If the Hexi Corridor is compared to a belt that maintains the Central Plains and the Western Regions, then Dunhuang County is the iron buckle on this belt, or it is the throat leading to the Central Plains of the Western Regions, and it plays an important strategic position in the entire Western Regions.
Dunhuang County is also a very strange area. When other counties in the Western Regions were swept by Xianbei, Rouran, and other grassland cavalry and gradually transformed into Hu, Dunhuang County still maintained its powerful Han culture, as if it was in a vast world.
An oasis in the desert.
At this time, Dunhuang County was still controlled by the remnants of the Daliang Kingdom. Li Gui's clan brother Li Zhaojin has been appointed as the governor of the Shazhou of the Daliang Kingdom. After the demise of the Daliang Kingdom, Li Zhaojin had decided to surrender to the Tang Dynasty, but this
At that time, news of Li Gui being killed in Chang'an came, and Li Zhaojin changed his mind and proclaimed himself the King of Dunhuang. He proposed the conditions for surrender to the Tang Dynasty. He was willing to surrender, but he still wanted to maintain his army and territory.
The Tang court could not accept such conditions, and the negotiations between the two sides were in a deadlock. At this time, the Tang Dynasty was doing its best to wipe out the Western Qin State, which made Dunhuang County temporarily quiet.
In November, Dunhuang's cold wind was howling, sandstorms were long, and the harsh cold left the ground without vitality, as if the stones were about to freeze and crack. Dunhuang entered the severe winter, and the Silk Road, which was busy with commerce in the past, became deserted, and it was no longer possible.
There was no sign of the caravan, and the merchants went home to rest, waiting for the arrival of spring.
But in this bitter cold wind, the pleasant jingle of camel bells faintly came. Under the dim sky, there was indeed a group of camels braved the cold wind and sandstorm and trek towards Dunhuang City with difficulty, in the vast vast
The ground seems particularly vibrant.
"General Li, how far is it from Dunhuang City? I can't hold on." In the wind and sand, a young man with a guy looked like a man lay on a camel and shouted loudly.
Li Zhengwei was their leader, a man in his thirties, with a burly figure and a well-defined face. Under his thick and thick eyebrows, his eyes were bright and sharp, revealing the perseverance of a man.
.
His name is Li Shatuo, and he is the second son of Li Jing's brother Li Duan. He has been following his uncle Li Jing for many years. He has been promoted from a soldier to a scout Dujilang General. This time he followed Su Dingfang to fight for Dunhuang. He was ordered to contact his relatives in Dunhuang.
The Sui faction, which is some forces that Yang Fuyuan and Luqing stayed in Dunhuang County.
He brought twenty subordinates to pretend to be a caravan from Chang'an and bought more than a dozen camels in Yumen County, with Guan coal from the Tang Dynasty on his body. It was Li Shatuo's first time to come to Dunhuang, but he
After staying in Fengzhou for many years, he was able to adapt to this harsh windy weather. He looked at the sky and couldn't see the time, but it was probably almost evening. He asked the guide next to him loudly, "Uncle Maguo, Dunhuang City is still there.
How far is it?"
The guide was named Ma Guo. He was an old man in his sixties and had half of his Han ancestry. He used to be a businessman who traveled around the Hexi Corridor all year round and knew the terrain and climate of this area. He was found by Su Dingfang's army as a guide.
Ma Guo laughed and said, "If you walk a few more miles, you can see the outline of the city."
Everyone walked a few miles and saw the outline of a city vaguely... The twenty subordinates cheered and walked in the wind and sand for nearly half a month, and finally saw the destination of their trip.
The investigation of Dunhuang City was much more relaxed than the Sui army thought. The soldiers guarding the city only took a brief look at the closing discs and let them into the city.
Compared with the cold wind outside the city and the uninhabited, there is a different scene in Dunhuang City. The streets are crowded and bustling. There are many shops shouting loudly, and many vendors are placing on both sides of the street. I got street stalls and sold food and handicrafts, blocking both sides of the road. Many carriages were struggling to walk, and the coachman was shouting loudly.
The group of people walked slowly on the streets with camels. Everyone felt the excitement of returning to the world and feeling this kind of lively life like a different world. There was no big difference between this place and the Central Plains, whether it was architecture or The human face is a big city in the Central Plains. Some foreign faces that appear by chance make them suddenly realize that this is actually the Western Regions, which is thousands of miles apart from the Central Plains.
Li Shatuo settled his subordinates in an inn, so he hurried to the south of the city alone. In the south of the city, after several inquiries, he found the Shen Mansion, a black gate mansion... In the Central Plains, there is no such thing as the Shen family. The big people with titles are not allowed to have gatehouses, but in Dunhuang, there is no such restriction. Li Shatuo even saw two stone lions at the door. This is a sign in front of the government and the powerful mansion, and the Shen family actually has one.
Li Shatuo walked up the steps and bowed to an old man who was sweeping the floor and said, "Please tell your master, just say that there are guests in Zhongyuan who are visiting."
The old man looked at him, turned around and slowly entered the mansion. After a moment, a man who looked like a housekeeper came out, smart and capable. He smiled and said, "Is this gentleman looking for the Shen family?"
"I was sent by the third young master, so I'm here to send a letter."
"Three Young Master?" The housekeeper read it twice, suddenly realized it, and hurriedly said, "Please go to the mansion first."
The housekeeper invited Li Shatuo into the mansion, pulled his feet and ran towards the inner house. After a while, a middle-aged man in a brocade robe, accompanied by several family members, walked out quickly and was so excited that he kept shouting. Question: "Where is the sender?"
This man is Chen Chun's father Chen Dongren. Since his elder brother Chen Wanchun passed away last year, because his elder brother had no son, he has become the head of the Shen family in Dunhuang. Chen Chun is his third son and left home Many years ago, I wrote a letter from my family three years ago saying that I was working in Fengzhou, and now I finally got news again.
Chen Dongren also heard about the great changes in the Central Plains. The Fengzhou army had occupied Hedong and established a new Sui Dynasty, which made him even more eager for news about his son.
Li Shatuo stepped forward and bowed, "Sir, is the father of Chen Zongjun? I mean Chen Chunchen Zongjun."
"That's right! That's right!"
Chen Dongren heard that his son had been engaged in military affairs and laughed happily. Li Shatuo took out a letter and handed it to Chen Dongren, and said with a smile: "Li Shatuo is a colleague of the son."
"Oh! It turns out it was Li Envoy."
Chen Tongren heard that Zhili was not an ordinary sender, and quickly said politely: "Envoy Li, please go to the inner hall together to speak."
Chen Dongren invited Li Shatuo into the inner hall and ordered people to serve tea. Although they were in the distant Western Regions, they still maintained the customs of the Southern Dynasty, and the tea leaves were also transported from the far south.
After reading his son's letter, Chen Tongren looked a little solemn, and his eyes were flashing with joy and suspicion. He was the son of Shen Xuanshuan. There were four brothers in total, and there was a youngest sister. Her sister Qiuniang married Zhang Zhongsu, the general of Chen Dynasty. Shortly after the demise of the Chen Dynasty, their father raised an army to rebel against the Sui Dynasty, but was suppressed by the slaughter. His father and his elder brother died tragically, his mother committed suicide, and the three brothers and their families were exiled to Dunhuang. More than twenty years passed in a flash.
Unexpectedly, the Shen family did not improve. Instead, their sister Qiuniang became Yang Huiyuan Huiqing's wet nurse. Her daughter was born and married to Yang Huiyuan Huiqing. She is now the concubine of the King of Chu, which has revived the Shen family again. The opportunity made him excited and it was difficult to calm down for a long time.
Chen Tongren saw the last letter and then realized the identity of the sender in front of him. He glanced at Li Shatuo and quickly bowed and apologized, "It turns out to be General Li, I'm disrespectful."
Li Shatuo smiled slightly, "How likely is the Sui army to seize Dunhuang?"
"This is hard to say!"
Chen Dongren sighed slightly, "Since the establishment of the Liang Kingdom of Longxi Li family, the gentry who moved from the south have become increasingly declining, and the former aristocratic families of Dunhuang, such as the Suo family, Cao family, Zhang family and Li family, have been reunited. He gained power and repeatedly bullied us. Last year, Xiao Yinyin led more than 200 members of the Xiao family to move back to his hometown in Jingzhou, and the Chen family also moved back to Danyang. The remaining Xie and Lu) Chen's three surnames were even weaker, and they were all protected by Dunhuang County Sima Lu Chunxing , otherwise we will be forced to move away.”
Li Shatuo understood their difficulties. Now that the Central Plains is in war, no one will move to a war-torn place unless they have to. It can be seen that these Jiangnan gentry were oppressed, but Chen Dongren refused to say in detail, and Li Shatuo was not much. ask.
Li Shatuo was very concerned about the situation of another person, and he asked quickly: "Where is General Li Zhu?"
Li Zhu was Yang Dalang at that time. He was left in Dunhuang as the commander of Yang Huiyuan Huiqing and was in charge of the Dunhuang army. Chen Dongren sneered, "Is this person? If it weren't for this person, how could the Liang Kingdom's army easily seize Dunhuang. County, he recognized Li Gui as his adoptive father and was named General of Right Wu Guard. He turned into Li Zhaojin's nephew, acted as Li Zhaojin's vanguard, and took away our land and food. Chen Shouhe's two sons were He killed him, the Chen family was forced to move back to Danyang County, and the Xiao family's caravan was also robbed by him. The horses and camels became military items, and the property was presented to Li Zhaojin. He also married the daughter of the Suo family as his wife. Now it is full of glory, and I call him Li Zhu behind my back."
Li Shatuo was very surprised. General Su told him that Li Zhu was someone they could trust, so how could it become like this?
After pondering for a while, Li Shatuo asked again: "What position does this Li Zhu hold in Dunhuang County now?"
"He is one of Li Zhaojin's two deputy generals, and is famously cruel and ruthless. It is best for the general not to go to him."
Chen Dongren sighed. Although the Sui Dynasty wanted to retake Dunhuang and appointed his son Chen Chun as the prefect of Dunhuang County, this was certainly gratifying, but they really couldn't help the Sui army. All their land was taken away and their family property was forcibly expropriated. Half of the income of the Shen family has been cut off now, and they can only rely on a little savings from the past to barely maintain their family's life. Several major families in Jiangnan have long lost their past glory.
At this moment, Chen Dongren suddenly remembered something and hurriedly said, "I can contact the Lu family. Sima Lu Chunxing is the brother of Lu Chunhe, the head of the Lu family. He has been in love with me for more than 20 years and is very familiar with each other. I know him I hate Li Zhaojin very much, and more importantly, he has a certain amount of power in his hands. Being familiar with the official connections in Dunhuang County should be able to help you."
Li Shatuo thought about it and said that this would be good. He could learn about the distribution of troops, equipment and other important information of Dunhuang County from Sima, which would be of great help to them seize Dunhuang County and stabilize the situation in Dunhuang.
"Then I'll trouble the head of the Shen family."
"You're welcome, I should help you all."
Chen Tongren thought for a while and said, "Where is General Li living? I will contact him tonight, maybe I will come to you."