Treatise on the Xiongnu

匈奴，其先祖夏后氏之苗裔也，曰淳維。唐虞以上有山戎、獫狁、葷粥，居于北蠻，隨畜牧而轉移。其畜之所多則馬、牛、羊，其奇畜則橐駞、驢、驘、駃騠、騊駼、騨騱。逐水草遷徙，毋城郭常處耕田之業，然亦各有分地。毋文書，以言語為約束。兒能騎羊，引弓射鳥鼠；少長則射狐兔：用為食。士力能毋弓，盡為甲騎。其俗，寬則隨畜，因射獵禽獸為生業，急則人習戰攻以侵伐，其天性也。其長兵則弓矢，短兵則刀鋋。利則進，不利則退，不羞遁走。茍利所在，不知禮義。自君王以下，咸食畜肉，衣其皮革，被旃裘。壯者食肥美，老者食其餘。貴壯健，賤老弱。父死，妻其後母；兄弟死，皆取其妻妻之。其俗有名不諱，而無姓字。

The Xiongnu were descended from the royal house of the Xia dynasty, and their progenitor was called Chunwei. Before the time of Yao and Shun, there were the Shanrong, the Xianyun, and the Xunyu, who dwelt in the northern wilds and migrated with their herds. Their most common livestock were horses, cattle, and sheep, while their rarer animals included camels, donkeys, mules, and several breeds of wild horses. They followed water and pasture in their migrations, having no walled cities, permanent dwellings, or agriculture, yet each group had its own allotted territory. They had no writing; agreements were sealed by spoken word alone. As children, they could ride sheep and draw the bow to shoot birds and mice; When they grew older they shot foxes and hares, which served as their food. Every man who could draw a bow served as armored cavalry. It was their custom in times of peace to follow their herds and hunt birds and beasts for a living, and in times of crisis to take up arms and raid — such was their innate nature. For long-range weapons they used bows and arrows, and for close combat, swords and short spears. When the advantage was theirs they advanced; when it was not, they retreated, feeling no shame in flight. They cared only for profit and knew nothing of propriety or righteousness. From the ruler down to the common people, all ate the flesh of their livestock, wore clothing of hide and leather, and wrapped themselves in felt and furs. The strong ate the richest and choicest portions, while the elderly ate what was left over. They esteemed the strong and vigorous and looked down upon the old and weak. When a father died, a son married his stepmother; When a brother died, the surviving brothers would take his widow as their own wife. In their customs, personal names carried no taboo, and they did not use clan surnames.

夏道衰，而公劉失其稷官，變于西戎，邑于豳。其後三百有餘歲，戎狄攻大王亶父，亶父亡走岐下，而豳人悉從亶父而邑焉，作周。其後百有餘歲，周西伯昌伐畎夷氏。後十有餘年，武王伐紂而營雒邑，復居于酆鄗，放逐戎夷涇、洛之北，以時入貢，命曰「荒服」。其後二百有餘年，周道衰，而穆王伐犬戎，得四白狼四白鹿以歸。自是之後，荒服不至。於是周遂作甫刑之辟。穆王之後二百有餘年，周幽王用寵姬褒姒之故，與申侯有卻。申侯怒而與犬戎共攻殺周幽王于驪山之下，遂取周之焦穫，而居于涇渭之閒，侵暴中國。秦襄公救周，於是周平王去酆鄗而東徙雒邑。當是之時，秦襄公伐戎至岐，始列為諸侯。是後六十有五年，而山戎越燕而伐齊，齊釐公與戰于齊郊。其後四十四年，而山戎伐燕。燕告急于齊，齊桓公北伐山戎，山戎走。其後二十有餘年，而戎狄至洛邑，伐周襄王，襄王奔于鄭之氾邑。初，周襄王欲伐鄭，故娶戎狄女為后，與戎狄兵共伐鄭。已而黜狄后，狄后怨，而襄王後母曰惠后，有子子帶，欲立之，於是惠后與狄后、子帶為內應，開戎狄，戎狄以故得入，破逐周襄王，而立子帶為天子。於是戎狄或居于陸渾，東至於衛，侵盜暴虐中國。中國疾之，故詩人歌之曰「戎狄是應」，「薄伐獫狁，至於大原」，「出輿彭彭，城彼朔方」。周襄王既居外四年，乃使使告急于晉。晉文公初立，欲修霸業，乃興師伐逐戎翟，誅子帶，迎內周襄王，居于雒邑。

When the Xia dynasty declined, Gongliu lost his position as Minister of Agriculture, and his people moved among the Western Rong, settling at Bin. More than three hundred years later, the Rong and Di attacked the Great King Danfu. Danfu fled to the foot of Mount Qi, and the people of Bin all followed him and settled there, founding the state of Zhou. More than a hundred years after that, the Earl of the West, Chang of Zhou, campaigned against the Quanyi people. More than ten years later, King Wu attacked Zhou and built Luoyi, then returned to dwell at Feng and Hao. He banished the Rong and Yi peoples north of the Jing and Luo rivers; they came to offer tribute at the proper seasons and were designated the "wild domain." Over two hundred years later, the power of Zhou had waned, and King Mu launched a campaign against the Quanrong. He returned with four white wolves and four white deer. From that time on, the peoples of the distant frontier ceased to bring tribute. Zhou then drew up the Penal Code of Fu. More than two hundred years after King Mu, King You of Zhou fell into a quarrel with the Marquis of Shen on account of his infatuation with his favorite consort, Bao Si. The Marquis of Shen, in his fury, allied with the Quanrong to attack and kill King You at the foot of Mount Li. They then seized the Zhou territories of Jiao and Huo, settled between the Jing and Wei rivers, and raided the Central States. Duke Xiang of Qin came to the rescue of Zhou, and King Ping then abandoned the old capitals of Feng and Hao and moved east to Luoyi. At that time, Duke Xiang of Qin drove the Rong back as far as Qi, and was for the first time elevated to the rank of feudal lord. Sixty-five years later, the Shanrong crossed the state of Yan and attacked Qi, and Duke Xi of Qi met them in battle at the outskirts of his capital. Forty-four years later, the Shanrong attacked Yan. Yan sent an urgent appeal to Qi, and Duke Huan of Qi led a northern campaign against the Shanrong, who fled. More than twenty years later, the Rong and Di reached Luoyi and attacked King Xiang of Zhou, who fled to the town of Fan in the state of Zheng. Earlier, King Xiang of Zhou had wished to attack Zheng, and so he took a Rong woman as his queen and joined forces with the Rong and Di troops to campaign against Zheng. Later, King Xiang deposed the Di queen. She grew resentful, and the king's stepmother, Queen Hui, who had a son named Zidai and wished to set him on the throne, conspired with the deposed queen and Zidai to serve as agents within the court. They opened the gates to the Rong and Di, who broke in, drove out King Xiang, and set up Zidai as Son of Heaven. The Rong and Di then settled in Luhun and pushed eastward as far as Wei, plundering and terrorizing the Central States. The Central States resented this, and so the poets sang: “The Rong and Di must be repelled,” “We set out in force against the Xianyun and reached Dayuan,” and “The chariots rolled forth in majesty to wall that northern region.” After King Xiang had lived in exile for four years, he sent envoys to plead for help from Jin. Duke Wen of Jin, newly come to power and eager to establish his hegemony, raised an army, drove out the Rong and Di, executed Zidai, and escorted King Xiang back to his seat at Luoyi.

當是之時，秦晉為彊國。晉文公攘戎翟，居于河西圁、洛之閒，號曰赤翟、白翟。秦穆公得由余，西戎八國服於秦，故自隴以西有綿諸、緄戎、翟、獂之戎，岐、梁山、涇、漆之北有義渠、大荔、烏氏、朐衍之戎。而晉北有林胡、樓煩之戎，燕北有東胡、山戎。各分散居谿谷，自有君長，往往而聚者百有餘戎，然莫能相一。

At that time, Qin and Jin were the most powerful states. Duke Wen of Jin drove back the Rong and Di, who settled in the region between the Yin and Luo rivers west of the Yellow River, and came to be known as the Red Di and the White Di. Duke Mu of Qin, having won over the advisor Youyu, brought eight Western Rong states into submission. Thus, west of the Long Mountains there were the Mianzhu, the Hunrong, the Di, and the Huan, while north of Qi, Mount Liang, and the Jing and Qi rivers there were the Yiqu, the Dali, the Wuzhi, and the Quyan. To the north of Jin were the Linhu and the Loufan, while to the north of Yan were the Donghu and the Shanrong. Each group lived scattered in the valleys and gorges, with its own chieftains and leaders. Though more than a hundred such groups were gathered in the region, none was able to unite the others.

自是之後百有餘年，晉悼公使魏絳和戎翟，戎翟朝晉。後百有餘年，趙襄子踰句注而破并代以臨胡貉。其後既與韓魏共滅智伯，分晉地而有之，則趙有代、句注之北，魏有河西、上郡，以與戎界邊。其後義渠之戎筑城郭以自守，而秦稍蠶食，至於惠王，遂拔義渠二十五城。惠王擊魏，魏盡入西河及上郡于秦。秦昭王時，義渠戎王與宣太后亂，有二子。宣太后詐而殺義渠戎王於甘泉，遂起兵伐殘義渠。於是秦有隴西、北地、上郡，筑長城以拒胡。而趙武靈王亦變俗胡服，習騎射，北破林胡、樓煩。筑長城，自代并陰山下，至高闕為塞。而置雲中、鴈門、代郡。其後燕有賢將秦開，為質於胡，胡甚信之。歸而襲破走東胡，東胡卻千餘里。與荊軻刺秦王秦舞陽者，開之孫也。燕亦筑長城，自造陽至襄平。置上谷、漁陽、右北平、遼西、遼東郡以拒胡。當是之時，冠帶戰國七，而三國邊於匈奴。其後趙將李牧時，匈奴不敢入趙邊。後秦滅六國，而始皇帝使蒙恬將十萬之眾北擊胡，悉收河南地。因河為塞，筑四十四縣城臨河，徙適戍以充之。而通直道，自九原至雲陽，因邊山險塹谿谷可繕者治之，起臨洮至遼東萬餘里。又度河據陽山北假中。

More than a hundred years later, Duke Dao of Jin sent Wei Jiang to make peace with the Rong and Di, who thereafter paid court to Jin. Another century or more passed, and Xiangzi of Zhao crossed the Gouzhu Mountains, conquered the regions of Bing and Dai, and confronted the Hu and Mo peoples. Afterward, having joined with Han and Wei to destroy the house of Zhi and divide the lands of Jin among themselves, Zhao held Dai and the territory north of the Gouzhu Mountains, while Wei held the area west of the Yellow River and Shang Commandery, both bordering on Rong territory. Later, the Yiqu Rong built walled cities to defend themselves, but Qin nibbled away at their lands like a silkworm devouring a mulberry leaf. By the time of King Hui, Qin had captured twenty-five of the Yiqu cities. King Hui attacked Wei, and Wei was forced to cede all the lands west of the Yellow River and Shang Commandery to Qin. During the reign of King Zhao of Qin, the king of the Yiqu Rong carried on an illicit affair with the Dowager Queen Xuan and fathered two sons by her. The Dowager Queen Xuan lured the Yiqu king to Ganquan Palace and had him killed, then raised an army to crush the Yiqu once and for all. Qin then gained control of the commanderies of Longxi, Beidi, and Shang, and built a long wall to hold the Hu at bay. King Wuling of Zhao likewise reformed his people's customs by adopting barbarian dress and training them in mounted archery, and then defeated the Linhu and the Loufan to the north. He built a long wall stretching from Dai along the foot of the Yin Mountains to Gaoque Pass as a defensive barrier. He also established the commanderies of Yunzhong, Yanmen, and Dai. Later, the state of Yan had an able general named Qin Kai, who had served as a hostage among the Hu and won their deep trust. Upon his return, he launched a surprise attack on the Donghu and routed them, driving them back more than a thousand li. Qin Wuyang, who accompanied Jing Ke in the attempt to assassinate the King of Qin, was Qin Kai's grandson. Yan likewise built a long wall stretching from Zaoyang to Xiangping. It established the commanderies of Shanggu, Yuyang, Youbeiping, Liaoxi, and Liaodong to hold the Hu in check. At that time, there were seven civilized states contending for supremacy, and three of them shared a border with the Xiongnu. Later, while the Zhao general Li Mu guarded the frontier, the Xiongnu did not dare to invade Zhao's borders. After Qin had destroyed the six states, the First Emperor dispatched Meng Tian with a force of a hundred thousand to strike north against the Hu, and he seized all the territory south of the Yellow River bend. He used the Yellow River as a natural barrier, built forty-four fortified towns along its bank, and relocated convicts to garrison them. He also constructed a straight road from Jiuyuan to Yunyang, and wherever mountain passes, defiles, and valleys along the frontier could be fortified, he repaired and connected them into a wall stretching more than ten thousand li from Lintao to Liaodong. He also crossed the Yellow River and occupied the territory north of the Yang Mountains in the Jiazhong region.

