The immortal is beside me

Chapter 103 This is the land he guarded
The meteor shower in the sky subsided, and the billowing smoke was blown away by the wind. Zhou Wuqing hid the longbow in his hand, lowered his body, and descended from the sky.

As soon as he landed, he felt many eyes cast at him. In the yellow sand before him, armored figures appeared one after another. They poured out from the open city gate and stood dozens of steps away from him, looking at him hesitantly.

After a long period of silence, a figure in full armor walked out of the team alone. It was the general who had just stood on the city wall and given orders.

"General Zhang Yichao greets the Immortal."

As the leader of the Anxi Army, although he had never come into direct contact with the cultivators, he was aware of the existence of those "immortals" who secretly supported the formation and protected the people. And the being who had just summoned the power of heaven to destroy the enemy was obviously also an immortal, a hundred times more powerful than any other talented person he had ever seen.

"The Immortal's power is witnessed by all of us. Let me thank the Immortal for saving us on behalf of the people of Shazhou City."

Zhang Yichao bowed and said with great caution, "May I ask where the immortal came from?"

Zhou Wuqing faced him. At this distance, he could see the other person's eyes clearly. There was a mixture of emotions in his eyes: awe of the great power, joy of escaping death, and a slight expectation.

He knew where the expectation came from.

"I come from the Central Plains." Zhou Wuqing replied.

The words were like lightning, and Zhang Yichao in front of him was shocked. He opened his mouth several times, but stopped himself several times, as if there was too much he wanted to say, and it was stuck in his throat and he couldn't spit it out.

"Since the immortal came from the Central Plains, please allow me to ask..."

After a moment's hesitation, he finally spoke. He enunciated the words slowly, each word weighing a thousand pounds.

"Where is the Tang Dynasty?"

Since the Hexi Corridor was cut off, the people of Central China who were stranded here have been guarding the name of the Tang Dynasty for eighty years. Several generations have sacrificed their lives for it, but they don’t even know whether the Tang Dynasty they are chasing still exists.

They want to go home, but they don't know if home is still there.

Now that he had finally met someone from the Central Plains, he was eager to learn about the situation in that distant hometown.

Zhou Wuqing was silent.

The Nine Li Immortal Alliance had collapsed, and the Central Plains was now in ruins, a far cry from the glory of the Tang Dynasty. The wounds of the An Lushan Rebellion still bleed after a century, and the glorious dynasty was heading towards irreversible decline.

He knew all this, no one knew it better than him.

But, even so,

"The Tang Dynasty still exists."

Zhang Yichao was stunned for a moment, and his tired eyes lit up as if they were ignited by fire.

"So, the Tang Dynasty still exists."

Zhang Yichao muttered these words softly, then slowly opened his mouth and laughed tremblingly, his laughter sounding like sobs.

He suddenly turned his head and looked at the soldiers behind him.

"Did you hear that? Go tell everyone." His voice rose. "Tell everyone—the Tang Dynasty still exists!"

The wind blew through the city beneath the desert, and the Tang Dynasty flags on the city walls fluttered in the air. This isolated city had held out in the desert for eighty years, finally waiting for the sound of its homeland.

Within a day, the news spread throughout the entire Anxi City. People ran around the streets and alleys to tell each other. Every household took out the fruits and vegetables that they usually didn't want to eat, and put on the Central Plains silk robes that they usually didn't want to wear. The whole city was immersed in a festive atmosphere.

The attendant walked into the tent and placed the fruit plate in his hand on the wooden table. On the plate were apricots and white loofahs unique to Anxi, which were also the best fruits selected in the entire city.

"I'm truly sorry, Immortal. Anxi City has been under siege for too long, and there's not much food left in the city. These are the only things we can offer you as tribute."

Zhang Yichao sat at the side of the wooden table, his expression excited but a little nervous. But then he realized that the immortal before him didn't seem angry at the simple tribute, and his nervousness subsided.

"Immortal, since you are from the Central Plains, have you ever been to the imperial capital, Chang'an?"

Zhang Yichao asked this question cautiously. When he saw Zhou Wuqing nod, the light in his eyes seemed to brighten a little, and his eyes were full of childlike joy.

