Chapter 98: Emergency
When this group of soldiers arrived, the market was in chaos. All the vendors felt threatened and ducked their heads to avoid them.
It can be seen that no one is afraid of these people's tyranny.
"Don't be afraid, sir. These are the Temple Army from Shan City! They won't embarrass the Han people."
Xiang Chenglin laughed .
Liu Zheng was surprised. He looked carefully and found that there were only ten cavalrymen in the team of nearly fifty people. The others were infantrymen wearing Loulan-style military uniforms and holding swords. Liu Zheng was very interested. The swords of the Loulan soldiers were different from those of the Longyan Dynasty. They were scimitars, long swords, daggers, felt hats and sheepskin clothes. It seemed that the soldiers of the Loulan Kingdom were mostly crossbowmen, and there were not many cavalrymen. This was a little different from the Turkic cavalry in Liu Zheng's impression.
The people in Loulan should be descendants of the Turks, but they don't have as many cavalry as the Xiongnu, probably because of religious beliefs. Liu Zheng knew that there were many temples in Loulan, which were similar to the later Islam. The whole country was a combination of politics and religion. In Loulan, there were gods from the temples, whose status in Loulan was even comparable to that of the king.
as expected.
The pair of temple soldiers arrived here and began a rough search, but what surprised Liu Zheng was that they did not be overly harsh on Long Yan and the Han people, and even passed them by without even a glance.
"Why is that?"
Liu Zheng asked in surprise.
Xiang Chenglin laughed and said, "Haha, young master, you don't know this, this is the characteristic of Loulan. How about I dare to invite you to visit my Rongxiang Company?"
Liu Zheng and the others naturally agreed. It was obvious that Xiang Chenglin had a great reputation in Shancheng, and many passers-by greeted him respectfully. After turning a few streets, they finally arrived at a fairly large inn called Rongxiang Inn.
"Shopkeeper, you are here. You must have had a hard journey!"
The innkeeper ran out immediately.
"Bring some wine, good wine! Bring out that Zui Yinzhou. I want to drink to my heart's content with Master Liu!"
Xiang Chenglin is very generous.
The boss was startled. Zui Yinzhou? This wine is the treasure of Rongxiang Inn. Without fifty taels of silver, it is absolutely impossible to get it. Thinking that this young man seems to be very extraordinary, he quickly ordered to prepare wine and dishes.
Drunk Silver State?
Liu Zheng didn't know whether to laugh or cry. He was tired of drinking the wine he brewed himself. He originally wanted to come to Loulan to try the famous highland barley wine, but it seemed that he would have no chance for the time being.
Xiang Chenglin is a good guide.
As they drank, he talked about the situation in the Kingdom of Loulan. Liu Zheng and the others also listened with great interest.
It turns out that this Kingdom of Loulan was a very small town before, just like Loulan in the previous life, with a population of less than 20,000, occupying only the city of Shancheng. But a few hundred years ago, a temple suddenly appeared in Loulan and preached widely.
At first, the Loulan royal court did not pay attention.
But who would have thought that the temple would spread like wildfire and be unstoppable. Soon, the entire Loulan people became believers of the temple.
At this time, the king began to worry and suppressed the rebellion several times, but it had no effect and almost aroused public outrage, and the temple overthrew his regime. Therefore, when the internal friction was extremely serious, the royal court and the temple finally reached an agreement to jointly manage Loulan!
The royal court governs the secular world, and the temple governs faith.
But what surprised the King of Loulan was that his compromise this time expanded the territory of the Kingdom of Loulan several times! You know, the expansion speed of religious beliefs is faster than that of the army. Soon, with the help of the temple, the Kingdom of Loulan not only expanded its territory, but also successfully traded with the Arabs in the West, becoming the largest country in the Western Regions. While the king was happy, he was also worried that the influence of the temple was too great.
So, the king came up with a solution!
The temple led the people to believe in religion, and the royal court called on the people to learn from the powerful Han people! It must be said that the King of Loulan before this was indeed a talent. He began to introduce Han culture, Han customs, clothing, ancient books, and talents to fight against the temple. Han culture itself was considered a high civilization among the ethnic minorities like Loulan who used to eat raw meat and drink blood. This move did work, making the Loulan royal court increasingly powerful and always competing with the temple, which continues to this day.
Therefore, within the territory of Loulan, as long as one is a Han Chinese, he or she will receive special treatment.
Liu Zheng was amazed when he heard this. It turned out that there were two opposing ideologies in Loulan right now.
After a few drinks of Zui Yin Zhou, Xiang Chenglin laughed and said, "That being said, the Temple Army will not embarrass us today. But the King of Loulan died a few days ago, and there was a lot of fighting in the country. If you want to go to Kucheng, you must be very careful!"
Liu Zheng looked at Cheng Lin and saw that although he was an old fox, he was honest with him, so he smiled and said, "It will probably take a few days to go to Kucheng. I want to find someone in Shancheng."
Xiang Chenglin said proudly: "Sir, who are you looking for? Just tell me! There is no merchant in Shancheng that I don't know!"
Zheng Yueru said, "There is a slave trader named Mi Re. Does the shopkeeper know him?"
Xiang Chenglin's face changed drastically: "Mi Re? How could I not know him? He was taken to Kucheng and will be executed on a certain day!"
"What?"
Liu Zheng and Zheng Yueru both changed color and stood up.
…
Silver Beach City, Silver State.
The huge project is still in full swing.
After several months, all the structures of the entire city had basically been built.
