After traveling through mountains and rivers for more than half a month, when Zhou Jun climbed up the Wangshan Rock and once again saw the "Tang" flag at Qikou Camp, he couldn't help but be so excited that he trembled all over and shouted loudly.
Shuofang's scouts, who heard the shouts, saw Zhou Jun and his party from a distance. Seeing that they were dusty and dusty, at first they thought they were Fanzi from the north.
After getting closer, the scouts carefully identified them and discovered that these people were actually envoys heading to Uighur.
Everyone in the mission was quickly taken back to the Qikou Camp. Wang Zhongsi rushed out after hearing the news, and the supervisor Fan Jinian also rushed over.
The two of them looked at the rugged man with unshaven beard and dark complexion in front of them, and for a moment they didn't recognize who the other person was.
It wasn't until Zhou Jun spoke that the two of them confirmed the former's identity.
Zhou Jun took out the carefully kept paint tube from his arms, handed it to Wang Zhongsi, and said with a smile: "Protector, I went on an envoy to Huihe, and fortunately I lived up to my mission."
Wang Zhongsi held his breath, first glanced at Zhou Jun, then took the paint tube with both hands, and then took out the Nine Surnames Oath from it, read it carefully, and said with a smile: "Okay, okay! Zhou Lang has made a great contribution!"
"
When Fan Jinian saw this, he also breathed a long sigh of relief, took Zhou Jun's hand and said, "Our family has not been able to eat well or sleep well these days. We are afraid that something will happen to Erlang."
"When you come back safely, our family is finally relieved!"
Wang Zhongsi put away the oath and said loudly to his subordinates behind him: "Prepare a banquet to greet the returning sons!"
Half an hour later, Zhou Jun changed into new clothes, washed himself again, entered the tent, and entered the banquet.
Wang Zhongsi, who was sitting on the main seat, said to everyone in the court tent: "The Huihe, Geluolu and other tribes have vowed to attack Bashmi. Shuofang's army has no worries when it marches north. It will be just around the corner to defeat the Turks."
When the generals in the tent heard this, they became excited.
Tens of thousands of troops have been nesting in this desolate Qikou camp for months.
Now, finally, there is a battle to be fought.
Wang Zhongsi looked at Zhou Jun again and asked: "I read the affidavit and it mentioned that the Bashmi tribe induced the nine surnames to rebel against the Tang Dynasty. What is going on?"
Zhou Jun stood up, clasped his hands, and told all the previous encounters in the Huihe tribe in front of the generals.
Everyone heard the thrill, but they were amazed and admired.
After Wang Zhongsi listened to Zhou Jun's narration, he sighed: "This time I am sent as an envoy to Uighur. Fortunately, I have been able to make it happen. It would have been a disaster."
After pausing for a moment, Wang Zhongsi said to the generals in the tent: "We have protected the entire army, uncovered the conspiracy of the Bashmi tribe, and persuaded the nine surnames to jointly combat the rebellion, thus helping the Shuofang army to relieve their worries. This northern expedition against the Turks is the first of its kind."
The merits should be recorded in the history of the order."
When the generals in the tent heard what Wang Zhongsi said, they all agreed.
Seeing this, Zhou Jun stood up and wanted to humble himself, but Fan Jinian beside him grabbed his sleeve.
Fan Jinian whispered to Zhou Jun: "During the month when you went to Huihe, the Ministry of War sent an inquiry, the Shangshu Province sent a summary, and the saint also wrote a personal letter to inquire about the Northern Expedition to the Turks.
."
"Our family had a private discussion with Wang Duhu a few days ago. It is not a problem to stop at Qikou like this. It is better to break camp and march north. Even if the march is slower, it is worse than following the truth."
"Fortunately, Erlang is back... You don't know how important that oath is to our family and the Protector."
"Therefore, it is natural that I would like to remember you for your first contribution. No need to say anything more."
After listening to Fan Jinian's words, Zhou Jun nodded and said nothing more.
