All members of the expedition, including the Mongolian cavalry boys who escorted them, were also given wine and meat to eat. Of course, the big shots went to the hall in the house, while these ordinary soldiers could only drink in the open air in the yard.
But drinking in the open air is a bit more interesting. Bonfires and charcoal braziers are placed everywhere. The whole marshal's mansion is warm. There is no hierarchy anymore. Everyone toasts to each other. Those who drink too much are asked to be carried out to the main hall. Throw it on the kang and fall asleep in the dark.
Only Samuel Baker of the expedition did not drink, because this typhoid patient was taken away by military doctors as soon as he entered the general's residence. His pulse was taken and diagnosed in a separate room. After a while, there was already a piece of medicine in the herbal jar. The medicine is fragrant.
Guazhou City is not big, and the so-called Marshal's Mansion is just a remodel of the Yamen. When the army comes, the house will naturally become overcrowded.
Samuel Baker and several other patients lived in the west wing of a small courtyard on the west side of the back house of the Marshal's Mansion. There was no movement in the east wing until dark, but soldiers could be seen setting up charcoal fires early. Basins, hot water, etc. are ready.
To the north of the east and west wing rooms is the main room, which is also empty, but there are people waiting on it. As soon as it gets dark, candles are lit and the fire plate is warmed. There are even four young maids who are rare and waiting.
Samuel Baker drank a bowl of decoction and rested on the bed. Not to mention that this oriental herbal medicine was really magical. He started to sweat within ten minutes after taking a bowl.
After sweating all over my body, I immediately felt relaxed!
Listening to the lively banquet in the Marshal's main hall not far away, the small courtyard became more and more peaceful. After drinking half a bowl of millet porridge, Samuel began to write his notes again, while other expedition teams in the room The patients are already asleep.
Just when he had just written a page and a half, suddenly there were messy footsteps in the small courtyard. Many people were coming in and out, and the courtyard suddenly became brighter.
Samuel stood up and pushed open the gap in the window lattice. He found that there were more than a dozen people in the yard carrying boxes and cages covered with dust. It looked like they had been busy in the desert for a long time. Before entering the house, everyone used a duster to pat them down. The loose soil on the body.
I saw many servants and soldiers carrying boxes and cages one after another. A few of them were the leaders at first sight, so they opened the boxes and cages in the courtyard and began to count the contents.
Samuel took one look and couldn't look away. He was a famous British explorer and was born with a sensitivity to cultural relics and antiques.
All of these items counted are ancient relics with a long history!
Stone carvings, metal vessels, peeling slates with decorative paintings... there are even some carved building components!
"Are they colleagues? Is this also an archaeological team..."
Just when he was thinking wildly, he suddenly found that two or three people in the leader seemed to be arguing over a piece of stone. He couldn't understand Chinese, but it was not difficult to guess from the expressions of these people that they were arguing about that piece of stone. argue over stones.
Samuel Baker became interested. He leaned forward even harder and even opened the window to look at the stone carefully. Then, with the light of the flickering torch, the stone turned back and forth in someone else's hand. It took him a while to see clearly the carvings on it. Ornamentation.
For a moment, Samuel Baker couldn't care less. He said loudly in English, "This is an ancient Zoroastrian sculpture. It is Zoroastrian..."
"This is the Zoroastrian god of victory..."
A series of words in English were blurted out, and everyone in the yard never expected that a foreign devil actually lived in the west wing. Everyone fell silent and looked at the foreign devil's head exposed in the window.
One of the Chinese people who were arguing just now stood up and said in very broken English, "Are you... Samuel Baker..."
Samuel heard that someone actually knew me. Although the English accent was wrong, he could understand it.
"That's right, it's me. Who are you?"
The person who lives in the east wing is none other than the shopkeeper Fan Jin on the left side of Guiyan. The person who lives in the main room facing north and south in this courtyard is also served by beautiful maids. Of course, he is the most noble King Shangtai in Guazhou City at the moment!
Zuo Zongtang was very strict in running the army, and it was during a war. How could he let an officer get close to women? In ancient Chinese tradition, the military is extremely masculine and masculine, and it is unlucky to bring a feminine woman with you.
Therefore, except for King Shang Tai, there is no woman in the entire Dashuai Palace. Even the kitchen helpers are veterans and there are no cooks.
If the general leads by example, then his officers and soldiers will not harass the women and children of the people. Only by being strict in discipline can they win the support of the people.
From this point of view, this small hospital is already a special case opened by Zuo Zongtang. It is a place where he specially places distinguished guests. On the left of King Shangtai, Guiyan and the shopkeeper Fan Jin of the Western Region Development Bank... and finally a group of British patients .
The people who were just arguing were a group of people including King Shang Tai, the left and Fan Jin, because both the left and King Shang Tai had Xiao Letian's secret mission. In addition to going to the Western Regions to support the war and do business, Dunhuang is also a key point that must be protected. .
In other words, the task of exploring archeology is very urgent!
Starting from Lanzhou and heading west along the ancient road, the monk Tai Wang on the left has had enough. The ruins of the ancient city, the abandoned tombs, and the buildings left by various religions without human habitation have all become the objects of their archeology.
Six days ago, they heard a local guide say that there was a group of ancient tombs two hundred miles southwest of Guazhou City. King Shangtai and Zuo Zuo ignored the wind, snow and cold, and went to rob the tombs under the protection of the guide and soldiers.
There was indeed a lot gained in these six days, and a camel team was loaded with antiques!
The stone carving they were squatting in the corner and arguing about just now was found in the ancient tombs, but no one knew the origin of the carving, and they discussed it for a long time with no results.
But I didn't expect that the British explorer Samuel Baker was an expert. One look at the carvings and I knew that this thing was very powerful.
Zuo Zuo smiled and said to King Shangtai, "Your Majesty, you have not been to England, so you are not familiar with it. I heard about this explorer when I was with the head of state in Europe... I also bought a book of his works. It’s a pity that the translation hasn’t been completed yet!”
"Sir Samuel Baker, the explorer who discovered the source of the Nile!"
King Shangtai had already heard of this man's name when he was stealing cultural relics in Egypt. He slapped his forehead and said, "Oh...it's that Pasha!"
"Unexpectedly, Gordon's expedition team also brought him..."
"Let's go, give us a few things that we can't understand, and let this British knight take charge of them..."
King Shangtai is surrounded by translators who are proficient in various languages. King Shangtai and shopkeeper Fan Jin themselves are very good in English. Guiyan Zuozuo also learned about it in Europe.
There was no problem with daily communication. When Samuel Baker heard that this was the king of the ancient Ryukyu Kingdom, he quickly stood up and saluted.
