Mount and Blade Central Asia

It is too easy to block the road from Damascus to Aleppo. There are only a few oases along the way. Eight out of ten people who do not follow the oasis will be swallowed by the desert, so Raven can only do this business from Cairo at a high price.

Li Rufeng has been leading his men out to suppress bandits for five days now. The information Raymond received was that Li Rufeng had at least three hundred men with him. If his plan went well, he would probably be able to mobilize the forces of two hundred men.

The last team of a hundred men is Li Rufeng's own guards. He will not be separated from these people no matter what, so the power in each person's hands must be strong enough to withstand that team of a hundred men.

Moreover, in this land, most of the soldiers under Li Rufeng are Mongolians who come and go like the wind. They must not only be ruthless but also quick in their actions. This means that there must be enough archers and cavalry among the mercenaries hired by Raven.

The good news is that my attitude towards the Governor of Alexandretta Port is very ambiguous. According to Raven's investigation, it seems that he was temporarily kept there by Li Rufeng entirely because of his good personal abilities.

So he would not be too sensitive to the mercenaries passing through the border, or to be more precise, he would turn a blind eye to such anomalies.

Moreover, war horses in this land are relatively easy to obtain, and both the people of Transoxiana and the Kurdish herdsmen are happy to sell their horses.

This gave Raven a lot of room to maneuver, so he spent a lot of money to hire a group of very famous Mamluk free men.

These people nominally called themselves Mamluk free men, but in fact they were a group of bandits who had been active in the Mamluk Empire for a long time. Most of their members were brave and warlike escaped slaves, and the rest were free people who could not make a living.

The Muslim world has a long tradition of using slave soldiers, from the Ghulam of the Seljuk Empire, to the Yericheni of the Ottomans, and the Mamluks of the Mamluk Empire. This is a system that has been passed down in an orderly manner and has proven to be effective.

As a spy, Raven is quite knowledgeable and he even has a deep understanding of these things.

Imagine you are a hypothetical Islamic monarch. Like most monarchs around the world, your power is not absolute—the land you rule is a semi-feudal patchwork, with many emirs, beys, and tributary kings paying homage to your powerful throne.

However, their loyalties are fickle, as they all have their own interests, which may not always align with yours.

You need soldiers who are directly loyal to you; their strength and loyalty are the basis for your support, not temporarily recruited Emirs.

Foreigners without roots are always more favored by you. After all, you only need to pay a little respect and reward to make these foreign slaves who think their lives have reached the bottom offer their loyalty.

Such a system can make a force grow strong quickly, but it will also cause endless troubles. You only need to look at the Mamluks today to clearly realize that it is nothing more than a chronic poison.

But the byproduct of this poison can now be used to deal with Li Rufeng. All it takes is a little bit of luck...

...

"Lord Rufeng, the mountain ahead is the hiding place of that gang of bandits." Hulucierjia introduced it to Li Rufeng like he knew it by heart.

Those scouts sent out by Li Rufeng for reconnaissance were basically cavalrymen from Li Rufeng's headquarters. Li Rufeng was deliberately training them, and Huluchirjia was the liaison person.

He is the bravest warrior in the tribe and naturally has a high prestige among the young people of Li Rufeng's tribe. However, he is too rough in character and it is difficult for him to achieve great things.

"My people have been keeping an eye on it for a week and are basically certain that their lair is right there." Hulucierjia looked at the mountains and forests in the distance. This place was not far from Kilis. Strictly speaking, it was actually the border of Li Rufeng's forces.

But for the free Mongols, it was obvious that the endurance of the horses and the sharpness of the scimitars were the only factors that determined their borders. In Horukhara's view, they were already restrained enough by not taking down Gaziantep further north.

This group of bandits hiding near Kilis has been very active recently. They have robbed seven or eight caravans in a row, which can definitely be considered as a lot of evil deeds.

