There is a proverb in the ancient desert: "There is a season when flowers bloom, and no one knows when horse thieves arrive."

In ancient times, there was a small country called Loulan in the Western Regions. It appeared about 12 years ago, 30 years ago, and its name disappeared from history in 77 BC. Including the existence of this small country of Loulan, it was only about fifty years ago, and it was more than two thousand years ago.

Emperor Wu sent Zhang Qian to the Western Regions not because of his curiosity or exploratory interest in unknown places, but because there was a great country called the Great Yuezhi on the other side of the unknown desert area. For many years, the Huns had united with this Great Yuezhi and threatened the Han Dynasty with powerful forces. Emperor Wu intended to use Zhang Qian to go to the Western Regions to attack the Huns. After more than 50 years since Emperor Gaozu, the Han Dynasty had married the princess to the Huns and the French one after another, gave gold, silver and wealth, and allowed them to trade, but the Huns still plundered the same.

At that time, all the emperors of China were troubled by the harassment of the Huns. The Huns were a nation that had been wandering in the north and always jumped between Siberia and Central Asia. They were fierce and fierce in nature and drove south to harass China's borders whenever they had the opportunity. Famine and natural disasters did not occur every year, but the war with the Huns was endless. In order to deal with the Huns, the Han Dynasty at that time had almost reached the point where the troops were exhausted. Among the prisoners captured by Emperor Wu when he first attacked the Huns, there was a Hu man. This man said: The Huns defeated the King of Yuezhi and took his head as a vessel for drinking. Although Yuezhi hated the Huns to the core, they only had to be in a state of inability to attack the Huns because they lacked the joint allies to attack the Huns. When the emperor heard about it, he intended to send envoys to the Dayuezhi to form an alliance with him to deal with the Huns. Emperor Wu then recruited candidates for the envoys to the Dayuezhi. At that time, Zhang Qian was the one who rushed to the expedition. Zhang Qian led more than a hundred people who had been slaves from Longxi County to enter Hudi. Thirteen years later, Zhang Qian returned to Han territory. Among the more than a hundred people who followed him, there was only one who returned to Han territory with Zhang Qian. On the way to the Dayuezhi, Zhang Qian became a prisoner of the Huns for a time, wasted more than ten years. Later, he took the opportunity to escape, crossed the desert, and arrived at the destination Dayuezhi, and finally completed the mission of the envoy. He was captured by the Huns again on his way back, but this time he was able to escape and return to his country due to civil strife of the Huns.

(Speak of the Huns: The Huns emerged during the Shang and Zhou dynasties and flourished in the Qin and Han dynasties. They were neighbors with the Qin and Han Empire, but they belonged to different civilizations and had completely different values. The Huns, who belonged to the nomadic civilization, advocated killing, looting, and free migration; the people of the Qin and Han Empire, who belonged to the farming civilization, advocated harmonious coexistence, relocated land, and regulated by law and moral etiquette. These are two civilizations with completely different value orientations. Once they become neighbors, they will inevitably collide, and the way of collision is war and fusion.

As a nomadic people on horseback, the Xiongnu were skilled in bowing and horses, brave and good at fighting. Men, women, young and old could fight on horseback and kill enemies. Almost all the people were soldiers. The mobility and flexibility of the Xiongnu army were the best in the world at that time. They came like the wind and went like lightning, which made people unable to defend themselves. Therefore, in the early contests, the Central Plains army was always on the defensive. In order to prevent the harassment of the Xiongnu, Qin, Zhao, Yan and other countries in the Warring States Period built the Great Wall in the area bordering the Xiongnu to resist the attacks of the Xiongnu. After Qin Shihuang unified China, although Meng Tian sent "more than 700 miles of the Xiongnu, the Hu people did not dare to go south and shed horses, and the soldiers did not dare to bend their bows to repay their grievances", given the flexible and maneuverable combat capabilities of the Xiongnu, he still pursued a strategic defense strategy, connecting the Great Wall of the original Qin, Zhao, and Yan, and extended it to form the Great Wall of the Great Wall that started from Lintao in the west and ended in Liaodong in the east.

