After a long journey, Xia Xun has arrived in Dunhuang.
Geographically speaking, Jiayuguan is indeed very dangerous, north of Jiayu Mountain, dangerous rocks and strange rocks, dangerous and unclimbable; The south is close to the river of Qiulai, because of tens of thousands of years of river erosion, the river valley is dozens of zhang deep, one or two miles wide, the water flow at the bottom of the valley is turbulent, the knives on both sides of the river are cut and the axe is sharpened, only the birds can pass through.
Further south, there is the frozen Qilian Mountain.
From the foot of Jiayu Mountain to the valley of the river, but ten miles of land, is the narrowest place at the west end of the corridor, as long as this place is choked, you can attack, you can defend it, not only Jiuquan is stable, the central and western regions of the entire corridor can be protected without worry, this is the key to the west of the Hexi Corridor, hold this pass, and the pass can be basically guaranteed.
The Ming court's strategy for dealing with Timur this time was to use Jiayuguan as the first forward fortress, but placing the focus of the strategy here also meant that the control over its outer territory was sharply weakened.
On the long defense line of 1,200 miles from Jiayuguan to Hami, there are only seven military defenses such as Chijin, Handong, Shazhou, and Hami, each of which has only 5,600 people, and implements the integrated rule of military and civil affairs, collectively referred to as the Seven Guards outside the Guan, and the Seven Guards outside the Guanwai are all commanded by the attached Mongols, and most of their soldiers are Mongols.
Among the seven guards, Hami Wei is the most important, located in a prominent position on the western front, and is the sentinel of the border court stationed in the interior.
The other two important guards, Handongwei and Shazhouwei, are located in Dunhuang, which is the bridge between the border court and the interior of the Ming Dynasty, and at the same time directly undertakes the supply of soldiers, horses, grains and straw for the Western Regions defense line, and is a military logistics base.
Historically, it was precisely because of the poor management of Hami, Dunhuang and other places, the seven guards outside the Guanwai fought for power and profit, and the Turpan Kingdom established by the Uighur nobles at the southern foot of the Tianshan Mountains continued to invade the east, and the world's navigation industry gradually developed at this time, and the passage of trade exchanges and envoys between the East and the West gradually moved from the land to the sea.
Land transportation and border defense in the Western Regions have gradually lost their original significance.
Therefore, in the eleventh year of Zhengde, Dunhuang was occupied by Turpan, Jiajing three years, the Ming Dynasty closed the Jiayu Pass, the people of Guanxi moved to the Guannei, abandoned the two states of Guasha, and then two hundred years of Dunhuang was unbuilt, becoming the desert land of "the wind sowing the building is thousands of miles away, and the moon shines on the quicksand for another day".
Xia Xun insisted on touring the west, there were three purposes, the first was of course for the top priority, this trip to Xuanfu Western Regions, can fight for one more is one, Daming can win one, Timur's side is equivalent to reducing one, striving for one, what you get is double the help, this account can be drawn.
The second is to take the opportunity to learn about the Western Regions.
The more in this sinister juncture, the more you can clarify the people's aspirations, understand the strength and weakness of the forces of all parties, if the strategy is appropriate, unfavorable things can also produce favorable results, the most difficult thing to break the old and establish the new is that the old and the new are mixed, it is difficult to abandon and stand up, the cruel means of war, but it is precisely the best means to break and then stand, make good use of it, you can use the war to break all the altars and jars, and then take the Ming court as the leading factor, and establish a new force here.
Third, Xia Xun has always had doubts about whether this Timur can reach the Western Regions safely.
Timur is a strong opponent, so he did not dare to use his so-called prophetic ability to say a word to the emperor in order to despise the defense of the Western Regions, otherwise if there is negligence in defense, and Timur really came, he is the culprit of countless people who have been poisoned by the war outside the Guan, once Timur's holy war is successful, he is even more a sinner of the nation.
But it stands to reason that even if there is one more person in the Central Plains who does not belong to this era, it is completely impossible to affect Timur's birth, old age, sickness and death.
He tried his best to go west, and the last stop was in Hami, hoping to grasp Timur's movements at the outpost as soon as possible.
