Another Large Tribe on Fish River

About ten days after Dali and Jia Li returned from their trade with the Horse Tribe, around noon, a large crowd gathered at the dock in the valley of the Fire Tribe's headquarters. Jianshi stood at the front, followed by Qingye, Yan, Canglan, Dali, Dabang, Jia Li, and others. Everyone's eyes were fixed on the surface of the Fire Creek River.

There, a huge fleet of boats was slowly approaching: ten boats with a carrying capacity of 20,000 catties, one hundred and twenty boats with a carrying capacity of 10,000 catties, two hundred boats with a carrying capacity of 5,000 catties, and two hundred large Muzhou with a carrying capacity of 2,000 catties—more than five hundred boats in total, densely packed on the surface of the Fire Creek River, like a giant dragon swimming.

"The Jianya leaders are back!" someone cheered.

The fleet slowly approached the shore. Jianya jumped off the largest ship and strode towards Jian Shi and the Jianshi on the dock. He was covered in dust, but in good spirits, with exceptionally bright eyes. When he saw the new ships moored not far from the dock, he suddenly stopped. Ten ships with a carrying capacity of 20,000 jin were neatly moored there, their brand-new hulls gleaming in the sunlight.

Jianya took a deep breath and quickened his pace towards Jianshi. "Big Brother!" he strode up to Jianshi, his voice filled with excitement, "Our Fire Tribe has built ten more ships with a carrying capacity of 20,000 jin! That means our plan to build fifty ships with a carrying capacity of 20,000 jin this year will be completed ahead of schedule!"

Jianshi smiled and nodded, patted him on the shoulder, and said, "This time, not only are there ten ships with a carrying capacity of 20,000 jin each, but also twenty ships with a carrying capacity of 10,000 jin each, which are also ready."

Pointing to the new ships by the dock, he said with pride, "Now our Fire Tribe has 140 ships with a carrying capacity of 10,000 jin and 20 ships with a carrying capacity of 20,000 jin."

Jianya gasped. One hundred and forty ships with a carrying capacity of ten thousand catties each, and twenty ships with a carrying capacity of twenty thousand catties each! When he left, there weren't so many. How long has it been? His tribe has built so many large ships!

"That's wonderful!" His voice trembled with excitement. "With the speed at which our Fire Tribe can build ships, we can also complete the transportation of 20 million catties of grain from the Valley Tribe ahead of schedule this year!"

As they were talking, the leader of the Valley Tribe, Fengren, also came over. He had just finished arranging the Valley Tribe's six 50,000-jin-capacity giant ships and had come to the dock by small boat to meet with Jianshi. When he stepped onto the dock and saw the Fire Tribe's new ships, he was completely stunned.

Ten more ships, each with a carrying capacity of 20,000 jin (approximately 10,000 kg). When he left last time, the Fire Tribe Fire Tribe had ten ships with a carrying capacity of 20,000 jin each, but now they have twenty! And the number of ships with a carrying capacity of 10,000 jin has also increased significantly! The Fire Tribe's shipbuilding speed...

"Leader Fengren!" Jianshi greeted him warmly, "You must be tired from your journey! Please come to the council hall to rest; I've already had hot food prepared!"

Fengren snapped out of his daze and quickly returned the greeting.

"Chief of Jianshi, you're too kind!"

As he walked, he couldn't help but look back at the Fire Tribe's new ships. Now the Fire Tribe had twenty ships with a carrying capacity of 20,000 jin each, and one hundred and forty ships with a carrying capacity of 10,000 jin each...

He silently calculated in his mind: a ship with a carrying capacity of 20,000 jin can carry 20,000 jin, so twenty ships would carry 400,000 jin. A ship with a carrying capacity of 10,000 jin can carry 10,000 jin, so one hundred and forty ships would carry one million four hundred thousand jin, plus those ships with carrying capacities of five thousand jin and two thousand jin...

The Fire Tribe's single transport capacity has exceeded three million catties! In contrast, the Valley Tribe's total capacity across all its ships is less than one million catties. He took a deep breath, suppressing his shock, and followed Jianshi into the Fire Tribe's headquarters council hall.

Inside the council chamber, steaming hot food had already been served: roasted lamb, stewed pork, fresh fish soup, rice... The table was full of food. Everyone ate and chatted in a harmonious atmosphere. Halfway through the meal, Fengren put down his chopsticks and sighed.

"Chief Jianshi, the shipbuilding speed of your Fire Tribe is truly astounding! In such a short time, you already have twenty ships with a carrying capacity of 20,000 jin and one hundred and forty ships with a carrying capacity of 10,000 jin. Your current transportation capacity far surpasses that of our Valley Tribe."

