Super Cultivation System of the Three Kingdoms

Chapter 1007: Conquering the Western Regions
A group of envoys dressed in strange costumes entered one after another.

"Greetings to the Empress Dowager and the Emperor of the Han Empire. I wish the Empress Dowager a long life and happiness, and the Emperor great power and prestige."

"You all have come from afar and must have had a hard time. Please rest."

Liu He made a polite remark and asked many envoys to stand up.

Xu couldn't help but move back and avoided them: "Eh... these people look really weird, they are really different from the people in the Central Plains. Could they be ghosts from somewhere?"

The people from these Western Regions mostly looked like Middle Easterners. Liu He, who traveled from the modern times, was naturally no stranger to them. However, Xu had never seen them before and had never even imagined that people could look like this.

Zhang Yu at the side said softly, "Don't be alarmed, mother. These people are from the Western Regions. They look a little different from us, but they are not ghosts."

Xu rubbed her chest and finally calmed down.

Among the twenty or so people, a tall man walked out. He put his hand on his chest and saluted Liu He again.

"I am Nan Duohe, the envoy of the Wusun Kingdom. On behalf of the twenty-one nations, I extend my most sincere blessings and present gifts to the Empress Dowager of the Han Dynasty."

Liu He glanced at the envoys and saw that they did not seem to be surprised at this man's intervention, so he understood what was going on.

"Sure enough, these guys had already colluded before coming to our Han Dynasty. Among the countries in the Western Regions, the Wusun Kingdom is slightly stronger, so it is reasonable to let him be the representative."

However, even though he knew it in his heart, Liu He had no intention of exposing them.

"Haha, your Excellency does not need to be so polite. Hundreds of years ago, during the reign of Emperor Xiaowu of our country, your country joined forces with the Han Dynasty to attack the Xiongnu. During the reign of Emperor Xiaoxuan, 150,000 troops were sent to assist your country in resisting the Xiongnu. After defeating the Xiongnu, the countries in the Western Regions were able to completely get rid of the Xiongnu's control. Therefore, the friendly neighborly relations between the countries and the Han Dynasty can be said to have a long history."

Liu He deliberately emphasized the battle in which Emperor Xuan of Han rescued the Wusun Kingdom: "Now that the rebellion of the Xiongnu and Qiang people has been quelled, the Han Dynasty's road to the Western Regions is once again unobstructed. For decades, these countries have suffered from ravages and humiliation, but now they have returned to the protection of the Han Dynasty and can rest assured from now on."

As soon as these words were spoken, many envoys began to whisper to each other, and Nan Duohe also looked hesitant.

"It is our honor to be a vassal state of the Han Dynasty. But..."

He turned around and looked behind him, only to see someone among the group of envoys nodded to him, and Nan Duohe immediately understood.

Liu He also noticed this detail: "Hmm? Who is that person? Nan Duohe seems to be looking at him for instructions?"

But Liu He didn't have time to think about it, Nanduohe said again: "However, we heard that your country is now in a period of civil unrest, and there are still many rebels who occupy half of your territory. Moreover, to the east of the Han Dynasty, there are Goguryeo, Wuhuan, and some Xianbei tribes, which still pose a threat to your border. We are all small countries. If we become a vassal of your country, I wonder if Your Majesty has the confidence to guarantee the safety of these countries?"

"Insanity!"

Guan Yu shouted angrily and glared at Nanduohe: "The imperial court has a million-strong army. Wherever we go, the bandits are helpless. We are invincible. How dare you, a small country like Wusun, look down on us? Don't you know how to write the Chinese word for 'death'?"

Guan Yu had a mighty appearance, and his years of fighting had made him full of murderous aura. When his phoenix eyes glared at him, Nan Duohe felt as if he had fallen into an icy cave. A chill rose from deep within his heart, and he retreated in fear.

When the envoys saw Guan Yu's majestic appearance, their eyes lit up, as if they had more confidence in the strength of the Han Dynasty.

"Cough cough..." A light cough was heard. After hearing the sound, Nan Duohe immediately woke up from his surprise.

He straightened his expression and looked at Guan Yu: "Could this red-faced, long-bearded general be the General Guan Yu who is feared in Liangzhou?"

