The Three Kingdoms Voyage

Chapter 352
Taixifeng is on the left bank of the Tigris River. The Dila River flows around the city from the east and joins the Tigris River in the south. The city of Taixifeng is at the mouth of the two rivers.Because of such convenient conditions, after Ardashir established the Sassanid Dynasty here, he diverted water to repair the wide moat, making the already strong Taixi city more inaccessible.However, considering the superiority of the Yue Kingdom in the navy, Ardashir ordered to lay a large number of wooden stakes in the moat, so that the warships of the Yue Kingdom Navy must not directly approach the city wall.

On the right bank of the Tigris River is an ancient city left over from the Seleucid Dynasty.The two cities stood side by side, supported each other, and firmly guarded the surface of the Tigris River.All ships passing by the river are within the attack range of the two big cities, and it is really not an easy task to pass safely.

However, Ardashir was still worried. Regardless of the objections of the ministers, he moved all the residents within twenty miles of the surrounding area into the city, even demolished the houses, and transported all the wood into the city, so as not to leave any room for the coming enemies. Next point available supplies.Faced with doubts about whether Yue and Rome would come to besiege the city, Ardashir affirmed that they would definitely come, and it would not be too long. Ctesiphon would surely face another test after Trajan's invasion.

The previous sentence was guessed correctly, but the latter sentence was guessed wrong.The coalition forces of Han, Rome, and Guishuang arrived at Taixifeng, but it was three months after Ardasil returned to Taixifeng.It wasn't until the beginning of October that Sun Shao and Quintus rushed to Taixifeng city thirty miles away with an army of 30.Ardahill was relieved when he was nervous. With the three months of preparation time, he had already made all the preparations, even grabbing the food and bringing it into the city. Now he is as stable as Mount Tai, and he has enough confidence to hold Taixi closed the city, making Sun Shao and Quintus futile outside the Taixi closed city.

However, for the Sasanians who have been mainly attacking for the past ten years, watching the enemy approaching step by step, they can only stick to the city instead of taking the initiative to attack and beat the enemy to pieces. It was an unbearable humiliation.Especially the tens of thousands of soldiers who returned from the city of Axum, they were full of anger, eager to return the humiliation a hundredfold to the Yue people.As for the Romans, they didn't pay attention to them. Although there were a lot of Romans, Quintus had never fought a war. The capable 4 people did not last a long time in front of the Sassanians, and they had enough capital to despise the Romans.

The Guishuang people are similar. The Sassanids only see Yue people, and only Yue people are their opponents, and they are worthy of being their opponents.If it hadn't been for the king of Yue, Sun Shao, who led the attack this time, the Sasanians would not have stood firm in the city at all. They would have taken the initiative to attack and defeated all the Romans and Guishan people outside the borders of the country.

Ardashir worked hard to defeat Sun Shao in Taixi Fengcheng, use the blood of Yue people to wash away the humiliation and revenge he suffered under the city of Axum, and use Sun Shao's failure to pay homage to Alpha and Shapur the spirit in heaven.For this purpose, he worked at full capacity with rare energy, and took care of every major event by himself, without letting go of any doubts. All Han merchants, scholars, and people of all colors who failed to withdraw from Taixifeng in time were detained by him. Even other nationals who had been to Yue State were detained on the grounds of war.

The city of Taixifeng has entered an unprecedented state of war. Compared with the time when the Roman Emperor Trajan besieged the city more than 100 years ago, the atmosphere in the whole city is depressing. The heavily armed soldiers marched neatly from the empty streets Walking up and down, the people hid behind the closed doors, watching these soldiers with fierce expressions nervously, not even daring to take a breath, for fear of being heard by those soldiers, they broke down the door and rushed in.

The priests of the temple were also mobilized by Ardashir. They walked out of the temple, into the streets, and into the homes of ordinary people, proclaiming the divine will of Ahura Mazda to them and calling on them to obey Ahura's words. Summon and obey the orders of the Sasanian King Ardashir, who is the spokesperson of Alahu in the world, and fight against the spokesperson of the evil god Ahriman, King Sun Shao of Yue.They promised that all those who fight bravely will be pardoned in different degrees according to the meritorious service. Even if they commit the most unforgivable crime, they may be forgiven. Be greeted by beautiful fairies into heaven.