The reason why Huluchirjia wanted to attack him first was because he was displeased with them. This kind of work would never have been done by these little thieves in the past. If Qinggelinayan didn't lead people to rob, Huluchirjia would also lead people to rob the grass valley.

But now that they have turned over a new leaf, there are still people who are ungrateful and dare to show off their skills before them. Hulucierjia can't tolerate this.

It took Li Rongfeng quite some time to make this reckless man realize that every time the passing caravans stopped in Aleppo, it was like throwing a few copper coins into their pockets.

Although the amount is not large, due to the frequent occurrence and large amount, it accumulates to a very considerable number.

So now in Hulucierjia's eyes, these bandits are all thieves who stole money from his pocket!

"Sir, there are about thirty of them, with about forty horses, and half of them are armored. They must be fleeing soldiers coming from the east." As Huluchirja lost his temper, his scout, who had been responsible for scouting the surrounding area, spoke clearly, "I saw the markings of the tribes from Mosul on their horses."

"Black Sheep?" Li Rufeng muttered, but he took a second look at the scout. It was rare for him to find such a talkative "talent" in his own unit, so he couldn't help but ask, "What's your name?"

"Sir, my name is Uliji..." The knight, who looked to be about seventeen or eighteen years old, said a little embarrassedly. This name means auspicious and is usually a nickname given to children.

"Jixiang is a good name. Stay with me for the time being." Li Rufeng said as he slapped Hulucierjia. "You can't even count. How long have I been teaching you?"

"Hehe, it's okay as long as someone knows how to count! I'll go ahead and clear the way and drive them out!" Hulucierjia rode out nonchalantly, not wanting to be taught at all.

Hulucierjia rushed into the forest first, leaving Li Rufeng sighing with worry. His most trusted young generation hadn't shown any signs of life...

Chapter 399 The Black Sheep’s Ambition

Hulujirga was a happy and reckless man. He didn't care about the threats from the Black Sheep People or the Mamluks. He also didn't care whether the people around him were officials or not. He just liked to ride his pony, holding his saber, and chase people all over the mountains and plains to kill them.

He doesn't even care who his enemy is, as long as there is someone he can chop, he will still be happy.

He was happy to kill the bastards under Dost, and he was also happy to kill those horse bandits.

But Huluchirjia was not as unwise as he seemed. The group of horse thieves in front of him were specially selected by him. Their origins were a mystery and there was obviously a background to be dug up. The number of people was just right to show off his bravery.

As early as ten days ago, Huluchirga had sent people to keep an eye on them.

This group of horse thieves not only have all their members riding war horses and are skilled in archery and horsemanship, but they also move like the wind and have excellent discipline. There are problems no matter how you look at it.

Just like what his spy said, maybe they came from the east, and those Black Sheep people are all very bad.

"Boss!" A scout from Hulujirga, who had been staying here before and disguised as a herdsman, took off his disguise and gestured to him, pointing to the northwest. "They are taking turns bathing by the river now. Only a few sentries are in the village."

This place is about five kilometers away from the horse thieves' lair, which is far beyond the range of their usual patrols and surveillance, so Hulucierjia doesn't have to worry at all about the horse thieves noticing their movements.

From Aleppo to the north, the terrain is basically plains with few high mountains, so the mountain in front of us is more like a hill than a mountain. The only thing that can provide cover for these horse thieves is the not-so-dense jungle.

The slightly chilly temperature in January has already turned the branches and leaves of these trees yellow and withered, making them unable to serve as shelter.

The leader of this group of horse thieves was named Zaifula. Like Raven, he was also one of the spies sent by the Black Sheep King Carl Yusuf.

These spies originally planned to lurk in the city of Alek, but obviously not every spy was wealthy enough to afford themselves a merchant's outfit and enough goods to disguise themselves as merchants.

However, it is really unreasonable to hide in the city of Aleppo with other identities. It is easy for Li Rufeng's men to see through the flaws, so some people can't restrain their desire and turn themselves into the current horse bandit leader.

