Dawn of the Empire

Chapter 1 (The pommel horse is like floating clouds (1)

On the eve of the Chengying camp's expedition, if the sergeant's family is near Dunhuang, just return to the barracks before dawn.This is a common practice in the Xia army, which is called saving seeds.The war is dangerous, and the conscripts may never return, but what remains is the hope of the continuation of the blood.The territory of the Kingdom of Xia is very vast. During the Weiyuan Dynasty, there were many troubles in all directions, and the army fought frequently. The sons of soldiers were often rarer than those of private households. Emperor Chen Ante of Weiyuan issued an edict that all soldiers with families, after three years of leaving the garrison, The imperial court must arrange for him to reunite with his family in order to preserve his offspring.If those who die in battle, the imperial court will take care of the orphans and widows, and those who are short of military camp expenses in prefectures and counties will be supplemented by money from the royal treasury.

The matter of saving seeds is dispensable to others, but to Liu Zheng, a sergeant under Zhao De's command, it is of great importance.There are three kinds of unfilial piety, and the greatest thing is to have no offspring, but he still has no heirs.Liu Zheng also wondered whether because of hidden illnesses, the couple even went to the doctor to see their bodies, and the doctor patted his chest to ensure that there was no problem.His wife, Yu Shi, was beautiful and virtuous. Although he attached great importance to his heirs, Liu Zheng was reluctant to divorce his wife, so he looked around for some secret recipes for having a son.Yu asked Liu Zheng to remarry several times with tears in his eyes, but Xia's national style is so strong that very few women are willing to be concubines.

The moon and the stars were sparse, and there was no sound on the old elm tree. Liu Zheng carefully brought a bowl of "medicine" soup to his wife, Yu Shi. "Drink it and keep it useful." Liu Zheng looked at the flushed Yu Shi full of expectation.The Four Gentlemen's Medicine Soup is made from the four main medicines of Astragalus membranaceus, Hualiangcao, Cistanche, and Yuanhezi, plus some other rare medicines.Before this, the family had stewed several roosters that had not been castrated before, which made both of them rosy and full of energy and blood.While Mrs. Yu was drinking the soup, Liu Zheng opened a new booklet he had collected, which listed the postures that are easy to bear a son.Yu put down the medicine bowl, and said in a low voice, "Husband." It was the scorching heat, and the woman's shirt was light and thin, and her face was red and beautiful. Liu Zheng's heart was burning, and he immediately put the little book aside.

It was rainy and cloudy that night, and at five o'clock, when the rooster crowed outside, Yu bit his lip and whispered: "Officer, the rooster has already crowed."

Liu Zheng didn't raise his head, but leaned over to Yu Shi's ear, and said in a low voice, "It's still early before dawn. Stay with the lady for a while. It's still dark outside."

Yu's eyes were full of worry, and he said in a low voice, "It will already be dawn when we arrive at the barracks from home."

Yu Shi's words made Liu Zheng calm down.It is an iron rule known to all women and children in the Xia Kingdom that the army must not make mistakes.Feeling the changes in Liu Zheng's body, Yu Shi suppressed her reluctance and choked with sobs, "Let me send my husband on a long journey." Helping Liu Zheng to sit up, he simply put on a Luo shirt, carefully Put on military robes and armor for Liu Zheng, and wash his temple hair.The couple's room was filled with the sadness of parting.

In Zhao Xingde's house, the luggage was also packed.Zhao Xingde's eyes were full of sadness, and he raised his hands horizontally.Li Ruoxue passed under his side with her bare hands, put on the thick leather soft armor, fastened the straps tightly one by one, and then helped him to fasten the wide leather waist belt inlaid with iron.When she was in front of Zhao Xingde, Li Ruoxue still managed not to show sadness, but when she turned behind him, she couldn't help the redness around her eyes, suppressed her sobs and said, "Who will help you wear these troublesome things outside?" ?" Zhao Xingde held her slender hand, and said in a low voice: "There is no one else but you. Do you believe that my hands are long enough to wear this armor by myself?" Li Ruoxue laughed through tears, and lightly thumped behind his shoulder After a while, he said angrily, "I believe you."

For this expedition, there are not many things that need to be carried from home, and two large luggage can hold them all.In addition to the usual soft armor worn on the body, there are also heavy utensils such as horse lances, chain mail, and bright light armor, which are all placed on the accompanying carriages in the camp.The entire sheepskin suitcase is behind the saddle on the left and right, the bow bag is hung on the left side of the saddle, and the saber and quiver are hung on the right side of the saddle.Li Ruoxue also went to see him off, Zhao Xingde let her sit in front of his saddle, felt the beauty's tender body, lightly tapped on the horse's belly, and the Dawan horse walked slowly towards the barracks.Hexi has a herd of horses, and the folk customs are more sturdy than those in Kanto. It is not uncommon for couples to ride together like this.

