Chapter 6 Chapter 5 The Jade of Kunlun

During the Five Dynasties, the Western Regions officially sent envoys to Zhongtu. The only time was in the third year of Tianfu in the Later Jin Dynasty (AD 938), when King Li Shengtian of Khotan sent his envoy Ma Jirong across the desert to pay tribute to red salt, Turmeric, plowed oxtail, and jade blanket.Salt, gold, plowed oxen, and jade are all special products of the country of Tian.In the Western Regions at that time, in addition to Khotan, there were other well-known countries such as Gaochang and Qiuci. These small countries had followed the rites of vassals to China since the Tang Dynasty. After the fall of the Tang Dynasty, China was in chaos. During the turbulent period of the Five Dynasties when Jin, Jin, Han, and Zhou successively ruled for hegemony, the attitudes of the countries in the Western Regions towards China changed a lot.

Therefore, Li Shengtian's tribute should be a special case. After Jin Gaozu accepted the tribute, he immediately sent the enshrined officer Zhang Kuangye, the fake Honglu Lang Zhangwujun, and the Jiedu judge Gao Juhui to the Kingdom of Khotan, and canonized Li Shengtian as a great treasure. King of Khotan. For the three envoys, Gaozu's edict was not something to celebrate, let alone the long journey, taking a step outside the country, and expanding the area in front of them is full of powerful alien races such as Khitan and Tuyuhun. Before arriving in the Western Regions, it is really impossible to predict what kind of difficulties and dangers are lurking on the way.Since the founding of the country, Gao Zu has been working hard to maintain affinity with these two alien races, so that he is taken advantage of by the other party everywhere.What's more troubling is that the two alien races are at odds with each other, accepting the Khitan's request, Tuyuhun will blame him, and showing friendship to Tuyuhun, the Khitan will invade at any time.The envoys had to cross the areas infested by these two alien races before they could reach the Western Regions.

For this distant and unknown trip to a foreign land, the envoys spent half a year making preparations.It took two years for the envoys from Khotan to enter the new capital Bianjing from the country, and the envoys sent by the Jin Dynasty must have taken an equal amount of time to reach their destinations. So simple, in order to maintain the prestige of the Jin Dynasty and to prevent alien attacks on the way, at least dozens of followers should be brought along. The amount of food needed alone is quite considerable.Half of the entourage were selected from the various brigades, and the remaining half were recruited from the market, most of which were handymen.

Gao Juhui was responsible for the selection of the three envoys. Among the most burly applicants, he found two slender young men, Sang Sheng and Li Sheng.From Gao Juhui's point of view, these two people are obviously different from other candidates.After Gao Juhui's investigation, nothing suspicious was found; both of them were sons of merchants in the capital city, and the reason they applied for—just want to see foreign scenery—doesn't seem to be fake.Gao Juhui decided to use them as secretaries and join the group.Sang was tall and handsome, with sharp eyes, and one could tell he was a stubborn young man. Li Sheng was more reserved, and his words and deeds were always fresh and childish. Both of them were twenty years old.

The envoy group of more than 60 people sent by the Later Jin Dynasty to Khotan finally made its first trip to Bianjing in the early autumn of this year, heading west. When Sang Sheng and Li Sheng joined the trip to Khotan, they did not just want to see the scenery of a foreign country, but had other plans.They heard that Khotan is rich in jade, so they dreamed of going to the place to retrieve the best jade, so as to make huge profits. Okay, let's open the way to become a jade rich businessman. After the fall of the Tang Dynasty, there has been a long period of chaos. No matter the capital Bianliang or the old capital Luoyang, there are neither workshops for grinding jade nor jade merchants. Naturally, there are no craftsmen for carving.

If you want to make huge profits during this period, the fastest shortcut is to get good quality jade and then resell it. This is the most reliable operation that anyone with a discerning eye can see; There is no difference between the love and attachment to jade. From the king to the market, everyone cherishes jade since ancient times.Generally speaking, jade is generally regarded as the essence of heaven and earth, the purest yang soul, and it is said that jade has five or nine virtues, and it is believed that eating jade powder can ensure longevity, and holding jade in the mouth of the dead can save the body from Rotten, there is the jade that removes evil sounds, and there is also the jade that prevents drought.Since ancient times, it has been customary for emperors, princes, and officials to wear white jade, black jade, and beryl respectively. Especially for emperors, the crown and scabbard must be decorated with precious jade.

The reign of Emperor Gaozu of the Later Jin Dynasty was very short, and the dynasty of the Later Jin Dynasty was not long, but from the founding of the country to the time when Luoyang moved the capital to Kaifeng (Bianjing), it was still considered that the war that had lasted for a long time before and after that had finally come to an end.Once the sound of fighting goes away, the search for jade starts again up and down, but the jade market disappears. Unless the tomb is robbed and the coffin is dug, there is no way to get new jade. In fact, no one can say for sure how jade entered China. Some people say that it was introduced to the capital through the hands of brokers. If you follow these routes all the way back, you will inevitably encounter foreign businessmen on the way. Whether it is the Yidi in the northeast, or the barbarians in the southwest, there are Dangxiang people and Huihe people among them. So far, if you want to explore further, you can't find the source of jade. In vain, you feel that the future is an unpredictable darkness. And those jade stones were passed from that darkness to Middle Earth.

Merchants all think that the top-grade fine jade is called Kunlun Jade, which means the jade produced in Kunlun Mountain. However, no one knows exactly where the so-called Kunlun Mountain is. As far as the Kunlun Mountains, a thousand people go, but a hundred people survive, and a hundred people go, and ten people survive.” It’s just that no one knows what rivers and lakes the three rivers and five lakes are called. They only know that since ancient times, it has been generally believed that the Yellow River comes from Kunlun Mountains, and jade is produced from the source of the Yellow River. Therefore, as long as you find the source of the Yellow River, you can find out where the jade is produced. Unfortunately, it is not an easy task to explore the source of the Yellow River itself.

Since the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, it is generally believed that the Yellow River originated from Jishi, and Jishi is speculated to be equivalent to a place near Xining City in Qinghai Province today, which is a place in the eastern branch of Qilian Mountain.Today, Qinghai is already a province of China, but in the Spring and Autumn and Warring States period, it was still a distant land outside China and a foreign land. At the end of the Warring States period, Kunlun Mountain moved from a distant foreign land to a place close to the capital. It was widely rumored that the source of the Yellow River came from a part of the Qinling Mountains, and that Kunlun Mountain was also located there, so people believed that jade was also produced in the region.

