Wait, please don't call me Emperor Zhaolie

Chapter 437 Sinicization of the Huns
After explaining things to Xun Yu and other ministers, Liu Bei did not stay in Yunyang any longer. He led his troops down the Wei River. When he arrived at Pingyang County in Hedong on October 7, he ordered the garrison to rest for a few days.

Then he summoned the county magistrates and county secretaries of Xiangling, Yangxian, Pingyang and Yong'an counties, preparing to inquire carefully about the progress of the sinicization of the Xiongnu tribes under Huochequan's command.

Are there still conflicts between the Huns and the people of Hedong?

Sima Yi, the magistrate of Xiangling County, walked in front of the crowd. Because he had been appointed by the emperor and had served in the army for a period of time, he was respected and admired by other county magistrates.

"Your Majesty, I, Sima Yi, kowtow to you! May your Majesty live forever and the Han Dynasty enjoy eternal happiness!"

Sima Yi heard the soldiers calling out one by one, straightened his clothes, and then walked respectfully into the military camp. When he entered the main tent and saw a familiar face, he immediately knelt down and kowtowed.

The other county magistrates and county secretaries also knelt on the ground, kowtowed and saluted, saying: "May Your Majesty live forever, and the Han Dynasty be forever happy!"

Seeing this, Liu Bei raised his hand and said with a smile: "No need to be polite, please stand up quickly."

Then his eyes fell on Sima Yi, and he said with a smile on his face: "Although I am in Yunyang Palace, I often hear Minister Xun praise that Sima Zhongda of Henei has the talent to govern the country, and is not inferior to his brother Boda."

"I also heard that Zhongda's brother, Sima Shuda, was famous in Hanoi and became one of the top three talents in the imperial examinations."

"I passed all the imperial examinations and finally ranked third. I was appointed as the Riling County of Zhangye, governing the people for the Han family."

"The rest of the younger brothers also became famous at a young age. This shows that the eight Sima of Henei are all capable of being good ministers."

Sima Yi felt a little bitter when hearing the emperor's praise. He never dreamed that Sima Fu would be transferred by the Ministry of Personnel to the distant Hexi as a county magistrate. He thought that at the very least he would be appointed to a post in Huainan or the Central Plains.

Unfortunately, Sima had no connections with the officials in the Ministry of Personnel, and did not know that there were no vacancies for county magistrates in many places at that time. Only the two counties of Jiuquan and Zhangye, which had just been recovered, had a large number of vacancies for officials.

Compared to going to the more distant Jiuquan to be a county magistrate, Sima Yi simply let Sima Fu choose Zhangye. Because the Han army's strong attack on the Qiang people frightened the small Yuezhi near Zhangye County and chose to surrender.

They only asked the Han army not to pursue the Qiang and Hu, but accidentally killed the Yuezhi herdsmen. They took the initiative to request that Han officials be sent to the Yuezhi city of their tribe to manage it on their behalf.

Sima Yi guessed that with Sima Fu's reputation, it would be impossible for him to become the chief official to the Xiaoyuezhi. It would be better for him to be the magistrate of a nearby county and persuade the Hu people to convert to Han Chinese, which would be a great political achievement.

So he wrote down all his experiences in governing the Xiongnu as the magistrate of Xiangling County on a piece of paper and gave it to Sima Fu. He also gave him several good Xiongnu horses and told him when he said goodbye: "Although Shuda is a county magistrate, he is busy with official duties but he should not neglect the Han people's riding, archery and swordsmanship. If he encounters danger, he can save his life."

Sima Fu put the report on his brother's governance written on paper overnight into the bag on his horse's back, smiled and bowed to Sima Yi, saying: "This journey is far away, and I don't know when I will return. I hope you take care of yourself, brother."

"Since Fu has been highly valued by the court, he has been ordered to go to Zhangye County as a county magistrate. This is also my good fortune. Zhangye is known as the arm that cuts off the Xiongnu and the arm of the Han Dynasty. How can I not yearn for such a magnificent place?"

