The Kingdom of Mu, located to the west of the Wuhu River, was once part of the Anxi Kingdom, adjacent to the Wunaho Kingdom. Their king, surnamed Zhaowu, is a descendant of the Kang Kingdom's king, whose courtesy name is Alanmi. The capital city measures just three li on each side, with a mere two thousand troops. To the northeast, five hundred li brings you to Anguo; to the east, more than two hundred li leads to Wunaho; to the west, over four thousand li lies Persia; and to the east, over seven thousand seven hundred li is Guazhou. During the era of the Sui Dynasty, they even dispatched envoys to pay tribute.
Persia, its capital city of Sulin City, is located to the west of the Dahe River, which was once part of the former Tiaozhi Kingdom. Their king's name is Kusahe. The capital city is more than ten miles in size, with over 20,000 elite soldiers, some of whom ride elephants into battle! In their country, there is no death penalty; the maximum punishment for committing a crime is amputation of hands and feet, confiscation of property, shaving off beards, or placing a sign around the neck to identify the offender. Individuals aged three and older are required to pay a tax of four coins. They have a custom of marrying their sisters. When someone dies, their body is placed on a mountain, and the family is required to wear mourning attire for a month. The king wears a golden flower crown, sits on a throne crafted from golden lions, adorns his beard with gold powder, wears brocade, and decorates himself with jewels. They are known for their fine horses, donkeys, lions, and white elephants, as well as large bird eggs, pearls, porphyry (a gemstone), beast souls (a gemstone), coral, glass, agate, crystal, sese (a gemstone), huluoji (a gemstone), lvteng (a gemstone), huoqi (a gemstone), diamonds, gold, silver, jinyushi (a mineral), copper, bintie (a type of steel), tin, silk, fine cloth, felt (a type of blanket), tu (a type of blanket), huna (a fabric), yuenobu (a fabric), sandalwood, cloth woven with gold thread, deer skin, cinnabar, mercury, and various spices including aloeswood, frankincense, sandalwood, pepper, and bibo (a spice), stone honey, semi-honey (honey), thousand-year dates, aconite (a medicinal herb), helele (a medicinal herb), wushizi (a medicinal herb), green salt (a pigment), and realgar (a pigment). The Turks cannot invade their territory, yet they are still under the control of the Sui Dynasty. Persia frequently sends envoys to pay tribute. Traveling west for a few hundred miles will reach the seaside, heading east for over four thousand miles will reach the Mu Kingdom, heading northwest for four thousand five hundred miles will reach Fuli (Byzantine Empire), and traveling east for eleven thousand seven hundred miles leads to Guazhou. Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty also dispatched Li Yu, the Cloud Rider Captain, as an envoy to Persia, and later sent additional envoys to pay tribute alongside Li Yu.
Cao Kingdom, north of Congling, was known as the Kingdom of Jibin during the Han Dynasty. The king of this kingdom was named Zhaowu, whose courtesy name was Shunda, and he was a relative of the Kangju king. The capital city stretched four li along its walls. The kingdom boasted over ten thousand fierce soldiers. The country's laws were very strict, with murderers and robbers facing the death penalty. Their customs included various peculiar sacrificial rituals.
On Congling Mountain, there was a temple dedicated to the god Shuntian, which was quite grand in scale. The roof was made of gold, silver, and copper, and the floor was laid with silver. There were thousands of people who visited the temple for sacrifices every day. In front of the temple, there was a fish vertebra, hollowed out in the middle, that even horses could pass through. The king wore a golden crown shaped like a fish and sat on a throne that resembled a golden horse. The region was rich in rice, millet, beans, and wheat, as well as many elephants, horses, and an animal known as Fengniu, along with gold, silver, bintie (a type of steel), carpets, cinnabar, indigo, as well as frankincense, sandalwood, and other spices, rock honey, semi-honey (which may refer to different types of honey), black salt, asafoetida, myrrh, and white aconite.
From Cao Kingdom, it was seven hundred li north to Fanyan City, six hundred li east to Jie Guo, and six thousand six hundred li northeast to Guazhou. During the Sui Dynasty, Cao Kingdom even sent envoys to present local specialties as tribute.