However, from the second year of Jianyuan (138 BC) to the third year of Tiansu (127 BC), Zhang Qian, who spent 13 years exploring the Western Regions, suddenly overturned people's beliefs. view.After Zhang Qian completed this great expedition and returned to the court, he immediately went to Emperor Shuwu, to the effect that there is a large river called Tarim in the Western Regions, which has two tributaries, one of which flows from Congling, and the other originates in the south of Tiantian. in the mountains.These two tributaries, Khotan, join together to form the Tarim River, which flows through the desert area of ​​the Tarim Basin and flows into Lop Nur.As for Lop Nur, since ancient times, people in the world have been amazed that it has never flooded the Tarim River. It must be because the lake water in Lop Nur sneaks underground and then reappears on the ground from somewhere, and the place where the sneaked lake water reappears on the ground is precisely the accumulation of stones. And Khotan, which is equivalent to the upper reaches of the Tarim River, also produces beautiful jade.Based on these speculations, the mountain range from Congling to the south of Khotan must undoubtedly be the Kunlun Mountains, which should be regarded as the true source of the Yellow River. a source.

Emperor Wu was deeply moved by Zhang Qian's description of how powerful he was, and thought what Zhang Qian said was very reasonable, so he announced it to the world.As a result, the source of the Yellow River changed from the Qinling Mountains to a distant place, resulting in the result that the Kunlun Mountains and jade production areas were all in the Western Regions.However, not everyone believes this. As before, the idea that the true source of the Yellow River lies in Jishi still persists. During Zhang Qian’s expedition, Jishi is no longer a distant foreign land, and it has been included in the territory of the Han Dynasty. Hope The accumulation of stones that place the source of the river within the territory is the common wish of people in this period. The imperial court focused on the factual investigation of the issue of stone accumulation, and it was the Tang Dynasty, more than 700 years after Zhang Qian's expedition to the Western Regions.During the reign of Emperor Taizong, Hou Junji, the general who was ordered to attack Tuyuhun, passed by Jishi, and found Xingxiu Sea and Xiangda Sea in the upper reaches of the Yellow River, but no one except Hou Junji knew what kind of place it was .Later, in the second year of Changqing of Emperor Mu Zong (822 AD), Dali Qing Liu Yuanding went to Tupan as an envoy, and passed through the upper reaches of the Yellow River on the way. After returning to the court, he described this, to the effect that he Cross the upper reaches of the Yellow River two thousand miles southwest of Hongjiliang in the Hequ area in the east of Qinghai. The river is extremely shallow and the water surface becomes narrower and narrower.This area is the source of the Yellow River, and more than three hundred miles to the south there are three mountains called Zishan Mountains, which must be Kunlun Mountains.From here to Chang'an five thousand miles away, the water at the source of the river is clear and slow flowing, and the color of the waters that flow through it becomes red, and continues to be poured by the waters, gradually turning yellow and turbid. Two hundred years have passed since Liu Yuanding's description of the source of the river when the envoys of the Later Jin Dynasty went to Khotan. Sang Sheng and Li Sheng didn't know who Hou Junji was or who Liu Yuanding was. They had never heard of the famous names of those two generals. However, they had been familiar with Zhang Qian's expedition to the Western Regions since they were young. The story of heroes and heroes, not only these two young men, but almost all the children know Zhang Qian's name.Therefore, they have heard a lot about the origin of the Yellow River in the Khotan Kingdom in the Western Regions, the rich jade in the river source area, the disappearance of the river in the desert lakes, and the reappearance of the distant Jishi mountain after thousands of miles underground, but they have never heard of it. To consider its veracity, only as old legend, and as a legend, it is extremely interesting and charming. Unexpectedly, the legendary Khotan Kingdom really sent envoys and brought jade mats as a tribute. When the news spread on the street reached the two young men, the old story about Zhang Qian suddenly became a realistic one. To tell the truth, and appear in front of them rashly. Sang Sheng remembered that an old man in his father's generation used to be a jade craftsman, so he and Li Sheng went to the back alleys of the market to visit the now down-and-out man.Back in the day, this old jade craftsman carved bracelets and other jade ornaments with unmatched ingenuity, but now he is working in a small workshop scattered with large and small whetstones, making whetstones for others. Sang Sheng asked the old man about the authenticity of the legend that the Yellow River originated in Khotan and that good jade was produced there. "Jade is also produced in other places, but the top-grade good jade is only produced in Khotan. In the past, Lantian Mountain, not far from Chang'an, also produced jade, but now it is only a legend. Yanshan in Hebei also