Usurpation of Mongolia: My father-in-law is Genghis Khan

Chapter 344 The terrifying and ruthless national power of the Yuan Dynasty crushes Dali in a daze!

Of course, although Zhao Shuo spoke so casually about conquering Dali, he actually took it very seriously.

Dali is not so easy to destroy.

Historical records indicate that Kublai Khan and Uriyangqatai, the golden duo of the Mongol Empire, led 100,000 elite troops to attack Dali.

Although the Dali Kingdom was successfully destroyed, only 20,000 of the 100,000 elite troops remained (D'Son's History of the Mongols). The exact number of warhorses lost is not recorded in historical records, but it is said that "nine out of ten were lost."

The main reason, of course, is not that the people of Dali were particularly skilled in warfare, but rather the climate and terrain.

Firstly, Dali is located on the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau. Although its altitude is far lower than that of the Tubo Plateau, soldiers from the plains will have their combat effectiveness reduced when they enter the plateau.

Secondly, like Annam, Dali suffered from malaria. While the Dali people alone could not inflict the same casualties as the Mongol army, the combination of malaria and disease made it extremely difficult for the Mongol army, which lacked logistical support, to cope.

Thirdly, and most importantly, is Dali's terrain. While Dali's malaria epidemic was far less severe than Annam's, its terrain was far more terrifying.

The core area of ​​Dali is carved out by a series of giant north-south mountain ranges (such as the Ailao Mountains, Wuliang Mountains, and Nu Mountains) and world-class rivers (such as the Jinsha River, Lancang River, and Nu River). These rivers have carved deep canyons through the towering mountains, creating a treacherous terrain where "the sky is just a line and the ground is just a gully."

The army's march was like navigating a vast maze, requiring them to traverse mountains and rivers. Supply lines were long and vulnerable, causing immense strain on laborers and livestock, and making them highly susceptible to being cut off. The unpredictable mountain climate and extreme temperature differences between day and night also made the expeditionary force extremely difficult to adapt to.

These factors combined resulted in the Mongol army suffering eight out of ten casualties and nine out of ten warhorses being lost.

It must be said that if an ordinary Central Plains dynasty had suffered such a huge loss, it would likely have been a defeat despite its victory, and its national power would have declined from its peak. Only the once powerful Mongol Empire was able to withstand it.

However, to be fair, the Yuan Dynasty is now far more powerful than the Mongol Empire of the past, and its strategic situation is many times better than that of Kublai Khan.

When Kublai Khan attacked Dali, only Tibet submitted; Sichuan was still under the control of the Song Dynasty, not to mention Annam, which the Mongols had never conquered.

Therefore, Kublai Khan had no choice but to launch a three-pronged military campaign, climbing the Zheduo Snow Mountain, crossing the Aba Grassland, and traversing two thousand miles of valleys.

This time, Zhao Shuo did not intend to take any military risks, but instead chose to advance in four directions.

In fact, Zhao Shuo had already made military preparations for attacking Dali as early as the first year of the Zhiyuan era. He sent envoys hoping for a peaceful resolution. If a peaceful resolution failed, then war would suffice. However, he did not expect the Dali people to go to such extremes, not only killing the envoys but also cutting off their noses, inflicting the deepest humiliation on the newly founded Yuan Dynasty.

The first army, heading towards Tibet.

Uriyangkhadai was the head coach, with Dong Wenbing and Wang Dechen as his vice-head coaches.

Uriyangkhadai led ten Mongol commanders of 1,000 men, Dong Wenbing led one Tibetan commander of 10,000 men, and Wang Dechen led one Han Chinese commander of 10,000 men, a total of 30,000 troops, and had already completed their assembly in Kemu (Changdu).

During the civil war on the steppe, Subutai chose to pledge allegiance to Tolui's faction, but sent his eldest son, Uriyangqatai, to Zhongdu.

Now that Subutai has passed away, his hereditary chiliarchy has been inherited by his second son, who remains loyal to the Tolui lineage.

Zhao Shuo selected one thousand households from the scattered Mongols who had come to him, and the position was to be inherited by Uriyangqatai.

It must be said that Subutai made the right move; the number of hereditary commanders of a thousand households under his descendants increased from one to two.

Of course, as the first general of the new generation of Mongolia, Uriyangqatai fully deserved this treatment.

