Chapter 15
Chapter 15: The Wind Picks Up
“This isn’t right, it shouldn’t be… Usually it takes at least half a month before it snows…” Qiaoba frowned tightly, urging them to descend quickly: “Stop looking, it’s getting dark soon.”
Going up the mountain is easy, going down is hard, especially with ox carts.
They had to be extra careful. Everyone sitting in the ox carts had to get down and walk.
Everyone walked very carefully—if they fell down here, no one could really save them.
Accustomed to life on the grassland, suddenly coming to the mountains, everyone felt somewhat uncomfortable.
Fortunately, they only had to climb this one mountain, and beyond it was grassland again.
“But the winter pasture grass isn’t very deep, and some places are still desert.” Nuomin moved steadily, walking while explaining to Xie Changqing: “If you want to pick medicinal herbs, you’ll have to wait until spring.”
Like before with Xie Yu, he was very picky.
Medicinal herbs from this season, he wouldn’t even deign to want.
Xie Changqing smiled and said helplessly: “We’re short on medicine now, so regardless of good or bad, I’ll stock up first.”
“I also think, regardless of good or bad, keep them first.” Nuomin nodded, completely agreeing: “If you can’t use them later, I’ll help you sell them!”
Who could they sell them to?
“Sell them to the veterinarian from the Seventh Pasture. That old man likes medicinal herbs.” Nuomin said naturally: “In the past, the herbs I picked could be traded for quite a lot of beef jerky from him.”
He was old and couldn’t travel far, ride horses, or climb mountains, so every time Nuomin went over, she would bring him some herbs.
Xie Changqing made an understanding sound, remembering that Qiaoba had also said that if he couldn’t cure those lambs, he would go to the Seventh Pasture to get some medicine…
It seemed there were really many herders on the grassland, divided into many pastures. Their Ninth Pasture had good relations with the Seventh Pasture, but tense relations with the Sixth Pasture.
When they reached tonight’s resting place, Haierte and the others had long since arrived and had already set up tents with campfires burning.
“There’s so much firewood here, they all went to collect it.” Haierte had been waiting here and was already itching to go.
Qiaoba waved his hand, letting everyone eat first and then go collect some: “But don’t cut down big trees—don’t let people catch you!”
The big trees in the mountains couldn’t be touched; at most they could cut some dead branches.
But even so, it was already very good.
The herders didn’t want to eat at all—they only wanted to gather firewood.
Even Tana took a hatchet and entrusted both sisters to Batu, telling him to watch them carefully: “They’re both fed and asleep. I’ll be right back!”
Their family was truly dirt poor now. She had to cut more firewood, or this winter would be hard to endure.
Yes, Xie Yu had even sold the firewood she’d previously stockpiled, leaving her nothing at all.
Thinking of this, Tana’s hatchet work became more fierce: That bastard!
Xie Changqing put the medicinal herbs on the ox cart, then came over carrying a hatchet.
“What are you doing here? Go back!” Tana refused to let him cut.
“I’m strong and can cut fast.” How could Xie Changqing let her work alone? He walked directly to her side and started cutting: “You go back!”
Tana had originally wanted to dissuade him, but seeing that others had already cut a small bundle, she couldn’t worry about it anymore: “Then be careful and don’t hurt yourself!”
Right now, the most precious treasure of their family was Xie Changqing!
However, being tall with long arms and legs, and having great strength, Xie Changqing cut much faster than her.
Others automatically avoided their area and went farther ahead on their own.
Even after Xie Changqing and Tana had cut four bundles and brought them back to put on another ox cart, Haierte brought over two more bundles: “Brother Changqing, here!”
“What’s this?” Xie Changqing was somewhat puzzled.
“Everyone helped cut them for you.” Haierte scratched his head and smiled: “Hehe, every family contributed a bit!”
The herders weren’t good at saying nice things—gratitude could only be expressed through actions.
Xie Changqing turned back, but no one was looking their way. Everyone felt this was a very normal, natural thing.
His heart warmed, and he smiled as he thanked them.
When everyone had drunk sheep’s milk and eaten flatbread and was preparing to rest, Qiaoba finally said gravely: “I went up the mountainside again to look carefully—those clouds are indeed gathering this way.”
By now it was completely dark. Except for their area, everywhere else was pitch black.
What clouds—you couldn’t see them now.
But everyone still instinctively looked up at the dark sky.
“With this wind, it’ll snow in just two or three days.” Sangtu drank a mouthful of sheep’s milk and chuckled: “Fortunately we ran fast this year!”
If the snow wasn’t heavy, they could still grit their teeth and keep traveling.
But if the snow got heavy, they really couldn’t move an inch.
Qiaoba also thought of this and said gravely: “So tomorrow we’ll set off early and hopefully reach the winter pasture before dark. Also—”
He looked at everyone with solemn eyes: “I’m planning to arrange for three people to cross the mountain and notify the other nearby pastures.”
No matter what, this was a matter of life and death.
As soon as he said this, quite a few people were unhappy.
“The closest ones are just the Sixth, Seventh, and Eighth Pastures. The others are all far away.”
“Seven and Eight I can accept, but the Sixth Pasture? Why should we?”
“Exactly, Chaolu and his bunch don’t deserve it!”
“I’d rather they get trapped on the other side by the blizzard!”
Qiaoba waited until they’d said their piece, then said gravely: “They deserve to die, but there are many innocent people.”
With such good weather today, they had climbed this mountain with great difficulty.
If it started snowing…
Thinking of that scene, quite a few people fell silent.
Nuomin held her bowl and suddenly said: “Even if we tell them, they might not believe us.”
After all, on the other side of the mountain you couldn’t see any signs now. If they hadn’t stood on the mountaintop, they probably wouldn’t know this information either.
“Whether they believe it or not is their business. Whether we tell them or not is ours.” Qiaoba paused and looked at them seriously: “Even if not for the people, we should notify them for the sake of those livestock.”
In the end, he arranged for Nuomin and Haierte to go to the Sixth Pasture.
He was young, so if those people said unpleasant things, he could just curse back without it mattering much.
“If they don’t believe it, then forget it.”
From beginning to end, Xie Changqing only watched and listened silently.
After everyone had gone to sleep, Xie Changqing sighed inwardly.
Uncle Qiaoba was really a good person, but…
As a leader, he was a bit too soft-hearted.
The next morning before departure, Haierte and the others indeed left early.
Nuomin was assigned to the Seventh Pasture, and Qiaoba privately told her it would be best to bring back some medicine.
With fewer people, and the grass being shallow in this area, the livestock basically wouldn’t stop and start to graze, so their traveling speed was even faster.
After traveling far, with the mountain barely visible, the sun still hadn’t come up.
Qiaoba looked up at the sky, his expression slightly grim: “The wind is picking up.”
What was going on? Could it be that this year would bring heavy snow?
Xie Changqing was about to speak when suddenly a deafening sound came from the distance.
He looked in that direction and was so shocked by the scene that he couldn’t speak.