Wang Rou hadn’t expected to meet Qiao Yan under these circumstances.

Compared to the rumors of her forcing out the previous inspector two years ago, her current actions were even more shocking.

Wang Rou was anything but “soft” as her name suggested, showing more courage than the magistrate of Wuyuan.

Even so, when she heard about Qiao Yan’s surprise attack on the surrendering city and coincidentally encountered the Xui Tu tribes just before their oath to attack, she couldn’t help but break into a cold sweat for her.

However, upon realizing the implications of this oath, she couldn’t help but feel a hint of fear.

Luckily… the combined efforts inside and outside the Xiu Tu’s Great Wall had been shattered by her thunderous actions.

Without this, she, as the Commander of the Xiongnu Guard, would certainly have been punished for dereliction of duty. On a larger scale…

If the defenses around Guanglu Sai were breached and the Southern Xiu Tu in Xiyue County rebelled, the consequences would surpass those of the Black Mountain and Hedong bandits!

“Marquis Qiao, do you think our intimidation this time will be effective?” Wang Rou asked as she watched Qiao Yan’s troops display a fierce and intimidating aura.

They loudly shouted and stacked the heads of the Xutu tribes on the square, arranged at Qiao Yan’s command.

Some of them stood around the square, creating an atmosphere reminiscent of the Hongmen Banquet.

In asking this, Wang Rou didn’t seem anxious like Qiao Yan might expect.

Instead, it sounded more like she was asking if they could gain sufficient benefits.

As the Commander of the Xiongnu Guard, Wang Rou had seen instances of pressuring Southern Xiu Tu into suicide and directly mobilizing for regime change.

Hailing from the prestigious Jinyang Wang clan, he had strong familial support and wasn’t intimidated by such scenes.

Having such an ally, especially one most suited to challenge the Southern Xiu Tu, was highly advantageous at this moment.

“Do you think some people arriving late already speak volumes about their stance?” Wang Rou smiled. “Indeed, that’s right. However, Marquis Qiao, we still need to show some force here.”

Though there was no overt “good cop, bad cop” scenario, Qiao Yan sensed that this was essentially Wang Rou’s point.

Before arriving at Meiji City, they had agreed that mere intimidation wouldn’t suffice to teach these naturally rebellious people a lesson; they needed to extract a hefty price from them.

In simpler terms, extortion.

Splitting the spoils fifty-fifty, Qiao Yan wasn’t shortchanged.

Because of their strategy, when King Gu Li of the Southern Xiu Tu saw the mountainous pile of Xuitu heads in the square and asked, “Why this?” a cold glint suddenly flashed before him.

A spear, only half its length, was jabbed into the ground just inches in front of him.

Left King Gu Li’s eyelid twitched.

If the aim had been slightly off, the spear would have struck his foot or chest.

The sudden threat made him instinctively step back, only to stumble and fall.

As he struggled to rise, he glanced at a familiar face among the heads piled nearby, recognizable like King Xui Tu.

Startled, he turned around to see another half of the spear aimed at his throat.

“Outrageous! What is the meaning of this?” he angrily exclaimed.

Before he could finish, he looked up to see Qiao Yan’s calm face and soldiers around the square raising their weapons.

The menacing display silenced him.

Qiao Yan casually remarked, “I am the Marquis of Han County, ranking highest among the fifth-tier marquises. Can you, as the Left King of the Southern Xiongnu, speak to me in such a manner?”

“Han County Marquis?” Left King Gu Li queried skeptically

Looking over at Wang Rou, the Commander of the Xiongnu Guard saw that he made no rebuttal to Qiao Yan’s words, suggesting they might indeed be true.

If Qiao Yan held the title of Han County Marquis, her status was indeed superior to his.

With the Southern Xiongnu now allied with the Han, even the Southern Chanyu was a vassal of Han, obliged to follow Wang Rou’s lead with the term “lord” firmly establishing his authority over him.

While this logic held true, killing the Xuitu tribes first and then pointing a spear at him, the Left King Gu Li, seemed overly aggressive!

