"We only have nearly ten thousand people here, and they are all relatives and subordinates of Khan Shekui.
Regardless of the small number of people, those who can come here and survive are the strongest and bravest among us. Whenever necessary, they will mount war horses and pick up scimitars to fight for their masters."
Ashina Nishu exaggerated the quantity and quality of his tribe, naturally hoping to gain the attention of the envoy.
He is considered a relatively knowledgeable person among the Turks, but what he said was actually thoughtless. Who in the Hexi region is willing to accept some strong tribes? When they gain a foothold, the first to be unlucky may be their former
Master, right?
The most important thing about these people to the Tang Dynasty was not how powerful they were, but that their identities could be exploited, and at some point, they would become sharp arrows aimed at the Western Turks.
Cheng Zhijie didn't care about this. He only knew that if the Turkic nobles in front of him told the truth, then he could return to Chang'an as soon as possible.
What he was most worried about was that he fought tooth and nail to get to the edge of the horizon, only to be beaten up by the Turkic bastards. Then there would definitely be no good results waiting for him when he returned to Chang'an.
He had learned enough about the emperor's cunningness. Maybe one day the emperor would think of old things again, and he might be able to throw him to the east sea for a while.
Well, it sounds like the Turks had a pretty miserable life, but there were still quite a lot of them. I guess they were exaggerating. I heard they had to go all the way to the Western Regions. They escaped all the way, and there were more than 10,000 people? Are they a liar?
I think back when they were in Shandong and Henan, they usually had hundreds of thousands or hundreds of thousands of soldiers and horses. If they lost a battle, most of them would only have a few hundred people fleeing, and then they would gather together with other people. What a Turk bastard.
If you have this ability...
Well, if you want to deceive this big thief, the Western Turkic nobles are obviously not good enough.
After a brief inquiry, Cheng Dabeard finally felt relieved when he saw that several Turkic nobles were always respectful and did not make any unusual words or actions.
So the interest in making friends arose. Although the emperor didn't like the Turks very much, if he really wanted someone to come over to him, he couldn't be tempted. Otherwise, he wouldn't have sent them to this damn place like Dunhuang.
If these Turks can present a beautiful Western Turkic woman who can ride a strong horse and draw a bow and arrow, they will definitely get preferential treatment from the emperor. Isn't this how the relatives of the Western Turkic Chuluo Khan climbed to the top?
Cheng Zhijie's mind became more active, so he ordered some wine to be served, and he even asked some Turkic nobles to bring some sheep to kill.
Several Western Turkic rebel generals were overjoyed when they saw this posture, and quickly ordered their troops to set up operations.
Hou Junji looked at their cheerful faces and couldn't laugh or cry. Cheng Dabeard, who never came out, had already put his arm around the shoulders of Ashina Nishu, who could speak Chinese, and walked out of the tent together, saying they were going to the river to wash up.
one time.
Well, Cheng Dabeard had already wanted to jump in and take a bath when he saw Danghe, but he was worried that the Turks might appear at any time. If the two sides didn't deal with it, his mud could still block swords and other things.
Now that the Turks have a good attitude, this guy has no scruples and wants to feel comfortable first.
……………………
With two pops of pops, the two red (harmonious) men jumped into the cold and biting river water, howled a few times happily, looked at each other and laughed together.
The Dang River is still relatively deep, but the area on the bank is still intact. The two big men splashed in the river for a while, and Cheng Zhijie became more pleasing to the eye when he saw Ashina Tong'o.
He just likes this kind of bold and forthright man who has no real estate. He is not afraid of those who are more thoughtful, but he must be bold on the surface, and that will suit Cheng Dabeard's taste.
Ashina Tong'o also liked this Tang envoy who was full of rough and heroic aura, especially when he saw the scars here and there on Cheng Dabeard's body, he was even more awe-struck.
People are different from Cheng Dashu. The people they respect most are warriors who have experienced hundreds of battles. Guys like Cheng Dashu seem to fit their perception.
It's a pity that they don't understand each other in the language. Otherwise, given their moral character, they would be able to call each other brothers in just one or two sentences. In two days, they would probably be almost like full brothers.
Cheng Dabeard's ability to make friends is beyond words.
The people on the shore had already found an open space and sat down. Hou Junji looked at the people in the river with envy. His whole body seemed to be itchy. He also wanted to take a bath, but he was not as thick-skinned as Cheng Dabeard.
, you dare to be honest with people in this kind of situation, he is so rude.
On the contrary, several Turkic people were all smiling, and the envoy did not treat them as outsiders, which meant that the matter had already reached eight points, and the remaining two points would probably be about the same after eating meat and drinking wine.
There is an old saying among the Turks that only true friends will drink in a tent...
They don't know that this bearded man has many friends, but there are only a few of them alive now. This man never shows mercy when he deceives his friends.
……………………
The Turks have already begun to drink. They can't wait. The wine from the Central Plains has always been very precious in the Western Regions. Otherwise, when Yang Guang came to Zhangye, the kings of the Western Regions would not be so happy to kowtow to him. Well, this is a joke.