當是之時，東胡彊而月氏盛。匈奴單于曰頭曼，頭曼不勝秦，北徙。十餘年而蒙恬死，諸侯畔秦，中國擾亂，諸秦所徙適戍邊者皆復去，於是匈奴得寬，復稍度河南與中國界於故塞。

At that time, the Donghu were powerful and the Yuezhi were flourishing. The chanyu of the Xiongnu was named Touman. Unable to withstand Qin, Touman withdrew to the north. After more than ten years, Meng Tian died, the feudal lords rose in revolt against Qin, and the Central States fell into turmoil. The convicts whom Qin had sent to garrison the frontier all deserted and returned home. The Xiongnu, finding the pressure relieved, gradually crossed back south of the Yellow River and once again shared a border with the Central States at the old line of fortifications.

單于有太子名冒頓。後有所愛閼氏，生少子，而單于欲廢冒頓而立少子，乃使冒頓質於月氏。冒頓既質於月氏，而頭曼急擊月氏。月氏欲殺冒頓，冒頓盜其善馬，騎之亡歸。頭曼以為壯，令將萬騎。冒頓乃作為鳴鏑，習勒其騎射，令曰：「鳴鏑所射而不悉射者，斬之。」行獵鳥獸，有不射鳴鏑所射者，輒斬之。已而冒頓以鳴鏑自射其善馬，左右或不敢射者，冒頓立斬不射善馬者。居頃之，復以鳴鏑自射其愛妻，左右或頗恐，不敢射，冒頓又復斬之。居頃之，冒頓出獵，以鳴鏑射單于善馬，左右皆射之。於是冒頓知其左右皆可用。從其父單于頭曼獵，以鳴鏑射頭曼，其左右亦皆隨鳴鏑而射殺單于頭曼，遂盡誅其後母與弟及大臣不聽從者。冒頓自立為單于。

The chanyu had an heir named Maodun. Later, a favorite consort bore the chanyu a younger son, and the chanyu wished to disinherit Maodun in the younger boy's favor. He therefore sent Maodun as a hostage to the Yuezhi. No sooner had Maodun been sent as a hostage than Touman launched a sudden attack on the Yuezhi. The Yuezhi were about to kill Maodun in retaliation, but he stole one of their finest horses and rode it back to his own people. Touman, impressed by his bravery, gave him command of ten thousand cavalry. Maodun then fashioned whistling arrows and drilled his horsemen in archery, decreeing, "Whoever does not shoot at whatever the whistling arrow strikes shall be beheaded." Whenever they went hunting and Maodun shot a whistling arrow at a target, any of his men who failed to shoot at the same target was immediately beheaded. Then Maodun shot a whistling arrow at his own finest horse. Some of his attendants hesitated to follow suit, and Maodun at once beheaded those who had not shot the horse. Not long after, he shot a whistling arrow at his own beloved wife. Some of his attendants were terrified and dared not shoot, and Maodun beheaded them as well. Some time later, Maodun went hunting and shot a whistling arrow at the chanyu's finest horse. Every one of his men shot it without hesitation. Then Maodun knew that his men could be relied upon. Accompanying his father, the chanyu Touman, on a hunt, he shot a whistling arrow at Touman. His men all followed the signal and riddled the chanyu with arrows, killing him. Maodun then put to death his stepmother, his younger brothers, and every minister who refused to submit. Maodun made himself chanyu.

冒頓既立，是時東胡彊盛，聞冒頓殺父自立，乃使使謂冒頓，欲得頭曼時有千里馬。冒頓問群臣，群臣皆曰：「千里馬，匈奴寶馬也，勿與。」冒頓曰：「柰何與人鄰國而愛一馬乎？」遂與之千里馬。居頃之，東胡以為冒頓畏之，乃使使謂冒頓，欲得單于一閼氏。冒頓復問左右，左右皆怒曰：「東胡無道，乃求閼氏！請擊之。」冒頓曰：「柰何與人鄰國愛一女子乎？」遂取所愛閼氏予東胡。東胡王愈益驕，西侵。與匈奴閒，中有棄地，莫居，千餘里，各居其邊為甌脫。東胡使使謂冒頓曰：「匈奴所與我界甌脫外棄地，匈奴非能至也，吾欲有之。」冒頓問群臣，群臣或曰：「此棄地，予之亦可，勿予亦可。」於是冒頓大怒曰：「地者，國之本也，柰何予之！」諸言予之者，皆斬之。冒頓上馬，令國中有後者斬，遂東襲擊東胡。東胡初輕冒頓，不為備。及冒頓以兵至，擊，大破滅東胡王，而虜其民人及畜產。既歸，西擊走月氏，南并樓煩、白羊河南王。［侵燕代］悉復收秦所使蒙恬所奪匈奴地者，與漢關故河南塞，至朝那、膚施，遂侵燕、代。是時漢兵與項羽相距，中國罷於兵革，以故冒頓得自彊，控弦之士三十餘萬。

After Maodun had established himself, the Donghu — who were at that time strong and flourishing — heard that he had killed his father and seized power, and sent an envoy demanding the famous thousand-li horse that had belonged to Touman. Maodun asked his ministers, and they all said, “The thousand-li horse is one of the Xiongnu's treasured steeds. Do not give it up.” Maodun said, “How can one who shares a border with another state cling to a single horse?” And so he gave them the thousand-li horse. Not long after, the Donghu, believing that Maodun feared them, sent another envoy demanding one of the chanyu's consorts. Maodun again asked his attendants, and they all said angrily, “The Donghu have no sense of right. Now they even demand a consort! We beg leave to attack them.” Maodun said, “How can one who shares a border with another state cling to a single woman?” And so he handed over the beloved consort to the Donghu. The king of the Donghu grew ever more arrogant and began encroaching westward. Between the Donghu and the Xiongnu there lay a stretch of abandoned land more than a thousand li across where no one lived; each side kept to its own border, using the empty zone as a buffer. The Donghu sent an envoy to Maodun, saying, “The abandoned land beyond the buffer zone on the Xiongnu border is territory the Xiongnu cannot reach. We wish to have it.” Maodun asked his ministers. Some said, “This is abandoned land. Giving it up would be acceptable, and refusing to give it up would also be acceptable.” Maodun then flew into a rage and said, “Land is the foundation of a state. How can we give it away!” He beheaded every one of those who had counseled giving it up. Maodun mounted his horse and issued an order that any man who lagged behind would be beheaded. He then launched an eastern assault against the Donghu. The Donghu had underestimated Maodun from the start and made no preparations for defense. When Maodun's forces arrived, he attacked and utterly destroyed the Donghu, killed their king, and carried off their people and livestock. Upon his return, he struck westward and routed the Yuezhi, then turned south and annexed the Loufan and the King of the White Sheep south of the Yellow River. He fully recovered all the Xiongnu lands that Qin had seized through Meng Tian, reaching the old Henan barrier of the Han frontier passes as far as Zhaona and Fushi, and then invaded Yan and Dai. At that time the Han armies were locked in struggle with Xiang Yu, and the Central States were exhausted by war. Maodun thus was able to strengthen himself until he commanded more than three hundred thousand mounted archers.

自淳維以至頭曼千有餘歲，時大時小，別散分離，尚矣，其世傳不可得而次云。然至冒頓而匈奴最彊大，盡服從北夷，而南與中國為敵國，其世傳國官號乃可得而記云。

From Chunwei down to Touman spans more than a thousand years, during which the Xiongnu were sometimes great and sometimes small, scattering and reuniting over so vast a stretch of time that their succession of rulers can no longer be established. But with the rise of Maodun, the Xiongnu reached the height of their power, bringing all the northern peoples to heel and rivaling the Central States to the south. From this point on, the succession of rulers and their official titles can be recorded.

置左右賢王，左右谷蠡王，左右大將，左右大都尉，左右大當戶，左右骨都侯。匈奴謂賢曰「屠耆」，故常以太子為左屠耆王。自如左右賢王以下至當戶，大者萬騎，小者數千，凡二十四長，立號曰「萬騎」。諸大臣皆世官。呼衍氏，蘭氏，其後有須卜氏，此三姓其貴種也。諸左方王將居東方，直上谷以往者，東接穢貉、朝鮮；右方王將居西方，直上郡以西，接月氏、氐、羌；而單于之庭直代、雲中：各有分地，逐水草移徙。而左右賢王、左右谷蠡王最為大（國），左右骨都侯輔政。諸二十四長亦各自置千長、百長、什長、裨小王、相、封都尉、當戶、且渠之屬。

He established the offices of the Wise Kings of the Left and Right, the Luli Kings of the Left and Right, the Great Generals of the Left and Right, the Great Commandants of the Left and Right, the Great Masters of the Court of the Left and Right, and the Gudu Marquises of the Left and Right. The Xiongnu call a worthy man a "tuji," and therefore they regularly make the heir apparent the Worthy King of the Left. From the Worthy Kings of the Left and Right down to the danghu, the greater officers commanded ten thousand horsemen and the lesser ones several thousand. There were twenty-four leaders in all, collectively styled the “Ten Thousand Horsemen.” All the high offices were hereditary. The Huyan, the Lan, and — in later times — the Xubu clans were the three noble lineages. The kings and generals of the left quarter resided in the east, extending eastward from Shanggu and bordering on the Huimo and Korea; The kings and generals of the right quarter resided in the west, extending westward from Shang Commandery and bordering on the Yuezhi, Di, and Qiang; The chanyu's court was centered opposite Dai and Yunzhong. Each group had its allotted territory and migrated in search of water and pasture. The Worthy Kings of the Left and Right and the Guli Kings of the Left and Right were the most powerful offices, while the Gudu Marquises of the Left and Right assisted in government. Each of the twenty-four leaders in turn appointed his own commanders of a thousand, commanders of a hundred, commanders of ten, minor kings, chancellors, commandants, masters of the court, and chief officials.

