Recently, the Bagua community in Chang'an City seems to be celebrating a festival.
First, they enjoyed all kinds of rumors and stories after the birth of the emperor's eldest son and the princess, and some of them even wrote some related metaphorical stories.
Although there is a certain risk in this, the leader in the Bagua Party is not afraid of losing his head, so what else should he be afraid of, such as a court lieutenant or a young master?
However, in the following days, the news changed.
Instead of Tingwei being furious, the Nei Shi Yamen's Tiqi went out everywhere to hunt down and inspect the gossip party who discussed the scandal in the palace.
But something happened that caught people's attention even more.
In a house in a certain alley, several big men secretly hid in a room drinking.
Recently, Ting Wei and Nei Shi have stepped up their inspection of alcohol.
Therefore, the price of alcoholic beverages in Guanzhong has skyrocketed. In the past, a bottle of wine could be purchased for about ten yuan. Nowadays, a bottle of wine costs at least one hundred yuan, and it is often not available.
It's also funny to say.
The stricter the government's control over alcohol, the more prosperous the alcohol trade will be.
The Tingwei and the internal history are very strict in investigating.
But the wine sellers are all big shots with profound backgrounds, or at least the nephews or relatives of these big shots.
Since ancient times, punishments have not been as good as those of officials, and courtesy has not been as good as that of common people.
It is not the crime of rebellion, secretly accumulating armor, plotting evil, cursing the king and father, and intending to subvert the country.
It is not a capital crime where people are extremely angry, bullying men and women, or even killing people in the street.
The nephews and relatives of the princes' relatives are just selling wine, and the court officials and internal officials have nothing to do with them.
Therefore, in Chang'an City, selling and buying alcohol is now officially prohibited by the government, but in fact, as long as you are alert enough and willing to pay for the liquid that can excite you, you can
You can buy those liquids that make your blood pump at any time.
There is no doubt that these big men are a group of people who never drink or have fun.
Between the cups and the cups, all that was left of the two or three jars of the wine they had just bought was the jars, and only the bones of the two roast chickens and a leg of lamb on the table were left.
After burping contentedly, and taking advantage of the alcohol, one of the dark, muscular men said mysteriously to his friends: "Have you heard about it?"
"What did you hear?"
"King Jiangdu's pilgrimage this time brings a big surprise to His Majesty!" The man picked his nose and said carelessly: "There is an uncle of a brother in a certain family who is on duty in the palace. According to what he said, this surprise,
Extraordinary…”
"What kind of surprise?" Everyone's curiosity was suddenly aroused.
The man opened the window and looked outside, then lowered his voice and said, "This matter must come out of my mouth and into your ears. Don't let anyone else know about it!"
Seeing this man's cautious look, everyone laughed and shouted: "Brother, please don't tempt me. Just tell me quickly and I will promise not to spread the word!"
This guarantee is the most insincere guarantee. Basically, even in today's world, which is known for keeping its promises, not many people will take such empty talk seriously.
But that man may not be showing off because he feels uncomfortable. Or he may be suppressing his discomfort and not sharing it with others. He is not happy, or it may be that he really trusts the friends here.
Anyway, he quickly whispered: "Have you ever heard of a place called Shendu?"
Everyone shook their heads in confusion, not knowing why.
But the man laughed proudly and said: "You guys don't know the body poison. This is normal. You must know that the body poison is thousands of miles away from China. It takes half a year to arrive from Shu County. Even if it is the most convenient way,
The sea route will also take two to three months!"
After hearing this, everyone rolled their eyes with disdain on their faces.
In traditional Chinese concepts, the land of barbarians and civilized deserts is either a ferocious barbarian tribe like the Xiongnu, or a poor, naked and remote mountainous area like North Korea. How can it compare with China's natural treasures and outstanding people?
Moreover, the Chinese people have been the most practical since ancient times.
No one will do anything that is not beneficial. Even if you force them with a whip, they will not work hard and do it half-heartedly.
But if there are benefits to be gained, everyone will flock to it without the need for instigation or orders from the ruler.
