On the fifteenth day of the first month, the Tang Kingdom, Dunhuang City.

The barbarian coalition army that had besieged Dunhuang City for more than 40 days quietly withdrew, and the curfew and military control in the city were also lifted, and the dark clouds pressing on the head of this kind of border fortress finally dissipated completely.

Yesterday, after a joint petition by the gentry and elders of the whole city, and with the approval of the city lord's mansion, a celebration of the victory of the Tang Dynasty will be held today.

Today is the day of the folk Shangyuan Festival, although the Tang official has not regarded this festival as a national legal holiday, but this festival has still been preserved in the Tang Dynasty.

Shangyuan Festival is a relatively important folk festival for the people, and appreciating the lanterns and worshiping the moon, dancing the dragon and performing the lion, and eating the Lantern Festival are the indispensable regular programs of the Shangyuan Festival.

On this year's Shangyuan Festival, the military and civilians of the whole city, regardless of whether they are rich or poor, whether they are rich or poor, whether they are official or white, all participate in this celebration, and many people have been busy on the evening of January 13.

According to the custom of the northwest borderlands, every family, regardless of their family background, needs to hang a lantern at the door on the day of the Shangyuan Festival, indicating that the whole family is reunited, harmonious and beautiful, and praying for good weather this year.

Ordinary people will take out the bamboo strips, copper wires, broken colored paper, rags that they usually collect, make a good paste, prepare a needlework rope, and make the lanterns at home, and the whole family will participate in this work, develop the greatest imagination, give full play to all the craftsmanship, and try to make their own lanterns look good and make them novel and extraordinary.

The rich and noble people are made by craftsmen who specialize in making lanterns, and it is impossible to have only one, they need more lanterns than others, in order to show the wealth of their homes, so the lanterns of the rich and noble people are not only used to pray, they also bear the effect of showing strength and highlighting the family style, the only advantage of this comparison psychology is that it can feast the eyes of the people who watch the lanterns.

There are also some poor people do not have to worry, the government will distribute a batch of standard lanterns for free every year, although these lanterns are simple in style and monotonous in color, but as a prayer for the poor people's Shangyuan Festival, it is still more than enough, as long as the men in the family are diligent, go to the government to receive it early on the day of the Shangyuan Festival.

If poor and lazy families don't have to despair, some powerful shops and chambers of commerce in the city will send men to pull lantern trucks around the city on the day of the Shangyuan Festival, and find that there are no lanterns hanging in front of the people, and they will take the initiative to give lanterns to the door.

However, these lanterns must have the eye-catching logos of these shops and chambers of commerce, these poor and lazy families generally do not pay attention to it, and if someone comes to deliver lanterns, then hang them up and add some popularity to their homes, so both sides take what they need and are harmonious.

At midnight, the chief historian of Dunhuang City, Sima and the record of the army had already taken the government officials to inspect the inner city and the outer city, and saw the festival scene that was more lively than in previous years, and saw the scale of the lanterns that was several times more than in previous years, and they were very satisfied, so the three of them rushed back to the city lord's mansion from all over to report.

The city lord's mansion has been arranged yesterday, and the two huge palace lamps on the gatehouse nearly two zhang high are made according to the official system of the imperial court and state government, showing the majesty of the dignity of a state, and because of Li Chengliang's clan status, these two palace lamps have specially added a few yellow silk silk pattern decoration edges, which shows the dignity of these two palace lamps.

The other places in the city lord's mansion are also full of lanterns, but most of the lanterns are relatively square and atmospheric lanterns, and there is no sense of luxury like the lanterns of the rich and noble, which shows the solemn atmosphere of the mansion.

This time, the army and people of Dunhuang City worked together to successfully resist the attack of the barbarian coalition army, ensuring the stability of the situation in the northwest, and winning the initiative for the negotiations between the Tang and Song kingdoms and the Mengyuan and the Western Regions, and the northeast countries, which can be described as a great achievement.

In one fell swoop, the imperial court exempted the people of Dunhuang City from paying taxes for three years, gave generous pensions to the soldiers and civilians who died, gave large sums of money to the reconstruction of the destroyed villages and towns outside Dunhuang City, and encouraged the soldiers and civilians to take Dunhuang City as the center and pioneer upwards to the north and west.

