Chapter 48: The Sweating Blood Horse

  When Lukas came to Luoyang again, it was still the season when peonies were in full bloom. The smile on his face was even more radiant than the peony flowers. He tightly grasped Liu Ze's hand and didn't want to let go for a long time.

  "Mr. Lukas looks pleased with himself, seems like he made a pretty penny on this trip to Rome." Liu Ze also had a smile on his face, and it looked very genuine.

  "Thanks to your blessing, this trip is not in vain. I've been doing business for many years and have never encountered such a smooth deal. Two whole carts of porcelain, it's almost sold out in Rome! By the way, Mr. Liu, I found the golden chicken nest tree bark you wanted, and I brought back a whole cart full." He handed Liu Ze a sample of the tree bark.

  Liu Ze took it and looked at it, and indeed it was the bark of the Golden Chicken Tree. He was overjoyed, originally he had only mentioned it casually and didn't have much hope of finding it, but unexpectedly Lukas brought back such a huge harvest.

  "The bark of this tree is difficult to obtain, Mr. Lukacz is indeed a great man."

  "This matter is actually simple, with a generous reward, there will be brave men. This time I arrived in Egypt and put up a notice to buy this tree bark at a high price, and thousands of people responded, fearing no danger, going south to find the tree bark. In just over a month, I got a whole cart full. If Mr. Liu still wants it next year, I can bring two more carts for you."

  "It's enough, it's enough. This time, Mr. Lukas also spent a lot of money. Later, you can settle the account at Jian Zhuanggui's place."

  The golden chicken's bark is in hand, and Liu Ze naturally treats it as a treasure. As for how much Ruka spent, he doesn't ask anymore, even if Ruka exaggerates the expenses, it doesn't matter, just pay him directly. Unexpectedly, Ruka didn't want money.

  "This is a small matter, what's worth mentioning? Mr. Liu has already given me a great opportunity to make a fortune, I'm already grateful and tearful. This cart of tree bark is just a token of my appreciation."

  "In business, we talk about business; with friends, we maintain friendships. This batch of tree bark was also purchased by Mr. Lukacz at a high price. How can I take advantage of it for free? The money must be paid, and Mr. Lukacz should not decline. I am deeply grateful that Mr. Lukacz has gone to great lengths to deliver the tree bark."

  "Money is absolutely out of the question. If Mr. Liu feels uneasy about it, I have an impolite request to make."

  "Please go ahead, sir."

  "Can Mr. Liu entrust me with the porcelain to be transported to the Western Regions, and let me act as his sole agent for the sale of porcelain in Persia and Rome? As for the price, it will naturally be decided by Mr. Liu. What is your intention, Mr. Liu?"

  Liu Zexin said, "This old slippery head is indeed a veteran of the business world for decades. He never makes a loss-making deal. For a carload of tree bark, he wants to exchange it for the exclusive agency rights of ceramics in Western countries. A carload of tree bark may be valuable, but compared to the agency rights of ceramics, it's truly a small trick. However, even if he doesn't mention it, Liu Zexin would still give him this exclusive agency right to do, after all, it's a win-win deal." At this point, he readily said, "Alright, let's settle on that!"

  Lu Zhong was overjoyed and said: "Thank you, Mr. Liu, for your help. But I don't know how many more pieces of porcelain Mr. Liu has in his possession?"

  This year, the Shu brocade in Luoyang market is already unaffordable, and being able to get the exclusive agency right of Qinghua porcelain in the West is undoubtedly the best choice. Liu Zedao said: "As for the specific cooperation matters, Mr. Lukas might as well sit down and talk with Manager Jian. This matter is entirely his responsibility. Since Mr. Lukas is willing to be our agent, we need to sign an agreement after all, which is different from buying and selling on the spot."

  "Of course," Luka said hastily.

