Controlling mountains and rivers since the Warring States Period

Chapter 524 The Westward Migration of the Xiongnu
Liu Ruyi's sigh did not last long.

Because the Reina River is a border region, even if it can enjoy peace for a while, it cannot maintain it forever.

savage chaos

This was the long-standing theme in Western lands, apart from Rome.

While the Suwei people of the East were celebrating the New Year with the gentlemen of the Xia people in Guangye, they launched a fierce attack on the Ubier tribe, whom they considered a "traitor."

The latter's leader was injured by a stray arrow during the battle, and even though he received medical treatment, his life force was severely depleted.

Six months later,

He then passed away.

Since he left no offspring, the "soft rice" that Liu Ruyi longed for was presented to his descendants.

unfortunately,

The leader's younger brother objected to his sister and brother-in-law's relationship.

He invoked the customary law of the tribe, demanding that, as an adult male relative, he have priority in inheriting the estate left by his elder brother.

After all, according to the customs of the Germanic barbarians,

Although women can inherit their fathers' and brothers' estates, they also face various restrictions.

For example, if the father has sons, the daughter can only receive some property and cannot touch the land left by her father.

Even the property they inherit needs to be under the guardianship and management of male relatives.

After the death of a male elder, adult males of the same generation who also have inheritance rights can receive the estate first.

“I was not yet an adult when my father passed away, so I did not raise any objections to the distribution of his estate.”

"But now, I will not allow the land of Ubiel to be occupied by the Chinese!"

This led to a fierce debate between the two sides, which even escalated into a war.

Among the Ubier tribe, some who were influenced by Liu Ruyi and other people from the Xia people and bathed in the light of God naturally supported the "princess" and the "son-in-law".

Some people, however, adhere to tradition, believing that since the Chinese already possess sufficient population and land, they should not further seize the wealth belonging to Ubier through marriage.

This prompted the renowned "living saint," the Great Teacher of the West, to come to the town where the Ubi people had settled to mediate between the two sides.

Subsequently,

Pontius Pilate, who had successfully reinstated himself through a twist of fate and indeed assumed the position of Roman governor of Gaul, also sent people to ease the conflict.

And the final result,

The Liu couple, along with the property that should have been inherited by them, and their brother, along with the two hundred slaves given to them by the new leader of Ubiel, chose to separate and live independently.

quickly,

They also became the first seed of "Guangye" to leave the branch and drift outwards.

After going through a period of trials and tribulations

The initial population was only six hundred, but along the way, another four hundred or so were gathered, making up a "Chu Kingdom" of over a thousand people. It was established on a narrow plain in the middle reaches of the Reina River.

……

Why is it called 'Chu'?

Underworld

The early rulers of Qin felt extremely uncomfortable whenever they heard this word.

"The contents of the edict were written by Liu Laosan; they have nothing to do with me!"

The questioned deity waved his hand and pointed to Emperor Taizu of Han, who was drinking beside him.

Because the formalities still needed to be completed after Liu Xiu's death, the emperors of the Zhou, Qin, and Han dynasties fought over them, but the Han dynasty ultimately succeeded in obtaining the brush and stamping the seal.

of course,

The corresponding ritual objects were also made by the dead men of the Han dynasty.

“I was born in the land of Chu, and the songs and dances I enjoy are also made by the people of Chu. Now that my descendants have the ambition to develop in the West, why can’t they be named after ‘Chu’?”

"Since Xiuer hasn't officially appointed anyone as the King of Chu yet, can't I, as her ancestor, claim that title first?"

"But most of the seeds of the Western Kingdom were migrated from the Qin State!"

A group of people with the blood of the Qin people, led by descendants of the Liu family, established a state called "Chu" in the west...

Just thinking about it is incredibly confusing!
"We're so close, why are you being so formal with 'you' and 'me'?"

Liu Laosan was still drinking his wine and speaking with self-righteousness.

The former ruler of Qin believed that he did it on purpose and continued to argue and fool around with him.

