Chapter 641 [First Update]
Lu Xuan, who had read some sage books, widened his eyes in surprise: "What?"
Liu Tan was quite calm. "Don't be surprised. The customs of the Wuhuan are quite different from ours. They value the young over the old, and killing fathers and brothers is not uncommon. They just don't kill their own mothers, because mothers have clans, but fathers don't. Besides, apart from war, matters within the tribe are decided by women, so killing fathers is quite normal within the Wuhuan."
Lu Xuan's entire worldview was distorted after hearing this. Although the Wusun people did not value filial piety as much as the Han people, they also had certain ethical and moral constraints. For example, Junxumi had to secretly kill his own grandfather in order to gain power. If it were the Wuhuan... wouldn't they just pick up their swords and chop them down?
After a moment of shock, Lu Xuan regained his composure and said with a complicated tone, "General Li... I'm afraid you won't agree?"
Liu Tan waved his hand and said, "It's okay, he will agree."
Lu Xuan fell silent after hearing this. He silently sympathized with General Li for a moment, and then he threw the matter aside without any conscience. After all, as long as his Ah Tan was happy, that was all that mattered.
As for worrying about losing, that kind of thing never even occurred to him.
If the Wusun Kingdom had more soldiers at that time, Lu Xuan would have been confident that he could take advantage of Wu Shilu's death to defeat the Xiongnu directly.
Now they have him and Li Xi. Li Xi has an army of 100,000 and there are tens of thousands of soldiers from the Northern Border Kingdom. If they can't defeat them...they should just forget about it.
Of course, Lu Xuan also knew that victory does not come from having more people, but they not only have people but also various powerful weapons. Why were the Xiongnu suppressed by them? Wasn’t it because they were well-equipped?
The time, place and people are all on their side, so if they still lose, it probably means that the gods don't like them.
Although they were making intensive preparations to deal with the Huns, for the Han Dynasty now, the surrender of the Wuhuan was the most important matter.
This kind of thing where other countries are defeated and forced to surrender is very encouraging, so Liu Tan will wait for Li Xi's victory report, and then polish it and hand it over directly.
This is because Liu Tan was nominally the main general in this battle, otherwise Li Xi's memorial should have been delivered directly to Chang'an, and then Chang'an would order Li Xi to return to the court.
Therefore, Liu Tan had to fight with the Huns before Liu Che ordered Li Xi to return to the court. Even if Chang'an knew about it, he could not let them retreat. If you dare to retreat, they will dare to attack you. So he definitely could not retreat at that time.
So Liu Tan discussed with Lu Xuan, and they decided to wait until Li Xi returned to Yan State to report before sending out the victory report. During this process, they prepared food and other things first.
However, this time they could not purchase from the surrounding counties. Even if they wanted to buy, they could only do it in a roundabout way and let Huo Guang buy it in the northern border country and then transport it to Yan State.
When Li Xi returned to the State of Yan with the surrendered Wuhuan Prince, his face beaming with joy, this was the news waiting for him.
In an instant, he threw aside all his previous hopes for a title. His face went from rosy to pale in the blink of an incense stick. He looked at Liu Tan earnestly and said, "Your Highness, Your Highness, the Xiongnu are different from the Wuhuan..."
Liu Tan disagreed: "They are just a little more numerous than the Wuhuan. Don't be scared by those people. The Xiongnu are nothing to be afraid of."
Li Xixin said that if the Huns were not that scary, would the Han Dynasty have to fight with them for such a long time?
Liu Tan knew what he was thinking from his expression and asked, "Tell me, what would happen if you didn't have a gunpowder barrel, a scope, or a crossbow, and you fought against the Wuhuan?"
Li Xi imagined the scene and suddenly felt his hair turn white with worry: "The chance of winning is probably only 60% at best."
Liu Tan spread his hands and said, "Look, with those things, our 60% chance of victory has become 100%. Even now, Chang'an still doesn't believe that your casualties are so low. What do you think the Xiongnu have more than the Wuhuan? All beings are equal in front of these things."
