Chapter 3: The Wilderness (Part 5b)

In late autumn and early winter, it is the season when the grasslands are culling livestock on a large scale, and meat is not valuable. Therefore, there are always people who carry large pieces of lean bones and go to the felt bun group where the vendors are boarding to see the little wolf Ganluo. With plenty of food, Ganro's body gradually developed into a wolf form. Between the silver-gray fluff, some thick and smooth hard ones have also begun to grow, although they are still very sparse, but they are white and translucent, as dazzling as sterling silver.

The moon had crawled out of the grass, like water and moonlight shining on Wolf Hao's body, which set off the color of Ganluo's fur more and more. It shuttled through the felt bags like lightning, running happily, but frightened the herdsmen's mounts with weak legs and feet, and snorted. At this moment, the owners of the mounts were gathering around the fires that had just been lit to drink and revel, and when they heard the neighing of the horses, they turned back one after another, just in time to see Gan Luo galloping against the wind.

The people were deeply influenced by Turkic culture and regarded the wolf as the king of the steppe. The most noble of the Turkic tribes, Ashina's wool silk is embroidered with a golden wolf. Therefore, one of the wishes of many shepherds who come to Susibu is to buy and sell goods while stopping by to see the silver wolf that the messenger said of him, and to dip in the blessings of the son of the bright moon. At this moment, when they saw the silver coat of Ganro in the moonlight, the shepherds, instead of being angry at the disturbance of their mounts, cheered loudly.

The little wolf Gan Luo followed Li Xu when he never opened his eyes, and he had long been accustomed to human voices. Hearing everyone's applause, he was not afraid, and occasionally stopped to look at the source of the sound, and then opened his four legs and quickly chased Li Xu away. The shepherds saw that it looked forward to the appearance of a king, and they were even more envious, and they all said that with the arrival of the silver wolf, the Su Si Department would inevitably prosper every year. The Susibu shepherds, who sat to accompany the guests in drinking, accepted the congratulations of their fellow tribesmen with great joy, as if Ganro had really been born from their tribe and not brought by a trader.

Li Xu felt sorry for Ganluo, and after running not far away, he took the mount, picked Ganluo on the horse, and hugged him in his arms. It was the first time to run at such a fast speed, and the little wolf was indeed a little tired, sitting in the arms of his master, sticking out his red tongue, and constantly panting with the ups and downs of his chest. This humble appearance is even more endearing, and a man and a wolf have just entered the central tent used by Su Si to entertain the vendors last time, and they have immediately become the focus of everyone's attention.

Su Sixier had already known the reason for Li Xu's late arrival from the female slave sent by Aunt Qing, so he had been waiting patiently with the ministers. When the elders saw that there was really a silver-gray wolf being raised, they were shocked and envious, and they all stepped forward to stroke the wolf's fur for good luck. With Li Xu here, although Gan Luo was extremely reluctant, he couldn't help stretching out his claws and kicking his legs, but he had no choice but to restrain his wildness and let the black hands of the elders touch his head. After a long period of excitement, the elders remembered that everyone had come to the banquet and confessed to their masters. The owner of this place, Su Sixier, was not annoyed, smiled and clapped his hands, and ordered his subordinates to serve wine and food.

The dishes of the Xia people are simple, and they are still the same boiled whole sheep as the last time they entertained Uncle Nine and others. Li Xu was still the youngest in the seat, so the elder still cut the first piece of lamb back meat to him. With the last drill, Li Xu was already familiar with all customs. Respectfully cut the sheep in return, just like a native of the Xia tribe, he did all the etiquette that he should do.

When the other ministers saw this, they were no less surprised than when they saw Ganluo for the first time. Du secretly said that the burly young man in front of him was probably specially given to Su Si by Changshengtian, otherwise how could he be so familiar with the etiquette of the Xia Clan.

Before eating, as usual, Eru and Tao Kuo led a team of girls to sing a toast for the guests. Li Xu had experience this time, and took the copper bowl that Tao Kuo took off the silk and no longer drank it all, but changed to the same posture as everyone else, and listened carefully to the toast while tasting it.

