Qiuci (now Kuqa) is more than 800 miles away from Gaochang, and its name is 900 miles.
The city was sixteen or seven miles in circumference and was once the largest country from the west of Gaochang to Congling. The Anxi Protectorate governed this area and commanded 24,000 to 30,000 soldiers from the four towns.
In the Tang Dynasty, the four towns of Anxi were generally stable, with the exception of Yanqi, which was once replaced by Suiye, Qiuci, Shule, and Khotan, and their status had never changed.
When Li Shengtian left Gaochang and returned to Qiuci, it was already October.
Without hesitation, he immediately organized a withdrawal and returned to Khotan.
On the third day of October, 20,000 Khotanese troops returned to Khotan with the looted goods and some prisoners.
Nearly four thousand people remained behind, waiting for the Xia army to come and take them over.
It was not that no one raised objections, thinking that they had finally taken advantage of the chaos to seize Qiuci and occupy it as the land of Khotan, but they were all rejected by Li Shengtian.
He knows very well that the Sage of Daxia may reward you with treasures, women, and titles, but it is unlikely that he will reward you with land, especially if he plans to rule it himself, the possibility is even smaller.
Qiuci is destined to have no relationship with Khotan. Moreover, it is separated by a desert, the transportation is inconvenient, the road is long, and it is not easy to rule.
The reasons given by Li Shengtian left everyone speechless. Especially those who wanted to be King of Qiuci were extremely disappointed.
Ordinary soldiers thought it was nothing, and were even a little happy.
In this expedition, there was no tough battle, there were not many casualties, and a lot of things were robbed. It can be said that it was a great harvest.
Big people have the same worries as big people. Their appetites are too big. Little people only need three melons and two dates in their pockets. It is enough to improve their lives and make their wives and children happy when they return home.
The day after the Khotan army left, on the fourth day of October, Yang Liang led more than 5,000 mounted infantrymen of the Feilong Army to Kucha and took over the defense.
He took people on a tour first, and then he couldn't stand it any longer.
"Li Shengtian is such a bastard, he's so good at plundering!" Yang Liang cursed as he looked at the treasury that was almost emptied.
Then looking at the surrounding people with their bare houses, they became even more furious.
Fortunately, the Khotanese people still have some conscience. The food has not been moved and has been left behind, and all the livestock have not been taken away. Otherwise, it would be a problem for the Feilong Army and others to eat - maybe the Khotanese people's carriages are used to carry wealth.
They had to leave goods and slaves. The food was too bulky and of low value, so they had no choice but to keep it. It was not because they had good intentions.
"Recruiting people who have no food and clothing, and allow them to work for relief, and repair the city first." Yang Liang looked at the dilapidated city wall and was speechless.
He very much doubted whether the city had not been properly repaired since the Tubo era, leading to it being in such a dilapidated state.
"Zhenzheng, there are many ditches that are blocked and it's time to clear them." A civil servant accompanying the army said.
Before Yang Liang set out, he was appointed as the military envoy of Qiuci Town, so he was called "the envoy of the town".
"How many people are there in Kucha?" Yang Liang couldn't help but ask.
He still has ambitions and many ideas. He also wants to use Kucha as a supply base, fight all the way to the southwest, and destroy the lair of the so-called Great Uighur Kingdom. If Kucha is sparsely populated and the products are not abundant, then he still wants to kill a bird!
"During the Tianbao period, there should be no less than 200,000, but it's hard to say now. This place has experienced many wars and endless conquests, and it has been extremely depleted. Otherwise, the Uighurs who migrated westward would not be able to easily capture Yanqi and Qiuci." The literary official said: "Pang Teqin.
When I went west, I probably took away a lot of people, and then the Pugu family and the Yaoluoge family repeatedly fought. This time, Khotan made another evil move. I thought that if there were 100,000 people, I would burn high incense."
"So few..." Yang Liang was stunned.
"Anyway, those who need to check the household registration will know after a while." The official said: "Maybe the Uighur rule in Gaochang is rough, and the Hu Nong Pugu family here in Qiuci underreported the household registration? However, I thought that Qiuci was not concerned about it.
How many people are left? The top priority is to restore order, clean the ditches, and sow seeds as soon as possible. In this way, a large amount of food can be harvested in May and June next year."
"That makes sense." Yang Liang said, "This matter has to be handled by you guys. I will give you a group of people to ride to the villages to inspect and urge the people to replant winter wheat. Anyone who delays will be whipped directly."
He heard on the road that the four towns of Anxi generally complete all autumn sowing in late September. It is now early October, half a month late. He hopes it is too late.
Then he couldn't help but look to the southwest, which was the direction of Shule. He heard that it had been greatly influenced by Persia in recent years, and it was a completely different world.
I hope I can go there next year to “experience things”.
******
In Shule City, after waiting for a long time, Mujamizhida finally met the Great Khan Ogurchak.
It seemed that he had just suffered a defeat west of Congling, and Ogurchak was not in a good mood. He was eating mutton, gesturing with a meat cleaver, and asked: "You Persian monk, why don't you take good care of yourself in Gaochang?"
What are you doing here in Karasha?"
"Gaochang is dead." After a moment of silence, Mi Zhida said.
Ogurchak showed a funny look and said, "So you are a wild dog now?"
"No, my dog, I have a new owner." Mizhida said calmly.
Ogulchak was startled for a moment, then realized something and asked, "Did you vote for the Xia Kingdom?"
"Yes." Mi Zhida made no secret of it.
In fact, there is no point in hiding it. People have brains and make their own judgments.
