The person who came out of the city of Hatush was the new national teacher of the Qarluqs, Sulman, who was a little different from what the man who sold water, although the national teacher was not a position, but Sulman played a pivotal role in the decision-making level of the Qarluqs, not only because he was the master of the great chief Atre, but more importantly, Sulman had a good relationship with the Great Food Caliph, and he was also the national teacher of the Uighurs, and he was very open in the two major kingdoms of the East and the West, which made the Qarluqs in the gap rely on him unknowingly, He squeezed into the decision-making level of Qarluq.

But Sulman himself knew very well that the reason why Rashid agreed to all his demands, and even promised to give him Bukhara, was conditional, was to unite with Qarlu and Hui to fight against Tang, and conversely, if he could not complete this task, not only would he not get anything, but he would also be hanged on the streets of Baghdad, yes! It was a gamble of wealth and death, and he had no choice.

Uniting Qarlu and Hui to jointly oppose the Tang Dynasty, there are four hidden meanings in this, one is that Qarlu is anti-Tang; the second is to return to the Tang Dynasty; The third is to unite the two, and the fourth meaning is the most secret, that is, both Qarlu and Hui must obey the command of Da Shi.

The first of them is easy to achieve, the relationship between Ge Lulu and Datang can no longer be reconciled, and Datang will no longer accept the return of this backboarder, but the second to fourth articles are difficult to do, the key is the second one, if Hui Lu Ken is clearly anti-Tang, then he is sure to persuade Ge Lulu to be a pawn of Hui Hui, and the fourth will also come naturally.

But the crux of the matter is that Hui Hui's decision-making is vacillating, the pro-Tang faction is still there, and the anti-Tang faction is difficult to monopolize the advantage, as well as the loyal Khan himself, from his desire to marry Shuang Kedun, it can be seen that this person is very good at the left and right. even wants to take advantage of the contradiction between Datang and Dashi to make a profit from it.

Although Sulman was well aware of the predicament in front of him, Rashid did not dare to disobey him, so where should he start? In the past two days, Sullman has been quite troubled by this matter. But now a window suddenly opened in front of Sulman's eyes, and this window was the Sogdian, the Atumu envoy standing in front of him, and suddenly, Sulman's thoughts became extremely clear.

While comforting Jalandra and ordering him to be brought with him, he immediately turned around and returned to the city, not rushing to see Atré, but first returning to his own tent.

Inside the big tent. Jalandra looked at this old man Mengyue who was also the national teacher of the two countries with some trepidation. It's been a long time, and he's still pacing back and forth in the big tent, not knowing what he's thinking?

"Do you really not want to be a subject of the Tang Dynasty?" Sulman finally spoke, speaking slowly and with a twinkling gaze. It seems to be a little careless.

Jalandra immediately knelt down and said sincerely: "We Sogdians do not want to serve the Tang people. I beg the national teacher to help, and the grace of the national teacher will be engraved on us Sogdians

"Don't worry, Atumu is my child, my own child is being bullied, how can I stand idly by?" Sulman slowly walked in front of him, he gently patted Jalandra on the shoulder, and then said earnestly: "But the problem now is that the Qarluq people are not united internally, many nobles are afraid of the Tang army, and they only want to be rich and noble and do not want to go to war with the Tang army, and the big chief has just ascended the throne. It is also difficult to command them. Therefore, in order that the Qarluqs will send troops to help you. I hope that you, the Sogdians in the town of Atum, will cooperate with me. ”

Jalandra was overjoyed. He did not hesitate to say: "Please ask the national teacher to give orders." We will fully cooperate with the national teachers' actions. ”

"Good! You come with your ears. Sulman whispered in his ear. Jalandra was stunned. "National teacher. That's not big, right! ”

"That's why I asked you if you would like to be a subject of the Tang Dynasty." Sulman's face sank. said coldly: "But now it seems." You really want to be loyal to Datang. Then when I didn't say anything. There you go! Don't bother me anymore. ”

After speaking. Sulman sat down cross-legged. Ignore him again. Jalandra's face changed. He knows it well. This is my only chance. He gritted his teeth and said, "That's good." We will do what the national teacher says. But I only ask the national teacher to keep it secret for us. ”

"Of course!" Sulman looked at him and smiled darkly. "If the other Sogdians knew about it. Will I still be alive? ”

Two days later. Jalandra returned to the Demon Dragon City. He immediately reported the Sulman Land plan to several heads of the Sogdian Chamber of Commerce. At first, the leaders were hesitant. After all, the consequences of this incident are very serious. But she couldn't stand Jalandra's repeated persuasion. In order to allow the Qarluqs or Uighurs to help them retake the town of Atumu. Eventually, they agreed to cooperate with Surmandi.