Just like today's great development of water conservancy and the construction of canals, the farmers in Guanzhong are going crazy. On the construction site of Longshou Canal, the surrounding farmers wait outside the construction site before dawn every day for work to start. They are almost free of charge.
In nature, they were doing a lot of auxiliary work to help those contracted Longshou Canal construction sites. Even during the scorching heat last summer, as long as the workers on the construction site had a rest, the three elders and squires from the surrounding villages would immediately lead the people and send them to them.
Mung bean porridge and other things were used to relieve the heat, and some people even volunteered to sew and wash clothes for the workers who repaired the canals and the officers and soldiers who supervised them.
It is said that after the Longshou Canal was opened to water supply, the scene and the legendary Tao Slurry Pot became nothing more than that.
Many old people said that the scene near Longshou Canal reminded them of the scene when the Qin Dynasty unified the six kingdoms. At that time, the Qin army returning from victory was also surrounded, worshiped and supported by the people of Guanzhong.
Although these guys don't understand any big principles, they can still simply seek good fortune and avoid misfortune.
So once they heard that the body poison was so far away, no one was immediately interested.
Someone said: "It's crazy to go to Shu County. From Chang'an to Shu County, you have to climb mountains and ridges all the way. If you are not careful, you will die in the canyon! And someone heard that from the west of Shu County, all the mountains are in Chongqing.
The mountains are over ridges, the jungles are dense, and wild beasts and barbarians are infested. If you are not careful, you will die!"
Someone else said: "Sea route? According to someone's knowledge, the First Emperor sent Xu Fu to take 3,000 boys and girls out to sea to find immortals, with a fleet of countless ships and thousands of elite Qin escorts. However, after leaving, there was no news.
It is said that the First Emperor's fleet was buried in the sea. Doesn't it mean that ordinary people are seeking death when they go to sea?"
"Furthermore, what are the benefits of body poison? Is there an elixir of immortality? Even if there is, will it be our turn?" Some people even sneered.
"Don't tell me..." The dark and muscular man chuckled: "According to a certain brother's uncle, there is a mysterious place in Shendu Country. It is said that there is a mysterious place hidden in Shendu Country.
The deep mountain is called the Fountain of Youth. Legend has it that King Chi You once went to Shendu, and Shendu still has the legend of King Chi You. It is said that King Chi You got the Fountain of Youth from the body poison. After drinking the Fountain of Youth, he had the ability to compete with the Yellow Emperor.
Competing divine power and an immortal body, otherwise, why do you think the Yellow Emperor had to dismember King Chi You's body and suppress it under the famous mountains and rivers? Wasn't it because he was afraid that King Chi You would be resurrected after his death?"
After such a big and explosive bomb was thrown, everyone immediately became energetic.
King Chi You!
This is the commander of the army!
In the traditional mythological system of the Han Dynasty, there are powerful gods such as Taiyi, the four heavenly emperors of white, red, green, yellow and black, and the Lord of Yin, Yang and Landlord. They are the totems and objects of sacrifice for all warriors. They are the gods of war believed in by the Han Dynasty.
!
Now I heard that the soldier actually gained such inhuman power and superhuman vitality after drinking the water from the Fountain of Youth. Even the ancestor Huang Di could only choose to suppress his body and limbs separately instead of destroying them.
Who doesn’t have a little fantasy spirit? Who doesn’t want to become a superhero?
Why is Lu Gong Xiang Yu so widely sympathized and remembered by the public? Isn’t it because what this man did back then was far beyond ordinary people?
Worshiping heroes and strong men is the instinct of all nations.
And everyone has a hero's dream in their heart. Even among the humblest slaves and the most humble Sikong Chengdan, there are heroes.
And in China, there will never be a shortage of heroes who started from humble beginnings.
Shun was raised in the garden, Fu Shuo was raised in the building, Jiao Ge was raised in the fish and salt, Guan Yiwu was raised in the army, Sun Shuao was raised in the sea, and Baili Xi was raised in the city.
Emperor Taizu Gao even established the Han Dynasty as the head of a pavilion and lived in the Ninth Five-Year Plan.
It's just that the so-called fantasy is just a heat wave.
For most living beings, even if there is some kind of fountain of youth from physical poison, so what?
