Chapter 303- Chiyou City
Translator: TeamTWO
Editor: Jun
When Song San entered the Lord's Manor, Ouyang Shuo was doing his morning practice.
Ever since his yellow emperor internal cultivation technique broke through to the 5th layer, his physique had experienced a large improvement. Be in strength, speed, vision, hearing, they all increased a grade.
His internal cultivation could be considered to have some small achievements.
Under the help of the strong internal strength, the Yang Family spear technique and Bajiquan also improved quickly. Especially with the Yang Family spear technique along with the Tianmo spear, Ouyang Shuo was like fish taking to water, improving at speeds visible to the naked eye.
Imbuing internal strength, the black spear head glowed golden, catching the eye.
As one's strength increased, Ouyang Shuo's temperament also changed slightly. His body had the aura of a lord, making one scared even when he wasn't angry; he had the murderous air of a general.
The two different auras mixing together formed an elegant demeanor unique to Ouyang Shuo.
The two-faced shura from the last life seemed to have returned.
The only difference was he was now at a higher position and he had loftier goals.
After completing his training, only then did he notice Song San and asked, "What's up?"
"My Lord, Leng Qian has safely returned to Gushan County. He is now rushing back."
"Great!" Ouyang Shuo heaved a sigh of relief. "Wait for me in the reading room, I'll be there shortly."
"Yes, my lord." Song San left.
Ouyang Shuo returned to the main courtyard and changed his clothes. He had a simple meal before he hurried to the reading room.
"Okay, speak. What exactly happened?"
"Based on the intel from Leng Qian, he investigated the reason for the mountain barbarians migrating. All the mountain barbarians went to a place in Wuzhou known as Chiyou City."
"Chiyou City?" Ouyang Shuo was astonished.
"That's right, it's located at Wuzhou; they are the Jiuli Tribe who appeared after the Battle of Zhuolu." Song San had participated in the battle so he knew about that part of history.
Although Shi Wanshui had killed Chiyou, but as the head of the camp, he would be immediately revived after the battle and lead the Jiuli tribe that appeared in the wilderness.
Only, didn't Gaia say that the Yellow Emperor tribe, Fire Emperor tribe, and the Jiuli tribes were hermit tribes? Why would the Jiuli tribe make such a huge appearance, and recruit so openly?
If one said that the one doing the recruiting was Chiyou, everything would make a lot of sense.
Close to the end of the battle, Chiyou led his tribe to the Xiongli Valley. That night, he arranged four of his brothers to lead a group of them down south to escape into the forests.
These people were the future Miao Race and Man Race.
Hence, Chiyou could be considered to be the ancestors of the mountain barbarians. His appearance would definitely make all of them bow to him and make him their leader.
"When Leng Qian returns, ask him to find me immediately." Ouyang Shuo was very solemn.
"Understood." Song San left, leaving Ouyang Shuo alone in the reading room to ponder.
Leng Qian whipped the horse, making it increase its speed. That afternoon, he reached Shanhai City. When he returned, he immediately reported to the Lord's Manor.
Ouyang Shuo brought Baiqi and Tian Wenjing together for a meeting.
Leng Qian started by reporting the intelligence that he had obtained. "I followed them in secret, walking north all the way, taking half a month to walk out of the mountain. Chiyou City was built at the foot and took up 60 square kilometers. They have reclaimed a lot of farmland. Hence, when mountain barbarians moved over, they didn't need to worry about not having food in the winter. The city wall had many flags, the same that the Jiuli tribe had during the Battle of Zhuolu. This was when I brought the spies to sneak into the city to investigate."
"What I didn't expect was for there not to be a single Chinese refugee. We weren't able to investigate deeply and were spotted. Hence, we could only run. The brothers who followed me died trying to cover me."
As he said up to this point, Leng Qian almost lost control of his emotions, as his eyes teared up. Those spies were the elites of the intelligence division, following him through life and death. Although they were subordinates, they were more like brothers.
Ouyang Shuo understood his feelings. To defend the territory, many men and brothers had died.
Leng Qian paused, calming himself down before continuing. "In the Chiyou tribe, there's a special spirit bird called the Ling Bird, similar to the one drawn in their tribe insignia. This bird is even better than the Feng Bird. After I escaped, the Ling Bird chased me. This Ling Bird killed the Feng Bird."
