Chapter Three: Hexi Fort

Listening to the squabbling between Erhu and Sanbao, Li Xiao remained silent.

According to the memories of his predecessor, Li Dalong had always handled his two younger brothers in this manner. Only after they had finished their bickering would Li Dalong intervene to arbitrate, bringing them both into line. It was for this reason that Li Dalong commanded such great prestige among his brothers, and the other boys of similar age in the village all looked to him as their leader.

However, their conversation forced Li Xiao to confront a pressing reality.

"A rebellion by the Karluk tribe in Jinzhou?" Li Xiao murmured to himself while mounted on his horse.

He cast his gaze toward the north, the direction where the Karluks lived in clusters within Jinzhou—a region the Han people called the North Mountains. Many villages in Jinzhou had recently been summoned by the Governor’s Office, with the able-bodied men drafted into an army to suppress the Karluk uprising in those very mountains. Li Xiao’s father, Li Dahai, and his second uncle, Li Erjiang, were among the one hundred men from Hexi Fort who had marched north. It had been over half a month, and there was still no news.

"It is a pity that history books contain so little about Western Liao, and there is absolutely no information regarding this Karluk rebellion," Li Xiao thought with a sigh of regret.

A transmigrator was not omnipotent. Had it been a matter involving the Song, Jin, or even the Mongol Empire, Li Xiao might have known something. Yet, everything regarding Western Liao seemed to have been scrubbed clean from the historical record, leaving behind only fragments. Most events could only be inferred through peripheral accounts.

"Still, the Karluks have launched many rebellions against Western Liao, and not one has ever succeeded. The outcome this time will undoubtedly be the same: suppression," Li Xiao reasoned.

Speaking of the Karluks, one must mention the Tiele of old. When the Turkic Khaganate dominated the northern grasslands, the Tiele were the most formidable force outside of the Turkic core itself. The Tiele were not a single ethnic group but a collective term for nine tribes, including the Karluks, Uyghurs, and Xueyantuo, known as the Nine Clans of Tiele. After the Turkic Khaganate was destroyed by the Great Tang, the Karluks and Uyghurs each annexed parts of the Turkic strength, becoming increasingly powerful.

The Uyghurs were the strongest; recognized by the Tang Empire, they soon replaced the Turks and established the Uyghur Khaganate on the northern grasslands. The Karluks also fared well, establishing the Karluk Khaganate in the Seven Rivers region of Central Asia and becoming the hegemons of the Western Regions at the time.

Regrettably, the fates of these two Tiele khaganates were tragic. Less than a hundred years after its founding, the Uyghur Khaganate suffered repeated attacks from the Tang Empire and was finally destroyed by the more northern nomadic Kyrgyz Khaganate. Defeated by the Kyrgyz, the Uyghurs were forced to split into three groups and flee westward. The first group, known as the Yellow Uyghurs, entered the Hexi Corridor and became a vassal force to the Tanguts; they fared the worst. The second group, the Xizhou Uyghurs, crossed the Tianshan Mountains to the south and established the Gaochang and Kucha Uyghur Khaganates in the Taklamakan Desert region.

The last group of Uyghur remnants was the most formidable. They continued their westward migration and, while passing through the Seven Rivers region, casually destroyed the Karluk Khaganate, establishing the Kara-Khanid Khaganate in the Western Regions. Later, the Kara-Khanid Khaganate split into Eastern and Western states. Eventually, they encountered the westward expedition of Yelü Dashi, who subjugated the Eastern and Western Kara-Khanids, as well as the Gaochang and Kucha Uyghur Khaganates, turning them all into vassals. Today, these khaganates are part of the Western Liao Empire, though they maintain a high degree of autonomy, functioning as states within a state.

The presence of the Karluks, following the sphere of influence of the Uyghurs, spread across most of Central Asia. Whether in the Seven Rivers region, Transoxiana, the areas directly under the royal court, or even the north and south of the Tianshan Mountains, the Karluks could be found.

In the northern frontier today, aside from the Han people, the Karluks were the most numerous; other nomadic tribes had limited influence. However, the Karluk people were genetically predisposed to violence and restlessness. While brave and skilled in battle, they harbored an irrepressible ambition that refused submission.

Back when the Great Tang Empire fought the Arabs for control of Central Asia, the Battle of Talas erupted. At the critical moment, the Karluks betrayed the Tang, turning their blades against them from behind, which led to the total collapse of the Tang forces. From that point on, the central dynasties completely lost their influence over the Western Regions.

By the era of Western Liao rule, the name "Karluk" remained synonymous with restlessness, marked by repeated rebellions and repeated suppressions. They rebelled, were defeated, and rebelled again. One must admit that the Yelü family was quite benevolent toward the Karluks; were it up to Li Xiao, he would have long since "leveled the carriage wheels"—a practice of executing any male taller than a cart wheel.

"I hope this rebellion is quelled soon," Li Xiao whispered. If it dragged on, it might interfere with the harvest season in Hexi Fort, as the one hundred able-bodied men drafted were the primary labor force of the village.

