Chapter 1 Awaiting Slaughter

Such a large tribal migration couldn't possibly be kept completely secret unless the tribe consisted solely of strong, able-bodied warriors who could ride and shoot. The latter could maintain stealth through constant raiding, killing, and rapid movement. But with the former, burdened by the old, weak, and women with children, such a thing was fundamentally impossible.

At the same time, various wild tribes in the vicinity sent out their own warriors to monitor the situation. These warriors gathered in increasing numbers; two or three thousand from one tribe, four or five thousand from another. Soon, along the migration route, a total of nearly twenty thousand warriors from various tribes were eyeing them menacingly.

Messages were rapidly exchanged among the tribes, and new warriors continued to arrive from the periphery.

The snow plains had always had their own pattern of survival and development. As the Blind Man would say, the lower the productivity, the clearer the laws of survival.

The entire snow plains was a giant gu (poison) breeding ground.

A few years ago, it had bred a Wild Man King. After the Wild Man King was defeated by the Yan people, the Black Dragon banner atop Snow Sea Pass became a nightmare for many tribes of the snow plains.

Fortunately, this nightmare didn't seem to have any immediate plans to enter the snow plains in force. So, while everyone didn't dare to jump around like the Naiman tribe had done, they were certainly continuing to consolidate their tribes through mergers and absorption.

This newly emerged migrating tribe was a flock of lambs waiting to be slaughtered. The warriors sent by the surrounding tribes intended to divide the spoils.

Soon, some insightful tribal elders, noting certain characteristics of this migrating tribe, made a guess: they believed that this tribe most likely came from the far north.

The snow plains were vast, but there were not many places suitable for habitation and propagation. Even for the snow plains wild men themselves, the far north was considered a restricted area.

However, this didn't mean that there were no tribes living there at all. In fact, there were, but those tribes were generally weak and highly dispersed.

Because any powerful tribe would have long since left the far north to seize a pasture elsewhere in the snow plains.

Furthermore, the leaders of the tribes patrolling the periphery could see that this tribe, while seemingly unified, was actually pieced together.

Tribal migration was common on the snow plains. Moving from one pasture to another to allow it to lie fallow was a privilege reserved for large tribes.

For small and medium-sized tribes, the norm was to migrate due to environmental changes and shifts in water and grass, leaving them no other choice.

Therefore, most snow plains tribes had experience with migration and possessed a wealth of knowledge.

During migration, the tribal livestock and the elderly, weak, women, and children were given specific placement. The warriors within the tribe were organized, with a main force acting as the fist leading the way, and another group patrolling around the tribe.

The former displayed their strength to other tribes who might have designs on them, while the latter guarded against those who might try to take advantage of the situation and create chaos.

But in the present situation, while the warriors in this migrating tribe were sparsely equipped, with very little armor to be seen, they were actually quite numerous. There were very few old people in the group, meaning there were few burdens. After all, in a place like the far north, only those who had survived the brutal selection of nature could live.

But their able-bodied men were distributed throughout the ranks, not gathered together. Especially after discovering the ill-intentioned tribal armies outside, they almost instinctively split into smaller groups.

The law of survival on the snow plains was that when facing a pack of wolves, you had to aim your last arrow at one wolf, so that the entire pack would fear you.

But this team clearly hadn't done that.

Several large tribes that were deploying troops had already begun to blow their horns and raise their own banners. The previous wait was firstly to allow the warriors from all sides to gather, and secondly to discuss how to divide up this migrating team of thirty thousand. This was a feast for all.

At the front of the migrating team, an old man with white hair and a string of human skulls around his neck squinted as he surveyed his surroundings.

He was protected by nearly a thousand warriors.

He was Sang Hu, once a great general under the Wild Man King. Originally, he had a feud with the Starry Sky Sacrificial Priests and was placed in the position of Grand Elder of the Starry Sky Envoy by the Wild Man King.

After the defeat at Wang Jiang, he was separated from the Wild Man King and finally returned to the snow plains after much hardship.

As the most loyal subordinate of the Wild Man King, he went to find the eight hundred loyal warriors that the Wild Man King had specifically left behind when he entered the pass, this being his last trump card.

Leading these eight hundred warriors, Sang Hu went to the far north, where he gathered a large number of scattered small tribes and finally regained some momentum.

He was waiting, waiting for the return of the King.

