Taiheiki

Chapter 350 Agreement
"The general of the Ju-ting people wants to bribe me?" Duan Jiong laughed. "This makes me even more curious. I don't remember you being the kind of person who likes to bribe others!"

"Times change, and people always change! Besides, he also prepared a generous gift for me!"

"Really?" Duan Jiong's eyes narrowed slightly, like a feline about to pounce. "Then what does he want?"

"Two things. First, he can lift the siege of the capital of Funan and lead his troops back north, but he must be allowed to retain the land on both sides of the middle and upper reaches of the Yellow River!"

"Hmm! That's not out of the question, if he's willing to lift the siege of Funan's capital! Anyway, those lands don't belong to the Han Dynasty, so it's not unreasonable to be generous with other people's money once in a while! What about the second matter?"

“He wants to establish himself as king in the newly occupied lands and hopes you can support him!” Ying Feng said.

"To carve out a territory and become king?" Duan Jiong frowned. "This person is called Qielan, right? It seems he has quite the ambition!"

“Ambitions are certainly present! But in my opinion, his desire to become king is less about ambition and more about self-preservation!”

"Oh?" Duan Jiong's lips curled up, revealing a mocking smile: "Rather than ambition, it's more like a desire for self-preservation? Uncle, it seems the gift he gave you is quite substantial! Making you speak up for him like this."

"I'm just telling the truth!" Ying Feng said without changing his expression. "This Qielan mentioned the experiences of Marquis Han Xin of Huaiyin several times when we were chatting. He was very worried that after making great contributions this time, he would become too powerful and be mistreated by the King of Gou Ting!"

"Marquis of Huaiyin, Han Xin?" Duan Jiong laughed. "This guy really thinks highly of himself. If he really is Marquis of Huaiyin, Han Xin, then who am I? Long Ju or Chen Yu? Or King Bao of Wei?"

"It should be Xiang Yu, the Hegemon!" Ying Feng laughed.

"I'm not that shameless!" Duan Jiong snorted coldly. "Fine, I don't care what this self-important Marquis of Huaiyin thinks, but we must first lift the siege of the capital. We can talk about the rest after the siege is over! Just give him this reply. If he agrees, we can talk about the rest; otherwise, there's nothing to talk about!"

"I understand!" Ying Feng nodded. "There's one more thing, Brother Duan, please enlighten me!"

"Are you wondering why the General sent you as an envoy to persuade the Ju-ting people to send troops to the southwest, and then had me lead troops from Jiaozhou?" Duan Jiong smiled. "The reason is actually quite simple. The General wants to take the southern lands, but doesn't want to be the first to act, so he's letting the Ju-ting people play the villain. Once they've shattered the Jin-ou (a powerful military regime), he'll clean up the mess! That's why he did it this way!"

"Why make things so complicated if we shatter the golden goblet and then have him clean up the mess? In my opinion, the Funan people aren't that strong. With a single brigade from Jiaozhou, wiping them out wouldn't be difficult at all!"

"It's very simple. The General only wants the delta near the sea and the fertile lands around this great lake. He's not very interested in other lands. Although the Funan people aren't militarily strong, they've occupied the area for hundreds of years and are deeply entrenched. If we directly send troops to conquer them, their royal family will most likely flee to remote vassal states. If the war drags on, it will become troublesome. But if the General does what he did, the Gou-ting people will invade the south, and the Funan people won't be able to resist. Then, our Jiaozhou will send troops to help them drive them away. Then, we can take the opportunity to appoint someone as their prime minister to assist their king. This way, we can settle and garrison without bloodshed, gradually encroaching on their territory. Wouldn't that be wonderful!"

"So, agreeing to Qielan's request isn't necessarily a bad thing!" Ying Feng laughed. "In this way, Qielan, having established his kingdom and declared himself king, will naturally need my help. Even the Funan people, with a powerful enemy at their side, will also need my help and wouldn't dare to back down. I can then mediate and reap the benefits from both sides!"

"Hmm!" Duan Jiong nodded: "That's true, but we also need to see what kind of person Qielan really is. If he's really like Han Xin, the Marquis of Huaiyin, then we must kill him first to avoid leaving trouble for our descendants. Also, in the end, this matter still requires the General's approval. At most, we can just write a memorial to report it!"

“Of course!” Ying Feng laughed.

