Deposed Crown Prince: After three years of service on the frontier, the entire court knelt and begge

As he spoke, Xiao Ce helped Nan Xi up.

Nan Xi looked at Xiao Ce with a deeply moved expression.

Seeing this, Xiao Ce said, "Your Majesty Nanxi, you don't need to look at me like that. You know I came here with a purpose."

"I have my reasons for helping you. After all, we're complete strangers, and I wouldn't help you without a reason!"

Nanxi smiled and said to Xiao Ce, "Your Highness, King of Mobei, please rest assured. I know! As long as you make our Shanshan Kingdom better, I would gladly give up the throne for you."

Xiao Ce laughed and said to Nan Xi, "There's no need for that. I have absolutely no interest in the throne."

Nanxi was a smart man. Seeing that Xiao Ce did not answer his question about the purpose of his trip to the Western Regions, he did not press the matter.

Instead, they cleverly replied: "Your Highness, the King of the Northern Desert, as long as our people of Shanshan are not harmed, we are willing to serve as your pawns!"

Xiao Ce smiled and said, "Alright. Then I can help you."

Seeing this, Nanxi asked Xiao Ce, "Your Highness, King of Mobei, have you found a way to help us?"

Xiao Ce nodded and said, "That's right, we do have some ideas! However, I need you to take me to see the full strength of your Shanshan Kingdom first!"

Seeing that Nan Xi agreed very readily, Xiao Ce interrupted from the side, saying, "I meant all our fighting strength, understand? Don't hold back."

Nan Xi nodded, but some of his trusted ministers immediately voiced their objections.

Their expressions revealed that these were the trump cards of their Shanshan Kingdom.

The minister stated that if one wanted to help Shanshan, there was no need to know about Shanshan's troop deployment or similar matters.

If Xiao Ce's identity is questionable, then their Shanshan Kingdom will be doomed.

Nanxi was about to reprimand him when Xiao Ce stopped her.

“Your Majesty, you don’t need to mention this minister. The fact that this minister raised this question in front of me shows that he is an upright person. Since he has spoken openly about this matter, I will explain it to you as well.”

Nanxi's trusted minister looked at Xiao Ce.

Xiao Ce then said, "My plan is to change your entire Shanshan Kingdom. This change will be revolutionary, and its effects will not be immediate. Therefore, I need to know your military deployment and whether it can withstand an invasion. If it can, then we can fully commit to the reforms!"

"Of course, if that doesn't work, then we need to reform the army first, and then reform the country, a two-pronged approach. Without sufficient military equipment, no matter how well you reform the country, in the end you'll just be making wedding clothes for others. Besides, you don't need to suspect me of being a spy. After all, in the Western Regions, if the remaining countries really want to do something to you, it won't change anything whether you reveal your hand or not."

Hearing Xiao Ce's words, the trusted minister nodded: "Thank you for your clarification, Your Highness the King of Mobei. However, since you said that whether we reveal our trump cards or not, we are no match for the others, why do we need to know?"

Xiao Ce smiled.

Before he could speak, Nan Xi spoke up for Xiao Ce.

"Because His Highness the King of the Northern Desert is here to help us find the problem. If you don't let him see our full strength, how can he find the problem for us?"

After listening to Nan Xi's words, Xiao Ce gave Nan Xi a thumbs up.

"Look at you, you're so lucky that your Shanshan Kingdom still has a wise ruler!"

Upon seeing this, the trusted minister beside Nan Xi spoke up, "Then I have no problem."

Nanxi then gave Xiao Ce an apologetic look.

"Your Highness, King of the Northern Desert, please forgive them. They did not mean any disrespect or distrust. They simply love this country too much!"

Xiao Ce waved his hand and said, "It's alright. If it's convenient for you, let's hurry up."

Nan Xi nodded and went to make the arrangements without saying another word.

On the way to the various camps, Nanxi gave Xiao Ce a brief introduction to the general situation of the army.

Their Shanshan Kingdom has a total army of 150,000, of which 100,000 are female soldiers and 50,000 are male soldiers.

Of these 150,000, 10,000 were cavalry and the rest were infantry.

Some of these troops were stationed near Ruoqiang, while others were stationed on the border for defense.

