The next afternoon, the crowd of Qiang chieftains who had hurried from Luomen to Shanggui were being deliberately guided through the western cavalry camp by Lu Su.
Lu Su led 50 excellent horsemen, placing these chieftains in the middle of the formation and carefully examining them one by one.
earthen walls, moats, ram bars, tents, lookout towers, fences...
The well-disciplined troops in formation, both foot soldiers and cavalry, were also something that caused the naive Qiang people from Liangzhou to widen their eyes.
It was the same sensation of shock, but the psychological reactions among different chieftains were still different.
As the stupid people like Qiu Ling and Shu Muhetun can only feel the strong and imposing power of the Wei army.
The Qiang people were already impoverished, with many knights not even having leather armor. How could they fight against these heavily armored elite cavalry of the central army? Since there was no way they could win no matter what, it was best to just follow orders!
However, there were still rational Qiang people.
Zhi Wodi, who is 35 years old and serves as the chieftain of the Dian Qiang, is one of the rare rational Qiang people.
The Qiang people of Dian Qiang resided within the Anyi County, and when Zhi Wudi, at the age of over twenty, just took over the leadership of his tribe, he invited a Han scholar to educate him and enlighten him.
Like other Qiang people, Zhi Wudi's IQ was not particularly high, and he often couldn't understand the knowledge that the teacher explained.
The more Zhi Wudi could not understand, the more he was impressed by the teacher's knowledge from his heart. Consequently, he grew increasingly reverent towards the Han people and the court.
When Lu Su came to reinforce the western region from Liangzhou, as he was just setting out from Xiping Commandery in Liangzhou, Zhi Wudi was almost among the first to respond.
The history of Dian Qiang is hundreds of years old and has a good reputation among the Qiang people in Liangzhou. With Zhi Wudi leading the first group to respond and join, Lu Su's affairs could develop so smoothly.
Now that he has seen the military array of Wei so closely, Zhi Wudi's desire to serve Wei was uncontrollable.
If he could serve the Great Wei, wouldn't it be a hundred times better than being a chieftain in some desolate place like Xiping Commandery?
In fact, the assimilation of civilization is like this. The cultural splendor and power of the central regime are one and the same. These people without culture, after initially learning Han people's knowledge, how could they not maintain reverence towards the court?
And let alone the emperor!
After leading the Qiang chieftains to experience the military array, Lu Su then commanded them to come into the city and kowtow to the emperor to pay their respects.
Indeed, it was the act of kneeling and bowing.
These Qiang chieftains only looked at the emperor of Wei for a moment after entering, and under Lu Su's repeated instructions, no one dared to continue looking up at the emperor.
Why would they, when Captain Lu himself is kneeling in front?
Today, Cao Rui came to accept the Qiang chieftains' worship and didn't add any extra performance of greeting him personally or inquiring about local customs.
Instead, he put on his imperial crown and regalia neatly and received the Qiang chieftains' homage in a serious manner, merely raising his hand to acknowledge them. The entire process was conducted with Sima Yi answering questions and distributing rewards, as if he were a deity sitting in a temple.
However, in just half a breath of time, Lu Su led these Qiang people out.
As the Qiang people were walking towards the middle military camp outside the city, they were all whispering to each other.
"Did you see the emperor clearly just now?" asked the oldest of them, Qiu Ling. "I didn't see him clearly before, but I felt his majesty was extraordinary, like a god!"
Shumuhetun answered: "The emperor is just a heavenly king, and the heavenly king is just a god. I haven't seen a real god, but today I have seen a real heavenly king!"
Among the Qiang people who were discussing, Zhi Wudi remained silent and followed.
The emperor, it is the emperor! The emperor described in the books, and today he finally saw him himself! His heart was pounding in his chest so fiercely that his face reddened as well.
As the commander of protecting Qiang people, Lu Su did not arrange these Qiang chieftains in the city for housing. Instead, he asked Wen Qin's camp to provide a few spacious tent for them as a temporary place to stay.
After entering the tent, Qiu Ling was pushed forward by the crowd and looked at Lu Su and said:
"Captain Lu," Qiu Ling forced a smile and asked, "Thank you, Captain Lu, for leading us to worship the emperor and for the rewards we received! I never thought of such a thing in my dreams."
"Captain Lu had originally said that he would lead us to attack Wu Du and Yinping, but now we have been camped at Luomen for several days. What should we do next?"
Lu Su waved his hand to indicate that everyone should sit down, then he stood in the tent with his hands on his waist, and said in a deep voice, "Wu Du and Yinping must be attacked."
"Today, you have worshipped the emperor. The emperor, considering that the Qiang people live in a remote area of Liangzhou and face great difficulties, out of the benevolence of a sage king, is willing to treat you Qiang people equally with the Han people and accept you all as the people of Great Wei."
The crowd was silent for a few moments, then a lively discussion began. After a while, the oldest among them, Qiu Ling, was chosen to ask questions.
"Reporting to Captain Lu," Qiu Ling knew that he was now in the camp of Wei, and he dared not directly express his opposition. Instead, he tried to inquire politely: "If the emperor accepts the Qiang people as equal to the Han people, what is the policy of the court on us, these tribal leaders?"
"Yes, Captain Lu, is there any policy?"
"What did the emperor say?"
"Will all of us be taken away?"
Amidst the chaos, many people kept asking questions, and Lu Su patiently explained, "Do you know what a position of a Qian Shi Marquis is? The elite cavalry you saw just now, the Marquis can lead an army of a thousand soldiers!"
"Do you know what the title of a Tinghou is?"
