Chapter 3430
Preparations for Annihilation
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Once the actual combat strength of this Kushan navy has been confirmed, we can proceed with our attack.
For Guan Yu, the deterrent power of the Kushan navy was far greater than that of the Kushan armies on both flanks. Even if the combined forces on both flanks exceeded 300,000, it could not change Guan Yu's judgment and preparations in this regard.
In land warfare, when both sides have such a large number of troops, the outcome can no longer be determined by a single battle.
However, whether it is a naval battle or a sea battle, it is completely different from a land battle. In many cases, the outcome is decided in a single battle.
Once you miss an opportunity, it's gone; once you fail, it's a complete failure. Even if you regret it, there's no way to make up for it.
Therefore, compared to the casual nature of land warfare, naval warfare, or naval warfare, requires extra caution before it begins.
Strive to make everything perfect, maximize your own advantages before the war begins, and then, when the war is decided, launch a full-scale attack.
Without giving the enemy a chance, and without giving yourself a chance to regret, fully utilize the concept of the navy to decide the outcome in one battle, directly annihilate or severely damage the enemy in one go, thereby gaining control of the entire Ganges River basin.
Gaining this power means that our logistics are no longer under great threat, and we no longer have too many worries.
Before the army moves, supplies must be prepared. As long as the logistical supply problem is solved, Guan Yu would not mind leading his army to confront the Kushan army head-on and fight a protracted war.
The Han army, with its logistical capabilities, could certainly sustain the logistics of frontline soldiers. However, whether the Kushans, who were mobilizing a large number of troops for defense, could sustain such a burden was an unknown.
However, based on existing records and information, Guan Yu was well aware of his opponent, and the Kushan Brahman system could definitely withstand it in the short term.
However, if this time dimension is extended, even the Brahmanical system, which has an extremely stable internal structure, will experience turmoil and anomalies.
Hundreds of thousands of soldiers meant hundreds of thousands of laborers who were no longer engaged in production. In addition, there was the corresponding food transportation and travel expenses, and even the craftsmen who assisted the soldiers. All of these would consume a large amount of non-productive manpower.
The entire Brahmanical system was extremely well-controlled internally, and the food production in its territory was extremely abundant, to the point that the entire system had a large number of people who were no longer engaged in productive labor.
The height is close to the upper limit of the entire feudal system, which is 7%.
In other words, the Brahmins, with a population of tens of millions, can only support about three million people who are not engaged in productive labor.
However, most Brahmins treat the vast majority of lower castes as less than human, subjecting them to intense oppression and exploitation, thus significantly reducing the lifespan of the lower caste population. This reality allows those who have left the workforce to advance further.
However, no matter how much further we go or how hard we try, we cannot change the fact that the basic output determines the availability of manpower.
Especially considering that the Brahmin and Kshatriya classes themselves did not engage in production but had to provide large quantities of grain to the Yuezhi people in the north, it was destined that the Brahmin workforce that could be supported by the three harvests of grain a year, excluding the Yuezhi, would not exceed three million. Although this is still a huge number, it became somewhat insufficient when it came to actual army building and combat.
Even under this system, the Brahmins could withstand two to three hundred thousand casualties each year, but they could not provide a larger army.
The army has 500,000 troops, the navy has 50,000 troops, and the navy has 300,000 troops, which is all the visible military force of the entire southern Brahman.
At this time, the Brahmin soldiers stockpiled in the deep defensive system surrounding Champa City had reached 400,000, a number that was approaching the limit that the Brahmins could sustain in the long term.
If the quantity is too large, then it will not have the ability to be sustained in the long term.
The number of soldiers fighting on the front lines and the auxiliary personnel providing transportation and logistics is extremely large.
The more troops gathered in one place, the more terrifying the food consumption will be.
The food consumption of the more than 400,000 troops under the Brahman system surrounding Jampal City was basically five times that of Guan Yu's more than 100,000 troops.
Once the number of troops exceeds the region's supply capacity, supplies can only be obtained from more distant regions.
When the food is delivered to the front lines, it's not uncommon for not only half of it to be wasted, but even ninety percent of it.
Therefore, Guan Yu was not too worried about this protracted war. Instead, he was very curious about how the Kushan army, which was about to face this situation, would break the deadlock.
Significantly reducing the size of the army or decreasing personnel losses will affect the overall combat effectiveness of the soldiers, making it more difficult to stop the Han army's advance.
If frugality is not an option, then opening the garden is the only choice. But even with the core Brahmanical system and core ruling area as its backing, and a region with extremely abundant food production, such a large army, along with the food lost in non-combat, would still be an extremely terrifying scale.
If Guan Yu could defeat the Kushan army and effectively injure them, he would also give it a try, since quickly eliminating the enemy was a sign of respect for his own soldiers.
However, if there is no way to quickly resolve the issue with the other party, then you can further influence their decisions and behaviors based on their performance.
"First secure an invincible position, then seek victory; this is the way of the king." Guan Yu, who had already planned for the future war, continued earnestly, "Now that things have come to this, let's prepare ourselves."
The generals, who were already prepared for this, all smiled and then waited earnestly for orders.
Everything the Kushans revealed and the inevitable outcome meant that the Han army would also need to adapt accordingly. By utilizing everything the enemy revealed, they could make targeted changes and thus achieve their objectives and prevent their efforts from being in vain.
"Order the navy to intensify harassment of the enemy. Once the Kushan navy appears, retreat gradually, luring the enemy to launch another attack. Then, block their retreat and completely annihilate them on the Ganges. At that time, the Kushan forces within our navy will be uprooted, and their remaining strength will be negligible." Guan Yu spoke while looking at the generals before him, issuing orders to the land forces. "The Han troops on both flanks continue to advance. The Han troops in the center will hold off the enemy first, then slowly retreat, further lowering the Kushan navy's guard and preparing for their annihilation." (End of Chapter)