Wei Ni

Chapter 260 Good intentions and bad intentions
You still have to have ambitions.

Regardless of whether it will eventually become a reality, it can inspire people to move forward courageously.

Just as Gongsun Yuan was looking forward to defeating the Wei army in one battle and being praised by the Liaodong gentry as a heroic ruler like his grandfather Gongsun Du, the Bai tribe Xianbei leader Mohuba also stopped on a low hill beside the Liaoze Lake, watching the Liao River rushing to the sea with a dazed look, his ambitions growing wildly like weeds in midsummer.

As long as the Gongsun clan of Liaodong is destroyed, he will be the most outstanding leader in the history of the Bai tribe of Xianbei!

Even if hundreds of years later, his bones are thrown in the mud somewhere, the tribesmen will remember his name and compose songs about his deeds to continue singing.

Because this time the Bai tribe Xianbei sent out two thousand cavalry to fight for the Wei State, the benefit was that the Wei government would allow his tribe to settle in the north of Jicheng (Beipiao City), and he would be officially named the Baosai Xianbei Lord of the Wei State.

This was after the Luoyang government announced to the world that it would raise troops to attack Gongsun Yuan in Liaodong. Guanqiu Jian faced all the leaders of the Xianbei and Wuhuan tribes who had surrendered to the country and conveyed the government's promise to him.

There is definitely no possibility of going back on one's word.

In other words, the area north of Jicheng, located in Liucheng of Liaoxi County and the northern part of Leyang County, had long been a wasteland, and the ruling influence of the Wei State had long been in name only. He directly brought his tribesmen to migrate and settle here, and no one stopped him. Why bother to go to the trouble of sending troops to fight for the Wei State before occupying it?

You know, the Bai tribe of Xianbei is the most powerful group in Baishan (Daxinganling Mountains). Since the three counties of Wuhuan and the central and eastern Xianbei were destroyed one after another, he wanted to migrate to the northern part of Liaoxi County to settle down, and he could not find any competitors!
But in Mohuba’s mind, the pros and cons are not calculated in this way.

Through the successive demise of Tadun and Kebinen, Mohuba realized one thing: even though there are three dynasties in the Central Plains now, the Wei Kingdom is definitely not something that the nomadic tribes can contend with.

If you don't want to die or your clan be destroyed, it's better not to fight with them.

In this way, the benefits of becoming a vassal of Wei and being named Baosai Xianbei Lord were reflected.

That is, they can carry out business activities and exchange what they have with each other.

The resources in Mobei are poor and relatively monotonous, and the craftsmanship is also backward. Many materials that are basic daily necessities in the Central Plains dynasty are considered rare items for nomadic tribes like them.

Looking back at the nomadic tribes in the past, whether it was the Wuhuan or the Xianbei, they plundered the people on the border of Wei State. Although they always gained something, it was not worth the loss compared to the tribes. Moreover, if they plundered too much, it would cause hatred between the Luoyang government and the people on the border, and from then on they would fight each other endlessly and suffer from each other.

What’s worse, with the population base of the nomadic tribes, they could never outlast the Wei State.

The tribes that had been plundering the border areas for a long time were either destroyed by the State of Wei in the end, or their tribes became impoverished and weak, their people scattered, and they were annexed by other tribes.

Mohuba didn't want his tribe to meet the same fate of disappearing into thin air.

Furthermore, the current strength of the Bai tribe of Xianbei is far inferior to that of the former Eastern Xianbei leader, the Suli tribe!

How could one have the guts to enter and reside in Wei State without Wei State's permission?

Isn't he afraid that the State of Wei might free up its hands in the future, or that General Du Liao stationed in Youzhou might become ambitious and send troops to attack his tribe?
Therefore, it is necessary to gain a reputation.

And after gaining a reputation, he could rely on the remaining power of Wei State's conquest of Tadun and Kebinen to recruit or annex other small tribes and gradually expand his own tribe.

As there is no strong tribe lingering in the northern part of Liaodong, Liaoxi and Youbeiping counties, it is very likely that the Bai tribe of Xianbei will become the second Tadun or Kebinen in the future.

Of course, he won't see that day.

But his descendants can see it, and the tribesmen will always remember him as the founder who made the tribe rise and become strong.

