Take control of Wei Zhongxian at the start and confiscate 100 million from him!

Chapter 376 The Ming Emperor is Too Arrogant
As Zhu Youjian carefully folded the letter home, which carried the scent of orchids and musk, and finally resolved to treat the border as his court and his soldiers as his comrades, an invisible storm had already swept his resolute will across the winding border wall and into the vast northern desert.

This storm came faster and more fiercely than the snow and ice in the world.

It is silent and unassuming, yet it possesses the power to overthrow a khanate and change the fate of a tribe.

The wind is high on the frontier, and snow piles up on the yurts.

Unlike the fortified city and towering buildings of Xuanzhen in the Ming Dynasty, north of the Great Wall, the same wind and snow transformed into a white Yama capable of devouring all living beings.

In this harsh winter with its swirling snow, the once mighty Chahar tribe's golden tent was like a perilous island suspended in a vast white ocean.

The north wind, sharp as a blade, whipped up ice shards and howled like ghosts, crashing against the thick felt tents, wailing incessantly.

Looking out, the sky and earth were one color, indistinguishable from each other, with only this endless white tyranny seemingly trying to completely devour the last trace of warmth in everything.

Inside the tent, a huge pile of cow dung was burning brightly, crackling and popping. The dark red flames tried their best to dispel the surrounding cold, but they could not dispel the chilling atmosphere that was a hundred times colder than the wind and snow outside the tent.

Lindan Khan sat high on his throne, which was covered with a magnificent tiger skin.

His face, which had once struck fear into the hearts of countless enemies, was now ashen, his jawline taut like a bow, and the fury in his eyes burned even more fiercely than the fire before him.

Below him stood several of the most elite princes, nobles, and valiant generals of the Chahar tribe.

Each of them was a renowned eagle and tiger on the grassland, but at this moment they all lowered their heads, held their breath, and even their breathing seemed to carry a sense of sin.

The atmosphere inside the tent was oppressive, like dark clouds looming overhead, and everyone was silent.

Just then, the tent flap was suddenly ripped open by a gust of wind, and a figure covered in frost stumbled in.

He was a weary scout, his cheeks were purplish-red from the cold, his lips were cracked and bleeding, and his eyebrows, eyelashes and beard were covered with icicles.

He disregarded etiquette and scrambled to the fire, trembling and uttering a few hoarse, unintelligible sounds.

"Give me wine!" Lin Danhan's voice was low and hoarse.

Immediately someone handed over a leather bag of strong mare's milk wine.

The spy didn't care that it was hot and took several big gulps.

The strong liquor went down his throat like a bolt of fire that instantly pierced through his nearly frozen body. He coughed violently, his face flushed an unnatural red, and his eyes finally regained some of their sparkle.

He struggled to straighten his knees, his voice still hoarse, but filled with an urgency and terror that could freeze the blood of everyone present: "Great Khan! The latest military intelligence... is absolutely true!"

The scout, panting, presented a small scroll tightly wrapped in oilcloth from his bosom.

A guard took it and respectfully handed it to Lindan Khan.

Lin Danhan unfolded the slightly wrinkled paper, his gaze sweeping across it rapidly. Everyone in the tent stared intently at his face, their attention captivated by every subtle change in his expression.

Everyone saw that the Khan's face changed from ashen to purplish-red, and then from purplish-red to a horrifying pale white.

Lin Danhan's hand holding the paper roll trembled slightly, veins bulging, as if that light piece of paper weighed a ton.

The document contained neither the mobilization of thousands of troops nor the fall of fortified cities and passes, but merely a few seemingly mundane news items.

Firstly, Ah Hai, the Taiji of the Tumed Right Wing Subai tribe, was recently officially conferred the title of "Dorobele" by the Ming Emperor Zhu Youjian! This title is second only to the prince and the duke! He was also granted the Han surname "Jin" and a mansion with carved beams and painted rafters in Guihua City.

The intelligence report also included a detailed description of the shape and pattern of the gold seal, as well as a list of the rewards—one hundred bolts of top-quality silk from Suzhou and Hangzhou, fifty boxes of exquisite tea from Wuyi Mountain, and crystal-clear, exquisitely crafted porcelain from the Jingdezhen imperial kiln… The total value of these items far exceeded that of the warhorse offered by Ahai by a hundred times!
Secondly, the Ming emperor is currently in his Xuanfu-Daqing headquarters, receiving leaders of various small and medium-sized tribes from the southern grasslands with unprecedented patience. Regardless of the size of their tribe or the social status of their members, all who request an audience are rewarded handsomely. Even those tiny tribes with populations of no more than a thousand and livestock of less than ten thousand receive enough gifts to help them safely get through the harshest winter.

