Chapter 238: Sword Pointed At The Hexi Corridor, Annihilate The Buddhists
Ganzhou, formerly known as Zhangye Dependency, is located in the middle section of the Hexi Corridor.
It borders Wuwei in Liangzhou to the east, and Jiuquan in Suzhou to the west.
The headquarters of the Gansu Army Command, one of the twelve army commands of Western Xia, is located in Ganzhou.
This is mainly to defend against raids from Tubo tribes south of the Qilian Mountains on the Hexi Corridor, and to provide support to the Guazhou Xiping Army Command to the west and the Blackwater Town Yan Army Division to the north at any time.
Furthermore, thanks to the prosperous commerce of the Hexi Corridor, Ganzhou, situated at an important pass, has also become an indispensable commercial transportation hub.
One day, a cold wind howled, and the twilight cast the shadow of the city gate tower long.
Su Luo’a Sha, the dutou of the West City Gate, hid in the gate tower, humming a little tune, and secretly took a few sips of wine from time to time.
Although guarding the city gate was hard work, compared to those struggling Han soldiers, Su Luo’a Sha, a Tangut, had a much freer life.
He had the final say in the inspection of everyone entering and exiting the entire West City Gate.
The most important thing was the high earnings.
Sitting on a stool, humming a Qiang folk song, he stretched his hand out of his sleeve and gently shook a wooden box, immediately hearing the jingle of copper coins and silver.
A satisfied smile spread across Su Luo’a Sha’s face.
“Hehehe, Dutou, how much did you earn today? Did you make ten guan?” a middle-aged Han soldier asked, hands tucked into his sleeves, with a smile.
Su Luo’a Sha glanced at him and scoffed, “You old rind, I never saw you work hard when you were on duty, but you’re quick to claim your share when it’s time to divide the money.”
The Han soldier, hearing this, did not get angry and continued to say with a smile, “It’s just that I have so many children at home!”
Su Luo’a Sha gently shook his head; the poorer the old rind, the more children he seemed to have.
He himself, with his position as dutou, could only support five children, yet this fellow had seven, the youngest still breastfeeding.
After speaking, Su Luo’a Sha opened the wooden box, and the old soldier peeked in, “Ha, more than ten guan.”
“Looks like at least twelve guan.”
“Alright, just let you see it, don’t go blabbing with your big mouth, damn it.”
Of these twelve guan in copper coins, most had to be appeased to those above; these soldiers only got a small fraction, but every bit counts, and even two hundred wen could be equivalent to the wages of ordinary laborers for two or three days.
Therefore, even though guarding the city gate was often exposed to the sun and wind and was very arduous, people vied to take on the job.
Seeing that the sun was about to set, Su Luo’a Sha squinted his eyes slightly and casually waved, “Close the gate, let’s go back and drink~”
By this time, not many people were entering the city; rather, some common people who had entered during the day had not yet come out.
Su Luo’a Sha paid them no mind, a bunch of poor wretches; who would open the gate for them without money?
They could sleep on the street tonight; if they froze to death, it would be their bad luck.
However, just as the drawbridge was about to be raised, a shout was suddenly heard from afar.
“Wait, wait a moment~”
“Officer, wait a moment.”
Su Luo’a Sha was startled by the sound and looked up, only to see the silhouette of a caravan appearing on the Gobi Desert outside the city.
More than a dozen large carts, loaded with who knows what goods.
There were also two men in tattered sheepskin jackets, riding horses and galloping towards the city gate ahead of the rest.
“Wait a moment, officer, our caravan will be here soon.”
A young man with a dark complexion jumped off his horse, and as if relieved, cupped his hands in supplication towards Su Luo’a Sha.
“Oh ho, how unusual.”
“Grandpa, the sun is almost setting, and there are still people trying to enter the city?”
Su Luo’a Sha turned and smiled at the soldiers, then said to the man with a serious expression, “The city gate is closing.”
“If you want to enter the city, wait until tomorrow.”
Hearing this, Li Qiufu’s face immediately showed a troubled expression, “Officer, please be accommodating. It is really unsafe outside the city late at night.”
Having said that, he secretly slipped a hard lump into Su Luo’a Sha’s sleeve.
Feeling the texture in his palm, Su Luo’a Sha’s eyes lit up; it was at least five taels of silver.
However, he then looked at the large carts behind them and asked casually, “What are those things loaded with?”
