Chinese New Year

Chapter 1504 "Ancient" Battlefield

The silvery laughter carried far.

The children jumped and skipped, holding wooden sticks and bamboo poles in their hands, laughing and joking as if they were marching and fighting.

Seven or eight cows strolled around nearby, leisurely chewing on the tender grass.

"These naughty kids!" Shao Zhen pushed aside the tall weeds, looked at the startled children, and laughed heartily.

The children were indeed startled, but they calmed down after seeing a group of brightly armored warriors.

One of the older children stepped forward and mustered his courage to ask, "Are you from the Black Spear Left Camp?"

"Little rascal, you know about the Black Spear Army?" Shao Zhen pinched his ear and laughed.

The child took a half step back and dodged.

Shao Zhen looked down and saw that the child was holding a broken, rusty arrow. She immediately understood.

This is Hanoi, a battlefield where the two sides repeatedly clashed, and countless people perished here.

The sound of disordered hooves came from the east.

Shao Zhen's expression brightened, and he looked around. The guards were pulling out a net and searching everywhere.

Shouts rang out, and spears darted back and forth among the reeds, until a naked man defecating burst out, crying out that he was innocent and not an assassin.

Shao Xun chuckled and ordered that he be rewarded with two bolts of silk.

At the same time, there was a hint of regret. What was he hoping for? Was he hoping to share drinks and laughter with old friends? Was he hoping to see his enemies weep and wail before him? Was he hoping to hear praise and admiration from those who respected and loved him?
He didn't know that he just wanted to come here to look around and talk to someone—well, the person he wanted to talk to had already been invited by the local officials.

"Your Majesty, these are the people who still live nearby back then." The magistrate of Heyang County walked over and reported, "It's a pity that there weren't many people in Henan under Xiongnu rule to begin with, and they're all here."

Shao Xun waved his hand, signaling the magistrate to leave.

The magistrate was somewhat disappointed, hesitated to speak, and ultimately left.

There were seven or eight people standing in front of Shao Xun, all of whom were quite old, probably in their forties or fifties.

Perhaps the magistrate had given them some instructions, because they spoke one by one, like beans spilling from a bamboo tube.

"One year, there was thunder all night. I was taking my flock of sheep to the foot of the mountain to take shelter from the rain. Amidst the lightning and thunder, the river was filled with countless boats. I was so scared that I scrambled to hide in a dilapidated temple."

After one person finished speaking, the other continued, "I went to my maternal uncle's house to return the grain. On my way back in the middle of the night, a group of wet people suddenly appeared by the river, looking like water ghosts. I immediately hid in the woods. In the latter half of the night, the sounds of battle were deafening, and even thunder and rain couldn't provide shelter. At dawn, I wanted to go to the battlefield to pick up some things, but in the end, I didn't dare."

“I was doing odd jobs at the Futu Temple. In the middle of the night, I suddenly heard the sounds of killing. The monk got up, put on his robe, went upstairs to look into the distance, and after a while, he sat in the attic and chanted sutras all night. I was so scared that my whole body went limp. I felt like the souls of the dead had been summoned.”

"At dawn, I was captured and forced to bury the corpses. Most of the Xiongnu soldiers had wounds in their backs, which shows the might of the royal army."

"The Xiongnu people collected all the boats and burned them. My family's fishing boat was hidden. In the middle of the night, I heard noises in the reeds, so I went to check. As a result, I was caught by the royal army scouts who came ashore. They forced me to row to the south bank to ferry people across the river. They said they would reward me with a bushel of grain, but I never received it."

“After the battle, some Hun soldiers hid here, and my father killed them with a hoe. At dawn, they said there would be a reward, and we could exchange the Hun heads for money. When my father went there, he was kicked and his head was stolen.”

Everyone chimed in with their own opinions, saying quite a lot, leaving Shao Xun speechless.

There are so many perspectives on the Battle of Chermady, and looking back, I have many feelings.

The former battlefield is now covered with green wheat seedlings, and the corpses rotting in the fields provide nutrients for the crops.

But after all these years, who can still imagine the resolute decision of thousands of soldiers to cross the river that night? Who can recall the heroic shouts in the pouring rain, and the ruthless stabbings in the dark rain?
Amidst the thunderous roar, the opposing sides clashed, unleashing emotions that were almost igniting.

It's all over!
All glory fades with time, but the soldiers of that era fulfilled their duty and inflicted a humiliating defeat on the Xiongnu.

Time has passed, and if they were still alive, perhaps one winter, they could look at their children and grandchildren gathered around the fireplace and proudly say, "Back then, I did this and that..."

"Give each person two bolts of silk," Shao Xun beckoned and gave the order.

The guards quickly brought over the silk and distributed it to everyone, who were naturally very grateful.

"So many years have passed since the great war, how have you been?" Shao Xun asked.

The crowd looked at each other, and finally chose one person.

