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“Can strategists not ascend to the throne?”
Chapter 154: Fortifications in Huo Shizhai
Well, it seems the decree didn’t just summon the Southern Xiongnu to Gaoping; it called for a bigger party—
The complete order directed them to escort the second batch of military supplies as well as high-quality seeds for planting near Gaoping City.
With over twenty thousand men being deployed, the supply carts they initially brought were already insufficient, and Bingzhou had long prepared backup transport.
Now that Qiao Yan’s order was issued, Liang Zhongning, responsible for escorting the food supplies, took a detour through Xihe Commandery and stopped by Meiji City to bring along Left Guli Wang and Yufuluo.
Yufuluo, for one, seemed to adjust quite well to such mobilization.
He wasn’t new to being called up by the Han Dynasty, after all.
Back then, he was assigned to Youzhou and Ji Province to quell the Yuyang Zhang Ju rebellion, and now he was dispatched to Liangzhou.
Earlier, when Qiao Yan requisitioned Hu Chuqian to plant crops on Ziwu Ridge, Yufuluo, as the elder brother, couldn’t help but feel anxious, wondering if he had inadvertently offended Qiao Yan. After all, her rise as the governor of Bingzhou happened while he was away assisting in military campaigns, so he might have missed something crucial.
Now that there was finally some assignment, albeit just to ensure the military supplies from Bingzhou to Gaoping wouldn’t be hijacked, Yufuluo felt relieved.
Honestly, moving supplies was a lot safer than facing off against Zhang Ju or Zhang Chun.
As they traveled through the river valley of the Jing River, it felt oddly peaceful, perhaps due to the mountains flanking either side, occasionally revealing fallen Qiang corpses, making it seem like a day out on a picnic.
Just as he was thinking this, Left Guli Wang murmured beside him, “Do you think the Bingzhou Governor called us here to make an example of us?”
Before Yufuluo could respond, he continued, “Why would she need to bring the Qiang people from Liangzhou to warn me? I had some thoughts about using our internal strife with the Xiongnu to seize power for ourselves, ideally to allow the Southern Xiongnu to become completely independent, but after she first used that guy’s head as a warning and scared me with the fate of the Xianbei, I couldn’t even entertain such ideas anymore.”
He complained, “I’ve almost given away all my personal possessions!”
Being a Left Guli Wang was a pretty big deal, second only to the royal princes, and it’s not every day someone like him ended up resembling this mess.
Yufuluo felt he was hearing almost a whimper in this guy’s voice.
At that moment, he didn’t know whether to be angry at Left Guli Wang’s dangerous thoughts or feel sympathy for his current predicament.
Then Left Guli Wang added, “What if this time, we’re not the monkeys being used to scare the chickens but are, in fact, the poor chicken ourselves?”
“Tuoli, watch your mouth!” Yufuluo quickly interrupted him.
Thankfully, Left Guli Wang had kept his complaints low and spoken in Xiongnu, so as he glanced over at Liang Zhongning, he saw that he seemed unaware of Tuoli’s malicious speculation about the Bingzhou Governor, and he heaved a sigh of relief.
“What good is it to be careful when…” Tuoli muttered, “The flying eagle has been stripped of its feathers.”
Tuoli means ‘flying eagle’ in Xiongnu, which made his remark rather vivid.
But Yufuluo could hardly applaud his choice of metaphor; instead, he scolded, “Huyan Tuoli, if you keep talking like that when we reach Gaoping City, I can’t protect you!”
With that shout, Left Guli Wang momentarily settled down.
In fact, he only dared to complain like this in the presence of his own kind; when it came to facing Qiao Yan, he’d turn into a quail instantaneously.
He even went on to praise the impressive martial ethics he’d heard about from her during their journey through the valley, making Qiao Yan look at him with a smile that wasn’t quite a smile.
She was pretty tempted to inform this idiot that troops like Liang Zhongning, stationed at Wuyuan to guard against the Hu, had undoubtedly picked up a phrase or two of Xiongnu language, just in case.
