Along the way, it can be described as trekking through mountains and rivers, and nine deaths and one life.

Of the 100 guards, there are now less than 60 left.

The city itself is located in a remote area, and Ma Kuo did not dare to go from the Jin country, but made a detour from Western Xia, and finally crossed the 800-li Han Sea.

At the beginning, Jin Guoxing had 100,000 soldiers, but they all lost their way in this vast desert, and finally withdrew in embarrassment.

Ma Kuo was a talented man, and with his eloquence and charisma, he managed to recruit a few local guides who would otherwise not have been able to cross the vast desert.

On the Gobi Desert, the wind and sand gradually subsided, and the whole world returned to the Ming and Qing dynasties.

Ma Kuo removed the veil that covered his mouth and nose and breathed in the cold air.

I don't know how long I walked, Ma Kuo looked up at the sun, stopped, and ordered: "The hour is not early, prepare to set up camp." ”

As soon as the words fell, I saw the guide on the side say a series of words.

The soldiers of the Xuanjia Army couldn't understand it, but Ma Kuo could, and I saw his face full of surprise.

The guide nodded busily and swore an oath.

Hearing this, Ma Kuo's face was delighted, and he shouted loudly in Chinese: "Work hard, there is a river about five miles ahead!" ”

Hearing that there was a river ahead, everyone's eyes lit up.

Rivers have been a place of life since ancient times.

There is a high probability that the river is inhabited, especially in the dry and barren desert Gobi.

Under the guidance of the guide, the group led the camels and horses and walked forward with difficult steps.

As the sun slopes to the west, the sparse shrubs gradually become richer.

Everyone was shocked and quickened their pace.

Da-da-da-da!

Suddenly, the sound of horses' hooves came from a distance.

Ma Kuo paused, followed the sound, and saw a group of cavalry galloping in the distance.

The expressions of the soldiers of the Xuanjia Army changed, and they all drew out the steel knives on their waists, intending to form a battle formation.

Ma Kuo looked at it carefully for a moment, but waved his hand and said, "Put away your blade." ”

Hearing this, the soldiers hesitated slightly, and finally put the steel knife into the sheath.

Along the way, Ma Kuo's performance made them admire, and several decisive decisions saved their lives, so they trusted him.

Ma Kuo is not a literati, but a martial artist.

You know, if you can get the love of most of the nobles of the Jin Kingdom, how can you not have two brushes.

When he first went to the Jin Kingdom, Wanyan Agu saw that he was thin and weak, so he invited him to hunt, originally to see him ugly and find out the bottom of the Song people.

As a result, Ma Kuo was not stunned at all, and with his exquisite archery skills, he conquered a number of Jurchen nobles.

Coupled with a clever and sophisticated personality, exquisite and clear, and able to speak, he soon won the respect of the Jurchen nobles.

To be honest, Ma Kuo's first mission to the Jin State was very successful, not only facilitating the maritime alliance, but also leaving a deep impression on the Jin people, so much so that the nobles such as Wanyan Aguta had respect for Zhao and Song, thinking that the Song people were like Ma Kuo, capable of literature and martial arts.

As a result, his mother's two Northern Expeditions were full of ugliness, and the Jin people saw through the reality.

Whenever he fights for a little anger, with the impression left by Ma Kuo, the Jin people will never dare to go south.

This is also the reason why Han Zhenqi is heavy on horses, an excellent diplomat, and his role is no less than that of thousands of troops.

Da Da Da ~ The cavalry was getting closer, and these cavalry were not armies, but herdsmen in the steppe.

However, even the herdsmen are all fierce, carrying bows and knives.

The cavalry gradually slowed down their horses, and stopped when they were more than 20 paces away from the caravan, and the cavalry led by them was about 20 years old, looked around the caravan, and asked in Khitan language: "Who are you waiting for?" ”

Khitan and Mongolian are the same language, and with more than 100 years of governing the grassland, Khitan has become the official language of the grassland in Shangjing Road.

Ma Kuan's mouth is fluent in Khitan: "We are merchants from the Han region." ”

"Merchant?"

Hearing that it was a caravan, the vigilance in the eyes of the cavalry dissipated a lot.

Herdsmen do not rob caravans, this is a rule that has been handed down since ancient times.

Even the most vicious robbers will not attack the merchants, but barter in a proper manner.

This is the most simple truth, kill the caravan, and no merchant will dare to come again.

Without tea, salt, silk, iron pots and other items, the herdsmen's life will be very sad.

"Yes."

Ma Kuo nodded, and lifted the blanket covering the camel's back, revealing the various goods in the bamboo basket.

Looking at the dazzling array of goods, the herdsmen smiled one after another, and the cavalry led by them smiled and invited: "Merchants from afar, our home is in front of us, and we treat merchants like relatives." ”

"It's a great honor."

Ma Kuo smiled slightly, took out a bottle of burnt knife white from the bamboo basket, handed it over, and said: "This is our Handi wine, after drinking the wine, we are friends!" ”

After taking the wine, the leader did not suspect him, slapped open the wine seal, raised his head and poured a big mouthful.

The white of the roast knife was a distilled spirit, so spicy that it slid down my throat and into my stomach, and I felt that my whole chest was on fire.

There is also wine on the grassland, but the wine fermented by mare's milk is only three or five degrees at the highest, and even fruit wine and rice wine are not comparable.

The leader had never drunk such strong wine, his whole face was flushed, and after a long time, he spit out a mouthful of turbid breath and laughed: "Happy, good wine!" ”

As he spoke, he handed the wine to the herdsman beside him.

A jar of wine, more than 20 people took a sip, and drank it all in a blink of an eye.