Inside the tent, all was silent.

Occasionally, a spark would burst from the cow dung in the fire, and the slight crackling sound, at that moment, sounded as piercing as thunder.

Lindan Khan hurled the scroll filled with humiliating words at the nearest prince like a red-hot iron.

The scroll was passed around among several key members of the royal family and nobility.

And so, on those once solemn faces, shock, humiliation, anger... a variety of emotions flashed by, and finally all solidified into the same color: iron-blue!

The silence inside the tent remained unbroken, yet it was filled with a pressure more terrifying than any sound.

When that thin scroll of paper finally reached the hands of the fierce general Bu Yanchechen, the deathly silence was finally shattered by a furious roar!

"This is too much!"

Bu Yanchechen roared and drew his curved sword from his waist with a clang. His eyes were bloodshot, and he looked like a mad tiger. His bulging muscles made his leather robe bulge.

He suddenly knelt down on one knee before Lindan Khan, his voice booming like thunder: "Great Khan! This is an utter disgrace! It is a slap in the face to you, to my Golden Family, in front of everyone on the entire grassland! Ahai! This despicable and shameless traitor! How dare he bypass you to accept the title of Emperor of the Southern People! Please give the order, Great Khan, I am willing to lead my five thousand iron cavalry to set off immediately! In a few days we will surely crush the Subai tribe, cut off that bastard Ahai's head, and hang it high on the top of my Chahar flagpole! We will make sure that all those on the grassland who harbor disloyalty know what the power of thunder is, and what the price of betrayal is!"

Buyan Chechen's rage was like a spark thrown into a powder keg.

"Kill! Kill Ah Hai!"

"Crush the Subabu!!"

"Let those two-faced cowards know who the true masters of the grasslands are!"

The generals inside the tent were instantly ignited, drawing their weapons in a frenzy of excitement and murderous intent.

This is the most direct and familiar way for the Mongols to solve problems, and it has been the most effective way for them for thousands of years. With swords and blood, they wash away betrayal; with the heads of their enemies, they uphold their honor!

"boom--"

With a loud crash, Lin Danhan slammed the pure gold wine glass, inlaid with turquoise, onto the ground.

The golden cup bounced on the hard ground with a piercing sound before finally rolling to the side of the fire, where it was bathed in a bright red glow, as if stained with blood.

The commotion inside the tent abruptly ceased.

Everyone was stunned by the Khan's overwhelming rage and fell silent.

Lin Danhan slowly stood up, his chest heaving violently, but his voice was surprisingly calm.

"What a great Ming emperor!" He practically spat out these words through clenched teeth, then let out a cold laugh. "What a brilliant tactic! What a clever scheme to sow discord! Does he think he can bribe the eagles soaring over the grasslands with some empty names and things that women love? Does he think he can make Genghis Khan's descendants kneel at his feet and become his lackeys?"

He surveyed the crowd in the tent, a cruel glint in his eyes: "Ridiculous! He doesn't understand the glory of the Mongols; this action only brings shame upon himself!"

Lin Danhan took a deep breath, seemingly having recovered from his initial rage and transformed back into the shrewd and strategic ruler of the grasslands.

With a wave of his hand, he decisively ordered: "Buyan Chechen is absolutely right! For traitors, only swords can be used! Issue the order to immediately assemble ten thousand elite cavalry, under the command of Buyan Chechen, to detour through Kubuqi and launch a surprise attack on the Subai tribe! I want Ahai, and those lowly bastards who are about to fawn over the Southern Emperor, to know that my blade will arrive much faster than any reward from the Ming Emperor!!"

"The Great Khan is wise!!"

Bu Yanchechen was so excited that his face turned red. He pounded his chest with his fist and was about to take up the order.

However, just as this fervor was about to sweep through the entire Khan's tent, an old and steady voice came down like a bucket of snow water mixed with ice shards.

"Great Khan! The wrath of thunder can shake mountains and rivers, but this war is truly a path to disaster, and must not be undertaken!"

