My life is like walking on thin ice

Chapter 424: Damn Han Envoy!
Although this is not quite fair to Ma Chun, who was once Ma Chun, and Cao Shi today;

But it must be said that Cao's pregnancy - especially the fact that she was pregnant with a boy - did not cause too much of a stir inside or outside the court.

The ministers and officials in the court, as well as the nobles and relatives, either filled with joy and blessings or suppressed their depression and unhappiness, presented Liu Rong with carefully prepared gifts.

The specifications of gifts are generally not high, and the main idea is that the gift is light but the sentiment is great, and it is not expensive but it takes thought to make it.

After all, she had just gotten pregnant;
According to the medical level of this era, the probability of this child being born safely and opening his eyes to see the world is less than one-third.

Even if a baby is eventually born safely, the probability of surviving past the age of six instead of dying before that is no more than 40%.

Therefore, rather than saying that the court and the outside world were celebrating the countdown to the birth of Liu Rong's eldest son, it would be more accurate to say that they were celebrating the fact that this fetus proved that "there was nothing wrong" with Liu Rong.

Today, Liu Rong can make Ma Chun/Cao Chun pregnant, and in the future he will definitely be able to make Zhang Chun and Li Chun pregnant.

Under the premise that Empress Cao did not have the political defect of "not being able to get pregnant", unless Empress Cao of the current dynasty was pregnant, the legitimate eldest son of the emperor or the eldest princess was about to be born;
Otherwise, if any other concubine was pregnant, it would not be a big deal for the Han Dynasty.

It doesn’t matter if you are pregnant with a boy or a girl;
It doesn’t matter whether the baby is born or not;
It doesn’t matter whether you raise it big or not.

In fact, this is the one Cao Chun is pregnant with, and is Liu Rong’s first blood child;
From now on, the second and third palace maids and concubines who become pregnant with Liu Rong's blood are unlikely to receive as much attention and treatment as Cao Chun does now.

As I said before - the focus of Cao Chun's baby is not the gender, whether it is healthy, or whether it can be born safely and raised to adulthood.

The only significance of this pregnancy to the Han Dynasty was to prove Liu Rong's fertility.

Cao Chun didn't really understand these things that were too profound and obscure.

But from that 'predecessor', the current Queen Mother Tang of Changsha, Cao could probably draw an analogy for his own situation.

——Even if we assume the most ideal situation, that the child is born safely, is indeed the eldest son of the emperor, and grows up successfully, my humble origins will still hold the child back.

In the future, this child will most likely be confined to a remote place;

When the current Emperor Liu Rong passes away, I will be taken to a fiefdom by my children and spend the rest of my life as a queen mother.

So Cao Chun was very clear: what he needed to do next were actually just a few things.

First: take good care of the fetus and give birth to the child;

Second: Get in the right position and always hold on to Empress Cao’s thighs.

Third: Educate your children well and raise them to be obedient and good children like the current King of Changsha, Liu Fa.

Then, always remember that the more you do, the more mistakes you make; the less you do, the fewer mistakes you make; and if you do nothing, you won’t make any mistakes. Just be law-abiding and be like the current Liu Rong.

Therefore, in response to Empress Cao's suggestion of "If you want to live in the Pepper Room, if you don't want to live in the Phoenix Palace", Cao Chun responded firmly: "Not to mention that I, the maid, absolutely do not want to leave the Pepper Room or the Empress.

Even if I wanted to, I would never go to Phoenix Palace!
After all, after the current emperor Liu Rong ascended the throne, the Phoenix Palace, which once belonged to the Empress Dowager Li of the Eastern Palace and the three brothers of the current emperor Liu Rong, has been shrouded in a special political color.

If nothing unexpected happens, within three or two generations, no concubines or princes in the harem will be arranged to live in the Phoenix Palace.

Unless, in the Han Dynasty, there is another emperor who is extremely dissatisfied with his eldest son, and likes one of his illegitimate sons very much, and intends to depose the crown prince and establish another one, and then arranges the illegitimate son he likes to the Phoenix Palace.

As a result, the matter of Cao Chun's pregnancy was soon settled.

——The common people in the streets and alleys of Chang'an smiled slightly when they heard this, which was considered to be a hope for the future;
After presenting congratulatory gifts inside and outside the court, he quickly put the matter behind him and continued to deal with the government affairs that had piled up at the end of the year, as well as the first round of the imperial examination that had just ended and the second round that was about to begin.

Everything is proceeding in an orderly manner. Although it is busy, it also makes people feel inexplicably peaceful.

