In the late Ming Dynasty, rising from the grassland

Chapter 11 Caravan (for further reading)

The three of them rode for more than 30 miles before it got dark. Fortunately, Lin Rui was already familiar with this terrain.

Not long after, they found the team that had just camped near a water source. The three of them led their horses and took advantage of the darkness to climb a nearby mound.

I saw piles of bonfires lit in the camp not far away, carriages surrounding the camp end to end, and countless figures busy at work.

"Brother Lin, this doesn't seem to be a Tatar, right?"

"Yes, this should be our Han caravan."

Sister-in-law Niu could see it, and naturally Lin Rui could also see it, and nodded.

"Well, it does look like a caravan, but there are too many people and cars. How big of a caravan is this?"

"If my guess is correct, the caravans of this size should be from the eight companies from Zhangjiakou. Judging from their direction, they are probably going to Liaodong."

Lin Rui said solemnly, all the carts below were fully loaded, at least three to four thousand, and the number of people was no less than five thousand. With the mules and horses pulling the carts, it would not be an exaggeration to say that a large army was camping.

The only caravans capable of such blatant smuggling on a large scale were the eight profiteers in Zhangjiakou in the entire Ming Dynasty.

Even Lin Rui had heard about the eight traitorous Shanxi merchants in his previous life, and the memory of the owner of this body also knew about them. It can be seen that the eight smuggling companies have long been known to everyone in Datong and Xuanfu.

"These damn profiteers brought so many things to Liaodong and sold them to the Houjin Tatars. Sooner or later, they will have to cut off their descendants and die a good death!"

Sure enough, Mrs. Niu had also heard about the Eight Families, and she immediately cursed bitterly.

"Xiao Cui, please go back overnight and tell everyone not to worry..." Lin Rui ordered to Xiao Cui.

"Okay, Brother Lin and Sister Niu, please be careful, I'm leaving." Xiaocui nodded and rode away.

This place is at least fifty miles away from their station, but neither of them is too worried about Xiao Cui's safety.

Not to mention fifty miles, it only takes half an hour at a quick pace. What's more, Xiaocui can easily handle some situations with her current skills.

.........

"Brother Lin, what are you thinking about? Are you thinking about girl Xiuying?"

The two of them were lying on the hillside. Seeing that Lin Rui had not spoken for a long time and was a little bored, Mrs. Niu couldn't help teasing her again.

"It's nothing, don't think about it." All he was thinking about was the caravan. How could he think about bed?

"Haha, you guys are just so lucky. With Xiuying's status and figure, in the past, if you dared to even take a look at it, someone would have to dig out your eyes. How can it be like now? Tossing around like this every night..."

But Mrs. Niu became more and more enthusiastic as she talked, and their every move at night could not be hidden from her and Xiaocui's ears.

"How could it be as outrageous as what you said?" Lin Rui rolled his eyes. In fact, he knew that what Mrs. Niu said was the truth.

In ancient times, there was an insurmountable gap between the two classes. China was better off and could rebel against the imperial examinations to counterattack, but the people at the bottom of Europe had no way out.

"But then again, our brother Lin is so capable and handsome now. It would be too unfair for you to live with us, hey!" Mrs. Niu sighed again at the end.

"Haha, Sister Xiuying is smart, well-informed, and I make money wherever she goes."

Lin Rui chuckled.

Women like Zhang Xiuying would have been extinct in the previous life, so he didn't feel that he was at a disadvantage. After all, he was mentally in his thirties.

"Sister Xiuying is indeed good, but she is not a young lady after all. With your current ability, if you return to the Central Plains, it will not be difficult to marry a lady from a wealthy family."

Aunt Niu said a little unconvinced.

After seeing him silent for a long time, his tone suddenly became deeper. "Brother Lin, is your brother Niu really dead?"

"Ok!"

Lin Rui felt a little guilty after being stared at by her, but finally nodded. Who would have thought that Mrs. Niu seemed to be relieved, turned over and sat on Lin Rui's body.

"What are you going to do?" Lin Rui was startled.

"If you want me to follow you, you can't treat one favorably and favor the other, right?"

Mrs. Niu's face turned red with embarrassment, but what she said was very bold.

Lin Rui was speechless for a moment and didn't know how to answer.

.........

The next day, the camp not far away started to get busy early in the morning. An hour later, the convoy headed northeast again.

But what surprised the two was that the convoy did not finish, but about 100 people and about [-] large vehicles remained.

"Brother Lin, why don't they leave?"

"I am not sure as well."

Looking at the group of people and cars that stayed behind, Lin Rui thought about it for a long time without thinking about it, so he shook his head.

However, at noon, the two finally came to their senses and saw a group of Tatars coming from a distance. After entering the camp, they left not long after.

Almost half of the horses they brought were missing, but when they left, the remaining horses carried a large amount of supplies on their backs.

In the next two days, six or seven tribes came to trade one after another. Each time, Lin Rui would record the number and direction of these Tatars in detail to judge the size and approximate location of their tribe.

"Brother Lin, aren't we almost finished with our salt and tea? Why don't we go and exchange some with them? By the way, there are still grains and cloth, so it's best to exchange some too."

"Change? In fact, most of those people are coachmen and horsemen, and the real guards are only 50 or [-] people."

Lin Rui never thought about trading. He stayed here for three days, not only trying to collect more information, but also trying to figure out how to rob this caravan.

"But apart from Sister Xiuying, there are only eighteen of us?" Aunt Niu naturally understood what he meant and said hesitantly.

"Today is different from the past. With our current strength, it is definitely not possible to fight head-on, but under a sneak attack, the chance of victory is still very high."

Lin Rui waved his hand.

He is still very confident in the team he has personally trained.

What's more, he knew that if he wanted to survive on the grassland, population was the most important thing, so he actually fell in love with the coachmen and horsemen. As for the supplies, it was secondary. Once he passed this village, there would be no such store.

"Okay, you can do whatever you say, my sister-in-law will listen to you." Sister-in-law Niu clenched the long knife in her hand. After last night's tossing, she was now even more obedient to Lin Rui's words.

"Without further delay, let's do it tonight, otherwise they might leave until tomorrow!"

With that said, the two of them quietly descended the hillside, then got on their horses and galloped away as if they were stationary.

Back at the station, when everyone heard that the caravan was to be robbed, not only did they not show any fear, but they were eager to try it. After all, the skilled man was brave, and everyone knew how much he had improved his strength.

Zhang Xiuying was the only one with a worried look on her face, but she also knew that she had to seize the caravan, otherwise the tea and salt would last for another two months at most before she would eat them all.

After everyone was ready, it was already dark. One man and two horses rushed towards the caravan camp to kill. Even Zhang Xiuying followed the others, so Lin Rui was worried about leaving her alone in the camp.

(End of this chapter)