"Have you seen Chang'an? I was born in Anxi and have often heard the elders talk about the capital of the Tang Dynasty. I have always wanted to see it."

He tried his best to restrain himself, but the excitement in his voice was still evident.

"I heard from the elders that Chang'an was the greatest city in the world. Inside the city was the Daming Palace built by Emperor Taizong, and the East and West Markets, where visitors from all over the world gathered. There were millions of people living there, including guests from all over the world, all of whom paid homage to the Tang court."

"I also heard that in the center of Chang'an is the widest road in the world, called Suzaku Avenue. Peach blossoms are planted on both sides of the street. In spring, the streets are covered with grass leaves and petals..."

Zhou Wuqing finally spoke up: "The flowers planted on Suzaku Street are not peach blossoms, but locust flowers."

"Oh... Sophora japonica flowers, so they are Sophora japonica flowers." Zhang Yichao said awkwardly, "There are no Sophora japonica trees in Anxi, but I haven't seen what Sophora japonica flowers look like. I am short-sighted."

Zhou Wuqing caught a glimpse of the embarrassment in his eyes and said after a moment of silence, "One day, you will see it."

"Thank you for your guidance, Immortal. Whether or not to see the locust flowers is a trivial matter. However, every Anxi citizen has a heart towards the Tang Dynasty. Everyone wants to return to the Central Plains and return to the rule of the imperial capital, Chang'an."

Zhang Yichao said, "Since the fall of Anxi, the people of this region have been subjected to brutal rule by the barbarians for nearly a hundred years. The able-bodied have been enslaved, while the elderly and infirm have had their hands and eyes cut off. I grew up here and have witnessed countless such incidents. Therefore, we aim to overthrow Tubo, restore the Central Plains, and save the people from this dire situation."

As he said this, the childish excitement and embarrassment on his face disappeared, replaced by the coldness of a soldier. In just a few breaths, he changed from a child guarding Chang'an into an iron-blooded general.

Zhou Wuqing looked into those determined eyes and nodded slowly.

"How do you plan to save people?"

"We have held Shazhou as our base for decades, accumulating a considerable force. Now that the enemy has retreated, I intend to launch an army from here and recapture the Anxi states. I have already made plans for the march."

A crude map lay spread out on the table, its anchor points outlined in ink, each representing tens of thousands of Central Plains civilians. As the general narrated, a route to defeat the enemy emerged, stretching toward the Hexi Corridor and the distant Central Plains.

"Then go ahead."

Zhou Wuqing said: "With me here, no one can stop you from returning home."

In 848 AD, meteors appeared in the Anxi area for several consecutive months. Local Buddhist temples and barbarian monks' settlements were destroyed one after another. Tens of thousands of Tibetan monks died under the meteors, and the Tibetan court was in panic.

In the same year, Zhang Yichao took advantage of the internal strife in Tubo to launch an uprising and overthrow the tyrannical Tubo rule. Once the uprising started, all prefectures responded, and within two years, the Anxi army conquered five prefectures and seven passes, liberating the local people.

In 850 AD, Zhang Yichao sent an envoy to Chang'an to report the Anxi Incident to the court. In recognition of his loyalty and bravery, Emperor Xuanzong promoted Zhang Yichao to the position of Defense Commissioner of Shazhou and appointed him Minister of War.

In 851 AD, eleven states including Sha, Gan, Su, Shan, Yi, Xi, He, Lan, Min and Kuo were all recovered, and the Hexi Corridor was reopened. The Tang court appointed Zhang Yichao as the governor and the envoy in charge of observation and disposal within the region, and added the titles of Inspecting Minister of Personnel, General of the Imperial Guards, Special Advancement, and granted him the title of the founding Duke of Nanyang County.

On the day when the imperial edict of ennoblement arrived, the sun was shining brightly in Anxi, and the city of Shazhou in the desert seemed to be coated with golden light.

"Immortal, the imperial edict has arrived!"

On the wall of Shazhou City, Zhang Yichao, who had changed into a new Tang suit, walked to the wall and handed the imperial edict in his hand to the figure in red standing on the wall.