Even though rumors from the outside world said that the King had already been killed by the Yan people or captured to Yanjing, he was still waiting.

He had no sons or daughters, no ties, and such people were the most loyal.

Finally,

he received a letter from the King.

Therefore, he immediately led this pieced-together tribe and began to migrate south.

At this moment, facing the encirclement of the surrounding snow plains tribal soldiers, there was not the slightest fear in his eyes. Instead, he silently had his men raise the Wild Man King's royal banner!

The Wild Man King's royal banner was made of snow wolf leather, shimmering silver in the sunlight.

The former royal banner had been lost on the battlefield, taken back to Yanjing by the Yan people as spoils of war. This one was personally hunted and remade by Sang Hu.

When the Wild Man King's banner reappeared,

the tribal armies staring here immediately showed no small amount of chaos.

The Wild Man King had once been the pride of the snow plains. Like a proud lone wolf, he had almost led the snow plains wild men to create a miracle. Although it ultimately failed, it was still the most shocking event for the wild men in hundreds of years, and the closest they had come to their homeland.

But soon,

under the comfort of various chieftains, the emotions of the tribal warriors immediately calmed down.

The Wild Man King's prestige did still linger above the snow plains, but after all, he was no longer there.

What was there to fear from someone who didn't exist?

Sang Hu silently drew his knife,

In his eyes,

the many tribal soldiers around him were not of the same race, but true enemies.

In fact,

the current situation on the snow plains was a re-shuffle after the Wild Man King era.

The tribes who initially believed in and were willing to follow the Wild Man King had sent their tribal elites to follow the Wild Man King into the pass, while those highly self-regarding large tribes continued to sit and watch.

But after the news of the Wild Man King's defeat came, these large tribes immediately began to annex the tribes of those who had followed the Wild Man King.

The Naiman tribe was the best example of this.

The tribes who had contributed tribal warriors and even chieftains to follow the Wild Man King had suffered heavy losses after losing their tribal youth, and had no ability to resist the annexation of other tribes.

The noble lineage was slaughtered, and the tribal population was reduced to the bottom-level slaves of the tribes that annexed them.

Sang Hu remembered that the Wild Man King had once said to them that the real reason for the decline of the holy clan was themselves.

Because of the inherent inferiority of the holy clan itself, although they all accepted the guidance of the stars, the starry sky above each tribe was actually completely different.

The Wild Man King taught them to understand and allow the existence of those short-sighted members of their own race, and to wait until their own great cause was successful before leading them and pulling them to their side.

But what about them?

They,

what did they do?

When Geli Mu led his army to attack Snow Sea Pass to open up a retreat for the main army back to the snow plains, those tribes on the back of Snow Sea Pass chose to stand still.

If they had also sent troops to attack at that time, Snow Sea Pass, facing the enemy on both sides, might not have been able to hold on.

They chose to watch the demise of their own people and, at the same time, began to devour the tribes of those people.

Sang Hu's anger towards these wild men tribes had exceeded his anger towards the Yan people.

In fact, there was nothing to hate about the Yan people, after all, the Yan people were indeed strong and directly defeated them, and the loss could be considered convincing.

But this kind of ungrateful fellow tribesmen often aroused the deepest disgust and hatred in people's hearts.

Outside, the enemy stabs a sharp steel knife into your chest, and when it is pulled out, it carries your own scalding blood. The pain is only temporary, and death is death, and in your heart, at least there is a blessing from the stars.

But when you are stabbed in the back by your own people, they use weapons stained with livestock feces. Even after you die, dirty things will continue to defile your body.

The Wild Man King once said to Zheng Boye,

he said that this generation of wild men was over, and even the next generation and the next generation would be over.

Because he had gathered the group of people with foresight, courage, and courage from the three generations of wild men, and gambled everything, but failed, and failed too thoroughly.

People die and can be reborn, but if the soul is gone, no matter how much you are born, you are just a piece of swine.

Zheng Boye could understand the Wild Man King's sigh. The rise of a nation requires various opportunities. It just so happens that in one era, elites join hands to erupt, so that this nation can open up new worlds.

If this group of elites loses itself, then this nation will go astray and collapse. If the true elites of this nation are completely wiped out, then there is really no hope.

