There is a grassland in the western Sichuan Plateau called Muya Grassland, where yaks live.
In late July, the grassland was full of Gesang flowers, and a ray of sunshine shone on the top of the snow-capped mountains in the distance, dyeing the snow-capped mountains golden.
This "sunshine golden mountain" scene was extremely gorgeous, but Dejimeduo was already accustomed to it. He walked to the river with the bucket without raising his head to look at it.
She struggled to carry the water back to the bunker and feed the livestock. Her little daughter had already woken up and was following behind her holding a worn wooden spoon to help scoop out the water.
Dejimedo then asked his daughter: "Is your brother feeling better?"
"Much better, I slept soundly."
Dejimedo then clasped his hands together and murmured: "The White Yak God bless my little son."
“Aniang, is it really a white yak?”
"Yes, the incarnation of the White Yak God." Dejimedo said, "The first leader of our tribe is the son of the White Yak God."
"I know, Julesji."
The little girl raised her hands happily, then tilted her head and asked, "Can you tell me the story of Rulayjie?"
"During the seventh generation of Zampu in Tubo, the treacherous minister Luoang Dazi killed Zampu and exiled the princess. The princess wandered on the grassland. After falling asleep, she dreamed of having sex with a handsome man in a white robe. She became pregnant.
At full term, she was chased by traitors and gave birth to a squirming blood clot. She couldn't bear to throw it away. At this moment, a white yak came and dropped its horns."
"Then what?"
"The princess put the blood clots into the horns of the yak and fed them with milk. Later, a boy was born from the horns, named 'Rulaijie', which means born from the horns. When Rulaijie grew up, he got rid of the treacherous minister
Loang Datse calmed down the civil strife."
"Then what?"
"Ru Laijie was the most powerful and wise minister of Tibet. He taught the world how to burn wood to make charcoal, smelt iron, divert water to burn fields, build bridges and pave roads, and the most important farming method of two oxen pulling a bar."
"That's awesome, can I meet him?"
"Silly boy." Dejimedo touched his daughter's head and said: "Ju Laijie lived in the age of the eighth generation of Zampu, and now he is the thirty-sixth generation of Zampu. Think about it, how long was that?
Before?"
"A long time ago, are we the descendants of Juleji?"
Dejimedo said very piously: "The white yak is the manifestation of Yala Xianbo, one of the nine sacred mountains in creation. We are all descendants of the sacred mountain."
"The white yak will protect my brother..."
After feeding the livestock, the mother and daughter went back to the house to eat tsampa noodles.
Dejimedo's husband, named Luo Zhui, is not at home today. He took some items to the White Dog Department in the northeast to do business a few days ago.
Nowadays, Tubo and Tang Dynasty are still at war, and these trades are not allowed. But recently, their youngest son has become ill, and his skin is covered with red spots. They have tried everything possible, but nothing has improved. The couple has not recovered yet.
The people discussed it and decided to take advantage of the current lack of access to merchants to sell the two horses at home and exchange them for tea leaves to give to the great master to treat his son's illness.
They knew that the White Dog Department had always had a good relationship with the Tang people, so Luo Zhui quietly went over there.
That day, Dejimeduo smeared tsampa on his youngest son's face, boiled the highland barley grits into a paste and let him drink it.
"Is anyone there?!" A voice suddenly sounded outside.
"The leader is here."
Dejimedo quickly wiped his hands on his apron and went out to greet them. He saw the leader Zhujie Gonpo leading many people standing outside.
"Why doesn't Luo Zhui come out?" Zhujie Gonpo asked, "I want to find him if I have something good to do."
"He...he went hunting."
"Let him come back quickly. A minister from our tribe is looking for him."
Zhujie Gonpo held a booklet in his hand and was flipping through it.
This is called the "Red Book", which is the result of this generation of Tubo King Chi Dai Zhu Dan reorganizing the military system.
Chidaizhudan was the marriage partner of Princess Jincheng. He was a talented and ambitious Tubo Zampu. He reformed the official system, rectified the finances, checked the Tubo soldiers, expanded the size of the army, and issued "tickets" to all adult men.
", to mobilize troops and horses at any time to start a war with the Tang army. Facing the prosperous Tang Dynasty, Chidaizhudan was unwilling to be inferior to others, and successively won over the Xiaobolu Kingdom and Nanzhao, and fought with the Tang army several times, with both sides winning and losing.
