Han Khan

Chapter 91, Slaves

The snow-capped Jinshan Mountain is like a giant silver dragon, winding and undulating, shining brightly in the morning sun.

On the mountainside, the dense forest is lush and green. Broad-leaved forests such as white birch and red and yellow poplar trees, and coniferous forests such as fir and Chinese pine complement each other, colorful as a gorgeous painting.

Next to the large lake basin at the foot of the mountain, more than 10,000 round felt tents and flocks of sheep, like white clouds floating in the sky, surround a huge golden tent and are neatly and orderly distributed around Uvs Lake, Qilek Lake and Kobdo River.

Under the azure sky, Lake Uvs is crystal clear, and the water is a deep blue, like a huge sapphire inlaid in the earth.

White clouds float slowly in the sky, their shadows reflected on the water, swaying gently with the breeze, adding a touch of mystery to the lake.

The grass in the basin at the foot of the mountain has begun to turn yellow, but it still exudes a fresh scent, allowing people to feel the vitality and vigor of nature.

In the distance outside the yurt, groups of black, black and white mixed yaks, cattle, as well as a large number of horses and tall camels were leisurely grazing on the grass.

They either lower their heads to eat grass or look up, seemingly enjoying this peaceful and beautiful time. The rolling mountains in the east, west and north, together with the desert Gobi in the south, are like a natural barrier, isolating this vast mountain and basin grassland from the outside world.

The scenery is so beautiful, this is the beautiful land bestowed by God Haotian to the Jinhan tribe.

It seems that there is no worldly noise here, only the breathing of nature, and everything seems so harmonious and peaceful.

But is it so?

No, the Jinhan tribe that occupied the Great Lakes Basin at this time was particularly noisy!
In the center of the basin, north of Lake Uvs, outside a camp surrounded by trenches, chevaux de frise and fences.

At this moment, rows of Guchuwuti captives, who were tied up, were driven by the Jinhan warriors to the front of the camp.

"Do you want to be slaves or dead?"

A large number of Jinhan guards, holding sharp knives, stood in front of the prisoners and asked with a ferocious look on their faces.

Faced with such a terrifying death threat, many Kuchuud people realized that this was no joke, so most of them replied: "I am willing to be a slave, I am willing to be a slave!"

But what is admirable is that among these captured Guchuti people, there are still many tough guys who would rather die than become slaves.

Faced with this situation, Zhang Sheng does not have the time and energy to influence them one by one.

He directly ordered the warriors to kill all those who resisted stubbornly.

Suddenly, human heads began to roll down on the grass.

The bright red blood splattered on the green grass, creating a shocking picture.

As screams rang out, some of the captives who had been silent began to kneel down and kowtow to beg for mercy, expressing their willingness to become slaves.

The ancient Chuwuti tribe was actually a new tribe formed decades ago by the integration of Tatars, Kyrgyz, Uighurs and Buryatids.

They migrated from the Yenisei River to the foot of the Golden Mountain, slaughtered and conquered a large number of tribes along the way, and gradually grew stronger.

This tribe is a common aggregation formed by tribal wars on the grassland - the Naiman people, and it is the most powerful among the several Naiman tribes.

In the future, they will be a powerful force against the Condor Archer, but now, except for the Ubili tribe in the Golden Mountain, all other Naiman people have been conquered by the Jinhan people.

After Jinhan's tribe has been reorganized, Zhang Sheng will never let Wubili's tribe go.

The structure of the Guchuwuti tribe was the same as that of other tribes on the grassland. At the top were the leaders and clan heads, who intermarried with each other and jointly controlled all the subjects and slaves at the bottom of the Guchuwuti tribe.

Those who had just put up a desperate resistance were almost all the small chieftains and Altan's relatives who survived the battle.

The land occupied by the Jinhan tribe was called Hunhe Prefecture, Langshan Prefecture and Xinli Prefecture during the Tang Dynasty. At that time, Hunhe Prefecture was inhabited by the left wing of the Karluk people who were settled by the Tang Dynasty, Langshan Prefecture was the right wing of the Karluk people, and Xinli Prefecture was the Basimi tribe.