After listening to it for a long time, he didn't understand a few Turkic words. I didn't pay attention, but the copper bowl in my hand saw the bottom again. A light smile jumped out of the blue-shirted girl's eyes, and while singing, she took the copper bowl in Li Xu's hand and filled it for him again. Li Xu was so flustered by her laughter that the rhythm of the second bowl was not controlled, the singing had not stopped, but there was no wine in the bowl. Seeing that he was drinking sweetly, the smile on her face became stronger, and she did not dissuade him, and continued to fill the wine bowl for him. This time, Li Xu finally controlled the beat, and when the lingering and disturbing sound of the song dissipated, he still couldn't finish putting the bowl down like the Xi people, and as usual, not a drop fell.

The horse ** wine is not strong, but the strength is ruthless and domineering. Even if he is a strong man of the Xia tribe, if he drinks three bowls in a row without accompanying vegetables, his steps will be vain. And Li Xu grew up drinking the wine made by his uncle Zhang Baosheng since he was a child, and the wine has been collected several times, and its strength is still above Ma **. So three bowls of mare's milk fell into his stomach, and he wouldn't be drunk at all. Besides, the young man's face is tender, and he always wants to be a hero in front of the girl unintentionally. If so, he will not write the smoky state on his face.

Since Uncle Nine and the others entered the account, the eyes of the ministers and elders have hardly left the little wolf. When you see the little wolf, you will inevitably see Li Xu next to the little wolf. Seeing him drink wine as if he were drinking water, his tongue did not stop at first. Together with the gaze that looked at the patriarch of the Su Si tribe, it also increased a little admiration.

Without waiting for the elders' gaze to retract from Li Xu, Xu Dayan's demeanor attracted their attention again. I saw that this handsome young man, who was smiling and well-behaved, actually stood up and cut a piece of meat on each plate one by one with a short knife stuck in the sheep's back. Each knife is cut down, the depth is just right, together with the outermost fat that has been rotten to the innermost part of the three-cooked flesh with blood and water, a layer does not fall, so that each piece of meat contains several layers from the fattest and thickest to the most tender and fresh.

According to the tradition of the Xia people, when a family is reunited, the youngest and oldest juniors are responsible for cutting meat for everyone. As long as any plate was empty in front of them, he was not allowed to sit down and eat. This ceremony is the last part of the banquet of the Xi clan, and no one pays attention to the ordinary banquet at all. Moreover, there are too many people in the audience at the gathering, and if this ritual is performed seriously, the meat cutter will probably have to go hungry and hold on to the end. So everyone doesn't care, and over time, they gradually forget this tradition. But he never expected that a young man of a foreign tribe would see the number of rituals passed down from his ancestors.

"Haha, it's rare to invite so many nobles to our department, it really makes the tents of Su Sibu start to glow red. Elders, please feel free and you're welcome! When Su Sixier saw this, his heart was overjoyed, and he took the lead in picking up the plate in front of him.

I'm afraid this teenager hit me by mistake. The ministers thought secretly, picked up the plate, and ate the meat in front of them like a whirlwind. When they put down the plates one by one, they found that the short knife in Xu Dayan's hand had brought new pieces of meat to them in the order in which the plates were placed.

I'm afraid this is not a mistake. The elders took the opportunity to toast each other and communicate with each other with their eyes. How did they know that just before the half-pillar incense time, Xu Dayan didn't know anything about this ceremony. At the banquet between the vendors and Su Sibu before, because everyone was not one at all, no one insisted on this ceremony. But at the critical moment when everyone's eyes were attracted by Li Xu's bold drinking attitude, Eru secretly conveyed his father's request to Xu Dayan.

Those who can achieve the position of tribal elders are all human spirits, and in the past ten years, the scene of the Su Si tribe thriving day by day is clearly in front of their eyes. However, as the common leader of the tribes, the headquarters of the Ruling Lost Bakhan is declining day by day. Especially in the past three years, the old age and dementia, and the tricks of the Xia tribe have made the Xia tribes suffer when they clash with other surrounding ethnic groups such as the Zhuxi, Murowei, and Khitan people in the nomadic areas.

The income of pastoralist peoples is far less stable than that of agrarian peoples. Tribes suffer losses in the competition for pasture, which often means a reduction in the number of livestock. The decline in the number of livestock will inevitably affect the attractiveness of the herders under his rule. In the long run, it means that a tribe is slowly dying out on the grassland.

Unable to make decisions for the benefit of the tribes, the tribes had to figure out their own solutions. And forming alliances with powerful tribes is one of the key means of self-preservation. Therefore, the most powerful Su Si tribe within a radius of hundreds of miles invited the nearby departments to trade in the name of the arrival of the caravan, which immediately made many old noses who had lived for nearly sixty years smell the smell of opportunity.

