A Good Landlord in the Tang Dynasty: Emperor Yuan Cong

Chapter 1129 Rainy Night
A sudden heavy rain interrupted the original plan for the evening banquet, and the bonfire barbecue party could not be held. The rain kept falling without stopping.

"Brother, what do you think of this place?"

In the Gongyue City Lord's Mansion, Wu Huaiyu and his brother Huaiyi had a drink, set up a small stove, made some beef and mutton skewers, and two river fish, and added some mushrooms, wild vegetables, and dried milk.

Warm up a bottle of wine.

He did not call anyone else. Huaiyu did not call his father-in-law Fan Xing, as well as Li Xiuxing, Qiu Xinggong, and Yun Shide, his stepfathers-in-law. Huaiyi did not call his father-in-law Cheng Yaojin either.

"Before I came to the Western Regions, I thought it was a desert with yellow sand all over the sky and Gobi desert, a desolate and remote place. After I came here, I realized how big and beautiful the Western Regions are, especially the Yili River Valley. The scenery there is so beautiful. The climate and grasslands here are comparable to those in the south of the Yangtze River, and are no worse than the Hetao area."

Huaiyi processed the two fishes, cut them into pieces, smeared them with seasoning and marinated them, and his movements were quite skillful. Huaiyu was cutting a large piece of lamb tail oil. The lamb tail oil was too fatty and most people couldn't get used to it, but when grilling lamb skewers, adding some lamb tail oil could make the meat more fragrant and tender.

"There are many good places in the Western Regions. Not to mention the oasis city-states in the south of the mountains, just look at the Yili River Valley, the Suiye River Valley, and the Rushuang River Valley in the north of the mountains. The grasslands in these valleys are so beautiful. Further west, there is the Mesopotamian Valley, which is also a very rich place."

"But, as you can see, the Western Regions have been in turmoil in recent years, and the Turkic people have been strife-ridden. The various Khans have come and gone, disrupting the stability of the Western Regions and affecting the smooth flow of the Silk Road.
Not to mention the ordinary herdsmen, whether they are Huang or Hei, whether they are from the Turkic Ten Arrows Tribe, other tribes, Tiele, Sogdian Hu, etc., these ordinary herdsmen actually do not live a very good life. "

On this beautiful grassland, the felt tents, cattle, sheep, camels, horses, and herdsmen look poetic, but when you get closer you will find that their lives are not easy.

Most herdsmen live by following water and grass, and they move throughout the year. Their wealth is livestock, which is also their foundation. But there is an old saying in the Central Plains: Even if you have a fortune, your hairy possessions don't count.

On the grassland, livestock are also prone to various natural disasters and diseases. For example, the most feared is snowstorms, as well as various diseases, especially plague. A heavy snowfall or a plague may leave a herdsman with nothing and cause an entire tribe to become extinct.

Another major threat to the herders is war, including endless tribal conflicts and ethnic wars.

In fact, the herdsmen's ability to resist risks is even worse than that of the Han farming people in the Central Plains.

“Indeed, it was very hard for the herders to move. When they were crossing the river, many sheep were washed away.

The shepherds were always busy, and their cattle, horses, and camels often got lost. They had to look for them everywhere, and sometimes they lost the people in the process.
It’s not easy.”

The herders live a self-sufficient life, but it is difficult for them to have a stable life.

Huaiyi was carving red willow branches, and Huaiyu was stringing them together.

Fresh beef and mutton are cut into large pieces, and each skewer weighs about two pounds of meat.

"These herders herd cattle and sheep all year round, but they usually rely on milk and eat less meat."

"Well, they usually slaughter some rams before the fall and winter, and either air-dry them or freeze them,"

The herders also needed to exchange materials, such as salt, ironware, etc. They usually exchanged sheepskin, wool, camel hair, or horses and camels.
Wu Huaiyu put the skewers on the fire and said with emotion, "In fact, everyone wants to live a down-to-earth life. The reactions of the Turkic tribes during our westward expedition also illustrate this problem."

Dulu Khan was captured alive by the Tang army after traveling thousands of miles. The Tang army had only 10,000 cavalrymen and penetrated deep into the enemy's heart.

However, the five Dulu tribes in the east wing of the Western Turkic Beiting, as well as the various Jijin tribes, in addition to the advance resistance of Gongyue City, the Chishifu of Shuanghe tried to unite with the Yan face to rescue the emperor.
The rest of the tribes, on the contrary, behaved very cowardly.