The Dunhuang City Government received the commendation order from the imperial court yesterday, and immediately sent all the soap officials, tolerances, and tax collectors in the city and city gate guards to the streets to preach, and the content of the commendation order made the morale of the people of Dunhuang greatly boosted, cheering, so there was today's celebration.

The frontier army and the common people rejoiced over tax cuts, pensions, and pioneer money, while the city's mid-level and high-ranking civil officials were apprehensive about the hidden meaning behind the commendation.

They could not know why the imperial court would launch a strategy at this time to encourage the people of the Tang State to go west and north, which was contrary to the policy of the Tang State to passively resist the enemy for many years.

Now that the world has been peaceful for a long time, it is not easy for any country to expand its territory, especially in the racial war between people of different cultures and races, and the tragedy is even more lamentable.

I don't know how much blood will be shed in Dunhuang, the northwest border city, in the next few decades or even hundreds of years?

Li Chengliang couldn't guess the thoughts of those high-ranking officials in the court, let alone change the decision of the imperial court, so he could only conscientiously implement the strategic guidelines of the imperial court.

Along with the commendation order, there was also an official letter from the province of Menxia, in which the senior officials of the court rejected Li Chengliang's application for this year's Zhishi, and persuaded him to persist for another year for the country on the grounds that the situation in the northwest was unpredictable, which made Li Chengliang feel very depressed.

The only thing that made him feel relieved was that when the imperial court rewarded Fan Yunchao, in addition to giving him a knight and rewarding a large amount of gold and silver, he also added the title of "deputy city lord" in front of his title of garrison general, it seems that the imperial court is also considering the replacement of the city lord in Dunhuang City, but he can't make up his mind for a while, so he hopes that Li Chengliang will insist on the transition again and give the court some buffer time.

This morning, the city lord Li Chengliang came to the study early, took out the court's commendation order and official letter, and read it carefully again.

As an official, you must figure out the above intentions, and the seemingly ordinary commendation orders and official letters may contain more meanings behind them, Li Chengliang must interpret them, and when they are all understood, he also needs to write a letter of thanks and an official letter to reply.

The letter of thanks is to thank the imperial court for its kindness and benevolence on behalf of the military and people of Dunhuang, and to express the admiration of the military and people of Dunhuang for their father and their determination to stick to the border city and expand their territory.

The official reply was to tell Menxia Province that although he is now seriously ill and old, if the imperial court insists on staying in office, then he will insist on it for another year, but at most for one year, otherwise he can only 'bow down and die in office', hoping that the imperial court will arrange suitable personnel to take over his position as city lord as soon as possible.

Li Chengliang thought for a long time, and the drafts of the two letters were basically prepared, so he asked the scholar to take the paper for the official letter, prepare a pen and polish the ink, and prepare to hurry up to reply to the two letters from the imperial court.

At this time, Menzi came to report, Changshi, Sima and Lushi joined the army to ask to see together, Li Chengliang had to ask the scholar to stop serving with pen and ink, hurry up to prepare tea, and at the same time let Menzi go to greet him.

Li Chengliang put on a leather coat and walked from the warm study to the front hall, where it was in line with the court's etiquette to meet the lower officials.

Soon, Changshi, Sima, and Lushi came to the back hall, and they first greeted the city lord together, and the city lord Li asked them to sit down and talk.

Li Chengliang looked at his three right-hand men, with neat official uniforms, sweat on their foreheads, and a dusty appearance, and said gently: "Why did the three of you run all in stinky sweat early in the morning, today is the Shangyuan Festival, there shouldn't be too much official business." ”

Changshi hurriedly clenched his fists: "Lord Hui, the three of us are not worried about the situation in the city, so we went to inspect all parts of the city, and we are about to report to you." ”

Li Chengliang hurriedly asked: "Is everything okay in the city? What is the mood of the people? Is the supply of materials in the city smooth? How are the preparations for the activities of the labor army?"

Changshi smiled and said, "My lord, don't worry, wait for the three of us to report to you one by one." I was responsible for inspecting the inner city, Sima was in charge of the north and east of the city, and the army was in charge of the west and south of the city.

The merchants and wealthy households in the inner city all have their own sources, and all kinds of news are the first to know, their families have sufficient material reserves, most of them have recovered from panic, and the lanterns and labor supplies they have prepared this year are several times that of previous years.

