At this time, the sun had jumped up to the plateau, illuminating the whole body of the hay and jade-topped yellow with a golden light. Jiang Shuo and Tuoba Qimei couldn't help but stare at each other. Jiang Shuo exclaimed: "This is what Longxiang Pegasus is called!"
In the eyes of the Central Plains, the yellow horse's coat looks dry and dull, but the sunlight on the plateau is more intense and can make people's skin red. Under the sunlight of the Tubo Plateau, the yellow horse's coat glows with a completely different look. Looking bright, Jiang Shuo remembered that Dugu Wen once said that Hay Ding Huang was a Pegasus from Longju Island in the West Sea. This place is not far from the West Sea. Is this really the birthplace of Long Xiangma?
While the two were stunned, Dugu Xiang rode a yellow horse and came close. She said with a smile: "Brother Shuo, the yellow horse saved your life today."
Tuoba Qimei said: "Since I was a child, I have heard from the herdsmen here that there is a Dragon-Xiang Pegasus that is transformed into a real dragon in the sky and can command the horses. I always thought it was just a legend, but I never thought it was true."
Dugu Xiang pointed back and said: "Ah, no! Run quickly..."
It turned out that the Tubo knight finally controlled the horse and came back. Under the sun, the Tibetan knights also have bright armor, which is eye-catching. The hundreds of arrows on the bows also shimmer in the sun, making people shudder.
Tuoba Qimei said: "Although the neighing of the dragon horse can temporarily disturb the horses, the opponent is a well-trained war horse after all. Once it gets used to it, it will not work. Let's take advantage of the chaos and escape!"
The three of them turned their horses and continued running towards the mountains. At this moment, the three of them were lightly dressed and equipped with Tubo cavalry, and they were two to three hundred steps away from each other. Even if some Tibetan riders could shoot such a long distance on a horse running at full strength. The distance was also at the end of a strong crossbow, and they were easily knocked away by the three of them.
After running like this for a long time, the distance between the two sides became wider and wider. Seeing that the Tubo knight could not catch up, he could only turn the horse's head back with a curse. The horses under the three of them except for the yellow horse with jade top, the peach blossom horse and the big green horse. They were all out of breath and almost exhausted, so they dared to slow down the three horses to rest their strength, but they did not dare to stop, and they still took small steps towards the mountains to the southwest.
There were sparse trees on the plateau, and the view was unobstructed. The movements of the Tibetan cavalry a few miles away could be seen in the distance. They seemed to have given up chasing Jiang Shuo and others and continued to march west as a team.
After walking for several more miles, when the sun fully rose, they finally entered the mountainous area. The three of them rode their horses up a hill and looked north, only to see a team of Tibetan horse archers moving rapidly to the northwest.
Dugu Xiang couldn't help but become curious again and asked: "Brother Shuo, where do you think they are going in such a hurry?"
Jiang Shuo shook his head and said, "I know nothing about the geography of Tubo mountains and rivers. I don't even know where they are going. How can I know what they are going to do?"
Tuoba Qimei said: "This direction is towards the West Sea, but to the north of the West Sea is the Qilian Mountains, and there is no road to the Tang Dynasty. The wars between Tang and Tibet were all in Shan and Kuo states. I have never heard of anything beyond the West Sea. The war started in the north.”
Jiang Shuo said: "I have an idea..."
Dugu Xiang smiled and said: "Hey, Brother Shuo, I know what your idea is. Do you want to follow the Tubo army and see their movements?"
Jiang Shuo nodded and said: "Yes, the Tubo people must not have thought that we would leave and come back. We followed them to see what they had in mind."
Tuoba Qimei said: "But, little friend Jiang, aren't you looking for that group of strangers who entered Tubo a few days ago?"
Jiang Shuo said: "Grandpa and the others are behind us. They should have arrived at the Tang Army station in Huangyuan by now. I have asked Zhang Shouyu and Gao Xiuyan to tell them that we are entering Tubo to search for the whereabouts of Brother Xie and others. Grandpa and the others do not know our fate. They should continue to march to Dafeichuan. But in fact, there is no guarantee where Brother Xie and the others will go after passing through Shibao City, so our search for the West Sea may not be in vain."
