Chapter 169: No Barbarians Here, the Han Way Flourishes

To Zhang Zhao's surprise, the Guo family's clan school at Guangcheng Fort was actually quite well run, with a dedicated teacher, a dedicated classroom, and desks and stools built from mud and stone.

Moreover, everyone could attend, studying two days out of every ten, with one meal of mixed-grain rice that could basically fill the stomach.

Of course, most without talent would recognize eighty or a hundred characters and then go back to whatever they did before; only those with talent would study further.

And Zhang Zhao saw at a glance how the Guo family had built up the Church of the East.

They were tucked away in Balasagun in the riverlands, with no way to contact their homeland, and no way at all to draw nourishment from the Central Plains.

The texts in the clan school amounted to only half a damaged copy of the Thousand Character Classic, already severely incomplete, a Five Classics Correct Meaning edited by Kong Yingda, and fragments of what appeared to be the Kaicheng Stone Classics.

The reason he said "appeared to be" was that these books had clearly all been recopied by the Guo family, and Zhang Zhao had never seen the Kaicheng Stone Classics himself; Guo Guangsheng said they were, but Zhang Zhao always felt the book had many omissions and sometimes did not hold together.

The most complete was a copy of the Classic of Filial Piety with Emperor Xuanzong of Tang's own commentary, the first eighty scrolls, plus a historical-political primer for beginners called the Rabbit Garden Guide, which had been lost in later ages.

With texts so scarce, the Guo family's scholars could barely finish learning to read before they had nothing left to study, and all the texts to be found in Anxi were almost entirely religious.

So the greatest supplement to the Guo clan school was translating the scriptures of the Church of the East into Chinese, then letting the clan members with scholarly talent study them, and finally making revisions.

In these riverlands where almost no one could read, a family like the Guo, able to mobilize the manpower and resources of the whole clan for study, was bound to stand out like a crane among chickens, and bound to climb gradually to the upper ranks of the Church of the East.

The power of knowledge was too formidable, so much so that now, of the three Great Virtues of the Church of the East in Balasagun, two were members of the Guo family.

Zhang Zhao opened a copy of the Scripture of Profound Peace and Joy, a text of the Church of the East, written in question-and-answer form recording the dialogue between Christ Jesus and his disciple Simon Peter.

This Simon Peter was one of the twelve disciples of Jesus, later recognized by the Roman See as the first pope.

But this text, which should have been a classic of the Church of the East, made Zhang Zhao's jaw drop.

Because one could clearly see places influenced by Buddhism and Daoism; in many of the doctrines expounded in question-and-answer form, large amounts of Buddhist, Daoist, and even Confucian thought had been mixed in.

Zhang Zhao finally understood why the god of the Church of the East was called Aluohe — this damn Aluohe was actually a transliteration of the old Syriac word alaha, which simply meant God.

In this Scripture of Profound Peace and Joy, Aluohe had been translated, according to Chinese custom, as Aluohe the Great Celestial Venerable; Matthew became the Dharma King Mingtai, Luke became the Dharma King Lujia, and so on.

Clearly, when the Guo family translated this text, they had stuffed it full of their own ideas, and then they translated those ideas back into Uyghur, completing the substitution.

Brilliant! No wonder that while Zheng Tong and Li Qilang were suffering so miserably in Shule, the Guo family could thrive in Balasagun — though still somewhat poor, they had truly taken hold of their own destiny.

Zhang Zhao suddenly felt genuine admiration for Guo Xuanli, and his earlier displeasure at the gate dissolved like clouds and rain.

This man had first wrapped his clan in the outer shell of the Church of the East, then used the Church to absorb large numbers of Uyghur and other converts for his own purposes, adding yet another layer of protection.

And while letting the clan's talented members gradually become middle and upper ranks of the Church of the East, the literary foundation he laid for them was the Han classics, only afterward exposing them to the scriptures of the Church of the East.

This step-by-step method both ensured a continued supply of high-ranking clergy for the church and kept the clan from forgetting their roots.

"Master Guo, may I ask who translated this Scripture of Profound Peace and Joy? Could you introduce me to him?"

Zhang Zhao asked with complete sincerity. To be able to use the scriptures of the Church of the East, turn them back and forth, stuff in one's own ideas, and finally make it all coherent while proposing new theories — in the Central Plains, that would be the level of a great Confucian scholar at least; here in the riverlands, it showed even more courage and cunning.

