Inheriting a Taoist temple, the story begins with Wu Zetian offering incense.

Chapter 371 Treating Han Chinese as slaves? [Seeking monthly votes]

The world of Emperor Yuan of the Western Han Dynasty, on the south bank of the Wei River in the suburbs of Chang'an.

After a period of demolition, the Gu Yong family manor was finally cleared out. Grand Master of Ceremonies Liu Xiang summoned thousands of refugees to dig the foundation and begin construction of the Yiyuan Pavilion.

Chen Xian led a caravan from Chang'an, bringing dozens of cartloads of grain that he had swindled from various households.

The construction of Yiyuan Pavilion was entirely undertaken by refugees, who were provided with two meals a day and a small allowance. Not long ago, Chen Xian raised more money than the pavilion was intended to cost. After discussion, the group decided to distribute the money to the refugees to enhance the prestige of the imperial court.

The Imperial Censor Gu Yong, who had come with the entourage, took out a notebook from his pocket, opened it, and said:
"Yesterday, Imperial Son-in-Law Shi Dan donated 100 hectares of land to the court, located north of the Wei River. Thus, the court now owns more than 1,000 hectares of fertile land, which can be used to encourage displaced people to cultivate."

Chen Xian was not satisfied with this number:
"Two days ago, the Crown Prince took Liu Xin and several others out of the city in a carriage under the guise of hunting and used drones to conduct some observation. There is still a lot of wasteland in Guanzhong that needs to be cultivated. Most of it is owned by aristocratic families, and they need to continue to exploit them so that there will be enough land to settle the flock of refugees."

Liu Xiang, fearing that this guy had gone too far, reminded him:
"Zikang, don't always use tokens to intimidate the aristocratic families. It would be better to appeal to their emotions and reason with them."

Chen Xian readily agreed:
"Don't worry, I know what to do."

However, despite saying that, as soon as he returned to Chang'an, this guy went to see Grand Marshal and General of Chariots and Cavalry Xu Jia:

"Grand Marshal, once the Crown Prince ascends the throne, you will be the Emperor's father-in-law. What are your plans for the future?"

Xu Jia was afraid that this guy was setting a trap for him again, so he said seriously:
"Naturally, I should set an example by myself, dedicate myself to the great Han Dynasty, eliminate long-standing abuses, and restore its former glory... Why does Zikang ask this?"

Xu Jia still vividly remembered being swindled out of a hundred gold coins by Chen Xian last time, so when he saw Chen Xian, he started speaking in official jargon and polite words, afraid that this guy would dig a pit for him.

Chen Xian put his arm around his shoulder and said:

"General, you may not know this, but our Han Dynasty is now filled with refugees and land annexation is rampant. Since you wish to set an example, why not donate the wasteland outside the city..."

Upon hearing this, Xu Jia's face revealed an expression of "I knew it!"
"Did Zikang come to find me just for the land passed down from my ancestors?"

Chen Xian shook his head and made a move to leave:

"No, we plan to erect several steles in the courtyard of the Yiyuan Pavilion. According to the amount of land donated by the nobles, their names will be engraved on the steles. The more land donated, the higher the name will be placed... Since the Grand Marshal is so concerned about land, then let's pretend I never mentioned this. Anyway, there are plenty of nobles who are willing to be listed at the top, and we will not force anyone."

Upon hearing that this was an opportunity to show off in front of the gods, Xu Jia immediately grabbed Chen Xian's sleeve and said:
"Zikang, don't go! We were just joking. Our Xu clan has too much land to manage. If the court would be so kind as to take it away, I would gladly give it my full support!"

Chen Xian confirmed:
"You really want to donate? Don't force yourself."

"It's true, absolutely true. I've always dreamed of giving those wastelands to the people."

Chen Xian was secretly delighted:
"Then tomorrow, we will have the stewards of the manor go outside the city to measure the land. Our ruler was bestowed by the immortal, and it will not be false in the slightest. Please rest assured, Grand Marshal."

