Chinese New Year

Chapter 1432 Desert
At the end of May, a sandstorm suddenly swept through the vicinity of the Qilian Mountains.

The sand was blowing in from the north, and it was very strong. The sun was still in the sky, but it already created a dark and gloomy atmosphere.

He Lun, who was on his inspection tour, had just cursed twice when he felt a sudden palpitation and clutched his chest, as if he was about to fall off his horse.

When his attendants saw this, they hurriedly helped him up and carried him to a willow tree by the roadside.

He Lun stared wide-eyed for a long time before finally letting out a long breath, his face already paler than paper.

He felt a pang of sadness. He was getting old; he had escaped this time, but he feared he wouldn't escape the next.

He came from a martial arts background and actually had a very good physique, but he hadn't paid much attention to it in the last twenty years, indulging in excessive eating and drinking and sensual pleasures, which gradually ruined his health.

In truth, given his temperament, whether he lived or died was no longer of any concern. What hadn't he enjoyed in his life? But there was still some regret. If he could have held on for another year and heard the news of the reconquest of the Western Regions, it would have been perfect, especially since his most outstanding son, He Fen, had led troops to join the expedition. After the abolition of Luze Town, He Fen was appointed as the Attendant Gentleman of the Anbei Protectorate and concurrently the General of Woye Town.

The sandstorm grew stronger, and all the camels on the post road knelt down on the ground.

With his attendants supporting He Lun and leading his horse, they soon arrived at a village to rest.

The courtyard was filled with soldiers seeking shelter from the sandstorm, and they all saluted He Lun when they saw him.

He Lun waved his hand, went inside, and sat down.

His forehead was covered in sweat, and he was almost completely soaked. After taking a sip of water, he ordered, "Slaughter the cattle and sheep stored in the pasture. More are arriving soon. Make them into jerky and send them to the front lines as soon as possible. They'll keep you full longer than grain."

“Some tribes are suffering from both horse conscription and manpower levies. There seems to be some silk in Guzang City. Let’s distribute it as a reward to stabilize the people’s hearts. We can settle the accounts after the imperial reward arrives.”

"I was planning to wait a few months before recommending talented individuals from the prefecture, but I'm afraid that opportunity has passed. I will dictate the names to you all, and you can write them down: Bei Gong Honghui, Xin Xiang, Suo Qian, Juqu Zongjing, Peng Ning..."

A servant took out a pen, ink, paper and inkstone, wrote quickly, and showed it to He Lun after finishing. Only after He Lun nodded did the servant affix his seal.

"Do not inform my son." He Lun took another sip of water, and after his complexion improved, he said, "Give all the concubines in the manor who have not borne children money and dismiss them if they are under the age of thirty. Let them choose their own husbands. That's all. Just remember this matter and deal with it yourself when you get back."

At this point, he noticed that his followers didn't look too happy, so he forced a smile and said, "Why bother? I will arrange a way out for each of you. As for me, haha, my life is in the hands of fate. In this life, I've tasted all the delicacies of land and sea, played with all kinds of beautiful women, even slept with the concubines of the false emperor and women of the Western Regions, amassed a lot of wealth, and have many children and grandchildren. What more could I ask for?"

Seeing that their lord spoke so freely, the crowd's expressions gradually improved.

"Don't neglect important matters; the western expedition is of utmost importance." He Lun added, "I'm afraid my health isn't up to the task, but with you all here, the government office can still function. That's all for now, gentlemen, keep up the good work."

The staff and attendants all agreed.

"Bring me the brush, ink, paper, and inkstone. I need to write a letter to the Emperor..." He Lun said again.

******
How far is it from Guzang to Dunhuang? 1,700 li.

How far is it from Chang'an? Three thousand seven hundred li.

This is an astonishing distance. Even if the Great Liang Dynasty had established its capital in Chang'an, it would still take three to four thousand li to reach Dunhuang, the last city in the west that could be considered somewhat large. Moreover, the Hexi Corridor was a very narrow and cramped section, making it easy for people to cut off the route.

This is not the most troublesome thing.

The biggest problem was that Liangzhou was not wealthy enough and the imperial court did not have sufficient control over it, making it difficult for it to become an ideal logistical base.

