An imperial decree arrived on the Grasslands from Chang'an. Liu Che had sent the golden patent of a High-ranking Marquis directly to the army. This was, of course, not an immediate investiture, but a statement of his stance.
Liu Che also issued orders to cancel the planned attack on the Xiongnu Royal Court and instead crush the White Sheep King's Forces and the King of Loufan's Tribe. In addition, the commandant detachments under Luo Wuji and Huo Qubing were to be immediately reinforced to thirty-six hundred men each, three times their previous strength.
The reason he had not simply given them more cavalry was that most of the Han Army could only be called mounted infantry. There were few cavalrymen capable of fighting on horseback to begin with, and half still had to be left to Wei Qing. After all, Wei Qing would be fighting the decisive battle head-on; without cavalry, many tactics would be impossible to employ.
The imperial decree also told Wei Qing that Luo Wuji and Huo Qubing were "Heaven's keen blades," and that he must "put their sharpness to use, not hide them in their sheaths."
Opportunities in battle vanished in a flash. Before the decree arrived, Wei Qing had already led the army toward the King of Loufan's Tribe. Once Liu Che's decree reached him, he set his mind completely at ease and made arrangements for the campaign against them.
Though it was called a campaign against the King of Loufan's Tribe, news of the Han Army's entry into the Grasslands had spread throughout the Grasslands following the King of the White Sheep's defeat and death. The enemy they faced was by no means the King of Loufan alone.
Among the Xiongnu, the Chanyu held the highest rank, followed by the Left Xian King. The