A short while after the helicopter took off, a thick column of black smoke was seen rising in the distance.
Arriving at the location where the black smoke was rising, a group of people were dancing around a bonfire below. A helicopter was parked next to the bonfire, and Xue Rengui was there.
As the helicopter landed, four people emerged from the cabin. Ge Luoyang, accompanied by several special forces soldiers, provided security.
Xue Rengui quickly pulled someone over.
"Your humble subordinate greets His Majesty!"
"Your Majesty, this is the young leader of the Tianwei tribe, Ge Zhiwo Teng~"
Li Shimin smiled, a hearty laugh.
"Hahahaha, the Tianwei tribe, good, very good!"
"I heard you abandoned your father on the grasslands and came out with your subordinates like this. In just over a year, you've managed to reach here. You're not bad, very not bad!"
Ge Zhiwo Teng was somewhat flattered. He quickly knelt on one knee in the snow and bowed to Li Shimin.
"I greet Your Majesty. I dare not accept such praise from Your Majesty."
"My father said that the Great Tang has shown immense kindness to the Tianwei tribe. What I do is only right!"
Hearing these words, Li Shimin felt delighted. The various tribes of the grasslands, which had always been a headache for the Central Plains, now not only submitted to the Great Tang but also expanded its territory. This was something no emperor in any dynasty had ever achieved.
He stared at Ge Zhiwo Teng for a while, then suddenly exclaimed, "Ge Zhiwo Teng of the Tianwei tribe, listen to your appointment!"
"I am here!" Ge Zhiwo Teng was overjoyed. He quickly changed from kneeling on one knee to both knees, bowing his head respectfully, and listening attentively.
"Ge Zhiwo Teng of the Tianwei tribe, for meritorious service in expanding territory, is hereby enfeoffed as~"
Halfway through his sentence, Li Shimin paused and looked at Fang Er somewhat awkwardly. "Anzhi, what do they call this place again?"
"Uh, Alaska~" Fang Er replied quickly.
Li Shimin nodded upon hearing this, then continued, "Ge Zhiwo Teng of the Tianwei tribe is enfeoffed as the Earl of Alaska~"
But then he shook his head again. "No, that name is too long. Let's change it. How about Arabia!"
Fang Er: ???
What the hell is Arabia!!!
And also, Ge Zhiwo Yang, Ge Zhiwo Teng, are you guys related to the armpit or something? Can we be more serious!
"Your subject, Arabia, thanks Your Majesty for the imperial favor!" kAnshu伍.ξà
Ge Zhiwo Teng didn't feel anything was wrong. Hearing that he had been granted a noble title, and an earldom at that, he quickly kowtowed to express his gratitude.
Just then, a group of people dressed in animal skins came from the bonfire. They pointed at everyone, muttering something incomprehensible.
Ge Zhiwo Teng quickly explained, "Your Majesty, these are the local people. They are somewhat uncivilized, please forgive them."
After speaking, he walked over to those people and said something in their language.
Fang Er looked at him in surprise. "How long has this guy been here?"
"He can already communicate seamlessly with these natives!"
Soon, an old man from among the natives walked over with Ge Zhiwo Teng.
He stopped a few steps in front of Li Shimin, crossed his hands over his chest, bowed slightly, and said in a broken accent.
"Wo, diu, jian ge huang xiang~"
Li Shimin was amused. "Hahahaha, Arabia is truly a talented person. Not only did he learn their language, but he can even teach them to speak Tang!"
"Good, good. Anzhi, present a reward on my behalf!"
Fang Er, speechless, took a small bottle of Erguotou from his pocket and threw it to Ge Zhiwo Teng.
In this icy cold, a sip of strong liquor was the most comfortable. He assumed this fellow had seen this thing from his father.
But the result was far beyond his expectations. Ge Zhiwo Teng handed the Erguotou back and looked at Fang Er with a fawning expression.
"I have seen you before, Lord. May I boldly ask if you could exchange this for fermented shark?"
Fang Er: ???
"Didn't you abandon your father because he smelled too bad after eating this thing?"
He took out a can of fermented shark and handed it over, asking curiously, "Don't you find this thing smelly?"
Ge Zhiwo Teng chuckled. "My Lord, you don't know. This thing smells bad but tastes good!"
"Of the cans I brought from home, besides the ones I used in battle, I ate the rest~"
Damn it!
This guy definitely didn't dislike his father for smelling bad after eating this; he was afraid his father would follow him and he wouldn't get any to eat!
Fang Er thought more and more that this was the truth of the matter!
This fellow, though young, at most seventeen or eighteen years old, was far more cunning than his father!
Taking the can, Ge Zhiwo Teng carefully tucked it into his embrace as if it were a treasure. He blew hot air on his reddened, cold hands and then smiled at everyone.
"Your Majesty, Lords, it's freezing cold. Why don't we go to the fire to warm up first?"
Li Shimin was also quite cold. He put his hands into the sleeves of his military coat and nodded, then led the way towards the bonfire.
Don't ask why he ignored the native old man; the answer is he was cold and didn't want to talk!
When he reached the bonfire, he asked Fang Er for the Erguotou that Ge Zhiwo Teng had disliked. He opened it and took a hearty sip.
After the warmth of the alcohol spread through him, coupled with the heat from the bonfire, his whole body instantly felt much warmer.
He handed the wine bottle to the native old man. "Here, try the fine wine of the Great Tang~"
The soldiers of the Tianwei tribe were considered peerless warriors by the old man, but Ge Zhiwo Teng was as respectful as a grandson in front of Li Shimin, which made him very nervous.
Looking at the wine bottle in front of him, he couldn't help but cast a questioning glance at Ge Zhiwo Teng. After receiving a nod of affirmation, he cautiously took it.
He carefully took a sip, the pungent taste was something he had never experienced before. But the next moment, he felt like a ball of fire was burning in his abdomen, an indescribable comfort.
He looked at the bottle in his hand in surprise, savored it for a moment, then stood up and bowed to Li Shimin. "Huang xiang sao deng~"
After speaking, he walked into the distance, where there were semicircular ice houses. Coupled with the snow on their roofs, they looked like mushrooms in the snow.
Shortly after entering an ice house, he returned to everyone with a bag of things. In a net woven from deer hide, there were a pile of dark, fluffy objects.
He took one out and handed it to Li Shimin. "Huang xiang, please taste~"
Li Shimin instinctively reached out to take it, but the next moment, he jumped up and put a great distance between himself and the old man.
Seeing this, Fang Er looked over at them. When he saw what the old man was holding, his eyes widened.
Holy cow, this seems to be a famous delicacy from the Arctic Circle~
Pickled Auk~
The old man looked somewhat confused, thinking Li Shimin didn't know what it was. He smiled and said, "Huang xiang, good to eat~!"
Seeing that Li Shimin had no intention of approaching, his eyes darted around. He picked up the pickled auk in his hand, used his right hand to pull open the bird's backside, and brought his mouth to the bird's anus.
Sluuurp~~~
Li Shimin watched him in shock. After a moment, he couldn't help but bend over.
"Blegh~ yue~~~~~!"
Li Ji and Li Xiaogong reacted the same way at the same time, dropping to all fours and vomiting painfully.