Er kämpft in allen Himmeln und unzähligen Welten

Kapitel 41

Mo Li and I rode together on Gebu's horse. Gebu insisted that his sister not ride with a man, and I was angry that he was blind to her beauty, but I also wanted to be with Mo Li, so I ultimately endured it.

Both horses were incredibly strong, galloping side by side across the grassland. I heard from Elizabeth that the Han people were enemies of the Mo people, and I couldn't help but ask Moli, "Are the Han people at war with the Mo people?"

"No, it's just that the situation has been more tense in the last three years, but now it seems that both sides are at a stalemate and neither side has any intention of starting a war."

Elizabeth turned her head from her horse. "Is this what you Han people think? The Mo people are now buying up good horses all over the grasslands at extremely low prices. Several ranches that refused their offers have mysteriously disappeared. The ranches were burned down, the people died, and the horses are all gone. Where do you think these horses went? What will they be used for?"

I was shocked when I heard this. The actions of the Mo Kingdom clearly indicated that they were preparing to go to war with my royal brother.

I recalled the day my brother ascended the throne, when he and Mo Fei walked hand in hand onto the high platform, swearing an eternal alliance between our two nations, and a sense of absurdity welled up within me.

Is it really that serious that I just couldn't marry into that family?

The two horses galloped at breakneck speed. Elizabeth was an excellent rider, and Mo Li was equally adept, keeping close behind. A moment later, we rounded the meadow Elizabeth had mentioned, and the scenery changed dramatically. Sure enough, there was a wide riverbed, with large, lush meadows along its banks. Wooden fences stretched out, and dozens of riders were herding herds of horses from within the fences towards the riverbank, accompanied by large dogs running alongside. The endless line of horses resembled another, five-colored, rushing river.

Elizabeth and Gebu shouted and rode off. An old man with white hair rode up to meet them. After listening to them say a few words, he turned to us. His eyes were bright and his face was quite dignified.

Mo Li cupped his hands in greeting to him, and the old man whipped his horse, arriving in front of us in the blink of an eye. He returned the gesture with a fist salute from his horse and said, "So it's our Han friends who have arrived. Unfortunately, we have encountered an emergency today and can only entertain you another day. We apologize."

Gebu had already joined the group driving the horses. Elizabeth jumped off her horse and ran over, stamping her foot and calling out, "Father!" Before she finished speaking, a commotion suddenly arose from the water's edge, someone shouting, "The horses are startled! The horses are startled!"

I turned my head and saw the horses being driven across the river. The water was already splashing and the horses were neighing incessantly. Suddenly, something seemed to have gone wrong; the leading horses began to stir, some even retreating. The horses behind couldn't avoid them and collided. The horses that had been gathered together scattered in all directions, some falling directly into the water, hooves in the air, unable to roll, and then being trampled by the approaching horses, neighing pitifully. Although the people in the ranch were trying their best to help, with hundreds of horses in such a commotion, it was impossible for just a few people to control them. The scene was chaotic and terrifying.

The old man's face changed drastically, and he turned his horse and galloped towards the river. Elizabeth grabbed a horse from the side and jumped on, then turned back and shouted to us, "Quickly find a place to hide, or you'll get trampled by a runaway horse!"

We were standing not far from the riverbank when, before she finished speaking, some horses came galloping toward where we were. Horses on the grassland are tall and long-legged, and a single one is already impressive, let alone a group of them galloping toward us. I was so frightened that I froze on the spot. I wanted to jump to a higher place to hide, but this was a flat grassland by the river with not even a small tree. Where could I jump to?

I hesitated for only a moment, and the herd of horses was already upon me. Before Elizabeth's horse could even gallop out, it was swallowed up by the surging herd and disappeared in the blink of an eye. The first horse to reach me reared up and stomped down on my head. I reached out to grab the person next to me, shouting frantically, "Mo Li, watch out!"

My body suddenly felt light, but I was grabbed and thrown into the air onto the horse's back. I heard his voice ring out amidst the clamor of thousands of horses galloping, piercing straight into my ears.

