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

Shen Bao looked at Xiao Ce's expression and asked, "Your Highness, you didn't know..."

"That traitor is Bao An..."

Shen Bao recounted Bao An's traitorous acts with great enthusiasm.

In fact, it was an open secret that Bao An and the Turks were in cahoots in the four northern prefectures.

However, no one can do anything about them.

The powerful and wealthy families here only care about their own interests, as long as their own interests are not affected.

They didn't care at all whether their emperor was Xiao Dingbang or the Khan of the Turks.

Therefore, in the end, it is the common people who suffer.

Hearing about Bao An's various actions, Xiao Ce's gaze turned colder.

He wasn't actually a saint!

However, that beast Bao An does absolutely nothing human.

After listening to Shen Bao finish speaking, Xiao Ce looked at Nie Bing questioningly.

Nie Bing nodded, her expression grim, and said, "When my father was alive, I knew that Bao An had done a lot of these things. I never expected that after my father died, Bao An, without any restraint, would become even more outrageous."

"Alright! Since Bao An is holding his wedding here, I will naturally send him a grand gift!"

After receiving Xiao Ce's affirmative reply, Shen Bao became even more excited.

“Your Highness, the garrison at Yanmen Pass numbers three thousand men. They’re supposed to be elite! But Bao An’s army, like Bao An himself, is rotten to the core! Many of them are our own people! If you want to take action, I can have them turn some of them against us.”

"Alright! Do you need money?" Xiao Ce didn't waste any words and went straight to the point.

Shen Bao smiled and said, "Your Highness, it would be best if you had some silver."

Xiao Ce nodded and said, "Alright, you handle it. I'll distribute them all at once! By the way, our army doesn't have weapons yet, does it?"

Shen Hu nodded and said, "We have some weapons in our village, but at most enough to equip 10,000 people."

Xiao Ce smiled and said, "That's enough! Then give the order, and we'll go down first thing tomorrow morning!"

"Shen Bao, I don't need you to bribe too many people. Just cut off their escape routes!"

Seeing the fierce glint in Xiao Ce's eyes, she guessed something.

...

The next day, before dawn.

Everyone descended the mountain in the dark.

Xiao Ce instructed Shen Hu to lead the main force to catch up slowly.

He led Shen Bao's thousand men from Tiger Leopard Village.

These thousand men are all seasoned veterans.

With the addition of Yan Jia leading 5,000 cavalrymen along the way, and with their combined inside and outside support, taking Yanmen Pass would be no problem at all.

After they left, Yan Jia came up and said to Xiao Ce, "Your Highness, our five thousand cavalry are all hidden along the way."

Xiao Ce said to Yan Jia, "Now we don't need to hide anymore, let everyone come out."

Yan Jia was somewhat surprised: "No need to hide anymore?"

Xiao Ce nodded: "Good... Tell everyone to cheer up. In our first battle, we must take Yanmen Pass!"

A hint of joy flashed in Yan Jia's eyes.

"Will the garrison at Yanmen Pass make a move?"

Xiao Ce shook his head and said, "I hope not. But who would be so blind? However, if I want to set foot in Yanmen Pass, anyone who tries to stop me... will be killed without mercy."

A fervent glint flashed in Yan Jia's eyes: "Yes, sir."

Then, Yan Jia took out a horn.

Accompanied by the sounding of bugles.

A short while later, a dark mass of cavalrymen gathered from the woods beside the road.

These cavalrymen were all wearing the same distinctive riding robes worn by Xiao Ce, making them look very imposing.

This elite force cost Xiao Ce a lot of money.

Shen Bao's eyes showed a hint of envy after witnessing this scene.

"Your Highness, this cavalry is so imposing. In the future, could we have uniforms like these?"

After saying that, Shen Bao looked at their tattered clothes.

Xiao Ce nodded and said, "Of course, you are all my army. There will be more in the future, but you need to give me some time."

Shen Bao nodded and muttered to himself, "Now that's what soldiers are like!"

In fact, this cavalry unit not only had good clothes, but their food and drink were also of the highest standard.

These people were all young and strong, and after a month of training on the road, plus a good diet, they were able to cope with the challenges.

Their bodies became very strong.

Moreover, they were in excellent spirits.

It certainly looks majestic.

...

At this time, the commander guarding Yanmen Pass was a lackey of Bao Cong named Cai Wu.

Cai Wu was considered a scion of a prominent family in the four prefectures of Mobei. Due to his family connections and his close relationship with Bao Cong, he was well-liked.

Despite having no talent for leading troops, he was appointed as a Grand Commander commanding three thousand men.

At this moment, he was in a government office in Yanmen Pass, with several women in his arms.

In front of them were many women and a band.

They danced gracefully, enjoying a peaceful and prosperous time.

He muttered under his breath, "Damn it, I had to come to this godforsaken place... Lingxiao City is so much more lively... Those damned disaster victims, if they really dared to come... I'd definitely kill them..."

Just as he was enjoying the dance while cursing and swearing.

A scout came rushing over.

"Report!"

...

"Commander-in-Chief! Commander-in-Chief! Something terrible has happened! Something terrible has happened!"

The singing and dancing stopped after a scout ran over.

This made Cai Wu, who was already unhappy, even more displeased.

"Bullshit... I'm perfectly fine here, and you're cursing me... Men, drag him away... give him a hundred lashes!"

The scout, terrified at the sight, prostrated himself on the ground and kept slapping himself in the face.

"Great Commander, spare me! Great Commander, spare me! I misspoke... I misspoke..."

Beside Cai Wu was a man dressed in a gray robe, who looked like a scholar.

This person was Cai Wu's military advisor, assigned by the Cai family.

"What happened? Tell me properly... Don't rush... If it's really urgent, I might spare you this time! But if it's not, you definitely won't escape this hundred strokes of the cane," the military advisor said sternly.

The scout stammered, "Reporting...reporting to the Grand Commander, a large cavalry force has appeared about twenty miles outside Yanmen Pass...at least several thousand men..."

Upon hearing this, the soldier's face stiffened: "A cavalry force? Besides our Bao family army, where else is there an army here? Are you sure you're looking carefully? Is it a cavalry force? Or are they just refugees?!"

Cai Wu became excited upon hearing this: "Yeah, are you seeing things? They're disaster victims! Damn it... I've been wanting to vent my anger. Finally, some disaster victims have come... I'm going to kill a few of them to my heart's content!"

The scout, trembling and crawling on the ground, said, "No...it's a cavalry unit, and they all have unit numbers! The flags are those of the King of the Northern Desert!"