Chapter 51

"Kill them all!" On the east bank of the Yellow River, the second and third attempts to cross using sheepskin rafts had failed again. Zhong Xing Shuo's patience was completely worn out. He coldly waved his hand, and Xubu Mo led the Xiongnu soldiers to slaughter the Qiang people and their families who were responsible for building the sheepskin rafts.

These people had escaped death due to Li You's mercy, but unfortunately, they were killed by Zhong Xing Shuo just a few days later! However, the reputation of the Han people as fierce and skilled warriors had already spread among these Qiang people.

"Give you one day to cut down trees! If we haven't crossed the river by this time tomorrow, you will join them!" Zhong Xing Shuo abandoned the idea of imitating Li You's method of crossing the river using sheepskin rafts and returned to the old way of building wooden rafts. At least the construction of wooden rafts was easier compared to sheepskin rafts. The only problem was that cutting down large trees required more time, but he had no other choice now.

The Qiang people from several surrounding tribes were driven by the Xiongnu soldiers to cut down trees desperately, hoping to send these demons across the river as soon as possible and save their lives from the hands of the Xiongnu!

Hopefully, it's not too late; the Great Snow Mountain is not easy to cross! Zhong Xing Shuo looked at the distant mountains, secretly guessing where the Han envoy group might be now.

He never expected the Han people to cross the Wushaoling so quickly, and he was fully confident that his army could intercept them in the Great Snow Mountain!

After working day and night, the Qiang people finally managed to build several large wooden rafts. Zhong Xing Shuo led the Xiongnu cavalry to the west bank of the Yellow River.

"Your Majesty, they went in that direction!" The soldiers skilled in tracking quickly identified the direction of the Han envoy group based on the hoof prints.

"Chase them!" Zhong Xing Shuo increasingly felt that the leader of that envoy group would be a great enemy to the Xiongnu. He had already made up his mind to kill them in the Great Snow Mountain no matter what the cost, otherwise, the Great Xiongnu would face great trouble when he completed his mission and returned to Chang'an!

The galloping hooves shattered the tranquility of the Yellow River shore once again. Over seven hundred elite soldiers from the Xiongnu royal court rushed toward the Great Snow Mountain like the wind!

A few days later, they arrived at the last campsite where the Han envoy group had stayed before ascending the mountain. Zhong Xing Shuo took a stick from his bodyguard and started digging through the ashes. "Bones, food... they must have abandoned most of their supplies!"

"Burn everything useless! Prepare to climb the mountain immediately!" Zhong Xing Shuo issued the same order as Li You. Groups of Xiongnu soldiers dismounted and walked up the mountain, wrapping themselves tightly in sheepskins looted from the Qiang tribes to protect against the bone-chilling wind!

At the same time, they prayed to the Kunlun God, hoping he would protect them and ensure a safe climb! However, it seemed the Kunlun God did not hear their prayers, or perhaps he found their prayers insufficiently sincere. As soon as they started climbing, a heavy snowfall began, and the howling wind whipped the snow at them, making their progress extremely difficult.

"Ah!" A惨叫 from the front of the group echoed as two Xiongnu soldiers and a horse fell off a cliff, plummeting into the abyss. It took a long time before the sound of their bodies hitting the ground was heard.

Peering over the edge of the cliff, they saw the two unfortunate soldiers and the horse were now unrecognizable, their bodies mangled and bloody. The Xiongnu soldiers' progress became even slower.

"Your Majesty, the wind and snow are too strong; we should rest!" In battle, Xubu Mo would not flinch at the thought of dying, but he found it hard to accept dying pointlessly during the march.

"Set up camp and rest!" Zhong Xing Shuo said with a dark look, thinking bitterly about how many of the Han people might have died while climbing the mountain. He hoped the Great Snow Mountain had already swallowed them all.

"Sir, we have just ten miles left to descend the mountain!" Tang Yifu, out of breath, said to Li You. Descending the mountain was easier than ascending, but it was more dangerous. Nearly ten soldiers had already fallen off the cliffs! This was much more than the losses they had during the ascent, and their food was almost gone.

"Where is the nearest tribe? The men have worked hard and deserve a good meal!" Li You felt a slight relief that the most difficult part of the journey was almost over, but another problem faced him.

Although there was still ten thousand stones of grain in the tiger talisman, such intense physical activity could not be sustained on grain alone. They needed meat.

Tang Yifu climbed onto a large rock and looked down the mountain, pointing in the distance. "Sir, there is smoke rising ahead. From the number of smoke columns, the tribe shouldn't be too large! It will be perfect for us to replenish our food, wine, and horses!"

"Good, you and General Pan Feng go ahead to investigate, and we will follow shortly!" Li You, fearing any mishap to Tang Yifu, sent the most skilled warrior in the envoy, Pan Feng, to protect him.

Tang Yifu and Pan Feng, along with a few skilled riders, galloped toward the direction of the smoke, while Li You and Chen Qingzhi led the remaining soldiers slowly behind.

Two hours later, they finally reached the foot of the mountain, and a vast, endless grassland stretched before them, lifting the spirits of the soldiers who had been walking on narrow mountain paths for several days. From now on, they could move more freely without having to take every step with extreme caution.

"Lord, please look!" Chen Qingzhi, with a joyful expression, pointed to the grassland ahead. "The path ahead is wide and open, not like the narrow paths we had before. Once we enter this grassland, it will be like a dragon entering the sea, and we can go anywhere. Even if the Xiongnu can track us here, they won't know where we've gone. We have nothing to worry about ahead!"

"Ziyun is right!" Li You nodded in agreement. Although the area ahead was the territory of King Xiutu and King Kunye, their control over their lands was very weak in this era. It was impossible to control such a vast territory with just a few tens of thousands of people. They just needed to avoid the major tribes! Adverse weather conditions posed a greater threat, so they needed to secure enough horses and supplies from the next tribe.

"Set up camp and prepare a meal! We will discuss our next move after Tang Yifu and General Pan return!" Li You ordered, and the group found a sheltered spot by the mountain to start a fire and cook.

Half an hour later, the sound of hooves was heard, and Tang Yifu and Pan Feng returned with the scouts. "Sir, we have investigated the tribe ahead!"

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