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

Hearing the words of the newcomer, Yan Jia tightened the reins and became vigilant.

If anything seemed amiss, he would order the entire army to charge.

Hearing what the man said, Sun Qiang rode forward alone on his horse.

"Come here, I have a secret order!"

Seeing that Sun Qiang was coming alone, Zhao Long came up.

"What the hell are you doing?"

Sun Qiang looked at Zhao Long and said, "Zhao Long, are we brothers?"

Zhao Long was bewildered by Sun Qiang's abrupt remark: "Of course!"

Sun Qiang said to Zhao Long, "The Prince is here! Cai Wu has been killed, and I have joined the Prince's Northern Desert Army. Will you come with me?"

Sun Qiang's words nearly made Zhao Long's head spin.

"Your Highness? Which prince? Could it be that useless prince from the capital? Are you crazy?"

“He’s not useless! If you’re a brother, trust me! Open the city gates! You, as a centurion, will receive fifty taels of silver a month in military pay! Most importantly, you’re capable of dealing with the Turks!” Sun Qiang emphasized.

Sure enough, it was this practical thing that caught Zhao Long's attention.

"Really? What about my brothers..."

Sun Qiang said, "Ordinary soldiers get five taels of silver a month, and all the people of Yanmen Pass have pledged allegiance to the Prince!"

Zhao Long was indeed persuaded by Sun Qiang.

"Reliable?"

Sun Qiang nodded and said, "Absolutely reliable! Don't you trust me?"

Zhao Long continued, "Can we really go and fight the Turks?"

Sun Qiang nodded and said, "The King of Mobei said that he would attack the Turks within half a month. He also said that if he did not attack the Turks, we should rebel against him."

Zhao Long's eyes lit up: "Let's do it!"

After saying that, Zhao Long turned his head and said, "Alright, open the city gate! Let them in..."

As soon as Zhao Long said this, the city gates were opened.

As Yan Jia rode his horse past Zhao Long...

Sun Qiang introduced, "General Yan, this is my sworn brother Zhao Long. I've already told him, and he's willing to work for us!"

Yan Jia nodded: "How many troops are guarding the city?"

Zhao Long cupped his hands in greeting: "General Yan, there are a total of two thousand troops at the four city gates, and most importantly, there are three thousand elite troops outside the General's Palace!"

Yan Jia nodded: "His Highness means he doesn't want them to kill each other! Do you have any acquaintances among yourselves?"

Zhao Long nodded and said, "Most of the two thousand soldiers guarding the four city gates are familiar with each other! However, the soldiers guarding outside the General's Palace are the General's confidants, and it is unlikely that they can be won over."

Yan Jia nodded and said, "Alright, then you should first persuade the guards at the four city gates!"

Zhao Long asked, "What about the treatment?"

“Sun Qiang told you, right? Anyone willing to join the Northern Desert Army and help us capture Lingxiao City and the traitor Bao An will be rewarded with ten taels of silver!” Yan Jia said.

"You'll get an extra five silver coins for capturing a prisoner or killing someone who resists!"

Zhao Long subconsciously looked at Sun Qiang, seemingly finding Yan Jia's terms too good to be true, and he was somewhat incredulous.

Sun Qiang nodded and said, "General Yan can represent the Prince."

Zhao Long nodded and then summoned his men.

He was said to be a centurion, and he commanded five hundred men.

He immediately gathered everyone together, and without getting straight to the point, he recounted his decision to join Xiao Ce.

Most people had a hint of excitement in their eyes.

"Brother Long, is it true?! You can really earn this much money? Will you be able to earn that much every month from now on?"

Zhao Long subconsciously looked at Sun Qiang.

"Does everyone know me? We men of Yanmen Pass pay soldiers five taels of silver, squad leaders ten taels, platoon leaders twenty taels, and centurions fifty taels! We all get paid in cash! But there's a condition: we have to abide by military regulations, because we'll still have to fight the Turks later."

Sun Qiang was considered a prominent figure in the Northern Desert Army.

He was a ruthless man who had actually killed Turks.

"Brother Sun Qiang, I know you. You're Brother Long's sworn brother!"

"Brother Sun Qiang, can you really fight the Turks? Damn it, if I really want to fight the Turks, I'll do it even if you don't pay me!"

...

Sun Qiang nodded and said, "Not only will we give you money, but that traitor Bao An only knows how to be a dog for the Turks! I've wanted to quit for a long time. The King of Mobei said that not only will we give you money, but we'll also have meat with every meal! Anyway, I won't harm you. If I fail to keep any of my promises to you, I'll give you my life."

His men immediately said, "I'll do it!"

"I'll do it too!"

A group of people immediately started yelling.

Yan Jia watched from the side, and Zhao Long quickly spotted several people who seemed downcast.

"This! This...and this..."

A short while later, more than twenty people were named.

"Tie all these people up!"

The men immediately became anxious and said, "Why are you tying me up! I'll do it..."

Zhao Long said, "Hmph, I'll investigate you thoroughly afterward! If you're all cleared up, I'll let you join."

"Zhang San, you take a team and keep an eye on them! If they dare to make any rash moves, kill them!"

Zhao Long then led a horse to Sun Qiang and said, "Brother Qiang, I'm going to persuade the other guards at the city gates! Why don't you go...?"

Yan Jia said to Zhao Long, "Let's go with you and give you some support."

