Taiheiki

Chapter 197 Alliance
"But according to the Zhou rites, the emperor has one empress, three consorts, nine concubines, twenty-seven ladies-in-waiting, and eighty-one imperial wives, totaling one hundred and twenty-one people!"

"If Zhou Li tells you to die, will you just go and die?" Wei Cong laughed.

"Hahahaha!" Yuan Shao finally stopped hiding his laughter and burst into laughter: "Brother Wei, you are truly a wonderful person. Really, this trip to Jiaozhou has not been in vain."

"Of course you didn't come for nothing!" Wei Cong smiled. "I've already selected three hundred elite soldiers from among the prisoners of war and handed them over to you. Take them back to Luoyang. They were all going to die anyway, but they survived because of you. Besides, they don't speak the language, so no one else would know where to start trying to bribe them. This way, you, the commander of the Northern Army, can finally sleep soundly!"

"I haven't decided yet whether I'll take this position as the Marquis of the Northern Army!" Yuan Shao laughed. "Perhaps I'll be assigned to a large prefecture?"

“He’s lying again. Now that he’s personally involved, how could Yuan Shao be someone who’s gone out to avoid trouble?” Wei Cong laughed.

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Shiwu carefully placed the tortoise shell on the campfire. The flames licked the shell, making a crackling sound. After a few minutes, he used tongs to pick up the shell. Before it cooled down, he began to carefully examine the cracks on it, searching his mind for suitable divination inscriptions.

"Ji An, what is the auspicious time?" Wei Cong asked in a deep voice.

"Reporting to the Governor!" Shi Wu replied cautiously, "The auspicious time will be at Chenshi (7-9 AM) four days from now!"

“Very good, then the alliance meeting will be held four days from now at Chenshi (7-9 AM)!” Wei Cong nodded: “I’ll leave the arrangements for the alliance meeting to you. Just tell me if you need manpower or money, is that alright?”

"Your subordinate obeys!" Shi Wu replied with trepidation. As a scholar of the Han Dynasty who had received excellent Confucian training, Shi Wu was not only a competent administrative official but also adept at organizing religious rituals. Wei Cong decided to hold an alliance meeting using the rites of the feudal lords during the Spring and Autumn Period: Wei Cong, as the governor of Jiaozhou and the Protector of the Hundred Yue, was the initiator of the meeting, while Yuan Shao, the Embroidered-Robe Envoy, was present as a representative of the Han Emperor to witness the meeting. The local chieftains and the Vice-King of Funan who participated in the meeting were the feudal lords.

Unfortunately, none of his subordinates knew the specific details of the alliance meeting. Just then, Shi Wu arrived, and Wei Cong remembered that he was Kong Gui's student and should know a lot about these matters. So, he was forced into the task. As the saying goes, "When the boss speaks, the subordinates run themselves ragged." Shi Wu had no choice but to take a copy of the Zuo Zhuan and a copy of the Book of Rites, half flipping through the books and half making up his own stories, and began to get busy.

Of course, Wei Cong wasn't doing this to play the role of Duke Huan of Qi or Duke Wen of Jin. He had come all the way from Rinan County, and the local people along the way were deeply influenced by ancient Hindu culture. For example, the King of Lin-yi even claimed to be an incarnation of Indra, and the script used by the Zhan people was likely mostly based on ancient Sanskrit. He knew that if he wanted long-term stability and to permanently bring the Mekong Delta, this precious land, into the heart of China, he had to win this cultural battle. The way of both military and civil affairs is balanced; neither should be neglected. Now that he had demonstrated the might of the Han Dynasty to these local barbarian chieftains, the next step should be to demonstrate the solemnity and grandeur of Chinese civilization, the beauty of literature and etiquette. This alliance meeting was the perfect opportunity for this.

Four days later, the Viceroy of Funan and a large group of local barbarian chieftains arrived, curiously observing the strange structure beside the lagoon—a palace wall with a circumference of three hundred paces, with a gate in each of the four directions. In the center of the palace was an earthen platform nine feet above the ground, upon which sat a small thatched hut. Even by the standards of the local barbarian chieftains, the structure was quite crude. Why were these Han Chinese building this house? Was it for their own residence?

Just as the barbarian chieftains were lost in thought, a horn sounded, and Wei Cong and Yuan Shao, dressed in magnificent robes, wearing scholar's caps, with jade pendants and long swords at their waists, appeared like deities, walking side by side. The barbarian chieftains were startled and quickly knelt in greeting. Wei Cong said in a deep voice, "Please rise, gentlemen. The auspicious time has arrived; let us enter the palace for the alliance meeting!"

"Good, good!" The Vice-King of Funan nodded hastily. Wei Cong invited Yuan Shao to go first, followed by himself, then the Vice-King, and the other barbarian chieftains entered the palace through the four gates. They then sat around the earthen platform according to their blood ties and strength, each with a minor official behind them instructing them on how to behave. Although these barbarian chieftains did not know the specific details of the ceremony, they were also affected by the solemn atmosphere and held their breath. The palace was completely silent; you could hear a pin drop.

