A few days later, we followed the left bank of the Great Herry River to the rolling Kahn Mountains.

The oasis is slowly fading, and the landscape ahead is majestic and desolate.

Due to the obstruction of the mountains, the river made a big bend here and flowed northward.

Demir tells us that the end of the River Heri is the richest piece of land in the northeastern frontier of what is now the Sassanid Kingdom, and its name is Khorasan, which means "the place where the sun rises" in Persian.

Several rivers that originate in the surrounding mountains meet there, creating a vast oasis where more than half of the wheat grain of all of Persia is produced.

So Demir suggested that we take this road, and there would be no problem with the supply of people and animals along the way.

The journey over the Kahn Mountains to Sberham in the west is half the way, but it is all sparsely populated barren pastoral areas.

Even His Royal Highness the Emperor of the Sasha Kingdom did not bother to govern, did not set up an official government, did not create a household register, did not have a garrison, did not collect taxes, and left the local wild people to fend for themselves.

In this respect, it looks a lot like the borderless land we came from the kingdom of Brahmana.

Such a royal technique is really unheard of, "The Book of Songs. Xiao Ya said: Under the world, it is not the king's land; On the shore of the land, it is not the king's minister.

All the subjects of the land in the kingdom should be treated equally, but the Sassanid emperor is better to take care of the rich oases and city-states, and treat the people of the barren land as grass and mustard.

If such a law of governing the country had been placed in our eastern territory, it would have caused disputes among the world's heroes long ago.

Demir explained that this method of state governance was learned from Emperor Alexander of Rome.

And I think that this kind of thinking of people's rule is clearly the rule of inaction in the scriptures of the old Zhuang in Middle Earth.

In a place where the property is barren and the land is vast and sparsely populated, leaving all living beings to fend for themselves is also a good way to recuperate.

"Mr. Young Master, why don't you take the trade route from Khorasan and Samnan to Sberham? The road is full of oases, and it is under the jurisdiction of the Empire, and along the way there are branches of our Fire Zoroastrian Sect! I'll keep you safe! Moreover, caravans traveling between the East and the West have always taken this trade route. ”

After crossing the hills at the bend of the river, we saw two distinct horse paths.

One leads west to the heart of the Kahn Mountains, with narrow and uneven roads, and the other to the north leads to Khorasan on a flat road.

Along the way, Demir has been persuading me to take the road north, and now that I am about to make a final decision, she is still making a final effort.

During the days when we were eating together, I became friends with the beautiful Miss Demir, and she also learned Qin Chong's name to call me young master, but there was an honorific title of "Mr." at the end.

"Demir! Let me ask you again, how many days after crossing the Karn Mountains from this Xilan Pass will you be able to reach Sberham, and whether there will be any prey on the way, and whether there will be forage and drinking water! ”

Seeing that the dispute could not be resolved, and that he was afraid of disappointing Demir's kindness, he stepped off the horse and took out his mother's brocade to read it, and asked Demir.

Gulandau had already taken out the white silk scroll and sat on a large rock by the river to outline the route and topography of the river bay area.

The big bird also flew, and soon disappeared into the blue sky above the Karn Mountains, and went to explore the way.

And Demir's coachman and guard, Grande, turned their chariot and horse to the side of the road to the north.

"Fifteen days on horseback, the road is full of artemisia grass and shrubs, and there are springs in the valley to drink, but there are no people for thousands of miles, and fierce beasts and bandits are rampant! We Persians seldom take this road to the East! Mr. Young Master, I'm afraid you won't be able to get to Sboham! ”

Grande, who had traveled through the hinterland with the Persian horses, replied on Demir's behalf, "It seemed to him a little strange that I had chosen the right path over the dangerous path.

The description of the unknown area in the mother's brocade map is: the origin of the gas and Kunlun pasture, the mountain bandits on the way are not afraid of sporadic evil, and the danger of tigers and jackals is more than man-made disasters, and it is advisable to stay overnight in a high place and the bonfire is endless.

It was almost exactly the same as Grande's description, and it also strengthened my determination to take the wild road of Xilan Pass.

"Don't hide it, Miss, when I first came to the west, I had an agreement with my mother and wife at home that I must return home within the year! It's the middle of the year, and we're not even halfway through our trip, so we're in a hurry! Our trip is mainly for exploration, and there are no items to trade, so everything is best to hurry as soon as possible! Miss Demir, let's leave it at that! ”

With that, I rolled over and smiled at Miss Demir.

When Gulando's eyes turned red when he translated my original words, his homesickness was palpable.

"Oh! In that case, we are also going down this path! Hehe! Grande! Unload the carriage and put the accompanying belongings on the horse's back! How much can you bring! ”

Seeing that I was determined to take a shortcut, Demir smiled brightly, turned to Grande, and ordered him to abandon the carriage and ride with us.

