Northern Dynasties

Chapter 1377: Rewarding the Motherland
Since the Yongjia Rebellion, the country has been in chaos, and various forces have taken turns to appear on the historical stage. Some are like a flash in the pan, while others rise and fall and remain active on the historical stage.

Among them, the more famous ones include Murong clan of Liaodong, which lost and restored their kingdoms several times, and occupied several places in the Sixteen Kingdoms of the Five Barbarians. The descendants of Tuyuhun still exist in Qinghai. The Northern Wei Dynasty was also founded by Tuoba Gui after its predecessor, Dai Kingdom, was destroyed by Former Qin. Others, such as Yuwen clan of Liaodong, withdrew from the struggle for hegemony of Liaodong Xianbei early, but Yuwen Tai established a hegemony in Guanxi.

As the various Hu regimes were so numerous and prosperous, the Han clans also experienced ups and downs. The Qinghe Cui clan and the Taiyuan Wang clan in the north were on the verge of extinction several times, but they were revived again.

As one of the Han Chinese clans, the Longxi Li clan also had a similar experience, and it was equally legendary. The Longxi Li clan was originally just a native of Longxi, unknown in China, or a powerful clan in Longyou, but it was definitely not a famous clan during the Wei and Jin dynasties. It was not until the reign of Zhang Gui of the Former Liang that it began to gain some influence, but it was only limited to the increase of influence in Longyou.

What gave the Longxi Li family a huge boost was the establishment of Xiliang by Li Hong in Dunhuang, Hexi, which made the Longxi Li family leap from a right surname in Xizhou to a royal family in the West.

However, the entire Hexi and Longyou areas were in chaos at that time. There were three regimes with the name of Liang at the same time: Northern Liang, Southern Liang and Western Liang. These three Liang countries were all split from the Later Liang founded by the Di people Lu Guang. Western Liang was not known for its strength among them, and its regime only existed for twenty years before it was conquered by Northern Liang.

Due to its short existence and the fact that the country was founded in the remote Hexi region, the Longxi Li family did not gain any universal influence. In the mainstream northern society at that time, it was still in an unknown and untraceable state.

The mystery of history lies in the fact that success or failure is not determined by the rise and fall of a moment. Although the Western Liang Kingdom was destroyed, the Longxi Li family was able to use this as an opportunity to break away from the confines of the western corner and officially step onto the entire northern stage.

After the fall of the Western Liang Kingdom, Li Bao, as the remnant of the fallen country, led the remaining people to cross the Liusha River to the west, and with the assistance of his uncle Tang Qi and others, he established the exiled regime of the Later Western Liang in the Western Regions. At that time, the Northern Wei Dynasty was growing stronger and was about to unify the north, and was advancing towards Longyou and Hexi. Li Bao and others decided to surrender to the Northern Wei Dynasty, and thus returned to the court as the royal family of Hexi.

However, the Northern Wei Dynasty also destroyed countless countries during its rise. The identity of the Longxi Li family alone was not enough to make it stand out. Li Chong's favor became a key factor in the continued growth of the Longxi Li family.

When the Longxi Li family first entered the court, they were not well received by the Han nobles at that time, so they were ridiculed as "Camel Li" in later generations. It is said that when the Northern Wei Dynasty was about to select the four surnames, the Longxi Li family rode a camel day and night to Luoyang for fear that they would not be selected, but in the end they still did not catch up with the selection of the four surnames, so they were ridiculed as Camel Li.

This story is nothing more than a mockery and resistance of the Guandong nobles to the Longxi Li family, who came from the Western Province but rose to prominence later. After all, a similar scene would not be out of place in any family other than the four surnames at that time, so the Guandong nobles at that time would probably be labeled as "pigs, horses, camels and donkeys", a bunch of beasts seeking fame and reputation.

In short, with the efforts of Li Chong and other clan members who entered the court, the Longxi Li family became one of the most famous aristocratic families in the world at that time. This was undoubtedly a result of counterattack and revival for a down-and-out royal family from the west, which made people feel fortunate and gratified.

However, when Li Tai suddenly appeared, he quickly rose in the situation of the Three Kingdoms, swept across the world in one fell swoop, and once again established a huge unified empire. This undoubtedly brought the revival process of the Longxi Li family to a new climax, and even surpassed the scope of revival. Instead, he far surpassed his predecessors and created a new glory and peak!

Admiring the strong and the great is the instinct of living things. When seeing powerful people and things, they always hope to have some kind of wonderful connection with them. The Tang emperor, whose ancestors came from the Western Land and once served as the ruler of Hexi, was undoubtedly powerful, and naturally won the admiration of the people of Dunhuang. Moreover, there was no need to force any connection between them. There was a deep connection between them, and their admiration naturally became stronger and deeper.

