Capital Datang

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Ciro was also a blessing in disguise. Relying on his legendary experience after being captured, especially in the Tang Dynasty, which was rich in silk and porcelain, he also won the gold medal in the sports meeting held by the Tang Dynasty. This kind of thing that made the Romans look good, naturally Many people treated Ciro as a Roman hero, and even the Eastern Roman Emperor Constance II had heard of Ciro's name, and even specially called Ciro into the palace to inquire about the customs of Tang Dynasty. (Baidu search update is the fastest and most stable,)

It was also by taking advantage of his great reputation that Ciro quickly chose to enter politics. In addition, he was appreciated by Constance II, so he soon became the chief of the royal private property, managing the emperor's private property. Property, belonging to the emperor's close ministers, can be said to be high in position and weight.Not long ago, the news that Datang supported Persia also reached Rome, which made Constans II immediately make a decision to unite Datang and Persia to fight Dashi.Ciro, on the other hand, took advantage of his familiarity with the Tang Dynasty, and easily obtained the position of ambassador to Rome.

Of course, Xi Luo would not tell Qibi Heli and the others everything, but only focused on his life in Tubo and Datang, which suddenly brought everyone closer and made Qibi Heli feel better about Xiluo. Luo's envoys were even more enthusiastic.

A few days later, Xi Luo took the Roman envoys on the road again, crossed the Congling Ridge to enter the territory of the Anxi Protectorate, and then passed through the countries of the Western Regions.It was only at this time that Xi Luo discovered that the chaotic countries in the Western Regions had existed in name only. Although the countries still maintained their independent names, the country had been slowly infiltrated by Tang officials, and even some small countries had been emptied , all domestic affairs are presided over by Han officials. I believe that in a few years, the entire Western Regions will be fully integrated into the Tang Dynasty.Capital Datang 609

Xi Luo also felt a little startled by the rapid expansion of Datang, especially when he also learned that there were barbarians in the grasslands in the north of Datang.And the powerful Western Turks have been wiped out by the Tang army, and his old club, Tubo, has also been overwhelmed by the Tang Dynasty. Even self-protection is a problem. It can be said that there is no one around the Tang Dynasty that can threaten it. strong enemy.

Thinking of this, Xi Luo couldn't help sighing secretly. The Central Plains Dynasty called Rome the Great Qin, thinking that they were as powerful a civilized country as the Central Plains Dynasty, but now the Great Tang is so powerful that its influence has even extended to West Asia.A little further to the border with Rome.

But look at Rome again. In the past, there was Persia as a powerful enemy in the east. The two sides fought and stopped for hundreds of years. Now Persia has finally declined, but a more powerful eclipse has emerged.Both the eastern and southern provinces of Rome were occupied, and there were barbarian invasions in the north of Rome, and the country was also very peaceful.It can be said that it cannot be compared with Datang in any aspect, which makes Xi Luo, who has always called himself a patriot, very uncomfortable.

Siro and the others traveled eastward along the ancient Silk Road, and encountered continuous convoys of people along the way, even in the desert Gobi, where there are few people.They also often encountered caravans driving camels, which allowed the rest of the envoys to finally see the prosperity of Datang's business, but when Xi Luo told them, this was only the newly occupied territory of Datang.Only after passing the Yumen pass can one enter the real territory of the Tang Dynasty, and everyone is amazed by it, and at the same time they are full of expectations.

More than four months later.Xi Luo and the others finally passed through Central Asia and came to Yumenguan, the former gateway of the Tang Dynasty.Before entering Yumen Pass, you can see groups of caravans pouring out of Yumen Pass. Among these caravans, there are Han people and Hu people. Everyone has a faint smile on their faces, as if they are very interested in this time. The merchant is full of confidence.

After the Roman envoys entered Yumen Pass, they passed through Suzhou, Ganzhou, and Liangzhou and entered the Guanzhong area. Before reaching Chang'an, they already felt the prosperity of the Tang Dynasty. All kinds of goods, especially silk and porcelain, which are extremely valuable in Rome, are randomly placed in small shops here, allowing ordinary people to choose, and the price is too cheap, for example, only one gold coin is needed , They can buy several bolts of exquisite silk, which is unimaginable if it is placed in Rome. (Baidu search update is the fastest and most stable,)

However, if the Roman envoys were surprised when they entered Guanzhong, they were shocked when they arrived in Chang'an. Before, they always thought that Constantinople in Rome was the largest city in the world, even if Xi Luo was in Chang'an. The passage in "Journey to the East" emphasizes that Chang'an in the Tang Dynasty is six or seven times that of Constantinople, but there are still very few people who are willing to believe it.

However, when the members of the diplomatic missions actually saw the majestic city of Chang'an, they really felt what is the largest city in the world, and they were even more shocked when they entered the interior. The population of Constantinople was several times that of Constantinople, especially when they learned that the population of Chang'an had exceeded one million, everyone was shocked and speechless. The total population of a medium-sized province is sometimes only about one million, but in Datang it is only the population of a city.