Although these spies could not get any money from the Black Sheep King, they could at least get some manpower to form their team.

The Black Sheep King, Karl Yusuf, was facing the same financial strain as Li Rufeng. While the situation appeared promising at first glance, a closer look revealed the costs of restoring livelihoods, maintaining the military, and even repairing the city...

Li Rufeng was already in a state of panic with only two cities at hand, and this was based on his two tons of gold reserves.

Karl Yusuf owned cities and armies several times larger than Li Rufeng's. He had just ended the war with Prince Milansha and needed to deploy heavy troops on the border, which meant he was spending money like water.

If it weren't for the fact that Karl Yusuf, as the Black Sheep King, had retained some of his ancestors' savings over the years, and if he hadn't obtained the treasures hidden by the Jashiri Dynasty when he swallowed it up, he would have gone bankrupt long ago and wouldn't even be able to pay the military salaries.

Zaifula used a knife to shave his bald scalp in the somewhat cold river water, leaving only the hair on both sides of his temples. This was the "legacy" left by the Mongols.

It was once synonymous with strong men, even after the unimaginably huge empire had been torn apart, and even the powerful empire formed by its collapsed fragments had been divided again.

The cold river water stimulated his scalp, causing Zaifula to shiver uncontrollably. The next second, he immersed himself in the water, took a long breath, and washed off the dirt on his body. He did not float to the surface until he could no longer hold on, feeling refreshed.

"Zaifula, your duration is much shorter than before! Is it because you slept with that woman too much? You can't take it anymore? Hahaha!" A man who was almost as strong as him was soaking in the middle of the river not far downstream, letting the river water wash over his muscles, and he did not hide the malice and sarcasm in his tone.

That was Abdullah, Zafula's most powerful warrior and also his strongest competitor.

Facing Abdullah's provocation, Zaifula simply smiled and pointed at the burly man: "No matter how loud you shout, you can only play with me. When you kill me, you can have the first share. Do you understand?"

Looking at the dense scars on Zaifula's chest, Abdullah finally said nothing more. He had fought with Zaifula several times, and he was completely defeated when both sides held back.

After forcing Abdullah to give in once again, Zaifula laughed wildly, then shuddered all over and turned around and shouted, "I just finished peeing, I'm leaving first!"

"Fuck! Zaifula! I will kill you sooner or later!" Abdullah, who was washing his face, suddenly became furious. He slammed the water surface angrily, splashing water everywhere.

Zai Fula received news from Raymond three days ago that the restless Mongolian lord had brought people out to suppress the bandits. Raymond wanted to find an opportunity to kill him. Even if he couldn't kill the lord, he would at least teach him a profound lesson and let him know that this land was not completely ruled by his will.

Raven also took thirty gold coins from him, which was most of his worth, but Zaifula trusted Raven. They were brothers who had risked their lives for each other when they were hiding in Baghdad.

But Zaifula still felt that Raven's plan would not succeed. They had too few available men. He had seen the cavalry under the Mongolian lord. They were all elite and far superior to those foreign vassal armies. If they wanted to defeat such a cavalry unit of a hundred men, they would need at least a three-fold numerical advantage.

Chapter 400 Countermeasures

Raven's plan went smoothly. After a few days of preparation, he had secretly transferred a Mamluk mercenary group of nearly 80 people from the port of Alexandretta to Umayr's camp.

He persuaded Umar not to leave his camp for the time being, but to provide cover for the Mamluk mercenary group. Raven also promised that he would provide intelligence support to Umar and issue an advance warning if any Mongolian cavalry approached him.

In Raven's plan, the Kurdish bandit gang was very useful. They were not only bait to attract Li Rufeng, but also the ones to take the blame in the end.