When Li Tai heard these Dunhuang scholars and common people calling themselves the remnants of the Liang Dynasty and the descendants of the Jian Dynasty, he couldn't help but feel deeply moved. The atmosphere had already reached this point, so naturally he could not remain silent in response.

So he stepped out of the carriage, and surrounded by the imperial guards, he came to the front of the team, raised his hands and shouted to the people of Dunhuang opposite him: "My descendants are unworthy, and have abandoned the legacy of our ancestors and alienated the loyal ones. After conquering the world, I am now returning to worship the ancestors' tombs. The old songs of our ancestors are still here, and they are foolishly guarding their ancestral home. I am very ashamed and very comforted. Now that I have returned to my homeland, I will reward the loyalty of Hexi!"

When the people of Dunhuang heard the Supreme's response, they cheered even louder and more enthusiastically. Along with the jubilant cheers, officials from the prefectures and counties and local nobles came forward to welcome the Holy Emperor into the city.

Dunhuang is located in the western section of the Hexi Corridor and is also the first stop for entering the Western Regions. It has a special status and significance from ancient times to the present. Li Tai's western tour certainly had important political and strategic intentions, but he also wanted to broaden his horizons and see the different customs and people in different parts of the Tang Dynasty under his rule.

As soon as he entered the city, Li Tai felt a strong exotic atmosphere. Whether it was the architectural style or the residents in Dunhuang, all races were mixed together. There were a large number of Diqiang and Hu people from the nine states of Zhaowu in the Western Regions living in the city. Even Persians and Byzantines from farther away were not uncommon in the city. It was simply a large exhibition of continental races.

Of course, it is not ruled out that the officials of Guazhou wanted to broaden the horizons of the Supreme Being here, so they gathered many people to welcome the arrival of the Holy Vehicle, but this is enough to show the unique charm of Dunhuang as the center of East-West communication on the mainland.

As a city with commerce as its main industry, Dunhuang City is not as well-fortified and heavily guarded as inland cities. Even the provincial capital in the city does not have high walls, and people can come and go freely. Of course, some important areas are still guarded by armored soldiers, but in most cases people's movements are relatively free.

Being free and easy is not necessarily good, and being heavily guarded is not necessarily bad. The relatively relaxed atmosphere in Dunhuang today can only mean that the exchanges between the East and the West are in a peaceful and prosperous period, and are not threatened by too much war or unrest. If the basic personal and property safety cannot be guaranteed due to the frequent looting and plundering of the chaotic soldiers and the rampant bandits in the streets, normal people with brains will also hope to strengthen supervision and regulations. Guazhou is the westernmost part of the actual control of the Tang Dynasty today. As the seat of Guazhou, Dunhuang naturally has a very unique significance. The current governor of Guazhou is Wang Ban, who was demoted to Hexi several years ago, and the prefect of Dunhuang is Tang Yong, an old man from the Northern Qi Dynasty.

Speaking of Tang Yong, he also had a close relationship with the Longxi Li family and the Hexi region. The Longxi Li family was able to establish the Hexi Kingdom, especially Li Bao's establishment of the Later Western Liang in the Western Regions, which was inseparable from the support of the in-laws Tang family. Tang Yong was born in the Jinchang Tang family, and he was a relative of the Longxi Li family.

Of course, the reason why Li Tai admired Tang Yong was that he was talented and capable. He had been in charge of Jinyang military affairs for many years and was a right-hand man that several generations of Northern Qi monarchs relied on. Guazhou was located in Hexi, far away from Guanlong, and the situation was relatively complicated. Such a smart and capable person was needed to take charge of the area and build a local garrison force.

Li Tai's schedule was quite busy when he came to Dunhuang. On the first day of his arrival, he hosted a banquet for officials from the prefecture and county and a group of noble families in the village. Families such as Linghu Yanbao, who have lived in the village for generations, have a profound influence on the maintenance of village order and local administration. The reason why the Western Wei Dynasty was able to recover Guazhou was due to the support of a group of noble families in the region.

The next day, Li Tai led the people to the mausoleum of Li Hong, the first emperor of Xiliang, Jianshi Mausoleum to worship their ancestors. Before, the people of Dunhuang called themselves Jianshi Mausoleum Households, because they regarded themselves as the mausoleum households of the Longxi Li family guarding the mausoleum.

It has been more than 100 years since Li Hong passed away. Soon after his death, the Western Liang was destroyed by the Northern Liang. After that, the Dunhuang area changed its ruler several times and was in constant turmoil. Therefore, Li Hong's mausoleum was inevitably damaged. However, when Li Tai ascended the throne in Chang'an and conferred the title of the Seven Temples, he also sent envoys to Dunhuang to repair the ancestral mausoleum. Therefore, the mausoleum is still well preserved.

