Colonial Era: From Remnants to European Dominator

The city of Yili, more accurately the royal court of Yili, was merely a name used by outsiders. At that time, Yili was more like a hodgepodge of powerful and wealthy people gathered together.

On the south bank of the Ili River stand the Golden Roof Temple and the Silver Roof Temple, symbols of Tibetan Buddhism, which are magnificent and part of the power of the entire Dzungar royal court.

Meanwhile, Hainuk, located on the south bank of the Ili River, which later became known as the "Ancient City," was the Khan's true residence at this time and the center of the entire Dzungar power.

Ili is essentially a place name. The city was merely a large military settlement used for trade and storage of military supplies and grain, and it was very different from the capitals of the Central Plains or even Europe.

At this time, Yili was lush with water and grass, with clear rivers, herds of cattle and sheep, and vast wheat fields that had turned golden, leaving the merchants from afar dazzled and marveling that this was truly the pearl of the Western Regions.

Concealing the "greed" in his eyes, Li Yuanheng took a deep breath and walked into the large tent opposite. The tent was huge, as big as a basketball court, and it didn't look like a tent at all, but rather like a magnificent building.

As soon as I walked in, I saw the golden wolf head in the center. Even just a glance was enough to estimate that it weighed at least thirty pounds of gold.

"May Your Majesty be well, and may you pay homage to the Lord of the Earth, the eternal descendant of Heaven—"

Seven or eight steps from the throne, Li Yuanheng first bowed, then prostrated himself, without the slightest deviation from propriety. This impressed Galdan Tsering, who was accustomed to crude forms of worship.

"Your father bore a striking resemblance to you when he met Ben Khan."

Li Yuanheng did not answer, but stood respectfully opposite him, head bowed, neither humble nor arrogant.

Ce Ling grabbed the golden seal beside him:

"I heard you killed quite a few female dogs in Kobdo last year, is that true??"

"I dare not deceive the Great Khan; this is indeed true."

"What a young talent! You are far superior to my sons. If they were like you, I would be at ease. I am not burdened with so much worry and toil. It is truly an injustice of the Eternal Heaven!"

Li Yuanheng bowed slightly and said "I dare not," raising his chin slightly to reveal his handsome and extraordinary face, as well as his obvious "joy," which pleased Ce Ling greatly. This attitude was in line with the reaction of a young man who had achieved early success. If Li Yuanheng had been neither happy nor sad, that would have been truly frightening.

After a few more casual words about family members' health, Ce Ling finally got to the point:

"You've only brought three thousand soldiers, which sets a good example for those miscellaneous troops. A reward would be necessary to encourage the soldiers."

"Not to mention the great merit he made last year, if we don't reward him, it might cause controversy among the tribes of the grasslands."

"I hereby bestow upon you the honors of Barth, a golden sword, a hundred attendants, and ten beautiful women—"

The so-called Balte is actually similar to the Manchu Baturu, meaning a warrior, but it highlights the person's bravery and loyalty.

After a pause, perhaps feeling that she was still being a bit stingy, Ce Ling continued:

"You are too young. For the sake of your father's prestige and dignity, I will bestow upon him the title of Beg, placing him above all the Zaisangs around the Altai. If he possesses a golden arrow, he can command all tribes to punish those who disobey."

"Whoosh----"

The royal courtiers who were watching the show initially thought it was just a game to amuse children, but when Burke, especially Golden Arrow, came out, not only the onlookers but even some of the out-of-town officials who had arrived earlier showed their dissatisfaction.

It's important to understand that while the titles of Zaisang and Burke may seem to indicate a military nobleman and a royal nobleman respectively, the difference between them is significant. Zaisang was at most a warlord with some influence, while Burke was a local lord with noble status.

The entire Dzungar Khanate only had a handful of Beks, many of whom were royalty. For a commoner to become a Bek and ride roughshod over them was utterly heinous. However, due to the current high spirits of Khan Tsering, they could only suppress their dissatisfaction.

The look in his eyes toward the young thug in the middle grew increasingly displeased, and some of his gazes seemed to say he wanted to devour him whole.

"On behalf of my father, I thank the Khan. May the Eternal Heaven forever protect the Khan, and may the Khan live ten thousand years!"

As Li Yuanheng knelt to express his gratitude, he subconsciously glanced at the envious eyes around him, memorized a few faces, and then went to his table to enjoy the food.

In fact, the so-called delicacies are beef. On the grasslands, beef is the most expensive, and bear paws are the most valuable in Jinshan. Venison is nowhere to be seen at this time. Depending on the type of beef, someone of Li Yuanheng's caliber eats ribeye, which is considered a good cut of meat.

