The cloudy weather, coupled with the mist, creates a damp feeling that makes people feel uncomfortable.
There are still endless mountains ahead. No wonder such a place was chosen as a place of exile.
Even if he didn't starve to death, he would still be suffocated by this humid atmosphere.
Su Qi'an waited until the sky cleared after taking shelter from the rain, and did not continue moving forward with the Dongshan Army.
Instead, he led Tong Zhan's special team and the rest of them rested in these large caves, waiting for news about Su Qi'an's exploration.
After all, the size of the Dongshan Army exceeded a thousand people. For such a large-scale operation, it was easy to hide their whereabouts in the woods. But after leaving the woods and actually going to the county town of Jiaozhou, it was difficult for them, big men with a murderous aura, not to attract other people. Notice.
The most important thing is that the Dongshan Army has different types of arms, including cavalry and infantry. It is quite inconvenient to move in these mountains.
It would be more convenient to take a special team that is good at fighting from the forest and go explore the road.
After handing over the Dongshan soldiers to Huang Wenyan and Su Yong, Su Qi'an led Tong Zhan and other special forces to explore the way first.
After walking through numerous mountain peaks for at least half a day, Su Qi'an and his party finally saw a path they could walk on.
Although this road is not as good as the official road, it is still better than walking on a steep cliff.
Su Qi'an, who was walking on the mountain road, basically no longer relied on the map in his hand.
The map of the three states in the southern border is just a rough outline. It is of no use at all when it comes to the actual situation.
Now Su Qi'an could only walk while starting to draw a map of the field.
After all, this remote place of exile was where he developed his power. Entering Jiaozhou, he had this opportunity to simply understand the local topography.
Just like this, walking along the mountain road, in order not to attract attention, Su Qi'an and other special forces all put on the clothes of ordinary people.
Su Qi'an had no intention of revealing his so-called identity as the Marquis once he arrived in Jiaozhou.
In the three southern states, according to Huang Wenyan, except for the core Nanzhou, the control power of local officials in the remaining two states is not as strong as that of other states.
It can be seen from the imperial examination students selected every year. On the surface, they are among the top ten in the three southern states.
In fact, nearly 80% of these ten people are from Nanzhou, even if occasionally there are a few students from Jiaozhou and Yuezhou who are qualified to take the palace examination.
Most of the forces behind them are from Nanzhou. To put it bluntly, here in Jiaozhou, it is said that the control power of the state pastor is only one-tenth compared to other states.
Most of the rest are controlled by the local leaders. In Liang people's terms, these leaders are called priests.
There are high and low levels between priests. There are hundreds of priests in the three southern states.
They divided the three southern states into hundreds of areas of different sizes based on their respective jurisdictions.
This system is like the feeling between tribes. They do not believe in imperial power here, but the totem of each tribe, which they call the belief of God.
To put it bluntly, their system is even more backward than the feudal society of Great Liang, and they live a life of slavery.
All the local residents, that is, the indigenous people, are slaves of the priests and do not even have the most basic human rights.
Logically speaking, with such a backward and ignorant tribal system, it should be easy for Daliang to rule.
In fact, the founding emperor of Daliang did the same thing. With the strong military power during the founding period, he occupied the three southern states without much effort.
But the three southern states are too remote and mountainous, making it difficult to grow food.
The feudal dynasty relied mainly on agriculture. Even if it were occupied in such a wild land, it would not be able to send heavy troops to guard it for a long time.
Without food and relying solely on logistical supplies from other states, the route would be as difficult as climbing to the sky.
In addition, the natives of these tribes obeyed the priests' words, and the priests formed an alliance.
The resistance was quite fierce. In terms of strength, these natives were definitely not as strong as the Daliang army.
If you can't fight them head-on, they can fight in Conglin and ambush you.
Under such an unpredictable attack, the cold soldiers stationed here complained endlessly.
Moreover, the main defense target of Daliang was Darong in the north. Therefore, after being stationed there for twenty or thirty years, the second emperor of Daliang negotiated with these priests and natives.
Daliang withdrew the stationed Liang soldiers, retaining only necessary strategic locations, and the rest of the land was given to local priests.
But the three southern states must recognize Daliang as orthodox.
The priests agreed to the condition of withdrawing their troops in exchange for nominal jurisdiction.
After fighting with the Liang soldiers for so many years, the Liang soldiers complained endlessly. Likewise, the natives in their hands suffered heavy casualties.
Being able to reach such an agreement at least brought peace and the rights in hand.
Naturally, there will be no more commotion, that is, because the existence of this agreement has brought peace between the two sides for more than two hundred years.
In Su Qian's view, this kind of agreement would not be a problem if the Great Liang's national power had always been strong, but once it gradually declined, there might even be a risk of annihilation of the country.
The three southern states were definitely the first to rebel.
Based on its geographical location, it can also be like Xizhou. It can separate various transportation arteries and send troops to guard them, and it can form its own separate territory.
Anyway, the three states in the south are a place where no one can shit. Even if the Great Liang is destroyed, they will most likely have to find a new master.
