The country of Shule is more than a hundred miles south of Bai Mountain and has existed since the Han Dynasty. The king, named Amijue, and both he and his subjects have six fingers. Children born without six fingers tend not to survive long. The capital city spans five li. There are twelve major cities, dozens of small cities, and a force of two thousand elite soldiers. The king wears a hat fashioned from gold lion motifs. The country produces rice, millet, hemp, wheat, copper, iron, silk, and orpiment, which are presented as tribute to the Turks each year. To the south of Shule is the Yellow River, to the west lies the Han Kingdom, over a thousand li away, to the east lies Kucha, about fifteen hundred li away, to the south is Zhu Jubo, approximately eight to nine hundred li away, to the northeast lies the Turks' camp, over a thousand li distant, and to the southeast is Guazhou, about four thousand six hundred li away. During the Sui Dynasty, Shule also dispatched envoys to present local specialties as tribute.
The Kingdom of Yutian is located more than two hundred li north of the Congling Mountains. The king's name is Wang Beishibiliang. The capital city stretches about eight to nine li. The country has five large cities, dozens of small cities, and several thousand elite soldiers. They follow Buddhism, with a large number of monks and nuns; the king often follows a vegetarian diet and recites scriptures. Fifty li south of the city, there is a Zanmo Temple, which is said to have been built by the Arhat Bhikshu Bilu. The temple stones bear the footprints of the Buddha. Five hundred li west of Yutian, there is a Bimo Temple, which is said to be the place where Laozi converted the barbarians into Buddhists. The people of Yutian are known for their lack of propriety, with many thieves and bandits, and they are quite licentious. The king wears a brocade hat adorned with a golden rat, while the queen wears a gold flower. The king's hair is not to be seen by others, because local lore says that if anyone sees the king's hair, that year will surely bring poverty. Yutian boasts abundant resources such as hemp, wheat, millet, rice, and a variety of fruits, featuring numerous gardens and an abundance of beautiful jade stones in the mountains. Yutian is 1,500 li east of Shanshan, 3,000 li south of Nüguo, over 1,000 li west of Zhujubo, and 1,400 li north of Kucha. It is 2,800 li northeast of Guazhou. During the Sui Dynasty, Yutian frequently sent envoys to pay tribute.
The Kingdom of Khan is located more than five hundred li west of the Congling Mountains, formerly known as the Kingdom of Qusou. The king's name is Zhaowu Aliqi. The capital city is about four li long, with several thousand elite soldiers. The king sits on a chair crafted from golden sheep, and the queen wears a gold flower. The country is abundant in cinnabar, gold, and iron. The Kingdom of Khan is over 1,000 li east of Shule, 500 li west of Sufengshana country, 500 li northwest of Shiguo, over 2,000 li northeast of the Tujue camp, and 5,500 li east of Guazhou. During the Sui Dynasty, the Kingdom of Khan also dispatched envoys to present local specialties as tribute.
In the country of Tuhuoluo, the capital is located 500 miles west of Congling, where its people coexist with those of Yida. The capital city covers an area of about two square miles. There are around 100,000 well-trained soldiers. Their customs involve the practice of Buddhism. Additionally, brothers share a wife, taking turns to sleep with her. When entering the house, each person hangs their clothes outside the door as a marker. The children born are considered the responsibility of the eldest brother. Legend has it that divine horses dwell in the caves there, and every year, they can give birth to fine steeds by grazing mares in the caves. Traveling south from Tuhuoluo for 1,700 miles takes you to Cao, and heading east for 5,800 miles brings you to Guazhou. During the Sui Dynasty, they even sent envoys to offer tribute.
Yida country, its capital lies more than 200 miles south of Wuhu River, and they are descendants of the ancient Dayuezhi. There are about five to six thousand soldiers who are fierce and skilled in battle. Historically, during times of unrest, the Turks appointed a man named Tong Shezijiangqiang to oversee them. The capital city spans over ten square miles. There are many temples and pagodas, all richly adorned with gold. Brothers also share one wife. If a woman has one husband, she wears a single-horned hat; if she has multiple husbands, the number of horns on her hat corresponds to the number of husbands. Going south from Yida for 1,500 miles leads to Cao, and going east for 6,500 miles leads to Guazhou. During the Deyuan era, they also sent envoys to offer some local specialties as tribute.
Miguo country, its capital lies west of the Namishi River, and it used to be the territory of the Kangju people. This country is without a king. The city lord, Zhaowu, is a distant relative of the king of Kang, known by the courtesy name Bizhuo. The capital city is approximately two square miles in size. There are only a few hundred soldiers capable of fighting. Going northwest for a hundred miles leads to Kang, going east for five hundred miles leads to Suduishana, going southwest for two hundred miles leads to Shiguo, and going east for 6,400 miles leads to Guazhou. During the Deyuan era, they frequently sent local specialties as tribute.
