0p0 Chapter 139 Foreign Enemies
Chapter 139 Foreign Enemies
Ning Xiaoxi rode on the back of a reindeer, watching Xiong Wei lead his team away. She was very satisfied with this chance encounter with Xiong Wei and the deepening of their relationship.
After a brief period of commotion, Ning Xiaoxi was left alone on her journey again.
Sitting on the reindeer's back, she was a little dazed, bobbing her head. Now that Xiong Wei had confirmed her parents and brothers had safely arrived in Fufang County, she could finally relax and take her time on the journey. Given that they hadn't yet received the king's pardon, the Ning family would likely have to stay on the border.
She took out the simple map that Xiong Wei had just drawn for her and looked at it. If she traveled at a normal speed from here to Fufang County, it would take about thirteen to fifteen days. If she rode a reindeer at full speed, it would take about three days.
The northern lands are bitterly cold, and survival is difficult for ordinary people. There are few towns in the northern territory, and along this route, the only large-scale town is the strategically important city of Beixiao. The geographical location of Beixiao is quite peculiar. Originally, Beixiao was the northern border of the Great Xia Dynasty. Later, the King of Youzhou led his troops out of the pass and directly expanded the border line five hundred miles north, building ten border towns.
Originally, Beixiao City was the largest city in the northern border. Later, Youdu City, where the King of Youzhou was stationed, became the largest city, and Beixiao City's position became awkward. To the west of Beixiao City is a mountain range stretching for over a thousand miles, with numerous peaks, some reaching tens of thousands of feet high. Thirty miles to the east lies the coast of the East Sea. This East Sea is quite magical; while the coast is covered in ice and snow, the sea itself is turbulent. No matter how cold the weather is on the shore, the sea never freezes.
The city of Beixiao was built between towering mountains and a continuous coastline, its importance self-evident. However, the King of Youzhou was not here, leaving only 100,000 troops stationed here.
The five hundred li of land between Beixiao City and Youdu City, while fertile, could only yield one harvest a year at most, not even enough to feed the population and army of ten border counties. Grain and fodder had to be transported from the interior. This was not only time-consuming and laborious but also increased the burden on the dynasty. However, this five hundred li was, after all, the dynasty's territory, and the king could not abandon it.
In truth, Ning Xiaoxi never quite understood what the King of Youzhou was guarding on the border, or who the enemy was.
When her father talked about the border of Youzhou, he was very excited. But who were the enemies there?
【Tuanzi!】 Ning Xiaoxi called out subconsciously.
no respond.
Ning Xiaoxi slapped her forehead, realizing she'd forgotten, and said, "[Turn on!]"
[System booting up...]
Tuanzi poked its head out with a silly grin. "Xiaoxi, what's wrong?"
Ning Xiaoxi's eyes darted around. [Tianji told me he received news that my parents and brother have all arrived safely in Fufang County.]
Yes, they're safer without you around.
Ning Xiaoxi was speechless for a moment. [Mainly because that Xiong Wei seemed more reliable.]
The Bear family was also a renowned military family in the North, known for its bravery and prowess.
Ning Xiaoxi nodded, seemingly having no memory of encountering Xiong Wei before. [Tuanzi, with the King of Youzhou guarding the border, who are the enemies outside?]
No record found.
Ning Xiaoxi felt a surge of blood rushing to her head, and she was too exhausted to even complain.
Your system is only responsible for slaying demons and monsters. If the area outside the border is not inhabited by demons or monsters, then naturally there will be no record of it.
[No way? There are foreign tribes here? Didn't the human race only have one dynasty, the Xia Dynasty?]
Strictly speaking, even non-Chinese races can be considered foreign.
[Are those foreign races beyond that border? Aren't they supposed to be under the rule of the dynasty? Even if they don't submit, they shouldn't be hostile, right?] On second thought, the Tushan and Kuafu tribes were forced into seclusion for a hundred years because their seals were broken. Over time, conflicts have accumulated, and it's not impossible for them to rebel! Besides, I remember Di Jie mentioning the remaining foreign races, which means that the foreign races within the Great Xia territory now are not the same as the original ones.
[Dumplings, from another race...]
[There are no records of anything about the alien races.] Tuanzi interrupted Ning Xiaoxi before she could finish speaking.
Ning Xiaoxi grabbed the jade cabbage and rubbed it vigorously. She really wanted to turn the little dumpling off again!
After taking a few deep breaths, Ning Xiaoxi calmed her fluctuating emotions and stopped paying attention to Tuanzi, afraid of upsetting herself.
Just then, she suddenly noticed a series of strange footprints ahead. These footprints were much larger than hers and had an odd shape, unlike those left by ordinary people. Startled, she became alert. She had actually been following the cart tracks and hoofprints left by the caravan led by Xiong Wei, but as she walked, she seemed to have strayed from the path. However, as long as the general direction was north, she didn't try to correct the reindeer's course.
The sudden appearance of these footprints is strange. It's just a series of footprints. Could it be that someone else is traveling alone like her? That seems unlikely!
Curiosity still drove her to follow the direction of the footprints.
After walking for a while, she saw a huge figure in the snow in the distance, sitting there motionless, looking like a person who had been frozen stiff.
Ning Xiaoxi jumped down from the reindeer's back and cautiously approached. She found a burly man dressed in animal skins, his hair and beard haphazardly obscuring his face, his eyes tightly closed, and a strange aura emanating from him. It wasn't simply the aura of a human; it seemed to contain some demonic energy? Or perhaps a malevolent aura? Yet it didn't quite resemble any of them; the aura was mixed and chaotic.
He didn't have a complete spiritual meridian, yet his physique was very strong. In such cold air, his exposed skin wasn't frozen stiff; rather, it looked like it was dormant during hibernation.
Ning Xiaoxi hesitated for a moment, then reached out to check the big man's breath and found that he was still breathing faintly.
"Could it really be hibernating? But humans don't have the habit of hibernating! That's a habit of polar animals." Ning Xiaoxi thought to herself, then turned around, picked up the reindeer, and prepared to leave.
After taking only a few steps, Ning Xiaoxi stopped again. The big man looked human no matter how she looked at him. In this freezing weather, if she left him alone, he would freeze to death, wouldn't he? She sighed helplessly. No matter what, she couldn't bear to watch him die.
Turning back, she began to try to wake the big man in her own way. First, she rubbed his bare arms with snow to improve blood circulation. Once his skin began to turn red, she took out the remaining hot mulberry sap from her bosom and fed it to him little by little.
With her efforts, the big man gradually began to move.
Ning Xiaoxi quietly took a few steps back, creating a safe distance between herself and the big man, adding two layers of defensive shields to herself. Although, her own life was still the most important thing.
Like a wild beast disturbed from hibernation, the burly man suddenly opened his blood-red eyes and pounced towards Ning Xiaoxi.