Chapter 59

Xue Tong held the horsewhip he had seized and examined it closely. The whip had a handle made of smooth, lustrous ox bone, and its body was made by wrapping tanned ox and dog leather together, adorned with gold, silver, and precious stones, intricately carved and exquisitely decorated. Having lived in the northern border for a long time, he was quite familiar with the customs and habits of the various tribes. Upon seeing the shape of the whip and the way the leather thongs were braided, he could not help but be startled.

Just as he was about to step forward to reason with the knights, a rider suddenly galloped out from behind a sparse grove in the direction of Jinyang City, shouting loudly.

The rider was dressed in a long-sleeved robe, typical of a civil official. He rode swiftly, his horsemanship quite remarkable. Initially, he was just a blurry shadow in the twilight, but in the blink of an eye, he was right in front of them. He then dismounted and spoke loudly to the group of knights, his words rapid and fluent, in the Xianbei language.

Lu Yao and the others could all speak a bit of the barbarian language, but to speak it so fluently was beyond their ability. This person must be a specialist in the Yue Shi Gong's staff, responsible for liaising with the northern barbarian tribes. Lu Yao rarely interacted with the civil officials in Yue Shi Gong's staff, so he did not recognize this person. However, with someone intervening, Lu Yao dismounted and ordered his men to step back.

The civil official spoke for a moment, and the group of knights suddenly burst into laughter. One of them even patted the civil official on the shoulder repeatedly, seemingly very pleased by something. They laughed wildly for a few moments and then galloped away.

Lu Yao and the others had been in a tense standoff, but they were taken aback by the civil official's few words, which had such a miraculous effect. They watched helplessly as the group of knights galloped away into the distance. The warhorses they rode were magnificent, and their horsemanship was superb, so they quickly disappeared into the dust.

"What happened... What did he say? It was so effective!" He Yun said in admiration.

"Bullshit! He just let them go? I was waiting to get justice for Old Deng!" Shen Jin was very dissatisfied.

Lu Yao cleared his throat and was about to step forward to speak with the civil official. However, the civil official suddenly changed his expression. "How dare you to offend the noble guests of Lord Yue Shi?"

Everyone was taken aback. The civil official continued to scold them, "Today, the noble guests have important matters to attend to, so they will temporarily forgive you and not hold you accountable. I, however, cannot tolerate such impolite behavior! Report your names and identities, and come to the governor's office tomorrow to receive your punishment!"

Lu Yao clasped his hands and smiled. "Sir..." As a deputy general, he held a high position among the military officers and thought he could talk things over and resolve the matter amicably.

However, the civil official was very arrogant and waved his sleeve to block Lu Yao's smile. "Stop your chatter. Quickly report your names to me. In the future, you must be more cautious. If I find you offending nobles again, I will punish you even more severely!"

"That's unreasonable! These barbarians were the ones causing trouble on the road and whipping our companion..." Shen Jin, being the most impulsive, immediately retorted.

The civil official's face darkened. Earlier, when he was speaking to the knights, he had been all smiles, but now he looked condescending and impatient. "What do you old soldiers know? If you delay the lord's important matters, even your heads won't be enough to atone for it..."

In the current dynasty, soldiers had a low status, treated like slaves. When additional troops were needed, they often conscripted criminals or赘婿 (a term for a man who marries into a family and takes on the family name, often used derogatorily). Calling Shen Jin an "old soldier" was like treating him as a servant. In fact, although Shen Jin was dressed casually, he was a tall, broad-shouldered man with a commanding presence, and his horse was of high quality. Anyone could see that he was likely a capable military officer, yet the civil official remained so disrespectful.

Indeed, Shen Jin became furious. He roared, "I'll kill you!" and reached for his sword. Fortunately, He Yun and Chu Kun were right beside him and quickly pounced on him, pulling him back.

Lu Yao did not feel particularly offended. In the future he came from, soldiers were respected for their bravery and patriotism. Therefore, the term "old soldier" did not make him feel humiliated. Besides, his personality was much more composed than Shen Jin's. Recently, the incident with Gao Xiang had made him wary of the people in Yue Shi Gong's staff. Since he did not get along with this person, he did not want to argue further.

He leaped onto his horse, waved his hand, and the other generals followed suit. These were all experienced and brave warriors, each having taken many lives. When they all mounted their horses at once, their movements were synchronized and exuded a formidable presence, causing the civil official to step back in shock.

Lu Yao pointed at the civil official with his whip. "We are all rough soldiers, not skilled in diplomacy. Fortunately, we have experience in battle and will not bow to anyone. Therefore, please do not mention kneeling and apologizing again, lest you embarrass yourself. Farewell!"

With that, he spurred his horse and rode away.

More than ten riders followed closely behind, quickly leaving the civil official behind.

The group rode in silence for several miles, all feeling somewhat unhappy.

"Who were those people? So arrogant and rude?" Shen Jin asked resentfully.

