Establishing a thousand-year family from the nobles of the Western Han Dynasty

Chapter 67 Zhou Yafu Returns to the Court, Xu Nan Promoted
In the fifth year of Yuanshuo, Wei Qing defeated the Xiongnu Zuoxian King on the grassland, beheaded 30,000 people, captured 40,000 people, and the enemy leader was killed on the spot. That day, the sticky blood dyed the grass red.

Huo Qubing also became a god in this battle. Relying on 10,000 cavalrymen, he defeated a larger force with a smaller one, defeated tens of thousands of Huns, killed Zuo Xian King in battle, captured more than 20 ministers of the minor kings, and made his power known in the northern desert.

The nomadic peoples were terrified by the killing, and hundreds of miles of fertile grasslands in the northern desert were completely lost. Millions of cattle and sheep were lost, and the population was also weakened to a certain extent.

This battle was the Battle of Dingxiang, which frightened the Xiongnu royal court so much that they once again fled thousands of miles away to avoid the attack of the Han army.

Xunan of Liaodong also dealt with several rebellions by various ethnic groups in the northeast, and pursued them in depth, completely pacifying this area of ​​white mountains and black waters. The Hu people surrendered to the country as a whole. They were also the ancestors of the Xianbei and Wuhuan, and later gradually replaced the Xiongnu to become the new overlords of the grassland.

"My dear nephew, you are truly a brave man. You have learned a lot from the Prime Minister in this battle. I feel as if I have seen the shadow of the former Grand Commandant Xu Zhao."

Zhou Yafu, who was stationed in Shangdang, came from afar to congratulate Xu Chu after learning that he had fought a big battle. As the prime minister's staunch "little brother", Zhou Yafu and Xu Nan also had a good relationship.

He admired this junior very much, so he was willing to recommend him as the Grand Marshal.

"How dare I compare myself with the general? You are an old general who has lived in the frontier for ten years. Any military exploits you show off can surpass me." Xu Nan put down the things in his hand and stood up with the same eagerness.

Since Zhou Yafu was reinstated as the General of the Northern Expedition, he has been in high spirits. He killed so many Huns on the battlefield that they no longer dared to launch large-scale attacks, and the people living in the border areas had a rare window of peace.

He was feared by foreign races and was called "Iron Wall General". As long as he was there, no one could invade even an inch of Han land.

He is also Xu Nan's main target. If he wants to compete with Xu Ye, he needs support from others. This favored Taiwei and important minister in charge of the emperor is one of them.

He also needed the recommendation of General Zhou, and the military school of the Imperial College also needed the support of this veteran general to have a hope of opening.

Otherwise, there won’t be enough students, let alone teachers.

"That's not bad either. I have fought in wars for many years and you are still young. You will have plenty of opportunities in the future. I remember that the prince was taught by Xu Taichang." Zhou Yafu looked at him with an expression of "you know".

In fact, veteran officials could all understand what His Majesty meant, and so could Xu Gong himself.

Since they wanted to suppress the Xu family, why did they let Xu's son be the prince's teacher? If the prince Liu Ju was close, then he would also need to use important people when he ascended to the throne, because these people were the only ones who could be used in the whole court.

Unless Your Majesty does not intend to let Liu Ju succeed to the throne, but this is obviously impossible. As the de facto emperor, he has no need to do so.

So this is a typical way of winning people's hearts. He wanted to take this opportunity to do some favors for Liu Ju. Wouldn't it be possible for Xu to be grateful to the new dynasty and then be able to use him again?
In fact, it is almost impossible to avoid the Xu family nowadays, because they are so useful. They have talents who can fight wars, talents who can govern the country, talents who can make plans, talents who can support agriculture and build weapons, and even talents who can teach talents!
This is exactly what all dynasties dream of. In addition, they are loyal enough, so as long as they don't have any rebellious thoughts, they can be used without a brain. Even if they do, it's useless because the foundation of the Xu family's life is loyalty to the emperor. If they rebel, they will be abandoned by their friends and relatives.