It is precisely in this tranquility, thousands of miles away - in the area west of the Hetao, hundreds of miles away from the junction of the Hetao and Hexi;

A group of Han Chinese merchants, as if descending from the sky, slowly approached the Hexi region and visited the nearest tribal settlement in Hetao.

Rest the slaughter department.

The Xiutu tribe, which has taken Xiutu Lake as its homeland and insisted on leaving armed forces here all year round, has lived here for generations...

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As the third largest lake in the Munan area after Nanchi and Yanchi, the area around Xiutu Lake has attracted countless nomadic tribes who covet this water source and fertile land.

But at this moment, along the eastern coast of Xiutu Lake, only a few hundred steps away from the lakeshore, no one from any other tribe could be seen.

——The Xiutu tribe is a very special nomadic tribe in Munan.

Compared with the three horse-drawn tribes of Zhelan, Baiyang and Loufan, the status of the Xiutu tribe in the court of the Xiongnu Chanyu was not much higher than that of other ordinary tribes, and was far inferior to these three horse-drawn tribes.

In terms of strength, the Xiutu tribe is only slightly stronger than ordinary medium or large tribes, whether in terms of population, number of livestock, or the combat effectiveness of tribal warriors.

It is far inferior to the three major players such as Zhelan;
He is not even worthy of polishing shoes for the Left and Right Wise Kings, or even for the Chanyu court officials.

But in Munan, the uniqueness of the Xiutu tribe is almost as great as that of the Zhelan tribe, whose per capita number of warmongers is almost zero.

Because every characteristic, or survival creed, of the Xiutu tribe is seriously inconsistent with, and even runs counter to, the mainstream values ​​on the grassland.

For example: The golden saying that is believed by almost all nomadic peoples throughout the prairie - whoever gives milk is the mother - is a great shame for the Xiutu people.

In the eyes of the Xiutu people, friendship and hostility are as unquestionable and unchanging as day and night.

A certain tribe that lives in harmony with the Xiutu people has been able to gain the trust and closeness of the Xiutu tribe for generations. As long as they are asked to come to their doorstep, the Xiutu tribe will help them if they can.

The same principle applies: if a tribe becomes enemies with the Xiu Tu tribe, the feud will also be passed down from generation to generation until one of them dies.

What does it mean if you can't fight, just run away, and if you can't escape, just surrender?
Stop killing people!

In the eyes of the Xiutu people, if you can't win, you should fight harder and never run away!
It's like being targeted by a pack of wolves on the grassland - the cowardly you are, the more arrogant the wolves will become. As long as you dare to run, the wolves will chase you to the ends of the earth.

Same reason;
In the eyes of the Xiutu people, when fighting against enemies, one should move forward courageously and never retreat.

Because only in this way can the enemy be terrified.

Once you retreat - even if it's just a tactical feigned defeat or a fake retreat, it will definitely boost the morale of the enemy, and make them attack you more resolutely and bravely.

This is the first point that the Xiutu tribe is incompatible with other tribes on the grassland.

The highest law of the grassland: everything must give way to survival!

The Xiu Tu tribe believes that only the brave deserve to live.

Secondly, unlike the vast majority of tribes on the grassland, they are open to tribal mergers and unions and use them to strengthen themselves.

The Xiutu tribe, or the Xiutu people, are extremely xenophobic!
The Xiutu tribe always refused requests from small and medium-sized tribes to unite or even voluntarily join the Xiutu tribe.
Even after a victory in a war against other tribes, the Xiutu tribe would not absorb the remnants of the defeated tribe, women and children. Most of the time, the Xiutu people would sell prisoners of war to other tribes as slaves in exchange for livestock and other supplies.

In very rare cases, they would stay and serve as shepherd slaves.

The second major characteristic that makes the Xiutu tribe incompatible with the grassland is their extreme xenophobia, resistance to tribal integration and annexation, and extreme emphasis on bloodline uniformity and tribal purity.

The last point is also the most incomprehensible.

——On the premise of resisting integration and annexation with other tribes, and even being reluctant to make friends with other tribes, the Xiutu tribe also had an extremely awkward attitude towards the Han people east of the river.

As for the Han army and people, the Xiutu tribe was just like every other nomadic tribe on the grassland: they were always thinking about robbing the Han people, playing tricks on, and attacking the Han army;

But at the same time, the Xiutu tribe was somewhat exaggeratedly friendly to the Han caravans that brought goods from the Han territory and traded all the way to the grassland.

Just like now;

This caravan just appeared near Xiutu Lake.

In just an hour or so, King Xiutu himself and a group of Xiutu nobles had prepared an open-air banquet by the lake to welcome the arrival of the Han merchant caravan.

"Guests from afar have come to our barren prairie!"

