"..."

Wu Liang couldn't help but think of the way he used to scare Cao Ang and Zhou Feng when he just traveled through time. It was such a nostalgic memory.

To think that at that time he was just a slave serving as a pawn.

Now, less than a year later, he has become the first and only Zhonglang General in Cao's camp. This change in identity and status is comparable to a carp leaping over a dragon's gate.

However, King Shanshan's naughtiness finally aroused the dissatisfaction of everyone in the Hu army.

Although no one went beyond Wu Liang to scold him directly, the dissatisfaction on everyone's faces was palpable, making King Shanshan, who wanted to see how everyone reacted, felt a clear chill for a moment.

"Ahem..."

King Shanshan cleared his throat in embarrassment, and quickly continued, "...our ancestors suddenly noticed that the stone statues were trembling slightly, and they kept making slight noises, and along with these tremors and slight noises

, tiny cracks began to appear on those stone statues.”

"The people of our tribe were confused, and the ancestor of our tribe didn't know what was going on. However, thinking of the warning given by the winged people in the dream, the ancestor of our tribe did not dare to stay where he was to find out, and he hurriedly

Lead everyone to pack up and leave this ruins."

"When we walked out of the ruins, our ancestors and the people looked back and saw that these stone statues had come to life and were fighting indiscriminately in the ruins. Our ancestors and the people secretly rejoiced. If they had left later,

If you take one step, you may be involved, and you may not be able to leave even if you want to."

"After leaving here, our ancestor king and his people finally followed the guidance of the mysterious woman in her dream and came to a barren land with no grass growing. They followed the instructions and dug down. As expected, they only dug down about a mile.

A few feet deep, clear water began to flow out of the pit. Our ancestors took a sip and found that the water was sweet and delicious. It is indeed the rarest source of life in the desert."

"And the mud city you see now is built on this desert where wells can be dug."

Having said this, King Shanshan paused slightly because he saw a suspicious look on Wu Liang's face and his lips moved, as if he had something to say.

really.

"Your Majesty, I do not understand something."

Wu Liang saw that King Shanshan paused in a very appropriate manner, and understood what he meant, so he asked directly, "You said that Shanni City was originally a desert with no grass growing, but according to common sense, if the ground is ten feet deep

There are fresh water sources everywhere, so there shouldn't be any grass growing here, right? And I see that there are a lot of tamarisk and poplar trees planted in Zanni City now. If there was no grass growing here before, it shouldn't be possible to grow tamarisk and poplar trees, right?

?”

"exactly."

King Shanshan nodded, "This is exactly what our ancestors were puzzled about. Until now, there is still no reasonable explanation."

"However, the guidance of the mysterious woman in the dream was fulfilled at that time. Our ancestors no longer doubted that he was there. He immediately divided the clansmen into two groups. One group of people stayed on the spot to build houses and prepare to settle down, while the other group of people carried their troops with them.

Half of the accompanying supplies continued eastward to the legendary Han Dynasty in exchange for food and daily necessities needed by the tribe."

"Another group of people and horses went through hardships and crossed Bailongdui to Liangzhou. Unexpectedly, the ivory, jade and gold items that the tribesmen brought with them on their way eastward were very popular among the Han Dynasty and were very valuable. They easily exchanged them for a large amount of grain and cloth.

and livestock, and even unparalleled silks.”

"In addition, after the local businessmen in Liangzhou learned about our clan's situation and that we still had a batch of goods that we had not brought all, they actually expressed their willingness to send craftsmen to bring materials to build homes for us. As long as we

Willing to pay the corresponding price..."

"The tribe has just experienced the war, so naturally they don't dare to believe it easily, lest it attract wolves into the house."

"So the tribesmen did not agree easily, but privately hired several experienced craftsmen in Liangzhou to bring them back to help our tribesmen build a place to live."

"After these people came back, our ancestors were overjoyed after hearing what they saw and heard in Liangzhou. He had already seen the opportunities. After all, although those ivory, jade and gold items were also popular in the Western Regions,

It is a precious thing, but it cannot be exchanged for so many materials as in the Han Dynasty, so you can get unimaginable benefits with just a flip of your hand."

"Then the late king of our clan had a bold idea in his mind."

"While he ordered the tribesmen to speed up the construction of residences under the guidance of several craftsmen, he also ordered some tribesmen to carry the grain and cloth exchanged from Liangzhou to the Western Regions, and exchange them for ivory, jade and gold items at a lower price to be shipped back.

Then take these things to Liangzhou for trading, and in this way continue to accumulate wealth and earn materials for the people to live and work in peace and contentment."

"Finally, after several months, a small city for the tribesmen to live was built in this desert."

"At this time something else happened. A small river suddenly appeared in a low valley outside this small town. In just half a month, the water in the small river became more and more full, and soon a river surface was formed.

A large river dozens of feet wide, this is the Kongque River that now flows outside the city."

"However, in this desert that was originally barren, many reeds and white grass grew along the river bank. The tribesmen tried to plant crops and trees on the river bank and outside the city. These crops and trees were able to survive. It is simply incredible.

Something to imagine!”

"The fortune of the family is everlasting!"

