The Leisurely Life of the Prince of the Tang Dynasty

Chapter 542: Meeting Xuanzang Again
Songtsen Gampo nodded and bowed again, but did not respond immediately.

Guo Zhengyi said: "You are a guest of the Tang Dynasty, please do as you please."

Songtsen Gampo returned to his residence, a spacious courtyard in Chang'an City. This kind of house is very valuable in Chang'an City today. It was arranged by the Ministry of Rites at that time.

There are two Tibetans here to take care of their daily life. Since the house is arranged by officials from the Ministry of Rites, they don't have to pay any money here.

Songtsen Gampo sat down on a chair in the yard, put his hands on his knees, and thought about what Guo Zhengyi had said.

The next day, after the holiday, Chang'an City seemed more prosperous at this time of year, and there were more pedestrians on Zhuque Street.

Songtsen Gampo was used to this kind of scene. Every morning, the most abundant breakfast in Chang'an City was cakes and meat. He would walk through the streets and alleys and come to a restaurant, where people would eat cakes.

Songtsen Gampo ate a bowl of mutton in a basin here, put down his chopsticks and paid the shop owner.

There were also Turks and people from the Western Regions eating in the restaurant. There were always many such people on the streets of West Market.

There were not many Tibetans in Chang'an this year. Songtsen Gampo walked all the way from the West Market and left Chang'an. He was not questioned or stopped by anyone.

Although he was surprised, Songtsen Gampo continued to walk along the official road as if nothing had happened until he reached the busy Xianyang Bridge. No one stopped him or questioned him, and no soldiers came to chase him.

Songtsen Gampo coughed twice in the cold wind and walked slowly. He saw a group of children running through the crowd on Xianyang Bridge.

Songtsen Gampo deliberately slowed down his pace and even bought a bowl of wine on the bridge.

"Guest, three cents."

Songtsen Gampo handed over three copper coins and walked towards the other end of the Xianyang Bridge. After crossing the bridge, he bought some dry food, a pair of shoes, and a horse.

In this way, Songtsen Gampo rode his horse slowly, heading west.

He may have just been out for a walk before, but if there were any bad guys nearby, he would have bought horses and dry food and was definitely going on a long journey.

Once the bad guys learn about this, they will definitely report it, and then someone will come to chase them.

Among the people around them who look like ordinary people, there is a high possibility that there are bad people. Nowadays, the bad people in Guanzhong are spread all over the markets in Chang'an City and the counties in Guanzhong. They are all dispatched by Jingzhao Prefecture, Dali Temple, or the army.

With this in mind, Songtsen Gampo asked the horse to speed up and walked all day until dusk.

After Songtsen Gampo passed Jingyang and walked on the official road to Longxi, he looked back and did not see any officers and soldiers behind him, as if no one was chasing him.

After calming himself down, Songtsen Gampo rode his horse all night long, running day and night, and there was still no pursuer behind him until dawn.

Songtsen Gampo found an inn and rested for a day.

For several days in a row, after leaving Chang'an, Songtsen Gampo headed westward. When he was almost at the Hexi Corridor, he was only one day away from the exit.

Tian Khan's troops did not come to capture him, nor did they pursue him.

After entering the Hexi Corridor, Songtsen Gampo left Wuwei County. Even the officers and soldiers here did not come to inquire or stop him.

They arrived at Guzang City, where Songtsen Gampo settled down. A Tibetan came running over with an excited look on his face and respectfully said in Tibetan etiquette, "Zanpu!"

It has been almost ten years since I came to the Tang Dynasty for treatment. My condition has improved during these ten years, but my hair has turned white. I didn't expect that the Tibetan children still remember me.

Hearing the Zamp's weak cough, the Tibetan hurried forward and said, "Zamp, I am Dazhan Dongsai."

The Tibetan child looked more mature than his peers in Guanzhong. He wiped his tears and said, "I was six years old when the Zamp left."

Songtsen Gampo recalled that he knew Dazhan Donsai, who was younger than Qinling.

Dazhang Dongsai is only sixteen years old now, but he is already very tall. Songtsen Gampo coughed twice again.

"Is the Zamp coming back?"

Songtsen Gampo did not ask any questions immediately, but walked into the posthouse with him, and the two spoke in Tibetan.

During the conversation, Songtsen Gampo learned about the recent situation in Tubo. A large group of children came to Guzang City along with Dazhan Dongsai.

Dazhan Dongsai is now studying in the Chongwenguan of Tubo, and he is also one of the students taught by the Chongwenguan of Tubo.