“Just some worthless furs, along with some raisins and alcoholic beverages,” Li Qiufu quickly explained.
“Where are you going?”
“Xingqing Prefecture!”
“Do you have a travel permit?”
“Yes, this is the travel permit issued to us by Lord Re La Mie E of Heishui City.”
Hearing this, Su Luo’a Sha’s facial muscles twitched slightly.
He had heard of Re La Mie E’s name.
He was the younger brother-in-law of Lord Weiming Zhongshi, the commander of Heishui City, a capable man.
He couldn’t afford to offend him.
But these were not Re La Mie E’s goods, and more than a dozen large carts trying to enter the city could not be handled with just five taels of silver.
“Leave one horse carriage, and you can enter the city.”
Li Qiufu’s face immediately changed drastically, “That won’t do, officer, that won’t do.”
“We are just small traders, we don’t make much money.”
“If you keep one large cart, we will lose a fortune.”
Having said that, he reached into Su Luo’a Sha’s sleeve again, “Officer, please be merciful.”
Another five taels of silver were offered, and Su Luo’a Sha’s face immediately broke into a smile.
“Alright, since you are so sensible, you may enter.”
“Thank you, officer.”
“May you live a long life, officer, with many descendants.”
Li Qiufu’s face beamed with joy, constantly speaking pleasantries as he led the caravan into the city gate.
After entering the city, they quickly met up with someone and arrived at a large courtyard.
“How was it? Did it go smoothly?”
There were more than twenty men in the courtyard. The one in charge was a sturdy man in his early twenties, wearing labor clothes and a large beard, looking very rough and tough.
Li Qiufu nodded slightly and said, “Head Shopkeeper, everything went smoothly.”
The man called Head Shopkeeper was actually a Centurion of the Northern Frontier Sixth Garrison, and Li Qiufu was a Captain under him.
“How many people did you bring this time?”
“A total of thirty-two,” Li Qiufu replied.
“That’s enough!”
The Head Shopkeeper nodded heavily.
There were already more than twenty people in this courtyard, and in another courtyard, there were more than thirty people.
They had all secretly entered the city with various identities during this period.
In total, there were nearly a hundred people.
Enough to cause chaos in the city.
“Head Shopkeeper, have the weapons been prepared?” Li Qiufu asked.
This was crucial to their success.
“Of course they have been prepared,” the Head Shopkeeper smiled faintly, then pointed to a few coffins not far away.
“Two days ago, we hid the crossbow weapons in the false bottoms of the coffins and have already brought them in secretly.”
Upon hearing this, Li Qiufu immediately showed a look of admiration and whispered, “You are so clever, Centurion, to have thought of such a method.”
If they had been hidden beneath furs, they might have been discovered by the city guards, but no one would have meticulously searched coffins for false bottoms.
As long as enough money was given, even corpses could be transported in.
“You rascal, stop flattering me,” the Head Shopkeeper chuckled.
Then he said sternly, “Now, we just need to wait for the army to arrive, and we will cooperate from within and without to turn Ganzhou City upside down.”
On the other side, at the city gate.
Not long after Li Qiufu and the others entered the city, as Su Luo’a Sha was preparing to have the drawbridge raised, the sound of hooves was heard again from afar.
“Wait, don’t close the city gate.”
Hearing this, Su Luo’a Sha was furious.
Why were these people all in such a hurry to get themselves killed.
He looked up and saw that this time there was only one person, a man on horseback, covered in dust.
“Stop, the city gate is closed, come back tomorrow.”
Su Luo’a Sha said impatiently, telling his subordinates to quickly raise the drawbridge.
After all, looking at the man’s impoverished appearance, he didn’t seem like someone with money.
“I am a personal guard of Commander Weiming of Heishui City, with urgent military intelligence to see Commander Mi Qin.”
“You, a mere dutou, if you delay an important matter, even ten heads wouldn’t be enough to atone for it,” the cavalryman shouted, reining in his warhorse and stopping outside the drawbridge.
Su Luo’a Sha was immediately stunned.
“Commander Weiming’s personal guard?”
“What proof of identity do you have?” he roared, his voice lacking confidence.
“Open your dog eyes and see.”
The cavalryman pulled out a token and threw it over.
Su Luo’a Sha picked it up and looked at it. Although he didn’t know if it was genuine, it did indeed have the words “Zhenyan Army Division” written on it.
