Tang Dynasty, my wife Wu Zetian

Chapter 468 Chang'an International Students

After crossing the Yingsuo River and traveling west for another two days, the familiar Rehe Oasis came into view.

Rehe was once the site of Helu's royal court. Now, returning to this homeland, Helu's eyes couldn't help but redden slightly.

Bili Du laughed and said, "Helu Khan, now that you've finally gained your freedom, why act like a woman?"

He Lu sighed, “It’s not that I’m nostalgic for my homeland or reminiscing about the past; it’s just that I never imagined I would be able to return here in my lifetime.”

Bili Du said, "I never thought I would regain my freedom. It's all thanks to Helu Khan."

Just as Lu Dongzan had predicted, Helu was indeed released by the Tang emperor and petitioned Li Zhi to allow Bilidu to regain his freedom as well.

After leaving Chang'an, the two, under the protection of a Tang army, headed west to Suyab to meet Pei Xingjian and ask him to arrange the takeover of the Turkic tribes.

He Lu had been appointed as the Deputy Protector-General of Anxi by Emperor Gaozong (Li Zhi), and he was in charge of the five tribes of the Turkic Nushibi.

However, after ten years away, if he were to return directly to the Turkic tribes, who would still recognize him as Khan?

Upon arriving in Suyab, Pei Xingjian would invite the chieftains of the various Turkic tribes to meet with Helu and inform them of the court's decision.

He Lu laughed and said, "There's no need for such talk between us. But given my current situation, which isn't optimistic either, I hope Brother Bi Li can lend me a hand!"

Bilidu said solemnly, "My life already belongs to Heluhan. Please give me any orders."

He Lu said in a deep voice, "If I return to the tribe and want to regain the support of my people, the support of the Tang Dynasty alone is far from enough. It would be best to have some money to win over those old followers."

Bi Lidu's eyes flickered slightly, and he understood the implied meaning from the mysterious song.

“I understand. I will take Helu Khan to the Tianshan Mountains and retrieve all the treasures buried there, and present them to Helu Khan!”

Helu was overjoyed, patted him on the shoulder, and said, "Good, once I regain power, I will definitely repay Bili Khan, but..."

At this point, he turned around and glanced at the Tang army following behind him.

“These Tang soldiers were ordered to escort me to the Anxi Protectorate. They may not be without the intention of monitoring me. I’m afraid they won’t change their route and head to the Tianshan Mountains.”

Both men spoke Turkic, so they were not worried that the Tang soldiers behind them would understand them.

"What does Helu Khan mean?" Bilidu asked.

He Lu said solemnly, "It seems that I can only rely on Bili Khan to retrieve the treasure on his own and then come to Suyab to meet me!"

Bili Du laughed, "Aren't you afraid that I'll get the treasure and run away?"

Helu smiled and said, "I have known Bilihan for many years and I know him well. He is a true man of the grasslands, a man of his word, and he would never break his promise."

He then changed the subject: "Furthermore, once I take control of the Turkic tribe, I will also help Bili Khan regain control of the Uyghur tribe. At that time, you and I will become sworn brothers, and our two tribes will be brothers forever, helping and supporting each other. What does Bili Khan think?"

Hikari said, "That is also what I wish for!"

He Lu laughed and said, "It's a pity there's no wine here, otherwise we could have become sworn brothers right here, which would have been quite enjoyable."

Hirudo said, "I'll come back to meet you after I retrieve the treasure!"

He Lu said, "Then I'll be waiting for you, brother!"

The main target of the Tang army's escort was Helu; Bili Du was just an extra.

So when He Lu asked Bi Lidu to do something for him, the Tang army captain escorting him did not object.

Thus, Bilidu separated from Helu's brigade and headed north towards the Tianshan Mountains.

After galloping to a high slope, he reined in his horse and turned around, watching as the Helu Brigade disappeared into the vast yellow dirt road, and couldn't help but sigh.

"Helu Khan, it's not that I'm more treacherous than Li Du, but this freedom was hard-won, and I don't want to die with you."

After saying this, he pulled on the reins and spurred his horse to gallop towards the Tianshan Mountains.

We rode swiftly along the way, encountering some grassland tribes along the way.

Bili Du went to inquire and learned that they were all the original Tiele tribes.

