Chapter 60

The next morning, after handling a few daily affairs, Lu Yao proceeded to the training ground for his routine inspection. He saw that both officers and soldiers were diligently practicing their formations and martial arts without any slack, which was quite satisfying. Being an expert in spear techniques himself, he watched for a while and felt the urge to practice. He then personally stepped in to point out the flaws in the movements of a few soldiers and encouraged those who had made rapid progress. Among the hundreds of soldiers on the training ground, more than half were already familiar to Lu Yao. He could tell who was training diligently and who was slightly lax, and he was spot on in his observations.

Before he knew it, two hours had passed. Lu Yao, thinking that the relocation of the camp had been decided, felt it was necessary to inform the relevant authorities promptly, so he headed for the Prefectural Office.

Exiting the camp gate, he walked along the main road toward the northern part of the city. It was a bustling time in the market, with vendors on both sides of the road selling their goods. The road was crowded, with people rubbing shoulders. Although most of the passersby looked haggard, the scene was far better than the ghostly quiet of a month ago.

After walking for a while, he reached a crossroads. Turning right would lead him close to the Han family's blacksmith shop, which he had passed by a few days ago. In the southeast corner of the intersection stood a two-story tavern, newly built with fresh wood. Despite the tavern selling rather bland wine, it still attracted many customers, and Xue Tong was a regular here.

As Lu Yao walked past the tavern's entrance, he suddenly heard a thunderous roar from inside, and a waiter was flung out, sprawling on the ground. Seeing the waiter about to be seriously injured, Lu Yao rushed forward and gently caught him.

After setting down the waiter, who was still in shock, Lu Yao continued on his way. The people of Bingzhou were known for their fierce and combative nature, and brawls among the populace were almost daily occurrences. Lu Yao, not being a patrolling soldier, had no intention of getting involved in such trivial matters.

Just as he took another step, several more people came out, rolling and crawling, screaming in pain. A short, sturdy man in a rough felt coat chased out of the tavern, shouting in a loud voice, and then returned inside. Whatever he said, it made many people in the tavern burst into laughter.

The man had his hair braided into four thick plaits, and he wore a gold ornament on his waist, which were unique customs of the Xianbei people.

Why are those Xianbei people here again? Lu Yao frowned. He could勉强 understand a few words of Xianbei, and the man's shouts were extremely insulting in Xianbei.

Lu Yao stopped and thought for a moment, considering whether he should intervene to stop the Xianbei people's unruly behavior. At that moment, several patrolling soldiers hurried over from the opposite side of the street, led by a young and handsome squad leader. Lu Yao, who had been frequenting these streets, recognized him as one of Liu Yan's capable subordinates, responsible for the security of a large area in the southern part of the city. Although they had not formally introduced themselves, they knew each other by face.

The security of Jinyang City was under the jurisdiction of General Liu Yan. Since his subordinate had arrived, Lu Yao did not want to meddle further. He quickened his pace toward the Prefectural Office.

Upon reaching the Prefectural Office and announcing his name, Wen Qiao came out to greet him a moment later. Before discussing official business, he said apologetically, "It's unfortunate today. The lord has important matters to attend to and cannot see you immediately. If you have some free time, you might wait in the study for a while."

Wen Qiao gestured, leading Lu Yao to the east wing, where the study used by Wen Qiao and other officials was located. It was also sometimes used to receive guests. Lu Yao took a few steps and suddenly had a thought, asking, "Could it be that the Xianbei nobles are visiting?"

Wen Qiao nodded, "Yes, a few days ago, the lord sent a letter to the Tuoba Xianbei. As a result, the chieftain of the western Tuoba, Dugu Zhe, has come to pay his respects to the lord."

It turned out that the Tuoba Xianbei were not a monolithic group but were composed of over a hundred large and small tribes, divided into eastern, central, and western regions, each led by a major chieftain. The chieftain of the eastern region, Tuoba Luoguan, resided north of Shanggu and west of Ruyuan, bordering the Xianbei Yuwen tribe. Although Tuoba Luoguan was nominally the leader of the tribe, his power and prestige were far inferior to those of his nephew, the grandson of the former chieftain, Tuoba Yiyi.

Tuoba Yiyi led the central tribes and resided in Canhepo, Dai Commandery. He had once toured the northern desert and conquered the western grassland tribes, bringing over thirty tribes to submission within five years. Later, he responded to the court's call to defeat the Xiongnu, slaying a famous Xiongnu general in battle, and was thus appointed as the Great Chanyu by the court, receiving a gold seal and purple sash.

Tuoba Yilu, the brother of Tuoba Yiyi, led the western tribes and resided in Shengle, Dingxiang, with his influence extending to the Yunzhong, Wuyuan, and Shuofang commanderies. Compared to Luoguan and Yiyi, Tuoba Yilu's forces were slightly weaker, but he still controlled over ten thousand archers, making him one of the most powerful forces on the grasslands.

