With a pale face, Yelu Abli opened the curtain of the carriage and curiously looked at the Liangzhou warriors and the three Dayun Temple monks around the carriage.
The road from Luoyang to Lanzhou is not easy to walk. The little girl was very tired. She suffered from vomiting and diarrhea along the way. She has only recently gotten used to it.
"Brother, why do those monks look so fierce? Their Buddha names are very weird. Are they begging for the protection of the Holy Wheel-turning King in the west of Hexi?"
The brother Yelu Abli mentioned was a tall, tall man with a hooked nose on his face.
The strong man turned back and smiled fondly at Yelu Abli, "Young lady, those monks are not ordinary monks. They are warrior monks from Dayun Temple in Hexi Province. They obey the orders of the Holy King Chakravartin and have learned some spears and clubs. The leader looked very brave, but certainly a bit fierce.
I just heard that the monks in Hexi Province all respect the laws of the Holy King Chakravartin and declare that there is no Holy King Bodhisattva in the South. It seems that Master Long Bian is not exaggerating. There really is a Dharma King in Liangzhou, Hexi Province! "
This strong man with an aquiline nose who can be called brother by Yelu Abli is also from the Liao royal family. His father is Yelu Yaliguo, the fourth son of Yelu Abaoji, the Taizu of Liao Dynasty.
Yelu Yaliguo was even worse than his elder brother Yelu Bei. In 921, Yelu Abao led an army to besiege Dingzhou. After hearing the news, Emperor Zhuangzong Li Cunxu of the Later Tang Dynasty personally led his army north to relieve the siege. A war broke out between the two sides in Wangdu, Dingzhou.
The heavy snowfall was not conducive to the movement of the Khitan cavalry. As a result, Yelu Abaoji was defeated and escaped with only a thousand cavalry.
In this battle, Yelu Yali, who accompanied his father on the expedition, did not escape and was captured by Later Tang Dynasty.
Tang Zhuangzong did not kill him, but named him Di Huaihui and was assigned to Jinyang to guard the palace gate. After Tang Mingzong Li Siyuan came to the throne, he was transferred to Luoyang to continue guarding the palace gate.
Tang Mingzong and Zhuangzong also sent gifts to Yelu Abaoji every year in the name of Yelu Yaliguo.
This is not killing people, but it is killing people's hearts!
From then on, the Khitan people did not dare to look southward for several years, or they said they had no shame to go southward.
Moreover, this battle was regarded by Yelu Abaoji as a great shame in his life, and he went to see the Buddha within a few years.
Yelv Yaliguo, who was guarding the gate, waited until Yelv Bei came from Dandong Fuhai and was named Li Zanhua, and then Emperor Mingzong of the Tang Dynasty refused to let him guard the gate.
After that, Yelu Yaliguo was able to rely on his eldest brother and live a peaceful life. This time Yelu Bei's youngest daughter Yelu Abli went westward, and Yelu Yaliguo also asked his second son Yelu He to escort him.
When Yelu Abli heard what his brother said, a few blushes flashed across his pale face, and he felt much better.
Although the little girl is only nine years old, it is obvious that she already understands what she is going to do in the westward journey.
Before leaving, her father Yelvbei told her that the Khitan people believed in the Buddha a lot. If there really was a Dharma King in Hexi, they might as well serve him wholeheartedly and spread his reputation to the north and south of the desert and the coast of the East China Sea.
You are the jade girl chosen by the Dharma King. With this Buddhist connection, you will definitely be the strong support of my family in the future.
Of course, Yelvbei didn't know that he would soon be killed by the last emperor Li Congke, and he was still thinking about using his daughter's identity as a Buddhist jade girl to gain more influence among the Khitan people.
Yelu Abri also knew what her father meant and his wishes. Although her father had no choice but to float to the Central Plains, he never forgot his identity as the eldest son of Khitan and Taizu of Liao Dynasty. He always hoped to return to Khitan to regain the throne. .
In this case, in Khitan, where Buddhism is generally believed, a prestigious Dharma king can definitely greatly enhance Yelvbei's influence. Compared with these, what is there to be reluctant to part with a daughter?
"Ao Gu, Yi Li Jin, Master Long Bian and the leaders of the Liangzhou warriors came to inform us that King Zhang Fa of Liangzhou is going to attack Lanzhou City. They asked us to wait here until we capture Lanzhou before entering the city!"
The Yelu Abli brothers and sisters didn't say a few words before the guard captain Mu Shunyi hurried over.
