《西游录注》

In the third month of the wuyin year, the thirteenth year of Emperor Taizu of the Yuan, Yelü Chucai set out from Yunzhong (the area of present-day Datong), reached the Tianshan Mountains, crossed the great desert, and finally arrived at the place where the emperor was stationed. The term xingzaisuo used in the text refers to the temporary residence where the emperor halted in the course of his travels.

The commentary cites geographical works from successive periods to explain the place names and landforms along the route. “Tianshan” is identified differently in different texts: some take it to be the Qilian Mountains, while others refer to the mountain ranges around Hami. Both daqi and shamo denote vast wastelands of sand and stone. “Gobi” is the local name; ancient books also call it Hanhai. These records serve to set out the route and environment through which Yelü Chucai passed on his journey west.

This refers to the traveling palace of Emperor Taizu of the Yuan at Helin (Karakorum), that is, the “emperor’s old ordo” mentioned in Qiu Chuji’s Xiyouji (Record of a Journey to the West). The Xiyouji records: “On the twenty-eighth day of the sixth month of the xinsi year, they halted at the ordo.” In Chinese, ordo means a traveling palace; it is also called the “ordo of the Naiman kingdom.” It was probably after Emperor Taizu of the Yuan destroyed the Naiman that he established a traveling palace here, so as to facilitate campaigns to the west.

“The following year” refers to the jimao year, that is, the fourteenth year of Emperor Taizu of the Yuan.

In that year a large-scale western expedition was launched, and along the way they passed through Jinshan (the Altai Mountains).

According to the Beibian Beidui, during the Sui and Tang periods the Ashina clan of the Turks occupied the lands in the northern part of the territory of the ancient Xiongnu and dwelt on the southern side of the Jinshan. Volume one of the Zhanran Jushi Ji contains a poem entitled “Passing the Jinshan, Using Another’s Rhymes.” The Xiyu Shidi states that Bogda Mountain at Ürümqi has three peaks soaring into the clouds; halfway up the mountain lies a pool more than ten li in circumference, which the local people call a “haizi”; and south of the mountain is a place popularly known as the “Seven Dabans.”

According to the Tangshu, one proceeds north from Jiaohe County in Xizhou, passes through Liugu, crosses the Jinsha Ridge, and thus reaches the city of the Beiting Protectorate. The route recorded in the notes to Du Fu’s poems is as follows: eighty li north from Jiaohe County to the Longquan post station, then one hundred thirty li north into the valley, through Liugu and over the Taisha Ridge, then one hundred sixty li past the Han garrison at Shihui, arriving at the Beiting Protectorate. Present-day Ürümqi is the site of the Tang Beiting Protectorate, and Turpan was the seat of ancient Xizhou. Judging by the distance between the two places, the “daban” (mountain pass) here is the Jinsha Ridge of the records. Beside the ridge today there is a steep slope of fine, loose sand on which horses’ hooves easily slip; the names “Jinsha” and “Taisha” may well have arisen from this.

The Huangyu Xiyu Tuzhi holds that the present-day Altan is the ancient Jinshan. Both the Tangshu’s statement that the Ashina dwelt south of the Jinshan and its record of Peiluo crossing the Jinshan westward refer to this place.

Even at the height of summer, snow and ice still lie on the mountains, and people can open a road only by cutting through the ice and snow. Pines and junipers tower into the sky, and flowers and grasses cover the valleys. The rivers west of the Jinshan all flow westward into the sea.

Liu Qi of the Jin dynasty recorded in the Beishi ji (Record of an Embassy to the North): “After leaving the northern frontier and traveling northwest, the terrain gradually rises as one passes through the Xia kingdom. After a journey of seven or eight thousand li, the rivers east of the mountain range all flow eastward, while those west of the range flow westward; the land then gradually descends.”

In the Xichui yaolüe (Essentials of the Western Frontier), Qi Yunshi writes: “The rivers of the various parts of Xinjiang flow in different directions. The waters of the southern route all flow eastward, rising between the northern and southern mountain ranges. For example, the Ulan Usu of Kashgar, the Jade River of Yarkand, the Karakash and Yurungkash rivers of Khotan, the Hushqi River of Ush, the Hunbashi River of Aksu, the Weigan River of Kucha, and the Kaidu River of Karashahr all flow east and converge in the Lop Nur of Turpan.” The waters formed by melting snow on the northern and southern mountains likewise all drain into Lop Nur. There the water gathers and accumulates, then sinks underground as a hidden current; this is what the ancient texts call the Puchang Sea.

The rivers of the northern route each take their own course: many of the rivers around Ili flow westward; the tributaries of the Irtysh in the Tarbagatai region mostly flow eastward; and the Manas River of Urumqi mostly flows northward. Some waters enter lakes, some pass through reed marshes, some disappear into the sands, and many rivers are also fed by snowmelt.

To its south stands a Uyghur city (a city built or inhabited by the Uyghurs).

The Appendix on the Northwestern Territories in the Yuan administrative records states: “In the twentieth year of the Zhiyuan reign of Emperor Shizu of the Yuan, four postal relay stations and a paper-currency treasury were established in the Uyghur (Weiwu’er) region.” The Ming Shifa Lu records: “Huozhou was called Weiwu’er in the Yuan dynasty. Seventy li to its east lies Liuchen City, and one hundred li west of Liuchen City is Turpan, the site of the capital of the ancient kingdom of Gaochang.”

According to the Treatise on the Military Guards in the History of the Liao, the armies of states subordinate to the Liao included Uyghur (Huihu) forces, comprising the Ganzhou Uyghurs, the Shazhou Uyghurs, and the Hezhou Uyghurs. What is meant here is the city of the Hezhou Uyghurs. Hong Hao’s Songmo Jiwen records: “The Uyghurs, Ganzhou, Liangzhou, Guazhou, and Shazhou all formerly had tribal encampments of their own. Only those living outside these four prefectures mostly formed a state of their own and possessed their own ruler.”

The name is also written “Bieshiba.”

The Xishi Ji records that the Longgu River flows on toward the northwest, lying due south of Beshbalik (Bieshibali) at a distance of about five hundred li. The “Appendix on the Northwestern Territories” in the Yuan Shi records that in the fifteenth year of Zhiyuan of the Yuan dynasty, military-station affairs were established at Beshbalik and placed under the charge of Basachali; in the seventeenth year, the myriarch Qi Gongzhi was sent to garrison the place; in the eighteenth year, at the request of Prince Ajiji, thirty new relay stations were set up from the Taihe Range to Beshbalik; in the twentieth year, the Pacification Commission of Beshbalik, Hezhou, and other places (a local military and civil administration) was established; and in the twenty-third year, one thousand newly surrendered imperial guards were dispatched to open military farms there, and a Marshal’s Office was instituted.