Although Liang Zhongning was a Yellow Turban Commander, he did possess some language skills, listening closely to Tuoli and Yufuluo’s conversation along the way.
Nonetheless, she didn’t summon him to play the part of a monkey or a chicken, nor did she plan to turn the Xiongnu leader’s head into a wine goblet, so she couldn’t be bothered holding him accountable for his poorly chosen words.
At the end of the day, the Southern Xiongnu under her command appearing here was merely for show to the surrounding Qiang.
She told Han Sui she was paying respects to Zhang Jiao, set to wage war at Fengyishan, and carry out a policy of total annihilation, but if she actually used all her forces to eradicate the Qiang, that would be putting the cart before the horse.
Thus, after the initial shock and slaughter, she still had to make use of some.
As for how to use them? A few representatives from the Southern Xiongnu fit the bill perfectly.
Once these Southern Xiongnu had finished transporting the supplies, aside from the five hundred who would continue making trips back and forth, some had been incorporated into the teams sweeping up surrounding tribes, while others were assigned to farm at Huo Shizhai.
Yufuluo belonged to the first group while Tuoli fell into the second.
Hearing that he only needed to transition from facing extortion in Meiji City to farming near Gaoping City, Tuoli finally let out a relieved breath.
His gaze skimmed over the decapitated head of the Qiang leader on the city wall, realizing that not engaging in conflict with Qiao Yan might just be the best decision he’d ever made.
Comparing the danger of his and Yufuluo’s tasks, he couldn’t help but feel a bit superior.
So, in a “kind-hearted” manner, he warned, “I’ve heard the Qiang are skilled soldiers who take pride in dying in battle and shame in dying of illness, so Yufuluo, you’d better be careful.”
Yufuluo pointed to the bloodstained ground outside Gaoping City and said, “If the Qiang really were unbeatable warriors, it wouldn’t look like this. The Han army is on a roll, and having me around doesn’t add much. Instead of worrying about my safety, you should worry about whether you’ve gotten too slack during these years of idleness. If you can’t even farm, now that’s a joke.”
“…” Tuoli decided to keep his mouth shut.
He glanced at his hands, which had lost some weight from anxiety but were still plump, and thought Yufuluo might be right.
He seemed to need to ask the soldiers under Qiao Yan how to farm properly.
If he remembered correctly, Qiao Yan had introduced a bunch of new farming techniques in Bingzhou?
Yufuluo couldn’t care less about how Tuoli planned to manage things; he was now focused on his own mission.
By the time these Southern Xiongnu reached Gaoping City, they had already passed the scheduled battle time that Qiao Yan had sent to Han Sui.
This meant, based on the news received by Qiao Yan, Han Sui ultimately backed down from a direct confrontation with her at Fengyishan, choosing instead to wait until she attacked Jincheng, and then to strike back using the advantage of terrain.
During these waiting days, Huangfu Song’s army had also shifted from Zhong to Gaoping City.
As the time for the Fengyishan agreement arrived, with Han Sui not showing up, these two armies, both labeled as fierce predators of the wild, moved out the following day.
In just one day, one of the forces annihilated nearby captive Qiang, while the other dealt with the Fengtai Qiang, proving their decisiveness and brutality beyond belief.
Both Qiang tribes were located to the west of Gaoping City, having retreated eastward after being defeated by the Han army during the early years.
Over the past few decades, they had frequently engaged in Qiang uprisings, often following Xianling Qiang’s lead, until they developed independently after his collapse.
During Han Sui’s rebellion, these two tribes had joined in quite a bit as part of the scattered forces in Anding Commandery.
Such inclinations in their choices led to their selection as targets for extermination by Qiao Yan after Han Sui declined the invitation to battle.
This undoubtedly sent a clear signal from Qiao Yan—
Han Sui was a coward, afraid to retaliate after she captured Gaoping, using his position to rally the Qiang while still hiding in Yuzhong and Jincheng, so she’d have to clear a path on her own to Yuzhong!