Dong Wenbing was one of the Han Chinese military commanders who followed Zhao Yan into Tibet seventeen years ago.

Seventeen years later, the Tibetan population had grown to 800,000. Adding the 50,000 Han Chinese immigrants brought by Zhao Shuo, the total population of the plateau reached 850,000.

The original plateau household, which had been one, has now become two.

Dong Wenbing is thirty-six years old this year, in the prime of his life, and has been appointed as the head of one of the plateau households.

Wang Dechen is thirty-one years old this year and is the son of Wang Shixian, the commander of the Han Army. Now that both father and son are commanders, they are considered among the most distinguished nobles in the Yuan Dynasty.

In summary, the entire Western Route Army was led by Uriyangkhadai as commander-in-chief, with Dong Wenbing and Wang Dechen as deputy commanders-in-chief. It consisted of 30,000 regular troops, 30,000 Tibetan soldiers, and 30,000 Tibetan laborers, for a total of 90,000 troops.

The combat mission was naturally the 30,000 regular troops, while the local soldiers and laborers mainly provided logistical support to the army using yaks and Tibetan horses.

The reason why Nanzhao and Tang were able to fight back and forth was precisely because of the support of Tibet.

Now, the Tibetan army is about to trample Dali!

The Second Route Army, heading towards Annam.

The Eastern Route Army, also consisting of 30,000 regular troops, was positioned in the Annam direction.

The commander-in-chief was Shi Tianxiang, the commander of a 10,000-household unit of the Han army. In addition to his own 10,000-household unit, there was also a 10,000-household unit of Annam led by Niu Fu. This 10,000-household unit had three Han army 1,000-household units, while the other seven 1,000-household units were all composed of barbarian soldiers.

The barbarian army was accustomed to fighting in high mountains and dense forests, which was somewhat similar to the environment of Dali.

Moreover, they had intricate connections with the barbarians within the territory of Dali.

For example, the Jinchi Man (金齿蛮) were not particularly powerful among the various barbarian tribes of Annam. However, within Dali, the Jinchi Man were extremely powerful. Eighty years ago, they gained independence from the Dali Kingdom and established a state called Jinglong Jindian Kingdom in the Xishuangbanna region.

Another commander of the Eastern Route Army was transferred from the Central Plains, and his commander was Yan Zhongzhen.

Yan Zhongzhen's father, Yan Shi, was a veteran commander of ten thousand households in the Plain Black Banner of the Han Army. Yan Shi had passed away, and Yan Zhongzhen succeeded him as commander.

The 30,000-strong army has now assembled at Viet Tri in Annam.

The 60,000 Annam soldiers provided logistical support for these 30,000 regular troops, while the total strength of the Eastern Route Army was also 90,000.

The Third Route Army, a vassal army of Yunnan and Guizhou.

In this era, Guizhou, in the later geographical sense, was partly part of the Yuan Dynasty and partly part of a small, uncivilized state.

There were three main barbarian states: Ziqi, Luoshi Gui, and Luodian.

All three of these small countries border Dali.

Some later generations believed that the Luo Clan Ghost Kingdom and the Luo Dian Kingdom were the same country, but this is incorrect. The Luo Clan Ghost Kingdom was located in the Bijie area of ​​Guizhou. The Luo Dian Kingdom was located in the Luo Dian and Zhenfeng areas of southwestern Guizhou, on the main route from Guangxi to Yunnan, and was the predecessor of the Shui'an clan.

At its peak, the Qi Kingdom was incredibly powerful, its territory stretching from Qujing in the north to the Red River in the south, from Kunming in the west to the Hongshui River in Guangxi in the east, encompassing a vast area of ​​over a thousand li (approximately 500 kilometers), and boasting an army of 100,000. Although its territory has shrunk slightly since then, it remains a formidable force. Historical records indicate that they even built a Great Wall to resist the Mongols. The Mongol army fought for three full years to conquer this kingdom.

In any case, since Zhao Shuo conquered the Song state, these three states have successively submitted to Zhao Shuo.

Zhao Shuo issued an imperial edict ordering the Qi Kingdom to send 40,000 troops, and the Luo Dian Kingdom and the Luo Shi Gui Kingdom to send 20,000 troops each, for a total of 80,000 troops, who would bring their own provisions, to Dali to attack Shan Chan (Kunming).

