The Soldier of the Red Mansion

Chapter 234 The Zhou Family of Datong
The sun hangs high in the sky, and the ground is lush and green.

The wind blows the grass low, revealing cattle and sheep, and also brings a touch of coolness.

Although he lost half of his cattle and sheep, he gained the territory of the Xiongnu chieftain's brother. Wang Xin's generosity exceeded his expectations. Although Batel felt a little uneasy, he could not suppress his joy.

After confirming that Zhou Jun had left, Batel called over his sons, his face serious: "You brothers must stick together."

Batel's sons were completely baffled, not understanding why their father had given them such instructions.

“Many people are dissatisfied with me because I was the first to agree to General Zhou’s demands, and I received such a generous reward, which inevitably aroused a lot of jealousy. Therefore, in the next ten years, my father and I must work together and not offend people easily.”

So that's how it is. The sons also knew that they and their father had caused too much dissatisfaction among many people.

The eldest son said, "China Taiji has said he'll teach us a lesson. Will he attack us?"

Chi Na was the first to leave, which offended Wang Xin. Wang Xin sent people to sweep through his territory. Everyone knows why the Zhou army was able to find them so accurately this time: because there was a traitor within the Shanyu tribe.

Experienced hunters alone were not enough, but with Shuoerhui leading the way, the traces of the various tribes of the Shanyu tribe could no longer be hidden from the Zhou army. As a result, China Taiji suffered huge losses and hated not only the Zhou army, but also those who had defected to the Zhou army.

“Chih is a brute, he has no brains, I’m not worried about him.” Batel shook his head.

The greatly weakened China is no threat.

Sudden.

Someone lifted the tent flap and came in, saying, "Taiji, Uen is here."

"Why is he here."

Batel's sons were shocked.

Wu En was Ou Yanhu's third son. The eldest and second eldest sons followed Ou Yanhu to fight against the Hu, leaving the youngest son, Wu En, to guard the home.

Upon hearing that Uen had arrived, Batel stood up. What he feared had come to pass. Now that things had come to this, he had no choice but to bite the bullet and go out to greet him. Not far away, more than a hundred riders were waiting outside the tribe, led by a young man in his early twenties.

“Uen”.

Batel stepped forward and opened his arms.

Upon seeing Bart's actions, the young man dismounted, and the two embraced warmly. Although young, Uen was calm and composed, which was why his father had left him to guard the house. Having seen Bart's attitude, Uen asked, "I heard that Bart Taiji has defected to the Zhou army?"

"Who said that?" Batel asked angrily.

Uen laughed and said, "Chi Na has gone to my place and has already brought his people to join me."

Although not explicitly stated, the implication was clear, indirectly telling Bart that he was well aware of what had happened in the Chanyu tribe.

Bart stopped talking and invited Un to sit in the tribe. Upon hearing Bart's invitation, Un's people became uneasy and tried to comfort him, clearly wary of Bart.

“I believe in Barttaiji,” Un said in front of everyone, then turned to Barttaiji and smiled, “Barttaiji is a smart man.”

Bart patted Un on the back and said with emotion, "Khan Oyanhu was a venomous snake that inspired fear, yet he gave birth to a heroic eagle."

This seemingly critical but actually complimentary remark caused most of the people brought by Un to change their attitudes and their impression of Barth to improve.

Upon arriving at the tribe, Bart had people make milk tea and add tea leaves.

Inside the tent, sipping milk tea, Bart asked with concern, "How is Khan Oyanhu?"

"The Khan should have arrived in Karakorum," Uen revealed, then smiled and added, "Everything is going smoothly."

"Helin."

Many people exclaimed in surprise.

That was the capital of the former Yuan Dynasty. Later, the former Ming Dynasty overthrew the former Yuan Dynasty, and the remnants of the former Yuan Dynasty fled back to Karakorum. However, due to constant internal strife, it became a ruin. Later, the Great Zhou Dynasty was established. Learning from the lessons of the Tumu Fortress, it fought fiercely against the Oirat Tatars and completely eliminated both tribes, eventually giving rise to their own Hu tribe.

In fact, the origins of the Hu people were complex. Some came from the far north, some migrated from the Western Regions, and a large number of Han Chinese from within the Great Wall fled there. However, they were all unified under the name of Hu people by the Great Zhou Dynasty, and thus became the Hu tribe.

The Hu tribes were inherently weak and fought independently. It wasn't that no one wanted to unify the desert, but they simply lacked the strength to do so.

Unexpectedly, Ou Yanhu, who had been relatively quiet for many years, had reached the forefront and actually arrived in Karakorum. If he succeeded, he would be the most powerful Taiji in the desert, and his self-proclaimed title of Khan would carry more weight.

After thinking it over, Bart said, "It's a pity that Khan Ouyanhu is on a northern expedition and is unable to support us. General Wang is untrustworthy and plotted to kill the Chanyu. We are leaderless and cannot deal with him. We can only compromise."

This statement was actually meant to express an attitude to Wu En. Although young, Wu En was indeed very clever. He grasped the key point and felt confident. He reassured Wu En, "Barttaiji, don't worry. Father Khan will understand your predicament. When Father Khan returns in triumph, he will definitely reopen the alliance meeting, stand up for you, and jointly attack the Great Zhou."

Bart replied without hesitation, "Then I will wait for the Khan to return."

A smile appeared on Uen's face.

Although he knew Batel wasn't sincere—these fickle people would side with whoever was strongest—Da Bansheng urgently needed to keep them in check and prevent them from completely siding with the Great Zhou. His father needed time, and his job was to buy him that time.

