Chapter 33
"Is this the Han name you gave yourself?" Lia asked curiously.
"Yes." Zhang Huiling looked up at Lia, a look of surprise flashing across his face. He seemingly hadn't expected the commanding general this time to be a woman.
Furthermore, not only was the leader a woman, but there were other women by Lia's side as well.
PS: Is there anyone who still doesn't know that the Western Regions is the place now known as Xinjiang Province?
Chapter 78: A Great Cultural Difference
This City Lord Zhang appeared to be only in his early thirties, with slightly curly chestnut hair, a high nose bridge, and a short beard that was also somewhat curly.
It was evident that upon hearing of the Han Army's arrival, City Lord Zhang had meticulously groomed himself.
He had his hair in a bun and was properly dressed in the robes and crown of the han family, having even learned Han etiquette.
Not only had he taken a Han name, but his han language skills were also excellent. It could only be said that this City Lord had a unique personal affinity for Han culture; saying his heart was devoted to the Han would not be an exaggeration.
"I have come on behalf of the Wu Kingdom this time, intending to reclaim The various kingdoms of the Western Regions for unified management. I wonder how City Lord Zhang views this matter," Lia asked.
Wu Kingdom was the name Lia intended to set for her state in the future, similar to the Wei of Northern Wei or the Song of Liu Song Dynasty. Once Lia decided to establish a country, she would use the word 'Wu' for the state.
"I shall follow all the High General's instructions," Zhang Huiling said, lowering his head.
"Rise. General Zhang, please lead the way. We have been marching for many days and will have to trouble General Zhang's territory for a temporary stay," Lia said.
"Yes." Zhang Huiling hurriedly stood up and began leading the way in front of Lia.
On the way, Lia inquired about the situation of Shanshan. He answered every question and expressed extreme admiration for Han culture. If Lia hadn't intended to turn The various kingdoms of the Western Regions into a province of the Land of Huaxia, she might have even considered supporting him to become the King of Shanshan.
However, while he couldn't be the King of Shanshan, becoming a Commandery Governor would be no problem.
Through his answers, Lia gained a clearer understanding of the Western Regions. Although the Western Regions were vast and contained many countries, they were actually small nations with populations ranging from a few tens of thousands.
As long as she marched her great army through, combined with the prestige established by the Han Army in the past, these small nations would submit to them. However, some countries would not submit so easily.
First was Dayuan, currently the furthest from them. This country had a population of about three hundred thousand and several tens of thousands of soldiers. If Lia wanted them to be truly convinced, she would have to show them whether her fists were hard enough.
Next to Dayuan was a historical tribe, the Wusun. The Wusun were quite formidable, with a total population of five to six hundred thousand and a total military force of one hundred and eighty thousand—nearly the entire population were soldiers.
Even during the Han Dynasty, alliances were formed with the Wusun through political marriages. The most famous stories were those of Princesses Liu Xijun and Liu Jieyou marrying into the Wusun.
However, this Wusun had now been destroyed by the Nomadic Confederation, with only some remnants remaining, integrated into other countries.
To the north of Dayuan was Kangju, with a population exceeding six hundred thousand and over one hundred thousand soldiers.
To the west of Dayuan was the Yuezhi, with a population of four hundred thousand and one hundred thousand soldiers.
South from the Yuezhi, across the Pamir Plateau, lay the region of ancient India.
And if one continued west from the Yuezhi, they would reach the Parthian Empire. This Parthian Empire was quite powerful, being the strongest opponent the Roman Empire encountered among the Eastern empires at that time.
The Han Dynasty called this Parthian Empire 'Anxi'.
Finally, returning to the Western Regions, to the south of the Wusun was the country of Jushi. Because Jushi was actually controlled by the Nomadic Confederation, this country would not easily submit to them either.
Once they attacked Jushi, the Nomadic Confederation would not sit idly by and would likely take the initiative to attack them.
Although these countries seemed to have large populations and military forces reaching one hundred thousand, in reality, that was the total military strength of an entire country, distributed across various regions and not easily mobilized.
It was just like the Land of Huaxia; the total combined forces reached millions, but could those millions be moved at will? Obviously not.