"pay close attention!"

I've gotten used to what he says lately, and even in moments of panic like this, I react instinctively, stretching out my arms and tightly hugging the horse's neck, while keeping my eyes fixed on him, afraid he might be in danger.

Mo Li reacted with lightning speed. After throwing me aside, he immediately leaped onto the horse's back, his toes barely touching the ground. In a few quick leaps, he was at the very front of the herd. The herdsmen, who were running and shouting, were startled by his sudden appearance. Without hesitation, he snatched a long whip from one of the herds and lashed it out, reining in a pure white horse. The horse, which had been charging wildly through the herd, was suddenly caught by the whip and neighed loudly. Its hooves flew off the ground, its mane billowing, and it was forced to spin halfway around by Mo Li's whip. The other horses around it immediately showed fear. Some stopped, while others, momentarily disoriented, turned around and followed its lead.

The white horse continued to struggle, but Mo Li's strength was immense. As he pulled, the long whip taut as iron. He then leaped forward and landed directly on the horse's bare back, grabbing its mane with one hand and clamping it tightly between his legs.

The horse was pure white, but extremely irritable. When Mo Li suddenly mounted it, it leaped wildly, wanting nothing more than to throw him off. But he held it tightly with his legs, and the long whip wrapped around its neck as if rooted to its back. It charged left and right in the water, splashing the river water like snowflakes, until finally it was exhausted, exhaling white breath from its nostrils, lowering its head, and no longer struggling.

Mo Li retracted his whip, braced his leg against the horse's belly, and urged it to cross the river. The white horse obeyed his commands, and the herd of horses around it stopped their restlessness and followed closely behind, clearly following his lead.

With the source gone and the herdsmen driving them away, the rioting horses gradually calmed down. It seemed that the disturbance had vanished. The men of the grassland admired those with superb horsemanship. What Mo Li had just done was more than just superb horsemanship; it was nothing short of a miraculous rescue of everyone from dire straits. Someone shouted a cheer first, and then everyone else began to cheer loudly from their horses. The grassland was filled with thunderous applause, and everyone regarded him as a hero.

Chapter Three: Nameless Valley

1

We crossed the river with the people from the ranch, and I returned to Moli's side. We rode together, and the white horse, which had lost all its arrogance, became extremely docile and obediently let him drive it.

The old man rode beside us, and like the white horse, he also changed his previous attitude, speaking to Mo Li with great respect.

The old man, named Sangza, was the father of Eliza and Gebu, and also the owner of the ranch. As they walked and talked, Eliza explained that for the past year, the Mexicans had been aggressively searching for fine horses on the grasslands. Although the Mexicans were powerful, they were not skilled in horse breeding. The Mongols had always been the best horse breeders on the grasslands, and the largest ranches all belonged to the Mongols. The Mexicans were buying horses everywhere, but the prices they offered were unbelievably low. As a result, several large Mongol ranches refused their demands and joined forces to resist. Unexpectedly, starting last month, several ranches were burned down one after another, and everyone on the ranches died overnight. The horses disappeared without a trace. Later, those who managed to escape spread the word that all of this was done by a Mexican cavalry unit.

Sanza had always been on good terms with those ranchers and had jointly rejected the Mexican offer. After what happened, he was naturally prepared, having his ranchmen take turns patrolling the area daily to prevent a Mexican army attack. Sure enough, today they discovered a troop of Mexican cavalry rushing towards their ranch. Sanza immediately decided to move the horses; even if it meant abandoning the ranch, he couldn't let the Mexicans seize their hard work.

Upon hearing this, I thought to myself, "Oh," and turned to look at Elizabeth, thinking, "No wonder she appeared alone on the grassland and bumped into us."

As I turned my head, I saw Eliza's gaze fixed on Mo Li. She looked at him openly, showing no sign of backing down even when I saw her. Her eyes were watery, and her face was flushed. I was immediately annoyed. Before I could even think of anything, she had already made her move, wrapping her arms around Mo Li's waist. He was talking to Sangza and turned around, only glancing at me with a slight upturn of his eyes.

