Picking People Up at the Clothing Tribe's River Mouth Dock

After Yan led the Fire Tribe's fleet away from the Big Horse River Mouth Outpost, they continued upstream along the Fish River. The fields on both banks of the stronghold spread out under the afternoon sun, the freshly turned soil gleaming with a deep brown sheen. Several farmers were bending over and turning the soil on the ridges, their Chutou falling and rising again, their movements slow but even. Occasionally, someone would straighten up, wipe the sweat from their forehead with their sleeve, glance at the fleet passing by on the river, and then bend down to continue working. The fleet traveled for most of the day, and that afternoon they finally arrived at the Clothing River Mouth Outpost dock.

From afar, Yan could see a large number of people standing on the dock. Dazhuang stood at the very front, wearing a dark blue linen robe with dark stitching on the collar and cuffs. He wore a leather belt with bronze buckles around his waist and animal skin boots with clean, polished shafts that gleamed with a dull luster in the afternoon sun. His hands were behind his back, and his back was ramrod straight, like an old tree that had been battered by the wind for many years but had never bent. Behind him stood some warriors and a group of tribesmen responsible for guiding people. Some held wooden tablets, some were tidying up the ropes along the boardwalk, and some were looking towards the river. On the open ground to the east of the dock, a large group of people stood in a dark mass, forming several long lines along the boardwalk. The tail of the lines stretched all the way to the vicinity of the camp entrance, like a dark ribbon spread across the ground, its varying shades illuminated by the afternoon sun.

The ship docked, the gangplank was set up, and Yan stepped off. Dazhuang stepped forward to greet him, stopping in front of him and bowing respectfully. "Yan'er, I've gathered all the remaining qualified Bear Tribe members from the Little Horse River Mouth Outpost and Green Leaf River Mouth Outpost, who were previously temporarily housed here, at the Clothing River Mouth Outpost. They're just waiting for you to arrive so they can board the ship. Including the Clothing Tribe, there are over seven thousand people in total. I've had them divided into three groups according to their origin: those from Little Horse River Mouth, those from Green Leaf River Mouth Estuary, and those from the Clothing River Estuary stronghold. The number of people in each group has been counted, and the lists have been checked to ensure there are no omissions or duplicates. Each group has been assigned a leader, so boarding will proceed by group to avoid confusion."

Yan returned the greeting with a fist and palm salute. "Uncle Dazhuang, gathering everyone here has saved me a lot of trouble and time. Let them board the ship now, so we can settle them at the Fire Creek River Mouth Outpost sooner. Uncle Jianya has already vacated houses; they can settle in as soon as they arrive." He paused, shifting his gaze from Dazhuang's face to the neatly arranged lines on the dock, then looked back. "These seven thousand-plus people, plus the three thousand I picked up at the Big Horse River Mouth, and the ten thousand from the Greater Qing Tribe, bring a total of over twenty thousand people to Uncle Jianya's place. Uncle Jianya is all set; he's just waiting for us to deliver them."

Dazhuang nodded, saying nothing more, but turned to the warriors behind him and raised his hand, clapping it briefly in mid-air. The warriors then led the group towards the dock, guiding the Bear Tribe tribe members onto the boats. The crowd moved slowly along the boardwalk; some carried bundles, the straps digging into their shoulders, leaving shallow marks; some held children, the babies nestled on their mothers' shoulders, eyes half-closed, as if still asleep; some supported the elderly, their hands resting on the arms of younger people, loosely but firmly. A young man walked in the middle of the group, carrying a ceramic jar in his arms. The jar's mouth was tied with cloth, and his fingers gripped the rim tightly, as if protecting something important. He took each step with extra care. Beside him, a woman led a little girl. The little girl's steps were small; she had to take several steps to catch up with the adult's. Sometimes she would step on the pebbles on the side of the road, stagger slightly, and then regain her balance. In the middle of the group, an old man walked very slowly. Next to him, a young man slowed his pace, walked a few steps beside him, adjusted his speed, and the two were about half a step apart.

Yan stood at the edge of the dock, watching people board the ships in batches. He neither urged them on nor left. His gaze moved from the front of the line to the back. When someone passed by him, they bowed slightly to him, and he nodded in response without saying anything more. Then he turned to Dazhuang and spoke in a low but clear voice, "Uncle Jianya's place has many more houses available now, enough to accommodate about 20,000 people. Adding your 7,000-plus, I've brought over 20,000 people to settle there this time. Once we've absorbed all the people we've recently recruited, our Fire Tribe's strength will reach a new level. With a larger population, we'll have more manpower for shipbuilding, land reclamation, and military training."

After listening, Dazhuang nodded, his fingers tapping lightly at his side. He spoke in a low voice, "Our Fire Tribe's resettlement methods are quite mature. When these people arrive at the Fire Creek River Mouth Outpost, they'll first bathe and change clothes, then register, and then be assigned houses, food, and tools according to their families. Before long, they'll truly become members of the Fire Tribe. We've resettled so many people before, and there's never been any major trouble. Jianya has experience; you can rest assured leaving the people to him." He paused, lightly tapping his fingers on his belt, the knuckles making a short, muffled sound. "Now, our Fire Tribe is preparing to relocate its management center to the Valley Tribe. I heard that Dali will be taking over the management of the Little Fish River Mouth Outpost?"

