Chapter 1 The Big Thief (Part 2) Xu Dayan originally planned to pretend to be Li Xu's companion and get through, but when Que Yu revealed his identity, he had no choice but to step forward to greet him, bowed and said, "Xu has been in the grassland for a long time.
I heard Brother Queyu’s methods and seeing them today is really a good opportunity given by the Immortal God!”
"Brother Xu, you're welcome. I saw the snow falling in the sky. I thought I wouldn't be able to wait until spring next year, but I didn't expect to welcome these two heroes so soon!" Queyu bowed and returned the gift to Xu Dayan, laughing.
Both of them were smart people. After talking to each other and smiling, Queyu took Li Xu with one hand and Xu Dayan with the other. He dragged the two teenagers into the camp of Yingmen Company as if they were greeting friends they had not seen for many years.
Immediately, there was a loud sound of drums, and thousands of Turkic warriors started playing all the military instruments such as war drums, gongs, and horns.
"The new city is a new one. The rough guys in the army can't make the sound of mountains and flowing water. I let them lively and lively as they like. I hope the two brothers won't blame Queyu for being so indifferent!" Ashina Queyu smiled, with undoubted politeness in his tone.
"This is a place where troops are hidden. Of course, it has to be played with drums to make it enjoyable. I guess the song just now should be the sound of an attack in front of the battle array! It is a pleasure to listen to this every day since the birth of a man!" Xu Dayan seemed to appreciate the music.
Like a noisy rhythm, smiling and praising
"People say that Xu Xian is as wise as the sea. When I saw him today, he was really powerful!" Ashina Choyu raised his thumb in praise, but what came out of his mouth was a Chinese sentence
"You only know the elegant arts after hearing the string songs. It's a trivial skill, not worthy of the Fang family's laughter!" Xu Dayan simply dropped his schoolbag and spoke in a formal manner, as if he was discussing knowledge with a Confucian scholar.
Except for Li Xu, everyone around was confused. Ashinachoyu did not explain to everyone. He quoted a line from "The Book of Songs" in the east and a line from "The Analects" in the west. He actually had a very even conversation with Xu Dayan.
In the wooden city wall, there are countless felt bags supported from the outside to the inside. The tops of the felt bags at different positions are sewn with circles and rows of linen cloth of different colors. They look really neat. Every time Ashina Queyu passes by
Everywhere, people leaned out from the door to salute him, whether they were soldiers, shepherds, or craftsmen, of all shapes and sizes, and the people in red cloaks were darting back and forth around the felt bags, always one step ahead.
"Clean up" the road that Mr. Queyu is about to pass by.
"Brother Queyu rules the city with military skills, he is really clever!" Xu Dayan looked around for a while, then turned his head and praised in Turkic language
"I have just received this land from the gift of immortality, so I have to manage it more tightly. When the herdsmen are familiar with the surrounding environment, there is no need to control it so rigidly." Que Yu nodded and smiled, and answered modestly.
Li Xu has not seen many cities, so he can't see many doorways. He just feels that this wooden city is huge enough and neat enough. Compared with any small county in the Central Plains, it seems to be missing something. "It's fireworks."
Angry!" As he walked, he gradually got an answer in his heart. The streets of his hometown were crowded and dirty, but the noisy business was full of vitality. This wooden city was neat and clean, but like a prison without any warmth.
While talking, the three of them walked to the central tent. This tent was used for Ashina Choyu to handle government affairs and banquets. It was even more majestic. Just looking at the area of the felt tent, it was already worth the size of the felt bag of Chief Xier's family back then.
A group of more than 20 golden-armored guards and several generals and civil servants under Ashina Choyu came in one after another to greet the guests, but it did not appear that the tent was crowded at all. However, the names of those people were long and lengthy, and they were preceded by the words
An official position with a weird pronunciation, such as Da Mei Lu, Pei Li Gulu, Little Burke Bilian, Right Tutun Kesi Reasonable, Left Tutun Basi Haha, etc., which made Li Xu's eyes keep popping up with stars (Note 1)
After introducing a circle of friends, Ashina Choyu clapped his hands, and the butler in charge of banquet etiquette immediately came forward to arrange for everyone to sit down. In order to show respect for the guests, the host followed the Central Plains custom since the Qin and Han Dynasties and asked everyone to divide their meals.
