Chapter 27: The Travelers (II)

The hospitable Göktürks welcomed the caravan from the Great Tang Dynasty into their furs-lined tents filled with the scent of milk. That night, several young Göktürk girls took advantage of the darkness to enter the guests’ tents and offered their bodies in return for the finest service.
Everyone knew what had happened. In this sparsely populated grassland, these temporary marriages were quite fitting.
The merchants, both physically and mentally relaxed, slept soundly.
As a sign of reciprocity, early the next morning, the caravan leader, Guan Yuyuan, presented gifts to Moulao Eluo to express the caravan’s sincere gratitude.
As soon as he entered the tent, Guan Yuyuan felt Moulao Eluo’s concern.
“Dear friends from the Tang Dynasty, guests who have come from afar—did you rest well last night? Did the women of our tribe satisfy your tastes?”
Hearing this, Guan Yuyuan placed one arm along his side and replied, “Thank you for the warm hospitality of the Göktürk brothers. The delicious milk tea relieved our fatigue, and the lovely girls brought a sense of home. As merchants from the Central Plains, we will share our finest goods with you.”
After Guan Yuyuan finished his speech, Moulao Eluo stepped forward, took his hands firmly, and said, “Brothers from the Tang Dynasty, it’s not easy for you to travel such a long distance. It would be unkind to expect trade right away, but you must be aware of the difficulties our tribe faces. The regulations of the Great Tang have caused great hardship to us small tribes. While the Turkic people can obtain goods from the Sogdians in the Western Regions, we, who rely on the Great Tang, are in great distress. Right now, we lack even basic tea and silk. Your arrival is a real relief to us.”
The Great Tang had trade posts in its border provinces, but they were rather unreasonable. First, there were too few such posts to meet the needs of all herders. Second, most of them were located in the territory controlled by the Uyghurs in the north of the desert. Tribes like the Göktürks, with their more remote pastures, had to travel hundreds of miles to the Uyghurs’ lands to exchange goods.
These traveling merchants were well aware of the situations of the various tribes in the border regions. Instead of hiding their wealth, it was better to be honest and offer some kindness. By being humble and modest, they might achieve unexpected results.

Guan Yuyuan had traveled in the regions beyond the Great Wall for many years and was well-versed in the local customs. Seeing Moulala Eluo act humble, he also smiled and said, “Actually, we merchants aren’t that delicate. We’ve traveled far and wide, so our bodies are strong. To be honest, the others in the caravan are also looking forward to selling their goods and returning home to their wives and children soon.”

Seeing Moulala Eluo’s smiling face, Guan Yuyuan added, “This is a sample of the goods we prepared, specially for Lord Yehu.”

Moulala Eluo cleared his throat a few times, and several strong warriors entered the tent to take the goods. …

The trade site was set up in an open area outside the camp. It was chosen because of its open and flat terrain, which made it easy for people to gather and conduct trade. You see, caravans like the one led by Guan Yuyuan were not seen very often by the Gelao tribe throughout the year. These trading days were the best opportunity for them to purchase and replenish the goods they lacked, so no one would want to miss them.

One merchant’s business seemed to be quite good—groups of Gelao women had already surrounded the stall in three layers.

Wishing to buy a piece of silk as a gift for his wife, He Runshi walked over to the corresponding stall and said cheerfully, “Shopkeeper, I’d like a piece of high-quality Suzhou silk. Oh, I don’t have rawhide, but I’ll give you this instead.”

He then took out a fine blood-stained jade pendant from his sleeve and handed it to the merchant.

The merchant weighed and examined the pendant, and seeing that it was of top quality in both color and texture, he smiled happily and said, “Sure, sure. You really know how to appreciate fine goods. Seeing how generous you are, I’ll give you half a piece of Shu brocade as a bonus.”

As he spoke, he quickly put the jade pendant into his satchel, seemingly afraid that He Runshi might change his mind and cause him to lose such a precious item.

Having traveled back and forth between the Central Plains and the northern deserts for years, these merchants knew the rules well. They would never ask questions they shouldn’t. Otherwise, how could a Han man like He Runshi appear in the Gelao tribe’s camp without arousing suspicion?

After receiving the silk from the merchant, He Runshi thanked him briefly and turned to leave.

When he came to a stall with fewer people, he saw a boy around fourteen or fifteen years old struggling to explain something to two Gelao girls. Out of curiosity, He Runshi stepped forward to take a look.

Upon getting closer, He Runshi realized that the boy was selling coarse tea. This kind of tea was popular in the grasslands, and everyone knew its market price. Even if someone tried to raise the price, it wouldn’t have much impact—perhaps that was why the boy had chosen to sell tea.

