Soon, Xie Zhiyu's order spread throughout the entire city of Kucha, and notices were posted all over the city's streets and alleys.

"No wonder the Xiongnu have been behaving themselves this time; it turns out the Han Dynasty is protecting us from behind!"

"Yes, it's unbelievable that even though our king has run away, the Great Han is still thinking of us!"

Upon seeing the proclamation, the people of Kucha City discussed it animatedly, and were filled with gratitude for the Han Dynasty's intervention.

Seeing this, Xie Zhiyu seized the opportunity and immediately dispatched an envoy with gifts to pay homage to Dong Zhuo.

"Unexpectedly, this Xie Zhiyu is quite adaptable; he grasped our meaning so quickly!"

Looking at the gifts displayed inside the tent, Dong Zhuo's face was full of smiles.

"Reporting to the general, my king said that we Xiongnu people are trustworthy. Since we have an agreement with your army, we will naturally act in accordance with the agreement. We hope that your army will also act in accordance with the agreement!"

The Xiongnu envoy's meaning was quite clear: since your Han army says there is an agreement, then we will acknowledge it, but the content of the agreement cannot be entirely determined by you.

"Haha~, that's for sure. Although I don't know many characters, I do know how to write the words 'trust' and 'righteousness'..."

Dong Zhuo laughed loudly, then looked at the Xiongnu envoy with a meaningful gaze: "According to the agreement, you Xiongnu are only temporarily stationed in Kucha, and will leave after the winter to find another place, is that right?"

"The general is right, that's exactly what's written in the agreement!"

Upon hearing Dong Zhuo bring up the contents of the agreement, the Xiongnu envoy quickly nodded in agreement.

His mission here was to discuss the contents of the so-called "agreement" with the Han army, in order to buy them time so that they could advance on the Kushan Empire next year.

Now that Dong Zhuo had actually brought it up himself, the Xiongnu envoy was naturally overjoyed.

Dong Zhuo smiled and waved his hand: "Alright, I accidentally lost the previous agreement. How about we draft a new one?"

"That would be perfect!" the Xiongnu envoy echoed.

Subsequently, Dong Zhuo ordered someone to bring him pen, ink, paper, and inkstone, and wrote down an agreement.

The agreement stipulated that the people and land of Kucha belonged to the Han Dynasty, but were only temporarily lent to the Xiongnu for governance. Both sides were allies, with the Han Dynasty as their superior, and no conflict was allowed during this period... and so on.

Soon, the agreement was drafted, and Dong Zhuo signed his name on it.

Of course, he only signed his name; he did not put his fingerprint on the document or affix his personal or official seal.

In this way, the agreement was essentially no different from a verbal agreement, as Dong Zhuo could renege on it at any time if he later refused to honor it.

The Xiongnu envoy remained oblivious to Dong Zhuo's ulterior motives, still basking in the joy of having accomplished his mission.

Dong Zhuo then smiled and said, "By the way, the main purpose of our army's visit is to mediate the dispute between you and the Xianbei. I wonder if you have exchanged any messages with the Xianbei?"

The Xiongnu envoy nodded: "Yes, the Xianbei people have agreed to negotiations and have agreed to hold talks on November 28th at the border between Kucha and Wusun!"

Dong Zhuo's expression hardened: "Very well, we don't care about the specific details of your negotiations, but I can guarantee that the Xianbei will not easily use force against you again!"

"Thank you, General! We, your humble servants, will never forget your kindness!"

Upon hearing Dong Zhuo's assurance, the Xiongnu envoy's face lit up with joy, and he hurriedly thanked Dong Zhuo repeatedly.

Dong Zhuo waved his hand: "You Xiongnu and Xianbei are now both vassals of my Great Han, this is what we should do. Alright, you can go back now!"

"I'll take my leave now!"

When the Xiongnu envoy saw Dong Zhuo waving at him, he immediately bowed and walked away.

...

Soon, the Xiongnu envoy returned to the Kucha palace with the agreement signed with Dong Zhuo.

Looking at the agreement brought back by his messenger, Xie Zhiyu breathed a sigh of relief, but was also secretly a little saddened.

He came to the Western Regions full of ambition, intending to establish a foothold there, then return to the grasslands, defeat the Xianbei, conquer the Han Dynasty, and restore the former glory of the Great Xiongnu.

Unexpectedly, things have turned out this way. I had just conquered Kucha, but now I have to prepare to leave and continue my westward campaign.

"Alas, I wonder when my Great Xiongnu will finally find a peaceful place to rest!"

Thinking it over, Xie Zhiyu couldn't help but sigh, his face revealing an unprecedented weariness.

At this point, he had completely abandoned his past ambitions and only wanted to find a place of rest for himself and his soldiers, to end this hopeless and aimless war.

Subsequently, Xie Zhiyu ordered the entire army to begin collecting supplies in preparation for the campaign against the Kushan Empire the following year.

A few days later, Yuan Shao's army arrived east of Kucha and joined Dong Zhuo's forces.

After learning about Dong Zhuo's actions during his campaign, Yuan Shao couldn't help but look at him with new respect.

Subsequently, Yuan Shao, in accordance with the agreement between Dong Zhuo and Xie Zhiyu, halted his army and set up camp there.

The army of 60,000 men built camps that stretched for nearly 15 miles from south to north.

From the sky, the Han army's camp looked like a long dragon, blocking the east of the capital of Kucha, completely extinguishing Xie Zhiyu's hope of returning east.

Shortly after Yuan Shao's Han army stopped, Li Ru and He Lian also left Wusun with their men and headed towards the negotiation site agreed upon by the Xiongnu.

November 28th.

On the border between Kucha and Wusun, the armies of the Xiongnu and Xianbei stood in neat formation, facing each other from north to south.

Before the two armies, Xie Zhiyu led his men and sat facing Li Ru, He Lian, and others.

"King Helian, speaking of which, I have some connection with your father, King Tanshihuai. It was he who guided me to the Western Regions back then. Who would have thought that things would turn out so unexpectedly, and now your tribe has also come here..."

As soon as they sat down, Xie Zhiyu took the lead in speaking, trying to get closer to He Lian while also pointing out the common experiences of the two departments.

He Lian smiled and said, "Yes, life is indeed unpredictable, but my department is much luckier than yours..."

Xie Zhiyu frowned: "You were both driven here like King Lian, so what's so lucky about that? Is it just because of the Han army's support for your tribe?"

"No, no, no, the aid and support from the Han army is only one aspect. The most important thing is that our tribe has a clear goal and direction. We will not be like you Xiongnu, being chased around like a frantic mouse..."

He Lian waved his hand with a smile, a hint of smugness and mockery of the Xiongnu on his face as he spoke.

"Goals and direction?"

Xie Zhiyu didn't care much about He Lian's sarcasm, but instead grasped the key point in He Lian's words.