Northern Prefecture Rivers and Mountains

Chapter 436 King

After the autumn harvest in August, Liu Daogui led the Tiger Guard cavalry northward.

Liu Huaimo was left as General Who Conquers the Barbarians to guard Guangling, while Jiankang was demoted to a temporary administrative region directly under the control of the imperial court.

While he was still on his way north, the imperial court in Chang'an issued an edict from Emperor Sima Dezong and a petition from the officials urging Liu Daogui to ascend the throne as the King of Han.

The proper rules still need to be followed. Following the usual procedure, Liu Daogui submitted a petition to resign.

Upon arriving in Luoyang, a second imperial edict arrived, along with letters of urging the emperor to ascend the throne from important generals such as Liu Yixing, Liu Muzhi, Mao Dezhu, Shen Tianzi, Shen Linzi, Zhu Lingshi, Zhu Chaoshi, Wang Yuande, and Xiao Chengzhi.

"General, you have turned the tide, defeated the northern barbarians, recovered the Central Plains, and restored China. Such achievements are unprecedented and worthy of being promoted to king!" Generals Wang Zhen'e, Wang Zhongde, and Duan Hong, who were traveling with you, also came to advise you.

In fact, everyone knows the process perfectly well, but the reason for going through it so meticulously is to show our attitude.

"What merit do I have to be appointed to this position? The great victory in the Northern Expedition was entirely due to the bloody battles fought by all the generals and soldiers. This matter can be discussed later, so there is no need to say more." Liu Daogui made a show of humility.

Upon entering Tongguan, the emperor issued his third edict.

"I, with my limited virtue, have inherited this great legacy. Yet the Mandate of Heaven is ever-changing, and the cycle of destiny has its course. Now, behold the General-in-Chief, Liu Bang, who embodies the righteous spirit of Heaven and Earth and the pure essence of the stars. Since Huan Xuan's usurpation, he has rescued those drowning and burned, quelled the wicked and eliminated the violent. He captured Murong Chao in the north, beheaded Lu Xun in the south, pacified Qiao Zong in the west, and subdued Sun En in the east. His achievements in restoring the Central Plains and rebuilding the state surpass even the contributions of Yi Yin in assisting the Shang and Zhou dynasties and Huo Guang in securing the Han dynasty."

It is said that the weight of divine instruments is not something that ordinary people can hold; the position of the great treasure must be bestowed by a sage.

When Huan Xuan raised his army, the Jin dynasty had already fallen. It was only thanks to the former Duke of Song and the Grand General that the state was restored. Now, it is appropriate to follow the will of Heaven and the people, and divide the land to form the Han state..."

The imperial edict, a lengthy document of over a thousand words, was written with absolute certainty, unlike the previous pretense and falsehood.

It is clear that there were intelligent people in the Sima family.

Liu Daogui looked at the end of the edict. In addition to the emperor's jade seal and the seal of the Ministry of Personnel, there was also the seal of Sima Dewen, the Prince of Langya. It was not hard to guess that this edict was written by Sima Dewen.

Previously in Jiankang, he engaged in petty scheming with Sima Shangzhi, but after entering Chang'an, he became more clear-headed and reasonable.

In fact, the imperial edict was not wrong; when Huan Xuan usurped the throne, the Jin dynasty had already perished.

It was only thanks to Liu Yu and Liu Daogui leading the Northern Army that it was brought back to life.

“The mandate of Heaven is with me; it would be disrespectful to refuse.” Liu Daogui bowed to the west in gratitude.

"King of Han!"

"Long live!"

The surrounding soldiers immediately cheered.

Having come this far, it's obvious what will happen next.

Liu Daogui was only one step away from the throne.

The banks of the Wei River were crowded with Han and Qiang people, shouting "Long live the emperor!" as if they were paying homage to the emperor, which shows that the relocation of the capital to Chang'an was deeply popular.

"Greetings, King of Han!" Liu Yixing and Liu Muzhi led a group of civil and military officials to greet him.

Among the crowd, there were no prominent families like Wang, Xie, Yu, or Xi; instead, there were minor gentry such as Xiao, Chen, Yuan, and Zang. Liu Daogui couldn't help but feel a little strange. A few months ago, Liu Yixing had reported on the assassination attempts on Sima Dezong and Sima Dewen, but he had been busy suppressing bandits and hadn't paid much attention to it afterward.

It's not appropriate to ask in front of so many people.

However, judging from Liu Yixing's calm and composed demeanor, he should have handled the situation properly.

"Excuse me!"

"Thank you, Prince Han!"

After going through all the etiquette, Liu Daogui felt more tired than going to the battlefield, and his whole body felt uncomfortable.

However, these things are indispensable. As the Zhou Rites say: "For all the important affairs of the state, the proper etiquette should be managed to assist the chief minister."

The Chinese have a long tradition of "five rites": sacrifice is an auspicious rite, coming-of-age and marriage are celebratory rites, entertaining guests is a guest rite, military affairs are a military rite, and funerals are an inauspicious rite.

