When the Han follow-up army finally set foot on the plateau by water and began to march to the Western Regions, which was later renamed the "Hexi Corridor", they finally received the latest news from the vanguard of the Red Fire Army.

Yuan Zhao restrained the war horse, and listened to the whole story, his heart was relieved, and there was a lot of anger. Although he has seen too many acts of conspiring to frame and kill people with knives for his own interests, he still can't help but feel sad when such a thing really appears in front of him.

"Where is the Red Fire Army now?"

"The Marquis of the Yuan reported that the army of the hussar general was resting in the Xiqiang royal city at this time. It seems like...... By the way, he is clearing the demon monks in the Western Regions. ”

"So, where is the army of the two kings of the Huns now?"

The five or six people who gathered around him to reply were not scouts from the Han army, they were all dressed differently, but they all looked very shrewd and capable. In front of Yuan Zhao, he was respectful and answered his questions meticulously.

These people have a very special identity, they have come to various countries with caravans to the Western Regions a long time ago, and they carry out various activities as merchants. But no one knew what they were ordered to do outside of the merchants.

In the past few years, there have been many people who have entered the countries of the Western Regions in a similar capacity, and they have secretly formed a strict intelligence system. They have all undergone the most rigorous training and are accountable to only one person.

When each of them set off for a long journey, in the hometown of Chang'an, someone once wrote down their names by hand, and handed them a small iron plate symbolizing their identity one by one.

"When you leave my country, your heart is in Chang'an." From then on, this is their loyalty and faith!

It would be shocking and terrifying to say that someone had planned the situation many years ago. But that's just the way it is. Only these forerunners and lurkers can profoundly know how the young marquis's foresight is far beyond the cognition of this world.

And today, when the elite division of the Great Han finally set foot on this land on a large scale, they finally waited for the person they were waiting for.

After five or six years of wind and rain, the iron bones are rusty, the heroic soul is ethereal, and more than 100 people who came together have died a lot, and behind each of them, there is actually a wonderful and tragic story. It's just that when all these sacrifices were finally exchanged for the might of the Han army, the only thing that could record their exploits and names was the iron tokens left behind by the dead brought back by these people who continued to carry out the mission.

Also, the young marquis in front of him looked moved.

Life is as light as a feather, or as heavy as Mount Tai. Behind every victorious national war, there are some unknown people who have made a lot of sacrifices. These real unsung heroes, Yuan Zhao has always admired them very much.

There were as many as sixty or seventy small iron plaques handed back, stained with rust and a little blood...... Yuan Zhao silently put them all in the leather bag behind the horse.

How unfortunate the victims. The news of the death of some of them may not be known to their families for a period of time. But how fortunate they are! Because the nation will not forget them, the nation will not forget them, and the people of future generations will not forget them...... And Yuan Zhao can't forget them!

In the brilliant masterpiece "History of the Han Empire", there are special chapters to comment on the biographies of these people. Among them, Tai Shi Ling once quoted Yuan Gong's praise at the end, giving these heroes walking in the dark a supreme evaluation.

“…… With a three-foot body, he serves his family and country. Hide and do the most dangerous things in the world. Regardless of fame, hidden in the dark, loyal and courageous, the sun and the moon can be revealed...... If you can't show your merit to the present generation, you can't allow your reputation to be buried and ...... future generations! ”

And today, when the Han army was about to start the most fierce collision with the Xiongnu cavalry in this Western Regions, their mission was not yet complete. After respectfully and accurately reporting all the whereabouts of the Huns, they re-disappeared in the distant wind and sand.

Until he saw their backs all disappear and could no longer be seen, Yuan Zhao turned around and made a request of his own to the group of people waiting behind him.

"You are all businessmen who bravely followed the footsteps of the Han army to the Western Regions, and since you are here, I believe that this trip will not disappoint you. However, before the Han army achieves a complete victory, I would like to ask you to do one thing for me. ”

Although Yuan Zhao was in a consultative tone, no one would refuse his request. Even if they didn't know what they were going to do, these merchants from the Han Dynasty had already agreed in unison.

Yuan Zhao thanked him, and then his face became solemn, and there was a hint of sadness in his tone.

"On the battlefield not far ahead, there are the bones of 3,000 soldiers of the Han army, and no one has to collect them in this foreign land...... If you can help with this, my Yuan Zhao will definitely remember it in my heart, and there should be a good reward! ”

In the light tone, the mournful voice is heart-wrenching. Everyone looked up, their faces flushed.