Xiang Yu, the Hegemon-King of Western Chu, was also standing nearby, his face flushed, as he recalled the story of the Chu-Han Contention.

The dead on each side are very energetic.
Only King Huai of Chu was silently shedding tears.

The State of Chu has reappeared.
But why!
Why isn't he a descendant of the Xiong family?
Aside from the orthodox Xiong clan, anyone can be called "Chu," right?
He Bo comforted him, saying, "Try to think positively. At least this time you're the Earl of Chu, which is a much higher position than the original Prince of Chu!"

When the State of Chu was enfeoffed by the Zhou emperor, it only received the lowest rank of viscount, and its fiefdom was only fifty li in circumference. It was so miserable that the ruler of Chu had to lead the people up the mountain to gather firewood and steal cattle from other people's houses to sacrifice to their ancestors.

"Moreover, the Emperor is now separated from the State of Chu by an entire continent. Even if you declare yourselves kings in the future, you will not have to worry about being criticized by other feudal lords, nor will you need to consider vying for supremacy in the Central Plains!"

King Huai of Chu then wept even more bitterly.

He tilted his head back and drank the wine of sorrow, waving his hand at the ghosts and spirits, saying, "Stop talking, stop talking..."

If we continue...

He even considered jumping into the river with Qu Yuan.

Seeing his grief-stricken appearance, He Bo laughed with joy.

The laughter reached the human world and transformed into the snowstorm of the twenty-fifth year of Jianwu, scattering across the land north of the Yellow River.

And in the winter of that year

The Central Kingdom is still grappling with the disasters that are happening everywhere;
After seizing the valley leading to the southern grasslands, the Yan state in Liaodong built city walls and fortresses there, clearly intending to transform it into a key western pass for their kingdom, while simultaneously severing any hope of the Wuhuan returning.

The Wuhuan, filled with boundless rage after their home was raided by the hateful Yan people, launched an attack on the Xiongnu.

But the Central Plains were suffering from natural disasters and could hardly make ends meet, let alone the Xiongnu people who grazed their livestock on the grasslands.

Their cattle and sheep became emaciated and eventually died due to a series of natural disasters and man-made calamities.

This made Punu Chanyu feel the winter chill even though he was wrapped in a blanket and sitting in a tent with a fire burning.

The bewildered Chanyu even tried to seek some hope for himself by consulting divination and asking the spirits of his ancestors in the heavens during the cold winds of last year.

But the oracle bones he burned always cracked into several pieces.

The yarrow stalks used for divination always seemed to sprout and break repeatedly.

The wizards serving them uttered in terrified voices, trembling as they said, "There's no hope, there's no hope here..."

"This is a very bad omen!"

Punu Chanyu, who inherited his father's personality, was furious.

He used the remaining yarrow stalks to whip the wizard, leaving his white divination robes stained with blood.

While smoking, he asked:
"Is it auspicious or inauspicious? Is it auspicious or inauspicious!"

The wizard had no choice but to change his tune, claiming it was an "auspicious sign."

Only then did Punu Chanyu stop whipping.

unfortunately,

His efforts could not change fate.

As the new winter approached, the strength of the Xiongnu deteriorated day by day.

"what?"

"Are the Wuhuan people capturing our people, cutting off their heads, and then demanding rewards from the Han people?"

How can a person be so shameless!

After losing Wuhuan Mountain, the Wuhuan people roamed the southern grasslands, plundering the Xiongnu's cattle, sheep, and pastures for their own supplies.

This naturally attracted the attention of the Central Plains dynasties. "It's such a pity not to recruit such fierce barbarians as henchmen!"

Initially, he set his sights on the border generals of the Wuhuan people, and sent a special report to Luoyang to try to win over the Wuhuan people to fight against the Xiongnu and the Yan state.

"The Xiongnu have weakened and their arrogance has faded. Now is the time to uphold our national prestige and uproot and eliminate this poisonous weed that has plagued the borders of our great Han Dynasty for two hundred years!"

"Moreover, the Wuhuan have a deep-seated hatred for the Yan state, stemming from the loss of their territory and the destruction of their homes. If their power were to fall to our side, we could lead them eastward to attack the Yan state!"