In the past, Emperor Xiaojing once said that the lifeblood of the Xu family was "righteousness," which was the basis for them to obey others and the foundation for the emperor's control.

君要臣death,臣不得不death!

This is the current situation of the Xu family. If they are declining, it can only be the result of the emperor's exclusion.

Xu Nan deliberately pretended to be "indifferent" and said: "Your Majesty has shown favor to me. Although my cousin is teaching the prince, it does not mean that the prince must use him. As a subject, I must obey the king."

Zhou Yafu agreed: "That's right. There is no way to survive if you fight against the imperial power." "The purpose of the commander's visit should be more than just a consolation," Xu Nan guessed.

"Haha... my dear nephew is very smart. I am not here just to congratulate you."

"You probably don't know yet, but Wei Qing won a victory in Mobei and almost wiped out the Xiongnu Zuoxian King's troops. Yizhixie is now alone and his strength has been almost weakened. The next time, I think we can completely solve the Xiongnu's hidden dangers."

Xu Nan was obviously a little surprised. He knew that with Wei Qing's ability, victory was inevitable, but he didn't expect it to be so soon, less than three months. It took him such a long time to defeat many scattered remnant tribes.

In fact, it is not difficult to understand. Although the Northeast is full of remnants of soldiers and guerrillas, they are extremely scattered, and it takes a long time to search and eliminate them.

Wei Qing had obtained insider intelligence very early on and knew the specific location of the enemy, so it was reasonable for him to win in one battle.

"so what?"

Zhou Yafu was obviously in a good mood: "When His Majesty summoned General Wei Qing to return to the court, he also ordered me to return to Chang'an. My years of traveling on the border can come to an end, and I can also see my new grandson."

He knew that the reason His Majesty summoned him back to the court was obviously to find a replacement, and he would surely be valued if he returned due to his outstanding military achievements.

Although Zhou Yafu knew that it would be difficult for him to compete with Xu Zhou, he still had some hope. Moreover, even if he could not become prime minister, he would still be an important official with great power.

These many military exploits were not achieved in vain and will become very important resumes.

Xu Nan immediately bowed and said, "Congratulations, General Zhou. I hope you will have a prosperous career and your family will be prosperous for thousands of years."

It was normal for Zhou Yafu to be happy. After all, no one could stand staying in this godforsaken place for ten years.

If he goes one step further, then his fight for the position of Grand Marshal can be put on the agenda, although there is a high probability that he will not be able to compete with his cousin Xu Zhou, who has the collective support of the Confucian Party and the Legalist Party.

"A thousand years of wealth and prosperity? How can there be a clan that can prosper for a thousand years? In my opinion, only the Xu family can do it." Zhou Yafu also praised him appropriately.

This is indeed the case. The Xu family has had three dukes in four generations and has been prosperous for a hundred years. They will continue to be valued in the future.

The two men immediately started drinking and all night long. Because of the Prohibition, Zhou Yafu had not had a drop of alcohol for a whole year. This time, he wanted to drink himself back to make up for the years of debt.

Xu Nan is also here to keep you company. He should be promoted soon, as pacifying the Northeast is also a contribution.

Half a month later, Wei Qing's tens of thousands of cavalry retreated to Dingxiang, and two imperial edicts were sent to Liaodong and Dingxiang respectively.

Emperor Wu of Han ordered Wei Qing to be promoted to the rank of Grand Marshal and General, a new official title. When Zhou Yafu returned to the court, his fief was increased by 3,000 households. Xu Nan took his place as the General of the Northern Expedition, granted temporary authority, and stationed at the border to defend against southern invasion by foreign races.

This result undoubtedly surprised Xu Nan. He had thought of everything, but he had never dared to think of the position of General of the Northern Expedition. This was not an ordinary official position!
Even Zhou Yafu was a little confused. Did His Majesty intend to make this position permanent? That was a bit too exaggerated.

(End of this chapter)