The “Account of the Western Regions” in the Ming Shi calls Beshbalik a great state of the Western Regions, adjoining Khotan (Yutian) to the south, reaching Samarkand to the west, Huozhou to the east, and linking with the Oirats (Wala) to the north, and notes that Yuan Shizu once considered establishing a pacification commission. In the Xiyou Ji it is written as “the great city of Biesima.” Ouyang Xuan’s Family Biography of the Qi Clan of Gaochang says: “Beiting is the city of Beshbalik of today.”

There are Tang-dynasty stone inscriptions in the locality.

The Xiyouji records: “Beiting Duanfu. In the third year of Jinglong (709), Grand Protector Yang He carried out benevolent governance. Longxing Western Monastery still preserves two stone inscriptions; the merits they record are exceptionally notable and well worth viewing. A Buddhist scripture is kept in the monastery. In the frontier cities of the Tang dynasty, remains of this kind have often survived.”

The Huaixi zazhi likewise records: “Tenage Tingduan Fu. In the third year of Jinglong, Grand Protector Yang He carried out benevolent governance. Longxing Western Monastery still preserves two stone inscriptions; the merits they record are exceptionally notable and well worth viewing. A Buddhist scripture is kept in the monastery. In the frontier cities of the Tang dynasty, remains of this kind have often survived.” The same work further states: “Tenage’er was Jinman County of the Tang dynasty, and fragmentary steles still remain there.”

The Xiyu shidi says: “The Dinggu Mountains of Kucha lie north of the city. On the mountains there is an ancient monastery that preserves many Tang stone inscriptions, together with a Buddhist pagoda several dozen zhang in height.”

The Xiyu shuidao ji records: “Barköl Nor has four sources of water. The one to the southeast is called Zhaomoduosha Ürümqi, and that is where Gongning City stands. The city backs onto the Alagui Mountains to the south and commands the Bogda Mountains to the east; on the north side of the mountains lies Fukang County. Continuing east along the mountains for one hundred and ninety li, one reaches Shabozhen of the Tang dynasty, that is, Mohe City, where Ashina Helu was based. Fifty li farther east is Futu City of the Western Turkic qaghan at Jimusa; under the Tang it was called Jinman County and was later renamed Houting County, and it was the seat of the Beiting Protectorate. In the Yuan dynasty the Beiting Grand Marshal’s Office was established at Beshbalik, and its seat was likewise placed here.

“This old city lies a little more than twenty li north of present-day Baohui City, at a place called Hubaozi. Within the abandoned city are fragmentary steles of Tang Jinman County. The stones stand upright, two in all; each is eight cun high and six cun wide. One bears seven lines, the other six.”

The so-called “Hanhai Army” was the Tang force garrisoned in the Hanhai region.

Liu Yu of the Yuan dynasty, in his Xishi ji (Record of an Embassy to the West), says: “The Hanhai region lies at a very high elevation and has an extremely cold climate; even at the height of summer, the accumulated snow does not melt.” What is now called the Hanhai is the ancient Jinshan (Golden Mountain).

The Tangshu, “Treatise on Geography,” records: “The Beiting Grand Protectorate was originally named Tingzhou. In the fourteenth year of Zhenguan (640), after the Tang pacified Gaochang, the Hanhai Army was established there; in the second year of Chang’an (702), the Beiting Grand Protectorate was further established.” The Hanhai lies several hundred li from the city.

The Xiyu shidi (Geographical Explanation of the Western Regions) says: “From Hami eastward to Anxi Prefecture and westward to Turpan, there is desert and Gobi throughout, short of water and pasture; for several hundred li not a blade of grass grows. Locally it is called the Hanhai, and today it is called the Gobi.”

In the sea there is a small island, entirely covered with feathers shed by birds.

The Shiji, “Account of the Xiongnu,” says: “The General of Agile Cavalry…”

The “Account of the Xiongnu” in the Records of the Grand Historian records that General of Agile Cavalry Huo Qubing was enfeoffed at Mount Langjuxu, made a sacrificial announcement at Mount Guyan, and returned after reaching the Hanhai. The Hanhai is the name of a great sea in the north. Zhang Shoujie explains that the Hanhai was originally a vast sea; according to legend, many birds molted and changed their feathers on the rocks and nested there to rear their young, and it took its name from this.

Li Guangting’s research states that Wenzheng’s Record of a Journey to the West records an arrival in the wuchen year at the imperial traveling residence, that is, Gaochang of the Tang dynasty; yet it identifies present-day Jimusa as the Hanhai, which differs from the account in Liu Yu’s Record of a Mission to the West, and calling it the Pulei Sea is likewise inaccurate. An Explanation of the Lands of the Western Regions holds, by contrast, that Barkol was anciently called the city of Huining, and that the lake beneath the sandy hills north of the city is the ancient Pulei Sea, also known as the Poxi Sea and popularly called Haizi. The lake extends more than a hundred li from east to west and is several tens of li wide. The histories record that the Huyan king once moved back and forth between Pulei and the Qin Sea, and that from north of Nazhi County in Yizhou during the Tang one could go directly to the Pulei Sea. Yizhou is present-day Hami, not far from Barkol, and Barkol is also the former territory of the Han-dynasty kingdom of Pulei. This lake, therefore, is the Pulei Sea.

Two hundred li west of the city lies Luntai County.

The “Treatise on Geography” in the New Book of Tang records that from Xiyan City in Tingzhou west to Luntai County is 320 li in all. The Journey to the West records that several hundred li east of the great city of Biesima lies Xiliang Prefecture, and more than three hundred li to the west lies Luntai County. When the Master asked how much farther it still was to the imperial traveling residence, the others replied, “Go on more than ten thousand li to the southwest, and that is the imperial traveling residence.”

Inscribed steles of the Tang dynasty also stand there. A Record of the Watercourses of the Western Regions discusses this.

Five hundred li to the south stands a Hezhou.

The “Biography of Yelü Xiliang” in the History of the Yuan records a journey from Kuxian to Hala Huozhou (Qara-Qocho). The “Appendix on the Northwestern Territories” in the History of the Yuan notes, in the area of Alimali (Almalik), a place called “Helahuo.”

This is the Gaochang of the Tang dynasty.

The “Treatise on Military Guards” in the History of the Liao records that Gaochang was among the armies of the subordinate states. The History of the Ming says that within the territory of Huozhou there are many mountains, colored blue-green and red, which from a distance look like fire, and that the place took its name from this. East of Huozhou stands an abandoned city: it was the capital of the kingdom of Gaochang and also the station of the Wuji Colonel (Wuji xiaowei) of the Han dynasty. To the northwest the region connects with Bieshibali (Beshbalik); later it was annexed by Tulufan (Turpan).

