Diqin Designer

Chapter 296: The Absurd Reason for Attacking the Huns

After Li Nian finished speaking, the main hall of Zhangtai Palace fell into silence for a while, and Li Nian did not speak again to ruin the atmosphere.

After a while, the First Emperor sighed and said, "What a heroic and loyal man!"

Although they were in different dynasties, the First Emperor paid tribute to the soldiers who defended the city, and he believed that the soldiers of the Qin Dynasty would be able to do the same in the future.

But it is better not to happen. The Qin Dynasty must prevent such things from happening and must not let the soldiers fighting outside fall into such danger.

His Great Qin is greater than the Great Han!

Li Nian said: "There are many such heroes in Chinese history, such as Su Wu of Han Dynasty, Wu Hou of Shu Dynasty, Zhang Xun of Tang Dynasty, Yue Fei of Song Dynasty, Yu Qian of Ming Dynasty..."

"However, there are not many people who can be rescued by the court like Geng Gong and others. Many of them become regrets. It is precisely because of this that the stories of Geng Gong and others are more precious."

"Liu Xun's contribution also included allowing Ban Chao to stay in the Western Regions and sending troops to reinforce Ban Chao."

"This is somewhat related to Liu Xun's mistakes. Liu Xun abolished the Western Regions Protectorate at that time, which reduced the Eastern Han Dynasty's control over the Western Regions."

"But this is understandable. The Western Regions are too far away from the Central Plains. If you want to effectively control them, you need to spend a lot of manpower and material resources. It's not worth it."

In fact, it is because the big man is too particular and too honest. To be like Niu Niu, Gallic Rooster and other guys who are not human, not worth it, and losing money, what does that mean?
Not every place is Guyana, where you can fleece the imperialists.

Even if we can't control the Western Regions, we can still leave a lot of bad things in the Western Regions.

The Han people are still too civilized and sophisticated!
Li Nian said: "Considering these aspects, Liu Lun's decision to give up the Western Regions is understandable, but it is indeed a bad decision."

"It's easy to withdraw, but it's hard to come back. It costs more. And at that time, many countries in the Western Regions were already accustomed to the existence of the Han Dynasty in the Western Regions and were loyal to the Han Dynasty. As long as we manage it well, the Western Regions will become Han territory and the people of the Western Regions will become Han people."

"When Ban Chao received Liu Jing's imperial edict to withdraw his troops and left Shule, the whole country of Shule was worried and terrified. Its commander Li Yan said, 'If the Han envoy abandons us, we will surely be destroyed by Qiuci again. I really can't bear to see the Han envoy leave.'" Then he committed suicide with a knife.

"When Ban Chao arrived at Yuwei, the princes and nobles of Yuwei all cried and said, 'We treat the Han envoys like our parents, so we must not leave.' They held onto Chao's horse feet and he could not leave."

The influence of the Han Dynasty on the Western Regions has reached such a point that these people in the Western Regions probably think that the air in Chang'an and Luoyang is sweet. As long as they are given a little more sweetness, they will definitely become die-hard Han people who are more loyal to the Han Dynasty than the Han people themselves, just like Jin Midi, a die-hard member of the Emperor Wu party.

Even Jin Midi, a Hun, could be made loyal to the Han Dynasty and become a die-hard supporter of Emperor Wu, let alone those people from the Western Regions.

"What will these Western countries think after the Han Dynasty abandons them?"

"Even if the Great Han returns in the future, will they still be so loyal to him?"

Because of the Han Dynasty's military power, they may continue to submit to the Han Dynasty, but the degree to which they are loyal to the Han Dynasty will definitely be affected.

They will worry that the Han people have abandoned them before and may abandon them again in the future.

"In the future, when Daqin has governed these places to such an extent, we must not abandon them at will, but try our best to turn them into Daqin's land."

"In fact, there are ways to solve the problem that Liu Xun is thinking about. Use the barbarians to control the barbarians, obtain local manpower and material resources, relocate people here, or let the garrisoned Han troops intermarry with the local people, and provide them with Han education, incorporate them into the Han family, and issue a certain number of Daqin household registrations (Daqin green cards)..."