Dugu Xiang said: "Yes, I heard that podophyllum is produced in the Western Sea. It is not impossible for them to go to the Western Sea to find medicine directly."
Tuoba Qimei muttered: "Well... although podophyllum is precious, it is not rare. The Tibetan people call it 'Omose' and use its fruit as medicine. Our Xiangqiang people call it 'Sheep Artemisia Claw' and use its leaves as medicine. As for what the Han people call 'podophyllum', its root is used as medicine. Podophyllum flowers and leaves produced anywhere can be used as medicine. If only this root can be used as medicine, it must be produced on Dan Island in the West Sea."
Dugu Xiang asked curiously: "Why is this?"
Tuoba Qimei was originally the leader of medicine farmers. When he talked about the origin of the medicine, he twisted his beard and said: "Podophyllum likes moisture and shade. It grows in the sparse-leaf forests of high mountains. Because it likes moisture, its roots are thick, long and dense. , This shows that podophyllum in the West Sea is different from other places."
Dugu Xiang was confused after hearing this and said, "I don't understand. What's different about Xihai?"
Tuoba Qimei said: "Since the West Sea is a sea, it is salty. Ordinary plants and trees will die when exposed to salt water. The podophyllum in the West Sea has absorbed the salt water but grows more vigorously. Isn't this a big strange thing? ?”
Jiang Shuo and Dugu Xiang's eyes widened. They only knew that the West Sea was a big lake, but they didn't expect that the West Sea was salty like the real sea.
Tuoba Qimei said: "Ordinary podophyllum can only dispel wind and dampness, activate blood circulation and relieve pain. To treat the 'lost soul' disease you mentioned, only Xihai podophyllum can cure it."
Jiang Shuo said: "In that case, let's go to the West Sea now. I'm afraid even Quan Daxian doesn't know what this podophyllum is. It's the same thing if we find the herbal medicine first."
Dugu Xiang also urged: "Then leave quickly, the Tubo people have all disappeared."
Tuoba Qimei smiled and said, "Don't worry, little Xiang'er. Their team of a thousand people cannot move very fast. We can just follow them from a distance. If we are too close, we will be easily discovered."
The three of them made up their minds and descended the mountain again in a hurry, following the hoof prints of the Tubo cavalry. The sky was high and the clouds were clear at the moment. Although the sun was blazing in the sky, there was no summer heat at all. The three of them let their horses gallop and felt very comfortable. Tuoba Qimei, however, advised Dugu Xiang to cover his head and face to avoid being burned by the hot sun.
After only a few dozen miles back on the road, Duguxiang suddenly exclaimed: "There really is a sea!"
Jiang Shuo saw the silver light jumping on the horizon in the distance, which was a vast expanse of water. The three men urged their horses together. The three horses were also very excited. They rushed forward and reached the shore of the "Western Sea" in a short time.
The peach blossom horse was already thirsty after running all the way. When it saw the water, it bowed its head and drank without waiting for the owner's command. After taking a few sips, it immediately spat it out. It kept wagging its lips and digging its hooves into the ground. It turns out that in the West Sea, The water, like sea water, is salt water and should not be drunk.
When the three of them saw the peach blossom horse's appearance, they all burst into laughter. However, neither the yellow horse nor the green horse had any water to drink. The green horse was a Tubo army horse, so it naturally knew that the water from the West Sea was not drinkable, and the dragon horse also knew that the water from the West Sea was not drinkable. The water was undrinkable, and Jiang Shuo couldn't help but doubt even more that Long Xiangma really came from Longju Island in the West Sea.
He rode his horse to a high slope by the seaside. Looking around, he saw vast expanse of blue water. It really looked like sea water. It was very different from the color of ordinary rivers and lakes. However, where could he see any islands in the sea?
Tuoba Qimei knew that he was looking for an island and said with a smile: "The Western Sea is two hundred miles wide. Longju Island is in the center of the sea. It is a hundred miles away. How can you see it?"
Jiang Shuo and Dugu Xiang couldn't help but be stunned when they heard that they had only crossed the Wuhu Sea for only 200 miles, but the huge lake on the plateau was actually 200 miles wide. Sure enough, it was really a sea and not a lake.