Songtsen Gampo asked him about the current situation of Tubo. When he saw a group of children coming to him with books, the king smiled happily. In all his years in Chang'an City, he had never seen so many Tubo children.

Songtsen Gampo picked up a child, laughed so hard that there were even tears in the corners of his eyes. It had been ten years, and these ten years were the happiest days for Songtsen Gampo.

According to Dazhan Dongsai's narration, these children actually lived very well, especially the Tang officials, who were particularly caring towards the Tibetan children.

Songtsen Gampo asked, "Will my Chongwen Hall snatch children from our people?"

This was a rumor at the time. Dazhan Dongsai explained the cause of the incident. In fact, it was not that Chongwenguan and the Tubo people were competing for the children, but that those Tubo parents were unwilling to let their children go to the Tang people's school to study. They were afraid that their children would no longer be their own children after reading the Tang people's knowledge.

Because of this fear, Tubo's parents often had conflicts with the teachers in Chongwenguan, and even fought each other.

Conflicts and misunderstandings will always be resolved. The Tang people did not use weapons to resolve the conflicts, but often played with the Tibetan children. Later, the Tang teachers used another way to get along with the Tibetan children and slowly taught them the Guanzhong dialect.

After three to five years, Tibetan parents gradually accepted the Tang Dynasty's academies. Some of their children went to study in the academies and brought back thick bedding, and could even provide medical treatment for Tibetans.

In this way, the Tang people and the Tibetans became more and more harmonious. Dazhan Dongsai said seriously: "Zamp, there are still many people who have prejudices against the Tang people and try to make us enemies of the Tang people. Now that the prime minister has returned, some people want to be the prime minister and me. There are also many Tibetans who continue to be enemies of the Tang people."

Songtsen Gampo asked in return: "Do you want to be enemies with the Tang people?"

The children in the room of the post house were silent, and Dazhan Dongsai did not answer immediately. However, they could hear a noisy sound outside the room, which was the voices of the people in the post house.

Dazhan Dongsai asked: "Does the Zamp want to be an enemy of the Tang people?"

Songtsen Gampo sat cross-legged. He came all the way from Chang'an to Guzang City by himself. He could see the bustling streets from the window. He still remembered that Guzang City used to be very desolate. There were not so many people, not so many houses, and even no city walls.

At that time, there was only a small piece of ruins and a stone slab broken into two pieces, telling passers-by that this was the former Guzang City.

When the Tuyuhun king was still alive, even the remains of Guzang City were almost completely demolished. Until now, the Tang people have rebuilt this city. There are also many Hu people coming and going in the city, and these Hu people all speak Guanzhong dialect.

The powerful Tang Dynasty had a powerful Heavenly Khan. Under the rule of this Heavenly Khan, all the Hu people and Turks were his subjects.

Songtsen Gampo recalled the decrees he had seen in Chang'an City. After the Heavenly Khan built the Anxi Protectorate, he had begun to require the people of the Western Regions to pay taxes. With the taxes from the Western Regions, the Tang Dynasty would become more powerful.

Dazhan Dongsai asked again: "Zamp?"

Songtsen Gampo shook his head and said, "We cannot be enemies with the Tang Dynasty. Once we become enemies with the Tang people, Tubo will be caught in an endless war."

Seeing the way the children looked up at him, Songtsen Gampo reached out and patted the child on the head, saying with a smile, "Go back to Tubo."

Hearing this, a group of children cheered until all the children left the room.

Dazhan Dongsai was the only one left in the room. Songtsen Gampo said, "I will not be an enemy of the Tang Dynasty. I cannot guarantee whether people in the future will be an enemy of the Tang Dynasty."

Dazhan Dongsai bowed and said, "Yes, Zamp."

Seeing the smiles of Dazhan Dongsai and the children, Songtsen Gampo, who was sitting in the house, took the tsampa and tasted the familiar taste of tsampa.

After taking the milk tea brought by Dazhan Dongsai, Songtsen Gampo felt satisfied.

Guzang City is very beautiful, so beautiful that people don't want to leave. Here you can hear all kinds of songs, various languages, dancing Hu people, cheering Turks, and Guanzhong people holding wine bowls. All kinds of people live here.

After leaving Chang'an City and coming all the way here, Songtsen Gampo felt very dazed and unreal, as if it was a big dream. If he woke up from this dream, he should still be in his house in Chang'an City.

But when Songtsen Gampo slept soundly for a night, he woke up and found himself still in Guzang City. This was not a dream. He had really left Chang'an City and came to Guzang City, riding a horse alone. No one stopped him, no one questioned him, and no one chased him.

