"Landlord, give me a gift?" Wang Pu was so angry that he couldn't help but laugh: "When did this land become yours, and you still say you are not bandits?"
"Three or four generations of our tribe have lived here, so this land is naturally ours!" the girl replied confidently.
"Can three or four generations belong to you?" Wang Pu sneered: "My family has lived here for more than ten generations. Let me tell you, this land belongs to the Emperor of the Tang Dynasty. Only he can send officials to set up cards to collect money. , anyone else who does this is a bandit."
"Hmph, that's why I said you people below the mountain won't understand!" The girl sneered: "It's obviously your own thing, but you insist that it belongs to some 'emperor' you've never seen before, and you have to kneel down and kowtow, isn't it mean? "
"You——!" Wang Pu was furious, and he drew his sword and was about to kill, but Acton held his hand down: "This woman just wants to provoke you to kill her. If you do it, you will fall into her trap! "
Wang Pu snorted coldly and returned the sword to its sheath. At this time, a low roar came from the distance, echoing among the rocks. Wang Pu and Acton both stood up and looked warily at the darkness outside.
"It's a snow leopard!" the girl said, "This beast smells blood. It can smell it five or six miles away. Throw the body out! Otherwise, they will keep circling here until they eat our meat!"
As if to confirm the girl's words, another roar sounded, much closer than the last time, which meant that there were at least two snow leopards. Wang Pu suppressed the fear in his heart and asked: "Acton, you grew up in the mountains and forests, can we deal with such a beast?"
"If it's daytime or on the plains, it's not a big problem!" Acton shook his head: "But here, it's a different story! We can't detect them at all before their claws scratch our throats; Bows and swords are of no use at all!"
"You can throw the body out!" The girl's voice said: "It will be safe!"
"They were once your companions!" Wang Pu stared at the girl angrily.
"No more, the dead cannot be partners of the living!" The girl smiled: "Besides, if I was the one who died, they would do the same thing!"
Acton walked to the corpse, stripped it naked, and then silently threw the corpse out. With two muffled sounds, the corpse disappeared into the endless darkness.
"Now we are safe!" the girl said: Snow leopards will never leave the carcasses before they have gnawed away their bones. It is very difficult for both humans and animals to get enough food! "
The sky was getting brighter, and the sunlight slid across the ridgeline, illuminating the road at the bottom of the valley. Acton tied the girl's hands and whispered: "Don't do stupid things, and you will survive!"
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"Finally we can see the sun!" Wang Wenzuo let out a long breath. The canyon in front of him was in darkness for most of the day. The huge boulders and mountains on both sides of the road blocked the sun. People and horses were walking in the shadows, and his breath condensed on On the beard, it becomes hoarfrost. The snow on the top of the mountain is melted by the sun, trickles down, and flows down to form small pools. It is also frozen by the cold at the bottom of the valley and crushed by the hoofs of horses. A few weeds squeezed out from the gaps between the rocks, and a bit of moss could be seen from time to time, but there was no grass and no trees. The cold ruled everything here.
The road is steep and narrow, spiraling up and over the ridge. In the narrowest place, people have to dismount and lead their horses. Igilian Bod followed Wang Wenzuo, holding a horn bow in his hand, looking around vigilantly.
All the soldiers felt nervous and uneasy, especially the Mohe people. Many of them said that they felt that some kind of sneaking beast was following them. This should be true, but there should be no one in nature who dares to take the initiative to attack. A ferocious beast with more than three hundred fully armed warriors - unless it is really hungry and can't stand it anymore. However, Wang Wenzuo was still very vigilant and even wore a lock curtain under his fur.
The end of the valley road is a huge gray rock. After passing there, the road will widen, gradually descend, and finally enter the wide Songpan grassland. Wang Wenzuo told the soldiers that they would rest and eat there. "The rest of the way is easy!" He shouted loudly: "When we get to Songzhou, everyone will be rewarded with a piece of Shu brocade!"
The soldiers were so happy that they would have cheered loudly if not everyone had a piece of wood in their mouth. The strong sunshine on the plateau shone on everyone, quickly dispelling the biting cold in the gorge, and then people felt hot and sweaty. The soldiers began to take off their coats and hats, and some even went naked to the upper body and ate dried meat. Drinking water feels like it's summer.
