Are you crazy? Trying to trick him into military service? He's the number one dragon on the fro

"My White Wolf Camp headquarters had 1,000 cavalry and 2,000 infantry participating in the battle. 315 cavalry and 609 soldiers died in battle, 1,425 Hu soldiers were killed in battle, and 117 were captured."

"The garrison led by Colonel Luo consisted of 2,000 infantrymen. Of them, 751 were killed in action, 947 were killed, and 89 were captured."

"General Long led 500 cavalry and 1,500 infantry in the battle, suffering a total of 523 dead, 958 killed, and 378 captured..."

With a heavy heart, Zhou Daxing reported the victory.

On the Zhou side, 9,000 troops were deployed, and 2,495 were killed in action.

Nearly a third of the soldiers were killed, which sounds like a lot, but it was a very good result for a major battle, especially when facing the Hu army.

Moreover, this time they beheaded Gulefeng and Gumi, captured Jiang Ke alive, and killed a total of 3,901 people and captured 1,436 people, directly defeating most of the Hu people.

More than three thousand Hu soldiers also fled.

They fled in different directions, and with the sudden arrival of heavy snow, many Hu soldiers headed east or west, or even directly towards border defense camps and outposts in various parts of the border region.

Before the war even began, Lu Xiao had already sent messages to his spies in various locations.

Therefore, some of these fleeing Hu soldiers will likely be killed or captured by them.

In the end, it is likely that only a small number of people will be able to escape back to Beihu.

Such a result is indeed something for everyone to be happy about.

After Zhou Daxing finished his report, he said with a smile:

"My lord, now that winter has arrived and the Hu people are returning north one after another, we can finally relax for a while and enjoy the fruits of our victory."

Having served on the frontier for many years, he had long understood the temperament of the Hu people.

Moreover, although the current Hu King Miluohan always makes a lot of noise when he sends troops south, vowing to crush the Great Zhou, he never personally leads the troops.

Those southward-bound Hu (non-Han) armies wouldn't actually engage in a life-or-death struggle with the surrounding towns and villages.

A national war cannot be easily started!

Neither Mirohan nor Emperor Dehong would easily engage in a mutually destructive battle, lest they relinquish their kingdom to the Western Rong, Ouyue, or Southern Man forces.

Hearing this, Lu Xiao's tense mind still did not relax:

"Don't let your guard down!"

"Although we won a great victory this time, Gulefeng brought less than 10,000 troops, while the Northern Hu still have more than 100,000 cavalry."

"The Northern Hu's ambition to destroy my Great Zhou has never subsided. Before I trample the Northern Hu's royal court, I vow to terrify them, to the point that they will flee in panic at the mere mention of my name, or even submit to me!"

"Uncle Daxing, give the brothers a day off, make sure the compensation for the fallen soldiers is done properly, and then immediately reinforce the camp's defenses."

"Didn't they also capture over a thousand Hu people?"

Seeing Zhou Daxing's expression gradually become serious, he nodded and said:

"As long as they never die, use them to the fullest, let the barbarians build us an impregnable wall of whispers against the barbarians!"

"clear!"

Zhou Daxing nodded emphatically, pondered for a moment, and then asked curiously:

"Is Your Excellency worried that the Hu people will lead a large army to attack again after spring?"

"It's not impossible."

Lu Xiao said that the Hu people are extremely vengeful, as can be seen from the several incursions by the Heishachuo and Gule tribes.

The heavy snow may indeed stop the Hu people from moving south, but as soon as spring comes, they will surely come back again.

At that time, the White Wolf Camp will face an even more terrifying crisis!

Just then, Luo Yang walked in and overheard their conversation.

After a moment of silence, he solemnly suggested:

"In that case, Brother Xiao should expand the army as soon as possible, striving to ensure that the White Wolf camp has the strength to withstand an attack of ten thousand barbarian soldiers before spring arrives!"

"That's exactly what I think, but we can't keep playing defensively forever, so I plan to directly form a cavalry battalion of three thousand men!"

For a moment, Luo Yang and Zhou Daxing were shocked, with the former exclaiming in astonishment:

"Brother Xiao, three thousand cavalry are not comparable to three thousand infantry!"

"To ensure a cavalry unit has sufficient combat effectiveness, numbers alone are not enough. At least one rider needs two horses, or even three, so that both men and horses can maintain their optimal condition during prolonged battles!"

"The men are alright, as long as their food is a little better than that of the infantry, but the horses need two or three times the rations of the soldiers!"

He certainly didn't approve of Lu Xiao taking such a big step right away:

"A cavalry unit of three thousand men is enough to arm more than ten thousand infantrymen to the teeth!"

"The White Wolf camp simply can't afford such enormous expenses!"

Upon hearing this, Lu Xiao nodded in agreement, but he also had his own reasons:

"Brother Luo, I am aware of the differences here, but I have already come up with a solution."

He pulled the two of them down to sit and said earnestly:

"Last time, when we annihilated the three-party coalition, the court only gave us honorary titles and other honors. We still had to solve all the expenses, such as expanding the army, ourselves. This time, His Majesty and the Prime Minister should give us substantial rewards directly."

"With the imperial court backing me up, and my plan to wage war against the surrounding nomadic tribes after spring, there shouldn't be any major problems!"

Lu Xiao smiled slightly:

"Furthermore, I don't intend to recruit all three thousand cavalry at once, but rather to proceed cautiously step by step during the period until next spring!"

He stated that with the support of the Fan family and Wang Qingqing, there are no problems with the two tanks.

The only thing to consider is manpower.

Hearing these words, Luo Yang breathed a slight sigh of relief:

"With the support of His Majesty and the Prime Minister, these are not problems."

Over the next period of time, Lu Xiao discussed the distribution of the spoils with the two of them.

The White Wolf camp will definitely take the lion's share, after all, they sent the most troops and put in the most effort.

The garrison of Changyang, the county troops, and the soldiers under Dong Tiancheng and Zhang Man should not be neglected.

Although Long Gui said he didn't want the spoils this time, Lu Xiao couldn't really refuse to give them to him!

……

"This heavy snowfall this year will surely bring our tribe an even better harvest next year!"

As usual, Mirohan summoned his brother and several key figures to drink and make merry in the royal tent.

Seeing a maid bring in some cold wind and snowflakes, he sighed and laughed:

There's an old saying among the Zhou people: "A timely snowfall promises a bumper harvest."

"Next year, their harvest will be even better because of this heavy snow, so we can bring back more hay and grain then."

Upon hearing this, his younger brother, Miro Wuyuan, laughed and said:

"Brother Wang, why not just destroy the Great Zhou and let my Northern Hu rule the world?"

"Our tribe possesses over 100,000 iron cavalry. A single charge can break through the Zhou people's defenses, and we can slaughter them like cattle and sheep. Wouldn't that be more practical than spending huge amounts of resources to march south every year?"

Mirohan laughed, and was about to speak when Xiluoluo burst in, looking disheveled:

"Your Majesty, Gulefeng and Gumi are dead! The Gule tribe has suffered a crushing defeat!"