Chapter 978: The Proud Chengqie

Chengqie turned his head away, signaling that he did not support or feel satisfied with any of this.

Baoxi was not willing to manage him too much either; in any case, he only needed to let him take one look at Huaxia, and all his problems would be cured. By then, he would likely be scrambling and fighting to go to Huaxia.

"Huangpin, I am going to assign you another task."

Huangpin hurriedly collected his thoughts and said respectfully to Baoxi, "Tribal Chief, please speak; I will certainly get it done."

"You are to take all the women of my tribe, as well as the children who can be confirmed as mine, and compile a list of them, then hand them over to Ping. He will make proper arrangements."

That Huaxia official named Ping nodded slightly at Huangpin. Although Huangpin was displeased, he had no choice but to force a smile at Ping. How could Huangpin not know that these people were here on behalf of the Suiren clan to divide his power? It was just that they were not yet familiar with the Suiren clan and had no control over the leaders below; otherwise, he reckoned he would have already been replaced by now.

Baoxi sensed that Huangpin might be overthinking things, so he comforted him again: "Huangpin, you don't need to overthink. What is yours will remain yours. They are just here to get some training. Their lives in Huaxia are much better than yours, and besides, they aren't considered important leaders in Huaxia at all."

"This time, they will likely only be here for a year or two, maybe three, and then they will return to Huaxia. They won't—and likely wouldn't want to—stay here. Ping and these others are mainly here to teach you how to manage the tribe, teach you to read, teach you arithmetic, and then select some of the better tribespeople to go to Huaxia to study."

"You are a man of merit in our Suiren clan; no matter what it is, there will be a share for you."

Huangpin had no choice but to offer a sheepish smile at Baoxi again, but until everything was clear, Huangpin would not believe anything. The Tribal Chief had gone to Huaxia twice, and both times after returning, he had changed drastically, becoming unlike the person he once was.

Last time, he hadn't even entered the gates of Huaxia, yet he nearly died upon returning, and then his temperament changed completely. This time, his body seemed even better, and his personality hadn't changed, but it felt as if he had been completely replaced from the inside out; the things he did and the things he said left people feeling baffled.

Subsequently, Baoxi introduced these people from Huaxia one by one. Huangpin couldn't even remember their names, while Chengqie watched with cold eyes, giving the impression that he would love to kill this group of Huaxia people. This also caused the group, who had just arrived in Huaxia, to feel an invisible pressure.

After a brief rest, the Huaxia group began to set up camp around Baoxi's residence, and Chengqie was also strictly kept by Baoxi's side, because Baoxi felt that if he let Chengqie be, he might really stir up some trouble. He had to send him to Huaxia as soon as possible to broaden his horizons.

He also ordered his Soldiers to quickly investigate those leaders who were close to Chengqie. In the end, even if he didn't kill them, he had to strip them of their power and give them a warning, lest they develop any untoward ideas.

The group quickly set up their Tents, and then, under Baoxi's gaze, Ping wrote a message on a small slip of paper, attached it to a pigeon's leg, and repeated the same process seven times.

Baoxi asked in confusion: "Why release so many? Isn't it said that pigeons can find their own way home? One should be enough, right?"

Ping reached out to release the pigeons one by one and explained to Baoxi: "There are too many birds of prey in the sky, and pigeons don't have much ability; they are easily snatched away. So, in order to ensure the message is delivered successfully, we can only release more pigeons. At least one of them will be able to deliver it."

Baoxi nodded: "Ah, well said, that must be the case. Are there enough pigeons? If not, I will have the Soldiers go catch some more."

Ping hurriedly refused: "That won't be necessary. The pigeons we brought this time are enough to send messages two more times. Besides, not just any pigeon will do; these pigeons were bred in our Huaxia for many years to be capable."

"In the future, if we don't have enough pigeons, we can just ask for them from Huaxia City. Huaxia City is not short of them at all; we would just have to walk a bit more. Also, you must have people look after these pigeons well; don't let foxes or anything eat them."

"Furthermore, you must keep your tribespeople in check; don't let them eat the pigeons. A similar incident happened in Huaxia before; a tribe that didn't understand the situation stole and ate many of our pigeons, which nearly caused us to be unable to send messages, and those people were severely punished."

"Good, that's no problem. I will send people to look after and take care of these pigeons properly; I will absolutely not let them steal and eat the pigeons."

Ping continued: "City Lord Baoxi, you should take a look now at who should be sent over. Choose the people early; once these pigeons are sent out, the Huaxia side will start preparing as well. We cannot let Huaxia City wait in vain and waste time."

Baoxi patted his chest: "I have already thought about this; I will arrange it immediately. Besides, there is nothing here to pack or bring; just let them bring some food. In any case, the things they have are of no use in Huaxia."

"Good, City Lord Baoxi, all of this will be left for you to arrange. We will be responsible for statistics and grouping. As for the numbers, the figure currently given by our Huaxia City is between twenty-seven thousand and thirty thousand. It can be a little less, but it is best not to exceed thirty thousand; if it exceeds thirty thousand, the pressure on that side will be too great, and the food supply won't keep up."

"Furthermore, according to the requirements, we need men, women, old, and young; it doesn't have to be only able-bodied laborers."

Baoxi said with a smile: "The King has already told me this; I am very clear on it. You all get a good rest tonight, and tomorrow you can just go to work as usual."

Ping bowed to Baoxi: "Very well, City Lord Baoxi should also rest early."

"Mm-hmm."

While Baoxi was chatting with the Huaxia officials, Chengqie was unwillingly held nearby to listen to the whole thing, but he just watched coldly from the sidelines, unwilling to say a single word. He saw that these Huaxia officials had limited respect for his father, so he became increasingly dissatisfied.

Chengqie's hands were still tied, yet he didn't utter a single word of complaint. After Baoxi glanced at him, he said to him: "Come, let the two of us have a good talk."

Chengqie held his head high and followed behind his father into that pitch-black room. Even the walls of the room were covered in thick animal hides, so it was relatively clean and not as filthy as one might expect. However, Baoxi, who was used to living in bright and spacious houses, already did not want to enter this room. He was now very much looking forward to his big house being completed soon.