Xiao Ce asked Nan Xi if he had any elite troops.

At first, Nanxi didn't know anything about the elite army.

Xiao Ce then explained, "The so-called elite army is your strongest or most distinctive army."

Nan Xi pondered for a moment and said to Xiao Ce, "We female warriors are the elite of the troops."

"You female warriors? Can you fight two against one, or outnumbered against many?" Xiao Ce asked.

Just then, Dan, who had been following Xiao Ce all the way, spoke up: "We have the courage to fight against overwhelming odds..."

Xiao Ce smiled helplessly.

Dan said somewhat displeasedly, "Your Highness, are you underestimating the courage of our female warriors?"

Xiao Ce shook his head: "Of course not. Courage is certainly important... but what we need is the ability to win with fewer troops! A true elite army should have the ability to fight five, or even ten, with one.

After hearing this, Dan asked incredulously, "You mean alone, or..."

Xiao Ce nodded: "Since it's an elite army, then it's every single person in that elite army!"

Dan quickly interjected, "That's impossible! You could find a few people, but for each of them to be able to take on five, or even ten, is practically impossible! Your Highness, King of the Northern Desert, don't exaggerate..."

Xiao Ce said, "If I build an army, I don't need an additional 5,000 men to rout an army of 50,000 or even 100,000 men!"

Upon hearing Xiao Ce's words, a hint of excitement flashed in the eyes of Nan Xi and Ling Chang.

Dan immediately scoffed, "Your Highness, King of the Northern Desert, I know you are a capable man! But what you're saying is nothing but a pipe dream, impossible to achieve. Anyone can talk the talk! I could even say that I, with a thousand men, can resist an army of one hundred thousand."

Seeing this, Nanxi immediately scolded, "Dan! Don't be rude!"

Dan has a very strong personality.

"Your Majesty, I am only telling the truth. His Highness the King of the Northern Desert is undoubtedly boasting. A force of five thousand men against an army ten or even twenty times their size, and still manages to win a great victory! Unless he has summoned heavenly soldiers and generals, it is absolutely impossible!"

Xiao Ce smiled and said, "Dan, do you dare to make a bet?"

Dan asked with a surprised look, "What are you betting on?"

Xiao Ce said to Dan, "I can use one hundred men to deal with a force of one thousand or even two thousand men, and win a great victory! That means I win! Otherwise, I lose!"

Dan's eyes lit up after hearing this, and without hesitation, she said, "Okay! I agree! What's the wager?"

Xiao Ce said to Dan, "If I win, you will marry him!"

As he spoke, Xiao Ce pointed to the large thunderbolt beside him.

Da Lei, who had been calm, suddenly showed a hint of panic and surprise in his eyes when he heard Xiao Ce's words.

After hearing Xiao Ce's words, Dan subconsciously looked at Da Lei.

After being looked at like that by Dan, Da Lei, who had been calm and expressionless the whole time, now seemed a little flustered.

At this moment, Nan Xi looked at the two of them with a meaningful expression, wondering why Xiao Ce would make such a request.

However, she did not interrupt.

Dan didn't rush to agree, and asked Xiao Ce, "Then, King of the Northern Desert, what if you lost?"

Xiao Ce said to Dan, "Name any condition you wish!"

A playful expression immediately appeared on Dan's face: "If you lose, you will have to marry Lady Ling Chang!"

Upon hearing Dan's words, Ling Chang, who was standing next to Nan Xi, blushed deeply, her face turning bright red to the roots of her ears.

"General Dan, don't talk nonsense!"

Dan, being a very easygoing person, said to Ling Chang, "Lady Ling Chang, I can tell from the journey that you greatly admire Lord Xiao Ce! If I win this bet, I'll do you a favor."

As she spoke, Dan looked at Xiao Ce again.

In fact, Xiao Ce was the same as Dan; he noticed something was wrong with Da Lei along the way.

Whenever Da Lei saw Dan, he would become somewhat uneasy, and his eyes would occasionally steal glances at Dan.

At that time, Xiao Ce realized that Da Lei, this iron tree, had finally blossomed.

Dan, seeing Ling Chang's great admiration for Xiao Ce, then this scene unfolded.

