Busy at the Start of Spring

After Jianshi Shi spoke with Yan and asked him to take a boat to the west bank of the upper reaches of the Fish River to pick up people, Yan barely slept for the past three days. He personally oversaw every single thing, from counting the boats and allocating manpower to loading necessary supplies and arranging the itinerary, for fear of making even the slightest mistake.

Three days later, before dawn, two hundred small Fire Tribe Muzhou weighing 500 jin each, two hundred large Muzhou 2,000 jin each, two hundred large boats weighing 5,000 jin each, and fifty giant boats weighing 10,000 jin each—a total of six hundred and fifty boats weighing ten thousand jin each—were densely moored on the Fire Creek River, loaded with the necessary supplies.

On the shore, three hundred young men from the new recruit camp were all ready to go. Their faces were filled with excitement and nervousness. These three hundred men were the batch who had just come of age last winter. They had trained in the new recruit camp all winter, and today they were finally going out to see the world. Yan stood at the Chuantou the largest ship, weighing ten thousand kilograms, and looked at all this. A sense of pride welled up in his heart.

Six hundred and fifty ships—this scale would have been unimaginable just a few years ago!

"Boss!" a young leader ran over, "Everything's ready! We can leave anytime!"

Yan nodded, took a deep breath, and shouted, "Let's go!"

As the horn sounded, 650 boats slowly started and sailed downstream along the Fire Creek River. On the bank, Jianshi, Qingye, Dali, and others stood there, watching the fleet depart. Yan stood at the Chuantou, facing the spring breeze, silently planning the journey.

From the west bank of the upper reaches of the Fish River Fish River, it takes two days to go upstream to the Peach River. It takes another two days to go to the Grass River, which is a bit further away. The Ash River is the farthest. Including the time spent in the river, the round trip takes almost half a month.

Fortunately, there were many boats this time, so they could split up and go their separate ways. When they reached the Peach River Peach River and Grass River, they could send some boats to pick up people while they themselves took the large boats and continued to the Ash River. In this way, by the time Yan himself led the boats to the Ash River, the people from the Peach River and Grass River would have almost arrived at the Fire Tribe headquarters. In about half a month, the matter of picking up people should be settled. As Yan was thinking, the fleet had already left the Fire Creek River and entered the wide Fish River.

"Boss!" a voice rang out.

Yan turned his head and saw Yingmu standing on another boat, waving at him. Yan waved back. Yingmu had come along this time as well. Shibang was still being handed over at the Deer Tribe. He could only come over after he had fully mastered Gubang.

Yan led the fleet upstream along the Fish River, heading south. The scenery on both banks kept changing, sometimes dense forests, sometimes open grasslands, and sometimes steep cliffs. Two days later, they arrived at the mouth of the Peach River. In the distance, Yan saw a large group of people standing on the bank, looking in their direction.

"We've arrived," Yingmu said.

The fleet slowly approached the shore, and the crowd on the bank stirred. They looked at the huge fleet and the figures on the ships with anticipation and excitement in their eyes. A familiar figure stepped out from the crowd—it was Taogen, the leader elected by the Peach River. He walked quickly to the shore and bowed to Yan on the ship.

"Young Master Yan! You've finally arrived!"

Yan jumped off the boat, strode over, and helped him up.

"Genshu, I'm sorry to have kept you waiting."

Taogen's eyes reddened, and he shook his head repeatedly.

"Not long, not long! It's good that you could come!"

He turned and pointed to the people on the bank, saying, "Everyone from this side of the Peach River is here, not a single one is missing!"

Looking at those thin but hopeful faces, Yan felt a surge of warmth in his heart.

"Alright! Let's get on board!"

The warriors of the Fire Tribe immediately sprang into action, guiding the crowd onto the boats. The elderly and children boarded first, followed by the women, and the young people last. In an orderly and efficient manner, half a day later, all the people and belongings on the Peach River side were on the boats. Yan told them to return to the Fire Tribe first, while he took the remaining boats and continued sailing upstream on the Fish River.