That's enough.

It was precisely because of this that he was so dedicated and dedicated to doing what Xiahou Hui had asked him to do.

Not only did he show a greedy and profit-seeking face, he also demanded a lot of food and fodder from Gongsun Yuan, and he also personally led his clansmen to travel back and forth between the upper reaches of the Liao River and Wuliu County every ten days.

He was afraid that when Xiahou Hui asked about the road conditions, his answer would be different from reality.

Well, Xiahou Hui and Guanqiu Jian did not reveal the battle plan to him.

He didn't and didn't dare to ask.

Perhaps, they were worried that after the Wei army arrived at Liaosui, the Liaodong army would use cavalry to take a detour and disrupt the grain route.

He guessed so and didn't care about the reason, he just worked diligently every day.

But he still messed it up.

However, although Xiahou Hui, who came east with three cavalry units, was looking for Mohuba to learn about the latest situation in the upper reaches of the Liao River, he did not neglect his duty to explore the way for the army.

After all, all the counties along the way from Banhai Road to Liaosui have been deserted, and it is very easy to hide ambushes in the mountains.

Regardless of whether the Liaodong Army has the courage to do so or not, it is better to be cautious.

Therefore, he ordered Qian Hong's troops to search every valley and forest along the way one by one; he asked Zhang Hu's troops to move slowly, select places to camp for the night for the subsequent army, mark water sources, firewood collection points, and mudflats that need to be avoided with caution; and he himself led the Leliang tribe and the White Horse Volunteers and headed straight for the Liao River.

With the combat power and mobility of the Heyi Battalion and the Baima Yicong, there is no need to worry about being ambushed.

Naturally, he did not approach Liao Sui rashly.

Instead, after leaving Banhai Road, they found a place with a wide view between the south side of Yiwulü Mountain and Liaoze to temporarily station their troops to serve as an outpost for the army. They also sent Gongsun Yi with the White Horse Volunteers to continue eastward to the west side of Liaoshui River to investigate the terrain between Tandu County and Fang County and the situation of the Liaodong Army. This place is across the water from Liaosui and will also become the first choice for the army to set up camp.

After the Heyi Camp was settled, he led more than a hundred cavalrymen to Wuliu County.

Fu Gu, a Zhonglang of the Zhenhu Department, also accompanied him. Since he arrived at the barracks outside Guzhu City in Liaoxi, Xiahou Hui used him as a strategist to assist him in matters. The apparent reason was that Ding Mi was good at general affairs but not at military affairs, and he was still helping Guanqiu Jian, so Xiahou Hui had no one to use for the time being. But the actual reason was that when they were in Yecheng, Jizhou, Fu Gu wanted to submit a petition on behalf of Xiahou Hui to persuade him, which brought the two closer together, and Xiahou Hui officially regarded him as his confidant.

There is no need to hide anything from someone you trust and are close to.

Xiahou Hui not only informed Fu Gu of the tactics of the war against Liaodong, but also told him that if the war went well, Emperor Cao Rui would send his second brother Xiahou Ba to guard Liaodong.

Therefore, Fu Gu became very interested in Mohuba, the leader of the Bai tribe of Xianbei.

Given the gap between the current Wuhuan gathering place and Liaodong's vassal state, the character of the Bai tribe Xianbei leader will have a great impact on whether the four counties of Liaodong can be stable after the war.

So he did not hesitate to follow Xiahou Hui on the trip.

Mo Huba, who had been informed by the Baima Yicong long ago, had been waiting for them in a valley in Wuliu County for four days.

In order to avoid misunderstanding, he only brought more than a hundred tribesmen with him, and prepared food and lodging such as yurts, roasted lamb, and kumis in advance, and his attitude was very respectful.

It's just that broken Chinese that he has only learned for a year or two, which is so painful to listen to.

For example, when he came out to greet her, in order to show his closeness, he greeted her enthusiastically in Chinese, but Xiahou Hui couldn't understand what he meant.

Fortunately, Xiahou Hui also brought an interpreter.

After the awkward episode, everyone entered the tent and sat down.

Although it was the yurt used by the tribal leader, the residual dirt everywhere, the old fur mats, the lack of gold and jade ornaments, the few old bows hanging diagonally in the corners, and the faint smell of rancid meat were enough to let people know that this tribe had always been hovering on the line of food and clothing.

