In the Western Han Dynasty, Yumen Pass was located in the northwest of Dunhuang, Shazhou. After leaving the pass, heading west to Cheshi, Qiting and Shule, it was the gateway to the Western Regions.
It was originally the shortest route from Dunhuang to the Western Regions, but the road was full of quicksand and there was a lack of supplies along the way. Therefore, during the Tang Dynasty, this route was gradually abandoned, and Dunhuang Yumen Pass was gradually abandoned and became the Yumen Pass.
During the Tang Dynasty, Xinyumen Pass moved eastward, from Dunhuang, Shazhou, to Jinchang, Guazhou.
The route from the Central Plains to the Western Regions was also changed from the original route from Jinchang to Dunhuang and then west to Yanqi. It was changed from Jinchang to the north to Yiwu, then west to Gaochang, and then south to Yanqi.
The new route is thousands of miles longer than the old route, but the advantage is that the roads along the way are safer, and there are many county towns and passes that can provide supplies and support.
When Zhou Jun came to the east of Jinchang County, more than fifty miles away, what he looked around reminded him of two poems - Yumenguan City is far away and lonely, and the yellow sand is thousands of miles away and the grass is dry.
Different from the mountains, rivers and green plains of the Central Plains, here there are Gobi deserts and yellow sand everywhere. The sky in the distance is always gray and there are no clouds or sun.
Wrapped in a thick wind robe, Zhou Jun looked at the Guancheng towering on the ground in the distance, and asked Sun Aying beside him: "Which guard is stationed at Yumen Pass now?"
Sun Aying said: "This is the Yumen Army. There are thousands of people registered in the register and thousands of war horses."
Zhou Jun asked further: "In the book?"
Sun Aying rode closer and said in a low voice: "The Yumen Army actually has only three hundred soldiers and less than six hundred horses."
Zhou Jun was a little surprised: "Why is it so different?"
Sun Aying: "Firstly, it is because the army's food and salary have been reduced and often in arrears, so the recruitment of soldiers is not enough; secondly, because the military envoys lied about the number of soldiers and received more empty pay... In fact, not only the Yumen Army, but also the Da Dou Army
, the Moli Army, the Chishui Army and other armies are all like this, but the military envoys tacitly understand it and hide it without repaying it. "
Seeing the worried look on Zhou Jun's face, Sun Aying said with a smile: "Zhou Lang was generous. During the Kaiyuan and Tianbao years, tens of thousands of Tibetan troops entered Dunhuang through Longle Mountain several times, and then headed east to Jinchang. The army was huge. Douban
The Lu army and the Mo Li army used less to defeat the larger army, and the Tang soldiers outnumbered ten by one, without any defeat."
Zhou Jun nodded and continued to move forward as the team.
The group finally arrived at Yumen Town next to Yumen Pass.
Yumen Town is a military town next to the pass. Businesses have been coming and going for many years. Although it is called a "town", it has already developed and expanded into an administrative division similar to a county government.
The chief official of political affairs in the town is Guan Suo, who has jurisdiction over more than ten people including the chief minister, the recorder, the official, and the Tianjin official.
At first, I heard a report from a servant saying that it was the supervisor of the mutual market who came to inspect, but I still didn't believe the order.
When they actually saw Zhou Jun, Guan Suoling was shocked and quickly asked his subordinates to clean up the backyard of the town house and arranged for a group of people to live in it.
After briefly washing up, Zhou Jun came to Guan Suoling to talk with him and learn about the surrounding situation.
Guan Suoling's surname is Wu and his given name is Yan Dao. He was originally a subordinate of Jinchang County. After years of hard work, he came to serve in Yumen Pass.
Wu Yandao said to Zhou Jun: "Zhou Shijian, during the Han Dynasty, Shazhou was prosperous because of the abundant water resources and oases on the sea road from Shazhou to the Western Regions. After entering the Tang Dynasty, the sea road gradually dried up, wind and sand were raging, and quicksand was everywhere.
The roads were dangerous, so Shazhou became increasingly desolate, and Guazhou began to prosper."
"Speaking of Guazhou, apart from Jinchang County, the most prosperous place is Daze. Daze is located more than a hundred miles north of Yumenguan. It is a wide lake with large areas of pasture, forest and fertile farmland. It is also the western part of the Tang Dynasty.
One of the largest horse farms.”
Zhou Jun had read about Daze in history books. Daze Lake is formed by melting water from the ice and snow of the Qilian Mountains. It is a famous place with fertile water and grass in the Hexi Corridor.
Zhou Jun asked Wu Yandao again: "Who are the wealthy families in Guazhou?"
Wu Yandao glanced at Zhou Jun and said, "The four major surnames are Cao, Zhang, Kang, and Shi, and there are more than ten minor surnames."
Upon hearing these four surnames, Zhou Jun frowned and asked Wu Yandao: "Most of them are Sogdians?"
Wu Yandao nodded.
Zhou Jun thought for a moment and then said: "I want to go to Daze."
Wu Yandao was stunned: "If the city supervisor wants to patrol the mutual market, he should go south to Changle, why should he go north?"
Zhou Jun: "There is a racecourse in Daze, and silk horses are traded in the Tang Dynasty. There are private traders from time to time, so it is natural to investigate."
After hearing this, Wu Yandao hesitated again and said to Zhou Jun: "Supervisor Zhou, although Daze is prosperous, most of the land is already privately owned by large households. If you break in rashly, you may cause disputes."
