Hurry Up and Crawl Like a Dog!
As those people drove away the Han Chinese, Zhou Wanwan frowned and said, "Let's follow them and see what these Northern Desert people are up to."
The Old Scholar Tree followed from a distance, and when they rounded a tall sand ridge, everyone was stunned.
What lay before us was no ordinary sand dune, but rather a colossal palace half-hidden by a thin layer of sand, its grandeur awe-inspiring.
Zhou Qingyan said, "There's actually a palace here. It seems this is the capital of the Northern Desert."
Zhou Wanwan nodded. After finally finding a cactus, she heard the cacti say, "They've captured a lot more Han Chinese. These Han Chinese are quite pitiful; after being captured, they were put here to build palaces."
Another cactus sighed and said, "I heard that this palace is very grand, it's like an entire city. Our Northern Desert will have a capital city now."
The cactus nodded. "I wonder if it's lively in this city?"
"It must be very lively there. I really want to go into town and have a look! It's a pity we can't move at all."
Zhou Wanwan said, "Let's go take a look at the capital city ahead. I'm curious to see what it's like."
The Old Scholar Tree led everyone around to the other side, and a moment later, the scene before them shocked them.
Hidden here is a colossal capital city, with walls several times wider than those of the Capital in the Central Plains, and tall, thick stone walls.
A river encircles the capital, its clear waters flowing gently along the city walls, completely defying the common perception that deserts are devoid of water.
The riverbanks are covered with drought-resistant vegetation, which contrasts sharply with the desolate yellow sand outside the city.
The main road is very wide, allowing several horse-drawn carriages to travel side by side. The houses are arranged in a neat and grand manner.
Zhou Wanwan clicked her tongue twice and said:
Who would have thought that such a place was hidden in the Northern Desert?
However, this place is indeed hard to find.
They encountered the people from the Northern Desert Kingdom, but the distance was still very far.
Therefore, the people of the Northern Desert Kingdom didn't even notice them.
All of these people were locked in cages, and all that could be heard was the Northern Desert people chattering away:
"When night falls, send them to the gold mine to work; we need a lot of ore right now."
We lack many things, especially food.
"Why have Pei Yong and his group been so quiet lately?"
"What can those defeated foes possibly do? We killed over 100 of them last time; they're probably scared."
"These four-legged sheep don't have Pei Yong's protection; they can do whatever they want."
"Capture more Han Chinese tonight. The Northern Desert King said that the Han Chinese are just tools and must be used properly."
Zhou Wanwan stared coldly at these people, her anger rising. These people were too cruel to the Han people.
When night fell, these people began their operation.
One group continued to capture Han Chinese, while another group led the Han Chinese deeper into the area.
Zhou Wanwan followed behind this group of people, and after more than an hour, she saw tens of thousands of Han people being imprisoned in a huge mine.
The Old Scholar Tree frowned and said, "So many people? This mine is quite large."
Zhou Wanwan looked at the Han people, their clothes were tattered, and many of them had old and new wounds on their bodies.
Their wrists and ankles were bound with thick hemp ropes, the knots digging into their flesh.
Even the slightest struggle would cause a burning pain, leaving one with no choice but to lower their head and numbly swing the pickaxe and carry the ore basket.
If the foreman saw anyone walking too slowly or not keeping up, he would raise his hand and lash them with a whip.
When they finally got a short break, the overseers wouldn't let them off the hook. They forced them to lie on the ground with whips, imitating the braying of donkeys and the barking of dogs.
Someone looked at the ground, and the man said, "See that? This guy used to be a fairly well-known general, he won many battles, but now he's crawling on the ground like a dog."
"Hurry up and climb! If you don't climb now, you won't get any food today!"
The surrounding overseers burst into laughter. The man looked at them and said, "What are you laughing at? A bunch of Mobei dogs. Sooner or later, the soldiers of my Great Xia will trample your Northern Desert to pieces."
"Hahaha... You think the people of the Great Xia Kingdom can find our existence?"
To tell you the truth, they can't even find our capital city.
"And here's more bad news: your General Pei Yong has disappeared; he's probably already run away!"
The man suddenly stood up, looked at them, and said, "General Pei would never abandon us; he must have gone to fetch reinforcements."
The overseers laughed loudly:
"Are you still having these unrealistic dreams? Then keep dreaming here!"
"Get up and crawl like a dog! You'll only get food when you crawl to that spot."
The man suddenly snatched the whip, took out a pair of sharp chopsticks, and stabbed them into the overseer's throat.
The overseer lay on the ground, his eyes fixed on him, filled with terror.
Soon, the foreman's neck was covered in blood, and the man laughed loudly:
Come on! I enjoy being enslaved, so keep enslaving me!
"I don't want to live anymore, I'm taking you all with me today."
The overseers shouted, "Murder! Kill him! Kill him!"
Soon, the soldiers from the Northern Desert arrived. The overseers sneered, "I'd like to see who can save your life today. Kill him, hang his body on the city wall, and let everyone see."
The soldiers rushed towards the man, just about to attack, when suddenly they felt snowflakes begin to fall from the sky.
The soldiers were stunned. Looking up, they saw a tree waving at them. Could there really be such a tall tree in the desert?
The key point isn't even the poplar trees; those are the most abundant plants in this desert.
They had never seen Old Scholar Tree before, and before they could figure it out, they all collapsed to the ground.
Zhou Wanwan sat on the Old Scholar Tree, swinging her legs and looking down at them, saying, "Are you all Han Chinese?"
The general stared at her blankly, then slowly knelt down.
The people behind him all knelt down and exclaimed, "Is this some kind of fairy?"
Zhou Wanwan looked at the young general and said, "You know Pei Yong, right? I know him too; he's my subordinate now."
The man looked at her, blinked, and said:
"What did you say? General Pei is your subordinate? Hahaha... You must be joking."
General Pei is our Northern Desert War God, how could he possibly obey a five-year-old child?
Zhou Wanwan looked at him and said, "Really, I'm not kidding. You should all go back."
Some Han Chinese were getting restless. "Should we run away quickly?"
But the Han people suddenly shook their heads and said:
"We're going to have to cross this desert like this, even if we don't die, we'll be skinned alive."
Moreover, in the Great Xia, we are considered dead, without any household registration. Even if we returned, we would only be able to become lowly slaves.
Zhou Wanwan's lips twitched as she said, "What do you mean by this? You don't mean you want me to take you in, do you?"