Qinghai Changyun Dark Snow Mountain,

The lonely city looks at the Yumen Pass from afar.

Yellow sand wears gold armor in a hundred battles,

If it is not broken, Loulan will not be returned.

In late September of the first year of Yong'an, a lonely Tang army traveled between hundreds of miles of desolate Gobi and mountains, Guan Ying opened his tired and red eyes, and looked at the continuous mountains in front of him with difficulty, they had lost their way, and the guide Ah Ming unfortunately fell off the cliff and was crushed when crossing the last mountain beam of the Tuoyun Pass.

The loss of the guide did not stop the Tang army's determination to advance, they relied on the remains of the Silk Road and the white bones on the side of the road, and were not afraid to go north, but they did not know that they could not go straight from the Tuoyun Pass to the broken leaves, and they had to detour along the arc of the Gobi Desert on the edge to avoid the obstruction of the mountains, and the sketch drawn by Amin before his death did not mark this, so that the Tang army finally went astray.

They had walked for six days to walk more than 300 miles, and the terrain here was not the endless Gobi as they imagined, but the rolling mountains, where the climate was arid, there were no forests and rivers, and most of the basins in the mountains were gravel fields covered with bushes, and the mountains were bare, without big trees and green.

Guan Ying fell ill under stress and anxiety, his lips burning with a string of large bubbles, sunken eye sockets, and bulging cheekbones, making his already thin face almost a skull.

The other Tang soldiers were also tired, although the march was extremely difficult, although they could not see the road ahead, there was no fear in the tired eyes of the Tang army, and no one complained. They are going to recover the Broken Leaf Military Town, which has been lost for nearly forty years in the Tang Dynasty, and a spirit of serving the country is supporting their will.

The army went down the mountain beam and came to a flat land, Guan Ying stopped his horse, and looked into the distance, where there were still gray mountains and fog shrouded in the mountains, and the sky was about to get dark, and a gust of cold wind blew up the dust in the sky and attacked the Tang army.

Guan Ying sighed, "Let's camp on the spot!" I'll go again tomorrow. ”

The Tang troops dismounted one after another. The army set up hundreds of tents in the basin between the two mountain beams, Guan Ying sat on a big rock, wrapped his body tightly with a blanket, and the most serious thing now was not to get lost, but that they were about to run out of water, and had not seen a river for three days, and he had tried his best to be thrifty, but there was still only half a bag of water left, and the other brothers could also imagine.

"General Guan, don't worry, we'll drink horse blood if it's a big deal. After all, it is the road to the sky. A lieutenant named Yan Yundi stepped forward and patted him on the shoulder and smiled.

Guan Ying shook his head, and he said worriedly: "What I'm really worried about is not this, I'm worried that I won't be able to catch up with the broken leaves for a long time, and I will miss the military plane of the governor!" ”

Yan Yun was silent, they had been marching for six days, according to the original plan, they should approach Broken Leaf City, but now they hadn't even found their way to Broken Leaf yet.

"Firelight!" One soldier suddenly pointed into the distance and shouted, followed by many soldiers who also shouted, "It's the fire." Oh, my God! There is hope. ”

Kwan Ying-Teng! He stood up, and the blanket slipped down and he didn't bother to pick it up, and he saw that a fire was burning on a mountain beam a few miles away, and it was so bright and hopeful in the night.

"I'll take a look!" Yan Yun was very surprised. They should be able to see that they are stationed. But they are not afraid, why is that?

"General Yan, don't scare them!" Guan Ying hurriedly shouted behind him.

"Don't worry! I have a number. Yan Yun led a group of soldiers and quickly ran towards the firelight.

About half an hour later, the soldiers rushed over with an injured man, carried him into the camp tent, and asked the military doctor who accompanied the team to treat him. He turned out to be surrounded by wolves. Asking for help from us! ”

"Is he badly hurt?" This is Guan Ying's main concern, this person is their only hope.

"It's fine! He jumped off the stone. It was as if only one leg had been broken. Yan Yun smiled and added, "He speaks Turkic, I can understand it." ”

"I can understand it, too!" Guan Ying hurriedly argued, as if he was afraid that others would not know that he would also speak Turkic, and his anxious demeanor caused a burst of knowing laughter from the surrounding Tang Jun.

Guan Ying scratched his head and scolded with a smile: "He***, you dare to laugh at the boss?" ”

The laughter became louder, and it was only after six days of difficult marching that the Tang army finally breathed a sigh of relief.

The next day, the rescued man finally woke up, his name was Türk, that is, the people of He Hunting City next to Atami, he heard that someone had found gold here, so he came with several other gold seekers, but unexpectedly encountered wolves, other companions were devoured by wolves, he was trapped in a lonely cliff, fortunately rescued by the Tang army.

From his mouth, he also learned that although the route taken by the Tang army is difficult, it is a straight line, more than two hundred miles closer than the arc, the Pearl River is actually less than a hundred miles away from them, after the canyon on the right, there is a river more than twenty miles forward, as long as you follow the river, you can reach the Pearl River.