"As Your Majesty has said, the imperial court has now re-incorporated the Anxi region into its jurisdiction. It is said that a military garrison will be restored there in the future. This will connect the Central Plains and Anxi once again."

He held the imperial edict in his hands, his eyes filled with joy. "Now, the Tibetan forces in all regions have been expelled, and the people's lives have returned to normal. It is all thanks to your divine power, Immortal, that our army was able to capture the states so quickly. You truly are a powerful immortal."

Zhou Wuqing nodded slightly, without saying much, saying, "You've always wanted to see Chang'an. Now that the Tang court has appointed you as a governor, won't you go and see him in person?"

During the two years, he had a lot of exchanges with Zhang Yichao. Almost every once in a while, he would ask him about Chang'an, and he never got tired of it.

For this general who was born in a foreign land, this is his hometown that he has never seen, and it is the deepest and softest thought in his heart.

"Chang'an. I do want to go." Zhang Yichao was stunned for a moment, then lowered his head and smiled. "However, although the eleven Anxi prefectures have been recovered, the remnants of the Tubo rule still exist. There is a lot of work to be done in all areas. Farmland and cities need to be prepared urgently. All of this still needs my planning."

"So, I won't be returning to Chang'an for now." He raised his head and said softly, "When the people of Anxi can all live and work in peace and contentment, then I will naturally return to my hometown."

Zhou Wuqing was silent for a moment, and said nothing more about the matter. He continued, "I have completely wiped out the forces in the Anxi states. They will not be able to make any progress in the future. Now that the situation is settled, I will also leave."

He had come here originally to search for the remaining Immortal Alliance members. However, after searching for several years, he had not found any Central Plains cultivators besides the four sects he had encountered initially. Only when he destroyed the Tibetan settlement did he occasionally find a few relics bearing the Immortal Alliance's mark.

Anxi, where they were, was liberated, but the Jiuli Immortal Alliance where he was could no longer be revived.

According to the news from Feixin, the current situation in the Tang Dynasty is getting worse day by day. Without the suppression of the Immortal Alliance, the various sects and factions have once again started chaos in the world of cultivation. The mortal world is also divided into various places, and there is an urgent need for powerful people to take charge.

The Tang Dynasty's fortunes were broken, and its fate would only decline day by day. This was an irreversible trend. All he could do was to annihilate the invaders and prolong the dynasty's existence for a few more days.

But one day delayed is one day saved.

"Really? You're leaving now."

Zhang Yichao's voice dimmed slightly. Without asking for the reason, he simply said, "Then I will gather people from all over the country to see you off."

"The act of seeing someone off is really complicated. I don't like it, and you don't have to do it."

Zhou Wuqing shook his head and turned away: "From now on, I will come to check on Anxi's situation from time to time."

"Immortal! I didn't expect that you would come back to see us after five years. Please take a seat, please take a seat."

"Look, this is the farmland we've just reclaimed. The crops are growing well this year, and the people everywhere will no longer have a problem with food. We're digging canals and compiling household registrations in the various states of Hexi, so that Anxi can return to the Tang system."

"You're asking about foreign enemies? Don't worry. We feed our horses and train our troops daily. Ordinary barbarians pose no threat to the people. Last month, the Uighurs attacked, but we defeated them and confiscated 10,000 pack horses."

"Don't worry, Immortal. We will definitely fulfill our duties, defend Anxi, and never retake the Central Plains."

"My lord, the last time I saw you was three years ago, wasn't it? It feels like only a day ago."

"Anxi is doing well. Now, under our control, production in all regions has stabilized, and armaments are sufficient."

"But I heard rumors that there is unrest in the Tang court, and many Jiedushi have declared themselves rulers of the Central Plains. Is the situation okay?"

"I see. It seems the Central Plains isn't entirely peaceful these days. I heard the military governors in Yingzhou and Bianzhou are the worst offenders, abusing their power to oppress the people. It seems they have immortals backing them. Eh? Have you killed them all?"

"No, I'm not disappointed. In this world, divisions must eventually unite, and unifications must eventually separate. Turmoil is inevitable, and you're here to rule, right? It will eventually pass."

