In the evening, on the outskirts of Zhiwu Township, Tongzhou Prefecture, in the Sogdian settlement, the Tongzhou Sabaoan Bora was presiding over the ceremony, and the devotees prayed around the altar of the sacred fire, and everyone wore masks, for fear that their unclean spit would defile the sacred flame during the chanting. Pen & Fun & Pavilion www.biquge.info

Zoroastrianism, also known as Zoroastrianism (as it was called since the Tang Dynasty), was the religion of the Sogdians and the state religion of the Sassanid Persian Empire in the far west.

The so-called fire worship shrine is the name of the Central Plains, in fact, it is the Zoroastrian temple, also known as the holy fire temple, because the Zoroastrian worship is the god of fire, so the temple worships the holy fire.

The temple is usually a domed square chamber with a central part for the sacred fire, surrounded by a vaulted corridor, in which the sacred flame of Changming is enshrined, and the eagle statue of the main god Ahura Mazda stands in the temple.

Its image is like a giant eagle spreading its wings horizontally, and the three layers of feathers represent the goodness of speech, body and heart; The tail points to the ground, which is also three-layered, but the color arrangement is exactly the opposite of the eagle's wing, which probably means that if you don't do the three good deeds, you will fall into hell.

The presiding deity, Ahura Mazda, sits on top of a giant eagle and holds a ring of light and a large ring on his body, indicating that life is limited.

The ceremony was solemn and sacred, but for Yu Wenwen, who was watching from afar, there was nothing special, and the knowledge of modern people was so high that he didn't know where to go, but Manichaeism, which had a lot of roots in Zoroastrianism, made him quite interested.

Because Manichaeism has another name in the Middle Plains - Mingjiao.

The six major sects besieged Guangming Ding, and when they were at the end of their rope, the Mingjiao sect members sat cross-legged, their fingers spread out, and raised them in front of their chests, making a flame flying:

"Burn my body, blaze the flames. What is the joy of life, and why is it so painful to die? Only good eliminates evil, only light. Joy and sorrow are dust. Have mercy on me, the world is full of sorrows..."

Yuwen Wen was immersed in the world of martial arts novels, and was distracted by An Tuluo on the side: "Lang Jun? ”

"Huh? Ah, I'm not a believer, so let's talk outside the temple. ”

"Lang Jun asked to wait outside the temple, and An and his brother finished the ceremony first."

Yu Wenwen walked out of the fire worship shrine under the leadership of the servant, looked at the sunset in the sky, and looked at Zhang Yu and the others who looked nervous: "What, are you afraid that something will happen?" ”

"Uh, Lord Lang, this is not my own territory after all..."

"It's okay, Shopkeeper An is now in the same boat with us, isn't it?"

Yu Wenwen looked at Wuxiang City in the distance, the outline of the city was faintly visible, yesterday afternoon the ambush of the Tongzhou army was successful, and the Tongzhou Prefecture governed Wuxiang Township, he thought about attacking, but after weighing the pros and cons, he still gave up.

Even if he can take the city, he can't hold it with the strength in his hands, not to mention standing on the city wall, that is, suppressing all parts of the city is insufficient, although the location of the same state is very important, but fighting Wuxiang is a useless consumption of the lives of the soldiers.

The most important thing is that there is an Anturo connection, he and the soldiers of the Hulin Army can repair near the Sogdian settlement, and the food brought from Guangtong Cang is enough to eat, so there is no need to fight the idea of Wuxiang City.

Tongzhou, called Huazhou in the Yuan Wei Dynasty, when Emperor Wei fled into Guanzhong, Yu Wentai, the prime minister who was in charge of the imperial court, led a hundred officials to settle in Tongzhou, which was regarded as the "accompanying capital" of the Western Wei Dynasty, and many dignitaries had mansions in Wuxiang City in Tongzhou.

Whenever the Eastern Wei Dynasty/Qi State used troops, the ruler of the army had to reward the soldiers in Tongzhou, whether it was the powerful minister Yuwen Hu of the year, or the emperors of the Zhou State in previous dynasties, they had to patrol the Tongzhou Palace from time to time.