Li Xi: ...
Seeing that Liu Tan had made up his mind, he guessed that he could no longer persuade him, so he asked cautiously, "Then... Your Majesty..."
He didn't finish the question because he saw Liu Tan's expression and knew there was no need to ask.
Alas, executing first and reporting later is probably his prince's ancestral skill.
Seeing his gloomy face, Liu Tan whispered, "Even though you've annihilated the Wuhuan this time, the most you'll be granted when you return is a Guannei Marquis. A Marquisate title will probably be difficult to achieve. But if you add to that the prestige of your victory over the Xiongnu, I can help you get one."
Liu Tan added, "Don't overthink it. The Xiongnu occupied Shanggu Commandery before, and although I drove them away, I was in a hurry to return to Yan State, so I ignored them. Now these Xiongnu are still lingering near the border, and I can't rest easy until I drive them away."
Li Xi couldn't help but feel his heart beating faster after hearing this. He had thought about it on the way here. Although this time it could be regarded as the destruction of a country, Wuhuan was just a small country. The Han Dynasty never took Wuhuan seriously at all, so at most he could only be a Marquis of Guannei, and it would probably be difficult to get any higher.
As for Li Buyan, he only recaptured Liaodong County, and was no match for Li Xi in terms of battle losses or other aspects, so he was just promoted.
From Guannei Hou to Lie Hou, there are more levels than just a few numbers.
When Li Xi had not lost his title, he had not yet become a marquis.
If we can defeat the Huns, there is no need to destroy the country. It should be enough as long as we can drive the Huns out of the range of Lady Fan City. Moreover, the King of the Northern Territory also said that he would take some action.
You should know that although the King of the North has been favored for so many years, he has never relied on his favor to ask for official positions or titles for his subordinates. Officials of the Northern Kingdom are promoted through normal channels, and they all have merits and are very confident.
So as long as Liu Tan opened his mouth, Liu Che would most likely agree.
The most important thing is that Liu Che treats people who listen to his son differently.
Li Xi was originally stationed in Huangjin City. Logically speaking, there was no one else in the court who could lead the troops except him, but Liu Che would rather promote someone to be stationed in Huangjin City and let him come. It was because he had a different relationship with Liu Tan.
This matter... is really possible. Even if he loses or fails to meet expectations, he is guaranteed to be a Guannei Hou.
As for being questioned or something… Li Xi wasn't worried at all. When had His Highness ever let a subordinate take the blame? Sometimes, even if it was a subordinate's fault, he would just downplay it and brush it off.
So after a brief hesitation, Li Xi made the decision and said, "Okay!"
Liu Tan was instantly overjoyed, and then said, "That's perfect. Prime Minister Huo has already made all the arrangements. You can take a team of personal soldiers and leave secretly tonight."
Li Xi was stunned for a moment: "Where does Your Highness want me to go?"
Liu Tan said, "In the Northern Territory, the two most experienced people there are Wei Buyi and Li Buyan. I'm still a little worried about them, so I can only let you take charge."
Li Xi suddenly had a bad feeling: "How does Your Highness plan to send troops?"
Liu Tan said, "Divide the troops into two groups. The Northern Border Kingdom and the Yan Kingdom will send troops simultaneously."
Li Xi looked up at him and said with difficulty: "Then I'm leaving..."
Liu Tan patted his shoulder and said, "Don't worry, don't worry. Aren't Lu Xuan and I still here?"
Li Xi turned and looked at Lu Xuan again: "Your Highness the King of Wusun... I'm afraid it's not easy to send troops?"
Lu Xuan glanced at Liu Tan with a smile and said, "I'm here to serve as Tan's vanguard."
Li Xi's eyes darkened. "These two are trying to poke a hole in the sky! How can you guys act like you just want to drive the Xiongnu away? If we don't go to Longcheng, he'll just retire!"
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