When Guan Yu saw that his fame had spread to the Western Regions thousands of miles away, the anger on his face was mixed with a bit of pride.

"It's Guan."

Nan Duohe immediately showed his admiration: "Although we are far away in the Western Regions, we have heard a lot about General Guan's reputation. To use a phrase from you Han people, it is like thunder in our ears. The Qiang tribes have hundreds of thousands of warriors who stand between the Han Dynasty and the countries in the Western Regions. We have been harassed and humiliated by them for a long time, but we didn't expect that the general would conquer us all in just two years. The general is really a god-like general given by the gods to our Western Regions."

Guan said proudly: "How can a few Qiang thieves compete with the might of the Han Dynasty? This is not Guan's work, but the result of the prestige of the court and the great fortune of the emperor. If it were any general of the Han Dynasty, they would be able to put down the Qiang rebellion."

When he said this, Nanduohe's expression immediately became somewhat skeptical: "Is it really so? Then why hasn't your country put down the rebellions of Goguryeo and Wuhuan so far, and why haven't you been able to annihilate the rebellions of several ministers of your country? I think it must be because the other generals are mediocre in ability."

His words made the faces of the other generals present instantly darken.

"Hey, you slave..."

Cheng Liang was about to explode when Zhang Yong held him down: "Don't be impulsive, Third Brother. Look at how calm and composed Big Brother is. I think he must have a plan in place. Let's not ruin Big Brother's plan."

Upon hearing this, Cheng Liang looked towards Liu He, and saw that Liu He looked confident.

"Well, let's see how Big Brother handles this bunch of foreign slaves... Ugh..."

Guan Yu also looked very unhappy: "Don't talk nonsense. I have many brave generals in the Han Dynasty, not just Guan Yu."

Nanduohe spread his hands and said, "In terms of strength, I am not familiar with the rebellious ministers of your country, but the coalition forces of Goguryeo and Wuhuan are not much stronger than the various tribes of the Qiang people. General, you can defeat the various tribes of the Qiang people, but other generals of your country cannot deal with the coalition forces of Goguryeo and Wuhuan. Isn't this the best proof?"

As soon as he finished speaking, several other envoys echoed him: "Yes, our countries are weak and want to be vassals of other countries just to seek peace. If the Han Dynasty does not have such ability, then it is better to trade on an equal footing in the future."

"The Kushan Empire has 100,000 cavalry and hundreds of thousands of infantry. In the past few years, they have fought against Khwarazm and the Northern Xiongnu royal court and won victory after victory. Last year, they captured more than 20 cities in Sindhu in one go. I think the Kushan Empire is still stronger."

Each of these envoys showed disdain on their faces, and there was a hint of sarcasm in their words, which made all the civil and military officials present feel indignant.

"What the hell are you talking about?"

"Who the hell is Kushan? How dare they compete with us Han? The whole world belongs to the king. Sooner or later, we will defeat that damn Kushan."

"You are just a bunch of tiny countries, a tiny place. We can crush you all with just a few troops. How dare you act so arrogantly in front of our emperor and queen mother? You really don't know how to live or die."

"Your Majesty, these people are called envoys, but in fact they have no manners and are uneducated. They dared to speak rudely at the Queen Mother's birthday banquet and offend the Emperor. I request that they be killed on the spot to preserve the prestige of the Han Dynasty."

When they heard that they were going to be killed, the envoys immediately became panicked.

At this time, a somewhat crisp voice came from the delegation, and it was unknown which country's envoy said this.

"The Han Chinese have a saying that when two countries visit each other, they should not kill the envoys. We are coming to celebrate birthdays, not to fight. You Han people call yourself a country of etiquette, is this how you treat your guests?"

"Who is so presumptuous? Do you really think that there is no one in our Han Dynasty?" Taiwei Yang Biao frowned, glanced at the delegation, and shouted coldly.

Seeing that the two sides were on the verge of a fight, Liu He waved his hand and said, "Everyone, please leave. This is a birthday banquet. Do you want to make the Queen Mother's fiftieth birthday a bloody one?"

When everyone heard this, they came to their senses. This was a birthday banquet, how could they call for fighting and killing in front of the empress dowager?
"We have violated the rules, and we shall die a thousand times."

