Chapter 113: Cultural Integration: The Gu Clan's Path of Transformation (Begging for Monthly Votes)

Gu Yi certainly understood as well that accomplishing all of this would not be easy.

The productive forces required for ethnic fusion far exceeded those of the current era.

Why did the barbarians on all four sides keep attacking the Great Han?

The core reason was precisely the insufficiency of productive forces!

Their systems and culture;

compared to the Great Han, were far more backward, and the environments they depended on for survival were even less sufficient to support their continued progress.

This was the fundamental reason the conflict between the two sides never ceased.

What Gu Yi wanted to attempt this time was to break the current situation.

Compared to the original history—

the current Great Han was far, far more prosperous, and this was the influence brought about by the appearance of the Gu clan.

The barbarians on all four sides longed for the Great Han's system far more than they did in the original history.

It was precisely this that allowed Gu Yi to see an opportunity.

Perhaps he could blaze a new trail and thoroughly establish the status of the entire Gu clan within the Nine Provinces.

Of course—

Gu Yi did not know whether this attempt would ultimately succeed.

But as long as there was the slightest hope, it was worth trying.

Guonei City.

Like the Western Xianbei's Wang Ting, the buildings throughout Guonei City were also imitating the architectural style of the Great Han.

But Goguryeo had not even grasped the superficial aspects.

It had become a complete mishmash.

Gu Yi once again sent Wen Yang out, ordering him to pursue and kill the King of Goguryeo.

—Only this time, Gu Yi placed restrictions on him.

He did not let him pursue too far.

Wen Yang had gradually begun to show some changes in recent days; his temperament was simply like that.

He needed someone he genuinely respected to continually educate him.

Only then could his reckless personality be changed little by little.

Gu Yi certainly would not grind away all of Wen Yang's ferocity; ethnic fusion was bound to be an extremely prolonged affair.

And Wen Yang happened to be the best candidate for holding down a region.

Only by using the blade and the system together was there a chance to achieve the goal Gu Yi anticipated.

This was a large-scale transformation spanning from faith to the entire system!

Everything had to be done gradually.

Gu Ye's talent was indeed not lacking; as the most outstanding among the younger generation of the Gu clan.

Gu Yi only needed to provide the general outline.

Gu Ye could then refine the details based on his own judgment, formulating a system more suited to the current situation.

—First and foremost, naturally, it targeted the nobles among these tribes.

Gu Yi would not hold back this time.

Apart from the nobles who had already been executed, Gu Yi also planned to relocate even the remaining pro-Han ones.

Moving them to remote areas of You Province.

Letting them cultivate the land while gradually integrating into Great Han culture.

At the root, thoroughly severing the current ruling system of the steppe tribes.

Gu Yi certainly would not cut everything off at once.

Humans were creatures of habit; cutting everything off at once would only cause greater chaos.

Gu Yi selected a group of young men from these tribal nobles who were familiar with Great Han culture.

Reappointing them as tribal chieftains.

Of course, this was merely a nominal position.

The positions that truly held power still needed to be filled by Han people.

And within this, he also made moves on the cultural front.

Incorporating the Heavenly God worshipped by the steppe people into Great Han culture, exerting influence gradually upon their faith.

And opening up academies and border markets.

The academies were naturally different from the current academies of the Great Han.

Gu Yi only had them learn the Great Han language, and their status would be raised according to the results of their learning.

As for the border markets—

that was one of the methods to stabilize the core of the conflict between the two sides.

Through the Western Xianbei's horses, the Wuhuan's furs, and Goguryeo's ginseng and medicinal herbs, they would exchange for the things they needed.

In fact, this matter was the true core.

Only by ensuring stability could the implementation of other systems be promoted.

Of course, it would not be that simple.

Beyond this, Gu Yi also formulated various policies for evaluating and enfeoffing lands based on the degree of integration with Han culture.

Including the able-bodied men among these tribes.

Gu Yi referenced the Fubing system of the Northern Wei from the original history and reformed it.

At the same time as controlling numbers.

It also gave them greater hope.

It was stipulated that after serving as soldiers for many years and obeying orders, they could receive land and be granted Han surnames.

It appropriately integrated the core principles of the Fu Bing system and the Jun Tian system.

Everything, including their specific settlement locations, was restricted and planned.

This was undoubtedly a landmark event across eras.

It was also a necessary choice as history moved forward.