Before he could react, Wang Rou approached with an indifferent expression and gently said, “Marquis Qiao, please hold off. Let’s not disturb the peace between Han and Southern Xiu Tu.”

Left King Gu Li let out a sigh of relief.

Wang Rou’s words sounded somewhat reasonable.

“Peace? Since the Southern Xiu Tu are allies with Han, attacking the Northern Xui Tu tribes on Han’s borders should be our mutual enemy,” Qiao Yan coldly replied. “Bringing these Xuitu heads here is just to seek clarification that they had no dealings with them. When you ask ‘why this,’ are you seeking justice for them?”

The spear in her hand was short but at this close range, it was enough to be a deadly weapon against Left King Gu Li.

The implications in Qiao Yan’s words shook the senior leader of the Southern Xiu Tu who still sat on the ground.

He wanted to confront the arrogant Marquis of Han County, but her clear meaning was that she was here to clear any association.

If he insisted on pressing the issue, he might end up being dealt with along with them.

With the Han forces showing dominance as usual, he had no choice but to firmly deny any connection with the Xuitu tribes.

He carefully moved Qiao Yan’s spear away from his neck and replied, “Of course not. The Xuitu tribes are a branch of the Northern Xiongnu, what do they have to do with us Southern Xiongnu? Even the Commander can confirm that since we settled in Meiji City, we have been peaceful and have no intention of offending Han.”

Qiao Yan raised an eyebrow, “Is that so?”

Wang Rou continued to play the peacemaker, saying, “Exactly as Left King Gu Li said.”

Seeing the spear finally move away from his neck and the soldiers around her sheathing their weapons, Left King Gu Li breathed a sigh of relief.

But no one told him that even after denying any connection with the Xuitu tribes, he would still have to provide grain and horses.

“Is this appropriate for military supplies?”

Southern Xiu Tu King remembered that two years ago, Qiao Yan had seized the authority of the Inspector of Bingzhou, and all she received was a mild house arrest.

With the backing of the Han Emperor, even if they mobilized the Bingzhou troops to defeat the Southern Xiongnu, he would at most face another brief house arrest.

Furthermore, the main force of the Xuitu tribes had been annihilated, reducing one less cannibalistic threat among the Xiongnu people. (Xiongnu = Place/Xiu Tu=Tribes in Xiaongnu)

Providing some military supplies could be seen as a reward.

Under the guise of maintaining a clean and upright image, it was actually a significant expense.

Gu Liwang(Southern Xiu Tu King) barely suppressed the urge to vomit blood.

When Qiao Yan had someone bring the head of Xuitu King in a beautifully decorated box, presenting it before him, he couldn’t help but feel a sense of impending danger.

Sure enough, he heard Qiao Yan apologize slightly as she said, “I heard that among the Xiongnu, there is a custom of using the skulls of brave warriors as drinking cups. Northern Xuitu King died by my arrow, yet he was a brave warrior. Therefore, I offer this as a gift to Southern Gu Liwang to ease any concerns.”

“…” These words left him speechless, especially as he held the ornate box. Gu Li Wang sensed there was more to her words than met the eye.

Then she changed tack, saying, “But I hope Your Highness doesn’t end up becoming someone else’s drinking cup someday.”

Before he could fully process her words, a sly smile played across her face.

At just thirteen or fourteen years old, the County Marquis’s actions chilled him deeply.

As she finished speaking, she swiftly pulled a half-broken spear from the ground, swung it back into her grasp, mounted her horse, and galloped away.

Her actions spurred soldiers around her like Zhao Yun, Zhang Yang, Dian Wei, and Xu Huang to follow suit.

Their display of momentum made up for their lack of training, leaving Southern Xiu Tu King Gu Liwang dumbfounded for a long moment.

As he came to his senses, he suddenly realized that most of the military supplies given away were from his own stockpile!

He wanted to curse Qiao Yan bitterly but turned to face a pile of severed heads instead.

“…” Gu Liwang’s heart raced as he turned away from another familiar face, deciding to delay his rise to power.

At least he had spent his money to avoid disaster, ensuring Qiao Yan wouldn’t challenge him over the Xuitu tribes again.

