Queen Nabihan is twenty years younger than Guangde, she was also a famous beauty in the Western Regions back then, and now she is in her forties, but the charm of the year still exists. With those big, god-like eyes and long eyelashes, there is no shortage of touching things about you now, but the years are unforgiving, and the merciless time still leaves a deep mark on her body. She had many crow's feet at the corners of her eyes, and her body was a little bloated due to her fatness.

Although Khotanese King Guangde is a majestic monarch, he is like an ordinary person, an old husband and a young wife, and he is inevitably a little afraid of guilt in the palace. At this time, when he saw that Nabihan had said so many unseemly words, he hurriedly stopped her with gestures, but Nabihan was on fire and ignored her. It was a lifelong event for her daughter, and she didn't want to pay attention to the meaning of the old man's gestures, so she kept arguing.

"You old fool! You don't have the ability to deal with the Qiuzi people, but you actually got my daughter's idea, and you return my daughter! You give my daughter back! She was arguing, and it seemed that she would never give up. Many palace maids were present, she was so noisy, what had become of this! Lao Guangde was in a hurry, he made a gesture to ask the palace maid to retreat. The palace ladies hurried away.

"I have nothing to fear, whoever wants to listen to it, I will never want to marry my daughter to that beast carving Tao Mo Gao!" Nabi was afraid that the palace maids would listen to their conversation, so he said so.

"Nabiham," said Guangde, pondering how to convince his queen. He was not only a father, but also a monarch, and as a monarch, he could not be emotional. He has to think about what he can do to benefit the country, and how to do it so that the crown does not fall to the ground. The matter is clear, today he rejected Mo Gao's proposal to carve pottery, and tomorrow the Qiuzi Iron Cavalry will crush the land of Khotan. The Turtles were trying to embarrass him and find an excuse to call.

"Nabiham, Shule has been defeated, and now the Iron Rider of Qiuzi is at the gate of the country. Why did they send an envoy to ask for their marriage at this time? They're trying to find an excuse to break into our country! We can't let them get such an excuse. Guangde patiently explained.

"I don't want to hear you say anything like that!" Nabihan interrupted Guangde with a wave of his chubby little hand. "Didn't you and your bastard ministers already decide? Very good! You do yours, I'll do mine, Olidai is at his grandmother's house right now. I immediately wrote a letter to my mother and sent someone to Kumi, telling Oridai not to return to Khotan, and that my father, King Kumi, and Queen Mother would protect Oridai's ......."

When the two of them were in trouble, the palace maid came in to report. said that Su Yule, the old assistant Kunitamata who had already been at home, asked for an audience. Su Yule is highly respected, and no one in Khotan is incomparable, and it was this old marquis who put Guangde on the throne. Guangde, who was anxious, immediately invited him in. There was a young man dressed as Han behind Su Yule, but at this time Guangde was distraught and didn't notice him. Su Yule was about to make a big salute, but Guangde hurriedly stopped him and said, "Enxiang doesn't have to be so stubborn. After sitting down, Guangde asked: "There must be something wrong with Enxiang entering the palace, I don't know how to teach me?" ”

"My lord, the minister thinks that when our country is struggling, every policy and move should not be hastily decided, and it is advisable to speak widely and follow it carefully." Su Yule said.

"What is Eun Xiang's opinion to resolve my doubts?" Guangde asked.

"The minister is old and unbearable, but I would like to introduce a man to think that the king is suspicious, and this man is intellectually superior, or he may have true insight."

Guangde asked, "Who?" ”

"Khan died Banchao, this person has been in Xicheng (the capital of Khotan) for three days." Su Yule said, stretching out his hand to lead the young man behind him.

Only then did Guangde set his eyes on the young man in Han costume behind Su Yule. The name of Ban Chao has been in the limelight recently.

Let's turn back the time to two years ago, in the spring of the sixteenth year of Yongping, after the Han army defeated the queen of Nanhuyan at Yiwulu, according to the will of Emperor Ming of the Han Dynasty, he wanted to send envoys to Shanshan State, that is, the Loulan State in the Western Han Dynasty. At that time, after Ban Chao learned the news, he took the initiative to find Dou Gu and asked to carry out this task.

