I, the prince, only want to be deposed.

Chapter 409 Your achievements are on the way, please check
Today's live arrow military exercise.

What it brought to the kings of the Three Kingdoms was not only the shock of military power, but also the shock in their hearts.

They had racked their brains to think that the sky above their heads had undergone tremendous changes without them noticing.

Sima Qian and others also began to look upon Liu Ju with increasing respect.

Fourth floor?
Fifth floor?
The sixth floor?
They could no longer determine which floor Liu Ju was on at the moment.

Because many things that they realized belatedly were telling them one thing, that every word Liu Ju had said and every thing he had done before were by no means independent, and almost all actions had follow-ups, one link after another, one step after another.

They even couldn't figure out what Liu Ju's real strategic goal was.

Is this the "circle and kick" strategy?

It’s definitely not that simple!
It is not difficult to see from the methods Liu Ju used to deal with these small countries in the Western Regions that the Han Dynasty's once overwhelming military strength had been relegated to the second line. In his hands, war was only a basic method, not worth mentioning at all, and might even be a bad strategy that would slow down his pace of conquering the Western Regions.

Of course, that doesn’t mean that war won’t happen quickly.

In the Battle of Hexi that year, Huo Qubing, who was only 20 years old, led 10,000 cavalry out of Longxi, fought for six days, marched more than a thousand miles, and conquered the five kingdoms in Hexi. The speed of conquest was truly astonishing.

But at the same time, the losses are equally staggering.

Even though Sima Qian and others were still young at the time, they knew that nearly 70% of Huo Qubing's troops were lost in this battle.

Apart from the loss of more than 120 soldiers and more than 60 war horses in the surprise attack on Loulan, Liu Ju suffered no other casualties.

Such losses were almost negligible for the Han Dynasty, even for their expeditionary force.

Then he did it without losing a single soldier.

In one fell swoop, the states of Yanqi, Shan and Yuli surrendered, and it was only a matter of time before the powerful Western Region country Qiuci surrendered.

As for the next target, Master.

It was already in his pocket, and it only depended on when Liu Ju would go to get it...

This was something that Sima Qian and others had never dared to imagine before.

Looking back at the history of the war between the Han Dynasty and the Huns, whether it was a victory or a defeat, the Han Dynasty had never failed to pay a heavy price. Otherwise, where did the current Majesty's policies that were criticized, such as the state-run salt and iron industry, the tax on silk and the report of silk, the payment of sheep to become a palace guard, the payment of grain to become an official, the currency reform, etc., come from?

Even this time, he conquered Loulan and Gushi.

Although it was a battle to establish authority, it was actually just a test. His Majesty was already prepared to pay for it before going on the expedition.

He allocated military pay and supplies entirely based on the losses incurred when Wei Qing and Huo Qubing attacked the Huns in the north.

As a result, Liu Ju's conquest of the Western Regions had led to a strange phenomenon that no one had expected:

Now, in the Han Dynasty's garrison in Loulan, grain and fodder were piled up into mountains, equipment and baggage filled the warehouses, and there were so many horses that they had to immediately use the slaves who had previously defected to the Han Dynasty to graze the horses. Many soldiers were well fed and had even grown fat during the process of farming and garrisoning.

In addition, Liu Ju also opened a blast furnace in the base to melt the silver sent by Liu Che to cast silver coins of the Han Dynasty.

This rich and prosperous scene almost made the Jianzhang cavalry think that they had returned to Shanglin Garden, and it was the Shanglin Garden when Emperor Liu Che was vigorously promoting the "Report on the Silk Road" in the country.

As we all know, Shanglinyuan is definitely the wealth center of the Han Dynasty.

This place was not only the place where the three officials’ coins were collected, but also where taxes and rare treasures collected from all over the country were concentrated. One of the duties of the Jianzhang Cavalry was to guard Shanglin Garden. Therefore, many people had seen the dazzling and abundant scene of Shanglin Garden during the "Gao Min" period.

Unfortunately, this abundant scene came and went quickly.

Even if the two great powers of the Han Dynasty won every battle in the desert, the things in Shanglin Garden would be emptied out within a few months. Then, as Liu Che introduced new financial policies, the garden would be quickly filled up, emptied out in an instant, and the cycle would repeat...