Zoroastrianism is the state religion of Sasanian. Almost all nobles and slaves in Tessiphon believe in Zoroastrianism. According to the priests, except for the Ardashir family and a few nobles, Most of them are guilty, and there is very little chance to enter heaven, and a considerable part will eventually enter hell to receive punishment. Now that such a good opportunity has suddenly appeared, those who worry about the afterlife all day long are not overjoyed. Do what you say.

With the efforts of all parties, Taixi Fengcheng has made all preparations for the fierce battle.Ardashir followed the example of the wooden curtains that Sun Shao hung in the city that he saw in Axum, and also made a large number of wooden curtains to protect the important buildings in the city, so as not to be disturbed by the cannon stones from outside the city. wreck.

Thirty miles away, Sun Shao and Quintus stopped their progress and saw Cao Zhang and Bodiao who had come to join them.As soon as they met, Bodiao first expressed his gratitude to Sun Shao, and then said with some regret: "Unfortunately, the king came too late, the Sasanians have already made sufficient preparations, if they can arrive one month earlier, the attack The city will be much easier."

Seeing that Bodiao didn't see him at all, Quintus couldn't help but feel a little unhappy, but for Sun Shao's sake, he hasn't exploded yet, but his face is a little unsightly.

Sun Shao smiled: "Why, Your Majesty is worried that I won't be able to conquer Taixi Fengcheng?"

Botiao smiled awkwardly and said: "How dare I doubt the king's methods. I just said that if the Sasanians could have come earlier, the Sasanians would not have been so well prepared, and it would be less difficult for us to attack the city. Now Ardasil All the surrounding people were moved to the city, all the property was collected, and all the food for this year was brought into the city. It is initially estimated that it can support the army for at least one year. Now the people in Taixi Fengcheng are stable, but it is not easy to attack."

Sun Shao chuckled, didn't take it seriously, and asked instead: "If Ardashir doesn't gather all these, even if we capture Taixi Fengcheng, how can we distribute it? King, there are too many people waiting to share the spoils here." If there is more, if there is less, it is not enough."

Seeing Sun Shao's funny words, Bo Dia couldn't help laughing.He thought about it, and although he felt that Sun Shao's words made sense, there was a premise that Sun Shao could capture Taixifeng.Can Sun Shao capture Taixifeng?Bo Tiao didn't know what to do. Anyway, from his point of view, it is impossible to capture this city with his current strength. It is not clear that Sun Shao may have some magic tricks to attack the city.

Maybe only by the blessing of the gods, Bodiao said to himself in his heart, Sun Shao has always been lucky, hope this time he can also get the blessings of the gods, conquer Taixi Fengcheng in one fell swoop, not only destroy the Sasanians, but also make Guishuang loose. He could also loot some property from Taixifeng to make up for Guishuang's losses over the years.

"Then I'll wait to receive the spoils." Bo Tiao also said with a playful smile.

"There are spoils of war, but only those with meritorious service can claim them. Not everyone can participate in the rewards. Those who can't win the battle should also receive the rewards." Quintus interjected ambiguously mouth.Bo Tiao glanced at him sideways, curled his mouth, dismissively: "Then I want to see what kind of credit His Majesty the Emperor can make."

Quintus' expression changed, and he was about to explode when he was stopped by Sun Shao.Sun Shao waved his hand: "Relax, both of you, it's okay to be joking, but you must not take it seriously. The reason why we were able to gather under the closure of Taixi is because we can cooperate sincerely. If we can't cooperate, we can only be killed by Ardashir Break through each one, and it will be too late to regret.”

Quintus and Bodiao glanced at each other unconvinced, and turned their heads in unison.When Sun Shao saw it, he smiled helplessly. The two donkeys really couldn't be tied into the same trough, so sad.He beckoned, asked Sima Shi to take a map, spread it on the table, tapped it lightly with his fingers and said: "You two, let's discuss how to divide the land of Sassan after defeating Tessiphon. .I like to do things fairly and reasonably. You should first weigh your own strengths, and then see how much you can benefit from.”

Bodiao glanced at Sun Shao in surprise, and felt that Sun Shao seemed too confident. The battle hadn't been fought yet, and he was preparing to share the spoils. Could it be that he was really confident in winning Taixifeng?Bo Tiao was extremely curious, but he couldn't open his mouth to ask questions. His heart was itchy, and even his eyebrows jumped up.He walked to the table, glanced at the map, and was immediately taken aback: "Your Majesty, this map is really detailed enough? There are still distances? How did you measure it?"

