I, the prince, only want to be deposed.

Chapter 378 The first breath I took carried the aroma of the Marquis
"What do you mean???"

This time, Zhao Po Nu and others understood what Liu Ju meant, but they could not comprehend the meaning for a while.

Wang Hui couldn't help but say:

"Your Highness, do you know that the circle you just drew covers at least dozens of countries. These countries are large and small, with people from different races and different cultural differences. Some small countries are even nomadic countries with no fixed place to live..."

His words were already spoken in a very subtle manner, with the sole purpose of reminding Liu Ju to be careful with his tone.

After all, there were only a few thousand truly elite soldiers in the Han army this time, and the 30,000 soldiers from the counties and states were inadequately trained and equipped, and most of the time they could only provide supplies and transport materials for these thousands of elite soldiers.

Just like the Han Dynasty's previous expedition to the Xiongnu, even in the Battle of Mobei, the main force was the 50,000 cavalry led by Wei Qing and Huo Qubing respectively, and the remaining hundreds of thousands of county and state soldiers were all logistics.

In this situation, Liu Ju's tone was obviously a bit too arrogant, and his ambition was even greater than that of the current emperor.

Let’s not talk about other countries for now, let’s just take Wusun in this circle as an example.

As the largest country among the states in the Western Regions, the King of Wusun, Lie Jiaomi, currently has more than 10,000 soldiers and horses, the second prince has more than 10,000 soldiers and horses, and the newly appointed Crown Prince Wangsun has more than 10,000 soldiers and horses.

The Wusun alone is enough to defeat the Han Dynasty even if all the troops it mobilizes are dispatched.

If Wusun did not have this strength, how could the emperor, who had previously flatly refused to marry the Xiongnu, agree to the marriage with Wusun and regard it as a means of cutting off the Xiongnu's right arm?

"General Wang is absolutely right."

Sima Qian heard this and stood up to echo,

"Your Highness, regarding this expedition, His Majesty intends to attack Loulan first. If the battle goes well, he will order people to report back and then decide whether to attack Gushi. As for the other Western Regions countries, even if they have plans, they should decide after they successfully conquer Gushi, instead of drawing a circle."

Even Su Wu interrupted and said:

"Your Highness, I came here on orders to make peace with Wusun. Your Highness wants to draw Wusun into a circle and kick them out. Isn't that a little inappropriate?"

Once a conflict occurs with Wusun, the marriage will definitely not be possible.

How can he go back and report if he fails?

The only thing to be thankful for now is that Wusun is located in the northwest of this circle, while Yumen Pass is located in the east of this circle. Even if Liu Ju really wants to do this, he will certainly not be able to reach that far in a short time.

"..."

Zhao Po Nu and the other four captains did not speak.

Wang Hui, Sima Qian and Su Wu have already said all that needs to be said. There is no need for them to continue to add insult to injury. The deposed crown prince is also a prince. If they say too much and cause dissatisfaction, it will not be a good thing.

However, at this moment, their view of Liu Ju had quietly changed.

Two circles, one is a "circle and kick" strategy. They suspected that Liu Ju did not understand what war was at all. He just had a little more knowledge about the Western Regions, so he came up with such an immature... even naive strategy in a fit of excitement.

"Of course I know what you mean. You have to eat one bite at a time and conquer one city at a time."

Liu Ju just smiled and continued,

"However, what you mentioned are only the tactical goals of this battle. You lack the strategic vision to think what my father thinks and see what my father sees. Therefore, even if you achieve the tactical goals, I am afraid it will be difficult for you to receive a great reward from my father."

"You led the troops into this arid and cold land and risked your lives. Don't you want to be rewarded with a title of nobility or a general?"

These words instantly hit the G-spot of Zhao Po Nu and others.

This time Zhao Po Nu finally couldn't sit still anymore and asked quickly:

"Could you please explain it in more detail, Your Highness?"

Previously, he had lost his title due to bribery, and some time ago he led his troops deep into the desert but returned empty-handed. Now is the time when he is most eager to make a contribution.

After all, he is different from Gongsun He, Han Shuo and others.

