After the Battle of Monan in the sixth year of Yuanshuo (123 BC), one of the purposes of the Xiongnu Yizhixie Chanyu's withdrawal from Mobei was to "lure the Han soldiers, surrender them and seize them." Unexpectedly, Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty turned to attack Hexi, which frustrated the Huns' plan to lure troops. Yi Zhixie Chanyu became angry. In the spring of the third year of Yuanshou (120 BC), he sent tens of thousands of cavalry to invade from Youbeiping and Dingxiang counties. He killed more than a thousand people in an attempt to anger Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty and lure him to Han Dynasty. The Han army advanced north and was annihilated in Mobei.
In view of the fact that the Xiongnu Chanyu headquarters and the Zuoxian Kingdom still have considerable strength and seriously threaten the security of the northern border of the Han Dynasty, considering that the Han army has accumulated the experience of using large-scale With the cavalry group's combat experience in long-distance attacks, Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty decided to take advantage of the new victory in Hexi to strengthen the offensive on the northern front. In the fourth year of Yuanshou (119 BC), he went to the marsh to implement the currency system reform, and also ordered the "initial calculation of money" and implemented a salt and iron monopoly to raise a large amount of material and financial resources needed for the war. At the same time, discuss with the generals the policy of war against the Huns. He believed: "Zhao Xin was planning for Shanyu. He often thought that Han soldiers could not conquer the desert (mo) and stay lightly. Now that they are going to attack, they are bound to get what they want." He was determined to use Zhao Xin's wrong judgment to surprise him and attack him unprepared, thus A combat policy was determined to concentrate troops, go deep into Mobei, and find and annihilate the main force of the Huns. Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty mobilized 100,000 cavalry, 140,000 accompanying horses, 100,000 infantry and transporters, commanded by Wei Qing and Huo Qubing, and marched to Mobei in two east-west routes. This was the largest expedition; Reinforce 40,000,000 infantrymen" to transport supplies.
In the spring of the fourth year of Yuanshou, Wei Qing and Huo Qubing led the army and embarked on the journey. (In the spring of the fourth year of Yuanshou, the general Qing and the hussar general Qu Bing were ordered to have 50,000 cavalry each. The infantry soldiers were transferred to hundreds of thousands of troops, and those who dared to fight in depth were all hussars.) In order to ensure victory in this battle, Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty made careful arrangements before the war: General Wei Qing led former general Li Guang, left general Gongsun He, right general Zhao Shiqi, lieutenant general Gongsun Ao, and rear general Cao Xiang, and led 50,000 cavalry out of Dai County to look for the Huns. King Zuo Xian fought for a decisive battle; General Huo Qubing led 50,000 selected "people who dare to fight hard and go deep" out of Dingxiang to find the main force of the Xiongnu Chanyu for a decisive battle. However, as soon as the team set off, they captured a Xiongnu sentry and learned that the main force of the Chanyu had moved eastward. Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty temporarily changed his deployment and transferred Huo Qubing's troops eastward from Daijun to go out of the fortress in order to find and annihilate the main force of the Shanyu. Wei Qing's troops Instead, he set off from Dingxiang and went north to attack King Zuoxian.
When Zhao Xin learned that the Han army was advancing northward, he also made suggestions for Yi Zhixie's Chanyu: "The Han army is about to defeat the enemy. When the men and horses are exhausted, the Xiongnu can sit back and collect the captives." The Chanyu followed the plan. And then, "learn about its material in the far north". All family members, people, animals and materials were moved further north, and elite troops were deployed in the Mobei area to prepare for the Han army's attack.
Not long after Wei Qing left Dingxiang, he learned from the prisoners where the Xiongnu Chanyu was garrisoned, and immediately ordered former general Li Guang and right general Zhao Shiqi to join forces and advance from the east road to cover He flanked the Shanyu Army and attacked the left back of the Shanyu Army, while he led the main force straight towards the Shanyu Army's main force, preparing to meet the enemy from the front. He led his troops to march north for more than a thousand miles, crossing the vast desert. After arriving in Mobei, "seeing Shan Yu's troops waiting", Wei Qing made a prompt decision and creatively used the new tactic of cavalry coordination, ordering the troops to "circle their own camp" with Wugang chariots to prevent the sudden attack of the Huns' cavalry. Order 5,000 cavalry to attack the Huns. Yizhixie Chanyu then fought with thousands of horses. The two armies fought fiercely for a day, with no victory or defeat. Near sunset, suddenly "a strong wind blew up, the sand and gravel hit the face, and the two armies did not meet each other." Wei Qing took advantage of the situation and sent troops to detour from the left and right wings to surround Shanzi's camp. Yi Zhixie Chanyu "considered that the Han soldiers were many-faced and their horses were strong, and the Huns would be disadvantaged in the battle." So he took advantage of nightfall, mounted a fine horse that was good at running, and led hundreds of strong horsemen to break out of the encirclement and escape to the northwest. The battle lasted until late at night, and the casualties on both sides of the Han and Hungarian sides were roughly equal. The left colonel of the Han army looked at the prisoners and found that Shan Yu had broken out and escaped before dark. Wei Qing immediately sent light cavalry to pursue him, and he led his army to follow up. (The left colonel of the Han army captured Shan Yu and left without fainting. Qingqi chased him at night, and the general's army followed him). The Huns army collapsed. By dawn, the Han army pursued for more than 200 miles and captured and killed more than 19,000 enemy soldiers, but there was no sign of the Shanyu. Wei Qing took advantage of the victory and advanced northward, attacking Zhao Xin City in Yanshan (a branch south of present-day Hangai Mountain), and seized a large amount of grain and military supplies gathered by the Xiongnu. The Han army stayed here for one day, then set fire to Zhao Xin City and the remaining grain that could not be transported away from the city, and then returned to the south. After arriving in Monan, Wei Qing met with Li Guang and Zhao Shiqi.