Having finally managed to launch a military campaign, how could he only take Yunnan? Zhao Shuo wanted to annex Guizhou as well. He stationed three Han army garrisons each in Hunan and Guangxi. If these three small states obeyed his orders and attacked Dali, that would be one thing.

If they dare to remain inactive, our army will immediately advance and annihilate these three small countries.

The Fourth Route Army was the main force that marched to Dali, also known as the Central Route Army.

Zhao Shuo stationed five Han army garrisons and a large amount of grain and supplies in Xuzhou (Yibin), Sichuan.

Xuzhou is located at the junction of the Yuan and Dali dynasties, and at the confluence of the Jinsha River and the Min River. From here downstream it is called the Yangtze River, and water transport is very developed.

Soldiers and weapons from Sichuan, and grain and supplies from Huguang, were continuously replenished to Xuzhou by waterway.

Here, Zhao Zhuo, as the commander-in-chief and Meng Gong, as the deputy commander-in-chief, led an army of 50,000 and 100,000 local soldiers, a total of 150,000 troops, to launch a frontal attack on Dali.

In addition, after the four armies enter Dali, they need to coordinate and cooperate, and obey the orders of Zhao Zhuo and Meng Gong.

Roughly calculated, Zhao Shuo's total force for attacking Dali this time was 90,000 for the Eastern Route Army, 90,000 for the Western Route Army, 150,000 for the Central Route Army, and 80,000 for the Yunnan-Guizhou vassal army, for a total force of 410,000!
Instead of engaging in military adventures like Kublai Khan in history, we will use ruthless national power to crush Dali and give it no chance!

The very next day, Zhao Shuo issued an imperial edict announcing the military deployment for the attack on Dali to the world.

What is there to hide?
Zhao Shuo wanted to tell the Ziqi Kingdom, the Luo Clan Ghost Kingdom, and the Luo Dian Kingdom not to have any illusions, but to obediently bring their own provisions and attack Dali.

The point was to tell the military and civilians in Dali that there was no point in resisting stubbornly, and that they had no other choice but to surrender obediently.

Of course, there was more to this edict than meets the eye.

For example, considering the historical connection between Yunnan and the Central Plains, Yunnan was already part of the Central Plains during the Qin, Han, and Northern and Southern Dynasties. The establishment of the Nanzhao Kingdom, its battles with the Tang Dynasty, and the massacre in Chengdu, all demonstrate this. Furthermore, the establishment of the Yuan Dynasty and its demand for Dali to rejoin the Central Plains resulted in Dali's insane act of killing and insulting the Yuan envoys. Such stubbornness necessitates immediate punishment.

For example, Zhao Bixie died in service to the king and made great contributions to the country, so he should be honored with the highest honors. When the imperial edict ordered Zhao Bixie's remains to be returned to Zhongdu, Yuan Haowen, the Minister of Rites and Vice Chancellor, personally went out to welcome him and presided over the sacrificial ceremony on behalf of the court.

Zhao Bixie was granted the title of Marquis of Boni County, with his fiefdom expanded to a circumference of four hundred li, a hereditary title that would last forever, sharing the fate of the state. Zhao Bixie's father was granted the rank of Second Grade, and Zhao Bixie's wife was granted the title of Lady of the Third Grade.

Furthermore, all citizens of Dali are hereby informed that wherever the Yuan army arrives, they must immediately surrender. Otherwise, on the day the city falls, the entire city will be exterminated. Of course, those who rise up to welcome the army and voluntarily open the city gates to surrender will not only be pardoned, but will also be rewarded by the Yuan Dynasty.

The imperial edict was sent to all the inner provinces of the Great Yuan Dynasty at the fastest speed possible. The entire realm was shaken!
One month later, in Dali City.

"Brother, disaster has struck! Disaster has struck!"

Gao Taihe hurriedly entered Gao Taixiang's study, carrying a notice copied by a Dali spy.

Gao Taihe was the brother of Gao Taixiang, the prime minister of the Dali Kingdom.

When the Yuan envoys came to Dali, demanding Dali's surrender, Gao Taihe and Gao Taixiang actually shared the same opinion: they would never surrender.