Sang Hu's knife revealed a cold light in the sun. He knew that it would be difficult for this pieced-together tribe behind him to muster any combat power. If he continued to develop on the edge of the far north, perhaps in ten or twenty years, he would be able to build a tribe of his own, imprinted with the tribe emblem of his choice;

But he still chose to follow the guidance of that letter. In the letter, the Wild Man King told him very frankly that he was tired and wanted to live for himself once.

Sang Hu felt that this was right. Compared to a tribe of his own, he would rather see the Wild Man King once again in his lifetime.

Just like when the Wild Man King, with his wicked sense of humor, pushed him, a butcher whose hands were stained with the blood of the Starry Sky Sacrificial Priests, to the position of Grand Elder of the Starry Sky Sacrificial Priests.

Sang Hu asked him why he did this.

The Wild Man King said he was happy.

Sang Hu is also very happy now.

In his eyes, he had already locked onto the banner of a tribe in front of him. The banner was a black wolf. That tribe had three thousand warriors, and that chieftain was wearing extremely fancy armor.

Sang Hu felt that his thousand warriors should be able to help him create an opportunity to kill the chieftain of the Black Wolf tribe on the other side.

He was not afraid of death. He could numbly choose the way to die and the glory before death.

On the outside, accompanied by increasingly dense horn sounds, the soldiers of the various tribes began to prepare, ready to charge.

And this migrating team more clearly began to divide into groups, waiting to be defeated one by one.

However,

just then,

the warriors of the various tribes preparing to charge on the outside suddenly had a huge commotion, and even the nobles and chieftains in their formation could not calm it down in a short time.

The battlefield, which was originally ready to go, suddenly stagnated.

Because,

in the south, a cavalry team in black armor appeared, with the Black Dragon banner and the "Zheng" flag.

They were not numerous, only three hundred riders, but when they appeared, they instantly became the focus of the audience.

At the beginning, the Naiman tribe was exterminated because they shot and killed a group of Jin refugees not far from Snow Sea Pass, which angered the Boye of Snow Sea Pass.

Now, not to mention the entire snow plains, at least the entire eastern snow plains area knows that in any case, they must give enough respect to the one at Snow Sea Pass.

Jin Shuke silently took off the bear skin gloves in his hand,

The summer on the snow plains is not too hot, but it is certainly not to the point where you need to wear gloves.

Jin Shuke's hands after taking off his gloves were already wet.

But he liked it,

because this was a gift that Boye had given him alone.

Moreover,

he was fascinated by the feeling of stacking the two gloves together and flicking them on the back of his hand to make a "pa" sound after taking off the gloves;

This was also an action learned from Zheng Boye,

Jin Shuke didn't know the word "handsome", but instinctively felt that this action looked good.

"Give me an order to those wild men tribes, whoever dares to act rashly, I will go and destroy their tribe first."

"Yes, General."

"Yes, General."

A group of messengers left the team.

At this time, an adjutant beside Jin Shuke asked:

"General, do we need to send an order to the rear to transfer troops now?"

Jin Shuke shook his head and said:

"Don't worry, people have come from the north, and guests have also come from the south. It is estimated that it is not our turn to take action."

"That's a pity." The adjutant was a little disappointed.

"That one was once our Boye's superior, and our Boye has to give him some face. Besides, you should thank that one for coming, otherwise our Boye may not have planned to fight this battle yet.

So many wild men tribes, hehe, I suggested to Boye a long time ago that we should open up a pasture for ourselves north of our Snow Sea Pass.

They wild men can graze, can't we barbarians?

Although this place is bitterly cold, after the winter, this grassland is really fertile."

Speaking of this,

Jin Shuke seemed to have thought of something,

and then ordered:

"Order to go down and prepare the dry food for the expedition."

"Yes, General."

"Hey, wait a minute."

Jin Shuke hesitated for a moment, and still said:

"Forget it, don't prepare in advance, wait for Boye to officially order it."

……

Zheng Boye did receive news from the north.

Although Snow Sea Pass had not planned to develop the snow plains for the time being due to limited troops and other reasons, thanks to the efforts of Kong Yuan and Liao Fan and a group of swindlers, they had already secretly won over some small tribes near Snow Sea Pass.

When that migrating team appeared, they immediately rushed to report to Snow Sea Pass.

Zheng Boye's first reaction was that the Wild Man King's backhand had arrived, and immediately sent the Blind Man to be responsible for this matter. He himself could not spare the time.

Because,

Li Fusheng is here.