Just as Qin Shihuang, Meng Tian and others were deliberately trying to improve the strategic defense line, Maodun, an epoch-making hero in the history of the Huns, entered the historical perspective. As soon as Qin Shihuang passed away, the young Maodun shot and killed his father Toman Shanyu and became the leader of the Huns. Maodun took advantage of the chaos in the Central Plains at the end of the Qin Dynasty and the dispute between Chu and Han, to destroy the Donghu, surrender to Wusun, and to subdue Dingling. He completed a series of annexation operations in the desert, and established a huge Huns. The territory of the empire started from the Wuhuan in the Daxingan Mountains in the east, the western boundary of the Xianbei Mountains, to the vast areas of Central Asia in the west, to Siberia outside the Mongolian Plateau, and to the Great Wall in the south, and the land area of ​​the possession was no less than that of the previous Qin Dynasty and later Han Dynasty.

After the Wenjing reign of the Han Dynasty, the national strength flourished and reached an unprecedented level of wealth. The Huns finally met their nemesis - Emperor Wu of Han. During the reign of Emperor Wu of Han, the Huns experienced seven Shanyus, but none of them could cross the mountain of Emperor Wu of Han. Although they all tried to make the Huns reappear the glory of the Maodun era, they all ended in hatred.

Not only that, under the strong attack of Emperor Wu of Han, the once prosperous Xiongnu finally broke into division. The Southern Xiongnu married the Han Dynasty and surrendered to the Han Dynasty, gradually became a vassal state of the Han Dynasty. The Northern Xiongnu continued to occupy the northern part of the Mo Dynasty and confronted the Han Dynasty. The two sides fought continuously until the middle of the Eastern Han Dynasty. Under the military strikes of the Han Dynasty and years of continuous natural and man-made disasters, one of the Northern Xiongnu moved south, and the other was forced to withdraw from the northern part of the Mo Dynasty, passing through the Western Regions, and Central Asia migrated all the way to Europe.

Although the two Huns in the north and south embarked on different paths due to splitting, they did not forget that they were Maodun's people, and always dreamed of reviving the Huns and proving that they were "the pride of heaven". After the Han Dynasty, the Southern Huns were frightened by the military power of the Cao Wei regime, and stopped their strength and secretly accumulating strength. Finally, they broke out after the "Eight Kings Rebellion" of the Western Jin Dynasty. Under the banner of revenge for the Han Dynasty, they won the Central Plains and attacked Luoyang directly, directed the "Yongjia Rebellion", destroyed the Western Jin Dynasty, and turned the Central Plains into earth. This feat never happened during the Maodun period. From then on, the Central Plains entered the "Five Barbarians Invasion of China" period for nearly three hundred years...

After the Northern Huns moved westward, they quickly regained their confidence in the Maodun era. With the flexibility, mobility, good at fighting, they conquered all the way and were invincible. The Ostrogoths, Visigoths, Germans, and Franks, who were always called powerful in Europe, became their defeated generals. The arrival of the Huns changed the political landscape of Europe and eventually led to the collapse of the Western Roman Empire.

Unfortunately, as a country, the Xiongnu moved westward, was completely based on violent conquest and lacked cohesion and centripetal force. After the death of the outstanding leader Attila, the powerful Xiongnu kingdom fell apart in an instant. After a lot of struggle, its remnants finally disappeared into the long river of history.)

In the fifth year of Yuanshuo (124 BC), Zhang Qian entered the capital Chang'an and reported to Emperor Wu that he had inspected the customs, people's conditions, and products of the Western Regions.

