The grassland is covered with snow.
Many elderly people looked at the heavy snow falling from the sky with despair in their eyes.
The Ming Dynasty has closed the trade fairs and prohibited anyone from transporting supplies to the grasslands. Once discovered, they will be executed immediately.
Many nobles on the grassland could only obtain food through smugglers. Even if the price was ten or even dozens of times more expensive than the usual price, they had no choice but to accept it willingly.
However, even so, they may not be able to get it.
Large numbers of cavalrymen were constantly patrolling, and any caravan carrying food and fodder they found would be killed on the spot.
Even under such strong pressure, there are still many smugglers who take risks.
Because with just one transaction, they can earn more money than they would in years.
Gold and jewelry cannot be turned into food. As the cold winter approaches, the nobles on the grassland have already offered a price equivalent to gold.
A pound of grain is worth a pound of gold.
When this news reached the border, not only the merchants, but also many soldiers' eyes turned red.
To this end, a large number of law enforcement officers were dispatched from the nine border towns.
The imperial court had strict laws, leaving a lot of blood on this white land.
"One ounce of grain is worth one ounce of gold. The Northern Yuan Dynasty is really being forced into a corner this time. What a pity that we can't make this money."
"It's not the money we can take. No matter how much money we have, it's useless. The superiors have said that any brother who dares to get involved will be killed. Our military pay is directly distributed to our families. Even if you get the gold, where can you hide it?"
"That's right. If you lose your life, gold is useless no matter how good it is. Only those merchants dare to earn it."
"What a waste of money. We have killed so many in the past few days. All checkpoints are guarded by people. People are allowed to enter but not leave. Anyone who wants to enter the grassland is breaking the law."
"After this winter, I'm afraid a lot of people will die on the grassland."
"It's good to die. If more of them die, it will be much easier when we fight next year."
“Hahaha, that makes sense.”
The patrolling soldiers chatted and marched in the snow.
Everyone knows that gold is good, but it’s a pity that you can earn it but not spend it.
This sudden sanction against the grassland caught the grassland tribes off guard.
Nomadic people migrate frequently, so they basically have no habit of storing food.
Many small tribes close to the Ming Dynasty had no choice but to migrate to the Ming Dynasty with their entire clans.
The Northern Yuan Dynasty court.
The price of food and fodder was set by them.
Inside the big tent.
Generals, ministers and the Northern Yuan Emperor were discussing matters.
"Your Majesty, the Ming Dynasty has imposed an embargo on us. We still have enough food for this winter, but we are running low on concentrated feed for our war horses. If we don't find a solution, our war horses will be greatly affected after this winter."
"In the vicinity of Daming, many tribes have now abandoned Changshengtian in order to survive. They have all gone to Daming's territory in groups. Daming is really abominable. They use food to attract the people of the grassland."
The Northern Yuan Emperor Elbek felt a little annoyed as he listened to his ministers making memorials one after another.
He himself doesn't want to break up with the Ming Dynasty. Isn't it nice to have beautiful women?
Since the establishment of friendly relations with the Ming Dynasty, all kinds of exquisite porcelain, delicacies, fine wines, and beautiful women have become available.
No matter what he wanted to eat, the merchants of the Ming Dynasty would try their best to get it for him, so Elbek really lived a happy life.
Even the government affairs were basically left to Haohai Dayu to manage.
As soon as things got out of hand here, everything became scarce.
He had just promised a new beauty a few days ago to buy her delicacies that only the Emperor of Ming Dynasty could eat, but now all his plans were wasted.
"Okay, go and arrange these things. If you want to fight, then win."
Elbek felt it was boring, so after saying something, he got up and left.
"Dismiss the court!" the eunuch who was following nearby shouted loudly, leaving the ministers looking at each other with helplessness on their faces.
At this time, Guilichi stood up and stopped Elbek.
"Your Majesty, my people are suffering from the cold and poverty. Please give us some food to help us get through the winter."
Elbek frowned and said unhappily, "It was you who wanted to fight the Ming Dynasty, and now it's you who are saying there is no food."
"You have so many people in your tribe. It doesn't matter if a few of them die. People die every winter."
