Usurpation of Mongolia: My father-in-law is Genghis Khan

Chapter 150 East Asian Monsters: Room Tremors - Everyone Was Terrified!

In the spring of 1217, Zhao Shuo set off from the Hulunbuir Grassland and arrived in Kashgar three months later, sweeping through the Western Liao. That autumn, he set off from Husihan'er and entered Khwarezm.

In the spring of 1218, Zhao Shuo set out from Samarkand and marched into Khorasan.

In the autumn of 1218, after Zhao Shuo pacified Luoshan, he marched westward, captured Kejiyun City, and beheaded Mahamo.

In the spring of 1219, Zhao Shuo arrived at the Terek Valley and annihilated the allied forces of the three tribes. Then, Zhao Shuo spent a year and a half pacifying the Rus' territories and received Temujin's order to return.

In the summer of 1221, the Mongol army entered the former territory of the Western Liao Dynasty.

Therefore, the Mongol army's expedition to Khwarazm took approximately four years.

During these four years, Muqali not only wiped out the Jin dynasty's influence in the northeast, but also eliminated Zhang Jing, the "King of Liaoxi," subdued Puxian Wannu, the "King of Dongxia," annihilated Yelü Si, the "King of Liao," and forced Goguryeo to submit and pay tribute. His performance was quite good.

However, without the help of the Han generals, Muqali's campaign against the Jin dynasty did not go as smoothly. Last year, Muqali led his army into Shaanxi, but after a prolonged siege of Fengxiang, he failed to capture it. Not only was his general Shi Tianying killed in battle, but Muqali himself was also wounded by an arrow and has been bedridden ever since.

It can be said that during these four years, Muqali's Mongol detachment did not put much pressure on the various forces in the East. Both the Jin Dynasty and the Western Xia had forgotten the terror of the Mongol army.

Now, the terrifying main force of the Mongol army has returned!

They conquered countless countries, expanded their territory by thousands of miles, and became even more powerful than before!
……

……

In the main hall of the imperial palace in Zhongxingfu, the capital of Western Xia.

"What? Temujin isn't dead?"

Upon hearing the report from the Blackwater spies, Emperor Li Zunxu of Western Xia was startled and could hardly believe his ears.

The current emperor of Western Xia is no longer Li Anquan, but Li Zunxu.

Ten years ago, Li Zunxu seized power in a coup, killing the original Western Xia emperor Li Anquan and taking the throne of Western Xia.

Li Zunxu was a smart man.

Before the coup, he was not only a member of the Western Xia royal family and was granted the title of Prince of Qi, but he also participated in the Western Xia imperial examination and became the top scholar.

Therefore, he was well aware of the huge gap in national strength between the Western Xia and the Mongols.

Since ascending the throne, Li Zunxu has been very obedient to the Mongols and has always obeyed Temujin's orders, leading the Western Xia army to attack the Jin Dynasty.

However, before Temujin sent troops to attack Khwarazm, Li Zunxu hesitated when ordering the Western Xia to send troops.

Khwarezm was a major Western power; was it so easy to defeat?
The Western Xia had its main force wiped out by the Mongols, and in recent years it had suffered further losses while attacking the Jin Dynasty. If it were to scatter 50,000 troops thousands of miles away, its demise would be imminent.

Unfortunately, at this moment, Crown Prince Li Deren noticed his hesitation.

"Father, have you ever heard of any monarch in history who has ever launched a campaign against Persia, thousands of miles away? And personally led the expedition? Are Qin Shi Huang, Emperor Wu of Han, Emperor Taizong of Tang, and Emperor Taizu of Song not as wise as Temujin? It is simply that a campaign thousands of miles away is difficult to guarantee logistics, and one wrong move could lead to utter ruin!"

"Even if we take a step back and say that Temujin was the greatest monarch in history, so what? He's nearly sixty years old, how many more years does he have left? How could he possibly withstand continuous warfare? He might die thousands of miles away one day, and his entire army of over two hundred thousand would be wiped out!"

