Parthia, also known as Anxi, inherited the basic plate of the Achaemenid Persian Empire, and completed the evolution from nomadic tribal civilization to agricultural civilization for more than 100 years. … ≦

In October, a light rain fell on Ctesiphon, and the warm and humid air from the Indian Ocean collided with the cold air from the Caspian Sea in the two river basins, and the autumn and winter seasons of each year entered the rainy season.

Ctesiphon, the rain-washed cobblestone main road is even more slippery, more than ten years after the local tyrant King Mithridates I conquered Seleucia, the first sight of this ancient city was impressed by its charm, at the expense of huge sums of money to build four extravagant cobblestone main roads.

Despite the shabby nature of the so-called main road, many of the city's streets are still muddy roads with sewage, and pointless cobblestone roads are of little use except for a staggering amount of money.

"The Parthian nouveau riche!"

Midian pulled down his hat and curled up as much as he could in a light cloak, stepping on dirty and muddy winding paths, and sometimes saw the homeless in tattered clothes hiding under the eaves to avoid the rain, their faces tired and their eyes staring blankly at the sky, this war lasted for nearly a hundred and seventy years, endless and endless, and generations did not enjoy a peaceful life, so that the people who grew up in this land have long forgotten the taste of peace.

Two months ago, he was an ordinary member of the homeless crowd, looking at the never-ending summer rain and feeling desperate and miserable, until one day the old priest brought them delicious bread, hot water to clear dirt and wounds, medicine to cure the sick, and hope to live.

Wander around to the dilapidated chapel.

"Tasparamia! I brought back the medicine. Midian's excited voice passed through the door, and when he pushed it open, he was shocked to find everyone in the chapel looking serious.

The old priest gently closed the eyes of the deceased full of unwillingness: "Midian, you are late. He's gone. ”

"I'm sorry, I'm already on my way back as soon as I can. But there were too many Parthian cavalry patrolling the road, and I had to avoid their sight and pick the path. Every trail is very dangerous, and I try to get through the path near the main road, which is a bit of a waste of time......"

The brown-eyed woman shook her head and said, "Brave Midian, we don't blame you, the priest told us two quarters of an hour ago that I am afraid that medicine will not be able to revive him." ”

"I ......"

"The dead will serve the great Ahura Mazda, and we need not grieve too much for him."

Zhang Qian sat in the corner of the church, holding his arms and closing his eyes, and there were many people in the corner. They wore black clothes and hid strong bows and sharp blades at their waists, like hungry wolves looking for food in the dark, their eyes slightly closed and seemed to fall asleep, but no one would come near that dark corner, and the generous Orientals were also vicious Orientals, who gave clothing and food to every homeless person in the church, but they refused to protect the refugees in the church.

The old priest asked, but Zhang Qian did not give a satisfactory answer, the Orientals were not followers of Ahura Mazda. They worship a sun god named Taiyi, whose deity is similar to the god of light in Ahura Mazda, and their different beliefs make communication extremely difficult, but their presence still intimidates the surrounding generations. Recently, the security in the vicinity of the chapel has improved significantly, and sometimes terrible screams can be heard late at night.

"The rainy season in Parthia is really troublesome, how long have we been stuck in Ctesiphon? Two months or five months? It's been so long that I've almost forgotten. ”

Lu Heng stretched his muscles and bones, changed to a comfortable position and continued to sleep. The rain-encircled Ctesiphon had nowhere to go, and the Parthian cavalry, which was in high battle in the valley of the two rivers, did not allow the caravan to leave. During the war, all caravans were required to obey the dispatch, and Zhang Qian was clearly unwilling to submit to the Parthians. So he had to hide in the old neighborhood of Ctesiphon, an area that the Parthian cavalry was not very happy to set foot in, and it was in disrepair, and the smell of rotten wood was everywhere, and there was also the smell of corpses.

Every night there are murders and vendettas, fighting for food, clean water, good habitat or the favor of a big man, these homeless people are like a pack of hungry jackals, fighting to the death in the dark night, the old old town of Ctesiphon is one of the main battlefields, the chapel is just one of the dozens of streets in the old town, and the location is not conspicuous.

If you want to survive in troubled times, you must have the vicious heart of a jackal, the cunning and resourcefulness of a fox, and the strong body of a lion, which is a common proverb passed down by the refugees.

Ctesiphon is a city of death, the birth rate has been declining year after year, and it has been declining for nearly 15 years and has never improved, but the urban population has been rising against the trend, and there is a continuous influx of refugees and homeless people fleeing the war.

"They are not good at fighting, but they are very bold, they fight hard in the night, and those who survive are entitled to better treatment, and the Parthians train these refugees as soldiers."

"The combat effectiveness is not good, it is only relatively speaking, it is not worth mentioning in front of us, but it is not bad in the ordinary nomadic cavalry, give them a set of weapons and armor and kill a few cavalrymen."

Every day when the sun sets and enters the fighting link, when the sky is bright, they clean the battlefield and lick their wounds, the continuous rain will wash away the smell of blood, and even the cleaners are completely omitted, and it is rare to fight for both sides to escape and leave the corpses of their companions at the same time, at this time it is necessary to send someone to the dangerous old town to clean up the corpses.

