An Idea for an Outpost on the River's West Bank

The Fire Tribe's fleet sailed majestically on the Fish River, the scenery on both banks slowly receding. The small tribes on the other side of the Orange River were already prepared, just waiting for the Fire Tribe's fleet to arrive so they could board.

"Young Chieftain," Bailin walked over and stood beside Yan, "Our Fire Tribe's fleet is almost at the Orange River."

Yan nodded, pointed ahead, and said, "Once we arrive, you take some boats and bring the people back to the Fire Tribe headquarters. I'll take the rest of the boats to the Red Flower River to pick them up."

Bailin replied, "Okay, understood!"

The Fire Tribe's fleet slowly entered the mouth of the Orange River Orange River. From afar, Yan could see a dense crowd of people, at least several thousand, standing together, crammed together and looking towards the Fire Tribe's fleet. When the Fire Tribe's fleet reached the shore, the crowd on the bank stirred, and several people who appeared to be leaders stepped out from the crowd and quickly came to greet them.

"Young Master Yan!" The middle-aged man at the head of the group beamed, "You've finally arrived! We're all ready!"

Yan jumped off the boat, smiled and nodded, saying, "Thank you for your hard work. Is everyone here?"

The chief nodded repeatedly. "Everyone's here! Everyone's here! The small tribe of the Orange River has about four thousand people, and they're all here; the people from the larger tribes will stay behind until the crops are harvested before heading to the Fire Tribe headquarters, there are about two thousand of them."

Yan glanced at the crowd on the shore, then at the chieftains, and said, "Alright, I'll leave some supplies for the tribes that stayed behind. We'll come to fetch you after the harvest."

With a wave of his hand, his entourage immediately unloaded bags of grain, bundles of linen, loads of pottery, and bags of coarse salt from the ship, piling them on the dock like a Little Mountain. The leaders' eyes lit up when they saw the supplies.

"Young Master Yan, this... this is far too much..."

Yan waved his hand. "Not much. Just focus on farming. We'll come and take you back to the Fire Tribe headquarters after the harvest."

He turned to Bailin and said, "Bailin, take some boats and bring these four thousand people back to the Fire Tribe headquarters. Leave their belongings here for now, and we'll transport them back next time we come."

Bailin nodded. "Okay, I understand!"

He immediately made arrangements, and four thousand people began to board the ships. The elderly and children boarded first, followed by women, and the young people last. Everything was orderly and efficient. Yan stood aside, watching the people board the ships, silently thinking that once these people were settled, the population of the Fire Tribe would increase to another level! An hour later, all four thousand people were on board, and Bailin led the fleet, slowly sailing out of the mouth of the Orange River and upstream along the Fish River towards the Fire Tribe's headquarters.

Yan then led the remaining boats and continued sailing downstream along the Fish River. Two days later, at dusk, the Red Flower River Mouth came into view in the distance. From afar, Yan saw a large, dark crowd standing at the river mouth. The population of this small tribe was even larger than that on the other side of the Orange River. When the Fire Tribe's fleet slowly approached the shore, the crowd on the bank immediately stirred. The three leaders, Huaguo, Hongmao, and Honglian, stepped out from the crowd and quickly came to greet them.

"Young Master Yan!" Huaguo exclaimed with a beaming smile, "You've finally arrived!"

Yan jumped off the boat, smiled, and nodded, saying, "Chief Huaguo, have all the people going to the Fire Tribe arrived?"

Huaguo nodded repeatedly. "Everyone's here! Everyone's here! The small tribes in the Red Flower River basin have a total of about six thousand people, and they're all here. We, the people from the larger tribes, will stay here until the crops are harvested before heading to the Fire Tribe headquarters. There are about three thousand of us staying behind."

Yan glanced at the crowd on the shore, then at the three leaders.

"Okay, I'll leave some supplies for you first. We'll come pick you up after the crops are harvested."

With a wave of his hand, his entourage immediately unloaded bags of grain, bundles of hemp cloth, loads of pottery, and bags of coarse salt from the ship and piled them on the dock, more than what was left on the other side of the Orange River. Huaguo's eyes reddened as she looked at the supplies.

"Chief Yan, your Fire Tribe... is truly too benevolent..."

Yan waved his hand. "Of course, you can focus on your farming. We'll come pick you up after the harvest."

He paused, then said, "It's getting late. Let's rest here for the night and set off first thing tomorrow morning."

Huaguo nodded repeatedly. "Okay, okay! I'll have someone arrange it!"

That night, Yan rested at the Red Flower River Mouth. A campfire was lit, and the members of the small tribes who were preparing to join the Fire Tribe 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 old men.

"Grandpa, are you having a hard time here?"

An old man sighed, "It's tough. We're short of food every year, and winter is the hardest time."

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

A young man nearby asked, "Chief Yan, 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'll definitely do my best!"

The next morning, before dawn, the camp was bustling with activity. Six thousand members of the small tribe began to board the boats, with the elderly and children going first, followed by the women, and the young people last. Yan stood at the Chuantou, watching all this, and a sense of accomplishment welled up in his heart.

