Chapter 177 Listening to the Spring and Appraising Treasures
The foreign woman, who was called "Mrs. An," said in fluent Chinese: "Let's work harder and rest after we pass this area!"
With the sound of camel bells, this huge caravan began to slowly accelerate and headed towards Xiping City along the grass-covered ancient road.
Traveling as a trader in the Western Regions was a matter of both risk and reward. On the long Silk Road, safe oases were as rare as gems, and caravans spent most of their time walking in terrifying dark forests.
A caravan traveling along the same route might suddenly turn into brutal robbers, and even the regular army might secretly work as horse bandits. Although Madam An was young, she had rich experience in business. She sent out guides who were familiar with the terrain to scout around, avoiding dangerous villages and trails, and only stopping at large cities with good security.
Due to the joint blockade by the Gaoche and Tuyuhun peoples, the road between Zhangye and Dunhuang was cut off, and the caravans led by Lady An, which were loaded with silk, could not return to the Western Regions.
Upon hearing that Xiping City had returned to the hands of the great Wei Dynasty, Madam An decisively led the caravan to Xiping.
From Xiping, you can take the southern route of the Silk Road back to the Western Regions. Although it is a detour, the northern route of the Silk Road is now cut off and the price of silk in the Western Regions has skyrocketed. As long as the silk can be transported back to the Western Regions, this detour will turn into gold coins in your pocket.
(Mrs. An's planned route)
Madam An skillfully controlled the direction of the caravan and kept issuing orders. According to intelligence, the caravan had reached what the Han people called the Xihai County area, which was already the front line for the battle between the Tuyuhun and Han peoples.
Madam An also ordered the archers to get ready. The reason why her caravan dared to travel to the Western Regions was because of the group of sharpshooters and bodyguards in the team.
At this moment, a scouting guide hurriedly rode back on horseback and reported to Madam An: "Madam An, there are two teams fighting ahead!"
Upon hearing that there was a battle between two teams, most caravans would immediately give way, but Madam An's caravan had just left the Dadouba Valley and had no room to hide.
She waved her hand, stopped the caravan, and ordered, "Form a formation, and wait for me to go investigate the situation!"
Madam An handed over the command to her deputy. The camel riders skillfully made the camels lie down in a circle, covered the cargo boxes with blankets, and used the cargo boxes and blankets to form a simple wall.
Blankets can reduce the force of bows and arrows, wooden boxes can block bows and arrows, and with sharpshooters hiding behind the camel formation, most of the bandits can be scared away.
Bandits rob to make money, not to risk their lives, and they will naturally leave when they encounter a tough opponent.
The survival rule of merchants in the Western Regions that Madam An always mentioned was, "Just don't be the softest date."
Madam An changed her horse and followed the scout. After climbing over a small hill, she saw the two fighting parties.
On one side were typical Tuyuhun cavalrymen. They rode northwestern Qiang horses, wore felt hats with ear protections, and wielded longbows, shooting left and right. Dense rain of arrows fell down, making Madam An feel chilled.
These are the elite cavalry of Tuyuhun!
These are not the poor horse bandits on the Silk Road who are reluctant to even shoot arrows. The strong bows used by these Tuyuhun cavalry can easily break through the armored defenses.
However, the team that fought against Tuyuhun was a strange one.
Three carriages formed a circle, and the sides of the carriages were covered with leather and steel plates. The leather could buffer the force of the arrows, and the steel plates could block the arrows after the force was unloaded. Each carriage was nailed like a hedgehog, but the Tuyuhun cavalry could not break through the defense of the carriages.
Behind the carriage, the crossbowman hid in the gap between the carriages and fought back. This was not an ordinary hand crossbow, but a powerful crossbow that required two people to operate.
A powerful crossbow is more powerful than a bow and arrow. Madam An saw a Tuyuhun rider's arm being hit by a powerful crossbow, and the whole person was knocked off his horse.
On the left and right of the crossbowmen, there were soldiers holding spears, thrusting out from the gaps between the chariots. The entire battle formation was like a hedgehog. The Tuyuhun cavalry did not dare to approach and could only surround the chariot formation and shoot from a distance.
Both sides are elite troops, and although they have consumed a large number of arrows, they are still in the stage of testing each other.
At this moment, a shrill whistle suddenly sounded at the edge of the battlefield. After hearing the whistle, the Tuyuhun cavalry began to retreat without looking back.
Madam An was wondering why the Tuyuhun cavalry suddenly retreated, when suddenly a group of cavalry appeared not far away and galloped towards the battlefield!
