Chapter 1500: They Have All Returned

Lu led the soldiers home, and at the same time, brought back the entire Jiang Cheng Tribe. Fortunately, this had already been mentioned in previous letters; otherwise, having to make arrangements for so many people on short notice would have been another great trouble for Huaxia.

As a Tribal Chief who had surrendered, Jiang Cheng still received preferential treatment. Of course, this was inseparable from his status; he would still be of great use for future attacks on the Shennong Clan, and even in the short term, he could play a role in stabilizing his tribesmen.

Furthermore, judging from the descriptions by Lu and Xiong, Jiang Cheng possessed a certain level of ability in commanding troops in battle, and the fact that he could arrange for women to be sent to the battlefield also showed that he was decisive, making him suitable to be a general.

Therefore, after considering many factors, Baifeng gave Jiang Cheng an opportunity to go to school for further study. If he could pass his studies, he would then be arranged to train in the military camp, after which the steps of being a grassroots soldier could be skipped, allowing him to become an officer. This was because he had an advantage over most Huaxia soldiers: he had commanded large-scale battles, and his ability was quite significant. If their weapons and equipment had been better, Huaxia might not have necessarily won, or at the very least, it would have been a pyrrhic victory.

The tribesmen of the Jiang Cheng Tribe had already left their homeland, and they were not at all picky about their living environment or location, as long as they were given a place where they could survive.

Moreover, as soon as they arrived, they saw the prosperity of Huaxia City, and they liked Huaxia even more; there was no resistance in their hearts at all, especially since they had heard that the King of Huaxia was a wise and intelligent person, completely different from the contemporary Shennong.

The arrangements for these people were naturally handled by Lema City. Lema City had enough land for them to live on. Although there were no houses and they had to clear the land themselves, because of the massive expansion of Lema City, the roads had already been built to be very smooth, and as far as the eye could see, there were other villages and farmland, which was very safe.

Those people were divided into more than ten villages to settle down. This winter, they could only be allowed to live in shacks first, and then they would be provided with food to let them survive this winter.

When the weather was more suitable, grassroots officials would take them with tools to build roads, and then they would fell trees to prepare for the construction of their houses next year.

Even if doing this in winter was very difficult, they still had to be made to work. If they did nothing all winter and just ate, it would breed laziness in them; they should be made to work in such a harsh environment first.

According to the reports from Lu, the possibility of a final great war with the Shennong Clan next year was very high, but the goal was also very clear: as long as they attacked Changyang Mountain and captured Shennong, this war would be won. Without Shennong's jurisdiction, those tribes that were already disloyal would certainly have no ability to resist. The only thing to guard against was the current greatest armed combat force of the Shennong Clan, the Xingtian Tribe.

The land exchange with the Xuanyuan Tribe this year was basically completed. Because the conversion had already been finished, Huaxia only needed to set up markers belonging to Huaxia at the border, and the Xuanyuan Tribe would not be able to enter again.

As for the large population that might be acquired next year, Baifeng already had ideas for how to handle them. It just so happened that Weicheng already had a prototype, so when the time came, he would have those people escorted to Weicheng to let them clear land and live there, and while obtaining food, they could also become the foremost line of defense for Huaxia.

Baifeng also planned to go to the Xuanyuan Tribe again in the spring; he still had some matters to discuss with Xuanyuan in person. If, after calculations, it was determined that the war to exterminate the Shennong Clan could be completed next year, Baifeng was also prepared to go to the front line to command himself.

He also wanted to see the outside world. It was said that he had come out of the wilderness, and he did not let the children go out to see the outside, but in reality, he had been to fewer places than Changle. Because he was too important to Huaxia, he could not go out and was restricted to Huaxia City.

Now that it had reached a time like this, which would determine the future fate of a tribe, Baifeng decided that he still had to go in person to see if, after Xingtian was killed and his head buried under the mountain, his body would grow eyes and a mouth, and if he would seek revenge on Xuanyuan every day. Such thoughts and feelings should be very peculiar, and Baifeng felt that he could not resist such temptation and curiosity.

Another point was the planning after wiping out the Shennong Clan; Huaxia and the Xuanyuan Tribe still needed to reach a consensus as much as possible. Everyone was developing and needed to develop well; the Xuanyuan Tribe needed to digest the vast territory of the Shennong Clan.

On the surface, Huaxia was attacking the northwest and seizing territory, but in secret, it also needed to properly digest and develop the territory of the Suiren Clan. Without seven or eight years, it was impossible to develop anything. This should also be Xuanyuan's demand; it was best for everyone to live in peace, and there was no rush to fight to the death until their strength was fully accumulated.

For a year, Xiao Town had been cold and quiet, peaceful and calm, with no changes. For such a place, no change was a good change; there was no need for any special disputes to arise, just develop well.

The farmland already had output, although the yield was low, the water source was relatively stable, and the livestock were also developing very steadily. The collection and purification of saltpeter were also exceptionally smooth, and because it was right at the source, the summer in Xiao Town was very comfortable, as every household could afford to use ice. By placing a large block of ice in the room, it would be cool all day long.

It was just a pity that they had not yet learned to utilize air pressure differences, otherwise they could have directly made an ice air conditioner. After all, Asan knew how to make grass air conditioners.

In addition to being able to provide a steady stream of saltpeter to Huaxia, Xiao Town also had various poisonous insects, all of which could be used as medicine. Massive trapping meant that not a single one could be found in the area where they lived, and one had to go to a relatively far place to find them. This could be considered as creating income while also solving a major safety hazard.

Another point was the smelting of copper. Xiao Town had discovered a layer of copper ore that was not large, but the copper content was extremely high. Transporting it from Xiao Town to Huaxia was a bit too troublesome, so a high-temperature copper smelting furnace was built directly on the wasteland of Xiao Town. They mined and smelted it locally, sent the finished copper ingots to Huaxia City, and finally, the finished products were sent back to Xiao Town.

It was also because of this contribution from Xiao Town that the supply ratio of copper and iron products for Xiao Town was the highest; this was what they deserved.