This is indeed a bit risky, but it is a helpless move, because it is unrealistic to expect his hidden dragon to fight all over the world, although it has gone through seven or eight years of development, the hidden dragon has matured, but to let them go deep into the Western Regions to carry out the mission, the biggest obstacle is the problem of language and race.
The Silk Road is no more powerful than other places, where the power is weak, and the merchants who have not developed for many years cannot survive, and a group of foreign Han people who do not understand the language of the Western Regions, even if they pretend to be merchants, are conspicuous enough, and then ask them to find out important military information, the difficulty can be imagined.
If you want to find out the intelligence of the Western Regions, you still have to rely on local talents.
Whether the intelligence is accurate or not is related to the fortune of the country, and whether it is timely or not is related to a large amount of wealth, and you must know that the transfer of hundreds of thousands of troops, stationed on the blockade, and the cost of each day is an astonishing amount, and the more accurate his time is mastered, the smaller the burden on the country.
Outside the westward pass, his first stop: Dunhuang, finally arrived.
Han Dongwei commanded Sunan and commanded Tongzhi to attack, and Shazhou Wei commanded Kunji and Mai Jia to greet him outside Dunhuang City.
Han Dongwei, the site of the guard is in Nanhu, responsible for the defense of the first line from Yangguan to Subei, the commander of the Wei is the general of the Yuan army, and the commander is his brother; The commanders of the Shazhou Guard are Kun Ji and Mai Jia, who are also a pair of Yuan army generals, and they are two brothers, in fact, they are the leaders of two tribes, one is the Handong Mongol tribe, and the other is the Shazhou Mongol tribe.
The wealthy giants of Dunhuang are also waiting under the high color shed, including the sandbank giant Mandu Latu, that is, Yingzhan, and the Tufan nobles Shenglong under the Tanggula Mountain in Nianqing.
The guard of honor of the Ming Dynasty Fuguo Gong was getting closer and closer, Su Nan and Kun Ji hurriedly tidied up their crowns and stepped forward, Yingzhan and Sheng Long and other wealthy businessmen in the Western Regions also followed with a smile on their faces, breaking their heads, and they would not have thought that the upcoming Duke of the Kingdom and the woman they loved could have anything to do with it.
A chariot marched in the vast snow, two rows of fierce warriors wore sharp curved horses at their waists, holding sharp spears to protect him tightly, the weather was freezing, the wind was howling, but a big fat man next to the chariot kept taking off his hat to wipe his sweat because of the difficulty of walking.
He was Gaius, originally a eunuch in the court of the Eastern Roman Empire, and brought back a group of eunuchs when Timur's army swept across the Eurasian continent, including him, and now he is Timur's close attendant.
Today, it is the fiftieth day of their stay on the Syr Darya, fifty days, the soldiers have suffered a lot, some soldiers who are not good at protecting themselves are frostbitten, but on the whole, the army's combat strength is still relatively intact, and the winter expedition is difficult, but for them, it is far more comfortable than enduring the hot summer of the Tarim Basin.
Timur learned that there was a nearby cemetery of a saint who went to the Western Regions to preach the Holy Religion, and he went to pay his respects today, and he just came back at the moment.
As soon as he returned to the camp, the general Gaisuyaddin rushed to report: "Great Khan, the Syr Darya River has completely frozen, even if we drive countless cattle and sheep to step on it at the same time, we will not be broken, and we can continue to march."
Timur was overjoyed and said happily: "I have just returned from worshiping the saint, and I have heard such good news.
He took two steps on the soft Persian carpet and said happily, "Bring in Bona, the master astrologer, and I will tell him to tell us a fortune." ” "Yes, my Great Khan" Gasuyaddin respectfully agreed and withdrew.
Soon after, a pale and withered old man wearing a dark robe slowly walked into Timur's huge palace-like felt tent, stood in the center of the carpet, and bowed respectfully to the great khan, the sleeves of which unfolded with his movements, and the edge of the robe revealed a circle of violet six-pointed star patterns, followed by two disciples, holding precious crystal balls and other magic weapons.
Timur said with great interest: "Oh, Master Bonati, you have finally arrived, the Syr Darya has frozen, I am ready to cross the river immediately, I hope you can divinate the next fortune for me, I am suddenly very interested in this" A smile appeared on Bonati's shriveled old face, and he said: "Your Majesty, those who walk in an unknown destiny are fearless, and when you see everything in the future, you may lose interest in moving forward."