Gongyue, Chishi and Yanmian, they are all just other tribes, not the core Wudulu tribe.

The five great chus all chose to submit to the Tang Dynasty. Although in their opinion, they may think that Duolu Khan was originally from the Eastern Turks and was not really one of them. Moreover, they may think that the Tang army came thousands of miles away this time, even if it was a thunderbolt, it would not be possible for them to stay in the Western Regions for a long time.

Sooner or later I will go back,

Then everything would remain the same, and it would not affect their respective interests, so after the Tang cavalry showed their powerful attack power, they were unwilling to fight. But no matter what, the attitudes of the Five Great Chuo, including the two Yehus, Mishe and Buzhen, showed that the Western Turkic Beiting had no authority. None of these powerful Beiting bigwigs were willing to save Duolu Khan, and none of them dared to resist the Tang Dynasty.

This is good news for the Tang Dynasty.

The Tang Dynasty would not be satisfied with just visiting here.
Of course, we can't rush things and have to take it step by step.

"We have to keep Gongyue City. I plan to leave 3,000 Tang cavalry to garrison Gongyue City and Cheling. We will set up Gongyue Town, which will govern Gongyue City, Cheling Fort."

"With 3,000 troops stationed there, how are we going to solve the supply problem?" Huaiyi asked.

"This is actually not difficult," Wu Huaiyu smiled. "The conditions here in Gongyue City are very good. We can farm and graze. We can open up some military settlements here and be self-sufficient while guarding. We can also graze some cattle and sheep.

Of course, the most important thing is that we are guarding the northern route of the Silk Road, and all the commercial goods coming and going will be taxed. The taxes collected will naturally be used to support the army first. "

After these 3,000 cavalrymen have gained a firm foothold here, the Tang army can then slowly ask the various Turkic governorates and states to send people to perform city guard service, that is, to take turns to perform military service and assist the Tang army in defending the city and patrolling the city.

In the name of maintaining the Silk Road, there is actually such an elite force that can also interfere more directly in surrounding affairs.

Actively intervene and interfere comprehensively, so that the right to speak will gradually increase, rather than just being a nominal rule.

"Who do you plan to let stay?" Huaiyi asked.

"Gongyue Town is just a military town after all. It would not be appropriate to have a higher level. But we must choose someone who can rule the town."

"Then I will recommend someone to you," Huaiyi said with a smile, "your adopted son An Lushan is also a Hu people. He was previously the commander of one of the six towns in the northern frontier. He has been guarding the northern frontier for more than ten years. His achievements, qualifications, and even prestige and ability are not bad."

"The most important thing is that this guy has a bit of bandit spirit. Given the current situation in the Western Region, it is quite appropriate for him to guard Gongyue City."

"That's true, brother. I'm just afraid that this guy will be too bold and do whatever the law requires here."

"That's not the case."

"Brother, after we defeat Gaochang, I will strongly recommend you to be the Protector General of Anxi. By then, Gongyue Town will also be under your command. If you really want to use Fatty An, I have no objection."

The two brothers were chatting in this rainy night.
The wind was strong and the rain was heavy.
Fortunately, they were staying in the City Lord's Mansion of Gongyue City instead of living in a felt tent, so they were not affected by the wind and rain. The sound of wind and rain added a bit of atmosphere to the brotherly barbecue on this rainy night.

Sprinkle with cumin, chopped green onion, and chili powder.
Freshly grilled meat skewers are delicious, especially those skewered with red willow branches, which have a unique red willow branch aroma.

"The news here should have been reported back to Gaochang. I just wonder what Gaochang King Qu Wentai and his ambitious prince Qu Zhisheng are feeling at this moment?" Huaiyu was enjoying himself while chewing skewers and drinking wine.

Huaiyi smiled and said, "I guess when our army arrives in Gaochang, the Qu family will certainly open the city gates and apologize for their crimes."

"Bah, it's too late to apologize, no matter how nice he says.

This time, I will destroy Gaochang. The more than one hundred years of history of Gaochang of the Qu family will come to an end. In the future, it will be the Western Province of the Tang Dynasty.

Another state of our Tang Dynasty in the Western Regions."

(End of this chapter)