Within the Great Han territory, due to a bumper harvest that had not been seen for many years, everyone was celebrating, creating a nationwide atmosphere of jubilation.
However, the northern grasslands were not so peaceful. The northern and southern Xiongnu continued to send their respective troops to harass each other, and the small tribes within a hundred miles of the border between the two sides were almost wiped out.
The Murong tribe of the Eastern Xianbei also had conflicts with the Shelihu of the Northern Wuhuan.
Tan Shikui of the western Xianbei seized the opportunity to grow stronger and continuously annexed the surrounding small tribes. He even swallowed up most of the central Xianbei.
By this time, Dong Zhuo's thousand Liangzhou cavalry had lost about three hundred men, and the small Xianbei tribes in the northwest and the small tribes of the Northern Xiongnu had been almost completely wiped out.
Dong Zhuo stepped out of the makeshift tent, feeling the chill of the autumn wind, and couldn't help but look towards the southeast.
One of Dong Zhuo's personal guards approached him and whispered, "General, there are very few small tribes left in sight. Shouldn't we go back?"
"Phew, time to go back. It's just a pity about those brothers who died in battle!"
Thinking of the Liangzhou warriors who died in battle, Dong Zhuo couldn't help but sigh softly.
"General, there is no need to grieve. I believe that one day, the mighty Han army will surely return here to take them back!"
"Haha~ Yes, you're right, that day will come eventually!"
Looking at his personal guards, Dong Zhuo thought of the emperor far away in Luoyang and burst into laughter.
Then Dong Zhuo said loudly, "Go tell the brothers to collect the belongings of the fallen brothers, tidy them up, and let's go home!"
"promise!"
In the western region of the Northern Xiongnu, Gongsun Zan led his remaining three hundred cavalrymen to conquer a small tribe once again. He then took out a map and began to mark it, meticulously recording the hilly terrain and minerals they traversed along the way.
After Gongsun Zan finished recording, a member of the Imperial Guard came to Gongsun Zan and said, "General, the surrounding small tribes have been cleared out, and we can't go any further. Now we should go back and report to His Majesty."
"Alright, order the brothers to pack up and go home!"
Gongsun Zan carefully put away the map, then led the team back south along the original route.
Meanwhile, the team led by Ma Teng seemed to have suffered fewer losses, as they had not encountered any major battles along the way, except for a few larger tribes.
On the contrary, he also encountered many small tribes that had been completely slaughtered. After inquiring with the surviving women, he discovered that it was all done by one person. This made Ma Teng very interested in the guy who slaughtered an entire tribe by himself, but unfortunately, he never met him.
"Brothers, pack up, we're getting ready to go home!"
Ma Teng also called to his brothers, preparing to return to the Han Dynasty.
Just as Ma Teng and his soldiers were busy, the scouts he had sent out suddenly rushed over.
"General, a small tribe has been discovered fifty miles to the northwest, and it appears that a battle is taking place."
Ma Teng assumed it was a battle between two tribes, and if there was an opportunity, he wouldn't mind taking advantage of it. So he couldn't help but ask, "How large-scale is the battle?"
On the grasslands, tribes can fight each other unless they are in an alliance, and mutual annexation is common.
"Uh... it's not a large group, it seems to be more than twenty people, and they're besieging one!" The scout scratched his head awkwardly.
"Attacking one person?"
Ma Teng looked at the scout who had come to report with some doubt, but he had no doubt about what his subordinate had said. Then his eyes lit up and he exclaimed, "Could it be him?"
"General, are you perhaps referring to that devil?" A soldier beside Ma Teng stared at him with wide eyes, somewhat incredulous.
No sooner had the sergeant finished speaking than a loud "smack" rang out, and Ma Teng slapped him on the back of the head, laughing and cursing:
"What devil? He's our hero. Do you know how many more brothers would have died if it weren't for him?"
"Hehe~ I'm used to hearing those Xiongnu women call me that, so it just slipped out." The soldier, who had just been slapped, chuckled a little sheepishly.
"Alright, enough with the banter. Call the brothers and head straight for the support!"
Ma Teng glanced around at the clothing and attire of the people around him and said in a deep voice, "Also, raise our Han army flags to avoid any unnecessary misunderstandings!"
"promise!"
The team quickly got ready, and Ma Teng patted his mount, leading the group towards the tribe.
Meanwhile, Lü Bu's battle was over, and covered in blood, he was searching for the male Xiongnu people in the tribe one by one, while the women were holding their children and weeping bitterly.
As he passed a tent, Lü Bu's ears twitched. He heard a noise coming from inside, grabbed his long sword, and rushed inside.
"ah!!!!"
A girl of about twelve years old, hugging a boy of about six years old, was huddled in the corner of the tent. When she saw Lu Bu, covered in blood and holding a long sword, suddenly rush in, she couldn't help but scream in fright.
Lu Bu also noticed them. His face turned cold as he slowly walked over. Only when he got closer did he realize that the two women were wearing Han Chinese clothes.
Upon closer inspection, it was discovered that the two were as thin as skin and bones, and the girl had a scar on her cheek, probably caused by a horsewhip, as if she had suffered a lot of abuse.
"Are you Han Chinese?"
"Um!"
The girl gave a soft "hmm," then looked up at Lü Bu, while the boy nestled fearfully in her arms.
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