But the existence of this fact is one thing, it is quite another to admit that the practice of "asking for gifts" is legitimate, because the right to compel tribute, that is, to tax, is exclusive and exclusive. It is impossible for two independent political forces to tax a region at the same time. The tax collector may turn a blind eye to the robbery of his tax opponent, but it is impossible to admit that his tax target also pays taxes to another political entity. obligations.
"Yes, you have indeed grasped the key!" Wang Wenzuo said with a smile: "But according to me, sometimes it is better to be careless!"
"What does Ming Gong mean?"
"The emperor of the Tang Dynasty ruled the world. Under the sun, there are no concubines. There is nothing to argue about this!" Wang Wenzuo said: "But this is of no use in how to solve the difficulties we are facing, not to mention these Qiang and Hu tribes. , even the Tubo people once paid tribute to the Tang Dynasty and declared themselves vassals, but when it comes to harassing the border, they still harass the border, and when they should fight, they still fight. After all, names cannot be used as food. In the final analysis, interests between countries are still two words!"
"Yes!" Ijirenbod sighed: "Actually, it's the same over there in the Eastern Kingdom. The Ezo people rebel and submit at times. When the strong are strong, they raise troops, and when the weak are humble, they have no sense of integrity at all!"
"The East Kingdom is different from here. Although the East Kingdom is desolate, the land is flat and fertile, and there are golden mountains. As long as you work hard, you can naturally assimilate them. This is impossible to do here in Songzhou. The Qiang people here After a thousand years, they will still be Qiang people, and brute force will not do it!"
"So what is Mr. Ming's plan?"
"Use Qiang to control Qiang!"
"Using Qiang to control Qiang?" Yijilianbod asked.
"Yes, let's take this Songmao Road as an example! I will divide it into tribes by piece, and then each tribe can get a 'gift' from the caravan passing through its own region, but this gift is not free! They must ensure that the caravan will not be attacked by bandits in their own area. If there is disaster or trouble, they must find a way to rescue them. Of course, the caravan must also pay for their services!"
"This is a good idea!" Ijilianbod nodded: "But I'm afraid some tribes are unwilling to accept this approach. Maybe they don't rob in their own area, but go to other areas to rob? There are also those who are not divided into What about the tribes in the area? They probably won’t accept this condition, right?”
"It doesn't matter, I will solve the problem in the end! At least then I won't be short of guides and allies!" Wang Wenzuo said with a smile: "I have already thought of the certificates for dividing the areas. What do you think of calling it an edict? ?”
"Edict?" Igilian Bod frowned: "Isn't this a bad name? Isn't it true that only the imperial court can issue an edict?"
"That's true!" Wang Wenzuo nodded: "Then what name do you think is better?"
"Judgment," "Zhou Li" says: Anyone who is responsible should listen to the judgment if there is a judgment to rule it out! It also says: "Judgment, if half of it is combined, it is a contract between the two branches, and each family gets one of them." ! "Wen Xin Diao Long" says: The scroll means to bind, to clearly restrain it in order to prepare for false feelings. The character shape is half-divided, so it is called the judgment book in Zhou Dynasty!"
"Okay, okay, okay!" Wang Wenzuo was stunned by Ijilenbod's dropping of his schoolbag. What is cultural export? A Japanese nobleman explained Chinese classics to a Tang general. This is called cultural export. The reason why Wang Wenzuo initially wanted to use the "Edict" as a certificate issued to each Qiang and Hu chief to divide the trade route area was inspired by the later Ming Dynasty's approach to governing the Northeast. According to the imperial edict, Jurchen chiefs can pay tribute and receive rewards (actually conducting trade). Since this kind of trade was extremely profitable, the Jurchen chiefs would fight and kill each other for the imperial edict. The number of edicts they owned became a symbol of the chief's strength. However, the Ming Dynasty used this to instigate the Jurchen chiefs to fight with each other and take advantage of the situation. The profit of the fisherman. The current situation in northwest Sichuan is quite similar to that in Liaodong in the Ming Dynasty. He wanted to follow the wisdom of future generations and see if he could achieve any results.
"If Ming Gong wants to use barbarians to overthrow them, there is a way to do it, but it also depends on the scale of the trade. If the scale is too small, I think those Qiang and Hu tribes may not be willing to submit!"
