Start with a red name

Chapter 394

"...We are currently only barely in control of the situation in the two states."

There's still a lot of meticulous work to be done before we can truly settle in.

“Those sand tribes are only intimidated by our force; they have no loyalty whatsoever.”

Because of Dong Guan's continuous exploitation of resources in the past few days, the strength of these groups has dropped significantly.

Most of their troops have now joined our ranks.

Even so, these settlements still retain some military force.

In each specific location, the troop strength and military power are not too great, but if the scope is expanded to the Xuanyou and You provinces, the number of these miscellaneous troops would be at least over 100,000.

"Fortunately, we also have over 100,000 newly recruited soldiers in our army, all of whom come from these settlements."

As long as we make good use of this bond, the relationship between the two sides won't be too bad; we can manage to maintain a stable situation.

"On this basis, we will use more meticulous efforts and more time to gradually digest these settlements."

This is the prudent approach... In haste, don't expect us to have the same prestige as Dong Guan.

"According to repeated calculations by the General Staff, because the two prefectures are vast, in order to maintain such a stable situation, at least 150,000 troops need to be dispatched to various places to guard them."

In some key locations, a Xuanyou cavalry unit should also be stationed.

Furthermore, the Xuanyou Cavalry must be used to keep some key post roads unobstructed. These are the vital arteries connecting the two states and are indispensable!

However, Dong Guan withdrew all of these troops in order to target us.

Now that the two states are in our hands, these arrangements must be restored; there's no way to skip them!

"Fortunately, you, General, have captured the hearts of those tribesmen in the name of 'God's Son,' so we don't have to devote too much energy to controlling them at this time... However, it is still necessary to arrange some troops and keep the communication channels open."

"...After a while, according to the General Staff's calculations, we need to deploy about 200,000 troops to ensure actual control over the two states."

After swallowing the two states, the primary task for the Black Wind Army leadership was to completely digest these territories and gain actual control.

At this moment, Liu Mu was explaining the upcoming strategic adjustments to Geng Xuan.

Hearing that so many troops needed to be deployed to gain actual control of the two prefectures, Geng Xuan was somewhat surprised.

"...If we follow your plan, we'll only have less than 150,000 troops that we can flexibly deploy?"

Liu Mu nodded slightly, pondering as he replied:
"As we gradually eliminate the unfamiliarity and barriers between ourselves and the local people, we can gradually withdraw some of the troops that have been deployed to various places."

If we can truly win over the local people, then we will only need tens of thousands of troops to achieve actual control over various regions.

Moreover, we can continuously draw troops from the local areas... However, this is a gradual process and cannot be accomplished in a short time.

Geng Xuan nodded slightly.

Seeing this, Song Mingzhu, who was standing nearby, suddenly spoke up to retort:

"Not really."

Geng Xuan turned to look at him, his eyes questioning.

Song Mingzhu also looked at him, and instead of answering, asked:
"Commander, do you wish to have more troops at your disposal?"

Geng Xuan nodded.

From a certain perspective, the "Black Wind Army" now has nearly 350,000 troops, almost all of which are the assets that Dong Guan has painstakingly accumulated over the past few decades.

As the army swept through the land, it also seized a large amount of grain and supplies along the way.

These were originally "supplies" that Dong Guan had prepared for his southward journey.

Although the two months of turmoil had severely depleted their resources, the total amount was still considerable. Now that he had both troops and provisions, he wanted to maximize their value.

If 200,000 troops are deployed to various locations to absorb the resources of the two states, these supplies will be consumed rapidly.

In Geng Xuan's mind, such consumption was really not cost-effective.

Song Mingzhu clearly understood his thoughts and offered a suggestion:
"A large part of the reason we are sending so many troops to the local areas is to deter them, especially the scattered miscellaneous troops that number over 100,000."

...If we gather and incorporate these miscellaneous soldiers, we will not only gain hundreds of thousands of additional troops, but also reduce the number of troops deployed for stability maintenance.

Adding to the prisoners brought back from various places during this period... if handled properly, I estimate that the number of troops we can flexibly deploy will be even greater than our current total force.”

Listening to Song Mingzhu's story, Geng Xuan nodded gently.

Upon seeing this, Liu Mu subconsciously said:
"It might not be that easy. From what I understand, because of Dong Guan's continued draining of resources, each settlement is taking the remaining troops in their hands very seriously."

Because they all knew that if they lost this last force, they would have no power to protect themselves.

Since they were doomed either way, they would naturally fight to the death.

...Moreover, there are hundreds of thousands of new recruits in our army who come from these places. This is a bond and a ties.

If we go too far, we might easily hurt their feelings.

Seeing Liu Mu speaking eloquently, Song Mingzhu glanced at him and said:

“Your consideration is not wrong, but it is only suitable for ordinary armies and not for our ‘Black Wind Army’.”

Upon hearing this, Liu Mu narrowed his eyes slightly, ready to retort with a few words.

Geng Xuan immediately interrupted, asking Song Mingzhu what he was thinking.

He could only shake his head at the sight before him.

The "Black Wind Army" is not a normal organization.

This is a deformed, monstrous thing that was forcibly created.

Before swallowing up the two states, things were alright; there was a sufficiently large and attractive target luring us in.

This forced this "abnormal organization" to at least have a common ideal and move towards a common goal together.

But now, with the achievement of the "ultimate goal," the "abnormal organization" has also stopped.

All sorts of hidden dangers immediately surfaced.

The conflict between Liu Mu and Song Mingzhu is just the tip of the iceberg.

The undercurrents between Liu Mu and Yu Hou.

More precisely, it was a group of people who considered themselves "veteran heroes," led by Liu Mu, and a group of newcomers centered around Yu Hou, who disliked each other.

Among the "veteran heroes," there are those who are divided by "Wild Wolf Gorge," by the sand bandits, by those Yellow Reed Islands, and by naval battles...

It can be divided almost infinitely, if one so desires.

In addition, there is an increasingly clear distinction between "Canglang believers" and "non-Canglang believers," and an increasingly undisguised division of "you" and "me."

Ultimately, the "Black Wind Army" got too full.

The "body" has expanded like a cancer cell, encompassing the two states of Xuanyou, covering tens of thousands of miles, with hundreds of thousands of soldiers and tens of millions of people.

However, the corresponding management system, or "brain," has not kept up at all.

It looks like a "deformed organism" that only grows a body but not a brain.

(End of this chapter)