The morale of the Tang army was invigorated, the whole team set off at noon that day, under the guidance of the guide Turkdi, through a narrow valley, sure enough, after traveling more than 20 miles, they saw a sparkling river, coming from the west, meandering to the north, the banks of the river are covered with towering birch trees, a group of antelopes and sika deer are drinking water by the river, although it is the bleak early winter at this time, and the river flow is much smaller, but from the moist and fertile land on both banks, you can imagine that the land here is moving and gorgeous in spring.

After ten days of difficult and boring marching, finally saw the murmuring water and lush forests, the Tang army cheered for a while, Guan Ying gave an order, and all the Tang troops jumped off their horses regardless of the cold of the river, and lay on the river to drink and freshen up to their heart's content, washing away the fatigue of the march. After resting by the river for a day, the army marched north along the river, and finally made its way out of the mountains after two days. In front of it is a wide river, the river water is clear and deep, here is the mother river of the Zhaowu Nine Kingdoms to the east of the Green Ridge, the upper reaches of the Zhenzhu River, across the river is the flat grassland, and then in the distance there are snow-capped mountains, and behind the mountains is the mysterious ancient city of broken leaves.

On September 20, when the first snow fell on the earth, the 4,000 Tang Expeditionary Force crossed the Pearl River and rushed towards the old city of the Tang Dynasty, which was full of challenges and honors.

Shule. His Royal Highness Prince Agush and Tocharian Governor Aros have entered the third day of the battle for the command of the Great Food Army, Aros never dreamed that Agush would be released back by the Tang Army, and he did not expect that Agush would be determined to compete with himself for the command of the army, before the big war, there was a disagreement at the top of the army, and the consequences were extremely serious, and Aros, who had been through a hundred battles, knew this better than anyone, for this reason, he did not hesitate to tear his face with Agu.

In the Shule Palace, Aros, who had been invited to negotiate, had a swollen face and slapped the table. The roaring voice echoed in the palace, "I was ordered by His Majesty the Great Caliph to command the army of the Eastern Expedition, you are just an envoy, you have no right to control the army, and without the order of the caliph, I will never hand over the military power to you!" ”

Agush, pale, cold, reclined on a circle chair and looked with contempt at the rude old man, who would not lose his grace like he did, like a rooster in heat.

"What shall I call you? Honorable Governor of Tochar or Governor of Shule. His voice was shrill and full of mockery. As if teasing a clown on the stage, "Please take a good look at my mission again, the mission given to me by the caliph is very clear, full authority to deal with the relationship between Dashi and Tubo and the Tang Dynasty, should it include the war with the Tang Dynasty?" ”

"Your Majesty the Caliph has put at your disposal only diplomacy, because you will not go to war and you will not lead troops. He can't give you the power to command a large army in battle. You, you will bury my army. ”

Agush suddenly looked up to the sky and laughed, "Humph! You've finally shown your feet, it's your army, that's why you don't want to give it to me. ”

He stood up, looked at the revealing general left and right, up and down, and sneered: "I finally understand now why you want to attack Anxi, so that you can have an excuse to transfer the army of Sammajian, Tuozhi City, and Bahanna. You're the governor of Tochar. But why leave all the Tocharian armies in your lair? That's because you want to borrow the hand of the Tang Army and fight out all the uncontrollable troops. So that the whole of the East belongs to you Aros alone, am I right, Your Majesty Aros? ”

Bang! There was a loud bang on the ground, and Aros, who was so angry that he lost his mind, kicked over the chair, and he strode towards the outside of the palace, waving his arms and shouting as he went, "Think whatever you like!" You will sue me before the caliph and you will do it, but you want to take my military power, that is a dream! ”

Agush didn't stop him, he looked at his tall back coldly, the corners of his mouth gradually showed a cruel smile, Aros strode to the door, waved his hand to the local guard, and said, "Let's go!" ”

"Yes! Checkmate. The guard officer stepped forward to open the door for him, but the moment Aros walked out of the gate, he suddenly felt a sharp pain in his lower back, and when he turned around, he saw his guard officer with a sinister smile on his face, and the long sword in his hand had sunk into his waist between the upper and lower armor.

"You!" Aros roared loudly and reached out and pinched his neck, "You dare to betray me!" ”

"General, Your Highness has, there is a caliphate's gold medal." The guard's feet were off the ground, and his tongue and eyes were about to be squeezed out.

"You go to die!" Aros's powerful big hand clicks! With a thud, he crushed the guard's neck bone and threw it to the ground, and he turned and ran out.

"Kill him! Kill him! Agush shouted loudly in the back, and the guards hidden around the palace came out one after another, although Aros was seriously wounded, but when he was young, he was known as the first fierce general of the Great Eclipse, and the tiger was still there, he rushed to a long corridor, drew his sword and killed more than 30 besieging soldiers in a row, and killed a bloody road, at this moment, a large group of soldiers suddenly poured out at the end of the corridor, blocking Aros's way, led by a burly general, he held a shield in one hand and a spear in the other.

