Seeing a towering pass from afar, Shu Yan knew that this was the Yumen Pass. I rested overnight at the Kannai Station, and got up early the next day to go out of the customs.

Although it was a time of peace, because it was a border fortress, people entering and leaving the pass had to go through a check by officers and soldiers. Shu Yan showed his identity, and of course the officers and soldiers guarding the pass did not dare to be embarrassed, and easily passed through the pass.

As soon as the door was closed, a westerly wind blew in the face, mixed with fine yellow sand, blowing the faces of the three people.

"Wow, get the mask."

Zhao Shun hurriedly took out the mask from his bag, and the three of them put it on.

The endless city walls and this ancient and isolated city pass have been mottled after the passage of time, the erosion of wind and sand, and the impact of swords and horses. The three big characters of "Yumen Pass" embedded on the city tower have also been slightly blurred, but the Jinyi font still reveals a domineering and mighty momentum.

Shu Yan stopped his horse and looked back for a long time, and couldn't help but sigh: "Back then, the Xiongnu were strong, expanding their territory, invading the Western Regions, chasing the Eastern Hu, and even more coveting the Han Dynasty. Unexpectedly, when he met Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, a male lord who happened once in a thousand years, he was finally disintegrated and forced to flee westward. And this Jade Gate Pass, I don't know how many large and small melee battles have been witnessed! ”

Zhao Shun smacked his lips and said: "I don't know much about history, I just wonder how such a majestic military fortress has such a gentle name as 'Jade Gate'?" ”

"You don't know that. Although the pass was a military stronghold, it was not only for war, but in most cases it was not for war. In peacetime, it was an important trade channel between the Central Plains and the Western Regions. A large amount of jade from the Western Regions entered the Central Plains through here, so this pass was named Yumen Pass. ”

Liu Cai sighed: "Oh, so that's the case. Fortunately, Zhang Qian passed through the Western Regions to achieve this place. Otherwise, in such a desolate place, I am afraid that birds will be rare. ”33

Zhao Shun remembered his leg injury, and inevitably complained a little: "I think we originally stayed well in Luoyang, how did we get here!" ”

The three of them are used to living in the Central Plains, although they are all ordinary people, but the environment in which they are located is not only the prosperous Jingshi, but also the water village and the mountains. And here, the bare city walls, the cool breeze covered in sand and dust, the merchants dressed in exotic clothes, and the mournful Qiang flute heard last night......

Of course, Shu Yan also felt this desolation, but he couldn't show it.

"Men have ambitions in all directions. Always lying on my stomach in my comfort zone, what world can I see? Look at these business travelers, which one is not away all year round? Looking at the officers and soldiers stationed in these garrisons, it will be several years. And we're just going to go this once, complaining about what! ”

After hearing Shu Yan's words, the two of them also stopped grieving.

Liu Cai quipped Zhao Shun: "Didn't you say that you really want to see exotic customs?" What are you nagging about this great opportunity! ”

Zhao Shun was unwilling to be exposed, and raised his head and retorted: "Of course it is, I didn't say that I wanted to back down." Is it you who nagged first, okay? ”

The two men argued with each other, and each did not show weakness. Shu Yan is trying to boost morale, all he wants is this momentum, and he doesn't stop them, let them fight.

There are many people waiting to clear the customs inside and outside the customs, and most of them are merchants leading caravans full of goods.

"Are you going west?" A voice on the side of the road beckoned to Shu Yan and the others.

Shu Yan looked at the person, leading two empty camels, not dressed as a native of the Western Regions, a typical Northwest native look, with shriveled skin and a dark red face.

"Why don't you go west, is it feasible to go in other directions here?" Liu Cai looked around and asked deliberately.

"If you want to go west, why don't you prepare a camel?"

is a few feet away, and there must be a reason for such a gratuitous conversation. Shu Yan knew what he meant, so he asked, "What, you have camels to sell?" ”

"There are exactly two ends, but if you're only using them to lead the way and not to ride, you can just use one."

"How do you sell it?"

"What do you buy it with?"