It seems that these wealthy businessmen are indeed greedy and cunning, and they can even smell some of the flavor from the court's commendation order, hoping to show it well, and strive to get a share of the court's support policy and obtain some real profits. ”

Li Chenglian sighed and said: "The border land is barren, the real estate is not enough to support the people, and you can really only rely on these businessmen and wealthy families to make this border city prosperous, you can't despise them too much, just put some senses in your heart, and often show them on your face, which is not good for your future career." ”

Changshi hurriedly got up and said, "Thank you for your advice, Xia Guan Meng Lang is here, and I will pay attention to it in the future." ”

Then Sima began to report: "Report to my lord, the outer city is slightly depressed, the situation in the east of the city is acceptable, but the direction of the north of the city is not good, the pressure on the north of the city is the greatest in this defense of the city, there are more casualties among the soldiers, and the people support the most labor during the war, and later because of the ice leeches, some areas in the north of the city have been isolated for half a month, resulting in a certain fatigue of the military and civilians in the north of the city.

However, the morale of the soldiers and civilians in the north of the city was high, and everyone believed that it was because the soldiers and civilians in the north of the city fought hard and repelled the Mengyuan army, which finally forced the barbarian coalition army to retreat. ”

Li Chengliang said: "The soldiers and civilians in the north of the city have indeed made huge sacrifices in this defense battle, you have to appease more, and after the pension and pioneer money come down, you must tilt towards the north of the city, how is the supply of materials in the north of the city?"

Sima said: "Merchants in the north of the city are worried that the leeches may have an impact in the future, so fewer shops have opened, and traders in other urban areas are reluctant to go to the north of the city to do business, resulting in a shortage of materials in the north of the city."

Before I returned, I had already arranged for someone to allocate supplies to Chengbei, and ordered the Chengbei store to open within three days, otherwise the practice license would be revoked, and the situation would be improved in the next few days. ”

Li Chengliang said: "Well, the means are powerful and the treatment is timely, but don't blindly use the force, force the people to accept, you need to know that 'the mouth of the people is better than the defense of Sichuan', and it is necessary to strengthen the preaching and explanation of the ice leeches to avoid causing large-scale panic due to misunderstanding, which is used by some people with ulterior motives." ”

Sima hurriedly got up and said, "What the adults teach is that the subordinates should remember to sort out the relevant information about the ice leeches in a while, issue notices, and arrange for the students in the superintendent to go to various cities to preach. ”

Li Chengliang nodded and said, "Well, this arrangement is proper, what about the situation in the west and south of the city?"

The secretary of the army said: "Hui Yu, the situation in the west and south of the city is slightly better than that in the north of the city, and the barbarian coalition army in the west of the city did not attack the city with all its might, so the casualties in the west of the city are not large. The people are in a stable mood and are methodically preparing for the activities of the labor army. ”

Li Chengliang said: "Well, today's Shangyuan Lantern Festival is just an introduction, the labor army activities are the focus, to highlight the theme of the people's spontaneous labor army, we don't want to participate too much, I hope that this labor army activity can make the integration of the military and the people in Dunhuang City go further, only the army and the people are united, in order to deal with a greater crisis in the future." ”

......

In the early morning of January 16, at the foot of the bridge mountain, beside the frustrated water.

Tu Shan Ziyi did not wear the purple clothes she liked to wear today, but changed into a very ordinary blue dress, wearing a power lily on her head, and the hanging light veil covered her peerless appearance and slender neck.

She carried a small burden behind her back, which was used to disguise her identity when entering the territory of the Terrans, and the valuables were actually placed in her storage bracelet.

She specially found a two-foot-four-inch short sword from the storeroom and held it in her hand, pretending to be used for self-defense, but this short sword was more like an ornament than for self-defense.

Because the news of Tu Shan Ziyi's descent from the mountain was deliberately blocked, only Ah Li and Tu Shanchong came to see her off in the morning, and Tu Shanchong was also responsible for opening the protective formation of Xuanyuan Tomb.

