Chapter 234: Zhang Yichao? No! This Is Li Shimin

In the city of Peshawar, as soon as Zhang Zhao's army entered the city, the entire Peshawar garrison was disarmed.

In fact there were not many garrison troops. According to the captured secretary of the Hindu Shahi kingdom, the whole kingdom had a population of about nine hundred thousand, and its entire army was under fifty thousand strong.

It seems this kingdom isn't all that big, is it?

And if nine hundred thousand people can casually produce fifty thousand soldiers, their martial virtue must be quite abundant!

Nonsense! Only after asking did Zhang Zhao learn that the reason nine hundred thousand people could produce fifty thousand soldiers was that the untouchables below the Shudra were simply not counted at all.

The secretary produced data from over forty years ago and estimated that the Shahi kingdom had more than four million Dalits.

Hearing this figure, even Ma Yaozi beside him swallowed a mouthful of saliva.

Reckoned this way, in numerical terms the whole Shahi kingdom had about five hundred Brahmins, over five thousand Kshatriyas, tens of thousands of Vaishyas, seven or eight hundred thousand Shudras, and more than four million Dalits.

Among these, the ones who could be called the ruling class were the Brahmins and the Kshatriyas.

Impressive! Five thousand-plus people lording it over five million-plus people — even averaged out, every Brahmin and Kshatriya could have around a thousand people and slaves.

What does it mean to have it good? This is what it means! This is not the personal dependency of retainers and tenant farmers in the Central Plains; this is a dependency that is basically slavery.

For a moment, Zhang Zhao truly did not want to leave. He now had more than ten thousand men under his command, and by the current measure of military strength, he could at the very least conquer a great kingdom of over ten million people, and then convert to Hinduism.

How satisfying that would be! Even the lowest-ranking soldier could be allotted a village and one or two hundred slaves.

Given the nature of these native Indians, his sons and grandsons could be lords here forever.

"Get out!" Zhang Zhao, his whole body hot and restless, waved his hand and drove out the trembling secretary of the Shahi kingdom.

In the great hall, more than thirty people all looked at Zhang Zhao. These were his innermost core subordinates.

There were Yin Yaozi, Fan Quan, and Fan Shun, Zhang Zhao's most intimate confidants.

There were Man Xiong and Dunzhu, fierce generals who broke through enemy formations.

There were trusted officers like Yan Jin, Ma Yaozi, and Bai Congxin.

There were men of the Suyab Guo family, and of the new Kucha Yang and Xue families.

There were also Li Ruotai and Hu Cile, who had joined midway but had already fully integrated.

Everyone watched Zhang Zhao, whose expression shifted uncertainly and who, unusually, paced back and forth, clearly ill at ease. In their hearts, they too were torn.

This place was so good! If they decided to put down roots here, in a few years they would no longer need to struggle, and could fully enjoy life here as lords.

"Let me ask: suppose I do not wish to stay here, and still want to return to Dunhuang as we all originally agreed — would any of you object?"

This was the first time Zhang Zhao had spoken to everyone in a consultative tone, something absolutely unimaginable before.

In the past, discussion was permitted, but when it came time to make a decision, Zhang Zhao always decided alone with absolute authority.

"Young lord, if it is only a return to Dunhuang, then Yan Jin does not want to go back with you!"

Zhang Zhao stared in shock, eyes wide. He had assumed Yan Jin would surely be his strongest supporter, because like Great King Zhang, he too had great ambitions in his heart.

But who would have thought! The first to betray the revolution would actually be this fellow with the thick brows and big eyes.

But before Zhang Zhao could ask, Yan Jin chuckled, and for the first time a hint of cunning appeared on his solemn face.

"Young lord, what is there worth returning to in Dunhuang? The wind is strong and the sand is plentiful, there are only so many people, and all the benefits have been eaten up by the Cao family. What could we do if we went back?

So if you only want to return to Dunhuang, we might as well stay here.

But if you want to go back and break through Ganzhou and Liangzhou, or even march on Chang'an, then Yan Jin will follow even if it means climbing a mountain of blades or plunging into a sea of fire.

The throne in Daming Palace — if the descendants of the the the Shatuo Zhuxie family can sit on it, can the descendants of the world's hero, Grand Guardian Zhang, not sit on it?"

Damn! He's even learned to drag out the suspense!

But Yan Jin was right! Zhang Zhao thought to himself: I have resolved to unify the Central Plains and end this age of chaos.

What does being a petty lord in India, clean and hygienic every day, amount to? How could such a low-level wish replace the highest ideal in my heart?

Without ideals, what difference is there between a man and a salted fish?

"Young lord, we are all simple fellows. Wherever you go, we go."

Man Xiong pulled Dunzhu and the others down to kneel on one knee before Zhang Zhao. Warriors like them, in the hands of a lord who knew how to use them, were weapons that crushed all before them; but if they met an unreliable one, they would likely become expendable.