"Exchange horses for horses, and if you don't have enough, use silk to make up for it."

"Seeing that your horse is also average, then one horse and eight silks will be exchanged for one camel for me."

"What? Eight horses? Everyone else is five, how can you have eight? Shu Yan was surprised.

Who knew that the man looked disdainful: "Don't want to cheat people, where is this price!" ”

"Why not, someone in Dunhuang City took the initiative to talk to us, and we haven't paid attention to them!"

"This is outside the Yumen Pass, not Dunhuang City two hundred miles away." This man is quite arrogant.

"Y-can you get cheaper?" Shu Yan didn't want to be angry with him, and still asked calmly.

"No, you can't. I'll pay this price here, if you don't want it, you can return it to Dunhuang. ”

Eight silks, if you change two heads, you will need sixteen, and I only have a total of fifty silks, and I have to put in two horses. I have the heart to go back to Dunhuang again, but it takes 500 miles to go back and forth. Shu Yan didn't want to delay too much, so he planned to change it with just one head.

"Then—"

Shu Yan was just about to finalize the deal, but was pulled aside by Liu Cai and said, "How can a general trade with such a person?" ”

"What's wrong with him? What can't be traded? ”

"What's wrong? This man only led two empty camels, and did not bring any goods, and was obviously not a merchant, but a merchant who was specially extorted from the customs at a high price, and whoever made a deal with them was allowed to be fooled. And these people are all related to the defenders of Yumen Pass, no matter how treacherous they are, no one dares to do anything! ”

"But if we don't trade, we don't have camels."

"What if there are no camels? Didn't we go so far as usual? ”

Liu Cai couldn't help Shu Yan and forcibly pushed him onto the horse.

It is also very rare for subordinates to have such a fist heart. Shu Yan didn't insist too much, after all, this deal was indeed suspected of blackmail. The three of them were full of confidence and went all the way out of Kansai.

But the morale and confidence they have aroused are very fragile when they really go deep into this land and face the sinister environmental reality.

Although the Central Plains is also full of desolate land, that desolation is a desolation full of life. Not to mention the scattered farmland, the smoke that can always be seen when walking for dozens of miles, is the primitive wilderness without human influence, and it is always a bit of the color of life.

And in this vast land, most of the endless is only the bare Gobi. The yellow sand flying in the sky blew so that Shu Yan and the three of them couldn't open their eyes, their lips were chapped, and their heads, faces, and clothes were full of sand, like three earth monkeys. Not only the men, but also the three horses were no better, their mouths were dry and their eyes were half-confused, the sand blew into their mouths and noses, and they breathed from time to time, carrying their bags and three men, and their hooves treading on the soft sand, and they walked with great difficulty.

There is a huge difference between cold and warm temperature between day and night, and the sun is still shining during the day, and the population is dry, and at night, the temperature suddenly drops below freezing, as if it is going through a round of seasonal changes in one day. Shu Yan and the three of them were just a jacket during the day, and they had to put on a fur coat at night, but they were still not able to withstand the cold. What they hope for most at this time is to meet a few herdsmen and take them in for a night in a tent, and if they can eat a little mutton and mare's milk, it will be very thankful. If you can't, you can only choose a place like a rock cave where you can escape the wind and cold for the night.

Man can endure cold, wind, sand, and even hunger, but he cannot endure thirst, and water is indispensable. But the most scarce thing here is water. This is where the most unbearable and dangerous places are. It is rare to encounter a water source, even if you are not thirsty, people and animals have to drink to their heart's content, and fill all the bottles and gourds. No one knows when the next time they will encounter a water source. People don't know, and horses can't count on it.

With little water, there is very little life. The wind and sand together cover the sky and the sun. Not to mention that there is no anger at all, even the direction is impossible to discern. Without any reference, taking a lot of wrongful paths, and deviating from the route many times, this is the most likely to make people confused and negative.