The man bowed and said, "Your Majesty, each of our families has been allocated land, and now we are self-sufficient in farming and our taxes and corvée labor are not heavy. It's much better than before." "Good," Shao Xun said happily, "Besides farming, are there any other means of livelihood?"

"Sheep graze on the riverbank, produce some cheese, and someone comes to buy it."

"Other than that?"

“There are always people building houses in Yewang and Heyang. If you have nothing to do, you can work for them and earn some money to supplement your family’s income.”

"Are there families with large members who have migrated outwards?"

"Last year, several young couples went to Luoyang together, saying they wanted to travel west to Gaochang, where they would be granted land. I haven't heard anything about it this year."

Why is it gone?

"No one is giving us money. People go to the Western Regions; they should at least send some money home."

Shao Xun nodded and said, "If things really don't work out, you can go south to Yangzhou or Jingzhou, or to Gaochang, Zangke, or Lelang."

Upon hearing this, the man nodded.

He only knew Gaochang; he'd never heard of the other two places, nor had he seen any officials come to recruit people with money. For people like him, money was the most important thing, and Gaochang was "green mountains and clear waters," "a land overflowing with gold and silver"—wouldn't it be better to go there?

Shao Xun didn't say anything more and waved for them to leave.

The wind was strong on the Zhema Causeway. He was wrapped in a brocade robe and walked along the causeway, searching for the remnants of the old battlefield.

Perhaps because the impression was too deep, he actually found a few places, but the scenery was very different from back then.

In particular, a small white tower was built at the place where Liu Fu, the King of Bohai, was encamped. After inquiring with the locals, it was learned that because the Liang army was in a hurry to pursue the enemy, the local people were ordered to collect and bury the corpses.

Years after the body was buried, some people began cultivating the land there. At night, eerie ghost lights flickered, which was very frightening. So they asked a monk to collect the remains and place them in a pagoda.

In other words, this is a stone tower filled with bones.

According to the villagers, as late as the end of the Zhenming era, people from Henan came to pay their respects. They said that their fathers had died in battle while attacking a camp, and their bodies had not been found. So they could only come here to pay their respects and seek peace of mind.

Shao Xun had some offerings prepared and instructed the county magistrate to find someone to come and perform the sacrifice.

On April 15th, he left Heyang and headed east. Before leaving, a messenger delivered several memorials and letters.

Yang Bao, the naval commander who had suffered from diabetes for many years, passed away. The crown prince ordered the Court of State Ceremonies and the Court of Imperial Sacrifices to select funerary objects and determine his posthumous title. At the same time, he also inquired whether Yang Qin, the protector-general of the Western Regions, should be allowed to take away his posthumous title.

After thinking for a moment, Shao Xun picked up his pen and drafted an imperial edict, ordering Yang Qin to remain in his post as Protector-General of the Western Regions despite his illness.

He conquered the Western Regions and established the military garrison system. He has the highest prestige and knows the most people there. At this critical juncture, it is indeed not advisable to act rashly.

Shao Xun then recalled the situation in Khotan. After several years of development, the town had 2,500 soldiers distributed among five fortified villages, initially controlling the southern route of the Silk Road, which was also the most important route.

Thinking of this, he simply wrote another edict, selecting a thousand strong soldiers from the Shanshan garrison troops (originally the troops under Li Bai, the Chief Administrator of the Western Regions) that had been passed down since the Cao Wei era, and organizing them into the garrison troops, which were then incorporated into the Khotan garrison.

Including the fortress (with 500 soldiers) that will be established in Khotan this year, the garrison in Khotan will reach 4,000 men, which can be considered as the initial formation completed. In the future, we only need to make minor adjustments to this system without having to make major changes.

In fact, Shao Xun had received a memorial from Yang Qin at the beginning of this year.

The government decided to recruit soldiers to establish Yanqi Town after the completion of the Yutian Town. However, Yang Qin suggested prioritizing the establishment of Shule Town, because it is close to Dayuan and would bring many benefits after its establishment, greatly increasing its influence on Dayuan.

Since it concerned such important military and political matters, the State Council dared not act on its own initiative, so it sent the matter here.

Shao Xun knew that even with the establishment of Shule Town, the journey to Dayuan would not be so simple.

Separated by the Pamir Mountains and the Alai Valley—which is actually a relatively low-altitude area with abundant water and grass—there are mountain passes leading to the Fergana Basin after passing through the Alai Valley. The distance is not short and the journey is not easy.

In order to control this route, the Tang Dynasty established the Congling Garrison City, stationed troops there, and controlled Ferghana (Dayuan). This border defense system only began to shrink after the defeat at the Battle of Talas.

Of course, there is more than one way to get to Dayuan. You can also cross the Tianshan Mountains from Kucha, but it is not as easy to travel as this way.

Shao Xun ultimately decided to trust the frontline commander's decision and ordered the construction of Shule Town to be prioritized.

This will probably take several more years, but it doesn't matter. Managing the Western Regions is not a task that can be completed in one generation. In the future, this task will have to be handed over to the Crown Prince.

(End of this chapter)