Once Father Khan returns victorious, the various tribes of the Shanyu, without their own Chanyu, will easily submit to him. Father Khan can then easily take over the entire Shanyu tribe. As for everything that the Zhou army generals have done, Wu En thinks it's all child's play.

Did he really think that by killing the Chanyu, the Chanyu's tribe would belong to him?

He's still too green to learn from his father.

Uen looked proud.

The father Khan plotted to kill Mo Bisheng, but he waited a full twenty years and made thorough preparations before taking action. How could a mere Wang Xin compare to the father Khan?
They even dared to imitate their father Khan's schemes and harm others, which truly tarnished their father Khan's reputation.

Wu En was always proud of his father Khan's "divine stroke" in easily eliminating Mo Bisheng. As a result, Wang Xin also made the same move, and many Hu people who had defected to Dabansheng cursed Wang Xin for breaking his promise.

Wu En didn't want to stop these remarks criticizing Wang Xin, but if he didn't, it would easily remind people of his father Khan's behavior.
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When the imperial court pays the army, it is the officials who support the army; when merchants support the army, it is essentially the merchants who support the army.

Wang Xin didn't want to cause trouble, but the officials were unhelpful. Since the officials were unhelpful, he had no choice but to turn to merchants.

"We've found out who Zhou Ji is; it turns out he's Li Yuan, the Vice Minister of War."

Upon returning to Datong, Wang Xin did not immediately visit Zhang Wenjin. Instead, he went to the mansion owned by the Zhou family, which, although not as grand and magnificent as the Jia family mansion in the capital, still had all the necessary features, including watchtowers and corner towers.

"What is the relationship between Zhou Dongjia and Li Yuan?" Wang Xin asked.

Tao Sheng smiled and said, "It's quite a coincidence. Back when Li Yuan hadn't passed the imperial examination, his family was very poor and he was able to study thanks to the Zhou family's financial support."

It turned out to be the case.

Wang Xin nodded, understanding that the relationship between the two families was essentially one of mutual benefit.

Tao Sheng was an interpreter, not a high-ranking official with little power, but he was a local strongman in Datong. So when Wang Xin sought him out, Tao Sheng, having personally witnessed Wang Xin's abilities, would not refuse and offered his help with great enthusiasm.

Wang Xin, accompanied by his personal guards and Tao Sheng, arrived at the Zhou family compound.

The head of the Zhou family compound, Zhou Shiming, received news yesterday that Wang Xin was coming to visit. Although he guessed what it was about, he was a guest since the man had come to his door, so Zhou Shiming waited at home early in the morning.

Upon hearing the steward's announcement, Zhou Shiming hurriedly led the people in the mansion out to greet him.

Wang Xin took the initiative to cup his hands and said with a smile, "Master Zhou, please forgive this uninvited guest for coming so abruptly."

"Don't dare, don't dare."

When they were not in contact, Zhou Shiming could ignore Wang Xin, but now that they were face to face, Zhou Shiming dared not be impolite and was very polite, asking Wang Xin to leave first.

After exchanging pleasantries, they entered the Zhou family compound. Wang Xin was curious and looked around to see if there were any red lanterns hanging.

The layout and architectural style of the houses are somewhat similar, but I didn't see any red lanterns hanging high. Maybe I came to the wrong place. This is the main hall, not where the concubines and wives live.

Having suppressed his curiosity, Wang Xin picked up his teacup, took a sip, and, seeing that the atmosphere was just right, asked, "I invited Master Zhou to Weiyuan Pass, but he refused. Could it be that I have offended Master Zhou in some way?"

When Zhou Shiming first met Wang Xin, he was not what he had imagined. Having heard about his deeds, Zhou Shiming had always thought that this man was arrogant and domineering. With such a personality, what good could he possibly get from dealing with them, the merchants?

Zhou Shiming didn't want to offend him, but he wasn't afraid of Wang Xin either.

The Zhou family was originally a powerful clan. Even without Li Yuan as their backer, they had other connections in the court and were not afraid of Wang Xin's reckless behavior.

Upon meeting him today, Zhou Shiming was surprised to find Wang Xin so courteous. He then said gently, "I have been unwell for some time and have been unable to travel far."

Wang Xin didn't care. He and Zhou Shiming were worlds apart in age and experience. What common ground could they possibly have? It was all about interests.

Self-interest is the most reliable thing.

Wang Xin said directly, "I have discussed with several owners that we plan to build a city in the Chier Mountain area and name it Zhenlu City. I wonder if Owner Zhou is interested in participating?"

If he had the money, Wang Xin would have planned to build it himself.

However, upon reflection, building a city is a minor matter; the future is more important. Do I only plan to build one city? And many other things. If I were to handle them myself, there would be a lot of trouble. But what if someone else were to handle them?

What you can't do yourself, you can do for your own benefit.

Zhou Shiming hadn't reacted yet and looked hesitant. Seeing this, Wang Xin reminded him again: "I have already destroyed the Chanyu."

It has been explained very clearly. If you still don't understand, then Wang Xin has to consider whether the Zhou family's vast foundation is based on commerce or power.

If it's the latter, then the Zhou family will have to be eliminated; this is a negative situation and will only bring harm.

Of course, in the Great Zhou Dynasty, the distinction between the two was not so clear, but there were still some differences. What Wang Xin needed were businesses that could maintain basic business principles, rather than businesses that relied on power to seize wealth through trickery and force.

(End of this chapter)