Li Shimin was also very happy about the arrival of the Roman envoys, so as soon as Xi Luo and the others arrived, they were warmly received by the Ministry of Rites, and then they were arranged by the Ministry of Rites to show them around Chang'an City. This friendly move is also to show the prosperity of Datang to the Romans and let them understand the strength of Datang from the side, which will also greatly promote the development of commercial exchanges in the future.

Although Xi Luo didn't stay in Chang'an for a long time, he left the most unforgettable memory here, so when he revisited the old place, he also seemed very excited.He even showed his sports medals and asked the officials of the Ministry of Rites to show them the original competition venue.

The officials of the Ministry of Rituals did not expect that the ambassador of the Roman Mission had participated in the first sports meeting, so they were amazed when they saw the medals. The Ministry of Rituals did not refuse Shiro's request. Anyway, it is the same everywhere, so they went to The visit itinerary of the mission has been modified a bit.

A few days later, after visiting several important scenic spots in Chang'an, as well as the prosperity of the eastern and western cities, Ciro finally waited for the opportunity to visit the venue when he won the championship that year.

Early in the morning, Xi Luo got up early, washed himself up, and changed into a rather special outfit. This outfit was bought from a clothing store in Chang'an. The style was made according to the clothing characteristics of Tubo warriors. He participated in the competition back then. At that time, he was wearing this style of clothes. Today, when he revisited the old place, he changed into the clothes of that year on a whim.

In fact, not only Ciro, but other Roman envoys also wore Tang clothes today, because today’s itinerary was added later, so it is not considered a formal itinerary, and the venue for the competition is a bit special, even the people who accompanied them Officials of the Ministry of Rites wear casual clothes, so it is not good for them to wear their Roman official costumes, otherwise they will be too conspicuous.

Coincidentally, Xiao Cuo, the son of Xiao Yu, who was in charge of receiving Xi Luo and the others from the Ministry of Rites, was Li Yin's nominal father-in-law. He came forward, but because Li Shimin attached great importance to the legendary Daqin Mission, he asked the Ministry of Rites to send a servant to accompany him in person.

The Winter Games that Xi Luo participated in at the beginning were held by Li Min in a hurry, and the venues of the competitions were also random. They were all rebuilt from the former polo field. However, in the official Datang Games held later, the previous occasions were all The construction was very formal, and the competition field of that year was also rebuilt. It is now named Chang'an Stadium, and it is a comprehensive venue for sports competitions.

A group of people came to the stadium in a carriage, and saw that this huge building was oval-shaped, surrounded by auditoriums, and in the middle was the competition field. This is very similar to the Colosseum in Rome, but the people from the Roman mission It is very inferior to find that compared with this stadium, their Colosseum is a bit stronger in construction materials, but it still loses a little in scale.

The stadium is also divided into several areas such as track and field, swimming, and running. Each area is overcrowded. It is not because there are any competitions held here, but because the stadium is open to the public for free, so there is a crowd every morning. A large number of sports enthusiasts exercise here.

Naturally, today is no exception. When Xi Luo and the others entered the stadium, what they saw were people engaged in various sports activities on the field. The most lively of them was naturally the polo field. During the confrontation training, the horseshoes flipped and splashed the mud, and the vigorous figure of the knight chased the polo, looking full of vitality.Capital Datang 609

For the sport of polo, Ciro has mentioned it emphatically in his book, so the people in the mission are no strangers to it, but this is the first time they have seen real polo. Several horses run nimbly, but rarely collide with each other. Although Rome is not famous for cavalry, they also know that it requires extremely superb equestrian skills to do this.

In addition to the polo field, Xiao Cuo also took Xi Luo and the others to visit other venues, such as running, long jump, bicycles, etc. Among them, bicycles aroused great interest from the Roman mission, and Xi Luo also mentioned in his book I have been to this kind of two-wheeled car, and it also recorded the match between the king of Tubo and the prince of Tang Dynasty, so many people want to try it for themselves, but I can learn it in a short time with a few people. In addition, most of the other people can't control the progress of the car for the time being.

Finally, Xi Luo and the others finally came to the track and field field, but the javelin sport is not too popular in Datang, so there are very few people playing javelin on the field, only a few teenagers are enthusiastically throwing the javelin, but they are throwing the javelin. The action is not standard, and the throwing distance is naturally not too far.But even so, it was enough to make Ciro's eyes filled with excitement. After grabbing his Roman colleagues around him, he began to talk about his winning the championship that year.

But at this moment, Xiao Cuo suddenly saw a few young figures on the track and field, playing archery vigorously, laughing cheerfully from time to time, but when Xiao Cuo saw these people , but there was a somewhat helpless wry smile on his face. (to be continued)