After walking for two days and one night, Fu Jiuqu's motorcade finally entered Binzhou Tuchief City at dawn.

The thirty-six caves are all governed by cave owners. The cave owners are also called chieftains and chieftains. The system originated from the restraint system of the Tang Dynasty. The court would collect donations from them, but would not interfere in their internal affairs. The patriarchal power of the thirty-six caves

Supreme, weddings and funerals, ancestor worship, ancestral temples, and external affairs are all autonomous.

Thirty-sixth Cave is similar to Nong Zhigao to a great extent. It nominally belongs to the territory of the Northern Song Dynasty, but it has been enslaved by Jiaozhi for a long time and was forced to pay tribute to the Li Dynasty.

The biggest reason why Nong Zhigao raised his army was that he could no longer endure the long-term enslavement and oppression of the Jiaozhi Kingdom, and he could not get the recognition and protection of the Song Dynasty. The Northern Song Dynasty called Nong Zhigao a rebel, but for the native chiefs of Guangnan West Road

To the people in the jurisdiction, Nong Zhigao was their young hero.

Nong Zhigao was proficient in the art of war and was good at fighting. When he was sixteen, he established the Dali Kingdom in Ande Prefecture to compete with Jiaozhi. With thousands of people, he withstood the attack of Jiaozhi's 100,000-strong army.

In a sense, Yang Wenguang's defeat by Nong Zhigao was not because General Yang was too weak, but because Nong Zhigao was too strong.

Therefore, most of the thirty-sixth cave owners who claimed to be "neutral" supported Nong Zhigao in private. When Jiaozhi attacked Nong Zhigao, twelve of the thirty-sixth caves sent troops to support it, and ten sent troops to block the pass.

, to prevent the Jiaozhi Li Dynasty army from crossing the border. This time Nong Zhigao raised troops to rebel against the Song Dynasty, and Thirty-sixth Dong also privately sent troops to support...

The carriage slowed down as it entered the knotted chief city.

Xin Yi opened a corner of the curtain and looked out with interest.

For a moment, I was amazed.

Among the thirty-six holes, Jiedong is a hole with strong strength, many soldiers, and abundant supplies. Its geographical location is very advantageous, and it has always been the target that Nong Zhigao wants to win over.

This city is much more spectacular than Xinyi imagined.

The solid city wall was made of bricks and stones and was very high, tightly surrounding the entire city in the middle.

When the carriage passed the city gate, you could see well-trained barbarians on the battlements. Among the people passing by were merchants from the Northern Song Dynasty and backpackers from Jiaozhi. People of all kinds were mixed together, including those leading horses, riding donkeys, and people sitting on

Selling things on the elephant...

Its liveliness is no less than that of some state cities in the Northern Song Dynasty, but the scenery and culture are quite different.

"Brother Jiu!" Xin Yi turned his head and glanced at Fu Jiuqu, who had his eyes closed to relax, and whispered: "Are you nervous?"

Fu Jiuqu opened his eyes, "Why are you nervous?"

Xin Yi blinked, "It's actually not bad to be a son-in-law here."

Fu Jiuqu's eyes dropped coldly, "Is your skin itchy again?"

Xin Yi stuck out his tongue in a funny way and continued to look outside.

They were dressed as merchants, and they were accompanied by a local lobbyist sent by Zhizhou. Fu Jiuqu called him Mr. Shi.

The two cars entered the city one after the other and soon arrived at the residence of the chieftain...

What surprised Xin Yi was that the residence of the native chief was actually built in the middle of the stilted buildings with earthen stilts. It was not a masonry structure of the city wall, but a bamboo and wood structure. Only the foundation was made of huge stones and painted in bright colors.

It looks very bright.

The most amazing thing is that when you look at the gate, it is decorated with lights and colorful decorations, as if it is celebrating some happy event, and the faces of the barbarians guarding the gate are also beaming with joy.

Xin Yi was startled, "Isn't this another wedding for my daughter? Is it possible that I really caught up with Brother Ninth's wedding wine?"

Fu Jiuqu calmly adjusted the corner of his robe and said, "Master Shi."

Mr. Shi was in the carriage behind. He was a bit older and had a white beard. The weather was not cold, but he was wrapped up thickly. He got on the carriage to hand over the post. After asking by the way, he found out that tomorrow was the wedding day.

Chief Dongtu’s fiftieth birthday.

The post was handed over, and soon the native chief came to greet him in person, allowing Fu Jiuqu and Lord Shi to be brought into the city.

This is a beautifully built stilted building. The banana and bamboo forest below is swaying in the breeze. The air is moist and warm, and the scenery is excellent.

Looking out along the bamboo forest, there are two elephants, one big and one small, who look like mother and son, playing in the forest.

Xin Yi freshened up a little and stretched, "I'm exhausted."

