"The first matter, naturally, is to leave this good-for-nothing son in Luoyang, so that he can find a wise teacher, master the classics, and serve the state."
"The second concerns the Xianbei."
"Your Majesty may not know this, but a great ruler has emerged among the Xianbei."
"His name is Tuoba Liwei. He had a reputation for intelligence and wisdom from a very young age, and after his father died, he became chief of the Xianbei Soutou Tribe."
"In the twenty-fifth year of Jian'an, his forces were very weak, so he placed himself under Dou Bin, the chieftain of the Meiluhui Tribe. Later, he accompanied Dou Bin on a campaign against the western Xianbei. Their army suffered a crushing defeat, and Dou Bin lost his horse and fled on foot. Tuoba Liwei sent someone to give him the fine horse he himself had been riding."
"After Dou Bin returned, he asked who had sent the horse, but Tuoba Liwei concealed the matter and refused to tell him. When Dou Bin later learned the truth, he was astonished and wanted to divide his realm in two to repay him for saving his life, but Tuoba Liwei refused."
"So Dou Bin married his daughter to him and allowed him to take his tribe away to expand. Over more than ten years, he adopted benevolent and virtuous policies, winning over many people and bringing them under his banner."
"Ten years ago, Dou Bin became gravely ill. Before he died, he told his sons to support Tuoba Liwei, but his sons wanted to kill Tuoba instead. Tuoba first killed his own wife and sent notice of her death to Dou Bin's two sons. When they came to mourn her, Tuoba seized the opportunity to eliminate them."
"Then Tuoba took over their tribe without spilling