Xu and Xu Dayan came all the way, and were placed on the left and right in the guest seats closest to Queyu. The two refused repeatedly. Ashina Queyu refused and had no choice but to obey the host's arrangement and grow taller.
Sit down
The musician at the door blew the long horn, and a group of young women walked into the big tent like butterflies in flowers, and presented fragrant milk tea. Ash Queyu poured the first cup with his own hands, and left the table to hold it in front of Xu Dayan.
Xu Dayan was already familiar with the customs of the Turks. He took the milk tea and gave it to a curly-bearded Turkic general under him with both hands.
He gave himself a lower head than the Turkic civil servants
Ashina Choyu is the younger brother of Shibi Khan. He is in the position of leading the army. In Turks, he is a high-ranking official second only to the prime minister. The generals under his command who can sit in the tent and share meals with him are at least a local village.
Today, such a prominent position was arranged to sit under two little-known Han boys. Everyone was originally unwilling to accept it, but now seeing that Xu Dayan was so proficient in Turkic etiquette, their grudges suddenly eased.
After a round of milk tea was passed around, the atmosphere between the guests and the host became harmonious. Many of the housekeepers who were responsible for arranging the banquet ran down. After a while, dozens of female slaves lined up to enter the tent, and placed melons, fruits and grapes from the Western Regions on each low table.
, the original autumn pears, the straw chestnuts from Liaodong, the out-of-season large flat peaches sent as tribute from Goryeo, one by one, plate after plate, Li Xu was dazzled by the sight of some fruits that he couldn't even name, Ashina Choyu picked them up
After being persuaded, he picked up one and ate it. It was sour, sweet, fragrant and crispy, and he ate it very much.
Xu Dayan's eating style is far more elegant than that of Li Xu. He tastes almost every fruit, and occasionally comments on it, praising the taste and the purity of the place of origin. The host and guests here are all very proud.
"Xian Xian is a master of military skills. He must be a descendant of the generals of the Sui Dynasty. I don't know which hero Xu Xian learned from." Sitting third from the left, a general wearing gold leather armor stood up and asked in a low voice.
Xu Dayan turned around and vaguely remembered that this person was named Bi Lian, and he was a leader. Burke sat upright and answered seriously, "I am not the queen of the generals. I just read a few military books and followed random gestures."
, who would have expected that I would be lucky enough to actually win a bet. It was because of the situation at that time. I have to think about the situation now, and I am a little scared myself! "
"Xian Xian is so humble. If you were gesticulating randomly, we would all be blind men riding a blind horse!" Little Burke Bilian sat down cross-legged and said with a smile.
From the appearance of the two of them, the officials had already seen that Li Xu must have come from a poor family. They thought that Xu Xianzhe, who had a calm demeanor, was a high-ranking official in the Sui Dynasty. That's why Mr. Queyu entertained them with such a grand ceremony. They did not expect that this man was also a commoner.
, the expressions on everyone's faces suddenly became unruly again, and they occasionally offered tea to each other, but no longer stood up.
"There is a saying among them that heroes should not ask where they are. Master Fu Li shot down my big eagle with one arrow. Xu Xian used a clever trick to break the rope head and ridiculed the five thousand elite soldiers. We were at his age, but we were still riding horses.
How about chasing rabbits?" Seeing his subordinates gradually starting to indulge, Ashina Choyu coughed and introduced with a smile.
Seeing their superiors speaking like this, all the Turkic officials immediately regained their enthusiasm. Some asked about the battle between Suotou Xi and Zhu Xi's coalition. Some asked about the legend of blessings from the holy wolf. Xu Dayan talked and laughed happily and answered the questions one by one. He mentioned the warriors of the two armies.
He described the battle and the scene of blood and flesh in detail. He wished he could describe every action and look to everyone clearly. When it came to how to use troops and how to predict the enemy, he felt dizzy, as if he had not participated in the decision-making at all.
Several generals under Que Yu's command were all experienced in battle formations. When they heard it, they knew that Xu Dayan's words were not necessarily harmful to Mr. Que Yu's face. They did not expose it and followed the civil servants who did not understand battle formations to file the case.