"Miss! Our duty is to escort the Illuminators within the parish! The Central Desert is not under the jurisdiction of the archbishop! Let's take the north road and wait for Mr. Yi and them at Sberham! ”

Grande shouted loudly, he meant that the main task of the Protector of Demir was to monitor our excessive contact with the Zoroastrian followers along the way.

Since there is not a single church in the central part of the country, and there are no believers, there is no threat to us, and there is no need for us to take risks together.

"Grande, just do as I say! I haven't walked this road either, so I just happened to visit along the way! ”

Demir seems to have forgotten her identity as a female protector, and the psychology of sightseeing and curiosity prevails.

"Subordinates obey!" When Grande saw that the heroine insisted on following us, he was no longer reluctant, and after bowing, he began to disassemble the wheels on horseback.

Seeing this, Qin Chong and Liu Zhen'er hurriedly dismounted and rushed over.

Help him pack all the bedding, clothes, water bladders, dried fruits, and other things in the carriage into bags, and tie them to the backs of the two Persian horses that used to pull the carriage.

"Miss Demir, what a mistake it is! If you make any mistakes on the way, we will be the biggest sinners, and the Sect Master will definitely blame me! ”

Seeing that Demir was willing to go with us, although it was something that could not be desired, I still admonished with concern.

At first, she said to protect us, and Qin Chong and I both felt very funny.

How can she, a weak woman and a samurai, protect our safety?

For several days, the officers and officials of the Persian checkpoints and the Inquisition of the Holy See along the way have repeatedly inspected us.

But as soon as he saw the letterhead and scepter in Demir's hand, he would respectfully let us go.

It is also conceivable that if Demir were not by his side, these guys would have deliberately framed us in order to extort money.

This kind of situation has long been strange to us in our business journey.

After the goose has plucked its feathers, I will talk to you about the teachings of the law of the country, and this is the same for the low-level officials of Dongtu and this Persia.

There is a clearance document and a decree from the Sect Master, which means that you can pass but you will be blackmailed.

Without these documents and edicts, you will not only be blackmailed, but you may also be in danger of your life, after all, you are walking on other people's territory.

It can be seen that what Demir said at the beginning was to escort us is a fact, and it is also a fact to supervise us to stop demagoguery and maintain the authority of the Holy See.

"Don't worry! Mr. Young Lord! You are the Messenger of Light and the Viceroy's honored guest, and I have done all this as I should! ”

On a summer afternoon, as the weather gets hotter and hotter, Demir has shed her veil of turban and reveals her stunning beauty.

Lu Ji has a Chinese chapter: fresh skin is moist, beautiful and delicious, describing the beauty of women can be called a quatrain.

It was when I was hungry, and when I saw Demir's true face, I suddenly felt a little again, so I wanted to go up and make fun of her.

I clapped my horse and chased after me, raised the scabbard of the Persian knife in my hand, and slapped it lightly on Demir's back.

"Mr. Young Master, what do you mean by this?" The woman looked up at me with a charming smile on her face.

Looking closely, I finally found that the beauty of the Persian beauty lies in its long, smooth neck, like a crane on a hill.

There are also deep and affectionate blue eyes, a plump and abrupt waist like an Egyptian dancing girl, and the kind of active and passionate passion that has not been educated by etiquette, which makes people can't help but stop.

"Demir, if I really sneak up on you, you'll be dead! It is difficult to protect ourselves on the way, and how to protect us! Ha ha! ”

I laughed happily and drew close to Demir to admire the charming smiling face of the Persian beauty.

"Sir, if necessary, I can ask Grande to go to the nearby Persian military station and bring two hundred armor soldiers to escort Mr. all the way!"

Demir didn't care about my cowardice, and still grinned.

"Don't dare, don't dare, how can you work so hard!"

Demir did not lie, there was a dirt city twenty miles away from here, and the inhabitants of the city were all Zoroastrians, not to mention two hundred, even two thousand men and horses were not a problem for her, the daughter of the female protector and governor.

"Since Mr. Young Master doesn't need it, my net worth on the way can be handed over to Mr. Yu! I'm only good at troop mobilization, not good at fighting! Hehe, it's not my forte to deal with hairy thieves and beasts! ”

"On the way, but by the dispatch of the Dharma Protector!" I immediately laughed.

Earlier, after the drawings were completed, Gulandot happily joined me in the conversation with Demir and translated for the two of us.

She saw that Demir and I were flirting a little, and the Persian sister seemed to be enjoying herself, and went to the front with a puff.

The name of Xilan Pass is actually a narrow plank road left by the local aborigines for thousands of years of hunting and grazing on the rolling slopes and mountain beams, which is only enough for one person to lead a horse to walk on it.

Demir and I ceased to speak each other, and our group of nine joined each other on the mountain path, leading our mounts and driving the horses carrying the goods, leaving a long shadow in the middle of the deserted mountains.

Qingluan had already flown back, with a freshly green fig in his mouth.

It shows that in the desert to the east of the Kahn Mountains, there are fig trees, not the lifeless Gobi Sand Sea.