Shi Guo, its capital is located ten miles south of Du Mo Shui, and was previously the territory of the Kangju. Their king's surname is Zhaowu, with the courtesy name Ti Zhe, and he is also a distant relative of the Kangju king. The capital city covers an area of about two square miles. There are over a thousand soldiers capable of fighting. Its customs are similar to those of the Kangju. Traveling north for two hundred and forty miles will take you to Kangju, traveling south for five hundred miles will lead you to the Kingdom of Tuhuolu, traveling west for two hundred miles will take you to the Nasebo Kingdom, traveling northeast for two hundred miles will lead you to the Kingdom of Mi, and traveling east for six thousand five hundred miles will take you to Guazhou. During the Daye period, they too sent envoys to present tributes of local products.
Cao Guo, its capital is located a few miles south of Mi Shui, which was previously the territory of the Kangju. The country lacks its own ruler, so the King of Kangju sent his son Wu Jian to govern. The capital is relatively small, covering only about three square miles. There are also just over a thousand elite soldiers. There is a mysterious object in this country that many countries from the West Sea to the East revere. This mysterious object is a golden figure, made of gold, over five zhang wide and proportionally tall. Every day, five camels, ten horses, and a hundred sheep are sacrificed to it, and the leftovers are too much for a thousand people to finish. Heading a hundred miles southeast of Cao Guo will lead you to Kangju, a hundred and fifty miles west is He Guo, and six thousand six hundred miles east is Guazhou. During the Daye period of Emperor Yang of Sui, Cao Guo also sent envoys to present tributes.
He Guo, its capital is similarly located a few miles south of Mi Shui, which was previously the territory of the Kangju. The king's surname is Zhaowu, also a relative of the Kangju royal family, with the courtesy name Dun. The capital is only two square miles, with just a thousand elite soldiers. The king sits on a throne made of gold and shaped like a sheep. Heading a hundred and fifty miles east of He Guo is Cao Guo, three hundred miles west is Xiao An Guo, and six thousand seven hundred and fifty miles east is Guazhou. During the Daye period, they too sent envoys to present tributes.
The country of Wunaho, whose capital is situated on the west bank of the Wuhu River, was formerly part of the Arsacid territory. The king's family name is Zhaowu and is also a member of the Kang royal family, whose courtesy name is Foshi. The capital covers an area of two square miles, with a military force of only a few hundred soldiers. The king sits upon a throne shaped like a golden ram. Anguo lies four hundred miles northeast of Wunaho, Muguo is located over two hundred miles to the northwest, and Guazhou is situated seven thousand five hundred miles to the east. During the Daye era, they also dispatched envoys to pay tribute.
Muguo, whose capital is on the west bank of the Wuhu River, which is also part of the former Arsacid territory, boasts a force of two thousand elite soldiers. Its capital spans an area of three square miles. Anguo is located five hundred miles northeast of Muguo, Wunaho is over two hundred miles to the east, Persia lies over four thousand miles to the west, and Guazhou is situated seven thousand seven hundred miles to the east. During the Daye era, they also dispatched envoys to pay tribute.
Speaking of Persia, it is located in the city of Sulim on the west side of the Dahe River, which is the ancient city of Tiaozhi. The king is named Kusahe, with a circumference of over ten miles for the capital. The army comprises over twenty thousand soldiers who engage in battle riding elephants. In this country, there is no death penalty, and those convicted of crimes may face amputation of hands and feet, property confiscation, be shaved, or have a wooden plaque hung around their neck for public humiliation. Individuals over the age of three are required to pay an annual tax of four coins. They also practice the custom of marrying their own sisters. When a person dies, their body is placed on a mountain, and family members are required to observe a month of mourning. The king dons a crown adorned with golden flowers, sits on a throne crafted in the shape of golden lions, adorns his beard with gold powder, is clad in a robe intricately embroidered with gold thread, and accessorizes with jade ornaments.