Zhao Shun was puzzled: "Why did the Parthians fight the Seleucids for so long, it shouldn't be too difficult to let go of their emperor and reach peace." ”

"It's probably the story of the tyrannical Qin detaining the king of Chu, a powerful minister can frame a meritorious minister to destroy the country, and the Parthians are copying the path that the tyrannical Qin has taken." Sima Tan talked eloquently about his view of history, full of economy and good at thinking, Sima Tan is a jack-of-all-trades in the caravan, his language talent is second only to Zhang Qian, he is good at sorting out and compiling the cultural history and even myths and stories of various ethnic groups in the caravan, and he also has excellent drawing shorthand skills, and the customs and topography along the way are all completed under his auspices.

Zhang Qian frowned and was silent. The thought of several roads leading to Rome being cut off made his mind sink into the bottomless lake. The enmity between the Parthian Empire and the Seleucid Empire was staged for nearly a hundred years, as the Parthians who inherited 70% of the power of the Seleucid Empire. At the same time, the feud between the Seleucid Empire and the Ptolemaic Empire was also integrated, but because of the existence of the Seleucid Empire as an enemy at this time, the Parthians took the initiative to put down their bodies and ask for an alliance with the arrogant Ptolemaic Empire.

The Seventh Syrian War in 145 BC ended with the victory of the Ptolemaic Empire, when Ptolemy VI succeeded in the throne of Seleucid Emperor by killing the Seleucid usurper Alexander I.

Since the violent death of Alexander the Great, the Mediterranean has been a mess of the Diadochi Wars, and there is no shortage of ambitious young people to display their talents. Just as the eight immortals crossed the sea to show their magical powers, conspired to usurp the throne, assassinated and framed, ate and sold abroad, and so on, there are many kinds of everything.

Zhang Qian suddenly raised his head: "My dear Tasparaemia, I am stuck in the middle of life and can't extricate myself, please show me a clear path." ”

"Oh, dear Zhang Qian, thank you for helping me, my child is very healthy now. I owe you a favor, and you must meet any of your requests. "Tasparamia was a noblewoman with a typical Persian face, and her origin, like her looks, came from a ruined aristocratic family of the Achaemenid dynasty, and passed down to her generation for nothing but a pretty face and a ritual of only seeing but not eating.

Zhang Qian muttered, "I want you to help me find out if there is a shortcut to the Seleucid Empire." ”

"You're going to Seleucus?" Tasparamiah was surprised and said, "The men of Parthia were fighting on the Seleucid front. Our predicament is only a fraction of Seleucus', and if you don't mind I want to dear Zhang Qian and your team shouldn't be near the dangerous Seleucus, it's too dangerous there. ”

"Nope. I have my important things to pass through the land of the Seleucid Empire, and I heard that Seleucus is behind the support of the Roman Republic, right? ”

Taspalamia lowered her voice: "You're right. But I have heard that this year the Roman Republic is busy quelling the great troubles in Sicily, and the Roman legions led by the famous general Scipio the Younger are suppressing the uprising in the city of Onna. I heard that the Romans suffered a lot at the hands of those Seleucid slaves, and even Scipio the Younger led a 50,000-strong army with 200,000 slaves and the rebel army was helpless. ”

Zhang Qian glanced at him in surprise: "Is your news true?" This year's news is so far away that you can also receive it? ”

"Yes, my cousin lives in Seleucus, originally my husband, children and servants and I were going to flee through Parthia to live in Seleucus, but we had no choice but to go to Ctesiphon to catch up with the whole martial law during the war, my husband never came back after a trip to inquire about the news, the child was sick and needed treatment, the servants stole my bags and fled quietly, I was kicked out of the inn and lived on the streets, if it wasn't for our family teaching me some skills to be good at hiding, I might have been ravaged in some dark corner, Or turn into dry bones and throw them in a corner somewhere. ”

Taspalamia's tone is so flat that it's hard to imagine how much inhuman suffering she's endured in the understatement, how terrible it would be to be alive until Zhang Qian happens to help, or maybe she's become a meal for a jackal thrown away from the wild by some nameless corpse.

"Dear Zhang Qian, please rest assured, my communication with my cousin has been very smooth."

Zhang Qian suddenly said: "Is it a carrier pigeon to deliver the news?" ”

"Well, it seems that you are also a connoisseur, you are right, it is indeed a carrier pigeon, our family's unique secret art, the barbarian emperor of Macedonia Alexander has not been found, the barbarian emperor of Seleucid, and the barbarian emperor of Parthia have not been found." There was a hint of pride on Tasparaamia's face. (To be continued, please search, the novel is better and updated faster!)

ps: The Syrian War is one of several links in the Diadochi War, from 323 BC to 101 BC, few people in China have written this history, and the linkage of Rome, Greece, Sabbath, Egypt, Xiongnu, and Han has not been established, and the real passage through this passage is about 50 BC, which has reached the end of Julius Caesar.