Xiahou Hui, whose mind was entirely focused on military affairs, did not pay attention to these things.

He was invited to drink several glasses of sour mare's milk wine in succession, but he was not disgusted by it. Instead, he listened attentively to the interpreter's retelling of Mohuba's words about the situation in the upper reaches of the Liao River.

Fu Gu discovered it as soon as he sat down.

Not only because he came here to observe the Bai tribe of Xianbei, but also because the leather felt mat under his seat was very hard and had several holes in it.

This is a tribe that can be driven away by force.

The imperial court only offered them trade, titles and a piece of wasteland to drive their two thousand cavalrymen to risk their lives. So, if they offered cloth, salt and tea as rewards, they could also be made "slave catchers", right?

In a moment, this was the thought in Fu Gu's mind.

The so-called slave catcher did not mean that he wanted to encourage Xiahou Hui to get involved in the despicable slave trade.

Instead, he had already thought of a way to curb the Bai tribe of Xianbei from becoming more powerful in this area in the future - that is, to secretly instigate the Youzhou tyrants to purchase slaves from them with money, so that they would, driven by the interests, launch wars against the various Hu tribes in the north of Youzhou and abduct men and women, thus becoming notorious, hated and isolated by other Hu tribes, and naturally losing the opportunity to rise and becoming a threat to the Wei border.

I just came to someone else's tent as a guest, and my first thought was to plot against him.
Fu Gu didn't feel guilty at all.

To work for the country and eliminate the hidden dangers in the border areas first, this is the unshirkable duty of a minister of the State of Wei.
Moreover, the Hu Lu tribes would submit to the emperor when they were weak and invade him when they were strong. They had no loyalty or trust at all. So it was normal for him to want to strike first and gain the upper hand.

"Lanshi?"

"Lanshi?!"

Just as he was immersed in planning with his eyelids drooping, how to make Xiahou Hui and Guanqiu Jian accept his ideas, he did not notice that Xiahou Hui had already called him several times.

It was not until Xiahou Hui raised her voice and reached out to pat him on the shoulder that he suddenly woke up.

"Ah, what is it?"

Fu Gu looked up in confusion at first, but when he saw that everyone's eyes were focused on him, he reacted and hurriedly bowed his hands in embarrassment to apologize, "I'm so ashamed! I'm so ashamed! I'm not very strong and can't stand the fatigue along the way. As soon as I sat down, I felt sleepy and dazed. I hope you will forgive me."

The owner of this place, Mo Huba, would not and dared not blame anyone.

Xiahou Hui was even more indulgent. After he first apologized to Mo Huba on his behalf, he whispered to him what had just happened.

It turned out that Mo Huba had just claimed that the Liaodong Army had suddenly increased its troops to Liaoyang County between the Liao River and the Liao River in recent days. For example, when Xiahou Hui came to Liaoze to survey the terrain, there were only a few hundred county soldiers in Liaoyang County, but now there are at least two thousand soldiers guarding it.

Actually, Xiahou Hui knew what was going on.

That was because Mohuba meant well but ended up doing something bad, and he was too conscientious in doing what he was asked to do.

No matter what, Gongsun Yuan only wanted to win over the Bai tribe of Xianbei for temporary use, and would not believe them without any suspicion. However, when he saw Mohuba and his tribesmen frequently appearing on the banks of the Liao River in Liaoyang County, how could he not be suspicious of Mohuba's motives!
Nomadic tribes are difficult to restrain with faith and loyalty.

Gongsun Yuan was also worried that Mohuba had ulterior motives. He thought that after asking for money, food and supplies, he was not trustworthy and was thinking of taking advantage of the situation to rob. He planned to take advantage of the fact that Liaoyang County was unguarded when the Wei army came to fight and lead the tribesmen to plunder!

Xiahou Hui now wanted to ask Fu Gu if there was any way to eliminate Gongsun Yuan's suspicion of Mo Huba and transfer the troops stationed in Liaoyang County back.

It turned out to be the case.

After hearing this, Fu Gu said without hesitation, "This is easy! We just need to let the leader Mohuba lead his people to Liaoyang County and ask the city garrison for some money and food."

(End of this chapter)