Seeking Refuge with the Fire Tribe

News of the unrest in the north spread like wildfire, flying southwards. At first, it was just scattered whispers—"I heard there's fighting again in the north," "A tribe was massacred," "It seems to have been the Wolf Tribe who did it"...

But soon, the whispers turned into Startling Thunder. When the dozen or so members of the Fish Tribe's subordinate groups heard the few survivors recount the horrific scene of the massacre of the Great Grass Vine Tribe, the Mound Earth Tribe, the Frog Marsh Tribe Sparrow Nest Tribe, and other tribes—charred thatched huts, piles of Little Mountain, the lingering smell of blood and burnt flesh in the air, and the once bustling campsites now only having crows and wild dogs wandering among the ruins.

The moment the news spread, more than a dozen tribes and over four thousand people were in complete uproar.

The first to collapse was the Green Mud Tribe, which was closest to the Great Grass Vine. It was a small tribe of more than 400 people. They had intermarried with the Great Grass Vine Tribe for generations, and the leaders of the two tribes were brothers-in-law. When the Green Mud Tribe's leader Nigen, heard the news of the massacre of Great Grass Vine, he stood there stunned for the entire time it takes for an incense stick to burn, as if struck by lightning.

Then he rushed out of the thatched hut like a madman, roaring at his tribesmen, "Pack your things! We're going to the Fish Tribe right now!"

"Chief, we haven't finished harvesting the wild lotus roots in our fields yet..."

"Collect my ass!" Nigen's eyes were bloodshot. "Is your life more important or wild lotus roots?"

That afternoon, the Green Mud Tribe abandoned the swamp where they had lived for generations and fled to the Nanyu Fish Tribe with their families. Other affiliated tribes of the Fish Tribe reacted similarly: the Luwei Tribe, the Waterbird Tribe, the Qiantan Tribe, the Sandbar Tribe... one after another, they all began packing their belongings and preparing to migrate to the Fish Tribe. It wasn't that they didn't want to resist, but that they simply couldn't resist.

Last year, when the Wolf Tribe invaded the west, these tribes contributed manpower and resources to resist alongside the Fish Tribe and the Pottery Salt Tribe. They witnessed firsthand the ferocity of the Wolf Tribe —those people didn't care about human life at all, killing people more efficiently than slaughtering sheep. Although they were victorious later, they suffered heavy losses. Now, the Wolf Tribe has emerged again, wreaking havoc everywhere, and they are even stronger than last year.

Who dares to stay?

Within just two days, more than 4,000 people from more than ten affiliated tribes of the Fish Tribe abandoned their homes and migrated to the Fish Tribe with their families. The Fish Tribe was their first stop in their escape.

At the entrance of the Fish Tribe camp, Canglan looked at the dark mass of people surging in from afar, his face as gloomy as the dark clouds in the sky.

"Chief," the Julang whispered beside him, "Three more tribes have arrived, making it about ten in total."

Canglan didn't speak. Of course he knew that his scouts had been reporting to him for the past two days that more than 4,000 people from a dozen tribes—old, young, sick, and weak—had brought their families, their last bit of food and livestock, and were running desperately toward the Fish Tribe like a herd of rabbits being chased by wild beasts. When they reached the Fish Tribe's camp, they knelt on the ground, crying and begging for protection.

Canglan looked at the people. Among them were people he recognized—the chief of the Luwei Tribe, with whom he had eaten last year; several elders from the Waterbird Tribe, who came to the Fish Tribe every year to exchange salt; and several young women whom he had seen at tribal gatherings before...

But more often, they were met with unfamiliar and terrified faces.

"Chief," a voice rang out. It was Weigan, the chief of the Luwei Tribe, who was over fifty years old with gray hair. He knelt at the front, his forehead pressed to the ground, his voice so hoarse that it was almost inaudible.

"Our Luwei Tribe has been dependent on the Fish Tribe for over a decade. Every year, we send the best Luwei mats to the Fish Tribe. We also contribute manpower and resources to every battle. Last year, when the Wolf Tribe came, our tribe even sent dozens of able-bodied men to fight alongside the Julang leader..."

He looked up, tears streaming down his face.

"Chief Canglan, I beg you, please accept us! The Wolf Tribe... the Wolf Tribe really will kill!"