produced jade at one time. , but because of poor quality, it is only called Yanshi. The best jade is all produced in Khotan. It is said in the Shangshu that Kungang is in flames, and the jade and stone are burned. Kungang refers to Kunlun Mountain, which is the mountain of Khotan. There are also It is said that the beauty of Northwest China lies in the 璆Lin and Langgan of Kunlun Hill, and 璆Lin is jade, and Langgan is also jade." The old jade craftsman completely believed in Zhang Qian's expedition memorials.Regarding jade, the old man is an expert, and the knowledge from his mouth made the two young men very tempted, but it was the old man's other words that prompted them to decide to make a trip to Khotan. "In the Han and Tang dynasties, Hu people transported jade to China almost every day. The Yellow River sneaked down to Zhongtu, and the jade passed through the hands of Hu people and waded through the quicksand to the Central Plains. This is a sign of prosperity for the country. If there is chaos, Liangyu will no longer come, and one day, I am afraid that the water will no longer come, and the Yellow River will dry up." Hearing this, Sang Sheng raised his eyebrows suddenly, intending to be recruited as the entourage of the Khotan envoy, why can't I replace the Hu people to transport jade to Central Earth?Now he bid farewell to the old man, and repeatedly lobbied Li Sheng on the way home, deciding to let this friend who is gentle and honest, but really not suitable for taking risks and making troubles, share his dream of becoming a great jade merchant. Jin envoys and their party left Bianjing and arrived in Lingzhou. They stayed here for more than a month, and after listening to the movements of various ethnic groups, they set off from Lingzhou in December of this year.After crossing the Yellow River and walking for about thirty miles, we came to the vast sandy sea, which is already the living area of ​​the party members.A group of people passed through the semi-desert areas commonly known as Xiyaosha, Shenshusha, Sangongsha, etc., and walked more than 400 kilometers on the endless sand plains, and arrived at Heibaosha, which is the largest in the semi-desert area.Then go up to Shaling, down to Shaling, cross Baiting River to Liangzhou.Go westward for another five hundred miles from Liangzhou to Deganzhou, which belongs to the sphere of influence of the Uighurs.In Ganzhou, half of the horses were replaced by camels.After crossing Ganzhou, it is considered to have entered the real desert.There is a lack of water in the desert, so we have to use camels to carry water.Under the guidance of the Ganzhou people, wooden boots and plow skins were wrapped on the hooves of horses and camels respectively, so as to walk in the desert.Traveling westward for a hundred miles, we arrived at Yumen Pass.It has already taken half a year since leaving the capital. Exit Yumen Pass and enter Tubo border, continue westward, and arrive at Guazhou and Shazhou successively.The two prefectures are both places where the descendants of the Chinese people lived. Hearing the arrival of the Jin envoy, the assassin Cao Yuanshen and others greeted him on the outskirts of the city and asked the emperor about his daily life.It is said that there is a Mingsha mountain thousands of miles south of Shazhou City, which rumbles like thunder in winter and summer. Not long after leaving Shazhou, he entered the great desert of the Western Regions.This is the entrance of the great desert that has been described as "no birds above, no animals below" since ancient times. Yellow sand and white salt are everywhere. Since ancient times, there have been names such as quicksand, vast sea, sand river, and sand sea. , It will take a month to cross this big sand sea. Since the day they entered the quicksand, a group of people have been suffering from sandstorms from time to time.Among humans and animals, only camels can predict the coming of sandstorms. Whenever they whine and gather together, it won't be long before a strong wind will strike.The sand smoke carried by the strong wind invaded the seven orifices of humans and animals, and the world was really darkened.Halfway through the desert, the sandstorm began to weaken, replaced by the torment caused by the lack of water. The group had to dig the ground to find wet sand, and took a large amount of wet sand to their chests to quench their thirst. From the time when the group of people embarked on this journey of quicksand, the two teenagers from Bianjing changed greatly in appearance.Sang Sheng, who first made up his mind to join this trip, was suffering from regret day and night. If this trip continued, his friends and himself might not be able to save their lives before arriving in Khotan. How can we get here?Even if there is still a long series of suffering days ahead, we can only act together with the envoys.On the contrary, Li Sheng is much stronger than his friends. In fact, rather than being strong, it would be more appropriate to say "seeing things early".Li Sheng didn't complain a word, just kept using "Kunlun Jade" to comfort and encourage his physically and mentally exhausted friends. The group continued westward and crossed the trapped river.It was winter, and when crossing the river, tamarisk branches were specially cut down and carried on the ice to serve as a bridge, otherwise people and animals would fall into