When the road reaches the shore of the West Sea, it divides into two roads, one going north along the east corner of the West Sea, and the other meandering westward along the south bank of the West Sea.
And there were actually hoof prints of the Tubo cavalry on both roads. Could it be that they were divided into two groups? Tuoba Qimei looked at it carefully and suddenly realized, "Let's go north first. We'll know it at a glance."
The three of them rode their horses and traveled north for ten miles. They saw a crystal clear river lying in front of them on the grassland. The Tibetan horse hoofprints ended on the south bank of the river. It turned out that the Tibetan army drank their horses here and then turned west. went.
Jiang Shuo put his hand on his forehead and said thankfully, "Fortunately, we didn't chase in a hurry. Otherwise, the Tubo people would have hit us just in time if they fought back and forth."
Tuoba Qimei saw that the Tubo people were actually taking the westward route, and couldn't help wondering: "Why are they going to Fuqi City in the west? It seems that this Tubo cavalry army is not going to fight in the Tang Dynasty."
The three of them originally thought that the Tibetan army was going to detour to the north to attack the Tang army, but if that was the case, there was no need for them to make a large circle around the West Sea. It seemed that they really were not fighting the Tang army in Shanzhou, but were going elsewhere.
Tuoba Qimei said: "That's fine. The Egg Island we are looking for where podophyllum grows in the West Sea happens to be in the west. The Tubo people will save us trouble by going this way."
After the Tibetan army drank their horses again and again, the distance between them and them was much closer. The three of them were afraid of chasing too fast and running into the Tibetan army's rear guard, so they simply drank their horses and rested by the river.
Although this river is clear and shallow, it has a special feature. All rivers in the world flow from west to east, but this river flows from east to west into the West Sea. Jiang Shuo asked Tuoba why he begged for plum blossoms.
Tuoba Qimei smiled and said: "The name of this water is 'Daotang River', and the Tubo people call it 'Roumoyong', which means the land of admiration in Tubo language. It is said that when the Dragon King sent his youngest daughter to build the West Sea, it took a hundred There were eight rivers, but the little daughter only found one hundred and seven, and the last river could not be found at all. In the end, the clever little dragon girl led a river backwards from the Riyue Mountain in the east, which was the reverse river. "
When Shuo and Xiang saw that the river was crystal clear, they also scooped up the water to drink. They found it clear and sweet. They looked at each other and smiled, but they felt that their hearts were also pure and sweet. They traveled long distances all day and night and did not feel tired anymore.
Tuoba Qimei walked away knowingly, and the two of them sat on the boulders by the river. Dugu Xiang took off his shoes and socks and washed his feet in the river. Jiang Shuo just stared blankly at this beautiful girl who was getting plumper, feeling in his heart There are so many tender feelings, but I can't express them.
The two of them sat like this for a long time, but Tuoba Qimei came back, holding two fishes in his hands. I don't know how he caught them.
The two fish are also very strange. They are long spindle-shaped and slightly flat, with a blunt head like a carp without a beard. The whole body is light yellow, only the back is slightly darker. The most surprising thing is that the whole body has no scales.
Tuoba Qimei said: "This is the Huangyu, a specialty of the West Sea. The Tibetan people don't eat fish. The Huangyu is everywhere. During the fish season, it's very easy to catch the fish by riding horses and wading through the water to kill them."
The medicine farmer makes a living in the wild all year round. Tuoba Qimei not only knows how to catch fish, but is also very skilled in peeling, washing and grilling them. In just half an hour, the three of them were able to eat the fragrant grilled fish. This phosphorus-free Huangyu was indeed very delicious.
After waiting for an hour by the Daotui River, the three of them remounted their horses and continued to follow the footsteps of the Tubo horses to the west until the end of the afternoon. Tuoba Qimei suddenly stopped Shuoxiang and the three horses. Leaving the main road, there were few tall vegetation on the plateau, so the three of them found a hill to hide.
Not long after hiding, the sound of horse hoofbeats was heard, and a group of Tibetan cavalry suddenly arrived.
33
Some people died, but not completely...
