Volume 1, Chapter 55: I Am Delivering Grain and Forage as a Betrothal Gift!

Right now, only a few dozen Dark Bear Tribe warriors remained guarding the grain storage at the Northern Yan vanguard camp.

This was a golden opportunity!

Without a moment's hesitation, Zhang Muyang waved his hand sharply and lowered his voice, "Surround them! Quick strike, quick resolution!"

Fifty elite soldiers stepped onto their snow-gliders, resembling silent phantoms of the snowy plains as they suddenly converged from all directions!

"Release arrows!"

At Wang Yi's command, a dense volley of arrows shot out like a sudden downpour!

The Dark Bear Tribe warriors had no time to react whatsoever before they were struck by arrows and fell to the ground one after another.

"Kill!"

Everyone charged forward like arrows loosed from a bow, blades flashing as they continuously hacked and slashed downward.

In just a few breaths, the battle came to a perfect end.

It was not that the Dark Bear Tribe warriors were incompetent, but rather that the surprise attack came too suddenly and too fiercely! In their wildest dreams, they never expected that even after the Northern Yan vanguard camp had fled, another elite force would descend from the heavens to strike directly at their lifeline.

Gousheng looked at the mountains of grain sacks, his voice trembling with excitement, "Brother Mu! We... we actually succeeded!"

"This place is not safe to linger! Quick! Take everything that can be carried." Zhang Muyang's gaze was sharp as he gave a swift order, "Immediate retreat!"

"Yes!"

The troop sprang into action instantly.

Some drove carriages loaded with grain, others vigilantly scanned the surroundings to serve as scouts, while a few held tree branches, constantly sweeping away the tracks of the wagon wheels to erase the retreating unit's traces as much as possible.

Unfortunately, human plans pale before heaven's will.

Just as Zhang Muyang and the others had departed the vanguard camp not long ago, the sound of urgent hooves suddenly echoed from behind!

The figure riding at the very front was draped in a crimson fox-fur cloak, looking like a burning flame amidst the snow, exceptionally striking.

She was none other than Chi Mei'er!

Everyone's heart sank instantly.

All around lay the boundless, flat snowy plains, offering no hazardous terrain to defend and nowhere to hide.

Wang Yi, Zhang Xiaobei, and the others drew their bows and nocked their arrows one after another, resolute determination flashing in their eyes, "Commander Zhang! Let's fight them to the death!"

"Fight? With what? With our numbers, a frontal fight is suicide!" Zhang Muyang remained exceptionally calm.

"Then what do we do? The grain we worked so hard to get..."

Wang Dadong was so anxious his eyes turned red.

To them, this grain was even more important than their lives!

Zhang Xiaobei gritted his teeth and said, "Then let's burn it to the ground! We must never let them have it for nothing!"

"No need!" Zhang Muyang's gaze flickered as he instantly made a decision that left everyone dumbfounded, speaking with utter decisiveness, "Abandon the grain! Full retreat!"

"What?!"

"Abandon it?!"

These men could not believe their ears.

The grain they had secured at the cost of immense risk was just going to be given up like this?

"Execute the order!" Zhang Muyang's tone admitted no argument as he shouted, "Don't worry, I have a way to make them willingly spit out everything they've swallowed, with interest! Fall back!"

"Move!"

How reluctant they were!

Yet, the men of the Red Fox Tribe were drawing closer and closer, as if an aura of killing intent could already be felt rushing toward them.

These men stamped their feet in frustration and finally spurred their horses away.

It was a matter of front feet and back feet.

The moment they left, Chi Mei'er and the Red Fox Tribe members arrived.

Grain?

Chi Mei'er's slender eyebrows raised slightly.

In fact, ever since that Rong cavalryman came to report the news, she had sensed something amiss.

The Black Wind Cliff already had a vanguard camp; how could there possibly be another hidden camp ten miles ahead, packed with grain? Furthermore, Han Zi had gone off to pursue Helian Chunshui and the others, so he could not possibly have issued an order stating that "whoever captures it keeps it."

At a critical juncture like this, the priority should be uniting the Red Fox Tribe and the Dark Bear Tribe, not instigating internal strife between them.

Therefore, she played along with the ruse, feigning pursuit for a short distance before immediately turning her people back around.

Of course, she had her own calculations: if nothing else happened, they would wipe out the Dark Bear Tribe members at the camp and seize this batch of grain crucial to the tribe's survival!

The weather was freezing, and snow had sealed the mountains.

Many elderly and weak members of the Red Fox Tribe had already frozen or starved to death; to survive, she would resort to any means necessary.

"Young Chieftain, shall we pursue the Border-Pacification Army?" asked a subordinate.

"No need." Chi Mei'er shook her head decisively. "Wu Man will react soon. We must handle this grain as quickly as possible, drive the carts immediately, and head toward the direction of Black Wind Cliff to find a concealed spot and bury it!"

"Yes!"

Across this vast expanse of snowy plains, only the complex terrain of Black Wind Cliff offered any hope of safely hiding this batch of grain so the enraged Dark Bear Tribe wouldn't easily find it.

Stop!

After leading his troop to a safe distance, Zhang Muyang suddenly reined in his horse and waved his hand to halt the unit.

Heh!

