My life is like walking on thin ice

Chapter 627 is open to discussion.
While waiting for the North Korean delegations to arrive for an audience, Liu Rong couldn't help but recall an interesting incident that occurred in the original history.

—In the original history, Wiman Joseon usurped the throne from Gija Joseon during the reign of Emperor Taejo Gojong, around 200 BC, and became the most powerful regime on the Korean Peninsula.

In the decades that followed, however, the Han dynasty was in a state of prolonged turmoil.

During the reign of Emperor Gaozu, there were numerous rebellions by princes of different surnames.

During the reigns of Emperor Xiaohui and Empress Lü, it was the relatives and princes—actually the sons of Emperor Gao—who were targeted and killed by Empress Lü.

When Empress Lü died, the feudal lords and ministers jointly executed the Lü clan.

When Emperor Xiaowen ascended the throne, Liu Xingju, the Prince of Jibei, rebelled...

This series of 'turmoil,' or rather, upheavals, resulted in a group within the Han dynasty being forced into exile overseas for a considerable period of time.

This group is naturally the losers in political struggles, or the subordinate forces that may be implicated by the losers in political struggles.

For example, Zang Tu, the Prince of Yan, raised an army to rebel, but failed and was executed by Emperor Taizu Gao, who personally led the expedition.

This led to Wei Man, a general under King Zang Tu of Yan, being forced to flee to the Korean Peninsula out of fear of being implicated by King Zang Tu, who had been defeated and killed, and being executed by Emperor Taizu Gao.

Following Zang Tu, the King of Yan, other non-royal princes such as Han Xin, Chen Xi, the Chancellor of Dai, and Lu Wan, the King of Yan, rebelled in succession in the northern regions of the Han Dynasty. During their rebellions and failures, many of their subordinates and followers had to flee.

For example, during the reign of Emperor Xiaohui, Zhao Yinwang Liu Ruyi and his mother were tortured to death by Empress Lü.

The stories of Liu Ruyi being poisoned by Empress Lü and Lady Qi being turned into a human pig by Empress Lü are well-known to later generations.

In a corner unnoticed by most, the Qi family relatives behind Lady Qi, as well as the faction built by Prince Zhao Yin, Liu Ruyi, in Handan, naturally had to flee overseas to avoid persecution by Empress Lü.

After the Lü Clan Rebellion, the entire Lü clan was exterminated, but many who were attached to or close to the Lü clan were forced to flee politically.

Of course, there were also those related to Liu Xingju, the Prince of Jibei, who rebelled and was quelled by Emperor Taizong, and who had to flee to escape the disaster.

The above-mentioned group of people can be broadly categorized as: political prisoners in exile.

After Wiman Joseon was established and became the most powerful regime on the Korean Peninsula, while also controlling the main transportation routes in and out of the peninsula, a considerable number of the political prisoners who had fled from the Han Dynasty were taken in by Wiman Joseon.

This is actually quite easy to understand.

For political prisoners who could not "make it in" within the Han court and had no choice but to flee, the options for escape seemed to be "vast and boundless, with nowhere to go";
But if you count them on your fingers, there are only a few places.

To the north and northwest, there are grasslands.

To the west lies the plateau, and only in the southwest, with the southwestern barbarians, can we consider eliminating a decent target.

To the south lies the land of the Baiyue people in Lingnan.

Heading east—once there was a King of Wu, Liu Bi, but now only 'going to sea' remains as an option.

Then there's the Korean Peninsula to the northeast.

Among these various options, there are naturally good and bad choices.

—The northern grasslands are bitterly cold and lack resources;

Thirdly, given the power imbalance between the Xiongnu and the Han dynasty over the past few decades, there was a systematic contempt for the Han people among the nomadic peoples of the grasslands.

Political prisoners of the Han dynasty who fled to the grasslands were almost certainly not treated as honored guests by the Xiongnu.

With capital at hand and the right timing, one can even hope to become the next King Xin of Han or King Lu Wan of Yan.

But he was already a king in Han territory, which allowed him to continue being the 'king' of the Xiongnu after going to the grasslands.

Those who already had little status or position in Han areas were still not well received even after going to the grasslands.

Moreover, as time went on—especially after Zhongxing Shuo, a major traitor, passed away and completely lost power in the Xiongnu Chanyu court, being exiled to the North Sea, the contempt for the Han people within the Xiongnu became increasingly apparent.

From then on, Han dynasty political prisoners who fled to the grasslands no longer expected any 'good future' for themselves.

Even a complete traitor like Zhong Xingshuo couldn't get by on the grasslands!

What's more, what about people who still have some bottom line and some dignity?

Especially as time went on, even the descendants and followers of Han Wangxin and Yan Wangluwan, who were once valued and respected by the Xiongnu Chanyu, were gradually despised or even hostile by the Chanyu's court.

