Preface
In the long history, there was once a small country called Loulan, whose rise and fall not only witnessed the prosperity and decline of the Central Plains Dynasty, but also heralded the trajectory of the prosperity and decline of the Silk Road.
What amazing thing did this small and small country located in the hinterland of the Western Regions do that made the heroes of the Han Dynasty of the Jin Ge Iron Horse swear to "never return Loulan if it is not broken"?
Or is it just a microcosm of the helplessness of a small and weak country struggling to survive in a geopolitical cage? Let's unravel the mysteries of this mysterious kingdom of the Western Regions and explore its unique fate during the rise and fall of the Han Dynasty.
1. The geographical location of Loulan and the Silk Road are important
In 176 B.C., a small state called Loulan quietly rose to prominence in the western part of present-day Lop Nur in Xinjiang. This place is at the key node of the intersection of Eastern and Western civilizations - the ancient Silk Road.
This winding trade route stretches from the Central Plains to the far Western Regions, connecting thousands of years of trade and cultural exchanges between the East and the West. Loulan is located at the point of this trade avenue and has become an important hub connecting the East and the West.
Located in the middle of nowhere, Loulan was originally a small country with a population of less than 20,000, and in modern terms, it was not even the size of a small town. But it is such a small place, but at the time of the rise of the Han Dynasty, it became a pivotal geopolitical key point.
This starts from the time of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty in the 2nd century BC. In order to open up the Western Regions and extend the influence of the Central Plains Dynasty, Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty sent his envoy Zhang Qian to the Western Regions twice, and finally opened up the Silk Road connecting the east and west.
Along with this, silk, porcelain, tea and other Central Plains products continued to flow to the Western Regions, and even radiated to distant Central Asia. Horses, jade, spices and other exotic treasures from the Western Regions also continued to enter the hinterland of the Central Plains.
The opening of this Silk Road brought unprecedented prosperity to the 36 countries of the Western Regions at that time. Loulan, which is located in it, has become an important transit station on this trade road by virtue of its unique geographical advantages.
Silk, spices, and jade are transported from the Central Plains to the Western Regions, and from the Western Regions to the Central Plains, almost all of them pass through Loulan, a key node. This undoubtedly greatly enhanced Loulan's geopolitical status at that time. From a military point of view, Loulan happened to be located between the Han Dynasty and the Xiongnu, becoming a buffer zone between the two great powers, and its strategic value is self-evident.
It is precisely because of this unique position of Loulan that it played such an important role in the history of the Han Dynasty and became a key pawn in the Central Plains Dynasty's struggle for control of the Western Regions.
2. Loulan: The "wall grass" in the Han-Hungarian game
During the reign of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, Loulan, as a small and weak country in the Western Regions, faced a terrifying attack between the two great powers, the Han Dynasty and the Xiongnu.
On the one hand, the Han Dynasty was eager to expand westward and establish control over the Silk Road; On the other hand, it is necessary to guard against the threat from the Xiongnu from the north. And Loulan is just in the middle of the gap between the two countries, which side should this small country choose for its survival?
Faced with the unpredictable outcome of the two-strong game, Loulan chose a relatively safe "wall grass" road: sometimes defecting to the Han Dynasty, sometimes surrendering to the Xiongnu. This kind of cautious survival wisdom undoubtedly became the fuse for Loulan's eventual disaster.
In 133 B.C., the Xiongnu Maodun Shan Yu conquered more than 20 small countries in the Western Regions, including Loulan. In the face of the powerful Xiongnu, Loulan had no choice but to submit and submit. But at this time, Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty officially abandoned the policy of peace and proximity for many years and switched to direct military confrontation.
In the following 40 years, the Han Dynasty successively sent large armies to attack the Xiongnu three times, led by brave generals such as Wei Qing and Huo Quzhi, and finally basically destroyed the military strength of the Xiongnu. And in these battles against the Xiongnu, Loulan, a small country in the cracks, gradually became the bane.
On the one hand, the king of Loulan sent envoys to pay tribute to the Han Dynasty, and on the other hand, he secretly colluded with the Xiongnu, acting as the "eyes and ears" between the two great powers. What's more, when the Han army attacked the Xiongnu vassal state, Loulan even allowed the Xiongnu to station troops in its country, which was undoubtedly a serious provocation to the deterrent power of the Han Dynasty.
Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty was furious, and he asserted that Loulan, an untrustworthy "wall-weed", must be completely eliminated in order to ensure the security of the Western Regions and maintain the smooth flow of the Silk Road. As a result, the Han army threw their heads and spilled their blood again, and finally conquered the mud city of Loulan, the capital of Loulan, and forced the king of Loulan to surrender.