the river.When it was time to cross the trapped river, the two teenagers, Sang Sheng and Li Sheng, were completely reversed in appearance. Li Sheng was obviously exhausted physically and mentally, and could only cry.As for Sang Sheng, he just kept talking about "Kunlun Jade" day and night, just like Li Sheng used this to encourage him a few days ago.And every time he heard "Kunlun Jade", Li Sheng stretched his thin arms like sticks into the air, as if the Kunlun Jade was right in front of him.Indeed, his eyelids were filled with piles of little emerald beads.At the beginning of the journey, when they entered the strong territory of Tubo, they saw Tubo men wearing middle-earth clothes, and women wearing the famous jade beads called Sese in their braids.Sese is a top-grade bead, and it is known that one bead is worth a good horse.In his imagination, Li Sheng regarded the piles of Sese as the jade of Kunlun. Although he had no way of knowing what the jade of Kunlun was, he relied on this imagination to survive the difficult and difficult journey. A group of people continued westward into Ganzhou.Nearly two years had passed before that.Ganzhou belongs to the state of Tian, ​​located in the southwest of Shazhou, 9,500 miles away from the capital.When they arrived in Ganzhou, the two young men, Sang and Li, both got rid of their temporary fragility, and they had grown into robust young men who were completely different from when they were in the capital.Every day, who will mention "Kunlun Jade" among the two people? It can be said that they have lived to this day because of the Kunlun Jade. Thanks to the Kunlun Jade, they have been reborn as two strong man. After walking westward for two days from Ganzhou, passing through Anjun Prefecture, the group finally arrived at their destination, Khotan.Li Shengtian specially dressed in Chinese clothes, and greeted the Jin envoy and his party in the countryside.The palace was built facing east and facing the sun, and the envoys were extended into the Qifeng Tower with several floors.The fine wines used to entertain them include green wine, purple wine, and fruit wine made from rose apples, but each of them is so mellow.However, only three envoys went into the palace, and the two young men, together with other soldiers and entourages, mingled with the camels in the square in the southwest corner of the city, sleeping for several days without doing anything. The two young men, Sang and Li, are really worthy of their names. Under the guidance of Kunlun Jade, they finally reached the Kingdom of Khotan. However, they never had the opportunity to see the true face of Kunlun Jade.During their stay, three envoys including Zhang Kuangye, Zhangwujun, and Gao Junhui were invited to visit the three rivers flowing through the country, namely, the Baiyu River in the east that produces white jade, the Cuiyu River in the west that produces green jade, and the river that also belongs to the west. , Wuyu River, which is rich in black jade, of course the two young men were not invited.However, all kinds of legends about these rivers flowed into their ears continuously; it is said that the three rivers of Baiyu, Cuiyu and Wuyu belonged to the same river, originated from the mountains in the south of Khotan, and were divided after arriving in Khotan. Fork into three tributaries. When the river dries up in autumn, the king first picks jade, and then the people are allowed to go down the river to pick it. The envoys from the late Jin Dynasty successfully completed their mission and stayed in Khotan for two months before returning home for the first time.In early autumn, the group took a different path this time.On the morning of the second day after leaving Khotan, the envoy Gao Juhui found that the two young men were missing from the team, and he did not know where they disappeared. The group did not search for their whereabouts, but continued eastward Row.Since the group set off from Bianjing, in the past two years, the number of entourages who lost their lives due to illness or excessive fatigue has exceeded ten fingers, and many lives will inevitably be lost on the way home. Therefore, the disappearance of these two young men , is not an accident of special significance. One month after the envoys left, the three rivers in Khotan began to dry up.According to the usual practice, the king chose a few nights when the moon was shining like day, and engaged in the ceremony of fishing for jade.In the past few nights, every river has been filled with Huizi (indigenous Uighurs), officials and some soldiers who are fishing for jade, either standing on the river bank or floating in the river.Thirty Huizi lined up in the river, shoulder to shoulder, stepping on the stones of the river bed with bare feet, going upstream step by step.As soon as the Huizi stepped on the jade, they bent down to pick it up in the water. The soldiers then beat the gong, and the officials recorded the number of jade in the account book according to the sound of the gong. The ranks of huizi went far upstream, and after they landed, a new batch of huizi appeared downstream, and they also lined up upstream. When they went far upstream, another wave of huizi reappears downstream. The two young men, Sang and Li, joined Huizi's ranks.Now the two people's feet are standing on the river bed of Kunlun Jade. They grope for the sand in the water with their