After some not-so-difficult contemplation, Zhou Cang left with Ye Feng's token, ecstatic.
Destination?
Qingzhou!
Since this historical CP had already met, Ye Feng couldn't possibly break them up, could he?
So,
Zhou Cang would still go and carry a sword for the second master. Carrying a spear or something was truly unsuitable.
After seeing Zhou Cang off, the boisterous group finally returned to peace.
However,
Out of the original two hundred elite cavalry, one hundred had left, leaving only one hundred elite cavalry.
"Isn't this a bit lacking in grandeur?"
Back in the carriage, Ye Feng pondered, stroking his chin.
He was going to recruit talents this time. He absolutely couldn't lose in terms of presence.
After all,
Hearing hearsay was nothing compared to seeing for oneself, especially in an era like ancient times where transportation was not convenient.
Perhaps they had heard rumors that there was a rebel leader in Youzhou named Ye Feng.
But who was Ye Feng?
What did he look like?
What had he done?
None of that was important!
Or rather,
As long as they weren't interested enough to attract them, none of these were the most important.
It was like you were walking down the street,
And then what happened?
Someone suddenly rushed up and insisted on telling you who was who and what they did.
Was it meaningful?
No!
But what if you were walking down the street and suddenly saw a tall, leggy girl.
Wouldn't you immediately want to know her measurements and where she lived?
Although you might not act on it, the subconscious thought was still there.
And at this time,
If someone came to introduce you to this girl, wouldn't you be patient enough to listen?
Most likely!
Even if you might not follow the girl, you'd still be interested in learning more.
This was the situation Ye Feng was facing now.
How could he pique the interest of those talented individuals and make them want to learn about him?
He couldn't possibly find a few tall, leggy girls to stand on his carriage and parade around, could he?
That wouldn't be appropriate!
Besides,
Although there were brothels in the late Han Dynasty, what kind of era was this?
With wars raging everywhere, who among the truly talented had the inclination for visiting courtesans?
So,
To attract the attention of those people, a more impressive entrance was needed.
For example... heavy cavalry?!
No!
Or rather, not enough!
Although heavy cavalry was impressive enough, it still needed someone to highlight it.
What was "highlighting it"?
It was like when you saw that girl, someone actively came over to introduce her to you.
And this person couldn't be too obvious.
How would that be obvious?
It was like the girl was wearing a work uniform, and the introducer was wearing a work badge.
When you saw that?
Oh?
They're from the same place!
Isn't this just typical self-promotion?
Get lost!
As a result,
It not only failed to attract the intended attention but also aroused the disgust of passersby.
The loss outweighed the gain!
Unfortunately,
Despite Ye Feng searching for anyone useful, he found no one suitable.
Even if he summoned ten thousand infantry and had them change into civilian clothes to blend in with the crowd, they would likely be recognized at a glance.
The traces were too obvious!
Soldiers and ordinary civilians could basically be distinguished at a glance.
"Ding~!"
Perhaps sensing Ye Feng's distress, the long-absent system sound suddenly rang out.
"Esteemed host, if you wish, you can use three elite troop summon cards to synthesize a designated troop summon card!"
"???"
Hearing the voice that suddenly sounded in his mind, Ye Feng was momentarily stunned.
"Wh-what do you mean?"
"It's very simple!"
Hearing the growing curiosity in Ye Feng's voice, the system quickly explained:
"For example, if you need Xuanjia Iron Cavalry, you only need to use three random elite summon cards to exchange them for one Xuanjia Iron Cavalry summon card!"
"Is that so?"
Ye Feng heard this, frowned, and his face showed no excitement.
Because it seemed like a bad deal no matter how you looked at it!
Exchanging three random elite summon cards for one elite Xuanjia Iron Cavalry?
While it seemed advantageous to be able to designate the troop,
The problem was,
Those three cards used were all elite cavalry summon cards. Even if they couldn't summon Xuanjia Iron Cavalry, they wouldn't be too bad.
Was he crazy?
However,
Just as Ye Feng was about to complain that the system took him for a fool...
"Ding~!"
"Friendly reminder: The summon cards required for synthesis do not distinguish between infantry and cavalry!"
"Synthesize!"
"Synthesize immediately!"
Ye Feng's eyes lit up instantly, and this time, excitement finally appeared on his face.
Exchanging three elite infantry for one Xuanjia Iron Cavalry was a bit of a loss.
