"His Majesty and I have decided to recognize the status of the Northern Region and endorse its culture."
Upon hearing this, the generals of the Northern Region showed expressions of shock. In the past, defeated tribes would force their adversaries to assimilate, especially since this had always been the case in the Central Plains. Why were they being so tolerant today?
Ma Hong was a typical nationalist. He stood up on the spot, ignoring his injuries, and objected to her: "No, these barbarians are uncivilized. How can we let them go unchecked? Besides, what kind of culture could the barbarians have? They..."
"What makes Li Li different from you? What makes him different from the rest of us here? Is it simply because his father is Bei Luo?"
Ma Hong nodded emphatically: "If the Hu people refuse to convert, then we will kill them until they do. There is no other way but to convert. Besides, what's wrong with them joining our Central Plains people?"
He was clearly very confident in the Central Plains.
People from every country are proud of their country. That's only natural. Unfortunately, whether the Central Plains are still advanced is perhaps no longer entirely certain.
Perhaps the civilization was very advanced, but the Central Plains still had many shortcomings.
People like Ma Hong must have also seen the shortcomings of the Central Plains.
Xie Lanzhi said to Ma Hong and even the generals around him, "Have you ever thought that their culture might also be worthy of respect? We don't necessarily have to assimilate them."
"Our civilization has also suffered greatly and endured many hardships, so we all empathize with the desire to protect our community. So perhaps we can try to be more tolerant of them."
"I even guide them on how to properly protect their communities. I firmly believe that every community, in the end, will share a common aspiration: to stop fighting and achieve universal harmony!"
Upon hearing this, the generals of the Northern Region all stared at Xie Lanzhi in shock.
This included Ma Hong and Ma Hu, as well as other generals of the Beijing Guard. Xie and his men, on the contrary, had become accustomed to it. They believed that every decision the marshal made was correct.
Ma Hong continued to argue, but Xie Lanzhi decided to listen to his story.
However, just as Ma Hong was about to speak, he suddenly remembered Xie Ying, who had been in a coma for several days, and the scene of their past battle resurfaced in his mind.
Finally, he moved his lips and asked, "Does Your Majesty agree?"
Xie Lanzhi said, "She will persuade the ministers."
"Does the Marshal have a way to ensure that the Hu people are of one mind with us?" Ma Hong asked Xie Lanzhi with a serious expression.
Xie Lanzhi said, "This is an unknown question. But I am willing to believe in the Hu people of the Northern Regions."
Ma Hong: "Because of the Crown Prince."
Xie Lanzhi nodded: "Because of Li Li, I realized that the Northern Regions are not outsiders. A hundred years ago, when the founding emperor of the Great Jin Dynasty established the country, the Hu people were among them, and they were also part of the Central Plains."
"It was only because the retired emperor was incompetent and died in the Central Plains that the various regions were divided. Now we have recovered the former Lu State, the ten central states, and the northern states."
"The Northern Region has inhabited this land for a hundred years, or even several hundred years, so why isn't it part of the Central Plains?"
These words were spoken.
The generals all said, "Our late ancestor abolished slavery in the north, giving all tribes and peoples the opportunity to rise above their circumstances. The glory of the past is recognized by all of Kyushu."
"Whether in the Northern Regions or among the Northern Hu and Xiongnu, everyone agrees on the contributions and impact of our late ancestor's abolition of slavery."
"Now, His Majesty is merely restoring the system of one state over the nine provinces, a practice inherited from the late Emperor Taizu."
"General Ma, your ancestors were all loyal and brave warriors. Have you ever forgotten a famous saying of General Ma?"
Ma Hong suddenly remembered that his grandfather had indeed said a famous saying: "The Central Plains and the four seas are one family, and only the eight neighboring countries are friendly nations."
This refers to the prosperous period when the founding emperor unified the nine provinces and governed various ethnic groups.
Ma Hong said nothing in the end, but bowed deeply to Xie Lanzhi: "Marshal, this matter is up to you to decide. I am still injured, so I will go back first."
In fact, he was avoiding meeting other people from the Northern Region. After all, he had killed so many people from the Northern Region, and if the Marshal were present to negotiate, the other side might change their minds because of him.
Xie Lanzhi understood what he meant.
She asked the general of the northern region, "Where is the old Khan now?"
The generals of the Northern Region answered one after another: "In the inner palace of the capital, the old Khan has been imprisoned by the traitor Yelü Wen. He is currently in poor health and is still recuperating."
Xie Lanzhi said, "Then let him rest. He is not suitable to preside over the Northern Region now. Have the leaders of your various tribes come to see me."