"So what if Zhao Shuo has the might of Xiang Yu? Xiang Yu, the King of Chu, relied on his strength and still committed suicide at the Wujiang River. Wei Qing and Huo Qubing were heroes, but they only managed to seal the wolf's lair and never even reached the Western Regions! Is Zhao Shuo really that much stronger than Wei Qing and Huo Qubing?"

"The Mongol expedition to Khwarazm is bound to end in a crushing defeat!"

"The Mongols are attacking Khwarazm with their entire army. Once news of their defeat arrives, the Jin Dynasty will inevitably counterattack the Mongols. At that time, our Xia Dynasty will also be able to get a share of the spoils. This is truly the best opportunity for the Xia Dynasty to revive!"

"On one hand, there is the danger of national subjugation; on the other hand, there is the unprecedented rise of Western Xia. Father, you should have no trouble considering this!"

……

Li Deren's silver tongue actually persuaded Li Zunxu.

Therefore, Li Zunxu refused Temujin's decree and shut himself away to live his own quiet life.

Over the past four years, there have been constant reports, some true and some false.

Some say that Temujin's advance was unstoppable, and he had already captured Samarkand, the capital of Khwarazm. Others say that the Mongol army was bogged down at Urgench, the capital of Khwarazm, where the second and third princes quarreled, and the siege dragged on for a long time without success.

Some say that Temujin was killed by a poisoned arrow from the Khwarazmians while sweeping through the cities along the Amu Darya River. Others say that Temujin did not die at the Amu Darya, but was defeated at Balwan and personally killed by Jalal ad-Din, the new Sultan of Khwarazm!
Some say that Zhao Shuo has broken away from the Mongol army and established himself as king in the far west.

Some say that Zhao Shuo did not declare himself king, but that Temujin had simply lost his way and was sun-dried into a mummified corpse in the desert.

Some people say that although the Mongols have suffered a few minor setbacks, they have generally been successful and have conquered a vast territory. They are about to return to Mongolia.

……

Li Zunxu didn't know which of these messages were true and which were false.

However, with so many reports saying Temujin is dead, surely none of them are true? Temujin is definitely dead, but the specific manner of his death is still unclear.

Very good!
Once Temujin dies, the Mongol army will inevitably turn back, and the Khwarazmian army will pursue them relentlessly. The Mongol army will likely not be able to return east at all.

As soon as news of the Mongol army's crushing defeat reached him, he would personally lead an expedition to raid the Mongol stronghold, and the Western Xia would achieve a revival under his rule.

Li Zunxu was overjoyed every time he received news of Temujin's death, and he would richly reward the messenger. Because of this, more and more people came to him with news of Temujin's demise…

Li Zunxu was intoxicated by the dream that Temujin was dead, indulging in pleasure.

Until today, his secret intelligence agency, the Blackwater Guard, delivered reliable news from Mongolia, shattering his dreams.

"Temujin is indeed not dead. Not only is he not dead, but he has also returned victorious from his expedition against Khwarazm!" The Blackwater spy held up a proclamation and said, "Your Majesty, look, this is a proclamation posted in Kashgar by the Mongols when they returned to the former territory of Western Liao!"

This proclamation not only clearly stated the results of the Mongol army's battle, but also announced the titles of Jochi, Tolui, Ögedei, Chagatai, and Zhao Shuo.

How could this be fake?
After reading it, Li Zunxu felt as if a bucket of cold water had been poured over his head in the dead of winter, chilling him to the bone.

Really!

What the Blackwater spy said was true!
Temujin is indeed not dead!
Not only did he live a long and healthy life, but he also destroyed the Western Liao and Khwarazmian Empires, as well as the Kipchak Steppe and the Rus' lands!
Today, his four sons and one son-in-law each have been allocated a large plot of land.

Especially Zhao Shuo, who was bestowed the title of "King of Khorasan, Tochariah, North India, Bagrajionni Kingdom, and West Rus'!"
This string of names completely overwhelmed Li Zunxu.

