Return to the Fire Tribe

Before Yan and Dali's fleet even reached the shore, they could see a large group of people standing on the dock. At the very front was their chief, Jianshi, accompanied by other high-ranking members of the tribe. It turned out that the small boat that Yan and Dali had sent back to report had already arrived and given them a general overview of the situation.

As the fleet slowly entered the Fire Tribe dock, the cabins of the large ship and the Muzhou canoes were filled with animal pelts tied with straw ropes, as well as medicinal herbs and other supplies. The crowd on the shore let out a low gasp of amazement and joyful discussion.

"Look! So many fine leathers!"

"This trip was really fruitful!"

"Dali and Yan are back, thank goodness they're safe and sound!"

As soon as the boat docked, the gangplank was lowered, and Yan and Dali were the first to jump onto the pier. More than a month of travel had tanned their faces, but their eyes were even brighter and sharper.

Jianshi strode forward, a relieved smile on his face. He carefully examined his son and younger brother, and seeing that although they were a bit thinner, they were in good spirits and unharmed, he was completely relieved. He reached out his large hand and patted Dali's shoulder forcefully, his voice booming, "Good! Good! It's good that you're back safe and sound! Look at all this cargo, you two worked hard on this trip!"

Dali chuckled and patted his chest, "Brother, it wasn't hard work at all! Running the boat, trading goods with people, and even broadening my horizons—it was worth it!"

Yan nodded with a smile, "Father, uncles and elders, we're back."

The group chatted and laughed as Jian Shi and the Jianshi escorted Yan and Dali away from the bustling dock, heading towards the largest wooden house in the center of the tribe. Along the way, many tribespeople stopped what they were doing, watching them with curiosity and envy, especially when they saw the bundles of furs being unloaded from the boat.

Upon entering the council chamber, warm water and tribal fruits had already been prepared. Everyone sat down, and the fatigue of the journey seemed to be largely dispelled by the familiar and peaceful environment.

Jianshi looked at Yan, signaling that he could begin. He knew his son was meticulous and that he must have already sorted out everything he had seen and heard along the way.

Yan took a sip of water to clear his mind, and then began to report in an orderly manner:

"Father, uncles and elders, this time Uncle Dali and I went to the upper reaches of the Fish River and roughly figured out the conditions along the way from our Fire Creek Mouth upstream until large boats can no longer pass."

He stood up, walked to the sandy ground in the center of the room (this was the Fire Tribe's method of drawing simple diagrams for discussion), picked up a thin stick, and began to sketch on the sand.

"Starting from Fire Creek Mouth, we'll go upstream along the east bank of the Fish River," he said, drawing a winding line in the sand with a stick to represent the Fish River, then marking several points on the line. "Besides the four rivers we already know about and have encountered— the Water River, the Forest River, the Stone River, and the Valley River a little further upstream—all of these rivers are navigable for our two-thousand-pound Muzhou."

His stick continued moving upstream, and further upstream on the Valley River, he marked three more points. "This time, we've discovered three new rivers of similar size. Based on their order and characteristics, we'll temporarily call them the Wood River, the Clear River, and the White River. These three rivers have stable water levels, and we estimate that even during the dry season, there's enough water for a two-thousand-pound Muzhou to navigate."

He paused his wooden stick at the point representing the White River, giving a sharp pause. "The furthest our fleet reached this time was the confluence of the White River and Fish River. There, the main channel of the Fish River became extremely narrow, shallow, and rocky. Although it wasn't the dry season, our large 5,000-jin boat could hardly navigate upstream quickly and safely. I estimated that during the autumn and winter dry season, it would be very difficult and risky for a 5,000-jin boat to continue upstream along the Fish River from the White River Mouth. So we stopped there and didn't continue exploring the main channel of the Fish River further upstream."

He raised his head and looked at everyone. "It took us about twenty days to travel upstream from Fire Creek Mouth to White River Mouth. On the return trip, because we were traveling downstream and stopped to trade along the three newly discovered tributaries— Wood River, Clear River, White River— it took a total of sixteen days. If we travel downstream without stopping, I estimate we can return to Fire Creek Mouth from White River Mouth in about ten days."

Then, he changed the subject and talked about the population situation. "The tribes in the Wood River, Clear River, and White River river basins are not as large or wealthy as the tribes in the middle reaches of the Fish River, and are even worse off than those in the Valley River area. The population is more scattered, with most large tribes consisting of only one hundred to two hundred people. The total population of the White River basin is estimated to be only two thousand. Their lives... are very difficult."