After Li Guang and Zhao Shiqi advanced from the east road, they were unable to participate in the battle because they had no guide or the guide died (the leader died in the army), and they got lost halfway. Wei Qing sent people to inquire about the lost situation. Li Guang, who once intimidated the enemy and was called the "Flying General of the Han" by the Huns, said to his subordinates: "Guang Jie has fought with the Huns for more than seventy years. Fortunately, the general came to pick him up." Shan Yubing, but the general Tu Guangbu went back far and lost his way. Isn't it heaven?" Then he drew his sword and took charge. The untimely death of a famous general greatly eclipsed the victory of this battle.
Although Huo Qubing's army that went out from the east did not fight against the Xiongnu Chanyu, the results were huge. Huo Qubing took advantage of the superiority of his men and horses. After coming out of Dai and moving to Beiping, he marched north for more than 2,000 miles in the desolate desert and launched a fierce attack on King Zuoxian of the Xiongnu. King Zuo Xian knew that he was no match for Huo Qubing, so he quickly abandoned the army and fled with his cronies. Huo Qubing pursued him all the way to Langjuxu Mountain (approximately from the northwest of today's Keshiketeng Banner in Inner Mongolia to Abaga Banner. It is said to be east of present-day Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia), and killed the Xiongnu Bei Chezhi The king captured three people, including the Tuntou King and the Han King, 83 generals, prime ministers, officials, and captains, and 70,443 Xiongnu officials. In order to commemorate this battle, Huo Qubing "sealed the wolf to live in Xushan Mountain, meditated in Guyan, climbed to Hanhai (now Hulun Lake and Beier Lake in Inner Mongolia. One said it is now Lake Baikal), held captives (prisoners) and captured 70,000 ugly men." Level One Hundred and Forty-Three", offering sacrifices to heaven and earth to celebrate victory.
The Battle of Mobei was the largest and most arduous battle fought by the Han army on the battlefield farthest from the Central Plains. Based on the victories in the three major battles of Henan, Monan, and Hexi, Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty relied on the Han army's experience in using cavalry groups to conduct long-distance raids and outflanks through actual combat training. The Han army was paralyzed because they did not dare to go deep into Mobei, so they decided to take them by surprise and attack them unprepared. They boldly formulated a strategic policy of attacking from a long distance, going deep into Mobei, plowing the court and sweeping holes, and looking for and annihilating the main force of the Xiongnu. At the same time, he carefully prepared for the war. In addition to gathering the most elite cavalry and best generals in the country to fight, he also mobilized a large number of horses and infantry to transport grain, grass and baggage to solve the supply problem for long-distance operations. In the battle, the commander-in-chief of the Han army showed excellent commanding skills, making full use of the mobility and impact of the cavalry. He not only dared to penetrate deep into the enemy's territory, but was also good at outflanking him. Wei Qing, in particular, tactfully acted after encountering Shan Yu's main force. Using the new tactics of chariot defense, cavalry attack, and coordinated combat, he first relied on the defensive capabilities of the chariots to make himself invincible, and then used the cavalry's rapid and mobile attack capabilities to outflank the enemy's two wings and defeat the Chanyu in one fell swoop. The main force also shows his excellent ability in battle command. All of this provided guarantee for the victory of the Han army.
The Battle of Mobei ended with the Han army's overall victory. In this battle, the Japanese annihilated more than 90,000 Xiongnu troops, leaving them unable to cross the desert and move south. The Western Han Dynasty also lost tens of thousands of troops and more than 100,000 horses. Almost all the main force of King Zuoxian was wiped out. Yizhixie Chanyu was separated from the soldiers for more than ten days, and was mistakenly thought to have died in battle. King Yougu Li established himself as the Chanyu. After more than ten days, Yi Zhixie Chanyu came back, and King Yougu Li resigned. , the chaos and embarrassment of the Xiongnu royal court shows its seriousness. As a large number of living forces were wiped out and a large amount of supplies were lost, the Xiongnu Chanyu no longer dared to establish a foothold on the northern edge of the desert and fled far to the northwest. As a result, the situation of "no royal court in the south of the curtain" emerged. If the Xiongnu Chanyu's move of the royal court to Mobei after the Battle of Monan can be seen as a strategic shift, then the "no royal court in Munan" after the Battle of Mobei marks the large-scale change of the Xiongnu's power. Withdraw. After that, the two sides temporarily ceased fighting. After this decisive battle, the Xiongnu border troubles that had harmed the Han Dynasty for more than a hundred years have been basically resolved.