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

Chapter 6: No wonder history books say he's a money-grubber! [Please add to your favorites]

Chen Tang?

Chen Tang, who famously declared, "Those who offend the mighty Han, though far away, shall be punished," and whose battle laid the foundation for the situation in the Western Regions for three hundred years.

Zhou Yi felt the joy of finally meeting his idol in person after years of chasing stars. That peerless general, whose slogan resounded throughout China for two thousand years and who displayed the majesty of the Han Dynasty, had actually come to Hunyuan Palace!
To prevent any mistakes, he checked it again:
"Are you Chen Tang, the son of Chen Zigong, from Shanyang County, Yanzhou?"

My grandfather used to say that those who cultivate Taoism should have a sense of national responsibility and remember the civil and military officials who made outstanding contributions to the country and the nation throughout history. Chen Tang, who shouted "I will punish them no matter how far away they are," was also among them.

Chen Tang exclaimed in surprise, "Eh?"
"How do you know my name, sir? Have I... borrowed money from you before?"

Fearing he might encounter a creditor, he quickly adopted the respectful terms used when dealing with Taoist priests.

He talks about money all the time; no wonder he's described in history as a greedy person… Zhou Yi shook his head:
"This is the world two thousand years after the Han Dynasty. You are quite famous in history. Your battle in the Western Regions brought stability to the borders of the Han Dynasty for three hundred years... Have you led your troops to kill the Chanyu of the Northern Xiongnu yet?"

Upon hearing that it wasn't a creditor, Chen Tang finally relaxed.
"Is this the world two thousand years in the future?"

Zhou Yi nodded and honked the motorcycle horn again:
"Back then you all rode horses, but now we ride these kinds of mounts. We don't need to feed them, and they can travel thousands of miles a day."

Chen Tang was still a little confused, but when the Northern Xiongnu were mentioned, he immediately perked up:
"Gan Yanshou, the Protector-General of the Western Regions and I, the Cavalry Commandant, marched a thousand miles and yesterday stormed Zhizhi City, killing the Northern Xiongnu Chanyu Zhizhi and capturing over a thousand members of the Northern Xiongnu royal family. Today, we were resting in the city when some soldiers burned incense and offered prayers. I joined in the fun, and unexpectedly, after offering my prayers, I found myself here."

Yesterday, Wu Zetian went to offer incense and pray for blessings, and unknowingly ended up at Hunyuan Palace.

Is there any necessary connection between this?

Zhou Yi bowed slightly to Chen Tang:
"General, you have made unparalleled contributions, congratulations! You haven't eaten yet, have you? Come on, let me take you to wash up and have a good meal first... You are a great hero of China, if I let you go hungry, I'm sure many people will curse me."

Speaking of food, Chen Tang subconsciously swallowed:

"Do you have soup noodles? I've been subsisting on dried meat and wheat cakes for months, and I haven't had soup noodles in ages. If you could cook some, I would be extremely grateful... Don't worry, I'll pay!"

Soup noodles?

This is just noodles!
Thinking of the two boxes of braised noodles he had just bought, Zhou Yi smiled and said:

"We'll talk about money later, there's plenty of soup noodles."

He pushed the motorcycle, leading Chen Tang through a series of grand halls to the small courtyard where they lived.

The courtyard was renovated by the old man years ago, and it is fully equipped with living facilities, including solar water heaters and water supply equipment. Zhou Yi led Chen Tang to the bathroom and explained to him how to use the bathroom facilities.

Chen Tang watched with astonishment:

"Sir, I have a plan to make a fortune. Would you like to hear it?"

"Take a shower first, then we'll talk."

Seeing that he hadn't changed his clothes, Zhou Yi even brought over his own basketball uniform:

"It's too hot. Wear this after you take a shower. Use plenty of shampoo, don't be stingy."

"Thank you sir!"

After giving his instructions, Zhou Yi went to the kitchen to prepare braised noodles for Chen Tang.

I bought some pork belly today, sliced ​​it thinly, sautéed it in oil, added water, and started cooking... Braised noodles go better with lamb, but the lamb in the supermarket was too expensive, so Zhou Yi finally chose the discounted pork belly.

After adding water, he brought over the noodles.

A box of braised noodles contains ten pieces, enough to cook three bowls of noodles. Considering that Chen Tang has just finished a fierce battle, he will probably eat more, so Zhou Yi plans to cook all ten pieces.

The hero has returned; we should at least make sure he's well-fed.

When we eat later, I'll take the opportunity to tell him about the course of history after this battle.

The defeat of Zhizhi Chanyu of the Northern Xiongnu was the highlight of Chen Tang's life. Although this battle demonstrated the spirit of the Han Dynasty and was hailed as the last glimmer of the Western Han Dynasty, Chen Tang's decision to send troops under false pretenses was still somewhat controversial.