.
Today, the situation in Tubo is similar to that of the Tang Dynasty. Under the high-pressure governance of the wise monarch, the country is strong and strong. At the same time, the crisis caused by the aggressive military force is beginning to appear.
"Luo Zhui...has been found!" Zhujie Gong said: "Recruit Luo Zhui to serve as the minister's guide."
"What?"
Dejimedo was stunned for a moment and said quickly: "Chief, Luo Zhui is disabled! He broke his hand in Qiandiao City."
Qian Diao City is very close to here. Two years ago, the Tang army's commander-in-chief Guo Xuji led his army to attack Qian Diao City. The Tubo Prime Minister mobilized his troops to attack, but was defeated by the Tang army. If there had not been trouble in Nanzhao, Guo Xuji would have died.
Perhaps the Tang army had already invaded the territory of the Yak tribe.
"After such a long time, the injury should be healed." Zhujie Gongbo said: "Everyone in the tribe has discussed that Luo Zhui has been to Nanzhao before, so he should be allowed to be a guide."
"But he only went there once, and our child was sick..."
"When Luo comes back, let him set off immediately!"
Dejimedo still wanted to beg, hoping that her man would not have to leave again. But Zhujie Gonpo refused to listen to her, waved his hand, settled the matter, and turned around to leave.
~~
There are many large tents set up on the grassland full of Gesang flowers.
Two Tibetan ministers were discussing in the tent.
"Looking at the meaning of Ge Luofeng's letter, it is obvious that he does not want to surrender to Tubo."
"His ambition has always been obvious. He wants to establish his own country. The king wants to make him his younger brother, but I'm afraid he may not be willing to accept it."
"If you don't want to be the royal brother of Tubo, there is always no problem in getting married."
"Something went wrong, look at this. The news from Chang'an traveled thousands of miles before it was delivered to me. The plan to send people to pick up Feng Jiayi failed, and Feng Jiayi died in Chang'an."
"Then princess?"
"Ge Luofeng has three sons. In addition to Feng Jiayi, there is also Duo Chuan. King Asi ordered the princess to continue south and marry Duo Chuan."
"But according to my guess, Ge Luofeng will definitely pass the throne to his grandson."
The Tibetan minister with a higher official position was named Lun Ruozan. He stroked his beard and thought, and said: "It doesn't matter. When the Tang army attacks Taihe City, Ge Luofeng will negotiate terms with us."
Lun Ruozan was born in the Gar clan of a powerful Tubo family. Although he was young, he had considerable power. At this time, all he could think about was how to make the princess the queen of Nanzhao.
"The Tang army will definitely attack Geluofeng..."
Suddenly, someone rushed outside the tent and reported: "Two ministers, it's bad, the princess ran out."
~~
"What are you doing?"
The little girl lying on the ground heard a question with a cold voice. She opened her eyes and saw a heroic and beautiful girl standing there looking at her. Her eyes lit up and she said, "Sister, you are so beautiful."
After sighing, she remembered to answer the question.
"I'm waiting for the white yak."
"Why?"
"The white yak is the incarnation of the gods. It can protect my grandfather from leaving me. I don't want him to be drafted..."
Although the girl standing there looked beautiful, her expression was very cold. After hearing this, her tone became more and more serious, and she said: "What you should do is to be more independent, instead of asking your grandpa to always guard you."
"But……"
"There is no but, if Tubo wants to become more powerful, all men must obey the command."
The little girl was stunned for a moment, feeling the coldness, and couldn't help crying.
"Crying?" Instead of comforting her, the stern girl shouted: "Cry somewhere where there is no one. The troops will arrive soon. Don't lie here and get in the way."
"Woooooooo..."
The little girl then ran away wiping her tears.
The stern-looking woman got on her horse and climbed onto a hill not far away, looking at the Yak Tribe recruiting troops.
Gradually, she made a decision in her heart.
Soon, several people came galloping on horseback.
Lun Ruozan got off his horse and stepped forward first to salute and call out: "Princess."
"I will not leave." Nalanzhen said, "I will obey my father's order and marry to Nanzhao. You can rest assured about this."
"I thought the princess wouldn't agree."
