White snow adorns the green peaks, silver-clad jade supporting scattered pearls.
Between heaven and earth, a vast expanse of white, amidst the wailing north wind, flakes of snow flutter down from the sky, landing on branches, on city walls, in the open fields, dyeing everything in sight a pure white. In the harsh, cold northern lands, blizzards are commonplace, and even before winter truly sets in, the north is already a world of ice and snow.
The further north one goes, the more so it becomes.
"Deputy General Ji Duoer, how many more li until we can rest our horses?"
The north wind howled like knives, cutting at everyone's bodies, and the swirling snow transformed Zhou Fugui and the thousand odd convicts into "white men."
Snowflakes landed on Zhou Fugui's face, eyebrows, and beard, making him look like an old man with white hair and a beard.
The snow on the ground was already knee-deep, making it exceptionally difficult for Zhou Fugui and the others to walk, their steps crunching loudly on the snow with each labored stride.
At this point, even with horses, they could only lead them.
Zhou Fugui, holding a horse by its reins, lifted the ear flaps of his fur hat and asked Ji Duoer.
The effort required to move forward made Zhou Fugui feel hot and incredibly weary, wishing only to reach their resting place and rest.
"Vice General Zhou, it's better to put the ear flaps of your fur hat down, or you won't know if your ears fall off," Ji Duoer said with a smile to Zhou Fugui.
Deputy General Ji Duoer was also a man of hardship, as such arduous tasks often fell to him. He was also very experienced in dealing with such severe weather.
Zhou Fugui quickly lowered the ear flaps, covering his ears completely.
In reality, ears were not the biggest concern; what truly bothered Zhou Fugui and the others was relieving themselves. If one were to unzip their pants to urinate or defecate, their crucial parts might freeze. The northern cold was such that water turned to ice.
Therefore, along the way, Zhou Fugui and the others tried to eat and drink as little as possible, and to hold it in for as long as they could.
"Soon, in another ten li, we will reach Xiao Family Village. Xiao Family Village has a government post station," Ji Duoer then said to Zhou Fugui.
"Ten li?" Zhou Fugui smiled wryly. "Deputy General Ji Duoer, to be honest, the roads in the north are difficult. I was somewhat prepared for this, but I never expected it to be so arduous. This journey feels like walking through the gates of hell."
"Heh heh, gates of hell?" Ji Duoer shook his head and said, "We are far from the gates of hell. The north is often cold, its ice piled up like mountains, with layers of ice stretching for miles, hundreds of feet thick. Fall in, and not a single bone will remain."
"Oh my heavens!" Xu Mancang, walking alongside Zhou Fugui, cried out in dismay.
"Alas, as the saying goes, the roads of Shu are difficult, more difficult than climbing to heaven. But compared to this, the roads of Shu are like a broad avenue," Zhou Fugui sighed.
"Oh? Vice General Zhou has been to the Sichuan region?" Ji Duoer turned and asked Zhou Fugui.
"Of course I have been..." Zhou Fugui nodded.
"Brother Fugui is just boasting, perhaps he went in his dreams?" Xu Mancang shook his head, disbelieving, and flicked snow off his face.
The others also looked as if they wouldn't believe him no matter what.
The Sichuan region was not a territory of the Great Yan Kingdom, but was occupied by Chen and Qin. Furthermore, Xu Mancang and the others were from the same hometown as Zhou Fugui, knowing him well, and had never heard of him having been to Sichuan.
"I'm boasting? Went in my dreams?" Zhou Fugui glared at Xu Mancang and said, "The roads of Shu are difficult, more difficult than climbing to heaven, but they couldn't stop my steps. I've been to many places in Sichuan, like Chengdu, uh... it should be Yizhou, Qingcheng Mountain and Emei Mountain in Yizhou, and so on. Golden pools, fertile lands stretching for thousands of miles, the land of abundance. The land of abundance is a place where outstanding people and rare treasures are born, and its produce is abundant, especially Shu brocade, Shu embroidery, and medicinal herbs, all of which are renowned. Unlike this barren land here!"
"General Zhou must be quoting from books, right?" Li Qing said with a smile.
"Hahahaha!" Everyone burst into laughter, still not believing that Zhou Fugui had ever been to the land of abundance.
However, Zhou Fugui's eloquent boasting here did alleviate some of the travel fatigue, and everyone's spirits seemed to improve.
"Barren land?" Ji Duoer was also drawn into the conversation by their banter and said enthusiastically, "It is cold here, yes, but the produce is not bad either. Ginseng, sable, pearls, sturgeon, honey, pine nuts, gyrfalcon, etc. West of Xuelin City is a vast grassland, with herds of cattle and sheep, as well as wolves, bears, foxes, leopards, wild goats, wild rabbits, elk, and so on..."
"Bears and wolves are also produce? Things that eat people?" Suo Dacheng said with a laugh.
When Zhou Fugui first met Ji Duoer, he thought he was another villain like Albogu and planned how to get rid of him... In fact, Ji Duoer was a decent person and had taken good care of Zhou Fugui and the others along the way. After they became familiar with each other, they chatted and laughed.
"Screeech!"
