Tiger Guards

Chapter 555: Taking the Head Start
Inside the hall, these high-ranking Xiongnu nobles appeared to be sitting at the same table as Zhao Ji.

However, with interests at stake, some fear becoming victims of Zhao Ji's blade, while others fear being implicated by others.

Few dared to take such a gamble. When Zhao Ji divided the main body of the Xiongnu into thousands of households, he had already screened out and eliminated a group of Xiongnu prodigies.

Birds of a feather flock together. Those outstanding nobles whom Zhao Ji disliked were the so-called Xiongnu pride.

The fear felt by many Xiongnu nobles now is not due to Zhao Ji's bloodthirstiness, but because the initial campaign to recapture the three commanderies was conducted in secrecy, and the entire operation was leaked.

The leaker either came from the Grand Marshal's office or from a Xiongnu tribe involved in the operation.

In the battle to recapture the three commanderies, Zhao Ji, along with Jia Xu and Xu Huang, captured so many prisoners that some of them must have known something. Subsequently, Zhao Ji reversed the advance of the four commanderies of Yunzhong, annihilating the main force of the Xianbei royal court twice, and capturing countless high-ranking prisoners.

Therefore, even if the Xiongnu nobles present were innocent and unaware, they were afraid that their relatives, peers, or subordinates might be involved in the leak.

But Zhao Ji wasn't considering such things at all; now was not the time to warn the Xiongnu.

The various Xiongnu tribes, which were already showing signs of division as they were migrating to the four commanderies of Yunzhong, had many people who had adapted to and liked the climate of the interior and were dissatisfied with the migration policy.

If we investigate the leak now, it will definitely cause a lot of trouble.

Zhao Ji wasn't afraid of dealing with these troubles, but he didn't want to delay more important matters.

Human energy is limited, and so is the organizational capacity to act.

First, relocate the various Xiongnu tribes to the four commanderies of Yunzhong and allocate autumn and winter pastures to them; while allocating these pastures, advance eastward, then intimidate Yuan Shao, and then advance westward around the north of Yinshan Mountain. During the sweeping campaign, allocate spring and summer pastures to the accompanying Xiongnu tribes.

In other words, only the Xiongnu tribes participating in this armed tourism tour around the Yinshan Mountains were eligible to be allocated grasslands and pastures.

Zhao Ji naturally hoped that all the Xiongnu tribes could participate, as he did not want to be distracted by the need to attack and suppress those Xiongnu supremacists.

What troubles Zhao Ji is the issue of future management levels.

Previously, since his own jurisdiction was limited, he could naturally divide the Xiongnu into thousands of households. Each king's territory was also divided into two or three thousands of households in advance, just waiting to complete the division when the old and new generations were replaced.

The authority of the Grand Marshal's shogunate was used to guarantee the hereditary succession of these commanders of thousands and hundreds; in return, these commanders of thousands and hundreds would pledge allegiance to the shogunate.

It is precisely because of this relationship that knowledgeable people from both inside and outside the Han and Hu ethnic groups jokingly refer to Zhao Ji as the Great Chanyu of Jinyang.

From then on, the traditional title of "Famous King" of the Xiongnu would become an honorary title, to be held by the eldest among the thousand households of the same clan.

For example, Xiutu Dada's tribe was relatively large and had been divided into three thousand-household units, each headed by his uncle and two brothers as hereditary thousand-household units. The remaining tribesmen were to be divided into three thousand-household units, which would be inherited by Xiutu Dada's three sons after his death and passed down through generations.

If the line ends in extinction, the shogunate will select a close descendant to adopt and inherit the throne.

As for Hutu Dada himself, the title of King of Sheyan, after his death, this honorary title of king will be inherited by his uncle.

In the future, the position of Sheyan King will be rotated among these six clans of chiliarchs. If some chiliarchs develop rapidly and make meritorious contributions, new chiliarch units may be established. These new chiliarch units will continue to take turns serving as Sheyan Kings along with the original chiliarch units.

It's essentially a succession system within the family based on seniority. If a lucky and long-lived individual comes along, then other members of the same clan at the same time have no hope of succeeding the king.

