The pork butcher is smoother than a pig butcher!

Chapter 417 Crush by Strength
The next day.

When 20,000 elite cavalrymen from Guanzhong, guided by Xiao Jin, arrived at the foot of Eagle's Beak Cliff, a war to reclaim Miaoling and even the entire southwest officially began.

This time, Gan Minglan doesn't need to be at the forefront.

Entrusted by a group of generals, she stayed in the royal tent below Eagle's Beak Cliff to protect Emperor Qianwu.

When the emperor personally leads an expedition, he acts as a stabilizing force.

With the Jade-Faced Rakshasa as their ultimate weapon, the generals no longer needed to worry about the emperor's safety and could fight boldly on the front lines with peace of mind.

Moreover.

The Miao King and the youngest warriors in the Miao village all died yesterday.

If they can't even take down Miaoling like this, what face do they have to wear this armor?

A general pointed to a Miao village in the distance and said to the soldiers behind him:

"See that? That cluster of stilted houses halfway up the mountain is the Miao village. All of you, be on your guard! Anyone who tries to stop us, kill them without mercy! His Majesty said we're different from the previous dynasty! We won't kill children under ten, people over fifty, or women."

That leaves only men aged 10 to 50!
The soldiers were somewhat confused about the latter part of the instructions:
"General, if we kill the Miao men, won't those half-grown boys still have to fight against the Han people when they grow up in a few years?"

"Yes! They say you have to nip it in the bud, so let's just massacre the whole village! Then burn down all their stilted houses. They're all wooden houses, they'll catch fire easily. Let's see how they'll live together and cause trouble in the future!"

Forgive these border soldiers from the Northwest.

After years of fighting with the Tatars, the Tatars raided the pass, and wherever they went, they would not spare even infants a few months old.

When they dealt with the Tatars, they naturally retaliated in kind.

In the eyes of these Han soldiers, the Miao people, who had been enemies of the Han people for hundreds of years, were no different from the Tatars.

Those who are not of our kind will surely have different hearts!
The general leading the group slapped the soldier next to him on the shoulder and glared at him angrily:

"His Majesty's words are law! You dare to disobey the imperial decree?"

This general, who was qualified to sit at the table and discuss matters, still remembered last night's meeting about the follow-up developments after the recapture of Miaoling.

at the meeting.

Several generals suggested that, in order to reduce future troubles, it would be best to exterminate the Miao people, but General Gan expressed his clear opposition.

She said:

"Among all ethnic groups, the Han people are the largest ethnic group. If Your Majesty were to usher in another golden age of the Tang Dynasty, would you want to exterminate the dozens of other ethnic groups besides the Han people?"

Take the Western Regions as an example.

Since we recovered Guanzhong, Huozhou, with only 20,000 troops stationed there, has a population of over 200,000 indigenous Uyghurs, but they have never rebelled.

Besides the Uyghurs, the Guanzhong Plain also includes the Saka, Yuezhi, Wusun, Qiang, Xiongnu, Rouran, Gaoche, Tuyuhun, Tujue, Tibetans, and Tatars. The total number of these ethnic minorities is definitely no less than one million!

But I am confident that I will completely recover the entire Western Regions within five years and kill them so badly that they dare not have any thoughts of rebellion!
Not only would they not harbor rebellious intentions, but if they were to engage in trade with us Han Chinese like the Eastern Yugur people, their nomadic lifestyle would experience a qualitative leap. For example, while they might raise a hundred commercial sheep a year, during the reign of the powerful Kashgar Khanate in the Western Regions, they needed to buy essential supplies like grain, salt, and iron pots after selling the sheep. When prices were low, a commercial sheep weighing 180 jin (approximately 50 kg) might only sell for one tael of silver. Some even owed money to be paid the following year; for families with many children, simply being able to feed themselves was a challenge.

However, as long as they became subjects of the Yongtai Dynasty, the various guard posts in Guanzhong would guarantee a minimum purchase price for livestock, with each commercial sheep costing no less than two taels and five mace of silver. Similarly, one hundred sheep could be sold for two hundred and fifty taels of silver, more than enough to support a large family of twenty people.

Anyone who isn't a fool can understand which dynasty had the best days.

If the common people are fed, clothed, and free from exploitation and humiliation by high-ranking officials, how can we not win their genuine submission? If two or three generations are truly subservient, it will be very difficult for their descendants to rebel.

One word from him left the generals who demanded the extermination of their clan speechless.

Most importantly, General Gan's argument was well-founded. With the trend of integration between Guanzhong and other ethnic groups ahead, they couldn't possibly assume that the imperial court would be unable to govern the southwest in the future just because they were afraid of trouble.

The three provincial administrations in the southwest were inhabited not only by Miao people, but also by Qiang people, Yi people, Tibetans, and others.

These are areas that previous dynasties failed to fully reclaim over hundreds of years, and where friction was frequent. If the Yongtai Dynasty could make these foreign tribes submit, what a glorious achievement it would be.
Before becoming emperor, Zhao Muyun only wanted to guard the border and become a renowned regional official.

After becoming emperor, his career plans naturally changed.

He, Zhao Muyun, is determined to become an emperor for all ages!
Since he was the greatest emperor of all time, he naturally had to manage the territory he conquered well. From now on, all ethnic minorities and Han people would be his subjects!
He immediately approved the operational plan for the Miao region, which would begin that day.

Go first.

Once you've won them over, then lure them with benefits.

The previous dynasty's policy of replacing native chieftains with appointed officials was not bad, but the appointed officials were too corrupt.

However, he must not repeat the same mistake when the officials sent by the Yongtai Dynasty to guard the southwest in the future!
Thinking this, the commanding general, seeing that the soldiers were still dissatisfied, said loudly:
"Remember this: we are the army of the Yongtai Dynasty, not butchers! His Majesty's decree is to reclaim the Miao Mountains, not to destroy them. We must show the Miao people that the Yongtai Dynasty not only possesses swords and muskets, but also leaves a chance for survival for those Miao people who sincerely submit to the court."

Having said that, let's fight.

The vanguard battalion and Gan Minglan's fifty personal guards had been waiting for a long time.

Soon, the men who stayed behind in the Miao village discovered that even poisoned arrows and Miao knives were useless against firearms.

The other party fired even though they were out of range.

One shot, one life.

Those who stand in the front are the ones who die the fastest.

Once the able-bodied men in the Miao village had been shot dead, the Han soldiers began to spread the word about the battle at Eagle's Beak Cliff.

"Still not surrendering? Your Miao King, the Gu poison master, and those 50,000 soldiers have all been slaughtered!"

"Don't think that your Gu poison is the best in the world. We were just pretending to be infected by Gu to paralyze you. In fact, we had already taken the antidote before we came. No Gu poison can kill us!"

"Old people and women, I advise you not to act rashly. His Majesty says that if you sincerely submit, he will spare your lives! If you remain obstinate and resist stubbornly, don't blame us for showing no mercy."

Many Miao people could understand Mandarin, and with this propaganda, morale began to crumble, and the war collapsed in a crushing defeat.

Wherever they went, they left behind a trail of bloodshed and carnage.
(End of this chapter)