"Please wait a moment." The general of the Northern Region immediately sent someone to invite the people from the eight major tribes of the Northern Region.
Among the leaders of the eight tribes was Subage. When Xie Lanzhi met Subage, she first invited him to sit down, and then said to the other tribal leaders, "I order you to count the population of various places in the Northern Region within three days, and then recruit road builders to enter the Central Alliance to open up the mountains for this dynasty."
"For every additional person killed, I will reward you with a basket of coal and a bag of grain."
The leaders of the eight tribes were stunned and didn't know what she was trying to do.
Subage understood Xie Lanzhi's meaning, but he did not say it directly. Instead, he said, "The people of 100,000 are willing to entrust this to the Marshal."
Xie Lanzhi said, "Very good. I will open up the commercial city within three days. Before the Crown Prince's posthumous children begin their education, the commercial city will be temporarily handed over to the Subage Grand Guardian for management."
Upon hearing this, Subag's eyes immediately reddened, and he wiped away his tears: "Thank you for your kindness, Marshal."
Your Highness, you have succeeded. You have preserved the roots of the Northern Region.
As for the other leaders, Xie Lanzhi urged them to take action immediately. The leaders were somewhat incredulous that Xie Lanzhi hadn't ordered them to surrender their troops, but they could still afford to pay for the civilians.
Xie Lanzhi emphasized: "The Hu people we borrow will travel by boat from the first place to Luzhou Prefecture. I will personally make the arrangements."
"Yes!" The seven leaders immediately turned to prepare. The Northern Region general followed closely behind. Even though they had troops, they dared not attack, otherwise, let alone the Imperial Guards, Xie Bing alone could have ruthlessly slaughtered them.
The fate of the Northern Hu and Xiongnu is imminent.
After the Northern Army generals left, Ma Hu couldn't help but step forward, clasping his hands in a fist and bow, saying, "Marshal, please wait."
Xie Lanzhi turned around and glanced at him: "I remember your name is Ma Hu, and you are the Right General under Ma Hong?"
Ma Hu said, "Yes, Marshal. May I ask you a question? Aren't you afraid that the Northern Army will become a hidden danger for the Western Jin Dynasty? Perhaps they are destined to be our enemies."
Xie Lanzhi said, "Our enemies are overseas."
After she finished speaking, she turned and boarded a military ship, then told him, "When Xie Ying wakes up, tell her to stay here temporarily to maintain order. She is not to return to the capital without being summoned."
This is all she can do for the child right now; the rest is up to fate.
I just hope they can all move on from Li Li's death.
The warships quickly left the port and arrived at the Lu State river port in an hour.
The people of the Northern Regions were all amazed by the power of the Western Jin Dynasty when they saw the iron box on the water. It was amazing that they could make iron ships weighing tens of tons float on the water, and the chimney was like a boiling pot lid that propelled the ship forward.
The mere sight of a single warship was enough to subdue many of the northern barbarians, and given that few had died there, with most remaining unharmed, their fear of the Western Jin Dynasty temporarily outweighed their hatred.
However, in Yifan, many people harbored hatred towards Ma Hong and Xie Ying. The 100,000 people who remained in Luzhou Prefecture, under Si Caifeng's arrangement, all returned to Yifan.
After the port was placed under guard, Si Caifeng, in order to maintain control of the commercial capital, specifically killed a group of radicals. This caused some of the remaining Hu people to become dissatisfied with her and want to elect Subage to replace Si Caifeng.
Subagu, however, supported Si Caifeng, vowing to kill whoever she suggested. Amidst the hatred of war, a sense of bewilderment arose: who truly was the enemy?
Years later, the hatred of their ancestors had faded with time. The people of that era became the inheritors of the Li Le culture, which in turn became the heart of the Inner Harbour. Furthermore, it gave rise to a powerful navy.
Furthermore, they insisted that the Li Li culture was one of the branches of the Central Plains culture. Later, it even influenced other regions, and these regions were integrated into the Central Plains because the Li Li culture submitted to the Central Plains.
Because most of the foreign regions shared the same ancestry and origins as the northern regions and the northern Hu and Xiongnu, their cultures were similar, making it easier for them to become familiar with the Li Li culture. As the Li Li culture interacted with the Central Plains, it absorbed elements from each other and became the ethnic culture closest to the Central Plains.
In contrast, the Northern Hu and Xiongnu disappeared without a trace in the end.
Only the Li Li culture survived and was sought after by countless people from other regions. The Central Plains began to accept cultural integration in large quantities, continuously progressed, and became the most inclusive country in later generations.