----------------------

Luoyang, Biyong.

On the morning of February 5th, 171 AD, residents from all areas of Luoyang City gathered before dawn and flocked to the Imperial Academy outside the city.

From the winding, narrow, and densely populated alleys on the north bank of the Luo River, a diverse crowd emerged. Their ages and social statuses varied, and they flooded the roads along the riverbank, all heading towards a single destination.

Qiang and Hu servants, commoners, craftsmen, small merchants, wounded veterans, women, and groups of children flowed forward in a steady stream. Their lively, cheerful faces, carefree conversations, and sarcastic remarks all indicated that they were hurrying to attend a very popular event.

All these diverse, chattering, and noisy crowds filled the heart of the empire with a vague, chaotic, but joyful cacophony, a clamor as if one were inside a giant beehive.

The residents of Luoyang were overjoyed, and the gloomy sky, overcast and threatening rain at any moment, did not dampen their spirits.

A very cold morning wind blew in from the mountains beyond Hangu Pass, constantly irritating people's faces. It was easy to tell how cold it was from people's clothing. Many people had pulled the hoods of their robes over their heads, while others wore hats. The men tried to wrap their winter robes or wide robes even tighter, and the women wrapped themselves in long, loose robes and cloaks.

This Biyong was originally the Imperial Academy established by the Western Zhou emperor. The school grounds were circular, surrounded by a moat, and a small bridge led to the front gate. It was used for aristocratic education of the upper-class youth, specifically the Six Arts. After Emperor Guangwu of Han, a proponent of Confucianism, rebuilt the Han Dynasty, he constructed the Biyong outside Luoyang City to teach the Imperial Academy students. Subsequent emperors of the Eastern Han Dynasty continuously repaired it, but by the time of Emperor Huan, it had gradually fallen into disrepair. However, after Wei Cong came to power, he gradually invested manpower and resources to build an oval plaza with a dougong (bracket set) structure, 130 meters long and 70 meters wide. Stepped stone steps surrounded the plaza for people to watch competitions held there.

At the highest point of these stone steps, there were parasols, platforms, and comfortable seats, prepared for the people of the highest status—the Nine Ministers, the Three Dukes, and even the Grand General Wei Cong were said to have come in person.

This is what the huge square looks like. For the residents of Luoyang, sitting here to watch a performance is a truly novel experience. Many people are entering for the first time. They look at the steps below them and the sculptures on the entrance wall, sighing repeatedly, anticipating the upcoming show.

What exactly happened that day? What were they celebrating? What kind of performance could have attracted so many spectators? General Wei Cong, the brother-in-law of the Empress Dowager, held the highest power in the Han Empire. To celebrate the news of the victory sent from the south, he ordered a large-scale performance here so that the residents of Luoyang could share in the glory and victory of the empire.

Wei Cong's generosity was unprecedented. He announced on a notice board that all residents of Luoyang would be treated to food and drink on the day of celebration, and all expenses would be covered by his private treasury, not by the emperor or the state. Perhaps many people were secretly dissatisfied with his overstepping of authority, but at least on the surface, all the people of Luoyang enjoyed the food and drink provided by this powerful figure without any hesitation.

The sky finally brightened completely, and the vibrant sunlight shone through the gaps in the dark clouds, bathing this magnificent "center of the world" in a golden hue, and warming the thousands upon thousands of Luoyang residents on the stone steps.

The audience members sitting on the steps occasionally took out food they had brought from home, including cured meat, millet dumplings, flatbread, and chopped blood sausage. They ate and joked, telling all sorts of impolite jokes. Among these audience members, the most sarcastic and daring were the students from the imperial academy across the country.

Fan Yang and his old friend Wang Kuang were among them. Both had just returned from Youzhou. During that past cold winter, the Xianbei and the Southern Xiongnu who had fled beyond the Great Wall had engaged in dozens of battles of varying sizes with the Han army and vassal state troops guarding the border. As outstanding graduates of the General's Mansion's logistics training program, the two had also participated in several battles with the army. The scar on Wang Kuang's right cheek that nearly disfigured him was a gift left to him by the Xianbei.

"Would you like some?" Wang Kuang handed over the leather bag in his hand: "This wine tastes quite good!"

"Hmm!" Fan Yang took the leather pouch, took a swig of wine, and looked around somewhat dazedly: "After returning from Youzhou, Luoyang is like a completely different world!"