"Master Xia is too greedy. The Central Plains is not enough, and he still wants to rule the grassland." Ogurchak suddenly became a little unhappy, snorted coldly, and said: "The grassland and the Central Plains are two different worlds."
"Didn't Emperor Taizong Li Shimin of the Tang Dynasty rule over the grassland?" Mi Zhida said: "The rise and fall of various forces is very common, isn't it? When the grassland has no owner, the emperor of the Central Plains can give orders to all directions."
"Do you still want to see Li Shimin again?" Ogurchak glared, his expression not very good.
"But it has already appeared." Mi Zhida reminded.
Ogulchak was silent.
No one wants to see the second Li Shimin, but what if he does appear?
Moreover, this Shao Shude had more capital than Li Shimin when he founded the country. Ogurchak only heard a rough mention of the situation in the Central Plains from the merchants. He had the impression that when the Xia Dynasty unified the world, there were more registered households than Li Shimin did at that time, so he
It may go further than Li Shimin, and it may be even more annoying.
"What does that person want to do?" Ogurchak asked as he ate the mutton again.
"It depends on what you want, Khan?" Mizhida asked without answering.
"What do you mean? Be clear." Ogurchak clapped his hands and ordered the servant to serve Mizhida.
Mi Zhida thanked him and then said: "The Emperor of Great Xia has consecrated the Lord of Khotan as the 'Great Treasure of Khotan', and he can also consecrate the Khan as the Loyal and Obedient King of Shule."
Ogurchak's movements slowed down.
"With this canonization, the sons of the Khan can inherit the title from generation to generation." Mizhida continued: "Have the three sons of the Khan grown up? Whoever you want to pass the throne to, just tell him, King Shule
The crown prince can be canonized together."
Ogurchak put down the meat cleaver and glanced at Mizhida.
This thief monk must have heard some rumors and came to sow discord. He wanted to mess up the Great Uighur Kingdom and then take the opportunity to attack and destroy it?
Mizhida looked at him firmly, not panicking at all.
Some strategies may seem very straightforward on the surface and not clever at all, but they often work. The reason is actually very simple: there are already problems within the party that falls prey to the scheme, and they are very serious. The reason why they have not exploded yet is because they were covered up.
go down, or compromise with each other, maintaining a fragile balance.
Is the problem serious in Shule? It is quite serious.
The Prince of Persia served as deputy khan and lived in a temple outside the city. He had a close relationship with Sartuk and helped him expand his power through preaching.
And Saturk also knew that many nobles might not be willing to take refuge with him under the roof and being monitored by his uncle. Even if they were willing, they would not believe it because they were afraid that they were spies who had infiltrated the group.
But some people are different. This is a new force within the Great Uighur Kingdom, a new force that is completely used by him, which is enough to compete with the traditional nobles under his uncle - those who still adhere to the tradition, Satu
Ke couldn't stand it and called them "old school", whom he wanted to get rid of quickly.
Did Ogulchak not notice? Of course not.
In fact, he had always had suspicions, otherwise he would not have sent someone to monitor his nephew.
As a Khan and a father, of course he hoped that his biological son would ascend to power, but later he discovered that some members of the royal family actually supported Sartuk, which made him more suspicious.
Therefore, as he grew older, he became more and more anxious in the past few years. He tried to attack his nephew several times, but was dissuaded, which made him even more frightened and angry.
The arrival of Mi Zhida today showed him another way to solve the problem.
As for canonization, it actually doesn't mean anything. Just keep your head down in name, but don't you still have to make the final decision on all matters in the country?
Thinking of this, he decided to try to talk to the Emperor of Xia Kingdom - it was just a talk. If the conditions were not satisfactory, he could turn his back and deny the person.
"I want to marry Princess Daxia for my son Dun Yu, how about that?" Ogulchak tried.
When Mizhida heard this, he was secretly happy. He knew that Ogurchak had taken the bait, so he said: "This is a great thing. It's just a woman. I think I won't be reluctant to part with it. If this thing is done, Dun Yu can do it."
Your Majesty, it will be a matter of course for you to inherit the throne of Khan in the future."
Ogurchak laughed.
Mi Zhida also laughed.
"By the way, there is something that the Great Khan needs to be careful about." After smiling, Mizhida straightened his face and said: "The Ghulam army in the hands of Satuk is brave and good at fighting, so the Great Khan has to guard against it."
Ogurchak's face became solemn and he asked: "Have you heard anything?"
Mizhida didn't hear anything, but he didn't mind adding some information to the uncle and nephew. He just heard him say: "There are rumors outside that Sartuk may raise an army to rebel and fight for the throne of Khan by force."
"How come I don't know?" Ogulchak was stunned.
"Rumors are not accurate. In short, the Great Khan should be prepared and don't be taken advantage of by villains." Mi Zhida said: "I will go back to Gaochang to meet the Saint and report the Great Khan's request to the Saint."
Ogulchak nodded slowly.
Although he was quite suspicious of his nephew, he really didn't expect that his stepson would be so decisive and dare to launch a military coup.
Mizhida reminded him that he probably didn't have any good intentions, and even the incident itself was false. But - it was right to take appropriate precautions.
Mizhida did not delay, and chatted with Ogurchak about Lingxi affairs again. After obtaining valuable information, he left that night.
After he left, news spread like wildfire in Shule City: the Khan's biological son Dunyu was going to marry the Princess of Daxia.
The news only fermented in a small area at first, but as time went by, it slowly began to spread among a larger group of people...