Chapter 18: Remember to Be Cautious

In winter, Liu Gui's caravan returned to Li Shuang's estate, bringing back five hundred crossbows and several carts of iron as agreed.

Li Shuang immediately inspected these crossbows and found their craftsmanship excellent, with an effective range beyond two hundred steps and good accuracy.

The Hu Ren are skilled archers, but mostly use bows, not crossbows.

Crossbow production is an engineering craft, and most masters of it are Han artisans, who are strictly monitored by both the Northern Wei and Southern Liang courts.

Liu Gui could obtain so many crossbows at once, indicating that the Hu tribe he visited had a large number of crossbow makers, and that they were not under the control of Take Pingcheng.

Li Shuang became curious at once, but Liu Gui stammered and refused to reveal specifics about the tribe.

Li Shuang did not press further.

"Then get me another thousand crossbows. The payment remains the same."

Such a large deal naturally appealed to Liu Gui, but he was troubled.

"The war in Wu Chuan and Huixu has become extremely difficult. Yuan Yu holds Yuncheng and dares not advance—his fear of the enemy is obvious. He likely cannot defeat Liu Baling. The northern tribes are all in fear, worried both that the Liuzhen army will come and that other tribes allied with the imperial forces will swallow them whole. Under these circumstances, a few bags of gold are no longer enough to secure loyalty."

"Then what do they want?"

"They want protection!"

Li Shuang understood—they wanted security.

For example, in the early Northern Wei, peripheral tribes of the Xianbei submitted pledges of allegiance and received the Xianbei's protection, ensuring their survival.

That person could not be Li Shuang—it had to be Er Zhu Rong.

Whether by official rank or reputation, Liang Jungong Er Zhu Rong, who had just captured Si Province, was the best candidate.

"Why not go to Yuan Shen?"

Liu Gui gave a nervous laugh and shook his head helplessly.

"Yuan Shen is now guarding against the northern tribes even more fiercely than against the Liuzhen. Many tribes have realized this Guangyang Prince is no friend. They are a small tribe—they fear that if they submit to Yuan Shen, he will devour them down to the last bone. If the military commander can persuade Liang Jungong to accept them, those thousand crossbows can be obtained without spending a single coin."

"Which small tribe?"

"Han Baling's tribe!"

Liu Gui glanced nervously at Li Shuang, who nearly spat out his drink.

"Han Baling's Han Baling?"

Liu Gui nodded, looking utterly innocent.

After careful consideration, Li Shuang told Er Zhu Rong about this matter.

When Li Shuang found Er Zhu Rong in Southern Xiurong City and told him that Han Baling's tribe wished to submit a pledge of allegiance, Er Zhu Rong became deeply interested.

Han Baling's tribe originally belonged to the Xiongnu, a major clan of Hexi, and had deep ties with the Er Zhu clan.

Now that Han Baling had become a notorious rebel, most of Han Baling's tribe had joined him; a few remained in a precarious position.

"Second brother, what do you think of this? Could it be a trick?"

Li Shuang's concern was not unfounded, but Er Zhu Rong shook his head.

Er Zhu Rong understood the feuds and grudges among these Hu tribes far better than Li Shuang, a Han.

"Han Baling's tribe was once a great Xiongnu clan, not a unified whole. It is natural that some within the tribe do not wish to follow Han Baling in rebellion. Tell Liu Gui—I accept."

Seeing Er Zhu Rong agree, Li Shuang breathed a sigh of relief—at least those thousand crossbows were secured.

"After they move south, second brother, where do you plan to settle them?"

Er Zhu Rong led Li Shuang to the map and pointed with his finger.

Li Shuang was startled!

"Ma Yi?"

Li Shuang thought carefully—Er Zhu Rong's seemingly casual gesture was, in fact, brilliantly planned.

Ma Yi was a strategic border stronghold linking Hengzhou and Si Province, currently still under Yuan Shen's control.

To settle this branch of Han Baling's tribe near Ma Yi.

If they harbored rebellious intentions, Er Zhu Rong could then launch a campaign to reclaim Ma Yi, eliminating all future threats.

If they truly wished to surrender, then as relatives of the rebel leader, their only reliable ally would be the Er Zhu clan, with whom they had deep ties. Should anything change, they would become Er Zhu's backing.

At that moment, Er Zhu Zhao hurried in, his expression grim.

He glanced at Li Shuang and reported:

"The Governor of Bingzhou, Zi Su, and Po Lun Xian have rebelled. The court has issued an edict ordering Uncle to march south and suppress them."

Er Zhu Rong looked at the edict and knew it bore the hand of Yuan Yi, the Regent General of the Guard in Luoyang.

"What else did the Regent General say?"

"The Regent General said that since Liu Teng's death, the situation in Luoyang has grown delicate. With Zi Su and Po Lun Xian in rebellion, some in court wish to appoint him to lead the campaign. The Regent General suspects foul play and urges Uncle to resolve this matter swiftly."

Several years ago, Yuan Yi and the eunuch Liu Teng jointly imprisoned Empress Dowager Hu, seizing control of Luoyang's court.

But recently, Liu Teng died. In the inner palace, Yuan Yi lost his key ally.

Empress Dowager Hu, previously imprisoned, became increasingly active. Yuan Yi felt the pressure and dared not leave Luoyang.

Yuan Yi was Er Zhu Rong's pillar in the Luoyang court—his fall would bring no benefit to the Er Zhu clan.

"Reply to the Regent General—I will immediately prepare troops and march south."

After Er Zhu Zhao left, Er Zhu Rong turned to Li Shuang.

"Bingzhou is not like Si Province. Zi Su and Po Lun Xian command large armies. This campaign, I will march south with my elder brother. Third brother, I assign you three thousand horses—you will lead troops north to meet Han Baling's tribe."

Er Zhu Rong feared that if he took his elite forces south, northern tribes might imitate the Er Zhu clan and seize Si Province in his absence.

"Second brother, I understand."

Er Zhu Rong looked at Li Shuang with suspicion and confirmed again.

"Be absolutely safe!"

"Don't worry!"

Li Shuang nodded heavily, then dashed out at lightning speed to pick a horse!

Er Zhu Rong watched Li Shuang's retreating back, feeling inexplicably uneasy.

"This fellow agreed so quickly; why do I feel so uneasy?"

A few days later.

While Er Zhu Rong led his seven thousand Qihu warriors and Hearing Yuan Tianmu's three thousand elite troops southward, he suddenly realized something!

"Tianbao, have you decided how to deal with Suhe Polunxian?"

"No, I just realized one thing: why I have been feeling uneasy."

"Why?"

Hearing Yuan Tianmu looked puzzled, but saw Er Zhu Rong's face change drastically.

"How could I forget what my third brother used to do? Sending him to Ma Yi, this treasure trove, is like letting an old cat guard salted fish!"

Hearing Yuan Tianmu chuckled lightly.

"That's hardly likely!"

Having spoken, Hearing Yuan Tianmu suddenly froze, exchanged a glance with Er Zhu Rong, and two words sprang to their minds.

Hard to say!