The imperial court is ceding territory from our northern border? Then we'll rebel!

Three days later.

"A Line of Sky" Valley Entrance.

A high platform, constructed from a mixture of three thousand corpses and frozen soil, has risen from the ground.

This is a Jingguan (a mound of skulls).

A silent yet menacing monument to martial arts achievements.

Ashina Sun and his three thousand most elite Kheshig guards were forever frozen here in a highly humiliating manner.

Their bodies, layered upon each other, were in various shapes, their faces still frozen with the fear and resentment of their dying moments.

At the very top of the Jingguan (a mound of statues), on a tall flagpole, hangs Ashina Jun, the once invincible king of the grasslands, now reduced to a mere torso, like a tattered rag.

He is still alive.

Xiao Jingchen used the best medicine to keep him alive until his last breath.

It was so that he could witness firsthand how the empire he had built would crumble.

The cold wind blew, stirring his battered body and carrying with it the thick, pungent smell of blood that permeated the grassland.

Anyone who sees this Jingguan (a mound of skulls) will feel an overwhelming sense of fear rising from the bottom of their heart.

Xiao Jingchen's 200,000-strong army was stationed not far from this mound of skulls.

But at this moment, the atmosphere in the military camp was completely different from that of three days ago.

There were no more shouts of battle, no more sounds of clashing weapons.

Instead of dej, there was a busy yet orderly scene.

Shen Wanqian's "Business Department" has taken full control of the follow-up work.

Truckloads of grain were continuously transported from within the Great Wall.

Outside the military camp, huge soup kitchens were set up.

Countless emaciated and ragged grassland herders were lining up in long queues to receive bowls of steaming rice porridge from the hands of the Great Yan soldiers.

Most of them were the elderly, women, and children who were abandoned at the rear when Ashina Sun went on his expedition.

They thought that what awaited them was the slaughter of the Han army and their flames.

Unexpectedly, what arrived was food that could save lives.

They watched as those Han soldiers, once like demons in legends, now patiently distributed food to them, even helping up elderly people who had accidentally fallen, and draping old military uniforms over shivering children.

Their eyes, initially filled with fear and numbness, gradually transformed into a hint of confusion, gratitude, and...hope.

On the other side of the military camp, however, was a completely different scene.

Hadan, the leader of the Black Wolf Tribe, Bayin, the leader of the Vulture Tribe, and more than a dozen other tribal leaders who had come to join them, were all gathered respectfully outside Shen Wanqian's tent.

Their faces wore fawning smiles, and their eyes were filled with longing.

"Lord Shen! Lord Shen! Look, our Black Wolf Tribe really put in a lot of effort this time! We were the first to harass Ashina Sun's supply lines! Look at the Prince's reward..." Hadan rubbed his hands together and said to Shen Wanqian, who had just stepped out of the tent.

"Hmph, Hadan, you're wrong about that!" Bayin immediately retorted, "Our Vulture Tribe killed the most enemies! We even turned one of Ashina Sun's 10,000-man commanders against us! If we're talking about merit, we're the greatest!"

"You're talking nonsense! We were the ones who made contact with that centurion first!"

"..."

Looking at these tribal chiefs who were sworn brothers yesterday but are now arguing heatedly over credit and rewards, Shen Wanqian still wore that characteristic merchant's smile of affability and the desire to make money.

But in his heart, he admired Xiao Jingchen's methods immensely.

The prince is right.

To deal with these people, we must prevent them from uniting.

"My lords, my lords, please calm down, please calm down!" Shen Wanqian cupped his hands in greeting and said with a smile, "His Highness has seen and remembered everyone's contributions. No one will be treated unfairly!"

"His Highness has given the order!" He cleared his throat, his voice suddenly rising.

All the tribal chiefs fell silent instantly, each one of them pricking up their ears.

"Hadan, the leader of the Black Wolf Tribe, is renowned for his bravery and outstanding achievements in battle. He is hereby granted the title of 'Captain of Righteousness' and awarded one thousand cattle, five thousand sheep, and one hundred bolts of silk!"

Hadan's eyes widened instantly, and his face was filled with ecstatic joy!

Lieutenant of the Righteous Commandant! That's a high-ranking official position in the Great Yan Dynasty! Although it's not a high-ranking one, if word gets out, it means I'm working for the Great Yan court! That's a huge amount of prestige!

"Bayin, the leader of the Vulture Tribe, is a man of great principle and has rendered meritorious service in turning the tribe against its leader. He is hereby granted the title of 'General of Huaihua' and awarded 800 cattle, 4,000 sheep, and 50 chests of tea!"

Bayin was taken aback, then overjoyed. "Huaihua Langjiang"—that sounded higher than "Xiaowei"! Although the reward was less, the rank was high!

Shen Wanqian chuckled inwardly as he looked at their expressions.

Both official positions were hastily created by him and were never reported to the imperial court. But they were more than enough to deal with these unsophisticated grassland barbarians.

He wanted them to both gain something, one the benefit and the other the fame, both feeling a little smug and a little resentful.

Next, Shen Wanqian read out a series of awards and honors.

As Xiao Jingchen had predicted.

The tribal chiefs who received the generous rewards were all beaming with joy and deeply grateful to the Great Yan.

Those who received slightly less reward, though they still received theirs, looked at the people around them with a hint of jealousy and resentment.

An invisible rift has appeared between them.

After dealing with these tribal chiefs, Shen Wanqian immediately headed to his next destination.

That was the surrender camp of Ashina Jun's remaining troops.

Upon seeing Ashina Sun's mound of skulls and learning that their king had become a prisoner, the hundreds of thousands of leaderless steppe troops surrendered without offering any resistance.

Xiao Jingchen did not imprison them all, but instead made an even bolder decision.

He instructed Shen Wanqian to select able-bodied men from among these surrendered soldiers and reorganize them.

"Tell them that Ashina Sun is dead. The grasslands need a new master."

"They have two options. One is to go home and graze their livestock. I, Da Yan, will guarantee their safety and provide them with seeds and cattle and sheep."

"Secondly, they can continue to serve in the army. But they will no longer serve for a tribal chief, but will become soldiers of the Great Yan's 'Grassland Protectorate.' They will receive military pay from Great Yan and guard the borders of Great Yan. Their enemies will no longer be the Han people, but those jackals from the west and north who attempt to disrupt the peace of the grasslands."

This decision has caused considerable controversy within the military.

Lei Lie was the first to jump out and object.

"Your Highness! You mustn't! These people were our enemies yesterday! To let them wear our uniforms and carry our weapons today? This... this is like raising a tiger to cause trouble! What if they stab us in the back?"

"They wouldn't dare," Xiao Jingchen replied simply.

"Their families are all under our control and need our food to survive. Their former masters are now corpses on the Jingguan (a mound of corpses). They have no faith, no support, and have no other choice but to rely on us."

"Furthermore, I will not let them form separate armies. I will break them up and mix them with our Han soldiers in formation. Each Han soldier will lead two steppe soldiers. This will allow them to learn from and supervise each other in their daily training and life."

"Most importantly, I want them to see that being a soldier of the Great Yan is more promising than being a soldier of the grasslands. We have better weapons, more generous pay, and more comprehensive compensation for the wounded and disabled. Those who make meritorious contributions can also be promoted and given official titles."

"Lei Lie, remember this. We conquered the grasslands not only with swords, but also with the hearts of the people. I want the bravest warriors on this land to be proud to serve my Great Yan. This is true peace and stability."

Lei Lie listened with a mixture of understanding and confusion, but he knew that the prince had never made a mistake in his decisions.