Aogu means goddess in Khitan. At this time, some princesses in the Liao Kingdom who were favored by the emperor would be called Aogu by others.
Yili Jin is an official position inherited by the Khitan from the Turkic language, and refers to the tribal military leader.
Yelu Yaliguo and his father Yelu Yaliguo were the fourth sons of Yelu Abaoji, Taizu of the Liao Dynasty. According to Khitan custom, they had their own tribe. All Yelu Yaliguo, Yelu Yaliguo and his son were also called Yili Jin by the Khitan warriors in the Central Plains.
"Hmph!" Yeluhe, who had a more impulsive personality, immediately frowned and snorted angrily when he heard what Mu Shunyi said.
"These Liangzhou people are so contemptuous of others. Are we, the Khitan warriors, greedy for life and afraid of death?"
Mu Shunyi frowned slightly. He was not as impulsive as Yeluhe. These fifty people were all the force to protect Yelu Abri. How could they casually throw themselves into the fight between Liangzhou and Lanzhou people?
He looked at Yelu Abli. They were the guards protecting Yelu Abli. Of course, they only listened to Yelu Abli.
The nine-year-old girl thought for a moment and asked cautiously: "Mu Sheli, do you think those Liangzhou people will succeed? If we just sit back and watch, will the Liangzhou people look down on me, the Khitan warriors?"
Relic is also a Khitan language, similar to Langjun, which is an honorific title for men.
When Mu Shunyi heard what Yelu Abli said, there was a hint of surprise on his face, and then he answered with his right hand on his chest.
"Reporting to Ao Gu, I have seen many Lanzhou people in Dongdu. They are not subordinate to each other, and the imperial court has blocked their iron supply, so they are not very powerful.
As for the soldiers of Liangzhou, if Master Long Bian hadn't lied, they would have been very brave and good at fighting. "
"That means the Liangzhou people are likely to succeed, right?" Yelu Abli asked with his long eyelashes flashing.
"It's very possible!" Mu Shunyi nodded hesitantly, "But it may also fail!"
"Then we Khitan warriors should fight together with the Liangzhou warriors. If we are bound to win, how can we show our importance?
Don't worry about me. I went to the Majestic Temple with Master Long Bian. Even if they failed, they would never dare to rush into the Buddhist temple and attack the Buddha. "
. . . .
Lanzhou City, the former Lanzhou Governor's Office, is one of the best-maintained buildings in Lanzhou City.
Since the Wang family tribe entrenched in Lanzhou is a federation of tribes, they naturally need a place to discuss matters. The most suitable place is definitely the Lanzhou Governor's Yamen.
The person in charge of the Wang family is the patriarch of the Shatuo Li family. It is actually not a big problem to say that they are the Shatuo Li family.
Because they are indeed somewhat related to the Shatuo Zhuxie tribe, but they are only distant relatives.
So when Li Keyong's great-grandfather, Zhu Xie of the Shatuo Zhuxie tribe, left Tubo and defected to the Tang Dynasty, they did not follow him.
Sitting opposite the head of the Li clan, the person who even formed a clearly divided court was an old man wearing a leather robe.
Although the old man was wearing a leather robe, he had a nondescript futou tied on his head, which seemed to indicate his identity as a Tang Dynasty man.
This person was the leader of the Wang family in Jincheng, Wang Zongheng, the official Yinqing Guanglu of the Later Tang Dynasty and the governor of Lanzhou.
Behind Wang Zongheng, a strong man with thick hands and feet, a long horizontal sword on his waist, and wearing a ring armor stood tall. He was Wang Zongheng's second son Wang Tinghan.
His name sounds quite elegant, but he was actually one of the few brave warriors in the Wang family. Historically, he was conferred the title of General of Shunyi and Official of Lanzhou by the Later Zhou Dynasty.
At this time, the atmosphere in the Lanzhou Governor's Yamen was already very tense. The Li clan leader looked at Wang Tinghan behind Wang Zongheng several times, with a hint, but in the end he was worried about something and did not speak.
Wang Tinghan also looked sideways at the Li clan leader. His hand had already reached into the hem of his robe, holding the handle of the horizontal sword tightly, ready to draw the sword at any time.
"The leader of the Xiaoliang tribe came to report on the fifth day, saying that there seemed to be a large number of troops passing by in the north of Jincheng County.
Yesterday, Hua Ma'er, the leader of the Daliang clan in Jinchengguan, also sent people to complain. One of their clansmen went out to collect firewood three days ago and have not returned yet.
