"The leader has been arresting people since early in the morning. Pingjun led people to search room by room. Ah Yan told me that he only caught the women who were exchanged from outside, and that he said that he meant to be the leader, so I didn't care. But then Heeongjun arrested me and locked me up with the women who came from outside. Ah Yan sneaked in and untied the rope for me, I was scared...... I don't know where to go. I...... I don't want to die. ”

Ayi trembled and whispered. The wind was blowing from the opposite side, and the slight sound from this position would not be heard by the people in the stockade. Tianhao saw the old priest Wu Xing standing on the side of the platform, his expression was completely numb. Hunting Captain Yonggang was beside him, leaning sideways, staring at the ground under his feet with his eyebrows twisted, his face was iron-blue.

The process of the sacrifice was simple, and the cold wind blew from not far away, and the leader Fu Song made a loud prayer to the great god.

"O Winter God! Give me a last name! I will give you a wealth that even the emperors of the world would envy. ”

There are not many chances of this kind of thing happening. Especially with the progress of civilization, the cases of sacrifice have become less and less. The superiors are not fools, they are well aware that ruling the population means power and wealth. Having said that, the sacrifice never stopped.

The god of winter cares for all the creatures of this world, and while he eats the sacrifices, he does not forget to take care of the hungry beasts.

Offerings were inserted at the top of the poles and in order around the leader's hut. This is one of the most important steps in the ritual, so that the great winter god can know who has made these tributes to him, so that the true worshipper can be blessed accurately and his desired wishes can be fulfilled.

From a distance, the Chief's Cottage resembles a poorly crafted cake, with its edges filled with strangely shaped birthday candles.

Tianhao took Tianmad and Ayi to stand up, went around in a circle, pretended that nothing had happened, and walked quickly into the gate.

"Ah Hao is back, and Ah Mad is back."

"They're coming fast! I thought it would be a few days before I got back. ”

"Hey, why is Ayi with them?"

In the midst of the noisy discussion of the villagers, Tianhao strode close to the platform and respectfully saluted the leader Fu Song who was standing on it. The latter was in a good mood, he walked off the platform with a smile, vigorously rolled up the sleeves of Tianhao's leather robe, looked at the scabbed horn brand on his left arm, and laughed loudly: "Not bad! Not bad! We have a young hundred-man leader in the village! ”

As he spoke, he took Tianhao's hand, raised his naked left arm high, and announced loudly to everyone standing around: "Everyone take a look, Tianhao went to the clan city to declare this time, did you see this brand?" Ah Hao is now the new head of 100 people in the village! ”

This symbol cannot be faked, and it is also a special status symbol of the northern barbarians, and the degree of ethnic recognition far exceeds that of the personal ID card of the civilized era.

A sparse response rang out all around. What they had just experienced made the villagers' hearts a little complicated, but the awe of the new superiors and Tianhao's previous contributions to the village quickly diluted the negative emotions in their minds. The cheers quickly became enthusiastic, and then evolved into hundreds of people roaring out loud notes like a mountain and a tsunami.

Tianhao walked up to the old priest and bowed. Wu Xing held his hand tightly, and the stiff expression on his face that had been stretched for a long time began to show signs of relaxation. He opened his wrinkled lips, but he didn't say anything, and his eyes released a vigilant gaze, firmly locked on Fu Song, the leader who was walking towards this direction from behind Tianhao.

"Ah Hao, did the patriarch say anything when you sent the paperwork over?" Fu Song glanced at the old priest deeply, patted Tianhao's shoulder affectionately, and spoke with undisguised eagerness in his gentle tone.