Surman's movements were also very fast, on the night of Jalandra's return to the Demon Dragon City, the people he sent also arrived in the Demon Dragon City, this is a burly man, his name is Lut, he has half Han Chinese blood on his body, his mother is a Han woman who was taken by the Qarluq people from the North Court to the grassland as a slave more than twenty years ago, and died shortly after giving birth to him, Lut was born a slave, raised by his master like a dog, because of his extraordinarily strong body, cold and cruel character, he was chosen by Arthuran to be his guardNow he was the chief of the guard of the Atre Land, and was loyal to his master, and because of his resemblance to the Han Chinese, he was chosen by Surman for this secret mission, and he brought with him five hundred brothers, who were now hiding in the forest twenty miles away.

That night, Jalandra took him to meet with several leaders of the Chamber of Commerce, and the two parties held a secret meeting overnight to discuss the details of the operation, and finally finalized the first operation two days later, with Jalandra as the guide of the Demon Dragon Town.

Before dawn, Root sneaked out of the secret passage of a Sogdian family and disappeared into the dark forest. After more than ten days of occupation, the Demon Dragon City has returned to its former peace, and the Turgish people who live by fishing began to sail to the distant Yibo Sea, and the wharf of the Tang Army on the shore of the Demon Dragon Lake officially began to be built, at the same time as the wharf was built. Five hundred engineers of the Tang Army also began to build cofferdams on a nearby lake

As the Sogdian shops opened one after another, two caravans from afar appeared on the streets of the Demon Dragon City, where they paid taxes to the government office and received a document that could pass through the territory of Datang within three months. Although this document is of little use to them now, they can use it to cross the border from Broken Leaf when they return, without worrying about the Tang Army's cross-examination.

The rise of the Demon Dragon Town has a great relationship with the northward migration of the Silk Road back to Hui, which faces the Demon Dragon Lake and is backed by the dark forest, and the geographical location is very important, which is the only way for the Northern Silk Road to pass through that year, and the caravans come and go frequently. The unique geographical conditions made Demon Dragon City once prosperous. With the complete recovery of Anxi and Beiting by the Tang Dynasty and the opening of the Golden Dragon Road, the Silk Road gradually moved south to Xiaye, and now most of the transit caravans are Sogdian merchants going to Qarlu or Hui, which is much lighter than the previous grand occasion when thousands of merchants gathered.

The two caravans that have come today are Sogdian caravans. One was to go back to the city of Kharun, and the other was to the city of Qarluq. Although the Demon Dragon City has been occupied by the Tang army, the Tang army did not embarrass them, only checked that their goods were not military products and then let them go, and the caravan going back to the eight miles of the ears of the Han Han went straight north from the north exit, and then turned around to return to the city after arriving at Yibohai, and the caravan to the city of Haitushi had to leave the town at the northeast entrance and pass through the dark forest for nearly fifty miles before reaching the territory of the Qarluqs.

The caravan to the city of Khotush consisted of more than a hundred camels, laden with cotton cloth, pottery, silverware, and other daily necessities purchased from Samarkand, which were scarce for the Qarluqs. It can be sold for a good price in Qarlu. In exchange for valuables such as gold, silver, precious stones, and hides, half of the caravan was owned by two Sogdian merchants who accompanied the caravan. The other half of the members are the three surnames of Gelulu, who is a powerful Gelulu nobleman.

This is a typical case of Sogdian merchants cooperating with Qarluq nobles, Sogdian merchants contributed seven costs and were responsible for trafficking goods, and Qarluq nobles contributed three costs, provided markets, and protected the interests of the Sogdian people, and finally the benefits were divided equally between the two sides, and most of the people and goods looted by the Qarluqs were sold through Sogdian merchants, so that the Sogdian merchants gradually controlled the economic lifeline of the Qarluqs and began to influence many of their major decisions.