歲正月，諸長小會單于庭，祠。五月，大會蘢城，祭其先、天地、鬼神。秋，馬肥，大會蹛林，課校人畜計。其法，拔刃尺者死，坐盜者沒入其家；有罪小者軋，大者死。獄久者不過十日，一國之囚不過數人。而單于朝出營，拜日之始生，夕拜月。其坐，長左而北鄉。日上戊己。其送死，有棺槨金銀衣裘，而無封樹喪服；近幸臣妾從死者，多至數千百人。舉事而候星月，月盛壯則攻戰，月虧則退兵。其攻戰，斬首虜賜一卮酒，而所得鹵獲因以予之，得人以為奴婢。故其戰，人人自為趣利，善為誘兵以冒敵。故其見敵則逐利，如鳥之集；其困敗，則瓦解雲散矣。戰而扶輿死者，盡得死者家財。

In the first month of each year, the leaders gathered in a minor assembly at the chanyu's court to offer sacrifices. In the fifth month, a great assembly was held at Longcheng, where they sacrificed to their ancestors, to Heaven and Earth, and to the spirits. In the autumn, when the horses had fattened, a great assembly was held at Dailin to count and inspect the people and livestock. By their law, whoever drew a blade a foot long was put to death, and whoever committed theft had his household confiscated; For minor offenses, the punishment was flogging; for major crimes, death. No one was imprisoned for more than ten days, and the total number of prisoners in the entire realm never exceeded a handful. Each morning, the chanyu emerged from his camp to bow in worship to the rising sun, and each evening he bowed to the moon. When seated, the place of honor was on the left, facing north. They favored the days of wu and ji in the celestial cycle. In sending off the dead they provided coffins and outer cases of gold, silver, clothing, and furs, but erected no mounded graves, planted no mourning trees, and wore no mourning garments; When a chanyu died, favored ministers and concubines were put to death to accompany him, sometimes numbering in the hundreds or even thousands. They timed their campaigns by the stars and the moon: when the moon was full and bright they attacked, and when it waned they withdrew their forces. In battle, a warrior who took an enemy's head or captured a prisoner was rewarded with a goblet of wine, and all plunder seized in war was given to the captors; prisoners were made slaves. In battle, therefore, every man fought for his own profit, and they were adept at luring the enemy into traps and ambushes. Thus, when they saw an enemy, they swarmed toward gain like flocking birds; But when hard-pressed and defeated, they would shatter like tiles and scatter like clouds. Anyone who recovered the body of a fallen comrade from the battlefield was awarded all the dead man's possessions.

後北服渾庾、屈射、丁零、鬲昆、薪犁之國。於是匈奴貴人大臣皆服，以冒頓單于為賢。

Later, he subjugated the northern peoples of the Hunyu, the Qushe, the Dingling, the Gekun, and the Xinli. All the Xiongnu nobles and high ministers were won over and acknowledged Maodun as a truly worthy chanyu.

是時漢初定中國，徙韓王信於代，都馬邑。匈奴大攻圍馬邑，韓王信降匈奴。匈奴得信，因引兵南踰句注，攻太原，至晉陽下。高帝自將兵往擊之。會冬大寒雨雪，卒之墮指者十二三，於是冒頓詳敗走，誘漢兵。漢兵逐擊冒頓，冒頓匿其精兵，見其羸弱，於是漢悉兵，多步兵，三十二萬，北逐之。高帝先至平城，步兵未盡到，冒頓縱精兵四十萬騎圍高帝於白登，七日，漢兵中外不得相救餉。匈奴騎，其西方盡白馬，東方盡青駹馬，北方盡烏驪馬，南方盡騂馬。高帝乃使使閒厚遺閼氏，閼氏乃謂冒頓曰：「兩主不相困。今得漢地，而單于終非能居之也。且漢王亦有神，單于察之。」冒頓與韓王信之將王黃、趙利期，而黃、利兵又不來，疑其與漢有謀，亦取閼氏之言，乃解圍之一角。於是高帝令士皆持滿傅矢外鄉，從解角直出，竟與大軍合，而冒頓遂引兵而去。漢亦引兵而罷，使劉敬結和親之約。

At that time, the Han had just pacified the Central States and relocated the King of Han Xin to the region of Dai, with his capital at Mayi. The Xiongnu launched a massive assault and besieged Mayi, and the King of Han Xin surrendered to them. Having gained Han Xin's allegiance, the Xiongnu led their forces south across the Gouzhu Mountains, attacked Taiyuan, and advanced to the walls of Jinyang. Emperor Gao personally led his armies to strike back against them. It happened to be deep winter with bitter cold and driving snow; two or three out of every ten soldiers lost fingers to frostbite. Maodun feigned defeat and retreated, luring the Han forces into pursuit. The Han forces gave chase, but Maodun had concealed his crack troops and showed only his weak and sickly soldiers. The Han committed their full strength — three hundred and twenty thousand men, mostly infantry — in a northward pursuit. Emperor Gao, riding ahead, reached Pingcheng before the infantry had fully arrived. Maodun then unleashed four hundred thousand elite cavalry and encircled the emperor at Baideng. For seven days, the Han forces inside and outside the siege could neither relieve one another nor send supplies. The Xiongnu cavalry were arrayed by the color of their mounts: all white horses on the west, all grey horses on the east, all black horses on the north, and all bay horses on the south. Emperor Gao then sent an envoy who secretly presented rich gifts to the consort. She then said to Maodun, “Two rulers should not drive each other to extremity. Even if you were to conquer Han territory, the chanyu could never settle there permanently. Besides, the King of Han also has the spirits on his side. Let the chanyu consider it.” Maodun had arranged to rendezvous with the generals Wang Huang and Zhao Li, who served under the King of Han Xin, but their forces failed to arrive. Suspecting they might be conspiring with the Han, and also heeding the counsel of his consort, Maodun opened one corner of the encirclement. Emperor Gao ordered all his soldiers to draw their bows to full and aim outward. They marched straight through the gap and finally linked up with the main army. Maodun then withdrew his forces and departed. The Han likewise withdrew its forces and sent Liu Jing to negotiate a marriage alliance.

是後韓王信為匈奴將，及趙利、王黃等數倍約，侵盜代、雲中。居無幾何，陳豨反，又與韓信合謀擊代。漢使樊噲往擊之，復拔代、鴈門、雲中郡縣，不出塞。是時匈奴以漢將眾往降，故冒頓常往來侵盜代地。於是漢患之，高帝乃使劉敬奉宗室女公主為單于閼氏，歲奉匈奴絮繒酒米食物各有數，約為昆弟以和親，冒頓乃少止。後燕王盧綰反，率其黨數千人降匈奴，往來苦上谷以東。

After this, the King of Han Xin served as a Xiongnu general, and together with Zhao Li, Wang Huang, and others repeatedly violated the treaty, raiding Dai and Yunzhong. Before long, Chen Xi revolted and joined forces with Han Xin in a plot to attack Dai. The Han sent Fan Kuai to attack them, and he recovered the commanderies and counties of Dai, Yanmen, and Yunzhong, though he did not venture beyond the frontier. At that time, many Han generals and their followers had defected to the Xiongnu, and Maodun therefore repeatedly raided the region of Dai. The Han, deeply troubled, had Emperor Gao send Liu Jing to present a princess of the imperial house as consort to the chanyu, and every year they sent the Xiongnu fixed quantities of silk, wine, rice, and other provisions. They agreed to be as brothers under a marriage alliance, and Maodun's raids subsided somewhat. Later, the King of Yan, Lu Wan, revolted, leading several thousand followers to surrender to the Xiongnu, and they harassed the region from Shanggu eastward.

高祖崩，孝惠、呂太后時，漢初定，故匈奴以驕。冒頓乃為書遺高后，妄言。高后欲擊之，諸將曰：「以高帝賢武，然尚困於平城。」於是高后乃止，復與匈奴和親。

After the death of Gaozu, during the reigns of Emperor Hui and the Dowager Empress Lu, the Han dynasty was still newly established, and the Xiongnu grew increasingly bold. Maodun went so far as to send the Dowager Empress a letter couched in outrageously insulting terms. The Dowager Empress wished to attack them, but the generals said, “Even with Emperor Gao's merit and martial prowess, he was still besieged at Pingcheng.” In the end, the Dowager Empress held back her anger and renewed the marriage alliance with the Xiongnu.

至孝文帝初立，復修和親之事。其三年五月，匈奴右賢王入居河南地，侵盜上郡葆塞蠻夷，殺略人民。於是孝文帝詔丞相灌嬰發車騎八萬五千，詣高奴，擊右賢王。右賢王走出塞。文帝幸太原。是時濟北王反，文帝歸，罷丞相擊胡之兵。

When Emperor Wen first came to the throne, he renewed the marriage alliance. In the fifth month of his third year, the Wise King of the Right invaded the territory south of the Yellow River, raided the border settlements of Shang Commandery, and killed and carried off the people. Emperor Wen then ordered the Chancellor, Guan Ying, to mobilize eighty-five thousand chariots and cavalry and advance to Gaonu to attack the Wise King of the Right. The Wise King of the Right fled beyond the frontier. Emperor Wen traveled in person to Taiyuan. At that time, the King of Jibei revolted, and Emperor Wen returned to the capital and recalled the Chancellor's forces that had been sent against the Hu.

其明年，單于遺漢書曰：「天所立匈奴大單于敬問皇帝無恙。前時皇帝言和親事，稱書意，合歡。漢邊吏侵侮右賢王，右賢王不請，聽後義盧侯難氏等計，與漢吏相距，絕二主之約，離兄弟之親。皇帝讓書再至，發使以書報，不來，漢使不至，漢以其故不和，鄰國不附。今以小吏之敗約故，罰右賢王，使之西求月氏擊之。以天之福，吏卒良，馬彊力，以夷滅月氏，盡斬殺降下之。定樓蘭、烏孫、呼揭及其旁二十六國，皆以為匈奴。諸引弓之民，并為一家。北州已定，願寢兵休士卒養馬，除前事，復故約，以安邊民，以應始古，使少者得成其長，老者安其處，世世平樂。未得皇帝之志也，故使郎中系雩淺奉書請，獻橐他一匹，騎馬二匹，駕二駟。皇帝即不欲匈奴近塞，則且詔吏民遠舍。使者至，即遣之。」以六月中來至薪望之地。書至，漢議擊與和親孰便。公卿皆曰：「單于新破月氏，乘勝，不可擊。且得匈奴地，澤鹵，非可居也。和親甚便。」漢許之。

The following year the chanyu sent a letter to the Han, saying, “The Great Chanyu of the Xiongnu, established by Heaven, respectfully asks whether the emperor is well. Previously, when the emperor spoke of the marriage alliance, the tone of his letter conveyed mutual goodwill, and both sides were pleased. But Han border officials insulted the Wise King of the Right. Without seeking permission, the Wise King heeded the counsel of the Yiluhou Nan clan and others and took up arms against the Han officials, breaking the pact between the two rulers and severing the bond of brotherhood. The emperor sent letters of reproof on two occasions, and I dispatched envoys to reply, but they never arrived. Since the Han envoys also failed to come, the Han used this as a pretext for hostility, and the neighboring states ceased to be friendly. Now, because the treaty was broken by petty officials, I have punished the Wise King of the Right and sent him westward to campaign against the Yuezhi. By the grace of Heaven, with fine officers and soldiers and strong horses, he has crushed the Yuezhi, slaughtering and subjugating them utterly. He has pacified Loulan, Wusun, Hujie, and twenty-six neighboring states, all of which are now subject to the Xiongnu. All the peoples who draw the bow are now united as one family. The northern lands are now settled, and I wish to lay down arms, rest the soldiers, and pasture the horses. Let us put aside past grievances, restore the old treaty, bring peace to the border peoples, and return to the ways of antiquity. Then the young may grow to manhood, the old may live out their days in peace, and generation after generation may enjoy tranquility. Not yet knowing the emperor's wishes, I have sent the Palace Secretary Xi Yuqian to present this letter, along with one camel, two riding horses, and two teams of four chariot horses. If the emperor does not wish the Xiongnu to approach the frontier, then let him order his officials and people to withdraw to a distance. When envoys arrive, send them back at once.” The envoy arrived at the place of Xinwang around the middle of the sixth month. When the letter arrived, the Han court debated whether it would be more advantageous to attack or to renew the marriage alliance. The high ministers all said, “The chanyu has only recently defeated the Yuezhi and is riding the momentum of victory. He cannot be attacked. Besides, even if we were to seize Xiongnu lands, they are nothing but salt marshes and cannot be settled. A marriage alliance is the most advantageous course.” The Han agreed to the proposal.

