Ministers Begging Me to Ascend the Throne

Chapter 513: Chapter 276: The Xiongnu Arrive

Although the Emperor allowed Empress Xie to organize her birthday banquet according to the usual customs, Empress Xie, wanting to showcase her virtue, ordered her birthday banquet to be held in a simple manner.

Simplicity meant inviting the concubines and princes for a meal at noon and watching a play together in the afternoon. The evening banquet was a private affair between her and the Emperor.

According to past customs, the Empress’s birthday banquet required the submission of gifts from the noblewomen, but this year Empress Xie canceled that, turning her birthday banquet into a family dinner.

The Emperor, seeing Empress Xie’s virtuous behavior, naturally praised her a great deal and rewarded her with many gifts. That night, he also accompanied Empress Xie for dinner. Of course, the Emperor stayed overnight at Zhao Yang Palace.

Even though this year’s birthday banquet was somewhat modest, the rewards were tremendous, leaving Empress Xie quite content.

After Empress Xie’s birthday banquet concluded, the Xiongnu arrived in the capital.

On the day the Xiongnu reached the capital, the Emperor did not summon them for an audience. Not only that, but Prince Dai also did not personally go to receive them; instead, a few ministers and military officers from the Ministry of Rites were sent to greet them.

This time, the Xiongnu did not send their princes but a trusted envoy of the new Modu Chanyu who could speak the language of the Central Plains.

In total, over twenty people from the Xiongnu arrived, five of whom had been harassing the northern borders of Great Zhou. According to the Xiongnu, these five were the leaders of bandits. The remaining dozen or so were from the Xiongnu Royal Court. Apart from the envoy, the others did not hold high status.

The purpose of the Xiongnu’s visit to Great Zhou was neither to negotiate peace nor to establish friendly relations between the two countries but to spy on Great Zhou’s military affairs.

For the Xiongnu to come so boldly to Great Zhou for military espionage was something Great Zhou should not have agreed to, but Great Zhou wanted to know what the Xiongnu were planning. Moreover, Great Zhou was also keen to give the Xiongnu a stern warning.

Unlike previous visits from countries like Annan who came with good intentions, the Xiongnu’s visit was not friendly. Both the court of Great Zhou and ordinary people were filled with apprehension and vigilance towards the Xiongnu.

In the past few days, during the morning court sessions, the Emperor repeatedly emphasized giving the Xiongnu a strong deterrent and that officials must not act in a way that would disgrace the dignity of Great Zhou.

If any official acted in a way that would damage the face of Great Zhou, he would not be lenient.

While Great Zhou wanted to give the Xiongnu a strong response, the Xiongnu also wanted to provoke Great Zhou, to make its people fear them.

Historically, the Xiongnu have always been known for their barbaric and brutal nature, often invading the Central Plains to the south and succeeding many times. Neither the previous dynasty nor the dynasty before that could defeat the Xiongnu and often had to send princesses to marry into their tribes to achieve peace.

The new Modu Chanyu naturally wanted to continue the past glory of the Royal Court, making the people of the Central Plains submit to them and obediently send princesses to marry.

By nature, the new Modu Chanyu wanted to directly invade Great Zhou, but his ministers persuaded him otherwise.

Ministers of the Xiongnu Royal Court had heard of many things about the Emperor of Great Zhou, knowing that the Emperor was invincible in battle and that his soldiers were brave and skilled. They had never fought against Great Zhou and did not understand its strength. If they attacked rashly, they might lose. To be safe, they decided to first investigate Great Zhou. If Great Zhou was like the Xia Dynasty, then they could fight. If Great Zhou was more formidable than the Xia Dynasty, then they couldn’t.

In fact, the new Modu Chanyu had not fully subjugated all the tribes, with three tribes still not conquered.

In recent years, the new Modu Chanyu had been at war with the Han Tribe but had not succeeded in defeating them. The Han Tribe was very resilient and troublesome, causing a lot of frustration for the new Modu Chanyu.

If they continued to fight, it would result in mutual destruction. Hence, some ministers suggested that the new Modu Chanyu target the Central Plains instead.

Many ministers believed that attacking the Central Plains would be easier than fighting the Han Tribe. Moreover, conquering the Central Plains would yield much wealth and grain, which could then be used to attack the Han Tribe.

As for the Han Tribe attacking the Royal Court while the new Modu Chanyu directed his efforts towards the Central Plains, there was no worry about that. The Han Tribe currently lacked the capacity to attack the Royal Court.

The fat bounty that was the Central Plains, the new Modu Chanyu did not want to miss out on.

While the populace might fear the Xiongnu, and some officials might dread them, the Emperor was not afraid, and neither were many of the soldiers. On the contrary, they were eager for an opportunity to fight the Xiongnu in revenge.

If the Emperor had not prohibited action, Shen Hu and others might have attacked the Xiongnu years ago. Now, however, the Xiongnu had come knocking on their door.