Reflecting on his interactions with Northern Xui Tu King, he realized his identity remained safe.

It was a relief.

Even Wang Rou, before parting ways with Qiao Yan, said, “This Southern Xiongnu had surrendered many horses. Even if they harbored rebellious thoughts, they lacked the resources to challenge further.

With Lord Qiao’s cavalry nearby and my own troops, we could easily suppress them. This chapter could be considered closed.”

That’s what he thought, unaware of the subtle flicker in Qiao Yan’s eyes when she heard the phrase “closed chapter.”

“A closed chapter?” Qiao Yan murmured to herself, shaking her head inwardly.

If she truly believed that defeating the Xuitu tribes had established dominance over Bingzhou and the compensation from the Southern Xiongnu could arm more cavalry, then she had not fully utilized her elite forces.

She always sought to achieve maximum impact with the resources at hand, and this situation was no different!

In reality, whether it was leading troops to pacify bandits in Hedong, bringing them under her control, or attacking the Xuitu tribes beyond the borders, creating such scenes during the withdrawal to Bingzhou, it all went against the laws unless local governors and inspectors made exceptions or tacit approvals due to special circumstances.

But what if—

What if she gained marching authority in Bingzhou?

Or if she used this incident to leap from a mere marquis title to actual power over counties and prefectures?

Those wouldn’t be issues anymore.

During the rapid marches earlier, or when she witnessed the tragic scenes in Gongyang City, besides feeling sorrow, her calm side pondered these possibilities.

She had previously maneuvered to secure the Marquis of Leping title through strategic play, mitigating the negative effects of controlling the Inspector, and even gaining Liu Hong’s approval.

Now, she could stage another play.

After this performance, she could quietly await news of Liu Hong’s demise.

But before that, she needed to meet with him again.

—A crucial meeting.

After returning to Leping, she instructed Lu Yuan to prepare something.

The next day, Guo Jia, looking as if he hadn’t slept, came knocking.

He was surprised to see Qiao Yan stepping out of her room.

“What have you brought?” Qiao Yan asked casually, seemingly unaware of his astonishment.

Despite his surprise, Guo Jia instinctively replied, “Lord Qiao previously entrusted me with tasks of intimidating, assimilating, and deceiving on the border of Bingzhou.

He also intends to adopt my proposal of using the deaths of Xiu Tunu to buy peace. Therefore, we must be prepared for this action.”

“There is something I need to explain.”

“So I stayed in Yuncheng and the counties of Wuyuan for two extra days, recording the grievances of the people troubled by the border.”

He bowed and handed over a scroll to Qiao Yan.

This should have been a strategic preparation, an initiative taken without waiting for orders.

But when he looked up at Qiao Yan again, he felt as if her presence had rooted him to the spot.

Qiao Yan’s actions—Marquis of Leping Qiao Yan actions—

Truly confirmed to him that he had not misjudged her!

Because at this moment, she wore mourning clothes of white!

Despite the white attire, she exuded an aura of battle and bloodshed from her previous expedition beyond the borders.

As she read through the scroll, she calmly explained her actions: “As the Marquis of Leping and with my grandfather buried in Leping, I consider myself half a native of Bingzhou.”

“The tragedy in Guyang is just a glimpse of Bingzhou’s plight. Without someone strong to govern and restrain, today’s Guyang could be tomorrow’s Bingzhou.”

“With no one to mourn the dead and the living barely surviving, I, as the Marquis of Leping, honored by His Majesty and bound by filial piety to my grandfather and parents three years ago, now wear white to mourn for Bingzhou!”

She put down the scroll and looked at Guo Jia. “Do you agree with this reasoning?”

“What Lord Qiao says is not wrong.”

Guo Jia knew that her motives, aiming for the people’s benefit rather than mere political strategy, were clear.

Yet he couldn’t help but think: if she could truly stabilize Bingzhou, who could fault her methods?

As his mind wandered, he heard Qiao Yan ask, “Feng Xiao( Nickname of Guo Jia ), would you be willing to accompany me to Luoyang?”