The caravan began to enter the dark forest at noon, the road was not wide, the camel caravan walked very slowly, the melodious and crisp camel bells were heard in the breeze in the distance, and the two Sogdian merchants who accompanied the caravan were brothers, one named Pierre and the other Mayer, both about fifty years old, who had been walking on this road for nearly twenty years, and were already very familiar with the situation along the way.

In order to be able to make a long-term profit in Qarlu, they fell in love with Ye Hu Duotu, who stepped on the strength department, and even married their daughter to Duotu, this time they trafficked 20,000 large food gold coins of goods, under normal circumstances, they could make half of the profits on this trip, and the two brothers were in a very happy mood.

After walking for about five miles, the two brothers suddenly heard someone shouting behind them, and when they looked back, they saw a person galloping on horseback, and the two brothers laughed, it was Jalandra who put money in the Demon Dragon City, and they were old friends in Baghdad back then.

"Brother Jalandra, what's the matter? Want to put money on us? The two brothers couldn't help laughing, "Unless you don't want to make money, then we'll borrow 100,000 gold coins." ”

Jalandra caught up with them, and he said very solemnly, "I was sent by the Chamber of Commerce to guide you, if you don't need it, then I'll go back." ”

The two brothers glanced at each other, and their eyes showed a look of surprise, leading the way? Why lead the way? , and it was actually the Chamber of Commerce that sent someone, and his brother Pierre saw that Jalandra was leaving, so he hurriedly stepped forward to stop him and said, "Brother Jalandra, what happened?" Don't go out of the way! ”

Jalandra looked left and right, and he suddenly lowered his voice and said, "How much tax did you pay?" ”

"One hundred taxes and five, we declared 10,000 gold coins, paid the tax of 500 gold coins, and the tax payment documents, what's the matter, is there a problem here?" Pierre asked, confused.

Jalandra shook his head and said, "Of course there is a problem, 10,000 gold coins of fat sheep, do you think the Tang people will let you go so easily?" Generally, you have to be stripped of at least 30% before you can leave safely. ”

Mayer, who was next to him, suddenly interjected and asked, "Then why do they only collect five hundred taxes and don't collect them together?" ”

Jalandra glanced at them with pity and said coldly, "Don't you really understand? The five hundred taxes are the official taxes of Datang. It was to be handed over to the broken leaves, and the other twenty-fifty percent of the money was collected by the local garrison and fell into the pockets of the officers, and the tax bills of the big food had to be checked. So they don't dare to make a move in the town, don't you believe that if you go twenty miles further, a cavalry of several hundred men will be waiting for you in front? ”

Speaking of this, Jalandra took out a letter from the Chamber of Commerce, handed it to his brothers, and said, "This is what the Sogdian Chamber of Commerce meant, if you don't even believe in your own people, then we can't do anything." ”

The two brothers looked at the letter, and it was exactly the same as what he had said. There is also the coat of arms of the Sogdian Chamber of Commerce. And Jalandra was very reasonable, and they couldn't believe it, and Pierre's face turned pale, and they had a big cannibal tax bill on them, which was clearly stated. If it is a cargo of 20,000 gold coins, then they will have to be confiscated 5,500 gold coins. Ten times more than they pay taxes in the morning, O Allah! These Datang people are really robbers.

"So what are we going to do?" The two brothers asked tremblingly.

Jalandra smiled, "So the Chamber of Commerce sent me to guide you and avoid the interception of the Tang Army in front, but the Chamber of Commerce will charge a guide fee of two hundred gold coins, are you willing?" ”

The Sogdians put profit first, even if they were their own brothers, they had to settle accounts, and if the other party led the way for free, the Pierre brothers did not believe it, and the other party had to charge a fee. That's when they were completely convinced. The two brothers discussed it, and they could afford two hundred gold coins. He nodded and agreed, "Okay! We made a deal, but we couldn't pay it until we got to Qarluq. ”

"No problem, you come with me." Jalandra turned her head for a moment, her eyes flashing with a hint of viciousness

The caravan walked on a dark forest path, the ground was covered with a thick layer of rotten leaves, camel hooves stepped on, making a rustling sound, they had left the trade road for about ten miles, and there was still a dark and boundless forest ahead, for some reason, the Pierre brothers began to feel a little uneasy in their hearts, they stayed in the town for a morning, and the Tang troops they met were very friendly, and they did not want to seek their wealth and land, and the passing caravan had to collect thirty percent of the tax, these Tang troops were not afraid that the merchants would go to the broken leaves to complain?