Alas, even heroes can't resist the charms of a beautiful woman; with just one glance, my face... turned red.

“The Mexicans are searching for Roman horses so thoroughly, they must be planning to expand their army. It seems that war is about to break out on the border again.” Mo Li didn’t pay any attention to what I was doing and turned back to continue talking to Sanza.

"The Mo people and the Han people have been fighting for so many years, and it's only been a few years since then. If we fight again, it will only be us, who are completely unrelated to them, who suffer." Sangza sighed heavily, then raised his head again. "We are just a people who graze their livestock on the grasslands. Wherever the horses are, that's where we are. If someone does business with us sincerely, they are our friends; otherwise, they are our enemies. In recent years, some Han people have gone out of the pass to buy horses, and they are honest and trustworthy, much better than those Mo people who force us to buy and sell. Today, thanks to you, young man, we were able to save our horses. On behalf of everyone on the ranch, I would like to express my gratitude in advance. In the future, if you need anything, young man Mo, just ask. I, Sangza, will do my best to help."

Mo Li smiled and asked, "I have a question for you, Master. There is a Han Chinese doctor named He Nan who is said to have been living in seclusion in this grassland for many years. Since you have lived here for so long, do you know his exact location?"

"A Han Chinese doctor?" Sangza frowned, deep in thought. "How old is he?"

"This person became famous thirty years ago, so he's not young anymore."

“A middle-aged man? Three years ago, a woman on the western pasture had a difficult childbirth. She was almost dead when a Han Chinese man passed by and saved both mother and child. The story spread far and wide, and everyone said they had encountered a miracle doctor. But that Han Chinese man wasn’t very old; he was just a middle-aged man.”

Mo Li's eyes brightened slightly. "That's it. This person's medical skills are superb, and he has a way of preserving his youth. It's no wonder he doesn't seem to age. Does the owner know where he is now?"

Sangza shook his head, looking troubled. "I really don't know. That ranch was burned down several months ago, and nobody bothered to ask about it. I only heard that the person left heading south, but this grassland is so vast..."

Mo Li listened without speaking, his brows slightly furrowed. After a long pause, I finally couldn't help but ask him in a low voice, "Why do we need to find this person? Is he important?"

I sat behind Mo Li, and to speak to him I had to strain my neck to look forward. After finally managing to finish speaking, I saw his eyes turn back, his face darken, and he said, "It's all because of you!"

For me? A bolt of lightning struck me, and I was speechless on the spot. I blinked for a long time, unable to recover my senses.

Before we knew it, the large group had crossed the river. The opposite bank was no longer a flat grassland, but a range of mountains. Sangza led the way, and everyone turned into a valley with a narrow and secluded entrance. Sangza proudly told us that he had accidentally discovered this valley while tracking a wolf. It was extremely well hidden, and no one knew about it except the people on his ranch.

Upon entering the valley, I was indeed greeted by a hidden paradise. Looking around, I saw lush green grass and babbling streams, a place that seemed like a fairyland.

Having reached their destination, the herders began to settle the large group of horses. Mo Li jumped off his horse and was about to return it to Sangza when, unexpectedly, Sangza immediately raised his hand to refuse.

"Absolutely not, this horse is already yours."

Mo Li raised an eyebrow, about to speak, when Elizabeth walked over and said with a smile, "These horses at the front are a herd of wild horses that Father and the uncles caught a few days ago. The white horse is their leader. We haven't had time to tame it yet. It was the one that started the trouble just now. Luckily you were here. Wild horses have no master, and whoever tames it will be its master. Father, am I right?"

Sanza seemed to adore his daughter. After hearing her words, he immediately laughed and nodded, saying, "Eliza is right. This horse is magnificent and deserves to be ridden by a hero like Brother Mo. You must not refuse."

I suddenly realized that the white horse was the leader of the wild horses they had captured a few days ago. Wild horses are unruly and difficult to tame. This time, in order to avoid the attack of the Mo people, they moved hastily. Unexpectedly, this white horse led the wild horse herd to riot at this critical moment. If Mo Li hadn't intervened in time, not only this herd of wild horses, but even the horses that were originally on their ranch might have scattered and escaped, and could never have been caught.