feet. When they step on the jade, they bend their upper body into the water and grab it. Every time they do this, the gong will ring , bent down twice one after another, and the gong sounded twice.The moonlight shone brightly on the river, but in the minds of the two young men, the flickering waves appeared dim, and the sound of the gong also sounded gloomy. However, the two of them were not disappointed because they failed to take these jades as their own. They originally devoted themselves to the aliens in order to learn the technique of fishing jade. The period when the king fished for jade was over, and the rivers began to open to the people. From that day on, every river was full of men and women who fished for jade.However, there is not much jade left in the river, and people have to compete to find a limited number of pieces of broken jade buried deep in the sand.Only a few lucky ones got the jade, and most of them soaked in the river for several nights without getting anything. The two young men, Sang and Li, adopted a method different from that of the Khotanese. They traveled along the river bank to the uninhabited upper reaches by night, looking for a place in the river that was shimmering in advance, and then went to the river the next day. Days ago to fish.This is not something that everyone can do. First of all, it is not easy to find the shimmer of jade from the water. It can only be said that Sang Sheng relied on his innate magical intuition. Only then can it be done.However, the two of them did not only rely on this special intuition to get the jade. Li Sheng also had another unique skill that no one else had.He asked Sang Sheng to stand on the bank of the river that he had passed by and look at the river. As long as he identified the place, Sang Sheng would be able to feel the part emitting strange light from the flowing water. In just one month, these two young men obtained a large amount of broken jade that the people of Khotan could not imagine.They sewed those pieces of jade into various parts of all the clothes, decided to sell the larger ones, and only brought back the better quality but smaller ones to the country.When there was nowhere to hide the jade on their bodies, and there was no way to hide it in the grain bag, the two resolutely left Khotan. The two young men carefully picked up places that were not noticed by others and headed eastward.If you want to avoid the road of people coming and going and move eastward unbiasedly, you have to go down the Tarim River, but it will take dozens of days before you catch the Tarim River.They used more than a dozen camels to carry food and drinking water, sometimes passed by, sometimes avoided some villages, and spent an astonishing amount of time traveling all the way east.Sometimes they walked along the banks of the Tarim River for a while, and sometimes they did not see the shadow of the river for dozens of days.Heat, ice and snow, floods, and whirlwinds hit the two boys in turn. It was the third spring when the two arrived in Lop Nur, where the Tarim River was swallowed up.They had to bid farewell to the Tarim River that guided them all the way here.If what Zhang Qian thought on this river bank in the past is true, then the Tarim River should be hidden underground from now on, becoming an underground undercurrent, flowing towards Han soil. After the two youths, Sang and Li, stayed on the shore of Lop Nur Lake for a few days, they embarked on the final journey of the quicksand journey.If you can cross the sand sea, pass through Shazhou and Guazhou, and arrive at Yumenguan, then no matter how long the future is, you will still have arrived in Hantu. It took the two young men more than a month before they came to the place near Yumen Pass.About half a day's journey away, they heard the news from the Tubo tribe that the Yumen Pass had been closed more than a month ago.Although this news is unbelievable, there is no way to find any evidence of "not true".The two young men did not know that Emperor Gaozu, who sent Zhang Kuangye and other three envoys to Yu Wei, died in the seventh year of Tianfu (942 AD). Since the Khitan might invade at any time, the gate to the Western Regions was closed. Nevertheless, the two young men headed towards Yumen Pass.It was late at night when they came to the closed giant gate.The two people realized that the door of the building was indeed closed, and it was impossible to open it anyway, so they only slept under the stone wall of the door for one night. Before dawn the next day, they heard the neighing of war horses from a distance, and they left in a hurry , so as not to encounter the Hu people's Koulue. The two had no choice but to turn back to the desert.A month later, the two young men came to the shore of Lop Nur Lake again.It was late at night when I arrived at Yumen Pass a month ago.This time I came back to Lop Nur Lake at midnight. However, it was also late at night. The former was a dark night, but when I returned to Lop Nur, it was a moonlit night. The two spent the night in a tent on a sandbar at the mouth of the Tarim River.Sang Sheng was woken up by birdsong in the middle of the night, when he just saw his companion getting out of the tent. "Where are you going?" Sang Sheng asked. "I plan to jump into Lop Nur and walk back to Hantu along the Tarim River. Besides, is there any other way to go back? I believe this