The “Treatise on Military Guards” in the History of the Liao records that Gaochang was among the armies of the subordinate states. The History of the Ming says that within the territory of Huozhou there are many mountains, colored blue-green and red, which from a distance look like fire, and that the place took its name from this. East of Huozhou stands an abandoned city: it was the capital of the kingdom of Gaochang and also the station of the Wuji Colonel of the Han dynasty. To the northwest the region connects with Bieshibali; later it was annexed by Tulufan.

It is also called Yizhou.

In juan 12 of the Collected Works of the Lay Scholar Zhanran, the poem “Recalling Antiquity” reads: “Crossing the Hanhai, one arrives at Western Yi.” The commentary says that northwest of Yizhou lies the Hanhai, and that Yizhou is also called Xizhou. The Xiyu Shidi (Explanation of the Geography of the Western Regions) says that the Yuanhe Maps and Gazetteer of Prefectures and Counties records that from Nazhi County of Yizhou the way north leads all the way to the Pulei Sea. The Yizhou of the Tang dynasty is present-day Hami.

Three to four thousand li west of Gaochang lies Wuduan City, that is, the kingdom of Yutian (Khotan) of the Tang dynasty.

In the Yuan History, the “Appendix on the Lands of the Northwest” records the name as “Hutan,” referring to this very place. Both the “Biography of Hesimaili” and the “Biography of Baiyan Badulu” write it as “Woduan,” while the “Annals of Emperor Xianzong” write it as “Kuoduan.” All these names are phonetic variations, in different languages, of the two characters “Wuduan.” What is now called “Hetian” is this same place. The Ming History writes it as “Aduan,” and also retains the ancient name in the form “Yutian”; these are not different places. The Xiyu Shidi (An Account of the Western Regions) says: “Yarkand was the site of the kingdom of Shache in the Han dynasty. After the Tang it was incorporated into Yutian, and was also called Hetian. The Han kingdom of Yutian was located here, and the Tang established the Yutian Area Command here. The Hui people call the Han Chinese ‘Heitai,’ and ‘Hetian’ is a corruption of ‘Heitai.’ Tradition has it that Ren Shang of the Han once abandoned his followers here.”

The rivers here produce white jade.

The Xichui Yaolue (Essentials of the Western Frontier) says: “Near Yarkand there is Mount Mierdi, more than two hundred li south of the city, which abounds in jade; there is also Mount Maerhuluke, more than four hundred li southwest of the city, which likewise abounds in jade. Another great mountain lies southwest of Yarkand and is joined to Mount Mierdi. The Hui people call it Tashdalahan, and the author supposes that it may be the Congling, the Onion Range, of which accounts speak. There is a Jade River in the area, issuing from Mount Mierdi, and a southern branch flows into Hetian. The mountains throughout the Hetian region are covered with snow all year round. The Halahashi River, the Yulonghashi River, and the Halangguitake River all abound in jade, and they also supply water for irrigating the fields.”

After crossing the Hanhai—a desert stretching as far as the eye can see—for more than a thousand li, one comes to the city of Bula.

The Appendix on the Lands of the Northwest records this city as “Pula.” The Biography of Yelü Xiliang states that Yelü Xiliang once reached “Bula City.” In his Illustrated Study of the Western Regions, Li Guangting says that Bula City is the “Boluo City” described in the Record of an Embassy to the West, the two names being merely different phonetic transcriptions. South of the city lie the Yinshan Mountains, also known as Pine-Tree Head Ridge. On the summit of the Yinshan there is a lake, now called Sailamu Lake, enclosed by mountains on all sides.

The Yinshan south of Bula City stretches a thousand li from east to west and is two hundred li across from north to south.

The Record of a Journey to the West relates that, at first, while north of the Shatuo, one looked far south toward the horizon and saw something like a band of silvery cloud and mist. Those nearby were asked, but none could explain it. The master said, “It is most likely the Yinshan.” The next day, after crossing the Shatuo, they met woodcutters and asked again; the woodcutters likewise said that it was the Yinshan. Volume 1 of the Collected Works of the Lay Scholar Zhanran contains “Six Poems on Passing the Yinshan, Matching Another’s Rhymes,” which records what was seen and heard while crossing the Yinshan.

On the summit of the Yinshan there is a lake with a circumference of seventy to eighty li.

The Essentials of the Western Frontiers records that among the waters of the Ili region is Sailimu Naor, lying more than two hundred li northeast of the city, beyond the mountains. Most of the rivers within the territory flow into the Ili River; only the water of Sailimu Naor does not join it. An Explanation of the Geography of the Western Regions likewise records that Sailimu Nuo’er lies more than two hundred li northeast of Ili City, east of Tarqi Ridge, and that to its north is a river valley called Bolotala. The work also states that the water of Sailimu Nuo’er does not flow into the Ili River.

The land south of the lake is covered with linqin trees, growing so densely that their branches and leaves shut out the sky and even sunlight cannot penetrate. Once one emerges from the Yinshan, one reaches Alima City.

The Xishi ji records: “After leaving the pass, one reaches the city of Alima, where streams of water run crisscross through the streets and lanes.” The name “Alimali” that appears here should be read as “Alima”; the extra character li is a superfluous interpolation. This is the “Alima” city spoken of in the Zhanran ji, and not the “Alimali” recorded in the Xibei di fulu (Appendix on the Northwestern Territories).

The local people call the apple “alima.” Apple orchards cover the outskirts of the city, and the city takes its name from this. It governs eight or nine dependent towns.

The Zhiyuan yiyu records that in Mongolian the pear is called “alima.”

The region abounds in grapes and pears, and the grain crops grown there are the same as those of the Central Plains. West of the city there is also a great river named the Yilie.

In the Beishi ji, Liu Qi says: “In the twelfth month of the fourth year of Xingding, we passed beyond the northern frontier and continued on; the terrain gradually rose. After traveling another seven or eight thousand li, and then a further four or five thousand li, the climate there was quite warm. We passed more than a hundred cities, none of whose names were Chinese. After several tens of thousands of li more, we reached Yili City of the Uyghur kingdom, that is, the capital of the Uyghur king.” Such is the general sense.

Critical study holds that “Yili” (益离) is a phonetic shift from “Yilie” (亦列), and that the city name most likely derives from the Yilie River. The Xiyou ji records: “Going south along the Tianchi (Heavenly Lake), one descends to Alima City; traveling west for four more days, one reaches the Dalasu Monian. ‘Monian’ means river.” In his postscript, Xu Song explains that Alima City corresponds to the area of the present western Alimatu River, northeast of Gongchen City. The river issues from the Taleqi mountain pass and flows southwest, only one hundred li from the Alimatu River. Four days’ travel farther west brings one to the Dalasu Monian, which is the Ili River of today. Reckoning by a westward journey of four days, the crossing should have been west of the present Chalin Ford.