Tianhao shook his head, his face full of the innocence and simplicity unique to young people: "No." ”

A bad thought sprouted in Fu Song's mind, and the growth momentum was very strong. His face changed slightly, and his words suddenly became a little angry: "How is this possible? Has the patriarch read the paperwork I asked you to forward? ”

"I handed over the documents by myself, and the patriarch also specifically asked why our village should hand over 80 percent of the grain quota next year." The crowd around him had not yet dispersed, and Tianhao controlled the volume of his speech, which was a little louder than usual, but he would not let Fu Song, who was in a hurry, notice this: "I will return to the patriarch at that time, this is what the leader of you meant." ”

A villager who was closer to him shouted on the spot: "Eighty percent? Why, next year we are going to hand over 80 percent of the grain to the clan? ”

The other person standing beside him also stared, shocked and angry: "We only paid 70% this year, and we have to pay more than this year?" ”

"Oh my God! This...... What the hell is going on? ”

"All the food has been delivered, what will we eat then?"

"What should I do?"

A very simple sentence, like a terrible cause of disease, caused a terrible plague in a very short time. The terrifying figure of "80 percent" fermented sharply in the minds of every listener, and people's eyes looking at Fu Song also lost their due respect, and became indifferent and hateful, even with a bit of hidden killing intent.

Fu Song felt like he had made a mistake. He was a little annoyed that Tianhao had made the contents of the document public, but if he wanted to get to the root of it, if he hadn't been too anxious to ask questions in front of everyone, Tianhao would not have made it clear at this time.

"Did the patriarch say when he would give me a surname?" Suppressing the anger in his heart, Fu Song asked directly about the issues he was most concerned about.

"Nope." Tianhao repeated what he had said before. The honest and serious look proves that he is not a liar.

A huge sense of loss and anger surged in Fu Song's mind at the same time. It's like two monsters fighting each other, constantly devouring other minds while growing at a terrifying rate. He suddenly felt that everything he had done had lost its meaning, and that what should have been safe had happened in a position he had never thought of.

Why didn't the patriarch give me a surname?

Am I not doing enough?

I have already paid 70 percent of the grain in the village this year, and I will pay more next year, and I have also given the patriarch a rich tribute of 3,000 giant horned deer...... So much, it still can't be exchanged for a surname?

Anger gnawed at Fu Song's heart like a devil, and he felt he had to find something to do. Tie blushed and turned and walked briskly towards his cabin. Lift your foot and kick the door open, slamming it shut with great force, making a loud noise.

Looking at the villagers who were standing in place, and then at the blood stains all over the ground, the old priest sighed and shook his head: "Scattered, scattered!" ”

……

Night fell.

When the blacksmith Tong Biao walked into the wooden house of the four Tianhao siblings, he found that Guoji and Changmin were also there.

Tianfeng's injuries have improved a lot, he can already sit up half-leaning, and he doesn't need to be fed a spoon into his mouth by others for food and drink.

Tianshuang played with a few polished bones in the corner of the room. This is a game often played by children of the northern barbarians, and the polished bones are spread out on the flat ground, which is quite similar to the gameplay of "touch and catch four" in the civilized era.

Tianhao boiled a pot of boiling water on the fire, opened a few rough clay cups, smiled and beckoned Tong Biao and the others to sit down, poured them a cup of "tea" respectively, and made a cup for Tianmad, who was sitting cross-legged next to him.

It is said to be tea, but it is actually a hot drink brewed from the leaves of black needle pine. There is no fragrance of tea in the civilized era, the entrance is very bitter, and it is a little sweet after drinking.

Tong Biao and Guoji and Changmin looked at each other, and each other's eyes were silently asking. They were all people who knelt down to Tianhao on the spot after successfully hunting the giant imperial ribbon fish on the beach that day.

"You all know the situation in the stockade. During the time I went to the clan city, Fu Song exchanged venison for many people from other villages. Qinglongzhai has changed two batches in a row, with a total of 300. There was a change of a group of fifty people over there in Huanchezhai. Qingyuanzhai also changed twenty. There were also other villages, all of which added up to four hundred and four people. ”

Tianhao's voice was flat and bland, without a particularly controlled intonation rhythm, and his joys, sorrows and sorrows could not be heard at all.