The strongest devouring system in the Three Kingdoms

"Hmm." Chen Er hadn't expected that Xi Zhicai would see things even more meticulously than he, someone with a cognitive advantage. He couldn't help but marvel at how extraordinary highly intelligent people truly were. Of course, Chen Er wouldn't show this, but it was a good thing. Actively thinking about problems was essential for technological progress, and independent innovation was one of the most important sources of progress.

"Regarding the waterproofing issue, once we return to Yuyang, we'll have the people at the arsenal take care of it." Actually, Chen Er already had some answers in mind, but he didn't want the arsenal technicians to become dependent on him, and his ideas were also somewhat uncertain. He decided to let Andeli and Xiong work on it themselves.

The autonomous region's musketeers had already gained the upper hand on the battlefield and were not in a hurry.

"Chen Qun, send word to the main camp to relocate the camp. We will set up camp here tonight." Chen Er turned to Chen Qun and said, "Tomorrow morning we will march into the Turkic camp. Hopefully, we haven't run all the way yet."

"Yes, my lord."

Chen Qun never asked for reasons when he did things; as long as it was an order from his lord, that was enough.

In late July 2188, major news broke from the northern grasslands: the Turks were annihilated. This time, it wasn't just a minor defeat like before, but a true annihilation. With the death of Murong Feng and the defeat of the main force of the New Turkic Alliance, the last hope for the Turks' rise vanished. Although there were still many small Turkic tribes on the grasslands, the largest of these tribes numbered only two or three thousand people. In the grasslands, a place where the strong prey on the weak, these small tribes, without the protection of their large tribes, faced only the fate of being swallowed up.

As for the last 200,000 tribesmen of the Turkic confederation? They all became laborers under the rule of the Northern Autonomous Region. All Turkic men, including underage men, were forbidden from marrying, and those who were married were forcibly separated. Turkic women were given by Chen Er to meritorious soldiers of the Autonomous Region's army.

The day after the decisive battle in the rain, Chen Er's army approached the last Turkic camp.

"Our lord has ordered! Anyone who does not surrender will be killed without mercy!" Chen Er's military order spread throughout the entire army and the entire Turkic camp. What does it mean to not surrender? Anyone who still dares to hold a weapon in their hand is considered not to surrender, even if it is just a stick.

"By order of the lord, men and women shall be separated! Those under the age of twelve shall be imprisoned in solitary confinement!"

"By order of our lord, all wizards shall be killed without mercy!"

As military orders were issued, chaos erupted throughout the Turkic camp. The Turks, who had completely lost their will to resist, no longer had the courage to confront the Blood Slaughter Army.

The Blood Slaughter Army sounds like a bloodthirsty army, but everyone knows that the Blood Slaughter Army treats prisoners relatively well, at least they don't kill prisoners indiscriminately. Of course, they don't know that the prisoners are just free laborers in Chen Er's eyes.

With the defeat of the New Turkic Alliance, a whirlwind of violence swept across the grasslands. Upon hearing this news, Chen Er, who had just returned from his campaign in shock, immediately ordered a ban on large-scale battles on the grasslands. He declared that they were determined to build a harmonious grassland and that anyone who started a war without cause should not be blamed for the Blood Slaughter Army's forceful intervention.

Of course, Chen Er didn't go too far. As long as you don't provoke a large-scale battle, that's fine. Chen Er doesn't care about coercion or bribery. As long as too many people don't die, Chen Er is too lazy to care. After all, natural selection and survival of the fittest are the principles followed on the grasslands.

Thus, Chen Er's military operation against the northern grasslands was a complete success. The most restless Turks on the northern grasslands were wiped out in a shock. As for the few remaining Turks, they would be swallowed up and exterminated by various ethnic groups with Chen Er's tacit approval.

The Turks were wiped out, but Chen Er still needed to strengthen his control over the grasslands. To this end, Chen Er planned to build roads and cities on the grasslands to enhance his control.

However, building a city is a long-term project. Baideng Trade City is an exception. The most important thing to build a city on the grassland is to build a road that will not be affected by rain. Only when the road is built and building materials can be transported deep into the grassland can the city building plan become a reality.

"My lord, this is the latest intelligence from the intelligence department." On the fifth day after the war ended, Chen Er hurriedly returned to Yuyang. He really didn't want to stay on the grassland for another day. Those days were really unbearable. However, even though he was away, all the work was still proceeding normally as before. His absence had no impact. That's why Chen Er dared to go home so boldly.

However, back home, things were still as busy as ever, with all sorts of important military and political matters coming up every morning. Just this day, Li Zhong came in with another intelligence report. Seeing Li Zhong come in, Su Xiao and Ying Qiuyu stood up from Chen Er's side, and Su Xiao picked up Lyon and Ying Qiuyu and walked towards the back garden.

Chen Er looked at Li Zhong. Li Zhong must have something very important to tell him that came to disturb him at this time. Otherwise, Li Zhong would never have disturbed Chen Er's leisure time, knowing that Chen Er was relaxing with his wife and children.

"Where did the intelligence come from?" Chen Er asked.

Li Zhong answered softly, "Chang'an."

Li Zhong handed the intelligence report to Chen Er, who immediately opened it and read it: "That old bastard Wang Yun is finally going to make his move."

Chen Er looked up and asked Li Zhong, "Have we arranged our manpower in Chang'an?"

"There are 135 people in total, all of whom are skilled fighters selected from among those wandering knights." Li Zhong returned to Chen Er. With so many skilled fighters, Chen Er seemed to be planning a big operation.

“Yes, send a message to the person in charge over there and tell them that if necessary, I will send cavalry to cross the river to provide support,” Chen Er said.

"Yes, my lord, I understand."

"So what is our good neighbor Yuan Shao doing right now?" Chen Er asked Li Zhong casually. Li Zhong thought for a moment and said to Chen Er, "Yuan Shao abandoned Luoyang two months ago, leaving only two thousand men to guard Hulao Pass."

"What about the common people?"

"Most of them were abandoned by Yuan Shao in Luoyang."

"Hmph." Upon hearing that Yuan Shao had abandoned those people, Chen Er snorted coldly, "Yuan Shao has completely ruined the reputation of his Yuan family."

Immediately afterwards, Chen Er muttered, "But this is good too, because it will reduce the resistance for our army to advance south."

Li Zhong remained silent, as if he hadn't heard what Chen Er said, but the glint in his eyes seemed to reveal something, indicating that things weren't so simple.

"Er Gouzi, you can go down now. Remember, no one else can know about what happened in Chang'an, do you understand?" Chen Er said, staring into Li Zhong's eyes.