After offering sacrifices to the ancestors' tombs, Li Tai ordered a visit to the former officials and subordinates of Xiliang, especially those who died for their country, and their descendants were given official titles to commend their loyalty. Although this move was to commemorate the ancestors' merits, it was actually to win over the current Han people in Hexi.

At the same time, all registered citizens in the former territory of Xiliang were exempted from rent and taxes for three years. Those over the age of sixty were permanently exempted from labor service, and those over seventy were given one hundred pieces of silk and two slaves.

The conditions for cultivation in Hexi were not as good as those in the inland of Guanzhong. The cultivated land was mainly concentrated in limited areas such as river valleys and oases, and most of the cultivated land was in the hands of the Han nobles. After all, neither the Zhaowu Hu nor the passing Persian and other Hu merchants were keen on reclaiming wasteland and starting businesses. Although farming was not as profitable as business, it was more stable. Therefore, despite the changes in the order in Hexi, the Han nobles still existed tenaciously and had strong power over people and land.

The biggest beneficiaries of the exemption of rent and labor service from the imperial court were naturally the Han people who owned equal land. As for other craftsmen and merchants engaged in handicrafts and commerce, they still had to pay the city tax.

In addition, Li Tai also summoned the descendants of the old Ganliang teachers, granted them the title of Longxing Wei and 100 hectares of land to reward these loyal men. His ancestor Li Bao retreated to Yiwu after the fall of the Western Liang Kingdom and established the Western Liang regime. At that time, he had a Ganliang brigade under his command. Some of this army followed Li Bao to the Northern Wei Dynasty, while others followed Tang He to stay in Yanqi in the Western Regions. Later, when Tang He entered the court, this army gradually dispersed between Hexi and the Western Regions.

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Li Tai wanted to form a new military force in Hexi. The troops directly sent by the imperial court were one source, the local powerful tribes in Hexi and the various vassal Hu tribes were also part of it, and the old Ganliang troops of the Later Xiliang could also serve as a source of troops.

Although more than a hundred years have passed and there are probably not many descendants of the old Ganliang tribe left, it does not prevent us from using this as a concept to build an elite force.

With the concept of winning over the old Ganliang troops, those who were selected must have a strong sense of cohesion and honor. Moreover, Li Tai gave these Longxing Wei such a generous reward, which was to train them directly as military landlords. With the formation and growth of this team, they can gradually replace the Hexi tyrants and become the new main force of the Hexi armed forces.

Of course, if these big families want to join, Li Tai is not opposed. However, after they join, they must also obey the faith of the old Ganliang tribes and can no longer use their past rural power to gain power.

When Li Tai came to Dunhuang, in addition to the establishment and arrangement of military and political affairs, he had another thing to do, which was to hold a grand exposition.

The development of Hexi is inseparable from the promotion of trade, and trade is not only an act of promoting regional prosperity and gaining benefits, but also a very important and effective means of united front work. For example, the previous Tuyuhun Khan Kua Lu originally did not want to join the Tang Dynasty's vassal system, but under the temptation of huge trade benefits, he still chose to submit to the Tang Dynasty.

In the future, if the Tang Dynasty wants to continue to expand its influence and control, strengthening the exchange of personnel and materials with the Western Regions is the only way. In order to gain the dominance of trade on the Silk Road, a strong country is certainly one aspect, and having a rich variety of goods is also very important. The world is bustling with people, all for profit. The Tang Dynasty is vast and rich in resources, which naturally has extraordinary attraction for merchants.

When Li Tai came to Dunhuang, he took the opportunity to show the riches of the Tang Dynasty to merchants from both inside and outside the country. His entourage carried a variety of goods. In order to ensure the travel date and to make a splash, he did not stop to display them when passing through Longyou. Now that he had arrived at the important town in the west of the Hexi Corridor, he naturally wanted to show them to the fullest. He set up a grand exhibition venue outside Dunhuang and invited Dunhuang people, chieftains and various Hu merchants to come in and watch.

When the crowd was immersed in viewing the various commodities on display, Li Tai did not have time to take care of these things. His main energy was still used on the most important thing of this western tour, which was to preside over the arrangement of military strikes against the Western Turks.

In the midst of the bustling atmosphere outside Dunhuang, another group of Hu merchants arrived in Dunhuang. However, this group did not go to the most popular exhibition venue, but quietly entered the military camp on the other side of the city under the escort of the Tang army. The leader of this group was not an ordinary merchant, but the King of Gaochang, Qu Qiangu.