Tuoba Liuxiu knelt on the ground hugging Zhao Hanzhang’s legs, crying loudly as he told her in detail about the events of this past month, feeling deeply wronged. “Han classical texts say that parents all love their children. I am also his biological son. Why doesn’t he love me?”
Tuoba Liuxiu roughly wiped away his tears with his sleeve, asking Zhao Hanzhang with tear-filled eyes, “Is it because my temperament is fierce and cruel that he detests me?”
Zhao Hanzhang said, “You two don’t have father-son affinity, do you? The affinities in this world are very mysterious. He gave birth to you—that’s one layer of affinity. But you don’t get along well, so it doesn’t count as a good affinity.”
“He is your father. He believes that your life, your abilities, everything you have all comes from him, so the power of life and death over you is his alone to decide.” Seeing his face full of revulsion, she asked, “You don’t agree with this viewpoint?”
Tuoba Liuxiu turned his head away. After a moment, he said, “Although it’s greatly rebellious, I still must say—I’m not his, or at least not entirely his. I’m also my mother’s!”
Zhao Hanzhang paced in place and said to Tuoba Liuxiu, “Liuxiu, you are your own person. Your parents brought you into this world through a mutual choice between you and your parents. You chose them as parents, and they also chose you as their child. This is an affinity, and only an affinity.”
“Since it’s affinity, there are good affinities and bad affinities. It’s just unfortunate that between you father and son, it’s a bad affinity.”
Tuoba Liuxiu listened in a daze, half-understanding. “So Aunt’s meaning is that my… my fighting back against Father doesn’t count as great evil, and my capturing Father—you also approve?”
Zhao Hanzhang nodded.
Tuoba Liuxiu’s expression changed several times. He still asked, “Then if I were to kill him…”
Zhao Hanzhang shook her head slightly at him and said, “Even if your father-son relationship is a bad affinity, you cannot kill him. Liuxiu, in being a person and doing things, one must be worthy of one’s own conscience. He has already failed now. Why would you need to utterly destroy him?”
Tuoba Liuxiu lowered his head and said, “If Aunt releases him back to Dai, I will have no foothold in Dai. I beg Aunt to take pity and let me serve as a guard by your side to barely survive this lifetime.”
Zhao Hanzhang asked him, “You are the legitimate eldest son of the King of Dai. According to our Han people’s tradition, the noble title should be inherited by the legitimate eldest son. Have you thought about how you would govern Dai after inheriting it?”
Tuoba Liuxiu’s eyes brightened as he said, “I will obey the court’s commands, stabilize the Thirty-Two Tribal Nations, strengthen our soldiers and generals, then lead our army westward and northward to completely subdue all the tribal nations not yet subdued and present them to Your Majesty.”
Zhao Hanzhang asked, “Only expanding territory, with no strategies for governing the nation and people?”
Tuoba Liuxiu said, “Of course I have them—have them raise more horses, more cattle and sheep. That’s good enough.”
Zhao Hanzhang said, “Dai’s military service is very heavy. Every household has someone serving in the military. There are even cases of three generations all being soldiers, divided among three armies. Occasionally when conflicts arise between tribal nations, father and son, grandfather and grandson might even meet with swords on the battlefield. Haven’t you thought of changing this?”
Tuoba Liuxiu said, “This is just an isolated case. It’s because that tribe was conscripted for military service, then the tribe migrated and the army was reassigned, and the great tent just happened to assign their tribe to another tribal nation. That’s what caused two generations, or even three generations, to be in different camps… When I return, I’ll have them change it—put one family in the same army.”
Zhao Hanzhang: … Is this the key issue?
Tuoba Liuxiu watched Zhao Hanzhang’s expression and said in a small voice, “Aunt, we Xianbei people have herded livestock and served as soldiers for generations. We can’t farm and can’t learn it either. Only by being soldiers can we seize territory and ensure our descendants can survive. I know you want me to reduce military service, but… I can’t.”