Xiao Ce agreed without hesitation, and said with a smile.

“No problem. If I could marry a beauty like Lady Ling Chang, it wouldn’t be a punishment, but rather a reward! However, I already have a wife. I don’t think Lady Ling Chang would mind.”

Ling Chang blushed slightly: "Your Highness, King of the Northern Desert, please don't listen to her..."

Nan Xi smiled and said, "Lady Ling Chang, I think this bet is quite good. Win or lose, it will be a wonderful thing. Dan, do you agree?"

General Dan was quite agreeable: "This gentleman is not bad-looking either, it's no problem for him to agree... Your Majesty, I agree!"

Xiao Ce said, "Alright...then the bet is settled. However, our people always use lethal moves when they make a move...so there can be no friendly sparring...Do you have any bandit organizations in your territory, preferably with several thousand members?"

Nanxi shook his head and said, "That's not true... Our country is peaceful and prosperous, everyone has enough to eat and drink, so no one would want to become a bandit!"

Just then, General Dan spoke up: "Your Majesty, although there are no bandits, there are some people on our side who are even more like bandits, who are forcibly occupying the key roads of our Shanshan Kingdom."

After listening to General Dan's words, Nan Xi shook his head and said, "How could I not know about that group on the Three Passes Road? However... that group belongs to Queen Bairda. If we attack their people, it might cause an unnecessary war!"

Upon hearing this, Xiao Ce, without waiting for General Dan's reply, asked Nan Xi, "Oh? What are you talking about regarding the Three Passes?"

Nan Xi didn't hide anything and said to Xiao Ce, "Sanguandao is a small village in the center of our Shanshan Kingdom, not even a city. However, due to its geographical significance, it is the most bustling town in our Shanshan Kingdom."

"Several years ago, when Otok, the brother-in-law of King Baird of Uzbekistan, was doing business in our Shanshan Kingdom, his goods were stolen when he passed through the Three Passes Pass. Otok immediately went to find the locals, but the goods seemed to have vanished into thin air."

"Later, Etuoke claimed that the people on the Three Passes Road had stolen them, but after searching for a long time, they found nothing. Etuoke then lied and said that they were all priceless treasures, worth millions of taels of gold. After they made a big fuss, they asked our Shanshan Kingdom to take responsibility."

“Of course we couldn’t just sit idly by. We negotiated and investigated at the same time. But they were clearly well-prepared. Later, it alarmed the Uzbek leader, Balda, who came to intervene. After learning about it, he even sent troops to support his brother-in-law, Otok, and urged us to pay compensation.”

"But how could we give it to them? So they resorted to shamelessness and blocked the Three Passes Road. Because it was a vital passage, they collected tolls from people passing through and stationed troops to protect it. Their intention was that they would leave automatically once they had paid back the money for the lost goods."

Nan Xi's face darkened as he said this: "This is because our country is weak. Why don't they dare to go to other countries? They only target our country! We can't take a hard line. We can only let that bloodsucking leech cling to us and suck our blood."

Xiao Ce got angry just listening to it.

Nan Xi is right. A weak nation cannot stand tall.

Xiao Ce turned to Dan and asked, "How many troops does their Three Passes Pass have?"

Dan said, "It's not a lot, but it's not a small number either; it's about three thousand troops."

After listening, Xiao Ce said, "Alright, let's choose him! We have a hundred against three thousand, let's see how we take them down!"

Dan listened to Xiao Ce's words with a look of shock: "Your Highness, are you sure you're not joking with us?"

At this moment, Nanxi advised, "Your Highness, the King of Mobei, you must not! You must not! We have actually analyzed this. The Kingdom of Uz is deliberately provoking us so that we can't hold out and we can attack them. Once we attack that Otog, then they will have a reason to launch a military campaign... They are impatient and thinking about it day and night, waiting for us to attack them!"

Xiao Ce nodded in agreement with Nan Xi's words: "I know, that's why I'm going to fight them!"

Nanxi was even more puzzled by Xiao Ce's words: "Your Highness, King of the Northern Desert, what do you mean by this?"

Xiao Ce smiled slightly: "Didn't you say you trusted me unconditionally? Consider this a trust test! I've decided to beat them up, and don't ask why!"