yuān" is likely translated from Yavana in Pali . Yepo was the main Ionians in ancient India at that time. Therefore, "Dayuan" is likely to be "Great Ionia" in the meaning of the word. Some scholars believe that during the expedition of the East, Alexander the Great built a "Essential Alexander" city on the south bank of the Sir River in . It is located in Kuzhan, Tajikistan today. In Alexander's view, this is the end of the world and his expedition could end. So he built this 6-kilometer-long nursing home city here to accommodate Greek expedition wounded soldiers and retired veterans. After the collapse of of the Alexander Empire, the descendants of these veterans and wounded soldiers expanded northward and finally established Dayuan Kingdom .
Note 6: To this day, there is still a Zhaosu Army horse farm in the local area, which has provided a large number of excellent mounts for the People's Liberation Army's frontier cavalry. In 2006, the military was renamed the Zhaosu Horse Farm. It is the largest single-farm breeding horse farm in China.
Note 7: Judging from the archaeological harem of the Western Han Dynasty military horses, the northern horses improved by Emperor Wu of Han are indeed much more majestic, which is a world of difference from the Han horses before Emperor Wu of Han.
According to 8: According to "Records of the Grand Historian, Biography of Dayuan": "Dayuan is a common man who likes alcohol, and horses are fond of alfalfa. The Han envoys actually came. So the emperor began to plant alfalfa and pony grapes and pony grapes. As there are many horses, foreign envoys come to see them, and they leave the palace and see them all planted pony grapes and pony grapes and pony grapes.
Note 9: Dayuan is a kingdom established by descendants of the Greeks. Its system is similar to Greece. Although there is a central monarch, the city-state has a high autonomy. Yucheng City is now the Uzgen City, the country of Uzbekistan.
Note 10: See "Records of the Grand Historian, Biography of Pony Victory": "(Li Yannian) His parents, brothers and daughters are all advocated. "Ching means singing and dancing artists.
