Negotiations at Tiger and Leopard Valley

In the narrowest section of Tiger and Leopard Valley, rolling stones roared and dust Chidian. Chidian lay on his horse, desperately whipping its rump. All he could hear were piercing screams—the desperate cries of his brothers, the cavalrymen he had personally led, as they were struck by Jushi and crushed by logs. A hundred cavalrymen had charged into Tiger and Leopard Valley, only to be torn apart by rolling stones and logs. Now, only a dozen or so remained behind him.

"Quick! Charge out!" Chidian roared, his voice almost tearing apart.

On both sides of the cliff, the Wolf Tribe warriors continued to push down boulders and giant logs. Each loud crash meant another life was lost. Finally, the view slowly opened up, and Chidian rushed out of the danger zone. Behind him were more than a dozen brave warriors. Before they could even breathe a sigh of relief, they saw a dark mass of cavalry lined up in front of them.

The leader had a hideous scar on his face, Xueya, and Chidian's heart sank to the bottom.

"Capture them alive," Xueya ordered calmly.

The Wolf Tribe's cavalry surged forward like a tide. Although Chidian and his dozen or so men fought desperately, they were outnumbered and quickly fell to the ground. Chidian was dragged off his horse and slammed to the ground, his face buried in the mud. His mouth was filled with the taste of blood and earth. He struggled desperately, but several burly men held his hands and feet down, preventing him from moving.

"Behave yourself!" A large foot stomped on his head.

Chidian saw that his brothers who had resisted fiercely had been killed on the spot by the Wolf Tribe. Blood splattered all over his face. He closed his eyes and stopped struggling. Xueya rode over slowly and looked down at Chidian, who was pinned to the ground.

"The leader of the Horse Tribe?" His voice was hoarse and flat.

Chidian raised his head and glared fiercely at Xueya, his eyes looking like he wanted to devour him. Xueya, however, smiled, a smile that appeared particularly sinister against the backdrop of his hideous scars.

"Take him away," he said. "Don't kill him."

Chidian was dragged away, leaving a long drag mark where he was dragged. Xueya didn't look at him again. He rode his horse to the valley entrance and looked at the corpses of the Horse Tribe cavalrymen who had been killed by rolling stones, as well as the warhorses that were panicking and running around in all directions.

"Inventory the spoils," he ordered.

Soon, the results were reported: the ambush had killed more than forty Horse Tribe cavalrymen and captured more than a dozen. More importantly, more than eighty dwarf horses were captured. The Horse Tribe lived up to its reputation of having two horses per person. Although more than forty people died, more than eighty horses were captured. Although many were unusable or dead, there were still more than forty healthy horses. With these horses, the number of the Wolf Tribe cavalrymen returned to six hundred.

Xueya looked at the well-fed and strong warhorses, a hint of satisfaction flashing in his eyes.

"Junfeng," he said softly, "Thank you for the horse."

Outside Tiger and Leopard Valley, Junfeng listened to the roaring sounds and screams coming from inside the valley, his face turning ashen.

"Chidian!" he gritted his teeth, "Chidian is still inside!"

The Xiao Matou rode up, his face filled with urgency. "Brother, I'll lead men to rush in and save him!"

"No." Junfeng raised his hand to stop him. "The middle of the valley is too narrow; rushing in would be suicide."

"What do we do?" Xiao Matou cried out anxiously, "Chidian's leader is still inside!"

Junfeng didn't speak. He just stared intently at the valley entrance, gripping the Jiangsheng tightly with both hands. After a long time, the roaring sounds in the valley finally stopped, followed by shouts of battle—the cheers of the Wolf Tribe. Junfeng closed his eyes. He knew that Chidian was finished, and most of his hundred brothers who had followed him for many years were also gone. Only about thirty of them had escaped back.

Junfeng opened his eyes, which were bloodshot, but he remained calm.

"Retreat three miles and set up camp," he said. "Wait for reinforcements."

After noon, a cloud of dust finally rose on the northern horizon. Junfeng raised his head, looked at the approaching dust cloud, and let out a long breath. His five hundred cavalrymen from his affiliated tribe had finally arrived. These were reinforcements transferred from the five core affiliated tribes of the Horse Tribe, one hundred cavalrymen from each tribe, all of whom were the most elite warriors.

Leading the group were several familiar faces— Canglang from the White Hoof Tribe, Liefeng from the Yellow Dappled Horse Tribe, and Yunti from the Piebald Horse Tribe ... all old friends of Junfeng.

"Chief Junfeng!" Canglang rode over, dismounted, and clasped his hands in greeting. "We're late!"

Junfeng helped him up and shook his head. "It's not too late."