Yan nodded and said, "Yes, the Fire Creek River Mouth Outpost and Little Fish River Mouth Outpost will both become the secondary management centers of our Fire Tribe. Father and the others plan to have Dali take over the management and defense of the Little Fish River Mouth Outpost. Uncle Dali is quite capable and has good martial arts skills, making him very suitable for this position. In the future, our Fire Tribe will continue to develop. If our Fire Tribe defeats the Tiger Tribe, we may move the management center to the Tiger Tribe's location. The Tiger Tribe is located at the Fish River Mouth, at the confluence of the Fish River and the Long River, which is further north and further out than the Valley Tribe. At that time, the Valley Tribe will very likely become our secondary management center. Father and the others will very likely let you manage the Valley Tribe. You have worked here for so long, you are familiar with the situation, and you have good relationships with people. Managing the Valley Tribe is the most suitable for you. At that time, the population of the Valley Tribe will be much larger than it is now, and the docks will also need to be expanded a lot. You should keep that in mind in advance."

After listening, Dazhuang paused for a moment, his fingers hovering at his side as if weighing the weight of those words. Then he spoke, his voice lower than usual, but every word was earnest. "Our Fire Tribe is indeed developing rapidly, from two hundred to nearly four hundred thousand people, from Fire Creek Valley to the middle reaches of the Fish River. The changes are so fast, sometimes we feel like we can't keep up. Yesterday I was telling the people in the camp that a few years ago we were still scavenging for food in the mountain gullies, and now we're managing some of the largest outposts in the Fish River. If there's anything I can do to help, of course I won't refuse. Go back and tell Big Brother that no matter where I'm sent, as long as it's for the Fire Tribe, I'll go. By the way, how's the situation with the Tiger Tribe and the Wolf Tribe lately? You must have heard quite a bit on your journey."

Yan took over, his voice becoming calmer, and said, "After we brought the people of the Willow Vine Tribe to the Greater Qing Tribe last time, the Tiger Tribe occupied all of the Willow Vine Tribe's territory. They sent people in to occupy all the empty houses and granaries, and they also sent some people to turn over the Willow Vine Tribe's original fields and plant things. After I left with the fleet, the Tiger Tribe lowered their guard and began to resume farming and production. The fires in several of their workshops were lit again, and smoke began to rise from the chimneys again. However, the Tiger Tribe is not as successful in recruiting people on the Long River. The tribes to the north are already on guard against the Tiger Tribe, and fewer and fewer people they send out bring back. Sometimes they even come back empty-handed. Some small tribes run further north as soon as they hear the name of the Tiger Tribe, abandoning even their houses and land."

He paused, tapping his fingers lightly on his side, the knuckles making a soft sound as they landed on his trouser leg. "Recently, the Wolf Tribe has also shrunk their patrol and activity space due to the joint harassment and attacks from our Greater Qing Tribe and the Bear Tribe Outpost. They used to dare to occasionally post sentries on the opposite bank of the river, but now they've even moved their sentry posts back, to within half a mile of the riverbank. Their patrol routes have also shortened; they used to patrol twice a day, now they only patrol once every two days. However, the Wolf Tribe recently purchased some boats with a carrying capacity of 20,000 jin and 10,000 jin from the Tiger Tribe..." They were very careful, not daring to show themselves on the Fish River, hiding all their boats in the Great Rock River, only bringing them out secretly when they needed to transport supplies to the Tiger Tribe. Shibang was keeping watch over there; their boats were small but fast. After we move the management center to the Valley Tribe, I will personally handle the Wolf Tribe's affairs. At that time, transferring troops from the Valley Tribe will be much faster than transferring them from here, and the transfer of grain and supplies will also be more convenient. Shibang and Yingmu have already done a lot of work over there; after I get there, I will add some more manpower for them and tighten the encirclement even further."

After listening, Dazhuang nodded, his gaze lingering on Yan's face for a moment. When he spoke, his voice carried a calmness born of confirmation. "It really is time to deal with the Wolf Tribe. Those people have been wreaking havoc along the Fish River for so many years. Before, we were too far away to do anything about them. Now, with the Greater Qing Tribe and Bear Tribe blocking their way, they can't escape. Let me know when you're going to make your move, and I can spare some manpower to help. Although I have to manage the Clothing River Mouth, Little Horse River Mouth, and Green Leaf River Mouth, I can still spare some elite troops."

Yan nodded at him, a slight smile playing on his lips, "We'll talk about it later. Let's get the relocation of the management center sorted out first. If this isn't done, nothing else will be on the list."

The two chatted for a while longer about the details of resettlement and defense. Dazhuang talked about the warehouse inventory at the Clothing River Mouth and the progress of the dock expansion. Yan briefly explained the docking order of the next few strongholds and the personnel handover arrangements. After everything was said, everyone on the dock had boarded the ships. Dazhuang had someone count the number of people. A soldier ran back from the east side of the dock with a wooden tablet and whispered something in Dazhuang's ear. Dazhuang and then raised his hand in Yan's direction, indicating that the number matched—more than seven thousand people, not a single one missing. Seeing that it was almost done, Yan clasped his hands in a fist salute to Dazhuang: "Then I'll be going now."

Dazhuang returned the greeting with a fist and palm salute. "Have a safe journey."

Yan nodded to him, turned and walked onto the gangplank. He stood at Chuantou bow, waved to the dock, and then shouted into the cabin, "Let's go!"

The sound of horns rang out, deep and resonant, as the fleet slowly departed from the Clothing River Mouth Outpost, sailing upstream along the Fish River towards the Fire Creek River Mouth Outpost. The sails billowed again in the afternoon sun, their white surfaces making a series of short, sharp slapping sounds as they unfurled in the wind, gradually being drowned out by the sound of the water. Yan stood at the Chuantou, his gaze fixed on the river ahead. Dazhuang stood on the dock, watching the fleet recede into the distance, his eyes following the white sails until they disappeared into a bend in the river, before turning and walking towards the camp.