Chapter 367: The Bamboo Rat Tribe Refuses to Trade
Hei Jia's death did not cause any ripples in the middle of Southern Wilderness.
It won't be long before his name is gradually forgotten by everyone except a very few people who are close to him, as if he had never existed.
For Jiang Xuan, it was just eliminating a hidden danger, and he would forget about it after killing him.
Right now, he has more important things to do, which is iron smelting.
Iron is a metal that is more suitable for making tools than bronze. It is also the key for the Teng tribe to quickly accumulate resources and gain a foothold in the central region.
September 19th, the ninth year since the establishment of the Teng Tribe.
“Woo woo…”
Above the Nan River, the familiar horn sounded again.
Five large ships raised their sails and set sail, carrying all kinds of goods and Teng tribe warriors, heading downstream of the Nan River.
On the deck of the leading ship, Jiang Xuan and Jing Jie stood side by side, looking at the wide, rushing river in front of them and the scenery on both sides that was constantly receding.
This time they were going to the Bamboo Rat Tribe to trade with them for a batch of iron ore, other precious stones and various materials.
Originally, Jiang Xuan planned to let Jing Jie lead the group, because Jing Jie had already figured out the route and the situation of the bamboo rat tribe, so this trip would not be very difficult.
But considering the importance of iron ore and the vigilance of the Bamboo Rat Tribe, Jiang Xuan was worried that Jingjie would not be able to handle it properly, and finally decided to go there in person.
Jiang Xuan held onto the deck and said, "Jingjie, the central region is not as good as the north. Our strength here is still relatively weak, and we are not very familiar with the surrounding tribes. No matter when and what we do, we must put the tribe first. We can be tough when we need to, but we must also be patient when we need to."
"You like taking risks, which is your advantage, but it is also a hidden danger. You never know when it will cause you to fall flat on your face."
Jing Jie nodded and said, "Don't worry, Chief. I will be careful and cautious."
Jiang Xuan patted Jing Jie's shoulder and said, "I have no doubt about your ability, otherwise I would not have handed over such a large fleet to you. But as the leader, since I have seen the problem, I must remind you. This is responsible for you and all the soldiers on these ships."
"Chief, I understand."
Jing Jie took Jiang Xuan's words to heart and reminded himself that he must not be too aggressive in the future.
Of course, being cautious does not mean being timid. He will still lead his fleet to bravely explore those unknown areas, bring more fresh goods and resources to the Teng tribe, and open up broader trade routes.
Along the way, the two chatted about the various tribes in the central region and the future plans of the Teng tribe. They also went fishing in their spare time, so the time on the boat was not too unbearable.
Two days later, the fleet arrived at a lake near the Black Tooth Tribe, then continued along the branch of the South River, and finally arrived near the Bamboo Rat Tribe at noon on the third day.
"The bamboo rat tribe is ahead."
Jiang Xuan stood on the bow of the boat in a good mood. He looked at Mangzhu Mountain not far away, as if he saw a rich mine.
Since the boats of the Teng tribe were relatively large and could not enter shallow waters, after arriving here, Jiang Xuan and Jing Jie took a team of warriors off the boat, took the gifts and goods that had been prepared long ago, and walked to the Bamboo Rat Tribe.
When they entered the forest, the Thorn Vine team members who had been waiting for a long time immediately led the way and brought them all the way to the foot of Mangzhu Mountain.
The Thorn Vine team said respectfully, "Chief, the bamboo rat tribe is ahead. They live in bamboo houses and earth caves on the mountain. I am a tourist now, so I will not accompany you there."
Jiang Xuan took out two bronze knife coins and stuffed them into his hands, saying, "Thank you for your hard work. Take these two knife coins and give one to the other brother who is guarding here. You can use these knife coins to exchange for things in the new trading area of the tribe."
"Thank you, Chief."
The member of the Thorn Vine Team held the two brand new bronze broadsword coins excitedly. As a member of the Vine Tribe, he naturally knew the value of this thing, but for him, what was more important was that his efforts were recognized by the leader, which was very important.
He bowed respectfully to Jiang Xuan again, then took the two big knife coins and went to find another member of the Thorn Vine Team who was responsible for guarding the Bamboo Rat Tribe to share the knife coins and joy rewarded by the leader.
Jiang Xuan's seemingly casual action was also seen by Jing Jie and other soldiers, and everyone had a smile on their face.
For a warrior, it is a great fortune to have a leader who remembers your merits and is generous with rewards.
The group continued to move forward and officially entered Mangzhu Mountain.
As soon as they arrived at the foot of the mountain, they were discovered by the Bamboo Rat Tribe warriors who were on guard.
Soon, the entire bamboo rat tribe became nervous and they all crawled into their burrows as if they were facing a great enemy. No matter what the enemy was here for, it would be a good idea to occupy the advantageous terrain first.
After most of the tribesmen had hidden, the leader of the Bamboo Rat Tribe came out of one of the holes in the ground with several warriors, and blocked Jiang Xuan and others from a distance.
The leader of the Bamboo Rat Tribe held a spear and shouted to the front: "Stop, this is the territory of the Bamboo Rat Tribe. Which tribe are you from? What are you doing here?"
Jiang Xuan took two steps forward and shouted, "Don't be nervous, we have no ill intentions. We are from the Teng Tribe and have brought a lot of goods with us. We want to trade with you."
After shouting, Jiang Xuan winked at Jing Jie and asked him to show the goods he brought.
Jingjie immediately ordered the accompanying warriors to prepare animal skin bags, hold up some of the goods high and show them to the Bamboo Rat Tribe.