At first, Dou Gu didn't agree, because at this time, the person he wanted to send was another person. This person is Geng Gong. Because Geng Gong's brave performance in the war left a deep impression on Dou Gu, and he felt that this was a talent that could be used boldly. But when talking to Geng Gong, he found that Geng Gong was not very good at rhetoric. And being an envoy, in many cases, requires a lot of effort on the lips. At this time, Ban Chao took the initiative to invite Ying, and made a speech-like speech.

Don't underestimate the power of words. If you want to use bows and arrows, knives and guns, Ban Chao may not be Geng Gong's opponent, but when it comes to the level of speech, Geng Gong is definitely not as good as Ban Chao. It is this point that made Dou Gu determined to let Ban go beyond Shanshanguo. Later facts proved that this was an extremely correct decision by Dou Gu. You might as well make another assumption, if Geng Gong is asked to be an envoy, what will the result be? It is a pity that history cannot be assumed, and any speculation and imagination is meaningless. So, Ban Chao set off with thirty-six people.

From Yiwulu to Loulan, there are more than 600 miles of road. There is a large desert in between, which brings countless difficulties to the travelers, but as a business travel channel, it has never been interrupted. Loulan is a small country, but its special location makes it important. Entering the Tarim Basin, it is the throat, and if you control it, you will master the entire large basin in the south of the Tianshan Mountains. Because it is so important, it has also become a battleground between the Han and Hungarian powers.

A group of 36 people, including Ban Chao and Guo Sui, went out of Jiuquan, passed through Yumen, passed through Yangguan, and came to Shanshan in April. Shanshanguo, whose real name is Loulanguo. In the fourth year of Emperor Yuanfeng of the Han Dynasty, because the Loulan State was instructed by the Xiongnu to kill the Han envoys repeatedly, the general Huo Guang sent the Pingle supervisor Fu Jiezi to assassinate the king of Loulan. Fu Jiezi led a group of brave men, carrying a large number of treasures and gold coins, to Loulan under the pretense of giving gifts to the king. The king was overjoyed and held a banquet to entertain Fu Jiezi and his party.

While drinking, Fu Jiezi pulled the king into the tent to whisper, and two strong men suddenly appeared and killed the king in an instant. Emperor Zhao set up another Loulan State as the king of the Han Dynasty, and changed the name of the country to Shanshan State, and the capital was also moved from the original Hunicheng (now Yuli East of Xinjiang, northwest of Lop Nur, and north bank of the Peacock River) to Yixun City (now Ruoqiang Milan, Xinjiang). Emperor Zhao also gave the palace maid to the new king Wei Tu Qi as his wife, and sent someone to engrave the seal of Shanshanguo.

Shanshan in the Han Dynasty and Shanshan in later generations are very different in terms of geographical location and geographical environment. Today's Shanshan is east of Turpan (the eastern end of the Flaming Mountain) and west of Hami; Hanzhi Shanshan is in the area of Lop Nur, thousands of miles south of the Flame Mountain, which is far away from the current Shanshan. Today's Shanshan is mostly Gobi, sand dunes and mountains, and the ground is arid and water-scarce; In the Han Dynasty, Shanshan (i.e., the Loulan area) was mostly swampy, and the ground was humid and watery.

In the past two thousand years, the ecological environment has changed greatly, and Shanshan in the past has long been on the desert of drought and water shortage; But in those days, cereals were planted here, livestock were raised, and the water source was quite sufficient, and water-loving tamarix, white grass could be seen everywhere, and there were endless reeds!

There were 36 countries in the Western Regions, and they were divided into 55 countries during the two emperors of Han Ai and Ping, all of which were in the southwest of the Xiongnu, the southeast of Wusun, more than 6,000 miles from east to west, and more than 1,000 miles from north to south. Shanshan is 1,600 miles away from Yangguan and 6,100 miles away from Chang'an. More importantly, it is for strategic reasons.

