Chapter 55: Kucha Homeland
Outside Xiliuwu was the Rose Pavilion. When she passed by, Xue Xiyang was testing the pipa strings under the rose stand. Seeing her hurried and erratic steps, he immediately chased after her.
"County Lady, what's wrong?" When he got closer, he saw her slightly red eyes and confused eyes, and immediately asked.
Qiandeng turned his head away, not wanting others to see his collapse: "Nothing..."
"You said it was nothing, but your voice is hoarse. It makes me feel so sorry for you." Xue Xiyang said softly, "If the county lady has anything sad, maybe you can tell me. After all, I have no other request, I just hope that the county lady can always be like in my painting, without worries."
Qiandeng recalled the picture he had painted of herself dancing in Kucha clothing, and also recalled the words that Cui Fufeng and Ling Tianshui had blamed her for not being able to face the other tribes in the northwest in the future. She felt desolate and filled with endless sadness.
Seeing that she looked even more sad, Xue Xiyang pulled her to sit down at the Rose Pavilion, plucked the pipa in his hand, and asked, "County Lady, let me play a song for you to change your mood. How is Mantingfang?"
Qian Deng shook his head, his voice a little hoarse: "No, let me be alone and think about it."
"Then, let me sing a Kucha song for the county lady. She will definitely like it."
Kucha. The land of her ancestors, the hometown she had never set foot on.
She asked unconsciously, "Have you ever been to Kucha? What is it like there? I only know it from the stories told by my grandfather and father."
"So the county lady has never been to Qiuci? Then the county lady must set foot on the land of her ancestors to see it in the future. It is truly the most beautiful place in the world." Xue Xiyang recalled, his face full of longing and nostalgia. "It is on the other side of the boundless desert. The distant snow-capped mountains are continuous, undulating under the blue sky. The melted snow has irrigated a large oasis. That is the lush land of water and grass where the Qiuci people have settled for generations.
"Every spring and summer, cattle and sheep graze on meadows filled with flowers, and young men on horseback shuttle across the grasslands, flying back and forth. Sometimes, a hawk would fly high above the vast mountains and forests in the distance, a vibrant green. It would plunge headfirst into that sea of green, its cry echoing faintly among the mountains, but its trace would never be found again..."
Listening to his description of the scenery outside the Great Wall, Qian Deng was fascinated. The sadness in her heart was also relieved a lot. She subconsciously murmured: "I must go back to see it in my lifetime."
"The county lady's mood will surely change when she goes to such a broad and cheerful place. She will have many surprises." Xue Xiyang's voice was gentle and lingering, just like the feeling she longed for when she woke up in the middle of the night and couldn't fall asleep. He gently coaxed her and let her sink into the tenderness. "I heard a song in Qiuci. It's a song passed down by the people of Qiuci. It's about the county lady's grandfather, King Changhua."
As he spoke, he plucked the pipa strings with his plectrum, and immediately played a desolate tune that was very different from the one in the Central Plains.
The ancient and rich music flowed under his hands. He sang the songs of the exotic Kucha. Qiandeng, who had learned the Kucha language from his father and grandfather since childhood, could naturally understand the meaning.
The little song sung by the herdsmen had no carefully compiled perfect paragraphs, but only eight tones ranging from low and suppressed to vigorous and high, repeating the same two lines of lyrics:
The little prince who ran away from the snow-capped mountains is the descendant of Queen Guishan.
The King of Changhua who returned from Chang'an was the glory of the Tang Dynasty in Kucha.
These few simple words, when repeated with the touching melody, depict the life from the little prince to the King of Changhua, from the snow-capped mountains and deserts to the prosperous flowers of Chang'an, make Qiandeng seem to see the figure of his young grandfather riding his horse eastward along the vast snow-capped mountains on the boundless grassland.
That was Prince Changhua Bai Xiaode. His grandmother was Queen Guishan of Kucha, and he was the little prince of Kucha back then.