  Liu Ze suddenly thought of something, which was that last year he and Su Shuang Zhang Shi Ping had discussed the Dawan horse. Lu Kesi has been traveling through the Western Regions for many years, so he should be quite familiar with the situation there. Perhaps he knows about the Dawan country and the Dawan horse. Liu Ze asked: "Mr. Lu Kesi, you have traveled through the Western Regions for many years, I'm sure you are very familiar with the situation there. I have something to ask, please enlighten me."

  "Mr. Liu spoke solemnly, I don't know what matter you'd like to discuss, I'll make sure to understand and speak without reserve."

  "Thousands of miles away, there is a country called Dayuan, which was first known to the people during the Han Dynasty when Zhang Qian opened up the Western Regions. It is said that Dayuan has been destroyed by the Xiongnu, but whether this is true or not?"

  "It was nothing, ten years ago the Xiongnu army crossed Cong Ling, broke through Jushi City and annihilated the main force of the Dayuan army. Later, they broke through Guishan City and killed the king of Dayuan. The Dayuan country, along with Loulan, Yuezhi, Wusun and twenty-five other countries were all destroyed by the Xiongnu."

  Liu Zhe's records of the Western Regions and Xiongnu are limited to the Book of Han and the Later Book of Han, but all Chinese historical books have adopted the Spring and Autumn Annals style, with vague language, and the neighboring countries were only briefly mentioned. According to the Records of the Han Dynasty, Emperor Wu sought to obtain the blood-sweating horses during his reign but was unsuccessful, so he dispatched General Li Guangli twice to conquer Dayuan, killing its king, Mu Kuang. As a result, Dayuan surrendered to the Han Dynasty, but only as a tributary state, and it continued to exist as an independent country. The records end here, and there is no further information about the ultimate fate of Dayuan in historical materials. However, there have been rumors among the people that Dayuan was destroyed by the Xiongnu along with other countries like Wusun. Now, I have heard that Lukacz has confirmed this, which should be accurate.

  "The Xiongnu split into two branches, the Northern and Southern, and continued to attack. The Northern Xiongnu was forced by the Han Dynasty, the Southern Xiongnu, and various Xianbei tribes, its power gradually declining, and retreated westward from the north of the desert. How did it still have the strength to destroy the Western Regions?"

  "Liu did not know that the Xiongnu were exceptionally fierce, far surpassing ordinary tribes. Although the Northern Xiongnu had been continuously defeated by the Great Han in the south and north of the desert and was forced to migrate westward, their actual strength should not be underestimated. The brave warriors under his command were all seasoned veterans who had survived a hundred battles. In comparison, the countries of Dayuan, Wusun, and other Western Regions were relatively weak and inept at warfare, and with small territories and poor populations, they fought separately, how could they withstand the rolling iron cavalry of the Xiongnu?"

  "It is said that Dayuan produced excellent horses, known as 'sweat-blood horses', but it is unknown whether the Dayuan horse became extinct after the fall of Dayuan."

  "It is not yet known whether the sweat blood horse has become extinct, only that although Dayuan was destroyed as a country, its people were not exterminated. They were forced by the Xiongnu to migrate south to the area between the Kunlun Mountains and the Pamirs. However, since they had moved out of the range of the Silk Road, the specific situation of the Dayuan people is also unknown."

  Liu Ze listened and became interested, saying: "Mr. Lukacz, according to your words, the Dayuan people have not been exterminated by the Xiongnu, I suppose the Dayuan horses will not be extinct either."

  "It stands to reason that the Dawan horse is a domesticated animal of the Dawan people. As long as the Dawan people still exist, the Dawan horse will not become extinct easily. This time on the Western Regions road, I heard from chatting with merchants that there are many Xiongnu people heading south, also in search of the Sweat Blood Horse."

  Liu Ze secretly calculated that the Xiongnu were also searching for the sweat-blood horse, and they must be eager to find these good horses and use them to rise again. It seems that he had to take action quickly, and couldn't let this batch of sweat-blood horses fall into the hands of the Xiongnu people. Once these sweat-blood horses were obtained by the Xiongnu, with their ferocity combined with the divine speed of the sweat-blood horses, the advantage over the Xiongnu that had been maintained since Emperor Wu would cease to exist. Moreover, the Central Plains were about to fall into chaos, and at that time, the Xiongnu who had obtained the sweat-blood horse would be like a tiger with wings added, bringing unknown deep suffering to the Chinese nation.