water must be connected to the Yellow River." Li Sheng turned around and said, then walked outside the tent.The moonlight illuminated half of his face, and that unusual expression was deeply burned into his eyes. Sang Sheng chased it out immediately, and after a while, he heard a loud splashing sound from Lu Di's leaves.Sang Sheng yelled inexplicably, pushing aside the reed clumps and rushed to the water's edge.It was also the night when the moon was shining brightly in the sand of the Jade River in Khotan, but Sang Sheng had lost his sharp eyesight when fishing for jade, and could not see any variation from the lake water. Perhaps his companions He had already followed the undercurrent of the Tarim River and returned to Hantu. For a while, Sang Sheng's eager shouts for his companions, mixed with the cries of night birds, reverberated around, but soon, the lakeside returned to its original tranquility.Since then, no one has heard of Sang Sheng. No one can determine whether the source of the Yellow River should be located in the high mountains near Jishi, or whether it should be located in a distant foreign land and set at Congling in the south of Khotan. From the Five Dynasties to Song, Yuan, Ming, and Qing, every dynasty has held these two views.Where does the Yellow River come from?If it is just the source of the river itself, it is not a problem, but when it comes to jade, it is also related to Kunlun Mountain, so the problem is not so simple. Especially Kunlun Mountain, the Han Dynasty linked it with the legend of the Queen Mother of the West, and considered it the paradise of the Queen Mother of the West.With the change of dynasties, Taoism and Buddhism were added, and it was imagined as a fairyland of immortality, or a pure land of bliss. In the minds of the world, Kunlun Mountain is no longer just a jade-producing mountain. Taoist and Buddhist believers hope to determine the location of Kunlun Mountain and go to worship it. If it is far away in a foreign land, they may not even think about it. You want to visit Situ in person, but if it is located in Middle Earth, everyone will yearn to live there in order to live forever. Zhang Qian’s argument that Congling is the true source of the Yellow River, and that the vicinity of Jishi is the second source, is confirmed by his field survey and backed up by the undeniable fact that Khotan is the origin of jade. It has always been very dominant. , the records of the history of the Five Dynasties and the history of the Song Dynasty are also in the position of affirming this statement. However, on the other hand, in the long history, there have been several attempts to conduct field surveys to explore the upper reaches of the Yellow River.In the later Jin Dynasty, three envoys, including Zhang Kuangye, went to Khotan about 300 years later, in the 17th year of Yuan Shizu (1280 AD), there was Dushi from the Jurchen tribe, who was ordered by Shizu to recruit as an envoy. Explore the upper reaches of the Yellow River.After Dushi returned to the court, he made a detailed memorial of what he saw and heard. According to him, they once stepped into an area scattered with countless lakes that may be the source of the river. The flowing water of the river flows into a large lake, and then comes out from there, and then merges with three tributaries and rushes down all the way.Du Shi also imagined Kunlun Mountain as a big snow mountain seen from the upper reaches of the Yellow River. Then, four hundred and thirty years later, in the era of the Holy Ancestor of the Qing Dynasty, the bodyguard Laxi was ordered to explore the source of the Yellow River, and arrived at Xingxiu Sea like Du Shi, and said that the place was located a month's journey away from Kunlun Mountain.Earlier than the investigation of the source of the river in Laxi, Emperor Kangxi's expeditionary army to crusade against alien races had also made a detailed geographical exploration of the upper reaches of the Yellow River. The reason why the survey results are not known to the general people, but only a special kind of knowledge is stored among some people, is because the expeditionary troops of Dushi, Laxi, and Emperor Kangxi did not bring back a piece of jade, nor did they witness it with their own eyes. The reason for the admiration of the fairy mountain.It is not just ordinary people who are dissatisfied with these surveys. Eighty years after the survey of the source of the river in Laxi, in the forty-seventh year of Qianlong (AD 1782), Emperor Gaozong sent his bodyguard Amit to Qinghai to explore the origin of the Yellow River. The source has not been related to Yu and Kunlun Mountains. Just as Dushi and Laxi each found the source of the river, Amida only found another new source of the river.He found a river that had never been seen before in the upper reaches of the Xingxiu Sea that the previous explorers had visited, and used it as a new river source for the emperor. Amida's trip to Qinghai was a major event at the time.In the long history of China, there are very few people who have explored the source of the Yellow River. At the same time, in any case, Amida is the discoverer of a new river source. After Amida returned from his expedition, for a long time, the question of the source of the Yellow River became the topic of the world, and everyone brought up the long-forgotten Kunlun Mountains, the Kunlun Jade, and so