In the mist of dusk, only a dim outline of the distant mountains remained in front of the purple sky. The wind had calmed down and the clouds were calm, and the water surface of the grassy pond was as calm as a silver mirror, reflecting the reflection of the rising twin moons on the horizon.
In the big tent, the bonfire in the brazier was burning brightly, and the hot milk wine beside the basin was bubbled and emitting a rich fragrance. A fresh suckling sheep was roasting on the fire.
The oil seeped out of the skin, gradually forming a fine oil film as if sweating, and then solidified into crystal clear oil beads that rolled down and slid into the fire, making an attractive sizzling sound.
Mu He paced back and forth in front of the brazier with his hands behind his back. After causing a scene at Tuya's wedding, he rushed back to his base camp overnight and seemed to be anxiously waiting for someone to arrive.
"Chief, they are coming."
An attendant suddenly lifted the curtain hanging on the tent door, leaned inside and bowed. Mu He, who had been waiting impatiently, breathed a sigh of relief:
"Please take a seat!"
Before he finished speaking, two men in their prime stepped into the tent. One of them was wearing a large brocade robe made of silk and satin. Although the shape could still be seen as the clothing of the prairie people, he also brought
He looked like a southerner with grace and splendor. Behind him was a large group of retinues who were also dressed in strange costumes, which looked a bit nondescript.
The other person wore a narrow-sleeved short robe, leather boots and trousers, with only a rat tail on his head. His clothes and trousers were narrow and tight, and they were close to the figure, outlining a strong figure.
These two people came from the other two tribes of the Shuodi tribe. The former was Mengdun, the leader of the Choluo tribe, and the latter was Qihexu, the leader of the Onma tribe.
The Chuoluo tribe and the Onama tribe are the two most powerful tribes in the entire Shuobei grassland after Muyun. Among them, the territory of the Chuoluo tribe is close to Zangdaoling and Pinjin River in the south, bordering Yubei. As early as Shuodi
Before the Rebellion, they had been doing intermittent business with the Southerners, and thus accumulated a lot of wealth. Compared with the poor nomadic life, their tribesmen longed for the prosperity of the Great Sheng Dynasty, and the name Chuoluo also
It comes from the fact that they usually wear luxurious clothing that combines the characteristics of the north and the south.
On the other hand, the Onma Division has the title of the most brave in Shuobei. When fighting, their troops do not like to wear clothes and armor. Instead, they ride bare-chested horses into the enemy's formation and smear the enemy's blood all over their bodies, thinking that they can win over the enemy in this way.
The power of.
The Oma territory is located in the Pingtung Desert south of the Shijing Sea and west of the Wuping Mountains. The Great Sheng Dynasty is known as the horse produced in Shuobei, and the Pingtung horses produced in this desert are the best among Shuobei horses. Every Pingtung horse
His shoulder height can easily exceed that of an adult man, and his temperament is as free and uninhibited as a prairie fire. Only men from the Onma Department who are equally brave can tame him.
Ever since Tuya's father, King Tieqin, began to rebuild the feared Tiezhong Mountain, Muhe had formed a clique within the Muyun Department and made his own plans. Unexpectedly, just a few years later, Tieqin
The Tiezhong Mountain under his command was already quite large, and Mu He had to temporarily curb his sharpness.
From then on, taking advantage of Caobo's special geographical location, he turned to secretly communicate with Ouma and Chuoluo, and secretly sent all his six daughters to the other party for marriage. Now ten
More than a few years passed, and the two sons-in-law, Meng Dun and Qihexu, succeeded in taking the leadership of Choluo and Onma. In addition, Tie Qin died, and Qin Na who succeeded him was brave and reckless. Muhe
I know my chance has finally come.
"My father-in-law asked me to come here overnight. What is the important matter to discuss?"
As soon as he entered the tent, Qiheyou asked loudly at the top of his voice. There was no respect in his tone, which made Meng Dun on the side couldn't help but criticize:
"Caobo is not your wind-swept Gobi Desert. There is no need to yell. Besides, why don't you use honorifics when talking to your father-in-law?"
However, Qiheyou did not restrain himself at all. Instead, he shouted back:
"Are you embarrassed to accuse me? I came to Caobo today without any bodyguards. Look at you, with so many people behind you. Are you afraid that someone will kill you? Or maybe you want to do something shameful.
What’s going on?”
"Shut up now. I'm not inviting you two here just to listen to your quarrel!"
