A thousand-year-old family that began with the Battle of Makino

Chapter 905: Bai Junyou heard Zhu Xie, the doorman was on standby to summon him

November of the ninth year of Taihe

Taiyuan, Songxi

At this time, Bai Shen had passed away, and Bai Xian succeeded him as the head of the Bai family and inherited the title of Duke of Bai.

His son Bai Hui was appointed as the head of the Bai family's main courtyard, and his eldest grandson Bai Mian was stationed in Henan as the envoy of the Eastern Court.

After Li Ang failed to eliminate the eunuchs in the fifth year of Taihe, the eunuchs became more tyrannical, which made it convenient for Bai Shi. She allowed Bai Mian to serve as the Xuanwu Jiedushi at the young age of 23.

However, because the power of the imperial court was still very strong, it was not good to provoke the imperial court too much, so the Bai family had made preparations and selected another person from another family, Liu Mian, to serve as the governor of Hedong.

This is to avoid having two military governors in one family and two big towns with the surname Bai, which would make the emperor in Chang'an uneasy.

"Master, the Zhuxie clan leader is here."

In the main courtyard of the Bai Mansion, Bai Xian was handling the Bai family affairs in the room. A counselor quietly entered the house and said respectfully.

"Zhu Xie?"

Bai Xian put down the documents in his hand and looked at the chief recorder Bai Wushuang who was also sitting behind the desk and helping with clan affairs.

Bai Wushuang gestured, put down the brush in his hand, lowered his head slightly and said:
"Master, the Zhuxie clan is originally a descendant of the Western Turkic people. When the Tang Dynasty and the Arabs attacked the Western Turkic people, the Western Turkic people were destroyed and some of them fled to Liangzhou to live."

"After the An-Shi Rebellion, Liangzhou was in chaos. The Tibetans and the Uighurs invaded. The two fought for control of Liangzhou and almost destroyed it."

"The leader of the Zhuxie clan was unwilling to join the two, so he moved from the south of the desert along the southern foot of the Yinshan Mountains to the Hedong area."

"Because the family wanted to enrich the land in Daibei, they took them in and let them graze in the Daibei area. It has been more than 30 years now, and many of them have intermarried with the nobles of Taiyuan."

"Most of the tribe members have assimilated into the Tang Dynasty. They wear Tang clothes, speak Tang dialect, and are almost indistinguishable from the Tang people."

"The current leader of the Zhuxie clan is named Zhuxie Chixin. Because the previous clan leader Zhuxie Zhiyi married a woman from the Wang clan and established himself in Daibei, most of the Hedong cavalry are from the Zhuxie clan."

"Because the Zhuxie clan is considered a large clan in Daibei, and they have participated in many battles against the Uighurs in Hedong, the clan's cavalry is very elite, so we planned for the clan's cavalry."

"It just so happens that Zhuxie Chixin has a crush on a girl in the family, and the two are planning to get married. So I asked him to come to Songxi to pay his respects, so as to win him over."

After listening to Bai Wushuang's description, Bai Xian tapped his fingers rhythmically on the desk, obviously thinking about something.

Bai Wushuang and the counselors in the hall fell silent, not daring to move for fear of disturbing the master's thoughts.

After searching for a long time, Bai Xian came up with a plan and said, "Jian'an."

"Master." The counselor on standby responded.

"Let Zhuxie Chixin come in. I want to meet the son-in-law of the Bai family."

"Yes."

After Bai Jianan left, Bai Xian asked Bai Wushuang to go to the main courtyard to call the director Bai Hui, and select a military officer from the record room to attend.

In the gatehouse of Bai Mansion, many people were sitting in the room, waiting to be summoned by Bai Mansion, while in the corner, a strong man and a young man were sitting there, out of place with the crowd.

The two men had very similar features, both with deep eyebrows and high nose bridges. Although they were dressed neatly in Tang Dynasty clothes, they still had a barbarian style.

The leader was about thirty years old, with a full beard, weather-beaten face, broad shoulders and a strong waist. He was obviously a warrior. He was Zhuxie Chixin, the new leader of the Zhuxie clan, the largest nomadic tribe in Daibei.

I saw him sitting a little awkwardly on a small chair, drinking the tea in his hand to hide his inner nervousness.

"Sanlang, come back and sit down. This is not a tribe. You can't walk around and jump around." He saw his son lying on the windowsill, looking at the picturesque scenery in the front yard and the busy clerks coming and going.

From time to time, a nobleman with a divine seal on his forehead would appear, followed by several followers.

There were also warriors in armor, holding swords and guns, patrolling back and forth to eliminate hidden dangers. It was quite lively.

The boy called Sanlang was only four or five years old. He was lying on the windowsill looking at the scenery outside. When he heard his father calling him, he reluctantly sat back down and asked curiously:
"Grandpa, is this the Bai Mansion? Is this my mother's family? It's so big. Are the people inside really from the same tribe? Are they all from the same family? They are dressed so nicely, and the houses here are so beautifully built..."

"The county town near our tribe is totally incomparable. Can a family really be more luxurious than a county town?"

"Grandpa, I see that those coming and going here seem to be high-ranking officials from the government. Are all the officials in the world here?"

"Grandpa, why didn't mother come with us?"

Zhu Xie Chixin was overwhelmed by the boy's continuous questions and could not help but growl:

"Shut up. When you get home, go ask your mother. I don't know."

After being growled at by his father, the boy became obedient and sipped the tea timidly.

My mother is gentle and cultured. She usually teaches me when I make mistakes, but my father really beats me and whips me if he disagrees with me.

It was okay in the tribe because my mother was there and my father didn’t dare to whip me at will. But now I’m in a foreign place and my mother is not around, so I have to bow my head temporarily to avoid physical pain.

After yelling at his son, Zhuxie Chixin felt much better and his previous nervousness disappeared. He waited in silence. He knew that this trip to Songxi would determine the pattern of the nomadic tribes in Daibei submitting to the Tang Dynasty.

He was glad that the Zhuxie clan took the initiative to submit and, under the auspices of his father, established relations with the Tang people and even with the Bai clan.

Perhaps, after today, the fate of the Zhuxie tribe will be divided into two.

A clerk entered the gatehouse and looked around at everyone. Everyone present straightened up and quieted down, hoping that they were summoned.

They were either patriarchs of the great families in Hedong, or officials of the imperial court, or even officers in the Hedong army.

They gathered here, all hoping to be summoned by the Bai Mansion, to establish a relationship with the Bai family, and thus change their own destiny.

"Is Chief Zhuxie here?"

Hearing the clerk speaking loudly, everyone relaxed and continued the conversation, except for themselves.

Zhu Xie Chixin quickly pulled his son to the front of the clerk, bowed slightly, and saluted with his hands crossed:

"I am Zhuxie Chixin, and this is my son."

The clerk returned the greeting and said with a smile, "Please move over, Chief Zhuxie. The patriarch is calling for you."

As soon as these words were spoken, the huge gatehouse suddenly became quiet again.

Zhu Xie Chixin showed joy on his face, but he still suppressed his excitement and said steadily: "The Bai Mansion is too big, please lead the way for me, sir."

"Of course, please follow me."

After the three men disappeared, the conversation in the lobby became so heated that it almost blew the roof off the room.

Most of the people waiting here are waiting to be summoned by the owners of several rooms in the Bai Mansion or several clan elders. This is something that others can only desire but cannot obtain.

Those who are lucky will be summoned by the head of the main courtyard. Why would someone who is summoned by the head of the family wait in the gatehouse in the front yard?

(End of this chapter)