The emperor thought his words made sense, so he sent envoys with generous offers to win over the Wuhuan.

As descendants of the Donghu, the Wuhuan people had lived in the Wuhuan Mountains near the Great Wall for over a hundred years, and naturally had many dealings with the gentlemen of the various Xia states.

Their leader was well aware of the wealth and power of the Central Plains, and that once he attached himself to it, he could enjoy a level of wealth and comfort that even his ancestors had never experienced.

He readily agreed and sent his son and his men to Luoyang to pay homage to the emperor.

The former remained as a hostage, while the latter returned to the grasslands laden with treasure, proclaiming to his people the correctness of their choice.

After defeating the Xiongnu in the west

Although they seized many cattle, sheep, and slaves, some Wuhuan people still felt that they had lost their ancestral land and that it was a great loss, so they complained a lot about their leader.

The leader knew it was his mistake and could only silently endure it.

When the cartloads of treasures bestowed by the emperor of the Central Plains arrived at the Wuhuan tribe, the chieftain, his chest puffed out, spoke in a loud voice to those who complained:
"Without doing this, how could I have achieved my current wealth and status?"

The Xiongnu, who were fighting with them, saw the dazzling jewels emanating from the direction of the Wuhuan. Looking down at their own roasted meat, which hadn't even been salted and was now charred black, their emotions were stirred.

quickly,

Last spring, wanting to stop fighting with the Wuhuan people and also wanting treasure and to curry favor with the Xiongnu, several tribes jointly supported the Right Rizhu King Bi as their Chanyu, standing in opposition to Punu Chanyu, who occupied Longting.

In this regard,

Just as the brothers' grandfather had in his youth, the Xiongnu were once again divided.

In order to show his promising future, the Chanyu of the Southern Xiongnu even gave himself the same name as his grandfather, "Huhanye," and did things that were consistent with the identity of "Huhanye Chanyu."

He submitted to the Han Dynasty, pleading for the emperor's mercy and expressing his willingness to serve as a loyal hound of the Han Dynasty, guarding the land north of the Great Wall.

This greatly angered the Wuhuan people.

It had just enjoyed the pleasure of being "the big man's dog," so how could a competitor suddenly appear on this track?
And regardless of whether it's the north or the south

The Xiongnu were just the Xiongnu.

They were all targets for the Wuhuan people to devour!

How can we hold back against the Southern Xiongnu just because they split up?

But the Han Dynasty was very pleased with the intelligence and understanding of the Southern Xiongnu Chanyu Huhanye.

The emperor extended his powerful hand to stop the conflict between the Wuhuan and the Southern Xiongnu, allowing the former to attack the still disobedient Northern Xiongnu Chanyu, Punu.

In order to appease the Wuhuan people who were vying for favor, the emperor issued a new decree in the autumn of this year, allowing the exchange of Xiongnu heads for wealth.

This made the Wuhuan people eager to fight.

Winter, when snow usually falls, is a very difficult time for the people of the grasslands.

But in the twenty-fifth year of Jianwu, the Wuhuan people were welcoming their "harvest" amidst the winter snow.

Heavy snow made it difficult for the grasslands to survive, causing cattle and sheep to fall ill.

It doesn't matter!

Capture the Xiongnu!

Resources are scarce on the grasslands, making it difficult to obtain good things from the Central Plains.

It doesn't matter!

Capture the Xiongnu!

As long as they can capture the Xiongnu, all the things they lacked before will be made up for!
Holding onto beautiful expectations for the future,

Groups of bounty hunters have appeared on the grasslands.

Before the descendants of the Shang dynasty in Yinzhou could even utter a word of "bitterness," they were bound with ropes and skinned to make boots. The Xiongnu people of the northern grasslands enjoyed the same treatment much earlier.

"What a beast!"

Punu Chanyu grew angrier the more he thought about it, but he was helpless. He could only lean against his throne, which was covered with layers of carpets, his chest heaving.