Thus, he dared not delay and personally led men to escort him into the city.
First, they went to the post station and handed over the news of the Northern Frontier invasion to the post station personnel, instructing them to immediately send someone to Xingqing Prefecture, day and night without rest.
The official post was directly under the Imperial Court’s jurisdiction and was not affected by local authorities.
However, it was late, and the city gates were already closed; to exit the city required the commander’s order.
Therefore, the director of the post station and Weiming Zhongshi’s personal guard had to go to the Commander’s Office to request an order to leave the city.
However, upon arrival, they were informed that the commander of the Gansu Army Command was not in his office but had gone out to inspect defenses.
This made them even more anxious.
“The military intelligence is urgent and cannot be delayed.”
“Where has Commander Mi Qin gone?”
“We don’t know either!” the steward of the Commander’s Office said, his gaze flickering.
“We have already sent people to inform the commander, you can wait.”
“There’s no time, the Northern Frontier Army has already reached Heishui City. The longer we wait, the more danger Heishui City will be in,” the personal guard said anxiously.
“It doesn’t matter if Commander Mi Qin doesn’t see us, but please leave a gap in the East Gate for the messenger to leave the city.”
But the steward of the Commander’s Office shook his head like a rattle drum, “No, no.”
“Without the commander’s order, no one is allowed to open the city gate without authorization.”
“Sigh~” The personal guard sighed heavily, flicked his sleeves in anger, and sat down on the steps outside the Commander’s Office.
He would sleep here tonight.
At the same time, Mi Qin Tiele was indulging in pleasure in the Hundred Flowers Pavilion, Ganzhou’s largest brothel.
“Come, Commander, have another drink!”
Mi Qin Tiele leaned on a brocade couch in a private room on the second floor, with a Hu Ji in his arms feeding him fine wine from a golden wine cup.
On a jade plate piled with freshly peeled dried venison, he took a bite. The salty, fishy taste mixed with the clear fragrance of the fine wine went down his throat.
“Hahaha, good.”
“This kind of life is what a person should enjoy.”
“This place is like heaven on earth.”
Mi Qin Tiele laughed heartily; there were five or six women in the room, with one arm around each, enjoying himself immensely.
And tonight, he was going to display his prowess and thoroughly satisfy all these women.
“Life is full of worries, one should enjoy oneself in time.”
Mi Qin Tiele drank the fine wine offered by the beauties mouth-to-mouth, his face flushed pink, his eyes hazy, and he began to sing loudly.
“Hmph, what official position, what nobility, what military merit, I care nothing for them all.”
“I only need you beauties, that’s enough.”
“Hahaha~”
Laughter of men and women echoed in the room.
But Mi Qin Tiele felt bitter and distressed.
Two years ago, the Northern Frontier looted the Hexi Corridor, broke through Dunhuang City and Guazhou City, and carried off a hundred thousand common people.
Mi Qin Tiele was ordered to fight and led the soldiers of the Gansu Army Command to reinforce Dunhuang. After ‘hard fighting’, they finally recovered the lost territory and drove away the Northern Frontier Army.
However, he never expected that such great merit would not be rewarded by the Imperial Court.
Instead, he was just given some gold and silver and sent away.
Moreover, for the next two years, he remained in the position of Ganzhou Commander without any promotion.
Mi Qin Tiele was not convinced.
He could only drown his sorrow in wine and women, indulging in pleasure all day long.
He had virtually sampled all the beauties of the Hundred Flowers Pavilion.
The mood was set, and just as he was about to engage in real combat with real swords and guns, the voice of a personal guard suddenly came from outside the door.
“Commander, Steward Liang sent someone to report.”
“There is important military business that requires the Commander to return.”
Mi Qin Tiele, with his clothes disheveled and his face flushed, pressed down on a Hu Ji, and said unhappily, “My most important military business right now is to properly reward these beautiful ladies.”
“As for anything else~”
“We’ll talk about it after I’m done.”
Having said that, Mi Qin Tiele continued to tear at the Hu Ji’s clothes, nuzzling her neck.
Having said that, Mi Qin Tiele continued to tear at the Hu Ji’s clothes and nuzzle her neck.
The guards outside were also somewhat anxious, shouting loudly, “Lord Commander, the Northern Frontier barbarians are invading south, and Heishui City is in danger. We request reinforcements.”