"Of course it is measured by feet." Quintus said jokingly.Bodiao glanced at him, but didn't say anything, and still looked at Sun Shao curiously.Sun Shao smiled: "I have detailed maps of all the places that Chinese businessmen pass by. In fact, the reason for shopping malls and battlefields is similar. The distance is also an important aspect of whether you can make a profit. Don't you think so?"

Bodiao nodded, but he was a little vigilant. There were also many merchants from the Han Dynasty in Guishuang. According to Sun Shao, did Sun Shao also have a map of Guishuang?At the beginning, I only knew that the merchants of the Han Dynasty could bring wealth, but I didn’t expect them to have these functions. Now it’s too late to ban it, and if it’s too obvious, I’m afraid the King of Yue in front of me won’t agree.Alas, I can only hope that I won't become his enemy in the future, otherwise I'm afraid I'll be at a disadvantage before the war begins.

Sun Shao could see the flickering eyes clearly, but he didn't point it out.It is still necessary to give him a little pressure at this time, so as to save him from being half-hearted.

"Everyone, the Persian Gulf and the Red Sea belong to the country of Yue. Thanks to His Majesty's trust, the Mediterranean Sea and the Black Sea are also allowed to sail by the navy of the country. I am a bit of an insatiable person. After defeating Sasan, I hope to take the Caspian Sea into my pocket." , I hope you two don't rob me."

Bo Tiao was taken aback, no wonder Sun Shao helped the Romans so much this time, it turned out that the Romans not only gave Axum to Sun Shao, but also handed over the sea rights of the Mediterranean Sea and the Black Sea to Sun Shao, which has such great benefits Even if Sun Shao didn't participate in the distribution of profits, he also got a lot of money.To him, it doesn't matter whether he beats Tessiphon or not. Anyway, he has already made a lot of money.He pondered for a moment, feeling very nervous.Sun Shao was not greedy enough, he did not give up after taking down the Mediterranean Sea and the Black Sea, and wanted to swallow the Caspian Sea again.The Caspian Sea is located to the north of Guishuang. If Sun Shao stationed a navy in the Caspian Sea, it would be like hanging a knife on the heads of Guishuang people.However, even though Bodiao was unwilling, he did not dare to oppose it face to face. Although the land was originally owned by the Guishuang people, it has now been taken away by the Sasanians. Sun Shao wanted the Caspian Sea, but it was also from the Sasanians. It's justifiable to take it away.If the wave is not allowed, then Sun Shao will definitely play tricks in the future cooperation, needless to say.The Caspian Sea is too far away from the Romans, and the Romans would certainly not object to Sun Shao taking over. They might be happy to see the jokes of the Guishuang people.

Bo Tiao pondered for a while, and then forced a smile: "Is Your Majesty going to develop eastward?"

"Not interested." Sun Shao reached out to pick up a cinnabar pen and drew a line on the map, "The southeast sides of the Caspian Sea are high mountains. I plan to use the high mountains as the dividing line. The side facing the sea is mine, and the side facing the sea is mine." On the other hand, I'm just asking. I don't know what the king wants?"

Potune breathed a sigh of relief.According to Sun Shao's drawing, the land taken by the Sassanians should be returned to Guishuang, as long as the Romans are not allowed to take the opportunity to insert their hands.He thought about it. The Guishuang people mainly rely on cavalry, supplemented by farming. The main forces are in the south, and the Caspian Sea can't take care of it at all. To avoid conflict with Sun Shao.Of course, this can't be given in vain, it has to be exchanged for some benefits.

"My lord, the sea here is a large piece of land. There are many high-quality pastures around, and my people often graze there. Sometimes they will cross the Caspian Sea and migrate to pastures on the west bank. Your Majesty has occupied the Caspian Sea, yes For them, it will not be easy to migrate in the future.”

Sun Shao frowned, looking a little surprised: "It turns out that the king's people have moved to the east bank. I didn't expect you to adapt to the new place so quickly. If this is the case, then you are still grazing there. Well, I don’t want the Caspian Sea anymore, just move to the south. Anyway, I’m new here, so I don’t have any problems adapting or not.”