I really hate to part with it!
It wasn't easy for the Gao family to grow from one of the six major families at the beginning of Dali to the dominant family it is today.
Today, members of the Gao family can be found in every prefecture and county of Dali, controlling the military and political affairs of their respective areas; they are practically local emperors.

Could such a good life be bought with a total of eight thousand taels of silver for all the Gao family members in a year?

However, Gao Taihe is now truly panicked.

An army of 410,000! What does that even mean?
Even with the nationwide mobilization efforts, Dali couldn't muster that many troops!

Furthermore, he keenly noticed the number 30,000.

Why did the Yuan Dynasty's three armies have at least 30,000 regular troops? Because the Dali Kingdom only had 30,000 regular troops in total!

No matter which Yuan army the Dali forces attacked, the Yuan army would at least not suffer losses.

As for the vassal armies of those three small countries? Zhao Shuo wouldn't care how many died.

With troops advancing from four directions, the Dali army was overwhelmed and its fate was likely sealed!

To put it bluntly, on the surface, Dali offended only the Yuan Dynasty. In reality, it was at least equivalent to offending Tibet, the Song Dynasty, and Annam simultaneously.

Which of these three forces is not more powerful than Dali?

Zhao Shuo's arrangement was both a complete and utter crushing defeat and a perfectly legitimate and open scheme. Gao Taihe couldn't figure out a way to counter it no matter how hard he tried.

However, after reading the notice, Prime Minister Gao Taixiang showed little panic on his face.

He nodded slightly and said, "I did indeed misjudge Zhao Shuo's determination. Originally, I thought that Dali was a small and poor country, and even if Zhao Shuo conquered Dali, how much could he gain? He would only send an army of about 100,000. I didn't expect Zhao Shuo to actually mobilize an army of 400,000. In this way, even if he conquers Dali, his gains will be far from making up for his losses!"

Gao Taihe said bitterly, "Even if Zhao Shuo's strength is not a hundred times that of Dali, it is at least dozens of times stronger. His indifference to military expenditure is a catastrophic disaster for Dali."

Gao Taixiang shook his head and said, "That's not entirely true. Dali has a standing army of 30,000. Under normal circumstances, when we send troops, we can reach 200,000, including local militia and Yi people. With maximum mobilization, we can also muster an army of 300,000."

"Then we're still short 110,000?"

"Can't the four kingdoms to the south—Jinglong Golden Palace Kingdom, Abo Kingdom, Boli Kingdom, and Baiman Kingdom—gather an army of 110,000? I estimate they could even muster 150,000. They were originally part of the Dali lineage, but they took advantage of Dali's decline to establish their own independent kingdoms. If Zhao Shuo destroys Dali, will he leave them alive? I can send envoys to persuade them to send troops to help us."

The Dali people were the first to assimilate into Han culture and regarded other tribes in the country as barbarians.

These four countries were small states that were established by the barbarians in southern Dali when Dali was declining and they broke away from the Dali Kingdom.

After a pause, Gao Taixiang continued, "Furthermore, the Ziqi Kingdom and the Luo Clan Ghost Kingdom are also part of the Dali lineage, established by the thirty-seven barbarian tribes in eastern Dali. I can also send envoys to persuade them to switch sides and help Dali, or at least keep them from helping each other."

"Furthermore, Zhao Shuo's warhorses may indeed gallop freely on flat ground, but how can they compare to the magnificent horses of Dali in the mountains of my Dali?"

The more he spoke, the more convinced he became of his point, and he said with great confidence, "In addition, Dali has the geographical advantage of Cangshan Mountain and Erhai Lake, and the miasma that outsiders are unfamiliar with. Even if Zhao Shuo's army of 400,000 invades Dali, what can they do?"

Finished!

Gao Taihe felt a chill run through him after hearing Gao Taixiang's words.

As the art of war says, if you know yourself and your enemy, you can fight a hundred battles with no danger of defeat.

He, the eldest brother, hasn't even been a true friend!

Jinglong Golden Palace Kingdom, Abo Kingdom, Boli Kingdom, Baiman Kingdom, Ziqi Kingdom, and Luoshi Ghost Kingdom—these were all originally part of Dali's strength. Gao Taixiang couldn't even reclaim one of these kingdoms. Now, he expects them to fight against Zhao Shuo's 410,000-strong army!
With him in charge, the Gao family of Dali will likely be wiped out!

(End of this chapter)