Two days later, Yan arrived at the mouth of the Grass River. People from the Grass River side had arrived, and there was another flurry of activity. Yan had them take the boats carrying personnel and supplies back to the Fire Tribe headquarters first, while Yan continued to lead the large boats towards the farthest Ash River.

After more than three days of sailing, the mouth of the Ash River finally came into view. In the distance, Yan could see a dark mass of people on the shore. Yan led the fleet slowly to the shore, and an old man with gray hair walked out from the crowd and walked shakily to the shore.

"Young Master Yan, I am the old man Huigen, the leader of this side of the Ash River. We... we've been waiting all winter, and finally you've arrived!"

Yan quickly stepped forward and helped him up.

"Genshu, I'm sorry to have kept you waiting."

Huigen wept uncontrollably, shaking his head repeatedly.

"Not long, not long! I'm glad I can wait, I'm glad I can wait..."

Looking at the equally excited crowd, Yan was filled with emotion. These people had endured the worst winter and had finally waited for this day.

"Get on the boat!" he shouted.

By the time everything was ready, it was already evening. Yan ordered that they spend the night at the river mouth and return early the next morning. That night, bonfires were lit on the riverbank. The new tribesmen sat around the fire, eating the dry rations brought by the Fire Tribe and drinking hot soup, their faces full of smiles. Yan sat by the fire and chatted with a few elders.

"Grandpa, is life hard here?"

An old man sighed, "It's so hard. We're short of food every year, and winter is the hardest to get through. If it weren't for you bringing us food last year, I don't know how many people would have starved to death."

Another old man said, "Now things are great. Joining the Fire Tribe means we won't have to worry anymore."

A young man nearby asked, "I heard that the Fire Tribe has an endless supply of food and an endless supply of wooden houses. Is that true?"

Yan smiled and nodded, "It's true, as long as you're willing to work and follow the rules, you can eat your fill and stay warm."

The young man's eyes lit up, and he nodded repeatedly.

I will definitely do my best!

The next morning, the fleet returned, sailing downstream at a much faster speed. By the time Yan reached the mouth of the Grass River, the people of the Grass River had already left, leaving only empty riverbanks. Another day passed, and when they reached the mouth of the Peach River, the people of the Peach River had also left, leaving the riverbanks deserted.

Yan stood at the Chuantou, looking at the empty riverbanks, a complex emotion welling up in his heart. From now on, these people would be the people of the Fire Tribe, and their fate would be closely linked with that of the Fire Tribe. A little over a day later, the fleet arrived at the Fire Tribe's main dock. The dock was already full of people. Jianshi, along with the Fire Tribe's high-ranking officials and many ordinary tribesmen, were waiting there. The fleet slowly docked.

The newcomers disembarked one after another and, guided by the Fire Tribe members, went to designated places to rest, eat, and settle in. Yan jumped off the boat and strode towards the Jianshi.

"Father!"

Jianshi went up to him and patted him hard on the shoulder.

"Good lad! He's brought back another seven thousand men!"

Yan smiled and said, "Everything went smoothly."

Jianshi looked at his son's slightly tired face and felt a pang of sadness. His son must not have had a good night's sleep in the past two weeks, but he could only suppress his heartache when he thought about all the things that needed to be done in the tribe.

"Yan," he said, "Go back and rest for a while. Come to the council chamber later; we have something to discuss."

Yan nodded. "Okay."

He turned and walked towards his wooden hut. After a few steps, he looked back again. On the dock, the newcomers were being settled in. Their faces showed curiosity, anticipation, and a hint of unease. Yan took a deep breath and continued walking.

Back in the cabin, he quickly washed up, changed into clean clothes, and then walked towards the council hall. Inside, Jianshi was sitting in the main seat handling affairs. When he saw Yan enter, he put down the wooden plank he was carrying.

"Yan, sit down and talk."

