At the beginning, I gave up my military power with a cup of wine, and I ascended the throne

Chapter 16 The Real Target: Shatuo Kingdom

"Guess a number."

Pan Yuanshao kept the question in suspense.

"I guess one hundred thousand taels."

Gao Li spoke.

He just came back yesterday. Chen Gong stayed at Qimen Pass to train soldiers and guard against the Northern Wei.

Nowadays, each of these brave generals has been appointed as a county lieutenant, although they are not as powerful as when they commanded thousands of troops in Yuyang.

But in the northern border, there are still people above them, and in Xiliang, except for Xiao Han, they are the biggest.

"You look down on me, don't you?"

Pan Yuanshao pretended to be annoyed.

"Two hundred thousand then."

Zhuge Shou was a little uncertain.

"It's worthless."

Shi Qing curled his lips: "These few days, I will be responsible for the inventory."

He held up three fingers and said, "At least this number."

"hiss."

Several people gasped.

"It is said that Xiliang is a bitter and cold place, but there are many fat sheep here."

"Just over 400,000 taels of silver."

Pan Yuanshao's face was so happy that it almost blossomed: "This does not include the antiques, calligraphy and paintings, jewelry, jade and other things that were seized during the house search."

"Wow, I'm rich."

Lu Ju looked at Xiao Han: "General, why don't we recruit soldiers now?"

"Train until the beginning of next spring, and I promise to train you a strong team."

Xiao Han shook his head: "We will recruit soldiers after the autumn harvest."

"It's just right that by that time, the first batch of war horses and armor and weapons that the Marquis promised me should have arrived."

There was a cold light in his eyes, and he drew a circle on the map with his finger and said, "If we don't want to fight, then don't fight. If we want to fight, we should fight a big one to prevent future troubles."

The generals looked in the direction of the circle drawn by Xiao Han. That was a vast area of ​​land belonging to the miscellaneous Hu people to the north of the Yellow River and west of Dingxi.

There are many grasslands with lush grass and land suitable for farming. For hundreds of years, they have been controlled by nomadic people on the grasslands.

Also because of Xiliang's special terrain, it is the border area between Xiliang and the various Hu peoples.

The Qilian Mountains blocked the way to the north, making it difficult for the Northern Wei army to advance southwards. The Marquis of Zhenbei had always been focused on the powerful Northern Wei. This vast land had always been occupied by the Shatuo, Ruoqiang and other miscellaneous Hu tribes.

Another reason is that although the Shatuo and other miscellaneous Hu tribes were not as strong as the Northern Wei, their cavalry strength was not weak. If they went into battle rashly, the gains would outweigh the losses.

"After we conquer this vast land, we will build a city directly on it."

Xiao Han spoke.

"In this way, the land of Xiliang will stretch for thousands of miles from east to west."

Pan Yuanshao opened his eyes wide and muttered to himself.

"Yes."

Xiao Han pointed at the map and said, "Ruoqiang tribe is just an appetizer. My real target is Shatuo country."

"By then, there will be a city to the west to protect it, and the Qilian Mountains to the north. As long as we have Qimen Pass in our hands, the Northern Wei will no longer be a threat."

All the generals present were brothers who had followed Xiao Han in battles for many years and had rolled in piles of dead bodies together.

Apart from Ruoyan, they are the people Xiao Han trusts the most in this world.

"Then fight."

Liao Huan's chest heaved and his heart was pounding. Although Xiao Han did not say it explicitly, they all understood it.

After conquering the Shatuo Kingdom and expanding the territory by thousands of miles, you will be qualified to divide the land and establish borders, dominate Xiliang, and become a figure like the Marquis of Zhenbei.

And they will also rise to prosper together.

Lu Ju said: "Recruit soldiers and destroy the Shatuo Kingdom."

“Don’t rush things.”

Pan Yuanshao said hurriedly: "The most important thing right now is to stabilize Xiliang, attack Ruoqiang, and make sure the autumn harvest goes smoothly."

"Correct."

Xiao Han nodded: "Yuan Shao, you have to work harder recently and organize those newly appointed officials as soon as possible."

"Lu Ju, you need to train the Xiliang soldiers to fight as fast as possible."