"Yes!" Wang Kuang sighed, "I feel the same way. We're fighting the Tartars to the death on the border, but Luoyang is in this state. The General is even paying out of his own pocket. I really don't know why he's doing this!"

"Perhaps he wants to do something big!" Fan Yang said after thinking for a moment. "So he wants to use food and drink to win over the people of Luoyang and gain their support!"

"To curry favor with the people of Luoyang?" Wang Kuang laughed. "Is that necessary? Who is the Grand General? He is the Empress Dowager's own brother-in-law. Would the Empress Dowager not allow him to do whatever he wants? We don't need the support of these rabble!"

"I don't know the specifics, but this is the only explanation!" Fan Yang patted the stone steps beneath him. "You know what? The construction of this huge thing under our butts wasn't done by conscripting labor; the craftsmen were paid wages. That's a huge windfall for the people of Luoyang! Compared to that, what are a few meals?"

"You're making it sound more and more true!" Wang Kuang laughed. Just as he was about to say something more, he suddenly heard a heated conversation behind him.

"Just think about it! With food and drinks for so many people, and all the entertainment to come, how much money will it cost in total? Ten million coins?"

"I'm afraid that's not enough. It will cost at least a hundred million! Just the food and drink for so many people is a considerable expense. And this square, we're sitting on stones, which we'll have to collect and transport from the mountains. Even if there's a waterway, it will still cost a lot of money!"

"Why are you bothering with this? Didn't we say it's all supplied by the General's private funds? We just need to enjoy ourselves!"

"You believe that kind of talk? Where would Wei Cong get that much money? Even if he did, would he be willing to give it up? That's no small sum!"

"Yes, it must have been the emperor's private treasury. That's just how he is. Back then, he dismantled the emperor's imperial gardens to house soldiers, using the emperor's private wealth to curry favor!"

"That's alright, after all, soldiers serve the country! He didn't pocket the money!"

"Serving the country? Have you forgotten what those soldiers did back then? They followed him to besiege the capital Luoyang! That's treason! Wei Cong used the emperor's private wealth to reward the soldiers who followed him in rebellion. Is there anything more audacious than that in the world?"

"These bastards!" Wang Kuang stood up angrily, his right hand already on the hilt of his sword at his waist: "You lot dare to openly slander the Great General!"

Despite the noise and commotion, Wang Kuang's voice still drew attention. Seven or eight young men dressed as imperial students, sitting two steps above him, stared at him in astonishment. One of the slightly chubby youths asked, "Who are you? Why are you speaking up for that scoundrel Wei Cong!"

"That's enough!" Fan Yang patted Wang Kuang on the shoulder. "There's no need to waste time arguing with these people!"

"Hmm!" Wang Kuang calmed down, turned around and sat down, and said with a wry smile, "I feel very disappointed when I think about how we suffered for these bastards on the border."

"That's not how you see it!" Fan Yang laughed. "There are plenty of people in Luoyang City, not just these few. Besides, our hardships weren't in vain; the General didn't mistreat us!"

"That's true!" Wang Kuang laughed, patting his waist pouch. "Not only do we receive a stipend, but we also receive a salary. The General is indeed very generous to us. But speaking of which, do you know what kind of victory this great victory in the south is that we're celebrating? Why such a grand celebration?"

"This—" Fan Yang hesitated for a moment, then said in a low voice, "Yesterday I went to the General's mansion and heard Military Advisor Qin mention something. It seems they won a great battle and expanded their territory by nearly a thousand miles! The General was very happy, which is why he ordered this!"

“That’s it—” Wang Kuang frowned: “It can’t be that bad, can it? Expanding territory by a thousand miles sounds like a lot, but that’s not the Central Plains, it’s the Southern Wilderness. What’s the use of a thousand miles of land there? Just like the Tartars in the north, any minor chieftain has hundreds of miles of land, but the problem is they are extremely poor. The most valuable thing they own is their two sheepskin coats!”

“According to Qin Canjun, it seems that this time is different!” Fan Yang shook his head: “You know, Qin Canjun is from Jiaozhou and knows the situation there very well. He said that the land they have occupied this time is fertile land with crisscrossing rivers, and the local climate is warm, so they can harvest three seasons of rice a year.”

(End of this chapter)