The person left by Tian Yu in Guangwucheng was Liu Qi, a general of Tian Yu.
Zhong Yu met Liu Qi and poured out everything all at once, then handed over Tian Yu's letter to Liu Qi.
Liu Qi opened the letter and what caught his eye was a sentence without a signature.
"Liu Qi: Order you to go with the Zhong envoy to pass on the imperial decree to Ke Bin Neng. If anything happens, you must sacrifice your life to ensure that Zhong envoy returns. This person is also the eldest son of Zhong Taifu. You should know what's at stake."
Son of the Grand Tutor? Make me travel with him??
This is to go to war, or a second-generation official from Luoyang coming to the border area to gain experience?
Liu Qi dare not hesitate for a moment, carefully putting the letter in his chest and bowing, "I don't know if Zhong envoy needs to rest for a night before starting out tomorrow morning?"
Zhong Yu asked, "Sir Liu, is it possible to reach Yin Guan by nightfall if we set out now?"
Liu Qi pondered for a moment and said, "We can reach Yin Guan by night, but it will be late in the night."
“No problem!” Zhong Yu's expression became determined: "Let's take ten riders and leave now. We will stay at Yin Guan tonight!"
The large army continued to head north, and Cao Rui only stayed one night in the house carefully repaired by Tian Yu before setting out for Yin Guan.
On the afternoon of the 14th day of March, the large army arrived at Yin Guan.
Yinguan City is located to the south of Sanggan Water, and after crossing the Sanggan Water northwestward, they would reach Maying City, where Liu Ye, Guanhou Jian, and Tian Yu had fought together.
The vast expanse of land between Yinguan City and the Sanggan River was sparsely and broadly occupied by camps of the Wuhuan and Xiongnu tribes, stretching for several miles in length.
Upon seeing the arrival of the large army of the Wei Kingdom's middle army, whether it was the Xianbei or the Xiongnu, they all followed Feng Po's orders and remained in their camps, not daring to disturb each other.
In fact, with the impressive appearance of the Wei army's cavalry, they didn't have the audacity to disturb each other.
Feng Po had already set up some basic camps here with his three thousand soldiers, so the two thousand cavalry saved quite a bit of effort upon their arrival.
Cao Rui genuinely wanted to visit Maying City. However, compared to visiting the battlefield of Maying City, there are more important things to be done at the moment.
It's about receiving foreigners.
Yanmen Commandery and Dai Commandery are places that Tian Yu has cultivated for more than a decade. General Tian Yu, who protects the Wuhuan, is happy to be the host. After he and Feng Po, He Ping have carefully counted the number of Xiongnu and Xianbei troops, he goes to seek an audience outside the main command tent of the central army.
When Tian Yu was summoned in, it was already evening, and the emperor was discussing military affairs with his officials. Torches were burning around the big tent, casting an eerie glow like daylight.
Cao Rui said, "Today I came with the army across the mountains, and I found out that the path to the west from Guangwu over the mountains is called Xixing. There are many beacon towers on Xixing Mountain, and there is also a fortress at the top of the mountain that is in ruins."
"You all say, should we renovate them again?"
Man Chong thought for a moment, "Is Your Majesty referring to renovating the fortress on top of it?"
Cao Rui nodded with interest: "I looked at this place and it is an extremely strategic location. How about we rename the fortress on Xixing Mountain as Yanmen Guan?"
Man Chong nodded, "Reporting to Your Majesty, it's not a problem to rebuild a fortress. But since we are about to use troops, maybe we should wait and do it later."
Sima Yi saw that Man Chong had unsaid intentions, so he smiled and said, "Your Majesty, there are also cities like Yinguan and Wang Tao beyond the fortress. There's no need to rush to make it a defensive stronghold."
Cao Rui was not concerned and waved his hand, saying, "I just thought there should be a strategic pass at Xixing. Since both of you have opinions, let's put this matter aside for now."
Seeing Tian Yu standing in the corner of the tent door, Cao Rui waved his hand:
"General Tian, what do you wish to report?"
Tian Yu walked quickly forward, holding a list and bowing to hand it over to the emperor: "Reporting to Your Majesty, this is a list of the Xiongnu, Xianbei, and Wuhuan tribes."
Chancellor Xu Shu stepped forward to take the list from him, and then presented it on the table in front of the emperor.
"Then I'll take a look." Cao Rui opened the list and quickly scanned it a few times.
"The Xiongnu's five departments are the most obedient, with six hundred elite light cavalry coming from each department. In total, there are three thousand light cavalry, not one too many and not one too few."
"The Wuhuan from Yanmen Commandery brought three thousand light cavalry, and they are also compliant."
"But the Xianbei departments are not as compliant. Bu Dugen brought four thousand cavalry, Suoli brought two thousand cavalry, and Xie Guini brought one thousand five hundred cavalry. This totals seven thousand five hundred cavalry."
"And there are also the three thousand Xianbei light cavalry of He Qibu, the son-in-law of Ke Bini. When you add these up, it comes to more than ten thousand cavalry."
