Chapter 1676: Eruption

As the first target of the western expeditionary army, there was no doubt that it was the city of Kucha, five hundred li from Karashahr. The Kingdom of Kucha had once been one of the great states among the city-states of the Western Regions, famous far and wide. Even after a thousand years, it remained a great city of the Western Regions, and this name also represented a complete historical lineage and inheritance. Without question, this was Chinese territory—how could it be allowed to remain lost for long in the hands of foreign lands and barbarian states? It had to be taken back.

Of course, for some Han army officers and men, led by Prince Wei Liu Min, aside from the driving interest of expanding territory and establishing merit, there was another reason: if the vast plain basin south of the Tianshan range were not taken, they would constantly suffer harassment from the Kara-Khanids, which would be detrimental to national defense.

Indeed, this was the case. As relations between the Han and the Kara-Khanids deteriorated, cavalry from the Kara-Khanid state had made several incursions eastward. The open, flat land was their racetrack for wanton galloping, coming and going like the wind. Many towns and their people had suffered losses. Although a counterattack had been launched, killing and wounding many Kara-Khanid soldiers, it did not solve the fundamental problem.

Therefore, among the strategic objectives set by the western expedition field headquarters, the first phase of operational goals was to fully take the plain region south of the Tianshan foothills, strive to inflict heavy casualties on the Kara-Khanid army, drive their forces out of the southern region, and then plan to advance northward.

It had to be said that the vast, sprawling Tianshan mountain range was a natural barrier for the Kara-Khanid state, perfectly protecting its core ruling territory.

Relying on this superior geographical advantage, the Kara-Khanid state always remained in a favorable position—able to attack or defend at will, with freedom of maneuver. Back then, when Yelu Xiezhen led the Khitan army sweeping westward, they too had been blocked by the Kara-Khanid Tianshan defense line. In the end, the Khitan army was even pushed back, losing the Moman and Kucha regions.

This same trouble now lay before the western expeditionary Han army. However, before facing those obstacles directly, Kucha absolutely had to be taken.

Kucha was the most important city of the Kara-Khanid state south of the Tianshan foothills, second only to Kashgar. It was also the largest, wealthiest, and most valuable city they had occupied after their eastward expansion. Thanks to the rise of east-west trade and its location on the Han–Kara-Khanid border, it had recovered some measure of prosperity over the past decade.

However, this so-called prosperity proved all too fragile in the face of war. The Kara-Khanid state had clearly put real effort into building up Kucha, and ten years of peacetime had been enough to produce some results.

Here, agriculture and animal husbandry flourished, and handicraft industry was also highly developed. It was not only a commercial city relying on Han–Kara-Khanid trade, but also a major military stronghold.

Although, owing to the original peace agreement, Kucha had not maintained a large garrison for a long period, various military facilities had been built to a high standard, and the city walls had been thickened and raised.

Perhaps in the eyes of the Kara-Khanids, the city of Kucha could serve as a base for raiding eastward when on the offensive, and as a defensive bulwark when on the retreat. But after the envoy incident came to light and the two states fell out, the old tacit understanding was broken, and the peace agreement was naturally torn up as well.

Especially after the western expedition field headquarters was established, the Han army massed in great numbers at Gaochang, Karashahr, Wulei, and other places. Large quantities of grain, weapons, warhorses, and livestock were successively transferred westward. These matters made no small stir and could not be hidden from anyone—nor, of course, was there any intention of hiding them.

In response to the Han army's movements, the Kara-Khanid state also refused to show weakness, even itching for a fight. The orders from Balasagun were equally hard-line: in the face of Han army provocation, they must resolutely counterattack.

Of course, this was not merely empty talk. While the Han army was busily preparing for the western expedition, the Kara-Khanid state was also mobilizing its forces, drawing troops from various regions and increasing the garrison at Kucha to twenty thousand men, including five thousand elite guards from the Kara-Khanid "Eastern Capital" of Balasagun.

Moreover, within their own territory, they simultaneously carried out mobilization, conscripting able-bodied young men from the various tribal peoples in the north to form militia forces, while also recruiting those convenient and cheap Islamic volunteers.

Of course, even more important was the assembly and mobilization of the standing armies of their various cities. In this regard, the Kara-Khanid state also had sufficient resolve.

This resolve came from their king, Ali Arslan Khan, a devout Muslim who had received a fine court education and Islamic upbringing from childhood.

After taking power, he forcefully pushed forward the Islamization of the Kara-Khanid state, severely suppressed Buddhism, launched wave after wave of religious campaigns, and even waged war.

Arslan Khan had only ascended the throne after concluding peace with the Great Han. Not long afterward, in the eleventh year of Kaibao, he launched a war against Khotan and rapidly reversed the religious war situation, which had been completely disadvantageous after the attrition against the Khitan and the Great Han, thoroughly expelling Khotan's forces from the Kashgar region.

In the process of suppressing Buddhists and achieving wholesale Islamization, Arslan Khan's position was gradually consolidated, and the Kara-Khanid state's centralization process also achieved tremendous results.

With ten years of accumulated strength, the expansionist nature rooted in their blood and marrow could no longer be suppressed—it urgently needed an outlet for release.

Under normal circumstances, the best direction for expansion lay to the west. The Samanid dynasty was both the Kara-Khanids' hereditary enemy and already in decline, riddled with internal contradictions and showing clear signs of fragmentation—it was the best target for conquest.

At the very least, to the south, the Kingdom of Khotan, though small and with a hard bone to crack, could be attacked under the banner of religious war to spread the glory of Islam—that too was only proper.

However, the development of the situation could not be determined solely by the Kara-Khanid state, nor solely by Arslan Khan. The Great Han Empire made the choice for them.

On the other hand, with frequent exchanges between east and west, the Kara-Khanid state's understanding of the Great Han was also deepening. Although they were astonished by its strength and vastness, they did not feel much fear.

Big as it was, they would be fighting on their home turf, and basic military common sense gave them confidence. At the same time, all sorts of legends from the East—about this neighbor to the east whose very land flowed with gold—made it hard to suppress their greedy hearts.

Especially after a book called *Travels in the Divine Capital* spread widely throughout the Kara-Khanid state and even Central Asia, while deepening foreigners' impressions of the Great Han, it also made that longing and covetous desire burn even more fiercely.

However, the realization of greedy goals also required strength to back them up. The Kara-Khanid state had confidence in itself, but likewise, facing the Han army's massive mobilization, they did not dare take it lightly.

Back then, even the Khitan had been able to inflict heavy losses on them—let alone the Han, who had shattered the mighty Khitan dynasty. Moreover, the clashes between the two states over a decade ago, though small-scale, had still meant fighting the Han army, giving them a glimpse of Han military strength.

The probing battle at Karashahr last year had once again proven that after ten years, the Han army had not weakened—it remained just as formidable.

In view of this, the Kara-Khanids faced the Han army's western expedition with excitement tinged with caution, joy mixed with worry, and prepared themselves mentally for going all out and fighting as a nation.

However, upon learning that the Han army's western expeditionary force numbered only around fifty thousand, their tense mood inexplicably relaxed somewhat. In the Kara-Khanids' view, the Han army was being far too arrogant—thinking they could destroy them with a mere few tens of thousands of men was clearly wishful thinking.

As the two states each quietly made their preparations, the clouds of war gathered over the southern Tianshan foothills for several months. Then, under the command of Prince Wei Liu Min of the Great Han, the Han army formally advanced westward, and a long-brewing great war erupted.

However, the course of the war and its level of bloodshed surprised many—it was beyond the Kara-Khanids' expectations, and also beyond the predictions of the Han army's generals.