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Fei Qian looked at Huang Cheng and Huang Xu on his left, then at Jia Qu and Ma Yan on his right, sighing inwardly. When would these meetings have more people?
Jia Qu had been mistaken about one thing regarding the Ma family. They were no longer the scholarly household from the days of the General Who Crosses the Frontier. Years of fighting and living on the frontier meant that the profound knowledge once used to annotate the Han Shu could not ensure the family's safety. Instead, military skills became greatly valued.
By Ma Yan's generation, the Ma family had fully embraced martial prowess. From men to women, young to old, nearly everyone in the Ma family practiced martial arts—and they were quite skilled.
The arrival of the Ma family significantly addressed Fei Qian's shortage of mid-level officers. Ma Yan himself was a former duwei (commandant) of Shangjun, and several of the Ma family's young men were already experienced military members, adept at army life. They quickly meshed well with Huang Cheng and others, taking charge of training the new recruits.
This allowed Fei Qian to find time to convene the second high-level meeting.
Initially, Fei Qian had wanted Ma Yunniang to join, but she firmly declined, so he let it go.
According to Ma Yan, the Ma family's martial arts were traditionally passed down by women. When a Ma man married, they always chose a woman skilled in martial arts, who then took on the responsibility of preserving and teaching the family's martial traditions. This ensured that the Ma family's martial legacy endured despite the loss of many male members on the battlefield.
As a former duwei of Shangjun, Ma Yan knew the situation there better than anyone present. The purpose of this meeting was to give all high-ranking members a clearer understanding of Shangjun.
However, before discussing Shangjun, they first needed to address the Xiongnu and Qiang Hu.
Strictly speaking, the Xiongnu and Qiang were distant kin of the Han people.
Before the Zhou dynasty, the term "Xiongnu" didn't exist. The earliest Xiongnu were said to be descendants of the Xia dynasty. After the last Xia ruler, Jie, was exiled by Shang Tang to Nanchao, Jie died, and his son Xunyu led his followers to flee north to the grasslands. Over time, they gave rise to tribes like Shanrong, Guifang, Xianyun, Yiqu, Yanjing, Yuwu, Loufan, and Dali.
"Xiongnu" translates to "fierce slaves," with "Xiong" meaning fierce and "nu" a derogatory term. During the Zhou dynasty, the Xiongnu had a love-hate relationship with the Zhou. The beacon fires used by King You of Zhou to deceive his vassals were originally set up to guard against the Xiongnu.
The Qiang were even more intriguing. They were a western minority group, loyal vassals during the Zhou dynasty. The Qin state itself was of Qiang-Rong origin. The First Emperor of Qin was born in the old Qiang homeland of Tianshui, Gansu, and the Tianshui Qiang were kin to the Qin. After founding his state and moving east to Xianyang, he issued decrees forbidding military action against the western Qiang-Rong tribes.
Ma Yan said, "Shangjun is now mostly occupied by the Xiongnu. Back then… well, in the first year of Zhongping (184 CE), when the Xiongnu invaded southward, there were likely nearly 30,000 of them, plus some Qiang Hu. It's hard to say how many Xiongnu are there now, but there are definitely more than back then…"
Ma Yan paused when mentioning the first year of Zhongping, and everyone understood why, so they didn't interrupt, letting him continue. "…In the fourth year of Zhongping (187 CE), the situation in Shangjun had initially stabilized. The Southern Xiongnu Chanyu Qiangqu was willing to negotiate peace with the Han, ceding some land. But a single imperial decree changed everything…"
"In April of the fourth year of Zhongping, an imperial edict ordered the Southern Xiongnu Chanyu to send troops to help suppress the rebellion of Zhang Chun, the governor of Zhongshan. However, the earlier campaigns didn't achieve the expected results, and the Southern Xiongnu, used as vanguard troops, suffered heavy losses. This led the Southern Xiongnu's Right Division, including Xialuo, Xiuju Hu, and Baima Tong, to rebel again…"
"This time, Chanyu Qiangqu was killed in the rebellion, and Shangjun descended into complete chaos, with fighting everywhere. At that time… heh…"
Ma Yan gave a bitter laugh and continued, "…The court thought it was a golden opportunity, ordering Shangjun to seize the chance to reclaim lost territory during the Xiongnu's internal strife. Unfortunately, the messengers were intercepted by the Xiongnu, who then amassed a large force and attacked us first. That's how Shangjun fell…"
Ma Yan didn't elaborate further, but everyone could infer what followed. With the last Han army driven out, the Han dynasty lost all control over Shangjun, which became a pasture for the Hu.
Since the Qin dynasty and through the Western Han, Shangjun had been a key horse-breeding region for the central government. Losing it was like losing a leg for the Eastern Han, depriving them of a vital supply of warhorses and weakening their ability to suppress internal rebellions with mobile forces.
The Han dynasty originally had three major horse-breeding regions: Yongzhou, producing the large, powerful Xiliang horses; the Hetao region, producing smaller, hardy horses suited for long-distance raids; and Jizhou, producing horses that were a middle ground between the two.
There was also a smaller breed in Shu, adept at navigating mountains but considered too small by many to be proper horses.
Much like in later times, some argued that cars without rear ends weren't proper sedans, and certain "Q" models were just glorified four-wheeled motorcycles…
Now, Yongzhou was in Dong Zhuo's hands, the Yuan family controlled Henei and northern Jizhou, and the Hetao was held by the Xiongnu. The Han dynasty's four legs had been reduced to two.
"Chengyuan, do you know how many Han people remain in Shangjun?" Fei Qian asked.
Ma Yan's expression grew heavy, and he shook his head. "There are definitely some, but it's hard to say how many. The Hu mostly congregate in areas with abundant water and grass. As for the more remote mountainous areas, the Hu don't bother with them."
"How are the Hu distributed?" Fei Qian asked.
Ma Yan thought for a moment and said, "From Gaonu onward, the Xiongnu mostly herd along the river, all the way to Guizi and Baitu. On the western side of Baiyu Mountain, there's Sheyan, where Eastern Qiang tribes are mixed. It's said that north of Shangjun, in Yunzhong and Shuofang, even the Xianbei have moved south to graze…"
So, essentially, all the fertile lands in Shangjun had been occupied.
The atmosphere in the tent grew heavy.
Fei Qian pondered for a while, then said, "Gentlemen, I have an idea, though it's not fully formed. Let's discuss it together."
All eyes turned to Fei Qian.
He spoke carefully, "What would happen if we openly declared our goal to reclaim Shangjun? Would the benefits outweigh the drawbacks, or vice versa?"
Fei Qian was considering whether to adopt historical proclamations like the "Call for Talent" or "Kill the Hu" orders, but it depended on whether they were feasible in the current situation.
Beneath this proposal, Fei Qian had his own intentions…