This country of Persia produces fine horses, large donkeys, lions, white elephants, large bird eggs, pearls, porphyry (a gemstone), beast spirit (a gemstone), coral, glassy, agate, crystal, sapphire (a gemstone), holokite (a gemstone), lute (a gemstone), fire-qi (a gemstone), diamond, gold, silver, tin ore (a mineral), copper, brittle iron (a type of steel), tin, brocade, fine cloth, felt blankets (a type of woolen blanket), tufted felt blankets, huna (a fabric), Yuen cloth (a fabric), sandalwood and silk woven with gold thread, red deer skin, cinnabar, mercury, along with various spices, including aloeswood, tulips, suhe incense, agarwood, and so on, as well as pepper, bibo (a spice), honey, semihoney (a type of sugar), thousand-year dates, aconite (a medicinal herb), helile (a medicinal herb), gallnut (a medicinal herb), green vitriol, realgar, and so on. The Turks were unable to defeat them, so they had to adopt a policy of indirect control towards them. The Persian country often sent envoys to pay tribute.
West of Persia lies the sea, to the east is the land of Mu, to the northwest is Fulin, known as the Byzantine Empire, and to the east is Guazhou. Emperor Yang of Sui sent Li Yu, captain of the Cloud Riders, to Persia, and later sent envoys with Li Yu to present various treasures as tribute.
Cao country, north of the Congling Mountains, was called the Jibin country during the Han Dynasty. The king of this land is Zhaowu, styled Shunda, and is a member of the royal family of Kangju.
The capital city stretches four li along its walls. There are over ten thousand formidable soldiers. The laws of the country are very strict, where murderers and robbers are sentenced to death. The locals are superstitious and partake in various chaotic religious practices.
On the top of Congling Mountain, there is a temple dedicated to the worship of the Heavenly God. The temple is very luxurious, whose roof is made of gold, silver, and copper, and the floor is covered in silver. Every day, thousands of people come to pay their respects.
In front of the temple stands a fish spine bone, with a hollow center large enough for a horse to pass through. The king wears a golden crown shaped like a fish and sits on a throne crafted from golden horses.
This region produces rice, millet, beans, and wheat, as well as many elephants, horses, and a type of cattle known as Fengniu, along with gold, silver, bingtong, a type of high-quality steel, carpets, cinnabar, indigo, frankincense, sandalwood, including rock honey and semi-honey, which may be a type of honey, black salt, asafoetida, myrrh, and white aconite.
To the north is Fan Yan City, 700 miles away, to the east is Jue Country, 600 miles away, and to the northeast is Guazhou, 6,600 miles away. During the Sui Dynasty, Cao Guo even sent envoys to present various local specialties.
It is said that the country of Fu, located more than two thousand li northwest of Shu County, was the territory of the southwestern tribes during the Han Dynasty. There is a tribe called Jialiang Yi to the east of Fu, with each tribe governing itself, and their customs are similar to those of Fu, but their languages are somewhat different and not unified. They do not have surnames. The king of Fu is called Yi Zeng. Their country is eight hundred li long from north to south and fifteen hundred li wide from southeast to northwest; without city walls, they live in strategic locations near valleys and mountains. The people there love revenge, so they build stone structures resembling bird nests to evade their enemies. These "stone structures" can reach over ten zhang in height, with some as short as five or six zhang, and each floor is over a zhang high and separated by wooden partitions. The base is only three to four steps square, and the top is two to three steps wide, resembling pagodas. There’s a small door on the ground floor, and they must close the door at night to keep thieves out. The country has over twenty thousand households, all under the king's authority. The Jialiang Yi tribe follows their chieftain, punishing serious crimes with death and minor offenses with a fine of a cow. They are nimble and skilled swordsmen. They use lacquered leather for armor, bows six chi long with strings made of bamboo. They practice polyandry, marrying multiple women, including sisters-in-law; if a brother's son dies, the father marries his widow. They enjoy singing and dancing, playing drums and flutes. When someone dies, there is no specific mourning dress; the body is placed on a high platform, cleaned, dressed in armor, and covered with animal skins. The children do not cry; instead, they dance in armor with swords, shouting, "My father was taken by ghosts! I will avenge him and kill the ghosts!" Other relatives cry three times before stopping. Women are required to cover their faces while crying. The family slaughters a cow, and relatives bring wine and pork to drink and eat together before the burial. A grand funeral is held ten years later, where friends and family are invited, and horses are sacrificed, sometimes numbering in the dozens. They honor their ancestors by erecting ancestral shrines. They wear leather hats that are round like bowls, some with additional coverings. Most of their clothing is made from fur, while their shoes are crafted from entire cow hides. They wear iron chains around their necks and iron bracelets on their wrists. The king and chieftain adorn themselves with gold jewelry, including a gold flower about three inches in diameter hanging from their chests. The area is elevated, with a cool climate, strong winds, and little rainfall. The land is ideal for cultivating wheat and barley. The mountains yield gold and silver, along with numerous white pheasants. There is a prized fish in the river that grows up to four feet long, with very fine scales.
