Hearing the emperor's casual question, Budugen's heart suddenly tightened.
This Xianbei man, who was nearly fifty years old, suddenly broke out in cold sweat on his forehead.
At the end of the Han Dynasty and the beginning of the Wei Dynasty, not only was there frequent war in the Central Plains, but there were also many disputes on the grasslands. The Xianbei fell into decline and disintegration almost like the Han Dynasty of the same period.
When Tan Shihuai was alive, Xianbei was a political entity that stretched thousands of miles from the sea in the east to the Western Regions in the west. By the time of Tan Shihuai's grandson, even if Budugen, who lived in Taiyuan and Yanmen, had fallen, the tribe could still muster tens of thousands of light cavalry.
After all, he was a leader of the Xianbei tribe. Budugen was powerful and domineering in his own tribe. Although he bowed to the Han people, it was only because of the situation.
But today, in front of many Huns, Xianbei and Wuhuan people, the emperor mentioned himself first, and also asked about his grandfather Tan Shihuai, who had a deep hatred with the Central Plains dynasty.
What is the purpose of this?
How could he not be shocked and afraid?
Budugen stood up slowly, lowered his head and said softly: "Your Majesty, my grandfather is Tan Shihuai."
Cao Rui glanced at Budugen's nervous look and continued, "When your grandfather was at his peak, during the reigns of Emperor Ling and Emperor Huan, he commanded more than 100,000 soldiers."
"My grandfather was like this, so the younger generation should not be weak either." Cao Rui's eyebrows did not move, but the corners of his mouth slightly raised, staring at Budugen and said: "Now you are a minister of me and the Great Wei, and I have always been generous in rewarding you."
"What are your ambitions? I am willing to help you."
Sweat was visibly dripping from Budugen's forehead, and his brain was working at a speed not seen in decades.
After a few moments, Budugen bowed and said, "Your Majesty, I have been protected by the Wei Dynasty in Bingzhou, but I have not achieved anything. How can I have any ambitions? I just hope to protect my tribe and live a peaceful life."
"Don't think about anything else, don't think about anything else!"
Cao Rui ignored Budugen and looked at the other three Xianbei people.
"Suli, you were oppressed by Kebineng and moved here from Yuyang County. General Tian has helped you many times. Are you happy now?"
Suli also bowed like Budugen and answered in a low voice: "My life and my tribe are all protected by your majesty's divine power. Now they are safe."
Cao Rui then looked at Xie Guini, who was nearly 40 years old, and said, "Xie Guini, your father Fu Luohan is Bu Dugen's elder brother, and Tan Shihuai is your great-grandfather. Do you have any ambitions in your heart?"
Budugen was thin and weathered, and it was obvious that he had been exposed to the wind on the grassland for a long time. Xieguini was much fatter.
Xie Guini said: "Your Majesty is wise, I have always listened to my uncle and have no ambitions."
The emperor was asking three Xianbei people. The last Xianbei man, Heqibu, Kebi Neng's second son-in-law, stood in the tent, at a loss, with constant micro-expressions, and looked quite uneasy.
Cao Rui finally looked at He Qibu and asked coldly: "He Qibu, right? Ke Bineng sent you here, but you don't dare to come to see me yourself?"
Budugen, Suli, and Xieguini felt a little happy about the emperor's misfortune. They didn't dare to look at the emperor casually, but they had no psychological barriers to looking at Heqibu. Kebi Neng was hateful, and his new son-in-law must not be a good person.
He Qibu was not shy and knelt down and kowtowed, saying, "Your Majesty, Your Majesty! I really don't know why the king didn't come. I am just following your orders."
Man Chong, who was sitting on one side, said coldly: "Wasn't Kebineng's title of Fuyi King stripped away in the fourth year of Huangchu? Where did this great king come from?"
He Qibu instinctively raised his head, looked in the direction of Man Chong, and then looked at the emperor. Both of them seemed to have unfriendly expressions.
Cao Rui snorted and responded to Man Chong: "So, Ke Bineng has overstepped his authority?"