At this time, Wang Zhongsi looked at Zhou Jun, but the more he looked at him, the happier he became. He blurted out: "If Zhou Lingshi is willing, why not join Shuo Fang's army?"
As soon as these words came out, Zhou Jun looked embarrassed.
Fortunately, Fan Jinian got him out of the way in time: "The Governor's words are obviously trying to eliminate our family. If Zhou Lang joins Shuofang's army, wouldn't it make others laugh? They all say that the army supervisor is incompetent and cannot retain talents.
?”
Wang Zhongsi smiled when he heard this, but never mentioned the matter again at the subsequent banquet.
After finishing the banquet, Zhou Jun walked towards his tent and happened to see Monk Yisi standing at the entrance of the tent, seemingly waiting for him.
Seeing Zhou Jun, Yis came over and said, "Zhou Lingshi, I will leave tomorrow."
Zhou Jun was stunned: "Leaving tomorrow?"
Yis said: "There will be a convoy heading to Fengzhou tomorrow, and I plan to follow them and head south."
Zhou Jun nodded: "That's good. If we arrive in Chang'an as soon as possible, you can meet your companions earlier."
Yis: "The tribulations along the way are all trials sent by the Lord. Those who died and what happened should not be buried. I must tell the elders of Chang'an Scripture Sect everything.
"
Hearing this, Zhou Jun remembered something. He opened the curtain of the camp and said to Yis: "Before you go back, I have something to ask you."
Yis nodded first and then followed Zhou Jun into the camp.
Waiting for Yisi to sit on the banquet, Zhou Jun asked: "You once said that the monks you belong to lived near the capital of Dashi for a while, and also passed through Khorasan Province on the way back?
"
Is: "Yes."
Zhou Jun: "I would like to ask, what is the current situation in Dashi? Who controls the situation? What is it like in Khorasan Province?"
Yis thought for a moment and then replied: "When talking about the current situation of Dashi, I'm afraid we have to start from the past."
"More than eighty years ago, Mu'awiya defeated Ali and established the Umayyad dynasty with the support of the nobles."
"However, the legitimacy of Muawiyah's regime has always been questioned. In the Christian world, many people believe that only the family of Prophet Muhammad is the legitimate successor to the caliphate, so the resistance against the Umayyads has never
It’s stopped.”
"The family of Prophet Muhammad includes two branches, the Ali family and the Abbasid family."
"Although the two families have political differences and conflicts, they have a consensus on opposing the Umayyads and can therefore cooperate with each other."
"The Shia sect, which is a big food, only recognizes the blood of the prophet. They are the biggest supporters of the Ali family and the Abbasid family."
"In the past few years, the martyrdom of Karbala and Zaid Ali were the two largest Shia-led uprisings."
"After the failure of these two uprisings, there was a period of peace in Dashi, but in the past few years, riots began again in Khorasan Province."
"When I left there, I heard that the riot had been suppressed."
After listening to what Is said, Zhou Jun knew that the Abbasid uprising in Khorasan Province had not been suppressed, but had only been moved underground.
Three years later, the Abbasid family, with the support of the Shiites, would seize the province of Khorasan with armed force and spread the war to the entire Kingdom.
After learning about the current situation of the Big Food Country, Zhou Jun thanked Yis.
Yis said: "Zhou Lingshi, if you return to Chang'an in the future, please come to Jingjiao Temple as a guest."
Zhou Jun agreed.
On the second day, Yis went to Fengzhou with the convoy, while Zhou Jun went north with the army.
Shuofang's army passed through Meijian City, Chiya, Yanbo, Hunyi River, Lumen Mountain, Muzhuling, and had several battles with Apodagan, the left wing of the Turks, and won great victories in all of them.
In the third year of Tianbao, at the end of November, Shuofang's army and the remaining troops of Apodagan fought in the mountains of Sahenei. This battle was also the last battle of the Tang Dynasty's Northern Expedition against the Turks.