Paragraph 2: In conclusion, the lives of the Fu and Jialiang Yi people are vastly different from ours today. The stone nests they live in sound truly unique, tall and layered like a giant beehive. Their customs of seeking revenge are also quite frightening, which suggests that living there requires caution. Furthermore, their marriage customs are completely different from ours now, such as marrying one’s sisters-in-law and practicing polyandry, which seems almost unimaginable today. However, they enjoy singing and dancing, illustrating that people have always appreciated beautiful things, no matter the era. Their grand funerals are quite elaborate, involving the sacrifice of dozens of horses, demonstrating their reverence for ancestors. Overall, their way of life merges the ruggedness of primitive tribes with distinctive cultural traits. After reading this passage, it feels as if one has traveled back to ancient times and experienced the unique life of the southwestern tribes.
In 608 AD, during the fourth year of Emperor Yangdi's Daye reign of the Sui Dynasty, their king sent eight people to the court as tribute. The following year, his student Yilin brought sixty Jialiang Yi people to pay tribute. They wanted to offer good horses, but the route was too treacherous and impassable, so they requested Emperor Yangdi to open a mountain road for easier tribute in the future. However, Emperor Yangdi deemed it too troublesome and burdensome, so he declined.
There is a river in the Jialiang Yi territory, approximately sixty to seventy zhang wide; in Fu Guo, there is also a river that is over a hundred zhang wide, both flowing southward. They crafted boats from animal skins to cross the rivers.
To the south of the country of Fu live the Bo Yuan Yi, whose customs and habits are similar to those of the Jialiang Yi. To the west of the country of Fu, there is a matriarchal kingdom. To the northeast of the country of Fu, mountains stretch for thousands of miles, all the way to the Dangxiang region. Qiang tribes are scattered throughout the mountains: Dazuo Feng, Xiaozuo Feng, Xiwei, Geyan, Baigou, Xiangren, Wangzu, Lintai, Chunsang, Lidou, Misang, Biyao, Dahai, Bailan, Chilimotu, Nae, Dangmi, Qubu, Sangwu, Qiandiao. These tribes all live in deep mountain valleys, with no major leaders to govern them. Their customs and habits are similar to those of the Dangxiang people; some are vassals of the Tuyuhun, and some are attached to the country of Fu. During the Sui Dynasty, these Qiang tribes all came to the court to pay tribute. In order to manage these areas, the court established several governors on the southwestern border, responsible for long-distance governance.
Historical records indicate that since ancient times, to expand the borders and establish trade with distant lands, one must rely on emperors with open-mindedness, and also on ministers who are enthusiastic about such matters. Zhang Qian opened the route to the Western Regions before, and Ban Chao later joined the military, continuing the development of the Western Regions. They either used treasures to buy or used force to intimidate, risking their lives for fleeting glory, all because the emperor valued the border and the ministers were willing to dedicate themselves to it. Therefore, it is said that what the emperor favors, the subjects will favor even more.
Emperor Yang of Sui, with ambitions to surpass the Qin and Han dynasties, had Pei Ju present the "Record of the Western Regions" to please him. Consequently, Emperor Yang of Sui personally went to Yumen Pass and established places like Yiwu and Qiemo. As a result, the area west of Guanzhong all the way to the Lop Desert was in chaos, causing immense suffering for the common people. If the northern nomadic tribes had not harassed them, and victories had been achieved in the east, Emperor Yang of Sui would certainly have continued to build military camps at Luntai, fortify cities at Wulei, and even sought pearls from Daqin, bringing back ostrich eggs and transporting them back and forth—what an exhausting endeavor that would be! Ancient wise emperors focused only on stabilizing the Central Plains, not bothering with remote and desolate areas. Were they lacking in prestige and virtue? No, they simply did not want trouble on the borders to burden the people of the Central Plains, nor did they want unproductive issues to delay useful ones. Therefore, the Qin Dynasty guarded the Wuling, and the Han Dynasty deployed troops on the three borders, resulting in either widespread famine or a halving of the population. The Sui Dynasty, despite its perceived strength, ultimately faced significant hardships in Qinghai. All of this was because the emperors themselves chose the wrong course, causing the common people to suffer.
If Emperor Yang of Sui could seriously consider this principle, firmly reject the requests of the officials to go on missions, return the thousand-mile horse, and refuse the tributes of white wolves, then even if the various tribes of the Western Regions only sent envoys to pay tribute, even if there were no brilliant victories like the Liaodong Campaign, how could they end up like Emperor Yang of Sui, meeting a miserable death in Jiangdu?