"Okay, everyone, leave." Naturally, no one dared to disobey Liu He's words. All the ministers, although they were still very angry in their hearts, obediently returned to their seats.

Liu He looked at the delegation and glanced among them a few times, trying to find the person who had just spoken, but the other party was obviously avoiding him intentionally, so he had no clue at all and could only give up.

"Haha, Goguryeo, Wuhuan and the like are just a mob, not worth mentioning. My second brother Guan Yu is a first-class general in the world. Why does he need to go in person to deal with such villains? There are many good generals in our country, more than a thousand. Any one of them is enough to defeat the enemy." Nan Duohe smiled and said, "Your Majesty's majesty, I have heard a lot about it. It's not that I don't believe it, it's just empty talk. It's easy to say, but to really do it, I'm afraid it's..."

"What? Do you suspect that I am deceiving people with my big words?"

"I dare not, but..."

At this moment, a shout came from outside: "Good news...Good news from eight hundred miles away..."

When Liu He heard this voice, the corners of his mouth rose slightly: "There is a victory report from the front line, please come quickly."

Soon, under the protection of the Imperial Guards, a soldier raised a roll of cloth above his head with both hands, ran over quickly, and knelt in front of Liu He.

"Your Majesty, Queen Mother, we have won a great victory in Youzhou. General Ma Chao knew that today was the Queen Mother's birthday. He was unable to return in time to wish her a happy birthday. I am sending this victory report as a gift to wish her happiness as vast as the East Sea and a long life as long as the Southern Mountains."

Xu smiled happily: "General Ma is a truly loyal and brave man. His loyalty to the country and contribution to the court is the best gift."

The numerous envoys from the Western Regions looked at each other in bewilderment. They naturally knew where Youzhou was in the Han Dynasty, and they were also aware of the war in Youzhou and who the Han Dynasty was fighting against. When they heard the good news coming from Youzhou, they couldn't help but imagine a lot.

Liu He looked delighted: "Well, Meng Qi has lived up to my expectations. Please read the victory report to me so that the Queen Mother and the other officials can know."

"I obey your command." The soldier immediately unfolded the victory report and read it.

"I, General Zhenbei Ma Chao, pay my respects to Your Majesty from afar in Liaodong: I, along with other generals, accompanied by the governors of Liaodong and Beiping, and the Chanyu of Xianbei, first defeated the rebel Kebineng in the grasslands, and then defeated the coalition forces of Goguryeo and Wuhuan in Beiping. The enemy troops were terrified and frightened. Our army took advantage of the victory and swept across Liaodong, killing the bandits and beheading the enemy chieftains. In three days, we chased them for more than 700 miles and finally captured the head of the King of Goguryeo, along with the king's seal, and presented them to Your Majesty at the steps of the Jade Hall."

When they heard the good news, everyone was shocked.

"Goguryeo was defeated?"

"From what I hear... Kebi Neng and the King of Goguryeo were both... beheaded?"

"Thank you, our ancestors, for this battle, the northern border of the Han Dynasty will be completely stable from now on."

All the ministers were delighted and excited.

The envoys from the Western Regions became more and more surprised. They had just talked about the battle situation in Youzhou when the victory report suddenly came. This made them suspicious.

"Hahahaha...you foreign slave, what else do you have to say?" Cheng Liang just felt extremely happy.

Nan Duohe's mouth twitched, and he said, "It's not that I dare to doubt Your Majesty, but... it's just that it's hard for me to tell whether this victory report is true or false."

"You bastard..." Cheng Liang was furious. He waved his fist and wanted to rush up and beat him up.

Liu He immediately stopped him: "Third brother, step back."

Then, he said to Nanduohe: "I guess you don't know what the King of Goguryeo looks like, so it's really not easy for you to identify him. But I'm sure you can recognize this golden seal of the King of Goguryeo, right?"

Nanduohe nodded immediately: "Although our country has no dealings with Goguryeo, we can certainly identify the king's seal. In addition, someone once left a portrait of the Goguryeo king's seal, and there is also a description of it in the book. If the foreign minister sees it, he can recognize it."

"That's good." Liu He turned to look at the soldier and said, "Give the captured golden seal of the Goguryeo king to this envoy for inspection."