With both the captive Qiang and those at Fengtai blocking her way, her only option was to clean house!
The two tribes, totaling around five to six thousand people, left no survivors; only the horses, cattle, and sheep they had raised were driven towards Gaoping City by the Han army.
Word spread that the surrounding Qiang tribes lashed out at Han Sui while also feeling fear towards Qiao Yan’s tactics.
Should she truly plan to wipe them out, under the threat of her iron hooves, they’d either have to unite to attempt a desperate fight, or flee all the way to Longxi Commandery.
“Is there a different possibility?” A voice interrupted the simple meeting.
“What are you trying to say?” The elder at the head turned to the speaker, asking.
The one speaking, a young girl around twenty-three or twenty-four, felt everyone’s gaze and said, “A few days ago, I saw a lot of carts carrying grain at the mountain’s base, and among the escorting men, there were quite a few dressed like Xiongnu. Perhaps this Qiao from Bingzhou is not like Duan Ji Ming.”
The elder frowned, “Yao Chang, don’t forget you’re of the Shaodang Qiang just because you claim to be a descendant of Emperor Shun, adopting the surname Yao. Don’t have any unrealistic expectations of these Han.”
The Shaodang Qiang had primarily aligned with the Han Dynasty during Emperor Xianhe’s rule, relocating to places like Longxi, Hanyang, and Anding, with a group near Gaoping. This was the group belonging to the girl now referred to as Yao Chang.
They were indeed quite different from the Zhong Qiang, Fengtai Qiang, and Fengtai Qiang tribes that Qiao Yan had successively attacked.
Since they mostly maintained a decent relationship with the local Han government, they also settled in more fertile lands, engaging in both traditional nomadic herding and farming.
This lifestyle offered them a more developed intelligence network than other Qiang tribes.
Yao Chang had heard numerous stories about that Bingzhou Governor, and to her, given how she had acted in Bingzhou, if she really were akin to Duan Jiao’s method, the Southern Xiongnu in Xihe Commandery would have long been wiped out.
Who would forget that Duan Jiao famously said—“To wish to mix the rebels with the Han is like planting thorny brambles in good fields and raising venomous snakes in one’s home.”
It meant that even if one brought the Qiang people to live among the Han, they would still harbor troubles, hence they were better off exterminating them all.
If Qiao Yan didn’t entirely adhere to Duan Jiao’s methods, it would be a different story…
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“Looks like we’re calling in the Xiongnu over to this battlefield. That has a weird vibe to it.”
She met the gaze of the higher-ups and firmly replied, “I won’t forget my identity, but I want to give it a shot. You can rest assured, I’ll only bring those who agree from my unit. If it doesn’t work out, it won’t affect you!”
Though the children of the Shaodang Qiang excelled in herding and farming, their martial prowess held true to the fierce style of the Liangzhou folks, which includes the saying, “Even the women wield daggers and spears, bow and arrows at the ready.”
Yao Chang was no exception.
After finishing her debate with the elder, she rallied a dozen convinced buddies and headed straight for Gaoping City.
However, before she even reached the city, she happened upon Yufuluo and a small group leaving Gaoping.
She initially wanted to confront the Bingzhou governor head-on but quickly reconsidered.
Instead of going empty-handed, she thought it’d be better to take a hostage.
Yufuluo never expected that before he could carry out Qiao Yan’s mission, he would suddenly run into trouble.
The campaign against the Qiang was far from the simple plan he and Tuoli had discussed.
Qiao Yan had also reminded him that he needed to select a few tribes from the chosen Qiang to cooperate with Chu Yan in capturing rather than exterminating them.
Yufuluo thought that since he had finally received the Bingzhou governor’s assignment, he had to do well. This would prove that he, as the next leader of the Southern Xiongnu, could serve Qiao with all his heart and do things steadily—at least way more reliably than that guy, Hu Yan Tuoli. So perhaps before officially marching, he could scout around a bit first.
