Chapter 300 Luo Zhongkan
Liu Ying looked at the noisy hall and got angry for the first time. It was a crucial occasion for me to bestow the Nine Gifts on my father-in-law, and you were so disrespectful to me?
He shouted loudly: "Keep quiet, if anyone makes noise again, drag them out directly."
Seeing that the usually good-tempered emperor was actually angry, the ministers slowly fell silent. Liu Ying nodded with some satisfaction, turned to look at Luo Xin, and said with a smile: "Father, please accept the Nine Gifts. The Han Dynasty still relies on you."
Luo Xin bowed slightly and said, "Your Majesty has bestowed upon me, and I dare not refuse. I will only devote all my energy and die in your service."
If he were an ordinary minister, he would certainly refuse. After all, these powers are too great and would easily arouse the emperor's fear, and the outcome would not be good.
But Luo Xin was not afraid. Even without mentioning the feelings between him and Liu Ying, from the perspective of interests alone, no one would be so blind as to come and sow discord while he was alive. After his death, he would return power to the emperor. A normal emperor would not have any need to settle accounts with him. If he really wanted to settle accounts with him, it would depend on who had the bigger fist, the emperor or the Luo family.
Chang'an City embarked on a new journey. Liu Ying became the core of power in the world, and Luo Xin became more prominent than when the empress dowager was in power. This made many people despair. It was unimaginable for a prime minister who had been in office for more than ten years to be so powerful.
…
Zhaocheng.
Luo Ling was meditating with his eyes closed. He was the oldest surviving member of the Luo family, but he looked the youngest.
Ji Zhao used medicine talismans to eliminate most of the side effects for him, and now it seems that he is the type who is naturally long-lived.
As he grew older, he became more and more interested in Zhuangzi's teachings, that kind of otherworldly learning, and spent a lot of time every day studying Taoist classics.
On this day, he was still meditating among the burning incense, when he suddenly heard footsteps. Luo Ling slowly opened his eyes and heard a cheerful voice outside the door saying, "Master, this is a letter from Master Zhongkan."
Luo Ling opened his eyes instantly and said in a deep voice, "Send it in."
His second brother, Luo Zhongkan.
I went to the Western Regions on his orders and have not returned until now. To such a remote place, letters are naturally intermittent. The longest delay was more than five years. It can even be said that it is a great achievement to be able to send the letters back.
Luo Ling opened the letter, which was filled with densely written small characters. The beginning was still: "Big brother, how are you? I am glad to see you in person. I have been in the Western Regions for twelve years and have passed through several kingdoms. I am heading to the westernmost kingdom. The kingdoms here are large and small, and some even have less than 10,000 people.
The following is what I have seen and heard during these days, as well as Kan’s opinions on how to deal with the situation after the heavenly army arrived.
In recent years, people's homesickness has become more and more intense. This is a point that needs attention. I hope you will pay more attention to it. In three years at the least and five years at the most, we should be able to return.
It has been twenty years since we last met, and I miss you and my brothers so much."
…
Western Regions.
A city made of piled earth. Luo Zhongkan and his party who came from the Central Plains stayed here. Now the team is much larger than before. Over the past ten years, some people who came from the Central Plains have died, and some local people have joined in, and even children.
After all, it is impossible to ask a group of strong men to abstain from sex for more than ten years. That is inhumane.
It was another cool night. On the vast and empty land of the Western Regions, Luo Zhongkan looked at the bright moon and felt homesick again.
It's not just him, it's the same for everyone else who came from the Central Plains. The longer they're away from home, the more they miss it. It's difficult to do this kind of pioneering work.
Someone sighed and said, "Sir, when I was in Zhuxia, I felt that Luo Village and Zhaocheng were very far apart, and it would take more than a month to travel by car or boat.
But when we arrived in the Western Regions, we realized that both Luo Village and Zhaocheng were thousands of miles away, and it would take a year or half to get there.
Now, let alone returning to Zhaocheng and Luocun, even stepping into Longxi feels like returning home."
yes.
As long as I see the people of Zhuxia, hear the sounds of Zhuxia, and see the tall buildings, I feel like I'm back home.
Luo Zhongkan was thinking the same thing in his heart, but he said to comfort them: "My brothers, look at the full moon in the sky. King Su said there is only one full moon in the sky.
So even though we are thousands of miles away from our hometown, we and our people are looking at the same moon. One day, we will return to our homeland."
Everyone agreed. Luo Zhongkan looked at everyone who had fallen asleep and couldn't help but recall the scene when he had just set out from the Central Plains.
…
Fifteen years ago, west of Chang'an.
A convoy of hundreds of people was moving slowly. It was the team led by Luo Zhongkan, the second son of the Luo family, who was heading to the Western Regions to investigate the situation.
The whole team consists of 300 people, 100 of whom are brave warriors who have been strictly selected. It is not just a matter of martial arts. The most important thing is that they cannot have too many concerns and can be away from their homeland for a long time. Because even Luo Ling and Luo Zhongkan don’t know how long it will take to go to the Western Regions.
