Chapter 425: The First Year of Yanwu, Sweeping the Five Barbarians [Subscription Request]

Dongxiu Palace has two main halls, each independent but connected by an inner corridor. It is the residence of Xiaoqiao and Daqiao in Tongquetai.

As they were worried that the two sisters would not be accustomed to the cold winter in the north, the floor was made entirely of wood and there was a heating platform inside.

The interior is warm as spring.

When they first entered the palace, they were the lowest-ranking concubines.

But in the eyes of outsiders, he is of noble status and many are jealous of him.

There are many people walking around.

The Qiao family was considered to be quite wealthy in Jiangdong.

Someone came this afternoon and told Xiao Qiao that her great-mother, or grandmother, was found dead in her sleep early in the morning.

"Xiao Qiao was raised by her eldest mother when she was young, and they have a very close relationship." Da Qiao explained to Cao Cao with slightly red eyes.

The two sisters were both wearing close-fitting undergarments in the bedroom.

The cross-lapel collar reveals a neck as white as fresh snow.

Xiao Qiao lowered her red eyes and wiped away her tears quietly. She did not dare to cry in front of Cao Cao, for fear that others would dislike her.

She was not familiar with Cao Cao, yet she was taken as a concubine.

However, this is the current norm. Women who are so beautiful that they can cause trouble do not actually have much autonomy.

Those who have a miserable life are playthings of the powerful.

Only if you can meet a good match can you hope for a stable life.

"Your Majesty, my sister is not available today. I will take Your Majesty to my bedroom, okay?"

Da Qiao was a girl from the south of the Yangtze River. She spoke in the soft Wu dialect and had eyes as gentle as water, with a pleading look in them.

When Xiao Qiao was feeling sad, she wanted Cao Cao to miss the day and come back later, but she didn't dare to say it out loud.

"You stay and take care of Xiao Qiao. I'll come and take a look before I leave."

The man's relative had just died, so Cao Cao felt it was inappropriate to let him stay overnight, so he changed the subject: "Are you used to living in this palace?"

"We're used to it." The two sisters said in unison.

Cao Cao only stayed for half a quarter of an hour before getting up and leaving.

Xiao Qiao closed her red eyes, a little surprised, wiped her eyes, and hurried out with her sister to see them off.

"Go back. You are wearing thin clothes. There is no need to see me off."

Cao Cao turned around and went to Diao Chan's courtyard.

Yin was standing at the door of the bedroom, sleeping soundly.

The little tigress was guarding nearby. When she saw Cao Cao, she stood up and came over to rub the hem of his dragon robe.

Inside the palace.

Diao Chan was practicing the scorpion's tail-swinging movements, inhaling and exhaling.

When she went to Hanzhong with Cao Cao for the first time, Zhang Lu gave her the health-preserving techniques of Tianshi Dao, which could regulate yin and yang, and Cao Cao asked her to practice it.

That book contains many secret techniques that cannot be revealed.

Diao Chan practiced very seriously, and when she encountered difficulties, she often sought out her husband to discuss skills.

When Cao Cao came in, Diao Chan held her breath, stood up and said:

"Your Majesty, why are you here so early?"

"You talk as if I always come in the middle of the night."

"It was already early last night, who came through the window?"

Diao Chan retorted, and before she finished speaking she whispered:
"I was wrong. I won't do it again."

The sound of begging for mercy lasted for more than an hour before it stopped.

In the darkness of the night, Diao Chan was extremely tired and fell asleep hugging the quilt. Her fair calves and slender feet were exposed outside the quilt, with exquisite lines.

Boss Cao had just stretched his body and walked out of the bedroom with swaying steps.

In the following days, Cao Wei announced a new year name after the founding of the country.

The first reign title of the Wei Dynasty was Yanwu, which meant to continue the military exploits and pacify the four barbarians.

Cao Cao's intention to expand territory is obvious.

Previously, a minister had proposed changing the country's name.

After considering it, Cao Cao did not agree.

Using "Wei" as the name will bring peace to the world and prosperity to the country, and it cannot be easily changed.

The historians and ritual officials who annotated the Book of Changes also thought that the changes were inappropriate.

That night, Da Qiao came back from Xiao Qiao.

My sister has recovered from the grief of losing our eldest mother.

