Luxurious Line-up

It turned out that for the past two months, every morning when the gate to the animal pen opened, Rou Rou and Hui Shan would run out and play wildly for a while. One time, it happened to be when the Brick Kiln was being fired. Steam was rising from the top of the Brick Kiln, and even the accumulated snow around it had melted. Rou Rou curiously walked over to the side of the Brick Kiln and completely fell in love with the place. If it weren't for having to go back to the pen to eat grass, it probably would have stayed there.

From then on, every morning when it was let out, Rou Rou would first wander around the Brick Kiln to see if it was being fired that day. If the Brick Kiln was still warm, it would lie there all day until it was time for dinner in the evening before returning to the pen.

But today, Rou Rou wasn't so lucky. Big Mouse, who had originally intended to engage in diplomacy, had led a group of followers on a journey that took most of the day. They finally reached the small river, expecting to see who was setting fires. When they arrived, however, there was no one there. All they saw was a small, round mound of earth by the riverbank emitting thick black smoke, and lying next to the small mound was "a large piece of meat."

To make filling the kiln with water easier, Luo Chong had built the Brick Kiln as a semi-underground structure. The wooden barrel for firing happened to be underneath, so Big Mouse didn't discover it. Instead, he targeted Rou Rou, who was lying next to the top of the kiln.

Big Mouse didn't understand why the small mound was smoking, and he didn't want to understand. He didn't see any people, only Rou Rou lying there warming itself. Why wait any longer to make a move?

You see, they were originally out hunting, and diplomacy was just a secondary matter. Now that they hadn't found anyone but had seen such a large animal, how could they not be tempted?

So, Big Mouse led his men across the river where the ice was thicker and quietly attacked Rou Rou.

But were Rou Rou's large ears just for show? It had discovered Big Mouse and his group when they were crossing the river, and they were unfamiliar strangers. So, it extended its trunk and let out a loud roar. However, instead of scaring them away, it attracted a dozen spears from the other side, frightening it so much that it quickly fled towards the cave.

Big Mouse and his group pursued relentlessly. Just as they reached the vicinity of the cave and threw their second round of spears, they saw Luo Chong leading a group of people out of the cave. Big Mouse and his group were stunned.

When the Han Tribe members heard their Chieftain shout for weapons, seventy to eighty people, including men, women, and children, rushed out. Regardless of gender, all adults, and even minors around ten years old, came out. Each person held a weapon and charged out howling, immediately surrounding Big Mouse and his group.

Big Mouse's mouth hung open. He saw a group of fierce-looking people before him. The young man leading them had a cold expression, wore a golden crown and golden hairpin, and held a white-shafted Golden Spear, staring at him.

The line-up behind him was even more blinding. Fifty shovels that reflected brilliantly – no, they were Bronze Shovels. When raised, they were like dozens of mirrors, flashing with a dazzling golden light that made it hard for people to open their eyes.

Copper Shovels are tools, yes, but they are also formidable close-combat weapons. They can cut, shovel, strike, and chop. They are truly essential weapons for construction workers getting into a group fight.

Big Strength, Stone, and Six-Finger, who were half a step behind Luo Chong, each grabbed a firefighting... uh, a Copper Axe. Even those without bronze weapons each had a White-shafted Long Spear.

Regardless of their combat effectiveness, this luxurious lineup alone was enough to terrify Big Mouse and his group into immobility.

Tsk, there's still not enough bronze. Otherwise, I could also experience the feeling of the whole city being covered in golden armor, Luo Chong thought, looking at the scene before him. He couldn't help but feel a little smug.

Rou Rou also saw that its boss had control of the situation and happily trotted back. Standing behind Luo Chong, it acted like a dog relying on the influence of its master (or an elephant relying on the influence of a human) and extended its trunk to roar at Big Mouse in the encirclement, making Luo Chong's ears numb.

Luo Chong patted its trunk, signaling it to be quiet. He turned to Big Mouse and said, "This elephant is ours. Who are you?"

Big Mouse was a bit confused. Although he didn't understand what Luo Chong was saying, he understood Luo Chong's meaning. This very large, strange monster belonged to this tribe. After all, Luo Chong seemed very familiar with this monster. He hadn't expected this neighboring tribe to be able to control such a large monster, and they also seemed to have a considerable number of people. They looked very strong.

But what he didn't expect even more was that Hui Shan, who was even larger than Rou Rou, also heard the commotion and ran out of the animal pen. It stood beside Rou Rou, curiously looking at the surrounded people.

Big Mouse and his group of followers were scared shitless. Holy crap, there's another one!

Seeing the stunned expressions of Big Mouse and his group, Luo Chong frowned and said to the Elder beside him, "Elder, go and ask them who they are and why they came here."

Communicating with people who didn't speak their language was troublesome; they had to use gestures. But Luo Chong was holding the Golden Spear and showing off, so he couldn't spare a hand to do that.

The Elder accepted the order and stepped forward, speaking and gesturing to Big Mouse. He translated Luo Chong's words and also introduced Luo Chong's status as Chieftain.

Big Mouse was not a fool to have become Chieftain; he naturally understood the principle that a wise man doesn't fight when the odds are against him. He quickly had his followers put down their weapons. In reality, they didn't have many spears left anyway; they had thrown them all when attacking Rou Rou earlier.

After hearing the Elder's question, Big Mouse bowed his head to Luo Chong in apology. He explained with gestures and words that they were a tribe from the other side of the river. Because they kept seeing black smoke rising from this side, they came over to investigate. As a result, they saw Rou Rou. He didn't know this was the Han Tribe's monster and hadn't seen any people, which was why he attacked Rou Rou. He hoped Luo Chong would let them go.

Luo Chong understood Big Mouse's meaning but was a bit hesitant. These people had fallen into his hands, and he couldn't just let them go easily. Luo Chong was very short on people right now. But if he kept them, they certainly wouldn't be loyal to him; they could only be used as captives, as slaves.

But such slaves were unreliable; he would also need to find people to watch over them, which would actually reduce the Han Tribe's labor force, resulting in a net loss. Furthermore, they had an unknown tribe behind them. What if that tribe was even stronger than the Han Tribe and came seeking revenge?

Luo Chong was hesitating whether to let them go, but Big Mouse wasn't stupid either. Although the language was a barrier, the eyes are the window to the soul. He had already seen a fierce glint flash in Luo Chong's eyes several times, indicating that he intended them harm.

Big Mouse quickly stepped forward to lighten the mood. With a sincere smile on his face, he pointed to the smoking Brick Kiln by the small river and asked, "Did you light that fire? Are you cooking food? If you have a lot of food, our tribe can trade things with you for some."

As Big Mouse spoke, he secretly glanced out of the corner of his eye at the two large "pieces of meat" behind Luo Chong. If their tribe could get one, it would be enough to feed the entire tribe for a month.

Trade? Luo Chong hadn't expected Big Mouse to say that. If he really had something Luo Chong could use, it wasn't impossible. After all, even if he kept these people, Luo Chong currently had no place or surplus food to support them, and he would also have to waste manpower watching them.

"Then what do you have to trade? If it's not useful, we won't trade."

Luo Chong asked tentatively and then had the Elder translate.

New Year's request for votes, asking for votes on the second day of the year (sideways smile).