When Aros saw that it was his lieutenant who was blocking the way, his eyes were red, and he shouted, "Lyari, do you want to betray me?" ”

Without saying a word, Moyali raised his hand and threw his spear straight at Aros. The spear was as fast as lightning, and it pierced through Aros's breastplate, the tip of the spear peeking through his back, nailing him to the ground.

With a light breath, Murali stepped forward, stared into Aros's dead eyes, and whispered, "I'm sorry! The prince has a caliphate gold medal, and you should not go against the will of the caliph. ”

Agush slowly walked up to Someali and patted his burly shoulder. With a slight smile, he said, "From now on, you are the Tocharian Governor!" ”

At the westernmost end of the vast Tulun Desert, a river that had just been cut off ten days ago lay quietly in the middle of the sea of sand, this river is called the Xiduo River, which originates in the Karakoram Mountains, crosses the Tulun Desert, and finally flows into the Red River in the north of the desert, but at this time it is like a long frozen snake, and a shallow pond can occasionally be seen on the dry riverbed.

At this time, a black line rushed far along the riverbed. Rushing to the front, but it was a Tang army of about 3,000 people, headed by Cao Hanchen, he was ordered by Zhang Huan to go south to explore the precautions on the way back from the Great Food, and allowed him to act at the opportunity, he lived in Shule for many years, and was very familiar with the geographical environment of this area, he went south from the Jiashi City on the edge of the desert, and ran all the way along the Xiduo River, after a five-day march. On this day, he finally arrived at the city of Shache, south of the Tulum Desert.

Shache country is also one of the ancient countries of Anxi, Zhang Qian has twice sent an envoy here, Han Yongping 16 years, Han envoy Ban Chao borrowed the soldiers of Khotan and other countries to kill the Xiongnu Shache king, and set up a new king, and later with the gradual reduction of the amount of water in the Xiduo River. The country of Shache also slowly declined. It was eventually annexed by the Shule State and became a side city of it, which was about 300 miles away from Shule and did not have a garrison of the Great Food Army.

Cao Hanchen reined in his war horse, and looked into the distance, under the cover of a poplar woodland, Shache City was already faintly visible, maybe it was just a phantom. There are many such apparitions in the desert! But the riverbed gets to here and further south. The Xiduo River began to have shallow water again, and occasionally you can see a few old red willows by the river.

"General. Someone seems to be coming. A lieutenant pointed to a dozen black dots in the distance.

Sure enough, it was more than a dozen knights, they stopped on a sand dune two miles away, vigilantly looking at this strange army, Cao Hanchen looked at it for a long time, and suddenly ordered: "Unfurl the military flag!" ”

The yellow banner of the Tang Army shook off in the desert, facing the west wind of hunting, and was in good spirits in the sun, and the military situation of the Tang Dynasty really had an effect, and more than a dozen knights rushed down the sand dunes and galloped towards this side.

Cao Hanchen smiled, he urged the horse to meet him, waved his arms and shouted, "Pei Guangguang, is it you?" ”

The knight led by the horse on the opposite side galloped over, and without waiting for the horse to stop, he jumped off the horse and greeted Cao Hanchen with open arms, Cao Hanchen also dismounted, and the two hugged each other tightly.

It turned out that Pei Guangguang, who had a strange name, turned out to be the prince of Shule, and Cao Hanchen was the son of Cao Lingzhong, the envoy of Anxi Jiedu, and the two had a very close relationship.

"Didn't you go to Khotan? How can it be in Shache? Cao Hanchen asked with a smile.

Pei Guangguang is about thirty years old, similar to Cao Hanchen, he has dark skin, not tall, but very strong, he has lived in Chang'an for a period of time, can speak fluent Chinese, he rode on a horse and Cao Hanchen slowly side by side, listened to the other party ask him, then sighed and said: "The big cannibals are menacing, where are we their opponents, they were defeated by a blow, originally we wanted to go to Khotan, but my father was a little unwilling, so he watched in Shache for a few days, a few days ago, there were hundreds of Tibetan remnants retreated and defeated, we learned that it was the Tang Army Brigade that came, and my father decided not to go to Khotan, so I will wait for you here. ”

Cao Hanchen nodded, and asked again, "How many troops do you still have?" ”

"There are more than 5,000 people, and we took a large amount of grain with us when we evacuated from Shule, and it is no problem for you to come." Pei Guangguang glanced back at the black-pressed Tang cavalry, and asked Cao Hanchen with a smile: "Why, you want to outflank Shule, this is not enough!" ”

"We have an army of 80,000 men, led by the governor of my family himself, and my mission is to explore the retreat route of the Great Cannibal Land."

Speaking of this, Cao Hanchen pondered again, he knew that if he could get the help of the Shule Turen, then his task would be much easier, so he simply said frankly: "Let me tell you this! My mission is to capture the Green Ridge and cut off the retreat of the Great Cannibal, I wonder if you can help me with this? ”

"You shouldn't ask that."

The smile on Pei Guangguang's face disappeared, and he stared into Cao Hanchen's eyes and said solemnly: "The reason why we stayed in Shache and didn't leave was to recover our homeland with the Tang Army. ”