At this time, Duan Jiong, inside the central command tent of the Liangzhou camp, also received the emperor's edict and a secret letter.
The imperial edict ordered the Liangzhou military camp to be moved to Jincheng.
The letter also requested Duan Jiong to secretly send troops, disguised in the uniforms of the commandery and kingdom soldiers, to garrison the commanderies of Dunhuang, Jiuquan, and Zhangye.
Duan Jiong immediately understood the emperor's intention. These counties were important passages connecting the Western Regions, and the Western Regions would be especially important if the Qiang people and the grasslands were to be completely resolved in the future.
Duan Jiong then summoned Guo Si, Tian Yan, Li Jue, and others to his tent and made arrangements. Guo Si led his men to Jiuquan, Tian Yan led his men to Zhangye, and Li Jue led his men to Dunhuang.
After making the arrangements, Duan Jiong summoned the generals and officers of the army, read the imperial edict to them, and then ordered the army to set off for Jincheng to garrison.
Jincheng was a place where Han and Qiang people lived together, with Qiang powerful families being the most numerous. Since Fu Xie became the governor of Jincheng, he had always used the methods of appeasement and co-optation to deal with the Qiang powerful families in Jincheng. As long as they did not infringe on the interests of the Han people, Fu Xie had always tolerated their oppression of the Qiang people.
In particular, Yan Zhong, a renowned scholar from Liangzhou, spared no effort in lobbying on behalf of Fu Xie, which enabled Fu Xie's decrees in Jincheng to be implemented. The lives of the Han people were further restored and improved, but the Qiang people in the city faced even greater hardship under the oppression of powerful clans.
Just as Duan Jiong's army set off, Fu Xie, the governor of Jincheng, also received an imperial edict. He then summoned the officials of the governor's office and designated an open space in the north of the city as a camp for the Liangzhou army.
This news quickly reached the ears of the Han and Qiang powerful families in Jincheng. The imminent arrival of Duan Jiong made some people uneasy.
Inside a mansion in Jincheng, upon learning of this news, Beigong Boyu hurriedly sent someone to contact Bian Zhang and several Qiang chieftains to come to the mansion for a meeting.
Seeing the worried faces of everyone in the hall, Beigong Boyu spoke first: "Gentlemen, tell me, that butcher Duan Jiong will be in Jincheng soon! What should we do?"
Bian Zhang frowned, pondered for a moment, and then said, "Since the Battle of Fengyishan, Duan Jiong has been stationed in Pengyang. It's normal for him to transfer troops to Jincheng to prevent them from counterattacking, since it's closer here."
We have been following the court's policies and have not done anything to harm the Han people, so I think he can't do anything to us.
The crowd nodded in agreement with Bian Zhang's guess. Although they had a long history of misdeeds, no one had targeted the Han people since Fu Xie arrived. As for the Qiang people in the city, they were their slaves, and the laws of the Han Dynasty did not apply to them.
Bian Zhang continued, "Besides, Fu Xie is in Jincheng now. He and Duan Jiong have always been at odds. Even if Duan Jiong has suspicions about us, as long as there is no evidence, Fu Xie will not let him act recklessly!"
Bei Gong Boyu nodded. "That's true, but Duan Jiong has never had a good impression of us! After we return, everyone must behave yourselves and avoid any disturbances, lest he take the opportunity to make trouble for us!"
Everyone agreed with Bei Gong Boyu's words. If their excessive oppression caused unrest among the Qiang people in the city, Duan Jiong, given his temperament, might really take the opportunity to wipe them out in one fell swoop.
After everyone had left, Beigong Boyu secretly sent someone to invite Bian Zhang back to the mansion. The two walked towards the study, where a young man was waiting for them.
This person was none other than Dianxian, who had escaped from Duan Jiong's camp. After his escape, Dianxian immediately returned to his tribe, intending to gather his former followers and prepare for a comeback.
As Xi Zhicai had predicted, although Dianxian was Dianmu's only son, he did not have his father's prestige, and very few people responded to him.
In addition, the father and son suffered a great defeat in the Battle of Fengyi Mountain, and all the tribes suffered heavy losses. Everyone was filled with resentment. The Dianmu tribe, which was originally the strongest in terms of fighting power, is now mostly left with the old, weak and disabled, which makes the other tribes extremely envious.
After Shehetai led his men back to the tribe, he immediately announced his allegiance to the Han Dynasty. He then reorganized his forces and rallied other tribes to begin attacking Dianxian's tribe.
More than a dozen tribes responded to Shehetai's call, each organizing their own troops and rushing towards Dianxian's tribe from all directions.
In just one battle, Dianxian was utterly defeated. Seeing his tribe being divided up by others, Dianxian, who had originally intended to fight to the death, was persuaded by his guards to flee again with hatred. After a long and winding journey, he arrived in Jincheng and sought refuge with Beigong Boyu.
Soon, Bei Gong Boyu and Bian Zhang entered the study. After the three of them sat down, Dian Xian spoke first, saying, "Now that Duan Jiong is leading a large army towards Jincheng, I'm afraid our next move will be very difficult."
Bian Zhang couldn't help but look at Beigong Boyu, "Is there any news from Wen Yue's side?"
Bei Gong Boyu said, "The Xiongnu are incapable of succeeding. Wen Yue has already pledged allegiance to Tan Shihuai and helped him integrate the western Xianbei."
Bian Zhang nodded. "Tan Shihuai is indeed an extraordinary person, perhaps more reliable than the Xiongnu."
Hearing the conversation between the two, Dianxian looked somewhat uneasy. The Wenyue they were talking about was none other than Han Sui, the good Mr. Han who had followed him in the past.
Dian Xian couldn't help but say, "Judging from the information Mr. Han conveyed, Tan Shihuai is an ambitious man and probably not so easy to control!"
Bei Gong Boyu smiled and said disdainfully, "Even if he is ambitious, he is just a grassland man. What else can he do besides robbing people? At most, we'll just give him some more benefits. It won't affect our plans."
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