Demoness, where are you Fleeing to?
Chapter 894 - 737: One Battle Decides the Grassland (Part 2)

Chapter 894: Chapter 737: One Battle Decides the Grassland (Part 2)

He sighed lightly as he mentioned this, "They asked me where County Prince Fenyang was. I told them you were here, and then they all bowed in this direction. I tried to persuade them, but they wouldn’t listen, claiming that they wanted to thank County Prince Fenyang for saving their lives. They even asked for weapons, wanting to join us in the northern campaign. I didn’t agree, as most of these people’s bodies have collapsed."

Shang Hong couldn’t help but fall silent, the change at Tumu Fort could be said to be an eternal scar of the Great Jin Dynasty.

Although the northern campaign of County Prince Fenyang was reckless and impulsive, it indeed provided these Han slaves with a chance to live.

The soldiers of Jin fought selflessly for the Court, but the Great Jin Dynasty truly wronged these brave men born from military households.

This was precisely what worried Shang Hong the most, to say that there was anyone in this world who could still make millions of soldiers from the Weisuo dedicate their lives, it could only be their current host, County Prince Fenyang.

Shang Hong had visited the army of Weisuo in north Zhili and Jizhou, and was well aware of the extent of Li Xuan’s prestige among the Weisuo soldiers.

In the eyes of those military households, County Prince Fenyang was like their reborn parents.

Li Xuan gave a slight nod without any expression, "Then let’s begin. Where is the translator?"

He seemed unresponsive, but his eyes were tumultuous.

Li Xuan’s mood was clearly not as calm as he appeared on the surface.

Shang Hong was startled on hearing this, "Is County Prince Fenyang intending to kill the prisoners? Your Highness, this cannot be, please hold back your thunderous rage. Killing prisoners brings bad omen; if the court and public hear of this, there will be uproar. Please reconsider, Your Highness!"

Li Xuan then gave him a cold glance, thinking to himself that injustice has its head and debt its owner; did he really need to be angry at these herders?

All the Han slaves were in the hands of the Mongolian nobles; the blood debt could only be attributed to these Mongolian nobles.

As for these herders, more accurately to be termed slave herders, they were like the tenant farmers of the Central Plains, but in an even worse situation.

The system of the Meng Wu people was controlled at the grassroots level by groups of ten households and a hundred households. These leaders each maintained some warriors armed with bows and blades; the rest were all servants.

The majority left here by the left wing of Datan’s seventy thousand households were of this kind.

Li Xuan was too lazy to talk further with Shang Hong and directly ordered the translator to go and do his job.

The translator selected by the Honglu Temple and stationed next to Li Xuan immediately spurred his horse forward, casting a cold gaze towards the Mongolian people in front.

His voice was loud and clear, speaking fluently in the language of Meng Wu, "All of you Marlakhin, all of you Aduqin, children under Changsheng Heaven, listen well!

You should all know your situation; according to your steppe norms, today, every man taller than a cartwheel should be beheaded or driven like cattle, destined to die of exhaustion or hunger like those Han slaves, paying with your lives for the blood debts you’ve created in the Central Plains!"

As the interpreter spoke these words, the herders immediately became agitated.

However, as the soldiers of the Jin Army nearby drew their swords to intimidate, the valley gradually regained its silence.

The interpreter waited until the surrounding noises had subsided before he spoke again, "However, our great County Prince Fenyang of Jin, the strongest warrior and most astute commander under Changsheng Heaven, believes in the virtue of cherishing life, and he is willing to give you a chance, a chance to change your destiny."

By this time, some soldiers had already placed daggers in front of the Mongolian nobles and warriors tied to the wooden posts.

At that moment, the translator’s voice carried a chilling note, "Take these daggers, stab them once, and the Great Jin will treat you as Jin People. The Great Jin will distribute to each of you twenty lamb kids, ten ewes, two cows, two horses, and a tent! And you will be exempt from taxes for three years."

In an instant, the whole valley fell silent, so quiet that one could hear a pin drop.

All the Mongolian herders, as well as the Mongolian Nobles tied to the wooden posts, looked incredulously towards Li Xuan.

Shang Hong surprisingly understood the Mongolian language as well, his pupils slightly contracting, "Your Highness, what exactly is your intention with this action?"

Li Xuan’s lips slightly lifted, holding a meaningful smile, "Naturally, it is to sweep through MoNan and MoBei, kill all the Mongolian Nobles, divide their cattle, sheep, and pastures, and register these herders in the civil census, govern them with counties. To seek a thorough cure and ensure long-lasting peace. Daxueshi Shang, what do you think?"

Actually, a more accurate description would be — a prairie version of robbing the rich and distributing land.

Unfortunately, Li Xuan did not have a well-organized political party; otherwise, he would not have resorted to such drastic measures.

Shang Hong pondered for a moment, then smiled bitterly, "If the County Prince can indeed accomplish this, it would indeed stabilize the Mongolian prairies for decades. However, those Mongolian Nobles will surely resist fiercely."

He thought that this strategy was completely contrary to the previous policy of the Great Jin in winning over the Mongolian chiefs and tribe leaders; in his view, it was too radical.

This would only make the Mongolians’ resistance even more resolute.

As for the ’thorough cure,’ Shang Hong completely refused to believe it.

The prairie to the north of the Great Jin was initially dominated by the Xiongnu, then successively taken over by the Xianbei and Rouran, followed by the Turkic people, and now the Mongolians.

Since the founding of the Jin, the Great Ancestor conducted eight northern expeditions, and Emperor Taizong five, driving these Mongolians to their limits.

But as soon as the heroes of the founding era of the Jin passed away, the Mongolians on the prairie thrived again like weeds after the spring.

Shang Hong shook his head slightly, secretly thinking Li Xuan naive, "Your Highness, the ’registration of the census, governed by counties’ is not a bad idea, but no one has ever achieved it. The nomadic people of the prairie move with the water and the grass, with the natural time, they are rootless people and truly ungovernable. The Court’s tethering is enough, but this system of counties is truly unsuitable for the prairie."

Li Xuan heard this and merely smiled, not saying anything further.

Dugu Biluo then gave Shang Hong a sidelong glance, thinking that just because the predecessors couldn’t achieve it, didn’t mean Li Xuan couldn’t.

She knew that the Shennong Institution was researching a technology known as ’Silage’.

The Spellcasters of the Shennong Institution were trying to mix various forages with corn and sweet potatoes, compacting them tightly and sealing them off, allowing these grasses to be isolated from the outside air and gradually ferment inside.

This would not only allow these grasses to be well preserved for several years, but also benefit the digestion of animals. And with its sour, sweet, and refreshing taste, it especially pleased the livestock.

That is to say, the future people of the prairie could preserve the pasture of the spring and summer seasons using the method of ’Silage,’ and use it to feed the livestock during the harsh winter months.

The so-called ’moving with the water and the grass, and with the natural time’ would then become history; the nomads of the prairie could thus settle down, and ’registration of the census, governed by counties’ would no longer be a fantasy.

Because Dugu Biluo was aware of the ’Silage’ method, she knew that Li Xuan’s northern expedition was truly intended to decisively settle the prairie and eradicate all future troubles!