Of the 10,000 injured and injured, it would be good if only half of them could eventually return to the battlefield.
In other words, in this battle alone, the number of troops was reduced by nearly 30,000.
Lin Xuan felt very heavy. He was not used to life and death like others.
So far, he has only experienced two wars in total.
The surprise attack on the Mukun tribe didn't take long, and the Heroic Guards suffered little losses.
This time, more than half of the brave guards were killed, and almost everyone else was injured.
The poor bones by the Wuding River are like those in a spring boudoir dream!
Their families are still waiting for them to return, and in the end they may not even be able to wait for their bodies and ashes.
"Okay! Soldiers should be proud to be wrapped in horse leather. We are lucky to survive today. We may be the ones who die in the battle tomorrow." Cheng Yaojin looked around and said: "What we have to do is to fulfill their wishes and level the grassland.
Protect the peace of the Tang Dynasty’s border for a hundred years!”
"Smooth the grasslands and protect the peace of the Tang Dynasty border for a hundred years!"
"Leave the grasslands flat and protect the peace of the Tang Dynasty border for a hundred years!"
All the generals stood up and shouted in unison.
…………
"Good news! Good news!"
In the evening, a group of post soldiers arrived at Chang'an City.
The soldiers guarding the city gate saw the flag behind them and quickly moved out of the way.
After the post soldiers rode into Chang'an City, they shouted loudly and went straight to the palace.
The people along the way gave way one after another, with joy on their faces.
Many of their families have people in the army, and the good news is that the soldiers at the front have won the battle, which also means that their sons, husbands, and fathers have a high chance of coming back alive.
"This good news should be from Northern Xinjiang, right?"
"Apart from Northern Xinjiang, where else is the Tang Dynasty still fighting at this time? And these messengers entered from the north gate, where else could they be if they weren't reporting on the battle in Northern Xinjiang?"
While the people in Chang'an were talking a lot, the battle report of the postmen had been sent to Li Shimin.
Although Li Shimin knew it was a good news, when he opened the battle report, his hands were already shaking a little.
Although we won, a big victory and a tragic victory have different meanings.
"Well, Zhijie is indeed my lucky general!" Li Shimin said happily after reading it.
This battle report is about Cheng Yaojin’s sneak attack on the Mukun tribe.
Although it only wiped out a tribe of more than 20,000 people, the self-sustaining losses were very small. In addition, this was the first battle for the army to enter the grassland, so it was of special significance.
Since ancient times, the Central Plains dynasties have mostly adopted a defensive approach towards nomadic peoples.
Qin Shihuang built the Great Wall to defend against the Huns.
Liu Bang's white horse siege almost cost him his life.
From the Five Husties to the Weishui Alliance, for thousands of years, the nomads have suffered losses for many talented and strategic emperors in the Central Plains Dynasty.
Of course, this does not mean that the Central Plains Dynasty has always been passively beaten. In fact, if we seriously calculate it, in the large-scale war with the nomads, the Central Plains Dynasty actually won more.
Victory was a victory, but for the Central Plains dynasty, it did not bring many benefits. On the contrary, it consumed a lot of national power.
After all, in most wars, nomads are the active party.
In this way, although the Central Plains Dynasty won, it actually did not gain much advantage. What it gained was only a short-term peace. When the nomads recovered their strength, they would come back again.
It’s not that the Central Plains dynasty doesn’t want to take the initiative to attack. The nomads are all cavalry. The Central Plains dynasty lacks war horses. Once the advantage of the city is gone, heaven will suffer.
The reason why Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty was on par with Qin Shihuang was because he took the initiative to conquer the Xiongnu many times and drove the Xiongnu to Mobei.
However, Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty was able to achieve his merits thanks to the horse breeding system that started in the early Han Dynasty.
In fact, starting from the Qin Dynasty, the court issued a system for raising horses.
In the Han Dynasty, Xiao He improved it on its basis. By the time of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, after the accumulation of several generations of emperors, the number of horses owned by the Han Dynasty had greatly increased. This was the foundation for the Han Dynasty to be able to conquer the Xiongnu many times during the period of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty.
Many people attribute the credit to Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty and Huo Qubing and Wei Qing.
As initiators and executors, they have indeed made great contributions.
But this is not decisive. Without the horse-raising system of the Han Dynasty and the persistence of generations of emperors, would it be possible for you to let Wei Qing and Huo Qubing lead the infantry to chase the cavalry?
However, although Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty drove the Xiongnu to Mobei, he also exhausted the national power of the Han Dynasty and caused many social conflicts.
The fundamental reason is that laying down the grassland cannot occupy it. From a long-term perspective, it can ease the pressure on the border and win peace.
But from a short-term perspective, it is just a waste of national power and has no practical significance.
But for Li Shimin, it was not impossible to conquer the grassland.
Other emperors could not occupy the grasslands because the Central Plains Dynasty was a farming nation, and the grasslands could not be cultivated. Occupying them would not only be of no use, but would consume the country's resources.
However, the appearance of potatoes gave Li Shimin hope of occupying the grassland.
As long as the Western Turks and Xue Yantuo could be destroyed or driven to Mobei, the Tang Dynasty could build a city on the grassland.
The existence of potatoes allowed the people of Tang Dynasty to take root in the grassland.
In addition, the grasslands can raise large quantities of horses, and with the population of the Central Plains, if there are sufficient war horses, the possibility of the nomads taking back those territories is very small.
If he could really do it, his achievements would far exceed that of Emperor Qin and Emperor Wu of Han, and the stain of killing his brother and imprisoning his father would be nothing at all.
Li Shimin was in a good mood after reading the battle report, but when he saw the letter written by Cheng Yaojin alone, Li Shimin's good mood dissipated a lot.
"Send someone to call Duke Zhao." Li Shimin said to Li Mu who was not far away.
"Yes." Li Mu responded.
…
Changsun Wuji didn't think much about Li Shimin's sudden summons.
The news of good news coming from the north was known to everyone in Chang'an, and he thought Li Shimin summoned him because of the war in the north.
However, when he arrived at the palace gate, Changsun Wuji got off the carriage and found that there was no other carriage at the palace gate.
Logically speaking, it is impossible for Li Shimin to summon him alone. There are only two explanations for this situation.
One is that he arrived the earliest, and others have not arrived yet.
Another possibility is that Li Shimin only summoned him alone.
The first possibility is not very likely. Although Changsun Wuji is the most valued by Li Shimin, Zhao Guogong's mansion is not the closest to the palace among all the palaces of princes and nobles.
When the emperor summoned him, of course no one delayed him. There was no reason why those who were far away would arrive, while those who were close would not.
Since it's not the first possibility, then it's the second possibility.
This also cast a shadow of gloom in Changsun Wuji's heart.
If Li Shimin summoned him under normal circumstances, he would be very happy, because this represents Li Shimin's trust in him.
But at this time Li Shimin only summoned him, and he didn't feel happy at all.
After entering the palace, Changsun Wuji saw no one around him and whispered: "Eunuch Zhang, did your Majesty only summon me?"
"This..." Eunuch Zhang was a little embarrassed.
Eunuch Zhang has been working as a kilometer officer for more than ten years, so he naturally knows how to be cautious in his words and deeds.
But Changsun Wuji didn't dare to offend him, so he was in a bit of a dilemma.