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

Chapter 392 Daring to Speak Officially to Chen Tang? [Seeking Monthly Tickets]

The royal tent of King Youguli was set up on a hill near Woye County, at the entrance to the Hetao region. The area was lush with water and grass, had a pleasant climate, and was also the gateway from the Hetao region to Beidi County.

As Huhanye's younger brother, the Right Guli King knew how to enjoy life. His tent was much larger and more conspicuous than that of ordinary people, which made it easier for Han scouts to conduct reconnaissance... You could ask anyone in the Hetao region where the Right Guli King's camp was.

The scouts understood Chen Tang's intentions perfectly. Instead of taking action beforehand, they brazenly set up camp nearby under the guise of being ordered to survey the land, much like modern-day officials checking water meters.

Now, Chen Tang has led his army to the scene, and the land survey has entered the implementation phase, but instead of using a ruler, they are using the heads of the Xiongnu people.

When Chen Tang ordered that even the earthworms in the royal tent be taken, the Imperial Guards launched a surprise attack.

They approached the royal tent in formation, swung ropes to tighten the fence, then used the power of their horses to pull the fence over, and the rest of the soldiers rode in through the gap.

The sudden turn of events alarmed the Right Guli King in the royal tent. He had served as a hostage in Chang'an for several years and spoke fluent Chinese.
"Honored guests of the Han Dynasty, why have you trespassed into my home? If you are hungry, I have fine wine and meat in my tent to entertain you. If you have come to arrest me, please produce the imperial edict."

Chen Tang rode over on horseback, smiling, and said:
"Having studied in Chang'an makes a difference, huh? You even know how to speak to me in official jargon. Well then, today, I'll speak to you in official jargon too... Is this your home? Are the people in the tent your family?"

King Youguli respectfully bowed:
"Reporting to the general, this is my home, and my family is in the tent."

Chen Tang looked down at him and asked condescendingly:
"How to prove it?"

The perplexing questions of "proving your mother is your mother" and "proving your father is your father" that baffle modern people were even more impossible for people in ancient times to answer.

At this time, the nearby Xiongnu people had begun to gather, preparing to come to rescue King Youguli, but Wang Zhang led his cavalry in a counter-charge and captured all of them.

King Youguli's attitude remained very respectful:
“My people and I have gone through countless hardships to come to Han land to recuperate and live in peace. We have always abided by the laws of the Han Dynasty and have never dared to overstep our bounds. If the general is willing to spare us, my wives and concubines are at your disposal.”

Chen Tang didn't speak, but waved to the Imperial Guards on the side. Several Imperial Guards immediately switched to fire arrows, lit them, and shot them at the Right Guli King's tent, setting the tomb-like tent ablaze.

King Youguli, no longer in the mood for playing the charade of forbearance, quickly said:
"Please, General, spare my family. I am willing to give my life for your forgiveness and pardon."

Chen Tang ignored him and instead made a gesture. A group of Imperial Guards immediately surrounded the burning tent, and if anyone tried to rush out, they would shoot arrows directly into their legs.

These people were all the wives, concubines, and underage children of King Youguli. Their pitiful cries echoed in the firelight, making King Youguli's throat tighten.

He knelt down before Chen Tang, kowtowing repeatedly, tears and snot streaming down his face, begging for leniency.

Chen Tang, mounted on his horse, looked down and scrutinized the dog-like creature:

"I'll ask you one more time, you really haven't violated the laws of the Han Dynasty?"

King Youguli dared not be defiant this time, and crawled forward two steps on his knees, saying:

“I once helped the Right Wise King capture Han Chinese from the Hetao region and sell them to various tribes as slaves. I was wrong. I beg the general to spare my bloodline. In my next life, I will be your ox or horse to repay your great kindness.”

Chen Tang asked slowly:

Where is the Right Wise King's royal tent?

“Near Linhe County, the northernmost part of the Hetao region, he seized Han Chinese to cultivate grain and occupied the best terrain.”