Zhou Jun glanced at Wu Yandao: "Is it possible that Daze is no longer Tang Tu?"
When Wu Yandao heard this, he was so frightened that he lowered his head and did not dare to speak any more.
After leaving the mansion, Zhou Jun stood at the gate and looked towards Yumen Town. He saw only low houses with earthen walls, pedestrians and residents, and their words and deeds were very different from those in the Central Plains.
Sun Ah Ying on the side walked over and whispered to Zhou Jun: "Zhou Zhoulang, look at those people opposite."
The latter was stunned when he heard this and looked towards the street. He saw five swordsmen wrapped in rags and mane robes standing on the street. He then looked at the long caravan next to the temple and whispered.
Zhou Jun looked at them carefully and saw that the men had sabers on their waists, strong bows on their backs, and leather armor could be vaguely seen at the hem of their robes.
Zhou Jun asked Sun Aying: "When did they come?"
Sun Aying: "As soon as we entered Yumen Town, they were targeting us."
Zhou Jun glanced at him for a few times, but before he could speak, the five men got on their horses and drove away like a gust of wind.
Zhou Jun frowned and said to Sun Aying: "Tell Uncle Shen of the Jin family about this and tell them to be careful."
Sun Aying nodded.
It's nightfall that day.
Zhou Jun was sitting in the backyard of the mansion, looking up at the night sky, thinking about his next move, when a melodious flute sound came from behind the walled courtyard.
Zhou Jun walked out of the courtyard and saw the Zoroastrian saint Tuoba Huaisu, wearing a white robe and fluttering skirts, with her green hair dancing lightly, like a fairy exiled in the world, standing on the high wall, facing
The bright and bright full moon is blowing the flute, which sounds like a sob.
This chapter is not finished yet, please click on the next page to continue reading the exciting content! Standing quietly in place, Zhou Jun listened to the entire song, feeling inexplicably sad in his heart, and asked: "What is the name of this song?"
Tuoba Huaisu turned his back to Zhou Jun, first put away his flute, then put on his mask, and said: "Unknown Song."
Zhou Jun shook his head: "What a pity."
Tuoba Huaisu: "Whether it is a piece of music or a person, it will all disappear one day. Even if it has a name, it will only leave sadness to future generations."
Zhou Jun listened helplessly and said to Tuoba Huaisu: "Everyone is fine, so come down and talk."
Tuoba Huaisu jumped lightly, and like a stork touching water, he glided down from mid-air and stopped firmly on the ground.
Zhou Jun asked Tuoba Huaisu: "You once said that you have a master and a senior sister. From this point of view, there is still a sect-like existence in Zoroastrianism?"
Tuoba Huaisu: "When I entered Zoroastrianism, my master had hundreds of fire attendants, all practicing in the Zoroastrian temple."
Zhou Jun: "Practice? What do you study in your daily life?"
Tuoba Huaisu: "Zorrocarpian arts, rituals, channeling, ancient medicine, receiving souls..."
Zhou Jun interrupted her and said: "What is a soul?"
Tuoba Huaisu: "If a fire maid wants to become a Zoroastrian saint, she must break away from human relations, abandon her emotions and desires, and vacate everything in her body to welcome the coming of divinity."
Zhou Jun frowned, this didn't sound like a good thing, and asked: "How to do it?"
Tuoba Huaisu: "A series of trials need to be completed."
Zhou Jun: "What kind of trial?"
Tuoba Huaisu took a deep breath and said: "There are hundreds of poisons that can kill people. The master mixes them together every time and makes everyone swallow some, so that we can keep wandering on the edge of death and life.
, endure the kind of pain that can drive ordinary people crazy. When we get through it, the dose of the next poison will be larger, and the toxicity will be stronger, making us gradually forget our human senses in the pain."
"There is that kind of narrow tunnel deep underground. We have to crawl into the tunnel, watch helplessly as the entrance to the cave is sealed, and then spend several days in darkness, loneliness and hunger."
"Also, at the bottom of the canyon, there are countless snakes and insects..."
Zhou Jun raised his hand and interrupted Tuoba Huaisu: "That's enough, no more."
Tuoba Huaisu quietly looked at Zhou Jun, who had a sigh on his face, and said nothing. His cold mask showed no fluctuations in his expression.
Zhou Jun thought for a long time before saying to Tuoba Huaisu: "Let's not talk about whether these trials of your master are useful... Even if there are gods in this world, I don't think they are nobler than humans; let alone
I think those gods are worthy of us resorting to self-mutilation to get closer to them."
Tuoba Huaisu stared at Zhou Jun.
Zhou Jun said: "For example, if the gods have determined a destiny, a disaster will come in the future. The teachings of Zoroastrianism are to find a savior to prevent this from happening. But have you ever thought about it, even if
Can a single person turn things around and change his destiny? The answer is naturally no, but... what about hundreds, thousands, or ten thousand people standing together?"
Tuoba Huaisu was thoughtful.
Zhou Jun: "Some people often say that heroes create the situation. I think that if you want to change history and create a world, it is not enough to rely on just one hero. Only by relying on the combined power of everyone can we
Achieve goals that are beyond the reach of mortals, and even be able to overturn everything originally planned by the gods, and open up a new future in the endless darkness and disaster."