After parting ways with Xu Jia, Chen Xian then approached Wang Shang, Wang Feng, and others, and under the same pretext of carving a monument, reluctantly acquired a large amount of land. He also constantly stirred up trouble among the officials in the court, encouraging them to compete with each other, much like a "shill" in a live-streaming room trying to trick fans into giving him tips.

While the devoted fan was reaping the land from the nobles in Chang'an, Chen Tang was not idle either.

When he led his army to the northern section of the Helan Mountains, he saw rows of Xiongnu tents and immediately, as if injected with adrenaline, ordered his men to launch a charge:
"Capture all these Xiongnu people, and kill any who resist!"

Wang Zhang felt that this behavior was somewhat rash:

"General, if we attack without cause, won't we give others a pretext to criticize us?"

Chen Tang said with dissatisfaction:
"What do you mean by 'unprovoked attack'? Would the General order an attack without any reason?"

Wang Zhang pressed on, asking:
"What is the reason you mentioned?"

"I haven't decided yet. Let's capture these Xiongnu people first!"

Once the people are arrested, Tom Cruise can come up with a hundred reasons to order an attack.

The Imperial Guards, having been indoctrinated with hatred by Chen Tang and recently equipped with Khitan weapons given to them by Guo Rong, were brimming with fighting spirit. Upon hearing the order to attack, they immediately spurred their horses and galloped away, quickly surrounding the Xiongnu settlement.

A Hun leader came galloping by, shouting loudly:
"We are subordinates of the Right Guli King, and we have been ordered to garrison here. Please, Han army, do not act rashly. We are one of our own."

Chen Tang ignored him and gave Wang Zhang a wink, to which Wang Zhang reacted quickly:

“In the past, the late emperor granted the land of Guanglu Pass to you Xiongnu people to garrison, but it did not involve Beidi Commandery. You have forcibly occupied the land of the people of Beidi Commandery without cause, which has violated the laws of the Great Han.”

After spending a lot of time with Chen Tang, Wang Zhang, this honest and simple guy, also became like Chen Tang, spouting lies without hesitation.

Guanglu Pass refers to the vast grasslands on the northern foothills of the Yin Mountains. Emperor Xuan of Han, Liu Xun, bestowed it upon the Southern Xiongnu so that they could establish a royal court; it did not involve any other areas.

Now Wang Zhang is seizing on this point and making a fuss about it, which can be seen as finding a suitable reason for his side to attack.

Chen Tang remained silent, instead controlling the drone to rise and begin surveying the Xiongnu settlement. As he looked, he suddenly noticed several Han Chinese working in the center of the camp, and asked the officer in charge:

"What's the deal with the Han Chinese working inside?" The village head honestly replied:
"We bought that to do work."

Chen Tang's face immediately turned cold, and the officers around him drew their cleavers one by one.

The man was still talking to himself:

"When we moved here from Shuofang County, the Right Guli King sold us a batch of slaves. We did not capture any people from Beidi County. Please, General..."

Before he could even utter the words "clear judgment," Chen Tang chopped off his head with a single stroke.

"Sweep this settlement clean and rescue our Han compatriots... Wang Zhang, send scouts to Shuofang County to investigate. Don't let the Right Guli King escape!"

After saying this, Chen Tang led the way into the Xiongnu camp and began rescuing people.

Wang Zhang no longer bothered to find any excuses. He began to send his scouts along the Yellow River valley to Shuofang County, hundreds of miles away, to investigate and search for the whereabouts of the Right Guli King.

Right Guli King was the younger brother of Huhanye Chanyu. He had been buying and selling Han people as slaves, and now the Han army was launching a counterattack.

Before the scouts departed, Wang Zhang gave them instructions:

"Better to kill the innocent than let the guilty go free. Anyone wearing gold ornaments on their head is a Xiongnu noble. If their identity cannot be confirmed, cut off their head first to prevent them from escaping."