When Wang Pu and Actun came back with the prisoners, Wang Wenzuo was sitting under the gray rock, studying the crude map in his hand. Wang Pu briefly recounted what happened last night, and finally said bitterly: "That woman is simply a beast, just wearing her own skin for nothing!"
"I didn't tell from your words that she is a beast!" Wang Wenzuo put down the map: "Only a fool would despise these Qiang Hu. They are actually as brave, as strong, and as smart as us, but the environment they live in is different! They were born in the mountains and wilderness, without officials or kings, they just thought they were their own kings!"
"But she threw the body of her companion who was her companion a few minutes ago for the snow leopard to eat!" Wang Pu replied angrily.
"I remember you said that you were in a mountain valley at that time. There should be no place to bury the body, right?" Wang Wenzuo asked.
"Yes, the ground is full of rocks and no one can dig the grave!"
"That's it. You can't dig graves, and you don't have enough firewood for cremation of the corpses. It's even more impossible to march with the corpses on your back. It's just a matter of time before those two corpses become rations for wild beasts, right?"
"Yes, but shouldn't we try our best to protect Pao Ze's body?" Wang Pu asked.
"Yes, but we are warriors and soldiers, and we have our duties to uphold. That girl is not the same!" Wang Wenzuo replied: "For her, survival is more important than anything else. Even as a soldier, in the siege If you are extremely embarrassed, you may even eat human flesh to satisfy your hunger!”
Wang Pu opened his mouth and found that he was speechless. He had heard various legends about cannibals from his brothers. During Baekje's Restoration War, too many tragic things happened. Those who survived tried their best to bury it deep in their hearts, and only emerged from nightmares late at night.
"Bring that girl here!" Wang Wenzuo whispered.
After a while, the girl was brought over. She looked at Wang Wenzuo warily, like a frightened little beast. Wang Wenzuo smiled: "I know your rules. As long as you answer my questions honestly, I will let you go free!"
"Hmph!" The girl sneered: "Who knows whether what you say is true or false? People at the foot of the mountain are the most unfaithful!"
"You should be able to see that I am not an ordinary person from the bottom of the mountain!" Wang Wenzuo said: "Maybe I can lie, but there is no need to lie to a little person like you!"
The girl looked at Wang Wenzuo and finally nodded: "I am Tuyan Mangjiebo from the Bailan tribe. I was ordered by the leader to monitor the road to see if there are any business travelers passing by!"
"A business trip passing by?" Wang Wenzuo laughed: "It seems that you are the bandits and bandits that the businessmen call you!"
"We are not bandits!" the girl retorted: "Those businessmen are thieves. They pass by our land but refuse to give gifts to their masters!"
"Hahaha!" Wang Wenzuo was not irritated. He asked Ijirenbod on the side: "Have you ever heard similar words from the people of Ezo?"
"That's not true! The Ezo people are saying that we stole the mountains, forests, rivers and wild animals. Those things that originally belonged to everyone were taken by us as our own."
"Well! This is a much better statement!" Wang Wenzuo said with a smile: "If I were to judge, the truth should actually be on the side of the Ezo people!"
"This, you can rule like this!" Ijilianbod's answer caused Wang Wenzuo to laugh. A few minutes later, Wang Wenzuo said to the girl: "Since you answered my question, then I will abide by my previous promise and let you go." Let’s go. But we can’t do it now, we have to talk later. Also, I have a letter for your leader, you can bring it to him for me!”
A horn echoed in the mountains, and Tuyan Mangjiebo heard the familiar barking of hunting dogs. This made her turn around subconsciously. There was only a vast mountain wilderness, and no one was following her. The man at the foot of the mountain could so easily kill her. Let yourself go?
"Tuyanmangjiebo, is that you?"
"It's me!" the girl responded, and a gray hound ran towards her, its tail raised high behind it, like a flag. Several Qiang people followed the hounds and ran over. The leader asked the girl in surprise: "I finally found you. Why are you here? Where are Kamba and Akan?"
"They are all dead! Killed by the people at the foot of the mountain!" The girl replied: "I was caught by the people at the foot of the mountain and almost died!"
"You were caught by the people at the bottom of the mountain? Then how did you escape?" The Qiang people looked at the girl with surprise and suspicion. From her appearance, it didn't look like she had escaped. Not only was she covered with clothes, There is also a protective weapon around his waist, and there is even a package on his back.