The young man was explaining in his poor Turkic to the two young women, “This, the tea bricks, are of top quality. Ten raw skins are needed for one jin—no less.” With his gestures, the two girls finally understood what he meant. One of them, dressed in yellow Hanfu, stepped forward and said, “These tea bricks are already a bit broken. Why are they still so expensive? Ten raw skins could buy a set of lacquerware.” The young man, being honest, became anxious and sweaty when he saw her trying to haggle and lower the price. “No, these are broken from being jostled on the road. It doesn’t matter; it can still be used for drinking.” But the more anxious he became, the less clear his speech became, until he finally collapsed from stress. He Runshi, seeing that he was so young yet already trading tea beyond the borders, felt pity and stepped forward to help. “Young man, I think your tea is good. Pack five jin for me. But these raw skins are too many. Why don’t you take the horse and go to my yurt later to get them?” He pointed in the direction of his yurt. The young man, who had been very depressed, immediately brightened up upon hearing that someone wanted to buy five jin of rough tea and agreed softly. The two Göktürk girls, seeing that He Runshi had bought five jin of tea at once, trusted the young man’s credibility. Each took two jin of rough tea and happily carried the packed tea bricks toward the camp. The young man sold a few more jin of tea. Seeing that there were hardly any people left, he led the old horse to catch up with He Runshi, smiled innocently at him, wiped the sweat from his forehead, and said loudly, “Sir, I’ve sold all my tea. I’ll follow you now.” It turned out he was afraid He Runshi would forget the deal, as that would mean a huge loss for him. Seeing the heavy silk in He Runshi’s hands, the young man said, “Sir, this silk is heavy. Let me help you carry it.” He Runshi, impressed by the young man’s honesty and loyalty, nodded in approval. With He Runshi’s permission, the young man took the silk from his arms and slung it over his shoulder. Seeing his skillful movements, He Runshi guessed he must have sold similar goods before. Thinking of how young he was yet already bearing the burden of supporting his family, He Runshi sighed softly. After about half a cup of tea’s time, the group arrived at He Runshi’s yurt. The young man tied the old horse to the wooden pole in front of the yurt and clapped his hands cheerfully before smiling at He Runshi. After lifting the curtain made of sheepskin, He Runshi invited the young man in. “I’m also staying here temporarily. Just choose whatever you like.”

Under He Runshi’s guidance, the boy placed the silk and wrapped tea leaves on the felt carpet beside the folding bed, feeling somewhat at a loss. Why was this young master treating him so well?
He Runshi gestured for the boy to sit down casually, then went to the wooden table to pour him a bowl of hot milk tea.
The boy took the milk tea, smiled shyly at He Runshi, and downed it in one gulp.
It turned out that in order to sell his goods earlier, the boy had set up his stall to sell tea from dawn. However, his knowledge of Turkic was not fluent, and after much effort in shouting, his throat had already dried out.
Although it was just an ordinary bowl of milk tea, it was like nectar to the boy.
“Thank you, sir. You’re a good person. Good people will be rewarded.”
With his cheeks red, the boy managed to say those words.
“What’s your name? Where are you from?”
For some reason, He Runshi felt an inexplicable fondness for this child, as if he had certain traits similar to his own.
“My name is Erwa. I’m from Wuwei in Hexi.”
When talking about his background, Erwa became awkward, no longer as open and cheerful as before.
He Runshi uttered a soft “Oh” and continued, “I see you’re still young. Why did you come to this cold place beyond the borders to sell goods? Are your family members okay with it?”
At that moment, Erwa’s face turned red, and after a long while, he knelt in front of He Runshi.
“Sir, since I think you’re a good person, I’ll tell you. Please don’t tell anyone else.”
How could He Runshi accept such a formal gesture from a boy of fourteen or fifteen? He gently helped Erwa up and said kindly, “Tell me first. If it’s a reasonable reason, I definitely won’t reveal it.”
“A while ago, my grandfather fell seriously ill. So I joined a few fellow villagers to go to Chang’an to sell tea to earn money for his treatment. By chance, I saw a military officer recruiting strong men, and I had an idea. Anyway, I borrowed the tea bricks from someone else. After selling them and repaying the lender, I wouldn’t have much left. But joining the army would give me fifteen guan in rewards, so I thought I’d sell them to him! To my surprise, that military officer was kind and bought my tea bricks right away, even giving me thirty guan as a bonus. Now, my grandfather’s illness can be treated…”
“Then why didn’t you stay at home to take care of your father instead of coming here to sell tea in the borderlands?”
He Runshi really couldn’t understand why the boy was willing to endure so much hardship to engage in trade in this remote area. Wouldn’t it be better to save up a little money and do small-scale business?

“After my grandfather recovered, I kept thinking about that military officer. His name is Li… Li Kuo, a great hero! He said that if I wanted to join the army, I could come to see him anytime!”
Erwa scratched his head and smiled, “I found out he was stationed in Shule City, so I wanted to go look for him. Coming with the caravan to trade was just to keep company, in case we encountered bandits on the road. I… I also want to become a great hero like him!”