Water Margin people

Chapter 1557 Flame Mountain

“It’s so hot!”

Sun Lei sat in the palace and fanned himself impatiently. He didn't quite understand why Gaochang City was built in such a hot place like the Flaming Mountain.

"Your Majesty, I'll have someone make some ice!"

Zhu Wu said that making ice was no secret in the Central Plains. After the knowledge was taught in schools, making ice with saltpeter quickly became popular. Saltpeter was everywhere, and as long as you could find it, you could make ice to relieve the heat and cool down.

"No, the soldiers are all enduring the heat, I can't make any special arrangements, so that's it!"

Sun Lei waved his hand and said, "Now that we are in the army, how can we just lie down and enjoy ourselves?"

"Where are the soldiers? Have they been arranged?"

Sun Lei looked at Sun Li and asked.

"We have all entered the clean barracks. Those barracks belong to the Uighur army. They are cool and well ventilated. They are very comfortable!"

Sun Li bowed and replied that Gaochang City was extremely hot in summer, but the locals had long thought of ways to deal with it. The houses here were different from those in the Central Plains, so as long as you stayed inside, you would not be afraid of the heat.

"Well, fighting and marching are hard for a large army. Let's rest for two days first!"

Sun Lei nodded.

"Your Majesty, this is the situation in Gaochang City! There are now more than 230,000 people of various ethnic groups in Gaochang City! But there is not much food and grass left. It is said that they have all been requisitioned as military rations."

Sun Li reported the situation in Gaochang City to Sun Lei.

“That’s quite a lot of people!”

Sun Lei took a quick look at the list handed over by Sun Li and said, for places like the Western Regions, a city with a population of more than 200,000 people is already a big city.

"Where are the defenders? Have they been dealt with? And what about the nobles?"

Sun Lei continued to ask.

"The garrison was very small, only a little over a thousand, and they have all been dealt with. The Uighur nobles have also been imprisoned. Only some merchants who helped us open the city have not been dealt with, but they are all very honest and have been working hard to collect supplies during this period."

Sun Li said.

"Are you so sensible? Then why not give them a chance and let them come to see me!"

Sun Lei said.

Sun Li took the order and went out.

"Your Majesty, please have some fruit!"

Hu Sanniang placed a plate of washed fruits next to Sun Lei. There were grapes, pears, and cut Hami melons on it. They had all been soaked in well water and were most comfortable to eat now that they were cool.

Sun Lei picked up a piece of Hami melon and started eating it. The cool feeling made him feel less hot.

“This place is good for fruit!”

Sun Lei finished eating a piece and then spoke with satisfaction, saying that there was nothing more comfortable than eating cool fruits on such a hot day.

"There are many wells in the palace where water is cold and perfect for making iced fruits and vegetables."

Hu Sanniang smiled and said that this was the palace of a foreign race, and the defense of the backyard was the responsibility of their female barracks.

"Add more ice, and let the brothers have some too!"

Sun Lei nodded. There were so many fruits and vegetables in the Western Regions that even an army of more than 100,000 could not eat them all.

"Well, I'll arrange it!"

Hu Sanniang nodded and went to the backyard to make arrangements.

Li Qingzhao came to the palace hall holding a plate with pen, ink, paper and inkstone on it. She was there to record and translate. Sun Lei was going to meet merchants from the Western Regions, and she needed to translate many things.

A kind of merchant was soon brought to the palace.

"Greetings to Your Majesty!"

As soon as the merchants entered the palace, they knelt down, pounded their heads heavily on the ground, and lowered their posture extremely low.

In the past, these merchants would simply bow when meeting the king, and the status of merchants in the Western Regions was very high.

But now it is different. They have witnessed the power of Qi's army. The 500,000-strong Western Liao army was defeated, and Yelu Dashi and the four Khans were captured alive. This kind of record has never been seen in the entire West.

"I heard that you helped the army open the city gate?" Sun Lei said with a smile as he looked at those humble businessmen.

"This is what I should do!"

The merchants said humbly.

"Haha, that's enough, raise your heads!"

Sun Lei looked at the businessmen, all of whom had their heads sticking to the ground. He could only see the backs of their heads in a row and had no idea who the people were.

The merchants then dared to raise their heads, but their eyes were timid and they did not dare to look at the emperor in front of them.

“There are some familiar faces!”

Sun Lei looked around and found several businessmen he had seen before.

"You should be very familiar with various places in the Western Regions, right? People who can travel and do business must know a lot of people!"

Sun Lei looked at these businessmen and asked.

"Your Majesty, we do know quite a few merchants, even some big merchants from the west, Saracens and Venetians!"

The merchants said that although the Silk Road had been interrupted over the years, the merchants did not give up. They tried every means to connect the trade and resell the good things from the East to the West.

"Well, I'm planning to open the Silk Road again, and I need a group of merchants who are familiar with the route. If you are sincere, I think you are the ones to choose!"

Sun Lei looked at these businessmen and spoke.

"Thank you, Your Majesty!"

All the merchants were ecstatic when they heard this. They did not ask for any reward. As long as they could continue their business, they would be very satisfied. After all, the goods from the East were as valuable as gold.

"Don't be in a hurry to thank me. My grace to you is conditional!"

Sun Lei looked at the businessmen and said.

"We will agree to any conditions!"

Those merchants spoke without thinking. For them, nothing was more important than reopening the Silk Road, and they were the first to obtain permission from the emperor.

"Okay, I want to know everything about the Ayub family and the situation in the Zengi Kingdom!"

Sun Lei looked at the group of merchants and asked. He had learned some information from the four Khans before, but he could not believe it all, so he had to confirm it from these merchants.

"The Ayyubids? The Zengi Kingdom?"

The businessmen immediately began to think about the information.

"The Ayyubid family came from a Kurdish tribe, under the rule of the Fazal dynasty..."

The businessmen shared the information they knew.

It is similar to what several Khans said. The Ayyubid family is considered a very powerful family in the West. They started their business through war with slave soldiers.

After asking the questions, Sun Lei waved his hand and let the businessman leave. He didn't need to ask about the rest of the matters.

"The information these people provided is the same as what I got from reading books and letters in the palace!"

Li Qingzhao looked at Sun Lei and said.

"Then there's no problem."

Sun Lei nodded and said that he could make the next plan only after he had confirmed the situation.

"You still want to march west? We have already reached the Western Regions!"

Li Qingzhao looked at Sun Lei and asked, this place was already the farthest place of the former dynasty in the Central Plains, and Sun Lei was also the first emperor to come here, but it seemed that Sun Lei was still not satisfied.

"Let's see the situation first. If we can fight, then we must. All the territory of Western Liao is mine. It borders those people in the west, so war is inevitable! This is not a question of whether I am willing or not!"

Sun Lei shook his head and said that those bordering the country must be enemies.

"You are the emperor, you shouldn't be away from the imperial city!"

Li Qingzhao lowered her head. She was not concerned about military affairs, but was worried about Sun Lei. How could an emperor lead his troops to fight so far away?

(End of this chapter)