Upon hearing this, Mi Qin Tiele instantly deflated.
All his arrogance vanished, and he exclaimed in shock, “The Northern Frontier barbarians are invading south?”
“It’s ruined, it’s ruined.”
“This is a disaster.”
Although he had always claimed that he had defeated the Northern Frontier Army two years ago and recaptured Dunhuang and other places,
the specific details were not a secret.
The Northern Frontier barbarians had terrifying combat power, and he had never dared to confront the Northern Frontier Army.
Now, those Northern Frontier barbarians were here again?
Although Heishui City and Ganzhou were hundreds of miles apart, the Blackwater River ran through both towns.
Once the Northern Frontier Army broke through Heishui City, they could simply follow the Blackwater River south and march directly into Ganzhou City.
“Damn it, quickly, change clothes.”
Mi Qin Tiele kicked the woman on the bed off and yelled at the guards outside the door.
He had to return immediately to make arrangements and prepare for the Northern Frontier Army.
……
Inside Heishui City, the night was deep, and bonfires blazed, illuminating the entire Ci’en Ancient Temple.
This temple, with a history of three hundred years, had become a tragic place under the ravage of the Northern Frontier Iron Cavalry.
“Drag out all these baldasses. The young and strong will be incorporated into the Kuli Army to fight, and the old baldasses will be sent to the agricultural army to work.”
Deputy Chiliarch Wei Ba Jin rode his warhorse directly into the temple courtyard.
Wielding his cavalry saber, he directed the actions of the Northern Frontier Soldiers.
The soldiers smashed open door after door, driving out all the monks within, their shouts and screams echoing.
“What do you want to do?”
“How dare you behave atrociously under the Buddha?” said an angry young monk wearing a kasaya.
He took out his Zen staff and prepared to fight the Northern Frontier Soldiers.
“Haha?”
“Has the baldass gone crazy from chanting sutras?”
A young Squad Leader in front of him sneered, sped up his horse, and directly speared the young monk away.
According to the Great Protector’s orders, resisters will be killed without mercy.
Whether they were commoners, soldiers, or even baldasses, anyone who picked up a weapon was an enemy of the Northern Frontier Army.
“Stop~”
“You quickly stop.”
Seeing the young monk speared away, another middle-aged monk wearing a kasaya’s eyes widened with rage, his face contorted, and his eyes turned red.
“You killed Hui Ming?”
Looking at the old monk and the group of young monks behind him, Wei Ba Jin sneered, “So what if we killed him?”
“Is he your own son? The old baldass is even crying?”
Hearing Wei Ba Jin’s words, a flicker of unease flashed across the old monk’s face, but it was immediately drowned by hatred.
“Northern Frontier barbarians!”
The old monk’s voice pierced through the firelight as he roared ferociously, “How dare you defile this pure land of Buddhism!”
“All disciples, obey my command and help me vanquish these demons.”
But before he could finish speaking, Wei Ba Jin raised his hand and shot an arrow.
The arrow pierced the old monk’s throat, and blood gushed out. The old monk, leaning on his Zen staff, looked incredulous as he staggered and fell.
“You~ How dare you~”
He never expected the Northern Frontier barbarians to actually dare to kill him.
He was Master Jue Wu!
He held immense influence in Heishui City and throughout Buddhism in Western Xia.
Didn’t the Northern Frontier barbarians fear the anger of Buddhist believers by killing him? Weren’t they afraid of the retribution of the Buddha?
But Wei Ba Jin was not afraid at all.
This was because most of the senior officers in the Northern Frontier Army were Han People from the Nine Forts and Eighteen Villages of Jin Prefecture.
The Han People of the Northern Frontier had no religious beliefs; they only worshipped their ancestors.
Therefore, the army commanded by these Northern Frontier generals, who had no faith, naturally showed no hesitation when dealing with these religious temples.
Disobey, and you die!
“Don’t you baldasses always say that the Buddha protects you?”
“The blades of my Northern Frontier are already at your necks, why didn’t I see the Buddha come to save you?” Wei Ba Jin sneered.
With that, he rode his warhorse into the Great Hall of the temple, ‘Ci’en Hall’, and looked at the dazzling golden Buddha statue above. Its plump body and smiling demeanor made his mouth split to his ears.
“Being so fat, it must be full of the people’s blood and sweat.”
