Before leaving Suizhou and setting off again, Luo Kai first renegotiated the itinerary with Li Jichong.

It is said that it is the fastest route to travel south along the Yongding River, and then go all the way to Bianjing along the Yellow River for water, but it is not a coincidence, the Yellow River that has been frozen in winter is not suitable as a route for travel - the ice on the river is thick and uneven, and the cavalry of the brigade walks on it is the act of seeking death, and the ice on the river is not smooth, even if it is difficult to travel by sledding and ice sled.

Fortunately, Luo Kaixian's team was marching with all cavalry, and there was no drag on horse-drawn carriages, and he didn't care so much about the requirements of the road, so Luo chose a safe route that was not a shortcut, crossed the Wuding River and went straight to the southeast to Jinzhou (1), and then took a short rest, and went straight to Zhao Song Xijing (2) and then went straight to Bianjing.

Although there are rivers blocking the mountain roads along this road, the freezing of the river and the withering of mountain trees do not pose any substantial difficulties.

But. The frozen soil road is not a smooth road after all, and this route will inevitably go around the mountains to test the water, and occasionally there will be illiterate shearers who do not have long eyes. Moreover, the image of the team is too strong, and the number of people is too large, even if they hold the mission flag with the word "Lingzhou" and look at the eyes full of rejection and fear of the civilians who can't escape, they can't go to the villages or Wu forts along the way to borrow, not only to avoid disturbing the people, but also to avoid unnecessary trouble.

In addition, Jia Ren and the others who accompanied him also carried goods, and they could be regarded as sleeping in the open air all the way, Luo and his personal guards were quite good, and the two little ladies and the people in the caravan could be called exhausted - walking in the wilderness in the north in winter is not such a simple thing.

Therefore, from the day of leaving Suizhou, it took six days to cross Fenshui and reach the territory of Jinju.

This march was too different from the previous hundreds of thousands of people, the icy weather also froze everyone's enthusiasm, and the scenery along the way was the same as before, leaving everyone with the only feeling besides the cold...... Disappointed. Especially for Olki and other Europas, the East is mysterious and rich, and everything in front of them, although exotic, is far from what they imagined.

After arriving in Jinju and sending someone to take the customs clearance document to report to the local governor, the team found a vacant place outside the city to camp and rest, while the accompanying Jia Ren and his party went to the city to live in a hotel, and they were accompanied by a ten-person guard team, who also pretended to be merchants, and entered the city for the purpose of buying and inquiring about news.

In the evening, outside the city of Jinju, in the preset felt military tent, the flames were blazing in the cast iron stove erected in the center, and all kinds of food were being baked on the side of the stove.

"Husband, it is said that the homeland ...... The people are simple-hearted, enthusiastic about helping others, and the ...... seen on the road Why are those people ......" Li Ji leaned lazily on Luo Kaixian - the fire lady who grew up in Central Asia did not have the tactful shyness of many East Asian women, and her big eyes stared at the flames in the furnace, like a cat star who couldn't understand the changes in the world.

Li Ji is not the only one who cares about this issue, not only Ge Rina, who is turning over a leg of mutton, Alki, who is scrubbing the wooden cup on the side, and Antiano, who is twisting a piece of charcoal to look through, all of them stopped their movements and focused on Luo Kaixian.

This is not surprising, including Li Ji, in the past two years, I have heard the old people in the camp tell too much about the East. In the hearts of the descendants of the original Tang Anxi Army craftsman battalion, the Eastern Tang Dynasty heralded wealth, martial arts and order.

But...... In the short distance of a few hundred miles since Suizhou, what everyone saw was not heroic soldiers, strong people, and enthusiastic girls, but a pair of eyes full of vigilance and rejection, and poor and ragged figures—how similar were all these to the scenery of Central Asia before bypassing the Green Mountain?

How big is the gap between dreams and reality? Whether it is Li Ji and Gerina, or Olki and Antiano, the four people do not have such concrete words as dream and reality in their hearts, but they do not exclude such a sense of disparity in their hearts.

In fact, this sense of disparity does not only exist in the hearts of the four people, what does Luo Kaixian think in his heart?

Including Jinju City, which he had never stepped into not far away, what he saw and heard on this road also made him a little disappointed. Later generations did not discuss too much about this era, although he was skeptical and never had too much longing for the "civilization of the Song Dynasty" described in the history books, but after all, he still hoped that the brilliance of the "ancestors" was extremely brilliant.

But this journey after Suizhou, what is presented in front of his Luo is like those old black and white photos of the late Qing Dynasty and the Republic of China that he saw in his previous life, except for the difference in hairstyle and clothing, there is not much difference.

Li Jiao's words were only halfway through, but Luo Kaixian was very clear about the words she hadn't said, and after clearing out the cluttered thoughts, he replied: "Siniang should be talking about poverty and cowardice? ”

"Hmm......" Li Ji didn't speak, but just snorted a little dumbly.