He paused, a complex emotion flashing in his eyes.

"Our Valley Tribe has also been building ships recently, but so far the combined carrying capacity is less than one million catties. Your Fire Tribe's single transport capacity is probably over three million catties, right?"

Jianshi smiled and shook his head.

"The ships our Fire Tribe builds are mainly for transporting goods. When it comes to naval combat power, your Valley Tribe's ships with a carrying capacity of 50,000 jin are far more formidable!"

These words made Fengren Ren feel good; being affirmed by a strong person did indeed feel different.

"You flatter me, Chief of Jianshi," he said with a smile, his tone becoming more sincere.

The two chatted for a few more minutes. After all the grain on the Valley Tribe's ship had been unloaded, Fengren got up to take his leave. Jianshi and the others escorted him to the dock.

At the dock, the small boat was waiting for him. Fengren boarded the boat and glanced back. In the valley of the Fire Tribe's headquarters, smoke curled from chimneys and people were bustling about.

Not far from the dock, the Fire Tribe's newly built large ships were quietly moored. He took a deep breath, turned and left, thinking to himself: The Fire Tribe is truly different now!

After seeing Fengren off, Jianshi led everyone back to the council hall of the Fire Tribe headquarters. Everyone took their seats, with Jianshi sitting in the main seat, his gaze sweeping over each person.

"Dali, Jia Li, you two talk to Fang and the Jianya about going to the Horse Tribe."

Dali stood up and recounted the situation at the Horse Tribe, from trading cattle to the information he had gathered about the Wolf Tribe, explaining everything clearly and in detail.

Fang frowned Jianya after hearing this.

Dali said, "Xueya has once again led his men to slaughter two small tribes of about three hundred people each. However, Daiyan from the Valley Tribe Little Valley Camp's Xiaogu camp sent three hundred cavalry, who easily drove them away. Now Xueya is leading his men further north, and they are probably already in the territory of the Bear Tribe."

Jianya spoke up, "The Bear Tribe isn't a good place to be. Xueya and his men probably won't be able to cause much trouble there."

Jianshi Stone nodded and looked at Jianya.

"Jianya, how did your trip to the Valley Tribe go?"

Jianya stood up, a smile on his face.

"Brother, everything is going smoothly. The Valley Tribe is treating our Fire Tribe very well, and the grain is being loaded onto the ships quickly."

He paused, then his tone became excited.

"Given the current shipbuilding speed of our Fire Tribe, we won't need the Valley Tribe's assistance much for transporting grain in the near future."

Jianshi nodded in satisfaction.

"Okay, yes, you've all worked hard these past few days. You should rest for a few days."

He looked at Yan and said seriously, "Yan, the harvest is over now. In a couple of days, you will take the fleet to the Orange River and Red Flower River to bring those five thousand people back to the Fire Tribe. I will have Dali go with you, and bring some people and supplies with him. We will set up a stronghold at the Red Flower River."

Yan stood up. "Yes!"

Dali stood up as well. "Understood!"

Jianshi then looked at Jianya and said, "Jianya, rest for two days, and then when Yan and the others return, continue leading the fleet to transport grain to the Valley Tribe. Get all the grain ordered for this year back as soon as possible."

Jianya nodded. "Okay."

Jianshi finally looked at everyone and said, "Everyone else, keep to your duties and don't let your guard down."

The crowd responded in unison, "Yes!"

Two days later, the docks were bustling again. Yan stood at the Chuantou, looking at the fleet before him: twenty ships with a 20,000-jin (10,000 kg) capacity, one hundred and forty ships with a 10,000-jin (5,000 kg) capacity, two hundred ships with a 5,000-jin (2,000 kg) capacity, and two hundred large Muzhou with a 2,000-jin (1,000 kg) capacity. There were more than five thousand people on board, and the ships were loaded with supplies such as grain, coarse salt, pottery, hemp cloth, and tools.

"Yan, everything's ready!" Dali walked over, his face full of excitement. "I'm going to do a great job this time establishing a base at the Red Flower River!"

Yan smiled, "Uncle Dali, then you'll have to trouble yourself."

Dali patted his chest confidently. "Don't worry!"

He then asked, "What about Yingmu and Shibang?"

Yan said, "I told them to go ahead by small boat. By the time we arrive, they should have already finished the preparations."

He nodded Dali and said nothing more.

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

As the horns sounded, over five hundred boats slowly set off, heading downstream along the Fire Creek River. On the bank, Jianshi, Qingye, Jianya, and others stood watching the Fire Tribe's fleet depart. The fleet sailed downstream at a rapid pace. By the time they reached the mouth of the Orange River Orange River, the people from the major tribes on that side were all ready. The crops had been harvested, and everything they needed to take was packed. Nearly two thousand people stood in a dense mass on the dock, waiting to board the boats. Yan jumped off the boat and met with several of the leaders.

