Tiger Guards

Chapter 543 The Weight of the Han Dynasty Tripod
Inside the warm barracks of Wuyuan County, Zhao Ji perused official documents and letters from Jinyang.

With the complete defeat of the Xianbei, the shortest passage between Wuyuan and Jinyang was opened up on its own.

There was no need to travel south along the Qin Straight Road to Shangjun, then east through Mengmen Pass to Xihe County, Lishi, across the Lüliang Mountains to the south of Jinyang, and then north to Jinyang.

The passage between Jinyang and Jinyang was constantly changing as the war progressed.

The first change was that after the great victory over the main force of the Xianbei royal court, the light sled transport team could travel from Wuyuan across the Yellow River, following the frozen river surface eastward, then suddenly turn south, and proceed along the ice surface in the Qin-Jin Grand Canyon.

This was the first trip. A transport team of more than 50,000 people, consisting of some wounded soldiers, auxiliary soldiers, Xiongnu volunteers, Han border people, slaves of various Hu tribes, and Xianbei captured men, barely made it to Jinyang.

This transport also opened up a second and third route.

The second route is very traditional: it goes through Yunzhong, then through Daijun and Yanmen Road to Jinyang, which is the most traditional route for the Han army to cross the border.

The third route still relies on the frozen surface of the Yellow River. At the bend, instead of heading south through the Qin-Jin Grand Canyon, it takes the Pianguan Trail, passes through Loufan, enters the Yanmen Road, and heads south to Jinyang.

It is not suitable for large-scale human migration at this time, let alone large-scale southward migration of animal herds.

This southward migration mainly involved moving wounded soldiers, volunteers, and unstable young and old Xianbei people together. Naturally, the migration process was hindered by wind and snow, and most of the elderly people with Xianbei cultural heritage could not arrive alive.

Although the tribes of the grasslands fought each other, they would execute adult men in large numbers, including the elderly.

However, after Zhao Ji's victory, he was reluctant to get his hands dirty and also did not want these wise Xianbei elders to survive. All he could do was send them to endure the trials of migration and snowstorms.

Nomadic life is characterized by scarcity of resources, and it is difficult for ordinary herders to live past fifty. Even if they do live past fifty, they can no longer be considered ordinary herders. They will certainly have many sons, grandsons, sons-in-law, and most will also have a considerable number of brothers, sisters, nephews, and nieces.

Aside from the very lucky few, the vast majority of ordinary herders who live to a ripe old age become the bond and key to tribal marriage ties.

Although the Xiongnu and Xianbei had a tradition of looking down on the old and weak, there were still distinctions among the old and weak.

With such diverse ethnic backgrounds, the elderly people are alive, and their descendants are close blood relatives and allies.

Only by letting these elderly people return to the earth and the connection between their descendants weakens will the aftermath be easier to handle.

Governing the border regions is a complex and long-term task, and at present, the only option is to eliminate potential threats among the Xianbei people through various means.

While observing the development of the war in Hebei, Zhao Ji put down the letter sent by his grandfather and said to the people around him with emotion: "Grandfather overestimated the mobility of the various tribes of Heishan. Now they are sharpening their knives and full of morale; but if Yuan Shao quickly defeats Gongsun Zan, these people will surely lower their flags and wait for our army's reaction."

The Black Mountain Army is no longer the army with any ideals; it is now just a band of refugees who were driven to the northern Taihang Mountains by Huangfu Song's government troops and powerful clans of Jizhou and are struggling to survive.

When the opportunity arises, these people will naturally come down from the mountain to plunder.

Their goal was to survive better, not to help them eliminate the Yuan clan.

If, after eliminating the Yuan clan and the remaining powerful clans in Hebei, the land could be distributed to the Black Mountain Army, then the Black Mountain Army would be engulfed in flames and become the Black Mountain Legion.

Given the wealth of Ji Province, how could Zhao Ji possibly divide it up so easily among the various units of the Black Mountain Army?
Let alone the various units of the Black Mountain Army, even the Zhao families of Ji Province... no, even his own brothers, Zhao Ji would never give up the rich and prosperous Hebei Province to them.

If Hebei is divided among your brothers and sons, as long as they are surnamed Zhao, they will be the source of future disasters.

Upon hearing this, Zhang Hong asked, "Does the Grand Marshal mean that the former general is about to be defeated?"

"Yes, the timing of Yuan Shao's illness is too coincidental, and Gongsun Zan happens to have the courage to take a gamble."

Zhao Ji analyzed the situation from his own perspective: "Our army has decisively defeated the Xianbei in the central and western regions and destroyed their royal court. The various Hu tribes are terrified, and Gongsun Zan and Yuan Shao will inevitably become anxious. At this moment, if Yuan Shao dares to take a gamble, why wouldn't Gongsun Zan dare to do the same?"

A decisive battle to determine the future hegemon of Hebei is in the fundamental interests of Jizhou, Youzhou, and the various Hu tribes in the east.

Yuan Shao had strategists under his command, and so did Gongsun Zan. Neither side wanted to fight like the snipe and the clam, allowing a third party to benefit.

Therefore, both those who can understand the situation and those who cannot will contribute to the rapid outbreak and swift end of the decisive battle between the Yuan and Gongsun clans.

Once the middle and upper echelons reach a consensus, it becomes something that Yuan Shao and Gongsun Zan cannot reverse or stop.

These two people are about to clash in an all-around way.