There are two roads in the north and south from Shanshan to cross the green ridge: along the north foot of the Nanshan Mountain along the river to the west, you can reach Shache, which is the south road; The south road and the west cross the green ridge to the big moon clan and the rest country. Wang Ting, who passed through the Cheshi Qian, traveled west along the North Mountain along the river to reach Shule, which is the North Road; The north road passes through the green ridge in the west, and you can reach Dawan, Kangju, and Xiangcai Zhuguo. It can be said that Shanshan is located at the key point of the north and south roads, and Ban Chaonaturally has to settle here first.

Since Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty sent Zhang Qian to open up the Western Regions, Wang Mang usurped power, and many countries in the Western Regions were attached to the Xiongnu. After Emperor Guangwu was revived, he was busy setting things right internally, and he didn't care about external affairs, and he didn't reverse this situation until Emperor Ming of Han ascended the throne for more than ten years. What is the situation in Shanshan? Is the future of this trip auspicious or evil? Ban Chao had no bottom in his heart.

Ten miles away from Yixun City, Ban Chao ordered his group to stop and send Yao Guang and Gan Ying into the city to inquire about the situation, and report their arrival to King Shanshan as appropriate. To Ban Chao's surprise, it didn't take long for Shanshan Wang Guang to personally accompany Yao Guang and Gan Ying to greet him.

At this time, there were no Qin bricks or Han tiles in the Western Regions, and all the houses were built of adobe, and the king's palace was no exception. Still, the palace is majestic. Shanshan Wang Guang took all the members of Ban Chao into the palace hall. In the hall, ten large tables have already been set up, and all kinds of snacks, raisins, dried cantaloupe, and milk tea have been prepared; The civil and military ministers of the Manchu Dynasty were all waiting, answering the wind for Ban Chao and his party.

It should be said that it is not for nothing that Shanshan Wang Guang is so polite and ceremoniously received. The news of the Han army's all-out counterattack against the Northern Xiongnu had already arrived, and he heard that after the Han army broke the king of Huyan in the Luohan Mountain and the Pu Sea, he deeply felt that the Han army was strong and overwhelming. The situation was pressing, and he wanted to try his best to curry favor with the Han army, so as soon as he heard that Ban Chao and his entourage were coming, he didn't dare to slack off at all, and personally went out of the city to greet him, and asked the Manchu ministers to entertain Ban Chao and his entourage together.

After taking his seat, Shanshan Wang Guang warmly welcomed the arrival of Ban Chao and his entourage with a very enthusiastic speech, and his words were full of friendly words. Ban Chao sat upright, with a serious expression. When King Shanshan invited him to speak, he first looked around the entire hall with two bright eyes, and then said loudly: "Your Majesty the Honorable King Shanshan, ministers, friends! We're here to make friends! From King Shanshan to the ministers, they all thought that the arrival of Ban Chao and his party was an extraordinary move, and they were very concerned about the intention of the Han Dynasty to send envoys. When Ban Chao spoke, the hall was silent, and everyone was listening.

Ban Chao continued: "As you already know, not long ago, my Han Empire sent troops to launch a comprehensive counterattack against the Northern Xiongnu, which was entirely due to the long-term invasion of the Northern Xiongnu. We don't want to fight. In order to protect the land and the country, we have to fight with war, and we are fighting for peace. Although the Han Empire was a large country, like many other countries, it wanted to live and work in peace and contentment. However, the Northern Xiongnu were barbaric and belligerent, and not only harassed us wantonly, but also imposed a high-pressure policy on the countries of the Western Regions, subjecting them politically to them and extorting them economically. We are resolutely opposed to this, and we should stand together and fight together for common interests. We have come to your land for peace, and I hope that we will live in harmony, be friendly from generation to generation, and share the blessings of peace and security in the country. ”