At that time, you will still have a high degree of autonomy that belongs to you and will not harm them in the slightest, so why not do it.
But the nearly three hundred years of rule in Daliang were not without any results.
In the core Nanzhou, Daliang officials basically control 70% to 80%. The best economy and best military strength are all in Nanzhou.
As long as Nanzhou is under control, the priests and natives on the left and right who want to be reactionary will also be under Nanzhou's control.
The strategy set by the Emperor of Daliang is to vigorously develop Nanzhou. As for the two states of Jiaoyue and Yue, he only needs to be obedient.
As for Yuezhou, the sixth prince's fiefdom is there anyway, so even if there is chaos, it won't be too chaotic.
On the contrary, Jiaozhou became a child without parents and did not care at all, resulting in extreme chaos in the territory, where all kinds of things happened, and there were no rules and regulations at all.
This is not an exaggeration by Su Qi'an. Just as they were traveling on the mountain road in front of them, they encountered no less than three or four waves of robberies in just a few miles.
Although these people are bandits, they are different from those in Xizhou. They are very ruthless. Even if they pay money, they will kill people and steal goods without mercy.
Killing people and buying goods is entirely based on their own preferences and there are no rules.
But unfortunately this time, they met Su Qi'an. Su Qi'an was not polite to these people.
Tong Zhan and others killed them on the spot with three strikes, five cuts, and five cuts.
After dealing with several waves of bandits and walking a little further, Su Qi'an and the others finally saw the county seat where the people lived.
This county seat is called Tucheng. Although it is a county seat, its scale and wall height are far less than any other county in Xizhou.
The city wall is made entirely of clay fired into bricks, and is only less than three feet high. This scale is truly worthy of the name Tucheng.
Although Tucheng is not big, the gates are still guarded by government officials.
No matter where you go, avoid charging money to enter the city. The fee in Tucheng is not very high, only a hundred cash.
It's not that they don't want to collect more, but this place is really too poor. Even if it's a hundred coins, it won't satisfy a few in a day.
Su Qi'an did not deliberately cause trouble, quietly paid the money and prepared to enter the city.
When he first arrived, he didn't know much about the local customs and habits of Jiaozhou.
This time I entered the city just to give myself a good look, and there was no need to embarrass the city guards.
Just as Su Qian was about to enter the city, suddenly, a rushing voice sounded behind him.
The voice sounded strange. It was not in the Daliang language at all. It felt like reciting some kind of spell.
Su Qi'an came back. In the distance, there were more than a dozen people wearing animal skins with dark complexions and faces.
A large man with various tattoos is depicted on it.
Reciting unintelligible words and striding forward, this is not the most surprising thing.
These big men in animal skins carry bamboo chairs made of bamboo tubes on their shoulders. On the bamboo chair, there is a short person.
But he was wearing an animal skin hat, his face was painted with weird makeup, and he was holding something like a long whip in his hand.
At this time, his eyes were slightly closed and his arms were folded, looking pious.
Along the way, people entering the city gave way, and some even knelt down and worshiped on the spot without realizing it.
Su Qi'an saw that these people who were kneeling and worshiping were all local aborigines. They were very pious, with their hands clasped together and their heads on the ground.
Not to mention how weird the scene was, after all, in Great Liang, a society where imperial power was paramount.
The only one who can make people kneel down and worship is His Majesty, the Su Liang royal family.
This is the scene that can only be seen in the three southern states. If it were in other places, as long as someone did not kneel down to worship the royal family, he would definitely be arrested and sent to prison.
The person on the bamboo chair didn't need to think too much to know that this person should be a local priest.
As for the level, Su Qi'an didn't know.
But it is certain that his status is very noble. Not only the natives along the way kneeled down to worship him.
The government officials guarding the city showed respect on their faces, walked forward quickly, and said something to the big man at the head.
As he spoke, he motioned to enter the city, but these big men in animal skins ignored the city guards and directly knocked him away and strode into the city.
The city guard yamen covered his chest with his palms, rubbing them to relieve the pain in his body, but still kept a smile on his face.
When the priest disappeared, the city guard's expression suddenly changed.
He muttered in a low voice, "Bah! What the hell, isn't he just a little priest? He's so crazy, he looks down on others, he's nothing. I'm just waiting for the day when I turn over, and I'll get it back sooner or later."
This yamen servant was obviously insulted and cursed by the priest in front of him more than once.
At this time, a joking voice suddenly sounded in his ears, "I'm really good at talking, but I wonder if I'll be able to turn around in the future."
The city guard's face suddenly changed, and he turned his head sharply, looking for the source of the sound.
Under his glance, Su Qi'an came into his eyes. Looking at Su Qi'an with a smile, the city guard confirmed that this was the person he just mentioned.
The city guard's face was filled with anger. Although he couldn't deal with the little priest, he was more than enough to deal with the civilian in front of him.
It just so happened that he had nowhere to vent his anger, so since it was delivered to his door, he would naturally not be polite.