Seeing the sons-in-law arguing as if no one else was around, Mu He had no choice but to intervene in person to persuade them to make peace. Meng Dun angrily ordered all his followers to retreat, and Qi Hexu also took the lead and found a comfortable position by the bonfire, pulling out his waistband
He cut off a piece of mutton with his short knife and stuffed it into his mouth:
"What are your father-in-law going to say?"
"The reason I invited you here today is actually to find out how many soldiers and horses each of the Good Office and Choluo Departments can mobilize."
The expression on Mu He's face suddenly became cautious. And his question poured a bucket of hot oil back into the already calm atmosphere in the tent.
Qiheyou immediately spat out the piece of mutton that he had just stuffed into his mouth onto the ground:
"My father-in-law's question is not impossible to answer. But if I tell you today, I'm afraid I will have to take your life before I leave!"
Meng Dun's expression on the side also changed slightly. However, he was not as straightforward as Qihexiu said. He just rubbed his hands and said with a gloomy smile:
"My father-in-law, don't listen to his nonsense. They are all used to deal with outsiders. I just don't know what the purpose of suddenly asking about our family's military strength is?"
"Stop pretending to be a good person here. Now on the Shuobei grassland, the three troops sitting here are equally powerful. The number of soldiers and horses is the secret of each ministry. If you let others know easily, wouldn't it be like a girl's family being seen out?
Upskirt!”
Qihehui said and stood up to leave, but Muhe did not say anything to persuade him to stay. He just stared at him with a pair of narrowed eyes. Qihehui had already reached the tent door in a few steps and stretched out his hand to lift the curtain.
But he suddenly turned around and came back, sat down heavily by the campfire again, picked up the milk wine in front of him and drank it all in one gulp, but the old man opposite had already seen through it.
"Have you finished the play? Sit down after the performance. If it hadn't been for something unexpected, I wouldn't have called you two here in such a hurry. Did you know that Qina is dead?"
The cold wind came in from the cracks in the dilapidated yurt. The elder sitting by the fire said this and reached out to close the black wolf fur cloak on his body. After the sun went down, the grassland was cold and dewy at night, completely losing the warmth and pleasantness during the day.
warmth.
"This matter has already spread throughout the Shuobei Grassland. If the two of us still don't know about it, then the news is too ill-informed."
Meng Dun also picked up a glass of milk wine, but he sipped it like a southerner.
"Just talk nonsense, just say you know what you know!"
Qihexu gave the other party a fierce look, and then, as if to compensate for himself, he reached out and pulled off a leg of mutton, held it in his mouth and ate it, "Qina is dead, so what does it have to do with us? Is it possible?"
Father-in-law, are you planning to unite all the ministries again and raise troops to go south? Have you forgotten how Tiezhongshan was defeated and massacred back then?"
"Even if I want to raise troops and go south, I have to eliminate the dissidents in Muyun's tribe first!"
What Mu He said made Qihe You couldn't help but laugh: "Why, is it possible that the father-in-law can't even deal with those guys in his own department who like to fly the white deer flag?"
"If we can deal with it easily, I should invite you two to go to the golden tent in Hulantai today to reminisce about the past, instead of blowing the wind in this broken tent in the grass."
"Could it be that Qina has a successor?" The two people beside the fire were surprised at the same time.
"Do you still remember that Qin Na also has a sister who is half-Southern?"
"Oh, that's the girl called Tuya. Did she inherit the position of Dahehan first? My father-in-law must not be joking. According to the rules, the position of Dahehan has always been passed down only to men and not to women.
There has never been a precedent before. How could you, Muyun, agree to let a woman succeed her?"
"So, your information is still not well-informed. A few years ago, Tuya brought back a certain Beizi from Ye State on the orders of Qinna, and the two got married today. If nothing else happens, the southern boy will soon
Then he will inherit the position of Dahehan!"
"If that's the case, why didn't my father-in-law deal with these two people on the spot? Why did he still have time to invite us here to drink and eat meat?"
Meng Dun interrupted abruptly. He still kept rubbing his hands, as if the precious silks and satins on his body could not resist the chill of the night.
"Have you all forgotten that although our ancestors set some rules, they also said that if there is no male descendant, the position of Hehan can be inherited by the bride's son-in-law until the next Hulantai Conference. What's more,
Tuya and Na Beizi still have the support of tens of thousands of tribesmen, and they also have thousands of Tiezhong Mountains led by Yuan Ti who are absolutely loyal to the Bakwuqin family. Even if I have the intention to take action, I am still unable to do it."