Cao Rui looked at Tian Yu and asked, "General Tian, didn't you explain to these Xianbei properly?"
"According to the emperor and the court's will, the Xianbei should have only brought out ten thousand cavalry. Just Yanmen Commandery alone brought out seven thousand five hundred cavalry. If we add those from Dai Commandery, Shanggu Commandery, and those from Ke Bini himself, wouldn't the Xianbei bring out twenty thousand cavalry alone?"
From the perspective of the Wei court, having more troops is not always better.
Man Chong, responsible for the military affairs of the Wei dynasty, coughed lightly and looked at Tian Yu: "General Tian, according to the plan of the Wei court, this expedition to Liaodong has deployed troops from various Uighur, Xiongnu, and Xianbei departments in Beiqiu, Jingjiu and Boping states. "On one hand to gather elite troops. On the other hand to eliminate border troubles so that the Wei court can focus on Liaodong War."
"Now that the Xianbei have sent so many light cavalry, it must be a mixture of elite soldiers and the old and weak. Are they going out to fight under the order of the court, or are they preparing to eat the court's military rations for a year?"
Tian Yu answered nervously, bowing his hands: "Reporting to Your Majesty, it is the fault of the minister himself that he has failed to supervise properly. Please give Your Majesty a day. By the evening of tomorrow, I will definitely reduce the number of Xianbei here!"
Cao Rui nodded lightly: "How many troops did General Tian originally intend the Xianbei to send?"
Tian Yu bowed and said, "The minister previously made the following distribution."
"Bu Dugen's department will send out one thousand five hundred cavalry, Suoli's department will send out one thousand, and Xie Guini's department will send out five hundred. Each department from Dai Commandery and Shanggu Commandery will send out one thousand cavalry."
"Adding up to five thousand Xianbei light cavalry is enough."
"Furthermore, we will recruit an additional five thousand or ten thousand elite cavalry from Ke Bini."
Cao Rui nodded: "After all, they are foreigners, and they are not like the Xiongnu where there are officials under the direct control of the court. If they are not obedient, I can still bear it."
"It's not a problem. I will stay here for another day. General Tian, please arrange this. I will meet them in the afternoon of tomorrow."
"Acknowledged, Your Majesty. The minister will withdraw." Tian Yu received the order and left.
...
The next afternoon, five Huns chieftains, three Wuhuan chieftains, and four Xianbei chieftains stood together in the emperor's tent, waiting to meet the emperor.
The twelve leaders stood together in the great tent, all of them today very aware of the gravity of the situation. They dared not move, dare not speak, and even dared not glance around with their eyes.
It is only because the one who is receiving them is the emperor of the Wei Kingdom himself.
All of them are living off the power of Wei. These people have a clear understanding of Wei's power structure. People like Bu Dugen would treat Yanmen Administrator with subservience and be extremely polite to General Tian Yu.
What about facing the emperor?
Before coming, Tian Yu had already told them one by one. When meeting the emperor, they should be as respectful as meeting your ancestors, the gods you worship, and the wolf god!
If anyone shows disrespect to the emperor, the only outcome will be death.
As the leaders of one department, no one is truly a fool. After entering the Wei central army's large encampment, they had never seen such elite riders and fully armored mounted soldiers in their lives.
Cao Rui, who was rarely formal, was also wearing a gold-embroidered armor and walked into the tent with a group of tiger-guard honor attendants over eight feet tall.
"You have come here at the command of the edict, and today, I also wish to meet you."
Cao Rui was saying as he walked towards the main seat in the middle of the tent.
"Kneel down!" Tian Yu whispered from the side.
"We, your subjects, pay homage to Your Majesty! May Your Majesty live ten thousand years!" The twelve men knelt down together and bowed deeply, their actions having reached the basic standard and unity.
Cao Rui looked at Tian Yu and Tian Yu bowed slightly.
Certainly, this was also something that Tian Yu had trained for.
Cao Rui nodded and said, "Rise."
"Thank Your Majesty!" The twelve people stood up together, looking down slightly, not daring to look directly at the emperor.
Cao Rui scanned the group and spoke in a firm and authoritative voice, "You are all subjects under my rule. Lift your heads and see your emperor and father!"
With the emperor's permission, these people dared to look up. The emperor was seated in the center of the tent in gold armor, surrounded by guards who were burly and muscular.
The emperor's majestic aura mixed with his handsome appearance, under the reflection of the surrounding environment, was even more inexpressible nobility and majesty.
He Qibu, who was initially unsatisfied with the arrangement by Ke Bini to come to Yinguan, is now in a state of chaos in his mind. His only thought is that this emperor is truly like a celestial being!
Cao Rui looked at the crowd, "I have reviewed all of your names."
"Who is Bu Dugen?"
A Xianbei man, about fifty years old, immediately knelt down and bowed to the ground: "Your Majesty, I am Bu Dugen."
"Rise," said Cao Rui calmly. "Every time the court mentions the Xianbei in Youbing, the first name that comes to mind for me is yours."
"Your grandfather was Dan Shihexi?" (End of this chapter)
