Chapter 41: Who should I ask for me?

Murong Guiying was about the same age as Cao Yijin. When he was young, he seemed not as strong as Cao Yijin, but in his later years, his physical condition was much better. As Sima of the Northern Expedition Army, he entered Yizhou. His children and grandchildren were originally worried that he could not bear it, and he was also a little worried, but after he really set off, he found that the more he walked, the more energetic he was, the more vigorous he became. He was not like an old man in his seventies, as if he was in his fifties.

So when the Uighurs retreated from Yizhou and the Guiyi army wanted to send people to Gaochang to negotiate peace, Murong Guiying took the initiative to ask the master general to go. He was the veteran of Guiyi army's prestige after Cao Yijin, and the master general was also his nephew. Since he took the initiative to propose who dared to refute him, he was led by his grandson Murong Ju, and rushed all the way to Gaochang. At first, he took a car, but finally rode a horse. When he arrived at Chiting Pass, he smiled and said to his grandson: "I originally thought I would live in a few years. Today, it seems that my grandfather can live another twenty years."

When the guard of Chiting Pass heard that he was coming, he quickly sent someone to send her into Gaochang.

It was cold, but the old man was not as afraid of the cold as a young man. Murong Ju shrank in the cold, but Murong Guiying looked as usual. Along the way, Murong Guiying secretly observed the arrangement of the Tang army in Anxi, and found that the arrangement of the Tang army was deep talisman military strategy, one level, one block, one post and one whistle did not leave any room for the enemy to take the opportunity to enter. He nodded secretly and thought: "The generals who arranged this military force were quite effective! I don't know who it is. The famous Anxi generals mentioned in the Anxi Long March Transformation article, you have to take a good look this time."

Seeing that there were at least one battalion of soldiers on every important stronghold, he judged that these soldiers were the Zhechongfu soldiers of the Anxi Army. These people were rare elite soldiers in Murong Guiying's eyes - whether it was the soldiers' own qualities or the training intensity reflected in the operation, "It was not common in Shazhou."

Below these people, the quality of some troops that seem to be newly surrendered is obviously one level behind.

Seeing that the next day, I was about to enter the city, I rushed past Sutou that night, and there was no village or shop in front of me, and camped in the wild. Suddenly, sobbing sounds came from the night. Murong Guiying heard it strangely, so she asked her grandson to inquire. The grandson said that the two Anxi soldiers who escorted them were crying.

Murong Guiying then came out of the tent. The two young soldiers in Anxi who were crying were only eighteen or nineteen years old, one taller and the other shorter, and were scolded by the general, but the general's eyes were also red. Seeing that these two young men were almost as old as their grandson, Murong Guiying felt a little loving in her heart, and asked, "Why are they scolding them? Did they do something wrong?"

The team escorted him said, "These two boys are ignorant and cry in the middle of the night, waking up the distinguished guest. I'm sorry."

Murong Guiying asked, "Why do they cry?"

The team said correctly: "Nothing."

Murong Guiying asked again, and the shorter soldier suddenly burst into tears: "The old general... the Tang Dynasty, the Tang Dynasty... the Tang Dynasty was destroyed..." As he said that, he cried bitterly.

The taller soldier also started crying, crying so much that Murong Guiying was a little surprised: "What...what?"

The team was in tears and said, "Old General, we just heard the news recently... The Tang Dynasty was destroyed."

The escort team seemed to be infected and suddenly started to cry. Murong Guiying didn't understand this kind of relationship. Why? This is not a question of IQ, this is not a question of experience, this is a question of his loss of a certain concept in his heart.

He had known the news of the demise of the Tang Dynasty. Not only had he known it for a long time, but he had also long lost that melancholy feeling. What's more, Murong Guiying was already a person who valued the family more than the country. All his plans were ultimately directed by the family, not the country.

To him, the Tang Dynasty was the court, which was a thing that could be exchanged, but the family was not.

But he was a wise man after all. Listening to the crying sounds and thinking about the passionate emotions expressed in the Anxi Long March Transformation article, he gradually understood.

"So they don't know..."

