Chapter 323: Mandated by Heaven, may you live long and prosper.

Chapter 323: Mandated by Heaven, may you live long and prosper.

"Announce, King Shache is here to see you!~"

"The ruler of Xuanpu State is here to see you!~"

"King Xuan Jingjue is here to see you!~"

"Announce the King of Shule to meet you!~"

"Announce the king of Shanshan to see you!~"

……

……

There are official announcements.

Whenever they thought of themselves, the rulers of the Western Regions would lower their heads in fear and trepidation and hurried into the hall, not caring about what they had said before. Once they entered, they would kneel down. One person entered and knelt down, and in a blink of an eye, a large group of people were kneeling down.

This scene moved Emperor Liu Xie deeply...

Not to mention, there are many ministers in the palace.
Their feelings are indescribable...

The world has been in turmoil for so many years, and seeing the various countries coming to the court to pay homage and tribute, how can we not sigh.

The audience and tribute from many kings of the Western Regions were tantamount to prescribing a miraculous remedy for the Han court and the people.

The Western Regions experienced three openings and three closings during the hundreds of years of the Han Dynasty. It began when Emperor Wu of Han sent Zhang Qian to open up the region and ended with the Qiang Rebellion during the reign of Emperor Ling of Han.

Every time the Western Regions were opened up, the Han Dynasty was in power.

Every time the Western Regions were conquered, the Han Dynasty was in turmoil.

Now that the Western Regions have been opened up again, and far more than before, actual control has begun, and the leaders of all countries have come to the court in person to pay homage. This is an excellent sign.

It has been clearly told to the world that the Han Dynasty will usher in an unprecedented era of peace and prosperity that far exceeds that of previous generations!
After more than forty kings had entered the palace,
Liu Wucai bowed and said, "Brother, the rulers of the Western Regions are all here."

"They didn't come empty-handed this time. Each country brought with them their own treasures and rare items. Altogether, they filled more than a hundred carts. A tribute convoy has already arrived outside the imperial city and can be deposited into the national treasury..."

"In addition, I have a lot of captured items that I am ready to present to you, my brother. There are Ferghana horses, Hu beauties, and so on..."

Liu Xie nodded repeatedly.

But in fact, I was already in a dilemma.

The countries in the Western Regions came to the court to pay homage and offered a lot of tributes to show their sincerity, which was very good.

but……

What did Liu Xie use to reward them?

You know, the tribute system, in addition to determining hierarchy and showing submission, also served some trade functions.

The vassal states would pay tribute with some items, and the suzerain state would also have to reward them with something.

What can Liu Xie have?
What else can the Xuchang court do?
"You are the king of Kushan?" Liu Xie pointed at the dusty Kushan king.

Unlike their king, he was tied up and forced to kneel because he was a prisoner of war.

"That's right..." The Kushan King was somewhat reluctant. In his heart, he and the Han emperor were on an equal footing.

The Great Yuezhi originally lived as nomads in the Liangzhou area. For a period of time, even the Xiongnu had to obey the will of the Yuezhi king.

Later, the Xiongnu became powerful, the Dayuezhi fled, and established their hegemony west of the Pamir Mountains.

"I heard that you were originally the Great Yuezhi people who were nomadic in the Liangzhou area, but you migrated to the west because you could not stand the bullying of the Xiongnu people anymore?"

The Kushan king nodded: "Yes."

"In order to find you, we sent the Han envoy Zhang Qian. But you were at ease in the west, forgetting your hatred for the Xiongnu and unwilling to send troops to fight against the Xiongnu together with the Han."

"In the past, when Marquis Dingyuan was sent as an envoy to the Western Regions, you made mistakes. An army of 70,000 came and attacked us, and we could hardly return with a single horse."

"Later, you paid tribute every month, and that was fine. I thought you would make some progress after this incident. Why did you send another 200,000 troops this time?"

"I heard that you are now a big country, with a population of over 15 million."

"Warfare is a matter of life and death. Don't you understand this principle?"

Liu Xie deliberately found an excuse...

