Yelu Chucai was captured by Genghis Khan during the battle, and his hometown had long been slaughtered by the Mongolian army.
Genghis Khan saw that he was very talented, so he did not kill him and took him under his command. However, he did not expect Yelu Chucai to be so loyal to Genghis Khan, which is really difficult for ordinary people to understand.
Genghis Khan smiled happily and said: "I know Ben Khan's body. Sir, tell me the truth. Which of Ben Khan's four sons can inherit the throne?"
Yelu Chucai was frightened. This kind of thing was related to the highest power. How dare he say a word!
Hesitating, Yelu Chucai couldn't say a word for a long time.
"explain."
When Genghis Khan saw that Yelu Chucai didn't reply, he looked faintly angry. He had to say one word.
Yelu Chucai was frightened, the pressure increased sharply, and he felt that the sky was about to fall.
Helpless, Yelu Chucai had no choice but to say carefully: "King Khan, although the eldest prince Shuchi and the second prince Chagatai are brave, they have rough personalities and are not good at listening to opinions. They are not wise kings and virtuous Khans.
Although the fourth prince Tuo Lei is brave and good at fighting, and he is very filial to the Khan, his desire to kill is too heavy, which may not be a long-term strategy for the empire. Moreover, Prince Tuo Lei is the youngest son and has the qualifications to guard the kitchen. If he inherits the throne of Khan again, he will
Given too much, the other princes would inevitably be dissatisfied.
However, the third prince has a generous residence, is benevolent and righteous, treats all the princes and relatives with courtesy, and is very popular among the people. In comparison, I think the third prince is a good choice."
It is a Mongolian tradition for the youngest son to keep the stove, which means that the older children should leave home one by one after they reach adulthood and live alone, as far away as possible. Of course, you can take some cattle and sheep with you when you leave, but most of the family property
It is left to the youngest son, who has the right to inherit most of the family property.
After listening to this, Genghis Khan showed an imperceptible look of satisfaction on his face. Obviously, what Yelu Chucai said was what he meant, and he also intended to let the third prince Ogedai inherit his throne.
But what Yelu Chucai said next brought up a question that he had been deliberately avoiding.
Yelu Chucai said: "King Khan, several princes are at odds with each other and have been fighting openly and secretly for a long time. If the third prince Ogedei succeeds to the throne, although more princes will be convinced, most of Mongolia's troops and horses will be controlled by the eldest prince.
In the hands of Jochi and the fourth prince Tuo Lei, these two princes have power but no position, and the second prince Chagatai is not willing to be subordinate to others. If things go on like this, great chaos will definitely break out."
Yelu Chucai is familiar with the classics of the past dynasties, especially the thousands of years of imperial power struggle in the Central Plains Dynasty. When thinking about the current situation of the four princes, it goes without saying that the transfer of power to the Khanate will cause big problems.
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Jochi and Tuo Lei. Jochi was the eldest son and had fought with Genghis Khan for the longest time. Because he was brave and good at fighting, the Mongols respected the strong, so naturally many people followed Jochi.
Tuolei was Genghis Khan's most beloved son, and he was often taken by Genghis Khan's side and taught him step by step, so he naturally had a large number of troops at his disposal.
For this reason, over time, Jochi and Tuo Lei's army actually accounted for 70% of the Mongolian army!
Because of this, they naturally wanted to compete for the throne. This time Genghis Khan went to Xixia, and they also followed him. They were worried that if the weather changed and they were not around, they would easily miss the opportunity.
How could Genghis Khan not know about Yelu Chucai's worries? This was also his biggest concern.
But because they were both his own sons, Genghis Khan was unwilling to face such a cruel family choice, so in the past Genghis Khan would subconsciously avoid it.
But now Yelu Chucai also realized the seriousness of this problem, which made Genghis Khan couldn't help but fall into deep thought.
Outside the big tent, after the battle, Ogedai had just left the battlefield and came to visit Genghis Khan, but was stopped by the guards. He did not dare to act presumptuously, so he had to wait quietly aside carefully.
Shuchi soon ran over. When he learned that it was Yelu Chucai who was in the tent, his eyes flashed with brilliance.
Soon, the two princes Tuolei and Chagatai also arrived. Not long after their arrival, Yelu Chucai came out of the tent, and the four princes also entered the tent one after another to visit Genghis Khan.
"gentlemen."
Yelu Chucai was resting in his tent when a voice came. Yelu Chucai looked and saw that it was the eldest prince Shuchi who had arrived. Yelu Chucai quickly saluted.
Jochi seemed to be in a very good mood, with a bold face, giving the impression that everything was under his control.
"Sir, this prince wants to give you a gift."
As he spoke, Jochi took out a piece of sheepskin, unfolded it, and spread it flat on the ground. "Sir, you stand up and try it."
Yelu Chucai took a closer look and saw that the sheepskin turned out to be a geographical map of mountains and rivers. "What does this mean, prince?"
"Sir, stand up first."
Yelu Chucai obeyed and stood on the sheepskin. Then Shuchi took a writing brush, bent down and drew two footprints on the sheepskin along Yelu Chucai's feet.
After finishing the painting, Ju Chidao said: "Sir, you are a Khitan. This prince is willing to give you a piece of land to rebuild the Khitan Kingdom. You will be the new king, and your land is the territory drawn under your feet. Are you satisfied?
?”
Yelu Chucai was startled, and quickly stepped down from the map, waving his hands repeatedly, "I can't do it, I can't do it. How can I, a humble minister, dare to accept such a great gift?"
Jochi smiled and said: "Sir, you are full of knowledge. Even my father Khan also trusts and values you very much. Giving you a piece of land is nothing. I, the Mongolian cavalry, travel all over the world. Is there anything that is not our horse ranch?"
Yelu Chucai didn't dare to take it away, so he carefully put away the sheepskin, folded it and handed it back to Jochi, saying: "Prince, please don't say that, I can't bear it. Now the Khan is in poor health, we think about praying for the Khan all the time."
, how dare you do what he thinks."
Yelu Chucai tactfully rejected Jochi's kindness and solicitation. Jochi's face showed a sullen look, "If this is the case, sir, then just pretend that this prince has not come."
After saying that, Jochi opened the tent and left. Yelu Chucai was frightened and extremely worried that he would be involved in a struggle for the highest power.
Jochi returned to his tent and was extremely angry. He said angrily: "Yelu Chucai is so ignorant of promotion, I will kill him."
On the second day, in the name of hunting, Shuchi sent his confidant Chipiha and invited Yelu Chucai to accompany him.
Yelu Chucai's heart trembled, and he declined politely, saying: "Please report back to the prince. I still need to translate the books. The Khan is still waiting. The time is tight. I am really sorry."
After hearing this, Chipiha didn't say much and went to reply to the letter.
Yelu Chucai felt a little relieved, thinking that he had escaped a disaster, and was secretly rejoicing. Unexpectedly, Chipiha came back not long after.