"Our tribes are originally one family, and although the nomadic territory is a bit far away from each other, no one can deny that we are brothers!" After a moment of silence, the elder Sha Ge, the minister of Sheto, picked up the wine bowl and invited everyone.

"Cheers to the blood of the swan that flows in our bodies!" Su Si Sier waited for this sentence, picked up the wine bowl, and saluted the guests.

"Cheers, for the descendants of the white swan to be able to wave their wings on the grassland!" Sitting near Xu Dayan, he must know that the minister Na Miye raised his glass and agreed.

The elders raised their glasses one after another, drinking and humming the ancient songs of the Xi people over and over again.

"White swans wave their wings, and there is no mountain in the world that they can't fly. The white swans are lined up as human characters, and no wind and rain can stop them from soaring......." These lyrics have not been mentioned for a long time. Today, he suddenly sang it, but it made many old people who were over half a hundred years old feel enthusiastic in their hearts.

For Turkic language, Xu Dayan didn't understand a word. But this did not prevent him from understanding the expressions of everyone at this moment. With the mysterious identity of Aunt Qing behind the scenes, Su Sibu has made rapid progress in food storage and leather sewing skills. Food and clothing on the steppe means population, and population means strength. There was already a strong strength to back it up, and now the silver wolf, which heralded good luck, suddenly appeared with the caravan in Su Si's department, and it was strange that this opportunity was not seized by Su Si'er.

Li Xu, Sun Jiu and others also have limited understanding of Turkic language, and the master sings ancient songs of the Xia people, which is not in line with Turkic language at all. Watching the elders singing as if they were drunk, especially the elders of the Su Si Department singing and singing, they were actually full of tears, and their hearts were also moved by the desolation with a bit of majestic lyrics, and they slapped their knees with their arms and hummed along with the rhythm of the song.

There were distinguished guests, and the people sang harder. After chanting repeatedly, Fang stopped singing. The women, who were waiting outside the tent, went in again and filled the bowls of the people, and without the master having to lift the bowls, the elders themselves did it.

Sussier nodded, and motioned with her eyes for the girls to stay in front of the table and continue to pour wine for the elders. Eru and Tao Kuo took the order and led the maidens to sit on the ground behind the guests. Each maiden served a distinguished guest, and when she saw that the bowl was empty, she immediately filled it for them.

"Susisier, your department, bless!" The wine is hot, and the minister Na Miye said with his tongue wide. This sentence is simple, and Li Xu can understand it completely. But the elder's next words made Li Xu feel boundless.

"They, daughters, twelve, hey!" Surely Namiye stretched out two large slaps, and when he swung them, he found that there were not enough of them, and stretched out his two legs that were sitting cross-legged on sheepskins. "Twelve daughters, married to twelve heroes. Twelve heroes, you Su Sibu will never be afraid of wild beasts snooping on your pasture! ”

Twelve daughters, twelve heroes, Li Xu stupidly counted and played for the old man, and he didn't understand a word of the other words. Sun Jiu, who was sitting on the other side of him, frowned secretly. If it is in the Central Plains, there is nothing to mention that there are many daughters of other people, but it is equivalent to mocking the other party for opening a tile field, and it is purely nothing to find a beating. (Note 1)

When Sussier heard this, he didn't think it was a pestle at all. He raised the wine bowl and took a big sip, and responded with a smile, "Sir of the Susi tribe has twelve daughters, nine of whom are married, and they are married to the heroes of the nine tribes. The three are not married, and they will be able to find a heroic husband in the future. Sir's younger brother had five sons and married the most beautiful women of the five nearby tribes. Su Sibu and the descendants of the white swan are connected by blood, and they will never deviate! ”

"My son is my brother's son, and my brother's daughter is my daughter. We are born brothers, and we will not be separated after death! Su Sisir's younger brother, after Su Si Fuli heard this, he picked up the wine bowl and echoed his brother.

"If Sir has a son in the future, he will definitely become the leader of our Su Si tribe. Detachment will become a sword in the hands of a nephew, a lamp in the night. If the Immortal Heaven refuses to give the Son of Cyr, we will embrace the Detachment as the leader after he is called by the Immortal Heaven. I believe that he will treat Syl's wife and daughter well, so that they will have food and clothing, and have a smile on their faces every day! Minister Su Si said with a smile. He did not shy away from talking about the arrangement of the handover of the position of the leader of the tribe in front of the guests. The life of people on the steppe is generally short, and ordinary men who live to fifty are considered to be long-lived. Moreover, men have to go through countless battles and vendettas in their lives, and it is not uncommon for them to die at a young age. If the issue of succession to the head of a tribe is well resolved, it means the long-term stability of the tribe. This is a big issue involving the interests of the entire tribe, and Su Sixier can't avoid it if he wants to.

