Chapter 1607: Bestowed Marriage?

"Tribal Chief, what about the others?"

Xingtian said without hesitation: "Leave them behind, let them come back on their own. If they can make it back, they make it back; if they can't, let them find their own way."

"We don't have enough food, and there aren't many Soldiers left. If we can get back sooner, we can still unite with other tribes to resist; there is still hope."

"If we take them with us, not only will we have no food to eat, but we will also move slowly; they are all burdens. When the time comes, none of us will be able to return, and the Shennong Clan will likely truly be wiped out by the Huaxia and the Xuanyuan Tribe."

Since the Tribal Chief had said so, how could those Soldiers not understand the severity of the current situation? Thus, they immediately executed the order; all the Soldiers took whatever supplies they could carry and left without looking back.

As for those wounded Soldiers, those who could walk left, and those who could not were simply left where they were. They understood that for them, staying behind meant either death or being captured as a Slave; in any case, there would certainly be no good end.

The women were leaderless and did not know what to do. There was no food, no Weapon, and no one to organize them. The only thing Xingtian threw at them was a single sentence: try your best to walk back on your own.

It was so late, what could they do? They had no choice but to tidy up the camp where they were, see if they could collect any more left-behind food, and then leave first thing tomorrow morning; they would go as far as they could.

Even if they couldn't escape, it didn't matter. Women had always been property; if they were captured, it would be nothing more than changing to another tribe to survive, as long as they could still labor and bear children.

And those Slaves were also extremely excited, because this meant that they were free; no one was controlling them anymore. Some Slaves who were originally from the same tribe contacted each other, then invited other familiar Slaves, picked up some Weapons from the piles of dead bodies, and headed in another direction. They also took some women away, though it was forced; those women were not willing to follow some Slaves, as there was no future in it.

Those Slaves were originally people of the Shennong Tribe. They were still living on their own land now, so they didn't have too many worries. They felt that tribes as large as the Huaxia and the Xuanyuan Tribe shouldn't notice this small group of theirs and would definitely go straight to Changyang Mountain. As long as they were given a few years, they would still have a chance to multiply into a small tribe. As long as they stayed far away from Changyang Mountain, they wouldn't have to worry; the world was so big, how could they possibly be found?

That night, the people who went to meet Shaoyin also waited for people at the location where the rafts were launched. Seeing Shaoyin was naturally exciting; this meant they had succeeded, and most of the Soldiers had also returned, bringing back a lot of food. In any case, it was enough for the people here to eat for a few days.

The food was not easy to carry, so it was left on the shore. It was impossible for anyone to come back here because it was the rear of the Huaxia camp. As for the rafts, they were all dragged onto the shore; although they didn't know if they would be used in the future, they couldn't be wasted, so they were kept if possible.

When Shaoyin returned to the camp, he was already exhausted, but he still had to see Baifeng first to report the battle results.

Seeing Shaoyin return, Baifeng was beaming with joy, and Xuanyuan was also quite happy; this was a great thing.

Shaoyin told Baifeng and Xuanyuan about the situation they encountered and his method of handling it. Baifeng expressed praise for this; Shaoyin's handling method was timely and clever.

Afterwards, Baifeng patted Shaoyin on the shoulder and said: "Shaoyin, this time, you have made a great contribution. In this great battle, even if you are not the top contributor, your contribution will not be small. Commanding properly and reacting alertly—this is the kind of good general I want. As for other rewards, when we return to Huaxia, I will naturally reward you according to your merits. This time, in view of your command ability and combat ability, I am promoting you to Brigade commander during wartime, allowing you to better command troops and exert greater effect."

Shaoyin's eyes lit up instantly. Sure enough, only war was the fastest way for him to rise. A great battle—although he almost died on the Boshui—but he was promoted two levels in a row, and after returning to Huaxia, there would be other rewards. All of this was worth it. In the entire Huaxia, where else was there a young Brigade commander like him?

If it were normal times, he would have been promoted two levels in a row like this, and let alone others, even he himself would not have been able to accept it, because he believed he had no merit and could not accept it. But this time, it was something he fought for with his life, so he could naturally accept it and feel it was well-deserved. Others could not possibly say a word of gossip, because they all knew his ability and contribution.

Xuanyuan then had Yinglong apologize to Shaoyin, because it was Yinglong's negligence that caused Shaoyin to be in danger. Yinglong also felt a bit guilty and apologized very straightforwardly. Shaoyin didn't know what to say, because given the situation at the time, if he were Yinglong, he was afraid there would be no better way either.

Xuanyuan also gave Shaoyin a commendation: "Shaoyin, this time, you have made a great contribution. Although you are not a Soldier of my Xuanyuan Tribe, our two tribes are currently allied, so your contribution is also a contribution to our Xuanyuan Tribe. Furthermore, this Yinglong almost harmed you, so I also want to give you a reward, as well as some compensation."

"How about this, after we go back, I will have someone send you some Silk and Tea Leaves. These are good things from our Xuanyuan Tribe that we can give to your Huaxia, and you will definitely like them. Furthermore, I have many daughters, all about the same age, without husbands; you pick one to be your wife."

Shaoyin waved his hands repeatedly: "Xuanyuan King, forget about this; I have a wife myself."

Xuanyuan was indifferent: "Men, what does it matter if there are more women? Could it be that you all have to learn from your King and only have two women?"

"If everyone is like Baifeng, who will bear children? Look at me, my sons and daughters together total several dozen, while Baifeng only has three children. I want to have my son marry his daughter, or marry my daughter to his son, but it's not possible."

"My Xuanyuan daughter is not just some ordinary woman; she is worthy of you. I am doing this because I see you are a talent and feel satisfied. Why do you want to refuse?"

Regarding this matter of marriage between the two tribes, Shaoyin really didn't know what to do. If he were a child from an ordinary family, it would be fine, but the problem was that his father was Xiong, and this matter would be troublesome. If he married a Xuanyuan daughter as his wife, he was afraid that many problems would arise. What if some secrets were leaked? What should he do?

"Shaoyin, I have agreed to this for you. Men, it's good to have more women. Xuanyuan's daughter must also be smart, and you are also smart; you will definitely be able to produce even smarter children."

"As for the other rewards, you should also accept them; there is no problem at all. I will also reward those who have made great contributions to the Xuanyuan Tribe."