Yes, there are many details in the Long March transformation article, didn’t it be said? How many times did the Anxi Tang army fight to return to their homeland during the Long March, and how many times did they shed blood for that long-standing home!

However, after arriving in Shule, have they not heard of the demise of the Tang Dynasty?

They should have heard some rumors, but they may have chosen not to believe it.

The distant Chang'an is not only a capital, but also the belief of these passionate men. Before they get the exact news, they refuse to believe all unfavorable "rumors"!

At this moment, the dream was finally shattered, and the things they were worried about became reality. They were already ready to accept reality when they were in Shule, but they still couldn't help but cry when they heard the news.

These soldiers cried not for individuals, not for someone, but for the country, and for a homeland that had been destroyed for many years!

Murong Guiying thought to herself, if it was the first time that she had heard the news of the demise of the Tang Dynasty, would she be able to cry for this incident?

He shook his head in his heart.

So how many of the military and civilians in Anxi can shed tears for this matter?

The next day, the camp advanced westward. The tears from last night had already turned into freezing point and disappeared, and the tears had long dried up.

While on the road, Murong Guiying couldn't see the soldiers weak because of the crying last night. On the contrary, what he saw were teenagers who straightened their backs in the cold wind.

"Young man," Murong Guiying asked a young man named Tian Han beside him, "Are you sad?"

"sad?"

"It was the one you cried last night." Murong Guiying said, "I'm afraid you teenagers won't understand."

"Nothing is not impossible!" Tian Han said: "We cried last night, but that was the Tang Dynasty that I passed by, but the Tang Dynasty in the future is still waiting for us in Chang'an, so we can't cry during the day, and we have to leave the greatest strength to fight! When we were in Shule, the Dadu Protector told us: No matter what happened in the East, no matter what the road ahead will be like, we will survive and fight! And we will continue to win, and one day we will sweep the world!"

Tian Han had just reached the age of being a soldier, and his face was so tender that the wind and snow could not bring him a sense of vicissitudes. After these words, Murong Guiying wanted to laugh in her heart and thought to herself, what a childish child this was, but when she looked at his eyes, Murong Guiying's heart turned into a stern - he found that Tian Han believed in what he had just said without reservation! Looking around, the teenagers who looked at her also had a firm belief in their eyes, and there were also a few young soldiers with brown hair, although they had yellow skin!

Suddenly, Murong Guiying had a further understanding of the Anxi Army being able to reach the present.

"They can now shed tears and blood for the country, and what about us? Can our soldiers have such passionate and generous feelings as they have?"

"It seems that the Anxi Army has come to this day, which is not just about strategy and military strength."

Perhaps in addition to wisdom, strategy and tactics, there is some more powerful force.

A kind of spiritual power that the Guiyi Army had lost for a long time.

When they arrived at Gaochang City, Murong Guiying was shocked. White cloth was hung on the top of the city, and many soldiers guarding the city also had white cloth strips tied on their heads. Guo Shiyong personally welcomed them. The two veterans met and after greetings, Murong Guiying asked why this was the case. Guo Shiyong said with tears: "This is the country's mourning."

Murong Guiying sighed: "The Tang Dynasty has been dead for many years. Besides, I have never seen this ceremony since ancient times."

Guo Shiyong said: "The Tang Dynasty has been dead for many years, but we have only recently received the definite news. We don't know if this ceremony has been received since ancient times, and it is just out of our true intentions."

Murong Guiying sighed and said, "Although this is the case, Gaochang is now new, and the barbarians are not far away, so we need to guard against Viagra taking advantage of this to counterattack."

Guo Shiyong said with a sigh: "We are just sad and angry, not powerless! If Viaya dares to come, please ask him to taste the power of our Tang Dynasty's mourning soldiers!"

When he arrived at the door, Zhang Mai was already waiting for him. On his left were Zheng Wei, Li Bin, Faxin and others, and on the right were Yang Yi, Xi Sheng, Shi Ba and others. In addition to the generals who were in charge of the troops, all the civil and military officials were here, which shows his importance to Murong Guiying.