Since then, Loulan has become an important stronghold of the Han Dynasty in the Western Regions, not only a military fortress, but also a hot spot for the development of Tuntian. It can be said that the fate of Loulan has been completely tied to the rise and fall of the Han Dynasty.
3. Fu Jiezi's revenge and the widow of King Loulan
After years of hard work, Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty finally defeated the Xiongnu and created a relatively peaceful situation. However, Loulan, the "grass on the wall", has resurfaced.
The new king of Loulan, who grew up in the Xiongnu since childhood, was not familiar with the culture of the Central Plains, but was close to the former enemy of the Xiongnu. When the Han Dynasty sent envoys to Loulan, An Gui actually ordered a sneak attack and killing, which was tantamount to seriously provoking the deterrent power of the Han Dynasty.
In this regard, Huo Guang, the general of Emperor Zhao of the Han Dynasty, selected a loyal subordinate Fu Jiezi, secretly went to Loulan, entered the palace as a merchant, and looked for an opportunity to assassinate An Gui.
During a banquet, Fu Jiezi stabbed several swords in a row, and finally killed Angui, the king of Loulan. Then, Fu Jiezi hung the head of An Gui on the wall of the Han Dynasty, which became a sensational military feat.
This incident not only shocked public opinion at the time, but even Emperor Zhao of the Han Dynasty was impressed. But in fact, this also marked the complete fall of Loulan, a small country in the Western Regions. After that, Loulan was renamed Shanshan and became an important vassal state of the Han Dynasty in the Western Regions.
The Han Dynasty cultivated and developed this land on a large scale, and Loulan was gradually assimilated by the Central Plains culture. It was not until the end of the 4th century A.D., when the former Qin Tieho destroyed the Western Regions, that this once glorious ancient city was finally buried in the smoke and dust of history.
It is worth mentioning that when King Angui of Loulan was killed, he left his last words before his death: "Although I have been killed, I believe that future generations will have someone who will be able to avenge me, and someone will not break Loulan's oath and never return it!" "
This last sentence has become the subject of countless poets in later generations. Wang Changling, a great poet of the Tang Dynasty, once had a heroic work of "wearing gold armor in a hundred battles in the yellow sand, and never returning Loulan if it is not broken"; And Li Bai also wrote a generous aria of "willing to lower the sword for the waist, just to kill Loulan". It can be seen how extensive the influence of the small country of Loulan was at that time.
Fourth, the fall of Loulan and the decline of civilization in the Western Regions
For the small country of Loulan, its fate has long been closely linked to the rise and fall of the Han Dynasty. With the prosperity of the Han Dynasty, Loulan also prospered for a time; And when the Han Dynasty finally went into decline, Loulan also fell.
In 376 AD, the iron hooves of the former Qin overthrew the former Liang, and the Western Regions Long History Institution also withdrew from Loulan City. The soldiers who had cultivated on this fertile soil also put down their sickles one after another and left this hot land closely related to the Central Plains Dynasty.
With the passage of time, this once glorious ancient city has gradually been submerged by the dust of history and has become a ruin today. It can be said that the demise of Loulan marks the gradual decline of an important hub on the ancient Silk Road.
This once prosperous trade route has also become more and more vicissitudes. Until the 6th century AD, when this land of the Western Regions was unified by the Northern Wei Dynasty, the name Loulan was completely lost in the long river of history.
Perhaps, in the pen of many Central Plains writers, Loulan will always be a symbol of the game between the Central Plains Dynasty and the small countries in the Western Regions. They are keen to sing the praises of those heroic feats who vow to "never return Loulan if they don't break it", but they also forget that Loulan is a small country, but it is just an innocent person who has been caught in the whirlpool.
But it is such a weak and small country in the Western Regions that has witnessed the pioneering spirit of the Central Plains Dynasty in the Western Regions, and also reflects the trajectory of the rise and fall of the Silk Road civilization. Its rise and fall reflects a grander historical picture.
epilogue
History is always thrilling, but the story of Loulan reveals a helpless sadness. It was once an important strategic fulcrum for the Central Plains Dynasty to open up the Western Regions, but it also fell victim to the game between the two great powers.
Perhaps in the long course of history, there will always be some little-known weak existences who are caught up in a vortex that they cannot control, and eventually die out in the changes of the times. Let us all remember the rise and fall of this small country and let it become a mirror for us to face reality cautiously and cherish the present.
Because in this rapidly changing world, no one can say what their tomorrow will look like. Let us work together to build a fairer and more just world, free from discrimination and war, and free more lives from destruction.