"If we station troops there for a long time without much return, people will think that these places are not worth investing in. This is normal. In fact, we can turn these places into planting bases, pastures, sources of manpower and material resources, and tax lands for the Han Dynasty, so that the locals can produce for the Han Dynasty."

Many times, the Chinese dynasties were losing money when they controlled those remote areas, which made some dynasties become more and more conservative:

That place is so far away, it costs a lot to station troops there and there's not much output, so what's the point of occupying it?

It is better to give it up and stabilize the Central Plains!

Simply put, they don't gain any benefits from it, the effort and reward are not proportional, so of course they don't want to do it.

The First Emperor asked, "Like the Xiongnu and Baiyue?"

Li Nian shook his head and said, "No, the Western Regions' respect and admiration for the Han Dynasty is even greater than that of the Xiongnu for the Qin Dynasty, so they are more likely to convert to the Han Dynasty than the Xiongnu."

"Liu Jing abolished the Western Regions Protectorate and withdrew the Han troops. Fortunately, there was Ban Chao, otherwise the consequences of this decree would have been even more serious."

"Ban Chao, who was given the title of 'Marquis of Dingyuan' for his meritorious service, was often referred to as 'Ban Dingyuan'. He was from Pingling, Youfufeng, and the youngest son of Ban Biao, the magistrate of Xu County. He had great ambitions since childhood."

"In the fifth year of Yongping, Ban Chao and his mother came to Luoyang with his brother Ban Gu."

Ban Chao's brother and sister were all very talented. Ban Gu was the elder brother who said "Qin was upright in his position, while Lu's government was cruel."

Li Nian didn't dare to tell the First Emperor what Ban Gu said. It would only arouse the First Emperor's anger and would not do him any good.

Besides, whose father the First Emperor was, what does it matter to him? What’s the point of studying it so clearly?

Ban Chao's sister was Ban Zhao, who once participated in court politics as a woman, wore a gold seal and purple ribbon, and held the same position as the prime minister. "Legislation for Women" was her creation.

"Because his family was poor, Ban Chao was often hired by the government to copy books to make a living, but copying books for a long time was very hard."

"One day, Ban Chao threw his pen aside and sighed, 'A real man has no other ambitions. He should follow the example of Fu Jiezi and Zhang Qian, who made great contributions in foreign lands to be awarded a title of nobility. How can he stay in the inkstone for long?'"

"Everyone around him laughed at him for this. Ban Chao said, 'How can a boy understand the ambition of a warrior?'"

This statement was obviously a reference to Comrade Chen Sheng's "How can a sparrow understand the ambition of a swan?" The people who were copying books with him must have understood this joke and probably laughed at Ban Chao even more happily at that time.

"Later, Ban Chao was awarded a title of nobility for his meritorious service in the Western Regions, and his merits were mainly in military affairs, so he left behind the idiom 'throwing away his pen to join the army'."

"'You can't get the tiger cub without entering the tiger's den' is also what Ban Chao said."

"When he was in Liuzhuang, Ban Chao was sent as an envoy to the Western Regions. He led his men to the Shanshan Kingdom in the Western Regions. When Ban Chao first arrived, the King of Shanshan was very respectful to Ban Chao and his men, but suddenly one day his attitude changed and he became indifferent and lax."

"Ban Chao guessed that there must be a reason. He explained to his subordinates that the envoys of the Northern Xiongnu arrived in Shanshan, which made the king of Shanshan hesitant, not knowing whether to surrender to the Northern Xiongnu or continue to obey the Han Dynasty, so he had such an inconsistent attitude." "Ban Chao deceived the Hu people who served them and confirmed his guess from them. Then he and his subordinates made a plan to kill the Northern Xiongnu envoys who arrived in Shanshan. It was at this time that he said, 'You can't get the tiger cub without entering the tiger's den.'"

"On the night when the plan was made, Ban Chao and his men successfully killed all the Northern Xiongnu envoys. There were only 36 of them, while the Northern Xiongnu envoys numbered over a hundred."

"After the battle, Ban Chao showed the head of the Northern Xiongnu envoy to the King of Shanshan, who was horrified. The entire Shanshan nation was terrified and no longer dared to jump between the Eastern Han Dynasty and the Northern Xiongnu, and expressed its willingness to submit to the Eastern Han court."