In truth, most people could only see the surface of history, aware of the glory achieved by Jiuzhou in this feudal era, yet ignoring the efforts and progress of generations before that brilliance.

For example, the Sui-Tang golden age in original history.

Most could only see the brilliance of that time, yet overlooked the foundation built by Northern Wei.

Fundamentally—

It was because of the successful ethnic integration implemented by Emperor Xiaowen of Northern Wei, which gave rise to a more vibrant Hu-Han culture, that later generations established a supercivilizational system spanning grasslands, farmland, and oceans.

This was a process of blossoming and bearing fruit.

Huaxia's ability to sustain a cultural heritage spanning thousands of years absolutely depended on repeated intermingling and rebirth.

The Gu family's path still stretches far ahead.

With the advancement of the times and the rise in productivity.

The Gu family's influence would certainly not be limited within the borders of Huaxia.

Gu Yi must ensure the Gu family leads the times—even if not every generation produces talent, the clan must maintain an unimaginable foundation and depth.

The news was swiftly sent to Luoyang.

——Upon hearing the news from the northern frontier, the court and realm erupted instantly!

One battle subdued three barbarian tribes!

Such achievements had never occurred since the revival of Great Han.

The pride of the entire Great Han reached its peak on this day.

Liu Chen would not miss this opportunity; he swiftly spread the news, using the talents of the Imperial Academy students to proclaim the heavenly might of Great Han.

The entire Great Han erupted completely!

The Gu family's sons, combined with this battle outcome, stirred the hearts of the common people.

The golden age had returned once more.

This was a thought arising from deep within everyone's hearts.

Although the natural disasters had long passed.

Yet it could not be denied that the people of Great Han still carried a faint shadow of gloom within their hearts—a shadow that must be dispelled by time or by other uplifting, inspiring events.

And this time, it was precisely so.

Gu Yi had been right.

When Gu Ye's name once again spread throughout the land and grew ever louder.

A long-established consensus finally found voice.

"When a Gu Shizi emerges, the world stirs!"

Folk rhymes began appearing simultaneously across all four regions.

This was not the achievement of Gu Ye's generation alone, but the result of generations of Gu family sons striving.

Never mind those renowned figures like Gu Kang, Gu Xi, and Gu Chen.

Under the Gu family's strictest educational system, even those obscure Gu family sons shone and contributed for the entire clan.

And now—

This was the moment their efforts bore fruit.

Of course, this mindset also imposed a new constraint upon the Gu family.

That is, only true talent emerging could re-enter the core of the court.

But for the Gu family, this was no problem.

The goal of entering the court's core was undoubtedly to continuously expand the family's influence.

Did the Gu family currently lack influence?

With the development of the times, the Gu family must gradually transform.

No matter what—

The Gu family must not bind itself to a single dynasty, but must bind itself to all of Jiuzhou!

The ministers in court understood this well, yet even those dissatisfied were destined to be powerless to stop it.

In today's Great Han, which family could rival the Gu family?

No—

The Gu family could no longer even be called a family.

Julu had become a sacred site; even during times of nationwide chaos, Julu remained untouched.

Throughout history, such a phenomenon had never occurred before.

Compared to it, all other families across the land seemed laughably insignificant.

Never mind these families;

Even the Liu imperial clan—what could they do?

Did their status in the people's hearts truly rival that of the Gu family?

The Gu family was no longer a mere "family" that could be summed up in one word; after generations of struggle, it had quietly begun to move toward the realm of faith.

This is a trend that no one could possibly reverse!

But before this uproar could settle, Gu Yi's memorial on governing the barbarians was sent back.

—The court and the realm were shaken to their core!

This time the impact far surpassed the previous battle reports.

Article after article of the system could be said to have pushed the atmosphere of the entire Han court to its absolute peak.

To the court officials, this kind of system was unimaginable.

Even Zhang Hua, Zhong Hui and the others were dumbfounded.

Gu Yi had long anticipated this, so within the memorial he explained the reasons and offered some reasonable justifications.

Yet this system still provoked resistance from many.

This was entirely unavoidable.

The pride of Han officials far exceeded that of ordinary commoners — how could they possibly accept the system Gu Yi had proposed?

For them—

If the barbarians wished to approach the Han, they could only do so through complete submission.

This matter stirred up a monstrous wave across the entire court, and the ministers launched a detailed discussion and debate over this system.

Liu Chan hesitated as well.

