Chapter 101: The Path Ahead

Originally, it was the Persian king who colluded with the rebels of Great Xia, forcing Great Xia to retaliate. The former Persian king was a war criminal and thus unfit to rule, so Great Xia supported a new king. Moreover, Persia was made a vassal state of Great Xia.

Although Persia was required to pay tribute annually and acknowledge Great Xia’s supremacy each year, it benefited greatly through trade. The ice in summer and the hotpot mutton in winter were privileges Persia gained by becoming a vassal. Those opposing Great Xia within Persia lacked leadership; their protests were limited to shouting in their towns and failed to cause significant unrest.

Thanks to Chen Mu’s vigorous propaganda, support for Great Xia grew steadily, and Persia was nearing stability. The former Persian king had been hidden by the Western Qiang in a village but was later found by Great Xia’s troops and executed on the spot. Within twenty days, Chen Mu had brought all of Persia under control, including its western regions. He then helped the new Persian king establish an army, selecting only those loyal to Great Xia.

But the matter did not end there. Chen Mu set out from western Persia to subdue the Western Qiang. The Western Qiang were few in number, mainly pastoralists supplemented by fishing and farming, scattered across coastal and grassland areas. Their main force consisted of five thousand light cavalry, all of whom had perished within Persian territory. Chen Mu’s overwhelming army swept through, quickly resolving the Western Qiang threat.

From then on, the Western Qiang also became a vassal state of Great Xia, signing the Rascal Treaty. Given the distance from Great Xia’s core lands, Persia was entrusted with overseeing the Western Qiang.

Upon returning to the capital, Chen Mu pondered another issue. What if Great Xia’s vassal states secretly exported strategic materials to more distant neighbors—such as stirrups, saddles, or provisions? If the Western Qiang, not yet a vassal, sought to import goods from Persia, Great Xia could block it. But other nations like Rascal or the Xiongnu were less controllable. What if they acquired Great Xia’s products and sold them to further neighbors?

For example, the Xiongnu had stirrups and saddles, but the Western Qiang did not due to geographical barriers of plateaus and deserts separating them. If the Western Qiang gained such equipment, it could inflict heavier losses on Great Xia. Similarly, if nations west of Xiongnu obtained these goods to invade, Great Xia’s aid to Xiongnu would be far more difficult.

How to prevent this? Trade restrictions were ineffective; once technology was stolen, it could be reproduced.

The best solution was to improve Great Xia’s own military strength. However, given the current metal smelting and forging technology, firearms and cannons were impossible to produce. What then?

Chen Mu thought over the journey back to Great Xia. Upon reaching the border county of Wen’an, he was urgently summoned with news from the capital that had arrived two days prior. Opening the message, his brow furrowed deeply.

The Yin Tang Organization had delivered a shock: while he was campaigning in Persia, they had launched a rebellion in the northeast. By the time the urgent report was sent, they had already seized Beibing County.

Beibing County was the northernmost town in the northeast, a region newly developed with only three counties: Beibing, Beilin, and Beihai, from north to south. Thanks to the well-maintained chidao roads and relay stations, urgent messages could be carried by fast horses day and night, reaching the capital from Beibing in five days. Adding two days from the capital to Wen’an, the rebellion occurred at least seven days ago.

It was likely the Yin Tang Organization controlled all three northeastern counties by now. Though the northeast had five thousand cavalry and over ten thousand militia, the rebels had infiltrated local governments and ignited the uprising through subversion.

Chen Mu prepared for the worst. Two days earlier, Chen Xingtian had dispatched General Li Feng with ten thousand cavalry to quell the rebellion. Li Feng, familiar with the terrain from prior campaigns against the Eastern Hu, was well suited for the task. Yet ten thousand cavalry might still be insufficient; if the rebels held fortified positions, cavalry would lose its advantage, only able to contain further expansion.

Reinforcements from Chen Mu were needed, but he could not bring his veteran troops, who required rest after prolonged warfare. Moreover, transporting heavy supplies to the northeast would be slow—at chariot speed, it would take at least a month.

Great Xia’s vast territory meant chidao roads sufficed for ordinary travel but were too slow for rapid troop deployment. Both weaponry and transportation demanded urgent technological advancement. If only there were trains, the journey from the western border to the northeast could be done in days.

Trains required steam engines. Chen Mu and students at the Institute of Engineering had studied steam power principles, but Chen Mu lacked the detailed knowledge to build one. Fortunately, the Institute had established a research project, and with the ingenuity of Great Xia’s craftsmen under Chen Mu’s guidance, development was only a matter of time.

But that was for the future. For now, the only expedient measure was to travel light and fast.

Chen Mu arranged for Zhang Zhong to lead the main army back to the capital. He himself took a hundred guards and rode by carriage to Qingqu County, the easternmost county in the Eastern Plains. Upon arrival, he dispatched trusted soldiers with a written order to summon five thousand elite troops from the Eastern Yue region, then visited the county magistrate to inquire about the situation.

The magistrate reported, “Your Highness, the rebels have seized all three northeastern counties. General Li Feng is currently patrolling between Beihai and Qingqu counties with ten thousand cavalry, but the rebels remain fortified and refuse to engage.”

Chen Mu nodded, confirming the rebels’ control, though uncertain about their strength. The magistrate continued, “A man claiming to be a covert operative has requested a personal audience to deliver important intelligence. I have sent for him; he should arrive shortly.”

Chen Mu’s eyes brightened. Such an agent surely brought priceless information from the northeast.

As they spoke, a man entered, bowed deeply, and exchanged secret signs with Chen Mu. Upon questioning, the operative revealed:

“The rebels number about one thousand core members, all part of the Yin Tang Organization, many skilled in martial arts. Additionally, there is a force of ten thousand private soldiers from twenty prominent families, whose combat ability resembles that of militia. Another fifteen thousand—three thousand militias and one thousand cavalry—have been swayed to the rebellion. The city’s civilians remain unharmed but may be susceptible to further indoctrination by the Yin Tang Organization.”