Li Fusheng was not wearing armor, but casual clothes, which looked almost like an old farmer. When he came, he was riding his Pixiu beast, with only seven or eight guards around him.

"Ah hahaha, wine, wine, Xiao Zhengzi, your brother has been craving your wine for a long time! Also, delicious food and drink, hurry up, up, up, I specially starved for a day before rushing to your place."

Zheng Boye's life is not extravagant, but it is definitely the most exquisite.

Before Zheng Fan came over, Xiao Yibo had already ordered the cooks to prepare the dishes.

When Zheng Fan walked into the hall, Li Fusheng had already poured himself a full bowl of wine.

"Come, come, come, sit down, sit down, and have a drink with your brother, hehe. I, ah, I am here to pick up the slack from you. It is strange to say, it is clear that there is no population around your Snow Sea Pass, and it is no exaggeration to say that it is the poorest place, but when you come over, this little day is actually going well.

In my opinion, it is really a waste to put you in Snow Sea Pass. It is more suitable to put you in Yingdu. The money and food for the second half of the year in Yingdu has just been transported, and it has been reduced compared to the first half of the year. If I didn't know that a war was about to break out, and there would be other batches of money and food coming over soon, I would have sent someone to Yingdu to have a good talk with those official masters."

"This group of civil officials, ah, are not reliable in their work."

Zheng Boye helped to scold him together.

He was not embarrassed at all, because the reduction of Li Fusheng's troops was actually made up for him.

After the money and food for the second half of the year was transported, it was twice as much as the normal amount in the past. This was based on the normal amount. If you refer to the fact that the rest of the garrison generals can only get about 60% of the normal amount, Zheng Boye can be said to have received three times as much as a normal person this time.

It is good to have someone in the court to be an official, and it is even more comfortable to have someone to support you locally.

Li Fusheng picked up the wine bowl and said, "I am here on the order of Prince Jingnan."

Zheng Boye did not get up to receive the order. They were all his own people, and it was still in this occasion, so it would be too formal and awkward.

"Seeing that a war is about to break out, the prince ordered me to lead my headquarters of 40,000 troops, plus two Jin camps of 30,000, a total of 70,000 troops, to come here to pick up the slack. The troops are in the back, and will probably arrive tomorrow morning. I will come over first to mooch a meal, hehe."

Picking up the slack is definitely not to eat Snow Sea Pass's, but must be to eat the snow plains's.

In fact, before going to Yanjing, Tian Wujing had told Zheng Fan that he would send troops to help Zheng Fan organize the snow plains first, but this happened to be when the Yan Emperor was about to start a war with Chu, so Zheng Boye originally thought it was hopeless, but who would have thought that Tian Wujing really did not forget the livestock of the snow plains wild men.

Zheng Fan smiled and said:

"Isn't it a coincidence? Just now, I just received a military memorial. Tens of thousands of wild men soldiers are gathered tens of miles north of my Snow Sea Pass."

"Pfft!"

Li Fusheng spat out the wine he had just drank into his mouth. He had this instinct, and he would not drink alcohol during war.

At the same time,

Li Fusheng's eyes immediately began to turn red, obviously his old problem had relapsed, and he impatiently called his guards:

"Quick, hurry up and send the order to speed up the march and the vanguard must rush over to me before midnight! If I miss this opportunity, I will skin those cubs!"

After giving the order,

Li Fusheng grabbed Zheng Fan's arms again,

and said excitedly:

"Brother, give it to me, you must give it to me, give it to my brother! My brother really can't help it! My brother is really suffocated!!!"

"Bang!"

Outside the hall,

Liu Ruqing, who was carrying a plate of pastries, accidentally dropped and broke the plate.

It is etiquette for women to show up when close guests come to the house.

Si Niang was working in the signing room and could not spare the time for the time being. The princess had a Yan title, and Li Fusheng had to salute her when he met her, which was inconvenient.

Therefore, only Liu Ruqing, a half-concubine, could meet the guests.

Seeing Liu Ruqing preparing to squat down to pick up the broken plate,

Zheng Fan immediately walked over to pull her up,

"Just call the servants to clean it up, don't cut your hand."

Liu Ruqing looked up at Zheng Boye and said timidly;

"Yes, this servant knows."

Well,

why is her look a little strange?

And her face is a little pale?

In fact,

what Liu Ruqing was thinking was:

No wonder he has never wanted me all this time, and only likes me to call him uncle. It turns out that he is actually...