"Yuanhou ...... Where is this coming from? My Han soldiers fought for the country, and as a citizen of the Han Dynasty, everyone inherited its favor! We will live up to our trust and let the souls of every martyr who sacrificed their lives return to the place where they were born and raised. Although Yuanhou can rest assured in this matter, he will definitely do it properly! ”

Yuan Zhao nodded again in thanks and put his mind at ease. Such a thing should henceforth become an eternal precedent, and those who have shed blood for the country should not let a single loyal bone not return to his homeland.

"General Li, order the army to speed up! The Huns have outflanked nearly 100,000 iron cavalry in two directions, and the Red Fire Army may be caught in the front and rear...... Hopefully we'll be in time. ”

Yuan Zhao commanded while secretly pondering in his heart. What is Huo Qu doing in Xiqiang King City? The Red Fire Army did not have many troops, and the most powerful way of fighting was to flexibly and maneuverably intersperse the search for fighters. If you don't go to the city for a long time, once you are surrounded by the Hun army, it will be bad.

In fact, Yuan Zhao's worries, Huo Quzhi and several generals under him had already thought of it. It's just that the Red Fire Army can't withdraw right now, because the food, grass and water they have prepared are not sufficient, and the reason why they haven't left yet is because they want to find more, especially water.

Many of those demon monks were killed by the Red Fire Army, and the rest fled. But these guys were also very vicious, not only setting fire to the largest grain storehouse, but also poisoning the wells in the city. Fortunately, the sudden death of the Xiqiang residents in the city aroused the vigilance of the Red Fire Army, and they did not succeed in their poisonous plan.

However, this brings us to the task of finding a clean water source again. However, when the Red Fire Army used manpower to try to dig a few wells, they found that the water they dug out was undrinkable.

The smell is pungent, the color is black, and the further you dig down, the worse it gets. It's not water, it's like oil. After digging more than a dozen mouthfuls tentatively, I finally found a stream of clear water and finally solved the problem of drinking water.

However, the abnormalities in the wells of the black liquid water attracted the attention of Zhang Qian, the Marquis of Bowang, who had heard from people from these countries on his previous missions to the Western Regions that in this vast area, an oil that could be burned. Locals often use it for daily use, and it seems that this is all there is to it.

When he told the hussar general about this situation, a glimmer of light flashed in Huo Quzhi's eyes. She remembered that she had heard her master Yuan Zhao say that in that year, the army went east to the Zhenfan Kingdom, and in the southern part of the country, which is now the place of Gaoli County of the Great Han Dynasty, they found two very precious products, one was cotton, and the other was black oil.

Huo Quzhi clearly remembered that Yuan Zhao's tone was extremely excited when he talked about these things, as if they were something extraordinary. And as it turned out, these things were very useful.

In the following four or five years, cotton has been introduced to the Central Plains and large-scale cultivation has begun. And its benefits are obvious, in the cold season, wear it on the body and add it to the bedding to resist the cold and add countless warmth to the world.

As for the black oil found in Goryeo-gun, according to Master, the use of that thing will be even more extensive, but unfortunately, there are too few mass productions, and it cannot be used now, so I can only take my time.

So, are these black oils found in the Xiqiang King City now the kind of black oil that the master vigorously admires? Huo Quzhi's heart was a little inexplicably excited, this feeling was even more exciting than destroying the enemy and winning a big battle.

Master Yuan Zhao once said that this kind of black oil is very easy to burn on a large scale, and under the current conditions, it is still possible to use it in military operations. So, how about finding a chance to experiment with it?

The bright-eyed general put on her armor and ordered her generals to be summoned, and she had a bold plan in her mind that needed everyone to carry it out seriously. If the plan can succeed in the first battle, perhaps, the decisive battle with the Huns will become extremely easy!

At the same time, less than a hundred miles away from the north of the Xiqiang King City, in the camp of the Chinese army where King Hutu was located. The king of the western steppes finally received a message from the Han army at the front.

This is not to blame for the slow news of the Huns. Who would have imagined that in such a short period of time, that Han Dynasty army would move so quickly.

As soon as the Huns returned to their camp and jointly slaughtered the Xiqiang White Horse Tengjia Army, which had slaughtered 3,000 Han troops, they were burned by the reinforcements who came later, and not even a single soldier escaped. Immediately afterwards, the other party captured the Xiqiang King City without stopping, and I heard that even the Xiqiang King himself was shown to the public and hung his head at the palace gate!

Such a sudden change made King Hutu, who had just heard the news, surprised.

"Quickly go and find out, who is the general of the Han army? How can the use of soldiers be so powerful! ”