At this time, Loulan appeared in Chinese history for the first time together with many countries in the desert areas such as Qiemo, Khotan, Shache, Yan, Luntai, Kucha, Shule. The Western Regions of Han Dynasty describes the Western Regions as follows: At the beginning of the Western Regions, there were only 36 countries, and then they split and reached more than fifty countries for a long time. All small countries are located west of the Xiongnu, south of Wusun, and across the Tianshan Mountains and Kunlun Mountains in the north and south, and flowing through the Tarim River in the center. More than 6,000 miles from east to west and more than 1,000 miles from north to south, Yumen and Yangguan are connected to the Han area in the east, and the Pamir Plateau is blocked in the west.

In short, the Western Regions are equivalent to the current Tarim Basin surrounded by three major mountains such as the Tianshan Mountains, Kunlun and Pamir Plateau. The Takuramakan Desert is formed in the center. The desert is surrounded by small towns of different ethnic groups with different languages, customs, skin colors, etc. Of course, this Western Regions has had transportation with China long before Emperor Wu, but they are all folk exchanges. There is formal negotiation between countries, starting from Emperor Wu.

As soon as you leave Yumen and Yangguan, it is an endless desert area. The one end of the desert is Lop Nur. At that time, the Han people called this lake the Puchang Sea or Salt Lake. It was several times larger than today's Lop Nur. Rather than saying that the lake is better called a large swamp full of salt in the inland sea. This place is more than 300 miles away from Yumen and Yangguan, and the Tarim River, the largest river in the Takuramakan Desert, flows into this lake.

The country closest to the Han area on the northwest shore of this lake is Loulan. The road from the Han area to the Western Regions is divided into two in Loulan. One is the road that walks south along the northern foot of the Kunlun Mountains, and the other is the one that walks west along the southern foot of the Tianshan Mountains. From Loulan, there are Qiemo, Khotan, Shache, Shule and other countries, and then lead to Yuezhi. If you walk north, you can pass through Gushi, Yan, Luntai, Kucha, and reach Wusun, Dayuan and other countries. Therefore, whether you walk south or north, Loulan is a must-pass place for China to lead to the Western Regions.

Regarding the Shanshan Kingdom, the Han Dynasty, the records of the Western Regions of the Han Dynasty are that the number of households, 470, 100, and 2912-strong soldiers are victorious. Based on this, we can imagine the general scale of the country Lop Nur. In any case, there is a small country with a population of 14,000 or 5,000 people on the northwest shore of Lop Nur. In terms of race, the Iranian people belong to the Arian race, have dark skin, low eyes, and absolute heights. Overall, it seems to have a clear and three-dimensional appearance, and live by farming, nomadic, and relying on Lop Nur's salt harvesting and fishery.

This country was first known to the world because of Zhang Qian's introduction, but this race lived here hundreds of years ago. Before establishing relations with the Han Dynasty, Loulan was always exposed to the threat of the Huns and suffered from its cruel plunder. Over the years, this small tribe with a population of 14,000 or 5,000 was finally able to rely on his subordinates to the Huns to survive on this beautiful Lop Nur Lakeshore with a vassal. Because of his small country, he was weak and could not resist the Huns; but every Loulan man was brave and good at fighting with his sword and spear. They were good at fighting in cavalry, and their unique tactics of driving cars and shooting bows were enough to make other tribes frightened.

In order to join forces with the Great Yuezhi, Emperor Wu sent Zhang Qian to a foreign land to join forces with the Great Yuezhi, but the Great Yuezhi never expressed his attitude. Therefore, in this sense, Emperor Wu was unable to get what he expected from Zhang Qian's report, but he got the greater gain that he had never expected from Zhang Qian's narrative, which was his new understanding of the countries in the Western Regions.

Take the strategic significance of the Xiongnu, the countries in the Western Regions are also of great value; they can be included in their rule and threatened the Xiongnu from the side, or they can use their troops to attack the Xiongnu. At the same time, these small countries in the desert produce various rare treasures, including jade, amber, gold, silver, and copper; they also produce salt, pepper, wine, cattle, horse, elephant, peacock, rhino and lion; in addition, they have abundant fruits and extremely prosperous grains. If they can trade with such small countries, they will save some of the Han Dynasty, which has been exhausted over the years due to the destruction of the Xiongnu. Especially the production of horses in Dayuan, which has a great attraction to Emperor Wu, who is suffering from short supply of horses.