孝文皇帝前六年，漢遺匈奴書曰：「皇帝敬問匈奴大單于無恙。使郎中系雩淺遺朕書曰：『右賢王不請，聽後義盧侯難氏等計，絕二主之約，離兄弟之親，漢以故不和，鄰國不附。今以小吏敗約，故罰右賢王使西擊月氏，盡定之。願寢兵休士卒養馬，除前事，復故約，以安邊民，使少者得成其長，老者安其處，世世平樂。』朕甚嘉之，此古聖主之意也。漢與匈奴約為兄弟，所以遺單于甚厚。倍約離兄弟之親者，常在匈奴。然右賢王事已在赦前，單于勿深誅。單于若稱書意，明告諸吏，使無負約，有信，敬如單于書。使者言單于自將伐國有功，甚苦兵事。服繡袷綺衣、繡袷長襦、錦袷袍各一，比余一，黃金飾具帶一，黃金胥紕一，繡十匹，錦三十匹，赤綈、綠繒各四十匹，使中大夫意、謁者令肩遺單于。」

In the sixth year before Emperor Wen, the Han sent a letter to the Xiongnu, saying, “The emperor respectfully asks whether the Great Chanyu of the Xiongnu is well. The Palace Secretary Xi Yuqian presented your letter to me, saying, ‘The Wise King of the Right did not request permission but followed the plans of the Yiluhou Nanshi and others, breaking the treaty between the two rulers and severing the bond of brotherhood. For this reason the Han and the Xiongnu are not in harmony, and neighboring states are not attached. Now, because the treaty was broken by minor officials, you have punished the Wise King of the Right by sending him west to attack the Yuezhi, and he has pacified them entirely. We wish to rest the troops, give the soldiers repose, and feed the horses, put aside former matters, restore the old treaty, and thereby pacify the border peoples. Then the young may reach maturity, the old may dwell in peace, and generation after generation may know peace and joy. We highly commend this — it accords with the intent of the sage rulers of antiquity. The Han and the Xiongnu agreed to be as brothers, and the gifts we have sent to the chanyu have been most generous. Yet those who have broken the treaty and sundered the bond of brotherhood have more often been on the Xiongnu side. Nevertheless, since the matter of the Wise King of the Right occurred before the amnesty, let the chanyu not punish him further. If the chanyu acts in the spirit of his letter and clearly instructs his officials not to violate the treaty but to keep faith, we shall respectfully comply with the chanyu's wishes. The envoy reports that the chanyu has personally led campaigns against other states and won great merit, though he has been much wearied by the labors of war. The gifts were one embroidered lined patterned-silk jacket, one embroidered lined long jacket, one brocade lined robe, one gold-decorated belt set, one gold xupi ornament, ten bolts of embroidery, thirty bolts of brocade, and forty bolts each of red silk and green silk. The Palace Counselor Yi and the Master of Guests Jian were sent to present them to the chanyu."

後頃之，冒頓死，子稽粥立，號曰老上單于。

Not long afterward, Maodun died. His son Jizhu succeeded him, taking the title of Laoshang Chanyu.

老上稽粥單于初立，孝文皇帝復遣宗室女公主為單于閼氏，使宦者燕人中行說傅公主。說不欲行，漢彊使之。說曰：「必我行也，為漢患者。」中行說既至，因降單于，單于甚親幸之。

When the Laoshang Chanyu first came to power, Emperor Wen again sent a princess of the imperial house to serve as the chanyu's consort, and appointed a eunuch from the state of Yan named Zhonghang Yue to accompany her. Zhonghang Yue did not wish to go, but the Han court forced him. Yue said, “If I must go, I will become a scourge to the Han.” When Zhonghang Yue arrived, he promptly defected to the chanyu, who took a great liking to him and favored him deeply.

初，匈奴好漢繒絮食物，中行說曰：「匈奴人眾不能當漢之一郡，然所以彊者，以衣食異，無仰於漢也。今單于變俗好漢物，漢物不過什二，則匈奴盡歸於漢矣。其得漢繒絮，以馳草棘中，衣袴皆裂敝，以示不如旃裘之完善也。得漢食物皆去之，以示不如湩酪之便美也。」於是說教單于左右疏記，以計課其人眾畜物。

At first the Xiongnu were fond of Han silks and grain foods. Zhonghang Yue said, “The Xiongnu in numbers cannot match a single Han commandery, yet they are strong because their food and clothing are different, and they do not depend on the Han. If the chanyu now changes his customs and develops a taste for Han goods, the Han need only divert a fifth of their products and the Xiongnu will be entirely won over to the Han way. He had his men take the Chinese silks they received and ride through the thorny brush until their robes and trousers were torn to shreds, to demonstrate that silk was no match for the sturdiness of felt and fur. They threw away all Han food they received to show that it was not as useful or as fine as kumiss and curds.” Zhonghang Yue then taught the chanyu's attendants to keep written records for tallying and assessing the population and livestock.

漢遺單于書，牘以尺一寸，辭曰「皇帝敬問匈奴大單于無恙」，所遺物及言語云云。中行說令單于遺漢書以尺二寸牘，及印封皆令廣大長，倨傲其辭曰「天地所生日月所置匈奴大單于敬問漢皇帝無恙」，所以遺物言語亦云云。

The Han sent the chanyu a letter on a tablet one foot and one inch long, beginning, “The emperor respectfully asks whether the Great Chanyu of the Xiongnu is well,” with the gifts and remaining language following the usual formula. Zhonghang Yue had the chanyu send letters to the Han on tablets one foot and two inches long, and ordered that the seals and bindings all be broader, larger, and longer. The wording was made haughty: “The Great Chanyu of the Xiongnu, established by Heaven and set in place by sun and moon, respectfully asks whether the emperor of the Han is well,” with the gifts and remaining language following the same pattern.

漢使或言曰：「匈奴俗賤老。」中行說窮漢使曰：「而漢俗屯戍從軍當發者，其老親豈有不自脫溫厚肥美以齎送飲食行戍乎？」漢使曰：「然。」中行說曰：「匈奴明以戰攻為事，其老弱不能鬬，故以其肥美飲食壯健者，蓋以自為守衛，如此父子各得久相保，何以言匈奴輕老也？」漢使曰：「匈奴父子乃同穹廬而臥。父死，妻其後母；兄弟死，盡取其妻妻之。無冠帶之飾，闕庭之禮。」中行說曰：「匈奴之俗，人食畜肉，飲其汁，衣其皮；畜食草飲水，隨時轉移。故其急則人習騎射，寬則人樂無事，其約束輕，易行也。君臣簡易，一國之政猶一身也。父子兄弟死，取其妻妻之，惡種姓之失也。故匈奴雖亂，必立宗種。今中國雖詳不取其父兄之妻，親屬益疏則相殺，至乃易姓，皆從此類。且禮義之敝，上下交怨望，而室屋之極，生力必屈。夫力耕桑以求衣食，筑城郭以自備，故其民急則不習戰功，緩則罷於作業。嗟土室之人，顧無多辭，令喋喋而佔佔，冠固何當？」

Some Han envoys said, “It is Xiongnu custom to disdain the old.” Zhonghang Yue pressed the Han envoy, saying, “In your Han custom, when men are called up for garrison duty or military service, do their aged parents not invariably set aside their own warm clothing and rich food to pack provisions for the journey?” The Han envoy said, “That is so.” Zhonghang Yue said, “The Xiongnu plainly make battle and attack their business. The old and weak cannot fight, and so the richest food and drink is given to the strong and robust so that they can guard and defend the others. In this way fathers and sons protect one another over the long term. Why say that the Xiongnu slight the old?” The Han envoy said, “Among the Xiongnu, fathers and sons sleep in the same yurt. When a father dies, a son marries his widow; When a brother dies, the surviving brothers take his widow as their own wife. They have no caps, sashes, or ornaments, and lack court ritual.” Zhonghang Yue said, “In Xiongnu custom, people eat the flesh of livestock, drink their milk, and wear their skins; Their livestock graze on grass and drink water, and the people move with the seasons. In times of crisis the people practice riding and archery; in times of peace they are content and unburdened. Their laws are few and simple and easy to follow. The relationship between ruler and ministers is straightforward, and the governance of the whole state is as natural as the workings of a single body. When fathers, sons, or brothers die, the surviving men marry their widows, for they abhor the extinction of a family line. Therefore, even in times of turmoil, the Xiongnu always preserve the continuity of their clans. In the Central States, though they make a point of not taking the wives of fathers and brothers, kinship ties grow ever more distant, until relatives murder one another and even change their family names — all of this follows from their system. Besides, the abuse of ritual and propriety breeds mutual resentment between high and low, and the obsession with building fine houses exhausts the people's strength. The Chinese toil at plowing and mulberry growing to provide food and clothing, and build walled cities to protect themselves. In times of danger their people are untrained for war, and in times of peace they are worn out by their labors. Alas, you people of earthen houses, look to yourselves and do not say so much. You chatter and prattle on, but what real use are caps and sashes to you?”

自是之後，漢使欲辯論者，中行說輒曰：「漢使無多言，顧漢所輸匈奴繒絮米糱，令其量中，必善美而己矣，何以為言乎？且所給備善則已；不備，苦惡，則候秋孰，以騎馳蹂而稼穡耳。」日夜教單于候利害處。

From this time on, whenever Han envoys wished to debate, Zhonghang Yue would say, “Han envoys, do not speak at length. Attend only to what the Han sends the Xiongnu in silks, floss, rice, and provisions. Make the measures correct and the goods excellent, and that is enough. Why speak further? Besides, if the supplies are complete and good, then that is enough; if they are incomplete or of poor quality, then wait until autumn, when the grain is ripe, and come with cavalry to gallop over and trample their crops.” Day and night he coached the chanyu on how to exploit the Han's vulnerabilities.

漢孝文皇帝十四年，匈奴單于十四萬騎入朝那、蕭關，殺北地都尉卬，虜人民畜產甚多，遂至彭陽。使奇兵入燒回中宮，候騎至雍甘泉。於是文帝以中尉周舍、郎中令張武為將軍，發車千乘，騎十萬，軍長安旁以備胡寇。而拜昌侯盧卿為上郡將軍，甯侯魏遬為北地將軍，隆慮侯周灶為隴西將軍，東陽侯張相如為大將軍，成侯董赤為前將軍，大發車騎往擊胡。單于留塞內月餘乃去，漢逐出塞即還，不能有所殺。匈奴日已驕，歲入邊，殺略人民畜產甚多，雲中、遼東最甚，至代郡萬餘人。漢患之，乃使使遺匈奴書。單于亦使當戶報謝，復言和親事。

In the fourteenth year of Emperor Wen, the chanyu led a hundred and forty thousand cavalry through Zhaona and Xiao Pass, killed the Commandant of Beidi, Ang, seized vast numbers of people and livestock, and advanced as far as Pengyang. He sent a raiding force that broke through and burned the Huizhong Palace, and his scouts reached as far as Yong and Ganquan. Emperor Wen then appointed Zhou She, Commandant of the Center, and Zhang Wu, Palace Secretary, as generals. He mobilized a thousand chariots and one hundred thousand cavalry and stationed them around Chang’an to guard against Hu raids. He appointed the Marquis of Chang, Lu Qing, as General of Shang Commandery; the Marquis of Ning, Wei Su, as General of Beidi; the Marquis of Longlu, Zhou Zao, as General of Longxi; the Marquis of Dongyang, Zhang Xiangru, as Grand General; and the Marquis of Cheng, Dong Chi, as Vanguard General. He then mobilized a large force of chariots and cavalry to attack the Hu. The chanyu lingered inside the frontier for more than a month before withdrawing. The Han pursued him beyond the border but turned back almost at once, unable to inflict any casualties. The Xiongnu grew more insolent by the day, raiding the border every year and killing and carrying off great numbers of people and livestock. Yunzhong and Liaodong suffered the worst, and even Dai Commandery lost more than ten thousand people. The Han court, greatly troubled, dispatched envoys to deliver a letter to the Xiongnu. The chanyu likewise sent a Master of the Court to convey his thanks and once again raised the matter of a marriage alliance.

