Chapter 27: The Greening of the Karakhanid Dynasty

Zhang Zhao was indeed quite displeased, but it was only to be expected. No one knew what the future held on the westward journey to Khotan, and it was normal for people to be unwilling to go. Besides, this Huang Yang'er was rather obedient to Bai Congxin, so letting him leave was for the best.

"Very well! If Brother Huang wishes to leave, I will not stop him. Still, since we have known each other, take twenty strings of cash, thirty bolts of hemp cloth, and fifty jin of salt from the stores, and go home!"

Huang Yang'er, who had been uneasy and fearful, was overjoyed. Zhang Zhao was not only letting him leave but also giving him cloth, salt, and money. He dropped to both knees and kowtowed, his head thumping loudly against the ground.

"Huang Yang'er thanks the young lord!"

"Young lord, my wife's younger brothers Fan Quan and Fan Shun are skilled in bow and horse. They can accompany you to the Golden Kingdom!" With Huang Yang'er having gone first, Qi Xiahu steeled himself and stepped forward.

This was truly within Zhang Zhao's expectations. The Guazhou-Shazhou region had few Han people to begin with, and previously men like Qi Xiahu had been in a position of abandonment because no one had spoken on their behalf.

Now that Lady Cao Sanniang had agreed to use her father-in-law Murong Guiying to pressure her father Cao Yuanzhong into pardoning them, as long as Shouchang no longer blocked their supplies, even living in the mountain stronghold, Qi Xiahu and his men could get by. They certainly would not be willing to go with him to the Golden Kingdom.

At the same time, Zhang Zhao had no intention of taking Qi Xiahu along either, because although the man's martial skills were decent, he was too old, already thirty-six.

In this ancient era, in a few more years he could call himself an old man. Taking him to Khotan would not give him many useful years, and there were still over a hundred women and children in the stronghold. If Zhang Zhao took Qi Xiahu away, what would happen to the rest?

"Elder Brother, please rise quickly. These twenty years, because of my father and me, you have all suffered along with us. Fortunately, Lady Cao Sanniang is righteous. You need not blame yourself. Just let the hundred-odd women and children in the stronghold live good lives, and that will be the greatest comfort to me, Zhang Erlang."

"Brothers Fan Quan and Fan Shun, from now on stay by my side. Do not worry, Elder Brother. I will treat them as my own elder brothers!"

These words made Qi Xiahu's eyes redden, and the brothers Fan Quan and Fan Shun quickly knelt as well.

"In years past, our fathers followed the Son of Heaven with utter loyalty. Now we too wish to emulate our elders and follow you, young lord, pledging our lives to the death!"

"Good! Please rise quickly, elder brothers!" Although Qi Xiahu had not chosen to go with Zhang Zhao, in truth these people were the ones Zhang Zhao could trust most besides Zhang Zhong and Yin Yaozi. Even if they could return to Guazhou-Shazhou, the brand of Zhang Chengfeng and Zhang Zhao upon them would not disappear.

Fan Quan and Fan Shun both had excellent archery skills. As long as he could take these two with him, whether or not he took the rest of Qi Xiahu's stronghold mattered little.

Everyone else in the stone tower had somewhere to go. What remained were the dozen or so men Zhang Zhao had just selected from the several hundred herding slaves outside. Zhang Zhao said nothing, only watched them. Whoever stepped forward first to declare himself would become someone Zhang Zhao relied upon.

"Tang family's Dongdai, Dondrup is willing to go with you, but I still have a younger sister and mother with no one to care for them." Sure enough, Dondrup, the one who could arrange everyone properly, was the first to speak up.

"What kind of background do you have? A mere herding slave gets a bite of meat and thinks himself a warrior? You may be willing to go, but Dongdai still has to be willing to take you. This is a chance to eat meat, drink wine, and wear brocade robes. Why should Dongdai have to bring you along!"

The moment Dondrup finished speaking, Qiong Redorje stood up with a look of contempt. This Dondrup was nothing but the lowest herding slave, without even a surname, a world apart from someone like himself with a family and a name. If even such a person could set conditions before Zhang Zhao, where would that leave his own face?

"Exactly. Who thinks anything of your sister and old mother? If you changed masters, what right would you have to enter the stone tower to drink and eat meat?"