After the Turks and Uighurs left, these places were occupied by the Kyrgyz tribe on the Yenisei River and the Tatar tribe from the east.

The geographical location between these three places is superior, and salt, timber, iron, gold and silver mines are very rich. The famous Turks rose to prominence here after being slaves of the Rouran people for two or three generations.

Today, the entire Great Lakes Basin is occupied by the Jinhan tribe who migrated from Dunhuang in the south.

Zhang Sheng believed that he had enough energy and ability to lead the Jinhan tribe to become strong and powerful by relying on this vast and resource-rich area.

There are lush grass and numerous rivers here. In the future, the people of Jinhan will definitely live a better life here than before.

We can completely emulate the historical situation of the Mongols and Shiwei people who continuously annexed and expanded other tribes.

Moreover, Zhang Sheng will not go deep into the south of the desert and come into conflict with the forces in the Central Plains.

First, nomadic cavalry are not good at attacking cities. Second, he is a descendant of the Han people. Although he now calls himself the Jin Han people he created, he can never erase the fact that he is Han.

He left Dunhuang in order to refuse to get involved in the internecine fighting among his tribe and to find a new paradise.

Even if we enter the Central Plains, what can we do?

Can we withstand the counterattacks from those powerful vassal states?
In contrast, the Jin Mountains in the northern desert are rich in water and grass, and have the benefits of salt and iron. The Jinhan tribe can rest and recuperate here, conquer the surrounding small tribes, and survive for a few more years, with plenty of opportunities.

At this time, the word "slave" was branded on the faces of rows of captives with red-hot irons.

As a non-local, Zhang Sheng is unlikely to be a slave owner.

However, with so many people from different tribes under its command, if the personal dependence of the tribe is not strengthened, the Jinhan tribe will never be able to rule and manage such a large population, and they will not truly surrender.

Moreover, the grassland is a world where slave-owning aristocrats and slaves coexist, and no one exists independently.

In order to strengthen the Jinhan tribe and consolidate his own power, Zhang Sheng could only rule the Jinhan tribe by using religion and classifying the tribe members.

Later, when these slaves have made meritorious services or have completely surrendered, control over them can be relaxed, but now they must be strict.

Those who have surrendered to Jin Han must be made to see clearly the differences between slaves, soldiers, tribesmen and warriors, and to understand their own identities and responsibilities.

We must keep them in their proper place while also giving them hope of moving up.

Slavery has existed to this day in the Central Plains, the Western Regions and countries further west.

The tenants who cultivated the land for the gentry, nobles, temples and other secular people, and the soldiers who were sent to garrison in distant frontiers, were all manifestations of slavery.

After the fall of the Tang Dynasty, Han civilization became conservative, pursuing stability and self-care.

The northern and southern parts of the desert and the Western Regions began their own development, which was a historical necessity.

A powerful tribe with thousands of armored cavalry crossed the Gobi Desert, conquered the Jiluo, Guchuwuti and Yudujin Tatars, and struck fear into the hearts of many surrounding tribes.

Moreover, they did not know the origin of the Jinhan tribe.

Looking at the slaves in front of him being branded and screaming heartbreakingly, Zhang Sheng felt a lot of emotions.

He knew that there was still a long way to go before the Jinhan tribe could become truly powerful.

He turned and walked into the big tent, and asked the guards to gather the four captains of the guards, the four hereditary leaders except Yang Binghan and Hailat who stayed in the Hela tribe, the six chief priests and the blacksmith camp's craftsman officer, Sairen Bojiu, into the big tent to discuss with him how the Jinhan tribe would survive in the Great Lakes Basin in the future.

"Your Highness, may the Lord of Heaven bless you with good health!"

Not long after, several people came in, bowed and saluted. Then, at Zhang Sheng's signal, the fifteen people he had named immediately knelt on the woolen blankets on the left and right sides in front of Zhang Sheng.

Seeing everyone sitting down, some female slaves outside the tent hurriedly brought plates of extremely precious dried fruits, tea, and large amounts of meat and dry biscuits, and placed them in front of everyone.

(End of this chapter)