I praised Li Xu for being clumsy and tongue-tied. He knew that telling stories was not as exciting as Xu Dayan, so he didn’t interrupt and just kept eating.
After drying two large bunches of grapes and several flat peaches that grew out of season, a female slave held up silver cups and plates, each one made of fine workmanship and exquisite patterns. Li Xu's eyes sparkled and Xu Dayan stopped boasting and mentioned something.
Take a silver meat cleaver and carefully research its origin and quality.
This was his family knowledge. Although the Turkic nobles knew how exquisite and valuable silverware was, they could not imagine how much detail there was in it. Waiting to hear about the difference in fineness between Persian silver and Eastern Japanese silver, Nanhai Silver and Cave said that silver has similar and different uses, but it is nonsense.
When the King of Persia went on an expedition to the west just to rob a few silversmiths and bring them home, the Tocharians saved their money all their lives so that they could pay for their daughter's headdress and other strange stories.
Amid roars of laughter, several strong men brought up the dishes for the dinner. Meat is the main food eaten on the grassland. Although Ashina Choyu has a noble status, the dishes for the banquet are only whole sheep, whole fish, and deer fetuses.
, there are four kinds of camels, but these four materials are divided into five or six burning methods, seven or eight parts are cut out, and the patterns are made so hard that I can’t even count them.
Ashina Choyu picked up the first bowl of wine and washed the dust for the guests. Then the sound of silk and bamboo sounded in the big tent. Two teams of extremely beautiful singers came forward and sang loudly while holding the wine bowls.
Li Xu picked up the copper bowl and sipped it while observing everyone in the tent. From the beginning to now, Ashina Queyu didn't ask a word about why the two left Su Chuobu. Obviously, he was very confident in the effect of the chain plan.
Pei Ligulu had a kind face, but he always turned to Silver Wolf when he spoke, probably because he wanted to find out why Gan Luo was not with him, whether he stayed in the Su Chuan tribe or was released into the wild. Little Burke Bilian said to Xu Da
The eyes are very dissatisfied, and he seems dissatisfied with the fact that Queyu entertained two low-status guests with a feast of such a standard. Yoututun Kesi is a reasonable person, and what he asked most about just now is the number of cattle and sheep of Su Chuo, Shetuo and others.
, pasture and water distribution, Zuo Tutun Basi Hara is an old fox. He doesn’t speak much, but every sentence falls on the key point, which makes Xu Dayan find it very difficult to avoid even if he wants to avoid it.
Li Xu didn't care much whether these people liked or disliked him, but Ashina Queyu's enthusiasm was unbearable. The first time he enthusiastically called himself brothers, he plotted against the entire Su Chuan tribe. Today, he behaved like this
Welcoming guests from far away with solemn etiquette, what kind of tricks will we make if we can’t do it?
After thinking about it, Li Xu didn't find that he had anything else to be plotted against. The few gems and jade in his luggage were considered valuable in his own eyes, but to Xu Dayan, they seemed like just a small amount of money left in Ashina Queyu.
In the eyes of this kind of Turkic royal family, it is probably not worth looking at. All that is left is a horse and a bow. If Queyu turns his back and wants to take down the bow and horse, Li Xu also knows that there is nothing he can do.
While they were thinking wildly, the singing had ended. Everyone drank the wine in the bowl and sat back down one after another. Ashina Queyu clapped his hands again. The singers squatted down to salute the guests, then lightly stretched their sleeves and jumped up gracefully.
Compared with the songs and dances of the Min people, the dances of the Turks are more complex and changeable. The intense parts are like a goshawk flying in the sky, and the graceful parts are like Xizi Danglou. The dance skirts on every woman's body are made of Su silk, which does not cover the elbows at the top and does not reach down at the bottom.
The knees are just hooped with silver hoops at the hands and ankles, and two transparent gauze are hung on the arms and legs at a distance, which adds to the allure of the dance, even for a Taoist like Li Xu.
People who have been influenced by Kuo Tuosi's dance will feel their blood pumping after watching it.
