(Thanks to Dameng, Chubby, and Hammer S.) Uh, the recommended thing, I think too much...... ）

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Phew――

A sharp thud slashed through the air, piercing the back of a galloping knight. The arrow slammed into his body, and his blood burst out, and the knight's throat let out a long trill, and he fell headlong. The war horse, which had lost its master, let out a mournful roar and ran blankly towards the desolate field.

Soon, a team of Hu cavalry galloped past, and two horses broke out of the team, one left and one right outflanked the ownerless war horse. One of them threw a lasso and caught the horse by the neck.

The other knight did not dare to turn his head back when he saw his companion being shot, and whipped his horse with all his might, and the horse's rump was drawn with blood. As if sensing imminent danger, the horse galloped like madness. Behind him, the sound of breaking the air was endless, and the arrows were like maggots attached to the bones, not leaving the left and right, and the most dangerous arrow was actually grazed by the knight's ear.

The chase and escape quickly went away, disappearing into the horizon. About half an hour later, the hoofs roared, and the Hu cavalry pursuers returned, apparently in vain. Passing by the corpse of the knight who had been shot earlier, Hu Qi stopped, first collected the knight's sword, bow, arrows and other weapons, and then rummaged through the belongings. But they were doomed to disappointment, and had nothing but a little dry food.

Hu Ren was obviously very unhappy, and finally stripped off all the clothes on the corpse, threw down the naked corpse, got on the horse one after another, and roared away.

When the faint smoke and dust were gone, the wilderness returned to its eternal desolation, and if it weren't for the pool of undried blood and stiffening corpses, it would have been an illusion.

Zhang Fang also hoped that all this was an illusion, but the cry of the Pu soldier who escaped back made him understand the seriousness of the matter.

This was the seventh day after Zhang Fang and his entourage met the Pu people, and they walked more than 300 miles south. With the Pu people as guides, the journey was very smooth, and I walked out of Pu Zhize in three days and came to an area southwest of Hami in the later generations. It is nearly a thousand miles away from Dunhuang, and if it is as smooth as before, it will be possible to reach Yumen Pass in another month...... Unfortunately, their good fortune ended there.

"When we climbed the south of the mountain and explored to the southeast, we found a large number of Huns, who had set up felt tents in the Toulon River valley. As soon as we tried to get closer, we found that the camel slave had been shot and killed while fleeing, and I had abandoned my horse and fled into the valley to save my life. The Pu soldiers who fled back looked frightened, and there was sadness that could not be concealed.

"Toulon Valley?!" Lin Tianci and Ali Mu both changed their faces.

"How?" Zhang Fang saw the expressions of the two, and felt faintly bad in his heart.

Lin Tianci and Ali Mu glanced at each other with a wry smile, and then waved to Zhang Fang, and said: "The Toulon River Valley is the only way to enter the Yumen Pass, if it is really as the sentinel said, the Huns camp here, we will not be able to pass." ”

Zhang Fang frowned: "Is there no other way?" ”

"Yes, yes, but it's too far to detour, a thousand miles, and it's better to ...... than that," Alimu hesitated for a moment, and suggested, "It's better to go west." ”

"To the west?" Zhang Fang was surprised, his destination was in the east, and Alimu actually said that he wanted to go west, isn't this the opposite of the other? Could it be that this Hu Shang knows that the earth is round and wants to circle it?

"Good idea, head west." Unexpectedly, Lin Tianci also applauded excitedly.

Deng Zhan also seemed to have an understanding: "It's difficult, it means that the Western Regions are the protectors of the palace......"

"No, the Duhu Mansion is too far away, and in Wulei City, it is also thousands of miles away." Lin Tianci is also a person who likes to look at pictures and speak, he picked up a branch, drew a curve on the ground, and made a fork at each end, "This head is where we are now, this end is the Duhu Mansion, and in the middle near our position here, it is the intersection of the river in front of the driver......"

As soon as he heard the last two words, Deng Zhan shouted: "Jiaohebi!" ”

Lin Tianci and Ali Mu said in unison: "Exactly." ”

Zhang Fang was a little confused when he heard it, he knew that this place name had been retained until later generations, and he passed through here when he traveled to Turpan. But in this era, what does Jiaohe represent?

