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Pooh!
At this point Luo spat on the ground to express his disdain.
Gao Gu frowned as he looked at the lifelike portrait on the parchment. Except for one person whose face was blurred, he just happened to recognize the rest of the people, a man and a woman.
Hu Xiuwu and Chen Duo.
Chapter 127: Fake Knife to Kill the Tiger
Why were Hu Xiuwu and Chen Duo targeted by the Jingjue Kingdom?
Gao Gu had also observed Hu Xiuwu and Chen Duo's performance along the way. Judging from their performance, it was indeed their first time in the Western Regions. Gao Gu was still somewhat confident in his eyesight and observation skills.
But why is the Jingjue Kingdom wanted for two people who have never been to the Western Regions?
My eldest brother once said that the Queen of Jingjue had a certain ability to predict the future. Could it be that the Queen of Jingjue predicted something?
Gao Gu's inner surprise and shock were as turbulent as the ocean currents in the deep sea, but his face remained as calm as the sea surface. After reading it, he closed the portrait again to prevent Gao Lu from seeing it. He was still young and not shrewd enough, so it would be easy for him to reveal his flaws.
Although Ze Luo looks like a rough man, he is a thoughtful person with a heart full of roses.
If Zhe Luo was really just a reckless man who only believed in strength, he would not have realized the importance of this strategy to Kucha when Gao Gu offered him advice.
If someone has an inherent prejudice against him because of his appearance, then they have really fallen into his trap.
Gao Gu said to Gao Lu, "You go out first. The king and I have something to discuss."
Gao Lu accepted the order: "Yes!"
Then he bowed and said goodbye to Ze Luo, and turned and left.
Ze Luo was not angry about Gao Lu not going to him. The Western Regions had not yet established a system of monarchs and subjects. The current Western Regions were more like a Western feudal system.
My men's men are not my men.
It was for this reason that Ze Luo spared no effort to promote the official system of the Central Plains brought by Gao Gu in order to strengthen the power of the central government of Kucha.
Ze Luo said disapprovingly: "This is your nephew, sage. There is nothing you cannot say to him."
Gao Gu's face turned serious. "Your Majesty, there is a Confucian master in the Central Plains who once said: If the ruler is not discreet, he will lose his ministers; if the ministers are not discreet, they will lose their lives; if the plans are not discreet, harm will be done."
Ze Luo actually didn't understand what Gao Gu said, what Confucianism, what else. He only learned the language of the Central Plains, but didn't understand the culture of the Central Plains.
Ze Luo still praised: "The wise man is right, you are indeed cautious."
Gao Gu handed the portrait back to Ze Luo and said, "Your Majesty, have the people of Jingjue ever told me why they want to arrest the person pictured here?"
He casually took the portrait back, and said in a playful tone:
"Hey, I heard it was an oracle from the gods that the cousin of the Queen of Jingjue believed in, telling her to find these two people, so Wuchan Najiahai sent messengers to order the countries in the Western Regions."
As an alien, Ze Luo never believed in the existence of the snake god worshipped by the Jingjue Kingdom. If this was true, then the Thirty-Six Kingdoms in the Western Regions would not have existed and would have been conquered by the Jingjue Kingdom long ago.
However, he was still very wary and jealous of the Jingjue Kingdom's ability to create mutants. It was also because of the existence of this secret technique that he did not use force to resist the rule of the Queen of Jingjue.
"As for the blurry person at the end, he seems to be an assassin. It is said that the assassin managed to sneak in front of the Queen of Jingjue under the heavy protection of the Jingjue aliens."
"Unfortunately, he was not good enough in martial arts and failed to kill Uchananagahai with one strike."
When Ze Luo talked about this strange man, he kept clicking his tongue and felt it was a pity that the assassin failed to kill the Queen of Jingjue.
"I was just about to have the Grand Commandant send someone to post the wanted order in Yancheng, but I didn't expect you, the sage, to return to Qiuci. This is truly God's will."
The Grand Commandant was the Prime Minister of Kucha and the deputy of the King of Kucha.
Of course, saying this is flattering him. The Kingdom of Kucha was just a big county, and the Grand Commandant was at most equivalent to a county magistrate.
Gao Gu secretly said in his heart that this was a close call. Fortunately, he came to the Kucha Palace first when he arrived in Kucha, otherwise if someone saw Hu Xiuwu and Chen Duo entering and leaving the Gao Family Chamber of Commerce, he would be in a passive position.
Once King Zhe Luo of Kucha has a preconceived idea, whatever he says will be considered as an excuse.
Gao Gu closed his eyes and thought for a long time, then pretended to change his expression:
"Your Majesty, this is a plan to attack Guo by pretending to be its territory."
Ze Luo was a little confused: "What? Using a fake knife? Beating a tiger? Is this to show off force? The people of Central Plains really know how to have fun. I'll try it next time."
Gao Gu was a little confused. There was nothing he could do. Ze Luo had only barely learned Chinese and didn't know much about other things in the Central Plains.
"Your Majesty, you have misunderstood. What I meant was that the Jingjue Nation's purpose in coming here is probably not as simple as just looking for three people."
Ze Luo said, "Oh, sage, please tell me in detail."
Gao Gu bowed and said, "Your Majesty, think about it, what would happen if these three people could not be found?"
Ze Luo was a little confused: "Can't find it? So what? Will Uchanakahai cause me trouble for this? It will just mean that I will have to pay more tribute in the future."
Gao Gu shook his head: "That's only one aspect. If the king cannot find these three people, will the envoys of Jingjue Kingdom have to stay in Qiuci forever?"
"What if this assassin doesn't exist?"
"does not exist."
Ze Luo murmured something, with a look of understanding on his face. He was also a smart man, and Gao Gu just gave him a slight touch, and he understood the key.