Xie Lanzhi's order prompted all the leaders to send the Hu people to Luzhou Prefecture in order to obtain more coal and grain.
I've been working on picking people up and haven't slept for almost two days.
The general beside him told him, "A total of five million people have been sent. That's far too many."
"Those nobles are like people who complain about having too many people to eat; they wouldn't go so far as to move all their people over here."
Gong Fuling didn't want to meddle in other people's business; he just wanted to complete the task quickly: "How many people have been counted in the Northern Region?"
"Of the total of 20 million people, 20% were sent here."
"Quickly send it into the mountains, and have them clear those mountains in the central region as soon as possible."
The Central Alliance, through the reconnaissance efforts of the Mohist disciples who had traveled north, discovered a substance called black oil in the vicinity. Unfortunately, the soil was too thick, requiring very deep digging to reach it. Therefore, the Mohist disciples temporarily abandoned the project.
However, those mountains do indeed block the road to Tianjing. Once the mountains are cleared, Tianjing in the central and southern regions can be connected. At that time, the central region and Luzhou Prefecture will be much wealthier.
The government had to admit that digging through mountains and building roads was indeed the most worthwhile project to develop throughout history.
Five million non-Han people were sent into the mountains, all wailing and howling as if they had been sold into slavery by their chieftains to serve as livestock for the Western Jin Dynasty in road construction. Everyone was plunged into despair.
The entire valley was filled with the cries of the Hu people, making it seem like a living hell.
However, after the Hu people had worked for a few days, they discovered that not only were houses being built, but a steady stream of food and charcoal was being delivered specifically for them.
The food was even better than what they had in the Northern Region.
They could even occasionally find a few pieces of meat, and they would receive some money every ten days. King Lu also opened the city to them so they could come in and buy things.
Many Hu people were able to use their money to buy new clothes. If they fell ill, doctors would prescribe medicine for them.
This life was simply unbearable for slaves. Over time, no one thought of escaping, and some even considered living in the Central Union.
Five million people were pioneering in the Central Alliance, undergoing rigorous training. Occasionally, artillery would clear the way, which greatly accelerated the road construction process.
The work here is in full swing.
The news that Xie had taken his family to the north spread throughout the land. The 100,000 Xie soldiers who had been dismissed had married and had children in the countryside. Upon hearing of Xie's call, they all took their families and went to the north.
Almost everyone related to the Xie family went north. A total of 300,000 people.
The ministers were initially worried that the Xie clan would monopolize the north and become a large clan, but Si Xitong dispersed the 300,000 people, and the main task of this Xie clan was to lead the people of the Central Plains in the north to reclaim the wasteland.
Over the past century, the Northern Hu and Xiongnu have not only failed to increase farmland, but have also acquired a considerable amount of pasture and forest.
What the farmers of the Central Plains needed was farmland. Xie's departure was ostensibly to use Xie Lanzhi's reputation to intimidate those restless people in the north, but in reality, it was to sow discord in the north.
There is no more suitable clan in the world than the Xie clan. Their cohesion is enough to keep the entire north in check.
The Xie family used warships and newly developed iron-wheeled ships to transport their supplies to the north.
The iron-wheeled boat was not a real boat, but a land-based vessel invented by Wei Gong. It was called an iron-wheeled boat because its body resembled that of a boat, except that it had three iron wheels added underneath.
To be honest, this iron-wheeled ship was an experimental vessel and couldn't go very fast, but it had the advantage of carrying a lot of cargo. So, going slowly wasn't a big deal.
This was a steamship built using the steam engine of an iron ship, with a power output of five kilometers per hour. Furthermore, the Northern Xiongnu had previously imitated the Central Plains in building roads, facilitating the Xie clan's entry into the north. Therefore, the iron-steamship traveled relatively smoothly. However, the steamship was very noisy, requiring frequent additions of water and coal. The vehicle also got too hot and needed to be stopped to cool down. It could be said that traveling on it was even less convenient than using a horse-drawn carriage.
The Xie clan members found it very interesting. Although the iron lump was big and difficult to move, it was the first time they had seen a vehicle that could move by a stove. Many children were lying on the stern, curiously observing the vehicle.
Xie Guang followed behind his clansmen, seeing the children still on the iron lumps. He couldn't help but say, "How can the children of the Xie clan be lazy? Get down and walk for me!!"
As soon as Xie Guang shouted, the children immediately got off the car and went to find their parents.
His wife, Mrs. Wang, couldn't help but pinch him: "Why are you shouting so loudly?!"