Chapter 741: Arrival and Rest

The sunlight faded, and the stopped heavy snow began falling again in swirling flakes. In the snowy land, a large group—considered quite numerous for this era—pressed forward through the snow.

By now, Han Cheng no longer had the high spirits he showed when they first set out. He awkwardly hunched his neck, wishing he could shrink his entire head into his leather coat.

Standing on the sled, he shuffled his feet in small movements, trying to generate some warmth.

Marching through the snow, launching a surprise attack that deals a fatal blow to the enemy—just thinking about such a thing excites the heart and stirs unstoppable enthusiasm. But when the action truly begins, it becomes tough to endure.

Historical records only mention Li Jing’s snowstorm surprise attack on the Turks, the great victory that eliminated the most substantial northern threat to the Tang dynasty and redeemed the shame of the Weishui alliance. But these records never tell how much suffering the soldiers endured crawling on ice and lying in snow during that attack.

Perhaps many things in the world are like this: when judging people, people only care about how outstanding their achievements are, not how much suffering and hardship they endured to achieve them.

Feeling the cold, Han Cheng looked at the people sitting on the sleds and those trudging painfully through the snow, and he was full of emotion.

Things are just like that—dreams are beautiful, but the wind, frost, rain, and snow on the path to those dreams make it very hard.

Some people endure it; others are frightened by the storm and change their direction, change their dreams… little do they know that the path to another dream is also full of hardship.

The surprise attack on the Half-Farming Tribe that Han Cheng leads will not be scared off by this snowstorm.

Partly because everyone has complete confidence, and partly because the travelers have magical tools for keeping warm.

Along the way, people occasionally pull out ceramic bottles sealed tightly with corks from their bosoms.

The chief of the Bear Tribe carefully uncorked the bottle, bringing it to his lips and cautiously sipping the wine inside.

The sour and astringent wine entered his mouth, but he did not swallow immediately. Instead, he let it linger in his mouth a while, fully savoring the taste before swallowing it bit by bit.

With the wine down his throat, warmth quickly spread down to his stomach.

The Bear Tribe chief shivered warmly and immediately felt comfortable all over, as if his entire body was warmed.

This is genuinely a good thing!

He held the bottle, staring at it for a while. Though he wanted to gulp down a couple more big sips, he restrained himself.

Instead, he firmly recorked the bottle and carefully returned it to his bosom.

Before departure, the Divine Child had instructed that the wine was only to be drunk when one could no longer bear the cold; each person had only one bottle, and once it was gone, there would be no more.

This wine was a treasure.

The Bear Tribe chief sighed again inwardly, thinking that although the taste wasn’t great, once drunk, it was unforgettable.

Thinking of the wine he wasted by choking before departure, the Bear Tribe chief couldn’t help feeling a pang of regret.

“Half a day more, and we’ll reach the Half-Farming Tribe!”

The eldest senior brother came to Han Cheng, excitedly reporting.

No worries about the route, since besides the sheep tribe prisoner with the branded face, they also had two Half-Farming tribe slaves who were thoroughly tamed.

With these three guiding, there was no chance of a mistake.

Once the eldest brother finished speaking, everyone, including Han Cheng, felt their spirits lifted.

They had been trudging through dull, monotonous snow for days; the cold and fatigue were tormenting both mind and body.

Hearing they would soon arrive at the evil tribe, how could they not feel excited?

Many looked at their respected Divine Child with hopeful expressions, eager for a command to quicken the march and reach the Half-Farming Tribe before nightfall.

After defeating the Half-Farming Tribe, they would be able to rest in those strange caves at night.

However, to their disappointment, Han Cheng thought for a moment, then shook his head.

“We’ll continue at a normal pace for a while longer, then rest.

Make plenty of hot soup, let everyone eat their fill, get a good sleep, then march all at once to attack and take the Half-Farming Tribe.”

Han Cheng said to the group.

Even with sleds, wine, socks, gloves, and other tools to combat the cold, continuous days of snow marching left the troops weary.

To rush forward now and immediately fight the Half-Farming Tribe without rest would be too hasty.

They had to remember the Half-Farming Tribe was not small in number; a rash charge without recovery would cause heavy casualties on their side, even if they took the tribe.

Now, with snow blocking the mountains and many birds and beasts vanished, the Half-Farming Tribe wouldn’t expect an attack at this time.

This means that whether they attacked today or tomorrow, the surprise effect would be the same.

So why not let everyone rest well, recover strength, and then calmly attack the Half-Farming Tribe?

“Good meals aren’t afraid of being late. We’ve waited this long—waiting one more night won’t hurt and will bring many benefits.”

Han Cheng said aloud.

After his decision, no one mentioned rushing to attack directly.

Instead, everyone followed Han Cheng’s orders and marched on steadily.

Though everyone understood the Divine Child’s reasoning and agreed it was correct, deep down, many still wished to attack the Half-Farming Tribe as soon as possible.

That was the honest feeling of many, but they could only bury it and endure the restless frustration.

After marching half a day more, under Han Cheng’s order, they stopped in a sheltered mountain hollow.

Some quickly set up tents, piling snow on top to build snow houses. Others arranged defenses with ropes around the camp perimeter.

Some wanted to light fires to melt snow for water and cook food as usual, but Han Cheng stopped them.

They were only five or six li (Chinese miles) from the Half-Farming Tribe now, and a fire would surely send up smoke visible to the tribe.

Once smoke was seen, their location would be revealed, significantly reducing the surprise of their attack.

So they had to make do with eating cold food to ease their hunger.

When dusk fell, they lit fires inside the snow houses to boil water and cook meals.

The snow houses shielded the firelight, and the smoke blended into the night, leaving no trace.

After giving these orders, everyone busied themselves, while Han Cheng took Shang, Mao, and seven or eight others from the tribe, along with the branded sheep tribe slave, armed and carrying some food, and headed east toward the Half-Farming Tribe.

This mission was to scout the terrain near the Half-Farming Tribe, preparing for the attack tomorrow.

Knowing the enemy and oneself leads to victory; though the task was challenging, it was nothing compared to sparing the tribe’s lives.