Anyway, it’s not my turn, and it’s just a topic of conversation after dinner. Maybe in the future, when I get old, I can tell the stories I heard at the wine table today to my children and grandchildren.
That's all.
However, the dark and muscular man did not intend to let everyone go like this. He lowered his voice and continued: "Gentlemen, the so-called Fountain of Youth, which is poisonous in the body, is just a legend! Gentlemen, do you know that the person who really makes me
Is my brother's uncle shocked by something?"
The man stood up, glanced at everyone, took a deep breath, clenched his fists and said, "It's the rich man from the poisonous place!"
"The grains of Shendu are ripe four times a year. It is said that the people of Shendu do not need to farm at all. They only need to scatter the seeds and wait for two months to harvest corn and rice. Moreover, Shendu has good weather all year round, and almost
There is no disaster. It is said that the local people's life is to eat, sleep, play with the boss, drink, gamble and play with women, tut tut tut..."
"What?" Everyone took a deep breath, almost in disbelief.
Is there really such a beautiful and prosperous place in this world?
Everyone, you look at me and I look at you, we are not sure.
For the Chinese people, the world they live in is basically their homes and villages. The world of merchants and officials is wider, but it can only be limited to one county and one country at most.
Even the most knowledgeable people in the world may only know a small part of the world, a thousand miles away at most, and no matter how far it is, they may only have a general impression.
Even the highly respected Matan family of Taishi Company in Shiqu Pavilion, known as the historians of all dynasties, has traveled all over the mountains and rivers of Jiuzhou, but they dare not claim to know much about the world.
Most people only know the world they know, and when it comes to the world beyond what they know, they basically hold a unique Chinese attitude of preferring to believe that it exists or not.
Therefore, as soon as Journey to the West came out in later generations, everyone automatically imagined that the journey from the Western Regions to Shendu was a place where demons were rampant and extremely dangerous.
And now, after everyone heard about the body poisoning, although they were heartbroken and didn't believe it, they couldn't deny it. Some people even believed in their hearts that such a place did exist.
After all, everyone has a very hard life.
The life of ordinary people throughout the year revolves around the land.
The harvest once a year is more related to the family's livelihood and life and death.
It seems very unreasonable that grains are ripe every year, but the life of a man with a poisonous body, eating, sleeping, cheating on his wife, drinking, gambling and playing with women every day, inevitably makes everyone think about it.
Who doesn't want to live in such a paradise-like world?
For a moment, everyone could only hear the sound of their own swallowing and the sound of their heartbeats.
After a long time, someone asked cautiously: "In such a rich land, the country must be a big country. With strong soldiers and horses, it must be a powerful country that dominates the outside world, just like the Huns..."
"Bullshit!" The strong black man quenched his saliva and said, "What a bullshit! According to what my brother's uncle knows, it is said that ten years ago, there was a tribe calling themselves the Yuezhi. They had three thousand soldiers and horses.
Attacking Shendu, he destroyed seventeen countries with Shendu, spread across thousands of miles, took away hundreds of thousands of kilograms of gold, and had a population of more than 100,000. But after the Yuezhi people left, Shendu remained the same as before, lying in the sun.
Sleep, eat, sleep and fight with your wife. Drink, gamble and play with women!"
"It is said that people in the land do not need any work at all. Just scatter the seeds in the ground and harvest them when the time is up. You will have something to eat. If you have no money, you can just dig in the ground.
When I was thirsty, I picked the fruits from the tree to quench my thirst. Mencius once said: Born in sorrow and died in peace and happiness. Born in peace and happiness, died in sorrow and trouble, body poison and body death are all in peace and happiness. It is said that the Yuezhi
In the human kingdom, there are often nobles who bring dozens of people, even without weapons, into Shendu's country and show off their power. There are Shendu officials who offer exquisite gold vessels, women and wealth, just to the Yuezhi people.
Can leave..."
After everyone listened, they looked at each other.
Suddenly, a man shouted and beat his chest and head: "Why is the body poison so far away from my country? Alas!"
Suddenly, everyone agreed.
Just listening to what the burly black man said, everyone felt excited and couldn't help themselves.