On the way here, they were rushing in a hurry, and they had to be prepared for Nong Zhigao to send troops for a surprise attack. Their nerves had been tense. When they relaxed, they felt tired.

Fu Jiuqu pinched her shoulder distressedly and said, "Get some sleep and I'll call you after dinner."

Xin Yi rubbed his sore eyes and yawned.

"And you?"

Fu Jiuqu closed the window and drew the bamboo curtain, "I'm going to talk to Mr. Shi."

"Hmm~"

Before the formal meeting, let's clear the air with the intermediary.

Xin Yi nodded understandingly, "Then can I take a walk in the garden?"

"Of course you can." Fu Jiuqu called Duan Sui instead, "Follow the lady."

Duan Sui responded, pressed the knife on his waist and went out.

Sun Huai carefully brought out a female-red satin cloak and handed it to Fu Jiuqu.

Fu Jiuqu put his arms around Xin Yi's shoulders knowingly and gave Sun Huai an appreciative look.

Monk Duan Suizhang was confused. Seeing Eunuch Sun's sycophantic look, he snorted secretly before trotting out after Xin Yi.

There were lush vegetation in the yard, and Xin Yi felt a chill when he stepped out. Suddenly, Xin Yi felt that Eunuch Sun was able to serve Fu Jiuqu for such a long time. He really had a good eye and could predict all this in advance.

She wrapped herself in her cloak and looked at the vegetation and species that were different from those in the Central Plains as if visiting a botanical garden. She slowly walked towards the bamboo fence on the side of the elephants, wanting to see the elephants of the Northern Song Dynasty...

However, the elephant was still where it was, but there was a barbarian girl about fifteen or sixteen years old on the elephant's back.

A self-woven blue dress with a big front, a long pleated skirt that goes vertically around the ankle, a colorful floral scarf on the head, and round-top embroidered shoes. The dress is slimmer than that of women from the Central Plains, with a slender waistline that is looming, and a slightly tanned skin.

, but the facial features are delicate and look bright and healthy.

But her face was not as pleasing as her clothes.

Sitting on the back of a tall elephant, she looked at Xin Yi proudly, with a cold flowing light in her eyes.

"Are you from Song Dynasty?"

The girl spoke in the Northern Song Dynasty Mandarin, with a strange and suspicious accent.

Duan Sui tightened his grip on the knife and silently took a step forward.

Xin Yi stopped in front of Duan Sui, met the girl's gaze, bowed and held her hands.

"I am from Bianjing in the Song Dynasty. May I ask who the girl is..."

The girl frowned, as if Xin Yi's question had offended her dignity, and she was very dissatisfied.

Immediately afterwards, the maid who was wiping the baby elephant turned around and said to Xin Yi dissatisfied:

"This is Dahua, our chief's little daughter."

Dahua? This is indeed the first time Xin Yi has heard this name that is a household name in Tusi City.

So he handed over his hands and apologized again: "I'm sorry, I only know Daji, but I don't know her face."

The two girls looked at each other and seemed to understand Xin Yi's words.

Then, Dahua, the girl on the elephant's back, raised her chin.

"Are you from Prince Guangling's side?"

Xin Yi smiled slightly and probably guessed who this girl was.

"yes."

Dahua glanced at her maid again, raised the whip in her hand, pointed at Xin Yi, "You, come forward."

Xin Yi nodded in agreement and walked over slowly.

Duan Sui followed, "My lady, you can't."

"It doesn't matter." Xin Yi raised his lips disapprovingly and looked at Da Hua with a smile.

If she can't deal with such an innocent little girl, how much anger will she suffer in the future with the charming face of Prince Guangling?

Seeing that she was obedient, Dahua calmed down her arrogance a little.

"Are you all servants of Prince Guangling?"

Xin Yi thought for a while and said, "Yes and no."

Dahua was puzzled, "Speak clearly and don't beat around the bush."

Xin Yi said: "Sometimes I am a servant, sometimes I am not."

Dahua seemed to have a solution, but her interest was not there. Due to cultural differences, she did not ask too much in detail, and just said: "I heard that the men in the Song Dynasty all had many wives, right?"

Xin Yi said truthfully: "High-ranking people may have many women, but they only have one wife and countless concubines. But the poor have many bachelors and cannot afford to marry wives, let alone take concubines."

"Wife? Concubine?" Dahua repeated it in her mouth, frowning and thinking for a moment, "What is the difference between a wife and a concubine?"

Xin Yi said: "A wife is a man's spouse, and there is only one. A concubine is a servant, enslaved by the couple, who warms the bed and gives birth to children. They have no status and can be beaten, scolded, and bought and sold at will."

Dahua's hand holding the whip tightened slightly, and there was a hint of astringency in her eyes.

"Does Prince Guangling have a wife?"
To be continued...