It was not Lin Tianci or Alimu who solved Zhang Fang's doubts, but Deng Zhan, who gestured excitedly: "Jiaohe City is where Wang Zhi is located in front of the Cheshi, where there is a garrison of Tuntian of my Han Dynasty, and the one who commands this garrison is Captain Wuji, and the camp of the garrison is named Jiaohebi." ”

Deng Zhan was far less clear about the situation in the Western Regions than Lin Tianci and Hu Shang, but he was also a border army officer, and he still had an understanding of the military system of the imperial court.

Zhang Fang suddenly realized, when it comes to the Western Regions Protectorate, it is like thunder, but this is the first time I have heard of it. But it doesn't matter, what matters is how far away and how many soldiers and horses there are.

Alimu stretched out three fingers and said succinctly: "Three hundred miles, three hundred households." ”

Three hundred miles, it's not far, it's worth a trip, but what is the situation of these three hundred households? When did the captains of the Han Dynasty be the same as the captains of the small countries in the Western Regions, only a few hundred soldiers and horses?

Deng Zhanyi explained, Zhang Fang then understood that this Wuji lieutenant did not have many troops, but his power and jurisdiction were not small. According to the Han military system, in an emergency, Captain Wuji could mobilize the troops of neighboring countries. That is to say, in the event of a war, in addition to the nearly 1,000 men and horses of the headquarters, Captain Wuji can also command the front of the Che Division, the rear of the Che Division, the front of Pu, the rear of Pu, Yiwulu, Donggu Mi, Nishiyi, and even the Guici Kingdom and other cities and states.

Zhang Fang smacked his lips and engaged in it for a long time, isn't this the overseas garrison model of a superpower in later generations? Using the natives to fight the natives, with the least military cost, to achieve the goal of controlling an area, the only difference is just an extra layer of self-reliance, which is really high!

"Okay, let's go to the river wall." Put the clapper on the board.

Zhang Fang didn't think that with such a small number of men and horses and a few artillery battles, they could compete with the Huns like wolves. Although tens of millions of people have gone to me, that is called bravery; Knowing that you can't do it is called stupidity.

In the afternoon of the next day, Zhang Fang and his entourage galloped dozens of miles, and Alimu pointed far ahead: "See, that is Donggeng Fengsui." ”

The so-called beacon is a beacon tower, which is equivalent to an outpost, but this is all decades ago.

During the Han-Hungarian five battles for the chariot division, in order to prevent the possible harassment of the chariot division and the Pu division, which were still hostile forces at that time, the Han army set up a lot of beacons in this area, which were numbered. This Donggeng beacon is the meaning of the seventh beacon in the east. However, in the second year of Emperor Xuan of the Han Dynasty, the Xiongnu descended to the Han Dynasty, and with the return of the northern provinces of the Tianshan Mountains to the Han Dynasty, these beacons were slowly abandoned. The stars are moving, the wind and sand are eroded, and most of the beacons built of rammed earth have been dilapidated, but now this Donggeng beacon is the most well-preserved one.

It wasn't until he got closer that Zhang Fang knew why this beacon could remain basically intact.

It was originally built on the side of a dry riverbed, and in order to strengthen the defense, the Han soldiers dug up many pebbles from the riverbed and inlaid them into the outer wall of the beacon. This prolongs the life of the building to a large extent, and from a distance, it looks like a mosaic on the exterior walls of later buildings.

The afternoon sun shines on the beacons, and the rammed earth walls made of brown, brown, red, and black pebbles of various colors reflect a rich layered halo, like a mirage.

It is only when you get closer and closer, through the dazzling halo, that you will find that the battlements are overgrown with weeds, the walls are cracked everywhere, the gaps that collapse, and the dilapidation can be seen everywhere.

This is a deserted Gobi city that has long been devoid of human breath.

Just as Zhang Fang was hesitating, he should stay in this beacon now, or take another ride......

Phew――

A burst of fireworks soared into the sky.

Everyone changed their faces, looked at each other, and without hesitation, shook the reins and urged the horses, and ran towards the deserted city with all their might.