Why is such a rich land, such a land of abundance, so far away from China?
And there are so many difficulties and obstacles on the road?
If it was only a thousand miles away, everyone would grit their teeth and walk over it.
But being so far away, separated by high mountains and vast oceans, everyone was a little scared.
This is because those who drink here belong to the group with the most adventurous spirit among the Han people: the knights.
If ordinary people heard this, they would probably do what they should do.
And among the sounds of mourning all over the place, a voice suddenly sounded: "Actually, it's not that difficult to get rid of the body poison..."
When everyone saw it, it was the dark, muscular man who was speaking.
"What do you say?" someone asked immediately.
"It is said that in addition to going west from Shu County or by sea, there is another road that can lead to Shendu..." The strong black man said with a smile: "Exit the Great Wall, pass through the territory of the Huns, and cross
Passing through the Western Regions, you can reach Shendu. It is said that the Yuezhi people are a tribe living outside the Western Regions. It is said that these Yuezhi people were driven there by the Huns..."
"What else is going on?!" Everyone started talking immediately.
Before, there was no comparison, and naturally it was unclear whether the so-called Shendu people were fighting against the five scum, or were the Yuezhi people too powerful in combat?
But now, with such an intuitive comparison of the Xiongnu, everyone understands clearly.
The Han Dynasty and the Huns faced each other not once or twice.
When the late emperor ascended the throne a few years ago, King Youxian of the Xiongnu broke through the border and invaded with great momentum. At that time, a full-scale war was imminent. Everyone present here included retired soldiers who had just faced off against the Xiongnu at that time.
Everyone knows the fighting power of the Huns. Since they are the so-called vulture shooters among the Huns, their strength is roughly the same as that of the Han army, which means they can shoot arrows more accurately.
It's not that the Han army couldn't defeat the Huns, it's just that the Han army was mainly infantry and couldn't keep up with the mobility of the Huns' cavalry.
Basically, the current combat effectiveness of the Han and Xiongnu armies is roughly between the same.
The Huns themselves recognized this matter, otherwise, why would they want to marry a princess and have a marriage?
When ordinary people choose their own son-in-law, they all think that one is a good match, let alone the country?
In the past, the Han Dynasty could only marry the daughter of the clan and give them money and silk in exchange for peace!
But now, the Huns are taking the initiative to marry off their daughters and sign a peace treaty.
Although everyone doesn't understand diplomacy, they all know a simple truth: if you can't defeat someone, then they don't need any marriage, just come and rob them.
Since the so-called Yuezhi people only used three thousand people to travel thousands of miles and sweep away seventeen countries, while the Huns chased the Yuezhi people out of the Western Region like chickens.
Even though everyone is not good at math, they still know simple conversions.
In other words, the combat effectiveness of the Han army is roughly equal to that of the Xiongnu army. The Xiongnu army is greater than that of the Yuezhi people, and the Yuezhi people are far superior to the Shendu people.
Unknowingly, in everyone's mind, the image of the Xiongnu suddenly became extremely dazzling. Many people's perception of the Xiongnu suddenly fell to a low point.
Although, the image of the Xiongnu has never been high.
But it is different from the past. In the past, everyone hated the Huns because they invaded the Han land and slaughtered the Han people. Everyone shared the same hatred and defended their country.
However, now, the Xiongnu has become a roadblock preventing everyone from going to the body-drug paradise.
Destroying people's wealth is like killing their parents. Killing their parents is a life-and-death affair!
"Fuck the Huns!" Someone hit the table hard and cursed fiercely.
"My brother has reached the age of his first master this year. Our family was originally thinking about delaying it for two years before enlisting in the army. But now it seems that it is better for my brother to join the army earlier. Enlist early and learn how to fight in the future.
My brother and I can fight side by side and defeat the Huns!" Some people said loudly.
In the Han system, all the people were soldiers, and all the men of the First Master had the obligation to perform military service. They could not avoid it, even the children of the princes' relatives could not avoid it.
However, the people are hesitant to join the army. After all, losing a strong man all at once is a huge loss to any civilian family or even the family of a small or medium-sized landlord.