A strange expression appeared on Guo Xuanli's face: he wanted to be modest, but his face was full of self-satisfaction; he struggled to suppress the pleasure inside, yet his two soaring eyebrows told plainly how delighted their owner was.

Guo Xuanli suddenly felt this young lord Zhang Erlang was really not bad at all, because he always managed to scratch exactly where it itched.

"Let me inform the Commandery Duke: the one who translated and wrote this Scripture of Profound Peace and Joy is none other than my father!" Guo Guangcheng said, his face glowing with pride, looking extremely happy.

"So it really was Master Guo! The Guo family has produced a clan leader of great vision and boldness!"

Zhang Zhao exclaimed repeatedly; he had just suspected it might be Guo Xuanli. As he spoke, Zhang Zhao's eyes turned, and he directly performed a grand ceremonial bow to Guo Xuanli.

"Master Guo, in this remote borderland, you have held fast to Han culture, struggling to survive, keeping your clan from forgetting their ancestors — you are a great hero to us who have lost our country and our homes!

If everyone could be like you, why worry that the Great Tang will not revive, why fear falling into barbarian dust? Master Guo above, please accept this humble bow from a junior."

This was a grand ceremonial bow, the kind reserved only for Heaven, Earth, sovereign, kin, and teacher. Half of Zhang Zhao's intent was to win over the Guo family, and half was genuine admiration.

Only then was Guo Xuanli startled. He hurried over to lift Zhang Zhao up, but Zhang Zhao insisted on completing the bow.

"May this junior ask Master Guo: how can one avoid falling into barbarian dust? Please teach me. I do not want my descendants to become barbarians; I do not want them to end up as ill-mannered shepherd children who cannot even remember their ancestors."

"The Commandery Duke comes from Dunhuang and is the nephew of the Great Sage Son of Heaven of the Golden Kingdom of Khotan. Both places are rich in Han culture and strong in national power, more than enough to hold the surrounding barbarians in check. Why does the Commandery Duke speak this way?"

After helping Zhang Zhao up, Guo Xuanli asked, deeply moved and deeply puzzled.

Zhang Zhao also looked carefully at Guo Xuanli for a moment before confirming that the old fellow truly was not speaking ironically.

Could it be that the Guo family, living so long in Balasagun, still thought Dunhuang was in the glorious heyday of the Zhang Yichao and Zhang Huaishen era?

At this, Zhang Zhao could only give a bitter smile.

"Master Guo, what you do not know is that the Guiyi Army has long been far weaker than before. Now we are trapped in Gua and Sha, with the Gaochang Uyghurs to the west, the Ganzhou Uyghurs to the east, and the Shazhou Uyghurs to the south. Though we can still hold on, it is foreseeable that in a few decades we will inevitably be barbarized.

Because the sons of Tang in Shazhou, men, women, old and young, number only seventy to eighty thousand. If nothing is done to reverse it, by my son's generation, they may well be speaking barbarian tongues."

Guo Xuanli suddenly understood. He understood why this young lord Zhang Erlang had come from Dunhuang to the Western Regions to find them.

Because the number of sons of Tang in the Guiyi Army had already fallen to an extremely dangerous level. To the east, the Ganzhou Uyghurs were said to be extremely powerful, and the Guiyi Army alone certainly could not break through Gan and Liang.

This young lord Zhang Erlang wanted to gather the strength of all the sons of Tang in the Western Regions and return to the motherland!

At this thought, a surge of hot blood welled up from Guo Xuanli's heart. This was his dream too!

However, old men are not as easily stirred as the young, and the heroic words already at the tip of his tongue were forcibly swallowed back down by Guo Xuanli.

However precious the dream, one still had to eat. The Guo family had worked hard to reach its present scale; though not wealthy, they could keep their lives.

If they rashly followed this young lord Zhang Erlang, the most likely outcome was falling on the road of hope.

But if they continued to huddle here, although the family might gradually become barbarized, it was also more likely they could wait for the Central Plains to revive and the heavenly troops to come west.

Zhang Zhao was not discouraged, only a little disappointed. Age brings cunning!

He wanted to take the entire Guo family with him. Although he knew his chances of success were great, he also could not count on the Central Plains at all, because my Great Song simply had no ability, and perhaps no intention, of managing the Western Regions.