With a war opportunity looming, the question of whether to delay sending a letter thousands of miles away to request instructions from the imperial court for months, or to decisively organize troops to attack, was a dilemma that border generals throughout history had to carefully consider. Chen Tang's approach was rather extreme. He directly forged an imperial edict, claiming that he and Gan Yanshou had come to the Western Regions on the emperor's orders to fight the Xiongnu, and then withdrew all the military officers and soldiers stationed in the Western Regions, as well as the troops from various small kingdoms.

With only a group of third-rate soldiers who had settled in the fields and small, incompetent troops from small states, Chen Tang launched a thousand-mile raid, directly attacking Zhizhi Chanyu's city of Zhizhi, where he captured and wiped out Zhizhi Chanyu and his vassals who had killed the Han envoy.

When news of the victory reached Chang'an, the entire court was shaken. No one had expected that the previously unknown Chen Tang would achieve feats comparable to those of Wei Qing and Huo Qubing.

However, the current prime minister, Kuang Heng, was displeased. He not only opposed granting Chen Tang and Gan Yanshou official titles and ranks, but also demanded that the emperor punish the two for forging imperial edicts.

Yes, this Kuang Heng is none other than the boy who borrowed light by chiseling a hole in the wall when he was a child.

When Kuang Heng grew up, he became a great Confucian scholar and held a high position in the government, but he did nothing good. He framed loyal officials, seized land, and colluded with eunuchs. He did not do any good deeds and did not miss any bad ones.

After returning from the Western Regions, Chen Tang was finally granted the title of Marquis within the Pass, but he was dismissed after only a few years. He then spent his life in ups and downs, and finally ended his life in poverty.

As a general, he had many shortcomings, such as being greedy for money, liking to accept bribes, and taking advantage of the opportunity to build the imperial mausoleum to engage in large-scale real estate development.

However, it is undeniable that Chen Tang's long-distance raid not only demonstrated the might of the Han Dynasty, but also intimidated a number of small states in the Western Regions.

After Emperor Yuan of Han ascended the throne, the Han Dynasty weakened and its control over the Western Regions declined. Several Han envoys were killed one after another, and the court was unable to send troops. This led those small countries to gradually develop the illusion that "we can take their place."

Chen Tang's emergence shattered the dreams of these small states. He decisively annihilated the Northern Xiongnu with only soldiers who had cultivated farmland. If it had been the large armies like the Longxiang and Yulin directly under the central government, the results would have been immeasurable.

From then on, no matter how much trouble the small kingdoms of the Western Regions caused, they only dared to linger around the Tianshan Mountains, and dared not take a step further east, much less provoke the Han Dynasty.

A hundred years later, just as the nightmare created by Chen Tang had begun to fade, Ban Chao wandered into the Western Regions, bringing with him new terrifying legends.

Chen Tang took a shower, changed into Zhou Yi's basketball uniform, and wore slippers, looking like an unkempt artist.

He had just stepped out of the bathroom when he smelled the aroma of cooking noodles:

"If this soup dumpling could be sold in Chang'an, even princes and nobles would become its fans."

Since there weren't many large bowls in the kitchen, Zhou Yi simply ladled the cooked noodles into a large stainless steel basin... Ten pieces of braised noodles should be enough for Chen Tang to have a hearty meal.

The noodles were served, and Zhou Yi placed them before Chen Tang:

"Try it and see how it tastes... Aren't you afraid of failure if you falsely claim to have summoned an army by imperial decree?"

This is a rare opportunity; I can finally ask Chen Tang about his motives face to face.

Some say Chen Tang is a gambler who goes all in, while others say he is a master of scheming... Zhou Yi thinks neither of these are accurate, and it's best to hear the real thoughts of the person involved first.

Chen Tang picked up a mouthful of braised noodles with his chopsticks, not minding the heat, and slurped it up, the smooth and chewy noodles were "drunk" into his mouth:
"Failure is failure. When I heard that several envoys had been beheaded and that Zhizhi Chanyu was threatening and extorting small countries in the Western Regions, I decided to teach him a lesson... What right does a mere spineless dog have to imitate the ways of my great Han?"

Sure enough, at the time, this guy only wanted to teach the Northern Xiongnu a lesson; merits and demerits were not even within his consideration.

To be fair, the Han Dynasty's attitude towards the Western Regions was somewhat like that of a domineering CEO... Only I can bully you, and no one else can even touch a finger of yours.

As Chen Tang slurped his noodles, he talked, and before he knew it, a whole bowl of noodles had been gone, not even the soup was left behind.

After finishing the noodle soup, Chen Tang, still wanting more, put down his chopsticks and asked:
"Is there any more? I don't feel very full."

Zhou Yi stood up and asked:

"How much more can you eat? I'll cook you some more."

Chen Tang patted the stainless steel basin somewhat embarrassedly:
"Give me this many more... Wait, this pot is actually made of iron? If I took it to Chang'an, I could definitely sell it for a good price!"

Zhouyi: "..."

For you, fighting is just a side job, making money is the main job, right?
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It's a new day, please bookmark this, guys!
(End of this chapter)