In the spring, the river swelled, and the Nisai River once again blocked the grazing footsteps of the Warat herders, but it also brought life to the grassland.

Bozhige led his two sons to graze happily on the spring meadows, while his mother-in-law, Meng Genqige, took her two daughters around a campfire burning cow dung, cooking the dried meat saved in the winter.

There wasn't much jerky, only a handful of finely chopped meat, and the rest were wild vegetables that the two daughters had dug up from the ground.

Although this bit of jerky is not enough to satisfy the consumption of a large family, compared to those who died in the cold winter, their family is already considered lucky.

Last winter, a white snow froze to death countless livestock, and many poor herdsmen were crushed to death in their yurts by the heavy snow.

Seeing that his daughter hadn't put water in the pot yet, Meng Genqige put the black pot on the fire, immediately snatched the pot from the fire, and then slapped it over, driving his stupid daughter away.

"Stupid!"

"How can our pot afford to burn like this?"

"Eji, I used to play at Sister Baoyin's house, and when I saw Sister Baoyin, she put the pot directly on the fire!"

"That's an iron pot, how can our horseskin pot compare?"

"Eji, what is the iron pot?"

"Why don't we buy an iron pot?"

Meng Genqige looked at his daughter depressedly.

"Do you think I don't like iron pots, but our family is too poor to afford it!"

"Eji, when my daughter gets married in the future, I will let my husband's family send you an iron pot!"

Meng Genqige looked at his innocent daughter, and he really couldn't bear to interrupt her sweet dream.

This kid really doesn't know the value of the iron pot, in this huge Nisai River grassland, who is willing to use the iron pot as a dowry?

In the evening, Božiged led his son back with the thirty sheep left in the family, just in time for Mungenqige to make dinner.

"Menggen, we can't always eat wild vegetables, even if we can stand it, the children can't stand it!"

Meng Genqige shook his head helplessly when he heard this.

"There isn't much jerky left at home, and if we don't put more wild vegetables, we won't survive autumn at all."

Bozhigede looked at the bow and arrow hanging from the tent.

"It's really not good, I'll take Rising Sun and Dai Qin to hunt tomorrow, if I can bring back a few yellow sheep, then we will be much better this spring!"

Hearing this, Meng Genqige hurriedly dissuaded.

"No way!"

"It's spring, the season of reproduction of all things, hunting violates the ancestral teachings, and you will be punished by the Immortal Heaven!"

Bozhige thumped his thigh in annoyance.

"Then we can't let our children go hungry, can we?"

"If Changsheng is innocently blamed, blame me alone, I must bring back more food for the children!"

After saying this, Bozhige drank a bowl of dried porridge with a sigh, and then fell back to sleep.

"I'm done, you can eat the rest!"

How could Meng Genqige not know that her husband was reluctant to eat more, for fear that the children would not have enough to eat?

But the family really doesn't have much food in stock, and if the husband is allowed to eat it with his belly open, I'm afraid they won't even be able to survive the summer.

After eating half a bowl, Meng Genqige also put down the wooden bowl, intending to save a bite to eat for her husband, so that he could cushion it at night when he was hungry.

The children are also very sensible, Dai Qin and Xu Rigan are eating, and at the same time promise their two younger sisters that they will definitely bring back the yellow sheep tomorrow and let the younger sisters have a full meal. And after each of them was half full, they put down their rice bowls under the pretext of going out to clean the sheepfold.

The two little ones didn't have this consciousness at all, holding the rice bowl and licking it constantly, and after a while, they ate the small half pot of wild vegetable porridge, and they stared at the porridge in the pot with good eyes, and they felt unfinished.

Seeing this, Meng Genqige felt very unbearable, but he still stopped the two little daughters.

"You two just eat almost, it's not good to eat too much at night!"

Meng Genqige said as he put the lid on the pot and sent the two daughters aside to play.

Just as Mungenkigg was packing up the pots and pans, Sunrise ran back in a hurry.

"Abba, Eji, someone...... Someone rides a horse...... More than one ......"

There are not many herders in the Nisai steppes, because the winters here are so long that many herders, even if they come here in the summer to graze, will leave with their cattle before autumn comes.

Therefore, there was only one Bozhige family within a radius of several tens of miles, and it was impossible for anyone to come.