The relationship between the Thirty-Six Kingdoms in the Western Regions and Jingjue was like the relationship between the various vassal states and Zhou during the Zhou Dynasty. Although they had to pay tribute to the King of Zhou every year, the final say was still held by the vassal states themselves.
But now there is an envoy sent by the suzerain country in the country, representing the will of the Queen of Jingjue. It would be disastrous if he were allowed to stay in Qiuci for a long time, if he took the opportunity to interfere in the internal affairs of Qiuci.
At that time, who will be the King of Kucha? Is Kucha the Kingdom of Kucha, or has it become Kucha County under the jurisdiction of the Kingdom of Jingjue?
The more Ze Luo thought about it, the uglier his expression became. He said in a heavy and murderous tone:
"Jing Jue has crossed the line. Aren't you afraid that she will force me to fight her to death?"
I'm really not afraid.
Jingjue had an army formed by foreigners, with a total of one thousand people. Even the cavalry formed by the Xiongnu with the whole country's strength was just a mixture of foreigners and ordinary people.
These one thousand men are all extraordinary people who can fight against a hundred enemies at once. In the era of cold weapons, they can be regarded as strategic weapons that can decide the outcome of a battle.
The army of Kucha itself had no more than a thousand people, and with the addition of the extraordinary King of Kucha, an army of this size was already considered a strong army in the Western Regions.
But such a force was no match for Jingjue. Relying on the Ghost Cave, Jingjue had already broken the balance of power in the Western Regions.
With the strength of just one country, it can compete with the other thirty-six countries.
After thinking about it, Ze Luo sighed helplessly, but then looked at Gao Gu expectantly:
"I wonder if the wise man has any good advice?"
Gao Gu looked a little embarrassed: "I just heard about this, and there is nothing I can do for the time being."
"Alas, he must be strong."
Hearing that Gao Gu didn't have any good ideas, Ze Luo lost interest and waved his hand to Gao Gu and said:
"That's right. The sage has just arrived in Kucha and I have been dragging him to discuss state affairs. I am afraid he must be very tired. Why don't you rest in the palace?"
Gao Gu refused: "Your Majesty, etiquette cannot be abolished. I am a foreign minister and cannot live in the palace. It will disrupt the order."
"There are too many things to be particular about in the Central Plains. In this case, I will send someone to send the sage back home."
Gao deliberately said meaningfully: "No need, sage, you should send these people to take care of the envoys of Jingjue."
When he heard Gao Gu mention Jingjue, Ze Luo's face darkened. After listening to his meaningful words, he suddenly realized:
"Yes, yes, if the sage hadn't mentioned it, I would have forgotten that the envoy of Jingjue has come. I have to entertain him well. How can I let him be without attendants?"
After saying that, the two looked at each other and smiled.
After Gao Gu left, the servants in the palace of Kucha reported to Ze Luo that it was the Grand Commandant who came to see the king.
He asked the servant to bring the Grand Commandant over, and Zeluoke was not as polite to him as he was to Gao Gu.
Ze Luo said coldly: "Why are you here?"
Grand Commandant Xiang Ze Luo said, "Your Majesty, the Gumo caravan wants to stay in Yancheng for a while."
As Qiuci was an important transportation hub in the Western Regions, all the countries in the Western Regions were accustomed to buying and selling goods in Qiuci to replenish their own needs.
Ze Luo frowned: "They haven't left yet? Prince Gu Mo is still in Yancheng? I thought they had left a long time ago."
The Grand Commandant said, "Yes, Prince Gumo seems to be ill again. The princess of Prince Gumo has been going to the market to collect herbs to treat Prince Gumo's illness recently, so Gumo's team has not left."
Ze Luo curled his lips and said, "Ordinary people's bodies are really poor. Never mind. This is just a small matter. It's their business when they want to leave."
Before he could even open his mouth, Ze Luo said to him with a murderous look in his eyes:
"Send more people to 'serve' the Jingjue envoy."
Ze Luo said word by word:
"Remember, have them stay by the side of the Jingjue envoy at all times. I want to know if he drinks even a sip of water in Qiuci!"
At this moment, Ze Luo finally showed the aura of a hero who dominated the Western Regions.
The Grand Commandant understood the seriousness of the matter and agreed solemnly.
After the Grand Commandant left, Ze Luo returned to his own bedroom. Halfway through his journey, he suddenly stopped and slapped his forehead:
"Oops, I forgot to ask the Sage if I still want to post that portrait."
He wanted to call Gao Gu back, but then he thought that Gao Gu might be exhausted today. It would be better to look for him tomorrow. He could also ask Gao Gu if he had any idea to fight against Jingjue.
······
On the other hand, after leaving the palace, Gao Lu couldn't help but talk to his uncle:
"I never thought the King of Kucha could speak Chinese so well."
But Gao Gu just kept walking and ignored him. Gao Gu thought that his performance today had disappointed his uncle, so he felt a little panicked and at a loss.
When they walked out of the Kucha Palace and passed through an empty alley, Gao Gu suddenly grabbed him when no one was around and said to Gao Lu in a serious tone:
"Go find your uncle Yue and tell him to bring Xiu Wu and his sister back immediately. Quickly!"
Gao Lu had never seen his uncle look so serious before. He understood the importance of the matter and immediately nodded and said:
"Here."
Chapter 128: Kucha Market
"Yancheng was built according to the terrain of Tianshan Mountain, with the court in front and the market in the back. The high ground at the foot of Tianshan Mountain is where the royal palace is located. Below is the residence of the nobles of Qiuci. Then there is the workshop we saw when we entered the city. Opposite the workshop is the residence of ordinary residents of Yancheng."