Without the nine Tiele tribes vying for water and pasture, these small tribes flourished. They no longer rejected the Tang Dynasty, and some even considered themselves Tang people.

Bili Du sneered inwardly, knowing that these people were the weakest of the Tiele people, who had already been tamed by the Tang people.

The truly principled Tiele people would rather go far away than submit to the Tang people!

When he arrived at a small tribe called Baishan, he found the tribe very lively. A group of herders were forming a caravan, seemingly preparing to travel far and trade with people.

There were more than a dozen oxcarts, loaded with cow and sheep hides, felt clothing, horns, and jewels for the trade. Many children were running around the carts, playing and frolicking.

During the Wei and Jin dynasties, the Tiele people were also known as the Gaoche people.

This is because they are skilled at building vehicles, which have large wheels and numerous spokes, allowing them to carry a large amount of goods.

Bi Lidu was very curious.

When he ruled the Tiele people, most of their goods could only be sold to him, the chieftain, who would then send people to unify the trade with the Tang and Turkic peoples.

Only the Tiele people, who lived in the border region, would cross the border into the Tang territory to sell furs and other goods.

Whom were these people planning to sell to as a caravan?
Bilidu only watched from afar and did not enter the tribe, in order to prevent any accidents.

Only after the caravan left the tribe did he ride closer and speak to the leader in the Tiele language.

"Hey, where are you going to sell this batch of goods?"

The leader of the Tiele people asked, "Who are you, and why are you asking these questions?"

Bi Lidu said, "I'm going to Tianshan. If we're going the same way, I'd like to travel with you."

After saying this, he saw a bird flying across the sky. He took out his bow and arrow from behind him, aimed at the sky, and shot an arrow. The bird fell to the ground.

On the grasslands, the strong are most respected. Seeing his amazing horsemanship and archery, the Tiele people all looked at him with admiration. The leader of the Tiele people patted his chest and said, "Respected warrior, we are preparing to go to Tianshan Town to sell our goods to the Tang people there."

Hikari Poison asked in surprise, "Tianshan Town?"

"You don't know Tianshan Town?" The Tiele man looked suspicious again.

Bi Lidu said in a deep voice, "I've been living in Chang'an recently and just returned from there."

Everyone immediately showed envy.

After the Tang Dynasty came to direct rule over the northern desert, many Tang merchants came to the northern desert and established trading companies and ranches. After exchanges between the two sides, the herders also heard about the prosperity of the Central Plains.

Some tribal nobles began sending their children to Chang'an to learn the advanced etiquette and knowledge of the Tang Dynasty.

Those who return from their studies in Chang'an will not only be envied by others, but will also be favored by the Yanran Protectorate, making it easy for them to enter the Tang Dynasty's officialdom and have a promising future!
The leader of the Tiele people, upon hearing that Bili Du had been to Chang'an, showed even greater respect, assuming that he was a nobleman from some tribe who had returned from studying in Chang'an, and enthusiastically answered his questions.

"Tianshan Town was a cattle and horse market built by the Tang people at the foot of Tianshan Mountain. People could bring their furs to the market to trade with Tang merchants and exchange them for Tang coins. With Tang coins, even if the winter was very cold and many livestock froze to death, people could still go to the market to buy food and survive the winter."

Bili Du asked, "Can you trade directly with Tang Dynasty merchants?"

A young Tiele man exclaimed, "That's right! The Uyghur tribe that used to rule us would only buy our furs at low prices and sell them to the Tang people at high prices, swallowing up all the profits. Humph, if the Tang merchants hadn't told us, we wouldn't have known!"

Bili Du coldly said, "Don't forget, your small tribes are only able to survive because of the protection of the Uyghur tribe, otherwise you would have been swallowed up long ago!"

The young Tiele man glared and said, "But the Yanran Protectorate also protects us and will not forcibly take away our furs!"

The leading Tiele man asked curiously, "Warrior, aren't you from Chang'an? Why are you speaking for the Uyghurs?"

Bilidu was silent for a moment, then said, "My tribe was once protected by the Uyghur tribe."

The leading Tiele man nodded and said in a deep voice, "Then when you go to Tianshan Town, be careful what you say, especially don't say anything nice about the Uyghurs."

Bili Du sneered, "What, are the Tang people so afraid of the Uyghurs?"