After going around in a long circle, Mu He finally got to the point of the conversation. Meng Dun and Qi Huxu looked at each other, and then asked in unison:
"Sending troops - it's not impossible. But if we agree to send troops, what benefits can we get?"
Mu He seemed to have known that his two sons-in-law would ask this question. He used his stubby fingers to twist the gray beard that was like a steel needle beside his cheeks: "You two - don't you want to know the metallurgy, armor forging, and formations of Tiechhong Mountain?"
A technique?"
"The secret of Tiechong Mountain has always been known to the heirs of the Bakwuqin family. Father-in-law, you are boasting too much, right?" Meng Dun, who had always been respectful, couldn't help laughing, "Even if we are
I call you father-in-law, but if you want to treat the two of us as three-year-old children, it is absolutely impossible."
Facing the younger generation's doubts, Mu He did not get angry and still said seriously:
"You also know that Qina simply does not have the courage and ability of his father Tieqin. He cannot even memorize the last secret of the Bakwuqin family, but records it in the words of the people from the south. As long as
The two of you helped me seize the position of Hehan, and Muyun, Onma and Chuoluo will become one family. By then, the secret of Tiechhong Mountain will naturally no longer be a secret to you and me."
This time, Qihexu and Mengdun were finally convinced by the old man, with an imperceptible smile on their faces. After all, the three characters "Tiechong Mountain" represented absolute power on the Shuobei grassland. The conditions proposed by Mu He,
It's something they never dare to dream about.
However, not long after watching his two sons-in-law leave, the elder in black wolf skin turned and kicked the roast lamb that had only eaten a few bites on the fire to the ground, and the kumiss also poured into the basin.
The charcoal fire was soaked, and thick black smoke rose up. Several attendants hurriedly stepped forward to clean up the mess, but were all kicked out by Mu He, who even heard him curse viciously:
"A bunch of greedy wolves! I have already married my daughter to you, and I also give you a lot of cattle, sheep, money, and money every year. I never thought that when I ask for something today, I still refuse and refuse!"
Unexpectedly, before he finished speaking, another person actually walked in from outside the tent, saying something that was either a reminder or a sarcasm: "If that's the case, why did you agree to give up the secrets of Tiechhong Mountain to them?"
Muhe couldn't help but trembled all over. However, when he turned around and saw the appearance of the visitor, he breathed a sigh of relief, and then scolded angrily: "I thought it was Qihexu and Mengdun who came back again.
Already."
"If they had heard what they just said, I'm afraid they would have drawn their swords against you by now, right?"
The visitor still asked slightly jokingly.
"Yes. Sir, did you hear the conversation between the three of us outside the tent?"
"That's natural. But I don't think you need to be so afraid of Onma and Choluo."
As he spoke, the man took a few steps forward and exposed his cloaked face in front of the flickering bonfire - that was a fair face of a scholar, and it was actually Kun Jie!
"This is not because of fear, but because I don't want to miss something big because of my negligence. It's impossible for you, sir, to not see it. Now, I just want to take advantage of them."
"Even so, your concession is still too big. Do you know that if you tell the other party about the metallurgy, armor forging, and formation techniques of Tiezhong Mountain, you will no longer have any leverage in your hands. With the current strength of the Muyun Department, you will be completely defeated.
The two armies of Onma and Choluo are at a disadvantage. Unless - you had no intention of telling them this secret from the beginning? Aren't you worried that the other party will take the opportunity to attack after they find out?"
"In other words, after I successfully take the position of Dahehan, there may be no need to worry about this." Mu He suddenly narrowed his eyes.
"Could it be that you plan to get rid of those two people as well to avoid future troubles?"
Kun Jie was quite surprised by Mu He's answer. It seemed that in his mind, these barbarians living on the Shuobei grassland were just savages with well-developed limbs and simple minds.
Mu He once again twirled the beard on his cheeks, but there was an imperceptible smile on his lips: "This is all sir's own guess, I didn't say anything."
"I have only been away from the grassland for a few months this time, but you have made a lot of progress." Kun Jie remained calm.
"Thanks to Mr., but having said that, all these plans stem from what Mr. said when you and I met last time." Muhe suddenly clenched his teeth with hatred, and the words on his lips were revealed.
The uneven teeth shone strangely in the firelight.
"Oh? Is it about the past when King Tieqin rebuilt Tiechong Mountain? That's just a rumor I heard from hearsay. It can't be taken seriously. It can't be taken seriously."
Kun Jie just smiled and shook his head, as if what the other person said was not worth mentioning at all. However, Mu He did not notice that there seemed to be other unknown intentions hidden in the eyes of the man opposite him.
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