"Today, we swear to the Immortal Heaven in front of all distinguished guests, as the descendants of the White Swan, we will not break our wings by ourselves." The two brothers, Cir and Fuli, drank opposite each other, their eyes full of openness.

This kind of free and easy behavior made the elder Sha Ge of Shetuo very emotional, and after drinking a bowl with the master, he praised: "If the descendants of the white swan want to fly over the mountain, they must be lined up in an array!" Without the strongest male swans to lead the way, and without the most alert old swans to guard at rest, they would have perished under the hunter's snare and feathered arrows! ”

The son of Shetsagoh married the eldest daughter of Susisir, so the two tribes became closer. At this time, he said this sentence as an elder of Sheto, obviously not only praising Ciel and attaching the two brothers to the same heart.

Except for a few guests from the Central Plains, all the elders present considered themselves to be the descendants of the White Swan. The two Su Si brothers agreed on the inheritance of the leader of their clan in front of so many people, and claimed to be the descendant of the white swan, and the intention did not need to be guessed at all. But it may be too early to assume that Su Si has the qualifications of the leader of the Southern Zhuqi Tribe. He was old and wise, but his tribe was still the most numerous of all the tribes.

"He was promoted as Khan by the big people because he drove out the Khitans who came to fight for the pasture for us." The Minister of Necessity Na Miye muttered. It was as if he had drunk too much, and his speech was very inarticulate. The whole body also swayed, and at any time he could fall asleep on the sheepskin cushion under him.

"I've heard that a tribe of Xi people has migrated to the edge of the pastures that have been passed down from generation to generation in the Musty Division. May I ask Elder Namiye, is your pasture enough for two tribes to share? Su Sixier's self-cultivation was quite good, and he didn't pay attention to the provocative taste in the elder's words at all, but cared about the survival of others.

Elder Miye's face began to turn red, and the shaking of his body instantly lessened. After thinking for a moment, he sighed softly and did not answer Susiccil's question.

"I've heard that it's a big tribe of tens of thousands of people. Will they be willing to return to their hometowns next spring? Seeing that the other party did not answer, Su Sixier continued to ask with a smile.

Namiye let out a long sigh and said, "I have already asked for help from the Obsabi Khan. But he said that the group of Xi people was forcibly driven away from the source of Suotou water by the Turks. The people of the Ashina family ordered them to move away, but they didn't specify a destination! ”

All the elders sighed, even if Su Sixier didn't mention this matter today, everyone would complain after drinking too much. In order to expand, the Turks forcibly took away the pastures of a Xi tribe. And this Xi tribe, relying on the large number of people, began to infiltrate the pastures of the Xi people.

The people of the Xia tribe are not prosperous, and even the most prosperous tribe like the Su Si tribe has only more than 4,000 people. Excluding the elderly and children, there are less than 1,000 people who can get on horses and dance with knives. The forces of other tribes are even weaker, and those who can make up 300 cavalry are already the strongest among them.

"At the beginning of spring next year, let's send Suotou Xi away together, would you like to go with me?" Susiccil did not sigh with the sighs of the crowd, raised the wine bowl, and saluted everyone.

This bowl of wine is not good to drink, so it is difficult for guests to make up their minds to answer the host's enthusiasm. The leader of Sil suggested that everyone send Xi away, and it must not be a banquet for the other party. For the survival of his own people, he should not be merciful. But once he followed Su Sixier and sent out his troops, no matter whether the result was victory or defeat, everyone would form a life-and-death alliance with him from then on. If you refuse to give up the crown, I am afraid that one day in the future, the white swans will inevitably meet each other with their beaks for the leading position. (Note 2)

Note 1: Open tile field. In ancient times, the Central Plains gave birth to a son, called Langzhang. and gave birth to a daughter, and she was called a tile. If there are many daughters and few boys in the family, they will be laughed at and made a tile field, which means that they have the ability to give birth to daughters.

Note 2: Beak, beak. The tribe with the swan as the totem meets each other with its beak, which means that the same tribe is at war.