Meanwhile, in the world of the Tang Dynasty during the Zhenguan era, Xue Rengui, who had ventured deep into the banks of the Yalu River to conduct reconnaissance, finally encountered the massive army from Pyongyang, a vast and boundless force.

Most people would be afraid of seeing so many soldiers, but Xue Rengui became excited instead.
"So many military merits, what a windfall, a huge windfall!"

He contacted Li Jing on the east bank of the Liao River via walkie-talkie and reported what he had seen and heard. Li Jing immediately said:

"Retreat, don't confront them. Once we get to Anshi East, we'll let you have your fill of slaughter."

After saying this, Li Jing began to mobilize his troops, secretly drawing away a portion of the surrounding besieging army to ambush the Pyongyang reinforcements on their inevitable route, catching them off guard.

Li Ji asked through the walkie-talkie:
"Lord Li Wei, the opportunity to fight is fleeting. We have been unable to contact Cheng Mingzhen. What should we do?"

Li Jing remained quite calm:
"I leave it to fate. I believe that Heaven will protect the Tang Dynasty, not Goguryeo!"

At the same time, in two water fortresses in Dengzhou and Laizhou, Shandong, boats of all sizes began to flock eastward, preparing to cross the sea for battle.

On the flagship, Cheng Mingzhen, the naval commander in his fifties, looked at the nautical chart and compass in his hand and exclaimed to Liu Rengui, the naval clerk beside him:

"This thing is a hundred times better than the compass. From now on, we will never lose our way in the near sea again."

Liu Rengui, holding a traditional Chinese version of a nautical chart, said:
"The book says that with a sextant, you can accurately locate yourself at sea by using the position of the stars."

Beside them was a globe larger than a basketball, marked with the flight path and landing point for the attack on Pyongyang. The entire journey would take several days, and after landing, they could head straight for Pyongyang.

To prevent a failed siege, the two even discussed dismantling some of the ships and turning them into siege equipment, displaying an attitude that they would not return to the Tang Dynasty until they captured Pyongyang.

At this time, Wu Meiniang's carriage arrived at Zhen Ding Prefecture. She brought some solar panels and installed them in the courtyard of the Hengzhou Prefectural Governor's Mansion. She also taught the Prefect and the Hengzhou Garrison Commander how to use walkie-talkies. She also contacted Luoyang and Jinyang here, gradually building up the communication network of the Tang Dynasty.

Less than two minutes later, Li Shimin, far away in Chang'an, received the news:

"With the coordinated efforts of Luoyang, Jinyang, Zhengding, and Chang'an, any urgent military intelligence can be transmitted to Chang'an in an instant, many times faster than the previous relay system... Technology is truly amazing! We must vigorously develop technology in the future!"

Fang Xuanling suggested:

"The intercom system and the radio system should be controlled by two separate departments, so that they can supervise each other at the local level, and the officials in charge of information in Chang'an will not lose their way because they have great power."

After some thought, Li Shimin decided to establish two departments in the near future, one for walkie-talkies and the other for radio. Both departments would be headed by Li Zhi, so that the Crown Prince could have access to information in advance and avoid being misled.

While state affairs were being discussed here, inside the Yiyuan Hall, Li Mingda was instructing Princess Hengshan, Li Chengyang:

"After I leave, you must keep an eye on Father and make sure he doesn't overeat. Every few hours, make him walk around the palace to stretch his muscles."

Li Chengyang nodded heavily:

"Don't worry, sister, I've got everything covered!"

After saying this, the two sisters knelt before the Tai Chi diagram and began to pray for the Tang Dynasty.

Inside the Hunyuan Palace, Zhou Yi was busy dismantling molds when he suddenly heard layers of prayers, but they were not very clear. He could vaguely make out words like "Tang Dynasty".

Zhou Yi didn't understand what was going on, so he went to the Sanqing Hall, used the Bagua abacus to deduce it, and then, based on the hexagrams, deciphered the two characters "Mingda" (明达).
"No way, I actually received Li Mingda's prayers?"

(End of this chapter)