Shi Wu, dressed in a red robe, stood below the earthen platform and proclaimed loudly, "Invite the angel to ascend the altar!" No sooner had he finished speaking than Yuan Shao ascended the platform. Just as everyone was wondering what was happening, Shi Wu announced loudly, "All lords, ascend the altar in order to pay homage to the angel!"

As soon as the words were spoken, Wei Cong ascended the earthen altar, knelt and bowed to Yuan Shao, who was the emperor's envoy, and then presented a jade pendant. Yuan Shao accepted the jade pendant, and Wei Cong withdrew. Then came the deputy king of Funan, and one by one, the barbarian chieftains came up on the platform, presented various gifts, and then withdrew one by one.

After everyone had finished offering their gifts, someone brought over specially prepared cattle, sheep, and pigs, which were then slaughtered at the foot of the earthen platform. The blood was poured into a large bronze vessel, and then sprinkled on the four gates in the east, west, south, and north. The slaughtered animals were then placed on a bonfire, doused with wine, and roasted. Shiwu then led everyone to kneel and worship at the four gates in the east, west, south, and north (representing the gods of the sun, moon, four rivers, and mountains and hills, respectively), inviting the gods to enjoy the offerings.

At this point, the barbarian chieftains all showed expressions of sudden realization. Perhaps they didn't understand the meaning of the previous ritual, but the slaughter of sacrificial offerings and the worship of gods were all too familiar to them; it was a part of their lives. Although the gods worshipped by the Han people were somewhat unfamiliar—the statues of the gods were placed in the main hall on the earthen platform.

However, this did not diminish their reverence. Firstly, ancient Hinduism was a diverse mix, and most of these barbarian chieftains were still in the transition from tribal to slave societies. Animism was still prevalent among them, and they had heard of many strange and unusual deities. Furthermore, the Han people were so powerful, possessing such a strong empire; their deities must have been equally powerful, and venerating an additional powerful deity would certainly not be a loss.

After completing the sacrifices to the gods, the people sat down on the ground, laid out wine, and shared the roasted offerings. The atmosphere became relaxed and joyful. The barbarian chieftains had all thought this alliance wouldn't be easy, but to their surprise, they only needed to kowtow a few times, sacrifice some livestock to the gods, and then sit down to drink and eat. It seems this Han official was truly a kind man!

After several rounds of drinks, Shi Wu walked to the earthen platform and solemnly addressed the barbarian chieftains: "Gentlemen, just now we offered gifts to the Emperor, and made offerings to the gods of the sun, moon, four rivers, mountains, and hills, and shared sacrificial meat and wine. Heaven and earth and the gods have arrived to witness our covenant! To proclaim our covenant!" He then took out a silk scroll from his sleeve and loudly proclaimed: "Wherever the sun and moon shine, wherever rivers flow, all is Han territory. Now there is the King of Linyi, who, relying on his strength, bullied the weak, gathered troops, and invaded the counties of the Great Han. He was defeated by the royal army, his body captured, and his kingdom destroyed. The people are displaced, and the lives of the people are in turmoil. The Emperor truly pities him. The reason for this is that this place lacks order and moral guidance; the strong bully the weak, and the large devour the small—this is the way of everything."
Is this not the duty of the local officials? Therefore, the Governor of Jiaozhou and Protector of the Baiyue, Wei Cong, is hereby ordered to gather the chieftains and establish an alliance: prohibiting theft, prohibiting mutual attacks, prohibiting the release of floodwaters downstream, prohibiting mobs from attacking each other, prohibiting harboring criminals from other countries, prohibiting the plundering of merchants, and prohibiting aiding outsiders in attacking allies..."

Shi Wu read a sentence on the earthen platform, and a translator translated it. The Vice-King of Funan heard it clearly. The prohibitions in the alliance were nothing more than mutual attacks, annexation, theft, cutting off downstream water sources during the dry season, releasing floodwaters downstream during the rainy season, and robbing merchants. Most of these were things that Funan originally had, but were more detailed and meticulous. The stone that had been hanging in mid-air in his heart finally settled down.

Presumably, this Governor Wei was afraid that another Lin-yi Kingdom might emerge, so he specially came to gather the barbarian chieftains for a solemn alliance. It doesn't really matter, since he'll have to leave in a month or two when the rainy season arrives anyway. This place is thousands of miles away from the Han Dynasty, and who knows when he'll come back next time! He just needs to get through this one.

Just as the Vice King of Funan was distracted, Shi Wu had finished reading the oath of alliance. Wei Cong was the first to stand up, walk to the bronze vessel containing blood, dip his finger in the blood, and smear it on his face and lips before stepping back. The others followed Wei Cong's example and swore an oath of alliance in turn.

