Supreme Golden Palace

Chapter 121: Cracked Earth (Part )

"My Lord, is this sincere?"

Huilin bowed slightly and spoke softly.

"The three cities west of Dunhuang?"

Yang Lin looked thoughtfully at the Western Regions feng shui map and asked, "Datou Khan, which three cities will you cede?"

Dunhuang was Dunhuang County during the Northern Zhou Dynasty. In the second year of Kaihuang in the Sui Dynasty, Dunhuang County was changed to Dunhuang County, which was still under the jurisdiction of Guazhou and became the seat of Guazhou.

To the east of Dunhuang are Yumen, Jiuquan, and Zhangye, all of which are part of the Sui Dynasty's territory. To the west of Dunhuang are the countries in the Western Regions.

Yang Lin still attaches great importance to the countries in the Western Regions. These countries are located in strategic locations. Their national strength may not be strong, but their location is very important.

Huilin bowed his head, his voice steady as he spoke, "Yiwu, Shanshan, and Gaochang. Datou Khan is willing to offer these three cities to the Sui Dynasty."

"These three cities,"

Yang Lin's fingertips suddenly stopped on the feng shui map drawn on sheepskin.

Yiwu is close to Dunhuang and is the throat of the northern route of the Silk Road. Controlling this place means controlling the northern border trade routes and intimidating the grassland tribes.

Shanshan controls the southern route and is crucial to stabilizing the situation in the southern part of the Western Regions.

Gaochang has fertile land, prosperous agriculture, and is located at a transportation hub, making it an important food and fodder supply base for the countries in the Western Regions.

Yang Lin whispered, "Datou Khan is really generous."

Among the forty-four countries in the Western Regions, Yiwu, Shanshan and Gaochang were all strategic locations.

Datou now handed over these three cities to the Sui Dynasty. With these three cities in hand, half of the Silk Road was in hand.

This was a great temptation for the Sui Dynasty, which had been preparing to move south.

Yang Lin's eyes were deep, and under the dim candlelight, the ink marks on the feng shui map seemed to dance.

He immediately chuckled and said, "Master, go back and tell Datou Khan that I accept this sincere gesture on behalf of the court and the emperor."

Huilin clasped his hands together and said, "Amitabha, then I will wait patiently for the prince to withdraw his troops."

After saying this, he turned and walked away steadily, his monk's robe fluttering in an arc in the night wind.

When Huilin's figure disappeared, Yang Lin's eyes turned cold instantly, and he strode to the center of the tent.

"This Datou, the three cities of Gaochang, gave them up without hesitation. He's quite a character."

Zuo Tiancheng frowned and said, "Your Highness, the three cities of Gaochang may be cities, but they are actually one kingdom. The ruler of Gaochang is Qu Gangu. Qu Gangu ruled for twenty years and maintained friendly relations with both the Turks and the Tuyuhun, managing to gain the upper hand on both sides. When I was stationed in Shanzhou two years ago, I heard the Tuyuhun people talk about this ruler of Gaochang."

Gaochang Kingdom was a Buddhist country in the Western Regions. It went through four dynasties over the past hundred years, namely Kan Gaochang, Zhang Gaochang, Ma Gaochang and Qu Gaochang. Among them, Qu Gaochang lasted the longest.

During the reign of Emperor Yuan of the Western Han Dynasty, a military barrier was built here. The terrain was high and open, and the population was prosperous, so it was called Gaochangbi, also known as Gaochanglei.

"Qu Gan Gu?"

Lu Shang's heart moved.

If we only talk about Qu Gangu, many people may not know who he is. But if we talk about Qu Gangu's grandson Qu Wentai, he is a figure who has left a significant mark in the history of Buddhism.

Gaochang Kingdom is mentioned in Journey to the West, but it only says that Gaochang Kingdom is to the north of Jisai Kingdom and pays tribute of beautiful jade, pearls, beautiful concubines and fine horses to Jisai Kingdom every year, but it does not mention Gaochang Kingdom specifically.