The First Emperor said: "He is both brave and resourceful, a true hero!"

It is extremely bold to kill the envoy of another powerful country in another country and force the other country to express its position.

These Han envoys are really good at making trouble!

Li Nian said: "Ban Chao continued to be active in the Western Regions, and he gained a great reputation and a high prestige in the Western Regions. Therefore, when Liu Jing abolished the Western Regions Protectorate and issued an edict to withdraw the troops, the people of Shule and Yuqi did not want Ban Chao to leave."

"It was not only because of Ban Chao's popularity, but also because of his bravery that they were able to resist the invasion of the Northern Huns."

"Ban Chao stayed in the Western Regions because of the people of Yu. It was also because of Ban Chao's stay that the Eastern Han Dynasty did not lose control of the Western Regions due to Liu Bei's edict."

"If Liu Xun forcibly recalls Ban Chao, the Eastern Han Dynasty will have a period of vacuum in its control over the Western Regions, which will allow the Northern Xiongnu to quickly control the Western Regions. With supplies from the Western Regions, the Northern Xiongnu may even regain their former glory and become a powerful enemy of the Eastern Han Dynasty again."

"The situation I'm talking about had already happened at that time. After the Western Regions Protectorate was abolished and the garrisoned Han troops left, some areas originally controlled by the Eastern Han Dynasty were lost, and some were not recovered until later."

Without Ban Chao, even more would have been lost. Even if the Eastern Han Dynasty was strong, it would have taken more effort to regain control of the Western Regions.

"Since many Han troops withdrew from the Western Regions, Ban Chao did not have many Han troops, so he adopted the method of 'using barbarians to control barbarians' to control the Western Regions."

"That is, he used the Western Regions countries that were willing to follow him to form an army, and then attacked those countries that did not submit to the Eastern Han Dynasty or were causing chaos in the Western Regions. This method did not require the Eastern Han Dynasty to make much effort, but could also effectively control the Western Regions."

"Liu Xun is also very good. He was worried that Ban Chao was short of manpower in the Western Regions, so he sent Han troops to reinforce Ban Chao, although the number was not large each time."

"Ban Chao stayed in the Western Regions for many years until Liu Xun's death, and even after Liu Xun's death. He stayed in the Western Regions for three dynasties. When Liu Zhao ascended the throne and Empress Dowager Dou took charge of the government, Ban Chao still made great contributions."

Ban Chao was also a senior official of the Eastern Han Dynasty who served for three dynasties. Unfortunately, he was in the Western Regions all year round instead of Luoyang. If he were in Luoyang, he might have had students and officials all over the world.

Of course, if Ban Chao had stayed in Luoyang, he would not have achieved the achievements he made in the Western Regions.

The First Emperor heard the words "Empress Dowager" and "Reign" from Li Nian's words, and the surname seemed somewhat familiar. It seems that the Han Dynasty and the surname "Dou" have an unfortunate fate, right?
The First Emperor asked, "Could it be that Liu Xun's fault also led to the harem and relatives interfering in government affairs?"

Li Nian nodded, "That's right! Liu Lun doted on his queen, and therefore favored the Dou family from which the queen came. But Liu Lun probably didn't expect that his queen would make such a big fuss after his death. After all, Liu Lun was only 33 years old when he died."

"In the Eastern Han Dynasty, there were six empresses ruling the country, and Liu Zong's empress, Empress Zhangdedou, was the first one. She set a precedent for the harem to interfere in government affairs in the Eastern Han Dynasty. The harem and relatives who had been suppressed by Liu Xiu and Liu Zhuang raised their heads from then on until the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty."

"As for the reason why Liu Xun died young, the history books never recorded it, so there were some speculations in later generations that he was murdered by Empress Zhangde Dou and others."

"Because there is a record in the history books that during the reign of Emperor Liu, there was a minister named 'Guo Ju' who had an affair with a concubine in the harem. The person who had the affair with her might be Empress Zhangdedou."

"One day, Guo Ju was caught having an affair in the harem by Liu Lun, and Guo Ju actually drew his sword to intimidate Liu Lun."

