The army under the command of Ma Zheng was marching at the junction of the Altun Mountains and the Kunlun Mountains, which later became known as the Altun Mountains. Mountains are mountain after mountain, and the altitude is very high, and the air is a bit thin, which makes people from lower altitudes feel a little tightness and shortness of breath.

After turning a corner on the mountain road, there were still mountains in front of me, and they were not lush mountains, but desolate and vicissitudes of life, bare, without a trace of green. Looking at the barren mountain in front of him, Ma Zheng was also a little impetuous, and asked, "How far is it from Stone Town when the night falls?" ”

"Back to the captain, I have to go for 5 days." Three feet behind Ma Zheng, a yellow-headed Uighur leader with a gray beard and sun-tanned skin immediately replied flatteringly. The surname of this Uighur leader indicates that he was a descendant of the Uighur royal family that had ruled Ganzhou in the past.

The Uighur regime in Ganzhou arose in the late Tang Dynasty, and when Zhang Yichao recovered the Hexi Corridor, he relied on the help of the Uighur tribes and allowed some of the Uighur tribes to enter the Quedan Pasture in Ganzhou (where the later Shandan military horse field was located). After the rise of the Song Dynasty, the Ganzhou Uighurs supported the rule of the Great Song Dynasty and cooperated with the Great Song court to curb the rebellious party thieves. However, during the reign of Zhenzong and Renzong, the Ganzhou Uighurs were attacked by the powerful Liao state and suffered heavy losses. In the sixth year of Renzong's Tiansheng, Yuan Hao took advantage of the fact that the Liao State had just withdrawn from the siege of Ganzhou (the siege lasted for 4 months) and launched an attack and captured the fundamental city of the Uighurs in Ganzhou.

After the loss of Ganzhou, most of the Uighurs migrated, and one of them fled to the western part of the Qinghai Road, south of Guasha, where they formed the present-day Yellow-headed Uighur tribe. However, these yellow-headed Uighurs had lost their unified power and were scattered into seven major ministries and a group of minor ministries. The leaders of most of these tribes are descendants of the Nightfall royal family.

And these scattered yellow-headed Uighur tribes could not survive entirely on the desolate Qaidam Basin. Therefore, taking advantage of the blockade of the Hexi Corridor due to the war, trade between the city of Qingtang and the city of Yochang in Khotan, which was controlled by the Qarakhanid dynasty, through the Qinghai West Road, became an important source of income for the yellow-headed Uighur tribes.

It was precisely because of the existence of this century-old trade route that the various tribes of the Yellow Headed Uighurs were unusually familiar with this mountain between the Qinghai Road and the Western Regions. The leaders of the Bian Shao and the Yellow Headed Uighurs also learned Chinese because of their frequent contact with the Han merchants.

"I still have to walk for 5 days......" Ma Zheng looked up at the mountains that could not be seen, "When will I be able to get out of this mountain?" ”

Ye Luo said with a smile: "There are still two days to go, and we are now moving along the mountain." This evening you will be able to reach the Ahmad Dhah Da Shui and then go down the river. When the time comes, the road will be easy to walk, and the water source will be abundant. ”

Ahmad Hudah Da Shui is the Cherchen River in later generations, an inland river formed by the convergence of melting snow from icebergs, precipitation from mountains and springs, with a total length of more than 1,000 li.

Ye Luo said again: "The army of the Taiwei only needs to walk along the water of Ahmad Huda for less than a day, and then they can get out of the mountains and reach the territory of Khotan. ”

"How's Stone Town?" Probably because the march was too boring, Ma Zheng inquired with the Uighur leader about the situation in Stone Town, the first target of the trip.

Stone Town belonged to Shanshan in ancient times, also known as Ruoqiang, and was renamed Stone Town during the Tang Dynasty, and was later ruled by the Uighurs of Western Prefecture, Khotan and Qarakhanid. When the Hexi Corridor was blockaded due to war, Stone Town became an important trading town.

"Okay!" Yeluo said with a smile, "Stone Town has been a good place since ancient times, and that place was also the capital of a country in ancient times, and now it is a place where merchants gather...... Don't look at the barren place here, but once you cross the mountains, it will be a continuous oasis and grassland. When the snow melts on the Kunlun Mountains, it flows to the territory that originally belonged to the Khotanese state. Stone Town, Yochang City, Kriya, and Khotanese City are as rich as Qingtang City everywhere! ”

After nightfall, the old man has probably been to such a good place in Qingtang City in his life, right? Therefore, in his opinion, the territory of Khotan is comparable to that of the Qing Tang Dynasty, and it is really rich.

And with him, there is also the general under the command of the "Lion King of China", Mahmoud Mahmud, the governor of Khotan. Berry. He had now driven with his 800 Ghulam warriors and 500 Iqta cavalry to the stone town of Khotan, about 1,800 miles from Khotan.

Although the "Lion King" gave him permission to clear the wilderness, Berry was still reluctant to give up the 1,800 miles of fertile land in Khotan.