Nalanzhen turned around and saw that there was no one else around Lun Ruozan. It was a rare opportunity to talk, so she asked, "Can I trust you?"
Lun Ruozan was stunned and lowered his head, not daring to look into those cold and beautiful eyes.
"I would rather die than betray the princess."
"Okay." Nalanzhen said, "I didn't want to leave my father's side at that time because I sensed that some of the nine ministers wanted to plot rebellion."
"Princess, are you going to let me down my guard and find another chance to escape?"
"You don't believe me either. If I wanted to escape, I would just escape."
Lun Ruozan lowered his voice and said: "Wang Xiongcai has a rough plan, who would dare to have different intentions? It must be the Tang army who carefully spread the rumors of alienating the king and the nine ministers. The princess must not fall into the trap. It is better not to mention this matter in the future."
Nalanzhen said: "Qinghai is using troops, Nanzhao is also using troops, and the army around father is empty. In this way, I promise to follow you to Nanzhao. You write a letter home to your grandpa and ask him to keep an eye on the nine ministers.
.”
"Princess really won't run away again?"
"We've all come this far." Nalanzhen said calmly, "There is no way back."
Within a few words, other knights arrived, and the two stopped talking. Nalanzhen took the reins and returned directly to the tent.
Lun Ruozan looked at her back, his eyes not moving away for a long time.
~~
The sun sets slowly over the snow-capped mountains, and the tribesmen on the grassland are still busy.
Suddenly a horse came running back, and the knight on the horse still had an arrow feather stuck in his body.
"Look, chief!"
Zhujie Gonpo heard the call and rushed out. He recognized that this was a tribesman who went out to buy salt with his son. He quickly stepped forward and pushed away the others, asking: "Where is my son?"
"Chief, we met Luo Zhui. He was leading the Tang Dynasty's caravan and wanted to... want to kill us."
"Where is my son?!"
"Dead...dead."
Zhujie Gonpo couldn't believe it, but the scene in front of him no longer allowed him to disbelieve.
He stood there with a sullen face digesting the news, then suddenly ran home, took out a single knife, and headed straight for Luo Zhui's house.
Soon, roars, begging for mercy, persuasion, and loud cries resounded from the grassland... The chaos lasted for a while, and Zhujie Gonpo had ordered people to tie up Dejimeduo and her two children and wanted to kill them.
They sacrificed his son.
"Chief, please slow down, we haven't found Luo Zhui yet."
"Yes, if we kill him now, Luo Zhui will have no scruples..."
Everyone in the tribe was discussing when they suddenly saw a group of knights arriving, but it was Lun Ruozan and his personal entourage.
A relative came forward on horseback and asked what happened. Lun Ruozan listened and said, "Let them hand over these criminals to us."
"Minister, her husband killed my son!"
"They are also the subjects of Tubo and the king's property." Lun Ruo praised: "Who allowed you to dispose of it?!"
Zhujie Gonpo was extremely dissatisfied with this, but in desperation, he had no choice but to hand him over.
Lun Ruozan looked calm and took Dejimedo and her children back to the camp.
He thought for a while and went to Nalanzhen's tent in person to explain what happened.
"Princess, I remember that your maid died of illness on the way here. I was thinking that if you need someone to serve you..."
"This is the internal affairs of the Yak Tribe. You should not interfere." Nalanzhen said through the curtain: "The leader of the Yak Tribe died his son, and you didn't even give him a chance to take revenge. Just because of your pitiful kindness.
, can’t you even tell which one is light and which is heavy?”
Lun Ruozan was stunned, a little embarrassed, and asked: "Then...shall I send the person back again?"
"Where is the majesty of the king?" Nalanzhen said: "Let's set off as soon as possible."
"Here..."
The next day, this team of Tibetan envoys prepared to continue their journey south.
Zhujie Gonbu watched the team go away and had nothing to do about Dejimedo being taken away. Fortunately, he knew that the road to Nanzhao was dangerous and it was impossible for these women and children to arrive alive.
For him, the most important thing right now is to find Luo Zhui and avenge his son.
~~
Heading east from the Yak Division, bypassing the towering snow-capped mountains and passing through dangerous passages, you can faintly hear the sound of rushing water.
That is the Dadu River. The mountains are high, the cliffs are dangerous, the river is deep, and the water is fast.
"Chief, over there!"