I stood beside the white horse, and hearing their words, my curiosity was piqued. I looked up at it a few more times and saw that its eyes were bright and its mane was snow-white; it was indeed beautiful. Seeing me staring at it, the white horse suddenly reared up and kicked its hind legs. This horse was exceptionally tall, and with a single leap, it was right next to my face. I was so frightened that I took a big step back. Before I could even use my lightness skill, I heard a lot of people laughing loudly around me.

She laughed, covering her mouth as she said to Mo Li, "Brother Mo, your little brother is really interesting."

I had already hidden behind Mo Li, and upon hearing those words, my face immediately hardened. I was extremely displeased and muttered to myself, "Who's the little brother? Who's your big brother? Shameless!"

2

As night fell, the herders had settled all their horses in the valley, pitched their tents, and gathered together to chat over a fire. Only Sangza and his two children spoke Mandarin on the pasture. I noticed that Eliza and Gebu looked slightly different from the others; although they shared the same dark reddish-brown skin, they didn't seem like purebred foreigners, and their features had a somewhat Han Chinese appearance.

I was a little curious, but since they wouldn't tell me, I felt too embarrassed to ask further.

Although they couldn't communicate verbally, it didn't stop the others from expressing their reverence for Mo Li with enthusiastic expressions and body language. Someone unloaded a bloody lamb from a horse and placed it over a fire. I found it strange; I never expected that there would be roasted whole lamb in such a place.

The Mongols are cheerful and outgoing. Although they had fled from the pastures to this place with their horses, they gathered together under the starry sky and around the campfire, their faces still full of enthusiasm and excitement, showing no sign of being in distress.

I sat down next to Mo Li, wanting to talk to him and ask him why he said he wanted to find that novice He Nan for my sake, but he was surrounded by people, and the men took out their wine pouches and passed them around to drink. The fireside was noisy, and there was no chance for me to speak.

When the wine bag was passed to me, I was immediately stunned by its size and shook my head. A young Mongolian man sat down next to me and, without saying a word, tried to lift the wine bag and pour it down my throat.

Sangza, sitting opposite me, smiled and said, "Young man, when you come to our grasslands, you can't not drink."

The man held my hand tightly, and as I struggled, my face turned bright red. I was focused on looking at Mo Li, hoping he would come to my rescue. But he was talking to Yi Li, who was sitting next to him. In the firelight, Yi Li's face glowed red, and her long, black braid almost touched his shoulder. My displeasure intensified, and in a moment of impulsiveness, I grabbed the wine bag and drank. The wine on the grassland was strong and spicy, and one sip made me cough and tears well up in my eyes.

The man laughed loudly, and the wine bag in his hand was taken away. Through my teary eyes, I shivered from the coldness of Mo Li's gaze. Even the man's laughter suddenly stopped. Only after Mo Li turned around with the wine bag in his hand did he lower his voice and mutter a long string of words.

At that moment, we suddenly understood each other. I understood what he meant, which was something like, "Little brother, your older brother looks really scary when he's stern."

He went ahead, his gaze serious.

"What are you doing here?" I asked, trying to make conversation.

"I'm keeping watch to see if those people will come."

"You mean the Mexicans?" I looked in the direction of his gaze, trying to find the pastureland we had come from, but there was no moon tonight, only some starlight reflected on the distant river, and the rest was an endless, desolate grassland. Someone like me who was completely unfamiliar with this place had no idea which way was which.

Gebu gritted his teeth, his small face filled with hatred. "They killed my friends, I hate them."

I was taken aback. "When was your friend killed by Mexicans?"

He nodded, then turned his head away from me. I don't know if it was because his eyes were red, but after a long while he spoke, "You Han people have also been killed by them many times. Aren't you very much like the Mo people?"

Have any Han Chinese been killed? I paused for a moment, and the image of the capital city, bathed in blood and fire three years ago, flashed before my eyes. So what if they were killed by the Mo people? Han Chinese killed other Han Chinese.

