Deep in the mountains, in a primitive mountain village.
"Your Majesty, the Hakka people from the foot of the mountain have not yet arrived!"
"These cunning people from the mountains, have they deceived us?"
"That's right! We harvested so much grain and planted these pretty but inedible flowers for him. He promised to send us grain and salt every month, but it's been two months already, and he still hasn't sent us any?"
"Your Majesty, they've lied to us! Let's pull up all those flowers!"
Several people who looked like leaders were shouting at each other around a high platform made of bamboo.
On the high platform, a dark-skinned, plump woman in her thirties sat cross-legged.
She was very large; even when she was sitting, she was still a head taller than the people around her.
She was dressed rather primitively, using only a few pieces of fabric to cover her private parts.
The fabric was of the finest brocade and silk, with very vibrant colors.
But such flashy fabric didn't match her dark, muscular physique at all.
The woman had a fleshy face, and her triangular eyes were filled with a cold, indifferent glint.
Although she was ugly and had a more robust and muscular physique than most men, she was the most distinguished among the group of men.
She was the leader of this Liao tribe, named Wu Yuan, and the queen of this mountain village.
In their Wuyuan tribe, women have always been the rulers, and Wuyuan inherited the "throne" from her mother.
Of course, besides the fact that her family has always been royal, Wu Yuan's robust physique and formidable martial prowess are also important reasons why she was able to stand out from her many sisters.
She was smarter than her sisters and even her mother; she didn't hate the people down the mountain, but was willing to make deals with them.
Queen Wuyuan traded poisonous snakes and medicinal herbs from the mountains for salt, cloth, refined iron, and other necessities needed by the village.
She had only been on the "throne" for a few short years when the village underwent tremendous changes.
The tribal chiefs under her command became increasingly respectful and deferential to Queen Wuyuan.
Two years ago, in the spring, Queen Wuyuan met a Hakka man from the foot of the mountain who claimed to be a high-ranking official sent by the imperial court.
He brought a magical seed and had Queen Wuyuan plant it in every corner of the mountain stronghold.
He promised that once the fairy flowers bloomed all over the mountain village, and then bore fruit and were boiled into juice, he would exchange them for loads of grain and salt.
For three consecutive years, Queen Wuyuan directed the villagers to plant the seeds.
When harvest season arrives, once the black ointment is prepared, people from the foot of the mountain will bring large quantities of goods to exchange for it.
The cooperation between the two parties was very pleasant.
The guest man surnamed Cui even presented Queen Wuyuan with magnificent brocade and gold jewelry.
This spring, the Wuyuan tribe continued to plant fairy flowers.
But, several months have passed, the fairy flowers have bloomed and are about to bear small fruits, but there has been no movement down the mountain.
Several tribal chiefs have already tasted the benefits and are now waiting for the good things to be sent from the foot of the mountain.
As a result, they waited and waited, but the Queen of Wuyuan still didn't come. They became a little anxious and ran to her to shout.
Bang!
Queen Wuyuan, annoyed by the noise, slammed her fist on the wooden table in front of her.
boom!
She punched through a sturdy wooden table, sending wood chips flying, but her rough, strong right hand remained completely unharmed.
The crowd immediately fell silent, each staring at Queen Wuyuan with trepidation.
"What's all the noise about?"
Queen Wuyuan's voice was very loud, and it also carried a domineering and arrogant air of absolute control.
Her triangular eyes coldly swept across the entire room.
All the tribal chiefs whose eyes met hers bowed their heads in awe.
"Anyway, we have the goods in our hands, so what's there to be afraid of? If that Hakka guy surnamed Cui doesn't come, I'll just sell the goods to someone else."
It has been planted for two years, during which Queen Wuyuan secretly tasted the fairy cream made from the fairy flower.
Wow, it truly lives up to its name as "Fairy Cream." After eating it, you feel like you're floating on clouds, as if you're on a celestial abyss.
Queen Wuyuan knew this was a good thing.
In fact, even if the Hakka people from the foot of the mountain came this year, Queen Wuyuan was still reluctant to hand it over.
Such a good item, if she were to sell it, she could definitely fetch a higher price.
As a result, the man surnamed Cui didn't come this year, which just suited Queen Wuyuan's wishes.
"What? We're selling it to other people?"
"Will it sell?"
"Who will you sell it to?"
"Your Majesty, if we sell them to others, will we still get so many good things in return?"
The leaders then engaged in another heated discussion.
Queen Wuyuan, however, appeared confident. "Of course! I sent people down the mountain to inquire. A king has come to the city of the Hakka people, and I heard he is the emperor's son!"
Last autumn, when the Wuyuan tribe and Cui Yong were making their handover, Queen Wuyuan cleverly tried to extract information from Cui Yong.
After being forced to drink several bowls of rice wine, Cui Yong became somewhat drunk. Under the deliberate guidance of Queen Wuyuan, he began to talk about things that happened down in the mountains.
For example, his master looked down on the new king.
They were initially wary of him being sent by the emperor, so they first gave him Five-Stone Powder, and then even wanted to "offer" him Immortal Ointment.
However, this king was truly useless. One dose of Five-Stone Powder drove him mad and rendered him completely useless, saving him the trouble of using the Immortal Ointment.
Cui Yong went on and on, and Queen Wuyuan wrote it all down.
After sending Cui Yong and a large quantity of the Divine Ointment away, Queen Wuyuan sent her clever slaves down the mountain to investigate.
Cui Yong was not lying to her; the king down the mountain was indeed addicted to drinking and drugs.
Although he's a good-for-nothing who only knows how to enjoy himself, he has money in his hands.
I heard that his family's treasury is piled high with copper coins and gold!
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