The Biography of Tripitaka Master of the Great Ci'en Temple of the Tang Dynasty states that in the first year of the Zhenguan reign of the Tang Dynasty, Xuanzang traveled west to Yiwu, where the King of Gaochang, Qu Wentai, sent people to welcome him to Gaochang. Qu Wentai wanted Xuanzang to stay in Gaochang to spread the Dharma, but Xuanzang refused and went on a hunger strike to express his determination. This eventually moved Qu Wentai, and the two became sworn brothers in the presence of the Buddha.

I just don’t know if Qu Wentai in the Journey to the West worldview had the chance to become sworn brothers with Tang Xuanzang.

Yang Lin said softly, "Feixiong, Tiancheng, notify the generals to set out tomorrow and prepare to return east."

"Yes,"

Zuo Tiancheng and Lu Shang took the order and left.

Inside the military camp shrouded in darkness, bursts of orders suddenly rang out.

Yang Lin sat in the main seat, watching the divination of the Western Regions. The candlelight flickered, casting his shadow in the tent indistinctly.

The cinnabar markings for Yiwu, Shanshan, and Gaochang now burned like three blazing flames across the map. "Your Highness, it's late. You should rest," a guard's respectful voice echoed from outside the tent.

Yang Lin waved his hand without responding. He squinted his eyes and looked at the feng shui map on the table.

His eyes fell on Gaochang and he couldn't take his eyes off it for a long time.

------

Purple River Ivory Tent,

"The great victory at Jinshan,"

"Great victory at Jinshan!"

A fast horse rushed into the tent. The scout squeezed the horse's belly and shouted loudly.

"Our army and the Sui army joined forces, and Jinshan defeated Datou. A great victory at Jinshan!"

The scout's voice echoed around the tent, and the tent suddenly became lively.

The blazing bonfire illuminated the red dome. Shaboluo Khan sat upright on a tiger-skin chair, with ripples forming in the gilded wine bowl in his hand.

"Hahaha, great victory at Jinshan!!"

Inside the Golden Tent, cheers instantly surged like a surging tide, surrounding Shaboluo Khan layer by layer.

The guards beside the Khan immediately hurriedly filled the glasses of wine for the Turkic generals.

"To the great Khan, long live the victory!"

"Wan Sheng!!"

Everyone held up their wine bowls, and the wine sparkled with an alluring luster under the reflection of the bonfire.

Shaboluo stood up and walked steadily to the center of the golden tent.

"Everyone,"

He looked around, and the noise in the tent stopped abruptly.

"This victory at Jinshan was won with such bloody efforts that this Khan will never forget it, but we must not let our guard down!"

Shaboluo's voice was low and powerful, and his eyes swept over the crowd like a torch.

"Although Datou has been severely damaged, his roots have not been eliminated and he may make a comeback at any time. Although we have borrowed the power of the Sui people to severely damage Datou, they will not help us completely eliminate Datou."

"The Han people want checks and balances. They won't allow us to dominate alone."

"If we want to get rid of Datou, we can only rely on our own strength."

Shaboluo Khan's words hit everyone's heart like a heavy hammer.

Inside the Ziheya tent, the originally warm atmosphere cooled down instantly, leaving only the crackling sound of the burning bonfire.

A young noble, unable to contain himself, stepped forward, and said with a bow, "Khan, Datou is severely injured. Why don't we seize the opportunity to pursue him and annihilate him in one fell swoop?"

"Even if the Sui army just stands by and watches, with our bravery, we will surely crush the ten arrows that hit our heads!"

Shaboluo Khan stared at the general with a hawk-like gaze and sneered, "A reckless pursuit would play right into the hands of the Sui people. Do you think the Sui army is truly helping us? No, they're simply worried that the Datou forces will grow and become a threat to them."

At this moment, another scout came into the ya tent on horseback. The scout jumped off his horse and rushed into the golden tent.

"Khan, Datou has asked for peace with the Sui people, and the Sui people have withdrawn their troops."

The scout's words exploded in the tent like a thunderclap.

The already cold atmosphere instantly dropped to freezing point, and everyone's eyes were fixed on Shaboluo Khan.

Shabolue put down the gilded wine bowl in his hand and let out a long sigh.

(End of this chapter)