Hao Hai Dayu quickly scolded: "Gui Lichi, you are so bold that you dare to block His Majesty's way. Are you planning to rebel?"
Hearing the word "rebellion", Gui Lichi's eyes flashed with a sharp light, and he lowered his head to step aside and said, "Gui Lichi dare not."
Elbek snorted coldly and left.
When Haohai Dayu saw His Majesty leave, he smiled and said to Guilichi: "The winter on the grassland is a test for Changshengtian. Only those who survive are warriors, and it can also save a lot of burden for the tribe."
"When next spring comes, these surviving warriors will be able to go to Ming to rob wealth."
Guilichi said in a deep voice: "But my people suffered heavy casualties when they went to Tubo, and His Majesty did not give us the gold that he promised them."
Haohai Dayu asked, "Are your people the only ones who died? The court lost so many Yuan cavalrymen, didn't it suffer a greater loss than you?"
"The gold that the Ming Dynasty promised has not been delivered, so we will go and rob it ourselves in the spring of next year. Even if we give you gold now, can it be eaten as food?"
Guilichi was silent for a while, then said, "My fellow Qierjisi people cannot sacrifice in vain."
Haohai Dayu's face darkened as well, and he said, "It seems that your Qierjisi tribe does not want to obey the orders of the Yuan Dynasty."
Guilichi didn't say anything. After looking at Haohaidayu, he turned around and left.
He knew that no matter how much he begged, the court would not give his tribe food to survive the winter.
Haohaidayu's face turned pale. He didn't expect that Guilichi would be so disrespectful to him in the royal court.
But thinking about the large number of people in Guilichi’s Qierjis tribe, he could only endure it.
"After this winter, I will let your Qierjisi tribe take the lead," Haohai Dayu thought.
After leaving the royal court, Guilichi did not return to the Qirgis tribe, but went to the Asut tribe.
The Asut tribe was a group of Mongolized Iranians, but they were not valued by the Mongols and their status was much lower than theirs.
Guilichi wanted to unite with the Asut tribe to overthrow the Northern Yuan Dynasty and kill Elbek.
…
Bering Strait.
This is the Far North.
After a long journey of six months, the Ming expeditionary force finally arrived near the Bering Strait at the end of the year.
As early as two months ago, the ships could no longer sail, and the 50,000 expeditionary forces could only advance on foot.
This is the time to face the real test of nature.
What meets the eye is endless ice and snow. The extremely cold weather is their biggest enemy.
Since approaching the Bering Strait, every morning, many colleagues would never wake up again and turned into ice sculptures.
It's too cold here, and even thick cotton clothes can't keep out the bone-chilling cold.
"Captain Wang, do you regret coming to this far north? I don't know if I can wake up tomorrow. Maybe the next time I go to sleep, I will be like those colleagues who have been frozen into ice sculptures and will never wake up again."
"I really can't understand. You are different from us. You are an outstanding student of the Imperial Military Academy. Your position as a centurion will be secure in the future. It won't be difficult to become a thousand-householder either. Why do you have to take the risk and look for the weeping tree?"
Chen Dayou looked at Wang Tianlu who insisted on moving forward and said with a sigh.
In the current expeditionary force, hundreds of people are frozen to death every day, and no one knows whether they can survive to the next day.
The snowstorm a few days ago caused the expeditionary force to suffer great losses, and many colleagues were missing.
In this hellhole, it is almost impossible to survive once you are separated from the main group.
Wang Tianlu looked ahead and continued to step on the snow step by step.
"It doesn't matter whether it's worth it or not. Someone has to go on this expedition. You're talking about me, why don't you talk about our commander-in-chief? He is the son of the Duke of Liang. Even if he can't inherit the title of the Duke of Liang, he can enjoy endless wealth and glory in his life. Is he worth it?"
"Even if I were given another chance, I would still choose to join. Even if I turned into an ice sculpture in the North tomorrow, I would not regret it."
"Some things need someone to do it. I'm here, and Captain Chen, you're here too, isn't that right?"
Hearing Wang Tianlu's answer, Chen Dayou smiled bitterly and said, "I do regret it a little. I am different from you. I have no chance to rise. As long as I can come back alive, I can win three levels in a row."
"Hey, we're already here. Going back would mean death. We can only move forward."