Zhao Ji had a premonition that after his great victory over the Xianbei, he had actually gained a crucial sense of recognition, namely, proof of his achievements in eliminating the barbarian threat and protecting the various Xia states. If there were two imperial thrones in the land of the Xia, one would be the traditional imperial thrones of the Xia, Shang, Zhou, Qin, and Han dynasties, and the other would be the Xiongnu Great Chanyu and Xianbei Great Chieftain, which formed a similar imperial throne after the rise of the Xiongnu.

This year, I broke the deadlock by defeating Li Jue and Guo Si; Yuan Shu also broke the deadlock; and Sun Ce transformed from a wanderer and a hated figure into a loyal subject of the Han Dynasty, which can also be considered a breakthrough.

Gongsun Zan and Yuan Shao were mutually restraining each other; only by uniting could the stalemate be broken.

After he decisively defeated the Xianbei, it was no longer a breakthrough, but a new beginning.

It wasn't just Yuan Shao and Gongsun Zan who were impatient; almost all intelligent people in the world would be impatient!

At this time of impatience from all sides, I must remain calm and properly digest the situation in these seven prefectures.

In other words, even if Yuan Shao and Gongsun Zan were to merge into a single overlord in Hebei, it wouldn't really matter.

Unless the other side can devour the Eastern Xianbei, Liaodong Xianbei, Goguryeo, Gongsun Gong, the Three Commanderies Wuhuan, and the Buyeo factions as they have done.

As he pondered these questions, Zhao Ji said with a playful expression, "I'm very curious now, what kind of conditions will they offer to the various Hu tribes in order to win them over?"

Zhang Hong, whose mind was filled with thoughts of sealing the wolf's lair, reacted the fastest, his eyes widening: "Grand Marshal, are you saying that the Yuan family will promise the Donghu that they will allow them to graze their horses and garrison in Yuyang, Shanggu, and Liaoxi?"

Although many small tribes and miscellaneous nomadic groups have moved inland, this is usually to avoid being annexed by larger tribes. They mostly move inland during the winter and then move out of the border when spring arrives.

If Yuan Shao openly permits the Hu peoples to migrate inland for the winter, their arrogance will grow, and local officials will turn a blind eye, inevitably squeezing the living space of Han border residents and powerful Han families.

In Zhang Hong's mind, a ridiculous scenario immediately appeared: his own army was conquering the various Donghu tribes, and the tribes were hiding in the borderlands, joining forces with Yuan's army to resist his side.

In Zhang Hong's view, whether it was the Wuhuan, the Eastern Xianbei, the Liaodong Xianbei, or the Goguryeo, they were all Donghu, and there was no need to make detailed distinctions.

He possessed a certain arrogance reminiscent of the famous scholars of Northeast China; he didn't care whether the sheep he wanted to eat was called Happy Sheep or Boiling Sheep.

Zhang Hong found it hard to accept, but quickly came to terms with it.

Gongsun Zan came from a border region, and the moral conscience of a powerful local magnate would restrain him. Gongsun Zan would not make concessions to the various Hu tribes without any bottom line, so the conditions he offered would certainly not be as good as those offered by Yuan Shao.

When Yuan Shao brought a group of Ru and Ying people to Hebei to start a business, he regarded the men and women of Ji Province as firewood. How could he care about the interests of the officials and people of You Province?

Meeting Zhao Ji's gaze, Zhang Hong made a similar judgment: "In that case, the General is in danger."

He remained calm, unconcerned about Gongsun Zan's defeat.

If Yuan Shao wanted to quickly annex Gongsun Zan, he had to win over the various Hu tribes without any scruples; however, this would put pressure on the living environment of the powerful clans in Youzhou, so Yuan Shao could not fully utilize the power of the officials and people of Youzhou.

At the same time, due to the resentment of the officials, people and powerful clans of Youzhou, it was difficult for Yuan Shao to lead the people of Youzhou to conquer the various Hu tribes!
In other words, outside of Yuan Shao's core area of ​​Ji Province, the region remained fragmented. However, without the adversary Gongsun Zan, there were no heroes like Gongsun Zan to rally Han and Hu chieftains and hinder the Yuan family.

Efficiency gained through cunning tactics and diplomatic concessions will inevitably come at a price.

Zhang Hong therefore wouldn't care about Yuan's growing power; it was just an empty shell and not worth worrying about.

The most important thing for him now is to manage the division of the seven prefectures well, and then, after the ice and snow melt in spring and the grasslands turn green, he will follow the Grand Marshal north out of Yinshan, seal the Wolf-Dwelling Mountain, and inscribe his achievements on Yanran Mountain.

They would replicate the great achievements of the Former and Later Han dynasties, and then launch eastward campaigns against the various Hu tribes. They would strike them if they could, and if not, it didn't matter, since they would just be suppressing them through nomadic means anyway.

Only by gathering an army can the redistribution plan of the seven counties be ensured and implemented, and can it also serve as a warning to the various Donghu tribes.

The withdrawal of troops from the border will take place around July or August of next year.

Either the armies simply returned to their respective borders, or they led the Xianbei, Xiongnu, and Qiang militia forces, who had been reassigned to new pastures and grazing lands, south to eat the grains and wild grasses of Guandong.

Even just holding armed parades in Luoyang and Xuchang to display military might can yield significant results, directly compensating for the lack of national prestige that the Zhao family lacks.

Although it's not about reaching the pinnacle, it has a similar effect.

(End of this chapter)