He briefly explained the situation, and when they heard the news that Junfeng had found out that Chidian had been captured and that most of the hundred cavalrymen had been killed or wounded, the faces of the leaders of several affiliated tribes changed.

"That Xueya..." Liefeng gritted his teeth, "Too cunning!"

Yunti asked, "What do we do now? Charge in?"

Junfeng shook his head. "Tiger and Leopard Valley has treacherous terrain; a direct assault would result in too many casualties. Besides, they've already secured a favorable position."

He paused, looking at the valley entrance in the distance. "Let's set up camp first and wear them down."

Thus, the two armies faced off in Tiger and Leopard Valley. The Wolf Tribe occupied the high ground on both sides of Tiger and Leopard Valley and blocked the valley with rolling stones and giant logs, while the Horse Tribe's cavalry camped outside the valley and sent small groups of cavalry to probe every day, but each time they were driven back by rolling stones, and neither side could do anything to the other.

Two days later, Junfeng stood on a high point in the camp, looking in the direction of Tiger and Leopard Valley, his brows furrowed.

"Chief," Zhuiying approached and whispered, "A scout reports that the people the Wolf Tribe has taken hostage are almost at the foot of High Pointed Mountain."

Junfeng's heart sank. He knew what this meant. Once those people and supplies safely arrived at High Pointed Mountain, the Wolf Tribe would have no worries. At that time, Xueya could fight or retreat as he pleased, and no one could stop him.

"We can't delay any longer," Junfeng said in a low voice.

Just then, a commotion suddenly arose from the direction of the valley entrance.

A warrior from the Horse Tribe galloped up, dismounted, and exclaimed excitedly, "Chief! The Wolf Tribe has sent people! They want to negotiate!"

Junfeng was taken aback. Negotiation? He led several leaders and rode to the front of the formation. On the other side, Xueya also rode over with several men. The two sides reined in their horses at the same time when they were about two hundred paces apart. Junfeng carefully examined Xueya on the other side.

This person was more complex, ruthless, and cunning than he had imagined. At this moment, Xueya's expression was calm, even with a hint of a smile, as if he hadn't been the one to carry out the ambush a couple of days ago.

"Chief of the Junfeng," Xueya called out, his voice echoing across the empty valley, "Our Wolf Tribe and Horse Tribe have no enmity whatsoever, so why are you chasing us relentlessly?"

Junfeng almost laughed out of anger. No grudge? He took a deep breath and suppressed his rage.

"Xueya," his voice was as cold as the winter wind, "You led your men to plunder small tribes all over our north, slaughtering my affiliated tribes— the Great Grass Vine, the Mound Earth, the Frog Marsh, the Bird's Sparrow Nest —several tribes, thousands of lives lost. You say there was no enmity between you?"

Xueya's smile remained unchanged.

"Chief Junfeng has misunderstood," he said. "Those tribes all submitted to us voluntarily. You can ask them if you don't believe me—oh, I forgot, they all followed me south."

A cold glint flashed in Junfeng's eyes.

"As for those tribes," Xueya continued, "They attacked us first, and we were merely defending ourselves. As for the fact that they are vassals of the Horse Tribe —we were unaware of this beforehand. Had we known, I would certainly have given Junfeng face and bypassed them."

"Lies!" Junfeng shouted angrily, "You slaughtered their old, weak, women and children, and you call that self-defense?"

Xueya shrugged. "On the battlefield, swords have no eyes. Leader Junfeng has led troops for many years; he should know this better than I do."

Junfeng was silent for a while, then he suddenly realized that it was pointless to reason with this kind of person.

"What do you want to say today?" he asked coldly.

Xueya's smile faded slightly, and he said solemnly, "Chief Junfeng, I, Xueya, have come today to sincerely seek peace."

He paused, then raised his voice and said, "Our Wolf Tribe has no hostility towards the Horse Tribe. We've only come north because our tribe is desperately short of supplies and can't survive. That's why we've come out to find something to eat. If Junfeng is willing to let us go, I, Xueya, swear here and now—"

He raised his right hand. "From this day forward, the Wolf Tribe will never set foot in the north again! Today, we release our captured brothers, along with two thousand sheep, as an apology!"

As soon as he finished speaking, he waved his hand, and behind him, several Wolf Tribe warriors escorted Chidian and the others out. Chidian was covered in wounds, but he could still walk. When he saw Junfeng, his eyes reddened, and he lowered his head. Then, the Wolf Tribe warriors drove a large flock of sheep over. At a glance, there were at least two thousand sheep. Junfeng narrowed his eyes; he was tempted.