"That's true! However, the plateau mountains and the plains each have their own strengths and weaknesses. They can exchange what they need through trade. If the trade routes are smooth, trade will soon flourish!" At this point, Wang Wenzuo said in Jin Lying down on the couch, the shaving master began to trim his beard.
"The emperor asked Mr. Ming to come to Songzhou to resist the invasion of the Tibetans, but you are thinking about trade!" Yiji Lianbode said with a smile.
"As long as the Tubo people are not deaf and blind, what should General Xue do in Longyou?" Wang Wenzuo said while closing his eyes and enjoying the sharp razor sliding on his cheek: "Before defeating the Longyou Army, the Tubo people can't win How many troops are on my side!"
"But according to what Li Jin said, the Tubo people move very frequently!"
"A thousand people passed by four sentry posts, and each sentry report was reported once. If the commander did not distinguish, it would be a battle report that four thousand enemy troops were attacking our army!" Wang Wenzuo sneered: "Don't talk about Li Jin, if I were here The Chengdu Prefecture would also cry to the court for reinforcements. The Tang Dynasty only had a few attacks on Jiannan Road! Even if two thousand Tubo people rushed to the gates of Chengdu, what would he do to resist the Tubo people? Those ignorant people in Chengdu city Marquis Wu who fights?"
"So Ming Gong thinks that the Tibetans will not attack?" Yiji Lianbod asked.
"I didn't say that, I just said that the Tubo people will not invade in a large scale!" Wang Wenzuo waved his hand and signaled the shaver to stop working: "No one can predict a small-scale military operation, but a large-scale invasion is unlikely. Big. But if the Tubo people win too easily and can sweep the Qiang and Hu tribes in this area, then it is not impossible to gather a hundred thousand troops. After all, no one can refuse the meat delivered to their mouths!"
"Meat delivered to your mouth? You mean Chengdu Prefecture?"
"Well, if the Tubo people can capture Songzhou and go all the way down the Songmao Road to Dujiangyan, then not many Qiang and Hu tribes will be able to resist the temptation to grab a handful!" Wang Wenzuo sneered: "Now it's just now In September, the wheat harvest in Chengdu should have already started, but on the plateau the wheat will ripen later. The Tibetan army should not be ready for half a month to a month, and then we will be in big trouble!"
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The sky was filled with ashes, like snow that had fallen prematurely.
Tuyan Mangjiebo stepped on the dry pine needles and brown humus soil and walked to the edge of the sparse pine forest. In the valley not far below, raging flames were spiraling up, and the hot wind rushed towards him, carrying thick blood and The smell of barbecue is disgusting.
The mountain wind was full of dangerous smells, including people, horses, fire, and steel. The smoke and ashes stung her eyes. Tears flowed out, blurring her vision. She vaguely saw a large snake with wings and its claws. It roared and spewed out a torrent of flames, completely engulfing the valley.
From time to time, there were loud noises of collapsing buildings from the flames. She felt that the ground beneath her feet was splitting and collapsing. Dogs were barking and whimpering, and horses were neighing in despair. But what overcame them all was the wailing of people, howls of fear, and despair. The screams, hysterical laughter and indescribable calls even overwhelmed other sounds. When everything finally calmed down, Tuyan Mangjiebo found himself slumped to the ground with tears streaming down his face.
"The village is over! Everyone is dead!" The speaker was a hunter who was traveling with him. He looked at everything in front of him in despair. Suddenly he pulled out his knife and rushed out hysterically, but he was grabbed by someone as soon as he took two steps out. He hugged him and fell to the ground, then started a struggle.
"Tie this kid up, or we will all be killed by him!" the Qiang leader who went with him said sternly. He calmly looked at the valley below, looking for possible enemy scouts. He looked at the Qiang girl: "Spit Yanmang Jiebo, come closer and confirm who is attacking the village? But you must promise me not to let the enemy discover you!"
"Yes!" The girl didn't say much. She had recovered from the huge blow. Pain was like a heavy forging hammer. It would smash some people to pieces, but it could make some people stronger. Wave is the latter.