Yan sat down, Jianshi looked at him, saying, "With the seven thousand people we brought back this time, plus the people from the previous four tribes, our Fire Tribe headquarters is a bit crowded. In the next couple of days, you take some people to prepare and transport a batch of people to settle in the Fish Tribe, Pottery Salt Tribe, Hundred Crafts Tribe, Marsh Tribe, Beast Taming Tribe, Green Grain Tribe, and the High Pointed Mountain Foothill Outpost."

He paused for a moment, then said, "You just need to take them to the Pottery Salt Tribe and Fish Tribe; Dazhuang will take care of them."

Yan nodded. "Okay."

Jianshi added, "When you go, bring some farm tools, equipment, and food supplies. They're going to be reclaiming land Dali that year, so these things are essential."

Yan nodded again.

Finally, Jianshi said, "After you've finished these matters, you can lead the fleet directly from the Fire Tribe headquarters to the Valley Tribe and bring back this year's pre-ordered grain."

Yan stood up. "Yes!"

Two days later, before dawn, Yan led the fleet off again. This time, the ships were not carrying new tribespeople, but various supplies—farm tools, implements, grain, salt, linen...

Another group of clansmen were to be settled in various strongholds. The fleet sailed down the Fish River. Early that morning, Yanxian stopped at the mouth of the Pottery Salt River Mouth, where Dazhuang was already waiting.

"Yan!" Dazhuang greeted him, "You must have had a long journey!"

Yan jumped off the boat and shook hands with him.

"Uncle Dazhuang, what are you doing here?"

Dazhuang said, "There's no problem at the Stone Creek River Mouth anymore. This place is more crucial, so I'll stay here for the time being."

Yan nodded, pointing to the supplies and personnel on the ship.

"These are the people and supplies to be settled in the strongholds of Pottery and Salt, Hundred Crafts, Shuize, Beast Taming, and Qinghe. Please make the arrangements."

Dazhuang nodded. "Okay, leave it to me."

The warriors of the Fire Tribe immediately sprang into action, unloading the supplies from the ships and guiding the people to designated locations. Soon after, everything was settled, and Yan and Dazhuang bid farewell, leading the remaining fleet to continue sailing downstream.

As dusk fell, the Fish Tribe's dock came into view in the distance. From afar, Yan saw two people standing on the dock: one was Canglan, the leader of the Fish Tribe, and the other was Dazhuang —wait, Dazhuang was just at the Pottery Salt River Mouth, how did he end up here? Yan was stunned for a moment, then realized that they were people sent by Dazhuang. They looked alike, but they were not the same person. The fleet slowly approached the shore, and Canglan quickly came to greet them.

"Young Master Yan!" he said with a broad smile, "You must have had a long journey!"

Yan jumped off the boat and took his hand.

"Leaders of Canglan, are you ready?"

Canglan nodded repeatedly. "Ready! We've been waiting for you!"

He pointed to the mountains of supplies piled up on the dock and said, "Everything is packed, and everyone is here—more than four thousand people—ready to depart at any time!"

Yan looked at the neatly arranged crowd and felt very satisfied.

"Okay!" Yan said, "I'll have people unload the personnel and supplies from the ship first, and then we'll get the people on board."

Canglan nodded and immediately made arrangements. The warriors of the Fire Tribe began unloading the cargo, and the food and supplies were moved to the dock. The people of the Fish Tribe also sprang into action, loading their prepared supplies onto the ships. Everything proceeded in an orderly manner. An hour later, all the supplies were unloaded and all the personnel boarded the ships.

More than four thousand people were crammed onto the boat, a dark mass. Yan stood at the Chuantou, watching all this, a complex emotion welling up in his heart. The Fish Tribe, this old tribe, had finally officially joined the Fire Tribe. From now on, there would be no more Fish Tribe along the Fish River, only the Fish Tribe stronghold of the Fire Tribe.

"Young Master Yan," Canglan walked over and stood beside him, also looking at the people boarding the ship, "From now on, we are family."

Yan turned and smiled at Canglan, saying, "Yes, from now on we're family."