His speech was warmly applauded and warmly welcomed. When Wang Guang of Shanshan heard this, he was extremely happy, and he couldn't help but stand up and say, "Ban Sima is a noble messenger and the most worthy of our respect. Although we are not as vast and abundant as the Han Dynasty, and although we have few people and no bird's nest seafood, we must bring out our best things with the highest courtesy and entertain our guests. ”

According to local customs, guests are treated with tea and fruits as soon as they arrive, which does not count in the banquet; After the refreshments, the feast is really set. While speaking, it was sunset, and the banquet officially began. At the same time, a group of beautiful girls in colorful skirts, serving tea and wine, in an instant, roasted whole sheep, barbecue skewers, roast pheasants, roast beef, and finger meat on each table...... A variety of dishes are available. Shanshan Wang Guang personally poured the wine and toasted three glasses with Ban Chao in a row.

In the following days, Shanshan Wang Guang led the Fuguo Hou, the Hou of Qihu, the chief translator and other officials, accompanied Ban Chao, Guo Xun, Yao Guang, Tian Xi, Gan Ying, Wang Qiang and others to the old capital of Shanshan Hunicheng, and visited for several days, and returned at sunset on the fourth day. In the following days, he traveled to the Peacock River in the north and climbed to the top of the South Mountain in the south, visiting the vast rural and pastoral areas. Everywhere he went, he was very welcome, and when he returned every day, he was greeted with warm hospitality.

On the day when he didn't go out to visit, Shanshan Wang Guang came to Ban Chao's residence and talked with Ban Chao and Guo Sui about wine; He could not come in person, but he had to send someone to visit him. Warm reception, full of the hospitality of the host; The solemn etiquette expresses the kindness of the host. Can this not be known to Ban Chao, who can judge the situation?

However, the good times did not last long, and after ten days, the situation suddenly changed: the food standard of three meals a day was greatly reduced, the guards who took care of them were not as enthusiastic as in the past, and the ministers of Shanshan, Wang Guang, who often came and went, no longer showed up, and an unbearable sense of neglect attacked the hearts of Ban Chao and his party every day. The nature of spring is warm, but the hearts of Ban Chao and his party are as cold as frost. What's going on?

Ban Chao fell into deep thought. On this day, Ban Chao called Wang Qiang, the chief of the guard, to his room and asked, "Brother Buqu, these days, King Shanshan has treated us much worse than before, do you wonder what is going on?" ”

"Ban Sima, it's a bit odd. Anyway...... Anyway, it's not good, I can't tell what's going on. Wang Qiang also felt confused.

As the two were talking, the entourage Tian Shu hurriedly walked into the house, and said with a slap on his face: "Tell Ban Sima, there are two masters and servants outside the post official who have sent a letter to ask to see the Han envoy, and the first one claims to be the scout under Geng Gong Sima Li Tong, and there is an emergency to inform the Han envoy. He said that this matter is related to the safety of the imperial court envoys. ”

When Ban Chao heard this, he looked at Wang Qiang and was suddenly a little confused. Ban Chao thought that Geng Gong knew him, and the relationship between the two was very good, but his troops were still far away in Yiwulu, how could the scouts under his command come to Loulan, which was six hundred miles away? Could it be some conspiracy of the Khotanese people? For a while, he was confused. But it's a big deal. After thinking about it, he got up and asked Tian Wei to avoid the eyes and ears of the officials of the post house in Khotan, and quietly brought the two of them to the study to meet.

Not long after, Ban Chao saw Tian Shu leading two people, one tall and one short, towards the study through the window of the study. I saw that the person in front of him was tall and strong, eight feet long, but his face was like a crown of jade, and his face was polite, if it wasn't for the dress of a Loulan person, at first glance I thought it was a son of a Han Dynasty. Behind this man was obviously a Hun man, but he was wearing the costume of an entourage, which made Ban Chaofa confused.