孝文帝後二年，使使遺匈奴書曰：「皇帝敬問匈奴大單于無恙。使當戶且居雕渠難、郎中韓遼遺朕馬二匹，已至，敬受。先帝制：長城以北，引弓之國，受命單于；長城以內，冠帶之室，朕亦制之。使萬民耕織射獵衣食，父子無離，臣主相安，俱無暴逆。今聞渫惡民貪降其進取之利，倍義絕約，忘萬民之命，離兩主之驩，然其事已在前矣。書曰：『二國已和親，兩主驩說，寢兵休卒養馬，世世昌樂，闟然更始。』朕甚嘉之。聖人者日新，改作更始，使老者得息，幼者得長，各保其首領而終其天年。朕與單于俱由此道，順天恤民，世世相傳，施之無窮，天下莫不咸便。漢與匈奴鄰國之敵，匈奴處北地，寒，殺氣早降，故詔吏遺單于秫糱金帛絲絮佗物歲有數。今天下大安，萬民熙熙，朕與單于為之父母。朕追念前事，薄物細故，謀臣計失，皆不足以離兄弟之驩。朕聞天不頗覆，地不偏載。朕與單于皆捐往細故，俱蹈大道，墮壞前惡，以圖長久，使兩國之民若一家子。元元萬民，下及魚鱉，上及飛鳥，跂行喙息蠕動之類，莫不就安利而辟危殆。故來者不止，天之道也。俱去前事：朕釋逃虜民，單于無言章尼等。朕聞古之帝王，約分明而無食言。單于留志，天下大安，和親之後，漢過不先。單于其察之。」

In the second year after Emperor Wen, envoys were sent bearing a letter to the Xiongnu, saying, “The emperor respectfully asks whether the Great Chanyu of the Xiongnu is well. You sent the Master of the Court Qieju Diaoqu Nan and the Palace Secretary Han Liao to present us with two horses. They have arrived, and we have received them with gratitude. The former emperor decreed that north of the Long Wall, the bow-drawing countries are subject to the command of the chanyu; Within the Great Wall, the people who wear the cap and sash are likewise under our governance. Let all the people plow and weave, hunt and shoot for their food and clothing, so that fathers and sons are not parted, rulers and ministers live in peace, and there is neither oppression nor rebellion. We have heard that wicked and greedy men, eager for plunder, have violated justice and broken the treaty, forgetting the fate of the common people and destroying the harmony between our two rulers. But those matters now belong to the past. The letter said, ‘The two states have already entered a marriage alliance, and the two rulers are pleased. Let the troops lie still, the soldiers rest, and the horses be fed; let generation after generation prosper in joy, and let there be a grand new beginning. We highly commend this. A sage renews himself each day and makes a fresh start, allowing the old to find rest, the young to grow to maturity, and each to preserve their life and live out the years allotted by Heaven. If we and the chanyu both follow this path — obeying Heaven and caring for the people, passing this bond down through the generations without end — then all under Heaven will benefit. The Han and the Xiongnu are neighboring states. The Xiongnu dwell in the northern lands where the cold descends early, and so we have ordered our officials to send the chanyu fixed annual quantities of millet, leaven, gold, silk, floss, and other goods. Now the world is at great peace and the people are joyful. We and the chanyu serve as their father and mother. When we reflect upon past events, the trivial matters and the miscalculations of advisors are not worth enough to sunder the bond of brotherhood. We have heard it said that Heaven does not cover the earth unevenly, nor does the earth bear its burdens with partiality. Let us and the chanyu cast aside past grievances, walk together the great way, discard former enmities, and plan for an enduring peace, so that the peoples of both nations may live as one family. Of all things under Heaven — from the multitudes of people, down to the fish and turtles, up to the birds in flight, and every creature that walks, breathes, or creeps — there is none that does not seek safety and shun danger. Therefore, those who come seeking peace never cease — this is the Way of Heaven. Let both sides put aside what has gone before: I will release the Han people who fled, and the chanyu should no longer speak of Zhangni and the others. We have heard that the emperors and kings of old made their agreements clear and never went back on their word. Let the chanyu hold to this purpose, and the world shall be at great peace. After the marriage alliance is sealed, the Han will not be the first to transgress. Let the chanyu consider it."

單于既約和親，於是制詔御史曰：「匈奴大單于遺朕書，言和親已定，亡人不足以益眾廣地，匈奴無入塞，漢無出塞，犯（令）［今］約者殺之，可以久親，后無咎，俱便。朕已許之。其布告天下，使明知之。」

After the chanyu agreed to the marriage alliance, the emperor issued an edict to the Censor, saying, "The Great Chanyu of the Xiongnu has sent me a letter stating that the marriage alliance is settled; fugitives are not enough to increase the population or broaden the territory. The Xiongnu shall not enter the passes, and the Han shall not go beyond them. Whoever violates the present treaty shall be put to death. In this way close relations can endure, there will be no later blame, and both sides will benefit. We have already given our consent. Let this be proclaimed throughout the realm so that all may clearly know it.”

後四歲，老上稽粥單于死，子軍臣立為單于。既立，孝文皇帝復與匈奴和親。而中行說復事之。

Four years later, the Laoshang Chanyu died, and his son Junchen succeeded him as chanyu. Once he was established, Emperor Wen once again renewed the marriage alliance with the Xiongnu. Zhonghang Yue continued to serve under the new chanyu.

軍臣單于立四歲，匈奴復絕和親，大入上郡、雲中各三萬騎，所殺略甚眾而去。於是漢使三將軍軍屯北地，代屯句注，趙屯飛狐口，緣邊亦各堅守以備胡寇。又置三將軍，軍長安西細柳、渭北棘門、霸上以備胡。胡騎入代句注邊，烽火通於甘泉、長安。數月，漢兵至邊，匈奴亦去遠塞，漢兵亦罷。後歲餘，孝文帝崩，孝景帝立，而趙王遂乃陰使人於匈奴。吳楚反，欲與趙合謀入邊。漢圍破趙，匈奴亦止。自是之後，孝景帝復與匈奴和親，通關市，給遺匈奴，遣公主，如故約。終孝景時，時小入盜邊，無大寇。

In the fourth year of the Junchen Chanyu's reign, the Xiongnu broke the marriage alliance again. Thirty thousand cavalry each poured into Shang Commandery and Yunzhong, killing and plundering vast numbers before withdrawing. The Han deployed three generals: one garrisoned Beidi, another held the Gouzhu Pass in Dai, and a third defended the Feihu Pass. All along the frontier, fortifications were reinforced against Hu raids. Three additional armies were stationed near the capital: at Xiliu west of Chang'an, at Jimen north of the Wei River, and at Bashang, all to guard against the Hu. Hu cavalry broke through the frontier at the Gouzhu Pass in Dai, and the beacon fires blazed all the way to Ganquan and Chang'an. After several months, the Han troops reached the border, but the Xiongnu had already withdrawn far beyond the frontier, and the Han forces were dismissed. More than a year later, Emperor Wen died, and Emperor Jing ascended the throne. The King of Zhao, Sui, secretly sent envoys to the Xiongnu. When Wu and Chu revolted, they sought to conspire with Zhao to bring the Xiongnu across the frontier. But the Han besieged and defeated Zhao, and the Xiongnu called off their plans. From then on, Emperor Jing renewed the marriage alliance with the Xiongnu, opened the border markets, supplied them with gifts, and sent a princess, all according to the old treaty. Throughout the reign of Emperor Jing, the Xiongnu occasionally made minor raids across the border, but there were no major incursions.

今帝即位，明和親約束，厚遇，通關市，饒給之。匈奴自單于以下皆親漢，往來長城下。

When the present emperor came to the throne, he upheld the marriage alliance, treated the Xiongnu generously, opened the border markets, and provided them abundantly. From the chanyu on down, the Xiongnu were all on friendly terms with the Han, and they came and went freely below the Great Wall.

漢使馬邑下人聶翁壹奸蘭出物與匈奴交，詳為賣馬邑城以誘單于。單于信之，而貪馬邑財物，乃以十萬騎入武州塞。漢伏兵三十餘萬馬邑旁，御史大夫韓安國為護軍，護四將軍以伏單于。單于既入漢塞，未至馬邑百餘里，見畜布野而無人牧者，怪之，乃攻亭。是時鴈門尉史行徼，見寇，葆此亭，知漢兵謀，單于得，欲殺之，尉史乃告單于漢兵所居。單于大驚曰：「吾固疑之。」乃引兵還。出曰：「吾得尉史，天也，天使若言。」以尉史為「天王」。漢兵約單于入馬邑而縱，單于不至，以故漢兵無所得。漢將軍王恢部出代擊胡輜重，聞單于還，兵多，不敢出。漢以恢本造兵謀而不進，斬恢。自是之後，匈奴絕和親，攻當路塞，往往入盜於漢邊，不可勝數。然匈奴貪，尚樂關市，嗜漢財物，漢亦尚關市不絕以中之。

The Han sent a man of Mayi named Nie Wengyi to smuggle goods to the Xiongnu, pretending to offer them the city of Mayi in order to lure the chanyu into a trap. The chanyu believed the scheme and, covetous of the riches of Mayi, led a hundred thousand cavalry through the Wuzhou Pass. The Han had concealed more than three hundred thousand troops near Mayi, with the Imperial Secretary Han Anguo serving as Commander of the Guard and coordinating four generals to spring the ambush on the chanyu. After the chanyu had crossed the Han frontier and was still more than a hundred li from Mayi, he noticed livestock scattered across the fields with not a single herdsman in sight. Suspicious, he attacked a watchtower. A minor officer from Yanmen happened to be on patrol and had taken refuge in the watchtower, where he had learned of the Han army's plan. The chanyu captured him and was about to have him killed, but the officer revealed to the chanyu where the Han forces were positioned. The chanyu was greatly alarmed and said, “I had long suspected this.” He immediately withdrew his forces. He went out and said, “I obtained the commandant. This is Heaven; Heaven made him speak.” He made the commandant the "Heavenly King." The Han plan had been to spring the trap once the chanyu entered Mayi, but since he never arrived, the Han forces gained nothing. The Han general Wang Hui, who had been ordered to march out from Dai to attack the Xiongnu supply train, learned that the chanyu had turned back with his full force and did not dare to engage. Since Wang Hui had been the original architect of the plan yet failed to advance, the Han executed him. From that time on, the Xiongnu severed the marriage alliance and attacked the border passes, raiding Han territory so frequently that the incursions were beyond counting. Yet the Xiongnu, being covetous by nature, still relished the border markets and craved Han goods, and the Han for their part kept the markets open as a means of influence.

自馬邑軍後五年之秋，漢使四將軍各萬騎擊胡關市下。將軍衛青出上谷，至蘢城，得胡首虜七百人。公孫賀出雲中，無所得。公孫敖出代郡，為胡所敗七千餘人。李廣出鴈門，為胡所敗，而匈奴生得廣，廣后得亡歸。漢囚敖、廣，敖、廣贖為庶人。其冬，匈奴數入盜邊，漁陽尤甚。漢使將軍韓安國屯漁陽備胡。其明年秋，匈奴二萬騎入漢，殺遼西太守，略二千餘人。胡又入敗漁陽太守軍千餘人，圍漢將軍安國，安國時千餘騎亦且盡，會燕救至，匈奴乃去。匈奴又入鴈門，殺略千餘人。於是漢使將軍衛青將三萬騎出鴈門，李息出代郡，擊胡。得首虜數千人。其明年，衛青復出雲中以西至隴西，擊胡之樓煩、白羊王於河南，得胡首虜數千，牛羊百餘萬。於是漢遂取河南地，筑朔方，復繕故秦時蒙恬所為塞，因河為固。漢亦棄上谷之什辟縣造陽地以予胡。是歲，漢之元朔二年也。

Five years after the Mayi ambush, in autumn, the Han sent four generals with ten thousand cavalry each to attack the Xiongnu near the border markets. General Wei Qing advanced from Shanggu to Longcheng and took seven hundred Xiongnu heads and prisoners. Gongsun He marched out from Yunzhong but achieved nothing. Gongsun Ao marched out from Dai Commandery but was defeated by the Xiongnu, losing more than seven thousand men. Li Guang marched out from Yanmen but was defeated, and the Xiongnu captured him alive. He later managed to escape and return. The Han court imprisoned both Gongsun Ao and Li Guang, but they ransomed themselves and were reduced to the rank of commoner. That winter, the Xiongnu repeatedly raided the frontier. Yuyang was hit hardest. The Han sent General Han Anguo to garrison Yuyang and defend against the Hu. The following autumn, twenty thousand Xiongnu cavalry invaded Han territory, killed the Governor of Liaoxi, and carried off more than two thousand people. The Xiongnu also defeated the army of the Governor of Yuyang, killing more than a thousand men, and surrounded General Han Anguo. When his force of a thousand-odd cavalry was nearly wiped out, a relief force from Yan arrived just in time, and the Xiongnu withdrew. The Xiongnu also invaded Yanmen, killing and seizing more than a thousand people. The Han then dispatched General Wei Qing with thirty thousand cavalry from Yanmen and Li Xi from Dai Commandery to strike the Xiongnu. They took several thousand heads and prisoners. The following year, Wei Qing marched again from Yunzhong west to Longxi and attacked the Loufan and the King of the White Sheep south of the Yellow River. He took several thousand heads and prisoners and captured over a million head of cattle and sheep. The Han then seized the territory south of the Yellow River bend, constructed the fortress of Shuofang, and restored the old defenses that Meng Tian had built during the Qin dynasty, using the Yellow River itself as a natural barrier. The Han also ceded a portion of the border counties of Shanggu, including the Zaoyang region, to the Xiongnu. This was the second year of the Yuanshuo era of the Han.