It could be said that being able to draw out twenty or thirty thousand troops to do other things was already their limit.
What Lia needed to do now was first subdue those small countries of a few thousand or ten thousand people that had been conquered by the Han Dynasty before she could turn her gaze toward the country of Dayuan.
In fact, in the modern map of China, Xinjiang's borders do not include the two countries of Dayuan and Wusun, only a part of what they once were.
However, during the Han Dynasty, these two countries were once included in the Han territory, though actual control could not be maintained. What Lia wanted to do was re-incorporate these two countries into the map. Since she was reclaiming lost territory, she had a justification for sending troops.
As for places like Kangju, Yuezhi, and the Parthian Empire, Lia had no excuse to move against them, and they were too far away. Continuing to fight would only stretch her supply lines too thin, eventually leading to failure due to a lack of supplies.
Her main goal now was still to unify the Land of Huaxia, allow the people to rest and prosper, and then slowly develop technology. Once the country regained its vitality, she could consider territorial expansion.
Otherwise, even if she conquered those places, they would be too far away to control. This is why the territory of the most powerful Tang Dynasty was only that large; that was already the limit of their control.
The most famous example is Mongolia. Although it once conquered the Eurasian continent, what was the result? It still fell apart. A large territory is meaningless; it only has meaning if you can actually control those places.
Lia stationed the main army outside the city and took a few people to follow City Lord Zhang into the city.
Being highly skilled and bold, she wasn't afraid of whether this City Lord was faking everything. After all, Merlin was by her side; if there were any movement, she would know immediately.
As the City Lord, Zhang Huiling's courtyard occupied the highest point in the city. It was two stories high, with wooden beams, sun-dried brick walls, and a framework of woven branches, with mud plastered inside and out to form the walls.
City Lord Zhang quickly arranged for everyone to eat in a courtyard. The food was a freshly slaughtered ox; after its internal organs were removed and it was cleaned, it was placed on a central brazier to roast.
When some of the generals on Lia's side saw that City Lord Zhang's banquet for them was an entire ox, they couldn't help but show strange expressions.
In the Central Plains, an ox was more valuable than a human life, and slaughtering a healthy ox without permission was a crime.
However, thinking of how the Western Regions specialized in herding horses, cattle, and sheep, and that their numbers here were not small at all and were specifically meant for eating, they felt a bit speechless.
It could only be said that the cultural difference between the two sides was indeed great.
Before long, the ox was roasted. City Lord Zhang beckoned a young woman to carve the beef and bring the roasted meat to Lia.
"Are you a Han person?" Lia asked, glancing at the woman.
"Yes, General." Seeing Lia questioning her, the woman hurriedly performed a salute.
"General, this is my wife. Her name is Cui Lin." Seeing Lia's inquiry, City Lord Zhang also spoke up immediately.
Chapter 79: My Loulan
"I see." Lia took another look at the woman, who was currently pouring wine with a beaming smile.
Although the Western Regions were barren, as the City Lord's wife, her life seemed quite good. She was somewhat plump, suggesting she hadn't suffered any hardships in City Lord Zhang's household.
It seemed this City Lord Zhang's devotion to the Han was quite serious, but that was fine; it saved Lia the trouble of looking for another spokesperson.
During the banquet, Lia asked many questions about City Lord Zhang, and she even mentioned the issue of reforms to see his reaction.
He didn't have much of a reaction to things like land reform. After all, in the Western Regions, farmland was only one aspect; there was also herding and fishing.
Of course, herding and fishing didn't mean everything belonged to oneself; tributes had to be paid, just like the principle of paying taxes on farming, which started at sixty or seventy percent.
However, Lia wasn't worried. The Western Regions, after all, were not a complete Han territory yet. Achieving full sinicization would require a step-by-step process. In short, the first step was to gain complete control over the Western Regions.
In addition, as City Lord Zhang spoke during the banquet, he began to wail, which caught Lia and the others off guard.
Subsequently, City Lord Zhang tearfully recounted the oppression by the Nomadic Confederation, their extortion of Shanshan, and the never-satisfied greed of these Rouran People.