Due to the snowmelt of the Kunlun Mountains, there is no shortage of water sources in Khotan. As a result, large grasslands and oases were formed. Among them, the four oases of Khotan, Keriya, Yochang City and Stone Town are the richest, with large areas of farmland and irrigation canals left over from the Han and Tang dynasties and Khotanese periods.

In particular, Ruoqiang Stone Town, which is located in the easternmost part of the entire "Lower China", is even more prosperous because it is located at the intersection of the Gaochang Uighurs, Western Xia and the Qinghai Line of the Silk Road. Even if the Hexi Corridor has been opened up now, it has not affected the prosperity of Stone Town.

Because the superior geographical location from Stone Town still exists, but the caravan does not need to take the Qinghai Road, and can go directly to Shazhou under the jurisdiction of the Hexi Army through the Great Desert.

What a rich trading town, Mahmoud. Naturally, Berry refused to give up.

And he also has the certainty of defending Stone Town, because Stone Town is a Stone Town!

The general Ghulam, who was dressed in chain mail, was riding his beloved Tianzhu Folded Ear Horse and walking around the stone fortress, followed by several Gulam or Iqtar knights who were also wearing chain mail and riding horses. Several other men in ornate silk robes walked beside Berry, touting the fortification of Stone Town in Uighur language as they went.

"Dear Captain Hakemu, this stone city was built by the Han people during the Tang Dynasty. All the stones used were collected from the nearby mountains and glued together with marl mixed with glutinous rice juice, making them as strong as a whole boulder......

"Yes, I think that in the past, in order to seize Stone City from the evil infidels (referring to the Gaochang Uighurs), the jihadists fought for three months, and tens of thousands of jihadists returned to heaven."

"The Han Chinese Buddhist army came from afar, and it was impossible to carry much food, as long as we cleared the wilderness around Stone Town to make sure they couldn't get supplies. Then instead of three months, it will only take a month, or even ten days, for their army to run out of food. ”

"Stone City is impossible to be breached, because in addition to the city is too strong, the city can also mobilize tens of thousands of militia, all of them are brave and good at fighting, and one person can defeat three Buddhist troops of the Song Kingdom."

"And the reserves in the city are very sufficient, enough for all the defenders and civilians to use for a year......"

Listening to the words of the magistrates, tribal leaders, and merchant leaders of Stone Town, Chief Berry was even more convinced that his position was correct.

Defending Stone Town is the best way to defeat the Upper Peach Blossom Stone Buddha Army. Because Stone Town is simply impossible to be breached by the enemy...... The capture of such a city requires a lot of equipment and time. The enemy doesn't have either of these things, the nearby trees have been cut down, and the enemy has no materials to build equipment. And the time is determined by the amount of supplies that the enemy can carry.

How much can they carry for thousands of miles? And for how long? If you can survive in Stone Town for 15 days, I'm afraid it's over.

15 days to capture Stone Town?

That was a complete dream!

Just as he was triumphant, the sound of horses' hooves came from far and near. Berry turned his head to see several Stone Town militiamen flying horses, and only after the City Leader of Stone Town, Burke (meaning the mayor), followed, did he roll off his horse.

"Great Burke," said one of the militiamen, who looked a little flustered, and said in a slightly weeping voice, "the rangers of the Upper Peach Blossom Stone have appeared under the Great Snow Mountain!" ”

Daxue Mountain is the name of the Khotanese people who believe in the Heavenly Religion for Kunlun Mountain and Altun Mountain.

Seeing that these militiamen were all in shock, Berry hurriedly asked, "Have you fought with them?" ”

"We've fought it...... the militiaman gasped, "we, we've lost eleven warriors!" Those Buddha armies are so powerful, everyone is a devil! ”

"Eleven warriors?" Berry took a breath, "How many of them are there?" ”

"I don't know, maybe six, seven ......"

What the? People rode six or seven, and you rode a dozen, and as a result, you slaughtered eleven ......

"How many of them did you kill and wound?" Berry asked again.

"No, I don't know, I don't know......" the man cried.

He is also a well-known hero in Stone Town, horseback riding, archery, and wrestling are all first-class, and he has also competed with horse bandits in the desert. I thought I could beat ten Buddhists who were on the peach blossom stone by myself. Unexpectedly, I met six or seven demons chanting Buddha today. As soon as a dozen people on his side fought with them, they were immediately put down in half. If I hadn't run fast with a few brothers, I am afraid that I would have gone to the kingdom of Allah.

"Berry!" A ghulam chief gathered together with Mahmud. Berry's side, "Did they meet the Gouram of the Peach Blossom Stone?" ”

Berry nodded slightly, there is only Gulam who has such ability!

"Sent Ghulam at the beginning, these people from Peach Blossom Mountain really won't fight!"

Berry nodded again, convinced.

Ghulam is all in the formation, how can there be a precious Ghulam to take the lead? How many gullams do you have to have?

Berry laughed: "They came with food all the way, despite the long distance, and used the precious Gulam to explore the way, obviously they don't know military affairs. We have won this war! Everyone just has to hold Stone Town, and if they hold it for half a month at most, they will run out of food and be defeated. ”

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