Songtsen Gampo met more Tibetan children who came to Guzang City to buy books. They went back after buying books and papers. Some Tibetan children even took furs and horses to exchange for pens and ink.

Songtsen Gampo did not want to leave Guzang City so soon, but stayed in the city. Sometimes Songtsen Gampo felt that the Heavenly Khan had forgotten that he was the Tibetan King. Perhaps when the Heavenly Khan remembered that the Tibetan King was very important, he would send people to catch up with him.

Songtsen Gampo waited here day after day, until Dazhan Dongsai and the children left, but he never waited for the Khan's troops to capture him.

Until the cold wind from outside the Great Wall swept across the northwest again, and the strong wind brought in sand-like snow and flooded Guzang City and the Hexi Corridor.

Songtsen Gampo also lived in this posthouse and witnessed the fierce wind and blizzard that swept through the buildings, leaving traces like flowing water.

The lights in the inn were dim. Songtsen Gampo walked out of the room and wanted to have dinner, but the sound of the wind outside was still there.

There were few guests today, and Songtsen Gampo saw a monk sitting here.

Monks are not uncommon in Guzang City, and there are also many monks in the Western Regions, so it is not surprising to see a monk here.

Songtsen Gampo looked at the monk's back. The wind and snow were howling outside, and he was sitting beside an oil lamp, writing.

The back figure looked familiar, and Songtsen Gampo walked forward with some uncertainty.

When he saw the monk's face, Songtsen Gampo felt dazed again and whispered, "Xuanzang?"

"It was Zamp."

Songtsen Gampo sat down at his table and asked, "They said you are no longer in Guanzhong."

Xuanzang put down the pen in his hand and blew on the ink on the paper.

Only in this way can you see clearly the words written on the paper. These four words are "people" and "heart".

Xuanzang was a monk and a disciple of Buddha. He was very pious and stubborn. Songtsen Gampo remembered that when Xuanzang passed through Tubo, he built a Buddha statue.

Being kind to others is actually the ideal of the court. Xuanzang did not write about the Buddha's name but about the ideals of the court.

Songtsen Gampo asked, "Do you still chant the Buddha's name now?"

Xuanzang replied, "What I do has nothing to do with what I study. I am teaching now. Now that I have a day off, I will come to Guzang City to look at books. The books in Chongwenguan are replenished every year. I come here every year to look at the books and see what I should teach my children to read next year."

After thinking about it again, Xuanzang said, "This year I have learned more about mathematics and geography. While teaching them to the children, I also need to learn it myself. I have been learning and teaching for so many years. The more I learn, the more I understand what kind of country the emperor wants to build."

There was a package next to Xuanzang. The package was very large and seemed to contain a lot of books.

Xuanzang said, "I have sixty students, twenty of whom will go to Chang'an this year. This is how students are now. Every child who has completed his studies can go to Chang'an to take the imperial examination."

Songtsen Gampo listened quietly. Xuanzang used to be a very pious man, and now Xuanzang also seemed to be a very pious man. Now he was devout in learning and teaching.

When he actually saw him, Songtsen Gampo could hardly believe that a man who had read Buddhist scriptures for half his life had actually started teaching.

Xuanzang put away the paper and said, "Whenever you feel confused, write some words like this. If you write more, you won't feel confused anymore."

It was already dark outside, and the two people, who had not seen each other for more than ten years, chatted all night in the inn.

Xuanzang is living a good life now. No one from the court or the Chongwenguan disturbs him. It seems that this matter was definitely instructed by Tian Khan.

The only thing Songtsen Gampo could be sure of was that most of what happened in the Tang Dynasty was what the emperor wanted it to happen.

What’s more, he is an emperor with such centralized power. The world will be whatever he wants it to be.

When daybreak came, the snow and wind stopped.

The door of the inn opened and the two men parted in front of the door. Songtsen Gampo and Xuanzang made an agreement to meet here again at this time next year.

Songtsen Gampo left Guzang City and walked out of the Great Wall. He walked all the way from the Hexi Corridor to Shazhou and arrived in Qinghai after five days of walking.

Here Songtsen Gampo met many Tibetan herdsmen and the Protector General of the Tibetan Protectorate, Li Anqi. Then Songtsen Gampo sat alone in the tent and began to write a policy paper. The Tibetan king held the pen of a Central Plains person and wrote in the language of the Central Plains. Gradually, an article on how the Tang Dynasty should govern Tibet took shape.

How the Tang Dynasty should govern the Tibetans is the answer that Tian Khan wants most. Songtsen Gampo doesn't know what the answer will be, but he can use his identity to help Tian Khan, just this time.

(End of this chapter)