Chapter 49: An Expedition to Goguryeo
The cold current from Siberia has eroded the land of Liaodong.
At this time of year in previous years, it was "hunting time" for the northern barbarians to plunder Youzhou and prepare New Year's goods for the winter.
This year is a little different.
The Eastern Xianbei, which bordered Changli County, rarely attacked, either because they benefited from border trade with Liaodong or because they were afraid of the Liaodong army.
Goguryeo was so cowardly that it didn't even dare to fart.
However, in the western part of Youzhou, Tuoba Xianbei still visited the border on time, causing great trouble to Youzhou Mu Liu Yu, which indirectly reflected the different deterrent power of the two giants of Youzhou against other ethnic groups.
Indirectly won Qin Mo a lot of people's support.
At least in Youzhou, there are very few people who still mention Qin Mo's Yellow Turban identity.
…
Liaodong Jiedushi Mansion.
Although Goguryeo admitted defeat, Qin Mo did not intend to let them go because he was still thinking about the Changbai Mountain ginseng.
Council Hall.
The five generals of the Liaodong Army, Gongsun Zan, Taishi Ci, Guan Hai, Zhang Niujiao, and Zhao Yun were all on the list, as well as the Chief Secretary Deng Mao.
Needless to say, this was another operations meeting.
At the beginning of the meeting, Qin Mo announced the decision to attack Goguryeo.
This wasn't just a whim on his part.
First, when they swept Lelang and Daifang counties last time, the remaining Goguryeo rebels fled northward and entered the Goguryeo base camp, which provided a good reason to start a war.
Second, Qin Mo had already planned to assassinate Emperor Ling of Han at the end of the year.
By then, the Central Plains will surely be in chaos. Qin Mo hopes to eliminate the hidden dangers in the backyard and dampen the morale of the Goguryeo people before leading his troops into the Central Plains.
To avoid a backyard fire.
The last point is to respond to players’ demands.
Players are born warmongers. As long as a war breaks out, they will have something to do, such as transporting food, conducting reconnaissance, manufacturing siege weapons, or directly participating in the war.
Anyway, they don't have to pay for the outcome of the war, nor do they have to worry about food and fodder.
Why not?
An irresponsible governor like Qin Mo likes such passionate players.
Because he is also a warmonger.
Qin Mo began to call out his generals: "Gongsun Zan!"
"I will be here!"
"I order you to lead your troops to invade the northwest of Goguryeo from the direction of Xuantu County." Qin Mo said.
"I obey your orders!"
In addition, Guan Hai led the central army and attacked into the core area of central Goguryeo from the direction of Liaodong County, while supporting each other with Gongsun Zan's troops.
Zhang Niujiao led the right army and, together with the 5,000 Youyun cavalry led by Zhao Yun, attacked into the south of Goguryeo from the direction of Lelang County, which was also the main direction in which the remnants of the Goguryeo rebels in Lelang County fled.
Finally, Taishi Ci led the vanguard army that was about to be formed, also marching from Lelang County, to attack the eastern coast of Goguryeo, coordinating with Zhang Niujiao and Zhao Yun's troops.
The Liaodong Army came out in full force again.
Qin Mo glanced at the generals and said in a deep voice: "This battle has two purposes. One is to wipe out the remnants of the Goguryeo rebels to restore the prestige of the court; the other is to drive the Goguryeo people out of the east bank of the Mazi River."
It is unrealistic to destroy Goguryeo in one battle.
Later, Emperor Yang Guang of the Sui Dynasty launched three expeditions to Goguryeo, which cost the people a lot of money and labor, but eventually ended with peace talks and cessation of hostilities. This indirectly reflects that Goguryeo still had some strength.
Of course, Goguryeo was founded not long ago at the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty and was not as powerful as it was later.
This gave Qin Mo an opportunity.
The Mazi River divided the Goguryeo territory into two parts. The headquarters Maru was located on the west bank of the upper reaches of the Mazi River, which was also the core area of the Goguryeo people.
Qin Mo focused on attacking the east coast this time, firstly to test the strength of the Goguryeo people, and secondly to expand the strategic space of Liaodong without forcing the Goguryeo people into a desperate situation.
