A family of loyal martyrs, starting with nine wives to continue the family line.

"You say you can help us reclaim the grasslands, but on what basis?"

The old leader placed his curved sword across his lap, the tip pointing directly at Liu Suan's chest.

On the other side of the fire, six other former leaders of the Northern Rong tribes were also staring at him.

Some had their hands on the hilts of their swords, while others had already nocked half an arrow onto their bowstrings. None of the seven pairs of eyes in the tent held any goodwill.

Liu Suan, wrapped in a fur coat, sat very steadily.

He took out a sheepskin map from his pocket, placed it on the table made of two wooden boxes, and slowly unfolded it.

"This is the troop deployment in the northern border of Xinwu."

The old leader looked down and his brows immediately furrowed.

Liu Suan's finger landed on a black dot.

"Huaiyuan Fort, 700 garrison troops. The rotation will take place in half a month, and the granary has less than ten days' worth of grain."

Move your finger again.

"Zheliu Pass has 836 men. On the surface, there are three granaries, but in reality, two have already been reassigned to Yunzhong Town. As long as the gates are sealed at night, the people inside won't last three days."

"Black Stone Fortress has abundant weaponry but scarce food. The garrison fears nothing more than running out of water."

The places marked with cinnabar on the map were gradually revealed.

The seven leaders approached without anyone noticing.

The young knight reached out and pressed his hand against the corner of the map, staring at the markings on it, his anger slowly subsiding.

There are granaries here.

There is a post road there.

There was also a mountain pass that was deliberately marked out, with even the time of the daily patrol clearly written down.

These are things that ordinary caravans could never find out.

The old leader looked up and stared at Liu Suan.

"Where did you get it?"

"The New Martial Court"

"Are you an officer from the new military?"

"no."

"Are you one of Wei Zhao's men?"

"No, not at all."

The old leader gripped the hilt of his knife, the veins on the back of his hand bulging.

"Then why are you helping us?"

Liu Suan's smile faded slightly.

"Because Wei Zhao was too fast."

He tapped his fingertips on the map.

"He uses military merit lands to gather the poor, the imperial examination system to dismantle the roots of aristocratic families, and the trade markets to bind foreign tribes. Give him another three years, and the young people of the North will see the new martial arts as their only way out. At that time, even if you raise your swords, no one will be willing to follow you."

These words are more severe than any insult.

None of the seven leaders spoke.

Liu knew he had guessed correctly.

The most valuable thing on the grassland is never cattle or sheep, but young people.

As long as young people are still willing to ride horses, draw bows, and follow the chief to seize pastures, the tribe will still have fire.

But if they discover that joining the new military army will grant them rations, iron tools, land, and even allow them to exchange military merits for women and official positions from the Central Plains, then those old royal families will lose their roots generation after generation.

He doesn't need to persuade these people to seek revenge.

They originally wanted revenge.

All he needed to do was tell them that if they didn't act now, they would miss their chance.

The old chief asked, "What do you want?"

"I do not want you to submit to me."

Liu Suan reached out and rolled the map back halfway, revealing three granaries in the northern border.

"In half a month, take down this place, this place, and this place. Don't be greedy for the barracks, and don't chase the new cavalry. Burn the grain, destroy the wagons, kill the escort officers, and then immediately retreat back to the snowfield."

The young leader frowned.

"Just burning grain?"

"You are not currently capable of engaging in a direct confrontation with the Xinwu Border Army."

Liu Suan glanced at him: "I don't want you to send your cavalry to crash into a wall."

The young leader looked grim, but did not refute.

Liu Suan continued, "We'll head south together on the day the imperial examinations begin."

The old leader's eyelid twitched.

"The imperial examination system?"

"The new Wu court will focus all its attention on Jingzhou and the examination halls in various places. Poor families, aristocratic families, newly rich military officials, and former officials will all be involved. On that day, the post stations will send out documents, the prefectures will mobilize troops, the capital will keep an eye on the examination halls, and the northern border will have the fewest troops available."

He pointed to the border town on the map.

"You don't need to attack the city, just harass it. Burn down the post roads, kill the scouts, cut off the caravans, and let Xinwu know that the Northern Territory has not yet knelt down."