The body fell below the cliff.
Several tribesmen finally climbed down with ropes and brought the body up. Zhujie Gonpo looked at it and avoided it for a moment, and then looked at the body with wide eyes.
The cliff was not low, the body had been broken, and three arrows were stuck in the chest.
Zhujie Gonpo was in great mourning. He leaned down and pulled out the arrow from his son's back with his own hands. The arrow pulled at his son's flesh and blood gushed out. But as a father, he could not gushing out at this time.
tear.
Several other people were shot dead together with his son, but all the arrows on their bodies had been pulled out. Only his son's body fell under the cliff and there were still arrows left.
The arrow is very heavy and the arrowhead is tempered to be extremely sharp.
Did the guards carried by Tang Shang, whom Luo Zhui helped lead the way, actually have such sharp weapons?
"Cross the river and go have a look."
There is no bridge on the Dadu River, so you can only cross the river by boat where the current is gentle.
Zhujie Gongbu originally just wanted to follow the traces of Luo Zhui. However, after he crossed the Dadu River and walked for a while, he found that the footprints in the valley were messy and the vegetation blocking the road had been split open.
"That's not right. Why did the business traveler go this way?"
Doubts arose in his mind, and when he carefully observed the traces left by that group of people, he became even more surprised.
Judging from this sign, there were actually thousands of people passing by, and at least thousands of people. Counting the excrement left by the horses, it was even harder to tell how many people there were.
How does this look like a caravan?
~~
In the river valley, teams are marching in an endless stream.
Because there was another narrow road ahead, only one person could pass, and the speed slowed down again.
Xue Bai also stopped, scratched his legs, and leaned against the stone wall to rest for a while.
There were several shouts in the distance, and when I looked up, I could see the branches and leaves in the crown of the tree shaking a few times.
From his perspective, the movement was very small, but in fact there was another confrontation over there.
After a while, Li Sheng squeezed in from behind, nodded and smiled when passing Xue Bai, and ran towards Wang Zhongsi.
When Ge Shuhan was in Chang'an, he wanted to persuade Xue Bai to go to Longyou. One time after drinking, he sent Li Sheng to escort Xue Bai. The two chatted for a while and mentioned that Li Sheng killed the enemy general on the city wall with one arrow and won "ten thousand".
The title of "human enemy".
He was indeed not lying. During this march, almost all his arrows were in vain.
Of course, in this kind of terrain, if the enemy is standing outside the shooting range, there is nothing he can do.
At this time, Li Sheng rushed to Wang Zhongsi, performed a military salute and said: "I met the Tibetan tribesmen and shot four of them, but two of them were too far away and could not be pursued."
"Fleeing north?"
"yes."
"Keep exploring."
They were walking on the territory of Tubo, and there were many people and horses. It was of course impossible to completely block the movement. But they were going to attack Nanzhao, so as long as the news did not spread southward, it would be fine.
Generally speaking, no tribesmen who saw the Tang army would think of running to Nanzhao to report the news.
As for the Tibetan encirclement, under such a terrain, it would be difficult for the Tibetans to mobilize their troops to surround them in a short period of time... unless they happened to encounter a group of Tibetan troops blocking the front.
What really worries Wang Zhongsi is the attrition and baggage on the road.
Seeing that the team would not be able to pass this narrow road for a while, he called his staff and guides over.
While waiting, Wang Zhongsi shook his head and tried to regain his consciousness.
Ever since he entered the mountains of western Sichuan, he had always felt uncomfortable and suffered from severe dizziness and nausea.
There were many people with the same symptoms as him. Everyone thought that they were hit by the miasma just after setting off, and their morale plummeted. However, Xue Bai said that it was called "altitude sickness" and that it would gradually get better. Whether it was good or not, they could only grit their teeth and keep walking, but
Morale has become somewhat stable.
"Come on."
Wang Zhongsi turned around and saw that everyone had arrived, except for the Tibetan guide who had been conquered and was resting on the other side. He then said: "We haven't crossed the Dadu River yet. Even if we are discovered by the Tubo people, they can't do anything."
But once we cross the river, the situation will be different. When do you think it is appropriate to cross the river?"
"The timing of crossing the river is critical. If we cross the river too late, the Tibetans may discover us. If we cross the river too early, marching on the west bank of the Dadu River will be far less safe than on the east bank."