Man Chong cupped his hands and said, "That's right."
"That's a traitor." Cao Rui waved his hand and said, "Come here, take this He Qibula out and execute him. It's a fair punishment."
He Qibu was terrified for a moment. He suddenly realized that everyone in the tent today was respectful to the Wei Dynasty, and he was the only so-called "outsider".
The three thousand light cavalry he could rely on were like a child's stick against a strong man, completely useless in front of an emperor from the Central Plains.
The Xiongnu and Wuhuan people in the surrounding area had always been at odds with the Xianbei, so they just watched the show. Budugen, Xieguini, and Suli were also suffering from Kebi Neng's oppression, so they didn't make any moves.
Two tiger guards in heavy armor stepped forward, grabbed one of He Qibu's arms on each side, and instantly pulled him backwards and dragged him away.
He Qibu begged for mercy in a desperate voice: "Your Majesty, please spare my life, Your Majesty, please spare my life! I shouted wrongly, I shouted wrongly, Your Majesty, please spare my life!"
Cao Rui raised his hand slightly, and Man Chong immediately asked the tiger guards to stop. He Qibu was dragged for several lengths. After he stopped, he felt as if he had been relieved after suffocation, his chest heaving and breathing heavily.
He suddenly felt hatred towards Ke Bineng who sent him here.
"You said you were wrong just now? What was wrong? What should you shout?"
He Qibu knelt down and explained: "Your Majesty, I was wrong. Ke Bineng is not the king. It is my fault!"
Man Chong stood up, pointed at He Qibu and scolded him, "Ke Bineng disobeyed the imperial summons and repeatedly invaded the border. His crimes are obvious and he is undoubtedly a criminal of the Wei Dynasty."
"He Qibu, if you still regard Ke Bineng as your master, then you have no other way out today except death."
After saying that, Man Chong signaled with his eyes to the tiger guards standing on both sides of He Qibu, and the two of them immediately lifted up He Qibu's arms.
In a panic, He Qibu shouted, "Your Majesty, Your Majesty! It was Kebi Neng who was rebellious and usurped power. It was all Kebi Neng's fault. I said this because I was bewitched by him. I have no intention of being an enemy of the Wei Dynasty!"
After these words were spoken, the tent fell into silence. The Xiongnu and Wuhuan people of course stood aside and watched the show.
Although Budugen, Suli and others were enemies of Kebineng, when they saw that Heqibu, who was from the same clan as them, was so spineless that he sold out their king and father-in-law under a little intimidation, they instantly felt disgusted with him and turned their heads away, unwilling to look at him.
Everyone is in a different situation and reacts differently.
If Suli or Xieguini were really in Heqibu's situation, these two people might not be able to do better than him.
A moment later, He Qibu realized that he had said the wrong thing. He knelt stupidly in the tent in front of everyone, as if his spine had been whipped.
No one paid any attention to him anymore.
Cao Rui also asked the five Xiongnu commanders about their names and origins, and chatted with a commander of the left army named Liu Bao. He was even more friendly to the Wuhuan people, who had always been submissive to the Wei Dynasty.
Cao Rui said calmly: "Today, there are twelve people from the Xiongnu, Wuhuan, and Xianbei in front of me. I have written down your names and origins."
"Since you are obedient to the Wei Dynasty, I will not treat you unfairly." Cao Rui turned to look at Sima Yi and said, "Sikong, when the imperial court conferred titles on the Qiang people in Guanxi before, how did the nobles of various tribes appease them?"
Sima Yi stood up, and his eagle eyes swept over the barbarians in the tent, then he bowed to the emperor and said:
"Your Majesty, the court has treated the Qiang people generously, and all the leaders of the tribes who are obedient can be granted the title of marquis."
Cao Rui nodded calmly: "Today is the first time I meet with the leaders of various tribes. Since you are respectful to me, I will not be stingy with rewards. You will all be granted the title of Tinghou and the court will provide you with salaries."
When everyone heard the emperor's words, they all knelt down to thank him, except He Qibu, who was left kneeling there at a loss.
