Chapter 306: The Buddhist Truth of the Wheel-Turning Sage King

The wind and snow on Hongchi Ridge were as fierce as ever. Braving the biting wind and snow, Jia Yanchang crossed this majestic mountain ridge once again.

Behind him were a thousand elite troops led by Ma Shacai, including his nephew Wang Tongxin and the three unlucky squad generals under his command.

Of these, fewer than two hundred were elite troops of Hanhai Garrison whom Zhang Zhao had brought back from Anxi; the remaining eight hundred-plus cavalry were all formed from the warriors of the six tribes.

These thousand men were almost all cavalry. The elite heavy infantry consisted of the Yucheng Garrison infantry that Li Shengtian had gifted to Zhang Zhao, commanded by Battalion Commander Erzhu Jing.

Zhang Zhao, of course, was not going to wait for the Sulun family to finish deliberating before he began preparing to attack the various tribes of Lanzhou.

If he did that, then he, Minister of Works Zhang, would leave the impression that he had only pacified Lanzhou by relying on the Sulun family. How could he establish his authority that way?

Therefore, Zhang Zhao had never expected the Sulun family to be of much use at all. They were nothing but a decoy. The real killing blow was still Zhang Zhao's own force of fifteen hundred elite soldiers under Ma Shacai's unified command.

Below Hongchi Ridge, the Ni River rushed straight toward Lanzhou. But it was now the dry season, so the river's flow was not great, and many stretches were even still frozen over.

After Ma Shacai led the fifteen hundred men down from Hongchi Ridge, only a little over twelve hundred remained.

Most of those missing had fallen behind. Speed was the essence of war, so leaving one squad general to organize those soldiers was enough; the main force could not possibly wait for them.

At the same time, more than twenty men had died or been injured in falls. Crossing Hongchi Ridge in winter was by no means a good choice, and this was even with a guide like Jia Yanchang, who had crossed Hongchi Ridge more than ten times.

Before they had even reached the foot of the mountain, Jia Yanchang pointed downstream along the Ni River and said, "From here, following the river down for about fifty li, there is a small town that serves as the seat of Jincheng County. It was built in the Han dynasty and sits squarely in the most critical position.

However, when this old man passed through three months ago, Jincheng County was already dilapidated and desolate, with only a few small tribes grazing and farming there."

The Ni River was what later generations called the Zhuanglang River in Gansu, and Jincheng was roughly where Yongdeng County in Lanzhou is located today.

Ma Shacai took out the map and studied it carefully. This map was a copy left behind after Zhang Yichao had presented the territory of the eleven prefectures of Hexi to the Great Tang, so it was considered quite reliable.

"May I ask, Captain Jia, whether the stretch of river at Jincheng County is frozen over? Is it truly two hundred li from Jincheng County down to Lanzhou? And what is the condition of the roads?"

Jia Yanchang unobtrusively glanced at Ma Shacai. This man was the battalion commander of the Guiyi Army's Hanhai Garrison, and it was said that he had once been nothing more than a horse bandit by origin.

He looked like a cruel, bloodthirsty warrior, but in fact he was skilled in deploying troops and formations, could read and write, and could even understand military maps.

This was all the result of Minister of Works Zhang's training! Not only was he himself an able fighter, but he was also skilled at cultivating the officers and soldiers under his command.

In all the decades of the Guiyi Army, only the Grand Guardian of old had possessed such ability. It seemed that the old rumors of the Grand Guardian manifesting his spirit to transmit teachings might not have been entirely false after all.

"Three months ago it was indeed frozen over. Five li north of the Jincheng County seat, the river channel is narrowest, and it should be passable.

From Jincheng County to Lanzhou, if one takes the main road, it is more than two hundred li. But if one takes the small path east of Jincheng County and cuts straight through, it is only about one hundred eighty li.

The road is quite muddy, but now that the ice and snow have not yet melted, it is actually somewhat easier to travel. By forced march along this small path, one can reach the walls of Lanzhou in five days."

Ma Shacai nodded, then summoned Erzhu Jing, Wang Tongxin, Cui Huxin, Du Luanchixin, and the other officers. Pointing to the positions of Jincheng County and Lanzhou on the map, he said,

"Half a month ago, Li Cunhui deliberately released Sulun Luxin back to Lanzhou. I believe the various tribes of Lanzhou, especially the Wang clan, already know.