At this time, let alone a guide, even if you can have a camel, you will not be so helpless. Liu Cai has long regretted that he was clever when he was in Dunhuang and Yumen Pass, and he did not exchange for camels. Of course, Shu Yan can't blame him, the more difficult it is, the more the morale of the army can't be slackened, and it is more necessary to maintain an optimistic attitude and inspire each other to move forward.

Although it has experienced many setbacks, fortunately, Shanshan is not too far from Yumen Pass, and it will be there in more than half a month.

In fact, from Yumen Pass to Dawan, there can be a shortcut, and you don't have to go through Shanshan. However, Shanshan is the residence of the Changshi Mansion of the Western Regions, and it is the most densely populated place within a radius of thousands of miles, and there are all kinds of business and trade exchanges. All the inadequate preparations caused by the lack of experience of Shu Yan and the three of them along the way have to be made up for here.

After enduring the hardships and hardships along the way, such a prosperous city-state suddenly appeared, how could it not be exciting! As soon as the three of them entered the city, they seemed to see the rising sun, and the bad memories of the past few days were swept away, and they could not hide their excitement and rode horses through the endless crowd, enjoying the strange and strange street scenes as they walked, looking left and right, and interested in everything.

But it's also something they should be interested in. Although the Central Plains has been operating the Western Regions since the Han Dynasty, and as the station of the Western Regions Changshi Mansion, the shadow of the influence of the Central Plains can also be seen everywhere, but the predecessor of Shanshan is Loulan, a very long ancient country with a long history, with a unique and deep-rooted culture, and its fundamental cultural landscape is still different from the Central Plains, a proper exotic style.

"Wow, I can't imagine that there is such a place in the depths of the Gobi!" Liu Cai said excitedly.

Zhao Shunyang said: "I'll just say, you can't see a rainbow without experiencing wind and rain." If you can't travel thousands of miles, how can you see exotic customs? ”

Liu Cai pouted: "Who was crying and complaining a few days ago?" ”

Zhao Shun was also unconvinced: "Isn't it influenced by you?" ”

Shu Yan looked at the two people arguing and said with a smile: "As a virgin trip, it is really not easy for us to come all the way. But in any case, starting from Luoyang, passing through Qinyong, to Dunhuang, passing through Yumen, so far Shanshan, we have already traveled more than halfway. ”

Hearing the words of more than half of the trip, Liu Zhao and the others became more confident, "So, success is near!" ”

"You can't be too happy. Because the remaining half of the road is to cross the real desert, which is the most difficult. There are no people for thousands of miles, and we must make adequate preparations for supplies here. ”

"We have suffered so much, even if we have suffered without camels, we will use camels to travel this time." Zhao Shun said, slanting a glance at Liu Cai.

"Of course, there are lessons to be learned, let alone to enter the real desert hinterland."

On the street in front, a tall Central Plains-style office stands tall, and at a glance, there are several big characters written on it: "The Long History Mansion of the Western Regions".

Liu Cai asked Shu Yan: "General, this is the residence of the Western Regions Governor's Mansion, are we going to visit the Chief's Envoy?" ”

Shu Yan said: "Of course I want to go." The county magistrate is not as good as the current management. Don't look at the high level of the long history of the Western Regions, but he holds military power and supervises the entire Western Regions, which is very prestigious in the eyes of the countries of the Western Regions. We asked him for a copy of the text and made a talisman, which might be more useful than the relevant documents of the imperial court. ”

Liu Cai was happy when he heard this: "Camels are worth a lot of money, and we don't have much money to bring." Since the long history of the Western Regions is so prestigious, we will ask him to ask for a few camels for us, and it must not be difficult for him. We are also court officials from Jingshi, so he should not refuse this request. ”

Shu Yan was laughed angrily: "What are you talking about!" I, Shu Yan, have never casually stretched out my hand to people, let alone such a valuable camel. If I stretch out my hand to him to ask for it, he can't spend his own money to buy it, and he will definitely have to ask for it from the local businessmen, even if they don't refuse, it will inevitably increase the people's grievances, and over time, what is the difference between it and Sima Lun, the king of Zhao? ”

Liu Cai was speechless by Shu Yan's righteous words.

Some people died, but not completely......