The crowd looked in the direction of the sound and saw an old man standing not far from Lindan Khan slowly walk out.

He was tall and thin, with white hair and beard, and his face was covered with deep wrinkles. Only his eyes, in the dim firelight, still shone with a wise light that seemed to understand the ways of the world.

This man was none other than Erdeni Hongtaiji, Ligdan Khan's most trusted strategist. Buyan Chechen, who had just received his orders and was about to leave, suddenly turned around upon hearing this, glaring at Erdeni and roaring, "Old man, what did you say? The Great Khan's authority has been insulted! Should we sit here drinking mare's milk and watch these villains rebel one after another instead of washing it away with the enemy's blood?"

Erdeni ignored Buyan Chechen's roar and simply looked intently at Lindan Khan: "Great Khan, really... we can't fight."

Ligdan Khan frowned deeply. Suppressing his displeasure, he asked in a deep voice, "Erdene, give me a reason. Why can't we fight? Are we really going to sit idly by and watch those people be bought off one by one by the Southern Emperor, becoming a laughingstock to the world?"

Erdeni Hongtaiji bowed deeply; in the entire Khan's tent, he was the only one who maintained absolute calm amidst the frenzied killing intent.

His aged voice echoed clearly in everyone's ears as he began to dissect the deadly trap hidden behind this seemingly simple decision.

“Great Khan,” he spoke slowly again, “please allow me to analyze this situation for you. This is not a conspiracy, but an open scheme. Its poison surpasses any of the most potent poisons in the world, for it is colorless and odorless, and even…sweet as honey.”

"May I ask, Great Khan, who are we going to attack?"

Lindan Khan replied impatiently, "It is none other than that traitor, Ahhai!"

"Indeed." Erdeni nodded. "But what is Ahai's current identity?"

Everyone inside the tent was taken aback.

Erdeni continued, “He is already a Dorobele personally appointed by the Emperor of the Great Ming! He wears the golden seal of the Great Ming, and his family is under the protection of the Great Ming! Great Khan, if we attack Ahai, it will not be a matter of dealing with internal treason, but rather a declaration of war against the Great Ming! This would be handing them a handle, leaving us with no legitimate reason to wage war!”

"So what if we declare war!" Buyan Chechen roared again, "When have the warriors of Mongolia ever feared war! Think of my ancestors..."

“Buyan Chechen!” Erdeni coldly interrupted him. “Your bravery is unparalleled on the grasslands. But look beyond the northern mountains and think about it: what is it that now stands in the former territory of Khorchin?”

Bu Yanchechen's expression changed instantly, and the flame in his eyes dimmed slightly.

Erdeni's voice grew increasingly low, like the chilling wind of a winter night seeping into everyone's bones: "They are the most elite border troops of the Ming Dynasty, numbering twenty thousand! Great Khan, do you still remember them? Their army hangs to our north like a sword of Damocles. To the east, they can cut off our retreat; to the west, they can aid their allies! The ingenuity and ruthlessness of their encampment is truly a stroke of genius!"

“Moreover,” Erdeni’s gaze swept across the angry and bewildered faces in the tent, “Man Gui of Xuanda, whose tens of thousands of new troops are no longer the same as before! Their firearms are sharp, their discipline is strict, and their tactics are unpredictable. In open battle with them, Great Khan, forgive my bluntness, but we have no guarantee of victory! If we get bogged down, we will be caught in a dilemma, unable to advance or retreat, and unable to cope with either side!”

His words struck everyone like a boulder, and the previously boiling murderous aura in the tent quickly cooled down.

Lindan Khan forced himself to remain calm, snorted coldly, and proposed another strategy: "Fine! Even if we don't take action ourselves, we will use the name of the Great Khan of Mongolia to command all the tribes in the southern desert to jointly punish the traitor! Do you think they would dare to disobey the call of my Golden Family? I don't believe the entire steppe is blind!"

These words were filled with the Great Khan's authority and confidence.

However, Erdeni Khuntaiji's next question was like the sharpest dagger, precisely and cruelly piercing through Ligdan Khan's last layer of disguise.

Erdene raised his head, his eyes filled with almost pity, and asked softly:

"Great Khan... I ask you, in this day and age, who would be willing to oppose the benefactor who provides him with food and clothing, for the sake of the Great Khan's name?"