"I didn't escape, they let me go!" Tuyan Mangjiebo replied.
"Let him go?" The leader of the Qiang people showed a look of fear, and he immediately said to the others: "Quick, go and see if anyone is following you?"
"Yes!" Everyone responded and dispersed to see if they were being followed. The leader of the Qiang people solemnly said: "Tu Yanmang Jiebo, please tell me the story in detail from beginning to end!"
A few minutes later, all the Qiang people who had dispersed to look for the stalker came back, but no one found anything. After listening to the girl's story, the leader asked suspiciously: "So, the man at the foot of the mountain just let you go so easily." I left, gave you a gift, and just asked you to bring a letter back?"
"Yes!" The girl took out a thick envelope from her arms and opened the package: "This is a gift. He said it was a reward for bringing me the letter!"
"This is Shu silk!" A Qiang man exclaimed: "One piece can be worth several horses!"
The Qiang people let out a low exclamation. Of course they knew what Shu silk meant. In the Songzhou market, Tang merchants brought many goods, including grain, tea, medicine, etc., but the most expensive and most popular goods were Even the most powerful chief would be overjoyed if he could receive a reward of three to four hundred pieces of Shu silk from the officials of the Tang Dynasty at a time, and this reward had to be exchanged for the blood of thousands of warriors.
"Tuyan Mangjiebo, the Tang man who released you is probably a big shot!" the Qiang leader said seriously.
"Then should I take this letter back?"
"Of course? What is written in the letter is up to the elders and chiefs to decide, but you must bring it, otherwise many people may be killed! This kind of thing must not be careless!"
As if infected by her companion's emotions, the Qiang girl nodded solemnly.
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Songzhou.
"Ming Gong, actually you don't have to go to so much trouble at all!" Yijilianbod said with a smile: "As long as you reveal your identity, the chiefs of the Qiang and Hu tribes will definitely come to Songzhou!"
"Yes, they will probably bring a bunch of specialties to bribe me!" Wang Wenzuo raised his chin and asked the shaving master to soften his beard with a hot towel in preparation for the next shaving: "But I'm not here to make a fortune! "
"What do you mean?" Ijilianbod asked with some confusion.
"Ijilenbode, you should know very well that I am very rich!" Wang Wenzuo said with a smile: "Maybe I am not the richest person in the Tang Dynasty, but I should not be far away from this title. Of course, I must combine the emperor and the empress. Eliminate it. So instead of receiving gifts, I’m going to give gifts!”
"Send a gift?" Ijilenbode asked in confusion.
"Yes, give them gifts! What the Qiang girl said gave me some inspiration! She said that merchants passed by their land but refused to give them any gifts. This is not good. Don't you think what she said makes sense?"
"With all due respect, the gifts are given voluntarily. That girl should be talking about taxes. Only taxes must be paid!" Igillenbod replied seriously: "The key to the problem is not that. Gifts, but who has the power to collect taxes? Only the Emperor of the Tang Dynasty, or the servants appointed by the Emperor, this kind of thing cannot be done carelessly!"
Wang Wenzuo nodded with satisfaction. Ijirenbode and Fujiwara joined his service relatively late, but their status rose very quickly, and they were already second only to Cui Hongdu, Shen Faseng, and Heijia Changzhi. , ranked above Mori Kimi Oishi, Mononobe Renxiong and others. A very important reason is that these two people understand the real rules of the operation of power. To use a more modern evaluation, they "understand politics". Yes, it is not a big deal for these Qiang and Hu tribes living in the mountains to rob caravans and forcefully ask for "gifts" from them. In fact, let alone the ungrateful places like northwest Sichuan, even between Chang'an and Luoyang at that time There are also similar thieves in the mountains on both sides of the road.
The update has been relatively late these days, mainly because the new home has not been completed yet and various things are not on track.
I saw a book friend in the discussion forum asking me to recommend some history books. If he is not talking about historical online articles, I personally recommend "Zuo Zhuan", "Zi Zhi Tong Jian Hu San Sheng Zhu", "Historical Records", "Han Shu", "Three Kingdoms", and Western history recommends "Peloponnesian War" History", Kovalov's "History of Ancient Rome". I think it is a good choice whether it is to engage in political affairs or improve writing skills.
