30. Appeasing Steppe Nomads With Tribute Became Chinese Policy For Centuries
So badly had Modu Chanyu beaten the Han emperor, and so memorable was the defeat, that Chinese attempts at a military solution were abandoned. The Heqin appeasement system of buying off the nomads with princesses and tribute became the bedrock of Chinese diplomacy for centuries.
The appeasement continued even after the Xiongnu Empire collapsed and the Xiongnu disappeared from the annals of history. Chinese princesses and Chinese “gifts” continued to be sent regularly to Steppe chieftains for over a thousand years, with the last recorded instance of Heqin occurring in 883 AD.