Murong Guiying looked at Zhang Mai with a thin eye. Seeing that he was tall and energetic, the hard battles over the past few months made his belly shrink back, and he didn't feel pampered in his body, but it seemed like a general had just finished a battle and returned home.

Entering the hall, this already spacious place looks even more relaxing due to its simple layout. The chairs are not very comfortable. The soft chairs are covered with felt blankets, but hardwood backrest chairs. Although there is a stove in the house, the windows are opened, and the cold wind blows in, making everyone feel energetic.

There was a character hanging on the wall on the front of the hall, which was almost the only decoration in the entire hall. Murong Guiying was both civil and military, so he noticed the character at first sight after entering the door, but what surprised him was that he couldn't recognize it completely. This was not because the font was difficult, but Murong Guiying had already seen that it was a copy of official script, but because these characters were a bit broken and some were very blurred.

"This is a rubbing." Murong Guiying thought. After sitting down, he first expressed his diligence to Zhang Mai on behalf of Cao Yijin. After three rounds of tea, he gradually came to military affairs and said, "When Cao Linggong heard that Vijay had attacked Yanqi, he was shocked and angry and summoned the generals of Shazhou to discuss countermeasures. All the generals said that Anxi was an ally, and allies must be rescued when they were attacked! Therefore, he wanted to send reinforcements, but Lao Jiu said: Vijay was attacked by Yanqi, when the news arrived in Dunhuang, he had already arrived in Yanqi.

On the border, if we send troops to the ancient Loulan Road to Yanqi, maybe when we arrive, the battle will be decided, so sending troops is useless, but it will be meaningless if we don’t send troops! Therefore, we offer a plan to siege Wei to save Zhao, and will attack Yizhou to restrain Viaga so that they can’t take care of each other. They don’t want the Great Protector to be brave and invincible. Not only did they repel Viaga but also attack Gaochang. Our army took advantage of the situation to attack Yizhou, and to correspond to the Great Protector’s military force, south of Tianshan, will be the world of our Han family in the future."

Zhang Mai raised his hand and said, "Gen. Murong is here! This regaining of Yizhou and opening up the southern road of Tianshan can be said to be Cao Linggong and Murong who made great contributions to the country."

Murong Guiying smiled and said, "The Li family has long been destroyed, and the new dynasty in the Central Plains doesn't care about this. We sent troops to attack Yizhou, not for the sake of the court, but just formed an alliance with Anxi and came for the friendship of our allies."

Zhang Mai said, "The old general's words are wrong! The alliance between Anxi and Hexi is the first-class thing, and the first-class thing is still to restore the country's hometown!" Seeing Murong Guiying's face showing a disapproval expression, Zhang Mai said, "What, what I said is wrong?"

Murong Guiying smiled and said, "Major Protector, you come from the west and probably don't understand the situation in the east. In fact, the new dynasty in the Central Plains did not take much care of the matters in the Western Regions. Whoever became kings, who became domineering, who won a state, who lost a town, was also on paper for them. If we send envoys, they would also receive them well and enthrone us, and reward us with some gold, silver and treasures to show that the Western Regions are still affiliated with them, but in fact they are not very serious."

His words were very easy and his meaning was very obvious: The Li Tang Empire had perished, and there was no place to ask for merit.

Zhang Mai stood up suddenly. As soon as he stood up, both civil and military squads also stood up. Murong Guiying was left alone in the hall, which made him embarrassed and had to stand up as well.

Zhang Mai pointed to the letter on the wall and said, "Old General, do you recognize this letter?"

Murong Guiying was stunned and shook her head and said, "I'm so confused, I really can't recognize this character."

Zhang Mai said: "It's not the old general, but no one can recognize this character. However, this character has a great origin. It is a rubbing of a stone tablet. The stone tablet is now in Shule, but every time I go out, I want to take it with me. Unfortunately, it is too heavy, so I asked the master to spread it down and take it with me. Small stone!"

"exist."

"You read out the inscription for the old general!"

Shi Ba responded to his order and stood up and said solemnly: "Where the sun and the moon shine, and the rivers reach, they are all ministers and concubines of the Han Dynasty!"