After the Tuyuhun cavalry retreated, the group of chariots did not disperse their formation immediately. Instead, after confirming the cavalry's slogan and token, an officer came out and joined the cavalry commander.
"Where do these elite troops come from?" Madam An couldn't help but exclaim in admiration.
The guide beside him said, "Madam An, these are the cavalry of the Wei Dynasty."
Madam An asked in confusion, "I have also seen Wei's soldiers in Zhangye, but why haven't I seen such elite troops?"
From forming a battle formation to defending, the identity of friendly forces was still confirmed in accordance with the system after the arrival of reinforcements. This shows that this army has strict laws and regulations and enforces orders.
After the two teams joined together, the auxiliary soldiers behind the cavalry hurried over. These cavalry did not dismount, but handed over the task of cleaning the battlefield and coordinating defense to the auxiliary soldiers, and then began to search for the enemy outside using the chariots as a base.
"Oops, let's go!"
By the time Madam An realized something was wrong, it was too late. A sharp-eyed cavalry scout had already discovered their tracks and was riding his horse towards them.
"Stop and put down your weapons."
Madam An didn't want to give these elite Northern Wei cavalrymen misunderstanding, so she asked the guide to lay down his weapon and wait for the Northern Wei cavalrymen to approach.
The scout blew the whistle, and more cavalry gathered here, quickly surrounding Madam An and the guide.
Madam An forced herself to calm down. The other side had strict discipline and were obviously government troops. Now whether she and the caravan could survive depended on what the other side thought.
Encountering such an elite army would not be something her caravan could resist. The only thing they could do at this time was to pray that the enemy was not a bandit army.
Madam An said in fluent Chinese: "We are a caravan from Zhangye, a caravan under the command of the Yuan governor of Liangzhou!"
Madam An did not lie. She had indeed registered her name under Yuan Yu, the governor of Liangzhou in the Northern Wei Dynasty, and paid protection fees. However, in this remote area, whether these cavalrymen recognized Yuan Yu's name depended on how tough their luck was.
At this time, a cavalryman who looked like an officer rode up and asked, "Where is your caravan?"
"behind."
The cavalry officer said, "We are under the command of General Hu Qiang of the Wei Dynasty. General Su has issued a new military order requiring us to help merchants along the way. Since you are a caravan from Zhangye, follow me to the camp in Xihai."
The army helps businessmen?
Madam An has traveled all over the country for so long, and has never seen an army protecting merchants. Extortion is considered the worst case scenario. There are too many cases of the army in the Western Regions secretly attacking caravans, and countless caravans have been buried next door.
But now Madam An had no way to resist. Since the other party showed goodwill, she could only accept it. She could only return to the caravan and head towards the salt pond under the escort of this group of cavalry.
Along the way, the cavalry kept a distance from the caravan, and no soldiers came to harass them when they camped at night.
Madam An would ask her servants to bring wine, dried meat and candied dates to the cavalry from time to time, but the other party insisted on eating only their own food, but they accepted the money that Madam An sent with a smile.
After the other party received the money, Madam An and the caravan members finally felt relieved. When they arrived at the salt pond three days later, the guide said in confusion:
“Is this a salt pond?”
Yanchi is a small saltwater lake on the edge of Qinghai Lake.
When the water level is low in summer, brine can be directly precipitated on the edge of the lake, so it is called a salt pond.
During the Xinmang period, Xihai County was established nearby in an attempt to control the salt lake and thus take control of the salt industry in the northwest.
At this time, workshops had been built around the salt pond, and many salt workers were boiling and making salt.
Next to the salt pond workshop is a newly built Han fort. The salt workers work in the workshop outside the fort during the day and retreat to the fort at night. Archers with bows slung across their backs patrol the corner towers around the fort. There are also stables and granaries in the fort. It is a small military fortress.
The cavalry officer walked up to the caravan and said to Madam An:
"The fort is a military restricted area, so you can't be stationed there. Twenty miles east of here, there is a temporary market, which is specially used for merchants like you to set up camp."
"There are market officials in the market. If you want to trade, you have to pay taxes, but you can buy fresh water and dry food."
"Don't fight in the market. If you are in danger, report it to the market official."
Madam An nodded woodenly, and the cavalry officer continued, "You will be safe when you reach Xihai County. This is for you."
The cavalry officer handed a signal arrow to Madam An. She had seen this group of Northern Wei cavalry use it before. After lighting the fuse, shoot the arrow into the sky with a bow and it would explode, emitting a bright light. It could be used as a signal on the vast grassland.