After a moment of silence,

He raised his hand to cover his face and began to cry, "How did the Xiongnu become like this!"

No one could give him an answer.

And in the end, the sorrow
Punu Chanyu then thought of his uncle who had run away.

He decided to follow in the footsteps of the other person and also went to the West!
Since we can't make it in the East anyway, why can't we try our luck in the West?

Although the Xiongnu were influenced by many people who migrated from the Central Plains to the grasslands, they developed a strong sense of land ownership and ancestor worship.
But in essence,
The Xiongnu were still nomads on the grasslands, herds of cattle and sheep that followed the water and grass!
When the feng shui of a place is bad, the pressure is too heavy, and the grass that serves as food cannot grow, and the cattle and sheep cannot breed with peace of mind and refuse to produce new cattle and sheep, it is only natural for them to migrate to other places!

"But the attitude from the Western Regions isn't very good either..."

Since Jiaonan became the hegemon of the Western Regions, it has become much more assertive towards the surrounding forces.

The weakened Northern Xiongnu dared not confront them directly.

Given the current situation,
The Southern Xiongnu attacked from the front, the increasingly rebellious tribes from the other side of the Han Sea invaded from the rear, the Wuhuan attacked from the left, and the Western Regions disturbed from the right...

Enemies are everywhere!

If the Northern Xiongnu were to engage in a deadly battle with one side and fail to wipe out the enemy with overwhelming force, they would face being dismembered and devoured!
Upon hearing this, Punu Chanyu leaned back in his seat and sighed.

But as this is true,

Given such a dire situation, if he doesn't find a way to escape, he will inevitably face death.

"Detour!"

"We'll head directly north, bypassing the entire Western Regions!"

He had no intention of seeking refuge with the Qi state. Having already broken away from the Xiongnu, he carried a copy of the "Records of the Grand Historian" and showed it to people everywhere, claiming that he was a legitimate relative of the Xia people.

The most important thing is to find a way to survive!
Moreover, Punu Chanyu learned about the situation outside the territory from the tribes and merchants who came and went, and knew that the forces there were mostly weak and powerless.

Even if I am a loser in the East, I might still become a dominant force there!

The only problem is,
The environment outside the region is indeed not as good as that in the East, otherwise it wouldn't be able to support powerful tribes.
For Punu Chanyu and his Northern Xiongnu, even though the palace was replaced by a thatched house, it was still a place where they could live in peace and shelter from the wind and rain.

It's much better than clinging to the palace and ending up having it all burned down!

that's it,
The Chanyu of Punu, whose royal court was located in the northern desert, led his tribe to migrate westward along the Jinshan Mountains, the northern border of the Western Regions.

They bypassed the Western Regions kingdoms controlled by Jiaonan and arrived in the northwest of Wusun, in a place called "Yueban," which bordered Kangju. Seeing that the land and water were quite good, they decided to graze their livestock there for a while and raise the cattle, sheep, and horses they had driven there.

Because the Northern Xiongnu were moving very fast, they deliberately took a long detour to avoid attracting attention and being pursued.

Therefore, the historians in the Central Plains who were responsible for observing major events in various regions lost their records of the Northern Xiongnu.

The successive Chanyus of the Xiongnu royal court

Apart from the lineage of Huhanye Chanyu of the Southern Xiongnu who migrated south and became subordinate to the Han Dynasty,

In the records of the historians of the Central Plains dynasties, the story ended with the reign of Punu Chanyu.

The struggle with the Central Plains began in the Qin Dynasty.

The old rival and neighbor who had been entangled with each other throughout the Former Han Dynasty thus disappeared from the sight of the Central Plains.

A history book belonging to the past has been written.

A new overlord of the grasslands will rise in the future.

but,

This was not something the flourishing Han Dynasty needed to concern itself with.

The emperor and his officials in Luoyang were still busy pacifying the country's disasters and managing the water and soil in all directions.

Only the underworld historians, scattered by God to various places, secretly hold their paper and pen, recording the many changes beyond the Central Plains.

They will continue to monitor them.
And on and on...

(End of this chapter)