Tiger Guards

Chapter 556 No Retreat

As the simple banquet came to an end, the Xiongnu nobles recovered from their shock and gradually began to savor the experience.

In the future, the famous kings of the Xiongnu, even the Chanyu and the left and right wise kings, will lose their original power, glory and special status.

The existing Xiongnu kings will become clan elders in the future thousand-household tribes of their own kind.

But what opportunities do the Xiongnu have to respond or resist now?

The Xiongnu nobles present at the meeting were neither the Chanyu nor the Chanyu's successor, the Left Wise King; was it necessary for them to become enemies with Zhao Ji for the sake of the power of the Xiongnu Chanyu family?
As for Liu Qubei, the Right Wise King, it was even less likely that he would stand up to oppose anything, since he was promoted to Right Wise King by Zhao Ji.

Liu Qubei didn't care much about the title of Right Wise King, because it was impossible for the title to be passed down to his descendants.

What Liu Qubei cared about and valued was the Dugu tribe that belonged to him.

In comparison, the Right Wise King who governs the right wing, or the Left Wise King or the Chanyu, have nothing to do with Liu Qubei.

If the situation in Han territory changes drastically, Liu Qubei could also abandon the Liu clan he had obtained by serving the Han dynasty and instead follow the example of other minor clans that split off from the royal family, such as the Sheyan and Helan clans, and become the Dugu clan.

Zhao Ji granted the Xiongnu nobles a monopoly on foreign trade. Compared to the profits from these trades, the profits of their own tribes were actually quite modest.

These tribes under their name provided the Xiongnu nobles with cheap labor and military support when conducting business.

As long as the monopoly on foreign trade remained unchanged, the resistance of these Xiongnu nobles was not as strong as imagined.

Compared to tribal migrations, the redistribution of grasslands and pastures, and changes in the system of volunteer soldiers... these Xiongnu nobles were now more afraid of being implicated by relatives who were accused of colluding with the enemy.

After the banquet, Liu Qubei deliberately lingered and accompanied Zhao Ji to inspect the gifts presented by the various Xiongnu tribes.

The Grand Marshal has achieved such a brilliant victory, severely damaging the Xiongnu's sworn enemy, the Xianbei, and allowing the Xiongnu who had been wandering within the Great Wall to return to their homeland. Shouldn't the nobles of the various tribes express a little gratitude for such a great favor?

Therefore, the kings and commanders of various tribes would present eagles, or only fine horses, or even noble dogs, as well as leathers of various rare animals or brightly colored feathers of birds.

Zhao Ji was not interested in gifts other than horses. These items were stored away and either crafted into other luxury goods to be given as rare gifts to meritorious civil and military officials.

Having witnessed the world's splendor, Zhao Ji, who either circulated directly in the market or had seen the world's prosperity, was not interested in contemporary luxury goods and showed no signs of obsession.

On the contrary, the fine horses brought by the various Xiongnu tribes could be used for breeding, which would benefit the country in the long run.

Zhao Ji personally inspected each of the fine horses presented to him, even though he didn't know much about the detailed classifications and differences between horses.

Accompanying him were herdsmen skilled in judging or raising horses. Whenever a fine horse was brought in, these professionals would immediately observe it and describe their views to Zhao Ji.

Even if inferior goods were used to impersonate rare treasures, Zhao Ji didn't care much.

As for the breeding and growth of fine horses, Zhao Ji would not hesitate to take the head of anyone who falsifies information in this regard.

People have different strengths. For example, the Xiongnu people had almost perfected their talents in collecting, raising, and training horses.

This is an advantage that the civil and military officials in the heartland do not possess. Officials from high-ranking families are very talented in plundering and exploiting, especially when it comes to plundering beautiful women. Their talent and ability are no less than that of the Xiongnu in searching for and raising fine horses.

Seeing that Zhao Ji valued these fine horses highly, Liu Qubei secretly took note of it. After inspecting the horses, Liu Qubei asked, "Grand Marshal, you love fine horses. Do you intend to send envoys to the Western Regions and re-establish officials there?"