Your king, horse and other families have lived in the north for a long time. I need to tell you whether there are soldiers and horses coming from somewhere to invade our territory? "
Jinchengguan is located to the north of Lanzhou City and is the only official road into Lanzhou City from the north.
For people coming to Lanzhou from the north, if they don't pass through Jinchengguan, there is only a small road further to the northeast that can pass. However, it has to go through the steep Yema Valley, which is not easy to walk.
Things were a bit strange. Chief Li felt something was wrong. Originally, he wanted to invite everyone to discuss it today, but the two sides choked up after a few words during the meeting.
The Li clan leader unknowingly threw the pot over the heads of the Jincheng Wang clan and other families descended from Tang'er out of habit.
"Maybe it's the Liangzhou soldiers and horses provoked by these farmers. They want to monopolize these good fields!"
"I saw someone from Su Lun's family going to Wang's family yesterday. Maybe they have some connection!"
As soon as the Li clan leader spoke out, someone started to steer the matter in the direction of colluding with the Liangzhou people.
"You rotten Qiang, if you have any evidence, bring it out. If there is no evidence, go find it! Talking nonsense will lead to tongue-pulling hell."
"Joke! The heavy snow on Hongchi Ridge is up to the knees, how can Liangzhou soldiers and horses fly in? If you want to frame it, you have to make it sound better. Do you want me to teach you a lesson?"
Faced with the accusations, Tang'er's descendants, headed by the Jincheng Wang family, did not show any weakness and cursed one after another.
Speaking of which, the situation in Lanzhou is actually somewhat similar to that in Liangzhou.
The disputes between Shatuo and Han people within the Wang family also originated from land.
A few decades ago, the Wang family in Jincheng was the dominant family, controlling large tracts of fertile land in and around Lanzhou close to the Zhuanglang River and the Yellow River.
At that time, in order to increase their strength and have more Dingkou, the descendants of the Han people headed by the Wang family of Jincheng recruited the Shatuo tribe and other Qiang tribes in the mountains.
At first, the two sides were in peace with each other. After all, Lanzhou was so big that supporting tens of thousands of people was not a big problem.
But later, it became colder and colder on the mountain, and more and more tribes came down.
After the Tang Dynasty and Tubo were put to rest, the two major forces fighting in Lanzhou were gone, and Lanzhou also ushered in a long period of peace.
During this period, the population grew rapidly, almost doubling to 1,340,000. In the generation from Jincheng County to Lanzhou City alone, there were 60,000 to 70,000 people.
You must know that when the Tang Dynasty controlled Lanzhou, there were only tens of thousands of people here. Now it has grown to hundreds of thousands. It is approaching the limit of the land's carrying capacity, and the contradiction between man and land has become increasingly acute.
The Jincheng Wang family and other Han families felt that the land in Lanzhou belonged to them. These Shatuo and Qiang people came down from the mountains to work as tenants for them. Now they want to seize their land and reclaim wasteland everywhere. It is an unforgivable crime. .
The Shatuo and Qiang people believed that even though the Tang people had occupied good land and were not allowed to open up wasteland, they were trying to drive them back to the mountains to wait for death. Therefore, the conflict between the two sides escalated rapidly within a few years.
The quarrel was fruitless. Originally, the Li clan leader wanted everyone to discuss how to deal with the threat from Zhang Zhao in Liangzhou? As a result, there was almost a fight in the Lanzhou Governor's Yamen.
When he returned home, Wang Tinghan let out a long sigh. He didn't even have time to take off the armor on his body, so he went to his father Wang Zongheng and said.
"Your Excellency, you need to make a decision. Everyone in the audience is planning to draw their swords today. If they weren't worried about the kid, fourth brother, and more than ten people, they might have come up to kill him.
I heard that Zhang Sikong in Liangzhou has thousands of soldiers, and he is also the reincarnation of Bodhisattva Dharma King. We are all Tang children, why not join him? "
Wang Zongheng sat down heavily on the bed, taking several deep breaths in his throat, and then his body slowly became exhausted again.
"My son said, how could I not know, but it was because Zhang Sikong had thousands of soldiers that I didn't dare to join him.
If he had not used force, there would still be room for us, but now he has thousands of soldiers. What he lacks is not warriors, but the wealth to support these soldiers.
Apart from the property, what else in my Wang family can be seen by Zhang Sikong?
If you don't take refuge, you're just giving up some of your belongings to Nasha Tuohu'er. If you take refuge, how can the Wang family keep the hundreds of thousands of acres of land? "