Yet, as soon as he entered the mountains, he stumbled and fell, taking a tumble that knocked him out cold.
When he woke up, he found himself and his companions tied up tightly, while the one who orchestrated the sneak attack—a Qiang woman armed with a bow and knife—was loudly questioning the folks above Gaoping City: “If Qiao from Bingzhou needs manpower, why use such useless rubbish? Why not consider me?”
Qiao Yan had been informed of the situation and stepped onto the city wall, looking down in response to the voice.
The Qiang woman below had striking features and a cool kind of beauty, but what caught Qiao Yan’s eye was the sense of power and confidence she exhibited while riding and wielding her weapons.
And then—
Her self-recommendation.
Now, that was a clever person!
“So what position does the lord have in mind for her?” Cheng Yu asked as he followed Qiao Yan up Liupan Mountain.
Qiao Yan replied, “No rush, we’ll decide when we officially go to war with Han Sui. Honestly, I’d rather keep her in Liangzhou than Bingzhou, ideally with an appropriate title.”
The Han government had always maintained a principle for governing Liangzhou: rule the land with local potentates.
Although due to the Sanhu Law principle, strongmen from one commandery could be dispatched to another, having that level of identity plus connections could effectively restrain the local Qiang forces.
But as time went on, there was a scarcity of useful people among the local prominent figures, and the frequent Qiang rebellions made that control vanish, eventually leading to a complete breakdown of order.
Some things couldn’t be said to others, but with someone like Cheng Yu, who understood her ambitions, she could speak plainly.
For instance, Cheng Yu knew clearly that her attack on Liangzhou wasn’t about taking down Dong Zhuo or restoring Emperor Liu Xie; it was simply about finding an opportunity to take control of Liangzhou.
This meant she needed to think beyond just how to quell Liangzhou’s rebellions; she also had to consider how to govern it.
This situation wasn’t the same as Bingzhou.
Aside from Xihe Commandery, other commanderies in Bingzhou were merely troubled by Qiang disturbances while largely remaining a cohesive Han identity. Yet, Liangzhou was a mixed bag of Qiang tribes living interspersed; it was like trying to separate black and white sesame seeds—not an easy task.
Rather than appointing local strongmen, Qiao Yan leaned towards the idea of governing the Qiang with their own.
Thus, having a Qiang official was a must.
The first to pledge allegiance to her, Yao Chang, could be kept under observation for now.
But because her ambitions weren’t something that could be realized immediately, Yao Chang and her tribespeople were temporarily settled in the Huo Shizhai’s mountain farming area, working alongside these recruited Han to cultivate the land, which matched the Shaodang Qiang’s skills.
However, considering Yao Chang’s self-recommendation set her apart from the rest, Qiao Yan appointed her as a minor leader, planning to assess her psyche up close.
As she stood looking towards the mountain farming area, she noticed that where the stream flowed through, the formerly unearthed land had undergone further adjustments and broadening under the Qiang’s development.
In the surrounding rolling hills, this relatively flat area appeared quite fertile.
Based on the local climate and planting conditions, Qiao Yan finalized three crops for this location—
Sesame, fava beans, and wheat.
This became the designated military farm of Huo Shizhai.
The reason this place was still called Huo Shizhai wasn’t because it was the later firestone reserve.
If classified by geography, it leaned more towards the eastern side of the Liupan Mountain range.
But when Qiao Yan glanced back towards the west, she saw the hazy distant mountains presenting an interplay of dark red and green, resembling a burning state.
This unique Danxia landform was currently blending with the evening sun, creating a distinct landscape in the heart of Liangzhou territory, the very origin of this mountain community’s name.
That mountain range had also become the essential path for the northern route of the Silk Road during the early Yuan Dynasty.
However, the mountains were still largely undeveloped, and traveling towards Yuzhong wouldn’t cut through the center.
Qiao Yan withdrew her gaze, temporarily burying her future plans, and told Cheng Yu, “Let’s head down.”
When they reached the farmland at the mountain’s midsection, she hesitated for a moment.