Which of these places is smaller than the Western Xia?
After Temujin returned, he easily destroyed the Western Xia. What difficulty was there in adding "Xia Kingdom" to Zhao Shuo's name?
I'm afraid the Western Xia dynasty is about to perish!
Thinking of the tragic ends of Emperor Huizong and Emperor Qinzong, the last emperors of the Song Dynasty, Li Zunxu was drenched in cold sweat, and his hands trembled uncontrollably.

Just then, someone came to report that the Crown Prince was requesting an audience.

Prince?

Does he still dare to come?

Li Zunxu understood that the Crown Prince must have come for the matter of the Mongol army returning to China.

Snapped!
As soon as Li Deren entered the main hall, a wine cup was smashed heavily in front of him.

Li Zunxu flew into a rage, pointing at Li Deren and saying, "Four years ago, you advised me to refuse Temujin's decree and help him attack Khwarazm without sending a single soldier. Now, Temujin has not only destroyed Khwarazm, but has also conquered the Rus' territories and the Kipchak Steppe, and is about to take severe revenge on my Western Xia. Now, what do you have to say?"

"Father, please forgive me!"

Li Deren, his face ashen, bowed deeply and said, "Your Majesty, I have come here for this very reason. I admit that I underestimated Genghis Khan Temujin and the Mongol prince consort Zhao Shuo. But things have come to this point, and I believe that the only hope for Western Xia now is to unite with the Jin against the Mongols. I urge Your Majesty to make a swift decision!"

"Unite with the Mongols to resist the Mongols—what a load of rubbish!"

Li Zunxu, unusually, uttered a curse, his face full of disdain, and said, "The Mongols have destroyed so many countries, aren't they much stronger than the Jin and Western Xia combined? If we unite with the Jin, we'll probably only provoke the Mongols' wrath even more, and die even faster!"

"But if we don't ally with the Jin against the Mongols, our Xia Kingdom will still be doomed!"

"That's not necessarily true. Let me think about it..."

Li Zunxu took a deep breath, frowned and pondered for a while, and said, "There is only one way now: our Xia Kingdom should immediately offer a large amount of wealth to the Mongols to show our willingness to submit to them again. We are willing to send troops to help them attack the Jin Kingdom again. The world is so big, can the Mongols occupy it all? As long as we show enough sincerity, the Mongols may not necessarily be able to tolerate our Xia Kingdom."

The more he spoke, the more convinced he became of his own words. He said, "That's right, not only should we offer a large number of gifts, but also beautiful women. Didn't the Jin Kingdom offer a princess to persuade the Mongol army to withdraw? Our Xia Kingdom will also offer beautiful women! Offer your three sisters to Temujin. Oh, and Li Anquan's daughters can also be called princesses; send them all over!"

Li Deren, however, felt that Li Zunxu's idea was not very reliable, and said, "But...but..."

"Alright, no buts. If I hadn't listened to your terrible advice back then, how could my Xia Kingdom have fallen to this state? Now my mind is made up, so it will be done this way!" Li Zunxu's tone was unquestionable and resolute.

……

……

Ten days later, in the Jin Kingdom.

Emperor Wanyan Xun of the Jin Dynasty spent those four years in a rather depressed state.

Taking advantage of the fact that the main Mongol force was not in the Central Plains, the Jin army actively implemented the policy of "compensating for losses in the north with gains in the south," engaging in a fierce battle with the Southern Song Dynasty.

And it even failed!

In the Battle of Zaoyang alone, the Jin state lost 50,000 troops, and its commander-in-chief, Wanyan E, barely escaped with his life.

Although the Jin dynasty managed to hold onto Fengxiang under Muqali's attack, Wanyan Xun felt no joy whatsoever. Muqali had only led a detachment of the Mongol army; what kind of skill was it for the Jin to hold onto a city from the Mongol conquest?

Therefore, Wanyan Xun could only pin his hopes on the folk tales that Temujin had died thousands of miles away and that the Mongol army had been completely wiped out.

However, the worst-case scenario has occurred.

