Chapter 66: Wang Wu's Foreign Language

Inside the Prince of Yan's mansion, a large Jie tribesman was dragged before Zhao Bin.

"Does anyone here speak the Jie language?" Zhao Bin asked the people behind him.

Wang Wu was the first to step forward, clenched his fists, and said, "Your Highness, this subordinate has fought against the Jie people. Let me handle this."

Zhao Bin couldn't help smiling and said, "Not bad, Brother Wu. I didn't expect you to speak a foreign language. Ask him who he is and what his name is."

Wang Wu cleared his throat and shouted, "Muriwala shimei no ganko?"

The moment Wang Wu finished his first sentence, Zhao Bin's face turned green. He involuntarily took two steps back, staring at Wang Wu in utter astonishment. Good grief, could Wang Wu possibly be a Japanese soldier?

The large tribesman looked blankly at Wang Wu, then blankly at Zhao Bin, wearing a deeply puzzled expression.

Seeing that something was obviously wrong, Zhao Bin planted a kick right on Wang Wu's backside. "Is that supposed to be the Jie language, you moron?"

Wang Wu was kicked a step forward, landing right in front of the Jie tribesman. He turned his head to shoot Zhao Bin a wronged glance, then whipped his head back, delivered a sharp slap across the Jie tribesman's face, and demanded furiously, "Are you even a Jie tribesman, you bastard?"

The Jie tribesman flew into an immediate rage, opening his mouth to bite Wang Wu, who hastily retreated two steps.

"Let me do it, Your Highness," He Miao said from the side.

He Miao spoke a few sentences to the Jie tribesman in a tongue none of the others understood. His expression then turned somewhat panicked as he reported to Zhao Bin, "Your Highness, he says he is Sha Diao, the eldest son of Shaierzhu, chieftain of the Sand Wolf tribe. He demands that we release him immediately, or the Sand Wolf tribe will not let us off the hook."

"Oh? So we really did catch a big fish," Zhao Bin said, curiously sizing up the Jie tribesman before him.

"What did you just say his name was?" Zhao Bin asked again.

"Sha Diao."

"Hahaha, it's obvious your old man lacked any culture to give you a name like that. Your name is just like the legendary steed Dilu—it brings disaster to its master. No wonder you got captured in your very first battle, you absolute dickhead," Zhao Bin burst out laughing.

Although the Jie tribesman didn't understand what Zhao Bin was saying, he could generally sense that he was being humiliated, and he lunged savagely toward Zhao Bin.

Wang Wu kicked him straight in the stomach. Since the prisoner already had an injury on his leg and now took another kick from Wang Wu, he could no longer support himself and collapsed to the ground, wailing.

Zhao Bin turned his head to look curiously at Wang Wu and asked, "Brother Wu, where on earth did you learn that 'shimei no ganko' line from?"

Wang Wu scratched the back of his head and replied, "I learned it from the old general."

"Which old general?"

"Which old general could it be? Old General Ding, of course," Wang Wu said with an utterly innocent face.

"Tsk," Zhao Bin drew in a sharp breath. Could his maternal grandfather possibly be a Japanese soldier?

"Why on earth would my grandfather say something like that?"

"Years ago, a foreign envoy came to the capital and later became friends with the old general. He was the one who taught it to the old general," Wang Wu explained.

"An envoy? From where?" Zhao Bin continued to ask.

"That, this subordinate doesn't know. The old general asked questions that way once when he was interrogating some Jie prisoners, so this subordinate assumed it must be the Jie envoy."

Hearing this, Zhao Bin offered neither confirmation nor denial. Considering that Wang Wu had served by his grandfather's side for so many years and then by his own for many more, there shouldn't be any problem.

"Take him down for now. Tend to his wounds and make sure he doesn't die—he's still useful," Zhao Bin instructed several guards.

Returning to the main hall, He Miao, Cao Li, and the others asked, "Your Highness, what should we do about this?"

"What do you mean, what should we do?" Zhao Bin replied indifferently.

"If this man truly is the son of the Jie chieftain, the chieftain will certainly not let this rest. He will surely lead a large army here, and by then, Yan City will likely be in grave danger," Cao Li said.

"Lord Cao, even if we hadn't captured the chieftain's son, we have just ambushed and slaughtered the Jie cavalry. It stands to reason that the Jie people wouldn't have let it rest anyway," Xiao Chu chimed in from the side.

"That's right, Xiao Chu is correct. Even without this Sha Diao, the Jie people would likely launch a massive invasion this year," Zhao Bin said, taking a sip of tea.

"Does anyone here know anything about this Sand Wolf tribe?" Zhao Bin asked.

He Miao stood up and reported, " Replying to Your Highness, the Sand Wolf tribe is the Jie tribe closest to Yan City. Once you pass through the Western Pass, you are in the territory of the Sand Wolf tribe. The tribe has a total population roughly comparable to Yan City, numbering around fifty thousand. Excluding the elderly, women, and children, they should have at least thirty thousand men able to mount horses and go to war. Shaierzhu, the chieftain of the Sand Wolf tribe, is extremely brutal. Not only do they cross into Yan City's borders to pillage, but they also frequently raid various Xianbei tribes, sparing neither man, woman, nor child."

Hearing this, Zhao Bin murmured, "The Xianbei people, eh?"

"Old Cao, keep an eye on the crossbow workshop over the next few days. The production of both the Zhuge repeating crossbows and the bolts must be accelerated. All five hundred slaves sent by Ma Xiaoxin are to be allocated to you."

"Understood, Your Highness."

"Old He, have men collect saltpeter from all over the city—whether it's medicinal or scraped from the corners of walls, send it all to the prince's mansion. In addition, dispatch men to acquire more from outside; buy as much as you possibly can. I have great use for it."

"Yes, Your Highness. This subordinate will order it to be done immediately."

"Is there any news from Lu Biao and the others?"

"Replying to Your Highness, not yet. The Jie people should not have reached Guo Family Town yet," Cao Li replied.

Meanwhile, Wei Xiang and Zhou Hu led the guards at top speed toward the southwest. When the troops arrived, they found that one of the villages had already been reduced to ruins by raging fires. Fortunately, the villagers had all retreated into underground tunnels, so there were no casualties. Although the Jie raiders had departed, the villagers hiding in the tunnels still did not dare to emerge rashly, terrified that the Jie forces might double back.

Wei Xiang rode his horse into the village. Many thatched huts were still burning, and the searing heat waves made the horses reluctant to advance. Wei Xiang raised his voice and shouted, "Is anyone there? I am Wei Xiang, commander of Yan City, and these are the garrison troops of the Prince of Yan's mansion. If anyone is breathing, come out!"

After shouting, Wei Xiang looked around in all directions. After waiting for two full minutes, someone finally poked their head out from a concealed spot. Only after confirming that the newcomers were indeed the garrison from the Prince of Yan's mansion did they crawl out from the tunnel entrance.

"Commander Wei, you've finally come! Those goddamned Jie people burned all our houses to the ground and slaughtered our livestock. Wuwuwu..." A half-century-old man crawled out of the tunnel entrance, his voice trembling as he spoke.

Wei Xiang and Zhou Hu exchanged glances, dismounted, and walked up to the old man to ask, "Old man, don't worry. As long as you're all safe, that's what matters. By the way, do you know which direction the Jie people went?"

Weeping, the old man raised a hand and pointed eastward. "They should have gone east. The closest place to the east is Daoyang Village. Whenever the Jie people came to pillage and attacked our Zhao Village, they would head straight to Daoyang Village afterward."

Zhou Hu raised his gaze to look eastward, but saw nothing. He turned back and asked the old man, "How far is Daoyang Village from here?"

"About three or four li," the old man replied.

"Old man, don't worry. We'll go after the Jie raiders first. Once everyone tallies up the slaughtered livestock later, the Prince of Yan will reissue them to you all." With that, Zhou Hu turned and mounted his horse.

"Old man, tell everyone to stay in the tunnels for now. Don't come out until we've dealt with this scum," Wei Xiang reminded them.

With shouts of urging, a force of over two hundred horsemen galloped swiftly toward the east.

"Commander Wei, since the Jie people are advancing eastward, they should run right into Commander Qin's troops," Zhou Hu said from his saddle.

"If that happens, it couldn't be better. We'll hit them from both sides and beat these motherfuckers to death," Wei Xiang replied indignantly.

A distance of three or four li was not far. Soon, they arrived within sight of Daoyang Village, where the outline of the cottages became faintly visible.

"Not good, they're about to set fires again." Looking through his telescope, Zhou Hu spotted the thatch on a roof in the village beginning to burst into flames in the distance.

"It seems Commander Qin's men haven't arrived yet," Wei Xiang said. "No more waiting. Let's charge right in?"

Zhou Hu pondered for just a moment before giving the order: "Prepare crossbows! One round of volley fire, followed by a charge!"

Hearing the command, the guardsmen pulled the crossbows hanging from their horses' bellies and pressed forward toward Daoyang Village.