As for the Yilie River, Li Guangting holds that it should be the Chahan Wusu River west of present-day Zhande City, the name “Ili” being used only as a general designation for the rivers of this region. The Xiyu shidi records: “The Ili River lies about one li south of Ili City. It rises from the Hashi and Kongjisi rivers; its waters are vast, and its channel is deep and broad, and streams from every part of the territory flow into it. After passing south of the city, the river turns northwest, flows more than seven hundred li into Kazakh territory, and, on meeting sandy ground, sinks underground.”

An examination of the Tang shu records: “During the Zhenguan reign, the Western Turks divided their tribes into two parts, taking the Yilie River as the boundary. In the second year of Xianqing, Su Dingfang served as commander-in-chief of the Yili Circuit expeditionary army and campaigned against the Western Turks.” The “Yili” (伊丽) spoken of here is the Ili (伊犁) of today, and the name comes from the river. “Li” (犁) and “li” (丽) are the same name, while the pronunciation of “lie” (列) is close to them.

To its west there is a city called Husi Woluduo, the capital of the Western Liao.

In the Ming dynasty, Chen Shiyuan wrote in the Zhushi Yiyu (Glosses on Terms in the Various Histories) that “Wo’erduo” (斡耳朵) means, in Chinese, simply “a tent.” The Liao History writes it as “Woluduo” (斡鲁朵), a variant spelling produced by a shift in pronunciation. The Liao History records that Yelü Dashi established his capital and called it “Husi Woluduo” (虎思斡鲁朵). Here “Woluduo” likewise refers to a palace tent or the place where the court was stationed.

The Xishi Ji (Account of a Mission to the West) records: “Passing between the two mountains of Liutu (六屠), the land there was level and thickly populated, with ditches and canals running in every direction; along the way there were also many old forts and ruined walls. On inquiring of the local people, one learned that this was where the Khitans had formerly lived. Estimating the distance of the journey, the place lay about fifteen thousand li from Helin.” The Basic Annals of Tianzuo in the Liao History states that Yelü Dashi built a capital city and named it “Husi Woluduo.”

The Treatise on Military Guards in the Liao History records that among the armies of the subordinate states there were the “Humusi Mountain Tribes” (胡母思山蕃). “Humusi” is the “Husi” (虎思) of the Basic Annals of Tianzuo. The Table of Tribes in the Liao History records that in the second year of Tianzan, Liao Taizu defeated the Humusi Mountain Tribes; the Table of the Various Tribes further mentions a “Humusi Tribe” (忽母思部). All these names correspond to the “Husi” (虎司) referred to in this book. After Yelü Dashi established his capital, this capital city came to be called “Wo’erduo.”

The Treatise on Camps and Guards in the Liao History says: “Where they dwelt there were palace guards, called Woluduo.” The Treatise on Officials in the Jin History says: “Woliduo (斡里朵) is the place where government offices conduct their business.”

There were several dozen dependent towns. Several hundred li farther west stood a city named Talasi (塔剌思).

The Record of the Western Mission (Xishi ji) states that on the twenty-eighth day they passed Talasi (塔剌寺). An examination of the Travels to the West (Xiyou ji) turns up the name “Dalasu monian” (答剌速没辇); the original note says that “monian” means river. From this it is clear that “Talasi” (塔剌思) is a different phonetic transcription of “Dalasu” (答剌速). The city takes its name from the river: the upper reaches are called the Dalasu River, while the present book calls it the Yilie River (亦列河), lying east of the capital of Hezhong Prefecture (河中府) of the Western Liao (西辽). The water flows west for several hundred li and bends around the city of Talasi. This Talasi is the same place that Liu Yu passed through.

More than four hundred li farther to the southwest lies the city of Kuzhan (苦盏).

The Record of the Western Mission states that four days later they crossed the Huzhang River (忽章河) in a boat as small as a man’s shoe. Local people said the river rises in the great mountains to the south, a region rich in jade. The recorder conjectured that this mountain might be the Kunlun Mountains.

Next comes the city of Bapu (八普).

The “Appendix on the Northwestern Territories” in the Yuan History (Yuanshi) writes the name as “Babu” (巴补), which is pronounced the same as “Bapu” here and differs only in the way it is written.

There is also the city of Kesan (可伞).

The “Appendix on the Northwestern Territories” in the Yuan History writes it “Kesan” (柯散), and the Biography of Hesimaili (曷思麦里传) writes “the city of Kesan” (可散城); all are different ways of writing “Kesan” (可伞).

There is, further, the city of Balan (芭榄). The Travels to the West records that in the first month of spring of the renwu year the balan had just come into bloom, its flowers shaped like small peaches; when the fruit was picked in autumn, it tasted like walnut. A poem on the western journey in the Zhanran ji (湛然集) also says: “Having tasted balan oneself, one no longer minds the price; brewing grape wine oneself, one does not present it to the authorities.” Many other poems mention balan and grapes as well.

Kuzhan abounds in pomegranates. The fruit is as large as an arched structural member, fragrant and sweet with a slight tartness. Three or five pomegranates yield a full basin of juice, an excellent drink for quenching thirst.

The name Kuzhan appears in different historical works: the Appendix on the Northwestern Territories in the Yuan History writes it as Huzhan, while the Account of the Western Regions in the Ming History writes it as Huozhan. The biography of Xue Talahai in the Yuan History records a campaign against Huhuchan and other states; what is meant is the area around the city of Kuzhan. The biography of Guo Baoyu in the Yuan History further says that, after the cities of Beshbalik, Beshibalan, and others had been taken, they reached the Huzhang River. From this it can be seen that Kuzhan and Huzhang are close in pronunciation, and that Kuzhan was probably named after the river.

The city of Balan is surrounded on all sides by almond orchards, and takes its name from them. The almond blossom resembles the apricot blossom, though its color is a little paler; its leaves resemble peach leaves, but are slightly smaller. It flowers in winter, and in summer the fruit grows in abundance.

The great watermelons of the city of Bapu weigh as much as fifty jin. The Songmo Jiwen records that the watermelon is shaped like a flattened bottle gourd, of a fresh green color, and turns yellow if kept for a year; its flesh is like that of a sweet melon, full of juice, and especially cool and refreshing to eat. When Zhang Yi of the Ming dynasty cites Yelü Chucai’s Xiyou lu in his Qingshang lu, he says that the watermelons of Bapu weigh fifty jin and can even hold a fox. The present text lacks the four characters meaning “able to hold a fox”; the Laoxue conglu deleted this phrase.