The 50,000-strong expeditionary force had lost more than 10,000 people in just over a month.
Lan Taiping did not count the number of people because it was meaningless. People died every day on this road.
There will be no deserters because they will die faster if they leave the main force.
"How long can our food and coal last?" Lan Taiping asked.
"Reporting to the commander, the snowstorm a few days ago caused us heavy losses. The current food and coal can only last for one and a half months." The captain who was responsible for the logistics replied.
In fact, it may be more than half a month, because people died every day, thus saving a lot of food and coal.
Lan Taiping felt a chill in his heart.
One and a half months is too short.
Before he came, he was told a lot of information and knew that he would be successful only if he crossed the frozen sea and reached another new continent.
But now, I have no idea how long it will take to arrive.
"Order the entire army to speed up."
Gritting his teeth, Lan Taiping spoke.
Upon hearing this, Qianhu's throat moved, wanting to say something, but in the end he replied, "As you command."
Another three days passed, and there was still nothing but white in front of us. No one knew how far the road ahead was.
Lan Taiping also felt deeply powerless.
The good news is that more people are dying every day now. The food that was originally enough to last for fifteen days can now last for sixteen days after three days.
At this moment, Lan Taiping suddenly heard cheers coming from the front.
"What's going on? Go and take a look." There was a glimmer of hope in Lan Taiping's eyes.
The team was very long, and Lan Taiping was naturally in the center, several miles away from the front.
The guards rushed forward and returned after about a quarter of an hour.
"The sea... the sea is frozen." The guards were so excited that their faces flushed, and they could even see the rising hot air above their heads.
Lan Taiping confirmed: "Did you see it with your own eyes?"
The guard nodded: "I saw it with my own eyes."
Lan Taiping also became excited: "Good, good, good, we have finally reached the frozen sea. Quick, spread this news to the entire army immediately."
"Tell them that we only need to cross the frozen sea and leave this frozen land to the place where the weeping tree is."
The news spread among the army, and the originally lifeless army immediately became cheering.
At this moment, everyone seemed to have endless strength suddenly surge out of their stiff bodies, and their pace quickened.
The rear army, in particular, wanted to see the rumored frozen sea.
Lan Taiping told everyone this news half a month ago after experiencing a snowstorm, in order to boost morale.
Because many people don’t know how long it will take or where it will end.
But even after knowing this news, the mention of the frozen sea still made many people suspicious.
Can the sea still be frozen?
And now news came from the front that they had really arrived at the frozen sea.
Wang Tianlu and Chen Dayou in the rear army also quickened their pace.
I don’t know how long I walked, but after I went around a hill, the view ahead suddenly became clear.
In the distance, at the end of the vast ocean, there is a piece of ice.
The sea was really frozen.
Looking to the other side of the ocean, you can vaguely see a new continent.
"It turns out that the Dongsheng Shenzhou really exists." Wang Tianlu murmured.
Chen Dayou asked excitedly: "Captain Wang, do you think there really are gods over there?"
Wang Tianlu smiled and said, "Maybe there is, maybe not, who knows, but we can take this frozen road to get there. Once we get there, we'll know."
Chen Dayou said eagerly, "Go to Dongsheng Shenzhou and find the weeping tree that His Royal Highness the Crown Prince mentioned, and then you can return to Daming."
Go ahead, Chen Dayou couldn't help but say, "Your Highness the Crown Prince also has his miscalculations. He said the expedition will take ten years, but I think it will take at most three years, no, maybe two years before we can return to Ming Dynasty."
At this point, Chen Dayou couldn't help but get a little nervous: "Captain Wang, if we go back in two years, will His Royal Highness the Crown Prince think it's too easy and not give us three consecutive promotions?"
Wang Tianlu was in a good mood at the moment, and said with a smile: "What are you thinking about? His Royal Highness the Crown Prince has said so, and since he has agreed, then it will happen naturally."
"Let's go quickly. Don't think too much. We don't know what the situation is on the other side. We won't know until we get there."
"It is said that many, many years ago, our ancestors took this road to the other side. Perhaps there is already a new country over there. We will only know when we go there."
Chen Da nodded and walked forward quickly. At this moment, even the ice and snow seemed not so cold.