Cui Laohou met him in a pavilion located in the garden. The garden was planted with various flowers, plants and trees unique to this area. It also introduced rivers to form streams and pools, and small bridges and flowing water. The scenery was not inferior to the famous gardens in China. Literature Museum
Cui Laohou sat at the stone table in the pavilion, raised his feet up, stepped on the edge of the stone bench, held a pipe in his hand and puffed away, looking at him with no surprise at this "Fan Qingzhou" who had changed into another person. "Keep getting closer.
Cui Laohou sent the leader away and said: "Sit down!"
Long Ying sat down opposite him, and Cui Laohou sighed: "No wonder you seemed to know me just now. Afterwards, I also felt that your eyes had a familiar feeling. It turned out to be Brother Fan. You have a pair of very special eyes. People are happy when they see you."
Long Ying's thoughts changed a lot, but his eyes still couldn't change. He took off his mask and said: "I came to see you this time to ask you to do me a big favor. I will let you ask me the price."
Cui Laohou frowned and said: "With your skills, you can go wherever you like, why do you need to join a group?" Then he narrowed his eyes and looked at him and said: "Are you going to the plateau?"
Long Ying said happily: "Brother is indeed considerate."
Cui Laohou said calmly: "We are old friends and know each other well. Since you know which route I will take, and you are begging me now, of course you want to follow me back to China by taking the old road."
Long Ying said: "Just make an offer."
Cui Laohou said: "Since we are old friends, we shouldn't hide anything. Who is Fan Qingzhou who is now flexing his muscles in Bashu and his business is getting bigger and bigger? What does it have to do with you?"
Long Ying said calmly: "He is my substitute. This is a secret. Please keep it secret for me. My snake-headed knife is on his back."
Cui Laohou looked up at the blue sky, with a nostalgic look in his eyes, and said: "Where has the beautiful girl who was by your side gone? I never imagined that there is such a stunning beauty in the world. The more I think about it, the more evocative it becomes."
Long Ying was surprised and said: "But at that time, I seemed to turn a blind eye and didn't feel anything."
Cui Laohou said: "I still have this superficial skill, but what man is not lustful?" He looked at him again and said in a deep voice: "Who are you? You must have a strong background, otherwise the military will not Such a hard-working person comes to find you."
Because Long Ying found out that he was a kind and righteous person, and wanted to obtain his unreserved cooperation and support, he said without any secret: "Little brother Long Ying, please forgive me for hiding this from my brother."
Cui Laohou trembled when he heard this. He lost his voice and said, "It's you." The foot of the step stool unconsciously returned to the ground.
Long Ying said: "My little brother was going to climb the plateau from the secret passage in the Altyn Mountains, but was intercepted by the Tibetan and Turkic coalition forces of more than 20,000 people. Fortunately, he broke out of the siege at night and relied on the terrain, and ended up in Khotan. You can imagine all the ways. The road to the plateau has been heavily blocked by the enemy. Fortunately, I have 'Young Marshal' Kou Zhong's ugly miracle doctor's mask, which can hide it from anyone. As long as my brother's trade team is willing to cover up for me, I will be able to pass."
Hearing that he was still able to escape despite the siege of more than 20,000 enemies, Cui Laohou's eyes widened even more. He looked at him fiercely for a while, then breathed out and said: "Let me tell you my feeling first. Alas! Brother Your name is too loud. This morning I was talking about you with the Camel King and others. You were so beautiful when you killed Jun Zhong and Sun Wanrong, which made us Han people very glorious. This time I came to Khotan. All my friends said to me His attitude was completely different, much more respectful. I was thinking in my heart, if I was lucky enough to see Long Ying, I would kneel down and worship him to thank him for the glory he gave us Han people. Ha! But I will finally meet you! But I can't even kneel down."
The two stared at each other for a while, and laughed loudly at the same time. They laughed so hard that they burst into tears, and they were full of joy.
Long Ying gasped and said: "Brother, I'm honest enough. I understand the feeling you mentioned. Ha! It's easy to think about it, but it's another thing to put it into practice."
Cui Laohou said: "When I knew you were Brother Fan, I had already intended to help you. Now that I know you are Dragon Eagle, let alone. Hey! Since you are Dragon Eagle, I have a new idea. I want to help you."
Please do me a big favor and grant my wish."
Long Ying thought that he wanted me to deal with a certain powerful enemy for him, so he said: "Just tell me, my enemy is my little brother's enemy."
Cui Laohou said: "It's not to deal with anyone, but to win over someone for me."
Long Ying was surprised and said: "Begging for someone? Who is begging for?"
Cui Laohou's eyes flashed with enthusiasm, and he was stuck in his memories, murmuring like a dream: "On the way here, I led my delegation and encountered a group of thieves who trafficked women. They carried more than a dozen young women in three mule carts.
The whole body was wrapped in a white robe and a white hood, only a pair of eyes were exposed, and one of the women stared at me intently. Those were really a pair of talking eyes, full of pleading, so pitiful and heartbreaking. Alas! I don't have it.
She can be forgotten for a moment. I once discussed with the Camel King and asked him to talk to those heartless people to see if he could save her from the dire straits, but the Camel King flatly refused, saying that he did not want to have anything to do with such people.