Although Leng Qian described it very simply, everyone could imagine how dangerous it was. All his brothers died and his Feng Bird had died too. He had to survive to bring the intel back.
On the way back, Leng Qian was attacked many times and escaped time after time. In the wilderness, there were numerous times where he woke up in shock.
Even so, Leng Qian didn't give up and made use of his reverse tracking and jungle experience to evade them. In the end, he walked out of the hundred thousand mountain even under circumstances where he lacked food.
When Ouyang Shuo saw that his eyes were bloodshot and that his body wasn't back to its best shape, he said warmly. "You've done well, go and rest! The Military Affairs Department will pay the deceased soldiers twice the standard remuneration and help their families."
"Thank you, lord!" Leng Quan tried his best to hold in his sadness and pain. Then, he left.
"How do you see it?" Ouyang Shuo asked Baiqi and Tian Wenjing for their views.
Tian Wenjing was the official who dealt with the mountain barbarians, so for such a thing to happen meant that he had failed his job. Now, what he had to consider was how to salvage the situation.
He thought silently before saying, "Chiyou's influence on the mountain barbarians can’t be further emphasized. No matter how we deal with the relationship with the Chiyou City, what's more important is the barbarian powers within our territory."
Ouyang Shuo froze and said, "Continue!"
"Those living in the territory, be it soldiers or their families, the settlements in the east suburbs, the ones around the minefields and those few tribes still living in the mountains as well as in Gushan County. There are many unstable elements within them, and they might be tempted by Chiyou, so we must be wary. Especially Gushan County, everyone there is a barbarian, and they are close to the hundred thousand mountains, so they are the most dangerous."
"How should we defend against them?"
"Firstly, the mountain barbarians soldiers. Forming our heavy armored infantry is the trump card of our territory. If something happens, the outcome will be very bad. I think we should move all their family to Shanhai City."
Ouyang Shuo nodded and looked at Baiqi. "General, you should visit the 3rd division when you are free."
"Don't worry."
"Secondly, the settlements east of Shanhai City. Those few tribes are those that entered the earliest and have been through a lot, pretty much assimilating into our community. Hence, we don't need to do much, just needing to slightly monitor them."
"Thirdly, those living around the minefield and up in the mountains. With Xuanniao tribe as the core, the sons of the tribes are mostly in the military and are living a good life. No matter what, they have to move down the mountain. If not, they are a ticking time bomb which could explode at any moment. As for the settlement area, I suggest the west suburbs. It’s convenient that the west region is developing and needs manpower. At the same time, the Langshan protection unit needs a change of personnel."
"Fourthly, Gushan County. It is purely run by mountain barbarians and haven't had a deep connection to the territory. Hence, they are the easiest to tempt. We need to move the entire county to the east region and arrange a military to supervise them."
Ouyang Shuo agreed with these few points.
When Tian Wenjing said the last one, Ouyang Shuo frowned. "That can't work. Not saying whether or not they will betray us, but if we do that, the mountain barbarians won't trust us. Not only that, it will make the other mountain barbarians feel that their race isn't treated the same as others."
"But..."
"You don't need to say anymore. I've decided that the policy with Gushan County will not be changed."
"Yes, my lord!" Tian Wenjing sighed.
"Don't worry. I'll ask Lei Fan to come over and have a deep conversation. With my understanding of him, he isn't a guy who is short sighted. He knows that staying here is far better than going to Chiyou City. If not, he wouldn't have reported the mountain barbarian activity in the first place."
"The marquis is smart!"
"As for convincing the mountain barbarians to move down the mountains, I need you to do so personally. The key would be the witch in the Xuanniao tribe. Bring a gift and visit her personally. As for Chiyou City, you can tell her about it. She is a smart person and will understand." Although he had just seen her once, he had a deep impression of her.
"Yes, my lord!"
Ouyang Shuo looked at Baiqi. "Military-wise, we need to prepare. The 3000 soldiers in the reserve squad would be of use now. Form a protection unit and replace the current people at Langshan. For the remaining 2,500 people, form an independent regiment belonging to the city east camp to defend Gushan County."
Ouyang Shuo believed that even if Chiyou looked down on him, he would choose this time to attack. For such an arrogant person, strengthening his power was the most important aspect.