Chương 593: Cao Cao's Beauty Contest

Long Uhti shouted from the city wall, his voice trembling:

"Yanqi has fortified cities and powerful troops; we are not afraid of your Han army! Come and attack if you dare! I would rather die than surrender! I would rather die a glorious death than live a shameful life!"

Cao Cao sneered, the sound echoing across the wilderness, and waved his hand, saying:

"Fire! Bombard them hard!"

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

Hundreds of tiger-squatting cannons fired simultaneously, aiming at the south gate of Yuanqu City.

The cannonballs whistled through the air, crashing against the city walls, raising clouds of dust...

Each cannonball that hit the city wall created a large crater, sending bricks and stones flying, as if a bite had been taken out of it...

In just a quarter of an hour, a gap more than ten feet wide was blasted into the south gate's city wall, and rubble and broken bricks formed a slope.

"Rush!"

Lü Bu led his cavalry and charged into the city through the breach, his Crimson Flame Horse leaping across.

Musketeers followed closely behind and began to mop up the remaining enemy forces.

Although the Yanqi soldiers fought desperately, they were no match for the Han army's firearms.

Their swords and spears couldn't cut through the Han army's iron armor, and their arrows couldn't pierce the Han army's helmets. They could only watch helplessly as their comrades fell one by one, and their psychological defenses completely collapsed.

Long Uhti led three thousand remaining troops in an attempt to break through the west gate, but was stopped by Zhang He.

After a burst of gunfire, Long Uhti and his remaining forces were all wiped out, their bodies piled up on the ground.

In less than an hour, Yuanqu City was captured.

The Han army annihilated the 20, 000 troops of Yanqi and destroyed the Yanqi Kingdom.

Cao Cao stood atop the palace tower, gazing at the Han banners fluttering throughout the city, stroking his beard and laughing with triumphant spirit:

"Pass down the order: rest for three days, then immediately advance westward, cut off Kucha's retreat, and don't let them escape! Don't let a single one get away!"

On the first day of his rest, Cao Cao was examining maps in his study in the palace, holding a teacup in one hand and drawing on the map with the other.

A guard entered and handed over a secret letter.

"General, this is a secret order from His Majesty, delivered by a member of the Embroidered Uniform Guard. It's an urgent dispatch."

Cao Cao took the secret letter, opened it, and couldn't help but laugh, his eyes narrowing into slits.

"Hahaha! I never expected Your Majesty to have this hobby," Cao Cao said, shaking his head in disbelief.

"I thought His Majesty was only concerned with matters of state, but it turns out he has this kind of thought as well."

Lü Bu and Zhang He walked in, saw Cao Cao smiling, and asked curiously:

"Mengde, what's so funny? Let us hear it too."

Cao Cao handed them the letter, saying, "Read it yourselves. His Majesty has ordered me to select some women with exotic Western Region features after I conquer the city and bring them back to Luoyang. He says it's to 'enrich the harem culture.' Tsk tsk tsk."

After reading the secret letter, Lü Bu and Zhang He couldn't help but laugh.

"Your Majesty's taste is questionable," Cao Cao said, pursing his lips and tapping his fingers on the table, looking utterly bewildered.

"I really can't compliment them. The women here in the Western Regions have rough skin, large pores, and a strong muttony smell. They eat mutton and drink mutton milk all day long, how can they not smell? How can they compare to the women of our Han Dynasty?"

The Han women are gentle and virtuous, with fair skin, and proficient in all the arts, far superior to these Western Region women. I truly don't understand what His Majesty is thinking.

Lu Bu laughed and said, "Perhaps His Majesty wants to try something new. After eating pearls and seafood every day, he might occasionally crave noodles."

"Hmph," Cao Cao laughed, "Since it is His Majesty's order, then I will obey."

"However, let me make this clear from the start: I am only selecting according to His Majesty's requirements. I am not responsible for whether the selection is good or not. If His Majesty is not satisfied, don't blame me."