Canglan closed his eyes. Of course he wanted to take them in. More than four thousand people, all able-bodied young men, capable of farming, fishing, and fighting. Taking them in would more than double the strength of the Fish Tribe, but he couldn't.

"Brother Weigan," Canglan's voice was very soft, as soft as a sigh, "Please stand up and speak."

Weigan refused to stand up, Canglan had no choice but to squat down and look him in the eye.

"Brother Weigan, it's not that I don't want to take you in." His voice was low, only Weigan could hear him, "My Fish Tribe suffered heavy losses in the battle with the Wolf Tribe last year, and our resources were also greatly depleted."

He paused for a moment, then continued, "Later, we only managed to recover by helping the Fire Tribe transport grain. But all the grain we earned was used to exchange for leather armor, weapons, and boats. My own people can only eat two meals of dry food a day now."

The Weigan was stunned.

"There are over four thousand of you," Canglan continued, "How am I supposed to feed you? How am I supposed to provide for you? When winter comes, you won't even have straw huts. Where will you live?"

The tears from the Weigan flowed even more fiercely.

"Then... what do we do?"

Canglan remained silent for a long time. Finally, he stood up and patted Weigan on the shoulder.

"Head south," he said, " to the Fire Tribe."

Weigan raised his head, his eyes filled with confusion. "Fire Tribe?"

"Yes." Canglan nodded. "They've recruited many people in the past few years. They have grain, land, and houses; they can harvest."

He paused, a complex emotion creeping into his voice. "Our Fish Tribe helped them transport grain. I saw it with my own eyes; their valleys were full of newly cultivated paddy fields and newly built wooden houses. They..."

He didn't finish speaking, but he knew that Weigan had understood: the Fire Tribe was the only option.

The group of about ten tribes stayed in the Fish Tribe for two days. Canglan had some grain brought out, cooked into porridge, and distributed it to them. But that was all. There was no place to stay, no place to settle them, and no promise of being taken in. Two days later, they continued their journey south.

After traveling for nine days, on the evening of the ninth day, they finally saw Fire Creek, and on both sides of Fire Creek, the endless paddy fields, the neat wooden houses, the wisps of smoke rising from the chimneys, and the people standing at the entrance of the valley to greet them. Jian Jianshi stood at the front, with Qingye on his left and Yan on his right.

Following them were Jianya, Dali, Dabang, and Dazhuang, as well as the leaders of various branches of the Fire Tribe. Jianshi frowned slightly as he watched the slowly approaching procession.

"There are quite a few people here..." he said softly.

Yan nodded. "The scouts report that there are about ten tribes, totaling more than four thousand people."

Is there enough food?

"That's enough," Yan said. "The 1.5 million jin of grain from the Valley Tribe just arrived, and more grain will be transported back later. Even if we have another 10,000 people, we can last until next spring."

Jianshi remained silent for a moment, then strode forward. At the head of the procession, Weigan had already knelt down, and behind him, a dozen or so tribal chiefs knelt down in unison.

"By the Fire Tribe Chief," the voice of the Weigan was hoarse and trembling, "We are refugees from the North, the Wolf Tribe... the Wolf Tribe has started causing trouble again. They've slaughtered many tribes in the North, including the Great Grass Vine, the Mound Earth, the Frog Marsh, and the Sparrow Nest tribes. We're afraid... we can only flee..."

He looked up, tears streaming down his face. "Please, Fire Tribe, take us in! We can do anything! Farming, fishing, fighting, building houses... Please!"

Jianshi didn't speak. He walked to Weigan, bent down, and helped him up. Then, he turned around and looked at the dark mass of people—old people, women, children, and young people, all exhausted, ragged, and with eyes full of fear and expectation.

Jianshi had already sent people to inquire about their situation and knew that they had genuinely come to seek refuge. He took a deep breath and said loudly:

"Fire Tribe, you're in!"

A deafening roar of cries and cheers erupted from the crowd. Weigan's legs went weak, and he was about to kneel down again, but Jianshi grabbed him.

"Stop kneeling," Jianshi said. "From today onwards, you are members of the Fire Tribe."

He turned and gave orders to the leaders behind him:

"Settle them in! Get the food from the warehouse first! Isolate and treat the sick!"

"Yes!"