Therefore, theoretically speaking, once the six thousand households of King Sheyan were established, it would be impossible for a seventh thousand households to be born; the more new thousand households were added, the lower the probability of them taking turns to succeed King Sheyan.

Zhao Ji's current predicament lies here: the previous plan used the thousand households as a connecting unit. However, with the expansion of the government, a new unit must be established between the central government and the thousand households; this new unit cannot rely on shortcuts and directly adopt the system of a king controlling the thousand households of his own clan and relatives.

This amounts to a failure of previous institutional reforms, a step backward.

However, not changing it was not an option. Once the grassland allocation in the southern part of Yinshan was completed, it would be equivalent to indirectly controlling the northern part of Yinshan.

With such a vast territory under our control, we must establish even larger units.

At this moment, Zhao Ji remained silent, and the Xiongnu nobles were terrified, fearing that even a deep breath would attract Zhao Ji's attention.

What should have taken Zhao Ji only a few breaths felt like a long time to Liu Qubei and the others.

Zhao Ji picked up his chopsticks and said, “Now that the territory has been restored, it is even more vast. If only a thousand households are stationed in various places for grazing, in case of an emergency, power cannot be concentrated and strength will be dispersed. Each will act independently and will inevitably be burdened by emergencies.”

Seeing him begin to pick up meat, Liu Qubei immediately spoke up: "I wonder if the Grand Marshal has any good ideas?"

"I am truly troubled by this. I have some immature ideas in my mind, but I am also afraid of hindering the friendship among the Xiongnu tribes and causing displeasure among everyone."

Zhao Ji picked up a slice of mutton, lightly seared both sides, then wrapped it in a ball of rice, swallowed it, and chewed. He glanced around at the people holding chopsticks who were hesitant to use them.

After swallowing, Zhao Ji formally asked, "What are your thoughts?"

Liu Qubei glanced at Xiu Tu Dada on his left. The two had been fighting together during this period, which had strengthened their friendship.

Xiutu Dada cupped his hands and said solemnly, "In terms of vision, even the most renowned talents in the country cannot keep up with the Grand Marshal's pace, let alone us dullards. In my opinion, even if we don't understand the Grand Marshal's arrangements now, I think the Xiongnu people will be able to understand them in the long run, perhaps a few years from now."

Xiutu Dada then looked at another close friend, a more distantly related king: "Brother Helan, what do you think?"

Helan Lizheng, also from the Luanti clan of the Xiongnu royal family, was alert upon hearing this, his eyes clear yet full of doubt: "I truly do not understand. With the Grand Marshal's foresight, do you all still have any doubts? In any case, as far as I am concerned, whatever the Grand Marshal says must have a reason, and I will certainly obey it!"

He spoke heavily, his gaze sweeping over the others with a menacing air, as if he were sifting through them to find those who harbored resentment.

The other Xiongnu nobles then bowed to Zhao Ji in unison, saying, "We are willing to follow the Grand Marshal's arrangements."

"Please be seated, everyone."

Zhao Ji waved his hand and picked up his wine cup: "If you all trust me, then let's come up with a temporary solution. First, we will establish six towns in Yinshan. The generals, chief secretaries, and military commanders of these towns will all be senior officials from the government. Under the six towns, the tribes, regardless of whether they are Xianbei, Xiongnu, or Qiang, will be divided into five banners based on their geographical proximity. The banner leader will be the one with the highest merit among the five banner leaders."

"In this way, we will have six military garrisons outside and the Protector of the Xianbei, the Envoy to the Xiongnu, and the General Who Crosses the Liao River inside. I will also establish the Protector of the Qiang in the west and the Protector of the Wuhuan in the east. With six garrisons outside and five military camps inside, we will be able to deal with the rebellions of various barbarians."

Zhao Ji raised his glass, his gaze sweeping over everyone: "This is my idea; those who agree, drink with me."

"Drink full!"

Liu Qubei shouted, raised the wine cup with both hands, and immediately tilted his head back to drink it down.

The other nobles, seeing this, dared not hesitate any longer and drank the wine, vying to be the first to drink.

(End of this chapter)