As for internal organs like the heart and lungs, they were bestowed upon the Khan's personal guards who patrolled outside, while the Khan himself ate a cow's head, which is similar to the meaning of "holding the cow's head" in the Central Plains.

Chewing on the roasted beef, savoring the aroma of meat mingled with spices, Li Yuanheng's knife moved swiftly and slowly, devouring the beef from the plate in just a few strokes. This left Ce Ling, who had been observing, speechless. After all, the beef on the silver plate must have weighed at least two pounds, and it had all been gone in such a short time. Could all the members of the Jinshan Li family really eat this much?

"Give my Khan's Balt some more meat, he's still not full!!"

Ce Ling stretched out his hand in the direction of Li Yuanheng, and immediately all eyes on him were drawn to him. Among them were many who were "resentful", "jealous" and "disdainful", but some people were also curious about this scoundrel Li Yuanheng.

Just as the servant was about to offer Li Yuanheng a piece of ribeye, he was stopped by Ce Ling on the throne:

"And send this piece of ox tongue over. I can't eat anymore, so Batel will take it for me."

When the half-cut beef tongue was placed on the plate, Li Yuanheng first stood up to express his gratitude, and then, in front of everyone, quickly ate the rather large half-cut beef tongue, dipped in spices, whole.

Witnessing all this, Ce Ling burst into laughter, exclaiming:

"This is the real Bart of the Khan, big appetite, can eat and can fight!!"

"Play music, play dance, entertain Batel!"

Seven or eight graceful dancers entered the tent, and music full of Yili flavor filled everyone's ears. Accompanied by the song and dance, everyone present, including Ce Ling himself, got up and danced. Li Yuanheng was among them, and he was even the closest to Ce Ling in the dance.

Unlike the Central Plains dynasties, which preferred simple and elegant aesthetics, in the Western Regions, dance was not only a form of entertainment, but also an important means and tool for strengthening relationships between different groups.

"My dear Batel, how about you lead the vanguard this time and help me recapture Hami City?"

As she danced, Ce Ling made a request that made Li Yuanheng's heart skip a beat, allowing him to calm down slightly:

"Your Majesty, I have only three thousand men, while the Qing army in Hami has at least tens of thousands. Even the fiercest pack of wolves would not dare to provoke a vicious tiger."

"Moreover, the Qing army has launched such a large-scale attack this time. We should focus our attention on their supply lines. As long as we cut off their food and supplies, these hundreds of thousands of Qing troops will naturally be defeated without a fight."

Ce Ling returned to the table and picked up the golden cup. Li Yuanheng also hurriedly took the silver cup and drank it down first, which greatly pleased Ce Ling.

"The supply lines are very important, but the Qing army has already stockpiled a lot of grain in various places, and it cannot be cut off in a short time. Therefore, taking back Hami is the most important thing."

"But I believe that Hami is not actually important."

"unimportant----"

These words seemed to have touched a nerve with Ce Ling, and his tone changed:

"Do you know what you're saying? The land of Bart and Hami belongs to the Dzungar Khanate. No matter how much time has passed, it will always be the territory of the Khanate, the pastureland of the herdsmen. What does 'unimportant' mean?"

"But Great Khan, Hami is currently a military city. It is not worth losing a large number of precious steppe men for the sake of a city. Victory in war is determined at the end, not by the ownership of a city."

"The important thing is to defeat these hundreds of thousands of Qing troops in front of us."

Li Yuanheng's explanation brought Ce Ling back to her senses from the effects of alcohol:

"You're right, but cutting off supplies is easier said than done; the Jurchen dogs are very cunning."

"The best way to deal with a powerful enemy is not to follow their tactics. I believe we should concentrate our forces to block the main Qing army, and then send our cavalry to raid their strongholds. Isn't this exactly what Your Majesty intended from the beginning?"

At that moment, Ce Ling seemed to remember something, slapped his forehead, and said to Li Yuanheng with some shame:

"I'm getting senile. I forgot what I said myself. I'm getting old, so old----"

Li Yuanheng smiled and told a few flattering jokes, which made Ce Ling laugh heartily. He even personally saw Ce Ling off when he left.

"Brother, has something bad happened?"

Seeing that Li Yuanheng's face had turned gloomy after walking for only a short while, Hu Wu asked him with some confusion. After all, he was very happy when he came out, so why did he change after only walking a mile?

Li Yuanheng lightly gripped the reins, his breathing slowing from rapid to gentle, and replied with chilling words:

"He's all talk and no action, a wolf in sheep's clothing. This scoundrel is something else. We need to keep a close eye on him and not fall for his tricks."