Hearing this, Bozhige hurriedly got up from the wool felt, then listened to the ground for a while, and said with a frown.

"About three or five people, it's coming soon!"

"Mungen, you take your daughters and sons and hide them in the haystack first, and I'll ride up and meet them!"

"Good!"

The grasslands are full of dangers, such as ferocious wolves, or cruel weather. But for individual herders like them, the greatest danger is people.

If they encounter horse bandits, they will not only lose their flock, but even their lives.

With a bow and arrows on his back and a saber full of gaps, Bozhige mounted his scrawny horse and rushed in the direction of the comer.

Bozhige had not gone far on his horse when he saw five heavily armed men running towards him.

Although these people saw that they had taken the initiative to reduce the speed of their horses, the outfit of these people still filled Bozhigede's heart with despair.

Whether these people are from the Khan's court or from other barbarian tribes, it will be a disaster for their little herdsmen's home!

"Dear distant friends!"

"I've prepared mare's milk wine here for a long time, waiting to entertain all my friends!"

When the people on the other side heard this, they all burst out laughing heartily.

"Dear master of this place, we are just passing by, and we were ordered to go to the Northern Yuan Khan Court to deliver a letter, if we can be taken in by the master for one night, and provide us with a place to shelter from the wind and roast the fire, we will be grateful!"

Hearing this, Bozhige secretly breathed a sigh of relief in his heart, the other party obviously had five people, and they were fully armed, whether it was a bow and arrows on horseback or armor on his body, it was enough to buy all his belongings.

However, instead of being domineering, they politely spoke to themselves, which shows that the other party should be kind people.

"Welcome my friends, come with me to the yurt and enjoy the sweetest mare's milk wine and the sweetest hand-made lamb ...... here"

Bozhigude returned to the yurt with the five men, and when they saw their flock, instead of showing greed, they had some pity, and his nervous heart was even more relaxed.

It seems that they don't like this bit of their own possessions!

When Bozhige thought of this, he immediately beckoned his mother-in-law to come out to greet the guests, and he himself went to the sheepfold to pick the fattest sheep.

Although their family is too poor to open the pot, the customs that have been passed down on the grassland for thousands of years still do not allow him to treat guests from afar.

Huqitu and the others did not stop Bozhigede from slaughtering sheep, because if someone else came to their house, they would be so enthusiastic. The big deal is to leave some more valuable things for their family when they leave, such as a steel knife and a few arrowheads made of stainless steel.

These are all good things that money can't buy on the grassland, as long as the owner of this family is not stupid, it is enough to hunt a lot of prey with these things, so that the whole family can live a rich life.

After slaughtering the fat sheep, Bozhige left the rest to his two sons, and he went to the tent to drink with some of the guests who had come from afar.

Huqitu and the others praised Bozhigede's generosity, drinking with him and singing praises.

However, the mare's milk wine in Bozhigede's family was too little, and each person barely got a bowl, and in the end, Hu Qitu and others took out their own mare's milk wine, which alleviated the embarrassment.

After the mutton was served, Hu Qitu just sniffed it and couldn't help frowning.

"This meat doesn't taste right, it should be cooked in horseskin, right?"

"Dear guest, you really have a good eye, you can see it at a glance!"

"We are poor here, and every family uses horse skin as a pot, which is really wronged by everyone......"

Hu Qitu sighed secretly when he heard this.

"Alas!"

"I can't imagine that the people of Mobei live so hard......"

"Who, you go and pick a pot from the goods we bring and give it to Bozhigede, and it will be our thank you gift."

Hearing this, Bozhigde hurriedly excused himself.

"No, it's too expensive, and our meager wine and meat are not worth the price."

Hu Qitu heard the words and persuaded again and again.

"You can accept it with peace of mind, this thing is not worth much in our Monan, it is cheaper near Naturalization City, and three or five sheep can be exchanged for a mouthful."

When Bozhige heard this, his mouth opened wide in surprise.

"What?"

"Three or five sheep can be exchanged for an iron pot?"

"Of course!"

"It is said that the Han land is cheaper, and half a sheep can be exchanged for an iron pot. It's just that it's not easy to transport this thing, and it's normal to travel thousands of miles to our grassland, and the price will increase by five or six times. ”

Bozhigud was even more depressed when he heard this, because this thing was worth thirty sheep to say the least......

