490: Chapter 490 Recruiting Mercenaries

Zhao Fusu sat quietly at the table, his eyes focused on the roster in his hands.

After adopting the fission-style recruitment method, he was pleasantly surprised to discover that the number of people standing on his side had snowballed from the initial three hundred to five thousand!

Coupled with the three thousand members of the Black Dragon Special Forces Brigade he personally led, the force he could now command had reached as many as eight thousand.

Meanwhile, Xiang Liang's side could not be underestimated; he had successfully gathered eight thousand Jiangdong Youths.

The numbers on both sides were now evenly matched, forming a delicate balance.

However, looking closely, most descendants of the royal families of the Six States had chosen to stand on Zhao Fusu's side.

This meant that Zhao Fusu's side had gathered more intellectuals, possessing a deeper foundation in terms of wit and strategy.

However, looking at the Pioneer Group as a whole, it only had sixteen thousand people at most; such a scale was truly too meager.

This was not difficult to understand, as in the current environment where Great Qin society was becoming increasingly stable, the vast majority of people were immersed in a peaceful and simple life.

Only a very small number of people who were restless by nature, harboring dissatisfaction with the status quo and suffering from having no better alternatives, resolutely chose to commit themselves to warfare, longing to venture out into the vast world.

But their target this time—the Mauryan Empire—was a massive nation with a population of over twenty million.

Just thinking about it, if sixteen thousand people really went there to fight for territory, even if the people of the Mauryan Empire each just spat once, it would be enough to completely drown them.

Deeply aware of the severity of the situation, Zhao Fusu made a prompt decision. In his capacity as Consul General of the Pioneer Group, he quickly summoned key figures such as Xiang Liang, Fan Zeng, Tian Feng, Zhao Xuan, and Han Zhao, preparing to hold a crucial meeting.

Everyone gathered together, and the atmosphere in the conference room seemed exceptionally heavy.

The expressions of Xiang Liang and Fan Zeng were not very good; after all, with their intelligence and wisdom, how could they fail to notice the imminent problem of the Pioneer Group's severe shortage of personnel?

Zhao Fusu broke the silence first, his voice steady and powerful: "Our vital force is extremely limited. Every time a person dies, for us, it means losing a precious asset. Therefore, we must do everything possible to preserve our vital force. After careful consideration, I believe we need to recruit foreign mercenaries."

"Recruit foreign mercenaries?"

Upon hearing this, Xiang Liang frowned slightly and then asked: "Is this so-called foreign mercenary something similar to an auxiliary army?"

Zhao Fusu nodded and said: "You can understand it that way, but it is not exactly the same. Auxiliary armies are more often forced to participate in war after being conquered, whereas the foreign mercenaries we recruit are profit-oriented, attracted by generous compensation to voluntarily serve us."

Fan Zeng stroked his beard, thinking with a deep gaze, and said slowly: "Although this plan is clever, it also carries many risks. Foreign mercenaries are, after all, not our own people. Whether they are loyal and reliable, and whether they will go all out in battle, are all difficult to guarantee."

Xiang Liang also echoed: "Mr. Fan is absolutely right. Moreover, foreign mercenaries may not necessarily agree with our philosophy and goals. If they harbor ulterior motives at a critical moment, it will instead bring us greater trouble."

Zhao Fusu had already considered this and said calmly: "What you all say is not unreasonable."

"I already have a contingency plan."

"Let's hear it."

Xiang Liang asked.