I don’t know if it’s because the Chinese have a sentimental attachment to farming, but even though the land was still being plowed and had yet to be seeded, she felt a sense of stability arising from the scene before her amidst the military expedition.
Even though she wouldn’t have time to stretch out this line until harvest!
Cheng Yu couldn’t help but tease, “Han Sui must be feeling pretty confused. The lord sends him a battle invitation, yet here we are farming in Anding Commandery.”
Qiao Yan turned to her longest-following strategist, saying, “But you should know, I never farm without aiming for greater profits.”
This was indeed Qiao Yan’s style, which Cheng Yu had witnessed from the beginning to the end.
She planted mustard greens in the capital to lessen Emperor Ling’s wariness, ensuring there wouldn’t be shifts at the marquis ranks before reaching Leping.
She farmed in Leping to build up a first batch of public goodwill and reserve grain, capital for recruiting manpower.
She promoted farming tools and practices in Bingzhou, setting up military farms in Baidao River, ensuring they had enough food supplies when going against Dong Zhuo or invading Liangzhou.
So farming in the Liupan Mountains of Liangzhou now, clearly, wasn’t just a temporary strategy on how to attack Yuzhong!
What was she plotting? Let Han Sui ponder over that!
Besides, was her biggest headache really Han Sui while she lingered in Gaoping?
She feared it was…
Just as she thought about this, a familiar voice suddenly broke her train of thought from the field ahead.
She took a couple of steps towards the sound and realized the voice belonged to Left Guli Wang of the Southern Xiongnu.
No wonder his spoken Chinese sounded a bit off.
Recalling what he had said while heading to Gaoping City, Qiao Yan decided to eavesdrop a bit more; after all, it could be some entertainment.
As they walked a distance further, they could clearly see the person Left Guli Wang was chatting with.
It was those Shaodang Qiang who had come to surrender to her, persuaded by Yao Chang, in a bid to avoid extermination.
For these Qiang people, shedding the label of cruelty was a bit tricky for Qiao Yan.
Though she had tentatively settled them here, looking fair-minded, they thought of the Southern Xiongnu nearby as their kin.
During a break from work, they started chatting with him.
Among the supplies brought by the Southern Xiongnu weren’t just grains but also farming tools.
One of the Shaodang Qiang, gripping a curved plow, asked Tuoli, “Using just this curved plow, can we really increase productivity as Qiao from Bingzhou said, doubling the yield?”
Even if they achieved deep cultivation, it didn’t seem feasible to get a yield that high.
But this kind of question… could be asked of anyone, but to Tuoli, it felt a bit off.
He had only learned farming skills a few days ago from Han people; who was he to be treated like an expert?
Yet when he realized he didn’t have to play the role of a “chicken” or “monkey” to set an example or warn others, he felt a huge relief, and being viewed as a seasoned person by these Qiang brought him a surge of satisfaction.
Compared to Yufuluo who was currently kidnapped by Yao Chang as a hostage, Tuoli felt that being threatened by Qiao Yan with a gun in the past was nothing.
After all, surviving under such scrutiny from the Bingzhou governor was a rare feat!
This was his first real privilege!
With this in mind, he puffed up his chest proudly.
Recalling what he had heard from Han people days earlier, he replied, “Of course not enough. You must mix bone meal into the soil before sowing, and apply two types of special fertilizer after planting.”
The Qiang in front of him nodded, seemingly in agreement but then asked, “What’s bone meal?”
“…” Tuoli awkwardly realized he didn’t have a clear answer to that, either.
Back when he was in Xihe Commandery, only those dedicated to farming had come into contact with the new farming practices issued by the government.
His job was purely about the eating!
Yet here, in front of these “good brothers,” he had to establish a reliable image, and he couldn’t flub it on such seemingly simple questions!
He quickly signaled for them to huddle closer, whispering, “You know why the lord had to kill so many Qiang and even cremated them according to their customs?”
Not far off, Qiao Yan froze in her tracks.