Feiyu walked over and stood beside him, saying, "Young Chief, we are all ready and can depart at any time."

Yan nodded, looking at the river in the distance, and suddenly said, "Feiyu, our Fire Tribe doesn't have a stronghold on the west bank of the Fish River yet. Shouldn't we build one?"

Feiyu paused for a moment, then his eyes lit up.

"What the young leader means is..."

Yan pointed towards the mouth of the Red Flower River Mouth and said, "Next time we come to pick up the rest of the people, we can build a stronghold on the Red Flower River. That way, we can blockade both sides of the Fish River, just like the Valley Tribe did."

He paused, then continued, "From the Fish River Little Fish River upstream, this entire area belongs to our Fire Tribe."

Feiyu nodded repeatedly, saying, "Great idea! This will expand our Fire Tribe's territory, and as the population grows, we can accommodate many more people."

Yan smiled and said, "Yes, just by placing people at the mouths of these tributaries of the Fish River, we can accommodate a lot of them."

Feiyu smiled too. The Fire Tribe's fleet slowly started up, sailed out of the Red Flower River Mouth, and began to travel upstream along the Fish River. Six days later, the Fire Tribe's main valley dock appeared before them.

The dock was crowded with people. Jianshi, along with the high-ranking members of the Fire Tribe and many ordinary tribesmen, were waiting there. The Fire Tribe's fleet slowly docked, and the six thousand members of the smaller tribes disembarked one after another. Guided by the Fire Tribe members, they went to designated places to rest, eat, and settle down.

Yan jumped off the boat, strode towards the Jianshi, and said, "Father!"

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

"Good lad! He's brought back another ten thousand men this time!"

Yan smiled and said, "Including the four thousand that Bailin brought back, we brought back a total of ten thousand this time. There are still five thousand people from the Orange River and Red Flower River who will come over after the crops are harvested."

Jianshi nodded, his eyes filled with satisfaction, and said, "Let's go to the council hall first."

The group entered the council hall, and everyone took their seats. Jianshi sat in the main seat, looking at Yan with eyes full of approval.

"Yan, you did a great job this time. These 10,000 people have been settled. Once we bring back the other 5,000, our Fire Tribe will have a population of 100,000."

Yan nodded, then suddenly remembered something.

"Father, I have an idea."

Jianshi looked at him. "Speak."

Yan stood up and walked to the map hanging on the wall.

"Father, fellow chieftains, you see, our Fire Tribe doesn't have a stronghold on the west bank of the Fish River yet. Next time we go to fetch the remaining people, I suggest we build a stronghold on the Red Flower River."

Pointing to the Red Flower River Mouth on the map, he continued, "This way, we can blockade both banks of the Fish River, just like the Valley Tribe did. Our Fire Tribe tribe's Fire Tribe starts from the Fish River Little Fish River and extends all the way upstream."

Jianshi's eyes lit up, and he said, "Great idea! This will not only strengthen our control over the territory, but also allow us to settle many people at the river mouth as the population grows."

Dali nodded repeatedly. "Yes! Those river mouths are good places; they can accommodate a lot of people!"

The others also agreed.

Jianshi made the decision. "Then it's settled. We'll set up the base next time we go to pick up the people."

He then looked at Jianya: "Jianya, get ready. In a couple of days, lead the fleet to the Valley Tribe to transport grain."

Jianya nodded. "Okay!"

Jianshi finally looked at Yan: "Yan, you've worked hard these past few days. Take a rest in the tribe for a while. Keep an eye on the two thousand people in the Youth Team and the Hunting Team. Also, visit the Fire Tribe's workshop whenever you have time."

Yan nodded. "Understood!"

Two days later, early in the morning, the docks were bustling again. Jianya stood at the Chuantou of the largest ship, a 20,000-jin (10,000 kg) vessel, looking at the massive fleet before him: ten 20,000-jin (10,000 kg) vessels, one hundred and twenty 10,000-jin (5,000 kg) vessels, two hundred 5,000-jin (2,000 kg) vessels, and two hundred large Muzhou with a capacity of two,000-jin (1,000 kg) each—a total of five hundred and thirty ships, densely packed on the surface of the Fire Creek River. Jianya's goal this time was to transport three million jin (1,000 kg) of grain from the Valley Tribe Fire Tribe.

"Let's go!" Jianya gave the order.

As the horn sounded, the Fire Tribe's fleet slowly started and began to sail downstream along the Fire Creek River. On the shore, Jianshi, Flame, Dali, and others stood there, watching Jianya and the Fire Tribe's fleet sail away. Flame stood by the dock, watching the sails gradually disappear, thinking silently to himself.

Once this batch of grain is transported back, the Fire Tribe's granaries will be even fuller. Once the five thousand people from the Orange River and Red Flower River are brought back, the Fire Tribe's population will reach one hundred thousand. Once the Red Flower River stronghold is established, the Fire Tribe's territory will be even larger. He took a deep breath and turned to walk towards the Youth Team's camp.