"The late king of our clan suddenly remembered what the woman with wings in the dream said. This is the fate of our clan. They settled in this barren land. Now they have not only gained a steady stream of wealth through transactions, but even this barren land has no grass.

The desert has begun to become pleasant and livable, and all this was said by the woman with wings in the dream!"

"Later, our ancestors sent people to investigate the upper and lower reaches of the Kongque River. Only then did they discover that the Kongque River was actually a tributary that suddenly branched off due to the recent surge in the Tarim River water. In the lower reaches of the Kongque River, the river water had already poured in.

A rather impressive salty lake was formed in a huge depression..."

"All of this seems to be the will of the gods to bless our clan's everlasting prosperity!"

"And those people who gave our clan dreams and gave them wings have since been regarded as the ancestors by our clan's ancestors. They have painted murals based on their memories and paid tribute to them from generation to generation. They will never be forgotten."

"After that, as our people traveled to the Han Dynasty and the Western Regions to do business, more and more people saw the benefits and joined us. People from different places came to us with goods for trading, and then they

After returning with the goods from the trade, our clan gradually gained the ability to protect itself, and the city of Ganni became bigger and bigger, so we finally established a country, named after the Kharu script used by our clan at that time, "Kura Laina".

"

"When the Han merchants came here, they were not used to the pronunciation of the Luwen. Over time, 'Kuluo Laina' was simplified by the Han people into 'Loulan'. Even merchants in the Western Regions also used this name.

As for why it is now called 'Shan Shan Country', that is another matter. As Han people, you should know what is going on..."

At this point, King Shanshan sighed again for some reason, and added worriedly, "Unfortunately, in recent years, the water flow of the Kongque River has been decreasing year by year, and parts of the river bed have been exposed in many places. The huge river downstream

The water area of ​​the Aral Lake has also been reduced. I wonder if this is a bad omen."

"Salty Lake..."

Wu Liang knew that this salty lake should be Lop Nur in later generations, but King Shanshan always called it salty lake. This was another question that puzzled Wu Liang.

Because as far as Wu Liang knows, Lop Nur must have existed before the ancient Loulan Kingdom was established. At least it once existed. It is recorded in the "Book of Mountains and Seas" and it is called "Youze".

But by this generation of King Shanshan, or in other words after the establishment of the ancient Loulan Kingdom, the residents of Loulan Kingdom did not continue to use the names in the "Book of Mountains and Seas".

In Wu Liang's view, there must be some reasons unknown to the world.

And listening to King Shanshan's description, it seems that after his ancestors came here, this huge saltwater lake did not exist, nor did the Kongque River outside the city. It was not until they built the city of Shanshan that the Kongque River finally emerged from Tarim.

A branch of the river appeared, and the "Youze" that once appeared in "The Classic of Mountains and Seas" reappeared.

"In other words, before you came here to build the city, there was no Kongque River here at all, and the huge salty lake did not exist, is that right?"

Wu Liang specifically confirmed it.

"It is indeed recorded in the biography of our ancestors. It was only a few hundred years ago, so it should not be wrong."

King Shanshan nodded and said.

"Um……"

Wu Liang frowned in thought.

He thought of the "Lop Nur Civilization" discovered locally by archaeologists of later generations, which predates the "Loulan Civilization" by nearly two thousand years. No one in later generations can explain clearly how the "Ancient Loulan Country" disappeared, let alone how the "Lop Nur Civilization"

"How did it disappear...

The Tomb of the Sun that Wu Liang came to look for on this trip belonged to the "Lop Nur Civilization" that was earlier than the "Lop Nur Civilization".

so.

If Lop Nur had disappeared for a period of time before the ancient Loulan Kingdom was established, would this be directly related to the disappearance of the "Lop Nur Civilization", and would it also be the main reason for the disconnection between the "Lop Nur Civilization" and the "Lop Nur Civilization"?

the most important is.

As a time traveler, Wu Liang already knows the ending of the "Ancient Loulan Kingdom", that is, the "Shanshan Kingdom" in front of him.

About four hundred years from now, the "Ancient Loulan Country" will mysteriously disappear without any records. Except for the ruins and cultural relics discovered by later generations of archaeologists, it seems as if it has never been there...

in addition.

Wu Liang also noticed another subtle detail in King Shanshan's description.

When the winged woman who appeared in the dream of the late King of Loulan guided him to come here to build the city, she said: "...it can ensure the prosperity of the family for hundreds of years."

These words may not sound special to the ears of ordinary people, but to the ears of Wu Liang, who has received spoilers in advance, they are extremely unusual.

It was as if the woman had already understood the rise and fall of the "Ancient Loulan Country" at that time, and therefore gave such a prophecy.

So, how did she gain insight into this matter?

Could the disappearance of "Lop Nur Civilization" be related to this?

The more Wu Liang thought about it, the more horrified he became.

Who are this woman and the winged man who appeared with her in the dream of the late King of Loulan? Why did they entrust their dreams to the late King of Loulan? What method and power did they use to entrust their dreams? And is all this related to the dream of the late King of Loulan?

Is it related to the disappearing "Lop Nur Civilization"?

"Then later, did your ancestors return to the ruins where they had dreamed of the winged man to investigate?"
To be continued...