Chapter 2, The Grievance of the Flesh

Lin Bin gazed at Dou Shiyan and suddenly felt that Dou Shiyan was a friend worth deepening the relationship with. "I am leaving, what will you do?"

One can acquire additional wealth without engaging in large-scale battles, and the primary enemies of the military and the monarch are not the Han court, but rather the rising powers of the Wusun and Cheshir states to the west

When the military minister became the Chanyu of the Xiongnu, he made adjustments to the Han policies. He did not oppose the Xiongnu tribes raiding the Han frontier counties, but he was against large-scale military actions without purpose. Since he succeeded as the Chanyu of the Xiongnu, the grasslands had not yet suffered major disasters, and during the reign of Emperor Wen of Han (the grandfather of Emperor Wu of Han), the Han showed great deference to the Xiongnu. The consistent strategy of the Han court was to send princesses for marriage to the Xiongnu and, according to the requests of the Xiongnu Chanyu, to provide urgently needed items for the Xiongnu people, which generally included iron, copper, salt, wine, silk, and so on.

Suddenly, a cry of anguish erupted as a young man, around twenty years old, fell heavily to his knees. His hands were bound behind him, and as he moved his knees, he cried out, "My mother!" He took refuge at the edge of the wooden fence of the sheep pen, tears streaming down his face in despair. In a fit of rage, he violently thrust himself against a protruding wooden splinter, which pierced his throat. A jet of blood sprayed onto Lin Bin's camouflage pants, staining them a deep crimson. The young man's throat was torn open, and his voice became inhuman as he uttered, "I hate... to live this life as a... Han... person!" With that, he breathed his last.

Lin Bin fell silent as he recalled the scene of his uncle being beheaded. A pang of grief struck his heart, and he turned to look at the slaughterhouse, saying, "The Xiongnu just killed my uncle."

Mother

"Elder brother, elder brother, do not abandon the child." Sima Tong pleaded with a sob, and others also joined in with lowly entreaties

The great Han's tiger-like eyes opened wide, shifting from the corpse on the ground to Lin Bin, gritting his teeth and saying: "The weak are prey to the strong"

Lin Bin declined many invitations from those who approached to discuss escape plans. He quietly leaned against the edge of the sheep pen to rest. Perhaps due to Lin Bin's tall and robust stature, in addition to Dou Shiyan, six others requested to stay by Lin Bin's side, seeking temporary refuge.

Lin Bin was also contemplating how to safely escape. He spent the entire day observing the Xiongnu soldiers and paying attention to his surroundings. He discovered that once the Xiongnu soldiers mounted their horses, they became exceptionally formidable. The surrounding environment was mostly unsuitable for evading pursuers, as it could hardly conceal many people.

In the sheepfold established by the Xiongnu, there were Han men bound and hiding in places where the torches did not shine, quietly discussing how to escape. Most of these men appeared fierce and were unwilling to be mere lambs awaiting slaughter. For them, being escorted deep into the grasslands to become slaves was less desirable than risking their lives to escape, as they believed that death was ultimately inevitable regardless.

One hundred thousand Xiongnu cavalry have already retreated to the outer border city of Mayi in the Han court's frontier regions, leaving only over one thousand cavalry to escort the captured Han men, women, and goods. During this retreat, the Xiongnu do not intend to plunder along the Sanggan River. In fact, the Xiongnu tribes rarely raid border markets, except out of revenge against the Han court. On the contrary, the current military leader, the Chanyu, often restrains the various Xiongnu tribes from raiding border markets, with the usual targets being some border villages and military fortifications.

On that day, the Xiongnu slaughtered over ten thousand elderly and weak Han people, with piles of corpses like mountains outside Yanmen County, and Han blood soaked the grasslands, almost converging into a river

Almost at the same time, those surrounding Lin Bin whispered, "Brother, you should escape alone! (Big brother, please take us with you!)" Dou Shiyan urged Lin Bin to go alone, while several others pleaded to be taken along.

Lin Bin was tall and strong, standing at 1.87 meters. At that time, people suffered from calcium deficiency and consumed little meat, with the tallest among them barely reaching 1.70 meters and the average height around 1.63 meters. The burly man standing next to Lin Bin only reached up to Lin Bin's nose. Lin Bin silently looked at the man, who was not very tall but had a robust build, and after a long while, said: "If I could escape, I would also kill the Xiongnu to avenge my uncle!"

The deceased youth seemed to have opened a floodgate, as the sheepfold echoed with the anguished cries of "Father," "Mother," and "Child". These were the voices of their relatives being dragged out by the Xiongnu soldiers, kneeling on the vast grassland under the heavens, awaiting execution.

I... Lin Bin is not familiar with everything here. He does not doubt his ability to escape, but hesitates whether he can survive in a completely unfamiliar environment if he does escape. In the past half month, if it had not been for the old man's assistance, he would have starved to death long ago

Dou Shiyan, Sima Tong, Lu Wuzuo Mu, and the other four unnamed individuals all turned their gazes towards Lin Bin. Among them, Sima Tong nearly stood up to rush over, as if he could not keep his eyes on Lin Bin tightly enough, fearing that in the next moment, he would suddenly disappear.

"Only I can escape; bringing you along would likely make it very difficult to get away," Lin Bin said with great confidence. In this era of cold weapons, as one of the Republic's most elite paratroopers, he had ample reason to be confident

My old father has just been killed by the Xiongnu! The voice of the Han man is filled with hatred, "I hate the court, the incompetent and cowardly court! The court does not kill the barbarian invaders, but someone will come to awaken this dead heaven! One day, the blood debts of the barbarian invaders will be repaid in blood!"