"Damn it, I've never fought such a prosperous war. These soldiers are not going to the battlefield, they are clearly here to enjoy themselves!"

When Zhao Po Nu saw this scene, he couldn't help but curse his mother.

In fact, he had previously followed Huo Qubing to the battlefield, and was also a military commander, so he did not suffer much. After all, Emperor Liu Che was never stingy with Huo Qubing's military pay, supplies, and rewards, and he was a military commander and a general, so his treatment would naturally not be bad. However, as a low-level soldier under Huo Qubing, it was not so easy.

Perhaps it was because when Huo Qubing was young, he lived a wealthy life as a noble relative of the emperor's wife because of his relationship with Wei Zifu and Wei Qing, and was also treated specially by Emperor Liu Che, which made him not feel much about the suffering of the people. Even though he had military talent that was unattainable for ordinary people, he did not care much about the grassroots soldiers under him, and often went hungry.

But this did not affect the loyalty and morale of the soldiers, especially the generals, to Huo Qubing.

Because if you follow Huo Qubing, you can win the battle and get rewards when you come back. So, compared with occasionally going hungry, and helping you achieve great things and be awarded a title or a general, what would you choose?
Now Zhao Po Nu is facing such a problem.

He was still waiting to get his marquisate back in this battle!

However, his previous gains in the raid on Loulan were obviously not enough to earn him a title of nobility. Now, with Dongfang Yu's meritorious service in killing the Xiongnu servant commander in Yanqi, that little bit of military achievement seemed even less worth mentioning.

If he never gets a chance to make greater military achievements, and has to return to the capital after capturing Gu Shi and achieving the emperor's strategic goal, how can he get the title of marquis back?

……

So when the battle between Gu Shi was getting closer.

Zhao Po Nu finally couldn't hold back his eagerness to make a contribution, so he went to Liu Ju privately to ask for permission:

"Your Highness, Master Gu is going to fight. I request to lead the troops in the vanguard!"

It was a bit weird that a general came to ask for orders from Liu Ju, a guard general, but Zhao Po Nu did not think there was anything wrong with it.

Because Liu Ju was not only able to keep his soldiers fat, but also able to help others achieve success.

And if you say you will give it, you will give it. Your words will be fulfilled.

Han Zeng and Dongfang Yu are living examples. One of them has become a fake Sima one month before he was appointed as an official, while the other will definitely be granted a title of nobility when he returns to the capital this time, and his name will most likely be recorded in history books.

"It's a good thing that General Zhao is eager to fight, but I'm afraid his achievements this time will still be few."

Liu Ju smiled and handed over a secret letter that had just been delivered, saying,

"When Gushi learned that Yanqi, Shan, and Yuli wanted to join forces with the Han army to attack Gushi, its left general knew that he could not defeat them, so he sent someone to deliver a secret letter, hoping to cooperate with the Han army from inside and outside, waiting for an opportunity to assassinate the king of Gushi and surrender the city."

"So when the Han army is at the gates of the city, it's almost time for it to end."

Although this news was somewhat unexpected, it was not completely beyond Liu Ju's expectations.

He had previously ordered the execution of the Loulan King Qibuchu and let the Loulan Prime Minister Ursa take charge of state affairs. This was a subtle guidance and also an attempt to alienate the ruling class of the Western Regions.

If there are people in the enemy country who have ulterior motives and are facing the pressure of national destruction, it is inevitable that someone will try to use the power of the Han Dynasty to seize the throne.

In fact, the world is just a makeshift team.

Anyone can play in a favorable game, and the group of people seem to be having a lot of fun.

But once the situation becomes unfavorable, pressure monsters, capitulationists, and ambitious people will emerge, and when the tide goes out, you will naturally know who is swimming naked.

"..."

Zhao Po Nu read the secret letter carefully and didn't know what to say for a moment. He just felt extremely heavy and lost in his heart.

However, Liu Ju's next words instantly perked him up again:
"But General Zhao, don't be anxious. You were once my cousin's deputy general, and we are half family. How could I forget you?"

"The merit I'm going to give you is on the way, and it will definitely not be smaller than Dongfang Yu's."

"General Zhao, just be patient and pay attention to it when the time comes."

Zhao Po Nu straightened his chest and asked subconsciously:

"Thank you, Your Highness. Could you please let me know what this achievement is?"

(End of this chapter)