Unless the emperor issues an edict to mobilize and the people know that a war is going on and the time has come to make contributions, they will actively participate.
Otherwise, I usually just drag it as long as I can.
Of course, some people were confused and asked the dark man: "The body poison is so far away from China. How did the news of the body poison reach the palace?"
Everyone also turned their curious eyes to the burly black man.
The dark, muscular man chuckled and said, "Didn't I tell you before? It's King Jiangdu!"
He said mysteriously: "The ministers of King Jiangdu accidentally bought an exotic treasure and presented it to King Jiangdu, who in turn presented it to His Majesty. His Majesty was so surprised that he sent a letter to inquire. It happened that the person who bought the treasure had the same relationship with King Jiangdu.
The foreign businessman was stranded in Jiangdu, so the emperor ordered the king of Jiangdu to bring him to face the saint. These things were all said by the foreign businessman. That businessman came from Shendu. He sold national treasures to the king of Shendu in exchange for me.
Chinese silk!”
"Furthermore, it is said that Mrs. Xia also confirmed that there is indeed a tribe like the Yuezhi, and there is indeed a place like Shendu outside the Western Region..."
Everyone immediately exclaimed, Mrs. Xia? She is the Hun princess who married the emperor! If this lady confirms it, then this matter is almost impossible to be true!
This explanation is reasonable and everyone is still very confident about Chinese silk.
Only the dark and strong man laughed in his heart: "My mission went really smoothly. I have already mobilized more than ninety people. I am only a few short of reaching the goal of one hundred people. By then,
You can be promoted to the embroidered clothing guard, and from then on you will become the court eagle dog, the emperor's minion, and have an official status!"
This person is a peripheral member of Xiuyiwei.
Through Ju Meng and others, Xiu Yiwei has taken root extensively in the three religions and nine streams in Chang'an City and developed numerous informants.
These eyeliners usually work for money and are not members of the Embroidery Guard.
However, according to regulations, as long as these peripheral members complete certain prescribed tasks, they will have the opportunity to be recruited into the Xiuyi Guards. From then on, they will become registered officials of the imperial court, and they will be directly subordinate to the emperor, and they will belong to the emperor's minions and hunting dogs.
This identity has a great attraction for the three religions and nine streams in Chang'an City.
What's more, the Xiuyi Guards also have regulations. Once they are recruited, registered, and become Xiuyi Guards, except for crimes such as treason, unfilial piety, and Bren, all other crimes will be cleared and will no longer be investigated.
Therefore, many rangers with criminal convictions, absconding criminals, and incognito fugitives are attracted to the Xiuyi Guards and become their peripheral members. Many people like the black and strong men are dreaming of completely clearing the past and regaining their lives.
, and the day when he becomes the imperial eagle dog.
The successful example of Ju Meng and others is what motivates them to work hard and fight hard.
At the same time, many, many, countless people like this strong black man were telling similar stories to different groups of people in various places in Chang'an City.
These people have been trained for a period of time before this, and they have memorized the relevant stories by heart. They also know clearly what kind of people they should say.
To the citizens, they focused on describing the wealth and the comfortable daily life of the people.
To the merchants, they spoke of the abundance of their products and their endless wealth.
To the soldiers, they described the cowardice and vulnerability of the Shendu army, as well as the wealth gained by the Yuezhi people after their victory.
For example, a certain Yuezhi soldier was so poor that he only had the clothes on his back. After being poisoned, he actually used gold chopsticks and white jade utensils, became a nobleman, and married the daughter of a great nobleman in the Yuezhi country.
Inspirational stories like this are widely circulated.
As for the nobles, these people either described the mystery and powerful power of the Fountain of Youth, or elaborated on the docility and obedience of the local people.
In their words, they poisoned the common people and almost always responded to their nobles and officials' requests without any complaints.
This immediately made many nobles feel elated and couldn't help themselves.
As a result, rumors about body poisoning and different versions of related stories instantly replaced the original palace affairs and became the hottest and hottest topic in Chang'an City.
Almost even three-year-old children know that there is a place called Shendu, which is rich and good, and it is simply a paradise on earth! (To be continued...) i1292