Although he was a marquis before, he was a commoner who climbed up from the bottom. He had no ancestral wealth and no one above him. Losing his title was equivalent to losing everything. He had to fight for it, otherwise he would soon return to poverty. The others also looked at Liu Ju eagerly.

When talking about being conferred titles of nobility and appointed as generals, everyone suddenly felt no longer sleepy.

This also includes Sima Qian, who came from a family of historians. In those days, being both literary and martial was the general trend, and there were no so-called weak scholars. Ban Chao, who also compiled the "Book of Han" decades later, was one of the best.

"Loulan has only a thousand households and ten thousand people. Even if all those who can ride horses are sent into battle, they can't gather more than three thousand miscellaneous soldiers."

Liu Ju did not hide it and said with a smile,

"The Gushi also has only a thousand households and ten thousand people. Even if all the cavalrymen were to go into battle, they still couldn't muster four thousand miscellaneous soldiers."

"I can't help but ask you, even if we successfully conquer these two small countries, how much credit can we get? Can you share it among us? Is there anyone among you who can really be made a marquis for this?"

"..."

After these words were spoken, Zhao Po Nu and others were speechless and their brows unconsciously frowned.

Historically, Zhao Po Nu was able to be named Marquis of Xuye again in this battle because he dared to raid Loulan with only 700 cavalrymen from vassal states, captured it in one fell swoop, and also captured the King of Loulan.

Emperor Liu Che, mindful of his courage to advance deep into the enemy's territory, conferred him a new title of nobility and made him an example to inspire other generals.

Wang Hui and Li Guangli, who participated in this battle and later captured Gushi, only received some rewards and had no chance of being granted the title of nobility.

It can be seen from this that the military achievements of these two small countries are actually quite limited.

Liu Ju knew this.

How could a general like Zhao Po Nu, who once followed Huo Qubing to kill people in Mobei, not know?

However, what Zhao Po Nu didn't know was.

In fact, Liu Ju had already thought of a strategy against him, so he didn't need to think about the credit for the surprise attack on Loulan.

Liu Ju will grab the credit before him, and then in the following period of time, he will use the title of marquis as a carrot hanging in front of the donkey's nose, always dangling this brave general who once followed Huo Qubing, so that he will willingly stay in the Western Regions to expand his territory...

"I don't care. Anyway, even if I abolish the crown prince, I am still a prince. I was born with a silver spoon in my mouth, and the first breath I took carried the fragrance of a marquis. It's really embarrassing."

Liu Ju shrugged and continued to laugh.
"But you can't ignore the issue of being conferred titles of nobility and appointed as generals."

"I might as well tell you another secret. You think my father fought this battle just because Loulan and Gushi robbed and killed Han Shi, but this is actually just an attempt by my father. His ultimate goal must be to open up the trade route to the Western Regions and spend the silver mountain he found overseas a few days ago."

"General Wang, who has been an envoy to various countries in the Western Regions, should know more about the value of silver than I do."

"That's why I connected these small countries into lines on this map. These are not just lines, but the lifelines that create wealth for our Han people."

"Do you know what kind of reward will be given to the person who connects these lines, and how will his name be recorded in history?"

"So... if you are still only interested in Loulan and Gushi, and have no interest in being granted titles or appointed as generals, then just think of me as someone who has nothing better to do and is meddling in your affairs."

As he spoke, Liu Ju nodded to Guo Zhen again.

Guo Zhen immediately understood and stepped forward to take the map, as if he was about to leave with Liu Ju.

"Wait a minute!"

Sima Qian hurried forward to hold Guo Zhen, turned back to Liu Ju with a smile on his face,
"Your Highness, please tell us more about this 'circle kick' strategy. I don't care about being made a marquis or a general, nor do I care about leaving a name in history. I just like the heroic spirit of this 'circle kick' strategy."

"Uh...right, right!"

Zhao Po Nu finally reacted and saluted Liu Ju with a smile.

"I have heard from General Wang that Loulan and Gushi were not the only countries that robbed and killed the Han envoys. If I can avenge these great Han heroes, how dare I refuse? Wouldn't that be a betrayal of the emperor's grace?"

(End of this chapter)