on.The one who was most stimulated and shocked by Amida's feat was a jade merchant named Lu, who owned a large shop in the downtown area of ​​the capital, specializing in buying and selling jade articles.Lu Shi is fifty years old, lost his wife ten years ago, and suffered the death of his only son two years ago.Lu's family is rich, but he is alone.There are rumors in the world that Mrs. Lu suffered misfortune because of too much ill-gotten wealth. In fact, these rumors may not be groundless. In order to make money, Mrs. Lu has indeed done a lot of vile activities, and often has some unreasonable behaviors. In the final analysis, he just bet his whole life on the Kunlun Jade, obtained the Kunlun Jade at a low price, and then sold it at a high price, that's all.However, in the eyes of others, Lu's actions appear to be ruthless, always taking advantage of others' dangers to see when the other party is in distress, and forcefully buy their priceless jade at ordinary prices.At one time, a ditty was even popular at the banquet, praising Lu Shi's superb ability, saying that no matter what kind of beautiful jade, once Lu Shi's eyes are on, he can't help being attracted. The world said that the misfortune that Lu Shi encountered in his later years might change his character, but he completely betrayed everyone's expectations.Ever since he lost his only son, he only cared more about making money. Whenever he heard of the high-grade jade articles and how far and how difficult it was, he also went to buy them himself.In the past, he would never touch stolen goods or stolen goods, but after his son's death, Lu Shi didn't care about doing so anymore. One day, Mrs. Lu was receiving a visitor at home, and when he heard the visitor mentioning the rumor of the Amida River expedition, his expression suddenly changed, and he left the guest and went out.Mrs. Lu was walking alone on the busy street. Just now when he heard a visitor mention that Amida found a new river that should be regarded as the source of the river, he suddenly felt that the source of the river should be there. further upstream of a new river. Due to professional needs, Mr. Lu has read all the ancient records about jade, Zhang Qian, Liu Yuanding, Dushi, Laxi, etc., he knows everything recorded in ancient books.Dushi changed Liu Yuanding's river source, then Laxi changed Dushi's river source, and then Amida changed Laxi's view, and then whose turn is it to modify Amida's river source? In the past, the Lu family did not believe that the source of the Yellow River produced Kunlun jade, nor did they even believe that there was a Kunlun Mountain.He thinks that the so-called Kunlun jade should have been produced in Khotan, and there is no such thing as Kunlun Mountain in this world. The only thing that is certain is the existence of the source of the river.Every river must have its source, but no one has ever been there.Since Amida found a river, I should be able to find another river further upstream of that river, Lu thought.I don't know why this idea suddenly arises, in short, from this day on, Lu Shi began to be tightly grasped by this idea. Under such circumstances, Lu Shi suddenly realized that there was an unexpected thought lurking in his heart. It turned out that he was depicting the legendary immortal Penglai fairyland in his heart, which he had never taken seriously.He no longer wants money, he has nothing to do in this world.At fifty, his remaining years are running out.If you can find the source of the Yellow River, which is not visited by humans, you may be able to find a piece of paradise where you can sit in peace.There, it doesn't matter to be lonely, and you don't have to turn your back to others to enjoy the rest of the year.After thinking about it this way, this thought firmly grasped him, and he always felt that there must be such a place in the world.It was the first time in Lu's life that he put aside money and embraced a dream. Kunlun Mountain jumped into his heart. Whether or not jade was produced there, he didn't care much. From the moment Kunlun Mountain entered his heart, Lu's He is no longer a jade merchant. Lu originally planned to hand over the business of the shop to the shopkeeper and set off for Qinghai alone, but before leaving, some people expressed their wish to go with him, and these people's foundations were all related to jade.Lu Shi announced to the outside world that he would go to Qinghai to search for jade. Everyone thought that if Lu Shi didn't have a plan, he would never have traveled so far. Wherever Lu Shi went, there must be top-grade jade waiting there. Mrs. Lu told those who wanted to go with him that although he was looking for jade, he was going to look for it at the source of the Yellow River. There may be jade there, or there may be no jade at all.至少也要花费两年到三年的时日，路途既遥远，一路上又极其艰苦。 一听说目的地在黄河的源头，想要同行者有半数立时现出退缩之意，其余的半数则越发的亮起眼睛。其中的一个说：“我也坚信河源产玉这事。无论会经历多大的艰难，我也要熬到河源，进入崑仑山里去，采拾一些上好良玉。” 另一个也说：“一向我是以雕玉为业，可眼前已经弄不到古时用来打造玉佩、玉器的那种良质美玉。既然专事攻玉，好歹希望这辈子能够经手一次那种精品，现在既然有意去寻求良玉，我也认为只有自古以来，以产玉闻名于世的河源才能找得到，尽管前往敢情会有险难。” 卢氏从想要同行者的当中挑选了三个小伙子，尽管他们的目的不外乎崑仑之玉，好歹总还抱有探究河源的想头，让他们同行并没有什么坏处。三个人当中，彪形大汉是个玉匠，小矮子是买卖玉器的中人，另一个独眼则以打磨玉器为业。 卢氏领着三个小伙子于秋初从京城出发，经过太原、平原，然后在潼关渡过黄河，接着行经故都西安，沿黄河支流的渭水西行，于兰州再度横渡黄河。 一行人抵达西宁，在那儿过年，一面为河源之旅预作准备，一面等候开春。卢氏在当地雇用了三十名对河源地带多少有点知情的雇工，其中大部分为混有胡人血统的土着。为了搬运粮食，也为了自卫，他们需要这些雇工。 开春，一行人离开西宁，他们曾经在此地渡过三个月的冬季。在这以前，各地的商人或官员都给了卢氏很大的方便，往后的行程可就没有这方面的仰仗了。