Unfortunately, bad news soon reached Raven's ears, disrupting some of his plans. Zaifula's team was dispersed, and Zaifula himself was missing. Only the people who were collecting food outside at the time happened to escape the Mongolian encirclement, and now these people have run to Raven's place.

The only thing they could be sure of was that Zaifula was not dead but injured. He jumped into the river and no one knew where he was washed away to.

Raven didn't know if it was his plan that killed Zafula, but since things had come to this point, he could only put the matter behind him for the time being and concentrate on his mission.

He was not worried that Zaifula would betray him. After all, they were people who could not be betrayed. But now it seemed that he didn't have to bother using those Kurds to take the blame.

In this case, they can be treated as completely consumable.

Raven currently has a total of nearly 340 people at his disposal, including a whole 100-man cavalry team made up of elite soldiers brought out from the Black Sheep Tribe by spies like him, 80 people are Mamluk mercenaries, and the rest are basically scattered bandits like Umail and his men.

It can be said that if it weren't for these Black Sheep spies making trouble, there would be very few bandits in the land under Li Rufeng's rule.

Raven was a connoisseur, so he actually admired the Mongolian lord in his heart. He had never seen a lord who could not take a penny after suddenly becoming rich and use all his income to subsidize the people's livelihood.

Especially after Raven did his own calculations and found that the lord was probably still losing money, he admired the Wind Shaman even more. Even the great Black Sheep King Carl Yusuf was still squeezing money from the Turkmen to maintain the status quo.

Lei Wen couldn't understand what the Wind Shaman was after. Was he really just trying to ensure the local people lived and worked in peace and contentment?

Recently, in the eyes of others, leaders of small forces like Li Rufeng who have suddenly risen and occupied one or two cities may become forgotten one day. If you don’t take advantage of this opportunity to make more money, won’t everything become a sunk cost?

Lei Wen didn't understand Li Rufeng, and Li Rufeng also didn't understand this group of bandits.

This was the second gang's lair he had wiped out. There were a total of 120 people, which was really a large scale. However, more than 80 of these 120 people were elderly people, women and children.

Strictly speaking, this was not a gang. It was just that there were a lot of caravans coming and going from Aleppo during that period, so the men in the tribe had evil thoughts. As a result, they couldn't stop and committed seven or eight crimes in a row, reaping a lot of rewards.

When Hulujirga surrounded the tribe, the men in the tribe were busy dividing gold with large scales and were completely unaware.

"Sir, we did not mean to do any harm on your land." A mature-looking man knelt shirtless in front of Li Rufeng, his hands tied behind his back. His tone was filled with fear. "We didn't know this place already had a new owner."

I wish you all a happy and happy New Year!

I feel a little ashamed to say that this month's update is almost 10,000 words less than last month. My condition is indeed not very good this month. There are many things to deal with at home, and my body and mood have been affected. I will make up for the 10,000 words next month.

By the way, let me talk about the direction of the plot. The pace of the plot will accelerate. After all, the name of this book is Mount and Blade Central Asia. It is not okay to always hang around in the Arabian Peninsula area. The mid-term goal is Hormuz in the Iranian region. I guess many friends should know the direction of Lao Mo’s plot when they see this place. This place is one of the places Zheng He visited during his voyage to the West.

In order to prevent it from becoming a paid chapter, please read on——

Chapter 401 Internal strife

Raven has been deploying the only forces he has at hand, using the intelligence network he had previously laid out to try to contain the soldiers around Li Rufeng. He is really trying his best to complete the Black Sheep King's mission, but unfortunately, no matter how hard an ant tries, it cannot defeat a lion.

"There are only a hundred people left by his side now. What are you waiting for?" Wu Mail's face looked a little ugly. In just six days, all the big-name gangs in this land had dispersed or fled, leaving only him and Raven's gang.

Moreover, because the evacuation was not timely during one of the operations to lure the enemy deep into the territory, Umail lost half of his men.