But Guo Xuanli did not know that! He probably thought that following him eastward might be far worse than staying put and waiting for the Central Plains to send troops.

Thinking of this, Zhang Zhao picked up the damaged Thousand Character Classic, because he was not familiar with the others.

The Five Classics Correct Meaning was something even Chinese literature majors and graduate students in later ages would never touch; the Rabbit Garden Guide and the like had simply been lost. But the Thousand Character Classic was different — he knew it too well.

"Today is my first meeting with Master Guo, and I have not prepared a gift to honor an elder. Allow me to complete this Thousand Character Classic!"

Guo Xuanli's face lit up. What later ages saw as utterly ordinary, findable with any search engine, complete with annotations and pinyin, was in this era considered fairly precious even in the Central Plains, let alone in the riverlands of the Western Regions.

"Then I must trouble the Commandery Duke. Since the Central Plains fell into chaos and the trade routes were blocked, I have wanted for years to buy some Central Plains texts, but either there were none, or they cost as much as gold. If the Commandery Duke can complete it for us, it would be a great deed of merit!"

"Can anyone here write it down?" Zhang Zhao turned and asked.

"I will, I will!" Guo Guangcheng came running over, holding a brush that was a pitiful sight.

It was made from a hollowed-out branch, with some unknown hair attached to it.

The ink was a black lump, not the best quality, but it still looked properly made — the pine soot of the Western Regions was probably decent enough.

"Lord of the Commandery, this brush hair is made from my own hundred-day birth hair. Today it can finally be put to great use!"

Guo Guangcheng was brimming with excitement. To him, using his own birth hair to continue the Thousand Character Classic, which had been broken off for over a hundred years, was a matter of tremendous honor.

"Heaven and earth dark and yellow, the cosmos vast and wild. Sun and moon wax and wane, the constellations spread in order. Cold comes and heat departs, autumn harvests and winter stores. The extra days make the year, pitch-pipes harmonize the yang."

Zhang Zhao began to recite. This Thousand Character Classic was something he had memorized since childhood.

Back then his great-grandfather was still alive. The old man had been a certified student in the late Qing, passing the county examination at a young age.

But before he could pass the exam for the xiucai degree, the Great Qing abolished the imperial examinations, so he could only become a barefoot doctor in the countryside, teaching a few children their first characters on the side.

Back then, among his eight or nine grandchildren and great-grandchildren, his great-grandfather had loved Zhang Zhao the most, because Zhang Zhao was willing to follow him in reciting the Hundred Family Surnames and the Thousand Character Classic.

As a child, Zhang Zhao had a somewhat distant relationship with his mother, but he was especially close to his great-grandfather and grandfather.

Fortunately, by the time he transmigrated, those two had already passed away many years ago — otherwise who knew how heartbroken they would have been.

"Gold is born in the Li River, jade comes from the Kunlun hills. The sword is named Juque, the pearl is called Yeguang."

Zhang Zhao continued reciting. Somehow, the images of the later world that had long blurred in his mind suddenly became so vivid. A few tears slid naturally from his eyes.

"Dragon Master and Fire Emperor, Bird Official and Human Sovereign. Writing was first created, and clothing was first worn. Abdicating the throne and yielding the state, there were Yu and Tao Tang."

Another voice joined Zhang Zhao in reciting. Guo Xuanli gently beat time, singing along with Zhang Zhao in the clear, precise Chang'an accent.

"Comforting the people and punishing the guilty, there were Zhou Fa and Yin Tang. Sitting in court and asking of the Dao, with hands folded they brought peace. Loving and nurturing the black-haired people, the Rong and Qiang came to submit. Near and far as one body, all guests returned to the king."

Guo Guangsheng, Guo Guangcheng, and the young Guo clansman in the Nestorian robe also began to sing along — especially these lines about the Qiang and Rong submitting and all guests returning to the king, which struck everyone's hearts almost too hard.

The atmosphere in the clan school suddenly turned sorrowful and solemn. Everyone's blood seemed to have been awakened by this short Thousand Character Classic.

Whether they were Guo family members who had attended the clan school, or men like Ma Yaozi who had only heard others recite it and could not read, their eyes all shone with a bright light — this was the culture and pride rooted in the hearts of the Chinese people.