Lin Danhan's body suddenly stiffened.

Erdene gave him no time to think; his aged and cruel voice continued to echo in the deathly silent Khan's tent:
"Last year, the Ordos tribe suffered a devastating famine, losing 30% of their cattle and sheep. They pleaded with the Great Khan to reduce their tribute but were refused. This year, they can exchange a dozen animal hides for a fine iron pot and half a sack of barley from the Ming Dynasty's trade market! Asking them to attack the Ming Dynasty is tantamount to sending them to their doom!"

"And those small tribes, who would have already been waiting to die by this time in previous years, are now able to borrow money to build warm shelters and buy food thanks to the Great Ming's policy of providing for their homes. Their women, children, and infants can then enjoy hot porridge in warm houses. Great Khan, do you think they would abandon the lives of their people, which are within their grasp, for your unattainable glory?"

"This is a union based on self-interest, not on righteousness!" Erdeni concluded sadly. "Great Khan, we are truly all alone! That Ming emperor is using the people's livelihood as bait to build an invisible Great Wall around us, trapping us in a death trap!"

Inside the tent, there was complete silence.

If the previous analysis only made everyone feel the military predicament and political passivity, then what Erdeni said next spread shock and fear like a plague through everyone's hearts.

He took a step forward, lowering his voice even further:

"Great Khan, that Ming emperor's true scheme is to undermine the foundation of our Mongol Empire!"

……

Erdeni Hongtaiji's analysis was like a long and cruel slow torture, revealing the crisis facing the Chahar tribe and the entire Mongolian region piece by piece in a bloody manner to everyone.

Even the most impulsive Bu Yanchechen had already collapsed to the ground in despair.

The scimitar in his hand had slipped from his grasp at some point. He just stared blankly at the fire, his once sharp eyes filled with unprecedented confusion and helplessness.

He got it.

Everyone understood.

The Ming emperor laid everything out in the open, and every choice was like a long-awaited rain after a drought, or a timely fire in the snow, for those small and medium-sized tribes struggling on the brink of life and death. They simply could not refuse it!

Every step was filled with kindness and grace.

Every step makes you willingly, even gratefully, jump in!

The ultimate result of all these choices was to push Ligdan Khan, the Chahar tribe, and the entire nomadic way of life into an abyss of no return.

This is a dead end that you can see clearly and understand perfectly, yet you simply cannot solve.

Lin Danhan slumped onto the huge tiger-skin throne, his body seemingly drained of all its strength.

His brain was working at an unprecedented speed, frantically trying to find even the slightest gap in this intricate web.

beat?
If we fight, we will be deserted by our followers and bring about our own destruction.

Do not hit?

They would simply sit and wait to die, to be slowly dismembered!
Lin Danhan's mind was uncontrollably filled with images of his greatest former rival, Huang Taiji.

“I always thought…” Lin Danhan murmured absentmindedly, his voice so soft it was almost inaudible, “I always thought Huang Taiji was already a dragon among men, a hero among men. Huang Taiji is a wolf; his actions are predictable, his heart is calculable. One who fights a wolf can compare the sharpness of his claws and teeth, the length of his endurance, and the extent of his ferocity!”

His voice suddenly began to tremble, and pure fear was evident in his eyes.

"However...however, this emperor of the Ming Dynasty...Zhu Youjian..."

"He is not a human, not a wolf..."

"Truly unpredictable!!"

Lin Danhan abruptly raised his head, his unfocused gaze sweeping over the horrified faces of everyone in the tent. He seemed to be speaking to them, yet also to himself:
"We still underestimated him."

Lin Danhan leaned back abruptly, letting out a hoarse growl:

"We all underestimated him!!"

He seemed to have exhausted all his strength, waving his hand weakly, his voice utterly weary: "All of you, step back. Let me, the Khan, be alone for a moment."

The crowd felt as if they had been granted a pardon, and bowed silently like zombies as they left the Khan's tent.

In the blink of an eye, the once crowded tent was now empty except for Lin Danhan.

The wind and snow outside the tent seemed to be getting heavier, and the mournful howling sounded like the wails of countless wandering souls on the grassland. A few wisps of icy cold air seeped in through the gaps in the tent and clung to his feet.

The fire that used to make him feel comfortable now seemed to have lost all its warmth.

(End of this chapter)