Sima Yi bowed and asked, "May I ask, Your Majesty, how should this He Qibu be dealt with? Should he also be granted a title of nobility?"
Cao Rui chuckled and said, "All the great Wei Tinghou, please stand up."
"He Qibu, are you willing to accept my reward of being a marquis?"
He Qibu's mentality was up and down today, and he could no longer bear any more shocks. He kowtowed repeatedly and said, "I am willing to serve Your Majesty!"
Cao Rui nodded slightly: "Well, let's give the reward to He Qibu as well."
"Everyone, please withdraw and return to your camp to prepare. We will march to Dai County tomorrow. The court officials will discuss the etiquette of ennobling a marquis with you."
All the Hu people thanked him and left.
……
On the other side, in the Xianbei royal court in the former Yunzhong County, Kebi Neng also met Zhong Yu and Liu Qi who were on diplomatic missions there.
Zhong Yu was so young and it was his first diplomatic mission. Although he had a serious attitude, he was also friendly and amiable. He was able to exchange greetings with Ke Bi smoothly.
Ke Bineng took a look at the edict and put it on the felt blanket beside him. Instead, he picked up the edict with the seal on it and looked at it a few more times.
"Minister Zhong," Ke Bineng asked in a fluent Bingzhou accent, "Are all the imperial edicts in Luoyang made of paper now? I have seen paper from the Central Plains, but I have never seen paper as good as this."
Zhong Yu replied in a neither humble nor arrogant manner: "This is Zuo Bo paper, which was improved by Luoyang's chief editor in the second year of Taihe. It is different from the old paper."
Ke Bineng's voice is deep but not turbid. If you listen carefully, it is somewhat similar to Wang Chang, the Right Supervisor of the Privy Council who was born in Taiyuan.
"The paper is fine, but what's up with this official seal? Is it a fake?"
Liu Qi was advised by Tian Yu. Naturally, he would take the blame for Zhong Yu on this issue that might cause a quarrel. "Are you kidding? His Majesty's edict clearly states that you should lead your army to Dai County to meet him, and then he will confer the title on you."
Ke Bineng was not annoyed. He reached into his fur coat and took out a gold seal of the same size. He waved it towards Zhong Yu and Liu Qi, and shook his head slightly, saying:
"Han people attach great importance to form. When the previous emperor conferred the title of Fuyi King on me, it was clearly written on the seal that read 'Pro-Wei Fuyi King'. How come this time it only has the words 'Xianbei Chanyu'?"
Zhong Yu had thought about many things when he came. He imagined the confrontation with Ke Bineng, the verbal battle, but he never thought that Ke Bineng would discuss the form of seals.
Zhong Yu thought of a solution in a hurry, smiled and said, "Your Excellency may not know that the current system of conferring titles on kings in the Great Wei Dynasty is like this. Perhaps your Excellency has been separated from the Great Wei Dynasty for too long."
Ke Bineng nodded calmly: "Dai County? Minister Zhong, He Qibu has already led 3,000 men, can I lead another 7,000?"
Zhong Yu stood there in a daze. He had never expected Ke Bi to be so easy to talk to. It seemed that this was completely different from the envoys in distress he had seen in books and heard from others before.
Seeing that Zhong Yu did not speak, Liu Qi bowed and said, "Seven thousand men will do, a total of ten thousand light cavalry. When would you like to set off?"
Ke Bineng said: "Today is the fourteenth day. It will take four days for the cavalry to reach Dai County. Let's set out tomorrow!"
"Two messengers, please follow my men to a place to stay and we will travel together tomorrow."
Zhong Yu and Liu Qi said goodbye and left.
At night, the two of them stayed in the same tent. When Zhong Yu couldn't sleep, he asked softly, "Liu Canjun, why is Ke Bineng so submissive today? It's completely different from what I heard before."
Liu Qi sighed, "If you really want to fight these barbarians, they will be more submissive than anyone else. It's because of the arrival of your majesty's central army that they are like this."
"I have been with Lord Tian's army for a long time, but I have never seen Ke Bineng in such a state!" (End of this chapter)