Then there are the various craftsmen within the Luo family, including astronomers, geographers, mathematicians and physicians, as well as powerful organizations like Luo Mo.
Luo Zhongkan is really a homebody. Even Luo Cun doesn't want to take a step out because it is too boring.
But after receiving a letter from Luo Ling, he immediately stepped out of Luo Village in high spirits to explore the unknown world. It was really interesting.
As the convoy completely left the territory of the Han Dynasty, it was filled with excitement and fear.
The Luo Mo disciple who was in charge of the team's manufacturing and repair came over and asked, "Master, are we heading to the legendary West Kunlun?"
In this westward journey, the number of Luo Mo disciples is second only to the brave warriors, with more than fifty of them. They are responsible for repairing vehicles and organizing various equipment, and they also have impressive martial arts skills. They are as important as doctors in the team. The performance of Mohist disciples is crucial to whether they can successfully reach the Western Regions.
Luo Zhongkan smiled and said, "Yes, the legendary West Kunlun is still dark now. King Su has paid attention to it, so we need to go there to explore."
No one knows what they will encounter, but these people are all die-hard fans of the Luo family and are among the people who have the deepest faith in Ji Zhao. As long as it is the order of the head of the Luo family, they will die without regrets.
In other words, after death, these people can follow Luo Ling, Luo Zhongkan and others into the Hall of Heroes.
Although there are only statues of special historical figures such as Luo and Xi Shi in Valhalla today, many years ago, after a generation of his direct descendants died in battle, portraits of his clansmen and Luo people who died in battle appeared on the base of his statue.
They followed their master to death during their lifetime, so when their master entered Valhalla, they would follow him.
When Luo's son opens his eyes and comes to the world again, these people will wake up as well. Of course, no one knows about this, not even the direct descendants of Luo's family. They only fight based on their worship and faith in Ji Zhao.
In fact, even many of the direct descendants of the Luo family were not sure whether they could serve the Su King. This was why Ji Zhao appeared in person many times to tell the Luo family members, "Don't be afraid of death. I stand at the end of death."
Luo Zhongkan followed the map the whole time. Even within the territory of Zhuxia, if he did not follow the map and climbed the mountains at random, it would be very likely that something bad would happen. After all, this was still a barbaric era, which was completely different from later generations.
Not to mention the Hexi region except for the territory of Zhuxia, where there are large areas of uninhabited areas. If they do not follow the points marked on the map, these 300 people will probably be killed by half before they reach the Western Regions.
In real history, opening up the Western Regions was an extremely difficult task, especially in the early days when everything was completely unknown about the Western Regions. Countless Han men shed blood and died from various natural disasters, lack of water and food.
What Ji Zhao remembered most clearly was that even though the Han Dynasty was already very familiar with the Western Regions, Emperor Wu of Han still suffered heavy losses when he conquered Dayuan. This shows how difficult it was to travel from the Central Plains to the Western Regions.
Luo Zhongkan only felt that the scenery along the way was very different from that in the Central Plains.
Especially since he came out of Luo Village, which is in the south of the world with picturesque scenery, and there was no sight of these vast wildernesses.
Luo Zhongkan said excitedly: "Legend has it that our Zhou people came from here and then went to the Central Plains to establish the Zhou Dynasty."
Zhou clan.
This is a term that few people mention, just like merchants, it has changed from the name of a tribe to a profession, but the Luo family themselves cannot forget it. This is their root. Just like the Luo family caters to the habit of some surnames merging, they still remember that they are the Luo family of the Ji surname and originated from the Ji Zhou Dynasty.
It was okay since I had just left Zhuxia territory. It was relatively peaceful. After all, the Huns had just suffered a severe blow and were now licking their wounds.
The biggest problem Luo Zhongkan and his men encountered was acclimatization. They still brought food and fodder with them, but they had to drink local water. Fortunately, Luo knew to drink boiled water, otherwise a large number of people would have collapsed.
Even so, many people still started to get sick. The warriors were fine, but the scholars, even though they had exercised, their physical fitness was still not enough, and their marching speed was suddenly slowed down. Fortunately, there were enough doctors accompanying them, and after half a month of discussion, the group was on the road again.
Because the entire journey was by carriage and horseback, with no walking, once health was restored, the pace of travel was relatively fast.
However, in order to maintain the combat effectiveness of the brave soldiers, Luo Zhongkan still maintained a relatively balanced marching speed.
Soon his caution was rewarded. Six hundred miles away from the exit pass, he encountered a group of horse thieves, perhaps from the surrounding tribes, who were entrenched here.
When they saw Luo Zhongkan and his convoy, they felt it was unfamiliar and wanted to rob them.
Luo Zhongkan gently twisted his neck, revealed a cold smile, and shouted: "Boys, prepare your swords!"
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(End of this chapter)
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