At first, Lia hadn't understood why this fellow was acting this way, but now she did.
In truth, he was afraid Lia would blame them for surrendering to the Rouran People. By pushing all the blame onto the Rouran first and distancing himself from them, it would be harder for the Han Army to hold them accountable.
Once the Han Army left and the Rouran People came to call them to account, they would likely weep and complain to the Rouran, making the Han Army out to be the villains.
It was quite common for small kingdoms to be double-dealing.
As for City Lord Zhang's supposed loyalty to the Great Han, it was enough to just listen and take it with a grain of salt; everything he was doing now was merely the result of practical considerations.
Perhaps when she met the King of Shanshan later, it would be a similar scene.
Having understood this key issue, Lia felt more certain. Perhaps everything she was seeing now was just a show the other party was putting on specifically for her benefit.
However, Lia didn't expose it. Saying it out loud would only be embarrassing for everyone. If the Han Army were strong enough to prevent the Rouran People from entering the Western Regions, then all these problems would be solved, and these people wouldn't need to be fence-sitters anymore.
That evening, under City Lord Zhang's arrangements, Lia and her group stayed at an inn to rest. Meanwhile, in City Lord Zhang's room, a fire was still lit and he had not yet gone to sleep.
"City Lord, the Rouran special envoy already knows the Han Army has arrived here. He has ordered us to assassinate the Han generals tonight," a servant said to City Lord Zhang as he sat in his room.
"Ignore them. Just say I am dead drunk and have already gone to bed." City Lord Zhang waved his hand.
Those Rouran People certainly had a clever plan. If the assassination succeeded, he would be the one in trouble; if it failed, he would still be the one in trouble. There was an army of ten thousand outside the city; he would have to be tired of living to do such a thing.
"Yes." The servant nodded and withdrew.
Looking at the lamplight, Zhang Huiling sighed. Their Shanshan people had always survived squeezed between the Han Army and the Rouran; it was not easy.
The next day, Lia and her group prepared to set out. It would take a full day to reach the royal city of Shanshan from here. To show his sincerity, City Lord Zhang decided to personally lead Lia and the others there.
Lia didn't object. It was always good to have someone lead the way.
After a day's journey, the Shanshan royal city was in sight. Looking from afar, Shanshan City was situated on an island-like area surrounded by two branches of the Peacock River. The city was several times larger than City Lord Zhang's previous city.
The King of Shanshan seemed to have received the news long ago. Facing the arrival of the Han Army, the King of Shanshan did not resist but instead opened the city gates wide. He led dozens of officials and thousands of Common People to the city gates.
When Lia's army arrived before him, the King of Shanshan hurriedly stepped forward, prostrated himself on the ground, and said respectfully, "Welcome, Heavenly Army."
From what was said before, the Rouran People had extorted Shanshan heavily. Shanshan had long been overburdened, and both the city lords and the commoners deeply hated the Rouran People.
It was said that most of the leather hunted each year had to be handed over to the city lord, who would then pass it on to the Rouran People.
The Rouran People only knew how to take from Loulan, but the Land of Huaxia not only didn't take, but also gave whenever requested.
Therefore, these Shanshan nobles were not afraid of Lia's arrival but instead showed looks of joy. Once the Han Army returned to the Western Regions, Shanshan could be rescued from the heavy taxes of the Rouran. Being pro-Han and anti-Rouran would be the choice of most of The various kingdoms of the Western Regions.
"Rise," Lia said, glancing at the King of Shanshan kneeling on the ground.
The King of Shanshan was thin and small, but he wore many gold ornaments favored by the nomadic tribes, which glittered in the light.
"I wonder why the Heavenly Army has come from so far away?" The King of Shanshan stood up, looked at Lia, and spoke carefully.
Lia nodded to the surrounding soldiers, and several weapons were immediately placed against the King of Shanshan's neck.
"General, why is this? Why?!" Seeing the sharp swords against his neck, the King of Shanshan was instantly terrified.
