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Yu Fuluo sat back down, took a deep breath, and said in a heavy tone, "Lord Fei, I admit I underestimated you. But you also need to know this: we, the Sons of Chinu, cannot tolerate grit in our eyes!"
Yu Fuluo had witnessed too many heads and too much bloodshed among his tribesmen. These experiences had forced him, once somewhat dismissive of all people and matters, to grow through repeated setbacks. He had to learn to assess the situation, weigh his options, and master the art of maximizing his own benefits.
Therefore, to avoid unnecessary risks, and due to his growing distrust of the Hedong people for repeatedly breaking their promises, Yu Fuluo had decided, upon receiving Fei Qian's delivery of Lü Bu's battle blade, to come and gauge which side was more worthy of his wager.
But he hadn't expected that a man younger than himself would repeatedly lead him by the nose in negotiations, with every shift in topic and focus striking like a heavy hammer against his weakest points.
His current statement was both a compromise and a threat.
"I need three days. Three days from now, all the apparent power dynamics will be altered..." Fei Qian also retracted his smile, speaking seriously. "Three days from now, everything will become clear. My only request is that you, Chanyu, lead your forces away from Pingyang. Just hold off for these three days..."
"Impossible!" Yu Fuluo immediately rejected Fei Qian's condition. The current situation favored Fei Qian's weakness. How could Yu Fuluo place his chips on Fei Qian's side at this time?
Fei Qian smiled and said, "Very well. To demonstrate my sincerity, let me point out a serious flaw currently plaguing the Xiongnu. Perhaps the Chanyu would care to listen first..."
Yu Fuluo gestured for him to proceed.
Fei Qian said, "Han people, like the Xiongnu, emphasize patrilineal bloodline succession. But the Xiongnu have a custom that severely undermines the stability of this succession..."
"A father who carves out a domain—who does he think of passing it to first?" Fei Qian asked. "Isn't it most likely his own son?"
Yu Fuluo nodded silently, thinking of his father, Chanyu Qiangqu.
"Direct father-to-son succession has many benefits. It's like a great tree—the main trunk always grows upward... But the Xiongnu have another custom, one you, Chanyu, must be aware of..." Fei Qian continued.
Yu Fuluo stared at Fei Qian. "...The younger brother succeeding the elder upon his death?"
Fei Qian gave a light clap of his hands. "The Chanyu is indeed perceptive... But that is not the core issue. The real problems are 'marrying the father's widow' and 'taking over the widowed sister-in-law'."
In the second year of the Jianshi era of Emperor Cheng, Huhanye Chanyu died. His son, Diaotaomo Gao, succeeded him as Fuzhulei Chanyu and subsequently took his father's widow, Wang Zhaojun, as his own wife. The Book of Later Han records: "When Huhanye died, the son of a previous wife succeeded him and wished to take her as his wife. Zhaojun submitted a letter requesting to return. Emperor Cheng ordered her to follow the Hu customs, so she again became the Chanyu's wife."
"...What is the problem with that? Women are a form of property. Should we allow them to remarry freely?" Yu Fuluo could not fully comprehend the issue.
Around the 3rd century BCE, the Xiongnu people stepped onto the stage of history. This period coincided with their transition from a primitive clan-based society to a slave society, leaving many remnants of clan society customs.
The customs of "marrying the father's widow" (zheng mu) and "taking the widowed sister-in-law" (bao sao) were among them.
In the Xiongnu worldview, when a woman married into a clan, it was a union between clans, not between individuals. A woman marrying into her husband's household did not belong solely to that household as a family member; she also belonged to the clan as a whole.
If her husband died and she remarried, she would not only leave her husband's household but also detach herself from his clan. To keep such women bound within the clan community, aside from one's own birth mother, the marital ties to these women would be inherited by sons or brothers, preventing them from leaving the husband's clan collective to act as individuals.
Fei Qian said, "If the main trunk of a tree accidentally breaks, as long as the original main branch still has buds and receives sunlight and rain, it might still continue to grow upward. But if those young buds lose all sunlight, rain, and everything else, can they still grow into a main trunk?"
"..." Yu Fuluo remained silent.
Fei Qian continued, "Aside from a few Chanyus who, in their old age, passed their positions to their strong, adult sons—allowing the complete inheritance of military power and authority—for those whose heirs were still young... well, let's be direct: how many, or rather, how few, managed to live long?"
Though the words were simple, they spread across Yu Fuluo's face like a dense, dark shadow.
"Precisely because of such customs, supporting anyone within the clan is acceptable—after all, they are brothers. Precisely because of such customs, the words of the clan elders carry significant weight. Precisely because of such customs, once a Chanyu ascends to the great seat, rebellion becomes just another option... isn't that right, Chanyu?" Fei Qian said, his tone almost offhand.
Fei Qian's words struck Yu Fuluo's most painful spot like a blade.
How did Yu Fuluo become Chanyu?
He proclaimed himself.
His father, Chanyu Qiangqu, died because of a rebellion within the tribe...
And the Chanyu currently at the royal court, Xubu Guduhou, was the one elected by the various Xiongnu tribes remaining there—chosen by the elders and other influential figures...
"The Chanyu has read Han books. Have you noticed that in Han history, every instance of a younger brother succeeding an elder brother or a branch of the family taking over has caused significant turmoil?" Fei Qian glanced at the expression on Yu Fuluo's face and continued slowly. "...However, the Han have the Empress Dowager, they emphasize the order of seniority, and they uphold the principle of a son succeeding his father. Therefore, over these several hundred years, the frequency of chaos has been less than that of the Xiongnu. Accumulating little by little, the Xiongnu have gradually declined, while the Han remain the Han."
In truth, the Han also had their share of succession issues, but what Fei Qian was expounding were theories that seemed plausible yet could be misleading. Right now, he was simply taking advantage of Yu Fuluo's relative lack of sophistication, presenting himself as someone offering well-meaning advice. He was digging a pit to see if Yu Fuluo would jump in. If he did, there would be other pitfalls in the future, like the "Nine Dragons Contending for the Throne" or similar intrigues, each one more treacherous than the last, with no limit to the deception...
However, what Fei Qian was saying now almost perfectly mirrored Yu Fuluo's own personal experiences...
In the current royal court, the old Chanyu was dead. What about the wives and concubines of Chanyu Qiangqu who remained there? According to Xiongnu custom, their fate was singular and predetermined. While Yu Fuluo understood this intellectually, who could feel comfortable when such a fate befell their own kin?
Yu Fuluo remained silent for a long while before finally saying, "Then... how can this be resolved?"
Fei Qian smiled without speaking.
Frustrated, Yu Fuluo said through gritted teeth, "Me leaving is impossible! But I will fall ill for three days! I hope Lord Fei will have good news by then!"
Fei Qian laughed heartily. "By then, I will certainly have news, guaranteed to cure the Chanyu's ailment!"