"There is no fine wine on the grassland, but there is also warm milk wine;"

"There are no delicacies on the grassland, but there is also fresh roast lamb."

"We serve the best wine and meat to our distinguished guests, and welcome them to the Xiu Tu Ze that we have guarded for generations..."

Yes.

In the eyes of the Xiutu people, it is not the Xiutu Lake and the land it nourishes that are nurturing the herdsmen of the Xiutu tribe;
Instead, it is the warriors of the Xiutu tribe who are devoutly guarding this holy pool that was given by the gods and specially entrusted to the Xiutu people to guard.

Therefore, nomads from other tribes, or even livestock, were never allowed to approach the area of ​​dozens of miles along the shore of Xiutu Lake.
The water in Xiutu Lake is drinkable only by the people and livestock of the Xiutu tribe.

Any attempt to defile Xiutu Lake will make every Xiutu person furious on the spot, and they will not hesitate to launch an endless blood hunt in the name of the gods.

What is blood pursuit?

It's like an ignorant child standing by the side of the Hutu Lake and peeing;

Then, until every family member of this child - including parents, siblings, and blood relatives of the same tribe;
Even sisters who have married into other tribes, as well as the tribes they married into, will be included in the Xiutu tribe's hunting list.

Unless the person on the list dies;

Otherwise, the Xiutu tribe's pursuit of this tribe or these tribes will continue endlessly from generation to generation...

Obviously, for this Han caravan that "came to Xiutu Lake again", the various habits of the Xiutu people have basically been figured out by this caravan.

Therefore, after hearing King Xiutu's impassioned welcome speech, the leading Han merchant immediately stood up and presented the gift he had brought from the Han area with both hands.

He did not forget to imitate the long, high-pitched tone of King Xiutu and said in return: "The great King Xiutu has given us the highest courtesy."

"As the eternal friends of the Xiutu tribe, we, the cunning merchants, have brought some insignificant gifts to the great King Xiutu."

"——I hope that the holy pond that King Xiutu has guarded for generations can also protect us cunning merchants and grant us the honor of coming here again to admire the majestic appearance of the holy pond."

"It's just a small gift, King Xiu Tu, please don't despise it..."

As soon as the Han merchant said this, the Xiongnu nobleman known as "King Xiutu" immediately smiled, walked forward with a smile, and took the gift covered with red cloth with both hands.

If no one had lifted up the red cloth to see the entire gift, the smile on King Xiu Tu's face would have immediately become three times more sincere.

"Your admiration for the holy pond is so great that even we, the guardians appointed by the gods, can't help but feel ashamed~"

"——King Xiutu, you don't have to be polite, but this is just a small gift..."

The two of them had already sat down in the courtesy room, arm in arm with Yu Shangshou, and in a short while, they were toasting each other, looking very happy.

The group of Xiu Tu nobles sitting with them also found their own goals - either drinking heroically or dancing together;
What's more, he pulled the target over quite cheerfully and walked towards his own felt tent.

Soon, there were bursts of heavy breathing, laughter, and the unique moans of grassland women from inside the tent...

It was like a ridiculous party of colors;

Everyone is releasing the primitive animal nature deep in their hearts that has been buried for who knows how long.

So much so that no one noticed that just a hundred steps away from the banquet venue, in the caravan's temporary camp, the caravan members, who should have been partying and feasting, were now secretly gathered together.

"I've basically figured out the temperaments of King Xiu Tu and the Xiu Tu tribe!"

"The Hunxie Department has basically made a decision too!"

“——If the Hunxie Tribe keeps its promise, then three days from now at midnight, the Xiu Tu Lake will become a bloody lake!”

"After that, what will happen to our Han family - what will be our situation in Hexi? It all depends on what we plan here in the next three days..."

The leader spoke in a deep voice, and everyone squatting in a circle nodded.

If a newcomer saw this scene, it would not be difficult to find that these dozens of people were very different from the members of ordinary Han caravans.

——He was as big and strong as the guards of ordinary caravans, but he didn't have much street style.

The swords on their waists were of various kinds, and they were obviously shoddy goods on the market, but the manners of these dozens of people when walking, and the left hands that were always on the hilts of the swords, always demonstrated their extraordinary qualities.

In later generations, there is a way to describe this group of people who are weird from the inside out;
Yishui'er has a short haircut, a dark face, and a sturdy body.

They wore windproof jackets over their training uniforms, combat boots on their feet, and spoke with Sichuan and Chongqing accents, uttering "Ma Mai Pi" every time.

He said he was a fisherman.

But he was seasick.

The harpoon in his hand always subconsciously made a bayonet-like posture...

(End of this chapter)