It's freezing rain outside, but it's as warm as spring inside.
Only a fool would want to go out for a walk in this damn weather. It’s perfect for writing.
"...Eighteen years ago, Xude Shaoyin Khan conquered the vast land of Qin. All the princes and nobles there rushed to kiss his boots and swear allegiance to him. Anyone whom the Khan considered trustworthy was honored.
Favored... Grand Governor of Shatuo, Ke Yong, Khan's dear brother, knowing for sure Khan's extraordinary talents and qualities of intelligence, stability, perseverance and bravery, before his death, he asked his heirs to assist Khan and unify the entire north."
"...Khan believed that the evil rule of Khitan and Bohai had no justice and mercy at all, so he prepared an army. This happened ten or twelve years ago, and the conquest began."
"...There is reason to believe that Anbajian (Abaoji)'s rule deviated from justice and justice, because he used unfair means to obtain the throne of the Khitan Kingdom. The entire country is declining day by day, and the people have reached the point where they can no longer live.
Launched an uprising. They were very angry and met the Xia Empire's army."
"The Khan mercifully pardoned many Khitan nobles and ordered a ban on robbing the Khitan people's property. He only took away Ambajan's beautiful Kortun. His integrity and wisdom are admirable, comparable to the greatest saints of the Creator.
.”
"...During the last period of the rule of Bohai Kingdom, there was no authoritative monarch. The people were oppressed and their anger was building up. The emperor was jealous of his prime minister and imprisoned him. This kind of treachery is chilling.
, the nobles are disloyal and unwilling to fight to the death against the Xia Empire's army."
"Shaoyin Khan sat on the throne of the Bohai Kingdom. The nobles knelt down and proclaimed themselves ministers and began to say congratulations. Ke Dun, written by Dazhen, danced a dance and was favored by the Khan. The Khan was fascinated by this woman.
What a happy noble and what a happy woman who gave up the idea of punishing the Bohai nobles!"
"...Khan was very ambitious and determined to conquer the south. Astrologers told Khan that this year was the tenth conjunction of three stars in the constellation Serpent, and he would definitely be able to win. The army prepared by Khan was unstoppable, and he won a great victory as scheduled - explain,
I have no intention of saying that these conquests were caused by the stars, for only the Creator can create all things."
"...Khan is determined to conquer the Changhe Kingdom, which is a thousand farsach away."
"...Khan has had enough of the Uighur insults."
"...Khan is obsessed with robbing, and he actually came to Ba Khan's place!"
After Tam finished writing a few pages, he quietly put them away because the leader of the mission, Mahamu, had already arrived in the courtyard outside.
"Another fruitless day." Sure enough, a moment later, Mahamu pushed the door open and shouted directly.
Tam put away the "forbidden book" and asked calmly: "Are you ready to return?"
"Are you ready?" Mahamu asked.
"Honestly, we should have a deeper understanding of the enemy's reality." Tam said.
"It's been more than three months, haven't you learned enough? A war has been fought," Mahamu said.
"For such a big country, three months is not enough. It will take at least three years."
"That's impossible." Mahamu smiled and said, "Have you thought about what to say when you go back?"
"You are Shahib Shahbad, you have more pressure."
Mahamu sighed after hearing this.
First of all, before the mission, many people in China were very opposed and believed that there would be no results.
Secondly, after entering the Xia Kingdom, they were intercepted by local officials and delayed for a long time.
Once again, they finally arrived in Chang'an, but they only met their emperor once. After a few hasty words, the emperor sent his officials to talk to them. But those officials were not enthusiastic, and there were always things like this and that.
The conditions under which we came out were also unacceptable.
To this day, Mahamu feels that the only thing he can accept is probably to execute Samani, because he participated in the coup of Karasha, which is the source of all struggles - according to the Xia people, this is the case.
All this made Mahamu feel that there was no point in staying any longer and there would be no results. The land beyond the river could only be settled by war until one party gave in.
But Tam's words made him think about the positive meaning of staying. Perhaps, learning more about Xia Kingdom's intelligence would have a very positive meaning for Grand Vizier's decision-making?
"How much do you know?" Mahamu sat down and asked.
During this period, Tam often took the Sogdian translator out for walks, even going as far as a city near Chang'an.
He talked to a lot of people and knew a lot of unknown things.
He observed Xia's climate, agriculture and transportation and wrote a report.
He went deep into the market to understand Xia's craftsmanship.
He tried every means to record the location of each province in the Xia Kingdom, the name of the governor, how many nobles there were, and how many people the nobles controlled.
He even entered the Nestorian church in Chang'an, pretended to be a Nestorian believer, and asked the clergy in the church how much they knew.
In short, his work was fruitful and Mahamu was very interested in it.
"I'll try my best to speak and you try to understand." Tam said directly without being polite.
Mahamu nodded.
"First, the peace of Xia Kingdom is not long, even shorter than ours. Therefore, they have a large number of nobles and soldiers with rich war experience. They are really good at fighting, not only in terms of courage, but also in professionalism.
knowledge and skills."
