Chapter 52

"From their attire, that tribe is a subordinate of the Chieftain Xiutu; there are about three hundred people, over a hundred of them are young and strong! We ran for twenty to thirty miles in all directions and did not find any other tribes around!" Tang Yifu said this with a relaxed expression, after experiencing battles with the elite forces of the Xiongnu royal court and the Qiang tribes, he no longer took such small tribes seriously.

"Lord! This battle must let me be the vanguard! I will surely take the head of that tribal leader! If he escapes, I'll give you my head!" Pan Feng looked pitifully at Li You, the experience of crossing Wushao Ridge had really frustrated him, "My great axe is already thirsty and hungry! It must drink the blood of the enemy!"

"General Pan, do not be hasty, the formation and battle tactics must follow General Ziyun's arrangements! It is already late today, everyone should have a meal and rest for the night, and act according to orders tomorrow!" Li You ordered wine, meat, and food to be served, calming down Pan Feng and the others, while he returned to his tent to draw a map of Wushao Ridge and discuss the battle plan for the next day with Chen Qingzhi.

"The enemy's strength is inferior to ours, and they are completely unprepared! A surprise attack tomorrow will surely bring a great victory!" Li You was not worried about defeating this small tribe, "But the journey ahead is long, if we fight all the way, even if we win every battle, by the time we reach the Yuezhi, the hundred or so members of the envoy will be few in number!"

Currently, the envoy led by Li You is roughly in the area of Wuwei City in present-day Gansu Province (the name Wuwei comes from the fact that over twenty years later, the cavalry general Huo Qubing defeated the Xiongnu in the Longyou region, and Emperor Wu of Han, Liu Che, named the area Wuwei to demonstrate the military might of the Han Empire), and the Yuezhi they need to reach is located along the Ili River in Xinjiang!

Moreover, if they move quickly, the Yuezhi will soon be defeated by the Wusun King Liejiamu and migrate west to the Amu Darya River, in present-day Afghanistan and Turkmenistan! The journey for Li You and his group will be even longer!

Thinking about the Yuezhi, this country is truly pitiful, first driven from the Hexi Corridor to Xinjiang by the Xiongnu Chanyu, and then driven from Xinjiang to Afghanistan by the Wusun King Liejiamu; although the Yuezhi suffered repeated defeats in the Western Regions, they became a dominant power in the west, defeating the Greek-descended Bactrian Kingdom (known as Daxia by Zhang Qian) south of the Amu Darya River, forcing these Bactrian Saka to move south to oppress the weaker Indians.

"Lord, the main purpose of this journey is to ally with the Yuezhi to attack the Xiongnu and map the Western Regions! It is not to fight the Xiongnu! If we can obtain horses and food without fighting, that would be best!" Chen Qingzhi also agreed, but he still reminded Li You, "Throughout history, the barbarians are like wolves, they plunder when they encounter weakness and submit when they encounter strength. Lord must be cautious!"

"Indeed, tomorrow we will first send Tang Yifu with silk and cloth to seek trade with them! If it works, that's best, if not, the long swords in the hands of our Han soldiers are not for show!" A lot of silk and cloth were burned while crossing Wushao Ridge, but there was still some left, and these items were highly valued in Xiongnu tribes, sufficient to exchange for the horses and food they needed.

The Juchu tribe is a small tribe under the rule of Chieftain Xiutu, named after an ancestor who once served as the Left Juchu (equivalent to a prime minister or grand marshal in the Han Empire, a position of great power) of the Great Chanyu. However, the glory of their ancestors has long faded, leaving only this small tribe!

This small tribe would not regain its glory until several hundred years later, when they migrated to the Zhangye region and the tribal leader Juchu Mengxun established the Northern Liang regime. But in this world, they might not have that opportunity.

Juchu Hezhu, an ancestor of Juchu Mengxun, was in a good mood this morning. Last night, he had a good dream, in which someone from the east brought them gifts, which seemed to foretell that good fortune would soon come to the Juchu tribe. Therefore, Juchu Hezhu got up early and, with a few brave men from the tribe, headed east.

"There seems to be the sound of hooves ahead!" Not far from where they were, his dream seemed to be verified, as five horses came down the hill, wearing clothing not commonly seen in the area.

"Who are the brave men ahead?" Tang Yifu asked from a distance, while raising his hands to show that he was not holding any weapons.

"This is the land of the Juchu tribe, who are you and what brings you here?" Juchu Hezhu grinned, seeing the full loads on their horses, he thought they must have brought a lot of goods! Could this be the gift from the Kunlun god?

"We come from Chang'an, we are merchants passing through, we have just arrived here and wish to buy some horses and food from your tribe!" Tang Yifu cautiously slowed his horse, his eyes fixed on the curved sword at Juchu Hezhu's waist.

"Of course, of course! The hospitable Juchu tribe loves merchants from afar! What goods do you have to trade?" Juchu Hezhu spurred his horse forward while quietly telling his men, "They are few in number, let's surround them and take their goods and horses!"

When they encountered a large group of travelers, they would avoid them, but when they encountered a small group, they would rob them. This was almost a common practice among the Xiongnu tribes. The men, thinking of the rich rewards soon to be theirs, could hardly contain their laughter as they slowly spread out and surrounded Tang Yifu and his group from three directions.

Tang Yifu and his group had intended to trade peacefully, but they did not expect such a hostile stance! They immediately turned and fled! Juchu Hezhu whipped his horse fiercely, and his steed, neighing in distress, shot forward like an arrow. The men with goods on their horses would definitely not be able to outrun them!

As the distance between them grew shorter, just one more hill to cross and they would catch these merchants! The silk, cloth, and tea of the Han were all good things! But they would soon be his!

Juchu Hezhu was grinning from ear to ear, he spurred his horse up the hill, but his smile froze as he saw over a hundred soldiers with swords and spears standing quietly behind the hill! Leading them was a tall, muscular man with a large axe.

"Damn fools! Want to do business properly, but you insist on coming to die!" Li You spat, he had seen everything from behind the hill. When he saw Juchu Hezhu spur his horse to chase them, he knew a battle was inevitable!

At this moment, the other men also climbed the hill and, like Juchu Hezhu, were stunned by the sight of the Han soldiers! They thought they were going to rob a few sheep, but instead, they had walked into a wolf's den.