Led by the Cato cavalry, the caravan advanced all the way to the depths of the steppe. The armed forces of nearly 100 men still aroused the vigilance or covetousness of many tribes, but they wisely chose to turn a blind eye after recognizing the tribe to which the escort belonged. Randolph estimated the distance and time of his travel, and found that it was much farther than the last time he came, and the Cato warlord apparently continued to expand his tribe's sphere of influence in the steppe, moving deeper into the steppe with his central tent. Although the periphery is still clear in the dry and wet seasons, the deeper the boundary becomes, the more blurred the boundaries become, and the rain is abundant and sunny throughout the year after reaching a certain depth, so the deeper the geographical location of the pasture, the more suitable for grazing livestock. Affected by this, the nomadic habits of the Cato people who lived in pursuit of water and grass have also undergone many changes, and the general direction of the overall migration has shown a trend of movement from the outside to the inside, and it is more determined by bloody conflicts rather than climatic and environmental factors, and the tribes that can get closer to the center of the steppe tend to be stronger, and they are also the objects of dependence of the outer tribes. Correspondingly, the competition between them is also extremely cruel. Despite the fact that the Gatu steppes were as vast as the territory of any of Pande's countries, the truly abundant and effective resources were concentrated on only a few great warlords, including the one who would meet with Randolph.

Then it should only be a matter of time before there is friction with the madman of the "saboteur" Zhu Da, the two warlords have already divided most of the grassland, one north and one south, and after going back, find an opportunity to report to the master, and stock up some weapons and equipment in advance, in case the two sides really clash, it will be an excellent business opportunity. Although after several large-scale battles at the beginning of the year, the Pande Five began to recuperate, but any peace is only a short-term illusion, the undercurrent of war is surging all the time, and the war horse has always been the hot hard currency in the arms race, let alone the war horse of Cato...... Randolph's thoughts were suddenly interrupted by a few loud neighing of horses, and he came back to his senses to find that the caravan had been surrounded by a long stretch of white tents, large and small, and that they were in a flat meadow that had been deliberately vacated. A number of slaves, dressed in tattered leather robes, walked up to the wagon and unloaded buckets of food and fresh water with great ease. Randolph jumped out of the carriage and hugged the Gatu men who came to greet him, slapping each other on the back. The man was tall and burly, and Randolph had two heads off him, and at first glance it looked like he had buried his head in the other's arms, and the man had to put his hand down to pat Randolph on the back instead of his sparsely haired head.

"Friends! Welcome back to my ranch. The man said enthusiastically, but his gaze wandered inadvertently around the carriage, pausing briefly on the Noldor Ranger one by one, before looking at Randolph, "How did you become the groom this time?" Isn't there the mysterious rich man sitting in the carriage? ”

"Lord Zakar, I remain solely responsible for the negotiation with you." Randolph smiled, his words respectful, but not distant, with the eagerness of a friend. He had always admired the warlord in front of him, and enjoyed dealing with him—rather all the merchants of Pander loved to deal with him. In this steppe of foreign invaders, Zakar was perhaps the only Gatu who had been "civilized" by the Pande civilization, who spoke the lingua franca fluently, could write neatly Pande, and would often exchange good horses or delicate weapons for books in Randolph's hands. Perhaps influenced by the so-called chivalry, he rarely surrendered, and his attitude towards captives was much softer than that of other great warlords. It is said that in recent years, a proverb has begun to circulate in the steppe: it is better to be a slave under Zakar than to be a guard by Juda's side. His usual tactics were to withhold and demand ransom – food or fresh water, of course, and if he couldn't afford it, he could regain his freedom as an armed slave for Zakar for a while. If you are brave in battle, you can also get a gift from Zakar before leaving, which may be a war horse, or it may be a standard weapon or armor of the Noldor - Zakar has always highly appreciated the strength and quality of the Noldor elves, and generally does not embarrass the forest dwellers captured by him, nor does he deal much with the related human trade, but weapons and equipment should still be captured. He and his elite guard, the "Grim Riders", are all Mislond armed men. And Noldor, although he hated Zakar as much as he hated the other Catu, had to admit that this man deserved extra respect over his countrymen, and "would give him a merciful and happy death", which was how the elves showed respect for their old enemies.

The purpose of Randolph's visit with a heavy gift is to exchange several Noldor elves who fell into the hands of Zakar. It wasn't the first time he had done it, but this time it was special, because there was a very sensitive figure sitting in the carriage behind him.

"My lord, let's talk in your tent." "The crispy lamb must have started thinking about me." ”

"It's not just roast lamb that I miss my friends, but also mare's milk wine! Much purer than the Daxia people! They don't have a good pasture like mine! Zakar laughed, and it didn't take much effort for him to understand Randolph's rhetoric. However, the guests in the carriage, as well as the rangers from the forest, were welcome to join the feast. ”

Randolph was stunned, and then smiled bitterly: "My lord, do you recognize it?" ”

"It's so ostentatious, it's hard not to recognize it. I don't know if they hide their green eyes, but there are some unique habits that are hard to change for a while. Zakar patted him on the shoulder and smiled heartily, "This frivolous disguise probably deceives Juda, and there are two hundred Noldor elves I have captured!" ”

The Noldor rangers all clenched the sigil bows in their hands, with the exception of Riedylan, who just crossed their arms and sneered nonchalantly. Randolph was sweating coldly on his back, this doesn't seem to be an occasion for self-boasting, right? The development of events exceeded his expectations in an instant, and Cato and Noldor, a pair of long-standing bitter enemies, were now separated by a thin curtain. Randolph knew that he had no control over the situation, so he could only silently pray in his heart that his master's years of business between the two sides would not be ruined today.

Aldaryan in the carriage did not react too violently, and after a while, her cold voice came from the curtain: "I'm not interested in Cato's food, you talk about yours, I'm only responsible for taking those people away." ”

Zakar shrugged his shoulders senselessly, not paying any attention to the angry and hostile gaze of the Noldor Ranger, "No other guests?" His gaze suddenly turned to nearby Estheau, and he let out a surprised cry, "Huh? Aren't you the Pande who was hunted down by Juda's men earlier? ”