Chapter 78: The Herdsmen Discuss Marriage

At this moment, every face in the crowd bloomed with brilliant smiles, so sincere they seemed like a sweet spring gushing from the depths of their hearts. Their excitement was boundless, endless, and could never be exhausted.

Compared to their lifeless state before, they now seemed reborn, brimming with vitality and filled with endless energy and passion.

Guo Jing was very happy, for he felt this was how people ought to be.

That night, after the meeting concluded, the herdsmen could not wait to take the documents from the Pastoral Reform Office to exchange for cattle and sheep. Once they received the livestock, they immediately drove them toward their homes.

As the herdsmen and their livestock departed, although five hundred soldiers remained here, the camp still looked somewhat empty.

Looking at the slightly empty encampment, Nie Huaishang half-joked, "Do you think those herdsmen might return home and then take their cattle and sheep to join another tribe?"

"No," Guo Jing said with firm conviction. "The reason is simple: they understand that other tribes always try to take things from them, such as cattle and sheep, their labor, or even their lives in battle to protect their safety."

"No one has ever thought about how to give them something rather than take something from them; they all understand this."

Nie Huaishang chuckled lightly. "I can't compare to you, great sage. My moral awareness as a despicable villain is far too low."

"However, despicable villains are often skilled in cunning schemes and sensitive to them. Recently, when I sent people to the markets opened by the Jin Chao to purchase supplies, I asked them to keep an eye on the Qiyen tribe members. Sure enough, there were many more Qiyen people there."

"So what?" Guo Jing asked, looking puzzled.

Nie Huaishang slapped his forehead helplessly. "Did you forget the Tatar tribe's rebellion against the Jin? The Tatars seized Jin people's treasures and were crushed by the Jin Chao's Han Chengxiang, Wanyan Xiang, leading an army. Temujin led his troops and, together with Wang Han, attacked the Tatar tribe."

Guo Jing suddenly realized. "Now that you mention it, I understand. When I saw the Tatar tribe rebel against the Jin, I was confused. The Tatars, backed by the Jin Chao, had offended all their western neighbors; there was no reason for them to rebel against the Jin. Your meaning is that Temujin was behind it."

Recalling that Temujin was the biggest beneficiary of this event, Guo Jing asked, "Then let us seize evidence against Temujin and expose his conspiracy."

Nie Huaishang spread his hands. "What good would exposing Temujin's conspiracy do for us? Don't forget that initially, Temujin merely distributing the plundered treasures to his subordinates already provoked dissatisfaction from other tribes. Our approach, in the eyes of other Tatar tribes, is the ultimate treason. If this continues, it is only a matter of time before people from other tribes unite to attack us."

"The Jin Chao and Temujin are drawing fire for us; we should be happy. When Temujin and the Jin Chao have utterly defeated the Tatars, we can swallow the entire Tatar tribe whole. After swallowing the Tatar tribe, we can hand the evidence over to the Jin people. Then the Jin army will have grounds to attack Temujin's Qiyen tribe and Wang Han's Kereit tribe. Temujin will no longer be able to use his status as a tribal official appointed by the Jin Chao to command the masses and issue orders to the noble families."

"Nie Huaisang, your intelligence is truly astonishing. No wonder your fans call you Director Nie," Guo Jing could not help but praise.

That night, the herdsmen drove their cattle and sheep back to their own yurts.

Haming's younger brother, Hashi, rushed excitedly toward the yurt, shouting, "Mother, come out quickly and look! Do you see what these are?"

Before dawn, Hashi's mother walked out of the yurt with a resentful expression, her scolding words still unspoken, when she saw the cattle and sheep Haming had driven back.

The scene before her delivered a massive shock. The elderly mother trembled as she asked, "Son, where did you get these cattle and sheep?"

"Mother, these were all issued by the Great Shaman. The Great Shaman's rule states that every herdsman can receive eight sheep and two cows. Since my older brother is a soldier shouldering the heavy responsibility of protecting everyone's lives and property, our family receives one and a half times the amount. Our family has been allocated sixty sheep and fifteen cows."

The huge surprise overwhelmed Hashi's mother's mind. Trembling all over, she kept murmuring, "Impossible, impossible. What does that Shaman Lord want from us? Even if our whole family died in a funeral sacrifice, we could not exchange for those cattle and sheep."

Seeing his mother's mind somewhat unbalanced, Haming immediately explained the reason: "Mother, the Great Shaman said the Eternal Heaven sent him a dream. The Eternal Heaven could not bear to see his subjects suffer abuse from the noble lords and live in poverty, so he released the slaves, abolished funeral sacrifices, and issued cattle and sheep to us."

"The Great Shaman also said he wants our lives to get better and better. He plans to open a night school in the tribe, first educating a portion of the people to eliminate illiteracy, and then educating the entire tribe."

Hearing this, Hashi's mother knelt devoutly toward the sky, crying out, "Eternal Heaven, have you finally seen the suffering your subjects endure and sent a true deity to save us?"

Seeing his old mother kneel to pray, Hashi hurriedly said:

"Mother, the Great Shaman established a rule long ago: no one in the tribe is allowed to kneel."

Hearing Hashi's words, Hashi's mother stood up immediately and said, "Since the Great Shaman said we should not kneel, then we will not kneel. Hashi, now that our family has so many cattle and sheep, and your brother is still studying as a soldier at the Shaman's place, it is time to go to another tribe to arrange a marriage for him."

"Alright!" Hashi finished speaking and excitedly drove the cattle and sheep back to their own cattle pen and sheep pen. Given their family's previous situation, forget about marrying a wife; even supporting themselves was difficult.

But now it was different. They had sixty sheep and fifteen cows. With such conditions, many Misses would be willing to marry in. Moreover, he had heard from his brother that the Great Shaman held him in high regard, took his opinions very seriously, and said he was the smartest among his students, able to learn many skills from the Great Shaman.

At that time, besides envy, he felt his older brother was truly amazing, not only bringing twenty more sheep and five more cows to the family but also making the Great Shaman value his opinions.

If he were as excellent as his brother, his goddess, the pearl in his heart, Heini, would inevitably fall in love with him. Thinking of this, Hashi's chest began to pound.

About two or three weeks later, soldiers in the tribe were approached one by one by their families to discuss marriage matters, making the soldiers extremely embarrassed. In the words of the Great Shaman, this was a critical moment for improving their personal comprehensive qualities; simply put, they were transforming from mediocre people into excellent ones.

At this critical moment where every second counted, how could they be delayed by matters of love? Guo Jing and Nie Huaishang naturally noticed this situation. While eating with the soldiers, Guo Jing jokingly added, "I heard recently that your families have discussed marriage matters with you, yet neither I nor Shaman Nie have received a single invitation."

Nie Huaishang, standing nearby, chimed in, "Yes, recently I have taught diligently and wholeheartedly, yet you haven't even invited us to your wedding wine. That is too unkind."

The soldiers who were eating scratched their heads and said awkwardly, "It is not that we don't invite you; we just feel this is a critical moment for training and studying and do not want to delay."

"Your thinking is incorrect. Marriage when a man reaches the proper age is natural and reasonable. However, if you all get married suddenly, the tribe's logistics will be a bit worrying. How about this: hold your wedding ceremonies here. Five hundred people will have their weddings over three days. You can take turns standing guard for your comrades-in-arms, how about that?"

After speaking, Nie Huaishang pondered, "When the time comes, make the weddings lively and festive. Ideally, the entire tribe should attend. Meanwhile, the two of us can also officiate your weddings and write some congratulatory verses."