It was gradually getting dark in the east, and after a short journey, it was close to the barracks.There were also more sergeants returning to the camp on the way, and most of them brought their family members to see them off.The familiar sergeants looked at each other, and did not greet loudly as usual, as if the voice was too loud, it would disturb the sadness of parting.Dozens of women and children had already gathered at the gate of the barracks, Zhao Xingde gently put Li Ruoxue off the horse, jumped off the horse himself, and finally hugged his wife again. "Yuan Zhi." Li Ruoxue hugged Zhao Xingde tightly.Zhao Xingde patted her on the back lightly, and whispered in her ear: "Wait for me to come back." "Yes." Li Ruoxue raised her head, her pretty face already covered with rain, "I'll wait for you to come back."

At dawn, it was the time of parting, and the family members were in front of the camp, watching the winding procession of Chengying Seventh Battalion heading west, gradually disappearing on the endless road.Li Ruoxue tried her best to look into the distance, but she could only see a blurred figure from her back. She lowered her eyelids and bit her lip to keep herself from crying.The atrium that was warmed by the brief reunion gradually cooled down.Zhao Xingde also frequently turned his head to look at Li Ruoxue's frail figure, which gradually disappeared, with a pain in his heart, dejectedly, the only thing left is to say goodbye.

The summer team's expeditions often start out listlessly, and the farther they leave the camp, the spirit gradually recovers.

Chengying Seventh Battalion moved forward along the Chi Road.They didn't stop at random along the way, and every [-] miles they arrived at a post station, where the soldiers fed their horses and rested, and set off again the next day.In large post stations, you can also replace a batch of tired camels and horses.The road Cao maintained the road and the post station very well. He was notified by the marching commander first, and he prepared fodder for the livestock in advance every night, and prepared hot soup and hot water for the sergeant, which saved a lot of chores for camping.

Along the way, many caravans followed Chengying Seventh Battalion. Some of these caravans only followed one or two post stations, and some followed thousands of miles.Whenever the surface of the road is damaged, the first caravan to find it will stop consciously, dig sand and soil far from the road, fill up the damaged area, and move on.Sometimes the bridge across the river is broken, and the caravan will stop and strengthen it before passing.Although the road operators will also regularly inspect the roads and repair bridges and repair roads, Zhao Xingde estimates that most of the small problems and hidden dangers on the roads are solved by passing caravans, which invisibly saves the road operators a lot. A maintenance fee.And passing troops like the Seventh Battalion of Chengying, when the military situation is not urgent, will take the initiative to stop to repair the road.

"Will the Prime Minister's Mansion pay them?" Zhao Xingde asked Sima Jin Changtai.

Beside the driveway, a businessman in long robes was sweating profusely with his hands on his hips to oversee the work. The porters first tamped the sand with heavy cargo boxes, and then drove the wagons full of goods, repeatedly crushing a hole that had just been filled. Hole.

Jin Changtai was slightly taken aback, and then replied: "If there is no proof, there will be no reward. Even if there is, it is very little. These merchants are too lazy to collect it. The merchant associations on the Silk Road all voluntarily agree on the rules of making up the road. , although it was delayed for a while, it was still more convenient after all."

"There is such a thing?" Zhao Xingde exclaimed, "If there are caravans who turn a blind eye and pass by, wouldn't they take advantage and let the honest caravans suffer?"

"The caravan's verbal agreement to make up the road is based on a word of faith." Jin Changtai said in a deep voice. An impenetrable wall, such a business trip that harms others and benefits oneself, will not be able to survive on the Silk Road after all."

Marching during the day, at night, the marching Sima taught the soldiers of the Chengying Camp simple Lumei language.In order to facilitate things after arriving in Lumei, this coursework started during the training period of Chengying Camp. Zhao Xingde had already started to learn Lumei's characters, and he was able to understand some simple Lumei articles.Because he knows how to look at the sky and position himself, he has read a lot of poetry and books, and he is quick to learn how to speak Lumei. The three marching commanders all regard Zhao Deying as the same kind, and they are willing to march with his centurion even if they have nothing to do.

Because of the smoothness of the road, the Tianshan North Road is far more prosperous than the South Road. Along the way, as long as there is plenty of water, there are orchards and pastures everywhere, cattle and sheep are wild, and occasionally a herd of horses can be seen running.After passing through Yizhou, Gaochang, Yanqi, Qiuci, Diaohua, Shule, and arrived in Kangguo.This trip lasted nearly four months, from summer to autumn, and the soldiers wore thick white folded cloth robes instead of their single clothes.

White folded cloth is one of the main goods exchanged between Xia and Song and Liao.Xia Guo was very careful about the reclamation of the Tianshan South Road, and the water source was more abundant, and the Tianshan North Road was planted with large swathes of cotton, which looked as white as snow.Every time the cotton peaches are picked, a large number of merchants go to Gaochang to buy raw cotton.At the beginning of spring, another group of merchants entered Tianshan North Road to buy white folded cloth.At this time, there was no large amount of cotton planted in the Central Plains, and the price of the white folded cloth in the Central Plains was not cheap because of the high shipping costs.