The visitor today was Dugu Zhe, a powerful chieftain of the Dugu tribe under Tuoba Yilu. This Xianbei tribe was both close to Jinyang and very powerful, so even Lord Yuanshi had to treat the chieftain's visit with great importance.

Wen Qiao explained briefly and then asked, "Have you seen them, Daoming?"

Lu Yao smiled bitterly, "Not only did I see them, but I also suffered a bit. Those Xianbei people are truly arrogant and rude." He then recounted the events of the previous evening and the recent incident, and Wen Qiao could not help but shake his head and sigh, "The Xianbei are indeed barbaric. The lord assigned the Record-Keeping Censor Yang Qiao to receive them, and I imagine Yang Censor must have had a hard time."

Lu Yao could only refrain from commenting. The official who had scolded him and his group the previous day was undoubtedly Yang Qiao. His behavior was despicable, but Lu Yao did not want to criticize a colleague behind his back, so he did not mention him.

After a few more words, he suddenly remembered the ornate horsewhip he had taken from the Xianbei cavalry the previous day. Lu Yao took out the whip and solemnly handed it to Wen Qiao, "Brother Taizhen, please take a look. This is the whip I took from the Xianbei during the conflict. Given its opulence, it must belong to a Xianbei chieftain. If it's convenient, could you return it to them for me?"

Wen Qiao took the whip, examined it closely for a few moments, then seemed to be distracted. He then excused himself, saying he had other matters to attend to, and left. Lu Yao did not mind and waited in the study.

A short while later, the sound of drums and music erupted outside the Prefectural Office, indicating that Dugu Zhe and his entourage had arrived.

Lu Yao waited for about half an hour, but no one came to call him, so he picked up a book from the bookshelf and started reading. Opening the book, he saw a line that read, "The Xianbei in Bingzhou are originally the fierce and wicked bandits of the Xiongnu..." The text was familiar, and after a few more glances, he recognized it as Jiang Tong's "On the Relocation of the Barbarians" from Chenliu. He immediately found it uninteresting.

Jiang Tong had once served in the court of Prince Sima Ying of Chengdu alongside Duke Lu Shiheng. Lu Yao had heard of him. Jiang Tong was quite accurate in predicting that the mixed residence of the barbarians in the interior would inevitably lead to trouble. However, like the common flaw of scholars of this era, Jiang Tong's lengthy essay detailed the origins and history of the barbarians in the regions of Yong, Liang, Qin, and Bing but did not propose any practical solutions. Moving millions of barbarians back to their former lands was no easy task. What specific measures would be taken? How would they be implemented? How would conflicts be avoided during the process? How would the population deficit be addressed after the barbarians were moved out?

Moreover, Jiang Tong's views were actually quite biased. In Lu Yao's opinion, the conflict between the northern nomadic tribes and the Han people was essentially a matter of power dynamics. When the Han people were strong, the barbarians outside the Great Wall were naturally weak and had to submit, serving like dogs and hawks. When the Han people were weak, the barbarians would take advantage of the situation and even covet the imperial throne, aspiring to rule the Central Plains. There was no third scenario. Unless the Han government could demonstrate its strength, all other plans would be futile.

The current deteriorating situation was not due to the large number of barbarians scattered throughout the Central Plains but rather to the corruption of the ruling class centered around the Sima clan, which had reached an unbelievable level. In such a state of decay, would it make any difference whether the barbarians were in the heartland or outside the Great Wall?

Lu Yao put the "On the Relocation of the Barbarians" back on the shelf and was about to look for another book when he heard a commotion outside the door. The sound of hurried footsteps and someone shouting angrily, "Get out of the way! I must see the lord now, and I will not let this go!"

Who could be so bold? Lu Yao wondered and walked to the study door to look out.

To his surprise, the person standing in the front hall of the Prefectural Office, raging and shouting, was Liu Yan. His face was flushed, and his jaw muscles were twitching from clenching his teeth, clearly furious. Several officials from the Prefectural Office were trying to calm him down, but to no avail.

This truly puzzled Lu Yao. Lord Yuanshi was a renowned military commander, but in terms of his standing in the heart of Prince Sima Yue of Donghai, he was not as high as his elder brother, Liu Yu. Liu Yu, as the Left Chief Secretary of Prince Sima Yue, held the secrets of the court and participated in state affairs, being one of the three great scholars known as the "Three Talents of the Yue Mansion." Liu Yan was Liu Yu's son and the nephew of Lord Yuanshi!

Given this relationship, who in Lord Yuanshi's staff could have angered Liu Yan to such an extent? As Lu Yao was pondering, Liu Yan spotted him. He called out loudly, "Lu Daoming! I didn't expect you to be here! Come, come, come, go with me to see the lord and be a witness!" He then quickly approached and grabbed Lu Yao's wrist.

Lu Yao was truly at a loss and did not want to forcibly pull away, so he asked repeatedly, "General Liu, Brother Shiran! Don't be hasty, tell me what has made you so angry?"

Pausing, Lu Yao added, "I heard that the lord is currently receiving Xianbei nobles. It might be inappropriate to see him now."