Speechless all the way, the three of them crossed the Fushui Bridge, Ah Li and Tu Shanchong stopped, Tu Shanchong said: "Aunt Ziyi, a good wind, I hope you will return as soon as possible." ”

Ah Li also said: "Aunt Ziyi, pay attention to safety all the way, this is the first time you have gone to the territory of the Terrans, I heard that the Terrans are very cunning, you must be careful everywhere." ”

Tu Shan Ziyi laughed: "You two little guys don't pretend to be adults in front of me, I am a senior monk in the realm of the Transformation Stage, even if I reach the territory of the human race, it is impossible for others to slaughter, and I don't need you two little guys to tell me to pay attention to safety." ”

Ah Li stepped forward and hugged Tu Shan Ziyi's arm and said, "Auntie, we really care about you, don't be angry." ”

Tu Shan Ziyi patted Ah Li's hand and said, "Well, Auntie knows, I'm teasing you." Okay, you can only send me here, Chong'er, open the door quickly, and after I leave, you can go back quickly. ”

Tu Shanchong took out a jade tablet from his bosom and inserted it into the card slot behind the dismounted stone tablet, and there was a ripple on the protective array of Xuanyuan Tomb, and a door one zhang high and eight feet wide was opened in front of the Fushui Bridge.

Tu Shan Ziyi gently broke free of Ah Li's arm, turned around and walked out of the formation gate, and then waved his hand at Ah Li and Tu Shan Chong, turning into a purple light and flying in the direction of the moat.

Tu Shan Chong pulled out the jade plaque behind the dismounted stone stele, and there was another ripple on the protective array, which turned into a complete transparent protective film again, protecting Qiaoshan and Fushui in the formation.

Tu Shanchong said to Ah Li, who was still staring: "Ah Li, let's go back, we have a lot of things to do, we have to redouble our efforts from today, there are still eight months to participate in the competition, and every day can't be wasted." ”

Ah Li said: "Okay, I will ask the ancestor to protect the Dharma for me today, I want to advance to the Jindan stage, and strive to catch up with Ji Yun'er and Yuguan as soon as possible." ”

Tu Shanchong nodded, didn't speak again, turned into a ray of light and flew towards Qiaoshan, Ah Li also took out a shuttle and flew towards Qiaoshan with himself.

Tu Shan Ziyi quickly shuttled through the Heavenly Demon Forest, but her mind didn't know where to run, she had never stepped into the territory of the human race in her life, and she was excited and a little uneasy at the moment, after all, the human race is synonymous with greed and despicability in most legends of the demon race.

The human race claims to be the primate of all things, because of their selfish desire to fight with all races and expel other living beings from the borderlands, it can be seen that they are really very hateful, so they are spurned by most demon races.

But Xuanyuan Tomb is a special case, they have an inextricable relationship with the human race, they still regard themselves as the descendants of the Yellow Emperor's authentic Miao descendants, and there is a feeling of "tragic isolation" in the demon race, so the feelings of the children of Xuanyuan Tomb towards the human race are complicated.

Tu Shan Ziyi didn't want to let the chaotic thoughts interfere with her emotions, so she kept speeding up, flying to the direction of the moat at the fastest speed, and finally she was completely silent in the realization of extreme speed, following the breakthrough in her body last night, her flight speed also broke through the previous limit.

Tu Shan Ziyi unconsciously maintained a day and a night of extreme speed flight and epiphany, and when she felt weak and hungry, she had already arrived near the moat.

Tu Shan's purple clothes landed on the crown of one of the tallest trees in this area, and she found a thicker branch and sat down, her body gently swaying with the breeze.

Tu Shan Ziyi took out the dry food and spiritual spring water, briefly replenished it, and took out two high-grade spirit stones and held them in the palm of his hand, then got up and looked at the majestic moat not far away.

Straddling a deep stream, the Celestial Trench is supported by eighteen pillars of heaven to connect the Terran territory and the Heavenly Demon Forest, no matter which angle you look at, this is a miracle.

Tu Shan Ziyi looked back in the direction of Xuanyuan Tomb, although he definitely couldn't see the high bridge mountain now, but Tu Shan Ziyi could still feel the warmth there.

Not long after, Tu Shan Ziyi felt that the demonic power had been replenished by six or seven percent, and then it could be slowly replenished by the operation of the exercises, she let go of her palm, and the two high-grade spirit stones had turned into powder, she gently patted the powder on her palm, and took out a handkerchief to gently wipe her palm.

Finally, Tu Shan Ziyi glanced back in the direction of the Heavenly Demon Forest and resolutely walked towards the Heavenly Moat.