The Zhou Dynasty governed the country with rites and enjoyed a reign of more than eight hundred years.

The Hu people had no rules of etiquette, and fathers, sons, and brothers killed each other. Maodun killed his father, and Tuoba Gui died at the hands of his own son. If the Murong clan had not killed each other generation after generation, they would not have ended up in this state. The surviving Northern Yan had nothing to do with the Murong family anymore, and the Jin man Feng Ba usurped the throne.

Although the Chinese dynasties also had their share of such blatant acts, they at least dared not be as brazen as Modu Chanyu.

After the court officials finished their rites, Sima Dewen helped Emperor Sima Dezong out, holding the imperial seal in his hands, and said with utmost respect: "The King of Han is endowed with divine virtue and wisdom, and his martial prowess is outstanding. He has rectified the declining fortunes and restored the Central Plains. He is indeed a revival of the fallen and a continuation of the interrupted. The ships and boats have been drowned. Now that the Jin dynasty has declined, the Han dynasty is about to rise. The Sima family wishes to abdicate the throne to the King of Han."

The surroundings suddenly fell silent, and all eyes were on Liu Daogui.

Liu Daogui was also surprised by Sima Dewen's enthusiasm. He glanced at Liu Yixing next to him, who looked completely at ease. He immediately understood that Sima Dewen must have already made arrangements and was just waiting for him to return.

However, it would be against propriety for someone who had just been promoted to King of Han to directly ascend the throne and become emperor.

When he was a general, he could do whatever he wanted. Now that he is the King of Han, his every word and action will affect future generations.

Although the Han dynasty's replacement of the Jin dynasty was an inevitable trend, the intermediate steps and procedures could not be omitted.

Just as they were thinking about how to decline, a cloud of dust rushed in from the north. "Report! Liu Bobo led 20,000 cavalrymen to break through Yunyang. All 8,600 people in the city perished. He built a skull altar on the banks of the Jing River to worship heaven and earth. He dropped the surname Liu and changed it to Helian, calling himself Heshi and Tianlian!"

The festive atmosphere was instantly overshadowed.

Yunyang is located northwest of Chang'an, at the throat of the Jing River entering Guanzhong.

In the 35th year of Qin Shi Huang's reign (212 BC), a straight road was built from Jiuyuan to Yunyang to connect Guanzhong and Shuofang, and 50,000 families were relocated there.

In the first year of the Tai Shi era of the Han Dynasty (96 BC), powerful local figures were moved here and the Ganquan Palace, also known as the Yunyang Palace, was built. Emperor Wu of Han often used this place to escape the summer heat.

The Xiongnu cavalry have already invaded the capital region.

Helian Bobo arrived at the most inopportune time of day, slaughtering the city of Yunyang and building the Skull Platform as soon as Liu Daogui arrived in Chang'an, clearly intending to give Liu Daogui a hard time. He had done the same thing when dealing with Yao Qin, using his cavalry advantage to avoid the enemy's strength and attack their weaknesses, leaving Yao Xing in a state of utter chaos.

Liu Daogui's face was gloomy. He grasped Sima Dewen's hand and pushed the imperial seal back. "The barbarians are so rampant that I dare not obey. This matter will be discussed again later!"

Sima Dewen also lost interest, saying, "It's entirely up to the King of Han to decide."

"Your son is incompetent!" Liu Yixing's face turned red, and he couldn't even lift his head.

He bears full responsibility for this incident.

Mao Dezhu and Xiao Chengzhi, their faces filled with shame, knelt on one knee, saying, "Your humble servants deserve to die!"

"It's not your fault, it's just that the barbarians found a good opportunity. Please get up quickly." Liu Daogui helped the three of them up.

Helian Bobo was notoriously cruel and cunning. With Xiaoguan in his hands, it was as if the gates of Guanzhong were wide open, and he could attack wherever he wanted.

In the past six months, the Xia Kingdom has not been idle; it has been busy preparing its army for war.

Moreover, the Hu people have always had the habit of raiding in autumn and winter, and now that autumn is here and the horses are fat, it is impossible for the Huns not to come.

Feng Kai said, "The barbarians are so rampant that we must not tolerate them, otherwise Guanzhong will never have peace."

Liu Muzhi looked worried. "After years of war, we have also relocated hundreds of thousands of people from Guandong to Guanzhong. Our treasury is empty and our food supplies are insufficient. We are unable to fight a major war. Moreover, if our army moves, the Qin, Liang and Northern Wei will not sit idly by."

Everyone knows the saying "if the lips are gone, the teeth will be cold."

With one strong and five weak forces, the five weak forces will inevitably join forces. Hu Xia has become an important pawn in containing Guanzhong, and the other forces will certainly not sit idly by.

Most importantly, although Helian Bobo claimed to be the Heavenly King and established a kingdom, he did not build a capital city and traveled around, making it difficult to eradicate him completely.

Of course, these are all minor issues; the biggest problems are the lack of money and food.

However, Liu Daogui, having been in the military for so many years, was most adept at dealing with such predicaments. "How long can the army's food supplies last?"