"Send a signal arrow when you encounter the Tuyuhun people, and the cavalry from the nearby forts will come out to protect you. Once you leave Xihai County and enter the Huangshui River, you will be completely safe."
After saying this, the cavalry left the caravan and headed towards the fortress beside the salt lake.
The deputy beside him looked at Madam An and felt that these days were just like a dream. He had never had such a smooth journey. He said with emotion: "It's a pity that General Su is only the Protector General of Hezhou, not the Grand Protector of Anxi Protectorate."
Madam An said, "Let's keep going. When we get to Xiping, we might be able to meet General Su. I'm really curious about what kind of person this general is."
The rest of the journey was just as the cavalry officer had said, and it was very smooth.
Twenty miles east of Yanchiwubao, there is a large market where people can replenish fresh water and buy dry food, and there are market officials to maintain order.
Mrs. An continued to head eastward and saw Han people's forts along the way. These newly built forts were surrounded by farmland, and nomadic tribes could be seen in the distance.
Madam An even saw a Taoist temple next to a fortress, and a Taoist priest was distributing talismanic water to cure people.
At that time, a fellow in her caravan suffered from chills and fever. After drinking the magic water, he actually started sweating and recovered. Madam An gave him some money for incense.
Forts can be seen at all dangerous passes, and occasionally beacon towers, and patrolling Northern Wei cavalry can often be seen.
Most cavalrymen would just come forward and question the caravan like Madam An's when they saw it. If they were willing to accept bribes, they would escort them for a while along the way. If they didn't accept bribes, they would still enthusiastically show the caravan the way.
In less than five days, the caravan successfully reached the Huangshui River. Madam An continued to ride eastward along the Huangshui River without stopping. She first passed by Linqiang City, which had just been recovered by the Northern Wei Dynasty, and rested outside the city. The city was in good order, and it did not look like a war had just taken place there a month ago.
Craftsmen were steaming soil to repair the city walls, and buildings were also being constructed inside the city.
Linqiang is the smallest of the three cities along the Huangshui River. In fact, such border fortress cities are generally not large, and are filled with military buildings.
Because only small cities are easy to defend, while big cities are more difficult to defend.
If it is a city like Luoyang, it would require 40,000 to 50,000 soldiers to be deployed on the city walls. The food supply alone for these troops would be an astronomical figure, and the large population in the city would be an unstable factor.
Therefore, during the An-Shi Rebellion, as soon as Tongguan was breached, Li Longji immediately fled westwards and did not defend Chang'an at all, because Chang'an was simply undefendable.
Among the three cities along the Huangshui River, only Xiping City is a big city with a market for trading, so Madam An did not stay in Linqiang City, but continued to head east to Xiping.
After passing Linqiang, even if you enter the Hehuang Valley, there are farmlands nearby that are ready for cultivation or have already been cultivated, and there are officials and people building simple water conservancy and irrigation facilities beside the fields.
After entering the Hehuang Valley, there are more facilities of all kinds, including smoking blacksmith shops, Buddhist temples where scriptures are chanted, Taoist temples where talisman water is distributed, carpenter shops where carriages are repaired, and post stations where messengers can rest.
Madam An had been to Xiping before. At that time, Xiping City was still under the control of the Tuyuhun people. Compared with the prosperous scene today, it seemed like a world away.
Merchants are one of the groups that most yearn for order, because only a stable order can bring benefits to merchants.
There was more and more discussion in the caravan about Su Ze, the general who protected the Qiang people, and everyone looked at him with admiration when talking about him.
After several more days of trekking, Madam An's caravan finally arrived at Xiping City.
Many caravans also appeared on the outskirts of Xiping City, and Madam An also met a familiar caravan leader.
Lao Bahan was the leader of a Gaochang caravan, and he came to Xiping because the trade route to Dunhuang was cut off.
What surprised Mrs. An was that this old businessman who once regarded camels as his home actually decided to settle down in Xiping!
From then on, his caravan planned to do short-distance trade near Xiping and no longer cross the long Silk Road.
Old Bahan said, "Madam An, this is your first time in Xiping City, right? Do you want to go and appraise the treasures? If there are any treasures in the goods of your caravan, not only can you reduce the commercial tax, but General Su will also buy them back at a high price!"
"Baby?" Madam An shook her head and said, "This time I brought only silk, no special products."
"It may not be a commodity. It may be a seed carried by your buddy or a small ornament on your body. These will also be regarded as treasures by General Su's merchants. I will take you to try it out?"
(End of this chapter)