It is said that in Fu Guo, over two thousand li northwest of Shu County, lies the region known as the southwestern barbarians during the Han Dynasty. Located east of Fu Guo is a tribe called Jia Liang Yi. They govern themselves, with customs similar to those of Fu Guo, though their language varies and lacks unification. They do not use surnames. The king of Fu Guo is Yi Zeng. Their country measures eight hundred li from north to south and one thousand five hundred li from southeast to northwest. They do not have city walls, but reside near river valleys and mountains. The people in this area love revenge, so they construct "stone nests" from piled stones to evade their enemies. These "stone nests" can reach heights of over ten zhang, with the shortest around five to six zhang, each layer approximately one zhang high, separated by wooden platforms. The base measures about three to four steps wide, narrowing to two to three steps at the top, which resemble a pagoda. There is a small door on the ground floor, and it must be closed at night to guard against thieves. The country has over twenty thousand households, all obeying the king. The Jia Liang Yi tribe follows their chieftains. Serious crimes are punishable by death, while minor offenses incur a fine of a cow. They are nimble and skilled swordsmen. They don lacquered leather armor and use six-chi-long bows with bamboo strings. They marry multiple wives and sisters-in-law, and if a brother dies, the eldest brother marries the widow. They enjoy singing and dancing, accompanied by drums, reed instruments, and flutes. When someone dies, they do not don mourning clothes, but instead place the body on a high bed, cleanse it, dress it in armor, and cover it with animal skins. The descendants do not weep, but don armor and dance with swords, shouting, "My father was taken by spirits; I will avenge him and slay those spirits!" Other relatives cry three times before stopping. Women are required to cover their faces while crying. Upon someone's death, they slaughter a cow, and relatives bring wine and pork to share before the burial. After ten years, they conduct a grand burial, where relatives and friends gather, horses are slaughtered, and an ancestral shrine is erected. They wear round leather hats, some adorned with face masks. Their clothing is primarily made of fur, and their shoes are crafted from whole cowhide. They adorn themselves with iron chains around their necks and iron bracelets on their wrists. The king and chieftains don gold jewelry, featuring a gold flower about three inches in diameter hanging from their chests. The region is elevated, boasting a cool climate with frequent winds and little rainfall. They cultivate wheat and barley in the fields, and the mountains yield gold, silver, and numerous white pheasants. The river is home to a type of excellent fish, measuring four chi long with very fine scales.
In the year 608 AD, during the fourth year of the reign of Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty, their king sent eight representatives to the court to pay tribute. The following year, he sent his student Yi Lin with sixty members of the Jialiang Yi tribe to present tribute. They wanted to offer good horses, but they were unable to make the journey due to the treacherous terrain, so they requested Emperor Yang of Sui to open a mountain pass to facilitate future tributes. However, Emperor Yang found it too troublesome and declined their request.
The Jialiang Yi tribe was situated by a river that spanned sixty to seventy zhang in width, while the neighboring country was home to a river over one hundred zhang wide, both flowing southward. They used boats made of animal skins to cross the rivers. To the south of the neighboring country resided the Boyuan Yi, whose customs closely mirrored those of the Jialiang Yi. To the west lay a matriarchal society. To the northeast of the neighboring country were continuous mountain ranges stretching for thousands of miles, extending all the way to the Dangxiang region.
In the mountains, various Qiang tribal communities thrived, including Dazuo Feng, Xiaozuo Feng, Xiwei, Geyan, Baigou, Xiangren, Wangzu, Lintai, Chunsang, Lidou, Misang, Biyao, Daha, Bailan, Chilimotu, Nao, Dangmi, Qubu, Sangwu, and Qiandiao. These tribes inhabited deep mountain valleys and lacked a strong leader. Their customs resembled those of the Dangxiang people; some were allied with Tuyuhun, while others were affiliated with the neighboring country. Throughout Emperor Yang's reign, these Qiang tribal communities visited the court to pay tribute. The court appointed several road supervisors in the southwestern border region to oversee these tribes.
The history books say: throughout history, in order to develop remote areas and open up border regions, there needs to be an ambitious emperor and loyal officials ready to serve the nation. Zhang Qian had previously paved the way to the Western Regions, and later Ban Chao also joined the military to serve the country. Some forged alliances through treasures, some used force to intimidate, and some even laid down their lives, all to fulfill the great cause of the country. All of this is because the emperor values distant lands, so the officials are willing to go to great lengths, dedicating themselves wholeheartedly. Therefore, it is clear that what the emperor likes, the people below will pay more attention to; this principle is very obvious.
Emperor Yang of Sui liked extravagance and waste; his ambitions even outshone those of Qin Shi Huang and Emperor Wu of Han. Pei Ju presented the "Record of the Western Regions," which was exactly what he wanted, so Emperor Yang of Sui personally led an expedition to Yumen Pass, establishing Yiwu, Qiemo, and other places, resulting in the people in the Guanzhong region and the surrounding deserts suffering, with complaints everywhere. If the northern nomadic tribes posed no threat and there were reports of success from the eastern tribes, Emperor Yang of Sui would definitely continue to build fortresses at Luntai, construct cities at Wulei, and try to obtain the pearls of the Great Qin and the bird eggs of Tiaozhi, leading to more and more goods flowing in and out; how could the country bear it?
Ancient wise emperors kept their territories within a radius of five thousand miles, focusing on stabilizing the Central Plains region, never sending troops to conquer remote areas. Was their prestige not enough to command respect from all corners? No, they simply wanted to prevent remote matters from draining the Central Plains' resources; they did not want to harm the interests of the country with useless matters. Therefore, the Qin Dynasty guarded the Five Ridges, the Han Dynasty managed the three borders, leading to either widespread death or a drastic population decline. The Sui Dynasty, relying on its strength, suffered a great loss in Qinghai. All of this stemmed from the rulers losing their way, leading to the suffering of the people.
If Emperor Yang of Sui could seriously consider the significance of expanding territory, reject the proposals to establish the Protectorate, return those horses from a thousand miles away, and not require tribute from the white wolves, then even without a great victory in Liaodong, how could Jiangdu have met such a tragic fate? "Seven barbarians, nine tribes, waiting for the winds to shift," it would still pale in comparison to the disaster of Jiangdu!