The wind blew through the grass, creating waves that rolled like the sea. I was engrossed in watching it when suddenly I realized something was wrong. I pointed to the opposite bank of the river and asked, "Gebu, what's that?"

Gebu stood up and looked in that direction, then his eyes widened suddenly, and he turned and ran downstairs, shouting as he ran, "Father, Father, someone's coming this way! Someone's coming this way!!"

Gebu ran very fast, and I wasn't in a hurry to catch up with him. I just stared at the direction carefully and saw a large shadow moving quickly across the river. In the blink of an eye, it reached the riverbank, paused briefly in front of the water, and then began to cross the river. Although it was a large, dark mass of people, they moved quickly and in an orderly manner. Judging from the situation, they must be a well-trained night army.

The army rode their horses across the river at incredible speed, heading straight for the valley where we were. Seeing the danger, I turned and ran back, determined to rejoin Mo Li no matter what. But before I could even leap, a dark figure appeared before me. I let out a scream before someone grabbed me, and a familiar, hoarse voice whispered in my ear, "What are you yelling for?"

Mo Li arrived after receiving Gebu's message, followed by several others, panting heavily. The dark shadow was still moving rapidly across the river, and everyone who saw it wore a grave expression.

The army moved with astonishing speed at night, and their direction was so clear that it seemed they knew the route well. Just as I was marveling at this, I heard Gebufei's strange voice beside me, "How did they know we were here?"

Elizabeth shook her head. "Impossible. Only we know the entrance to this valley. How could they have found it?"

Mo Li gave a slightly chilly smile. I stood right next to him, understanding his meaning yet unable to believe it. I lowered my voice to a whisper, almost exhaling, and asked, "Did someone leak the information?"

He hummed in agreement. "It seems so."

The ranchers were huddled together, debating whether to stay and hide or flee deeper into the grasslands. Looking at their dark, honest faces, I couldn't believe it. "How could this be? There are traitors among these people who would betray their friends?"

He glanced at me, his eyes questioning, "Where is it not?"

I froze, involuntarily recalling the first time I met him, Mo Li's cold attitude of distrusting everyone. I couldn't utter a rebuttal, but suddenly felt that he was far away from me. Before I could think, my fingers twitched and I grabbed his hem again.

Lately, this action of mine has become a habit, and he noticed it too, but he only glanced down at it without frowning. This put my mind at ease, thinking that even if he is wary of everyone else, as long as he is good to me, that's enough.

Sangza walked over, frowning as she discussed with him, "Brother Mo, what do you think of the current situation..."

Everyone else turned their attention to him. Although they had only spent half a day with Mo Li, they all treated him with great respect. In this critical moment, their expressions even seemed to regard him as a savior.

It's understandable. These herdsmen are used to the peaceful life of grazing horses on the grasslands. Even if they were somewhat prepared, they were still panicked and at a loss when faced with a sudden army attack. Mo Li's martial arts skills were superb, and his appearance was so timely that it was inevitable that they would rely on him.

Mo Li cast his gaze into the distance, where a shadow, like a dark cloud, was hurtling towards the valley where we were. His eyesight was excellent; he focused his gaze for a moment in the darkness before speaking.

"With over a hundred cavalrymen, their ability to move so swiftly and orderly even at night suggests they are a well-trained army."

Someone clutched their head and screamed. Although they were speaking Mongolian, they sounded extremely panicked.

Sangza shouted angrily at the man in Mongolian, then said, "What are you yelling for! If you come, we'll draw our swords and fight, killing one by one. Are the men of the grasslands afraid of death?"

Mo Li surveyed the terrain, pondered for a moment, and asked, "Is there only one entrance and exit to this valley?"

Sanza shook his head. "There are passages in the valley, but they are all extremely well hidden, and not many people know about them."

Elizabeth repeated her father's words in Mongolian. When the people around heard that there was a path in the back mountain, they all showed surprise and joy, and some even shouted out loud.

Sangza frowned. "I've never mentioned the road behind the mountain to them, because it's a dead end."