Timur laughed: "No, no, no, dear Master Bonati, I have been fearless all my life, like the sword at my waist, my warriors, as fearless as I am, and will not change because the future is dark or light.
Seeing my goals clearly, it doesn't change my path, I just suddenly really get interested" Bonati smiled slightly, bowed and said, "Then, as you wish, Your Majesty" He stepped forward and sat down at a table, and one of the disciples immediately put the huge crystal ball he was holding in front of the table, uncovering the velvet black silk scarf on it, and Bonati gently rested his thin hands on the crystal ball, chanting in the air, and the deep eyes on his pale face were full of vicissitudes, staring closely at the crystal ball in front of him, as if he wanted to pierce his gaze deeply.
The tent was quiet, everyone held their breath, even Timur Da Yanjing sat there, quietly waiting, and there was a horse neighing in the distance.
After a long time, Bonati's hands were removed from the crystal ball, and with a strange expression on his face, he glanced at Timur, but did not speak.
Timur couldn't help but ask, "What do you see?"
Bonati's old cheeks were expressionless, and he only said in a low, dreamy voice: "Your Majesty, I see an unpredictable future" Timur's expression tightened, leaned forward, and said, "When you see it, it should no longer be an unpredictable future, can you tell me what you see?"
Bonati blinked, he was staring at Timur, but that gaze seemed to pass through Timur's body, projecting into a void space, and muttered in a dazed tone: "Water and fire are incompatible, but Mars and Mercury are surprisingly connected, the positions of the Taurus, the Twins, and the Pisces have changed, the gate of Hades' palace has been opened, and the messenger of the god of Hades is carrying a huge scythe and is coming from nothingness."
Bonati grunted twice in his throat, his eyes suddenly widened, staring ahead without focus, and his voice suddenly became extremely frightened: "He's coming, he's coming" Timur could not understand Bonati's words, and could not help asking, "Dear Master Bonati, can you tell me more clearly?"
Bonati still had the same expression, in the tone of a poem, and said thoughtfully: "It is now a remarkable autumn of life and death, and there are astonishing symptoms in the sky, and the clouds are dyed red with blood, and the messenger of the god of the underworld has tied up his robe, and carried his huge scythe, casting the shadow of death in the sky, he should not have appeared in this world, but he has brought his servants, a man who should not be his, the twins are driving the chariot for him in front, Pisces are serving diligently in the back, and on his left side is a woman who is not a woman, To his right is a daughter who is not a daughter, what a strange combination, they should not be here, but because of the mistake of the god of fate, they are in the wrong place.
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A great king, who looks down on the world and is invincible, but before the messenger of the god of the underworld, he willingly bows down and kills him, yes, he is the messenger of the god of the underworld, and only the god of the world can invite the greatest king to his palace when he should not leave This is an irresistible fate, so his enemies in the world, who should have feared him and hated him, helped him; He could have killed his enemies, but he was willing to use them for him."
Timur still couldn't understand what he said, but he already felt that it seemed to be a prophecy against him, and his face was very ugly, and he couldn't help but call: "Master Bonati, Master Bonati" Bonati did not hear it, but his voice suddenly became high-pitched and sharp, and his body trembled violently: "He is coming, he is coming, he is coming back to Samarkand, and he is going back to Samarkand, and only the strong palace, the place where the glory of the gods is sprinkled, can be protected by God."
Timur stood up, and the astrologer Bonati shook violently, and suddenly came to his senses, and the focus fell on Timur's body again.
Because of the fear of the unpredictable prophecy, the beautiful maids and many eunuchs in the tent fell to the ground, trembling with horror, and Timur said with a pale face: "Master Bonati, what you have seen is very unfavorable to me."
Bonati's thin old face returned to the appearance of Gujing Wubo: "Your Majesty, the road ahead is full of layers of fog, if Allah wants to tell you anything through me, then I have told you everything I know truthfully, and now I know no more than you."
Timur had a calm face, dragged the stump leg, slowly walked two steps in the tent, and stood still, with a trace of terrifying hideousness on his face: "He is here, then who is he, I am here, I am Timur, I am the king of the world, I am the messenger of the god of the underworld walking in the world, never fearless, from the invincible hand, come on, let's fight."
To be continued: