Kumbha's youngest son, Tamir, was grazing Centurion's pony beside the camp with other children. When he saw his father returning, he hurried over.
The child had been smart since he was a child, and Kunbuha loved him very much. In the past two days, when Tamir helped the centurion mount his horse, he accidentally got the feet of the centurion's robe stained with mud. He was whipped for a while, and now his bare back was covered in blood. There were whip marks, and a piece of skin was even lifted off by the riding crop. Kunbuha rushed to protect his child, but was whipped several times.
Because of this, Tamir was frightened and cowered a little. He also curled up in front of his father and hid in the doorway, like a frightened squirrel who saw everyone as a terrifying natural enemy.
"You didn't tell anyone what we saw that day, right?" Kunbuha asked.
His voice was already very gentle, but Tamir was still surprised and kept saying: "No! No!"
"That's good! You follow me, together..."
At this point, Kunbuha suddenly changed his mind: "No, you should stay here and wait for my return with peace of mind!"
Coming out of the tent, Kunbuha quickly arrived at Abul's tent.
Abel was holding a wine skin and lying among the piled skins, completely drunk.
Genghis Khan hated the spread of alcohol in the army. He issued orders to abstain from alcohol more than once, saying that drunk people would become blind, deaf and mute. He also required alcoholics not to hold military positions above ten captains. However, Mongolians are naturally addicted to alcohol and cannot change it. In the past two years, ordinary Mongolians have not only enjoyed the original kumiss, but also like to exchange any money and supplies they have for good wine to drink.
Kunbuha smiled bitterly and remembered that because his youngest son made a mistake, Abul conveyed the centurion's intention and punished Kunbuha with a sheep. But the centurion himself soon forgot about it, so Abel exchanged the punished sheep for a large bag of wine from the centurion, which is what he drinks now.
Kunbuha bent down low and shouted several times in a long voice.
After a while, Abul squinted his eyes and recognized Kumbha's skinny figure wrapped in fur.
At that time, he was one line away from the Centurion, and his troops were no worse than Naminfu. However, since his arm was broken, most of the old troops defected to Naminfu and followed him on the Western Expedition.
The new centurion looked down on a useless person like him. Except for a few old cronies, the people assigned to him were all old, weak, sick and disabled, and they were worthy of a useless person like him. Among these people, Kunbuha is still somewhat discerning and can do something for him.
At that moment, Abel shouted in a rough voice: "You old guy, why did you come to me?"
"There is important news that has spread throughout the grassland these days. Do you know?"
Abel sneered: "How could I not know? Two captains offered a reward for a missing man..."
At this point, his eyes suddenly widened: "Why are you bringing this up?"
Kunbuha laughed twice: "About this matter... I have a clue."
Abel sat up straight: "What clue?"
"I've seen that man! I've seen the man for whom a bounty was placed!"
"Huh?" Abel jumped up, the drunkenness on his face disappeared, and stared at Kunbuha with bloodshot eyes: "Say it again!"
"I've seen that man!"
Kunbuha lowered his voice and spoke every word: "Four nights ago, I was collecting limonium in the saline-alkali land in the north. I saw two young Han boys urging their horses to run away, followed by nearly a hundred Tatar people in hot pursuit. Then The two teenagers were very familiar with the road, and the Tatars chased them, but they kept being thrown away!"
Abel pondered for a long time: "How do you know those two? Belgutai and Yeliyasi only said that they were nobles in Han'er's caravan, but they did not say their specific appearance, nor did they say they were two young men! "
"Captain Ten, who is behind those Tatar people? How can they hide it from us? In the past few days, Yeligasi sent cavalry back and forth to sweep them, just to find someone! He should be in the hands of the Tatar people. , but not found... Do you think it's because these two people escaped early and got rid of the pursuing Tatar people? "
"Are you sure the Tatars didn't catch them?"
"I waited in the weeds for half the night, and watched with my own eyes those Tatar people who were extremely frustrated and scattered back the way they came... If they were caught, this wouldn't be the case!"
Abel sneered repeatedly: "North of Galibo, there are endless grasslands and deserts. The two men fled there, like hares running on the grasslands, sparrows flying in the clouds... The Tatar people couldn't find them. How can we find it?"
"We can find it! Because I know where those two men are going. I heard them when they rode by!"
Abel jumped up, first looked outside the tent to see if there was anyone irrelevant, and then turned back: "I forgot, you can understand Han'er's words... what did they say?"
"They said they relied on familiar roads to escape this time, but no matter how far they were, they didn't know them; so they had no choice but to go to Usha Castle to escape!"
Abel's eyes rolled wildly, and after a while he leaned over and asked again: "Those Tatar people have been chasing Han'er all night, and at least they know the direction in which Han'er is escaping. Why don't they bring this news to them and make some profit?" "
"Captain Ten, Yeli Yasi wiped out their entire tribe. Now that the two families are enemies, how can they talk about it? As for Belgutai, he is the brother of the Great Khan and a nobleman of the Golden Family! These two families are enemies. Even if the Tatar people want to report it, they still have to reach it..."
Abel's eyes became more and more red: "Then you are willing to tell me?"
This look made Kunbuha a little scared. He buried his head in his hands, with the back of his hands close to the ground, and replied: "Captain Ten, I know this, so what can I do? I am old, even the crotch I don’t have the strength to kill a goat, let alone a green lamb hiding in the mountains?”
He turned his face sideways, looked at Abel, smiled, and made a gesture with his hand: "Captain Ten, if we find that Han'er, no matter which Qianhu, no matter how much they give, it will be yours; I only need Just a little, just a little! Five horses and fifty sheep, just for my son!"
"Ha ha ha ha……"
Abul was smiling, and Kunbuha said: "However, every time someone walks on the road, there will be traces. Yeli Yasi Qianhu must still be chasing the remaining Tatar people. In these days or two, as long as one is caught Two of them will know where Han'er has escaped!"
Abel casually grabbed the short knife, inserted it into his belt, then opened the felt tent and went out, shouting to his close subordinates: "We have something to go! Bring your horses and bows and arrows!"
Old herdsmen like Kunbuha have a better understanding of the terrain based on decades of continuous accumulation, and are indeed better than ordinary Mongolians. He led Abel and his companions through meadows and salt-alkali land, full of confidence along the way because he had walked through this barren slope and swamp more than once.
Sometimes he stopped to examine the marks on the ground, or climbed to a higher place to look over, and then continued on his way. In his eyes, the vague traces have never been cut off, and they always point to the fortress deep in the mountains in the distance where the Jin Kingdom was heavily guarded.
Both he and Abel knew that there were no secrets on the grassland, so they had to move quickly... Maybe at this time, someone else had gotten wind of the news and started to turn their attention to Usha Castle.
Just as Kunbuha thought, there are many people with keen sense of smell on the grassland. There are people like this even in the Central Plains.
For example, at this moment, Zhao Xuan was kneeling on one knee, covered in sweat.
Seeing the sweat drops crackling on the dry land and making no less than a dozen marks, he made up his mind, bowed his head and said: "Probably near Wusha Castle... The young master is most familiar with that place. Now that he is in danger, Nine times out of ten, we will avoid there.”
"Usha Castle?"
Guo Ning put up a pergola with his hands and looked north.
It was noon, and the wind howled from the west, stirring up sand and dust at every turn, making the vision dim. Guo Ning raised his eyes and stared for a long time, only to see the vast sky and the dozens of military flags fluttering nearby.
"Usha Castle..." He chanted the name loudly, but said no other words.
(End of chapter)
