210: Chapter 210 Only One Thousand Cavalrymen? Kim Hee-sam's Worries!

Zhao Fusu nodded slightly.

The situation on the grasslands was even more complex than he had imagined.

In addition to external annexations, the Xiongnu Royal Court was also undergoing internal consolidations.

"If your grassland tribes are annexed, what is the outcome?"

Zhao Fusu couldn't help but ask.

"The tribe's livestock and furs will be plundered by the other side."

Jin Xishan said with a gloomy expression, "Those who resist will be killed, and the women will be taken as spoils of war to be divided among the opposing tribe."

"The men are either reduced to slaves or incorporated into their army."

"If the tribes have a blood feud, everyone is killed except for children shorter than a wagon wheel!"

Zhao Fusu had heard of this rule before.

It was intended to prevent the grassland ethnic groups from killing each other off entirely.

When the Manchu Qing general Uya Jhaohui fought the Dzungar Khanate, he kicked over the wagon wheels and ordered a massacre of anyone taller than a wheel, turning Dzungar—a medium-sized nation of 4 million square kilometers—into nothing more than a geographical name.

"The leader of the Qinglan Tribe is on good terms with my father."

Jin Xishan's beautiful eyes sparkled as she spoke, "If His Majesty the Head of State can also allow the Qinglan Tribe to exchange wool for grain and guarantee their safety, they will choose to submit to Your Majesty."

"Mhm."

Zhao Fusu felt a stir in his heart as he listened.

Just as he had thought, securing the Tuan Tribe was like opening a breach in the grasslands; it allowed him to divide more Xiongnu Tribes from the control of the Xiongnu Royal Court and bring them into his camp.

"Very well."

Zhao Fusu said, "I can allow them to exchange wool for grain, and at the same time, I will send troops to help them resist the invasion of the Right Great Danghu."

"Your Tuan Tribe will be responsible for contacting them."

"Yes, Your Majesty the Paramount Leader."

"I will return to the tribe tomorrow to explain this to my father."

Jin Xishan agreed.

"Mhm."

Zhao Fusu nodded.

Jin Xishan continued, "If Your Majesty can help the Qinglan Tribe repel the Right Great Danghu's invasion, you might even take the opportunity to annex the Right Great Danghu's tribe, greatly increasing Your Majesty's power."

"The Shuangzong Tribe is the furthest north."

"Every winter, many people in their tribe freeze to death."

"Your Majesty, if you make them unable to live without honeycomb coals, they will choose to defect to you."

"Your Majesty, after integrating our Tuan Tribe, the Qinglan Tribe, the Right Great Danghu's tribe, and the Shuangzong Tribe, you can pressure the Chiyanju Tribe to submit to you."

"If the Liefeng Tribe is ungrateful and refuses to submit, then use heavy troops to hunt them down until they are cowed into submission!"

Zhao Fusu looked at the ruthlessness in Jin Xishan's eyes.

Although Jin Xishan was a woman, she was a daughter of the grasslands. The fighting between grassland tribes over pastures was even more frequent than in the Central Plains.

Growing up in such a cruel environment and even having fought on horseback, she carried a very heavy aura of slaughter.

"The Lingyu Tribe is the same."

"If they do not accept the kindness bestowed by Your Majesty, then forcibly annex them."

"Good, good, good!"

Zhao Fusu was overjoyed.

He looked at Jin Xishan and said, "You truly are my Female Zhuge!"

The female translator could only transliterate 'Female Zhuge' directly.

"Female Zhuge?"

Even though Jin Xishan didn't know what 'Female Zhuge' meant, she knew that her suggestions had been taken to heart by the Paramount Leader.

Her status in the Paramount Leader's mind had greatly increased, which would allow her to secure more benefits for the Tuan Tribe.

It was not impossible for their Tuan Tribe to become the Xiongnu Royal Court!

Zhao Fusu was in high spirits and even ate an extra bowl of rice that evening.

After arranging for Jin Xishan to rest, Zhao Fusu began to deploy troops.

He prepared to send one thousand light cavalrymen equipped with revolvers, each carrying two guns.

Every soldier carried one hundred rounds of ammunition.

They were bringing one hundred thousand rounds of ammunition!

Each soldier also carried four Grenades, totaling four thousand grenades!

At the same time, he arranged for ten mortar teams to hold the line.

A mortar team consisted of three people: an ammunition bearer, an aimer, and a loader.

Each team carried 5 cases of ammunition, with 5 shells per case.

That was two hundred and fifty mortar shells!

He would first treat the attacking enemy cavalry to a wave of mortar fire.

Once the enemy cavalry was blown off their horses and their formation was in chaos, he would send in the cavalry armed with revolvers to attack.

One thousand men attacking once, firing all twelve rounds from their two revolvers, would be twelve thousand bullets!

This wouldn't just be a fight; it would be a one-sided slaughter!

What Zhao Fusu had to consider was not killing too many people.

Besides being integrated into the Tuan Tribe, these prisoners of war could be sent to mine coal.

It seemed he needed to give strict instructions to only kill those who resisted.

Those willing to surrender would be taken in by the Tuan Tribe.

With the plan in place, Zhao Fusu made the arrangements overnight.

For lighting convenience, Zhao Fusu also equipped them with ten kerosene pressure lamps and four reflectors.

Placing a kerosene pressure lamp in the middle of a reflector would turn it into a searchlight, used to prevent the Xiongnu Tribes from disregarding martial ethics and launching a night raid.

The next day.

When Jin Xishan saw that Zhao Fusu had only sent out one thousand cavalry, she found him with a displeased expression.

"Your Majesty the Paramount Leader!"

Jin Xishan placed her right hand over her heart, greeting Zhao Fusu with Xiongnu etiquette, and said, "Isn't this too few men and horses?"

Jin Xishan had originally thought that Zhao Fusu would send at least five thousand cavalry.

As it turned out, there were only a thousand.

And there were no war chariots among them.

The Right Great Danghu would not come leading only his own cavalry; he would certainly borrow troops from other Commanders of Ten Thousand Cavalry.

The other Commanders would be happy to lend him troops or even come along so they could share in the spoils of war.

Besides the pastures they occupied, the Qinglan Tribe's livestock, furs, and women had long been targeted by the Right Great Danghu's coalition.

Jin Xishan feared that the Right Great Danghu's coalition forces would exceed ten thousand cavalry!

With the Qinglan Tribe's five thousand cavalry plus all the cavalry from her Tuan Tribe, that only made seven thousand.

Since the Paramount Leader only sent one thousand, their total cavalry count was only eight thousand.

Jin Xishan had heard that the Qin Army's most formidable weapon was the Qin Crossbow.

She believed the Qin Army could repel the Right Great Danghu's invasion because she hoped the Qin Crossbow would show its divine might.

However, she discovered that the cavalry sent by the Paramount Leader was not even carrying Qin Crossbows.

Was the Paramount Leader planning to let these cavalrymen go head-to-head with the Xiongnu in a frontal assault?

The bows and arrows of their Xiongnu people were extremely powerful.

Without using the Qin Crossbow, the Qin Army might not necessarily be able to defeat the Xiongnu!

Jin Xishan felt no sense of security at all, and she began to wonder if her choice to defect to Zhao Fusu had been a mistake.