其后冬，匈奴軍臣單于死。軍臣單于弟左谷蠡王伊稚斜自立為單于，攻破軍臣單于太子於單。於單亡降漢，漢封於單為涉安侯，數月而死。

In the winter that followed, the Junchen Chanyu died. His younger brother, the Luli King of the Left, Yizhixie, seized power and declared himself chanyu, defeating the Junchen Chanyu's heir, Yudan. Yudan fled and surrendered to the Han, who enfeoffed him as the Marquis of She'an. He died a few months later.

伊稚斜單于既立，其夏，匈奴數萬騎入殺代郡太守恭友，略千餘人。其秋，匈奴又入鴈門，殺略千餘人。其明年，匈奴又復復入代郡、定襄、上郡，各三萬騎，殺略數千人。匈奴右賢王怨漢奪之河南地而筑朔方，數為寇，盜邊，及入河南，侵擾朔方，殺略吏民其眾。

After the Yizhixie Chanyu had established himself, that summer the Xiongnu sent tens of thousands of cavalry pouring in to kill the Governor of Dai Commandery, Gong You, and carried off more than a thousand people. That autumn, the Xiongnu invaded Yanmen again, killing and seizing more than a thousand people. The following year, the Xiongnu again raided Dai Commandery, Dingxiang, and Shang Commandery with thirty thousand cavalry each, killing and abducting several thousand people. The Wise King of the Right, furious that the Han had seized the territory south of the Yellow River bend and built Shuofang, repeatedly raided the frontier. He invaded the Henan region, harassed Shuofang, and killed and carried off great numbers of officials and common people.

其明年春，漢以衛青為大將軍，將六將軍，十餘萬人，出朔方、高闕擊胡。右賢王以為漢兵不能至，飲酒醉，漢兵出塞六七百里，夜圍右賢王。右賢王大驚，脫身逃走，諸精騎往往隨后去。漢得右賢王眾男女萬五千人，裨小王十餘人。其秋，匈奴萬騎入殺代郡都尉朱英，略千餘人。

The following spring, the Han appointed Wei Qing as Grand General and put six generals under his command with more than a hundred thousand troops. They marched out from Shuofang and Gaoque to attack the Xiongnu. The Wise King of the Right, confident that the Han forces could never reach him, had been drinking and was in his cups. The Han troops advanced six or seven hundred li beyond the frontier and surrounded him under cover of night. The Wise King of the Right was stricken with alarm. He barely escaped with his life, and his best cavalrymen fled after him. The Han captured fifteen thousand of the Wise King's men and women, along with more than ten minor kings. That autumn, ten thousand Xiongnu cavalry invaded Dai Commandery, killed the Commandant Zhu Ying, and carried off more than a thousand people.

其明年春，漢復遣大將軍衛青將六將軍，兵十餘萬騎，乃再出定襄數百里擊匈奴，得首虜前后凡萬九千餘級，而漢亦亡兩將軍，軍三千餘騎。右將軍建得以身脫，而前將軍翕侯趙信兵不利，降匈奴。趙信者，故胡小王，降漢，漢封為翕侯，以前將軍與右將軍并軍分行，獨遇單于兵，故盡沒。單于既得翕侯，以為自次王，用其姊妻之，與謀漢。信教單于益北絕幕，以誘罷漢兵，徼極而取之，無近塞。單于從其計。其明年，胡騎萬人入上谷，殺數百人。

The following spring, the Han again dispatched Grand General Wei Qing with six generals and more than a hundred thousand cavalry. They advanced several hundred li beyond Dingxiang to strike the Xiongnu and took a combined total of more than nineteen thousand heads and prisoners. However, the Han also lost two generals and over three thousand cavalry. The Right General, Jian, escaped with his life, but the Vanguard General, the Marquis of Xi, Zhao Xin, suffered a defeat and surrendered to the Xiongnu. Zhao Xin was originally a minor Xiongnu king who had defected to the Han and been enfeoffed as the Marquis of Xi. Serving as Vanguard General, he had split from the Right General's column and happened to encounter the chanyu's main force alone. His army was annihilated. Once the chanyu had gained the Marquis of Xi, he made him a king second in rank only to himself, gave him his own sister in marriage, and consulted with him on strategy against the Han. Zhao Xin advised the chanyu to withdraw even further north, deep into the desert, to lure the Han armies until they were exhausted, then ambush them at the extremity of their advance. He urged the chanyu not to remain near the frontier. The chanyu followed his plan. The following year, ten thousand Xiongnu cavalry invaded Shanggu and killed several hundred people.

其明年春，漢使驃騎將軍去病將萬騎出隴西，過焉支山千餘里，擊匈奴，得胡首虜（騎）萬八千餘級，破得休屠王祭天金人。其夏，驃騎將軍復與合騎侯數萬騎出隴西、北地二千里，擊匈奴。過居延，攻祁連山，得胡首虜三萬餘人，裨小王以下七十餘人。是時匈奴亦來入代郡、鴈門，殺略數百人。漢使博望侯及李將軍廣出右北平，擊匈奴左賢王。左賢王圍李將軍，卒可四千人，且盡，殺虜亦過當。會博望侯軍救至，李將軍得脫。漢失亡數千人，合騎侯後驃騎將軍期，及與博望侯皆當死，贖為庶人。

The next spring, the Han sent the Swift Cavalry General Huo Qubing out from Longxi with ten thousand cavalry. He advanced more than a thousand li beyond Mount Yanzhi, attacked the Xiongnu, took more than eighteen thousand Hu heads and captives, and captured the golden figure used by the King of Xiutu in sacrifices to Heaven. That summer, the General of Swift Cavalry rode out again with the Marquis of Heqi and tens of thousands of cavalry, advancing two thousand li from Longxi and Beidi to attack the Xiongnu. They crossed Juyan and struck at the Qilian Mountains, taking more than thirty thousand Xiongnu heads and prisoners, including over seventy minor kings and officials. At the same time, the Xiongnu also raided Dai Commandery and Yanmen, killing and seizing several hundred people. The Han also sent the Marquis of Bowang and General Li Guang out from Youbeiping to attack the Wise King of the Left. The Wise King of the Left surrounded General Li Guang. Li Guang had only about four thousand men, and they were nearly wiped out, though they killed and captured more than their own number. Just then the Marquis of Bowang's relief force arrived, and General Li Guang was able to escape. The Han lost several thousand men. The Marquis of Heqi had failed to rendezvous with the General of Swift Cavalry on time, and both he and the Marquis of Bowang were sentenced to death but ransomed themselves as commoners.

其秋，單于怒渾邪王、休屠王居西方為漢所殺虜數萬人，欲召誅之。渾邪王與休屠王恐，謀降漢，漢使驃騎將軍往迎之。渾邪王殺休屠王，并將其眾降漢。凡四萬餘人，號十萬。於是漢已得渾邪王，則隴西、北地、河西益少胡寇，徙關東貧民處所奪匈奴河南、新秦中以實之，而減北地以西戍卒半。其明年，匈奴入右北平、定襄各數萬騎，殺略千餘人而去。

That autumn, the chanyu, furious that the King of Hunxie and the King of Xiutu in the west had lost tens of thousands of their people to the Han, summoned them with the intent of putting them to death. The Kings of Hunxie and Xiutu, terrified, plotted to surrender to the Han. The Han sent the General of Swift Cavalry to receive them. The King of Hunxie killed the King of Xiutu, took command of his people, and surrendered them all to the Han. In all, more than forty thousand people came over, though they claimed the number was a hundred thousand. With the surrender of the King of Hunxie, Xiongnu raids on Longxi, Beidi, and the Hexi corridor greatly diminished. The Han relocated impoverished people from east of the passes to settle the territories seized from the Xiongnu in the Henan region and the newly established Xinqinzhong, and reduced the garrisons west of Beidi by half. The following year, the Xiongnu invaded Youbeiping and Dingxiang with tens of thousands of cavalry each, killing and carrying off more than a thousand people before withdrawing.

其明年春，漢謀曰「翕侯信為單于計，居幕北，以為漢兵不能至」。乃粟馬發十萬騎，（負）私［負］從馬凡十四萬匹，糧重不與焉。令大將軍青、驃騎將軍去病中分軍，大將軍出定襄，驃騎將軍出代，咸約絕幕擊匈奴。單于聞之，遠其輜重，以精兵待於幕北。與漢大將軍接戰一日，會暮，大風起，漢兵縱左右翼圍單于。單于自度戰不能如漢兵，單于遂獨身與壯騎數百潰漢圍西北遁走。漢兵夜追不得。行斬捕匈奴首虜萬九千級，北至闐顏山趙信城而還。

The next spring the Han deliberated, saying, "The Marquis of Xixin plotted for the chanyu to dwell north of the felt tents, thinking Han troops could not reach him." They therefore fed the horses on grain and sent out a hundred thousand cavalry. Including the mounts of private followers, the total came to one hundred forty thousand horses, not counting baggage animals. He ordered Grand General Wei Qing and the General of Swift Cavalry, Huo Qubing, to divide their forces: the Grand General would advance from Dingxiang and the General of Swift Cavalry from Dai, both crossing the desert to strike the Xiongnu. When the chanyu learned of this, he sent his baggage train far to the rear and waited with his crack troops north of the desert. He engaged the Han Grand General in battle for an entire day. As dusk fell and a great windstorm arose, the Han troops unleashed their left and right wings to encircle the chanyu. The chanyu, judging that he was no match for the Han forces, broke through the encirclement to the northwest with only a few hundred of his best horsemen and fled. The Han troops pursued him through the night but could not catch him. On the march, the Han took nineteen thousand Xiongnu heads and prisoners, advanced north as far as Mount Tianyan and the fortified town that bore Zhao Xin's name, then turned back.

單于之遁走，其兵往往與漢兵相亂而隨單于。單于久不與其大眾相得，其右谷蠡王以為單于死，乃自立為單于。真單于復得其眾，而右谷蠡王乃去其單于號，復為右谷蠡王。

When the chanyu fled, many of his soldiers became scattered and mingled with the Han troops, but eventually rallied to follow him. The chanyu was separated from the bulk of his forces for so long that the Luli King of the Right, believing him dead, declared himself chanyu. When the true chanyu regained contact with his main forces, the Luli King of the Right relinquished his claim and reverted to his former title.

漢驃騎將軍之出代二千餘里，與左賢王接戰，漢兵得胡首虜凡七萬餘級，左賢王將皆遁走。驃騎封於狼居胥山，禪姑衍，臨翰海而還。

Meanwhile, the Han General of Swift Cavalry advanced more than two thousand li from Dai and engaged the Wise King of the Left. The Han forces took a total of over seventy thousand Xiongnu heads and prisoners, and the Wise King of the Left and all his commanders fled. The General of Swift Cavalry performed a sacrificial ceremony at Mount Langjuxu, offered sacrifices at Guyan, looked out upon the northern sea, and then returned.