"Siniang's perception is not bad, but Siniang doesn't know something......" After raising a statement, Luo Kai explained first: "Do you remember the Anshi Rebellion I mentioned to you?" ”

"Anshi's rebellion?" Li Ji was stunned again, and asked rhetorically: "I remember that you talked about it, husband, but what does it have to do with it now?" Anshi Rebellion ......"

She counted it with her hands and continued: "Anshi Rebellion...... It was nearly 250 years ago! ”

"Not bad!" Luo Kaixian was very pleased with Xiao Niang's intelligence, and it is rare in this era to remember things that have only been mentioned twice occasionally, "In the past, the Anshi Rebellion lasted for more than ten years, which was not too long, but the war caused by An Lushan and Shi Siming had a very wide impact, and after their deaths, because of the dishonesty of the royal family, the generals of the various regions gradually began to work separately, and the Eastern reference is to make a festival, just like after the fall of the Saman family, the highlanders were in a mess, just like the king of the city-state on the Roman side......"

"Like Rome?" Xiao Niang repeated with some consternation, she knew about the two examples given by Luo Kaixian, she lived in Silvan, she knew the history of the Samanid dynasty in Persia very well, and there was a descendant of Alexander the Great as a teacher, and she was no stranger to the history of the Romans.

But for Li Ji, who was born on the coast of Magyar, the East is the place where her ancestors lived, and the elders of the family told her that it was always a beautiful word such as peace and prosperity.

"It's like Rome!" Luo Kaixian affirmed and continued: "Since the Anshi Rebellion to the present, there have been two hundred and fifty years, and the war has never stopped! As far as I know, there are no less than ten different forces ruling this area for thousands of miles alone...... You say, what should it be like to live in such a situation? ”

"God......" Li Ji couldn't help but sigh, and Ge Rina, who was sitting next to her, stopped turning the leg of mutton in her hand.

For a moment, the tent became silent, only the charcoal fire in the stove beeped.

"The Lord ......," Alki, who was sitting opposite Luo Kaixian, said in a low voice, "Since the East has become so chaotic, why did the Lord General come back at that time?" ”

Li Ji and Ge Rina raised their heads in unison, yes, it's so chaotic, what are you going to do when you come back?

The Bulgarian was very direct, but the question was to the point.

"Good question, Olki!" Luo Kai first applauded, and then explained: "It is precisely because of the barrenness of this East due to chaos that I need to come back even more. If this East is still prosperous and strong like the Tang Dynasty, what will I do when I come back? Farmer or businessman? ”

Maybe the gladiator-turned-guys are a bit adventurous, and when the two women were still a little puzzled by Luo Kaixian's words, both the conservative Alki and the talkative Antiano couldn't help but laugh.

Oh, what can a man as powerful and persistent as the Lord do when he returns to a prosperous empire? Rebellion? Prosperity means peace, and what does peace mean to soldiers? No one knows better than the former gladiators who spent years on the killing fields.

The woman's thinking is different from that of the man, and when Alki and Antiano laughed, Li Ji's brows furrowed. "Husband, the people here are already very bitter, you bring everyone back together, you don't want to fight, right?"

Luo Kaixian shook his head gently, "Siniang, you think too much." When it comes to destroying a race, war is not necessarily the most effective, but it is certainly the fastest! But if you want to rule a race, war is the most stupid! Because needless attacks only accumulate hatred, how can a husband be so unwise? ”

"Domination?" This word is not difficult to understand, and Li Ji is very sensitive to grasp the key content.

The eyes of the remaining three were all lit up.

"That's right, it's domination." After affirming a sentence, Luo Kaixian said very calmly: "Siniang, and Ge Rina, as a husband, I never wanted to be anyone's courtier, and returning to the East is not just to come back." Orki, Antiano, will you follow your generals and build a new empire? ”

Since leaving Sylvan, this is the first time that Luo Kaixian has clearly stated his goals for the future, and he is surrounded by people who can be trusted, and he really doesn't feel that there is anything to avoid.

…………………………………………………………

Note: (1) Jinzhou, located in the Linfen Basin, is located in the southeast of Xinjiang, the current Yuncheng City. Non-HB Jin County.

(2) Xijing, also known as HN Fu, refers to Luoyang. There were four capitals in the Northern Song Dynasty, namely Xijing HN Mansion - Luoyang, Tokyo Kaifeng Mansion - Bianliang, BJ Daimyo Mansion - Handan Daimyo Mansion, Nanjing Yingtianfu - Songzhou (now Shangqiu).

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Attached: Thank you for the WeChat red envelope reward of the book friend "Jiangdong Buyi"! In addition, in recent days, it is the day of the postoperative re-examination of the old father's cancer, and I am restless, and the code word has also been affected, so I apologize to all the book friends.