No matter how brilliant he was, he was inevitably constrained by his era.

Moreover, the current situation was entirely different from the original history — at the very least, Shenzhou still stood, and the Han still stood.

All of this was simply too subversive for him.

But out of trust in Gu Ye, he still began to seriously consider the matter.

He discussed it in detail with Zhang Hua, Zhong Hui and others.

Zhang Hua and the others were indeed extraordinary — after several days of deliberation, they had already grasped the deeper meaning behind Gu Yi's proposal.

Yet taking this step was still extremely difficult for them.

The most difficult of all was Liu Chan.

Undoubtedly, if this move truly succeeded, these barbarians would sooner or later be absorbed into the Han, and their lands would eventually become Han territory.

This was no mere surface-level occupation.

Cultural fusion would cause this stretch of land to merge entirely into the Nine Provinces, just as in ancient times.

If it truly could be so—

Then his achievements as Emperor, even when stacked against every Emperor of both the Former and Later Han, would absolutely rank among the greatest.

But if it failed and triggered even greater turmoil — even the collapse of the Nine Provinces, as those who resisted warned—

Then he, Liu Chan, would become the sinner of the entire Nine Provinces.

For any Emperor, this was not a choice that could be made lightly.

But don't forget — he was Liu Chan!

—Better to die in battle than surrender the realm; never yield Jiangshan with open hands.

This alone was enough to reveal his character.

Once he had learned that if this succeeded, it would bring unimaginable benefits to the entire Han—

How could he possibly hesitate?

As for failure — Liu Chan paid it no heed at all.

If it failed, he would simply fight his way back.

Even if, in the future, he were no longer in this world, his descendants would surely continue to fight for the Han.

Liu Chan was not Liu Shan!

He would rather err in action than choose to do nothing!

Not to mention, the one who proposed all of this was still a scion of the Gu clan.

Once he had settled his own thoughts, Liu Chan immediately silenced every voice in the court.

The Emperor and the Chancellor both approved the matter.

The overall situation was completely decided.

Liu Chan's imperial edict was swiftly dispatched to the northern frontier; he entrusted everything to Gu Ye, fully declaring that the entire Nine Provinces had taken another great step forward.

The transformation began from this moment—

Gungnae.

Wen Yang had indeed curbed his temperament somewhat — though he did not pursue far, he still slew a considerable number of men.

The King of Goguryeo had already fled in detail to distant lands.

Under the threat of the Han army, he did not dare entertain even the slightest thought of turning back.

There was no choice — Gu Yi's attitude toward the Western Xianbei and Wuhuan nobles had truly filled him with dread.

Gu Yi had been waiting all along for the court's decree.

Although the Gu clan currently had no real restraints, unless they truly took that step, in the present era they still had to maintain certain proprieties.

And taking that step would mean certain annihilation for the Gu clan.

The foundations built over several generations would vanish in an instant.

Finally, as time passed, the imperial edict was at last delivered.

After Gu Yi gave it a cursory glance—

He handed the edict directly to Wen Yang, looked at him and said seriously: "A-Yang, can you bear this heavy responsibility?"

A great general had to be stationed there to hold the line.

This must be guaranteed before this system can begin.

"Great General, this general will surely complete the mission." Wen Yang said without the slightest hesitation, his voice ringing with force.

He had always been this confident.

But how could the process of elevating a mere commander to a regional commander-in-chief be so simple?

Fortunately, however, what Wen Yang truly needed to do was merely to intimidate.

Gu Yi did not hesitate in the slightest and immediately began making the arrangements.

This was bound to meet with resistance.

The emergence of any brand-new system cannot be easily accepted by people at the very beginning.

But what can resistance accomplish?

Gu Yi would not hold back in the slightest — every last one would be put to death.

He meant to use blood to lay the foundation of this reform and pave this road!

——————

"The great cultural fusion proposed by Great General Gu Ye during the Yan Han period is an important node in our country's historical development that cannot be ignored.

The cultural fusion practices he implemented not only demonstrate the inclusive nature of our civilization,

but also provided later generations with valuable experience in governing the various peoples.

This dialogue spanning the steppe and agrarian civilizations was ultimately forged into the civilizational cornerstone of later dynasties, and laid a thoroughly solid foundation for the brilliance of later dynasties."

— *People's Education Press History Textbook, Grade 7 Volume 1 (Great Ethnic Fusion Unit)*

(End of this chapter)