是後匈奴遠遁，而幕南無王庭。漢度河自朔方以西至令居，往往通渠置田，官吏卒五六萬人，稍蠶食，地接匈奴以北。

After this, the Xiongnu retreated far away, and south of the desert there was no longer a chanyu's court. The Han crossed the Yellow River and from Shuofang westward to Lingju built canals and established agricultural settlements, garrisoned by fifty or sixty thousand officials and soldiers. They gradually encroached upon the land stretching north toward Xiongnu territory.

初，漢兩將軍大出圍單于，所殺虜八九萬，而漢士卒物故亦數萬，漢馬死者十餘萬。匈奴雖病，遠去，而漢亦馬少，無以復往。匈奴用趙信之計，遣使於漢，好辭請和親。天子下其議，或言和親，或言遂臣之。丞相長史任敞曰：「匈奴新破，困，宜可使為外臣，朝請於邊。」漢使任敞於單于。單于聞敞計，大怒，留之不遣。先是漢亦有所降匈奴使者，單于亦輒留漢使相當。漢方復收士馬，會驃騎將軍去病死，於是漢久不北擊胡。

In these campaigns, the two Han generals had ridden out in force and encircled the chanyu, killing and capturing eighty to ninety thousand of his men. Yet the Han also lost tens of thousands of soldiers, and more than a hundred thousand of their horses perished. Though the Xiongnu were severely weakened and had withdrawn far away, the Han likewise found themselves short of horses and unable to mount another expedition. The Xiongnu, following Zhao Xin's counsel, sent envoys to the Han with conciliatory language requesting a renewal of the marriage alliance. The emperor put the matter to his court for debate. Some advocated renewing the marriage alliance, while others argued for forcing the Xiongnu into submission as vassals. The Chief Clerk to the Chancellor, Ren Chang, said, “The Xiongnu have recently been defeated and are in distress. It may be fitting to make them outer subjects who come to court at the border.” The Han sent Ren Chang as an envoy to the chanyu. When the chanyu heard the terms Ren Chang proposed, he was furious and detained him, refusing to let him return. Before this, the Han had detained Xiongnu envoys who defected, and the chanyu had retaliated by seizing Han envoys in like number. Just as the Han were rebuilding their forces, the General of Swift Cavalry, Huo Qubing, died. After this, the Han refrained from attacking the Xiongnu in the north for a long time.

數歲，伊稚斜單于立十三年死，子烏維立為單于。是歲，漢元鼎三年也。烏維單于立，而漢天子始出巡郡縣。其後漢方南誅兩越，不擊匈奴，匈奴亦不侵入邊。

Several years later, the Yizhixie Chanyu died after a reign of thirteen years, and his son Wuwei succeeded him as chanyu. This was the third year of the Yuanding era of the Han. After the Wuwei Chanyu came to power, the Han emperor began making inspection tours of the commanderies and counties. During this time, the Han were occupied with subduing the two Yue kingdoms in the south and did not attack the Xiongnu, and the Xiongnu likewise refrained from invading the border.

烏維單于立三年，漢已滅南越，遣故太仆賀將萬五千騎出九原二千餘里，至浮苴井而還，不見匈奴一人。漢又遣故從驃侯趙破奴萬餘騎出令居數千里，至匈河水而還，亦不見匈奴一人。

In the third year of the Wuwei Chanyu's reign, the Han, having already destroyed Nanyue, sent the former Grand Coachman He with fifteen thousand cavalry more than two thousand li beyond Jiuyuan. They advanced as far as the Well of Fuju and returned without encountering a single Xiongnu. The Han also sent the former Marquis of Congpiao, Zhao Ponu, with more than ten thousand cavalry several thousand li beyond Lingju. They reached the Xiongnu River and turned back, again without encountering a single Xiongnu.

是時天子巡邊，至朔方，勒兵十八萬騎以見武節，而使郭吉風告單于。郭吉既至匈奴，匈奴主客問所使，郭吉禮卑言好，曰：「吾見單于而口言。」單于見吉，吉曰：「南越王頭已懸於漢北闕。今單于（能）即［能］前與漢戰，天子自將兵待邊；單于即不能，即南面而臣於漢。何徒遠走，亡匿於幕北寒苦無水草之地，毋為也。」語卒而單于大怒，立斬主客見者，而留郭吉不歸，遷之北海上。而單于終不肯為寇於漢邊，休養息士馬，習射獵，數使使於漢，好辭甘言求請和親。

At this time, the emperor toured the frontier, arriving at Shuofang, where he marshaled a hundred and eighty thousand cavalry in a display of martial power, and sent Guo Ji to deliver a message to the chanyu. When Guo Ji reached the Xiongnu, the Xiongnu Master of Guests asked what mission he carried. Guo Ji behaved humbly and spoke courteously, saying, "I will see the chanyu and speak to him in person." When the chanyu received Ji, Ji said, "The head of the King of Nanyue is already hanging at the northern gate of the Han. If the chanyu can now advance and fight the Han first, the Son of Heaven will personally lead troops and wait at the frontier; If the chanyu cannot prevail in war, then let him turn south and acknowledge himself a vassal of the Han. Why merely flee far away and hide in that cold, bitter land north of the felt tents, where there is neither water nor pasture? Do not do it." When these words were finished, the chanyu flew into a rage and immediately beheaded the official who had introduced the envoy. He detained Guo Ji and refused to let him return, exiling him to the shores of the Northern Sea. Yet the chanyu still refrained from raiding the Han frontier. He rested and replenished his soldiers and horses, practiced archery and hunting, and repeatedly sent envoys to the Han with fair words and sweet language requesting a marriage alliance.

漢使王烏等窺匈奴。匈奴法，漢使非去節而以墨黥其面者不得入穹廬。王烏，北地人，習胡俗，去其節，黥面，得入穹廬。單于愛之，詳許甘言，為遣其太子入漢為質，以求和親。

The Han sent Wang Wu and others to spy on the Xiongnu. By Xiongnu law, Han envoys could not enter the felt tents of the chanyu unless they surrendered their credentials and had their faces tattooed with ink. Wang Wu, a man from Beidi who was familiar with barbarian customs, surrendered his credentials and had his face tattooed, and was thus admitted to the chanyu's tent. The chanyu took a liking to him and, making a show of agreeing to sweet terms, offered to send his heir to the Han as a hostage in order to secure a marriage alliance.

漢使楊信於匈奴。是時漢東拔穢貉、朝鮮以為郡，而西置酒泉郡以鬲絕胡與羌通之路。漢又西通月氏、大夏，又以公主妻烏孫王，以分匈奴西方之援國。又北益廣田至胘雷為塞，而匈奴終不敢以為言。是歲，翕侯信死，漢用事者以匈奴為已弱，可臣從也。楊信為人剛直屈彊，素非貴臣，單于不親。單于欲召入，不肯去節，單于乃坐穹廬外見楊信。楊信既見單于，說曰：「即欲和親，以單于太子為質於漢。」單于曰：「非故約。故約，漢常遣翁主，給繒絮食物有品，以和親，而匈奴亦不擾邊。今乃欲反古，令吾太子為質，無幾矣。」匈奴俗，見漢使非中貴人，其儒先，以為欲說，折其辯；其少年，以為欲刺，折其氣。每漢使入匈奴，匈奴輒報償。漢留匈奴使，匈奴亦留漢使，必得當乃肯止。

The Han sent Yang Xin as an envoy to the Xiongnu. At this time, the Han had conquered Huimo and Chaoxian in the east and made them into commanderies, while in the west they established Jiuquan Commandery to sever the routes connecting the Xiongnu with the Qiang. The Han also opened communications with the Yuezhi and Daxia in the west, and married a princess to the King of Wusun, in order to detach the Xiongnu's western allies. The Han also extended their agricultural settlements ever further north as far as Xuanlei, making it a defensive frontier, and the Xiongnu dared not protest. That year, the Marquis of Xi, Zhao Xin, died. The Han officials in charge of policy judged the Xiongnu to be sufficiently weakened that they could be made vassals. Yang Xin was by nature rigid and unyielding, and as he was not a high-ranking official, the chanyu did not treat him warmly. The chanyu wished to summon him inside, but Yang Xin refused to surrender his credentials. The chanyu therefore received him seated outside his tent. After Yang Xin had an audience with the chanyu, he said, "If you want a marriage alliance, send the chanyu’s heir to serve as a hostage in Han." The chanyu said, "That is not the old agreement. Under the old treaty, the Han regularly sent a princess and provided fixed quantities of silk, floss, and food to maintain the marriage alliance, and the Xiongnu in return refrained from disturbing the border. Now you want to go back to antiquity and make my heir a hostage. That will not do." It was Xiongnu custom that when a Han envoy was not a high noble, they would put the Confucians forward first, assuming he wanted to debate, and break down his arguments; The younger courtiers suspected he meant to provoke them, hoping to break their spirit. Whenever a Han envoy entered Xiongnu territory, the Xiongnu would match each action with a corresponding response. When the Han detained Xiongnu envoys, the Xiongnu detained Han envoys in return, and neither side would relent until the balance was restored.

楊信既歸，漢使王烏，而單于復肴甘言，欲多得漢財物，紿謂王烏曰：「吾欲入漢見天子，面相約為兄弟。」王烏歸報漢，漢為單于筑邸于長安。匈奴曰：「非得漢貴人使，吾不與誠語。」匈奴使其貴人至漢，病，漢予藥，欲愈之，不幸而死。而漢使路充國佩二千石印綬往使，因送其喪，厚葬直數千金，曰「此漢貴人也」。單于以為漢殺吾貴使者，乃留路充國不歸。諸所言者，單于特空紿王烏，殊無意入漢及遣太子來質。於是匈奴數使奇兵侵犯邊。漢乃拜郭昌為拔胡將軍，及浞野侯屯朔方以東，備胡。路充國留匈奴三歲，單于死。

After Yang Xin returned, the Han sent Wang Wu. The chanyu again used sweet words, hoping to obtain more Han goods, and deceived Wang Wu by saying, "I wish to enter Han territory, see the Son of Heaven, and make a face-to-face covenant as brothers." Wang Wu returned and reported to the Han court, and the Han built a residence for the chanyu in Chang'an. The Xiongnu said, "Unless we receive an envoy who is a Han noble, we will not speak with him sincerely." The Xiongnu sent one of their nobles to the Han, but he fell ill. The Han provided medicine and attempted to cure him, but he died nonetheless. The Han sent Lu Chongguo as envoy wearing the seal and ribbon of a two-thousand-shi official. Since they were escorting his funeral, they gave him a rich burial worth several thousand jin, saying, "This is a Han noble." The chanyu, believing the Han had killed his noble envoy, detained Lu Chongguo and refused to let him return. As for all his promises, the chanyu had merely been stringing Wang Wu along with empty words; he had no real intention of visiting the Han or sending his heir as a hostage. The Xiongnu then repeatedly sent raiding parties to harass the frontier. The Han then appointed Guo Chang as General for Subduing the Hu and stationed him along with the Marquis of Zhuoye east of Shuofang to guard against Xiongnu incursions. Lu Chongguo was held among the Xiongnu for three years before the chanyu died.

烏維單于立十歲而死，子烏師廬立為單于。年少，號為兒單于。是歲元封六年也。自此之後，單于益西北，左方兵直雲中，右方直酒泉、燉煌郡。

The Wuwei Chanyu died after a reign of ten years, and his son Wushilu succeeded him as chanyu. He was very young, and was known as the Child Chanyu. This was the sixth year of the Yuanfeng era. From this time on, the chanyu moved further to the northwest. His eastern forces faced Yunzhong, while his western forces extended to the commanderies of Jiuquan and Dunhuang.

兒單于立，漢使兩使者，一弔單于，一弔右賢王，欲以乖其國。使者入匈奴，匈奴悉將致單于。單于怒而盡留漢使。漢使留匈奴者前後十餘輩，而匈奴使來，漢亦輒留相當。

When the Child Chanyu came to power, the Han sent two envoys — one to offer condolences to the chanyu, the other to the Worthy King of the Right — hoping to sow division within their state. When the envoys entered Xiongnu territory, the Xiongnu escorted them all directly to the chanyu. The chanyu was enraged and detained every Han envoy. Over time, more than ten groups of Han envoys were detained among the Xiongnu, and whenever Xiongnu envoys came to the Han, the Han detained a corresponding number in retaliation.