Looking back toward the direction where the Red Fox Tribe's convoy had departed, a cold smirk curved the corner of Zhang Muyang's mouth, "You wait here. I'll be right back."

"Go back?" Wang Dadong asked, utterly bewildered. "Commander Zhang, why go back? The grain is all gone!"

"Gone? Then I'll go get it back."

"Get it back? How?"

"With my mouth!" Zhang Muyang's tone was resolute as he turned his head and said, "Su Ying, you're coming with me."

"What?"

Everyone was dumbfounded!

The other party was the Red Fox Tribe!

Even with fifty men, they had chosen to avoid a direct clash; now, returning with only two people was no different from walking into the jaws of death.

Wang Dadong, Zhang Xiaobei, and the others immediately stepped forward, "Brother Muyang, we'll go with you!"

"Nonsense! We are going to negotiate, not to fight! Having more people will only ruin things."

"But..."

"Rest assured."

Zhang Muyang's gaze was sharp. "They won't dare to make a move, and they probably don't even want to."

Amidst the worried and incredulous gazes of his men, Zhang Muyang and Su Ying turned their horses around and actually chased in the direction of the Red Fox Tribe's convoy.

Wang Yi raised his eyebrows slightly and gave a low command, "All personnel, put on your snow-gliders and tail them quietly! No one is to expose themselves without my order! Be ready to provide backup at any moment!"

"Yes!"

The troop melted back into the shadows like ghosts, stealthily trailing behind without a sound.

The rhythmic sound of hoofbeats echoed once more, breaking the silence of the snowy plains.

Fearing that the Red Fox Tribe might loose arrows, Zhang Muyang called out in a low voice, "Su Ying, shout out to declare our identity and purpose."

Su Ying immediately raised her voice in fluent Rong language, calling out, "Chi Mei'er, we are the Great Liang Border-Pacification Army! Please do not shoot, we have important matters to discuss!"

The Border-Pacification Army?

Chi Mei'er raised a hand to signal the convoy to halt, gesturing for several warriors to draw their bows and arrows, keeping a vigilant watch on the two approaching figures.

Soon, Zhang Muyang and Su Ying arrived close by.

Chi Mei'er sneered, "You guys are quite scheming. It was you who fabricated false intelligence, lured Wu Man away, and took the opportunity to seize the grain, wasn't it?"

"That's right!"

Through Su Ying's translation, Zhang Muyang calmly admitted, "It was also us who shot and wounded Han Zi with an arrow, set fire to the Northern Yan camp, and ultimately provoked a bloody battle between you and the Northern Yan army."

What?!

A violent shock reverberated through Chi Mei'er's heart!

She had only deduced the first part, but she never imagined the second and third parts.

To think that from the moment Han Zi was struck by an arrow to the armed conflict between the two forces, everything behind the scenes had been orchestrated by a single hidden hand!

What a terrifying scheme; it was simply hair-raising!

Chi Mei'er forced down the shock in her heart, took a deep breath, and asked, "What exactly do you want by coming back now?"

Zhang Muyang remained unhurried. "Tell me, the defending Dark Bear Tribe warriors are dead, and the grain is gone. When Wu Man returns, will he believe your explanation? Do you think a furious Dark Bear Tribe will spare your outnumbered Red Fox Tribe?"

Chi Mei'er's expression shifted slightly. This was precisely what she feared most.

Zhang Muyang continued, "However, if you hand over the majority of the grain to our Border-Pacification Army, we will take the blame for this, and your Red Fox Tribe can naturally stay out of it."

"Impossible!" Chi Mei'er flatly refused. "This grain concerns the lives of my tribe members; there is no way I will hand it over."

"Don't rush, we have a better cooperative proposal. Remember that arrow that hit Han Zi? The arrowhead was coated with a special poison; under heaven, only our Border-Pacification Army possesses the antidote."

"Is that true?" A sharp glint flashed in Chi Mei'er's eyes.

"Absolute truth."

Zhang Muyang said with certainty, "If you agree to cooperate, we can provide the antidote to help you save Han Zi. When the time comes, we can use Han Zi's life as a bargaining chip to demand more grain from the Rong Great Khan. We can then transfer a portion of that grain to your Red Fox Tribe as a token of our sincerity in cooperation. What do you think?"

Chi Mei'er fell silent.

This batch of grain was vital to the tribe, but what the other party offered was far more tempting and much safer.

Seeing her hesitant expression, Zhang Muyang spoke with solemn weight, "If the Young Chieftain feels the risk is too high, I have one more proposal: you can dispatch fifty men right now to escort all the grain back to the Red Fox Tribe, while we stage a raid and steal the grain ourselves. That way, you'll have a plausible explanation for the Dark Bear Tribe."

"What?"

Chi Mei'er was completely stunned, staring incredulously at Zhang Muyang, "You... why would you do this? What good does this do for you?"

Zhang Muyang smiled faintly, locking his gaze onto Chi Mei'er's seductive yet wild eyes, and said word for word, "It's very simple."

"First, I admire your capability and your tribe, and I hope to establish a long-term, deep cooperation with you and the Red Fox Tribe."

"Second..."

He paused, adding with a smile that was bound to shock, "I happen to fancy you as well. I, Zhang Muyang, wish to take you, Chi Mei'er, as my wife! Consider this grain as the betrothal gift."