Tiger Guards

Chapter 527 Internal War
Huze is due north-northwest, in Chouyang City, in the eastern part of Wuyuan County.

Xinpi and his men, without taking a break, retreated overnight from here to the Yunzhong region in the east.

However, they underestimated Zhao Ji's patience. It wasn't until after a night's rest that Zhao Ji's vanguard cavalry circled around from the east.

This is a cavalry force of over five hundred riders, all dressed in the attire of the Yunzhong Xianbei tribe.

The leading nobles and warriors were genuine Xianbei people from Yunzhong.

The garrison at the gates of Chouyang City did not even close the gates, and upon seeing the Xianbei knights coming from the direction of Yunzhong, they merely sent someone to inform the tribal elders.

The Xianbei lacked a well-established official system, which allowed them to flexibly allocate their forces during attacks and to be relatively efficient in dividing up the spoils of war.

Without a large group of nobles and bureaucrats parasitizing them, the Xianbei people's military costs were very low... so low that each tribe was responsible for its own profits and losses.

Consequently, the tribes become disorganized, and the lower the status of the herders, the less they care about the rise, fall, or prosperity of their tribe.

If the herders and tribesmen on the outskirts of the area are not related by blood, it is already a great honor for you if they are willing to stand guard and patrol with wooden spears in such a cold winter.

Therefore, you can't expect a group of conscripts to perform better on the battlefield.

Negligence and apathy led to the gatekeepers' lack of a sense of ownership, and they soon faced backlash.

The disguised Han archers fired immediately, while other Han cavalry seized the city gate and attacked and dispersed the Xianbei defenders.

The Xianbei prisoners who were temporarily incorporated into the army were even more ferocious. They chased after the fleeing Xianbei garrison and stormed into the city, shouting loudly in the streets and spreading rumors to frighten the Xianbei men and women in the city.

These Xianbei prisoners, who had already fallen into the water, were exceptionally brave in order to earn merit, get ashore, and become people again.

All Xiongnu people could serve as loyal knights under the Grand Marshal. Some high-ranking knights and loyal knights received rewards from the Grand Marshal, including land, property, and status. In addition, the Grand Marshal would also bestow upon them a surname that could be passed down through generations.

The Xianbei people had their own pride; even as loyal knights of the Grand Marshal, they were still better than the Xiongnu!

At this moment, these Xianbei people fought fiercely in the streets near the East Gate, engaging in a bloody battle with the scattered Xianbei youths who rushed onto the streets, fighting to the death without retreating.

Last year, a Xiongnu officer who was promoted to the rank of captain was granted the surname Zhu; this year, he was granted the surname Shu.

Those with special achievements will be given other surnames... To be more precise, Zhao Ji's current status can only be granted a surname.

The commander of these hundred-odd Xianbei prisoners was a Xiongnu centurion who had moved to the Pingyang Marquisate last year and was named Zhu Chengliang.

At this moment, he watched as more than a hundred Xianbei prisoners, fearless of death, slaughtered other Xianbei people like pigs and dogs, showing no mercy whatsoever.

This startled Zhu Chengliang, who could only order the archers who had seized the city walls and the two sides to suppress the nearby Xianbei archers, or to suppress and fire at the places where the Xianbei people were gathered, in order to help disperse the Xianbei prisoners.

Inside the city, any Xianbei man, woman, old or weak who dared to take out a wooden spear or weapon would be attacked by Xianbei prisoners; the Han soldiers and volunteer archers on higher ground would fire in a targeted manner, especially at Xianbei archers who could threaten their own safety.

Even women, children, the elderly, and the weak, as long as they take a bow and walk to higher ground, will be targeted and killed by archers on the city walls.

Not only Chouyang, but also Wuyuan City to the west suffered a similar attack.

Zhang Liao was personally in charge of the raid on Wuyuan City. Zhang Liao was luckier. When he arrived with more than a thousand disguised Han soldiers and volunteer knights, the Xianbei nobles in Wuyuan City were divided and confronting each other.

The tribal elders were then chosen by these uncles to elect the new leader.

Zhang Liao's 'thousand Xianbei cavalry' that rushed in from the east immediately shattered the tacit understanding and pitiful trust among the Xianbei tribes here.

The weaker party is less resilient and less able to withstand pressure, and they themselves have no connections with outsiders; when they see the other party bringing in outsiders, they immediately feel the urge to admit defeat.

The stronger party already has a greater chance of winning, and when they see the other party betraying tribal agreements and oaths, even colluding with outsiders to seize the leadership position, how can they tolerate defeat?
So he immediately flipped the table.

Before Zhang Liao's troops arrived, the Xianbei people who were facing off were already engaged in a chaotic battle, so much so that Zhang Liao was stunned when he got close to the battlefield.

I thought the Xianbei were putting on an act, but when I got close to the battlefield, I saw the two sides fighting fiercely. Blood was being spilled all the time. The Xianbei knights fought in teams of family and in-laws, chasing and killing each other. Every now and then, some would fall behind or fall off their horses.

If even a single apartment building can breed deadly feuds, imagine the conflicts that arise during nomadic life and production.

Within the tribe, there are families of varying sizes, and the conflicts between them are substantial.

Now that they've unleashed their full power to fight, the outcome will either be to resolve old grudges and elect a new leader, or the tribe will disintegrate, with each family forming smaller tribes and starting anew.

This kind of civil war was not a major event for the Xianbei tribes.

Zhang Liao reined in his horse and observed the situation, quickly guessing the truth.

Yi Congqianhu rode closer on horseback: "General Zhang, what should we do now?"

"Put away your bows and spears, and wait for them to decide the victor."

Zhang Liao said to the other officers who had gathered around, "We can't distinguish friend from foe, except for them. Once we attack, we'll fight both sides at once, and they'll naturally stop fighting and counterattack. Put away your bows and spears, and the whole army will slowly march towards Wuyuan City with me. We'll also shout to the Xianbei people along the way, telling them to come and see me as the victors."

"General, will this work?"

How can you succeed if you don't try?

Zhang Liao questioned loudly and instructed, "After entering Wuyuan City, immediately seize the four gates, release yellow smoke, and send a message to the main army!"

"Here!"

The centurion in charge of setting off the smoke stepped forward, cupped his hands, and responded loudly. The other officers quickly returned to their units to relay the message.

Zhang Liao took a deep breath and, seeing that the cavalry everywhere had put away their spears and halberds, pointed his whip at Wuyuan City: "Let's go!"

A messenger beside him took out a conch shell and immediately blew it.

Approximately 1,300 knights formed a large marching column and followed Zhang Liao, slowly advancing and weaving their way towards the battlefield.

Neither side dared to attack recklessly; in their eyes, the rival family that had betrayed the alliance deserved to die even more.

As the army of Budugen disintegrated, and nobles of all ranks returned to their tribes to vie for leadership positions, some engaged in civil war, others reached a compromise through the understanding of the tribal elders, and still others elected two leaders and split up.

When the Xianbei tribes developed to a certain size, due to limitations in their production methods, they would inevitably have to separate out some families or branches of families to form subordinate smaller tribes of the same tribe.

The smaller family units that split off may also unite to form a relatively independent larger unit.

However, within the Xianbei family, there were still many large tribes, which were alliances of the same ethnicity.

Each level has its own struggles. The Xianbei people had not experienced a large-scale war for nearly twenty years, and the accumulated contradictions had become very heavy.

After Kui Tou's death, the conflict could no longer be suppressed.

While noble bureaucrats may waste military resources, they can also resolve many conflicts.

(End of this chapter)