The seven leaders exchanged glances.

Liu did not urge them.

He knew this step was the most important.

These people can be driven by hatred, but they won't be driven to their deaths by a few words.

They need to see the granary, they need to see the escape route, they need to see that Xinwu will really descend into chaos.

Those markings on the map are his bargaining chips.

Moreover, he wasn't lying.

The former officials of Jingzhou have agreed to create chaos on the day the imperial examination begins.

If fires break out in both the north and south at the same time, the Xinwu court will have no choice but to divide its forces.

Wei Zhao had just received a million surrendered soldiers, and the local military power had not yet been fully handed over, while the northern border trade had just been launched.

The situation looks stable, but in reality, it's still shaky in every aspect.

Liu Suan doesn't need to defeat Wei Zhao.

All he needs to do is make Wei Zhao stop.

As soon as the people of Xinwu see the border reignite, see the military merit fields fail to be distributed, and see the imperial examinations stained with blood, suspicion will arise.

And once suspicion takes root, it doesn't need to be watered by him.

The old chieftain suddenly asked, "What if Wei Zhao personally goes north?"

Liu Suan smiled.

"He won't."

"What makes you say that?"

"Because he is the emperor."

Liu Suan rolled up the map and put it back in his pocket: "He can personally lead troops into battle, but he cannot abandon the newly started imperial examination for the sake of seven snowfield tribes, nor can he abandon Jingzhou, Huainan, and those surrendered troops who have just surrendered."

The old leader looked at him.

Liu paused for a moment, then added another sentence.

"Moreover, he has too many places to defend now. Wei Zhao's greatest strength is his willingness to deploy his troops. But the greatest fear is that an deployed force will encounter problems everywhere at the same time."

The tent remained quiet for a long time.

Sparks exploded, and the firewood broke in two.

The seven leaders discussed the matter in hushed tones, their words interspersed with the old language of the Northern Rong. Liu Suan could understand them, but he did not interrupt.

He knew these people were still calculating.

Some wanted the grasslands, some wanted the old royal banners, and some just wanted to drive the Xinwu border market out.

Seven people may not be of one mind, but that doesn't matter.

As long as they all want to take a piece of Wei Zhao, that's enough.

Half an hour later, the elder leader extended his hand.

"make a deal."

Liu Suan glanced at the calloused hand and reached out to give him a high five.

Snapped.

The voice wasn't loud, but it sealed the decision made in the tent.

The young leader sheathed his scimitar again.

"Half a month later, the Snow Wolf tribe burned down the Huaiyuan Fort granary."

Another person added, "The Black Horn Tribe will take Zheliu Pass."

"The Red Fox tribe is going to Black Stone Pass."

The remaining four leaders also took on their respective targets, then grabbed their fur robes and left the royal tent with their personal guards.

One by one, the curtains were lowered.

Soon, the sound of horses' hooves could be heard outside, and the seven teams dispersed in different directions.

Liu Suan sat by the fire and did not try to stop him.

He knew that since these people left, the North had gained seven more knives hidden in the snow.

Whether they can stab Wei Zhao depends on their courage.

Whether or not Xinwu can bleed depends on his methods.

Only after the last hoofbeats faded away did Liu Suan open his wine flask and take a sip of cold wine.

The liquor slid down my throat, but the chill couldn't suppress the warmth in my chest.

He took out half of a yellowed book from his pocket and turned to one of the pages.

There is only one sentence above.

In chaotic times, conquering cities is inferior to conquering hearts and minds; conquering hearts and minds is inferior to making them doubt themselves.

Liu Suan looked at it for a moment, then closed the book.

Wei Zhao now has an army, grain, land, people, and a group of foreign leaders who have just knelt down.

It looks like it has everything.

But none of the things he held had actually taken root in the ground yet.

The military merit system requires victories to sustain it.

The imperial examination system required the trust of those from humble backgrounds.

Border trade requires border stability.

The surrendered soldiers needed a way to survive.

If one part cracks first, others will reach out and tear it apart.

Liu Suan placed the map on his lap and looked south.

"White clothes".

He spoke in a low voice.

"This is just the first step."