The long-eared donkeys carry only two of them at a time. Five hundred li northwest of Kuzhan stands the city of Otrar.

The Basic Annals of the History of the Yuan record: “In the fourteenth year, the city of Edala (讹答剌) was attacked and taken.” The name of this city is precisely a phonetic transcription of the three characters “Edala” (讹打剌). The Appendix on the Northwestern Territories writes it as “Wutila’er” (兀提剌耳). The Basic Annals of the History of the Yuan further record: “In the autumn of the fifteenth year, the city of Wotuoluo’er (斡脱罗儿) was attacked and captured.” The pronunciation of this name is likewise close to the two preceding forms. The annotator surmises that the relevant accounts may have been drawn from different books and were therefore repeated; nor can one rule out the possibility that the powers of the Western Regions were so formidable that, after the city had been taken, it rebelled again, and that armies were consequently sent on two separate campaigns.

Li Guangting’s Examination of Maps of the Western Regions says: “After Qiuci came under the Yuan dynasty, it was called Bieshibali (别失八里). On the western frontier there was a city named Kuxian (苦先), which is a phonetic transcription of the present-day name Kuche (库车). The biography of Yelü Xiliang in the History of the Yuan records that, while accompanying the army on campaign, he once reached the city of Hunbasheng (浑八升). Today, south of Aksu, there is a Hunbashi village (浑巴什庄). After Emperor Shizu was summoned back from the two princes, he set out from the city of Kuxian for Hala Huozhou (哈剌火州), then left Yizhou (伊州), crossed the great desert, and returned; this route is also called Kuzhan (苦盏).” Wenzheng’s Record of a Journey to the West likewise records the route by which Emperor Shizu returned from the two princes, passing through the city of Kuxian, Hala Huozhou, and Yizhou, and then crossing the desert. The Record of a Journey to the West also says: “Five hundred li northwest of Kuzhan lies the city of Edala (讹打剌).” All these accounts refer to the same region.

Edala had more than ten subordinate cities. The local chieftain had killed several officials of the court and more than a hundred merchants, and had seized all their property. The court therefore sent its army on the western campaign.

The Basic Annals of the History of the Yuan record: “In the sixth month of the summer of the fourteenth year of Taizu, the Western Regions murdered the envoys. The emperor personally led the army on campaign, took the city of Edala (讹答剌), and captured its chieftain, Hazhi’er Zhilantu (哈只儿只兰秃).”

More than a thousand li west of Edala there was a great city named Xunsigan (寻斯干).

The Record of an Embassy to the West says: “Passing through Xiansigan (挦思干), the city was very large and its inhabitants numerous.” The Basic Annals of Taizu in the History of the Yuan record: “In the fifteenth year, the city of Xunsigan (寻思干) was taken.”

More than a thousand li west of Edala there was a great city named Xunsigan (寻斯干).

The Xishi ji records: “Passing through Xunsigan, the city was vast and its people numerous.” The Basic Annals of Taizu in the Yuanshi records that in the fifteenth year of Taizu’s reign the city of Xunsigan was taken, and that in the sixteenth year the city of Xuemisigan was attacked again. The Xuemisigan mentioned here is Xunsigan. Although Taizu had already captured the city, rebellion later broke out within it, so it was attacked once more in the sixteenth year. The Appendix on the Northwestern Lands records it as “Sama’ergan.” The biography of Anzhuer in the Yuanshi says that Taizu campaigned west against Xunsigan; the biography of Guo Baoyu records the capture of the city of Xunsigan, and further states that he led troops to occupy the city, entered the Iron Gate, and encamped at the Great Snow Mountains; the biography of Yelü Ahai likewise records the capture of Xunsigan and other cities.

The Mingshi falu states that Sama’ergan was anciently called Xunbin and lies west of the Xuandu Mountains. In the Tang dynasty the Xiuxian Area Command was established there and five area commanders were appointed; under the Yuan it was ruled by the imperial son-in-law Temür. To the east were places such as Yang’ershaluhaiya and Sailandashigan, and to the west cities such as Keshi and Dielimi, all under its jurisdiction.

It is said that “Xunsigan” means “fertile” in the languages of the West. The name arose because the local land was fertile and its produce abundant.

The Xiyou ji calls the city of Xunsigan the finest place in the Uyghur regions, ten thousand li away. The Jingxing ji records that Samojian had fertile soil and a prosperous people; the territory was not large, and within the city there was a shrine named “Bazhu.” Among the “Twelve Poems Recalling Antiquity” in the Zhanran ji is the line, “Grateful to receive the sage’s decree, I send word as far as Xunsi.” The author’s own note says that Xunsiqian is a city of the Western Regions; people of the West call “Xunsi” “fertile” and “qian” “city,” which together mean “the Fertile City.”

The land there is rich in produce. Coins are cast of gold and copper, and they have no square holes. For several dozen li outside the city there are gardens and groves. Canal water courses through the air overhead, and springs wind along their way. There are both square pools and round marshes. Flowers, grasses, and trees stretch on without a break, and the scenery is exceedingly fine. Locally there is a kind of melon, the larger ones as big as a horse’s head. Among the grains there is neither millet, glutinous rice, nor soybean, and even at the height of summer no rain falls. People make wine from grapes. Although mulberry trees grow there, silkworms are not raised, and everyone wears clothes made from a fabric called quxuan.

In juan 7 of the Zhanran ji, “Two Playful Compositions” reads: “A light robe of quxuan is cut in duck green; new grape wine brims with goose yellow.” This means that the thin garments made of quxuan are the color of duck green, while the new grape wine is a goose yellow. Juan 5, in the “Poem Begging a Fan,” further reads: “Quxuan is cut round into a disc of white jade; the recluse himself snips pale langgan.” This refers to quxuan cut into a round fan, pure white as a jade plate. From this it can be seen that quxuan is a locally produced textile that may be used for clothing or for the face of a fan.

The “Treatise on Carriages and Dress” in the Yuan History says that zhisun means, in Chinese, “robe of a single color.” It is the garment worn by nobles of merit, high ministers, and close attendants after they have received it as a grant. Musicians and technical specialists also have such clothing, differing only in whether the fabric and workmanship are fine or coarse; all are collectively called zhisun.

Local people regard white clothing as an auspicious color, while blue-black clothing is used as mourning dress, so everyone wears white. Zhisun is also called in Chinese a “robe of a single color.” Nobles of merit, high ministers, and close attendants wear it after receiving it as a grant, and musicians and technical specialists wear it as well, though the quality of the material and the workmanship differ in each case.

Chen Cheng’s Record of an Embassy to the Western Regions notes that the ruler of the kingdom of Halie wrapped his head in white cloth and, behind his braided hair, kept a di—a hairpiece or lock of hair joined to the hair. Men shaved their heads and then wrapped them in white cloth, while women covered their heads with white cloth.

