In the deep mountains and old forests east of Zhaotong, there are a large number of Yi and Miao tribes living together.
Fifty miles north of the gathering place of the Wusa tribe, which Li Xia marked as "Weining" on the map, there is a "Molu Mountain". At the foot of the Molu Mountain is a Miao village. Because three clans have settled there, outsiders call it "Weining".
"Sanjiazhai".
Sanjiazhai is close to Wuchi Road. Merchants on the Southern Silk Road would occasionally stop here to trade goods with Miao Village.
This was also one of Xiong Shan's roles as a guide for merchants back then, that is, to deal with these old seedlings in the mountains.
And because Xiong Shan was appointed as a hundred generals under Li Xia, when Li Xia went to Baiyan Miao Village to buy tea with Xiong Chun, Xiong Chun specially sent Xiong Aqi to accompany Li Xia to act as a guide.
On March 8, after Li Xia arrived in Weining along the Wuchi Road, he heard that there was an incident involving a relic monk in Dali, so he asked Xiong Aqi to stay in Sanjiazhai with his goods.
It was the sixth day of April. Xiong Aqi saw that nearly a month had passed and Li Xia had not returned with his troops, and he began to feel anxious.
As he saw, Lieutenant Li's attempt to reopen the smuggling trade route in Dali had failed.
Of course, Baiyan Miao Village did not suffer much loss, but it only sold some tea, and Li Xia had already paid half of the money in advance.
But Xiong Aqi was worried when he saw Li Xia's salt, sugar, cloth, porcelain and other goods piled there. He was not only worried that the situation would worsen and someone would rob him, but he also felt sorry for Li Xia for the big loss of this wasted trip.
…
On this day, Xiong Aqi was still carefully guarding the mules, horses and goods with his clansmen, but suddenly he heard the clansmen guarding the mountain pass running back and yelling.
"Tiger Head, Tiger Head, the county captain is back! The county captain is back... There are only a hundred people left... What should we do?!"
Xiong Aqi was surprised and happy. He was surprised that Qingfu's army suffered heavy casualties, but he was happy that Li Xia finally came back.
He hurriedly went out to greet them and saw Li Xia and his party at the mountain pass. It looked like they were not returning from a disastrous defeat.
…
"County Lieutenant, with the current situation in Dali, I'm afraid it's hard to continue selling goods, right?"
After the greetings, Xiong Aqi asked cautiously: "Why don't you just go back?"
Li Xia said: "No, this trip went smoothly. Someone in Dali will receive our goods in the future, but we have to wait until the war is over."
"So... what are we bringing this time?"
"Trading with the Yi and Miao people."
Xiong Aqi was stunned, then smiled awkwardly and said: "How can an old barbarian in the mountains have any items that he can trade with the county captain?"
"Yes." Li Xia said: "In exchange for their labor, I want them to shout for our clan, set up camps and build cannons, build cities and walls..."
In the eyes of the Song people, the Usa tribe was just barbarians. But Usa was actually a political power with its own language, writing, and strict systems.
In addition to growing rice and raising livestock to make a living, the Usa tribe also has a large number of skilled craftsmen who weave bambooware and make ironware. There are also literati who educate the people, called "Bumo", who are both priests and assistant ministers.
This is a stable regime in which "scholars, farmers, and workers" each perform their own duties. It is said that "the soul of the king gives orders, the soul of ministers directs, the soul of the teacher is knowledgeable, and the soul of the craftsman manages the artists."
After the Usa tribe surrendered to Dali, Dali sent many generals to the border to monitor the Usa tribe. In the end, they were all integrated into the Usa tribe's tribal government due to their interests and became its pillars.
The four most famous among them were called the "Four White Yi", and they maintained the vassal relationship between Ussa and Dali until the destruction of Dali...
The leader of the tribe of Uzzah was named All, and he was seventy-three years old.
When he was still an infant, he was lost in the wilderness due to war and survived by sucking mulberry moss blown by the wind. In the eyes of the tribe of Uzzah, Ale was a king protected by the gods.
Later facts also proved this point. Ale revitalized the Ussa tribe and maintained the stability of the tribe until the destruction of Dali...
The Mongols moved south, bringing a new destiny to everyone in the southwest.
Ale and his eldest son Leyu were unwilling to surrender to the Mongols.
When Wuliang Hetai attacked Shu, he attacked and plundered the city of Usa tribe, so A'le had to move to the Nairn Mountains to avoid the Wuchi Road.spanstyle>Valley/spanstyle>
On the eighth day of April, Le Yu led the people to carry two boxes and placed them in front of Al, saying: "Father, the Miao people from Sanjiazhai sent us a gift, saying that a Song official and Dali Gao family wanted to see us."
He opened the bag and found a piece of fine cloth inside, porcelain cried.
Al sat there, seemingly drowsy, and asked in an old voice: "What do they want?"
"They were fighting with the Mongols at Kedu Pass in the south, and they wanted help from the Ussa tribe."
Al didn't speak for a long time, seemingly lost in distant memories.
When he was young, he led his people to fight against the four coalition forces. He fought forty-seven battles, and won forty-three of them. He was regarded as a hero in this world.
But in his later years, when he met the Mongols, he realized that the Mongols were truly good at fighting.
"Father?" Le Yu asked again.
"Song people? Song people can't control the mountains... The Gao family in Dali is no longer as majestic as it used to be. We don't need to see them. We can't let them bring the flames of war to the mountains of Usa again."
Le Yu said: "What about these gifts?"
"The gifts stay, but the people drive them out."
Leyu was a little disappointed, thinking that Ale was old and had lost his usual ambition.
His idea was different from Al's. After Al's death, he needed to succeed as the king of Uzzah. He urgently needed to establish his own prestige and lead his people out of the current predicament.
Therefore, Ale is also unwilling to surrender to Mongolia. What he wants is to keep his people safe; Leyu wants to fight a few victorious battles first, firstly to convince the people, and secondly, even if he surrenders in the future, he can exchange for more soldiers.
benefit.
Of course, this is a matter for the future for him. For the time being, he is still inclined to unite with people from Song and Dali.
Le Yu thought for a while and said: "The Miao people said that the Song official is... Hades."
"Hades?"
Al opened his eyes.
A very important reason why Yi and Miao can coexist in the Wuman land is "witchcraft".
The Yi people are pan-god worshipers and believe that "all things are animistic and show witchcraft". Various ghosts and gods dominate the world. Only by believing in ghosts and gods can the race not decline...
When Le Yu saw his father open his eyes, he took two steps forward and whispered: "Tong Si of Kuixiang Miao Village said... that the Han official is the reincarnation of Pluto, who came to save the world from the cruelty of the Mongols. She said that human beings
After death, the soul will leave the body and go to another world...just as the priest said."
“How could Hades be reincarnated as a Han?”
"But she cured Mabo Awei's apathy, and the Miao people in Sanjiazhai all believed that the Han official was the King of Hades."
Ale didn't speak, he just opened and closed his lips.
Leyu added: "Father, that Han official is not only the King of Hades, but also the son-in-law of Gao Taihe... Also, Wu Liang Hetai was killed by him."
"What's his name?"
"The Chinese name is 'Li Xia'..."
at the same time.
"Is Feiyu confident in persuading Ale?" Gao Qiong asked: "After all, my uncle and father have been defeated and died. Even my cousin will find it difficult to let the Usa tribe serve again."
"Yes." Li Xia said.
He looked up at the mountains and whispered: "Ale, who was abandoned in the wild since childhood and lived by sucking mulberry moss, needs another myth to regain the confidence of his people..."