Temujin returned victorious and announced the great victory to the world!

Wanyan Xun is now filled with deep regret.
Why didn't you agree to Temujin's condition of being made King of Henan in the first place?

Becoming a vassal state of Mongolia is a thousand times better than dying and having your country destroyed, right?

What to do now?
Given the current state of the Jin Dynasty, how can it withstand an attack from Genghis Khan's envoy?
Therefore, in the past few days, Wanyan Xun has been unable to eat or drink, and has even lost interest in favoring the newly acquired beauties.

The dilapidated house was further aggravated by a night of continuous rain.

Just then, the Jin Dynasty's secret intelligence agency delivered the latest intelligence about the Western Xia.

"What? The Western Xia prepared over a thousand cartloads of gold and silver to send to the Mongols? Among them are even seven Western Xia princesses?!" Wanyan Xun was furious upon hearing the report.

Clearly, the Western Xia are going to choose between the death of their fellow Daoists and the death of themselves!
Their efforts to befriend the Mongols were precisely because they hoped the Mongols would attack the Jin Dynasty instead of the Western Xia.

Wanyan Xun loudly proclaimed, "Issue my decree: order the Ministry of Revenue to prepare 100,000 taels of gold, 300,000 taels of silver, and 500 beautiful women to be sent to Mongolia to congratulate Genghis Khan on his territorial expansion!" Hmph, if the Xia Kingdom does the first thing, the Jin Kingdom will do the fifteenth!
They give gifts, so we give gifts too!
I refuse to believe that the Mongols would attack the Jin Dynasty instead of the Xia Kingdom, which they have offended the most!
……

……

The Kingdom of Dongzhen was the last to receive news of Temujin's victory.

This country was founded by Puxian Wannu.

The Jin dynasty initially ordered Puxian Wannu to lead an army of 300,000 to attack Yelü Liuge in the northeast. Puxian Wannu was no match for Yelü Liuge, so he simply declared himself king and established the Dongzhen Kingdom.

Later, Muqali led his troops to the Northeast, and Puxian Wannu surrendered voluntarily, making Dongzhen a vassal state of the Mongols.

However, ever since Muqali was shot with an arrow and fell seriously ill, Puxian Wannu began to harbor wicked intentions.

The Kingdom of Goryeo, located to the west of Dongzhen, had always been in close contact with Dongzhen, and both revered the Mongol Emperor Genghis Khan and the Dongzhen Emperor Puxian Wannu, except that the title of the Mongol Emperor Genghis Khan came before that of the Dongxia Emperor Puxian Wannu.

This is also why Muqali said that Goryeo was restless.

Seeing that Temujin had not returned from his expedition to Khwarazm, thousands of miles away, for four years, and that Muqali had fallen ill and was bedridden, Puxianwannu, unwilling to be subordinate to others, prepared to rebel.

He sent a man named Yelü Chun to convey an imperial edict to Goryeo: "The Mongol Genghis Khan has passed away in a remote and unknown land. Temuge is greedy, tyrannical, and cruel, and we have severed all ties with him. Now, your country should only honor the Eastern Emperor."

Temuge, Genghis Khan's fourth brother, is currently stationed on the Mongolian grasslands and is nominally Muqali's superior.

Pu Xianwannu's decree meant that Goryeo should join him in rebelling against the Mongols.

However, just one day after Yelü Chun set off, Puxian Wannu received news of Temujin's return.

"Quickly! Bring Yelü Chun back!"

Inside the palace, Pu Xianwannu was terrified upon receiving the news. He exclaimed, "That decree must not fall into the hands of the Goryeo people! Otherwise, my Dongzhen Kingdom will be completely finished!"

"Your Majesty, please don't panic."

His empress, Li Xian'e, advised, "Yelü Chun has only been gone for a day and is not traveling fast, so he should be able to catch up. However, the little tricks you have done, and not just this imperial edict, will likely cause unimaginable consequences if Genghis Khan finds out."