他们顺着黄河的河道一路走上去，日日夜夜都在山中跋涉，过了一山，前头又耸立着一山，他们偶尔会离开黄河的河道，作一连几天的山之旅。诚如那些雇工所言，黄河不多久又会再度出现眼前，只是每当又见黄河的时候，河相总是变得越来越险峻。 离开西宁四个月之后，一行人进入雇工所说的河源地带，也就是自古传说的积石之地，而自从雇工们时常河源长河源短的时候起，卢氏开始每天晚上都要跌入某种奇异的陶醉感里面。漫长的旅程所带来的疲劳使得体力消耗殆尽，一张脸瘦得判若两人，但他的精神反而更为旺盛。深夜里，卢氏总要醒来好几次，老觉得有谁在呼唤他。然而等到清醒过来，却又听不见任何声音。 “我又听见了，那地方还远么？”卢氏这样自言自语地欠起上身。 每看到老人这副样子，那三个年轻人就止不住感到心寒，老人看起来简直就跟失常了一样。 在既不是梦乡又不像是现实的恍惚之境，卢氏确是听见呼唤自己的声音，他不知道是谁，总之听起来像是在说：“来吧，赶紧到这里来吧。”那声音时而像他妻子，时而又像是他儿子，每听到那声音的时候，卢氏就在嘴里喃喃的说：“不成，现在要到那边去未免相隔太远，再等一等罢，再过三、五天，也许还要半个月一个月也不一定。” 最令卢氏恼火的是每日的行程越来越短，进入山里没多久，一天便宣告结束。河面益形狭窄而湍急，两边的绝壁也变得更加险恶，行程因而耽延下来也是理所当然。不过，一方面也是因为那三个小伙子开始致力于此行的目的—寻玉。至于一干雇工，也学着小伙子们，一边走，一边用眼睛搜寻着河流的四周。偶或有谁大叫一声，其他的人立刻就拥簇过去看看。三个小伙子和一干雇工都四处乱窜着寻玉。 夜晚，在营帐里，小伙子们尽着谈玉，大伙儿都异口同声的说，玉一定藏在这个山中，虽然不知道在河岸、河底、抑或绝壁里，总之，埋藏在这一带的山中是不容置疑的。 而看在老人的眼里，这些小伙子同样的像一群疯子，他们是怎么看怎么像被玉迷了心窍的一群疯子。开玩笑，这种地方怎么可能有玉！卢氏心想。但为了不愿意伤他们的心，只好保持沉默。 事到如今，如若不借助这些小伙子，要想完成一天比一天更艰险更剧烈的深山之行，只怕很难。老人对小伙子们所讲的唯一的话是：“要是有玉，那就应该在深山里，咱们得更深入到山的最里丛才行。” 一天，大伙儿从一条小水泽爬上山顶，再沿着山脊行走，突然，雇工当中的一个怪叫一声，卢氏以为发生了什么，忙着止步，下一个瞬间，他也差点惊叫起来，原来脚底下出现布满无数小湖的一片平原。 卢氏想起了古籍上所记载的都实那篇见闻。 —有泉百余泓，或泉或潦，水沮洳散涣，方可七八十里，且泥淖溺，不胜人迹，弗可逼视，履高山下瞰，灿若列星，故名火敦淖尔，火敦译言星宿，淖尔译言海子也。 一行人于是走向星宿海那奇幻的景致里去。那是布满了小湖如繁星的一片平原。其实，与其说平原，倒还真是名符其实的给人大海的感觉。每一口小湖都平平静静的蓄满了水，从湖里漫出的细流，自然而然一一汇聚，在星宿海间成为若干条水带，整片平原当中散布着数不尽的小湖，其问牵扯着几条水带。 大伙儿下山来到星宿海的一角，完全失去了继续朝前走去的意思。没有一个人开口说话，只成为死亡风景当中的一个个点点兀立在那里。天光一灿亮，数不尽的湖面就成为反射着冷光的镜子，一旦阴晦下来，顷刻之间就一变而为铅灰色的一块块生锈的木板。 天开始黑下来的时候，大伙儿这才回过神来，离开了星宿海湖畔。他们沿着若干条水带当中的一条走上去，这支河流中途与另一支水流合而为一，逐渐粗壮过去。 这天夜里，一行人于这支水带的岸边设营。是个听不见鸟啼和野兽吼叫的夜晚。在这里只能认为夜晚是死的。想来星宿海周边很可能尚有数支类似这样的水带，只是无从知道它们位于何处，以及朝着什么方向奔流。 第二天一整天，他们顺着越变越宽大的这条水带走去，行行复行行之余，发现水带不觉间已成为一口大湖，当晚在湖边张蓬过夜，第二天沿着湖边移动了一整天，这口大湖中腰一带洼陷下去，看似两个湖在某一个地方连接在一起。老人认为必定是都实所提及的“阿赤淖尔”（赤湖）。然而，湖水并不红，看上去澄蓝而清澈，水浅可以过人。 翌日，他们看到从大湖流出来的一支水流，那水冷冽透骨，几乎无法伸进手去，而且澄净得河底的沉沙粒粒可见。毫无疑问，一行人是抵达了河流状的黄河源头，起码已经站到形成河源的几条河流当中一支的岸边，是不容置疑的了。 独眼的打磨师傅忽然说：“要是有玉的话，管保在这条河里，赶明儿咱们顺着这条河走下去如何？” 其他两个小伙子和雇工们都对这个独眼年轻人所说的表示同意，唯独卢氏极力反对。 “好不容易熬到了这里，难不成你们甘心就这样的入宝山空手而返？这一带的河床上就算藏的有玉，也是极其有限，你们要是想从这里走下去，那就尽管去好了。我可是准备爬那个满是小湖的平原上可以看到的那座山。湖水是从那座大山里涌出来的。想想看，那么一座山里居然能够冒出这许多大水，单是这一点不就神奇得耐人寻味么？泉水通常总是打一个地方冒出来，那并不是泉水，准是有一股水流从地面的某一个地方流到地底下来。黄河真正的源头管保还在别的所在，不过，也应该不会太远了。” 让卢氏这么一数说，小伙子们可又拿不定主意该不该折回头，总觉得黄河之源确是位在别处，在那儿，躺卧着一片宽广的河床，纵目皆是真正的崑仑之玉。 卢氏并非信口雌黄。阿弥达既然在星宿海之外觅得一条新的河流，好歹他也要摸到阿弥达所曾到过的地点，到了那里再来重新考虑往后的行程。无论如何，先得看一眼阿弥达所曾见过的那条河流，才能够谈到其他。他所寻求的长生不老的蓬莱仙境必定存在于那条河流更上游的地方，而夜夜冲着他来的那一声声遥远的呼唤，也是来自那个地方。 卢氏知道曾经亲眼看过星宿海而在古籍上留有名字的人一共有几个。唐代的刘元鼎也许还没有到达星宿海，但起码元代的都实、清代的拉锡、阿弥达，以及康熙皇帝所派遣的远征军队当中的几名武将，都曾身历其境，且各自上疏奏明发现新的河源，想必阿弥达之外的其他人，准是把从星宿海漫流出来的若干条水带当中的一条，当作了自己所发现的河源。 一行人遂又回头走向星宿海，于第二天再度踩上星宿海的一角，决定从这儿朝着遥遥可见的西南方那座山峰进发。他们顺着星宿海绕个大弯，紧贴着寸草不生的山岩一路往上爬，渐渐地离开星宿海。 星宿海之后的宿营地点，必须求诸避免风吹的山岩凹陷处。每天晚上，营帐都被强风慑人的巨吼所笼罩，那震耳欲聋的巨吼，使得人人都听不见彼此的说话声。只有卢氏一个人从强风的啸叫里听到呼唤他的声音，无论风声有多狂烈，那声音都能够从风声的底层，柔和的向他呼唤过来。而那声音又已经接近许多，听在卢氏的耳朵里，彷佛在说：“你再忍耐一阵，就可以来到我这里啦，快了，就快到达了，咬咬牙再忍耐一下吧。” 至于那几个小伙子，随着宿营日数的增多，脸上的忧色也越浓了。 其中的一个说：“我们老是走同样的地方，到底要走到什么时候？像这样，压根儿就搞不清究竟在往东还是往西走，不是只管沿着山脊，尽朝深山里一路钻进去么？” 卢氏于是报以一成不变的回答：“不，快了，要不了多久，就可以到达真正的河源啦。” “那儿总有玉罢？一定有满是玉块的河床罢？”小矮子玉器掮客对卢氏说话的口气，开始带有盘诘的味道。 而卢氏每听到他这种口气，便也不甘示弱的用果断的语气道：“那还用说，正因为有玉，我们才要这么千辛万苦的翻山越岭。” “在哪儿？你是说藏在水流出来的地方么？” “不，就在泉眼那儿，泉眼被七彩的玉石遮盖起来了。” 听到卢氏这么说，对方于是闭上嘴巴。这个时候的卢氏，在小伙子们看来，仍然像个神智失常的疯子。而正因为看起来不正常，从他嘴里出来的言词反而具有不由你不相信的一股真实感。 离开星宿海约莫十天，小伙子们开始每天早晨都要为着该不该折回头而议论半天。按照一般的道理来说，当然是回头为宜，但雇工当中的几个却又表示，要是有什么泉水的话，那就应该位于这座岩山的尽头与丛生着树木的另一座山相重叠的夹缝那里。小伙子们虽然已经不再把老人所说的当回事，却也不便冒然的拒绝雇工们的意见，三个小伙子于是达成一项协议—既然已经来到这里，索性走到寸草不生的这座岩山尽头看看，果真没有泉水再回头，而自这天起，气温陡然下降，一入夜，严寒便向着一行人反覆袭击。 离开星宿海之后，每天每天都从山脊降到深谷，再从山谷攀上山脊，万般艰苦的重复着翻山越岭。也不知第几回登上山脊的一天，领先走在前头的独眼打磨师傅，突然发了疯似地跑回头，只管大嚷大叫着：“水，水，水。”小伙子们和那干雇工也跟着拔脚飞奔。 卢氏跑不动，只得慢吞吞地移动脚步。蓦地里，山的棱线凭空中断，刚觉得眼前豁然开朗，便只见前头出现了一口深蓝色的大湖。那是从岩山当中凿出来的一口大湖，岩石给深深地挖开，凹陷进去的地方漾满了碧蓝的一大汪水，面积之大，绕湖一周只怕要耗费一整天的时问。 一行人就像乍然目睹星宿海之时那般，一句话也说不出口，并且完全失去了还想往他处走的意志，只管呆若木鸡地兀立着，阿弥达所发现的新河源原来就是这个了，卢氏心想。 第二天起，两日之问，大伙儿绕着这口大湖的四周走，发现有水顺着北边的大岩壁上流泻到这大湖里。岩壁呈赤褐色，泻落的瀑布因而辉映成金黄，进入大湖之后就一变而为碧蓝。无论如何，人只能认为这湖水的泉源应该在流泻着瀑布的那座大岩壁上面。有几个雇工表示，他们自幼就听说黄河之水涌自号称“北辰之石”的大石潭，或许那座“北辰之石”就在这面大岩壁的上方。三个小伙子和雇工们顿时显得生气勃勃，长年艰苦跋涉的结果，终于把猎物逼进了无可逃遁的死巷里去了，他们的心情正是如此。至于卢氏，从亲眼看到大岩壁上面泻下的金黄流泉那一刻起，他就确信梦想了多年的瑶池仙境应该不会远了。 为了要攀登到那面大岩壁上方，一行人不得不绕大弯，多走上约莫两天的行程，而当他们费尽九牛二虎的气力爬到岩壁上方，正是日头当顶的中午时分，这儿有口新湖，大小和星宿海当中的一个湖差不多，而一行人当中没有谁认为那是湖泊，乃是由于湖面不住的波涛汹涌的关系，而且那又并不是单纯的波涛汹涌，而像是有一股庞大的什么从水底不断的搅动、上冲那样，整个的湖水都在剧烈的动荡、奔腾。卢氏他们并不知道，阿弥达一行也曾站在这同一个地点。阿弥达就曾上奏：“—池中流泉喷涌，骊为百道，皆作金色入阿勒坦郭勒（黄金之河），则真黄河之上源也。”阿勒坦郭勒就是阿弥达他们所发现的一条河流，也就是那口碧蓝的大湖。 “原来水是打这儿冒出来的。”大个子年轻人抱起胳臂，凝望着骚动个不停的这片神奇的湖面。 一点儿也不错，这儿确实是一口庞大的泉眼。奇怪的是这几个小伙子都忘记了长期艰苦跋涉，支撑到此地的主要目的，没有谁提起“玉”这个字。但所有的人并非已经全然把玉置诸脑后，只是“玉的产地并不在此地”这个事实，成为一个确定的意念，跳入兀立在这个地点的每一个人的心坎里。 卢氏亦复如此，如今“崑仑山和长生不老的瑶池仙境并不在此”的意念，占满了他的心思，他确信他们有可能存在于天底下的某处，但绝不可能是这个地方！ “原来西域罗布泊的湖水潜流地下几千里之后，从这里冒出来了。”卢氏自言自语地说。 “这么看来，也只有到这条河流遥远的源头，异地的于阗那边，才能够弄到玉呢。”独眼的小伙子作了结论。 其他的两个年轻人没有作声，是因为同伴已经道出了他们所要讲的。一行人此刻已经站在长途旅行的终点，往下已然无处可去，且只有这一点是确切分明的，小伙子心目中的玉石落空，卢氏的瑶池仙境也宣告幻灭，而人们内心带针带刺儿的烟火气也随着烟消云散。 不久，一行人离开了湖水泉涌的池畔，他们向遥远的京城踏出归途的一步。一旦从中了玉邪那种情况底下清醒过来，每个人都得去正视自己所置身的现实，他们如今站在黄河源流的最尽头，且面临着严寒的冬季。卢氏是一步也走不动了，只好由小伙子们轮流着背负。崑仑之玉落空，小伙子们也跟着恢复了理性，目前，在这世上要想得到崑仑之玉，最可靠的捷径，莫过于这位垂死的老富翁卢氏。 两天后，大伙儿再度来到彷佛凿开岩山而成的那口碧蓝大湖的岸边，又耗费几天的功夫，第三度临到星宿海湖畔。繁星一般布满了整个平原的这些小湖泊全已冰冻，湖面就像水晶玻璃的切口那般的闪着刺眼的光。一行人立即离开那里，触目所及，一切的一切都冻结成冰，那种奇幻的冰冻世界，简直不属于这个人世。为了能够活着返回故土，最好是趁早逃离已然呲出严冬利齿的这片河源地带。 史上第一个目睹星宿海那冰冻湖面的，还是卢氏和三个小伙子这奇妙的一伙。十年后的乾隆五十六年，大将军嘉勇出征西藏之际路经此地，返朝后禀奏：“池水冰冻如镜，灿然遥列，不知其数。”算是初次列入记载。 如果卢氏和三个小伙子安然无恙地返回京城北京，史上第一个目睹星宿海冰封景观的荣耀，或许已经透过某种记载归为他们所有，可惜事实并不如此，卢氏和三个小伙子任何一个，都没有再出现于北京城。 自西元一八八三年到一八八五年，俄国的尼古拉?米盖维奇?普勒查伍斯基将军，前来探索黄河的河源。 普勒查伍斯基确定罗布泊和星宿海的水位分别是七百五十公尺和三千六百公尺，他同时指出罗布泊属咸水湖，反之，黄河属淡水，进而否定了两千年前张骞那种罗布泊湖水潜流地下复出为黄河之水的说法。 时至今日，人们只把罗布泊与黄河之水渊源相通这事当作古代的传说来接受，而将近两千年来，这个传说始终在一部分人的否定与另一部分人的肯定之下，汨汨地流存于中国历史的长河。