It was Yan Wu who spoke first.
He did not have any "altitude sickness" and remained awake. He added: "In my opinion, instead of deciding where to cross the river, it is better to watch the reaction of the Tibetan people..."
On this trip south, the Tang army had to cross many rivers, among which the two largest ones were the Dadu River and the Jinsha River.
The Dadu River first flows from north to south in this section of the Western Sichuan Plateau, then turns eastward after passing through Shimian County, and merges into the Minjiang River all the way east.
As far as Xue Bai knew, it was at the bend of the river that there was a suitable place to cross the river... He remembered that it was there that Shi Dakai failed to cross the river and was destroyed.
"Let's cross the river here." Xue Bai then took out the map and pointed at it with his finger, but he couldn't name the place.
Gao Shi couldn't help but be curious and asked: "Why?"
“It’s easy to cross the river here.”
"How did Xue Lang know?"
"I saw it while looking through the files in the Youxiang Mansion."
"Is there such a literary calf in the Youxiang Mansion?"
Under Wang Zhongsi's rule, Xue Bai's plans were different. He often directly gave a result and explained the reasons, but he always came true. This made the officers and soldiers in the army extremely surprised, and they were astonished.
Yan Wu refused to obey others, but only obeyed Xue Bai. He originally had a lot of analysis about crossing the river, but now he had to give up and said: "I second Xue Lang's opinion."
Wang Zhongsi asked the Shu commander in the army: "How far are we from here?"
He pointed to the bend of the Dadu River on the map.
The guide shook his head and said: "I have walked on the Tea Horse Road, but the road that Jieshuai took is very popular. It is difficult for me to estimate, for fear of missing the military plane."
Wang Zhongsi said: "Call the Tibetan guide."
After a while, a Tubo man in his thirties was brought over. This man's left hand was half broken. It was Luo Zhui. At this time, his face was full of sorrow and his eyes were full of worry.
"I've met the general." Luo Zhui's accent was thick, but he could still be understood in Chinese.
Wang Zhongsi pointed to the map again and asked: "Can I cross the river here?"
Luo Zhui did not answer immediately, his eyes flickered a few times, and finally he nodded and said: "That is the best place to cross the river, but you must have a boat."
"Are there any boats nearby?"
"The Si tribe on the south coast may have a few boats, but I'm not sure."
"How far do we have to go there?"
"Two hundred miles."
"Okay, continue leading the way."
Luo Zhui was reluctant.
He wanted to put forward conditions just now, but he calmed down and showed his value first, then said: "We agreed, I will lead the way for you, and you will give me tea and medicine."
"That's right." Wang Zhongsi said, "You take us here to cross the river, and I will keep my word."
"My tribe, my wife and children are on the other side. You promised to let me go back first, but you ended up killing my leader's son." Luo Zhui said: "Now I am very worried about my family and I can't safely lead the way for you..."
"Unruly!"
Guan Chongsi immediately cursed and strode forward, wanting to teach Luo Zhui a lesson, but Wang Zhongsi stopped him.
"Jie Shuai." Guan Chongsi echoed: "The road is just going down the river. This barbarian has a different intention. He can't be kept, let alone let him go. It's better to kill him."
"You don't have to worry about it." Wang Zhongsi scolded and chased Luo: "I ask you again, do you really not want to lead the way?"
"I did all this for my son. I don't trust him now and will never move forward."
"Well, you tell my guide the specific route and go back with the things you want."
"real?"
"Leave now, or I will kill you if you are too late."
Luo Zhui was about to leave. Seeing this situation, many of the generals were puzzled and asked Wang Zhongsi: "General, aren't you worried that if the news gets out about him, the Tubo tribe will come after him?"
"I have my own sense of proportion."
Wang Zhongsi glanced at Li Sheng and didn't explain much.
Even Xue Bai didn't understand this matter until Dang had a few words with Li Sheng.
"I have discovered that people from the Yak Division are following behind. Commander Jie deliberately let Luo Zhui go."
"That's good. I still act like a charismatic commander because I'm soft-hearted."
"Compassion does not command troops, and commander-in-chief is never soft-hearted." Li Sheng said, "The Yak tribe has discovered us anyway, so why not deliberately reveal the news and let them know where we are crossing the river and let them prepare the boat..."