Han dynasty
To the north of China proper, the nomadic Xiongnu chieftain Modu Chanyu (r. 209–174 BC) conquered various tribes inhabiting the eastern portion of the Eurasian Steppe. By the end of his reign, he controlled Manchuria, Mongolia, and the Tarim Basin, subjugating over twenty states east of Samarkand. Emperor Gaozu was troubled about the abundant Han-manufactured iron weapons traded to the Xiongnu along the northern borders, and he established a trade embargo against the group. In retaliation, the Xiongnu invaded what is now Shanxi province, where they defeated the Han forces at Baideng in 200 BC. After negotiations, the "heqin" agreement in 198 BC nominally held the leaders of the Xiongnu and the Han as equal partners in a royal marriage alliance, but the Han were forced to send large amounts of tribute items such as silk clothes, food, and wine to the Xiongnu.
Luandi
The Luandi (; alternatively written as Xulianti ) was a clan and the ruling dynasty of the ancient Xiongnu that flourished between 3rd century BCE to 4th century CE. The form Luandi (挛鞮) comes from Hanshu, while the form Xulianti comes from Hou Hanshu. Anna Dybo reconstructed 攣鞮's Old Chinese pronunciation as "*r(h)wan-de" & posits that the clan's name was an Iranic loanword, cognate with Khotanese "runde", plural of "rre" from "*rwant-" "king". There were four other noble tribes: Huyan, Xubu, Qiulin and Lan. The Huyan belonged to the dominating left wing, and the Lan and the Xubu belonged to the right wing.