Zhao Long nodded.

Their large army passed by in a grand procession, having bypassed the general's palace built by Bao An.

They encountered patrol teams along the way and arrested them all.

Afterwards, the same words were uttered again.

They were tempted by the offer of five taels of silver for military pay, but did not immediately decide to join.

However, upon hearing that they could defeat the Turks, these people eagerly expressed their desire to join.

In fact, only the people of the northern deserts truly hate the Turks.

Many of their parents, brothers, and sisters were murdered by the Turks, and they dared not speak out against it.

Those who tried to stop him were all killed by Zhao Long.

In less than half an hour, they had subdued all two thousand people, and killed over a hundred of them.

At this moment, Sun Qiang and Zhao Long said to Yan Jia, "General Yan, there are three annexation points around the General's palace. There are a total of three thousand men!"

Yan Jia said to them, "Do you want to make money? If you do, I'll give you the opportunity to lead the attack! If you don't want to make money, you can just watch from the back while we take the lead!"

Then Yan Jia said to the cavalry behind him, "Everyone, switch to bows!"

The cavalrymen, with their feet in the stirrups, prepared their bows and arrows!

Sun Qiang and Zhao Long exchanged a glance.

They then looked at the other centurions.

Yan Jia knew they wanted to discuss things.

"You have five minutes to discuss! No matter how many of them there are, we can catch them off guard and fire two rounds of shots, which should kill 80% of them."

Sun Qiang and Zhao Long nodded.

After discussing it, the centurions, not being presumptuous, decided to choose a secluded outpost.

"General Yan Jia, let's choose that stronghold with a thousand men!"

Yan Jia nodded and said, "Alright! We'll attack first, and you can ambush from one side. After I attack them, the troops from the strongholds on both sides will definitely come to our aid. At that time, you can charge in from one side!"

"Remember, let our men wear white cloth strips tied to their hands as a signal."

After Yan Jia gave his instructions, they all nodded.

As Yan Jia spoke, he took the Lingxiao City defense map and divided his troops into more than twenty squads, which were then stationed at various key intersections.

Just then, a person dressed in special clothes appeared from the shadows.

"General Yan!"

Yan Jia recognized the person in the attire immediately; it was one of Xiao Ce's Twelve Fiends.

Although the man was wrapped up tightly, he recognized him from the two large axes he was carrying on his back.

This man was the one whom Xiao Ce had named Axe Ox. He was incredibly strong, and with a single swing of his axe, he could cut a person in two!

"Mr. Axe Ox, is His Highness alright?" Yan Jia said respectfully to Axe Ox.

He knew very well that each of the Twelve Fiends was a trusted confidant of Xiao Ce.

Axe Ox nodded and said, "His Highness is well and is waiting for your news."

Yan Jia then explained the situation here.

"If Your Highness requires it, we will launch a surprise attack, and we can stabilize the situation in twenty minutes at most!"

Axe Bull nodded and said, "Okay, we'll use the rocket as the signal later!"

...

At this time, the general was in the palace.

They were presenting treasures when, halfway there, a Turkic prince suddenly appeared.

This disrupted the progress of the treasure presentation.

Upon hearing that the Turkic prince had arrived, Bao An greeted him like a dog, wagging his tail.

The Turkic prince was dressed in animal fur, and his hair was braided like a dreadlock.

Seeing how many layers he was wearing, even in this sweltering heat, he still seemed to be feeling hot.

After the Turkic prince entered, Bao An bowed and scraped, saying, "What are you all standing there for? Bow and pay your respects to Prince Moss!"

As he spoke, the people outside the hall all knelt down.

Xiao Ce stood ramrod straight, as if he hadn't heard a thing.

He stood ramrod straight, and Da Lei stood beside Xiao Ce.

This terrified the shopkeeper, Qian Lai, who kept pulling them away.

Fortunately, their position was blocked by a large tree.

Moreover, this Turkic prince had a problem with Bao An.

That means his eyeballs are all on his forehead.

After watching them go inside, Xiao Ce pulled Qian Lai up.

"Qian Lai, remember this! Don't be so soft-hearted when you see Turkic dogs in the future!"

Qian Lai nodded awkwardly.

Xiao Ce continued, "What's this guy's background?"

"His name is Mos Ashina. He is the eldest prince of the most powerful tribe in the Turkic Ashina clan. He can also represent the entire Turkic kingdom."

Listening to Qian Lai's introduction, Xiao Ce nodded in satisfaction: "I didn't expect it to be such a big fish!"

Before he came, he had done some research on the Turkic Khaganate. The surnames of the Turks all followed the surnames of their Khans.

For example, the Khan of the Ashina tribe was named Ashina. Therefore, everyone in their tribe shared the surname Ashina.

The Turks believed that this was the only way to unite.

After Mos Ashina followed him inside, this Bao An really turned out to be a spineless coward.

Since Ashina Khan did not come, Bao An gave his seat to Mos Ashina.

Mos Ashina didn't stand on ceremony at all and sat down directly.

Bao An stood to the side, bowing and scraping with a forced smile...

Xiao Ce was extremely uncomfortable watching this scene and spat out, "That bastard Bao An! He strikes hard domestically, but acts like a spineless mollusk when it comes to foreign affairs! This bastard has completely disgraced the Great Xiao Kingdom!"