Mahamu listened carefully. Everyone knows how valuable military talents who have come from the war years are. He was proud that Persia had such a large number of outstanding talents, but who would have thought that there are also such outstanding talents in the far east?
Such a large number of professional military talents number in the hundreds of thousands.
"Second, the Xia Kingdom has a vast land and a large population. I can't know the exact number, but there is no doubt that it is several times that of ours. This means that they can recruit a large number of free people and serfs to the front line, and they have often
Do this."
This is indeed a headache, and Mahamu is also very worried.
Population means war potential. If the Xia Kingdom goes crazy, it can completely mobilize military personnel and materials from its eastern region to fight on the western border. As long as it is not afraid of causing domestic unrest and relies on the monarch's personal will to implement it, it is theoretically possible.
.
"The third and most important one is that there is no turmoil in the Xia Kingdom, and there are no commendable enemies outside. They can concentrate on doing what they want to do."
After hearing this, Mahamu stood up and walked around twice, then sat back down, frowning.
As expected of the advisor to Governor Bakhna, Tam indeed has a certain skill, a very sharp vision and a very precise attitude.
In fact, rebellions and foreign enemies seriously strained Bukhara's energy.
When the war in the most elite province of Khorasan continues, no one has the heart to fight in the east. The Grand Vizier decided to take the initiative to attack this year to eliminate the threat in one direction. This strategic decision has been criticized by many people, including the growing
Big Emir.
Internal rebellion has been a lingering nightmare since the Umayyad Dynasty. After all, Samandria actually started by suppressing rebellions or "rebellions", which is an absolute Achilles' heel.
"There is also the fourth item." Tam continued: "The Xia Emperor's prestige is very high, and no one questions every decision he makes. Can you imagine that when Yinsma Yi (the second monarch of Samandria)
What was the situation in the country when ) was still alive? Would anyone dare to rebel?"
"No." Mahamu shook his head subconsciously, and then sighed. He understood what Tam meant.
Xude Shaoyin Khan was the founding leader of the Xia Kingdom.
He built the army with his own hands and promoted the officials with his own hands. He was invincible and rarely made mistakes in the decisions he made. Over a period of thirty years, he eliminated one opponent after another. Such a person ruled
His power is top-notch and crushing. He will not have any opponents, his words will be respected by everyone, and the decisions he makes are comparable to the will of the Creator.
How to deal with such a person? Mahamu can't think of a way.
"Stay for another two months and leave during the New Year of Xia Kingdom." Tam suggested: "This is a very rare opportunity. We can take this opportunity to learn a lot about Xia Kingdom."
"Our money can only last until then." Mahamu said: "Then stay for another two months. During this period, you can collect information carefully, and I will try to meet the Emperor of Xia again."
"That's it." Tam nodded.
Mahamu came in a hurry and left in a hurry.
Tam sat still for a while, and after making sure no one disturbed him, he took out a pen and paper and began to write the manuscript of "The War Beyond the River".
"...Xude Shaoyin Khan was born when the auspicious stars met, which is consistent with the country's records. In history, such auspicious star conjunctions have only appeared three times. The first time, Alexander the Great was born. The second time
, the prophet Maimaiti came to the world. The third time, Shaoyin Khan came to the world."
"...I tried divination once to predict good and bad luck, and the result was: 'The seven planets herald the happiness that will appear, and hand over the keys to the universe to their owners.'"
"...The universe and the sun have become his slaves, and the times and the country are in his hands. The Xia Kingdom has ushered in such a powerful era, which is the misfortune of the surrounding countries and nations. Because the wolf will never change its nature until it is uprooted.
Sharp teeth. A snake will never change its bite until it smashes its head off.”
"When the camels climb the minarets and make noise, it is better for people to hide and not expose themselves. Unfortunately, our country is in a chaotic situation and does not do a good job of hiding itself."
"...The conditions for the birth of the Lord of the Stars are extremely stringent. He is the darling sent by the Creator to the world to rule mankind on his behalf. Some people may not believe it, but the love of the Creator sometimes benefits pagans and uses them to
Stir up your own lamb so that it will know when it has gone astray."
"...The first time I saw Shaoyin Khan, I was convinced of the results of my divination. The whip-like majesty made us kneel down, cross our hands on our chests, and bow our heads in worship. After standing up, we moved forward.
Take one step forward, kneel down, and bow again."
"...I dare to use my family reputation and my lifetime of knowledge and glory to swear that the Lord of the Stars does not belong to this world. Once you encounter it, you can only avoid it and wait silently for it to return to the embrace of the Creator. This is
The only way."
After writing these pages, Tam was in a daze for a long time.
It wasn't until the rain outside stopped that he woke up from a dream. After hurriedly closing the manuscript, he thought for a while, crossed out the main title "War outside the River" and added the subtitle "Hu Da's Whip".
, became the main book title.
There were times when he felt that he had become a fanatical supporter of the "Lord of the Stars" even though he was hurting his own country.
This book—maybe it will become a banned book.
I need to write more copies, including Persian, Sogdian, Dashiyu and even Turkic versions.
Starting tomorrow, we will resume learning the language and writing of Xia.