The Kushan king was still a little indignant: "It's just a matter of success or failure. Whether we are the Great Yuezhi or the Xiongnu, we have all been glorious in the past. I am willing to accept the defeat. You can kill me or chop me up, it's all up to you."

Emperor Liu Xie said: "You are the ruler of Kushan, and I am the ruler of Han." "The two countries were originally thousands of miles apart, and now they are separated by this distance, which is also a chance..."

"I heard from my brother that you all brought a lot of tribute. Logically, I should give you some rewards."

"King Kushan, tell me, what do you want me to reward you with?"

The Kushan king was moved: "I wonder what reward Your Majesty can give me?"

Liu Xie smiled and said, "Whatever you want, I can give you."

The Kushan King was silent for a moment, and then said: "Your Majesty, please kill the King of Chu!"

"This man is brutal and bloodthirsty, and will destroy any country if there is any disobedience. Overnight, all the people in the country have become slaves!"

"The Western Regions have now submitted to the Han Dynasty, and I, the Kushan Empire, am also willing to submit to the Han Dynasty!"

"If His Majesty the Emperor of Han can kill the King of Chu, I, the Kushan Empire, am willing to be a vassal of the Han Dynasty for generations and offer half of the national treasury..."

"The people of the Western Regions are also your Majesty's people. How could your Majesty bear to see us in such a miserable state? Not to mention the Zhou Yu left by the King of Chu in the Western Regions. He was equally cruel and ruled with an iron fist. The 4,000 miles of territory he controlled destroyed several large countries. He had tens of thousands of Han soldiers and enslaved millions of slaves. Those slaves..."

On the Dragon Terrace,
Liu Xie's face remained calm, with a barely perceptible smile on the corner of his mouth. The Kushan king had indeed fallen into the trap.

"Is this true?" Liu Xie stepped forward.

Kushan King: "If Your Majesty does not believe it, you can ask the other kings..."

Subsequently,

There began to be movement in the hall...

Except for a dozen or so kings who came to surrender voluntarily, the other kings had begun to lose their temper.

They naively thought that the emperor could really help them get justice...

"There was a general named Gan Ning. I had already presented my princess to him, but he took my queen away with him."

"At first, our Cheshi Kingdom didn't know it was the Han Dynasty's imperial army. Later, we found out and surrendered. As a result, a cavalry general named Gao Shun emptied our Cheshi Kingdom's treasury..."

"If we talk about the most miserable country, it has to be Qiuci. Qiuci was a great country in the Western Regions second only to Wusun and Dayuan. Now the whole country is gone. The king has no children, and the nobles and commoners have all become slaves of the Western Regions Protectorate."

"Don't even mention Qiuci. Dayuan, the second most powerful country in the Western Regions, is gone..."

"The Western Regions have never experienced such a great terror. Your Majesty, we are trembling with fear every day..."

"I understand." Liu Xie finally stopped their grievance meeting and said, "Come here."

Immediately, Zhao Zilong came to the palace with two personal guards.

Liu Xie nodded at the Kushan king and said, "Take him out and hang his head on the northern palace."

Zhao Yun: “Yes!”

The Kushan King was stunned, his face pale: "Your Majesty, didn't you say that you would grant me..."

Liu Xie: "I grant you death..."

The whole hall was silent.

The Kushan king had been dragged away.

Liu Xie looked at the many kings who were already like frightened birds, and said: "The reward given by the Kushan king is too much. I can only sentence him to death."

"You only told me how the Han Dynasty treated you, but why didn't you tell me how you rebelled and attacked the Han Dynasty's Western Region Protectorate?"

"Just now, you have offended the royal family and slandered my brother. I will not pursue it. Now, tell me, what do you want?!"

what do you want?
what do you want?
The King of Cheshi was the first to throw himself to the ground: "Your Majesty, I want to live..."

The rest followed suit.

They all said they were guilty and begged for their lives.

At this point, Liu Xie let out a long sigh, finally saving a lot of money.

After the leaders of all countries retreated.

The emperor glanced to his side and what he saw was the jade seal on the right side of the table.

Mandated by Heaven, long life and prosperity

"Awu, come forward..."

(End of this chapter)