"Immortal, you still look the same as you did four years ago, not a bit changed."

"I heard from the imperial envoys that famine is spreading across the entire Central Plains, and the people are starving. Rebel factions are gathering in various locations to overthrow the Tang Dynasty. Is this true?"

".Is that so? The Tang Dynasty has become like this."

"Anxi has stored some grain this year. Bringing it back to the Central Plains might be useful. What do you think?"

"No matter what the Central Plains becomes, it is still our homeland."

"Immortal, you are back."

"It's been twenty years since I first saw you. I'm already quite old, but you're still so young."

"A few days ago, the imperial court issued an edict, ordering me to return to the court to meet His Majesty. I will be leaving for Chang'an tomorrow."

"Yes, this is my first time going to Chang'an since I was born. Tell me, if I wear this dress, will it look too rustic?"

"Excited? Haha, of course I'm excited, but I'm old now, and I'm no longer as excited as I used to be."

"You're coming with me? Isn't that a bit strange?"

"No, of course I am willing. It is an honor to be able to travel with you again after twenty years."

February 867 AD, Chang'an.

The convoy stopped in front of the city gate. Zhou Wuqing, who was standing beside the horse, lifted up his hat and looked towards the capital city in front of him.

Under the winter sky, Chang'an City is still as magnificent as before, but the grass and trees on the streets have withered, the voices of people in the city have become much thinner, and the dry tree trunks stand on the side of the empty streets, like countless silent dead souls.

Compared to his memory, the songs and fireworks of the past no longer existed. Standing in front of the city gate, he could feel the desolation and loneliness seeping out from inside the gate.

After he opened this door, he realized that the Kaiyuan Era was no longer prosperous.

"So this is Chang'an."

A low sigh came from the side. He turned around and saw a white-haired old man tremblingly getting off the carriage. He walked to his side with some staggering, looked up at the magnificent and deserted capital in front of him, and his fingers seemed to tremble slightly.

"Chang'an is just as I've heard. It's the greatest city in the world. It was the elders who told me about it back then, and now I'm an old man too."

Zhang Yichao murmured. Suddenly, tears welled up in his eyes, and a childlike smile blossomed across his wrinkled face.

"Immortal, Chang'an is truly beautiful."

He looked at Chang'an in front of him, and the corners of his mouth trembled and curled up: "Although I can't see the locust flowers on Zhuque Street, it's good like this, really good."

Zhou Wuqing listened to him and silently pulled down his hat, hiding the expression on his face under the brim.

"I thought I would never be able to return to the Central Plains in this lifetime. It is all thanks to you, Immortal, that I can now stand here and see such a beautiful Chang'an."

"Immortal, look!"

Zhang Yichao was suddenly stunned and turned around to look. There was no one around him.

Who was I talking to just now?

He pressed his forehead, trying hard to recall something. As he was thinking hard, a faint fragrance filled his nose.

That is the fragrance of flowers.

On Zhuque Street in winter, the dead locust trees have turned green one after another, and locust flowers are blooming among the trees, with white petals flying all over the sky, reaching into the sky.

Under the iron-gray sky, the old man who returned home stood in the rain of flowers, lost in thought for a long time.

In February 867, Zhang Yichao, the governor of Hexi, was summoned back to the capital, arriving in Chang'an, a city he had never seen before. After an audience with the emperor, he was appointed commander of the Right Divine Military Army, granted land, and promoted to Minister of Education.

In August 872 AD, Zhang Yichao died suddenly in Chang'an at the age of 16. He was given the title of Grand Protector. At this time, it was still years before the fall of the Tang Dynasty.

After Zhang Yichao's death, his nephew Zhang Huaishen took over the position of Jiedushi and continued to promote production and train soldiers in the Anxi area, making the Anxi area happy and becoming one of the few remaining pure lands in the late Tang Dynasty.

More than a thousand years later, this land stood on the territory of China and was named Ganzhou.

Thousands of years later, the immortal traces here are still there, the ancestors are still there, and the tradition is still there.

This is the Central Plains.

P.S. I will update two chapters first, and there will be another one later. I started writing after get off work and haven’t finished it yet. Sorry orz
(End of this chapter)