So Man Xiong and the others understood little else, but they understood that they must follow Zhang Zhao closely.

"Young lord, without you, Yaozi here would be nothing but a foot soldier muddling through life, and even in Dunhuang he would not have had any good days.

If you tell me to return to Dunhuang, Yaozi will return to Dunhuang — there is nothing to lose anyway. If you tell me to go to Chang'an, Yaozi will follow you to Chang'an.

I think Yan Jin is right. No one is more fit than you to sit on the throne in Daming Palace."

Ma Yaozi spoke from the heart. Setting aside the knowledge and growth he had gained over these years, just considering his character — gluttonous, lustful, stingy, trouble-loving, and often careless with his words — under a different lord, his head might well have fallen to the ground.

Only Zhang Zhao could not only tolerate him, but also discover his strengths and cultivate him.

"Young lord, for Bai Congxin, Qiongre Duojin, and Ma Shacai, there is even less need to speak. The three of us were originally just horse bandits on the Qilian Mountains. Without you, young lord, how would we have this day? You have treated us as a lord treats his finest men, and we are determined to follow you to the death!"

These three all came from Ge Duo's horse-bandit gang. Likewise, though they now cut fine figures, without Zhang Zhao discovering them and letting their strengths be fully used, the best ending for these men would have been to remain horse bandits, until the day they could no longer ride or draw a bow, not knowing where they would die.

"Young lord, you promised me that after you unified the realm, you would let me lead my clansmen from the Qilian Mountains back to Kucha to rebuild the Bai royal line!" After the three had declared their loyalty, Bai Congxin added half-jokingly.

"Rest assured. The Bai family of Kucha were loyal subjects of the Great Tang. If that day you speak of truly comes, I will personally lead a great army to smash the Gaochang Uyghurs and return Kucha to your Bai family."

Before everyone, Zhang Zhao made the most solemn of promises. This was also the wish in Bai Congxin's heart: to rebuild the Bai royal house of Kucha.

"Young lord, you need not ask me. I am a descendant of the Prince of Wudu Commandery, and the blood of the Li Tang imperial line flows in my veins!

To return to the Central Plains, rebuild the Celestial Dynasty, and after achieving fame and success, compose and exchange poetry with three or five friends by the Qujiang Pool, drinking and making merry — and if I could also have the company of a few famous courtesans and beauties, this life would be complete! Chang'an — I must return there!"

Li Ruotai's eyes grew dreamy. It seemed the artistic cells and the literary-romantic affliction of the Yuchi clan were acting up in him.

"Hu Cile and my son Hu Guang will certainly follow the Great King. This place may be rich, but it is a gentle trap. If one wishes to build merit and leave a name for posterity, how can one dwell in this land of barbarians?"

Uh, Zhang Zhao looked at Hu Cile. You are a Tatar — one of the ancestors of the later Mongol compatriots — so how are you not interested in India? Weren't the emperors of the Mughal dynasty just Islamized Mongols?

"Without the Great King, our Yang, Xue, and Zheng families would long ago have become slaves of the barbarians. Whatever the Great King wants of us, just give the order!"

Yang Shouli answered crisply. Having come from the brink of clan extermination to where they were now, what more was there to say?

"Great King, you know Guo Tiance's heart. Restoring the glory of my ancestor, the Prince of Wuwu Commandery, is my life's wish. I will never covet the wealth and honor of India!"

"Right! Your servant Guo Guangcheng feels the same. I would follow the Great King east with my curved blade in hand. If one day my portrait could grace the Lingyan Pavilion, then this life would not have been lived in vain!"

"Well said! Well said! A true man lives in this world to have his portrait placed in the Lingyan Pavilion!"

"When I grow old, I shall surely find someone to write our heroic deeds into a storybook, like the Complete Biographies of Great Tang Heroes, to be passed down to later generations!"

As the company discussed this with great fervor, Zhang Zhao instead felt a twinge of shame.

A moment ago, he had in truth briefly considered staying in India, because the success and comfort here were visible to the naked eye.

But at this moment, he once again steeled his ideals. Having crossed over here by some mysterious design, if he ended up as just some nobody in India, how could he face this journey?

This place could become a land of wealth, but it could never be the place where he, Zhang Zhao, settled for good.

"I, Zhang Erlang, count myself thrice blessed to have all of you who share my purpose. If we can revive the great dynasty, every one of you shall be a meritorious minister on the Lingyan Pavilion! I will never let you down!"

Zhang Zhao bowed to everyone in the hall with clasped hands. This was the first time that his small circle had clearly defined its future direction.

Everyone now understood that Zhang Zhao's ambition was no longer merely to reclaim the Guiyi Army's patrimony and then open the Ganzhou–Liangzhou route to become another Zhang Yichao. He meant to become another Taizong Wen Emperor, Li Shimin!

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