Upon entering the tribe and seeing the dilapidated state of the village and the pitiful women, the Xianbei soldiers suppressed their urge to plunder.
Under Li Ru's orders, the Xianbei soldiers followed the military discipline they had learned from the Han army. They not only gave food to the women from the Western Regions, but also went into the tribe to help them repair their houses, fetch water and carry firewood. Some even gave their own clothes to the women to keep them warm.
Seeing the Xianbei soldiers who did not harm them in the slightest and even offered to help them, the women in the tribe were deeply moved, and their expectations grew stronger.
Li Ru also found a house, took out a map, and began to plan his next route.
Following Dong Zhuo's earlier advice, Li Ru also used his pen to connect all the tribes and countries along the route from here to Cheshi into a line.
According to Li Ru's thinking, it would be very difficult for the Xianbei people alone to reach the northern steppes of Rome in the far west from here.
Therefore, in order to ensure the safety and success of the westward journey, it was necessary to bring the Xiongnu people into the westward journey group.
With this in mind, Li Ru began to ponder his next contact with Xie Zhiyu.
Previously, although Tan Shihuai and Xie Zhiyu fought to the death, in the final battle, Tan Shihuai generously let Xie Zhiyu go and guided him to the Western Regions.
With this bond, and given their current similar circumstances, they are able to coexist peacefully.
The only problem Li Ru needs to consider now is how to persuade Xie Zhiyu to follow him westward.
After all, no one had ever been to Rome and knew nothing about the situation there. Without any substantial intelligence, it was difficult to persuade Xie Zhi to willingly leave.
After a moment's thought, Li Ru also came up with a plan in his mind to force Xie Zhi to follow him on the journey to the west.
Just as Li Ru was pondering this, the army's deputy general walked in with an excited expression.
"Sir, I've inquired, and all the women here are willing to come with us!"
"good!"
Upon hearing the deputy's report, Li Ru put away the map and then ordered, "Leave five hundred warriors to guard these women, and send someone to report the situation to the King. Once the King arrives, we will take them with us on our journey!"
"Yes, sir!"
The lieutenant agreed and then turned to leave.
After the deputy general left, Li Ru summoned one of his close attendants.
Looking at his trusted followers, Li Ru said in a deep voice, "Go to Yangguan immediately, find the people in the intelligence bureau, and tell them that I need some information about Rome, the more detailed the better!"
"Yes, sir!"
The attendant agreed and then quickly turned and left.
After resting for a day, the army, except for the five hundred soldiers left to guard the women, continued westward under Li Ru's leadership.
As Li Ru led his army on a march, taking in women along the way, the Xiongnu troops in Cheshi also finished packing up.
Thirty thousand Xiongnu cavalrymen and thirty thousand able-bodied men, carrying a large amount of supplies, formed a long column and lined up south of the capital of Cheshi.
Looking at the Cheshi capital city where he had lived for so long, Xie Zhiyu, who was at the front of the procession, couldn't help but sigh inwardly.
Chou Chan rode up to Xie Zhiyu's side: "Your Majesty, we should go!"
Let's go!
Turning his head to look at the fully equipped and ready troops, Xie Zhiyu immediately spurred his warhorse and led the troops towards Kucha in the southwest.
On the city wall of Gaochang, watching the departing Xiongnu troops, Yuan Shao let out a soft breath and a smile appeared on his face.
Zhang Xiu stepped forward and said, "Brother Benchu, the Xiongnu have already withdrawn. Should we send someone to take over Cheshi immediately?"
Yuan Shao shook his head: "No need. After this confrontation with the Xiongnu, there are very few men left in Shanshan, Qiemo, Jingjue, Xiaowan and other countries. Now, nearly 300,000 women in dozens of oases in the eastern part of the Western Regions are waiting for the court to take them in and settle them. Just these are already making the court a little overwhelmed."
If we include countries like Cheshi, we might end up neglecting one thing for another.
"Phew, Brother Benchu is right!"
Hearing Yuan Shao's words, Zhang Xiu breathed a sigh of relief and said nothing more.
Previously, the emperor led his army in a decisive battle against the Xianbei people. Although he conquered the grasslands and watered the vast sea, he achieved unparalleled success.
Although the Han Dynasty completely eliminated the threat from the north, it also depleted the reserves of the official granaries accumulated over many years, which greatly affected the Western Regions.
To completely conquer the Western Regions, the imperial court would need at least five years, or even longer, to accumulate strength.
Therefore, Yuan Shao could only allocate his limited resources to the states of Shanshan and Xiaowan, which had already submitted to the Han Dynasty. As for the land and remaining population of Cheshi, they had to be put on hold for the time being.
Just then, a woman's voice came from behind them: "But what about the women in Cheshi? The Xiongnu have taken away most of the food and supplies. Those women will starve to death soon!"
Yuan Shao and Zhang Xiu turned around and saw Lan Zhi standing there, looking at them with a sorrowful expression.
Upon seeing this, the two quickly stepped forward and bowed, saying, "Greetings, Your Majesty!"
Lanzhi stepped forward, looked at Yuan Shao and Zhang Xiu, and asked with some reproach, "I'm asking you a question again, what about those abandoned women from Cheshi Kingdom?"
"this……"
Upon hearing Lanzhi's question, Yuan Shao and Zhang Xiu exchanged a glance.
Zhang Xiu pursed his lips, then took a step back, leaving the speaking position to Yuan Shao.
Zhang Xiu was afraid that if he said something, he would get himself into trouble because his wife was angry.
Seeing this, Yuan Shao had no choice but to step forward and explain, "Your Highness need not worry. Although we cannot take those women in, we will not let them starve to death."
I had already ordered the prepared grain to be transported outside the city.
"Oh, so that food was prepared for them?"
Upon hearing Yuan Shao's explanation, Lanzhi suddenly understood, and the resentment on her face disappeared.
Yuan Shao smiled and nodded: "That's right. Although Cheshi has not submitted to the Han Dynasty, it was once a vassal state of the Han Dynasty. We will certainly not watch the people there starve to death!"
"That's good, but what will happen to those women who can't farm or work on their own?"
Hearing Yuan Shao's words, Lan Zhi felt relieved, but also raised her own questions.
Yuan Shao smiled and said, "Your Highness, rest assured, those women will be taken care of and properly settled!"
"That's good then, I won't bother you any longer!"
Hearing Yuan Shao say this, Lanzhi finally nodded in relief, and without asking any further questions, she turned and left.
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