Shao Xu led 5,000 men from Lingzhou, and it took them 40 days to reach Dunhuang, which was already late June.

As he dismounted, looking at the demoralized troops, he gave a wry smile.

Yes, he was already tired, let alone the ordinary soldiers whose conditions were much worse than his.

Forty days of long marching, forty days of wind and sun exposure—hey, the experience is hard to describe.

Upon arriving at the temporary barracks assigned to them, he convened a meeting with his staff from the Prince's Palace.

"I heard this is where the Left and Right Cavalry Guards used to live. They set off westward five days ago, and the barracks are now empty," Wang Youshen Jin shouted, sharing the information he had gathered.

His cousin Shen Dian, standing behind him, added, "The Left and Right Valiant Cavalry Guards haven't gone far; they're still in Hecang City."

Shao Xu immediately had someone bring him a map.

Dunhuang County has a large number of lakes and marshes to the north, a significant portion of which are freshwater. Several rivers also flow nearby, giving the area a substantial agricultural and pastoral foundation. This has also fostered the long-standing prosperity of prominent ethnic groups such as the Song, Yin, Ma, and Suo.

Traveling southwest from Dunhuang to Longle County, you will find Yangguan Pass.

Heading northwest from Dunhuang, you'll find Hecang City (present-day Dafangpan City, northwest of Dunhuang) and Yinguan Pass, also known as Yumen Pass (present-day Xiaofangpan City).

Their route was to Yumen Pass.

Looking at the map, Shao Xu asked, "Is the Yumen Camp located at Yumen Pass?"

“There are more in Hecang City,” Shen Dian replied. “Hecang City has lakes and marshes on both the east and west sides, covered with reeds and tamarisk. After years of development, there are many irrigation canals, which the soldiers rely on for farming. Yumen Pass is a bit worse off. The Shule River flows through it, and there is little fertile land around it. One hundred and ten li north of here is a large lake (now Hala Lake, which has dried up). Not far from the lake is Hecang City, where a large amount of military supplies and equipment are stored. Thirty li north of Hecang City is Yumen Pass, and sixty or seventy li beyond Yumen Pass is the desert…”

At this point, he glanced at Shao Xu.

Shao Xu felt his gaze, shook his head and smiled, "I know. Your Majesty has divided this desert in two, the west belongs to me and the east belongs to Dunhuang. Speaking of which, isn't this also the boundary between Dunhuang and Gaochang?"

“Yes,” Shen Dian said. “From Yumen Pass to Yiwu (near present-day Hami) is 540 li, most of which is desert.”

Actually, what he said wasn't entirely accurate.

Yiwu was once a county established in the early Jin Dynasty, belonging to Dunhuang Commandery. That is to say, the Hami region as a whole was once part of Dunhuang Commandery. However, the area became sparsely populated and the county was abolished. By the Liang Dynasty, Yiwu was just a place name, with only a few hundred households, enough to provide some basic supplies for caravans.

The Dunhuang Prefecture of the Jin and Liang dynasties was actually only a few dozen miles from the Yumen Pass. Beyond that lay hundreds of miles of desert, and one had to cross this desert to reach Gaochang. It was a natural dividing line.

Shao Xun divided the desert in half, granting the western part, including Yiwu and Gaochang, entirely to his third son, Shao Xu, for this very reason. Now that Shao Xu had mentioned the matter of the fiefdom, the officials of the royal court gathered around, discussing it animatedly.

Shao Xu handed them the map and said, "We will rest in Dunhuang for five days. After that, we will collect food and water, head north to Yumen Pass, and then proceed to Gaochang."

Everyone nodded in agreement, but at the same time, they felt a bit of annoyance.

You don't know how difficult it is until you go out and take a walk. It's the complete opposite of the Eastern Expedition against the Murong Xianbei.

Over there, you have to cross hundreds of miles of marshland, all muddy swamps; over here, you have to traverse hundreds of miles of desert, all scorching sun and yellow sand—both are daunting sights.

To be honest, if they were in each other's shoes, they wouldn't want to send troops to conquer.

Isn't it good to have Yumen Pass as the western boundary and the newly built Linyu Pass as the eastern boundary?
This is something that only if the current emperor insists on doing so, otherwise it will truly be a case of losing more than you gain.