"Make a deal?"
The leader of the Bamboo Rat Tribe looked at the dazzling array of goods, and his nervous mood eased a little. As long as the other party was not here to steal or attack the tribe, it would be fine.
Jiang Xuan continued to shout: "We have brought salt, sugar, pottery, animal skins and all kinds of good things. We really want to trade with you. Come and have a look."
The leader of the Bamboo Rat Tribe was indeed very envious of these things, and usually the Bamboo Rat Tribe went to other tribes to trade, and the trading opportunities that came to his door were extremely rare, and he didn't want to miss them.
However, because the Bamboo Rat Tribe was relatively weak, most of the tribesmen were cautious, or timid. Even after seeing so many good things, the leader of the Bamboo Rat Tribe did not dare to go directly over.
He thought for a moment and shouted to Jiang Xuan, "I have never seen you, nor have I heard of the Teng Tribe. I cannot make the decision on this matter. Please wait a moment, I will ask the witch for instructions."
After the leader of the Bamboo Rat Tribe finished speaking, he ordered his warriors to keep a close eye on the people of the Vine Tribe, then he went into the cave to find the witch.
On the mountain road, Jiang Xuan felt speechless.
He had already seen that the person who had just called out was the leader of the Bamboo Rat Tribe. As a leader, he had to ask the witch for permission even for a deal. Wasn't he too afraid to take responsibility? However, they were the ones who took the initiative to come to the door. In order to leave a good impression on the Bamboo Rat Tribe and facilitate future transactions, they had no choice but to wait patiently.
On the other side, the leader of the Bamboo Rat Tribe quickly walked through the winding and intricate tunnels, and finally came to a relatively spacious cave hall and met the witch of the Bamboo Rat Tribe.
The witch of the Bamboo Rat Tribe was studying an ancient animal skin scroll. He was about fifty or sixty years old, thin, with small eyes, but two particularly large front teeth, just like a bamboo rat that had turned into a spirit.
The chief walked up to the witch and bowed respectfully: "Wu, there are some people outside, they say they are from the Teng tribe, they brought a lot of goods, and want to trade with us."
The witch of the Bamboo Rat Tribe raised her head in surprise and said, "Someone wants to trade with us? This is a good thing. Let's take some good goods and try to exchange them for something to see if they will try to snatch it away. If there is no problem, then we can officially trade with them."
The leader of the Bamboo Rat Tribe said excitedly: "Okay, I'll do it right away."
"etc……"
Just as the leader of the Bamboo Rat Tribe was about to leave, the witch suddenly called him.
The leader looked back blankly: "Wu, is there anything else?"
The witch of the Bamboo Rat Tribe frowned and said, "I don't know why, but I suddenly feel a little uneasy. I'd better go with you to take a look. Don't let anything go wrong."
"good."
The chief was eager for the witch to go with him. With excitement on his face, he took the witch out of the cave and walked towards the foot of the mountain.
Soon, the leader and witch of the Bamboo Rat Tribe arrived at the foot of the mountain and saw the people of the Vine Tribe who came to trade.
What no one expected was that when the witch of the Bamboo Rat Tribe saw the totem patterns on Jiang Xuan and others’ faces, he suddenly screamed as if he had seen a ghost: “Don’t make a deal with them, let them go!”
Then he immediately entered the tunnel and went deeper without looking back.
Although the leader of the Bamboo Rat Tribe didn't know why the witch did this, he took a few steps back out of caution.
"I'm sorry, we witches don't agree to make a deal with you. Please leave."
Afterwards, the leader of the Bamboo Rat Tribe and his men went into the tunnel and disappeared completely in the blink of an eye.
"What's going on?"
Jiang Xuan was a little confused when he saw this scene. The Vine Tribe had never had a conflict with the Bamboo Rat Tribe, nor had they communicated before. Why would the Bamboo Rat Tribe witch have such a reaction? Jing Jie asked in distress: "Chief, the people of the Bamboo Rat Tribe have run away. What should we do now?"
Jiang Xuan thought for a moment and said, "Since they are unwilling to make a deal, it is not safe to stay here. Let's go back to the ship first."
Led by Jiang Xuan, the group carried the goods through the forest and returned to the boat docked by the river.
But this does not mean that Jiang Xuan will give up iron ore, because this thing is too important to the Teng Tribe. If the Bamboo Rat Tribe refuses to give in, he can only consider using some tough measures.
…
On the other side, the leader of the Bamboo Rat Tribe, puzzled, found the witch and asked him why he refused to make a deal with the Vine Tribe.
The witch of the Bamboo Rat Tribe picked up a piece of bamboo that had been used for divination, pointed at the vine-like pattern on it and said, "I have always felt that the tribe is in danger recently, so I have divined several times, and this pattern appeared almost every time, but I don't know what it is."
"It was not until today, when I saw those people from the Teng tribe coming here to trade, that I finally understood that this is the totem pattern of the Teng tribe. This tribe will bring disaster to us!"
The witch's words made the Bamboo Rat Tribe leader's face turn pale. He stuttered and asked, "Then...then if we reject the Vine Tribe, will there be any problems?"
The witch of the Bamboo Rat Tribe said uncertainly: "Our Bamboo Rat Tribe is not a good place, and we don't have any particularly good products. We just refuse to trade with them, and nothing should happen."
The leader of the Bamboo Rat Tribe nodded, but he was actually very nervous. He could only hope that the people of the Vine Tribe would abandon the Bamboo Rat Tribe and go to other tribes to trade.
Thanks to the book friend "閒看苑" for the reward of 500 book coins.
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