The leader said boldly: "I like your gift very much, and we will be friends from now on!" ”

Soon, the caravan set out again, following the herdsmen towards the front.

The tribe of herders was built not far from this and near the river.

Along the way, Ma Kuo, with his excellent personality charm and eloquence, has been thoroughly familiar with the other party, and has taken out the information from the other party.

The other party's name is Mozhigen, and this place is under the jurisdiction of Dadan (Tatar) Bubu, and the population of the tribe is about 300.

Morrigan's father was the head of the clan.

At this time, he was not in the tribe, and he went to Kedun City a while ago to attend the banquet of the King of Liao.

In fact, Jerodashi had already set himself up as king on his way west.

"The caravan is coming!"

Morrigan roared.

In an instant, the entire tribe boiled.

There was little recreation on the steppes, and the caravans were most likely the only outsiders the herders had contact with for a whole year, or even years.

Every time a caravan arrives, it is a rare carnival day for the herdsmen on the steppe.

Although the Liao State established towns such as Keduncheng and Fangzhou on this land, the herders did not settle down, but lived in pursuit of water and grass.

Moreover, this place is too remote, commerce is withered, and the so-called towns are just tribes with walls and houses.

Mo Rigen gave Ma Kuo a warm welcome.

The grassland people are bold, and Ma Kuo is also a person who does not refuse, which attracts applause from the audience.

After three rounds of drinking, Ma Kuo asked, "Mo Rigen, how far is this place from Kedun City?" ”

Mo Rigen was already drunk at this time, and said with a big tongue: "You can ride a horse for three days." ”

Ma Kuo silently calculated in his heart that it would take three days to ride a horse, that is, five hundred miles or so.

Because the grassland is vast and boundless, and there are no obstacles, and there is no need to detour, it is extremely easy to travel more than 100 miles a day.

Mo Rigen grabbed him by the shoulders and said, "I heard that the King of Liao is vigorously developing trade, if you go, the King of Liao will be very happy, there has been no caravan from the Han Land for several years." ”

Hearing this, Ma Kuo nodded secretly in his heart.

In just one year, the grassland tribes were recovered, and they were united to vigorously develop commerce and slowly accumulate strength.

Ma Kuo echoed: "The Jin people are blocked in the north, and we can't get through, so we can only take a detour from Western Xia, pass through the vast desert, and only arrive here after nine deaths." ”

Speaking of the golden people, a trace of killing intent appeared on Mo Rigen's drunken face, and he shouted angrily: "Damn the golden people, sooner or later they will be killed!" ”

"Kill all the gold!"

The rest of the herdsmen in the tent raised their wine and shouted loudly.

They hated the Jin people very much, originally under the rule of the Liao State, life was very good, and they could easily exchange living materials through caravans.

As a result, after the Jin people raised their troops, the trade routes on the grassland were cut off.

Although Shangjing Road borders Western Xia, it is separated by 800 miles of Hanhai, which is almost a life-and-death journey, and no merchant is willing to do this.

Seeing this, Ma Kuo's heart was overjoyed, the people of the grassland were like this, it seems that this errand should be successful.

Outside the tents, herdsmen came to exchange their favorite goods with long-accumulated supplies such as sheepskins, horns, cowhides, etc.

The most popular products are needlework, tea, iron pots, and salt.

Of course, the herdsmen like wine and silk cloth, but few people can change it.

A herdsman chattered as he pushed a young girl into Lu Cheng's arms.

The girl entered her arms, and a smell of mutton suddenly came to her nose.

Lu Cheng looked at his own capital head at a loss, and said with a bitter face: "Zhang Dutou, this ...... What does this mean? ”

"Looks like I want to marry my daughter to you."

Zhang Dutou understood the Khitan language, scratched his head, and said with some uncertainty.

Seeing that the two of them did not move, the herdsman chattered again, and then directly picked up a jar of wine from the ground and walked away.

Lu Cheng hurriedly shouted: "Hey, you haven't paid yet." ”

The other party ignored him and quickly disappeared into the darkness.

At this moment, the guide who led the way for them showed a few big yellow teeth and said in a stiff Chinese dialect: "Girl, wine, friend." ”

The guide talked and made comparisons, and Lu Cheng and Zhang Dutou finally understood.

Fang Cai used his daughter's night to exchange wine.

But on the grassland, this is not called exchange, between friends, you give me wine, I send your daughter to sleep for you, it's normal.

This is the result of the survival and evolution of the group, which seems to be very chaotic, but in fact it is to ensure the genetic diversity of the group, otherwise a group will be closed for too long, and after a few generations, it will all be close relatives.

looked down at the girl, she was not very old, she was fifteen or sixteen, and there was a touch of plateau red on her cheeks on both sides, which was not pretty, but she was not ugly, and her figure was uneven.

A pair of legs are strong and strong due to long-term riding and grazing.

At this moment, lying in Lu Cheng's arms, the girl was not afraid, but her eyes widened, looking at all kinds of goods curiously.

Lu Cheng asked, "Zhang Dutou, what should I do now?" ”

"What to do?"

Zhang Dutou pursed his lips and snorted: "It's cheap, but the can of wine just now, when I go back, I have to deduct it from your money!" ”

Lu Cheng said to Ai Ai: "This ...... It's not good. ”

As soon as the words fell, even a soldier stepped forward: "Lao Lu, if you don't want to give it to me, I will pay for the wine!" ”

It's been half a year since I started from Beijing, and I'm really panicking.

"Roll the calves!"

Lu Cheng was suddenly anxious, and he didn't care about hypocrisy, and kicked the other party away.

Then, he put the girl on his shoulders and walked briskly towards a haystack in the distance.

(End of chapter)