Murong Guiying was shocked, stunned for a while, and said, "This...is this the Hu Monument of the Han Xuanding?"

"Not bad!" Zhang Mai said: "This is the boundary monument that Emperor Xuan of Han inherited the achievements of Han Wu and intimidated the Hu Hu. Old General, do you think Emperor Xuan of Han has made any contributions?"

"If you have merit, you will naturally have merit. If Emperor Wu of Han expanded his territory, then Emperor Xuan of Han defended the country and established a country, he will naturally have merit."

Zhang Mai said: "But now the Han Dynasty has all perished! Then Emperor Xuan of Han made this contribution, but should he ask who should take it?"

Murong Guiying said jokingly: "This is not a private achievement, but a national achievement. Emperor Xuan of Han himself is already an emperor, and he is the only one in the world. Naturally, he no longer needs any private rewards. If he insists on asking who should receive the merit, it is to ask the country to receive merit, ask the people to receive merit, and ask history to receive merit!" He blurted out these words, and after he said it, he was stunned by himself.

"Shoot!" Zhang Mai said: "The contribution of Emperor Xuan of Han should be the same as that of Emperor Wu of Han, Ban Chao, Li Jing, Su Dingfang and other heroes. No matter which dynasty or generation, they cannot be erased. Those who make such contributions are the emperor, generals, and common people. The soldiers of Anxi have made along the way, and those who make such contributions this time are all such contributions! We are not asking for credit from anyone, nor from any court, but as the old general said just now - asking for credit from the country, from the people, and from history!"

Speaking of this, Zhang Mai remembered the passage of the Hu stele of Han Xuanding, and a little angry appeared on his face, saying, "Old General, do you know where this stele came from?"

Murong Guiying said, "I'll ask for advice."

Zhang Mai said: "That was discovered in Zangbei Valley. Zangbei Valley is a small river valley near Yibohai. There are hundreds of Tang slaves living in it. Do the old general know what Tang slaves are? It was the Hu people who captured us Tang people to be slaves! When we found this stele, he had been abandoned on the river beach. The Hu people told the descendants of Tang people who were unknown in the valley, saying that this stele is a good luck stone. If anyone wants to do something, such as traveling far away or getting married, urinating on this stele can bring good luck. Therefore, this stele has been insulted for hundreds of years - and it is not an insult from foreign races, but an insult to our Chinese descendants themselves!"

Murong Guiying was shocked when she heard this. He was nearly seventy years old, but when she remembered the scene of Hu Bei being insulted in Han Xuanding, she still couldn't help feeling a little uncomfortable, and she felt like she had been violated.

"Only people are insulting themselves, and later people insult them! I carry this monument not because of the glory it symbolizes, but because of the insult it has been! Only with it can I always remember what kind of bullying our country and this nation have been! And I tell myself that I must start from me and start from now on, and end this humiliation of myself!"

When Zhang Mai said this, his tone turned gentle and said to Dongnan with a sincere and grateful attitude: "That is why I am so grateful to my brothers in Shagua and the two states, not because you sell me Zhang Mai's face, nor because you care about the friendship between the two families, but because you have done what the Han men should do. As long as we Han men do not give up their dignity, one day, the past described by the Hubei of Han Xuanding will become a reality again, so that the sun and the moon and rivers will all become ministers and concubines of the Han Dynasty! All of us believe this!"

When Zhang Mai said this, his eyes also shot like Tian Han, and he believed in the myth described in his mouth and seemed to be preparing to fight for this myth. This made Murong Guiying a little dazzling. He originally thought that his understanding of Zhang Mai was almost in line with the actual situation, but now he realized that he might not understand this group of people at all!

They seem to have clear goals, not just for dominance, nor for glory and wealth, but for greater ambitions! That is what they think - "What Han men should do"!

What's even more terrifying is that Murong Guiying vaguely thought: "They seem to be preparing to make the Han people in Hexi the same as them!"

Is that possible? That seems unlikely. At least Murong Guiying didn't think anyone could do it before, but now...

"Are these weird people really descendants of the Tang Dynasty like us? Are they alienated because they were isolated in the Western Regions for too long?"
Chapter completed!