And Yuwenwen also lived in Tongzhou when he was a child, and his hometown is still there, but he was unable to enter the city to revisit his hometown at this time.

I don't know how long it took, the ceremony in the fire worship shrine finally ended, and when everyone dispersed, Tongzhou Sabaoan Bora and his brother Antura met with Yu Wenwen in a small courtyard.

Sabao, also known as Sabao or Safu, was the leader of the Sogdian caravans, the supreme administrator of the Sogdian settlements, and the priest of Zoroastrianism.

The Sogdians, who lived in the Transoxiana region (later Central Asia), migrated eastward along the Silk Road into the Central Plains during the Wei and Jin dynasties, and by the time of the Northern and Southern Dynasties, the imperial courts incorporated Sabao into the bureaucracy in order to manage the Sogdians, a merchant people.

Originally, the office of Sabao was inherited from father to son, but by this time, the imperial court had begun to appoint foreign Sogdians as local Sabao, as was the case with Angar, the father of the Anbora and Anturo brothers.

According to Anturo, his father, Anjia, was originally from Liangzhou, and was appointed by the Zhou court as Sabao in Tongzhou, and then moved here with his family to live with his Sogdian compatriots who lived in Tongzhou.

Although the An father and son were the top managers of the Sogdians in Tongzhou, they did not have the strength to speak their minds, and they had to discuss with other Sogdian families when they encountered major events.

Angar's power came from the imperial court, so only if the imperial court supported him, the local Sogdians in the same state would listen to orders, and after Angar's death, the eldest son Anbora succeeded him, which was also recognized by the imperial court.

They can only gain a firm foothold in Tongzhou by relying on the imperial court, so when Yang Jian took the Sui Dynasty as the queen of Zhou, he naturally hugged the thighs of the new upstart, but the world is unpredictable, and the new thighs are over before they are hot.

"Duke Di, the An family has always been loyal to the imperial court, but the changes in Chang'an City are really ... An is willing to atone for his sins and do his best for Wang Shi to recover Guanzhong. ”

"Ansa don't worry, Ansa came to the barracks that day, and after telling the details, my father immediately wrote a letter to send it to Chang'an, so that my brother Ansa Luo and other clansmen in Chang'an are all right, An's has done a lot of things for the king, and my father will make it clear to the court."

There are only three people in the room, Yu Wenwen's self-proclaimed "Bengong" has also been restored, and the soldiers of the Hulin Army are still hiding somewhere nearby, and he came here with a few followers to hide his head and tail, and he doesn't want people to know the traces.

"Gong Guo, there are still many warriors in the An clan, who escort caravans back and forth on weekdays, and have good riding and archery and fighting skills, if the officials and soldiers need it, they can listen to orders at any time."

"No, the movement is too big, and more than 100 people will not help the overall situation." Yu Wenwen said this, "How are you preparing?" ”

An Boluo nodded and said that everything was ready, but An Tuluo asked with some concern: "Guogong, this move seems to be too risky, now that the Guangtong warehouse is over, the Sui army outside Chang'an City will retreat sooner or later, why bother..."

"Although the Guangtong warehouse was burned, the grain and grass carried by the Sui army itself can last for a few days, and the trapped beasts are still fighting, so they must be guarded against."

"What does Guogong mean?"

"Naturally, we will not sit idly by."

After talking for a while, one person entered the room to say "ready", and Anbora and Antura led Yuwenwen to a corner outside the village, only to see that countless horses had been waiting for a long time.

The Sogdians have been doing business for generations, traveling between the desert and the steppe, and camels and horses are indispensable for trekking thousands of miles, and Yuwen Wen came here not only for "sightseeing", but also for serious business.

The supreme god of Zoroastrianism is called Ahura Mazda (ahura_mazda), and there is a car brand called Mazda in modern society, which is said to be related to the supreme god of Zoroastrianism.

I don't know if this statement is correct or not, but what Yu Wenwen knows is that after coming here, Ma, Zida. (To be continued.) )