Memoirs of the Heavenly Khan

Chapter 430 One should be upright and honest.

Yang Kan led his army to capture Shanzhou, and his forces had reached the Western Sea. The Tuyuhun were defeated in battle, and their Khan, Kualü, sued for peace.

Tuyuhun Yaren was sent to Chang'an as an envoy to sue for peace.

In Shanglin Temple, Tuyuhun Yaren once again arrived at a familiar place.

However, things have changed; the former honored guest has become a prisoner.

A group of Qihu soldiers surrounded the hunting grounds, while Tuyuhun Yaren and envoys from other tribes waited at a distance.

In the center of the hunting grounds, Li Shuang sat on the throne, his body slightly tilted, one hand supporting his chin.

Before the throne, the chiefs of a dozen tribes were imprisoned in cages, naked, their faces filled with terror and resentment.

The prison gates opened, and the dozen or so tribal leaders were freed from their restraints. As soon as they were freed, several of the more hot-tempered ones rushed towards Li Shuang.

Before they even got close, they were subdued by the Qihu soldiers next to the prison.

The one at the very front, like a lion, glared at Li Shuang and roared:
"Ohno Sou, if you've got the guts, let me go. I want to fight you one-on-one!"

His anger was soaring, but it only elicited a smile in return.

"Qibi has lost his way, and Guanzhong is suffering from a severe drought. I have moved the people to Shu. It's one thing for the Qiang, Di, and Man tribes to cause trouble, but why are you getting involved?"

Qibi Mocang listened, his words filled with anger.

“If we don’t rebel today, do you think you’ll let us go tomorrow? You’ve established five regional governorates in the Lingxia region, imitating the old Han system. Isn’t that just to turn us into the Xiongnu of yesteryear, making us your obedient lackeys?”

Upon hearing this, Li Shuang did not rush to refute, but instead leaned to the other side of the throne and switched hands to support her chin.

"Anymore?"

"Guanzhong is suffering from a severe drought; this is a godsend opportunity. You, Da Yeshuang, are nothing but a bandit. You claim to be king and marquis today only because you've taken advantage of the Yuan clan's decline. If you can do it, why can't I?"

Just then, Changsun Si, the court attendant standing beside Li Shuang, stopped writing, no longer daring to take notes. He looked at Li Shuang with some difficulty, but saw that he didn't care at all.

"Historians record events truthfully, without altering a single word."

Upon hearing this, Changsun Si felt a surge of admiration. His writing became even more powerful.

Li Shuang smiled and asked:

"Who taught you all this?"

"It is—"

Qibi Mocang stopped abruptly, realizing what was happening, and looked at Li Shuang.

"Can't I figure it out myself?"

"You? You think I wouldn't know if you didn't tell me? It must be that Rouran chieftain Anagui! That kid is still causing trouble after going to the Western Regions, hooking up with you Tiele people."

Qibi, not expecting Li Shuang to already know the truth, immediately stopped hiding it and said:
"So what?"

Li Shuang smiled and said:
"you are wrong."

Qibi was taken aback, but then heard Li Shuang say:
"In the past, the Xiongnu dominated the grasslands, commanding 300,000 archers. Their territory stretched east to the sea and west beyond the Pamir Mountains. As for you tribes, I could easily annihilate you with a mere thousand cavalrymen sent north. How could you possibly compare to the Xiongnu?"

Qibi Mocang blushed, a surge of anger rising in his chest, unable to be expressed, when he heard Li Shuang sneer:
"Qibi didn't hide anything, so you probably don't even know what the sea looks like?"

"Oh no, you think you're so great just because you went to the beach!"

Qibi Mocang snorted coldly, turned his face away, and ignored Li Shuang.

Li Shuang waved his hand, and the Qihu soldiers beside him turned Qibi Mocang's face towards Li Shuang.

“It’s just amazing!”

"Humph!"

"Furthermore, you say this is a godsend opportunity, but you are completely wrong."

Li Shuang stood up, walked to Qibi Meicang, and said, “If I were you, I would wait for the right opportunity, prepare for migration, and contact the Rouran people to evacuate at any time. Such a drought will not last only a year. During this time, we can accumulate strength and wait until two or three years later, when the power in Guanzhong is at its lowest, to seize the opportunity to rebel. Instead of what you have done now, directly rushing to my pastures in Lingzhou to steal livestock.”

Qibi listened without hiding anything, nodded slightly, and said:
"You have a point!"

"Look at you, you can't even figure out how to start a rebellion properly, what else can you do!"

Qibi blinked, looked at Li Shuang, and asked:
"Can you give me another chance?"

Li Shuang smiled and said:
"That's definitely not possible!"

Qibi Mocang was dragged along by Qihu soldiers, and angrily said:

"Da Ye Shuang, you shameless scoundrel! You lost to me in the cockfight last time, and you cheated on me by refusing to pay. You said you owed me a favor, but now you're denying it."

"You're talking nonsense. When did I lose?"

As he spoke, Li Shuang looked at Changsun Si standing to the side and said:
"Don't memorize the last sentence."

Changsun Si was taken aback and quickly erased what he had just written down.

Li Shuang waved his hand, and the Qihu soldiers who were dragging Qibi Meicang back again.

"After thinking it over, I realize you haven't committed any major mistakes in the past, you were just confused this time. Here's what we'll do: Yujiulutahan has presented me with ten top-quality grassland horses. Others might not know how to raise them properly, but if you raise them well for me, I will forgive your crime of treason."

Qibi Mocang snorted and said:
"A loss is a loss, and you still won't admit it."

With that, Qibi Meicang swaggered away, shouting:
Where are those steppe horses?

……

Li Shuang waved his hand, and the Qihu people beside him took the rest of the people away.

"Your Majesty, envoys from various countries have arrived."

Li Shuang turned his head and looked at it, saying:
"Summon the envoy from Tuyuhun, and everyone else disperse."

Amidst the watchful eyes of the envoys, Tuyuhun Yaren hurriedly ran to Li Shuang's side.

"Your humble servant pays respects to the King of Qin!"

Why did you come here in such a hurry?

"Your Majesty, Tuyuhun has done nothing wrong!"

Ya Ren hurriedly explained:
"Since the beginning of this year, many tribes in the north have shown signs of rebellion, but only our Tuyuhun has remained as respectful to our superior nation as ever!"

"This king knows!"

"Then why did Your Majesty send General Yang Kan to attack our tribe?"

"This year, strange phenomena have occurred, and all the tribes on the grasslands are facing a shortage of food and resources, leading to frequent wars. How is your Tuyuhun doing?"

Ya Ren listened and replied:
"On the trade routes, the number of merchants is not as high as before, and various tribes are worried about the lack of pasture and the fear that cattle and sheep will freeze to death."

“Look, when others encounter this kind of thing, they think of rebelling and going south to seize the livestock in my pastures, but you Tuyuhun just send some herdsmen across the border to graze sheep. Is that right?”

"..."

"If even Qibi Meicang could receive Yujiulü Anagui's letter, it shows how desperate Yujiulü Anagui is. How could Kualü not have received it?"

Li Shuang put his hands behind his back, sighed softly, and said:
"Such a shape must indicate treachery and a hidden scheme; shouldn't we punish them?"

Of course, if Kualu hadn't shown Tuyuhun Yaren the secret letter from Anagui requesting an alliance, Tuyuhun Yaren would have just cursed him!

But now, after reading the letter and looking at Li Shuang, Tuyuhun Yaren couldn't help but feel a little guilty. At the same time, he also felt some inexplicable emotions.

You have a really good eye for people!

……

(End of this chapter)