The soldier did not dare to delay and immediately took out a cloth bag from his arms, walked respectfully to Nanduohe, and handed it to him with both hands.

Nan Duohe took it doubtfully, opened the cloth bag, and then opened a brocade box inside, and sure enough, there was a fist-sized gold seal.

"This...this is..."

Nan Duohe was a little excited, and with trembling hands he held up the golden seal, examining it carefully from top to bottom and from left to right.

After looking for a long time, Nan Duohe's eyes gradually widened and his lips began to tremble slightly.

The other envoys behind him were getting impatient and urged, "Nanduohe, have you figured out whether it's true or not?"

Nan Duohe nodded vigorously: "It can't be wrong, absolutely can't be wrong, this golden seal is exactly the same as the records and pictures I have seen before, there is no difference at all, it must be the golden seal of the King of Goguryeo without a doubt."

"Wow..." Many envoys were stunned for a moment.

"This... this could also be carved by your country itself. The Han Dynasty's calligraphy and carving skills are unparalleled in the world. Carving a gold seal is no problem."

One of the envoys was still arguing stubbornly.

Xun Yu stood up and said, "As an envoy of a country, how can you make such a random guess? When you envoys came to our country, how could we know in advance that you would stir up these incidents today to question the use of Youzhou's generals, and thus make this fake seal in advance to deceive you?"

"This..." The envoy had no way to refute this and could only retreat in disappointment.

"It can't be wrong, it can't be wrong." Nanduohe kept saying, "According to the records in the books, this gold seal of the King of Goguryeo is not newly made. I, Nanduohe, have a lot of experience in these gold, silver and jade artifacts in the Wusun Kingdom. I will definitely not be wrong whether this thing is real or fake."

After he finished speaking, his expression suddenly changed, and he knelt down with a plop, raising the golden seal above his head with both hands.

"I was rebellious for a moment and offended the Emperor of the Han Dynasty. I deserve death. If Your Majesty wants to punish someone, please punish me alone and let the rest of the envoys and our Wusun Kingdom go."

Liu He raised his eyebrows when he saw this. He knew that the kneeling ceremony was not popular in the Western Regions. The fact that Nanduohe could kneel down and confess his guilt to him meant that he had truly surrendered, so he used the Han etiquette to apologize.

His expression remained unchanged, and he extended his right hand forward, "Your Excellency is worrying too much. I know why you have come here from afar. The countries in the Western Regions are weak, surrounded by powerful enemies, and frequently harassed. Naturally, they all want to be protected by one side. Since they want protection, they will inevitably verify the strength of the country. Moreover, I see that you are loyal and righteous, which is very commendable. How can I blame you?"

"Thank you, Your Majesty. Your Majesty's divine power is as high and profound as Mount Kunlun. Foreign ministers no longer have any doubts about the great power of the Han Dynasty. From now on, our Wusun country will follow the orders of the Han Dynasty, pay tribute every year, and come to the court every year. If we disobey, please ask the great god Kunlun to press our Wusun country under the snow mountain, and we will not be able to escape even for thousands of years."

"We are also willing to submit and become vassals of the Han Dynasty from now on. We will never rebel."

All the envoys knelt down and shouted in unison.

Liu He smiled slightly and said to himself, "It's done."

However, despite his excitement, he suppressed his excitement temporarily and said, "Since you are so sincere, the Han Dynasty will never reject old friends. Please stay in Luoyang for a few days. I will send someone to take you around the city. Afterwards, the Minister of the Chancellery Xun Yu will draft a letter of credence and sign it with you. After one month, I will send an envoy with a caravan and my gifts to return to the Western Regions with you to meet the rulers of various countries."

The envoys were overjoyed. They came to the Han Dynasty for two purposes. First, to find out the strength of the Han Dynasty. If they were indeed trustworthy, they would seek the protection of the Han Dynasty. Second, they wanted to trade with the Han Dynasty. After all, the Silk Road, which had been maintained for hundreds of years, connected the Han Dynasty and Rome. The Western Regions were located in the Silk Road, which was very profitable.

Now that both goals have been achieved, these envoys can foresee what kind of praise and rewards they will receive after returning home.

"Thank you, His Majesty the Emperor of the Han Dynasty. Long live the Emperor!"

(End of this chapter)