The Xiongnu, laden with plundered wealth, drove over ten thousand strong Han men and several thousand captured women towards the steppe. Passing through the outer city of Sanggan in Yanmen County, the Xiongnu thousand-man leader in charge of escorting the Han slaves and goods sought permission from the front commander, Left General Zuo, to temporarily halt the rear army in the border city of Sanggan. The reason was concern over the excessive fatigue of the journey, as the casualties among the captured Han slaves were too severe, and the slaves had now become their property. Moreover, as the rear army responsible for escorting the Han slaves, they were also willing to march slowly, which allowed for more time to plunder the captured Han women and children.

He looked angrily at the corpse of the young man, his muscles unconsciously tensing. The grass ropes binding him creaked, "Why do I hate being Han?" Why should one hate being Han? Why hate at all? He pondered deeply, and without realizing it, the grass ropes on his body loosened. With a little more effort, he could break free by stretching his arms, but he stopped his movements.

Lin Bin asked: "Where is this? Why is this happening?" This has already been the Nth time he has asked in the past half month, and each time he receives no answer

Every time the Xiongnu raided and drove the population deep into the grasslands, only about two or three Han people could truly reach the depths of the grasslands. This means that at least seven or eight out of every ten would perish. The harshness of the environment and the Xiongnu's unwillingness to waste food were the primary reasons for the significant deaths of Han captives during the migration.

Brother, once you leave the border county and enter the grasslands, you will never be able to leave. Taking advantage of the night, the Xiongnu are busy dividing their wealth and violating women and children. Let us depart!

He stood up from a crouch, his bound hands brushing against his right calf. He discovered that the dagger was still tucked into the camouflage pants on his calf. His expression tightened, as if he were contemplating a difficult decision.

... ...

For the Xiongnu, fighting holds the same significance as farming does for the Han people; the only difference is that the Xiongnu cultivate with knives and arrows, while the Han use farming tools. In the eyes of the fierce Xiongnu, the Han are like sheep; weak sheep can never stand against wolves. The Xiongnu's Kunlun deity tells them that if they lack something, they should seize it from the Han, who are the wealth they have raised in their sheepfolds. For all Xiongnu, the Kunlun deity is supreme, and it is only natural for wolves to steal sheep. For hundreds of years, the Xiongnu have become accustomed to this logic of banditry; they are not afraid of the formidable Qin dynasty, so how could they fear the newly established Han dynasty?

This man had a face full of beard, a rather robust physique, and his bare chest was covered in dark hair. He replied expressionlessly: "Why cry! What use is crying? Will weeping stop the barbarian invaders from slaughtering our kin?"

This area is predominantly an expansive plain, mostly consisting of yellow sand and desert, with only a small portion covered in grass and sparse thickets. The forested areas are also limited, and at least the Xiongnu could easily search through the entire woodland with minimal effort. Not far away, Sanggan is the only town in the vicinity, but looking at the tightly shut city gates, it is evident that the people of Sanggan would absolutely not allow any fugitives to enter the town

Dou Shiyan is the robust man who vowed in the afternoon to eradicate the Xiongnu. According to him, the Dou surname is a prominent one in Guanzhong, and the current Empress Dowager of the Han court also bears the Dou surname. However, Dou Shiyan and the Empress Dowager are worlds apart; one is a noble of the imperial court while the other is a commoner from the border regions

Lin Bin fell silent

The Xiongnu had already relaxed their vigilance as they were about to return to the grasslands. In fact, they had never been vigilant throughout their journey. For decades, it was only the Xiongnu who plundered the Han people, while the Han never approached the grasslands for retaliation. The Han would merely wait in their established 'sheepfolds' for the Xiongnu to come and plunder again

Dou Shiyan smiled sadly, "If you truly leave, please make sure to kill a few Hu invaders on my behalf, as a way to avenge me and my late father"

Sangqian is a small town where the nomadic peoples of the grasslands and the border residents of the Han court engage in trade. It is unclear what considerations led the Xiongnu to demand that Sangqian contribute wealth and beautiful women during their southward advance, without resorting to military action against the town.

Lin Bin's heart felt as if it had been stirred; he looked up at the sky. The sky was not blue, but a terrifying pale, as if shrouded in a thin mist.

The Xiongnu drove the strong Han captives in batches into temporary sheep pens enclosed by wooden fences, with each pen holding one thousand individuals. That night, the Xiongnu only assigned a few guards to watch over the bound Han men, while the other Xiongnu were busy abusing the captured Han women and selecting the plundered goods.

Lin Bin looked at the young man's unblinking eyes, shivering all over as if pierced by something, repeatedly murmuring: "Do I hate this life as a Han person?"

Lin Bin stared for a long time, then suddenly turned to ask a person standing quietly beside him, his voice cold: "Why aren't you crying?"

"Is there anyone who can escape?" A boy, about fifteen or sixteen years old, always liked to stick close to Lin Bin, fearing that if he strayed too far, he would be killed. His name was Sima Tong, and he referred to himself as a scholar, looking quite frail.

The Xiongnu divided over ten thousand young and strong Han people into teams of one thousand for supervision, with each "pen" for escorting Han people having a different geographical distribution. For instance, Lin Bin's "pen" was situated on a slope, with a camp of about two hundred Xiongnu soldiers to the northwest, a similar "pen" for holding Han people to the south, and further south, a camp gathering five hundred Xiongnu soldiers. Only the northeastern and western directions had fewer guards in the desolate area. The camp of about two hundred Xiongnu soldiers was to the northwest, the similar "pen" for holding Han people was to the south, and further south was a camp gathering five hundred Xiongnu soldiers, with only the northeastern and western directions having fewer guards in the desolate area.