Emperor Wu also learned about the names of several major countries on the other side of the Western Regions: Kangju, Anxi, and Physal Poison. He did not know where these countries were located, but only knew that they seemed to be huge countries, and their lands were full of various treasures. Among them, what attracted Emperor Wu the most was the hot country of Physal Poison (India), thousands of miles southeast of Daxia. I heard that it could go directly to the place without the threat of the Huns, and the country was willing to exchange the treasures produced with the Han territory's property. In Emperor Wu's impression, Physal Poison became a special country.

The Loulan people witnessed the Han army for the first time, but Zhang Qian went to the Western Regions for three missions to 121 BC. On that day, this small town on the side of Lop Nur around the city wall received an alarm from the Han people, and the whole city suddenly fell into chaos. Thousands of horses and camels outside the city were all rushed into the city, and the seven gates were closed firmly, and every important place on the city wall was fully armed and strong men were deployed.

Upon climbing the city wall, you can see that the Lop Nur lake surface is like a blue cloth, quietly spreading there. On weekdays, a breeze full of salt is enough to make the lake surging, but today it is so calm, which makes people feel uneasy and fearful. The lake surface is green at the shore, and the further it becomes deep blue. Looking over the city wall, the lake bank in the north is an endless dense forest area, most of which are poplar forests, and sometimes there are shrubs mixed with tahini and other trees, weaving striped cloth for nature. The lake bank in the south is full of reeds and reeds, and several rivers are covered with reeds and reeds. If you don’t get close, you can’t see it.

Speaking of rivers, there are many canals around the city. In Hubei, outside the dense forest area, the mesh seems to be intertwined with many canals on the land within several miles of radius. The canals and canals are spread out with pieces of arable land. Some canals are artificially dug, but most of them are brought into the Tarim River water, a mile away from the outside of the city, into the old river traces of the past and the dry river channels. Therefore, to be correct, although Loulan is located in the desert area, it is built along Lop Nur in a city in the fertile Tarim River Delta.

There is a road on the north bank of the Tarim River. Because the Tarim River conceals the shrubs on both sides, it looks like most of the rivers are hidden from the city walls, but there is a place that shows its chaotic blue posture. It turns out that a part of the Wanding River mutated a few years ago, creating a new river channel. Because there are no trees on both sides of the new river, it is barely exposed to the sky light, and the road along the river bank is stripped of its clothes.

This group of Han army drove north from Loulan to the north of the Takulamakan Desert, connecting with the most powerful Wusun among the northern countries. There, they further divided the army into several troops, heading towards Dayuan, Kangju, Dayuezhi, Daxia, Anxi, Zhenguan, Gantian, and rolling down the countries. When this news came to the ears of the King of Loulan, it was half a year later. Obviously, the Han army intended to avoid Loulan, which was within the sphere of influence of the Huns, and Gushi, who was also located at the entrance of the Western Regions and belonged to the Huns.

Starting from the second year, the Loulan people began to discover that the Han army's large and small troops had to come and go almost every month. Not only the Han army, but also dozens of Wusun people, each carrying dozens of horses and camels to the Han area along the Tarim River. At that time, the Daxia troops were carrying camels and horses every few days or every day, heading towards the east. Although this had nothing to do with the Loulan people, they clearly saw that the relationship between the Han Dynasty and the countries in the Western Regions was getting closer and closer.

Loulan believed that the Huns should not appear in this place again. It was reported that the Han army had defeated the Huns and surrendered the Huns' Hunxie King, the Loulan people could not help but believe that this was an unquestionable fact. According to past business travelers, the Han Dynasty had set up counties in Jiuquan and Dunhuang, one of the Xiongnu's base areas, and the Great Wall had also extended to Jiuquan; in the west of Dunhuang, several beacon towers and passes were built, and the corridor connecting the Han area and the Western Regions had been completed.
Chapter completed!