Six or seven hundred li west of Xunsigan lies the city of Puhua. Produce there is even more abundant, and towns are also comparatively numerous.

The Basic Annals of Taizu in the History of the Yuan records: “In the fifteenth year, the city of Puhua was captured.” The Biography of Yelü Ahai also says: “The city of Puhua was captured.” The Appendix on the Lands of the Northwest records “Buhala” under “Te’ermi,” and this would seem to be the “Puhua” of the Basic Annals. The Mingshi Falu says: “Buhua’er lies seven hundred li to the west of Chema’erhan. Calculating by the route, Sama’ergan is Xunsigan, and thus Buhua’er is Puhua.” The Biography of Yelü Ahai further records that Yelü Ahai followed the emperor in attacking the western cities and captured Puhua, Xunsigan, and other cities. The seventh poem of “Poems Presented to Marshal Pucha” in juan 5 of the Zhanran ji says: “At leisure I rode a gaunt horse past Puhua.” From this it appears that the “Puhua” here is the city of Puhua. The Biography of Yelü Ahai also records that Yelü Ahai followed the emperor in attacking the western cities and captured Puhua, Xunsigan, and other cities. The seventh poem of “Poems Presented to Marshal Pucha” in juan 5 of the Zhanran ji says further: “At leisure I rode a thin horse through Puhua, and then arrived at the home of the Prefect of Xiyang.” Juan 6 also contains “Poem on Dreaming of Elder Wansong in the City of Puhua.”

Xunsigan was the capital of Suolitan, chieftain of the Musulman tribes.

The Record of the Northern Mission states that there was a people known as the “Mosuluman Huihe,” cruel by nature, who, whenever they ate meat, insisted on slaughtering the animals with their own hands; even during periods of fasting they still drank wine and ate dried meat. The Journey to the West records that, when the party reached the city of Alima, the king of the kingdom of Pusuman came out to receive them, and the envoys lodged in the Western Garden.

“Pusuman” and “Mosuluman” are different phonetic transcriptions of “Mousuluman.” The Table of the Various Tribes in the History of the Liao records a Pusuwuan tribe, and the History of the Jin records the Pusuo; the “Mousuluman stock” spoken of here seems to have been people of the same kind.

The commentary on “One Hundred Rhymes on Recalling the Past” in juan 12 of the Zhanran ji says that Dashi Linya was a senior minister of the Liao court who led his followers away from Liao territory. In less than twenty years he conquered several dozen states of the Western Regions, and his domain extended over tens of thousands of li; the throne passed through several generations of rulers, more than a hundred years in all. They set great store by culture and education, and the people of the Western Regions still cherish their memory to this day. His temple name was Dezong. The commentary on the “Poem on a Spring Excursion in Hezhong” in juan 5 of the Zhanran ji says that at Xunsigan there was an old palace of a suolitan (sultan, a sovereign) of the Western Regions.

The cities of Puhua, Kuzhan, and Edala all lay under the jurisdiction of this regime.

The Illustrated Study of the Western Regions, citing the Annals of Taizu of the Yuan, says: in the fourteenth year, the jimao year, people of the Western Regions killed the envoys; Taizu of the Yuan took the field in person and captured the city of Edala. Edala is the city of Aksu, and the Stone River of Yeshi is the Bidir River of Wushi.

The Basic Annals of Taizu of the Yuan record that in the fifth month of summer in the fifteenth year, Taizu encamped on the Stone River of Yeshi. But the cities taken at that time were Puhua and Xunsigan, so the great river meant here is not the Stone River of Yeshi but today’s Amu River. The accounts in the Secret History of the Yuan and the Journey to the West can prove this.

To its west lies the city of Yulijian.

The Basic Annals of the History of the Yuan record: “In the autumn of the sixteenth year, the imperial princes Jochi, Chagatai, and Ögedei separately stormed cities including Yulongjiechi and captured them.” The “Yulijian” in the text is an alternative phonetic rendering of the three characters “Yulongjie.” In Mongolian an official is called chi, and so the city was named Yulongjiechi. The Secret History of the Yuan records: “They crossed the Amu River and encamped beneath the city of Wulonggechi.” The pronunciation of “Wulongge” is especially close to “Yulijian.” The Biography of Hesimaili in the History of the Yuan writes this city as “the land of Yuelianjiechi.”

The Biography of Yelü Xiliang records: “In the fifth month they traveled west to Boliesali; in the sixth month they reached Huanzhasun. Traveling another nine hundred li westward, they arrived at the city of Yeliqian. Later, accompanying the two princes on their return, they reached the city of Bula.” On examination, Boliesali is the city of Bula; Huanzhasun is a phonetic shift from “Husi” and refers to the capital of the Western Liao; and “the city of Yeliqian, nine hundred li away” is a phonetic shift from “Yulongjie,” that is, Yulongjiechi, another rendering of “Yulijian.” The phrase “returned to the city of Bula” in the text means a return to Boliesali. It seems the translator rendered the same personal or place names inconsistently from one passage to the next, while the author of the biography was unfamiliar with Mongolian, which is why readers find the text difficult to understand.

The place where the sultan’s queen mother resided was rich in produce, and its prosperity surpassed that of Puhua.

This queen mother must have been the wife of Zhilugu. At that time the Naiman seized Zhilugu’s realm and honored his wife as empress dowager.

In addition, farther west, near a great river, there was also a city of Ban.

The Basic Annals of the History of the Yuan record: “In the sixteenth year, the year xin-si, in the fourth month of summer, the emperor was stationed at the Iron Gate Pass. In autumn, the emperor attacked Banlehe and other cities.” The Biography of Bai Chahan says: “Chahan was a native of the city of Banlehe in the Western Regions. At the outset, Chahan was born in Hezhong. That night the weather was clear, and the moonlight was as bright as day. The people of the Western Regions call white ‘Chahan,’ and so he was given the name Chahan.” According to research, Hezhong is the city of Xunsigan, and Banlehe is the city of Ban.

West of the Iron Gate Pass there is also a city built of brick.

The Xiyouji says: “West of the southern bank of the Iron Gate Pass there is a mountain stronghold named Tuanbala. The mountains are steep and forbidding, easy to defend and hard to attack.” The names “brick city” and “Tuan city” here may have undergone a shift in pronunciation. The Xiyouji therefore also says: “Going southeast from here for thirty li, one passes the city of Banli.” From this it can be known that the city lies west of Banli, and so the “brick city” is what the book calls “Tuanbala.”