Li Xian'e and Yelü Liuge were not only childhood sweethearts, but she was also exceptionally beautiful. When Yelü Liuge raided Puxian Wannu's stronghold, he captured Li Xian'e. The Mongol military supervisor Ketege, who remained with Yelü Liuge, was immediately captivated by her beauty and forcibly took her as his own.

Later, Li Xian'e found an opportunity to escape and returned to Pu Xianwannu's side.

Pu Xianwannu showed no disgust towards him and their love remained as strong as ever.

Now, after hearing Li Xian'e's words, Pu Xianwannu calmed down and said, "What does the Empress think I should do?"
"First, now is not the time to be lenient; all those who know the truth must be executed. Second, we must demonstrate sufficient loyalty to Genghis Khan."

"loyalty?"

As a powerful and ruthless figure, Pu Xianwannu had no psychological barriers to killing people to silence witnesses.

But loyalty...

He thought for a moment and said, "Then I can only prepare a very generous gift. I am a loyal subject of the Mongols, and it is only natural that I should present Genghis Khan with a generous congratulatory gift upon his return from his expedition. It would not be out of place. Hmm, I will also send another envoy to have Goryeo prepare more wealth to present to Genghis Khan as a congratulatory gift. This is also a way for me to express my loyalty to Genghis Khan."

Li Xian'e hesitated and asked, "Can Goryeo listen to His Majesty?"

"Don't listen?"

Pu Xianwannu smiled sinisterly and said, "Genghis Khan has returned from his expedition, sharpening his sword. He may not remember who presented him with gifts, but he will probably remember very clearly who did not."

Of course, simply presenting a congratulatory gift to Temujin was not enough.

Whether it was the Jin Dynasty, the Xia Dynasty, or Dongzhen and Goryeo, the generous gifts they prepared would always include a high-ranking Mongol official like Zhao Shuo.

Just as chaos reigned in Dongjin and Goryeo, with everyone preparing lavish gifts, Zhao Shuo returned to Kharka Guicheng.

Hua Zheng led nearly 100,000 people out of the city to welcome him.

There are indeed that many people.

Because this group included not only Zhao Shuo's five sons and two daughters, the artisans and their families from Harka Guicheng, the families of the Black Riders, the merchants and their families from Harka Guicheng, the families of the soldiers who died on the grasslands during Zhao Shuo's western expedition, and the families of the Mongolian soldiers who remained behind.

The families of these soldiers came here for two reasons: first, to congratulate Zhao Shuo on his triumphant return; and second, to wait for Zhao Shuo to distribute the spoils.

The property left behind by the soldiers who died in the grassland battle, the compensation Zhao Shuo paid to the fallen soldiers, and the property that the soldiers who stayed behind entrusted Zhao Shuo to bring back will all be distributed here.

Zhao Shuo decided to personally distribute the property and compensation left behind by soldiers who died in battle at the rank of captain or above.

A platform three zhang high had already been erected.

Not only were twenty black riders already standing on the high platform, but there were also two small mountains made of gold and silver.

Having not seen his family for over four years, Zhao Shuo had a thousand words to say. But he could tell them slowly when he got back. The most important thing now was to distribute the money and compensation to the families of the soldiers and put their minds at ease.

Zhao Shuo stepped onto the high platform and announced loudly, "Families of the tenth head of the Herdaiqin household, come up to the platform!"

"Yes!"

With a reply, an elderly woman with gray hair, accompanied by a woman in her forties, two Mongolian boys, and a girl of seven or eight years old, walked onto the high platform.

They were Herdachin's mother, wife, two sons, and a daughter.

Zhao Shuo first asked their names, then loudly proclaimed, "Heldaiqin, the tenth headman, is truly outstanding! Since the start of this western expedition, outside the city of Husihan'er in Western Liao, he single-handedly beheaded two Khwarazmian elite cavalrymen and captured one enemy!"

"During our army's attack on Erban City, he shot and killed one enemy soldier and beheaded another!"