"You two, go pour wine and cut meat for the guests!" After the song ended, Ashina Queyu pointed at the two leading singers and ordered loudly.
The two singers bowed and saluted, and smoke floated to the sides of Li Xu and Xu Dayan. The other thirty or so singers chuckled lightly, and scattered like petals to the officials and generals.
"They are my two favorite concubines, one is called Lvzhu and the other is called Yanluo. I hope this will not offend the eyes of our distinguished guests!" Ashina Queyu looked at Li Xu and Xu Dayan who looked embarrassed and said politely.
Xu and Li quickly stepped aside to make way for the two women to take their seats. Turkic people have a custom of letting their wives or concubines accompany distinguished guests, but guests must not exceed the courtesy, otherwise they risk being kicked out of the house by their hosts.
The two women picked up the wine bowl that the guest had placed on the small table, filled it with wine, gently picked up the bottom of the bowl with ten fingers, and raised it between their eyebrows. Li and Li took the wine bowl with increasingly embarrassed expressions.
He opened his mouth and poured it down his throat. Half of the bowl of wine went into his stomach, but most of it was spilled on his clothes.
"You are so fearless among the thousands of distinguished guests, but why are you frightened by two women who cannot carry a sword!" Dame Lu Pei Li raised his hands and laughed loudly, asking loudly.
The men and women in the audience all laughed. Everyone was laissez-faire and used to having fights. Even if they occasionally became immoral after drinking, no one would go into detail. This was the first time someone saw someone who was so frightened by two singers that he spilled half a bowl of wine.
, more interested than seeing a five-legged cow or sheep.
Li Xu's face turned red again. He didn't know what to say in reply, but Xu Dayan was choked by the wine. He coughed and retorted: "Have you never heard that the word "sex" means a knife on the head?
Among the two armies, the swords and arrows have somewhere to hide from the eyes of women, but the swords and arrows are invisible and invisible!"
Everyone laughed again, saying that Xu Xianzhe answered cleverly. The women took the opportunity to pour wine frequently, and soon everyone's drunkenness reached a climax.
"In this season, two heroes are going south together. Is there something urgent at home that they need to rush to attend to?" After drinking a few more rounds of wine, little Burke Bilian asked, holding up the wine bowl.
"I've been away from home for too long, and suddenly I want to go back for a visit!" Li Xu cast a meaningful glance at Ashina Queyu and replied with a smile.
Xu Dayan was already drunk by the singer named Luzhu. He could no longer hold the knife steady, and his head tilted to his own knees again and again. At this moment, no matter what moves the Turks made, Li Xu would have to be the one.
People will deal with it
"You're not rushing back to serve the country!" Ashina Queyu put down the wine bowl in his hand and asked with a smile.
"Serve the country?" Li Xu was asked a little confused. Why did he leave Su Chuobu? Ashina Queyu should know better than everyone here that he was deliberately pretending to be confused. Was it because of the guest's face, or because
Any other bad intentions?
"Yes, don't you know that the Sui Dynasty has already prepared its troops and prepared to attack Goryeo?" Ashina Choyu widened his eyes and made a look of surprise. "By the way, you have been away all year round, so you probably don't know what happened in your hometown.
If someone comes here for some reason, let him tell the distinguished guest about the current situation in his hometown!"
"The special service has an order, pass it on to the divination!" The red-cloaked guards standing outside the door passed the order one by one. After two bowls of wine, a handsome young man with a bit of fear on his face was called
The guards brought in
"I have seen Mr. Queyu. I don't know what you want to do if Mr. Queyu is looking for me!" The young man named Hebulan bowed and saluted, and asked timidly. His Turkic language was extremely blunt, and it sounded completely strange.
Translate Chinese word by word
"You can say in Chinese that this friend of mine is your tribe and you want to know what happened in the Central Plains recently!" Ashina Queyu shook his head, pointed at Li Xu and ordered Hebu Lan
"Yes, I obey you!" He Bulan made a long bow, and as soon as he changed his answer into Chinese, his speech immediately clearly explained the virtues of the Sui Emperor in the past year and more, and his tone remained calm at first.
, later on, his voice became louder and louder, his eyes were red, and he was so angry that he wanted to draw a knife and fight with others desperately.