At the same time, it can also block the connection between Goguryeo and the people of Lelang and Daifang counties.
In this expedition, the main task of Gongsun Zan and Guan Hai's troops on the west bank was to contain the main force of the Goguryeo people, while the real killer lay in the three armies on the east bank.
Therefore, Qin Mo deployed all the Youyun Cavalry on the east bank, intending to decide the outcome with just one battle.
"Sir, are you going to recruit foreigners this time?" Deng Mao asked.
"certainly!"
Qin Mo said with certainty.
…
As soon as the news of the expedition to Goguryeo was released, it immediately aroused the enthusiasm of players to sign up.
Even worse than participating in the Battle of Liaodong.
Compared with the battle to quell the civil strife in Liaodong, players are more willing to conquer foreign races. This time, not only the mercenary groups in Youzhou came out in full force, but even the neighboring Bingzhou, Jizhou, and Qingzhou also heard the news and took action.
There were as many as 74 mercenary groups that signed up to participate in the battle.
After receiving the news, although the war has not yet begun, Qin Mo has already foreseen the outcome of this war - this time, it is indeed a sure thing.
He just needs to provide logistical support.
…
On November 1, 185, the war against Goguryeo officially broke out.
The course of the war was exactly as Qin Mo had expected. With the help of the players, the four armies of Liaodong won battle after battle and made rapid progress, forcing the Goguryeo people to flee in panic and retreat again and again.
If it weren't for the Boilyu River blocking their way, the army would have been able to penetrate into the heartland of the Goguryeo people.
The mercenary group, which was so bloodthirsty that they even went out on their own to wipe out the small Goguryeo tribes scattered everywhere, without waiting for the Liaodong Jiedushi to issue a mercenary mission.
Some tribes were even directly massacred.
The Goguryeo royal court was stunned, and the contemporary Goguryeo king, the new King Gao Bogu, was panicked and hurriedly sent a delegation of envoys with a large amount of gifts to Xiangping County to negotiate peace and stop the war with the Liaodong Jiedushi Mansion.
Among them are twelve hundred-year-old ginsengs and even a three-hundred-year-old ginseng king.
No one knew from which channel Gao Bogu got the news that Qin Mo was collecting ginseng.
Really powerful.
History has taken an interesting turn.
In view of the arrival of midwinter, the consumption of food and supplies was huge, and the army was also exhausted. Qin Mo took advantage of the situation and agreed to Gao Bogu's request for peace after proposing a series of conditions.
From then on, a large area of land on the east bank of the Mazi River was temporarily incorporated into the jurisdiction of Lelang County in Liaodong.
Qin Mo ended the battle in a hurry because he was worried that the player would completely lose control. Without any psychological burden, he was really worried that the player would do something even more outrageous.
Once the beast within is freed, the destructive power it unleashes is truly terrifying.
The first expedition against Goguryeo came to an end.
At the end of the war, Qin Mo not only expanded the territory for the Han Dynasty, but also gained 20 points of legend in one fell swoop, which was more than the gains from pacifying the three counties of Liaodong combined.
It is probably because this time we are conquering a foreign race.
…
What Qin Mo didn't expect was that he was also rewarded by the court for defeating Goguryeo.
It’s actually not difficult to understand.
Before this, whether it was pacifying the Wuhuan in Liaodong or sweeping away the rebellions in Lelang and Daifang Goguryeo, those were all internal affairs of the Han Dynasty and the duties of Qin Mo, the governor.
There is no reason to praise it.
But this time it’s different. This is to conquer foreign races and enhance the military power of the Han Dynasty.
The imperial court had not received such good news for many years.
More importantly, the Liaodong Army not only won the battle this time, but also occupied a large area of land, although these lands were very barren and had limited economic value.
But the symbolic significance is huge.
From then on, when history books recorded Emperor Ling of Han, they would also add the phrase "expanding territory".
This is worth writing about in detail.
It is no wonder that Emperor Ling of Han was in a hurry to issue an order, asking Qin Mo to bring the land cession document signed by the Goguryeo royal court and rush to Luoyang to meet the emperor immediately.
"What is coming will eventually come." Qin Mo murmured to himself.