Speak of the devil, as they were talking and walking, a sable suddenly appeared from nowhere. A completely white sable, wagging its bushy tail, stood on the snow, its ruby-like eyes staring at Zhou Fugui and the others with curiosity and vigilance.
"A sable?" Hong Wei whispered excitedly to Zhou Fugui, "Camp leader, you are a good archer, shoot it for us to eat."
"Cannot kill, cannot kill," Ji Duoer said, his face pale with fright. "Sables are divine beasts. If we kill one, we might anger the mountain spirit, and we will be in danger."
"Divine beast?" Zhou Fugui didn't believe a sable was a divine beast. However, this little creature did look very cute, and it seemed a pity to kill it. So Zhou Fugui, who had already taken out his bow and arrow, put them back on his back. He then patted Hong Wei and cursed with a laugh, "This little thing doesn't have much meat. Are you starving? But if we caught it... keeping it as a pet wouldn't be bad."
"You can't kill it and you can't catch it. Did it do anything to you?" Ji Duoer said angrily to Zhou Fugui.
"Oh, I won't catch it, so why are you so agitated?" Zhou Fugui muttered, "Are all the wild beasts in these mountains divine beasts?"
So, no one bothered the sable anymore and continued to move forward, walking past it. Startled, the sable let out a "screeech" and darted up a pine tree. It stood on a branch, baring its teeth at Zhou Fugui and letting out "squeaking" sounds.
Zhou Fugui found it amusing. His childlike heart was stirred, and he broke off the arrowhead of an arrow, nocked it, and drew his bow as if embracing the full moon. He shot the arrow, and the featherless arrow knocked the sable down from the tree.
"Hah, little brat, let's see you show off!" Zhou Fugui laughed triumphantly.
"Hahahaha!" Everyone laughed heartily.
The laughter of over five hundred people shook the snow off the branches, causing it to fall in a flurry.
"Rumble! Rumble! Rumble!"
Suddenly, a series of loud noises echoed from afar, startling everyone into turning their heads. In the misty distance, white, layered masses of snow roared down the mountainside like a white snow dragon, unstoppable and swallowing everything in its path, filling them with terror.
"Avalanche! Avalanche!" Ji Duoer shouted in despair. "The mountain spirit is angry! Run, run! Run to the sides, hide behind the rocks!"
After saying this, Ji Duoer glared fiercely at Zhou Fugui.
...
"Vice General Zhou, what can I say about you? I told you sables are divine beasts and should not be offended, yet you..." Ji Duoer said grumpily to Zhou Fugui as they approached Xiao Family Village.
Serves you right! You wanted to show off your archery skills, and now you've nearly caused the entire army to be annihilated. You said the sable was showing off; it was you who was showing off, everyone grumbled in their hearts, including Hong Wei...
No one expected that a burst of laughter would trigger an avalanche. The snow roared down, almost burying the convicts in the wilderness. Fortunately, they ran fast and hid well, and the avalanche was some distance away, so no one died, only a dozen or so were injured. However, it caused the convicts to lose their armor and weapons, appearing disheveled, exhausted, and demoralized.
And the culprit behind it all was Zhou Fugui, which greatly diminished his image in the eyes of the convicts.
What kind of cursed place is this? Zhou Fugui, dejected, was speechless and dared not reply, muttering to himself, "Such treacherous mountains and dangerous waters. With an unintentional playful act, I actually triggered an avalanche? I almost got buried in the snow myself."
If that had happened, it would have been a premature death before achieving anything, perhaps even more unjustly than Zhuge Liang...
"Deputy General Ji Duoer, Xiao Family Village has been reached!" At this moment, one of Ji Duoer's subordinates galloped over to report.
As they neared Xiao Family Village, the road became flatter, and the snow cover lessened, allowing them to ride horses again.
Zhou Fugui looked up and saw Xiao Family Village, resembling a fortress, standing between heaven and earth.
Xiao Family Village was built of stones, with uneven ramparts and embrasures for shooting arrows. The gate frame, lintel, and threshold were all made of quarried stones, neatly dressed and adorned with some carvings.
As dusk approached, many torches were lit on the ramparts. In the firelight, figures could be vaguely seen patrolling the walls, whether they were Yan soldiers or the village's own militia was unclear.
Although the Great Yan Kingdom controlled a large swathe of land south of Xuelin City, bandits, horse thieves, mountain bandits, and roving rebels were rampant, not to mention incursions by nomadic tribes like the Xiongnu. Therefore, places where people gathered, such as villages and towns, were generally built like fortresses and guarded by Yan troops or local militia.
"Vice General Zhou, do not meddle in others' affairs, and do not cause trouble," Ji Duoer reminded Zhou Fugui as he led the convicts towards Xiao Family Village.
"Am I the kind of person who meddles in others' affairs?" Zhou Fugui muttered.
"Yes!" Mancang, Suo Dacheng, Pan Guigui, Li Qing, Yi Jisheng, Yang Xinhong, Wu Tianqi, Hu Yuan, Wei Liang, Wei Xiazi, Chen Kunkun, Hong Wei, Hu Tieniu, and others said in unison.