Bo Tiao's face suddenly flushed.He heard the strong threat in Sun Shao's words.Want the East Coast?Well, the land in the south that was taken by the Sasanians belongs to me.Compared with this large piece of land to the south, the grasslands on the east and west sides of the Caspian Sea are vast and sparsely populated, which is nothing worth mentioning.He quickly shook his head and said, "Your Majesty, that's unnecessary, we don't have many people there, I'd better let them retreat."

Quintus laughed dumbfounded, with a bit more disdain in his expression.

"Then thank you for your generosity." Sun Shao smiled and waved his hand: "Then it's settled, the Caspian Sea belongs to me, and the land south of Caspian and east of Zagros Mountain belongs to the king. "

Bo Tiao nodded again and again, smiling all over his face.This piece of land is larger than the place that was snatched by the Sasanians, and Guishuang has earned it.

"The land west of the Euphrates River, north of the Syrian Desert, and the east coast of the Mediterranean Sea, including Asia Minor, belongs to Rome." Sun Shao drew a large piece of land on the map and said to Quintus with a smile.Quintus didn't say anything, just nodded. These days, he and Sun Shao had already made a deal, and now he said it again, just for Bo Tiao's listening.Bodiao looked at the map, but was a little surprised: "Where is Armenia? Rome is gone?"

"To the north of Armenia, the area between the Caspian Sea and the Black Sea, all the way to the extremely cold place belongs to me." Sun Shao pointed to his nose.

Bo Tiao hesitated to speak.Armenia belonged to the Romans, and Quintus didn't care if he gave it away or not.Besides, the population there is sparsely populated and there are many barbarians, so there is nothing to benefit from. If Sun Shao wants it, then give it to him.

"East of the Euphrates River and west of Mount Zagros, this piece of crescent-shaped land that originally belonged to Patia and now belongs to Sassanid is still uncertain. Because although I have the confidence to win Taisifeng and severely damage the Sasanians , but it is still unknown whether Sassanid will be destroyed in the end, and maybe finally make peace with Ardashir. In this case, it is meaningless to talk about the ownership of this land now." He looked up at Quintus and Bo Tiao glanced at it, then laughed again: "But I have a proposal, I wonder if you agree with it?"

Quintus remained calm, but Bo Tiao raised his vigilance again.Although he was not familiar with Quintus, but looking at Quintus's expression, he didn't need to think about it to know that this weak Roman emperor was now Sun Shao's echo.They must have discussed how to divide Sassan's land on the road, and now they are partnering to deal with him.

"Your Majesty might as well talk about it first, what kind of good proposal is it?" Bo said with a mischievous smile.

"My proposal is that in order to encourage the soldiers of the three kingdoms to take the lead in the battle, this piece of land will be used as a reward. If the city cannot be broken, it is fine. If the city is broken and Sassan is finally eliminated, then this piece of land will be rewarded Those meritorious ministers, whether they are Romans, Guishuang people, or my Han people, as long as they have meritorious service, they can get a piece of land from it. This land will not establish a country in the future, only a principality, as a buffer zone between the three countries , a free trade zone with no tariffs. What do you two think?"

Hearing Bo Tiao, the brows twitched, and then the brows became happy.He never thought of getting involved here. After all, this place is too far away from Guishuang Kingdom. Even if he wanted to control it, he was powerless.What's more, if Sassan is really going to be eliminated, this will become the border between Guishuang and Rome, and conflicts will continue in the future.And if according to Sun Shao's suggestion, this place is used as a subdivision of meritorious ministers, it will not only solve the problem of future rewards, but also establish a buffer zone between Guishuang and Rome. When the generals are motivated, they can work together to deal with the Sassanians in one go and completely wipe out this powerful enemy.If they can't be defeated, then this place is still the land of the Sasanians, but it's just sandwiched between the three countries, and their strength will be greatly reduced. It will not be easy for him to imagine being as majestic as he is now.

"Your Majesty is brilliant." Bodiao raised his thumb and praised loudly: "I agree with the proposal of your majesty, and I will use this place as a fief for the heroes. Under the heavy reward, there must be a brave man. With such a piece of fertile land as a reward , I believe that no matter which country the soldiers are, they will be like gods possessed, and they will be unstoppable."

(End of this chapter)