Shaking his head slightly, Li Xiao stopped thinking about the Karluks. The outcome was already set; they could not stir up too much trouble. What Li Xiao needed to do now was focus on his martial arts and archery, expanding his influence in Hexi Fort and even throughout Jinzhou.

After silencing the fussing of Erhu and Sanbao, the group soon arrived at the gates of Hexi Fort.

The settlements of Han people on the northern frontier differed from those of the nomads. Nomads would simply pitch tents anywhere, with almost no protection, moving as they pleased. But the Han settlers of the north would not migrate easily, perhaps due to a lack of security. Every Han village in the north was built with walls and trenches, resembling small fortresses.

Approaching Hexi Fort, the first thing one saw was a surrounding trench, about two or three meters wide and not very deep. Its primary purpose was not to stop men, but to stop horses. As long as the majority of warhorses could not jump over it, the village was safe, for cavalry was the main combat force on the grasslands. Even if a small number of infantry entered the village, they could be dispatched by the local able-bodied men. But if a large-scale cavalry force were to charge in, the result would be different. Thus, all defenses in Hexi Fort were designed to counter large-scale cavalry assaults.

The wall behind the trench was the same. Though called a wall, it was far inferior to the true city walls of the Central Plains; it was merely a row of adobe walls about a meter high. Given the size of Hexi Fort, the cost of building a real wall to enclose the village was too high for them to bear. This ring of adobe was sufficient. When the enemy attacked, the wall became cover, and the villagers could fire arrows from behind it, leaving the enemy completely exposed on the open ground outside the trench. With the barrier of the trench and the wall, the enemy could not enter in a short time, and if they did not want to become live targets, they had no choice but to retreat. Using these simple defensive measures, the ancestors of Hexi Fort had repelled countless horse bandits and hostile tribes over the past fifty years.

"I should tell the old man to check the adobe walls in the next couple of days; any collapsed sections need immediate repair," Li Xiao thought to himself as he looked back at the wall.

It was better to be safe than sorry. What if the Karluk cavalry bypassed the main force of the Jinzhou army and charged toward Hexi Fort? If he didn't want the village to suffer, he had to make the necessary preparations.

Entering the village, rows of neatly arranged adobe houses came into view. Each house had a fenced-in courtyard, which was quite spacious, allowing the villagers to build sheep pens, cow sheds, and stables. Every household kept at least dozens of sheep and cattle, with some having hundreds; these were the essential assets of the villagers of Hexi Fort.

As he passed each house, Li Xiao greeted the villagers as he always did.

"Auntie Wang, the food smells good today! Is that meat?" Li Xiao asked with a smile to a middle-aged woman wearing an apron who was busy in her courtyard.

"I reckon the men should be coming back soon. An old ewe stopped producing milk, so I slaughtered it to make meat; it’ll give the master a good boost," Auntie Wang laughed.

Hexi Fort had about thirteen hundred people, all descendants of the ancestral followers of Li Xiao’s ancestors. They had various surnames, though "Li" was the most common.

"Well, make sure to save the 'sheep treasure' for Uncle Wang; we need him to give Tietou a little brother or sister next year!" Li Xiao laughed. Tietou was a childhood friend of Li Xiao, who was currently herding the sheep behind them.

Auntie Wang laughed openly, showing no shyness, and replied boldly, "He’ll certainly get his share. Dalong, if you want some, you can have a portion too. You’re a young man about to get married; you need to eat plenty of that stuff."

The women of the northern frontier were not bound by such taboos; they were as bold and forthright as the men and were never prone to blushing. Li Xiao, however, was caught off guard and quickly waved away her well-intentioned offer.

After passing Tietou’s house and walking another few hundred meters, they arrived at Li Xiao’s home. It was a large compound located in the center of the village, over thirty meters wide and nearly one hundred meters deep. In the middle of the courtyard stood an adobe house with five main rooms and two side rooms, surrounded by sheep pens and cow sheds.

With over two hundred sheep, thirty cows, six adult horses, two foals, and eighty acres of land outside the village, this was the sum of the Li family’s assets. In ancient times, this would be considered a wealthy household; even local landlords in the countryside were rarely this well-off. However, because the northern frontier was vast and sparsely populated, and the royal court’s control was limited, there was little pressure from above, and the lives of the common people naturally improved. Every household in Hexi Fort possessed significant assets.

Li Xiao greeted Li Dahu and his brothers as they headed toward the neighboring courtyard, which belonged to his second uncle. Then, with Erhu and Sanbao, he herded the livestock into their pens and tied their respective horses in the stable.

Glancing at his grandmother, who was standing at a table rolling noodles, Li Xiao asked, "Grandma, is Mom back yet?"

"Gushan Fort is dozens of miles away; she won't be back that quickly," the old woman said, working nimbly while smiling at Li Xiao. "Besides, the sky looks like it wants to throw a tantrum; she might just stay the night there!" She was a gentle and kind-hearted old lady.

Li Xiao nodded, picked up a ladle from the water vat, and gulped down a few mouthfuls of water. Once his throat was no longer dry, he asked, "Where’s Grandpa?"

The old woman gestured toward the back of the house with her eyes. "In the back. The stubborn old man has been banging away all day, and he just stopped. Go call your grandpa; it's time to eat!"

"Oh, got it!"