"Then, Liu Xun died in the second year of the Zhanghe reign, but Guo Ju was still alive and well, and was quite favored after Empress Dou of Zhangde took power."

"So, some people in later generations speculated that the person who had an affair with Guo Ju was Empress Zhangde Dou."

"After being discovered having an affair by Liu Xun, Empress Zhangde and others decided to take the initiative and kill Liu Xun first, fearing that he would execute them."

Meng Tian asked: "Why didn't Liu Jing execute them when he found them?"

Li Nian replied: "Some people think that Liu Xun doted on Empress Zhangde and Dou too much and was soft-hearted. As Empress Zhangde and Dou had no children, Liu Xun adopted a son born to a noble lady and made him the crown prince."

"Some people also think that it may be because of the fact that the power behind Empress Zhangde Dou and Guo Ju was too great to be eradicated all at once, so Liu Jing wanted to take it slowly. Guo Ju was the great-nephew of Guo Shengtong, and Empress Zhangde Dou was also quite powerful. However, Liu Jing was killed before the time was right."

"Of course, these are some speculations about Liu Xun's death in later generations, but no matter what the truth is, it is true that Liu Xun failed to restrict the harem and relatives like his grandfather and father did."

"He favored Empress Zhangde Dou, and Empress Zhangde Dou's brothers Dou Xian and Dou Du were also favored by Liu Jing because of his love for her. They served in the palace and became more and more favored, and the princes looked at them with awe."

"Dou Xian even dared to force the princess to buy her garden and land at a low price, but the princess was afraid of Dou Xian's power and did not dare to compete with him."

"Perhaps it was because Dou Xian was arrogant and domineering that although he left behind the military honor of 'carving a stone on Yanran', it was not as popular as Guanjun Hou's 'sealing the wolf in the lagoon'."

Is this Dou Xian the protagonist of “Inscription on the Stone at Yanran”?
According to this kid Li Nian, that is the honor that many military generals in later generations dream of.

Li Niandao: "In the second year of Zhanghe, Liu Xun passed away. He reigned for thirteen years. He was posthumously named Emperor Xiaozhang and his temple name was Suzong. He was also the third emperor of the Eastern Han Dynasty to have a temple name."

"There are two interesting things about Liu Xun: one is that he received a lion and a giraffe as a gift from the Kushan Empire. These two animals came from Xuanzhou, thousands of miles away; the other is that Liu Xun's calligraphy is excellent, especially cursive script."

Who says that an emperor cannot be a good emperor if he is good at calligraphy? Don’t you think so, Zhao Ji?
"After Liu Xun passed away, Crown Prince Liu Zhao, the prince who was adopted by Empress Zhangde and Dou, ascended the throne. Because Liu Zhao was young, Empress Zhangde and Dou took charge of the government and controlled the government with her cronies. At that time, Dou Xian's power also grew unprecedentedly."

"But Dou Xian was afraid that a man named 'Liu Chang' would take away his power, so he sent assassins to kill Liu Chang. And this Liu Chang was said to be the lover of Empress Zhangde Dou. Judging from the historical records and the reactions of Dou Xian and Empress Zhangde Dou, Liu Chang might really have been the lover of Empress Zhangde Dou."

"Liu Chang has bad behavior, but he has been summoned by Empress Zhangde Dou several times, and she is also planning to give Liu Chang the right to enter and leave the palace."

"Dou Xian felt the crisis and sent people to kill Liu Chang, but after Liu Chang was killed, Empress Zhangde Dou was furious and locked Dou Xian in the inner palace."

"Dou Xian was afraid that he would be killed by his sister, so he took the initiative to ask to fight the Xiongnu!"

Xiongnu: People are sitting on the grassland, and disasters come from Luoyang. You sent people to kill Liu Chang. You offended your sister. What does it have to do with us? Why do you come to fight us? Is there still law?
The First Emperor and his two companions could hardly hold back their anger, with bizarre and absurd emotions swirling in their hearts. The Huns were also unlucky, as they had attracted a plague god for such an outrageous reason.

Li Nian said: "Regarding Empress Zhangdedou's lovers, it is rumored that in addition to Guo Ju and Liu Chang, there are also two princes from Cheshi."

(End of this chapter)