“You know?” This time, it was Yeli who was surprised.
“Who else could it be?” Provocatively glancing at Manlun, whose face was flushed with anger, Sha Yi turned her gaze back to Yeli. “He told you that Jialuo wanted to merge with us, but did he mention that our two groups were originally enemies? I bet he only told you that I tricked Jialuo, didn’t he? Did he also say that killing me and capturing Jialuo would allow you to swallow up our group?”
“Whether he said it or not, what does it matter?” Yeli frowned at her. “What, are you trying to sow discord?”
“Isn’t this an indirect admission of the relationship between the two of you?” Pointing at Manlun, Sha Yi remained unruffled by the man’s words. “Since you’ve already admitted it, do I even need to stir things up? If you truly want to negotiate terms with us, I expect you to bring enough sincerity. Otherwise, if conflict breaks out between us, even if you outnumber us, you might not escape unscathed—and we might not suffer heavy losses either. If you don’t believe me, go ahead and try.”
She wasn’t boasting about their strength, nor was she belittling Yeli’s side. At most, it was a display of their capabilities.
Originally, Yeli’s side had been full of threats, emboldened by Manlun’s defection.
She had considered not revealing too much of their strength, but to achieve a peaceful resolution, overwhelming superiority was necessary. Otherwise, given Yeli and Yelai’s temperaments, they would likely insist on a head-on clash. At least in this ancient era, they held an absolute advantage in numbers.
On their side, even with Jialuo’s people and Sainah’s group combined, they had at most sixty individuals.
Compared to the female-dominated group of over eighty, they were still at a disadvantage.
Moreover, in this era, women were not much inferior to men in terms of physique or strength.
If it came to a standoff, the bows and metal weapons they had crafted would indeed give them a significant advantage. But with her modern pacifist mindset—and Xiyi, who cared only for her—she preferred to avoid war if possible.
Because even the smallest conflict would bring casualties.
Stunned by her words, Yeli’s gaze swept past their group and landed on the red brick house not far behind them. After a moment of silence, he regained his composure and smiled again. “I don’t mean to doubt you. But if you want Jialuo as part of the exchange, I truly can’t comply right now.”
“Then you must explain the actual situation. If you can’t show full sincerity in the first negotiation, I believe we have the right to reject your terms.”
“Fine, I’ll explain.” After a moment of thought, Yeli nodded. “It’s true we captured Jialuo half a month ago. He lured away all our giant-toothed eagles, and when we encountered the inexplicable forest fire, we realized his intention—he just wanted to cause us trouble. We went to great lengths to catch him, but that didn’t change the fact that we had to take a longer route and spend more time. Before we even arrived here, he escaped on his own.”
So that was it.
No wonder Jialuo’s scouting mission had taken so long and he never returned.
He must have had his own plan all along—likely conceived when the underground oil pit exploded. While she had been helpless against the burning forest, he had thought ahead. Perhaps he already knew those people would come through that woodland, or maybe they had flown over on birds during their migration.
And when they first returned, though they wanted to merge with her group, they had proposed terms that heavily favored themselves.
Most likely, Jialuo was still hiding things from them.
Like why this female-dominated group insisted on migrating to this particular area.
Though she had never ventured into the forest beyond, it was surely habitable, just like the riverside. Yet Yeli and Yelai were determined to take their settlement—clearly aiming to seize this prime waterfront location.
But since no one had mentioned this, she couldn’t be certain. Still, she doubted they hadn’t considered other options during their long migration.
If so, there must be a compelling reason they had to come here.
In this ancient era, without natural disasters, she couldn’t think of any reason for a group to trek for months to an unfamiliar place—except one: superstition, like modern-day beliefs in feng shui.
Earlier, Tuge had mentioned that this group was formed by merging several smaller ones. Their problem was that most of their children were girls, and these girls struggled to survive, plagued by constant issues. Unable to find a human cause, they blamed it on supernatural forces—hence the need to migrate.
And for such a migration to gain widespread acceptance, someone highly persuasive must have proposed it, with rulers like Yeli making the final decision.
That meant this migrating group likely had a “shaman” figure.
Though she understood the significance of such a role in primitive societies, she hadn’t expected to encounter it firsthand.
Faced with this realization, she was somewhat surprised.
But she had no intention of probing further. It didn’t concern her. If the groups eventually merged, they could address it naturally later.
As for Jialuo, he must have known that if Manlun defected, he would teach the new group how to control the giant-toothed eagles. So Yeli’s side would inevitably gain the birds’ assistance.
Even if the eagles were about to hibernate, there was still time. Given their speed, without the accidental fire, they might have arrived much earlier—possibly before the brick house was completed. That would have been disastrous.
Jialuo’s initial plan was likely to drive the eagles away, but other ideas must have emerged. Yet in the end, he was caught.
Perhaps hoping Jialuo could recall the eagles, Yeli hadn’t killed him outright. Or maybe Yeli distrusted Manlun too. Alternatively, he might have wanted to use Jialuo as leverage. Either way, his inaction allowed Jialuo to escape.
She didn’t know how he managed it, but she believed he had truly fled. Otherwise, given Yeli’s temperament, he would have demanded exorbitant terms, not admitted Jialuo had escaped.
Of course, he could have fabricated the story. But with their superior equipment and undeniable advantages—plus Yelai being his twin—Yeli wouldn’t risk his brother’s safety.
Thus, Yeli’s words carried considerable credibility.
But Jialuo was still missing. She wanted to know what had happened next, but without him or Yeli’s full disclosure, she was at a loss.
Having pieced things together, Sha Yi responded calmly, “Fine, I believe you. But you must offer another condition for treating Yelai well. Otherwise, we have no reason to waste food and effort raising our sworn enemy!”
“You really won’t yield an inch!” Yeli sighed, feigning helplessness. “But if you want a new condition, I can’t think of one right now. Why don’t you tell me, and I’ll follow your lead.”
Glancing back at Xiyi, who gave a subtle signal, Sha Yi didn’t miss the calculation in Yeli’s eyes. “Either recapture Jialuo, or hand over Manlun as exchange…”
Yeli burst into laughter. “Is that all? That’s no different from my earlier proposal. Let’s just use Manlun—it’ll save trouble. Besides, I doubt you truly expect me to catch Jialuo. Even if your groups were once at odds, I don’t buy it.”
“Let me finish.” Shaking her head, Sha Yi remained composed. “When I say Manlun as exchange, I mean his corpse. I want you to deliver a dead Manlun, not this living one glaring at us!”
At this, the previously subdued, obese Manlun jerked his head up, face twisted in shock and fury. Yeli’s expression wasn’t much better—stunned, he finally managed, “Are you serious?”
“Absolutely. Can you give me a definite answer?” Smirking, Sha Yi eyed the man’s shifting expression. “If so, we can swap now—I give you the living, you give me the dead.”
Seemingly stunned, Yeli’s face cycled through emotions before settling into a smile. “Given this demand, I’d say you still hold a grudge against Jialuo’s side. Since you want me to catch him anyway, why not collaborate? Wouldn’t that be better?”
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