The cooperative relationship between him and Raven has also changed from an alliance to one more like a relationship between superiors and subordinates. Every time Wu Mail looks at Raven, he feels that the other party is doing it on purpose. After all, almost all the information he can get comes from Raven.

"It's almost there, Wumail, don't worry, we still have a chance." Raven's tone was neither hurried nor slow, and he still looked like he was in control of the situation.

Wu Mail snorted. If the number of his men increased, he would also be able to make plans.

The bandits who were defeated had no other options but to surrender to Raven or leave the area completely and continue westward to the more chaotic Anatolia region.

But Raven was also under great pressure. He knew that the Mughals were not easy to deal with. After all, for a long time, it was these Mughals who suppressed the resistance of the various Black Sheep tribes. Even the Black Sheep themselves believed that one Mughal cavalryman could at least beat three Black Sheep cavalrymen.

But the speed at which Li Rufeng's army was mobilized was beyond Raven's imagination.

He would often send out a message yesterday, informing people of the direction a certain "friendly force" was moving, only to receive the news the next day that the entire "friendly force" had been annihilated.

During this period of time, the only good news that Raven received was that his old friend Zaifula had survived the disaster and escaped from Li Rufeng. Raymond relied on the unique induction between the spies to search along the river bank and finally found the dying Zaifula.

"Boss, that group of Mamluks are making trouble again. They want to eat meat and drink wine. Where the hell can we get so much meat and wine now?" Umail's men walked into the tent angrily and complained loudly to the outside.

Raven first gave Umar a calming look. Umar had been providing food and lodging for these Mamluk gentlemen for a long time, and his men had been complaining for a long time. Then he left the tent and found the mercenaries in the noisy camp.

This was not the first time that the Mamluks had caused trouble, and the reason for their disturbance this time was, as Umar's men had said before, that they wanted to eat meat and drink wine.

Speaking of which, from the Spartans to the Romans later, there has always been a vegetarian tradition to ensure endurance, which naturally includes the famous Mamluk cavalry.

Chapter 402 Provocation

"Lord of the great cities of Aleppo and Hama, protector of trade, Your Excellency Li Rufeng, I, Alexi, a freed slave of the Mamluks, present my gift to you..."

When Li Rufeng and his team followed the clues and found the den of thieves where the Black Sheep lurkers were, a man who knew the current situation had already prepared everything in advance and was waiting there for a long time with gifts.

Obviously, in this war between "smart people", the one who laughs last is Alexi, who has the biggest fist. In Umar's camp, he has the most people and the sharpest knife.

The Kurdish bandit gang led by Umail had never even seen Li Rufeng before, and was destroyed in this internal conflict. Not surprisingly, Raven himself was captured alive on the spot by this group of unsportsmanlike mercenaries.

But for Li Rufeng, except for Li Rufeng himself who was happy to see such a scene, almost no one had a smile on their face.

Not to mention Huluchirjia, he himself is a "war maniac", and he is very dissatisfied that he cannot personally destroy all the participants in this line. He originally wanted to take this opportunity to be promoted to the next level.

This is not to say that Huluqierjia has any political ambitions or wants to take a step forward. He simply wants to lead more soldiers and have more fun.

Jixiang was also very disappointed. He had just been noticed by Li Rufeng and had been kept as a guard by his side for a short time. He had not had time to establish any merits yet, but he was counting on securing this position in this bandit suppression mission. In the end, these Mamluk slaves did all the work!

"Lord Rufeng, this is our employer, a cunning black sheep man." Alexi was humble and calm, as if he had been prepared to betray his employer long before they arrived in this land.

"How do you know he's a Black Sheep?" Li Rufeng asked with a smile, "Have you ever peeked at him taking a bath?"

Alexi smiled innocently and said, "Not really. I've only seen him once before, next to that Karl Yusuf."

When Raven heard this, his eyes widened and he stared at Alexi's face, but in the end he could only sigh in frustration.