The girl took off all the equipment on her body that might hinder her movement, leaving only a short knife. Then she turned her leather coat over so that the color of her clothes was the same as the autumn hillside. Her steps were light and silent. She walked west along the edge of the forest, walked for a while and then turned north, so that she could use the uneven stones to cover her tracks. When she arrived at the entrance of the village, she found that the sky was gray and smoke was billowing. Half of the ancestral temple not far from the entrance of the village had collapsed - it was the only stone building in the village that enshrined the ancestors of the tribe. The girl carefully walked into the yard and found that the ground was littered with fallen clay statues, which were all statues of her ancestors.
The ancestral temple has been reduced to an empty shell by the flames. The floors have been burned, the wooden beams have burned out, and the walls have collapsed. Tuyan Mangjiebo can directly see a small mud house at the back, which is the residence of the shaman disciples. Instead, it has become this place. The only well-preserved building. She walked through the temple, wanting to see what else was left, but suddenly she stopped and got into the ruins beside the road.
Two burly black figures walked out of the mud hut and walked slowly through the ruins, making the sound of armor leaves clashing. Tuyan Mangjiebo carefully peeked out through the cracks in the rocks. The iron armor almost completely covered the two people, and even their faces were covered by ferocious iron masks. There were only two small holes for the eyes. The two people came closer and closer. Tuyan Mangjiebo held his breath, lowered his body, made himself as inconspicuous as possible, and got into the gap.
The footsteps stopped, followed by a burst of laughter, but in a language the girl could not understand. Tuyan Mangjiebo felt that her heart was about to jump out of her mouth, but time passed extremely slowly. After a while, she felt two streams of warm liquid pouring down from the top of her head, and she was a little bit irritated. Two people were peeing, and the girl forced herself to lie on the ground, motionless.
I don't know how much time passed, but the girl could no longer hear human voices and voices. She raised her head and looked around, but there was no one alive. She got up and ran away silently.
"It's the Tubo people!" Tu Yanmang vigorously scrubbed his hair with his hands and said: "It must be them. I recognize their armor. They are wrapped tightly from head to toe, and they also wear masks on their faces. , neither the Tang people nor we Qiang people would dress like this!"
"Damn the Tubo people!" The crowd uttered desperate curses. It is not surprising that the Qiang tribes fight each other for land, prey, pastures, and water sources, but such battles rarely aim at completely annihilating their opponents. But the Tubo people are different. After they defeat their opponents, they will send all the weak tribes to their farms as slaves, and the strong ones will be incorporated into the army as cannon fodder. If there is resistance, they will kill all, even if they surrender to them, Heavy tributes and a large number of hostages also had to be paid. Compared with the Tubo people, even the Tang people, who are known for their arrogance, can be said to be kind.
"What should we do now?" someone asked: "Without the village, there are only seven of us and we can't survive at all!"
"That's right! Seven people can't rebuild the village!"
"We are still rebuilding the village and there is no food storage. Winter is coming soon and we will all starve to death!"
"Why don't we go to a nearby village? Ask them to take us in!"
"This is a good idea!"
"But will they take us in? It's winter soon. Each tribe doesn't have enough food. There are seven more mouths at once. Why should they take us in!"
"We are both good hunters and good farmers!"
"It's impossible for a good hunter to save enough food for a whole winter before winter! Besides, have you ever thought about where the Tibetans went after they attacked our village? If we went to a nearby village, would we Becoming their next target? We may not be so lucky then!"
Tuyan Mangjiebo kept her head down, silent, and did not participate in the quarrel. It seemed that she did not care about the debate at all. Suddenly she raised her head: "I have a good place to go. I don't have to worry about the Tibetan people attacking me, and I have enough food for the winter!"
"Tu Yanmang Jiebo, where did you say?"
"Songzhou City! Can we go to Songzhou City?" Tuyan Mangjiebo asked.
"Are you crazy?" Someone laughed and said, "The Tang people are not Bodhisattvas, so why would they take us in? Do you want to sell yourself? Even if you sell yourself, I think the Tang people will only want you and not us, because you are a young girl with a long face." It looks good too!”
"Have you forgotten this?" Tuyan Mangjiebo took out the letter from his arms: "That Tang man asked us to bring a letter to the elders, and also said that the reply should be sent to Songzhou! Now that the elders are gone, we can Take this letter as proof and go to the Tang Dynasty man who rewarded me with Shu silk and ask him to take us in!"
"Is that Tang man willing to take us in?"