The lineage of Lu Wan, the Prince of Yan, was somewhat better off, as they lived in the south of the Mu River and could obtain intelligence about the Han Dynasty, which was of some value to the Xiongnu.
However, the lineage of Han Wangxin, who lived in the northern desert, had long since fallen to the bottom of the grassland's hierarchy of contempt and food chain. As early as the reign of Emperor Taizong, some of his members (Han Tuidang) were sent back to Han territory to prevent the entire family from disappearing on the grassland.

Even these two descendants of Han traitors who surrendered to the Xiongnu as 'kings' could not live a relatively comfortable life on the grasslands, let alone the political prisoners of the Han dynasty who would never be sentenced to royal titles today.

Therefore, for Han Dynasty political prisoners who planned to flee, the northern grasslands were definitely not a good place to go, whether in terms of material conditions, climate conditions, or 'political conditions' such as popularity and importance.

Especially nowadays, unless one is too close to the grasslands and is fleeing in such a hurry that there is no chance to escape to other places;

Otherwise, even political prisoners who originally lived in the clouds, separated from the grasslands by only a city wall, would still choose to seek refuge elsewhere rather than go to the grasslands nearby to seek the protection of the Xiongnu.

Moreover, the era when the north and northwest were inhabited by the Xiongnu had long since ended with the Han dynasty's successive victories in foreign wars.

—At present, to the northwest of the Han Dynasty are the Hetao region, which is completely under the control of the Han Dynasty, and the Hexi region, which can be taken over at any time.

The Xiongnu people now only exist in the far north of the territory.

Even if one wanted to escape to the grasslands, only those who already lived in the northern border, such as those from the states of Yan and Dai, would have a chance to escape.

The idea of ​​fleeing from the inland regions to the grasslands to seek refuge with the Xiongnu was no longer a viable option in practice.

At this point, it's fair to say that the Xiongnu people in the north and northwest could be excluded from the list of 'good places to seek refuge' by political prisoners.

The Xiongnu people to the north and northwest were eliminated, and the west was a plateau;
The remaining southwest direction, as well as the southwestern Yi and Lingnan Baiyue regions in the south, are also not considered very good places to go.

Let's start with the southwestern barbarians.

In an era before even the phrase "the road to Shu is difficult" was uttered, even the Bashu region was, to some extent, "isolated from the Central Plains." If Bashu was "isolated from the world," then the southwestern Yi people, whose geographical location was even further out, were naturally even more isolated.

The arduous journey alone deterred most political prisoners from even attempting it.

Even setting that aside—even if the political prisoners weren't afraid of the difficult roads—from other perspectives, the southwestern barbarians were definitely not a good place to go.

In terms of material conditions, the backwardness of the southwestern Yi people was far greater than that of the nomadic people of the grasslands.

At least the nomadic peoples of the grasslands could intermittently obtain goods from the Han territory due to the presence of Han Dynasty merchants;

As for the southwestern barbarians, firstly, the roads were impassable, and secondly, the terrain was rugged and geographically isolated.
The most crucial point is the scarcity of resources.

Even if Han Chinese caravans were willing to travel long distances to deliver exquisite goods from Han China, the southwestern Yi people simply did not have the corresponding scarce resources to exchange for goods from the Han Chinese caravans.

Coupled with the hot and humid climate, it is no exaggeration to say that in the eyes of Han Dynasty political prisoners who planned to flee, the southwestern barbarians were among the worst options, on par with "going to sea from the east".

It might even be worse than going to sea!
After all, going to sea is not only about an unknown future, but it also gives you the chance to find a decent island not far from the mainland where resources are not scarce.

However, the southwestern barbarians were genuinely impoverished, and there was no chance of any unexpected poverty.

As for the Baiyue people of Lingnan, although they were better off than the isolated southwestern Yi in terms of material conditions, they were much worse off than the southwestern Yi in terms of climate.

The southwestern barbarians, at least, only experienced humid and muggy weather;
But the Baiyue people of Lingnan are so wet that they can drown, and so hot that they can die from heat.

Moreover, the humid heat of Lingnan is accompanied by widespread miasma, swamps, and mosquitoes, snakes, and scorpions that can take lives at any time.

Compared to the Xiongnu in the north and the various Yi tribes in the southwest, the only advantage of the Baiyue people in Lingnan was that their political conditions were relatively good.

—After all, with the existence of Zhao Tuo, the King of Nanyue, any Han Dynasty political prisoner who set foot in the Lingnan region had a great chance of receiving political asylum or even preferential treatment.

By eliminating them one by one, the escape routes available to Han Dynasty political prisoners and the circumstances of their escape destinations in various directions became clear at a glance.