It's still priceless, and you can't buy it if you want to.

However, the other party's words aroused Bozhigede's curiosity, but he often heard people from the Khan's court say how hard the herdsmen close to Daming were, and how lucky they were to follow the Khan's court to Mobei.

Why is it that listening to each other's words now, their lives are not only not bitter, but much more comfortable than themselves?

"Dare to ask the distinguished guests, aren't you afraid that the Ming people will rob your cattle and sheep and bully your women?"

Hu Qitu laughed when he heard this.

"Brother, you think too much, people are extremely rich, how can you look down on our cattle and sheep?"

"As for women......"

"It's not that we grow the ambition of others and destroy the prestige of our own people. It's just that we wash our own women and send them over, and people may not be rare......"

"Don't you know, our people in Monan, there are really many families who want to marry their daughters to Daming, but they don't want to!"

"Uh-uh......"

Bozhige asked with a confused look on his face.

"That's not what the people of the Khan Court say, they say......"

Hu Qitu's expression was grim when he heard this, and he looked at Bozhige solemnly.

"Brother, are you from the Khan's Court, or do you believe in me, a person who has come from afar?"

"I ......"

Hu Qitu saw the hesitation on his face, and he didn't rush to urge him, but said lightly.

"Now it's different from before, Daming has an emperor and saint grandson, he is not only kind to the people of Daming, but his brilliance also shines on our vast grassland."

"There is no herdsman in Mo Nan who has not received his favor, under his rule, we can drive cattle and sheep to graze everywhere, and we can also exchange cattle and sheep for anything we need in life from the hands of Daming merchants."

"Not only did he not collect heavy taxes from us, but he also protected us from being harassed by the Khan's court."

"For us ordinary herdsmen, the Emperor and Holy Sun of the Ming Dynasty are far more worthy of following than the Northern Yuan Khan!"

Bozhigde muttered to himself.

"Is that really the case?"

"Could it be that the people of the Khan's Court have been lying to me?"

"Brother, let me tell you another news, many of the grassland people who were captured by the Ming Dynasty a few years ago have now been released, and they have also been given grassland, cattle and sheep by the emperor's grandson......"

"Huh?"

Božiged was even more surprised when he heard this.

"Aren't they buried in the ground as roadbeds?"

Huqitu explained.

"It is true that some people died while building roads, but they died unjustly, and the Ming people have done their best to heal them, but they deserve to die in their lives, and they really can't be saved."

"But the vast majority of people survived, and some even became Ming soldiers!"

"This ......"

Bozhige only felt that his perception had been subverted again, and instead of being killed, his captured people had become soldiers of the Ming Dynasty?

Doesn't it mean that it won't be long before he will have to meet those people on the battlefield?

Huqitu saw the hesitation on Bozhigede's face, and hurriedly hit the railway while it was hot.

"Brother, if you believe me, hurry up and move with your family in the direction of Daming!"

"To tell you the truth, I led the team to come this time to write a war letter to the Khan Court for the Emperor Saint Sun of the Ming Dynasty!"

"It won't be long before Daming will go to war with the Khan Court, and we, the herdsmen caught in the middle, must be the most unlucky and the first to be killed......"

"That's ......"

When Bozhige heard this, he was really moved. It's just that the thought of the distance from Daming made him shake a little.

Because he was afraid that he wouldn't be able to go that far......

The next day, Huqitu left with his entourage, and when he left, he not only left steel knives and arrows for the Bozhigede family, but also a lot of salt, dried meat, and other things.

These things are not precious in Monan, but they are definitely rare in barren Mobei, enough to thank the Bozhige family for their hospitality.

After seeing off Huqitu and others, Bozhigede also quickly returned to his normal life.

Although Hu Qitu and others said that Daming was so beautiful, Daming was too far away from them, so far away that it was as untouchable as a cloud on the horizon.

However, their peace was soon shattered.

A troop of cavalry roared in, carrying the latest will of the Khan's court.

"The Khan wants to conscript the Ming Dynasty, and each family must conscript two soldiers, and the sheep ......"

The leader of the cavalry silently counted the sheepfolds of Bozhigede's family, and reported a number that Bozhigede could not accept at all.

"Twenty-nine sheep!"

(End of chapter)