"
Long Ying said: "Isn't he your old friend?"
Cui Laohou said with a wry smile: "You know how my old friend came to be. At first, I relied on giving gifts. After giving them for decades, we became familiar with each other. We also figured out each other's behavior and could trust each other, so we called each other brothers.
But I understand him. The benefits of human trafficking are too great. It has established a terrifying transnational power, and even the government has to accept bribes, turning a blind eye to it."
Long Ying asked: "If you have gold, can you do business with them?"
Cui Laohou said: "If it were so easy, I would have bought her back. There are rules in the industry. Those traffickers who come here for food must hand over the people and goods intact to the Tubo people, and they must not touch even a hair of their hair.
Otherwise, the Tubo people will teach them to kill their heads."
Only then did Long Ying understand why Cui Laohou appeared in the square and said, "Brother, do you know that the King of Khotan has taken the issue of human trafficking seriously?"
Cui Laohou said: "It's useless! If it could have been stopped, it would have been stopped long ago. Yuchizhang only focused on the issue of official integrity, and did not want to bear the reputation of the capital of human trafficking. What's more, Yuchi supported the human traffickers behind the scenes.
People you can’t afford to offend.”
Long Ying said: "Is it because Tubo's emperor has no morning sun?"
Cui Laohou said: "You are very well informed, but things are not as simple as you imagine. Are you interested in meeting someone? No one knows the current situation in Tubo better than him, but he lives in the palace of the King of Khotan.
I can only ask him out to see you tomorrow."
Long Ying said with great joy: "Of course I'm interested, and it's like rain comes after a long drought."
He added: "If I let go and do things for my brother, of course I will try not to involve him, but paper can't stop the fire. If my relationship with this matter is exposed, I will take this route in the future, and I will be retaliated by others."
It’s possible. Have you ever thought about the consequences of this?”
Cui Laohou said: "I am forty-eight years old this year and have been busy for most of my life. Isn't that enough? If I get this girl, I will never come back after returning to the Central Plains. It's time to enjoy the happiness of family. Hey! Is there anything you can do?"
Long Ying said: "It's easy to find someone. You can use the art of disguise to bring someone back to the Central Plains. The only problem is to recognize the person. You must not go with me. If you let the other party know about our relationship, it will be ineffective."
Cui Laohou was immersed in the memories of that day, and said in a dream: "She is not difficult to recognize. Among the sixteen Persian girls, she is the tallest, half a head taller than me. She is a long-legged girl with blue eyes.
, like two sparkling gems, and there is a hand mole on the left wrist that is as round as a dot of paint, very cute."
Long Ying recalled the touching expressions of the two foreign women in black robes he saw this morning, with only their eyes exposed, and felt the same. He could imagine Cui Laohou's situation at that time. He couldn't help but ask: "How can you see so clearly? According to the photo
Logically speaking, human traffickers will never let them be exposed."
Cui Laohou explained: "We came down from the plateau and met them on the road east of Shule. At that time, there were several groups of hungry wolves looking for food nearby. The woman in charge was afraid of wolves, so we all walked together.
How courageous."
Long Ying was surprised: "A woman is actually the boss of the human traffickers' team?"
Cui Laohou said: "This is their custom. They are afraid that men will not be able to control their wild nature and invade them. They stay in the car during the day and surround it with a curtain at night before letting them sleep inside. Therefore, they have never had the chance to see her.
.When they had to wade across the river, the traffickers were forced to let them out and sent them across the river two by two on camels."
Long Ying said: "Are you sure that these Persian girls were handed over to the Tubo people?"
Cui Laohou said: "It must be so. In the past ten years or so, the business of human trafficking has been almost monopolized by the Tubo people with the help of the local Khotanese gang. Even if there are exceptions, it is only a small business."
Long Ying said: "That's it, I'll take care of this matter. Within three days, I will hand it over to you, but you must prepare a place to hide your beauty and leave immediately after you get it. When are you ready?
Set off?"
Cui Laohou said: "It will be three days later in the morning. Won't you go on the road with us?"
Long Ying said: "First tell me the route you took."
Cui Laohou said: "After we left Khotan, we walked west, crossed the Karakash River, then headed south, crossed the Kara Pass of the Kunlun Mountains, arrived at Ali in the west of the plateau, and then climbed over the mountains and ridges to the south.
Pangong Tso, "Tso" means lake. Then pass through the area of the former Shangshung Kingdom, along the north of the Gangdise Mountains, turn eastward, until Chemala, the road becomes much easier after arriving here. Then there is the Pangong Tso
Ba, Lazi, and then Luoxue City, the capital of the Tubo people."
Long Ying let out a breath of cold air and said, "Without you, brother, I would either be hunted all over the plateau or lose my way."
Cui Laohou asked: "Where are you going to meet us?"
After Longying asked clearly about the journey, direction and distance, he said: "After crossing the Karakash River, you will camp on its west bank. I will join your group at night."
Cui Laohou said enthusiastically: "You must meet the person I just mentioned tomorrow, and the meeting place is not suitable here, but please forgive me for not revealing his identity now, because I have not obtained his consent."