After "Women admire chastity, men emulate the capable and virtuous," the voices stopped, because the Guo clan school's copy of the Thousand Character Classic ended there — the rest had been lost. Only Zhang Zhao knew what came after.

Everyone crowded tightly around Zhang Zhao, all looking at him with admiration. Zhang Zhao turned and found the crowd before him with eyes all glistening brightly.

"Knowing your faults, you must correct them; gaining ability, do not forget it. Do not speak of others' shortcomings, do not rely on your own strengths... Ignorant and ill-informed, foolish and deserving of mockery. As for the grammatical particles: yan, zai, hu, ye."

Zhang Zhao recited slowly, and Guo Guangcheng recorded slowly. The crowd pressed closer and closer, and even the Guo family schoolchildren and women gathered around. Every time Zhang Zhao recited eight characters, they all cried out in unison, "Excellent!"

The long Thousand Character Classic was finished, but the fervent atmosphere did not diminish in the slightest. The Guo family surrounded Zhang Zhao, as if there were something about him that especially drew them in.

They did not know why they surrounded Zhang Zhao, but they simply did not want to leave. In that moment, a thing called culture surrounded everyone, and distinctions of high and low, noble and base, all vanished.

"Ma Yaozi, go tell Yin Yaozi to bring out the fine wine and pastries we brought from Dunhuang, and slaughter some cattle and sheep as well.

Tonight is a great day for us sons of Tang to gather. Let us speak of nothing else, but celebrate well and drink until we are drunk — what do you say?"

Zhang Zhao's last words were addressed to the Guo family.

"Yes!" A roar of cheers erupted, and many children jumped and shouted with joy.

"Why should the young lord trouble himself to slaughter sheep and cattle? My family has killed quite a few today already. I, Guo Guangcheng, will provide the meat!

Today is my wedding day. To have Young Lord Zhang Erlang grace us with his presence, and to be married on the day the Thousand Character Classic is made whole — this is the greatest honor of my life, Guo Jiulang!

But Young Lord, will you sing more of our Great Tang's poems and writings for us?"

Guo Xuanli looked at his youngest son in surprise. This boy, who was usually the most proper and rarely made decisions on his own, had completely changed his usual manner — he seemed like a different person.

"Very well! Then I shall sing Li Taibai's 'No Barbarians.' Do you all know who Li Taibai is?" Zhang Zhao shouted.

"How could we not know? Li Taibai is our own countryman — he was born right here! I can sing 'No Barbarians' too." The young Guo clansman in the Nestorian robe leaped out and shouted.

Balasagun, also called Husie'erduo, but its most famous name should be Suyab. Though strictly speaking they are not the same place, in reality Balasagun is simply the new city of Suyab.

"Good! Then everyone sing with me!" Like starting a concert, Zhang Zhao jumped down from the high place to the very front of the group. He picked up two wooden sticks and began striking them together — bang, bang.

"The harsh wind blows frost, the sea grass withers; sinews are tough and strong, the barbarian horses proud. Three hundred thousand Han warriors, the general also commands Huo Piaoyao. Shooting-star white feathers at the waist, the sword-flower autumn lotus gleams from its scabbard."

"Good! Fine poetry! When will we have a Huo Piaoyao?" Hundreds roared their approval, and those who knew the song shouted out loudly as well.

"Heavenly soldiers shine on snow, descending on Jade Pass; enemy arrows like sand strike the golden armor. Cloud-dragons and wind-tigers all wheel about; Taibai enters the moon, the foe can be destroyed. The foe can be destroyed, the banner-head falls; we tread barbarian guts and wade through barbarian blood."

"Excellent! Truly he is our countryman, truly the Banished Immortal!" Guo Guangsheng, Guo Dalang, suddenly burst out with a roar, so excited that he tore off his outer robe.

"Hang the barbarians in the blue sky, bury the barbarians by the purple frontier. No barbarians remain, the Han way prospers."

"Hang the barbarians in the blue sky, bury the barbarians by the purple frontier. No barbarians remain, the Han way prospers."

This line was the most famous — nearly everyone knew it. Right there in Guangcheng Fort, hundreds of people gathered around Zhang Zhao and sang it, again and again, the sound lasting long without end!

They had all come back! They had forgotten their hiding and skulking. In this moment, they were worthy of their ancestors' hundred years of lonely vigil!

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