King Youguli continued to kowtow, hoping that Chen Tang would spare his son, but Chen Tang remained silent until the tent was burned down to its frame and the screams inside gradually subsided.

Only when even the groans could no longer be heard in the middle of the fire did Chen Tang speak:

"Now you know what it feels like for Han people to lose their homeland, right?"

Before the Right Guli King could answer, Chen Tang controlled his white horse, turned around, and kicked the fifty-year-old Xiongnu nobleman to death.

For a people who live on horseback to die under the hooves of horses is the greatest humiliation for the people of the grasslands.

After executing the Right Guli King, Chen Tang picked up the walkie-talkie and issued the battle orders:
"Each of five hundred men will be a unit to drive the nearby Xiongnu people over. If they resist, kill them without mercy... The Imperial Guard Commandant will lead three thousand cavalrymen to Linhe County, the northernmost part of the Ordos region, to capture the Right Wise King alive!"

After receiving his orders, the Imperial Guard Commander led three thousand cavalrymen away, while the rest scattered and rushed toward the nearby Xiongnu camp.

Next, Chen Tang connected a repeater to an outdoor power source and mounted a Yagi antenna, enabling seamless connectivity for walkie-talkies within a 300-kilometer radius.

After finishing all this, Chen Tang hurriedly arrived at Hunyuan Palace, just in time for dinner. However, he didn't have time to eat, so he grabbed two flatbreads and left in a hurry with the weapons Guo Rong had given him.

The Imperial Guards were limited in number. If they wanted to escort the Xiongnu to the Han Dynasty as slaves, they would have to mobilize the Han people in the Hetao region. These people were not very good at fighting, but they could be put in armor and weapons and form a security regiment to escort prisoners.

Captured Xiongnu people would first be sent to Beidi County to build roads. The heavy physical labor was a test for the Xiongnu people, and it was a way to weed out those who were physically weak or who were lazy and deceitful.

Once the roads were completed and the Xiongnu had been tempered enough, they began to cultivate the land. There were still large tracts of fertile land in the Xitao Plain on the eastern foothills of the Helan Mountains that needed to be reclaimed. These Xiongnu people could be used to cultivate the land, and some scholars could be transferred from Chang'an to educate their descendants, gradually destroying the history of the Xiongnu.

Three generations later, the Xiongnu people would completely shed their muttony smell and become Han people who were loyal to the emperor, loved their country, and valued farming and scholarship.

Inside the Hunyuan Palace, Li Qingzhao took a bite of a large flatbread:
"If all the Xiongnu people run away, then General Zigong, wouldn't you have worked for nothing?"

The Book of Changes says:

"It's good that they ran away. It frees up land for the Han people. Migrants from all over the country can be transferred there to cultivate the land, promote new farming methods, and increase grain production."

At the end of the Western Han Dynasty, after Wang Mang's usurpation of the throne, the Red Eyebrows uprising, and the Green Forest uprising, coupled with years of natural disasters, the population of the north had decreased sharply... While there is still a chance to recover, we must take action in advance to avoid repeating the same mistakes.

Li Qingzhao asked:
"What if those Xiongnu people join forces with the Northern Xiongnu and attack again?"

Wu Zetian smiled and said:
"They will only plunder those areas with abundant water and grass, and it is impossible for them to unite. The hatred between the Northern and Southern Xiongnu is impossible to resolve. Otherwise, the Xiongnu would not have been fighting each other until the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty."

The Southern Xiongnu only submitted to the Han Dynasty because they couldn't defeat the Northern Xiongnu. Going back would only mean being bullied, so most Southern Xiongnu people would not leave but choose to stay and serve as servants to the Han people.

As long as they aren't killed directly, they will shamelessly continue to stay in Han territory.

It can be said that Emperor Xuan of Han treated the Xiongnu too well, which led to the Xiongnu's rebelliousness and growing power at the end of the Western Han Dynasty. Zhou Yi believes that this matter still needs to be settled, especially the bizarre move of placing the Xiongnu above the feudal kings and using the taxes of the four commanderies to support the Southern Xiongnu, which is comparable to Sima Guang's return of the Western Xia land.

