Outside Longxing Temple, an old monk leaned against the base of the wall, his eyes closed, basking in the sun. In the south of Khotan, the winter is not very cold, but the weather is windy and sandy. It's rare that there is no wind today, the sun is hanging high in the sky, and basking in the sun is really a joy in life.

A little monk turned out from behind, came to the old monk's side, and said, "Master, I went to the city just now and saw that the soldiers here were leaving. ”

The old monk opened his eyes and said, "Why are they leaving?" ”

The little monk said: "I heard that the soldiers and horses of the Great Song Dynasty were coming, and they knew that they could not resist the enemy, so they fled." It's just that these people are very inauthentic, and they want to grab some treasure before they flee, which makes the people in the city panic. Fortunately, knowing that Song Jun was coming, everyone was patient. ”

The old monk looked at the sun in the sky, and then looked at the mountains in the distance, and said: "Since the decline of the Tang Dynasty, it has been more than 300 years, and I have not seen the characters of the Central Plains. These days, everyone said that the Song Dynasty had defeated the Black Khan and was going to march into Khotan. I don't know what they'll be like when they come. In the 50 years since I was in the black sweat, Buddhism has declined, and our temple is about to collapse. ”

The little monk said: "Since you are from the Central Plains, you should naturally flourish in Buddhism." Our temple was built by the Tang Dynasty Emperor, how could it be the same? ”

The old monk smiled and said, "We are monks, what do we do about those things in the world." As long as Buddhism flourishes, it will be like a gift from heaven. ”

After speaking, he stood up and took the little monk's hand and walked towards the temple gate. Black Khan believed in the Green Religion, since the destruction of Khotan, although he did not force the people to convert, but suppressed the Buddhist temple, Longxing Temple for 50 years without incense. In the huge temple, there are only five or six monks left, who gather together to eat mixed rice. Fifty years without repair, Longxing Temple is in great decline, and there are not many houses that can live in people.

When I entered the temple, I saw three monks gathered around a big tree in the courtyard, around a pot, and they were lighting a fire there. Seeing two monks, an old man and a young monk, come in, and a monk said, "Master Qingyun, come over and have some fasting food!" Today was a bit of luck, we went out and dug up some wild vegetables. ”

The old monk said to the little monk: "You go over and eat some, I'm not hungry." ”

After speaking, he sat down on the steps in front of the hall, leaned against the pillar, and looked into the distance. I remembered that when I was young, I believed in Buddhism in Khotan, and as a big temple in the capital, Longxing Temple was full of incense. Since the destruction of Khotan, the Black Khan people suppressed Buddhism, and it has declined step by step, becoming what it is today. In the past fifty years, he has changed from an innocent boy to a dying old man, and he has already seen through the world. All the prosperity and disgrace in the world are all external causes, and hardship is not the cultivation of Buddhism. When the Song army came, maybe it didn't suppress Buddhism like the Black Khan, so what could it do?

At this moment, a group of men and women came from outside, noisily and shouted into the temple. A member in a silk robe walked in front of people, and when he saw Master Qingyun after entering the temple, his eyes lit up, and he hurriedly stepped forward, put his hands together and said, "The master is here." Now the Black Khan's army is gone, and there is no one in the city to control it, only for fear that something will happen. Everyone discussed, the master is profound, benevolent, and should preside over the overall situation. ”

Several older people stepped forward to salute together, and asked Master Qingyun to come forward and temporarily preside over the situation and prepare for the arrival of the Song army.

Master Qingyun stood up and looked at the people who came, feeling a little absurd for a while, and didn't know how to answer. When the Black Khan army was there, they didn't care much about local affairs, and as soon as they left, they were going to push someone out? After thinking about it carefully, the meaning of these people is that the most important thing is to welcome Song Jun. When the Song army came to Khotan, local figures went out to greet them, and there must always be a leader. These people are either rich or expensive, and no one else wants to go out, but at this time they think of themselves. There is also a point that pushes yourself out, which is also illustrated with the previous black sweat cut.

Khotan used to be a Buddhist country, with many Buddhist temples and monks, and many Buddhist exchanges with Sha, Gua and other states. After 50 years of suppression by Black Khan, there are now very few monks. As soon as Black Khan left, the remaining monks immediately became high-end figures in the hearts of the natives.

At the Khotanese junction, Peng Lin and a few soldiers took a large net to fish in the river. It's too remote here, and there is not even a grass market, so you can only do it yourself and have enough food and clothing. Fortunately, there are many water pools, and there are many big fish in them, as long as you are willing to do it, you will never go hungry.

A fast horse galloped over, and when he arrived, the knight on the horse dismounted and crossed his hand to Peng Lin: "Commander, ten miles away, there is an army of black sweat coming!" Look at them along the river, they must have come from Khotan! ”

Peng Lin threw the fishing net in his hand, straightened up and said, "How many people?" Is it all the Black Khan army from Khotan? ”

The knight said: "There are more than five hundred people, and in addition, there are many rich and noble families with them. I can't see it clearly from a distance, so I think it should be the retreat of the Black Khan army in Khotan, and many rich and noble families in the city should follow them. ”

Peng Lin said: "Let's go, there is a battle, what kind of fish are you catching!" Gather your troops and horses and go to battle with me! From Khotan, there is only one way to go, as long as we hold it firmly, where do they want to flee? This battle is a great achievement! ”

In Khotan, this river is called the Baiyu River, which joins the Tarim River nearby. Descending from Khotan, you can walk out of the desert here, cross the Tianshan Mountains to the north, and return to Black Khan. This road was not difficult to follow, and it was an important trade route in Khotan during the previous period. Since the end of Khotan, trade routes have been abandoned. The trade route is gone, the river is still there, as long as you follow the Baiyu River, you can get out of the desert.