Yan's tone carried a hint of emotion. "Hunting is difficult, gathering yields are meager, and most importantly, there's a severe salt shortage! Take the White River Tribe, for example. Their chief told me that the Fish Tribe hasn't come for over a year. Without salt, the elderly and children are too weak, and hunters can't go far. They can only barely survive by drinking animal blood. They see the coarse salt we brought for curing meat as a lifesaver. Especially the White River Tribe; this is the first time they've ever heard of our Fire Tribe."

Upon hearing this, Jianshi and the other high-ranking members all showed thoughtful expressions. They could imagine the predicament of being on the verge of salt shortage, and they could understand the excitement of those small tribes when they saw the Fire Tribe caravan.

"However," Yan continued, "It is precisely because they know so little about us and live in extreme hardship that their trust in us is still very weak. Although they admire the tribal life we describe, if you were to ask them to immediately abandon their homes and embark on a long journey to join us, I'm afraid the vast majority would still have many doubts and dare not make a decision easily."

He looked at Jianshi and offered his suggestion. "Therefore, I think it's not the right time to immediately go to these newly discovered river basins and absorb a large population on a large scale. The results might not be very good. I promised them that we would go to trade again this year. My idea is to first deepen our understanding and build trust through continuous and fair trade, allowing the name ' Fire Tribe,' as well as the Fire Tribe's wealth, trustworthiness, and power (demonstrated through superior goods and ships), to slowly permeate their hearts. Once they are moved on their own, it will be much easier and more stable for us to recruit them."

After listening, Jianshi nodded slowly, his eyes showing approval. "Yan's consideration is very thorough. Recruiting people can't be rushed, especially with tribes in unfamiliar river basins. Make friends first, then brothers. Your idea is good. Go again this year, bringing enough supplies and affordable food products they need. Next time, we can select some of the tribespeople who recently joined our tribe from the Valley River and Water River and let them go with the fleet. Let them chat with the people from the Wood River, Clear River, and White River, telling them about their real lives in the Fire Tribe. The effect will definitely be much better than us just talking!"

The other high-ranking officials present also nodded in agreement. It was indeed a good idea for the people of the Valley River to communicate with people from other small upstream tribes, as it would be easier to resonate with them and dispel their doubts more quickly.

Seeing that everyone agreed with this approach, Yan used a stick to mark several locations on the sandy west side (opposite) of the Fish River: "This time, we mainly explored the east bank of the Fish River, but we also observed the west bank during our voyage. Roughly estimating, there are five decent-sized tributaries on the west bank of the Fish River from Fire Creek Mouth to White River Mouth. Judging from the river's width, even a 2,000-jin Muzhou could pass through during the dry season. However, due to time constraints and our complete unfamiliarity with the west bank, we didn't explore it this time."

He put down the stick and concluded, "I suggest that next time we organize an exploration or trade fleet, we could allocate some resources to check out the west bank of the Fish River. We're still quite unfamiliar with the situation there."

Mentioning the west bank, several older people in the room who had frequent dealings with the Fish Tribe exchanged glances. One of them spoke up, "The Fish Tribe does go to the west bank every year or two, mainly to sell coarse salt. However, they don't go very often. Firstly, the tribes there are smaller and poorer, so the transaction volume isn't large; secondly, they probably go less often on purpose, making it scarce so that the price of coarse salt can be driven up. I've heard that the Fish Tribe has basically established a 'monopoly' on the coarse salt trade on the west bank, making it difficult for other tribes to interfere."

Jianshi listened, tapping his fingers lightly on the edge of the wooden table, and pondered, "The Fish Tribe can do this because firstly, they have coarse salt (although they obtained it from the Valley Tribe), and secondly, because in the past, no tribe had enough boats and strength to travel along that section of the river (the Pottery Salt Tribe was also warned by the Fish Tribe not to go to the west bank of the Fish River), but now it's different."

His gaze sharpened. "Our Fire Tribe now has boats, and there will be more and more of them. We can also produce our own coarse salt, although we don't sell it outside for the time being, but the cured fish and dried meat are almost as valuable as salt. More importantly, our strength is now far greater than it was a few years ago! More than 15,000 people, nearly 3,000 warriors, and hundreds of boats of various sizes! We no longer need to worry about the Fish Tribe's feelings or be afraid of provoking unknown troubles, as we did before."

He surveyed the crowd, his tone decisive. "We can go check out the West Bank! Let's learn about the distribution of tribes there and their living conditions. Perhaps it will be a new place for us to attract people and expand our influence in the future. Even if we don't directly compete with the Fish Tribe for salt, it won't hurt to trade with them using pottery, preserved goods, and our own grain products to establish connections. More friends mean more opportunities; more knowledge about a place means more confidence for our Fire Tribe!"

Everyone in the room nodded, their faces showing excitement.