"Are you all ready?" he asked.

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

Yan waved his hand. "Get on the ship!"

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 boarded last. Everything proceeded smoothly, and an hour later, everyone was on board. Yan had Yingmu take them back first, while he led the remaining boats and continued sailing downstream.

Two days later, they arrived at the Red Flower River Mouth. From afar, Yan could see a dark mass of people standing at the river mouth, about three thousand people, huddled together, looking in their direction. The Fire Tribe's fleet slowly approached the shore, and the crowd on the shore 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 broad smile, "You've finally arrived!"

Yan jumped off the boat, nodding with a smile.

"Is everything ready?"

Huaguo nodded repeatedly. "We're ready! The crops have all been harvested, and everything we needed to bring is packed. There are about three thousand people here."

He paused, then pointed to a clearing on the riverbank and said, "Over there, we've reserved a place for you; it's enough to build a base."

Yan followed his finger and nodded in satisfaction.

"Alright, let's get on the ship first. Someone will take care of the base arrangements."

Huaguo nodded, turned around to greet the people, and three thousand people began to board the ship. Yan found Dali.

"Uncle Dali, I'm leaving the Red Flower River outpost to you."

Dali patted his chest confidently. "Don't worry! Leave it to me!"

He then asked, "Where's the Shibang?"

Yan pointed to the open space on the riverbank. "It should be over there."

Dali nodded Dali and led the people and supplies toward the open space. Yan stood on the dock, watching the people boarding the ship, and a sense of accomplishment welled up in his heart. This time, he had picked up another five thousand people, bringing the total to about fifteen thousand. From now on, these people would be the people of the Fire Tribe.

An hour later, all three thousand people boarded the boats. The Fire Tribe's fleet slowly started and sailed out of the Red Flower River Mouth, going upstream along the Fish River. Six days later, the Fire Tribe's main valley came into view.

The dock at the Fire Tribe headquarters was packed with people. Jianshi, along with the Fire Tribe's high-ranking officials and countless ordinary tribesmen, were waiting there. The Fire Tribe's fleet slowly docked, and the newcomers disembarked. They were all stunned by what they saw before them—tall wooden houses, fields stretching as far as the eye could see, herds of cattle and sheep, and countless chickens and ducks.

"Is this the Fire Tribe?" someone murmured.

"My God..." an old man rubbed his eyes, "It's so big..."

"It's much better than where we are!" a young man exclaimed excitedly.

Although their chief had told his people that the Fire Tribe was powerful, they were still deeply shocked when they saw it with their own eyes: vast fields, countless houses, herds of livestock, and mountains of grain...

Joining the Fire Tribe was definitely the right choice. The new members all had happy smiles on their faces, and they felt more confident—as long as they followed the Fire Tribe and were willing to work, they would have food.

Yan jumped off the boat and strode toward the Jianshi.

"Father!"

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

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

Yan smiled and said, "Including those from before, there are a total of 15,000 people. The people from the Orange River and Red Flower River have all been brought back."

Jianshi nodded, his eyes filled with satisfaction.

"Let's go to the Fire Tribe's council hall first."

The group entered the council hall, and everyone took their seats. Jianshi sat in the main seat, his gaze sweeping over each person, his eyes gleaming.

"From this moment forward, the Fire Tribe's population has truly reached 100,000!"

A low cheer rose from inside the room. Jianshi raised his hand to signal everyone to be quiet, his tone becoming serious.

"However, we are still far from our target of 150,000 people."

He looked at everyone and spoke earnestly.

"Our Fire Tribe has a food surplus this year, and there won't be any war here for the time being. If the opportunity arises, we can absorb some more people in the Green Leaf River and Little Horse River basins, keeping the number under 20,000."

He paused, then continued, "Also, we need to get the grain we ordered from the Valley Tribe back as soon as possible. Grain is only truly ours when it's in our own hands."

He looked at Jianya: "Jianya, get ready. In two days, lead the fleet to the Valley Tribe again to transport grain, and try to bring back all of this year's grain as soon as possible."

Jianya stood up. "Good!"

Jianshi finally looked at everyone and said, "Everyone else, keep to your duties and don't let your guard down!"

The crowd responded in unison, "Yes!"

Yan walked out of the council hall and took a deep breath. One hundred thousand people, twenty ships with a carrying capacity of twenty thousand catties each, and one hundred and forty ships with a carrying capacity of ten thousand catties each— the Fire Tribe could finally be called a major tribe!