After the meal, Zhou Yi returned to his room, wrote down the names of Xiao Wangzhi, Zhao Chongguo, and others, and handed them to Wang Qiang, asking Liu Xiang to arrange for people to start stirring up trouble in the court and begin to purge the great Confucian scholars who had been appeasing foreign tribes.

Kuang Heng believed that Chen Tang's act of hanging human heads was an insult to the emperor, and Xiao Wangzhi insisted on regarding the Xiongnu as a country equal to the Han Dynasty... These great Confucian scholars at the end of the Western Han Dynasty were all somewhat ill.

Now, it is time to reunite our thinking. Anyone who harbors goodwill toward foreign races should be expelled from the court, forbidden from teaching students, and forbidden from pursuing scholarship, lest one person teach ten, and ten teach a hundred.

Those spineless Han Chinese who kneel before barbarians are products of the spinelessness of the previous generation… an endless cycle of kneeling.

On the other side, in the world of Emperor Wu of the Western Han Dynasty.

Inside Weiyang Palace, Emperor Wu of Han was having dinner with Empress Wei Zifu and Emperor Liu Ju when Zhang Tang came in to report:

"Your Majesty, Doctor Di Shan has submitted memorials for three consecutive days, claiming that our Great Han Dynasty has recklessly waged war against the Xiongnu, and that the dynasty's reign will not last long. May I have him imprisoned?"

If there were a selection of the ten cruelest officials in Chinese history, Zhang Tang would definitely be at the top of the list. This guy not only liked to find fault with his ministers, but he even went so far as to set up entrapment operations... Although he had a bad reputation, he played an immeasurable role in the rise of the Han Dynasty.

Without the efforts of Emperor Wu of Han and his generation, the Han Dynasty could not have become the totem and symbol of the Chinese nation.

Liu Che rewarded Zhang Tang with a mutton pie and said:
"Others can be imprisoned for saying a few words, but our Great Han cannot engage in literary inquisitions. If Di Shan still insists on opposing the attack on the Xiongnu at tomorrow's morning court, I will personally arrange his fate."

Upon hearing this, Zhang Tang held the mutton pie in both hands, took his leave, and departed.

After he left, Liu Ju asked:
"Father, is Dr. Di right? Should our Han Dynasty wage war against the Xiongnu?"

From questioning his father before to now actively seeking his advice, Liu Ju has changed a lot during this period and no longer blindly obeys his teacher... Of course, this is also related to Liu Che changing his teachers.

Liu Che held up a bowl, personally ladled a bowl of soup, and handed it to Wei Zifu, smiling as he said to his son:
“If the Xiongnu continue to coexist peacefully with our Han Dynasty, I will naturally not resort to force and will continue to pursue peace through marriage. But since they have repeatedly violated the borders of the Han Dynasty, we can only demonstrate the mighty wrath of the Han Dynasty. Only when they know that the Han Dynasty cannot be trifled with will they become docile again.”

The next day at the grand court assembly, as soon as Liu Che took his seat, the scholar Di Shan stepped forward to present a memorial, hoping that the Han Dynasty could withdraw its weapons, let its horses graze freely, and end the war.

Just as several pro-war officials in the court were about to rise and refute, Liu Che spoke up:

"Di Shan, if you were to govern a prefecture, could you prevent the Xiongnu from invading?"

Di Shan shook his head and said:

"That is impossible. The Xiongnu are barbarians. Our great Han needs to educate and guide them, not attack them."

Liu Che then asked:

"If I gave you a county, could you prevent the Xiongnu from invading?"

Di Shan sensed something and shook his head again, but his words were already softening.

But Liu Che remained unmoved and asked a third time:
"If I gave you a fortified village, could you prevent the Xiongnu from invading?"

(End of this chapter)