"How can a herding slave dare to make excuses to his master? Young lord! For lowly people like this, a good whipping is all that's needed!"

In human society, class and chains of contempt exist everywhere. The others in the stone tower had originally all belonged to the ruling stratum under Geduo's rule. They were already extremely displeased that Dondrup and the dozen-odd herding slaves behind him could come in and eat meat and drink wine with them. Knowing this was Zhang Zhao's intention to recruit, they had endured it, but now that Dondrup dared to set conditions, the group could no longer hold back and began cursing loudly.

Zhang Zhao naturally would not stop them. This was for the best. If the men below were a solid bloc, he probably would not be able to sleep at night. He had deliberately selected a group from among the herding slaves precisely to create balance.

So he waited until the original horse-bandit group had cursed themselves out, and only then did Zhang Zhao raise a hand to stop them.

"Those willing to follow me, your families will be sent to another stronghold of mine to settle. It is far better than this cold, windswept mountain."

"If you want to keep eating meat and drinking wine in the future, and want your families to stop being the lowest herding slaves, then you must serve loyally. I am kind-hearted, but my wine and meat are not so easy to take!"

At this point, Dondrup and the others could no longer worry about family or not. Several of the selected herding slaves stepped past Dondrup and kowtowed at Zhang Zhao's feet. Dondrup too hurriedly kowtowed like a pestle pounding garlic, repeatedly begging Zhang Zhao to allow them to serve.

"Enough! All of you, rise! Old Zhong, bring me my map!" Zhang Zhao gestured for the kowtowing herding slaves to rise while signaling Zhang Zhong to bring over the map.

This was a parchment map, drawn by Zhang Zhao. As someone familiar with Tang dynasty history, the sort who would deliberately wear mingguang armor while watching "The Longest Day in Chang'an," Zhang Zhao was fairly familiar with Hexi and the Western Regions. This map was something he had slowly recalled and drawn.

"This is Suzhou, Guazhou, Shazhou, Shanshan, Loulan, Qiemo. Here is the Golden Kingdom of Khotan, and to its north are the Gaochang Uyghurs and the Karakhanid state." Zhang Zhao pointed out the cities on the map one by one, finally stopping at the Karakhanid dynasty.

"As far as I know, Satuq Bughra Khan of the Karakhanids has already abandoned the Great Merciful Father and converted to the Green Religion of the Arab lands. Within his realm, Manichaeans and Buddhists are being persecuted."

"Therefore the Arslan Khan of the Gaochang Uyghurs, who believes in our Buddha, and the Son of Heaven of the Golden Kingdom of Khotan have already prepared to send troops to chastise him. You are all warriors, and I am the nephew of the Golden Kingdom's Son of Heaven. If we can unite our hearts and strength, this place is where we shall win merit and build our careers!"

"We are willing to follow the young lord's commands and win merit!" The men in the stone tower listened with great excitement. A war to fight was good! Only by fighting wars could one win merit!

Why could they only be horse bandits, unable to join Dunhuang State (the Guiyi Army) or Ganzhou as officials? Was it not precisely because the Great King of the West, Cao Yijin of Dunhuang State, and the Shunhua Khagan of the Ganzhou Uyghurs had become sworn uncle and nephew, and thus ceased hostilities?

If Dunhuang State and the Ganzhou Uyghurs were still at war, both sides would long ago have bid high to win them over. Would they need to be horse bandits hiding everywhere like rats?

Moreover, from what Young Lord Zhang said, Bughra Khan had dared to embrace the Green Religion and persecute Buddhists and Manichaeans. This would inevitably draw a gang beating. The Golden Kingdom of Khotan and the Gaochang Uyghurs fighting two against one — this was joining a winning war! The risk was not great, and the rewards were certain.

But their greater confidence still came from Zhang Zhao's valor. Since the decline of the Great Tang and the Tibetans, warfare in the Western Regions had basically been amateurs pecking at each other.

One weak soldier is one weak soldier, but one weak general weakens the whole nest. A valiant leader in such circumstances could often play an enormous role in the course of battle. With Young Lord Zhang's ability to fight a hundred men alone, he would surely prevail wherever he went.

All chapters have been cached for you. Download the APP to view them.