xymnovel Chapter 2156 - 1563: What If Potatoes Were Introduced to Mongolia?
Chapter 2156 - 1563: What If Potatoes Were Introduced to Mongolia?
"Ali! Why do you have dark circles under your eyes? Haven’t you been sleeping well these past few days?""Uh? Ancestor High Priest?..."
"Oh, Chief Divine, it’s all Aguda’s fault! He insisted on having a tribal marriage with the local River-side Tribe, and it went on for most of the day. Once Pearl went into the tent, it went on all night, and I could hear him howling away! These lousy tents don’t block any sound. His Jurchen Tribe and this group of Mongolians are truly idle, sneaking over to eavesdrop all night!..."
"Ah?? Ancestor High Priest, Brother Aguda is quite thoughtful. Making a fuss and forming a marriage alliance with the local River-side Tribe isn’t a bad thing. Haven’t these past few days seen the River-side Tribe’s attitude towards us become much friendlier? Oh, I get it! Ancestor High Priest, are you... envious? Brother Aguda’s stamina is indeed astonishing!..."
"What? Envious of what?! I am not, don’t talk nonsense! Ali, I just haven’t slept well like you..."
"But, you’re currently drinking sheep whip soup?..."
"Ahem! Ali, eat your milk skin properly! After you finish, accompany me for a walk in the village. I want to see the altar of this Mongolian Tribe..."
The grassland in September showed a slight chill, and Huli Ping Village was always permeated with the gamey smell of cattle and sheep, with everything edible related to sheep.
Maha Aguda made a grand affair, actually formally marrying Bule’s daughter Pearl according to tribal customs, establishing a kinship, which made Bule quite surprised and delighted. However, when it came to the issue of "conscription of men and horses," he remained hesitant and didn’t give a definite answer. He just said to let the "Lord Leader" rest for a few days after the new marriage, and Chieftain Ao Hala would come over personally to discuss...
"Ali, I’ve also observed these past two days. This nomadic tribe, aside from milk, sheep milk, various dairy products, and mutton specifically provided for us, doesn’t have much else to eat. At most, there’s some grass seeds, and there’s even less wild vegetables, not as good as the Black Water Forest where we came from. However, the horse milk wine is quite good! It’s a bit sweet and sour, somewhat similar to the deer blood wine of the Mountain Part, but there’s much more in quantity..."
"Haha! Of course! You live off the mountain when you rely on it, and you use water when you have it. White Mountain Black Water is truly a good place! I’m not bragging, but the old forest of our Jurchen Tribes, with its water and trees, yields much more than this endless grassland! Even the number of game in the forest far exceeds that on the grassland... The barnyard grass we grow is also more reliable than this sheep that produces milk. If it weren’t for the wilder people from the farther north moving southward..."
"Hmm... At the same latitude, a place that can grow a forest is definitely better than one that only grows grass! Your Majesty once said, the forest’s Tonali has more than grass..."
Zuwaro held a pouch, drinking horse milk wine while wandering around where the Kingdom’s Warriors were stationed. This time, he didn’t bring that Jurchen Translator Ah Bo but instead was with Ali, who knew a bit of Mongolian. As the two drank the sour wine and watched the bustling nomadic life of the River-side Tribe, they seemed as idle as true "Mongolian nobles." Whenever they encountered anything interesting, Zuwaro would have Ali ask a few questions, especially concerning his main focus...
"Ali, this human-sized ’pyramid,’ draped with a strip, with cattle, sheep, horses placed... Eh! And human skulls? Chief Divine bears witness! This must be the altar of this Mongolian Tribe?..."
"Ah! Ancestor High Priest, this is their Oobao... Yes, it’s the Priest’s prayer altar! This cone-like shape symbolizes the bridge connecting heaven and earth. The top is pointy, linking with the ’Eternal Sky,’ while the base is wide, merging with the ’Mother Earth’... See those skulls, blood, and milk offerings? They are dedicated to Tenggeri Eternal Sky!"
"Tenggeri Eternal Sky? What kind of Divine Spirit is He? Does He also favor life and blood, accepting sacrifices of Tonali’s life force?..."
"Uh! The Mongolian Tribes do have the custom of sacrifices. Typically, there’s the ’white sacrifice,’ using dairy products as offerings to the Eternal Sky. For important occasions, ’red sacrifices’ are used, involving the entire slaughter of sheep, cattle, or even horses, in offerings that involve bloodletting. When facing severe white disasters or tribal wars, some tribes resort to the more solemn ’human sacrifice,’ using slaves or prisoners of war..."
The two walked up to the Oobao, gazing at the stone and earth altar stained with red and white, their expressions solemn. Ali fetched two Jurchen pastoral slaves and inquired carefully for a long time before continuing to answer Zuwaro.
"Ancestor High Priest! In the eyes of the Mongolians, the Eternal Sky is the oldest, most just, and greatest Heavenly Divine, but He has no precise form. He governs weather changes and the alternation of seasons, affecting the growth of grassland pastures and the reproduction of livestock. Simply put, He can be seen as the ’sky,’ ’sun,’ ’snowstorm,’ ’rainfall’... all these awe-inspiring or worshipped celestial phenomena are His embodiments!"
"Besides worshiping the Eternal Sky, they also worship ’Ehedelei,’ or the ’Mother Earth,’ the Mother Goddess protecting her children, the five livestock, and the five grains... And many Mongolian nobles believe in the ancestral spirits, the ’Sun and Moon Light.’ The ancestor of the Golden Family of the Bei’erzhijin, Beiduan Cha’er, is said to be his mother, conceived by the Sun and Moon Light. Therefore, all noble golden bloodlines are ’Light’s descendants,’ and worshiping light is worshiping the ancestors..."
"For ordinary herdsmen, they worship the Seven Stars ’Daolan Ebugen,’ that is, the Seven Elders, the Big Dipper. These Seven Stars always accompany the herdsmen grazing in the wild, turning throughout the spring, summer, autumn, and winter, like the protecting Shaman Heavenly Divine above. Each of the seven stars has its name, respectively one star ’Sun Di,’ two stars ’Bu Riva Badala,’ three stars ’Aslith,’ four stars ’Aoru Jini,’ five stars ’Ene Rinde,’ six stars ’Riyi Wadi,’ seven stars ’Mao Leibari’... said to be transformed from seven ancient great shamans, their mana boundless!"