Firmament

Hometown people.

- Daur proverb

Badr did not have the right to choose his life, Ali and Abbas were requisitioned servants from the steppe state, and they did not have the right to choose whether to move or stay. They only have the obligation to follow the action of the army of the steppe country, work tirelessly to make tea and cook for Hoheba, and run around day and night on the march and battle.

In 1226, the army of the grassland country conquered Ejina of the Baigao Daxia Kingdom, fiercely broke into the Hexi Corridor, and successively occupied important cities such as Ganzhou, Shazhou and Suzhou, and advanced all the way to Hunntui Mountain.

When Hoheba Rida arrived in Ganzhou, he found that the terrain here is flat, the soil is fertile, the products are abundant, and the people are simple, so he likes this place very much. So, he ordered the army to rest in Ganzhou for two days.

Seeing Ali and Abbas finish their work, Badr allowed them to go out for the first time, but they had to get back to the camp within an hour.

Ali and Abbas were excited: they had finally seized the opportunity to escape.

Located in the middle of the Hexi Corridor, Ganzhou is a famous historical and cultural city on the Silk Road, showing a completely different customs from Khorezm.

They climbed the tall bell and drum tower in the center of the city to overlook the panoramic view of the city with oriental pavilions and pavilions, and looked at the bungalows and deep mansions scattered around the bell and drum tower with interest. They even went to the Great Buddha Temple, an important place in Buddhism, to observe the statue of the Bodhisattva with kind eyebrows and good eyes and the good men and women who burned incense and kowtowed.

On the surface, they are touring the city, but in their hearts they are trying to find a way to break away from the army of the steppe country.

In order to strictly prevent Tang Wu spies from mixing in and out, the grassland country sent heavy troops to guard the city gate and strictly inspect the people entering and leaving. If someone is found to be without a wooden pass from the government, they will be immediately arrested and tortured.

Ali and Abbas stared at the wide gates, eager to turn into a little sparrow with wings, and fly freely out of the city of Ganzhou and towards the distant land of Khorezm.

An hour has come. They returned to the barracks sullenly.

The other cooks saw their dejected looks and asked curiously, "What's wrong with you?"

Ali and Abbas could not answer their questions, so they went to a secluded place and sat down in silence.

Ali couldn't help but start thinking about his relatives and hometown. He took out the pebble on the banks of the Zeravshan River from his pocket, put it in the palm of his hand and rubbed it gently, as if he was caressing Ada, his grandmother and his relatives, as if he was caressing Samarkand, which haunted his dreams.

Abbas had seen many people who were sophisticated, so he naturally understood Ali's thoughts at this time.

He quietly asked, "Ali, are you homesick again?"

Ali nodded sadly. A few tears fell from their eye sockets and rolled down the cobblestones.

Abbas tries to amuse Ali in the hope of distracting him.

He smiled and asked, "Ali, can I carve your favorite pattern on this pebble?"

Ali wiped his tears with his hand and replied, "How boring the pattern is." I think it's better to engrave the names of the two of us. "

"Okay. Abbas took out his small knife and carefully carved it into the pebbles.

After a while, two lines of alphabetic text like sprouts appeared on the surface of the pebbles. That's the Iranian word for the names of Ali and Abbas.

Ali saw that there was still some blank space on it, so he said, "This place can also be engraved with a person's name." "

Abbas quipped, "Which pretty girl's name would you like to engrave?"

Ali's face suddenly turned into an autumn red apple.

He shyly pushed Abbas and said angrily, "People are serious about talking to you." Why do you keep joking! I think it's engraved with Badr's name. We've been following him, and we're friends through thick and thin, right?"

Abbas said dissatisfiedly: "Badr is the officer of the steppe country who occupied our Khorezm, and now he is the ruler who oppresses us, and he is not worthy of being engraved with the name of our Khorezmians...... However, if you have a crush on him, I can grant you your wishes. "

In order to make Ali happy, Abbas carved Badr's name on the pebbles against his will.

Just then, Badr approached them from a distance.

He shouted at Ali and Abbas, "Hey, Sartas, what are you doing sneaking around? "

Ali replied, "Master Badr, we have carved words in the stone." "

Badr casually took the pebbles and looked at them casually. Realizing that he didn't recognize the words, he raised his hand holding the pebble and made a gesture ready to throw.

Ali hurriedly stopped: "Lord Badr, don't throw it away! "

Badr smiled eerily, with a wicked look on his face.

He smirked, "I'm kidding you, naïve Sarta!".

Ali saw that Badr was in a good mood at the moment, and asked, "Lord Badr, when will Abbas and I return home?"

Badr immediately restrained his smile, looked at Ali with strange eyes, pondered expressionlessly for a while, and then looked at the rolling Qilian Mountains in a daze. He seemed to be a listless child, and he stayed there bored, not answering Ali's questions.

Finally, he slowly stepped out of Ali and Abbas's sight.