Upon hearing Lu Su's words, the Qiang chieftains nodded in agreement.
Although the Qiang people are poor and live in remote areas, they still understand various official positions and titles under Wei administration.
Let alone the distant ones, the former HAN Sui and HAN Wen Yue, who had dominated the area of Yong and Chang once, have not been given a title of Marquis by the court. On the other side, Captain Lu in Wuxi and XIAHOU, who was the prefectural governor of XUWEI, had no title of Tinghou either.
Even Xiahou Yuan, who once roamed fearlessly in the Guanyou region, was no more than a Marquis of Boxiang Ting!
Qiu Ling swallowed his saliva: "Qian Shi Marquis has a higher official position than Xianling. Tinghou is a much bigger person that we have never seen before. I don't understand Captain Lu's true intention."
"Please, Captain Lu, speak your mind!"
The Qiang chieftains in the tent also urged him to speak.
Lu Su paused for a few moments, and then slowly announced the policy that had been previously discussed regarding the Qiang people. The final sentence was, "If you are willing to supervise the tribal people engaged in farming, you can be appointed as a Qian Shi Marquis. If you do not wish to serve in Liangzhou, you can be awarded a title of Tinghou and serve as an official in Luoyang at the foot of the emperor, enjoying prosperity and wealth in Luoyang!"
Upon hearing this, the Qiang people present in the tent all began to breathe rapidly.
The Qiang people are different from the Xiongnu people on the northern side of You and Huan provinces, as well as the Huns and the Xianbei on the northern side of Bing Province.
Xiongnu Chanyu and Xianbei Dadiran are used to wielding power within their own tribes. It's unlikely that they would leave the northern grasslands to eat sand if given a legitimate official position or title.
But the Qiang people's kind families are not centralized like the Xiongnu or Xianbei, and to be honest, most of these people have little opportunity to enjoy wealth in their own kind families.
After decades of chaos, even the Central Plains suffered from a lack of resources. Let alone the areas of Yong and Liang, which were even more impoverished. How could the Qiang people living in mountain valleys in Yong and Liang compare to the Han people there?
If you buy their tribe with a title of Tinghou, this transaction will be a profitable one!
Zhi Wudi was the first to jump up and say, "Captain Lu, I am willing to serve as an official and be a Qian Shi Marquis. I hope that Captain Lu will allow me to serve Wei!"
Lu Su nodded gravely and said, "Zhi Wu Dai, your intelligence is commendable. I will report your name to the emperor."
Zhi Wudi's face lit up with joy and he bowed repeatedly: "Thank you, Captain Lu! Thank you, Captain Lu! I am willing to serve as an official alongside Captain Lu!"
Lu Su smiled coldly in his heart, but continued to ask calmly, "What about the rest of you? What are your thoughts?"
"Today, there are twenty of you. We have limited slots and will only take ten people today. As Zhi Wu Dai has already said, there are nine people left."
"If you are willing to assimilate into the Wei, stand on the left side of my command."
"I will remind you once more that this time, the court intends to relocate the assimilated Qiang people to Jianxian and Shangguan regions."
Ji County? Shangguan?
While they are all in the region of Yong, Liang, Liangzhou is much better than the borderland near Huang He River.
These Qiang chieftains had traveled from Luomen to the east, passing through Ji County, Xinyang, and Shangguan. They were not allowed to cultivate in the Huang He River valley before, but now they are allowed to cultivate in the Wei River valley?
One by one, the Qiang chieftains stood up and moved to stand beside Lu Su, until nine of them were beside him. Then Lu Su reached out to stop those who wanted to follow.
Among the nine, only three of the younger ones were willing to serve as a Qian Shi Marquis. The remaining six, who were older, all wanted to be appointed officials in Luoyang and enjoy their lives with the title of Tinghou given by the court.
Liangzhou is remote and cold. These chieftains spent their early years making uprisings with Han Sui and Ma Suo, which times did they ever become Marquis? Even Han Sui himself has never been given a title of Marquis.
Now that the emperor is so benevolent, why not seize the opportunity as soon as possible?
What's the point of saying 'land is hard to leave'? If you don't want to farm in Liangzhou, let others do it!
"Qiu Ling, why do you want to accept a title instead of serving as an official?" Lu Su looked directly at Qiu Ling and asked.
Qiu Ling did not hesitate, his eyes full of longing for titles and wealth, and he answered straightforwardly, "Captain Lu, I want to go to Luoyang! I want to be a Tinghou!"
"Please, Captain Lu, allow me to bring my family to Luoyang."
Lu Su laughed: "Of course."
The selected Qiang chieftains were all pleased, but the ones who were not selected started to cause trouble and make noise in the tent.
"Captain Lu, why only take ten? We are also willing to serve the Wei! Why don't we all become assimilated?"
"Yes, yes!"
"Right, Captain Lu, and us too!"
Lu Su looked at these enthusiastic Qiang people, and remembered the scene when he was fighting the Yamuyi tribes in Yangzhou. It was like a heaven and earth difference, and he couldn't help but feel a sense of regret.
Lu Su hurriedly signaled the crowd to be quiet: "This time, those who have not been selected can also join the Wei troops to fight!"
"Besides the areas of Ji County and Shangguan, there are also choices in Qishan and Lücheng in the future! There is a hundred-li river valley along the Western Han River, all of which can be cultivated into good farmland!"
After a good round of persuasion, these Qiang people finally calmed down.
However, after Lu Su left, the Qiang people in the tent were clearly divided into two camps. One group was envious of the other.
The selected Qiang people addressed each other as Marquis or Lord, making quite a lively scene in the tent for a while. (Chapter ends)
