"Elder sister, my younger sister is not in good health, and the desert climate has such drastic temperature changes between day and night. These past few days, she has fallen quite ill; do you think we could stay here for a couple of days? Let her rest and recover from her sickness?"
The female warrior furrowed her brows and said, "Our tribe never allows outsiders to stay over!"
Hong Xiangjun quickly said, "It’s fine, it’s fine. Later, I’d like to exchange some medicinal herbs with you all. Would it be alright if we stay outside the tribe? I’ve heard that there are horse bandits in this desert, and ever since we entered the desert, the three of us have been constantly on edge."
Anyway, Hong Xiangjun spewed an endless stream of lies, but on the surface, she seemed earnest and sincere. In the end, even the female warrior relented, and it seemed she had a sympathetic heart. "Well, if you’re staying outside the tribe... I’ll go back and ask our captain, only if the captain agrees."
"I really can’t thank you enough!"
Afterward, Hong Xiangjun exchanged some food and water and bought some medicinal herbs. The three of them paid careful attention to the terrain here until it was nearly dark, then they arrived outside the Nu Woer Tribe and set up their tent there.
Dong Huiying prepared a pot of soup medicine; the bitter taste of the traditional medicine spread far and wide once brewed. With this, everyone living inside the tribe, whether they knew previously or not, was now aware that the bitter scent came from strangers, and that today, three strangers had visited the tribe.
In the evening, to express her gratitude, Hong Xiangjun approached the female warrior with a small bottle in hand, "Elder sister, you’ve helped me tremendously, and I really don’t know how to thank you. My sister is clumsy with her hands and has no other skills, but she loves fiddling with small trinkets. Please don’t look down on it and accept it with a smile?"
The female warrior pulled open the bottle stopper, and a refreshing fragrance diffused into the air, a scent she had never encountered before. Inside the bottle, there was a white ointment.
"This is a fragrant balm! It’s especially for men to use, but women love it too."
The female warrior quite liked it and thus accepted the gift.
In the following days, Hong Xiangjun occasionally brought small trinkets to the female warrior, and some of the people also took a liking to these trinkets, inquiring whether she had more. Hong Xiangjun was generous with them... After all, these items were all made by Lady Xiao Dong, so she didn’t feel distressed giving them as gifts.
And so, before long, she became familiar with the people in the tribe, occasionally dropping hints and asking indirect questions, and indeed managed to gather quite a lot of useful information.
Hong Xiangjun spoke with a worried expression, "There’s something very strange. This Nu Woer Tribe is very similar to the Kechar Tribe."
Dong Huiying immediately perked up, "Similar?"
Hong Xiangjun explained, "The Nu Woer Tribe originally had many offspring, but for some reason, they all died young. This is exactly like Tuoya, the female leader of the Kechar Tribe. In addition, I found out something else. With Nu Woer dead, it’s like a dragon without a head. Right now, the important people in the tribe are discussing the new leader. According to the rules of The Outside, when the old leader dies, the new leader should be picked from among her daughters, and if there are no daughters, a son will inherit the role. However, nominally, the son’s wife must be the one to take over as leader."
With a flash of fierce light in her eyes, the young lady touched her chin and sneered, "Even though Nu Woer died, she left behind a mess. Pei Yu is Nu Woer’s illegitimate son; it doesn’t matter whether it’s Pei Yu or He Su—if either of them gains power..."
She scoffed, feeling extremely fortunate for this journey to The Outside. Otherwise, her own situation could have been very passive!