They all assume that we will wait until the Sulun family has submitted and the ice and snow have melted before we attack.

So let us give them a great surprise. My intention is this: do not occupy Jincheng County. Cross the river north of Jincheng County, then take the small path and strike straight for the walls of Lanzhou.

In ancient times, Li Su took Caizhou in a snowy night. Today, I, Ma Shacai, together with all of you, have crossed Hongchi Ridge and will raid Lanzhou in a snowy night, settling the matter in a single battle!"

"I agree with Commander Ma's opinion. In the battle for Lanzhou, if we do not strike, then fine; but if we do strike, it must be a thunderbolt blow, displaying the might of our Guiyi Army and overawing the tribes of Lanzhou, Wei, and the other prefectures. This is also the Great King's decree!"

The one who spoke in agreement was Erzhu Jing. He still addressed Zhang Zhao as Great King. His ancestor had been the Protector-General before Guo Xin, the last Grand Protector-General of Anxi, and had later drifted to Khotan and served the Khotan royal clan.

Although the Erzhu family was of Xiongnu and Qihu origin, after several hundred years of intermingling, they were now no different from Han people.

Zhang Zhao had promoted a certain degree of military democracy within the army, mobilizing the initiative of mid- and low-ranking officers and soldiers, and it had produced some results.

At least within the army, when major decisions were made, mid-ranking officers still had a certain voice.

Among these fifteen hundred men, apart from Ma Shacai, who held the title of Guiyi Gentleman and served as Commander, Erzhu Jing held the highest rank as the other Commander. Once the two of them agreed, the matter was essentially settled.

Wang Tongxin immediately stepped forward and volunteered. "Commander Ma, Commander Erzhu, the three hundred cavalry under my command can serve as the vanguard, screening and concealing the main army's advance!"

"Good! Your unit shall be the vanguard!" As someone who had come from the same Hanshan Unit, Ma Shacai naturally knew that although Wang Tongxin had some problems in his personal conduct, he could still be trusted militarily.

Moreover, he had once fought side by side with Zhang Zhao, and had twice been snatched back from the brink of death by Zhang Zhao.

One who saves his lord's life is a great meritorious servant, but one whose life is saved by his lord is also a kind of closeness, is it not?

"Three masters, I am giving each of you two horses. The matter of entering the city to contact Weiyan Temple will have to trouble you three!"

Having approved Wang Tongxin's request, Ma Shacai then gave instructions to the three burly monks beside him who carried swords and spears.

These were warrior monks from the Great Buddha Temple of Liangzhou. Since Zhang Zhao was the Silver Wheel Dharma King of the Buddhist faith, he naturally would not let the elite warrior monks of the temples go unused.

These fellows could be called the special forces of this era. They had religious identities as cover, which made it easy for them to travel about and gather intelligence, and what they practiced were all the darting, dodging, and brawling skills of street fighting and close combat.

They had both tradition and year-round training. Forming up in battle array might not be their strength, but in small-unit skirmishes and urban street fighting, they were fiercer than ordinary armored soldiers.

"Namo Wheel-Turning Sage King Bodhisattva!" The lead monk intoned a Buddhist invocation, and also waved a stick-like object in his hand.

"Commander Ma, rest assured. We have been granted three divine fire thunder-bombs by the Wheel-Turning Dharma King. I believe the Meditation Master Dinghui, the chief seat of Weiyan Temple, will certainly understand the Buddhist meaning within them.

The temple has two hundred monk soldiers, all trained in spear and staff, who can serve as reinforcements. When the time comes, we will wait only for the Commander's three thunder-bombs, then burst out from Weiyan Temple, seize Yongning Gate, and let the great army into the city!"

Cui Huxin wiped the cold sweat from his forehead and unconsciously moved a little farther away from the wooden stick in the monk's hand.

What was packed inside that thing was a divine fire thunder-bomb. Just one of them could blast several strong men into bloody pulp.

Meditation Master Dinghui of Weiyan Temple would certainly understand the "Buddhist truth" contained within. If he did not understand, he would probably go straight to meet the Buddha.

Damn it! What kind of world was this? Even these big monks had come to steal the warriors' livelihood, had come to compete!

Yongning Gate was the western gate of Lanzhou, and it was also the main direction of Ma Shacai's attack on Lanzhou this time.