The people of the Fire Tribe immediately sprang into action. Standing behind Jianshi, Weigan watched all this, and tears welled up in his eyes once again. But this time, they were tears of gratitude. That evening, the Fire Tribe's council hall was brightly lit. Jianshi sat in the main seat, listening to Weigan and several other tribal leaders recount the situation in the north in detail.

"The Wolf Tribe has brought many other tribes with them this time, and now their forces number at least nine hundred," said Weigan. "Among them, there are more than four hundred cavalry. They moved very quickly; in less than half a month, they wiped out seven or eight tribes."

Another leader added, "I heard that they later fought a battle with the Horse Tribe. The Horse Tribe pursued them but were ambushed and lost more than a hundred men. In the end, the two sides made peace, and the Wolf Tribe swore that they would never go north again."

"Make peace?" Yan frowned. "The Horse Tribe is just going to let them go like that?"

Weigan smiled bitterly, "What can we do if we don't let them go? The Wolf Tribe has occupied Tiger and Leopard Valley, which is easy to defend and difficult to attack. The Horse Tribe's cavalry can't get up there, and a direct assault would result in too many casualties. Moreover, the people that the Wolf Tribe has taken hostage are already close to High Pointed Mountain. If the Horse Tribe continues to drag this out, they will only suffer greater losses."

Yan was silent for a while. He recalled the situation when the Wolf Tribe invaded the west last autumn. At that time, the Wolf Tribe also took several hundred young men with them, but after that battle, the main force was almost completely annihilated, and only a dozen or so people escaped. Unexpectedly, in less than a year, they made a comeback and were even stronger than before.

"That Xueya..." Yan said in a low voice, "Is indeed not simple."

Weigan nodded. "The news we heard is that Xueya ordered those coerced young men to slaughter innocent people, to get their hands dirty with blood, and to force them to fight the Wolf Tribe wholeheartedly. Those young men were originally farmers and shepherds, but after Xueya led them to kill people for a few days, their eyes all changed."

Jianshi frowned. This method of training warriors was cruel, bloody, and inhumane, but... he had to admit, it was very effective.

"How many of them are there now?" Jianshi asked.

Weigan thought for a moment and said, "I heard that our strength has greatly increased, with more than a thousand warriors, including at least six hundred cavalry."

Silence fell over the tent. There were over a thousand soldiers and six hundred cavalrymen—more than the number from last autumn.

"Can we trust the oaths they made?" Yan asked.

Weigan shook his head. "That Xueya guy's oaths are like farts. He'll definitely come back this time, either to the north or the west."

"West?" Dali was taken aback. "You mean... the area around the Fish Tribe?"

Weigan didn't answer directly, but the fear in his eyes said it all. After the meeting, everyone gradually dispersed, but Yan didn't leave. He stood at the entrance of the council hall, watching the busy camp outside—the newly arrived refugees were being slowly settled with the help of the Fire Tribe people.

The Wolf Tribe in the north is developing rapidly, and their methods are a hundred times more bloody than those of the Fire Tribe.

What are you thinking about?

A voice rang out; it was Jianshi, who had somehow appeared beside him. Yan remained silent for a moment.

"Father," he said, "the Wolf Tribe will definitely come out to raid again after they return this time. They swore they wouldn't go north anytime soon, so their next target..."

He didn't finish speaking.

Jianshi picked up the conversation. "The west."

Yan nodded.

"Fish Tribe, Pottery Salt Tribe, Hundred Crafts Tribe, and so on."

Jianshi remained silent for a long time.

What do you think?

Yan thought for a moment, then slowly said, "We now have over 40,000 people, more than 8,000 warriors, and a large number of ships. The Wolf Tribe coming to our Fire Tribe is courting their own destruction."

"However," he changed his tone, "We can't learn from the Wolf Tribe's fighting style. Forcing people to fight by slaughtering them may seem fast, but it's actually very dangerous. Those people can kill others today, but they can turn against you tomorrow. Besides, they don't do much farming; they can only keep raiding!"

Jianshi Shi nodded.

"Also," Yan said, "We need to contact the Fish Tribe and the Horse Tribe. The Wolf Tribe is our common enemy; we can't defeat them alone. We need to unite."

Jianshi looked at him, a hint of relief flashing in his eyes.

"That's right."