Back at the camp, Peng Lin gathered his men and rushed forward to the preset battlefield. He and his army have been stationed here for five or six days, and they have familiarized themselves with the terrain, and the terrain of the selected battlefield is open, with the Baiyu River on one side and the vast desert on the other.

Yu Dufu was the leader of the army of the Black Khan Khotan State, and as soon as the Song army broke the crow, he knew that Khotan could not be saved. He hurriedly gathered his soldiers, looted some treasures in the city, and together with the nobles and high-ranking officials of the Black Khan, went straight south along the Baiyu River. Although there are no caravans, everyone knows this road, and there are obvious landmarks such as the river, so you are not afraid of getting lost.

After walking for several days, they finally saw the Tianshan Mountains in the distance, and everyone became excited. Of course, the Tianshan Mountains are not easy to climb, but it is winter at this time, and there are a large number of winter pastures in the Tianshan Mountains, so you should be able to go back to Hei Khan. Although he lost Khotan, he robbed a lot of treasures before leaving, and he returned to China as a rich man. As for the responsibility of defending the territory, Iric was defeated, so how could he defend Khotan.

At this moment, a soldier in front came back from the road and saluted Yu Sufu: "General, five miles ahead, there is a Song army blocking the way!" ”

When Yu Sufu heard this, he couldn't help but be taken aback: "This road has been abandoned for a long time, how can there be a Song army garrison!" ”

The soldier said: "I don't know what the Song army thinks, so I sent someone to garrison here." We were in a hurry, and it shouldn't have been a leak. ”

Yu Sufu's face changed abruptly, and he was silent. After a long while, he said, "How many of them are there?" How strong is it? ”

The soldier said: "It looks like there are four or five hundred people, in the middle is a military formation of about two hundred people, and the two wings are cavalry. It is impossible to see how small the strength is, they do not use knives and guns, and the ones they hold in their hands may be the legendary muskets. In the military formation, there are also a few big iron guys, which are supposed to be the artillery pieces that were passed on a few days ago. How powerful are these guns, and who knows? ”

Yu Sufu didn't know either. The Song army of Bu Ersong defeated the army of the Black Khan, and it was rumored that there were different opinions, and it was divine. One of the common points is that the Song army fought with guns and cannons, which was extremely powerful, and the Black Khan army could not parry it at all. I didn't expect my membership to arrive, and Yu Sufu didn't know what to do for a while.

After a while, Yu Sufu said: "It's too late to turn back now, and Khotan has already fallen into the hands of the Song army." Either way, we have only one way forward. The Song army is in the way, so there is only one way to fight to the death with them! ”

When the soldiers around them heard this, they were silent. The main force of the Black Khan was destroyed by the Song army, which was extremely shocking for the rest of the Black Khan army. Defeated with more fights and less, the strength of the two sides is equal, how to fight with the Song army?

Yu Sufu sighed: "This road is along the Baiyu River, there is a desert on both sides, and there is no way to escape if you want to." But now we have to fight with the Song army. If you win, you can get out of the way and go over the Tianshan Mountains. ”

A person next to him said: "What if you lose?" ”

Yu Sufu said: "What else do you have to say if you are defeated?" Naturally, it was at the disposal of Song Jun. ”

After speaking, he stopped being wordy, gathered soldiers and horses, and ordered the high-ranking officials and nobles who were traveling with him to rest here first, and led the troops forward by himself.

Penlin rode on his horse, holding a telescope and looking ahead. It's not like the place where the peasant families lived, there wasn't that much water, except for the wide river overgrown with reeds, and the desert on both sides, so you couldn't see the edge at a glance. Standing on the sand dunes, as far as the eye can see, it can be miles away.

Seeing the Black Khan soldiers and horses in the distance coming in a hurry, Peng Lin said: "The Black Khan soldiers and horses are coming, and I ordered all the armies to prepare." This may be the last battle in the Western Regions, to fight beautifully, so that others have nothing to say! ”

All the generals agreed together, and the momentum shook the sky.

Yu Sufu took the soldiers and horses to the front of the Song army more than a mile ago, and when he saw the army formation in front of him, he ordered to stop, saying: "The Song army's muskets and artillery are far away, and the army formation can't get close to them, so they stop here." ”

The general on one side said: "It's too far here, and our bows can't hurt them, how can we fight?" ”

Yu Sufu said: "Ask them what they mean by blocking the road first, and then make a claim." ”

In fact, Yu Sufu didn't know how to fight this battle. You can see clearly in front that the Song army has guns and cannons, and the lineup is neat. Although the formation is evacuated, it is not like when they fought in the past, but they have different weapons and should fight in different ways.

Looking around, Yu Sufu pointed to the adjutant general Omar and said, "The adjutant general stepped forward and asked Song Jun what he wanted." ”

Omar listened to the curse in his heart, but he didn't dare to disobey the military order, so he had to urge the horse and slowly move forward. When he reached a hundred steps in front of the Song army, he stopped, and said in a loud voice: "Dare to ask the soldiers in front, why are you blocking the road here?" ”