Da Qiao was in a good mood. She liked to grow flowers. There were many rare species in front of and behind her house. After Cao Cao knew her hobby, he ordered people to collect some for her.

Da Qiao voluntarily married Cao Cao as a concubine.

For some time, I lived quite comfortably in Cao's mansion and in the palace.

She tended to the flowers and plants, took a bath, changed into small clothes, and after removing her hairpin, her satin-like hair hung down and bounced back.

Then he climbed onto the bed and fell asleep.

In the middle of the night, when Da Qiao woke up from her dream, she vaguely heard someone calling her. When she opened her eyes, she saw Cao Cao. She was slightly startled and said angrily, "Your Majesty."

Cao Cao came to the couch.

The entry says that Daqiao and Xiaoqiao are both excellent products, and Yangguan Sandie is very steep.

Cao Cao deployed his tactics and captured three passes in a row...

Like this for several days.

It is now mid-January, half a month after the founding of the country.

At this time, there were changes in the surrounding areas of Shenzhou.

To the west of Yizhou, Cao Ren led his troops and never stopped levying taxes on the Qiang and Di tribes.

Cao Cao appointed Meng Huo as the leader of the seventy-two tribes in southern Xinjiang and ordered him to recruit the various tribes in southern Xinjiang to join Cao Wei.

By doing so, Meng Huo's power increased significantly on the surface, and all the foreign ethnic groups in southern Xinjiang were brought under his command.

In fact, Meng Huo was used to control foreign tribes and subdue the disobedient.

This is a method of using barbarians to control barbarians. It costs little to Cao Wei but has good effects.

You must know that Meng Huo himself is the largest chief in southern Xinjiang, and no tribe can resist him alone.

In addition to the previous wars, some people from the surrounding ethnic groups suffered casualties.

Although there are still many remnants, their power is getting weaker.

With Meng Huo's familiarity with southern Xinjiang, his own troops, and the support of Cao Wei, the conquest of surrounding tribes immediately became a powerful weapon for Cao Wei to deal with southern Xinjiang.

Yecheng.

In the afternoon, Cao Cao received news one after another: In the south, Meng Huo had just conquered the Baima Qiang tribe's land yesterday!
This was the first large tribe whose territory was conquered after the Battle of Yizhou.

The second piece of news: During the severe cold, the Xianbei gathered together all their tribes and decided to move north as soon as the weather warmed up.

The third piece of news: Trade with the Western Regions is increasing month by month, and the trade volume is expected to continue to expand.

The fourth piece of news is about the east of Shenzhou.

Under the leadership of Lu Su, the Wei army conquered the Three Han Kingdoms and selected a large number of young and strong captives, sending them to Liaodong, Yanshan and other places to become the labor force for mining copper and iron mines.

Lu Su was stationed in Han and had used the Koreans to begin making arrangements against Japan, which was separated from him by a strait.

Cao Cao read a series of news, thought for a moment, and wrote down the four big words "sweep away the Five Barbarians".

The Five Barbarians were the Xiongnu, Xianbei, Jie, Di, and Qiang.

Most of the Qiang and Di tribes are scattered in the north and south ends of Hexi.

Cao's army has fought many battles in recent years and has dealt them many blows.

Since the Xiongnu were defeated in the Western Han Dynasty, they migrated westward in large numbers.

The Southern Xiongnu who remained in Han territory were pursued repeatedly by Zhao Zilong in the previous few years and fled in all directions. Most of the remaining ones were annexed by the Xianbei.

A branch of them that migrated westwards still remains in the northwest of the Western Regions.

In addition, the Jie people have the characteristics of deep eyes, high nose and thick beard.

Some of their ethnic groups are descendants of Qiangqu.

The Hu people in the Western Regions are also a part of it.

Another part came from the west of the Western Regions and had the same origin as the Lesser Yuezhi. They were also a nomadic tribe that migrated westward from Han territory during the Western Han Dynasty.

A hundred years later, the remnants of the Five Barbarians would return and invade China, causing great disasters.

After the unification of the Wei Dynasty, in order to strengthen the country internally and improve people's livelihood, it was necessary to reduce the consumption of war.

Should we fight against the Five Barbarians? How should we fight them?
In later generations, the Mongols waged wars year after year, using the strategy of lightening the baggage load, compounding profits, and using war to support war.