But after the kings of the Western Regions returned, they really missed the fine wines of the Central Plains for many years. Now that the trade routes have been cut off, the fine wines of the Central Plains are even more precious in the Western Regions. In addition to the nobles who often find treasures to taste, they have already been seen on the market.
There are no drinks from the Central Plains.
Turks are addicted to alcohol, and now that they have drunk something good, their eyes begin to shine.
These wines were obtained with great difficulty, and Cheng Dabeard, Hou Junji and others drank some of them during the process. These were actually gifts given to the Turks.
A bonfire had been set up by the river. The Turks brought the sheep over, killed the sheep, skinned them, took out the internal organs, and began to barbecue on the fire. The smoke was burning, and the aroma of the meat gradually spread by the river.
Hou Junji sat on the floor and sighed comfortably, then called someone over and gave a few instructions in a low voice, telling them not to let down their guard.
A few Turkic nobles didn't care so much. They had not been so happy for a long time. They smelled the smoke and the aroma of meat, drank large gulps of fine wine from the Central Plains, and soon started to indulge.
Their attendants called some women, and around the bonfire, they sang Turkish pastoral songs and danced around the roasted sheep.
Hou Jun sat on the ground at the banquet and looked at these happy Turks. He felt that they were really big-hearted. They were so indulgent before even talking about serious matters. No wonder they were kicked out by their own people.
In fact, it is easy to understand. The Turks originated in Mobei and are standard nomadic people. Even though they have been a nation for a long time, they still have the characteristics of nomadic people.
Their lives tend to be simple, with no poems, songs, music, chess, calligraphy or painting. The daily lives of ordinary herdsmen are just a few things, such as eating, grazing, drinking, and beating their wives. The difference between them and ordinary farmers in the Central Plains is not very big.
But the nobles are far behind. In addition to having a better life than ordinary shepherds, the entertainment activities are also simple and pitiful. When they are happy, they just hold a bonfire party, enjoy singing and dancing, and those who are brave can race horses, wrestle, and other
It's nothing.
They can hardly create anything that can be called civilization. They only destroy civilization. Even thousands of years later, in the era of prosperous civilization, the people on the grassland are still like this...
The Western Turks are especially better than their kin in the east. Because they are located in the Western Regions, some of their customs and habits have been influenced by the countries in the Western Regions. From language to clothing, to singing and dancing, etc., they have actually been closely related to the Turkic royal court.
There's a big difference there.
It's just that it was the first time for Hou Junji and others to deal with Turks and they couldn't tell them apart.
Several Turks toasted to him one after another, and Hou Junji instinctively observed the etiquette and responded to them one by one.
In fact, several Turkic nobles were once prominent figures in the Western Regions. Today, they are running away in despair. Although their airs are gone, they can still see that their knowledge is still there. Looking at Hou Junji's appearance, he knows that he is a real nobleman from the east, so he treats him
So he respected him very much.
But if you ask them who they would like to talk to, it is the bearded man in the river who they find more pleasing to the eye. People are just so different.
Hou Junji drank a few drinks and refused to drink again no matter how much the Turks persuaded him. When he came to such a strange place and surrounded by Turks, he had to stay awake at all times to avoid any accidents.
Like Cheng Dabeard, he learned some Turkic dialects on the road, but seeing that Ashina Ni was more sensible, he only talked to him.
Naturally, unlike Cheng Zhijie who thought about where it was, he first asked about the situation in the Western Regions.
This topic covers a wide range of topics, from geography and folk customs to the military and political affairs of Western Turks, human affairs, etc., and even Ashina Nishen asked about it without even thinking about drinking.
Compared to Cheng Dabeard, he is more like a true messenger.
Hou Junji was also secretly surprised by the chaos in the Western Regions, which cannot be summed up by saying "the Western Turks govern the Western Regions."
The Western Regions have been the dreamland of the Central Plains dynasties for nearly 800 years since Emperor Xiaowu of the Han Dynasty. During these long years, the Central Plains dynasties have exerted influence there one after another.
According to oral traditions and written records in the Central Plains, the scope of the Western Regions is also gradually expanding. In the narrow sense, the Western Regions were defined in the Han Dynasty as extending from Yumen Pass and Yangguan in the east to Congling in the west and Wusun north of Tianshan Mountain in the north.
, the core area of the area south to Tianzhu is the Tarim Basin, where most of the thirty-six countries of the Western Regions at that time lived.
In the pre-Sui Dynasty, the scope of the Western Regions was far beyond that. With the westward migration of the Xiongnu and the rise of Rouran, Turks, etc., the Western Regions had actually become the vastness of the South Asian subcontinent, Central Asia, West Asia, and even Eastern Europe and North Africa.
The collective name for territory.
There are many countries and constant conquests. Even people like Ashina Nishu, who have the right of succession in the Western Turks, are not sure how many countries there are in the Western Region under their rule and what their origins are.