He said to his guards, "Send word to select women between the ages of sixteen and twenty in Yuanqu City. Those with high noses, deep-set eyes, fair skin, and graceful figures will be given priority; those skilled in singing, dancing, and music will be especially favored. Once selected, bring them to the palace; I want to see them personally. Better to have none than to have inferior ones!"

"Here you go!"

The guards obeyed and left.

In less than three days, they selected about a hundred women and brought them to the main hall of the palace. They stood in three rows with their heads down, some of them trembling.

Cao Cao sat in the main seat, holding a teacup in his hand, slowly sipping his tea, crossing his legs, and scrutinizing each of the women below with a critical eye.

Lu Bu and Zhang He sat on either side, watching the spectacle and pointing and commenting.

"The first one," Cao Cao said, pointing to the woman on the far left, then shook his head, "too short, no good. She only reaches His Majesty's shoulder; it doesn't look good for them to walk together."

"The second one is too fat, no way. His Majesty won't have an appetite."

"Thirdly, his nose is too flat and does not meet His Majesty's requirements. Our lord prefers a high nose bridge."

"Fourth, her skin is too dark, no way. Like charcoal."

"Fifth, the eyes are too small, like they're not even open. No way."

"Sixth, crooked teeth, I don't even dare to smile, that won't do."

Cao Cao looked at the items, shaking his head as he picked and chose, his mouth never stopping.

He eliminated most of the more than one hundred women, leaving only a few.

In the end, only twelve women remained. Each of them had a high nose, deep-set eyes, fair skin, and a tall and straight figure. Some of them could dance the Hu Xuan dance and play the pipa, and they were clearly trained.

"Hmm, twelve is about right." Cao Cao nodded, satisfied.

"These twelve will do. Take them to the backyard, take good care of them, and don't bully them. Provide them with good food and drink every day, so they don't get too thin."

When we return to the capital in triumph, take them all back to Luoyang and hand them over to His Majesty. If anything goes wrong on the way, I will hold you all accountable.

"Here you go!"

The guards led the twelve women away.

Cao Cao put down his teacup and said to Lü Bu and Zhang He, beaming with pride:

"Look, aren't these women I picked quite good? Although they can't compare to women from the Central Plains, they're still top-quality from the Western Regions. His Majesty should be satisfied. If my lord isn't satisfied, then I really can't help you."

Lu Bu and Zhang He nodded repeatedly, saying, "Mengde has excellent judgment; his choices are definitely correct. These girls are indeed top-notch among those from the Western Regions."

Cao Cao stroked his beard and smiled smugly.

But in his heart he was thinking: When I get back to Luoyang, I want to see how His Majesty will evaluate these women from the Western Regions.

If His Majesty is not satisfied, he cannot blame me.

Then we can say, "This is the level of the Western Regions; I have done my best."

...

Three days later, Cao Cao led his army away from Yanqi and marched west to cut off the rear of Kucha.

Xue Rengui pacified the southern route and led his army north.

Su Lie subdued the Wusun and led his army south.

The three armies victoriously joined forces at the foot of Shule City, with banners fluttering and bugles sounding in unison.

When the King of Kucha learned that the three armies had joined forces and that he was surrounded on three sides with no way to escape, he was so frightened that he couldn't even eat properly.

He immediately opened the city gates and surrendered, becoming a vassal of the Han Dynasty and paying tribute, kneeling at the city gate to welcome the Han army.

When the King of Shule saw that Kucha had surrendered, he dared not resist and followed suit, opening the city gates and surrendering obediently, handing over his seal of office.

At this point, all six core city-states in the Tarim Basin had submitted to the Han Dynasty.

After nearly a century of separation from the Central Plains, the vast territory of the Western Regions finally returned to the embrace of the Han Dynasty.

The people of the Western Regions took to the streets to welcome the Han army into the city, beating drums and gongs, making it even more lively than the New Year.

..................