For example, when fighting the Three Han Kingdoms, the local supplies seized would be enough to supply Cao Wei's troops stationed in Han territory.

The consumption on Wei itself was greatly reduced.

In the subsequent attack on Japan, the baggage would be supplied to Korea from Buyeo via Liaodong, and combined with Korea's own baggage, if Japan could be defeated as expected, the spoils of Japan would offset the military operations of Wei against Japan.

The consumption in Cao Wei's homeland will be much less than expected.

The Mongols were able to wage war all year round and reach the border of Europe because they used light cavalry and baggage trains, fought to support themselves, and relied on spoils of war to replenish their army and continue to expand.

But this method has a prerequisite, which is to win every battle!

If we lose the war, we will be dragged into the war, which will impose a serious burden on the national strength.

Cao Cao planned to wipe out the Five Barbarians and pacify the enemies in all directions, so he planned to adopt similar tactics.

He sat in his study, looking out the window at the lake.

Several white cranes landed on the lakeside, and from time to time they stretched out their long sword-like beaks to peck at the fish in the lake.

Nature is at its purest, where the strong prey on the weak.

Cao Cao withdrew his gaze and looked at the northeast corner of the map again.

……

In the middle of the Yayoi period, Wakoku called itself a slave country.

In 57 AD, its ruler sent envoys to China for the first time, arriving in Luoyang and paying tribute to the Eastern Han Dynasty.

This is the earliest record of exchanges between the two countries that can be found in later generations.

Emperor Guangwu bestowed on him the "Seal of the Kingdom of Wa", which is the earliest physical evidence of the introduction of Chinese characters into Japan.

They have always admired Han culture and have come to the West to pay homage to the Han emperor many times since then.

In 107 AD, Wa Kingdom sent envoys to Luoyang again, offering 160 slaves and requesting Empress Dowager Deng to summon them and grant them the title of a lower country, that is, a vassal state of the Eastern Han Dynasty.

Their main population is distributed in the southern part of Honshu Island, around the Nara and Osaka basins.

Its population is concentrated in the south of the country, very close to South Korea.

The two straits are only 180 miles apart at their closest point, and there are many small islands in between, where frog leaping is possible.

Park Jin-young is a member of the royal family of Mahan.

The Three Kingdoms of Han were conquered and most of their royal families were beheaded.

But Lu Su kept a few useful people.

Park Jin-young is one of them.

He was sent by Lu Su to deliver a letter of surrender to Japan.

This is the same as when Lu Su attacked Han before.

South Korea and Japan had had interactions for a long time, and Park Jin-young was kept because he had experience as an envoy to Japan.

He landed on Japanese soil accompanied by a small group of captured Korean soldiers.

Then, he sent a letter of surrender to a tribe called Hase clan in southern Japan.

Hasegawa Kaze, the leader of the Hasegawa clan, is the head of the largest national power in southern Japan.

The man was middle-aged, with sharp eyes, his hair tied up with a hairpin behind his head, and he was wearing a leather robe.

Because Korea and Japan are close to each other, they have traded with each other.

Hase Feng knows Park Jin-young.

Moreover, among each other's entourage, there are people who can speak the other's language.

"There is a great country in Shenzhou, named Wei, which is a new dynasty of the Han people.

They asked the entire Japanese nation to surrender and selected young and strong people to go to China to mine." Park Jinying said.

There was no sincerity in Lu Su's letter of surrender. It was just forcing people to resist so that he could beat them.

Chang Gufeng was stunned for a long while after hearing this:
“Go back and tell them that we admire Shenzhou and are willing to be its vassal and pay tribute every year.

But if you want us to surrender as a whole clan, that's not possible. We Japanese are also warriors of the sea, not a small clan that can be bullied by others.

We will not fear death and we will not surrender.”

Park Jin-young muttered to himself, these words sound so familiar.

They had responded to the Han people's call for surrender in the same way before, and then the Han army came and smashed the Three Han states to pieces.

He suddenly felt a sense of gloating, as if someone was finally going to take the blame for him.

"Wait a minute, I'll go back and report."

In late January, Park Jin-young returned to Han and told Lu Su the news.

Lu Su reported it to Cao Cao again.

At this time in the Wei Dynasty, Cao Cao was entertaining his ministers.

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(End of this chapter)