  He chatted with Lukas for a few words, and then arranged for Jian Yong to negotiate the specific matters of cooperation between the two parties in detail. He came down to discuss the matter of going west with Guan Yu and Zhang Fei. Guan Yu and Zhang Fei listened to Liu Ze's words, highly agreeing, and Zhang Fei even rubbed his fists and urged Liu Ze to hurry up on the road.

  Liu Ze smiled and said, "Third brother, don't be impatient. The Western Kunlun is tens of thousands of miles away, how can we go without making some preparations? Moreover, this trip may encounter the fierce Xiongnu cavalry, relying solely on the strength of us three brothers is absolutely impossible."

  "What's wrong with that? My Eight Snake Spears have not been used properly yet, this time I can go to the Western Regions and meet those Xiongnu cavalry, it's not bad at all. At least I can kill them thoroughly. What do you think, Second Brother?" Zhang Fei was thrilled when he heard about fighting, how could he fall behind in such a good opportunity?

  Guan Yu smiled slightly and said, "My Green Dragon Crescent Blade has not yet tasted blood. I was just looking for a few Xiongnu people to sacrifice to the blade, so they can also understand that there are heroes in the Central Plains."

  "The two younger brothers are indeed bold and ambitious, this trip to the Western Regions will surely not be in vain. I have already sent a message to Guan Yu through a fast horse, letting Pan Feng and Wu Anguo lead three hundred cavalrymen disguised as merchants, set off immediately from Quyang, take the road to Aipingyang, and meet us at Fenglingdu. We also need to make some preparations here, and we will set out in three days." Liu Ze looked at Guan Yu and Zhang Fei's enthusiastic appearance and was also inspired, telling them the plan.

  Liu Ze personally selected over a dozen partners with better martial arts skills, withdrew 100,000 taels of gold from Jian Yong's place, and disguised themselves as a merchant team. However, the goods loaded in the vehicles were not merchandise, but all kinds of long and short weapons, bows, crossbows, arrows, helmets, and armor. These things were all hidden in the interlayer of the specially made vehicle bottom plate, with dried rations, clothing, tents, and other living materials piled on top.

  Liu Ze's low-key approach was to avoid trouble. Imagine a fully armed cavalry unit appearing near Guanluo, it would surely shock the imperial court and local officials, and might even be labeled as rebels and eliminated directly. So Liu Ze ordered Pan Feng and Wu An to lead 300 cavalrymen disguised as merchants, and not to go through Luoyang but to meet at Fenglingdu instead. Another reason was that taking the Ai Pingyang route would save one-third of the journey.

  Luoyang is ready, Liu Ze and Guan Zhang set off immediately, heading in the direction of Chang'an. Along the way, nothing happened, and three days later, Liu Ze and others arrived at Fenglingdu, where Liu Ze ordered the merchant group to rest at the inn by the ferry terminal, waiting for Pan Feng and Wu Anguo from Quyang.

  Three or four days later, Pan Feng and Wu Anguo hastily led their troops to catch up, completely following Liu Ze's orders, disguising themselves as a merchant team, which delayed them for several days. If they had advanced with light cavalry, they could have saved at least half the time.

  Pan Wu and two people reported to Liu Ze, according to Liu Ze's command, from the Tianzi team and Diziz team, they selected 100 and 200 people respectively, all of whom were young men aged 16 or 17, with high martial arts skills and pure horseback riding skills. They can be called the elite among the elites in Fenghuang Valley. Liu Ze was very satisfied, and the two armies merged into one place, continuing to disguise themselves as a merchant team, passing through Tongguan and Chang'an, and rushing straight to Liangzhou.

  The farther west you go, the more desolate it becomes. After passing through Lintao County and Tianshui, crossing the Yellow River at Jincheng Ferry, you enter the Hexi Corridor.