"I have this wish, but the Western Regions are far away, and the Qin Hu and various Qiang tribes are causing trouble, cutting off the roads."

Zhao Ji spoke casually about his position, saying that there was nothing to deny or cover up about the restoration of the Western Regions.

The people who migrated eastward and endangered the safety of men and women in the border regions were the Qiang people, followed by the Xianbei people. It was difficult for any powerful tribe to rise in the Western Regions, so the sovereignty of such marginal people should naturally be promoted.

In fact, Zhao Ji could appoint officials in the Western Regions through the imperial court; however, he simply doesn't have the manpower available at the moment.

Han Chinese scholars had a longing for the Western Regions, which was not just a longing for the Western Regions themselves, but a yearning for the unknown world further west.

Therefore, even though the Western Regions were far away, when officials were appointed, the appointed officials did not have any resistance.

The Western Regions governor is a good pool for personnel turnover. It's not unfair for people from our own region to take up positions there. It can also be used to settle some sensitive personnel in the Western Regions, allowing them to temporarily avoid the disputes in the Central Plains, stay out of the mess, and retain their usefulness.

Before the armed tourism activities around Yinshan Mountain came to an end, Zhao Ji did not intend to appoint any officials from the Western Regions.

Especially before the Han army was unable to intervene in the Western Regions, the various city-states and tribal kingdoms in the Western Regions were not very obedient.

The cities that submitted to the Han were mainly small city-states. These small city-states relied on the order established by the Han army in order to survive in the Western Regions with a relatively small population and military strength.

However, these small city-states were unable to influence the Western Regions. Even if the small city-states formed an alliance, without the Han army as the backbone, these small city-state alliances were unusable.

Therefore, if they intervened in the Western Regions in advance, the people they sent would certainly be threatened, killed, or forced to sign agreements that would damage the dignity and prestige of the imperial court and the shogunate.

Whether it was the humiliation and murder of the chief official or the signing of an unfair treaty, it would force the shogunate to launch a war in the Western Regions, which was clearly in fundamental conflict with Zhao Ji's plans.

Seeing that Zhao Ji did not deny his thoughts on the Western Regions, Liu Qubei inquired further: "Does the Grand Marshal have a preferred candidate?"

Seeing Liu Qubei's appearance, Zhao Ji scrutinized him from head to toe, then asked with feigned curiosity, "Could it be that Your Majesty intends to do so?"

"Yes, the Grand Marshal has done me a great service. I am of limited ability and have only a limited understanding of the situation. The states of the Western Regions are weak and their rulers and people are the most arrogant. I am willing to share the burden for the Grand Marshal and eliminate the disobedient and disrespectful states of the Western Regions."

Liu Qubei stopped, bowed deeply to Zhao Ji, and said with a bitter face, "This time I followed the Grand Marshal to conquer the Qiang tribes in the north, but the military intelligence was leaked. Although I have the trust of the Grand Marshal, I am still deeply afraid. I sincerely hope that the Grand Marshal will show some leniency. I will remember this in my heart and never forget it."

Seeing that Liu Qubei had put it this way, Zhao Ji still refused: "The chief official of the Western Regions has already been chosen and should not be replaced. However, I will carefully consider what Your Majesty is worried about. Even if there are any changes, I will keep the scope under control and not allow it to expand."

As Zhao Ji spoke, he reached out to help Liu Qubei up. Although Liu Qubei did not want to miss this opportunity, he could not go against Zhao Ji's wishes.

Helped to his feet, Liu Qubei said, "I have noticed that the Grand Marshal is fond of fine horses. I am not talented, but I am able to make some progress."

"There is no need to rush. For now, we must rely on the wise king to persuade the tribes and prevent them from causing chaos. If the situation changes again next year, the wise king will be able to stay out of it."

Zhao Ji continued to comfort him, saying that Liu Qubei was someone he had put in charge of, so naturally he should make good use of him. How could he run to the Western Regions to avoid trouble and become a local tyrant when the situation turned bad?

(End of this chapter)