After Li Shentong saluted happily and exited the tent.
Liu Hongji, who had been holding back for a long time, immediately glared and said angrily to Xiao Han: "Why did you let him stay? Don't you know that this kid will be a disaster if he stays here?"
"Nonsense!" Xiao Han heard this, but he pulled up a chair and sat down, rolling his eyes: "You think I don't want to drive him back? But you don't think about it, with this kid's donkey temper, he can
Do you honestly want to send him back to Chang'an?
No wonder, he will sneak away halfway! At that time, if he has another accident, Li Jing will still blame you and me!
In this case, it is better to make things clear like this. If Li Jing is really worried about his brother, then he will send someone to pick him up personally! If he runs away again, it will not be your fault. "
"Oh? What you said seems to make some sense!" After hearing this, Liu Hongji finally realized the twists and turns, and then he couldn't help but grinned and said: "You are still the traitor!"
Facing Liu Hongji's "praise", Xiao Han looked disgusted: "Bah, bah, bah, who's raping me? I'm a good young man, okay?"
Liu Hongji laughed loudly, put his arm around Xiao Han's shoulders and said: "Five good things? Good food? Good drink? Good sex? Good wine? Good money? The five good things?"
"Go away, there's no ivory coming out of a dog's mouth!"
"You are awesome, spit out your ivory and let me see??"
How can there be an overnight feud between brothers?
In this way, after a while of bickering in the tent, Xiao Han and Liu Hongji immediately became as comfortable as wearing a pair of trousers.
Liu Hongji acted like a magician and took out a delicate small wooden box from his arms: "Come and try it. This is the most popular cigarette in Chang'an recently. It is said that something is added to it, some mint, and it feels cool when smoked..."
Each of them lit up a cigarette, and while puffing away comfortably, the topic inevitably turned from Li Shentong to the Western Expedition.
Now, the imperial court's appeal against thieves has been issued, and news about Tuyuhun is no longer blocked.
Therefore, more and more things about Yangguan and Yumenguan are widely spread in the market.
As for Liu Hongji, a general who suppresses thieves, his information here is more comprehensive and detailed than outside.
"Xiao Han, tell me, is this Tuyuhun crazy? Why is it attacking Yumenguan and Yangguan when it has nothing to do? Those are two gate cities. There are very few people in them, and there are not many wealthy businessmen. It is not worthwhile to attack them!"
Opening his mouth and blowing out a smoke ring, Liu Hongji asked Xiao Han with a hint of doubt.
This foreign invasion does not care about two situations:
First, just like the Turks in the past, they went to Han people's territory to plow grass and valleys in order to plunder wealth!
The second is that they are optimistic about that piece of land and want to come over and seize it!
But Liu Hongji has been to Yumenguan and Yangguan, they are just two passes in the sky of yellow sand!
There is definitely no money in the pass! Even if it is food, there is not much.
Because of its remote location, there are not many officers and soldiers stationed in Yumen Pass, only about a hundred people at full capacity, so there is never much food stored in the pass. It is impossible to fight them for food!
And to say it's a land grab?
The territory at Yumen Pass is huge!
But there is nothing but sand in the land. Not to mention food, not even a blade of grass grows. So what’s the use of Tuyuhun’s land?
"I think..." Xiao Han held a cigarette in his mouth, looking at the map hanging in the tent amid the curls of smoke, and said slowly: "They didn't go there for money and food this time!"
"If it's not money and food, what else could it be? Is it possible that they still occupy those two passes?" Liu Hongji sneered and said casually.
Xiao Han nodded and said seriously: "They just want to occupy these two passes!"
"Ah?" Liu Hongji was shocked. He looked at Xiao Han in disbelief and asked, "Are you kidding? They want to occupy these two cities? Why do they? Even if they successfully attack these two places now
, then why do they think they can hold on!"
Of course, it’s no wonder Liu Hongji was so shocked and couldn’t believe it!
Because although the two passes of Yumen Pass and Yang Pass are extremely famous, they are not two dangerous passes in themselves!
Not to mention the Jianmen Pass, a great pass in the world where only one man can pass it, and no one can open it. Even any border fortress in the Tang Dynasty today is stronger and more dangerous than it!
These two isolated passes on the Gobi beach have never been famous because of their dangerous terrain! But because they hold the most precious thing in the Gobi desert: water!
After leaving Yumen Pass and Heyang Pass, you can only see a patch of wind and sand outside the Great Wall, and the nearest water source is hundreds of miles away!
In other words, after traveling for hundreds of miles in the Gobi Desert, you can only replenish some water until you reach Yumen Pass and Yang Pass.
Therefore, Yumen Pass and Yang Pass will become the two famous pass cities in the world, and will become the two most important nodes on the Silk Road!
"Look!"
After spitting out the cigarette in his mouth, Xiao Han walked to the map and placed his hands on the positions of Yumen Pass and Yang Pass: "Did you see it? These two passes are almost the two routes that all merchants in the Western Regions must pass through! In addition,
…”
After saying that, Xiao Han moved his finger upwards again, tapped the two points on the map a few times, and continued: "In addition, there are Yizhou and Dianhe City! These two places are also backup routes for trade routes.
! These four places, plus Shazhou City, happen to be connected in a straight line on the map! In this world, all merchants entering and leaving the Western Region must pass through this line! So you understand? "
"..."
Liu Hongji was shocked by Xiao Han's words! He stared at the map without moving! Until the cigarette in his mouth was about to burn out and burned his lips.
Then Lao Li said "Ouch", quickly spit out his cigarette, rubbed his lips and said: "Tuyuhun wants to control this entire line and do the bandit business of collecting tolls! Damn it! No wonder they want to fight
Yizhou and Dianhe City! Fortunately, the defenders provided quick support, otherwise, these two places would have been occupied by them!"
Yes, Li Shimin had said at the beginning that Tuyuhun had sent troops to Yizhou and Dianhe City!
However, with the lessons learned from Yumenguan and Yangguan, how can we let Tuyuhun get his wish again?
Even if they had firearms in their hands, facing two strong walls and a clear wilderness, with no way out of the Guancheng, the Tuyuhun people were like dogs biting hedgehogs and had nowhere to bite!
In the end, they had no choice but to retreat hastily before the reinforcements from the Tang Dynasty border troops arrived, leaving only two Guancheng cities riddled with holes that were bombed by firearms, still standing in the sky of yellow sand.