Chapter 1 The Subjugation of Xirong

The silence from Great Wei relaxed Tian Cheng and his daughter, making them believe that Great Wei was unable to launch an attack due to their two battles with the Xiongnu.

It was this assumption that allowed them to unscrupulously wipe out the various princes.

Little did they expect that Great Wei would enter the fray at the height of the conflict!

Without giving them any time to react, they were already stationed beneath the city walls.

"Miaomiao, what do we do?"

Tian Cheng was not yet fifty and was usually well-maintained, making him look quite young.

But in just one month, he had aged drastically.

Tian Miaomiao, who was always full of confidence and wisdom, now had a bloodless face.

Ten thousand soldiers stationed beneath the city walls, what could they do?

"Quickly issue a call to arms, ordering generals from all regions to lead their troops back to support us!" Tian Miaomiao said.

"Yes! Yes!"

Tian Cheng suddenly understood and hurried to make arrangements.

However, after receiving the news, the generals from various regions were unable to return to support them, even if they wanted to.

The Quanrong people were naturally skilled in battle, and even ordinary civilians could become soldiers with weapons in hand.

Upon hearing that Tian Cheng was besieged in the royal city, the Quanrong people became even more zealous.

Now they sought nothing else but the deaths of Tian Cheng and his daughter, two foreigners who plotted to seize the Quanrong throne!

After ten days of resistance, the two thousand soldiers in the city completely ran out of food and ammunition.

Yao Shouxin led his army to easily break through the city.

It was a pity that Tian Cheng and his daughter probably knew what would happen if they were captured alive, so they set the palace on fire.

With Tian Cheng's death, the generals under his command lost their fighting spirit and were quickly eliminated by the Quanrong people.

Just as the Quanrong people were cheering, Yao Shouxin led his troops to descend like gods and directly annihilated them.

Under the conquest of the ten thousand strong army, the already struggling Quanrong people could no longer resist and fled westward.

Yao Shouxin won battle after battle, occupying the entire Xirong.

One memorial after another from Yao Shouxin was sent back to the capital, causing wave after wave of cheers.

The ministers were all overjoyed.

In addition to completely eliminating the threat of the Quanrong, this was a monumental achievement of expanding the territory for generations to come!

The Minister of Rites, Wen Fengli, presented a memorial, saying, "Your Majesty, I believe that under your rule, Great Wei first incorporated the Xiongnu, and then recovered the territory of the Quanrong. This achievement is comparable to the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors and should be announced to the Imperial Ancestral Temple!"

The ministers echoed in agreement.

Lin Mu laughed and said, "Very well, announce it to the Imperial Ancestral Temple!"

After the announcement to the Imperial Ancestral Temple, this news also spread throughout Great Wei.

All the people cheered.

Not only because Great Wei expanded its territory, but also because with the end of the autumn harvest, everyone had harvested much more grain than in previous years!

After the excitement, a question was placed before Lin Mu.

"My lords, what are your thoughts on this territory of the Quanrong?" Lin Mu asked.

The area occupied by the Quanrong was not large, but it was not small either.

Now that this territory had been incorporated into the Great Wei, but because the people there had died out, it was now completely uninhabited.

What to do with this area was also a question worth discussing.

The ministers all looked at Yao Shouxin.

They had only heard of the Quanrong before, and even knew what the Quanrong people looked like only after the Quanrong came last time, let alone the local climate and land conditions.

Of all the officials, only Yao Shouxin knew.

Yao Shouxin stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, the land of the Quanrong is quite arid, and the geology is also different from most of the Great Wei."

"I have not seen much, and for a moment, I can't think of what it is suitable for."

The ministers all frowned, even Yao Shouxin didn't know what was suitable to plant?

Didn't that mean that this territory, which was finally obtained, was of no use at all?

Not only was it useless, but it was also harmful?

After all, in order to firmly grasp this territory in the hands of Great Wei, it was necessary to station troops on the edges.

The manpower and material resources required were no small expense!

The ministers looked at Lin Mu, waiting for Lin Mu to make a decision.

Lin Mu then asked, "Yao Qing, to the west of the Quanrong, what kind of people are there?"

Yao Shouxin did not expect Lin Mu to ask this question, and after recalling, he said, "Your Majesty, to the west of the Quanrong, there are some people who look quite different from our Great Wei people."

"I can't understand the language they speak at all. Their clothes and living habits are also very different."

Lin Mu nodded, and he had a rough idea in his mind.

"If that's the case, then send people to their side to see what they plant and eat. Then bring the seeds back."

This proposal surprised the ministers.

But after thinking about it carefully, this proposal was very reasonable.

Since what Great Wei, located to the east of the Quanrong, possessed was not suitable for the Quanrong, then what the countries to the west of the Quanrong had might be suitable.

At least it was a method!

Back in the Hall of Diligent Governance, Lin Mu looked at the Great Wei map hanging there, and his gaze finally fell on the lower right corner of the map.

Only the hidden danger of the Southern Military Camp remained unresolved!

"Your Majesty, it's cold, please be careful not to catch a cold." Feng Jin, who was beside him, stepped forward with a cloak.

Lin Mu looked at the climate outside, which had already become dry, and sighed, "Well, it's almost winter."

Feng Jin said, "Yes, the winter in the capital has always been very cold."

Lin Mu nodded, he deeply understood this.

"Feng Jin, how old are you?" Lin Mu suddenly asked.

Feng Jin was taken aback and quickly knelt down, "Your Majesty, this old servant is fifty-seven years old."

Lin Mu frowned and said, "Get up, I'm just asking, why are you panicking?"

"Thank you, Your Majesty."

Feng Jin carefully got up, offered a smile, and said, "This old servant thought that Your Majesty was going to drive this old servant away."

Lin Mu waved his hand and said, "As long as you don't do anything out of line, I am not a capricious person."

Seeing that Lin Mu really didn't mean to blame him and seemed to be in a good mood, Feng Jin said with a smile, "This old servant naturally knows what kind of personality Your Majesty has, but the outside world's evaluation of Your Majesty is not very good."

"Oh?"

Lin Mu asked curiously, "What are the evaluations of me in the outside world?"

Seeing that Lin Mu was very interested, Feng Jin said, "This old servant heard before that some people said that Your Majesty is mean and ungrateful, and does things entirely based on personal preferences..."

Speaking up to this point, Feng Jin quickly shut his mouth and said, "Your Majesty, these are all jokes, don't take them seriously..."

But Lin Mu chuckled, "It's okay, then tell me, in your eyes, what kind of person am I?"

Feng Jin's face showed some embarrassment, and said, "This... this old servant dares not."

"What's there to be afraid of?"

Lin Mu encouraged, "Just say it, I'm in a good mood today, and I'll forgive you."

"Yes."

Feng Jin thought for a while and said, "When Your Majesty was young, he was naturally intelligent, otherwise he would not have been valued by the late Emperor. However, after inheriting the throne, the Mei family took control of the court, and Your Majesty became somewhat indifferent to state affairs."