After everyone had finished drinking the blood oath, Shi Wu placed the covenant in a jade box, put it in a pit that had been dug under the earthen altar, and then buried it, along with the bronze vessel that had held the blood. After finishing, he shouted loudly: "The sun, moon, the four rivers, the mountains and hills bear witness, those who break the covenant will be condemned by heaven and earth, and will be abhorred by gods and men. May they be cursed by the gods for generations to come!"

As the ceremony ended, everyone present, especially the barbarian chieftains, suddenly felt a supernatural and immense power descend upon them, as if the gazes of several enormous, magnificent, and otherworldly creators were cast upon them, causing them to instinctively feel awe and trembling.

"This, this is a deity, a Han Chinese deity!" The Vice-King of Funan subconsciously lowered his head. A thought flashed through his mind: Could it be that the ceremony he had just participated in was an invitation for a deity to descend and bear witness to the covenant that had just been made? Were these Han Chinese deities also among the people eating meat and drinking wine in the walls just now? At this thought, the Vice-King of Funan's body trembled involuntarily.

After the agreement was signed, Wei Cong took out the list of barbarian chieftains who had participated in assisting the King of Linyi in his invasion of Jiaozhou. The list contained seventeen names; nine were present, while the remaining eight were absent, presumably having heard rumors. Wei Cong said in a deep voice, "Those who have not formed an alliance are my enemies. I will personally send troops to punish them, and you must not assist him. Anyone who captures them alive or takes their heads will be rewarded with official titles, ranks, and money. As for those who have already come—"

He paused for a moment, his gaze sweeping over the terrified faces kneeling before him: "The King of Lin-yi was the ringleader of this crime and is currently imprisoned in Jiaozhi. He will be transferred to Luoyang for the Emperor's judgment. Although you have committed evil, your evil does not match that of the King of Lin-yi, and you are being executed without prior instruction. This would be too much punishment and the evil would not prevail! If I were to kill you all today, I fear the people would not be satisfied. So, I will spare you today, but while you may escape death, you will not escape punishment. I will punish each of you by having three hundred men lead you to perform two months of hard labor for the construction of the city each year, for a total of three years. Do you accept this?"

The nine men were overjoyed to have their lives spared and quickly kowtowed, saying, "The governor is merciful; we are naturally convinced!"

"That's good!" Wei Cong said with a smile. "Since that's the case, we are now allies. If there is any emergency, as long as it's covered in the alliance, you can send a messenger, and I will certainly provide assistance!"

"Governor Wei is truly a hero of our time!"

"Thank you, Governor Wei!"

"The kindness shown to us by Governor Wei is as vast as mountains and seas!"

Regardless of their true feelings, the barbarian chieftains all appeared outwardly grateful. After the alliance meeting, they presented various valuable items as gifts. Wei Cong reciprocated with silk, salt, ironware, and swords. The group then feasted for three days before dispersing.

Wei Cong then ordered the construction of his new city, centered on the site of the alliance meeting, with trenches dug, walls built, and docks constructed. Yuan Shao was somewhat puzzled as to why Wei Cong chose this location, but Wei Cong did not hide anything, explaining directly: "I chose this place for several advantages: First, this lagoon is about forty li in circumference, with a narrow mouth and a large belly. The water is three or four zhang deep, connecting directly to the sea. Even with strong winds and waves at sea, the lake remains calm, making it suitable for anchoring large ships."
Secondly, this lagoon is a mixture of fresh and seawater, which is usually abundant with fish and shellfish, providing food for the local people. The shoreline is rocky and does not easily silt up, making it a good harbor. There is also a waterway that connects directly to the main river, allowing for upstream travel. By building a fortified city to guard the strategic points, there will be the advantage of navigation without the worry of being attacked.

Thirdly, the land surrounding the lagoon is fertile, offering abundant agricultural benefits, not to mention the endless coconut groves!

Wei Cong pointed to the endless coconut groves all around and laughed, "These are treasures! The coconut meat is edible, the coconut juice is drinkable, it can be used to make wine, and it can be pressed for oil. The coconut palm is tough and resistant to seawater corrosion, so it can be used to make ropes, fill seams in ships, and replace hemp rope. Hemp requires planting, but coconut palm doesn't. We just need to wait for it to ripen and send people to harvest it, then load it onto ships and transport it back to Panyu for processing. Just for this alone, building a city here will bring endless benefits!"

Yuan Shao laughed when he heard Wei Cong's reasoning: "Brother Wei, your first two points are fine, but the last one is only a one-tenth profit, yet you specifically brought it up. It's a bit of a waste!"

“Benchu, you’re mistaken!” Wei Cong’s expression turned serious. “Without this tithe, this city cannot be built, and even if it is, it won’t last long!”

(End of this chapter)