Liu Muzhi held up three fingers, "An army of 100,000 can hold out for 20 days, and an army of 50,000 can hold out for 2 months."

"That's enough! If they have no money or food, then we'll rob them. All generals, listen to my command: Mao Dezhu, Fu Hongzhi, and Xiao Chengzhi will lead 23,000 infantrymen and Qiang troops westward to attack Gaoping and Anding counties. Zhu Lingshi, Zhu Chaoshi, and Liu Yiwu will lead 7,000 elite cavalry northward to attack Beidi County. Shen Tianzi and Shen Qingzhi will lead 13,000 cavalry and infantry to attack and plunder Shang County. Don't worry about the gains or losses of a single city or place; the priority is to kill and wound the young and strong of the barbarians and plunder their livestock and provisions!"

In fact, Liu Daogui preferred fighting with the barbarians and didn't care about morality or righteousness; he would simply eliminate them completely.

Beidi Commandery and Shang Commandery were among the thirty-six commanderies of the Qin Dynasty. In the second year of Yuanshuo in the Western Han Dynasty, Emperor Wu of Han ordered General Wei Qing and General Li Xi to launch a surprise attack on Yunzhong. Their troops marched directly towards the weakly defended Henan region of the Xiongnu, defeating the Xiongnu Baiyang King and Loufan King, and capturing more than one million head of cattle and sheep.

Subsequently, the Han Dynasty established Wuyuan Commandery and Shuofang Commandery in Henan Province and built Shuofang City. From then on, the roles of offense and defense in the Han-Xiongnu War changed.

The dust of history has settled, but the geopolitical situation remains constant and unchanged throughout the ages.

Whoever controls Henan holds the initiative in the offensive, like a sharp knife thrust into the southern Gobi Desert, which has extremely high strategic value for future attacks on the Northern Wei and Rouran.

In fact, even if Helian Bobo hadn't come to harass Guanzhong, Liu Daogui was also prepared to use the strengths of the Northern Army to invade Henan and burn, kill, and plunder.

Looting was not a specialty of the nomadic tribes; the Northern Army and the Western Army were also adept at it.

While Liu Daogui was still in Huai and Si, he both cultivated the land and plundered the states of Zhai Wei and Later Yan.

This is not a civil war in the Central Plains, but a life-or-death struggle against a foreign race.

As long as they can win, they don't care about moral constraints and will stop at nothing.

The three armies, totaling over 40,000 men, carried only a month's worth of provisions. Each army was also accompanied by a 3,000-strong Qiang army to clear the way. The next day, they marched in a mighty force towards the Hu Xia.

The soldiers were extremely high in morale and filled with hatred for the Xiongnu.

Liu Daogui was very satisfied with Liu Yixing and Liu Muzhi's abilities in mobilizing 40,000 troops in such a short time.

Mobilization capacity is also a form of national strength.

After the arrangements were made, Wang Zhen'e took the initiative to approach him, saying, "How can Your Majesty show favoritism? The soldiers of Jingzhou have willingly followed Your Majesty northward all the way, and they certainly did not stand idly by."

Liu Daogui said, "The soldiers have come from afar and are exhausted. My original intention was for them to rest for a while."

Wang Zhen'e said in a serious tone: "We have traveled by boat all the way here, eating meat at every meal. The soldiers have been resting and recuperating for many days. When they heard that Helian Bobo had slaughtered the people, they were all furious and wanted to take revenge."

It was clearly because they saw others looting that the Western Army became envious.

In recent years, the discipline of the former Northern Army troops has improved under the command of the military order. However, the former Western Army troops remain the same as before. When they encounter a commander like Wang Zhen'e, they become even more greedy and ruthless than before.

However, greed and ruthlessness are not necessarily bad things; at least they dared to fight against the barbarians.

“Excellent. Since the soldiers have such intentions, how can I let them down? I will give you a month's worth of provisions. You can decide for yourself where to attack.” Liu Daogui had placed his utmost trust in him.

Henan Province covers the area east of the Helan Mountains and south of the Yellow River. It is rich in water and grass. During the Han Dynasty, it was able to capture a million cattle and sheep at a time, which shows its wealth. At its peak, it had more than 30 counties and its territory was no less than that of the Guanzhong Plain.

The three armies, numbering over 40,000, naturally could not cover everyone.

"Time is of the essence; this humble general only needs ten days' worth of rations!" A cold glint flashed in Wang Zhen'e's eyes.

He was too sharp and ambitious, and was constantly ostracized by other factions. The old subordinates of the Northern Army were incompatible with him, the generals of Jiangdong looked down on him, the surrendered soldiers of Southern Yan couldn't get along with him, and even Fu Hongzhi, Zhu Lin, Hu Fan, and Mao Xiuzhi, who were all from the Western Army, were not very close to him.

However, through years of fighting, he has become the leader of the Xifu faction.

Liu Daogui kindly reminded him, "Don't be careless. Helian Bobo is no ordinary person."

"This humble general is willing to sign a military pledge: if I fail, I will bring my head to face you."

(End of this chapter)