Among the Thirty-Six Kingdoms of the Western Regions, Kucha was a rich and beautiful nation. Situated on a major east-west transportation route, it boasted a thriving brocade weaving and smelting industry, and its warm climate nurtured the growth of wheat, hemp, and grapes in its oasis. Xuanzang, in his Great Tang Records on the Western Regions, noted that Kucha's music and dance were "uniquely superior among all the kingdoms in terms of orchestral music," featuring guzheng, pipa, bixiao, and xiao instruments, and whirling, wind-like movements.
But such a state inevitably became a center of power struggle. For millennia, Kucha was plagued by conflict, with Tubo, the Turks, the Uighurs, and the Tang Dynasty all vying for control. It wasn't until Queen Guishan led her people to surrender to the Tang Dynasty that the Tang established the Anxi Protectorate in Kucha. Despite several subsequent rises and falls, Kucha had long since become an integral part of the Tang Dynasty.
After Queen Guishan died, her son Baimobi succeeded her as King of Kucha. Soon he received news that the Anshi Rebellion had broken out in the Tang Dynasty.
At that time, the eldest prince Bai Xiaojie believed that the Tang Dynasty was in decline and the rebels were unstoppable, so Kucha should play both sides and watch the chaos; the second prince Bai Xiaoyi agreed and believed that the Tang Dynasty's power in the northwest had weakened, and Kucha could even take the opportunity to change its backers.
Only the little prince Bai Xiaode believed that the turmoil would not last long and that stability was what people wanted. He believed that he should do his utmost to help the Tang Dynasty and quell the chaos.
He said so and did so. As a teenager, he led the Kucha people who were loyal to the Tang Dynasty to resist the rebel army that attempted to attack during the chaos, and defended the Anxi Protectorate with the Tang army.
When the rebel army arrived in Kucha to punish him, his father and brothers, in order to protect themselves, lured him back to the palace, intending to capture him and punish him. The Anxi Protectorate finally fell and turned into a sea of fire.
It was his mother who risked her life to rescue him and sent him on the journey to the Central Plains, telling him that since he had chosen the path, he should follow his beliefs.
He rode away from his homeland, and when he looked back for the last time among the towering snow-capped mountains and the vast jungle, he saw his mother falling from the burning Kucha City.
He traveled thousands of miles to the Central Plains and became an insignificant soldier under Li Guangbi. Later, due to his bravery, he was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant General. He became famous for killing an enemy general in the midst of thousands of troops. After Li Guangbi became the Prince of Linhuai, he was appointed as the Jiedushi of Beiting.
He returned to his homeland of Kucha, where his father had already passed away and his elder brother, who had succeeded him as King of Kucha, was now under his command. He suppressed the Tubo in the south, defeated the rebels in the east, and commanded great power in the northwest, ultimately earning him the title of King of Changhua.
He never forgot his mother's words. Once he had chosen a path, he would follow his convictions until he died for it.
The little prince who ran away from the snow-capped mountains is the descendant of Queen Guishan.
The King of Changhua who returned from Chang'an was the glory of the Tang Dynasty in Kucha.
The queen who led her people back to the Tang Dynasty and ended the century-long chaos in Kucha, and the King Changhua who defended the Tang Dynasty and the stability of Kucha, will be immortal in the chanting and singing of the Kucha people.
Qiandeng's cheeks were warm and hot tears rolled down her cheeks, unable to be contained.
Xue Xiyang stopped playing, took out a handkerchief and handed it to her: "County Lady, I'm sorry, I made you even more sad."
Qian Deng buried his face in the pure white and soft silk, choking for a long time. After a long while, he choked out, "No, thank you very much. You helped me find... the direction I should go."
Going to the direction her father and grandfather risked their lives to run for and protect.
Xue Xiyang put down the pipa in his arms, stood up and walked to her side, gently raised his arms and touched the crying and trembling body.
He has enough experience and is very clear about every step he can take in every link.
For example, at this moment, he knew that he had reached a natural state. While comforting and caressing her, using a little bit of trickery was enough to bring him a big step closer to her - this method always worked when he faced other girls in the past.
He reached out his hand to help her tidy up the soft black hair that flowed down her shoulders, and then gently held her trembling hand to comfort her. He called her softly with the most beautiful voice in Chang'an: "County Princess..."
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