The more he thought about it, the more wrong it became, and as soon as Pierre raised his hand, he ordered the caravan to stop, and he turned back and shouted: "Go and call that usurer!" ”

Just now Jalandra ran to relieve his hands and fell behind, he should be behind, and after waiting for a while, someone shouted in the distance behind: "Big proprietor, that person didn't follow, it seems to be gone." ”

"Big brother, we must have met a liar, dog, I will definitely settle accounts with him when I come back!" Mayer scolded angrily.

"That's not right!" Pierre suddenly reacted, "We didn't give him any money, what did he lie to us?" ”

Majer was stunned, "So what's going on?" ”

The two brothers looked at each other, not knowing what Jalandra meant, and suddenly, a deafening sound of horses' hooves erupted around them, and cavalrymen with swords appeared from all directions, rushing towards them, all wearing the armor of the Tang army, the first Tang general, with a burly figure and wolf-like eyes with ruthless cruelty.

"It's Tang Jun!" The retinue on the camel was terrified, some of them drew their swords, some turned and fled, and the Pierre brothers were dumbfounded, their eyes full of endless fear.

"We're willing to pay taxes!" Pierre shouted in a broken Chinese trembling voice.

But the result was beyond their expectations, the Tang army seemed to not want taxes, a scream came from the mouths of the entourage, the Tang cavalry began to kill frantically in silence, they were ruthless under the knife, the sword light waved everywhere, or the corpse was separated, or cut off at the waist, and the attack was extremely cruel.

The hearts of the Pierre brothers sank into the abyss at once, these Tang soldiers were killed to snatch their goods, the two brothers turned around and fled, the burly officer had already stared at them, he chased them with a knife, the explosion speed of the camel was far inferior to the war horse, and in a moment the Tang general caught up with them, he jumped on the horse, waved the knife and cut the back of Mayer's head, it happened that Mayer was also turning back, as soon as the two looked at each other, Mayer suddenly recognized him, he shouted, "Big brother, they are not Tang Jun, they are Ge Luo."

Before he could finish speaking, Mayer's head was chopped off, and the headless body rolled to the ground, and Pierre heard his brother's last shout, and he was filled with grief and indignation, and suddenly stopped his camel, drew his scimitar and slashed at the other party, "Dog mongrel, I will fight with you." ”

But his movements slowed down, and he only saw the indifferent eyes of the other party's wolf, and when his eyes were dark, he didn't know anything.

Rout killed the Pierre brothers, he looked back at the others, almost all the more than a hundred retinues of the caravan were killed, and several women in the caravan were not spared, and they were raped and killed by the most brutal of the Qarluqs, and there were still two or three people who were skilled in martial arts who were struggling with the Qarluqs, at this moment Root was already undisguised, he scolded angrily in Turkic, and immediately rushed up to a hundred people, and the remaining few people were cut into pulp in the shadow of the sword.

Hundreds of Qarluqs hastily buried the caravan's corpses, and with a shout from Root, they quickly disappeared into the forest with their camels and goods.

The slaughterhouse was silent in an instant, surrounded by the pungent smell of blood, and the ground was covered with bloodstains, which looked extremely terrifying in the dark forest, but what everyone didn't expect was that on the top of a big tree, among the dense foliage, a turk hunter was holding a tree trunk, he was so frightened that he almost went limp, and he could see clearly a series of things that happened before and after the tree.

(Note: The location of the Demon Dragon City set here is today's Almaty, so Lao Gao named it Atumu, and the Demon Dragon Snow Mountain is today's Talgor Peak.) ）

Lao Gao continues to ask for a monthly pass!