Entering the study, Tian Shu pointed to the young man led by Ban Chaochong, who was sitting at the top, and said, "Little Brother Li, this is the Ban Sima you want to see." ”

The person who came stepped forward, took out a military card from his arms, handed over the black wooden waist card after a military salute, and only heard a deep voice say: "Dunhuang Rong Army Geng Sima under the command of the scout chief Li Tong, see the envoy Ban Sima!" ”

The people who came were Li Tong and Mo Bode, after the two arrived in Yiwulu, Li Tong planned to mix into Ban Chao's envoy group, because he knew that Ban Chao was because of this mission, fame, Ban Chao was later named Yuanhou because of his merits, and after the death of Chen Mu, the original protector of the Western Regions, Ban Chao took over as the protector of the Western Regions, Ban Chao with extraordinary political and military talents, in the thirty-one years of the Western Regions, correctly implemented the policy of "cutting off the right arm of the Xiongnu" of the Han Dynasty, and based on winning the majority from beginning to end, dividing, disintegrating and expelling the Xiongnu forces, Therefore, the battle must be won, and the attack must be won. Ban Chao not only maintained the security of the Eastern Han Dynasty, but also strengthened the ties with the subject countries of the Western Regions, and made outstanding contributions to the return of the Western Regions.

Emperor Liu Wei of the Han Dynasty once spoke highly of Ban Chao: Chao Sui surpassed the onion collar (Pamir Plateau), until the county (Hindu Kush Mountain), in and out of 22 years, no one did not obey. and appoint its king, and subjugate its people. If you don't move China, you don't bother the soldiers, you have to get the sum of Yuanyi, and the same vulgar heart, and cause heaven to be punished, and you will be ashamed to avenge the soldiers.

At this time, the national strength of the Eastern Han Dynasty was thriving, and the traverser Li Tong wanted to gain a foothold in the Western Regions in the future, how could such a thigh not rush up and hug it. And "Deterring Shanshan" is the first act of Ban Chao on the stage of history, which is extremely dangerous. At this moment, Li Tong is not sending charcoal in the snow, and he is trying to find a way to infiltrate the mission to make a name for himself, when will he wait?

Therefore, after Li Tong and Mo Bode arrived in Yiwulu, they found a valley on the Tianshan South Road as a base, and while collecting the Western Regions savages to train their own troops, they led the Western Regions savages to pretend to be horse thieves, specifically attacking the logistics of the Huns, seizing military materials, and at the same time robbing the past merchants and brigades to strengthen their strength.

In just a few months, the two amassed a large fortune and had a cavalry force of eighty-three people. At the beginning of the sixteenth year of Yongping, Li Tong and Mo Bode disguised themselves as businessmen and infiltrated Yixun City, patiently waiting for the arrival of Ban Chao and his party from the Han Mission, which led to the first meeting between Li Tong and Ban Chao today.

After listening to Li Tong's origin, and hearing that Li Tong was actually a descendant of the flying general Li Guang, Ban Chao, who was born in a family of historians, immediately had a good impression of Li Tong, a young man. He invited him to sit down and talk, and asked him about the ins and outs of King Shanshan's sudden change of attitude.

"Without the intervention of the Northern Huns, King Shanshan will naturally treat us well; As soon as the Northern Huns intervened, he had scruples in his heart, and his attitude towards us changed. Li Tong bluntly told Ban Chao: "Ban Sima, according to the investigation, the Northern Xiongnu mission arrived 30 miles outside Yixun City five days ago, the Northern Xiongnu mission lived in a tent by the Peacock River, the first envoy was called Wu Lai Dai, and the deputy envoy was called Bi Lizhi, a total of more than 135 people, including 100 heavily armed ironclad cavalry. ”

"What do you think we should do?" Tian Shu asked.

"A wise person looks at the problem at the germination stage of things. From the attitude of Shanshan Wang Guang, we can see the signs of the stage of the incident," Li Tongben analyzed seriously, "Now, although Shanshan Wang Guang's treatment of us has changed a lot, he is still hesitating in his heart, and he doesn't know where to go. ”

"Simply, let's find King Shanshan to find out which side he is on." Wang Qiang couldn't help but interject.