The walls of Lanzhou had also suffered varying degrees of collapse because the various tribes had repaired them by force. Yongning Gate was the most severely damaged area.

He also understood why some temple monk soldiers were so fanatical. It was because, according to the explanations of those foreign monks from India, Zhang Zhao's identity as the Wheel-Turning Sage King allowed him to consecrate a vajra and a small number of guardian treasures as the Dharma King's dharma-protecting attendants.

The Yan'en Temple currently under construction in Dunhuang, and the Wrathful Vajra Dharma-Protector Hall under construction in the Great Cloud Temple of Liangzhou, were both such guardian temples belonging to the Wheel-Turning Sage King.

Zhang Zhao had even deliberately skirted the rules: the vajra and guardian treasures belonging to the Wheel-Turning Sage King could be carved as life-sized statues in the likeness of virtuous monks and enshrined in the temples for worship.

As for who was virtuous, that was decided by Zhang Zhao's single word. Therefore, some warrior monks who had the ambition of having themselves enshrined in temples were quite fanatical and willing to fight for Zhang Zhao.

Their grasp of the Dharma had never been particularly deep to begin with. Now that there was this shortcut tempting them — in life they could fight and enjoy wealth and honor, and in death they could enter a temple as a vajra — they were naturally willing to come out and do something.

"Masters, wait a moment!" Seeing that the three monks were about to leave with the divine fire thunder-bombs tucked away, Jia Yanchang immediately called them to stop. Only after the three monks had halted did Jia Yanchang turn to Ma Shacai and say,

"By this old man's estimate, the Hexi Chief Buddhist Controller, Master Longbian, has very likely already entered Lanzhou territory. He came from the eastern capital Luoyang to request the Jade Woman Treasure for the Minister of Works, and he has nearly a hundred attendants with him."

"Commander Ma, why not send thirty more picked men to accompany the three masters? Have them avoid entering Lanzhou city for now. Once they find Master Longbian, they can all follow the procession into Weiyan Temple together — that will make the people of Lanzhou even less prepared!"

Ma Shacai's eyes lit up. With the escort of Longbian, Chief Buddhist Controller of Hexi, added to the force, if over a hundred men could enter Weiyan Temple, the matter would be far easier to carry out.

"Wen Chongle, draw thirty picked men from your own unit to accompany the three masters in searching for Master Longbian, and enter Lanzhou city together with them."

Unlike Cui Huxin and Du Lun Chixin, who enjoyed some small reputation among the Liugu tribe, Wen Chongle came from a minor family, which made it easier for him to conceal his identity, because no one knew him.

Wen Chongle's spirits rose. Under Zhang Zhao, only by fighting could one earn merit, and only with merit came rewards. His boon companion Yue Saonu also turned at once to look at Wen Chongle, his eyes full of longing.

"As ordered! My subordinate Yue Saonu and thirty men hail from the southern mountains of Guzang. We are skilled at close-quarters combat and will certainly accomplish the Commander's important task!"

Jia Yanchang's estimate proved correct. After the three great monks traveled a stretch farther south of Lanzhou city and waited only two days, they indeed encountered Longbian, Chief Buddhist Controller of Hexi, coming from the eastern capital Luoyang, together with Yelu Bei's youngest daughter, Yelu Abuli, only nine years old.

Besides the sixty-odd guards of the Long clan of Suzhou that Longbian had brought with him, there was also a force of fifty Khitan warriors.

Their leader bore the Han name Mu Shunyi and the Khitan name Muge. He had originally been a personal guard of Yelu Bei, King of Dongdan.

After Yelu Bei crossed the sea and came to the Later Tang, the several hundred warriors who followed him were all granted Han names by Emperor Mingzong of Tang and became Yelu Bei's personal guards, called the Khitan Zhi.

In truth, Yelu Bei had been somewhat tricked by Zhang Zhao. In history, when Li Congke sent men to kill Yelu Bei, the Khitan Zhi fought back fiercely and nearly allowed Yelu Bei to escape.

But in this timeline, Yelu Bei, to keep up appearances, had Yelu Abuli take away more than fifty men from the Khitan Zhi, which originally numbered only a little over two hundred. As a result, lacking guards, he died wretchedly in his residence.

Though it was death either way, the latter death was truly too humiliating. Mu Shunyi and the others, however, were spared the fate of being hacked to death by blades.

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