是歲，漢使貳師將軍廣利西伐大宛，而令因杅將軍敖筑受降城。其冬，匈奴大雨雪，畜多饑寒死。兒單于年少，好殺伐，國人多不安。左大都尉欲殺單于，使人閒告漢曰：「我欲殺單于降漢，漢遠，即兵來迎我，我即發。」初，漢聞此言，故筑受降城，猶以為遠。

That year, the Han dispatched the Ershi General, Li Guangli, to campaign westward against Dayuan, and ordered General Ao of Yinzhu to construct the Fortress of Surrender. That winter, heavy snow fell across Xiongnu lands, and great numbers of their livestock perished from cold and starvation. The Child Chanyu was young and fond of warfare, and the people grew increasingly uneasy. The Left Grand Commandant wanted to kill the chanyu and secretly sent someone to tell the Han, "I wish to kill the chanyu and surrender to Han. Han is far away; if troops come at once to receive me, I will rise." When the Han first received these reports, they had built the Fortress of Surrender, though they still considered it too distant.

其明年春，漢使浞野侯破奴將二萬餘騎出朔方西北二千餘里，期至浚稽山而還。浞野侯既至期而還，左大都尉欲發而覺，單于誅之，發左方兵擊浞野。浞野侯行捕首虜得數千人。還，未至受降城四百里，匈奴兵八萬騎圍之。浞野侯夜自出求水，匈奴閒捕，生得浞野侯，因急擊其軍。軍中郭縱為護，維王為渠，相與謀曰：「及諸校尉畏亡將軍而誅之，莫相勸歸。」軍遂沒於匈奴。匈奴兒單于大喜，遂遣奇兵攻受降城。不能下，乃寇入邊而去。其明年，單于欲自攻受降城，未至，病死。

The following spring, the Han sent the Marquis of Zhuoye, Zhao Ponu, with a force of over twenty thousand cavalry to ride more than two thousand li northwest from Shuofang, with orders to advance as far as Mount Xunji and then return. After the Marquis of Zhuoye had reached his objective and begun his return, the Left Grand Commandant attempted to launch his planned revolt but was discovered. The chanyu executed him and then dispatched his eastern forces to attack the marquis. The Marquis of Zhuoye had captured several thousand prisoners on his march. On his way back, while still four hundred li from the Fortress of Surrender, eighty thousand Xiongnu cavalry surrounded him. During the night, the marquis went out himself to search for water, and the Xiongnu intercepted and captured him alive. They then launched a fierce assault on his army. In the army, Guo Zong served as protector and Wei Wang as guide. They plotted together, saying, "When the colonels fear that the lost general will be executed, no one will encourage the others to return." His entire army was destroyed by the Xiongnu. The Child Chanyu was greatly elated and dispatched raiding forces to attack the Fortress of Surrender. Unable to take the fortress, they raided the border region and withdrew. The following year, the chanyu intended to lead an attack on the fortress himself, but fell ill and died before he could reach it.

兒單于立三歲而死。子年少，匈奴乃立其季父烏維單于弟右賢王呴犁湖為單于。是歲太初三年也。

The Child Chanyu died after a reign of three years. Since his son was too young to rule, the Xiongnu installed the Worthy King of the Right, Xulihu, a younger brother of the Wuwei Chanyu, as the new chanyu. This was the third year of the Taichu era.

呴犁湖單于立，漢使光祿徐自為出五原塞數百里，遠者千餘里，筑城鄣列亭至廬朐，而使游擊將軍韓說、長平侯衛伉屯其旁，使彊弩都尉路博德筑居延澤上。

After the Xulihu Chanyu came to power, the Han sent the Master of Imperial Attendants, Xu Ziwei, several hundred li beyond the Wuyuan frontier — and in some cases more than a thousand li — to build fortified walls and a chain of watchtowers extending to Luqu. The Roving Strike General Han Shuo and the Marquis of Changping, Wei Kang, were stationed nearby, while the Commandant of Strong Crossbowmen, Lu Bode, constructed fortifications at Lake Juyan.

其秋，匈奴大入定襄、雲中，殺略數千人，敗數二千石而去，行破壞光祿所筑城列亭鄣。又使右賢王入酒泉、張掖，略數千人。會任文擊救，盡復失所得而去。是歲，貳師將軍破大宛，斬其王而還。匈奴欲遮之，不能至。其冬，欲攻受降城，會單于病死。

That autumn, the Xiongnu launched a massive invasion into Dingxiang and Yunzhong, killing or capturing several thousand people. They defeated several officials of the two-thousand-bushel rank and, on their way out, demolished the fortified walls and watchtowers that the Master of Imperial Attendants had built. They also sent the Worthy King of the Right to invade Jiuquan and Zhangye, where he seized several thousand captives. However, Ren Wen led a relief force that struck back and recovered all who had been taken, and the Xiongnu withdrew. That same year, the Ershi General defeated Dayuan, beheaded its king, and returned. The Xiongnu attempted to intercept him but were unable to reach his army. That winter, they prepared to attack the Fortress of Surrender, but the chanyu fell ill and died.

呴犁湖單于立一歲死。匈奴乃立其弟左大都尉且鞮侯為單于。

The Xulihu Chanyu died after a reign of just one year. The Xiongnu then installed his younger brother, the Left Grand Commandant and Marquis Qiedi, as chanyu.

漢既誅大宛，威震外國。天子意欲遂困胡，乃下詔曰：「高皇帝遺朕平城之憂，高后時單于書絕悖逆。昔齊襄公復九世之讎，春秋大之。」是歲太初四年也。

After the Han had conquered Dayuan, their power awed the nations beyond their borders. The Son of Heaven wished to press the Hu to the limit and issued an edict, saying, "The High Emperor left me the humiliation of Pingcheng; in the time of Empress Gao, the chanyu’s letter was utterly perverse and rebellious. In antiquity, Duke Xiang of Qi avenged a wrong after nine generations, and the Spring and Autumn Annals praised him for it." This was the fourth year of the Taichu era.

且鞮侯單于既立，盡歸漢使之不降者。路充國等得歸。單于初立，恐漢襲之，乃自謂「我兒子，安敢望漢天子！漢天子，我丈人行也」。漢遣中郎將蘇武厚幣賂遺單于。單于益驕，禮甚倨，非漢所望也。其明年，浞野侯破奴得亡歸漢。

After the Qiedi Chanyu came to power, he returned all the Han envoys who had refused to surrender. Lu Chongguo and the others were at last allowed to return home. When the chanyu had first been installed, he feared a Han attack and said of himself, "I am only his son; how would I dare gaze toward the Son of Heaven of Han! The Son of Heaven of Han is my father-in-law by marriage." The Han dispatched the Palace Attendant Su Wu with lavish gifts to present to the chanyu. The chanyu grew increasingly arrogant; his manner was extremely rude, far from what the Han had hoped. The following year, the Marquis of Zhuoye, Zhao Ponu, managed to escape and return to the Han.

其明年，漢使貳師將軍廣利以三萬騎出酒泉，擊右賢王於天山，得胡首虜萬餘級而還。匈奴大圍貳師將軍，幾不脫。漢兵物故什六七。漢復使因杅將軍敖出西河，與彊弩都尉會涿涂山，毋所得。又使騎都尉李陵將步騎五千人，出居延北千餘里，與單于會，合戰，陵所殺傷萬餘人，兵及食盡，欲解歸，匈奴圍陵，陵降匈奴，其兵遂沒，得還者四百人。單于乃貴陵，以其女妻之。

The following year, the Han sent the Ershi General, Li Guangli, with thirty thousand cavalry from Jiuquan to strike the Worthy King of the Right at the Tianshan Mountains. He took over ten thousand heads and captives before returning. The Xiongnu had nearly encircled the Ershi General, and he barely escaped. Six or seven out of every ten Han soldiers perished. The Han also sent General Ao of Yinzhu from Xihe to rendezvous with the Commandant of Strong Crossbowmen at Mount Zhuotu, but they accomplished nothing. They also sent the Commandant of Cavalry, Li Ling, with five thousand infantry and cavalry more than a thousand li north of Juyan. He encountered the chanyu and gave battle, killing and wounding over ten thousand of the enemy. After his troops and supplies were exhausted, he tried to fight his way home, but the Xiongnu surrounded him. Li Ling surrendered to the Xiongnu. His army was annihilated; only four hundred men made it back. The chanyu honored Li Ling and gave him one of his daughters in marriage.

後二歲，復使貳師將軍將六萬騎，步兵十萬，出朔方。彊弩都尉路博德將萬餘人，與貳師會。游擊將軍說將步騎三萬人，出五原。因杅將軍敖將萬騎步兵三萬人，出鴈門。匈奴聞，悉遠其累重於余吾水北，而單于以十萬騎待水南，與貳師將軍接戰。貳師乃解而引歸，與單于連戰十餘日。貳師聞其家以巫蠱族滅，因并眾降匈奴，得來還千人一兩人耳。游擊說無所得。因杅敖與左賢王戰，不利，引歸。是歲漢兵之出擊匈奴者不得言功多少，功不得御。有詔捕太醫令隨但，言貳師將軍家室族滅，使廣利得降匈奴。

Two years later, the Han once more dispatched the Ershi General with sixty thousand cavalry and a hundred thousand infantry from Shuofang. The Commandant of Strong Crossbowmen, Lu Bode, led more than ten thousand men to join forces with the Ershi General. The Roving Strike General, Han Shuo, led thirty thousand infantry and cavalry from Wuyuan. General Ao of Yinzhu led ten thousand cavalry and thirty thousand infantry from Yanmen. When the Xiongnu received word of this, they moved all their baggage trains north of the Yuwu River, while the chanyu waited on the south bank with a hundred thousand cavalry and engaged the Ershi General in battle. The Ershi General disengaged and began to withdraw, fighting running battles with the chanyu for more than ten days. When the Ershi General learned that his family had been executed in the witchcraft purge, he surrendered to the Xiongnu along with his entire force. Of his army, only one or two men out of every thousand made it home. The Roving Strike General, Han Shuo, achieved nothing. General Ao of Yinzhu engaged the Worthy King of the Left in battle but fared badly and withdrew. That year, none of the Han forces sent against the Xiongnu could claim any merit, and no rewards were bestowed. An imperial decree ordered the arrest of the Imperial Physician Sui Dan, on the grounds that the execution of the Ershi General's family had driven Li Guangli to surrender to the Xiongnu.

太史公曰：孔氏著春秋，隱桓之閒則章，至定哀之際則微，為其切當世之文而罔褒，忌諱之辭也。世俗之言匈奴者，患其徼一時之權，而務莖讇納其說，以便偏指，不參彼己；將率席中國廣大，氣奮，人主因以決策，是以建功不深。堯雖賢，興事業不成，得禹而九州寧。且欲興聖統，唯在擇任將相哉！唯在擇任將相哉！

The Grand Historian says: When Confucius composed the Spring and Autumn Annals, the record from Duke Yin to Duke Huan was explicit, but by the time of Duke Ding and Duke Ai it became subtle. This was because the text touched closely on the affairs of his own age and avoided open praise or blame, using language shaped by taboo. Those who discuss the Xiongnu in ordinary discourse worry only about seizing some advantage of the moment. They devote themselves to flattering what is said and accepting convenient partial arguments, without weighing both sides; The generals presumed upon the vastness of the empire and were carried away by their own enthusiasm, and the ruler shaped his policies accordingly — this is why their achievements never amounted to much. Even Yao, for all his sagacity, could not bring his great enterprises to completion; it was only when he obtained Yu that the Nine Provinces knew peace. And if one wishes to raise a sage succession, does it not depend solely on selecting and appointing generals and chancellors! Does it not depend solely on selecting and appointing generals and chancellors!

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