The focus is of course the salt factory and Liu Zheng’s military workshop!
Jiang Xuan no longer had any resentment towards Qingyang Suo. Apart from training every day, he stayed in Yintan City and learned from him.
"Sir, it's been a month and a half and there's been no news from the young master. We..."
Jiang Xuan was a little worried. While grinding Qingyang Suo, he asked anxiously.
Qingyang Suo said calmly: "Want to go to Loulan?"
Jiang Xuan chuckled and said excitedly, "My lord, there is a poem that says, 'I'll wear my golden armor after a hundred battles in the yellow sand, and I won't return until I conquer Loulan!' Give me five thousand cavalrymen, and I will surely conquer Loulan!"
Qingyang Suo shook his head: "Why did you build this Yintan City?"
Jiang Xuan was stunned and asked, "Isn't it just for making salt?"
Qingyang Suo smiled slightly and looked west. The construction of Yintan City was huge and spectacular. Even at the farthest point, it bordered the Gobi Desert dozens of miles away. Even with the help of Qingyang Suo, the river course was being changed and water was being diverted to the Gobi Desert...
At this moment, even Qingyang Suo had to admire the great ambition of this Master Liu, and no one in the world could match him.
He wants to open up a road to the Western Regions!
This road starts from Yintan City, but I don't know where it will go... When the young master left, he told me that when he came back, he would bring back a detailed map of the Loulan Passage. Then, it would be time to really build this passage.
He called this the "Silk Road"!
The Silk Road.
Qingyang Suo smiled faintly, fascinated. What a beautiful and romantic name.
He seemed to have heard the unique vocal music and camel bells of Loulan, and seemed to have seen the dances with strange costumes and graceful figures...
Although he didn't know how the young master was doing in Loulan, Qingyang Suo believed that such a talented person would surely be blessed by heaven.
"Go to Kezhou again and build more fortifications!"
"Yes, sir!"
…
"Execution?"
Liu Zheng was stunned. How could this be possible? He had traveled through the desert with great difficulty and almost died on the way. Just to find this Mi Re, but he was going to be executed?
Zheng Yueru also asked anxiously: "Why is this?"
Xiang Chenglin smiled bitterly and said, "It's all because of the assassination of the crown prince. The assassin was a skilled Kunlun slave. Mi Re was Loulan's largest slave trader, so he was naturally involved. The seventh prince arrested Mi Re on the pretext of avenging his brother... But everyone knows that Mi Re is the queen's man. After the crown prince died, only the third prince was her legitimate son. The seventh prince was suppressing the third prince!"
Liu Zheng was confused after hearing this. After thinking for a while, he finally figured out the mystery.
It seems that the battle for the throne of the Kingdom of Loulan now fell upon the seventh prince and the third prince. No wonder the seventh prince invited a werewolf driver in the desert, who was determined to kill his third brother.
The internal strife within the royal family is indeed a life-and-death struggle.
"Then the werewolf chaser is probably also from the temple?"
Liu Zheng thought for a moment and suddenly his eyes lit up.
Xiang Chenglin looked at him in amazement: "Young Master, you really have a keen eye. This Seventh Prince is supported by the Temple behind the scenes. Otherwise, how could Loulan be so prosperous with just this bastard?"
Liu Zheng understood immediately and said with a smile: "Then the third prince is pro-Han?"
He nodded in agreement to Chenglin.
Liu Zheng stood up suddenly: "There is no time to lose, let's go to Kucheng immediately!"
Xiang Chenglin was shocked: "Sir, Mire is not easy to save!"
Liu Zheng shook his head: "It has to be saved even if it's difficult!"
Mi Re was not only the biggest slave trader in Loulan, but also a long-time friend of Du Biao. Just for Du Biao's sake, he had to help.
Xiang Chenglin was shocked: "Sir, what's your strategy?"
Liu Zheng looked at Xiang Chenglin and said with a smile, "Boss Xiang, are you willing to help me?"
Xiang Chenglin was so frightened that he smiled bitterly and said, "Sir, this cannot be done! The Seventh Prince has a strong army and the Temple Army has already taken control of Ku City. I, I, we..."
He looked at Liu Zheng, Qin Changfeng, Zheng Yueru, and then at himself.
Just these few people?
Liu Zheng smiled and said, "Yes, just these few people!"
Xiang Chenglin's legs went limp.
Seeing Liu Zheng's confidence again, Zheng Yueru couldn't help but ask curiously, "What's your plan, sir?"
Liu Zheng shook his head: "No details yet, but we must go to Kucheng! Shopkeeper, the third prince is pro-Han, the seventh prince is anti-Han, which one is more important, you should know it clearly!"
Xiang Chenglin was speechless after hearing what Liu Zheng said. Only then did he realize that this dispute among the princes did have an impact on those who were doing business in Loulan.
but……
Who exactly is this Mr. Liu? How could these people break into Loulan and do it without hesitation?
Liu Zheng sat there, thinking for a moment, his mind racing.
If he wanted to save Mi Re, he could only go through the third prince of Loulan. However, the third prince had just returned to Kucheng and was surrounded by enemies. He had not yet gained a foothold, so he had no way to save Mi Re.
Under such circumstances, the third prince must be supported to take the throne so that Mire will have a chance to be saved!
Thinking so, Liu Zheng rubbed his face hard.
Why am I going to fight half, or even most of Loulan on my own?
Suddenly, a gleam of light flashed in his eyes: "Got it!"
Several people looked over.