"Unfortunately, in the decisive battle against the Asu people in the Jele River Valley, after killing two Asu soldiers, he took a bullet for his warrior Tulegmin and died tragically. The property and pension left by the tenth head of the Herdaichin family were converted into silver, totaling one thousand two hundred and seven taels. Guards!"

The black-clad rider behind Zhao Shuo responded loudly, "Yes, sir!"

“Take 1,207 taels of silver and give it to the family of the head of the ten households of Herdaiqin.”

"Yes!"

In that era, one tael of silver was equivalent to 37.5 grams in later times. One thousand two hundred and seven taels would be ninety catties.

In terms of volume, it is equivalent to two two-liter bottles of Coca-Cola in later times.

People didn't feel anything when they saw the piles of gold and silver on the high platform, but when they saw that so much silver was for Herdain's family, they were dazzled.

"So many? How...how could there be so many?"

"Nonsense, he's a squad leader, not an ordinary soldier. His income is twice that of an ordinary soldier. Besides, the Prince Consort Ende even gave special compensation to the fallen soldiers."

"That's...that's too much! Twelve thousand taels of silver! Their family could never spend it all in their lifetime!"

"Can't spend it all? That depends on how you spend it. If you go to the money pits in the Central Plains, you probably won't last a year."

“I mean normal life. This... this prince consort is too generous! He risks his life on the battlefield and he gets this much! Even the most in-house staff under me only get two taels of silver a month at most. This 1,200 taels of silver is enough for them to work for fifty years without eating or drinking!”

"Who can work for fifty years? I'm afraid you'll fire them in less than twenty years and replace them with someone younger and stronger."

"That's why I said the prince consort gave too much!"

……

The soldiers and civilians watching murmured amongst themselves.

The merchants, in particular, found the prince consort's treatment of these soldiers utterly incomprehensible. How could a human life be worth so much money?
Herdechin's family members were quite dizzy looking at so much silver.

Although the deaths of their family members in battle caused them great sorrow.

However, Zhao Shuo just listed Herdachin's achievements, what an honor that is.

The arrival of such a large sum of wealth only lessened their sorrow.

"Herdaichin's life was worth fighting for the prince consort!"

Herdaiqin's mother, along with the rest of her family, knelt down and choked with sobs, saying, "Thank you for your generous gift, Prince Consort. We are willing to die for you!"
"Go down and live a good life, and raise Herdachin's children to adulthood."

"Yes!"

Herdaichin's family members went down, but Zhao Shuo's rewards continued.

The soldiers and civilians watching from below the stage were increasingly moved.

In the past, grassland warriors never had such good fortune. Even if there were spoils of war from killing within the grasslands, they were negligible.

Now, following the prince consort to the west to slaughter, they have such rich spoils of war.

Moreover, the prince consort received an additional pension.

Half of the spoils of war from this expedition were distributed to the soldiers who were killed or wounded. The wounded soldiers received half of what the dead soldiers received.

Just as Herdachin's mother said, "Fighting for the prince consort, this life has been worthwhile!"

After distributing money to the families of soldiers who died in battle, Zhao Shuo proclaimed loudly, "The sacrifices of the soldiers who died in this western expedition were not in vain! Their blood was not shed in vain!"

"They avenged the blood feud for our Mongolian caravans! They brought a better life to their families! They conquered fertile lands, providing better pastures for their descendants! They are our heroes!"

"Hero! Hero!"

Nearly 100,000 soldiers, civilians, and ordinary people cheered in unison, their voices shaking the heavens.

By this time, they had learned from the soldiers who had returned to the steppes earlier how wonderful the Terek Valley was. The families of the soldiers who remained in the Terek Valley would be moved to the Terek River Valley to enjoy even more fertile pastures.

Those who do not migrate will naturally have more pasture.

These people are indeed heroes.

Whether they are soldiers who returned home safely, wounded soldiers, or soldiers who died in battle, they are all heroes of the Mongolians!
At this very moment, countless Mongolian youths dream of following their fathers to the battlefield with their sons-in-law, using swords and spears to bring wealth to their families and fight for more land for their people!

(End of this chapter)