The Great Tang Records on the Western Regions state: “From the kingdom of Jieshuangna one travels southwest for more than two hundred li and enters the mountains. The mountain paths are rugged and the ravines precipitous; people are few, and water and pasture are also scarce. Continuing southeast along the mountains for more than three hundred li, one enters the Iron Gate Pass. Mountains rise on both sides of the pass, and their slopes are extremely steep. Although a gorge provides a way through, the place remains highly strategic. The rock walls on either side are the color of iron. Gate leaves are set at the pass and reinforced with iron, and many iron bells hang upon them. Because the terrain is so secure, it is called the Iron Gate Pass. Beyond the Iron Gate Pass one reaches the kingdom of Duhuoluo…” The brick city referred to here was probably the former territory of the kingdom of Tuhuoluo in the Tang period.

From here one goes west and comes directly to the black city of India. Writing is found here as well.

Liu Qi’s Beishi ji (Record of an Embassy to the North) says: “There is a people called the Yindu Huihe. Their skin is dark, and their temperament is gentle. Their documents and contracts are all written in the Huihe script; they make pen-holders from reeds, and their language differs from that of China.” The Xishi ji (Record of an Embassy to the West) says: “The state of Yindu lies nearest to China. Its soldiers and civilians together number twelve million households. This is what the Han dynasty called Shendu.” Giulio Aleni’s Zhifang waiji (Account of Lands beyond the Imperial Realm) says: “Southwest of China is Yindiya, that is, the Five Indias of Tianzhu, lying on both banks of the Indus River.” The “Memoir on the Western Regions” in the Hanshu says: “The state of Wulei borders Juandu on the north.” Yan Shigu’s commentary says: “Juandu is Shendu and Tiandu. These were originally one and the same name, differing only in whether the pronunciation was light or heavy.” Qi Zhaonan’s critical note says: “Tiandu is Tianzhu. The Tianzhu spoken of in the ‘Memoir on the Western Regions’ of the Hou Hanshu is the Juandu spoken of in the ‘Memoir on the Western Regions’ of the Hanshu; later generations also called it the state of Yindu.”

The script and language here both differ from those of the land of the Buddha, yet images of the Buddha are numerous.

The Xishi ji says: “The Qishimixi are probably those who inherited the robe and bowl of Shakyamuni.” The Songmo jiwen (Record of Things Heard amid Pines and Desert) says: “The Huihu revere Buddhism with particular devotion. Together they build a Buddha hall and fashion images of the Buddha inside it. At every fast they offer sheep; sometimes, when the wine has been drunk to the full, they dip a finger in blood and smear it on the mouth of a Buddha image, or take the image’s feet in their hands and sound them, thereby showing intimacy and respect. When they recite scriptures they wear monastic robes and use the language of Xizhu.” The Datang Xiyu ji (Great Tang Record of the Western Regions) records that the state of Jiashimiluo was formerly called “Chubin,” and that this is an erroneous name.

The local people do not slaughter cattle or sheep, but only drink their milk. Snow is unknown to them. Wheat is harvested twice a year. In high summer, tinware set upon the sand melts in a short while. The moment horse dung falls to the ground, it begins to seethe. Moonlight falling on a person’s body is like the sunlight of a summer day. South of this land lies a great river, its water cold as ice and snow and its current swift and perilous, which at last empties into the Southern Sea.

The Xin Tangshu (New History of the Tang), in its “Treatise on Geography,” records: “On the western frontier of Tianzhu (India) there are five small states, the farthest being the state of Ti■〈wind and sun〉. There is a great river, the Milan, also called the Xintou River. It rises in the Bokun Mountains to the north, flows west through the state of Ti■〈wind and sun〉, and then turns north to enter the sea.” The Zhifang waiji (Records of Foreign Lands) records: “In eastern India there is a great river named the Anri. The local people believe that a single bath in this river can wash away all the karma one has created in the past.”

Sugarcane grows there in abundance, and people take its juice to brew liquor and to boil sugar. Continuing northwest from India, one comes to the state of Kefucha.

The Yuanshi (History of the Yuan), in the “Biography of Guo Baoyu,” records that in the xinsi year the sultan-khan of the state of Kefucha led his troops to conquer the state of Naiman and occupy Xiansigan. Hearing that the emperor was about to arrive, he abandoned the city and fled south, entered the Iron Gate, and encamped in the region of the Great Snow Mountains. Guo Baoyu pursued him, and he then fled to India. The Jiu Tangshu (Old History of the Tang), in the “Account of the Western Rong,” says rather that Persia borders Tukhara and the state of Kang on the east, and adjoins the Kesa tribe of the Turks on the north. The “Kesa” spoken of here is probably Kasask in present-day Russia—that is, the state of Kefucha mentioned in this book.

For several thousand li all around, the land here is level plain, with neither hills nor towns.

The Zhifang Waiji records that on the northwestern frontier of Asia (Yaxiya) there is a great state called Muscovy (Mosigoweiya, the Moscow region). It extends 15,000 li from east to west and 8,000 li from north to south, and its territory is divided into sixteen circuits (administrative regions). The Wo’erjia River (the Volga) is the largest river there. It has eighty tributaries, all of which flow into it, and more than seventy mouths, through which it empties into the Beigao Sea (the northern Caspian).

The Datang Xiyu Ji (Great Tang Records on the Western Regions) records that, going southwest from the kingdom of Xindu (Sindhu) for 1,500 to 1,600 li, one reaches the kingdom of Axiapochiluo, whose territory is more than 5,000 li in circuit. Going north for more than 700 li, one reaches the kingdom of Biduoshiluo, which belongs to Western India and is more than 3,000 li in circuit. From there, going northeast for more than 300 li, one reaches the kingdom of Axiatu, which likewise belongs to Western India and is 2,400 to 2,500 li in circuit. The great city of the kingdom is more than 20 li in circuit. It has no single supreme ruler and is subject to the kingdom of Xindu. Going northeast again for more than 900 li, one reaches the kingdom of Falana, whose territory is more than 4,000 li in circuit. Then, going northwest, crossing great mountains and great rivers and passing through a number of small towns, after more than 2,000 li one leaves the territory of India and arrives at the kingdom of Caojuzha.

The people there mostly raise sheep and horses and brew wine from honey. Daylight is very long and the nights very short: before the meat of a sheep’s shoulder is cooked through, the sun has risen again. This matches precisely the situation of the country of Guliwo recorded in the Tang histories.

The Biography of Tutuha in the Yuanshi (History of the Yuan) records: “Qipchaq (Qincha) lies more than 30,000 li from China. Summer nights are extremely short; no sooner has the sun set than it rises again.” The “Northwestern Lands” section of the Treatise on Geography also appends related records.