“Guards!”
Wei Ba Jin commanded coldly, “Melt this Buddha statue for me.”
Although it wasn’t a pure gold statue, even if it was pure copper plated with gold, it would be worth a lot of money.
The common people of Heishui City were starving, yet the temple yielded a considerable amount of gold and silver treasures.
It could be used to cover the Northern Frontier Army’s expenses.
Just as the soldiers were about to move the statue, a soldier rushed in from outside the hall.
“Deputy Chiliarch, we found a cellar in the back courtyard.”
“Upon opening it, we discovered over thirty women imprisoned inside.”
“Through interrogation of the monks in the temple, they admitted that they had kidnapped those women through various means for their own pleasure.”
Hearing this, Wei Ba Jin’s expression turned cold, and he sneered, “These baldasses have quite peculiar tastes.”
He then turned to look at the Golden Buddha statue in front of him, on which hung a plaque with the words ‘Compassion for All Beings’ written in gold lacquer.
Wei Ba Jin felt a surge of irony.
Although the Northern Frontier Army was not exactly a good bunch and had engaged in looting and killing, they at least did so openly.
Unlike these baldasses, who preached righteousness and compassion but engaged in despicable acts behind closed doors.
“Compassion for All Beings?”
“Where is your compassion?”
Wei Ba Jin said coldly to the Golden Buddha statue, spat on the ground, and turned to leave.
He would first go to see the condition of the imprisoned women and then report truthfully to his superior.
As for how the monks of Ci’en Temple would be dealt with, that would depend on the Great Protector’s decision.
The moment he turned, the golden Buddha statue, half a zhang tall, crashed to the ground.
……
Two days later, the situation in Heishui City had completely stabilized.
Li Xiao was preparing for the next phase of military operations.
The dawn pierced the gray curtain of the Gobi Desert, and the golden Sun and Moon Battle Flag fluttered in the wind and sand.
Tens of thousands of cavalry flowed like a golden torrent across the sand dunes, departing from Heishui City. Following the course of the Blackwater River south, they marched towards Ganzhou and Suzhou in the Hexi Corridor.
The iron cavalry thundered, and the clash of weapons echoed, shaking the very land.
Li Xiao, clad in dark gold cotton armor, rode on his warhorse, commanding the army to advance south.
On the other side of Heishui City, over ten thousand captured common people were gathered.
More than four thousand men were separated from the old, weak, women, and children, standing on opposite sides.
Surrounding them were countless Sixth Garrison soldiers in white cotton armor with red trim, mounted on horseback, holding spears and bows, guarding these unarmed common people.
In front of these common people, hundreds of men, bound hand and foot, knelt on the ground in a posture resembling an execution.
Among them were many monks, as well as many Tangut nobles, officials, and generals.
According to Li Xiao’s orders, these individuals would be executed publicly.
“Kill!”
At Li Donghe’s command, a chiliarch’s cavalry unit charged forward.
They charged towards these officials and monks.
Their spears pierced directly through the chests of these Tanguts, and the immense impact sent many flying.
The Gobi ground underfoot soon turned into a muddy blood swamp, with screams, wails, and pleas merging into one.
After the cavalry had passed, only piles of corpses and minced meat remained, resembling hell on earth.
The gruesome scene caused the common people on the sides to tremble, closing their eyes in terror.
“These people were the officials, generals, and monks of Heishui City, who ordinarily acted tyrannically and oppressed the good…”
“Today, my Northern Frontier Army has avenged you~”
Li Donghe shouted loudly to the common people of Heishui City, essentially brainwashing them. The effectiveness of this was yet to be seen.
Finally, he looked at the men and shouted, “Warriors of Heishui City, you will become our Kuli warriors of the Northern Frontier.”
“Take up your sabers and spears, and follow my Northern Frontier Army south.”
“Kill enemies and earn merit, so your families can live better lives, and your children can become outstanding individuals in the future…”
Under Li Donghe’s mix of threats and inducements, the four thousand young and strong men from Heishui City were compelled to pick up weapons and embark on the southern campaign.
The weapons were readily available, second-hand goods from the Heishui City garrison.
They were just ordinary sabers, spears, bows, and arrows; the Northern Frontier Army would not provide them with superior weaponry.
The warhorses were also of inferior quality, only suitable for travel.
All glory and power would have to be earned by their own hands.