"If you need people, I'll give them to you. If you need money, I'll give you money."

"General, I have enough men and money for now."

Lu Ju scratched his head and said, "What we lack most right now are armor and crossbows, especially crossbows."

"If I can bring the 20,000 troops from Yuyang here, I can destroy not only the Ruoqiang tribe, but even the Shatuo Kingdom." "Yuan Shao, go pick some gifts. I'm going to Shangyuan County tomorrow."

Xiao Han spoke.

"Shangyuan County?"

The generals were confused.

"General, are you planning to go to Cao's house?"

Pan Yuanshao's face looked solemn.

"Yes."

Xiao Han smiled and said, "After all, he is the number one merchant in Xiliang. It would be rude if I didn't pay him a visit."

As the prefect of Xiliang County and the only think tank under Xiao Han, Pan Yuanshao naturally knew the details of the Shangyuan Cao family.

Although I can't say it clearly, I have a general understanding of it.

"General, the Cao family is far from being as simple as it seems."

Pan Yuanshao's face was solemn: "If you want to go, it's better to bring more people."

"Yuan Shao is overthinking."

Xiao Han smiled and said, "It has always been the case that courtesy comes before force. How can force come before courtesy? Besides, even the thousands of troops of the Northern Wei Dynasty can't stop me. Do you think the Cao family is qualified to compete with me?"

"General, it's better to be careful."

Pan Yuanshao shook his head.

"Why don't I go with you tomorrow?"

The fierce general Zhuge Shou said: "If the Cao family doesn't know what's good for them, I will lead my men to destroy them."

"alright."

Xiao Han nodded.

Needless to say, Zhuge Shou's strength is natural, he is in the eighth level of the acquired realm, and with one or two hundred cavalry, he is enough to crush a medium-sized sect.

This time, in addition to asking for bows, crossbows and armor, I would also like to demonstrate my strength and give the Cao family a warning.

If the other party knows what's good for him, Xiao Han doesn't mind cooperating with them.

After all, he is a local tyrant with complex power.

If he could get help from the Cao family, his plans in Xiliang would be much easier.

But if the other party doesn't know what's good for him, then don't blame Xiao Han for being ruthless.

Over the years, he has razed dozens, if not hundreds, of aristocratic clans.

Pan Yuanshao withdrew.

He has been very busy recently, and almost all the major and minor matters in Xiliang fall on his shoulders.

To describe it in one sentence, it is painful and happy.

"Let's discuss how to attack the Ruoqiang tribe."

In the lobby.

Xiao Han and his trusted generals gathered in front of the map. This map of Xiliang was extremely detailed, with mountains and rivers of all sizes marked very clearly.

"We have to catch them by surprise."

There was no guarantee that the Cao family or the miscellaneous Hu spies in Xiliang County would not leak the news. Xiao Han said: "We are short of troops now, and we must wipe out the Ruoqiang tribe in the shortest possible time."

"If we are held back, if other tribes move eastward, our troops will be left empty-handed and something unexpected may happen."

"General, how about we set up a false formation?"

Shi Qing said: "Before the autumn harvest, move the army to the south of the Yellow River and station them in Shangyuan, Qingshui and Huining."

"Take a defensive stance and send out cavalry to patrol everywhere every day to make the surrounding tribes let down their guard."

"In fact, if we find the right opportunity, we can travel 300 miles with 2,000 cavalrymen lightly equipped. If we set out at midnight, we can arrive at dawn."

"I wiped out the Ruoqiang tribe, but perhaps the other tribes haven't reacted yet."

"feasible."

After Xiao Han pondered for a moment, he nodded slightly.

"Remember, it must be kept secret."

Xiao Han's sharp eyes swept over the crowd: "Whoever leaks the news will be punished mercilessly by military law."

"Don't worry, my lord."

"It depends on whether we can suppress those barbarian tribes. If we can't, we may have to fight a few more tough battles this winter."

"We have 500 elite soldiers from Yuyang Prefecture. If a few barbarians dare to attack us, we will definitely let them know what elite soldiers are."

Lu Ju snorted coldly.

……

(End of this chapter)