"What's more, a real man has ambitions to travel the world and gain a title based on his military achievements. Now there are still military achievements in Yong and Liang provinces. Fu, at a young age, is heading west with a sword. Why should he fear life or death!" When Sima Yi heard this, he stopped talking and just shook his head with a wry smile, because he saw youthful energy and the will to overcome difficulties and obstacles in Sima Fu's eyes.

He almost wanted to throw down his pen and go to a frontier county to be granted a title. Watching his back riding away, Sima Yi stroked his beard and said in deep thought: "If I can clear the land of ten thousand miles and bring order to the eight wastelands, I will be able to live up to my life's ambition and become a hero of the age."

After the farewell, Sima Yi continued to be busy with the affairs of the Huns. Now, time has passed and it has been almost a year. If Your Majesty had not suddenly mentioned this matter, Sima Yi would have almost forgotten it.

He hurriedly bowed and replied: "Thank you for your praise, Your Majesty. Except for Shuda, the other eight Sima are still young, so I dare not call them good ministers."

Liu Bei smiled and asked directly: "Zhongda has been transferred to Xiangling County since October of the first year of Jianxing. In the past two years, he must have known the Xiongnu well. How are the tens of thousands of Xiongnu being governed now?"

Hearing the emperor's question, Sima Yi considered his words and respectfully said, "Your Majesty, since I took control of the Xiongnu in Xiangling, I have used both kindness and severity to divide them, giving benefits to those who are close to me and reducing benefits to those who are far away."

"He also punished the corrupt officials who had previously collected excessive taxes, and with the coercion and intimidation of the Hedong Military Office, he successively eliminated the noble forces among the Xiongnu and distinguished them."

"When the time was right, the Xiongnu near Xiangling were registered as civilians, with the imperial court as the main document. Every ten households had a Jia, every ten Jia had a Bao, every ten Bao had a Du Bao. The most pro-Han people were appointed as Jiazhang, Baozhang, and Du Bao. A performance evaluation system was also established, and the chief officials were rotated every year, with the best ones taking over."

"When their superiors set an example, we can then use Han clothing and Confucian etiquette to teach them. From my observation, if this continues for more than 20 years, it will be enough to convert tens of thousands of Xiongnu people into Han people."

"By then, the baojia who still follow the Xiongnu's example will be despised and looked down upon by the rest of the Xiongnu, and will gradually become rare under this influence. To implement this good policy, Your Majesty and the officials of the court must be patient and not give up halfway."

Sima Yi explained in detail and bowed again.

The Xiongnu tribes in Hedong were easy to control because this part of the Xiongnu had fought with the Han army many times, especially in the Battle of Qinshui, where they were completely defeated.

Unable to return to the Xiongnu royal court in the north, the surrounding Han clans became stronger again, and the Han army was approaching with the intention of wiping out the Xiongnu tribe in one fell swoop.

This was the reason why the Huns under Huochequan's command did not dare to resist. What's more, the Chanyu and the nobles were summoned to Guanzhong, and three hundred noble sons who stayed behind also went to Luoyang. Many of them were prestigious people among the Huns.

Who asked Your Majesty to relax the age limit for Xiongnu nobles? Anyone aged between fifteen and forty can go to the Imperial Academy in Luoyang to study Confucian classics.

The emperor's edict was delivered, together with the tortoise-ribbon seal of the Chanyu. Moreover, the official document did not specify how long he would be away. Many noble children thought that they would be back after they arrived. However, they found out after they arrived that they could not just show up and leave to enter the academy. They had to pass the examinations of the doctors and the chief academic officers in the Imperial Academy on the Analects and other Confucian classics. Otherwise, they could not even leave Luoyang City because they had no pass.

Under the various efforts of the Han Dynasty, the power of the nobles in the Hedong tribe disappeared in an instant. Even if Huochuquan, Qubei and others escaped from the barbarian residence, it would be difficult to mobilize one-third of the herdsmen. The sinicization of the Hedong Xiongnu was only a matter of time.

(End of this chapter)