The leading Tiele man frowned and said, "What kind of talk is that? What does this have to do with the Tang people? It's Sijie, the leader of the Sijie tribe, who hates the Uyghur chieftain Bilidu very much. He won't let anyone who dares to say a good word about the Uyghurs off easily!"

Bi Lidu's expression changed drastically.

He was defeated by Xue Rengui because the Sijie tribe betrayed him and told Xue Rengui about the collusion between the Uyghurs and the Karluks.

Xue Rengui first conquered the east and then the west, subduing the Karluk tribe before finally defeating the Nine Clans tribe.

Over the years, when he looked back on that battle, the person he hated most was Si Jie.

If he hadn't tipped them off, the outcome of the Tang army's attack from both the Tiele Nine Tribes and the Karluks would have been uncertain!
"Thinking Department is doing quite well now, isn't it?" Higurashi Poison gritted his teeth and said.

The leader of the Tiele people said, "Of course, he was the first to submit to the Tang Dynasty. The Tang people value rewarding merit, so they allocated a prefecture and made Sijie the governor. In recent years, his tribe has grown the fastest and now has tens of thousands of people."

The young Tiele man suddenly said, "I heard that Sijie sent all five of his sons to Chang'an. Don't you know them?"

Bilidu glanced at him and said, "Do you know how big Chang'an is? Do you think that just because it's like your tribe, everyone living in Chang'an knows each other?"

The young Tiele man blushed slightly and fell silent, but in his heart he was thinking, "So what if I'm rich? I'll go to Chang'an someday!"

The Tiele caravan headed towards Tianshan Town, and after two days of travel, they were not far from Tianshan.

The Tianshan Mountains stretch for five thousand miles from east to west, with snow-capped peaks all year round. The terrain is complex, featuring not only snow-capped mountains and ice peaks, forests and meadows, but also rivers, lakes, and red-layered canyons, which the Tiele people regarded as sacred mountains.

After separating from the caravan, Bilidu made his way to a small mountain shaped like a horse's head on the south side of the Tianshan Mountains. He climbed halfway up the mountain and found the treasure he had buried in a cave.

This is a cave that he discovered by chance while hunting years ago. The cave seems to be connected to underground fire, and it is warm all year round, which is quite mysterious.

Before the decisive battle between Bilidu and the Tang army, he buried some of his valuables in the cave and killed all his trusted confidants who knew its secret.

Therefore, even after so much time has passed, the valuables inside the cave remain intact.

There were two boxes of jewels in total, which Bilidu couldn't take all at once. He put some in a sheep bag and prepared to leave, planning to find an opportunity to take all the treasures with him when he returned to the tribe.

Bilidu was very cautious and did not go down the mountain immediately. He hunted a wild goat on the mountain, ate it, and then took a nap.

He didn't descend the mountain until late at night, and hurried away from Tianshan via the night road.

Bilidu followed the Tianshan Mountains northward, searching for his tribe.

After traveling west for five days, they crossed a large river and finally left the Yanran Protectorate and entered the territory of the Anxi Protectorate.

The Anxi Protectorate covers a vast area, and since he was walking along the north side, he did not see any Tang people.

In many places, there are some unique little tribes living in remote areas. They are not even aware that they live under the rule of the Tang Dynasty and lead peaceful lives.

It is evident that although the Tang dynasty divided up such a large territory, it was actually unable to govern it effectively.

Among these small tribes, he finally encountered some former Uyghur tribesmen who had fled here and stayed for various reasons.

Most of these people have become accustomed to their new lives and are no longer willing to follow Bilidu.

Even chestnut poison wouldn't be too much to ask.

A small number of people still respect him and are willing to give up their current comfortable lives to continue following their former leader.

From them, Bilidu finally learned of the existence of the Khazars Khanate.

As Lu Dongzan speculated, most of the Uyghur tribes that fled north had already been incorporated into the Khazar Khanate.

If you continue westward and ride at full speed, you can reach the Khazars Khanate in about half a month.

However, there's one more thing Bili Du hasn't done.

He turned south, entered Kangguo, bought a three-colored fruit, wrote a letter, and had a subordinate deliver the items to Tibet, to be given to Qinling.

After fulfilling the agreement, Bilidu, accompanied by his entourage, headed towards the Khazars Khanate.

(End of this chapter)