Zhao Hanzhang raised her eyebrows, lowered her eyes to consider, then asked, “What about Dai’s harsh laws and severe punishments?”
“This can be changed.” Although Tuoba Liuxiu was fierce, he also disliked his father’s system of collective punishment. “If one person commits a crime, just punish that one person. No need to implicate their family and neighbors.”
Zhao Hanzhang leaned forward, staring at him intently. “What if I asked you to hand over governing authority?”
Tuoba Liuxiu’s mouth dropped open in surprise, unable to answer for a moment.
Zhao Hanzhang said, “You would still be King of Dai. You would have military authority, responsibility for guarding the borders and expanding territory, and the right to participate in government. However, Dai’s governance would be handled by officials appointed by the court, and the laws to be observed would be Hua’s laws.”
Tuoba Liuxiu looked at Zhao Hanzhang, looking straight into her eyes. Seeing only determination in her eyes, he knew this matter could not be changed.
He thought for a moment, then lowered his head and agreed, “I obey.”
Zhao Hanzhang’s lips curved slightly upward. She reached out to help him up from the ground and had him sit across from her. “I’ve said before, regardless of which ethnicity people belong to, all descended from Yan and Huang, so all belong to Hua. I love you as I love the Han people, as I love my own children.”
“If Dai continues as a vassal state with autonomous rule, the harm to the common people outweighs the benefits. Otherwise, why would that farmwoman report the King of Dai? Don’t forget, although she is from Xinping City, she is even more a person of Dai.”
Zhao Hanzhang said, “You are a fierce general, but you cannot govern the people. If everything follows old precedents, in time, in the hearts of Dai’s people, you will one day become like your father.”
The same—when you fall into difficulty, they will choose to betray you.
Tuoba Liuxiu’s body shook. He prostrated himself on the ground and said, “Please teach me, Your Majesty.”
This time, he was much more sincere.
Tuoba Liuxiu was also very concerned about his father, so he asked, “Will Your Majesty execute him in the court’s name?”
Execute what? Why does this child always think about killing Tuoba Yilu?
Zhao Hanzhang said, “I plan to keep him in Luoyang as a long-term guest.”
As a hostage! Tuoba Liuxiu frowned. “I’m afraid the Thirty-Two Tribal Nations and Dai’s old ministers won’t be willing.”
Zhao Hanzhang said, “That depends on your ability.”
Tuoba Liuxiu was startled, then understood.
She had already handed him the authority. Whether he could grasp it depended on his own ability.
Tuoba Liuxiu wasn’t stupid. He immediately said, “I humbly ask for Aunt’s assistance.”
Zhao Hanzhang nodded. “General Beigong and General Shi will both assist you, especially General Shi.”
She said, “I plan to re-assign Dai to Youzhou. Your Tuoba clan will be enfeoffed in Dai territory with hereditary noble rank, governing the Xianbei people on behalf of the court.”
Tuoba Liuxiu asked, “Can’t Dai become its own province?”
He didn’t want to work under Shi Lei. That man… was extremely fierce.
Zhao Hanzhang said, “Dai is too small to become a province.”
Tuoba Liuxiu’s eyes rolled and he asked, “Your Majesty, what if I also conquer the northern Qiang-Hu lands and the areas north of Shengle?”
Zhao Hanzhang raised her eyebrows. “We’ll see.”
Although she didn’t agree, she also didn’t immediately object, which meant it was feasible.
Tuoba Liuxiu felt refreshed and bowed, saying, “Aunt, rest assured. I will definitely expand territory for you.”
Zhao Hanzhang smiled faintly. The lands where the Qiang-Hu currently resided were Ningxia, northern Shaanxi, and southern Inner Mongolia. This didn’t really count as territorial expansion yet, but that area was still dominated by tribes with constant fighting among them.
In terms of tribal conflicts and governance, the Xianbei people, also a minority ethnic group, were more skilled. Zhao Hanzhang had originally wanted to assign this matter to Beigong Chun. Now having another Tuoba Liuxiu wasn’t bad either.
—