It wasn't because of those two thousand sheep— the Horse Tribe didn't lack that much—but because Xueya had given him a way out, a way to gracefully end things. He glanced at the leaders beside him; Canglang, Liefeng, Yunti were all looking at him without saying a word. He then looked at the troops behind him: nearly five hundred Horse Tribe cavalry and five hundred cavalry from affiliated tribes, totaling about a thousand men. Could they win if they fought head-on?

Perhaps, but how many would die? At least half. The Wolf Tribe, on the other hand, could afford to die. Junfeng recalled the standoff of the past two days. The Wolf Tribe occupied advantageous terrain, able to advance and retreat freely. No matter how elite his cavalry was, they couldn't break through those steep slopes. More importantly, the people the Wolf Tribe had taken with them were almost at High Pointed Mountain. They had no worries about their rear and could hold out against him for ten days or half a month. As for him, his cavalry had only carried five days' worth of rations, which were almost gone. If they continued to hold out, the supply of hay and horse feed would be a major problem.

and...

He glanced at Xiao Matou and Tengjiao beside him. Xiao Matou Head looked anxious, his lips moved as if he wanted to say something, while Tengjiao stared intently at Xueya with red eyes, wishing he could pounce on him and bite him. Junfeng knew what they wanted to say, but he also knew that now was not the time to act rashly, so he remained silent for a long time.

"Xueya," he finally spoke, his voice so calm it betrayed no emotion, "I don't trust the oaths you've made."

Xueya's expression remained unchanged. "Junfeng, what do you want me to believe you?"

"I want you to swear an oath before the gods," Junfeng said, "In the name of all your Wolf Tribe's ancestors."

Xueya paused for a moment, then dismounted, knelt on the ground, and raised his hands to the sky.

"I, Xueya, swear in the name of all the ancestors of the Wolf Tribe!" His voice boomed, echoing through the valley, "From this day forward, the Wolf Tribe will never set foot within the Horse Tribe's territory! May we be struck by lightning and die a horrible death!"

He stood up and looked at Junfeng: "Junfeng, is this alright?"

Junfeng didn't speak. He spurred his horse forward a few steps, then turned it around and headed towards his camp. After a few more steps, he stopped and said without turning back:

"Two thousand sheep, I've taken them. And the prisoners, I'm taking them with me too. Xueya, remember the oath you swore today."

Xueya called out from behind, "Junfeng, rest assured! I, Xueya, keep my word! Someone, take the sheep over there!"

The Wolf Tribe herders drove their flocks of sheep slowly toward the Horse Tribe's camp. Junfeng didn't look back. He led Chidian and the two thousand sheep back to his own camp. Behind him, Xiao Matou and Tengjiao caught up.

"Brother!" Xiao Matou Head cried anxiously, "Are you just going to let them go like that? Can Xueya be trusted?"

Junfeng remained silent, but Tengjiao caught up, tears welling in his eyes. "Chief Junfeng, are you just going to let the lives of over five hundred people from our Great Grass Vine Tribe go like this?"

Junfeng reined in his horse, turned around, and looked at the two men. Their faces were filled with resentment, anger, and disappointment. He remained silent for a while.

"Do you think I'd let them go?" His voice was low, only a few of them could hear, "But look at the situation now."

He pointed to the troops behind him. "Our cavalry are almost out of rations. If we keep dragging this out, the horses will starve. The Wolf Tribe has taken advantage of the terrain. How many of us will die if we launch a direct attack? Out of a thousand cavalry, how many will be left?"

The Xiao Matou opened its mouth, but couldn't speak.

"Moreover," Junfeng continued, "Those people the Wolf Tribe has taken hostage are almost at High Pointed Mountain. Xueya has no worries about his rear; he can hold out against us for ten days or half a month. Can we afford to?"

Tengjiao lowered his head, tears dripping to the ground. Junfeng looked at them, his voice softening slightly. "Of course I don't believe Xueya's words. Oaths made by such people are like farts."

He paused, a cold glint flashing in his eyes. "But for today, this is the only way."

Xiao Matou raised his head, hope rekindling in his eyes. "Brother, you mean..."

Junfeng did not answer. He spurred his horse forward.

After taking a few steps, he whispered:

"We'll talk about it when we get back."

The Horse Tribe's troops slowly retreated northward. In the Wolf Tribe's camp, a deafening cheer erupted. Xueya, riding his horse, watched the departing Horse Tribe cavalry with a satisfied smile on his face.

"Chief," Yexiao Owl rode up and asked in a low voice, "The oath you swore..."

Xueya laughed, "Swear an oath? Can you eat that stuff?"

He tightened the Jiangsheng and turned the horse around.

"Pass down the order: pack your things and return to High Pointed Mountain!"

The Wolf Tribe tribe began packing up their camp, preparing to return south.