The Biography of Tutuha in the History of the Yuan records: “Qincha lies more than thirty thousand li from China. In summer the nights are extremely short; the sun has scarcely set before it rises again.” The Appendix on the Northwestern Regions in the Geographical Treatise says: “Qiongkela takes its name from a river and is subordinate to the Jilijisi. It lies more than twenty-five thousand li from Dadu. The days are long and the nights short. When the sun sets, people roast sheep ribs, and just as the mutton is cooked, the east is already bright.” This is the kingdom of Guliwo recorded in the Tang histories.

The Geographical Treatise of the New History of the Tang records: “On the northern bank of the Xian’e River stands the city of Fugui. From there one travels slightly east of due north, crossing snowy mountains, forests of pine and birch, and many springs and lakes, for a total of one thousand five hundred li, and reaches Guliwo. Going west another thirteen days, one arrives at the Dubo tribe; going north another six or seven days, one reaches the Jiankun tribe, where there are Mount Lao and the Jian River. North of the two tribes of Guliwo and Dubo lies a small sea. When the ice is firm, horses can cross it in eight days. North of the sea are many great mountains. The people there are tall and large in build and appearance, and their customs resemble those of Guliwo; the days are long and the nights short.” The Account of the Uyghurs also says: “Guliwo lies north of the Hanhai and can field five thousand fighting men. Lilies grow abundantly in its grasslands, and it produces fine horses whose heads resemble those of camels and that can run several hundred li. The land borders the sea on the north and is the farthest from the capital. Crossing the sea still farther north, the days are long and the nights short. When the sun sets, people begin to boil a sheep’s shoulder; just as the meat is cooked, the east is already bright. This is presumably a place close to where the sun rises and sets.”

Yet the names of these lands are not the same in the various accounts. Could it be that, with so many years between them, errors arose as the names were passed down in speech?

The Shuzhai Laoxue Congtan records: “Assistant Commissioner Xu Xianchen said that at Angjila the sun seems not to set at all, but is only veiled by a band of dark vapor; once a sheep’s shoulder has been boiled through, the sun comes out again. Liu Jingzhi of Baoding once went there to serve as a judicial officer and saw this with his own eyes.” This agrees with what the Tang histories record of the kingdom of Guliwo, though the place-name differs—perhaps it changed in later times. From this we may see that the sun and moon do not sink beneath the earth and then rise again, but travel near the North Pole, and that day and night are distinguished in this way. There are indeed records that can prove it.

From Xunsigan (the ancient Central Asian city of Samarkand) to the Central Plains is about twenty thousand li; from India to Xunsigan is roughly the same distance; and from Kefucha (a place name whose exact referent is unknown) to India is equally far.

The Xishi ji (Record of an Embassy to the West) says: “The Xin Tangshu (New History of the Tang) records that Fulin (the ancient name for the region of the Eastern Roman Empire) lies forty thousand li from the capital, upon the Western Sea. The rare and precious goods produced there are the same as those seen today, and the distance likewise broadly agrees, so there seems to be no doubt.”

Although the route is winding and circuitous and is indeed extremely remote, exactly how many tens of thousands of li it covers is hard to determine.

A note to the “Dingling Poem” in the Shuangxi ji says: “Emperor Taizong of our dynasty once issued an edict sending He Rui and others to the Northern Sea. The journey there and back took several years before they at last found the mountain where the sun does not set.”

In his Xiyu kaogu lu (Archaeological Record of the Western Regions), Yu Hao quotes the Xiyou lu (Record of a Journey to the West):

In the third month of spring in the wuyin year, the party set out from Yunzhong (an ancient place name, roughly in the area of present-day northern Shanxi), reached the Tianshan, crossed the great Gobi and the deserts, and arrived at the place where the emperor was residing. The following year the court launched a major campaign to the west, and the party passed by the Jinshan (the area of the present-day Altai Mountains). It was the height of summer, yet snow and ice still lay thick upon the mountains; people cut and chiseled through the ice and snow to open a road. Pines and junipers towered into the clouds, and flowers and grasses covered the valleys. The rivers west of the Jinshan all flow westward into the sea. South of the mountains stood a Uyghur city called Bieshiba (Beshbaliq). Within the city was a stone stele of the Tang dynasty; this is the place the histories call the seat of the Hanhai Army. (See volume 10.)

Yu Hao comments: “The Biography of the Uyghurs in the Tangshu (History of the Tang) records that after the Uyghurs fell, their remnant groups hid in the mountains and forests and sustained themselves by raiding the surrounding tribes. In the time of Emperor Yizong, the great chieftain Pugu Jun marched out from Beiting to attack the Tibetans, beheaded Shang Kongre, and sent his head to the capital. Thereafter the two prefectures of Xiting and Beiting were both recovered. Pugu Jun sent envoys to the court requesting investiture, but later histories left no biography of this state. In the end the state never grew powerful, and afterward its people often brought sheep and horses to the frontier to trade.” Yu Hao holds that the origin of the Uyghurs’ Five Cities is connected with this. The Hanhai Army was established at Beiting by Guo Yuanzhen early in the Jinglong era. Bieshiba is a variant transliteration of “Beshbaliq”; in the Yuan dynasty a Branch Secretariat of Beshbaliq was established.

The origins of Hanhai, Hu, and the Five Cities are recorded as follows. The Hanhai Army was established at Beiting (a major military and administrative stronghold in the Western Regions during the Tang dynasty). In the early Jinglong era (the reign title of Emperor Zhongzong of Tang, beginning in 707), it was set up by Guo Yuanzhen. “Bieshiba” is another way of writing “Beshbaliq.” In the Yuan dynasty, the Beshbaliq Branch Secretariat (a local administrative institution of the Yuan) was established.

Hanhai lies several hundred li from the city. In the sea there is an island, covered all over with the feathers of all kinds of birds. Two hundred li west of the city is Luntai County, where a stone stele of the Tang dynasty remains. Five hundred li south of the city is Hezhou, that is, the Gaochang of the Tang, also called Yizhou.

Li’s note says that the Xiyu Tuzhi (Illustrated Gazetteer of the Western Regions) records: “The Yizhou of the Tang dynasty is today’s Hami.” It also says: “Today’s Zhenxi Prefecture was Yizhou in ancient times; Pizhan was Gaochang in ancient times.”

Consultation of the Yuanhe Junxian Zhi (Yuanhe Gazetteer of Commanderies and Counties) and the Taiping Huanyu Ji (Universal Geography of the Taiping Era) shows that the Beiting Protectorate of the Tang administered three armies, used to guard against the Türgesh, the Jiankun, and other tribes, and had jurisdiction over the Hanhai, Tianshan, Yiwu, Hanhai, and other armies. The Hanhai Army was stationed within the city, with a force of twelve thousand men; the records indeed state this (as above).