"Previously, those Rouran People invaded my Huaxia borders, causing countless deaths and injuries to my frontier soldiers. So I would like to ask, what does the King of Loulan have to say?" Lia snorted coldly, her voice filled with killing intent.
Although Loulan had now changed its name to Shanshan, Lia used this name intentionally to tell the other party: Are you planning to discard the name Shanshan? Are you planning to break away from us?
"General, forgive me! this humble king had no choice. The Rouran People are powerful; they threatened us, saying that if we dared to block their path, they would destroy our Loulan kingdom. this humble king was forced!" The King of Shanshan immediately began to weep and plead.
"I remember your Shanshan surrendered to us six years ago, didn't it?"
Although the current Shanshan had not surrendered to Lia but to the Northern Wei, it didn't matter that the King of Loulan didn't know Lia had already cut off the Hexi Corridor route.
Under the circumstances where the Rouran had surrendered to Northern Wei, it was quite excessive for these Shanshan people to still dare to let the Rouran People pass through.
Of course, it was not realistic to expect Shanshan's two or three thousand troops to resist the Rouran People, and Lia knew this.
Shanshan was, after all, only a vassal state. Expecting them to fight to the death for Huaxia was simply unrealistic. They had no sense of belonging to the han family, or rather, none of these countries in the Western Regions had that sense of belonging.
Chapter 80: Loulan, Vanished into the Long River of History
Lia's purpose in coming to the Western Regions this time was precisely to solve this problem. These ten thousand soldiers would be permanently stationed in the Western Regions from now on.
Even during the Han Dynasty, the number of people stationed in the Western Regions was only 300. Lia was truly making a massive investment.
She not only wanted to station troops in the Western Regions but also wanted the entire Western Regions to undergo sinicization!
Lia did not listen further to the King of Shanshan's pleas but only said coldly, "King of Shanshan, you call yourself a Han official, yet you willingly let yourself be driven by the Rouran People, cutting off the North-South Road. The Rouran People certainly deserve to die, but the King of Shanshan is not innocent either. Execute him immediately."
Although Shanshan had its difficulties, Lia could not accept such repeated duplicity.
One cannot say that because they have difficulties, they can be double-dealing. Could it be that because you have difficulties, you ignore the difficulties of my Huaxia?
Therefore, Lia had to kill him. Moreover, killing the King of Shanshan on the spot was a deterrent to these Loulan people, clearly telling the nobles of the Shanshan kingdom that she hadn't come to Shanshan to play games; she would kill.
As Lia's words fell, the soldiers' blades dropped. Accompanied by the King of Shanshan's scream, a head rolled to the ground.
Seeing their king killed on the spot like that, the nobles and commoners of the Shanshan kingdom were all stunned for a moment. In the vast square, no one dared to say a word.
Among the several thousand Loulan people, not a single person stepped forward, and no one even dared to fire a single arrow.
"I wonder if everyone present heard clearly what I just said?" Lia continued.
"I, Zhang Huiling, will forever be a Han official of the Wu Kingdom, and I will only follow the orders of the Wu Kingdom!" Seeing this, Zhang Huiling was the first to kneel, expressing his determination to Lia.
"Enter the city." Lia glanced at everyone around her and walked directly into the city.
The Shanshan people watched the army enter the city, not even daring to block them.
Loulan City was located between two intersecting river channels. Outside the city, Populus euphratica trees stretched in rows, providing lush shade. The city walls, like the cities Lia had passed along the way, were built of rammed earth and reeds, each side being over three hundred meters wide.
The city was roughly divided into three areas: the northeast was the palace area, with adobe walls and tall Populus euphratica pillars painted with vermilion lacquer, separated from other areas by a low wall. Outside the east gate, there was also a large, lush vineyard.
The west side was the residential area, with small single rooms tightly packed together. The walls were made of reed stalks and red willow trees arranged vertically and horizontally like a fence, then reinforced with rope made of grass, and finally plastered with mud—very simple.
But those qualified to live in the city were already the relatively wealthy middle class.
The southeast corner was the official government area. Facing the south city gate was a small square. On the edge of the square stood the three tallest rooms in Shanshan City; this was where the King of Shanshan usually presided over the judgment of criminals.