Going to the grasslands to find the Xiongnu people meant enduring poor food, drink, and lodging, and being looked down upon and discriminated against by the nomadic people.
Going to the southwestern barbarians, while you won't be looked down upon by the locals, you'll have to deal with the hot and humid climate.

Going to Lingnan and seeking refuge with Zhao Tuo, the King of Nanyue, would offer relatively better material conditions and make it easier to obtain protection, but the climate would be extremely harsh, and one could easily lose their life.

As for the East China Sea—escaping by sea is truly a gamble.

They were gambling that they would be lucky enough to find a deserted island before they starved or froze to death, and that the island would be large enough and rich in resources.

If you're lucky, you might even be able to live a better life than in Lingnan;

But if you're unlucky, the way you die can be beyond your wildest imagination.

It's like gambling with your life and leaving it to fate.

Unless there is no other choice but to go to sea and die, no one would choose this option.

The last remaining option is undoubtedly the one that is relatively easier to accept from all sides: the Korean Peninsula.

Compared to the cold grasslands and the humid southwest, the climate conditions on the Korean Peninsula, though not much better, can still be addressed.

—The deadly thing about the grasslands is not the cold, but the fact that it is both cold and an endless plain!

In winter, all you can do is get a tent and tough it out.

However, the Korean Peninsula is mostly hilly, so even in cold weather, one can easily find shelter from the wind and build earthen or wooden houses using local materials to keep warm.

In terms of material conditions, the Korean Peninsula is slightly more affluent than the grasslands.

Although there were no herds of cattle and sheep on the grasslands to provide the necessary meat and dairy products, the closer proximity to the Han Dynasty's territory brought more trade and the flow of goods.

Furthermore, at the most crucial political level, the existence of Wiman Joseon meant that political prisoners had no need to worry about living worse than dogs on the Korean Peninsula.

—Wiman Joseon could not afford to offend the Han Dynasty and dared not confront it head-on.
But given the opportunity, Wiman Joseon would never let go of any chance to disgust and upset the Han Dynasty.

Taking all these factors into account, the Korean Peninsula—more precisely, the Wiman Joseon regime—became the most ideal destination for Han Dynasty political prisoners over the past few decades.

Compared to the Xiongnu people on the grasslands, the various ethnic groups in the southwest, and Zhao Tuo in Lingnan, Wiman Joseon had a considerable advantage on almost every level.

In terms of climate, it's not as cold as the grasslands, nor as sweltering as the southwest or Lingnan. Most importantly, there are ways to deal with the cold.

In terms of material resources, it is richer than the grasslands and the southwestern barbarians. Although it cannot compare with Lingnan, it is not much worse.

In terms of political considerations, the contradiction, or rather the stability of the hostile relationship between Wiman Joseon and the Han Dynasty was far more steadfast than that between the Xiongnu and Zhao Tuo, not to mention the southwestern barbarians who were not hostile to the Han Dynasty.

After all, the hostile relationship between the Xiongnu and the Han Dynasty stemmed from a struggle for interests;
Zhao Tuo's hostility towards the Han Dynasty was merely a desire for separatism and resistance to unification by the Han Dynasty, but it did not escalate to the point where a war was inevitable, and there was still a chance for a peaceful resolution.

However, Wiman Joseon was descended from the remnants of rebels, making it almost impossible for the Han Dynasty to tolerate them, and there was virtually no possibility of 'reconciliation with the Han Dynasty'!
For political prisoners who escaped from Hankou, this was undoubtedly the most reassuring political background.

Such are the objective conditions, and the reality is not much different.

—Over the past few decades, Wiman Joseon, which was able to gain a foothold on the peninsula, took in nearly half of the Han Dynasty's political prisoners who had fled abroad.

Especially after King Liu Bi of Wu was defeated and killed, and the Wu Kingdom lost its superior status as the 'best place for political prisoners,' more than 80% of the political prisoners who fled abroad would regard the Korean Peninsula as their best choice for refuge.

Historically, this situation intensified after the Rebellion of the Seven States of Wu and Chu, and erupted in full force during the reign of Emperor Wu of Han.

—During the reign of Emperor Wu of Han, Wiman's grandson, King Wie U-gu of Wiman Joseon, began to intensify efforts to accommodate refugees from the Han dynasty.

In just over a decade, by absorbing refugees from the Han Dynasty, Wiman Joseon, under the leadership of Wie Yoo-gu, was able to build an army of tens of thousands of people and acquire the powerful military strength to sweep across the Korean Peninsula!

Moreover, as his power grew, Wei Youqu became increasingly assertive—he brazenly broke the treaty with the Han Dynasty and refused to continue paying tribute to the Han.

At the same time, it also prevented other countries on the Korean Peninsula, such as Zhenfan, from trading with the Han Dynasty and paying tribute to the Han Dynasty.

(End of this chapter)