******
While Shao Xu and the others were looking at the map, Tuoba Sigong had already led four hundred Right Valiant Cavalry out of Yumen Pass.

They followed the guides of the Yumen Camp, marching more than sixty li a day, and camped outside a beacon tower at dusk.

Inside the beacon tower were fifty soldiers from the Yumen Camp. Next to it was a lake, and within several miles around it were aquatic plants and a small grove of willows, which looked quite pleasant.

The lake water was slightly salty, and the soldiers said it was best not to drink it; instead, they could fetch water from the cistern and well.

Tuoba Sigong tasted a mouthful of well water, and it was damn bitter!

Standing atop the beacon tower, one can see the boundless desert stretching to the north.

Deep in the desert, there seemed to be a continuous stream of camel caravans moving forward; it was truly arduous and dangerous.

He turned to look south. This place was already more than two hundred miles north of Dunhuang. Hundreds of Zuoxiao Cavalry Guards were causing a cloud of dust as they rushed to the beacon tower.

Behind them, there were also carriages, horses, and camels, stretching all the way to the southern horizon.

Along the 700-mile route from Dunhuang to Yiwu, countless soldiers, laborers, carts, and camels were traveling at this time.

The vast expanse of yellow sand seems endless.

The scorching sun was almost scorching, and this was no exaggeration. Along the way, Tuoba Sigong had already seen many blackened corpses lying in the sand.

As darkness fell, someone began to play a bamboo flute, the sound so mournful it brought tears to one's eyes.

Tuoba Sigong secretly encouraged himself.

He had finally managed to secure the opportunity to go on the expedition, and he was still just a minor deputy commander. He still had a long way to go and make his mark.

After some mental preparation, I felt much better, so I descended from the beacon tower and prepared to eat and drink some food.

On June 24th, eight hundred riders from the Left and Right Vanguard Cavalry left the beacon tower and, guided by their guides, entered the vast desert.

With hundreds of miles of yellow sand covering the sky, even with enough food and water, the experience was still indescribable.

On the very first day, Tuoba Sigong saw many mummified corpses lying haphazardly on the ground.

They didn't know whose husbands, fathers, or sons they were; they were gone forever, sleeping eternally on their journey to war, accompanied by the yellow sand.

The scene was similar the next day, with damaged vehicles everywhere.

Guided by their guide, they arrived at a stream that could hardly be called a river. Like hungry wolves, they rushed across, not caring whether it was clean or not, and drank the water in large gulps. Then they carefully filled their leather water bags.

A sizable convoy was parked on the opposite bank of the river.

In the dim light of the setting sun, Tuoba Sigong noticed that the laborers were staring at them blankly, their faces unchanged. They seemed to have exhausted their strength and energy in the desert, and were no different from walking corpses.

He expected to sigh, but to his surprise, he didn't; his face became as numb as the other convicts'...

On the third day, they were still in the vast desert, without encountering any rivers or wetlands. They spent a difficult night under the dunes.

We lost quite a few horses that day, and about ten people collapsed, probably because it was too hot.

The fourth day was still filled with endless yellow sand, the scenery so monotonous it was despairing.

On the way, they encountered two messengers who were wrapped up tightly, and Tuoba Sigong gave them some of his precious drinking water.

After the messenger expressed his gratitude, he instructed them to be careful, as a grain transport team had gone missing ten days earlier due to a severe sandstorm.

Tuoba Sigong felt a chill run down his spine.

There are deserts on the grasslands, but they seem much "gentler" than the deserts of the Western Regions.

On the fifth day, they found a small lake, where they could finally catch their breath.

The guide told them that they would be able to leave the desert in about three more days.

Tuoba Sigong breathed a sigh of relief.

Even the usually lightning-fast Left and Right Cavalry Guards couldn't keep up their pace in the vast desert. He couldn't imagine what they would do if an enemy hid in a small oasis and then launched a surprise attack.
Without familiarity with the geography, this battle is truly impossible to fight.

On the first day of the seventh lunar month, just as the guide had said, they saw the city walls of Yiwu Ancient County in the distance, and the surrounding scenery gradually became more beautiful, with more greenery.

Tuoba Sigong almost burst into tears of joy.

(End of this chapter)