Chapter 939: Chapter 2: The Hardships and Riches of the Western Regions, Grand Aspirations and a Compassionate Heart
"These pieces of gold can be exchanged in the city for some provisions, cattle, and sheep. We can even get some sacred water blessed by God Buddha. Once cured of our ailments, we might survive."
Batuer maintained a stern and cold expression, instructing the elders to put on their clothes, and in that same cold manner, ordered them to fetch the food. Only when everyone had left, did he open his hand, clench that gold, lift it up, and wipe the corners of his eyes with his back turned to them.
"Tian Ge’er, the hero bestowed upon the earth by the Heavenly God."
He recalled the legends from his childhood.
He remembered the time he felt someone pat his head, and the grandfather who walked before the Holy Lake but never returned, holding a scimitar that clang and resounded.
Soon, the people of the Heavenly Strategy Mansion returned one by one, according to their levels of Qinggong. As for the Qilin, it had long been lying nearby, starting to lap up the cattle and sheep milk from Li Guanyi’s side, smacking its lips with disdain, commenting that the taste was just so-so.
Then it took big gulps.
Even though it was so-so.
However, a virtuous Qilin does not waste any food!
When Shi Dalin, Changsun Wuchou, and others returned, this small tribe had prepared food for them, served in coarse pottery. It was a grain resembling wheat with a rough texture, cooked and mixed with cow and sheep milk, and added with dried figs and raisins. Li Guanyi and this group from the Heavenly Strategy Mansion were also given roasted meat jerky.
This combination was the best hospitality this small tribe could offer to the caravan that fell from the sky.
Li Guanyi took a bite of the meat jerky and glanced over to see the Qilin had somehow dug out a small porcelain bottle, poured out fine chili powder and five-spice powder, and only then elegantly began to eat the roasted meat.
Li Guanyi’s forehead twitched.
What had Old Qilin taught him?
Batuer also used cow and sheep milk to brew tea for them to drink, though this milk tea was somewhat salty. The people accustomed to the tea of Jiangnan found it a bit hard to get used to. Xu Tiange of the Farmer School crunched on this food while running over to converse and inquire about these grain seeds.
Pan Wanxiu from the Mo School was very interested in the tribe’s mobile dwellings and the wooden structures that were birthed from local customs for holding items and performing rituals, and he ran over to exchange ideas.
Fan Qing proactively went to converse with the tribe’s martial master wielding the scimitar.
Lei Laomeng stroked his chin, observing the tribe’s horses, cattle, and sheep.
For a moment, only Li Guanyi seemed to have nothing to do. He sighed, took a sip of the salty milk tea to calm himself, and the sky of the Western Regions seemed especially vast and distant, the stars quiet, when suddenly someone pulled at Li Guanyi.
He turned his head to see that it was Nangong Wumeng, the last to return.
Li Guanyi offered the tribe-prepared food and asked, "Why so slow?"
"Your Qinggong should only be inferior to mine here."
Nangong Wumeng rolled her eyes and muttered, "That Ancient Divine Dragon is just too unreasonable. I was hurled so far by Him, and when I landed, I was in a branch of the lake, and got seared by a stone, my back is bruised."
"I was originally planning to throw this thing away."
"But, well, I took another look under the moonlight and still decided to bring it over to you."
Li Guanyi smiled, "What would I want with a stone?"
This number one beauty of the Martial World took out that piece of stone and tossed it to Li Guanyi, who casually caught it, slightly stunned, feeling the completely unusual sensation in his hand. Upon closer inspection, it was radiating a golden color under the moonlight.
Heavy, indeed a naturally formed nugget of gold.
Nangong Wumeng slyly smiled, "What’s wrong? Lord, does this piece of stone truly make you this happy? Ah... not a single change at all... guh ah ah!"
Li Guanyi lifted his head, grabbing Nangong Wumeng by the wrist, "Well done!"
"I knew bringing you along wasn’t a mistake!"
Nangong Wumeng, who was just slyly smiling and charming, suddenly stuttered, "You, you, you!"
Li Guanyi divided his meat for Nangong Wumeng.
Rubbing this large nugget of natural gold.
It truly is you!
The Heavenly Strategy Mansion’s Qilin Army, blessed with the greatest fortune!
Nangong Wumeng retreated, defeated, while Li Guanyi ate and surveyed the surroundings. The numbers weren’t small, predominantly young and middle-aged men carrying scimitars, with cattle, sheep, and horses. Li Guanyi thought for a moment, then feigned fetching something and found the little girl Saatanati, inquiring about the situation.
Saatanati, grateful to this merchant from the Central Plains for saving the elders from being abandoned to die by the lake, listened to Li Guanyi’s questions and replied, "We followed the river here to buy some provisions in the nearby city, sell our pelts and meat, and exchange them for salt and tea bricks.
"Without eating salt, there’s no strength. Without tea, one would..."
Saatanati pondered for a moment, gesturing with her fingers, "One would fall ill, and the blood would spoil."
Li Guanyi understood it was due to the difficulty of replenishing fresh vegetables here.
"Which city are you heading to?"
Saatanati replied, "Balujia City, there’s a lake there called [Daqing Pond]. This lake is long and narrow, the water blackish-blue, bitter and salty, but salt is very cheap in Balujia City, and we all go there."
Li Guanyi was thoughtful.
The land deed Miss prepared was there, a vast area of land in a village, reportedly a salt lake producing salt in the Western Regions. Miss had indeed chosen a great spot.
He casually chatted with the little girl, and Saatanati seemed very curious about the outside world, responding to Li Guanyi’s questions and also asking him about outside affairs, to which Li Guanyi provided brief answers.
Li Guanyi came to understand the situation, this tribe has over a thousand people, among the smallest in the Western Regions. They lacked the force to seize even the smallest oasis and were unwilling to become servants under a larger tribe, thus had to wander around.