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

Seeing this, Shen Hu said to Xiao Ce, "Your Highness, how about I call them down?"

Xiao Ce smiled and said, "I was just thinking of coming to see your village. If it's in a good location, I'll have a great use for it."

Shen Hu may look rough, but he is actually very meticulous.

Nie Bing's reminder made Shen Hu realize it too.

Xiao Ce patted his shoulder and said, "My principle is to trust those I employ and not to employ those I don't trust! Let's go up the mountain!"

The mountain path they were talking about was actually a cave.

Since they were going through this cave, the assassins had to stay close together.

This cave appears to have been carved out by them.

"Shen Hu, you must have put a lot of effort into building this cave, right?" Xiao Ce asked as they walked.

Because, given their current level of craftsmanship, it is indeed not easy to build such a road.

Shen Hu said to Xiao Ce, "Your Highness, we didn't actually build this road. Tiger Leopard Stronghold has existed for hundreds of years. However, it was abandoned after being wiped out. My brother and I just stumbled in by accident. Everything inside is already there. You'll see when you get there!"

As Xiao Ce spoke, he followed Shen Hu, winding his way around for quite a while.

They were all caves connected to each other, even though they were following Shen Hu.

But if you let him go alone, he will definitely get lost.

After walking for more than half an hour, they emerged from a cave.

My eyes suddenly became enlightened.

It was a flat area nestled among the mountains.

Although it's called flat land, it's actually halfway up the mountain.

This flat area is at least the size of five football fields, and it contains rows of stone houses.

The houses don't look like they're from this era; the stone houses are covered in greenery...

This is simply a secluded paradise in a small town.

Xiao Ce saw many people, who then separated and began their own training.

Shen Hu said, "Your Highness, we have actually heard some old people say that hundreds of years ago, many people hid here to escape persecution by the Turks and lived far away from the crowds."

“When we arrived, the ground was littered with bones. According to the inscriptions left at the scene, they seemed to have contracted the plague and eventually all died!”

Xiao Ce nodded: "This is a good place..."

He had actually been planning this all along, but what he had been lacking was a secure secret base where he could create some modern things.

For example, white sugar, fine salt, and so on. Xiao Ce also plans to brew wine, but he doesn't intend to produce a large quantity.

Because the purpose of the things he made was to exploit the wealthy people here.

If mass production is not allowed, then production must be kept secret.

He had been looking for a piece of land, and now he had it all without any effort.

Shen Hu said to Xiao Ce, "Your Highness, if you like it, this place is yours!"

Xiao Ce smiled and nodded, saying, "Alright, then I won't stand on ceremony with you. However, I won't take your money for nothing! I'll give you money!"

Shen Hu quickly waved his hand and said, "Your Highness, you are a living bodhisattva. I have heard about everything you have done. I am willing to follow someone like you who has the people in his heart! I don't want anything in return!"

Xiao Ce laughed, "Alright, I don't like taking advantage of you. But I don't have any money to give you right now! We'll talk about it later. Go and call everyone over."

Shen Hu nodded, put his hand in his mouth, and blew a very loud whistle.

Upon hearing the whistle, all the soldiers who were training stopped.

They then converged in this direction.

Shen Hu said to Xiao Ce, "Your Highness, everyone here has been registered. Including our Tiger and Leopard Stronghold, there are a total of 48,000 people! Among them, more than 30,000 are veterans! And more than 18,000 are strong young men!"

After hearing this, Xiao Ce asked in surprise, "What? So many veterans?"

Shen Hu nodded and said, "These veterans have all fought against the Turks to some extent. Their general was framed by the current Bao An, and their troops were disbanded. Bao An wanted to recruit them, but many of them were unwilling and went home to farm."

After listening, Xiao Ce said, "Hahaha, good! Good!"

As he spoke, Xiao Ce turned around to look at Nie Bing.

"These aren't raw recruits anymore, are they?"

Nie Bing's eyes were also filled with excitement.

After all, although she kept pouring cold water on Xiao Ce, she was genuinely thinking of Xiao Ce's best interests.

Now, there are so many veterans.

Xiao Ce's journey to the four prefectures of Mobei was practically a piece of cake.

With over 48,000 people here, veterans leading new recruits, the fighting strength will only increase.

There were also the more than 50,000 new recruits along the way.

Xiao Ce really managed to gather 100,000 troops!

More than 40,000 people gathered there, forming a dense, dark mass.

Moreover, these people seemed to emanate a murderous aura.

Shen Hu announced loudly, "Everyone, this is the King of the Northern Desert who summoned you all here!"

Upon hearing Shen Hu's words, everyone knelt down in unison.

"Greetings, King of the Northern Desert!"

The deafening shout echoed throughout the entire mountain valley, stirring the emotions of those who heard it...

Xiao Ce listened and smiled, saying, "Alright! Now that everyone's here, you must know why we're here!"

Everyone was silent for a moment.

Shen Hu was the first to speak: "Pacify the Turks!"

After Shen Hu took the lead, everyone else followed suit.

"Suppress the Turks! Suppress the Turks!"

"Excellent! Resist the Turks! Revitalize the northern deserts! Not only that, I will also ensure that you have meat to eat and money to spare!" Xiao Ce shouted directly.

"Long live! Long live! Long live!"

The soldiers started yelling.

Seeing everyone's expressions, Xiao Ce said, "Alright! I don't like nonsense! As long as you follow me, I will definitely not treat you unfairly! I'll say it again: follow me, and you will be rewarded for your actions and punished for your mistakes!"

"The people who brought you here have already told you, right? Ordinary soldiers get five taels of silver in pay, and you'll get a raise every time you're promoted! I can't promise you anything else if you follow me. But if you're willing to risk your life, I'll let you go home and build a house after one year, and let you buy land after three years."

"Long live the Prince! Long live the Prince! Long live the Prince!"

Xiao Ce's simple words completely stirred up everyone's emotions.

There's no need to talk about national sentiment with these people; after all, ordinary people care more about practical benefits.

"Shen Hu, do you have any wine or meat here?"

Shen Hu nodded and said, "Your Highness, yes! We have plenty of wine and meat stored up!"

Xiao Ce said, "Alright, go and take inventory. I've bought all the meat and wine you have here! Today, all soldiers, eat meat and drink wine to your hearts' content! Tomorrow, I will lead you out of the mountains! We will take over the northern desert!"

"Good! Good! Good!"

"Long live! Long live! Long live!"

Upon hearing that they could eat meat, the soldiers erupted in another thunderous roar of cheers.