contend

Chapter 964 Prosperity
Diocletian finally came to Gaochang after crossing the fertile river, crossing Congling Mountains, and trekking thousands of miles of yellow sand.

A county town is almost the size of their capital city.

After 20 years of rest and recuperation, today's Gaochang has become a pearl in the Western Regions.

Pavilions, terraces and pavilions are lined up row upon row, and the eaves blow the clouds.

In the eyes of Diocletian and Kalinus, everything is like a fairyland.

In order to win Daqin's support, and to gain a more comprehensive and in-depth understanding of this powerful empire, the two once again embarked on the road to the west.

Different from the mentality of being condescending and watching the flowers last time, this time it is with the mentality of in-depth learning.

Gaochang was followed by Dunhuang, Jiuquan, Zhangye, and Wuwei. These cities became more prosperous in various dividends after Daqin returned to the Western Regions and marched into Hezhong.

The scale and population of the city far exceed Gaochang.

There is an endless stream of people wearing silk and satin, and even ordinary people are dressed in clean and tidy clothes, with proud smiles on their faces.

Diocletian was not a simple general, and his political ability was not inferior to his military ability.

So is Carlinus.

Both had the ambition to revive Rome.

"The prosperity of a country can be seen from the faces of its people!" Diocletian sighed.

"Then we are on the right track this time." Kalinus has more and more oriental temperament.

Only a handful of people know that he is the mastermind behind the Knights' Order that has been active in Rome in recent years.

Diocletian first entered Qin to learn more advanced military technology and politics, while the young and passionate Kalinus did it for his own beliefs.

Unlike Diocletian, who came from a slave family, Carlinus was the son of the current Roman head of state, Carlos.

The head of state is not an emperor, and Carlinus is not a prince, and has no right of succession in Rome.

Decades later, the pair of young people proclaimed themselves emperor in Gaul and the other in Constantinople, and finally came to the opposite of each other.

"Oriental things can be borrowed and learned, but not indulged, my friend." Diocletian was born in a humble background and struggled in the secular world, so he is more practical.

Kalinus did not hear his friend's advice, and his eyes were attracted by the bowl of mutton noodles in front of him.

This trip east is also a culinary journey.

Everything in Daqin is full of attraction to him, architecture, customs, food.

It is said that this kind of oil-splashed noodles was invented by Emperor Qin himself. Kalinus grabbed the food with his hands in disregard of the image of the nobility, which caused a burst of ridicule from the surrounding diners.

But Kalinus didn't care about the eyes of the people around him, and concentrated on enjoying the food.

People from all over the world are concentrated in the Hexi Corridor, and food and customs from all over the world are also gathered here.

The fried noodles are just an appetizer.

The next Qiang boiled and broiled is the main meal.

In the Eastern Han, Wei and Jin Dynasties, the music was the Hudi and the harp, the royal was the Hu bed, the food was roasted with Qiang, and the utensils were the stove.

Qiang roast is medium-rare barbecue, roasted whole lamb is grilled, and the stove plate is the iron plate barbecue of later generations, with a variety of patterns.

"Pao porpoise come out!" the shopkeeper roared.

Then four young men came out carrying a whole roasted pig, and the aroma was overflowing, attracting the attention of all the diners.

The so-called "pao pig" refers to taking a whole pig, digging it open to clean the internal organs, filling the pig with jujube, collecting sage grass, mixing it with mud, spreading it on the pig, and carrying it into the fire to roast it.

Similar to the practice of beggar chickens of later generations.

With a mouthful of meat and a mouthful of Pu Tao wine, the two of them ate nearly two catties of roast pig each.

It wasn't over yet, the store brought up burnt meat skewers again.

Burnt is also roasted, and it is burned in the fire, which is the kebab of later generations.

After serving the skewers, there is also raw fish. Take fresh carp, slice it into small pieces as thin as onion wings, soak it in spirits for a while, and put it directly into your mouth, and the entrance will melt...

After a few rounds, Diocletian and Kalinus walked out of the restaurant with their bellies out.

"Daqin is really a magical country!" Kalinus belched, his eyes shining.

Diocletian was a little careless.

Next, every time I go to a place, I will live for two days, eat, drink, and walk around.

There are all kinds of people in the Hexi Corridor, Gaoche people on the grassland, Qiang people on the plateau, and various Hu people from the Western Regions, so no one thinks Diocletian and his party's outfits are strange.

Entering Guanzhong, everything is peaceful and peaceful.

The rice fields are criss-crossed and the villages are dotted. During the period of embellishment, the official servants come and go, the merchants' chariots and horses are in an endless stream, the people lead the cattle to work in the fields, and the waterwheels are turning leisurely...

All kinds of scenes, the two have not seen in Rome for a long time.

Their land was full of wars, uprisings, and plunder, slaves and serfs rebelled against the increasingly corrupt nobles, and barbarians who refused to surrender continued to attack the border, burning, killing, and looting.

The Sassanids loomed over the frontier.

This is how the so-called "crisis of the third century" came about.

The appearance of Da Qin brought them a glimmer of hope.

Such a vast country should be so stable, which seemed inconceivable to them.

The Romans were exhausted simply maintaining their rule in the northwestern Mediterranean.

For hundreds of years, divisions and rebellions have never stopped.

Diocletian only wanted to learn from and study the Daqin system, but Kalinus rose to the spiritual level.

"Have you noticed that we came all the way from the river, neither exploiting our officials nor robbing our horse bandits, this is incredible!" Diocletian walked from west to east, fighting horse bandits and bandits More than 30 times.

Even Rome is full of thieves...

After entering the river, his sword has never been unsheathed.

As long as you pay a small amount of gold coins, you can take the carriages and horses at the stations along the way and enter Guanzhong comfortably all the way.

Sometimes you will see patrolling cavalry squads of the Qin Army.

Whether it was a soldier or a commoner, the pride and confidence on their faces deeply shocked them both.

"There must be a major problem in our spirit and thinking, so our country has various problems. To save Rome, we must fully learn from Daqin in spirit and thought!"

Kalinus secretly made up his mind, and for this reason, he began to study Chinese hard.

After reaching Daxing, we can already have some simple conversations.

The last time I went to Daqin as an envoy, I came and went in a hurry, and because of the difference in mentality, I didn't realize how powerful Daqin was.

This time chewing slowly, I feel a lot more natural.

This capital alone is seven times larger than their capital.

It doesn't matter if it's big, but it's even more delicate. Every stone, every tree, every brick and every tile is full of elegant and grand beauty, which deeply shocked the two of them.

"In front of Daqin, we are already in decline!" Diocletian's eyes inevitably lost.

"But there is still time to catch up, my friend." Kalinus encouraged.

(End of this chapter)