Ban Chao paced back and forth in the room anxiously, he thought of the scene of Zhang Qian's envoy to the Western Regions being imprisoned by the Xiongnu for thirteen years, and the dangerous situation faced by his group of thirty-six people. He thought about it, frowned, couldn't help but think about it, and looked at Li Tong who was sitting like a mountain, and he liked it in his heart. Then he had the heart to take the test and asked: "Li Tong, if you are an envoy, how should you deal with it?" ”

"These days, Shanshan Wang Guang's attitude towards our mission has changed a lot, and it is very likely that he will hand over our mission to the Northern Huns, who are numerous, and at that time, none of us will inevitably die without a place to be buried." When Li Tong said this, he took the case and said: "When you meet on a narrow road, the brave wins." If you don't enter the tiger's den, how can you get the tiger? The only way to do this today is to attack the enemy tonight. They don't know how many of us there are, let's also surprise him, a big killing, they will be in turmoil, let's take this opportunity to annihilate the Northern Huns in one fell swoop. With this move, King Guang of Shanshan will definitely be frightened, and the Xiongnu envoy died in his country, so he will definitely stand with us with all his heart, and Ban Sima will come to Shanshan and it will be done. ”

As soon as these words came out, except for Ban Chao's face showing a look of approval, the others "snorted", gasped, and looked blankly at Li Tong, who was talking eloquently and in high spirits. Before everyone could react, they only heard Ban Chao laughing: "Sure enough, it is a hero who is a young man, Li Langjun's words are exactly what he wanted,"

"Tian Xi, Wang Qiang!" Ban Chao shouted.

"Yes!" The two responded in unison.

"When you go out into the street to buy wine, you will buy ten jars of good wine." Ban Chao commanded.

"Ahh What to do when buying alcohol? The two of them were dumbfounded.

The corners of Ban Chao's mouth curled, and he smiled slyly: "Don't ask!" Wine can be enjoyable, tonight we have a dinner with all the brothers in the army. ”

Tian Xi and Wang Qiang were confused when they heard this, and went to the street to buy wine nervously.

At dinner time that day, Ban Chao did not eat at his residence in the city, but took Li Tong and his master and servant to the barracks to have dinner with everyone. Deputy Envoy Guo Sui didn't know anything about the situation, and still ate at his residence as before, and Ban Chao didn't alarm him.

Everyone was very happy to see Ban Chao come to the barracks for dinner. When they learned that Ban Chao asked Tian Xi and Wang Qiang to bring good wine, they deeply felt that Corporal Ban Chao was a good soldier and deeply cared for his subordinates, and a warm current surged into their hearts. After all the entourage members were seated, Ban Chao secretly counted the number of people, only Guo Sui was missing, and there were thirty-seven people including himself and Li Tong's master and servant (Ban Chao didn't know, this was two more than the original history), all of them were present, waiting for the meal.

"Let's have a good drink tonight, Le and Lehe." Ban Chao said to everyone.

Everyone was elated when they heard this, and applauded in unison. "The meal must be well fed and the wine must be drunk. But there is one rule, no one can get drunk. Ban Chao instructed everyone again.

There was another chorus of applause.

To tell the truth, most of the sergeants of these escort missions were born as rangers in Luoyang and Chang'an cities, and although they were strong in martial arts, they were not good at battle, and they had no discipline at all except for being brave and ruthless. Since he came to Shanshan, except for a few drinks in the first few days when he was entertained by Shanshan Wang Guang, Ban Chao stipulated that he was not allowed to drink alcohol on weekdays, and the bird had already faded out of his mouth. Everyone was overjoyed and very happy when they saw that Sima had made an exception to prepare wine tonight. After Ban Chao spoke, the hall was full of people eating and drinking, talking and laughing, and their hearts were refreshed.

Ban Chao ate and drank with them, with witty words and full of interest. One altar, two altars, three altars...... Ten jars of good wine were quickly drunk. Some people's faces are already red, and those who are not red also have eight points of alcohol.

Ban Chao took advantage of the wine to stand up violently and said loudly: "Now, I have a very important news for you. ”

(To be continued)