Aztec Civilization: Destiny to Conquer America!-Chapter 1690 - 1204: The Red Crow’s Food Shortage and an Unexpected Turn (Part 2)

"Amo, don't be anxious! I've gone over it with Azu, placing ten thousand at Flint Lake can roughly support spring sowing, feeding them until the October harvest! Over at Warrior Lake, I estimate it could also support ten thousand, making it twenty thousand tribes total!..."

"Twenty thousand, we can support at most another twenty thousand! But what about the remaining thirty thousand?! These thirty thousand Prairie Tribes, they also came out of the heaps of dead from the cold tide, they're not obedient Vastek agricultural slaves!..."

Amoxtli furrowed his brows in the wind, took a deep breath, and a sudden realization appeared on his face. He glared with old eyes at Moqi, who was slightly avoiding his gaze, and Zucata, who was still standing straight, and asked coldly.

"Ha! In the end, you all still want to lead people southward, to plunder the Vastek tribes in the south? No, this isn't just the two of you... speak, how many chieftains from the tribes support you?" 𝘧𝓇ℯ𝑒𝓌𝑒𝑏𝓃𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭.𝒸ℴ𝓂

"Ahem! Amo, we really have no other way! You suggested settling down to farm, and although there are some complaints, in truth, everyone supports you. You've always kept your word, and you're fair in rewards and punishments to each tribe, everyone sees you as the true Great Chief, even more than Great Chief Chichika! Without these tens of thousands of prairie tribes heading south, the chieftains would be content here to clear land and await the autumn harvest... But the lass fought fiercely up north, gathering so many tribes; if we don't head south to the Red Crow heartland, it will be chaos in the north... We figured, better to take them south to rob the Vasteks than let them cause trouble in the north or here! No matter how many die, even one survivor is a gain, and they can come back with a big pile of spoils of war!..."

"Ah! Moqi and Azu, you two seem smart... Think carefully! Plundering southward? Even plundering requires preparing food; you can't go on an empty stomach! Suitable Vastek tribes with provisions might have fled eight hundred li away. To lead these thirty thousand tribes, we ourselves need to send ten thousand warriors, leaving our homeland with ten thousand fewer able-bodied men for farming, causing at least a ten percent reduction in this year's autumn harvest!..."

"And the food for these forty thousand people to go eight hundred li south, we have to provide it ourselves! Then staying in the south for half a year until the autumn harvest, which Vastek tribe could sustain us? Only Crow City a thousand li away!... Think carefully about this account! Do we really want to fiercely strike the Silver Raven Alliance, push all the way to Crow City, and lose two thousand tribes in the process?!..."

Amoxtli sighed heavily, extended his rough fingers that had wielded spears and tilled land, and calculated for the two confidants to see. Though he initially was just a small tribal chieftain, he had traveled thousands of li over the years, seen the grand world, and led the growing Red Crow Tribe, constantly learning diligently... and he saw far more clearly than others in the tribes!

"Forty thousand hunting tribes heading south can carry food for at most a little over two months! Forget about any supply lines from the rear, there's no surplus, and grain cannot be transported during spring sowing. So it'll be eating whatever they find, wherever they reach! Within a month, they have to travel eight hundred li across the river to the territory of the Silver Raven Alliance. Then raid any villages they see, kill any tribes they encounter, and within half a month, reach the edge of Crow City! By then, there would be half a month to a month's worth of food left, they must take down Crow City and seize their city-state's provisions to survive!..."

"Ah! Break open the wealthy Crow City, rob the Silver Raven Alliance, just like breaking into Otter City!… Good! Amo! As long as you give the order, we'll all rally with the elite troops and see it through with you!..."

Hearing this, Moqi and Zucata's eyes filled with excitement. However, Amoxtli kicked out with his leg, nearly knocking the two confidants over.

"Damn it! You two only know how to fight, can't you use your brains? Capture Crow City in a month? It's not that easy! Let's not even talk about the Silver Raven Alliance itself; they can muster tens of thousands of militia... If they truly get desperate and request reinforcements from the Totornak Alliance in the southeast, getting those city-states in the south to send numerous bow-wielding samurais to help defend the city... how many casualties would we have to suffer to break through the city walls?… Moreover, if they stall us while seeking aid from the Qingqiu tribes to the west... we'd be in real danger!..."

"That sly wolf Balamo, you've seen him before! And that old fox Red Fox Otuwa brought the great Red Fox Tribe to join him early last year... He's now gained the western Vastec land, gearing up with his tribesmen, coming down from the wilderness! If we blindly head so far south, leaving our flanks and rear completely exposed, can he resist baring his teeth, can he resist taking a bite out of us?!... If he leads the tribes in a surprise attack on Crow City, seizing our base and occupying the northeast... we'll be like stray dogs with no lair, like a snake with its seven-inch shattered!..."

"What? That old fellow Red Fox Otuwa is still alive? He actually joined Balamo?..."

"Ah?! That ruthless guy Balamo? Isn't he one of the Great Chiefs under the Great God of Death's rule? Would he attack us and seize our territory?..."

Upon hearing this, Moqi and Zucata stood frozen, revealing rare tension on their faces. In truth, they didn't care much about the supposedly powerful Totornak Alliance in the south. After all, no matter how powerful the other side was, it was challenging for them to send a massive army northward a thousand li to hit the Red Crow's lair here. But the Qingqiu tribes located upstream in the southwest, mainly composed of Wilderness Dog Descendants tribes with Balamo as Great Chief, were almost a mirror image of the Red Crow Alliance. The Canine Descendants of the Qingqiu tribes truly had the capability to depart east from Desolate Valley City, march over six hundred li, and stealthily capture the Red Crow's lair...