"They are probably the Xianbei Tuoba tribe. That kind of horsewhip is used by the nobles of the Xianbei Tuoba tribe," Xue Tong replied. Everyone present nodded in understanding.

Since the northern Xiongnu migrated west and the southern Xiongnu submitted, the vast lands north and south of the desert had been occupied by the emerging and powerful nomadic Xianbei tribe. It is said that the Xianbei are descendants of the Donghu. During the reign of Tan Shihu, the Xianbei defeated the Fuyu to the east, the Wusun to the west, the Dingling to the north, and the Han border to the south, controlling a territory of over 12,000 miles east to west and 7,000 miles north to south, rivaling the power of the Xiongnu at their peak.

After Tan Shihu, the Xianbei tribes split and fought each other. By the end of the Han dynasty, the chieftain Ke Bine unified the tribes again, establishing a unified Xianbei regime. He repeatedly defeated the Wei army, threatening the northern border of Wei. Fortunately, the governor of Youzhou, Wang Xiong, sent a brave warrior named Han Long to assassinate Ke Bine, causing the Xianbei tribes to fall into disarray again.

The current Xianbei tribe is divided into several branches, such as the Murong, Yuyan, Tuoba, and Duan. The Yuyan and Duan tribes allied with the governor of Youzhou, Wang Jun, and once followed him to attack Ye City. The Murong tribe, however, was isolated in the northeast, far from the Central Plains.

The Tuoba Xianbei are one of the stronger branches of the Xianbei, distributed in Shanggu, Dai, and Dingxiang, with 36 states, 99 major clans, and over 400,000 cavalry. Because of their custom of braiding their hair, they are also called the "braided-head Xianbei." The Tuoba Xianbei are divided into eastern, central, and western branches, with the central branch being the strongest. Its chieftain is named Tuoba Yiyi. Three years ago, Sima Teng of Dongying invited him to send troops against the Xiongnu, and the Xianbei cavalry defeated the Xiongnu Han King Liu Yuan at Lishi, achieving a great victory. The court greatly rewarded him, granting him the title of Great Chanyu. Thus, the Tuoba Xianbei became a formidable force in the northern border, becoming increasingly arrogant.

This time, the nobles of the Tuoba Xianbei came to Jinyang, perhaps because Lord Yue Shi also intended to invite them to fight against the Xiongnu?

Shen Jin muttered, "The barbarians are naturally fierce and fight without regard for their lives, like madmen. If they can help in the battle, the Xiongnu will have a hard time!"

"The Xianbei are savages who eat raw meat and drink blood, of course, they are fierce. Otherwise, how could they easily resist the Xiongnu?" Xue Tong handed the whip to Lu Yao and shook his head. "Old Deng, you took a beating for nothing. We can't do anything to these Xianbei chieftains!"

Deng Gang smiled bitterly and touched the whip marks on his back, wincing in pain. "What's a beating? You guys watch, since Lord Yue Shi needs the Xianbei, he will reward them. In a few days, we might have to call the Xianbei chieftains 'Sir.'"

"They are just barbarians, what's there to talk about? Let's go!" Lu Yao suddenly felt a bit restless. He called out and rode away with a cold expression.

Are these Xianbei really loyal dogs that can be used to guard the gates? Or are they actually wolves in sheep's clothing? Lu Yao knew very well that in the history he was familiar with, it was the Tuoba Xianbei who eventually unified the northern part of China and established the Northern Wei dynasty... Lu Yao pondered as he rode, and the group followed him silently towards Jinyang. His sudden change in mood made everyone unsure of what to say, and they just spurred their horses to gallop along the road.

As the sun set and Jinyang City came into view, Lu Yao suddenly turned to look at everyone and said solemnly, "Non-Han people have different hearts! I hope you all remember this. I can say with certainty today that the Xianbei cannot be relied upon! If we want to restore our land, we must ultimately rely on ourselves!"

******

This morning, I was a bit down and vented a little. I didn't expect to receive so much support and encouragement from readers, which is very touching.

Thank you to itjustgoon, lin1230123, Maxcupl, nanhaixzw, 英雄丿打灰机, Feng Yang, and others for your help. Thank you to Brother Tie Shou for your consistent support, and to Lord Han Tang Cavalry for your patronage.

Previously, in the group, I said to Brother Chu Jiang Han: "The 'Fufeng Song' is a legendary novel set in a relatively rigorous historical background, which is probably my definition of this book."

The protagonist will have moments of riding the wind and commanding the masses, but there will be no aura of invincibility.

There will be times of building a base and farming, but there will be no industrial revolution.

There will be times of leading ten thousand troops to achieve great victories, but there will be no modern firearms or invincible phalanxes.

Perhaps, readers can join me in listening to Liu Kun's 'Hu Jia' to save the city, watching Zu Ti strike the oars in the middle of the river, and moving bricks with Tao Kan, and so on.

That's about it. If any readers don't like it, I sincerely apologize.

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