But what about three elite infantry?
Exchange them!
He'd exchange as many as he had!
Let alone three infantry for one cavalry, he'd be willing even if it was five for one.
After all,
If they were truly short on infantry, he could recruit tens of thousands of them on the spot.
Although they couldn't compare to the elite status of the system's soldiers, they had numbers!
As for cavalry?
Don't even think about it!
Even if you gave them the same equipment and mounts, they might not know how to use them.
Except for those foreign races who interacted with horses all day, horses were a rare commodity within the Han Dynasty.
New recruits wouldn't be trained for a year or two.
Let alone comparable to elites, they wouldn't even dare to be sent to the battlefield, let alone be effective.
That was money!
The cost of cultivating one heavy cavalry soldier could support how many infantry soldiers?
Thinking of this,
Ye Feng had the urge to exchange all the infantry in his warehouse for heavy cavalry.
"Calm down~!"
"Host, you must remain calm!"
Perhaps sensing Ye Feng's agitated mood, the system quickly added:
"There is a limit to this exchange. The cumulative number within a year cannot exceed ten times!"
"Uh???"
Ye Feng, who had already made up his mind, was suddenly displeased.
"System, you were the one who enticed me to exchange, and now you're the one limiting my exchanges."
"What exactly do you want?"
"I, I..."
The system, feeling wronged by Ye Feng's accusation, replied with a hint of grievance:
"Insufficient stock!"
"???"
Ye Feng, hearing this term for the first time, asked in his mind with some surprise:
"What does 'insufficient stock' mean?"
"What do you think?"
After muttering irritably, the system explained:
"Each troop type is not unlimited. To summon them, there must be a prototype."
"This means that no matter how many there are, you can at most summon that many."
"Although there are some errors due to the existence of the film and television dimension, it's definitely not enough for you to go all out."
"If you were to suddenly create hundreds of thousands of Xuanjia Iron Cavalry, where would I get so many for you?"
"Cough cough..."
Ye Feng, whose thoughts had been exposed by the system, coughed awkwardly.
Indeed.
He had actually considered exchanging all his summon cards for Xuanjia Iron Cavalry just now.
Not for any other reason,
But because they looked cool!
Thinking of hundreds of thousands of cavalry sweeping across the grasslands, Ye Feng's heart swelled inexplicably.
Unfortunately,
His beautiful fantasy was shattered by this damned system before it even began.
Ten times a year?
This basically ruled out using individual summon cards for exchange. Exchanges could only be made using the Ten Thousand Soldier Summon Card.
And the main source of Ten Thousand Soldier Summon Cards was enemy generals.
Like this time, Goguryeo's Yu Ju, Ran Ren, and their eldest prince Gao Nanwu.
These pillars of Goguryeo not only dropped over ten Ten Thousand Soldier Summon Cards for him,
But also dropped five general summon cards and two strategist summon cards.
Among them, there were even three gold cards... two strategists and one general.
This was also one of the reasons Ye Feng was still wandering outside.
With these two strategist cards, he wouldn't have to worry about Jizhou and Qingzhou.
If he could get another one, or entice one back, then Bingzhou wouldn't be a concern either.
As for other places?
Sorry!
For Ye Feng at this stage, he felt that securing these few regions was enough.
The first reason was that these places were not wealthy, so neither the court nor the noble families would be overly concerned even if he took them.
The second was still the old problem.
Lack of personnel!
Ye Feng would rather not unify for the time being and first clear up internal issues.
Like the Liaodong Massacre!
That was a case where the area was nominally taken, but there was no one to govern it.
How to put it?
Those who were originally loyal to the Han court would not serve you, and your own people had not arrived.
If you had to find a concrete example... a certain port returning two years later.
It was roughly similar to that situation, even a little worse.
After all,
Although the government in Youzhou had strong military power, they didn't know it.
They only knew that Ye Feng was a rebel leader.
Even if he had been granted amnesty, he was still a rebel leader.
Want to control us?
Dream on!
If you can exploit, exploit to the fullest. If you can't, find ways to exploit, and then move to another place.
Youzhou belongs to you?
Here you go!
We'll take the silver and treasures we've looted and develop in other prefectures and counties.
What's left behind is only devastation and brutally abused civilians.
This was a situation Ye Feng did not want to see and was unwilling to witness.
If you're going to do it, do it best!
He wanted to bring a good life to the people under his command, not disaster.
Even if you killed all the perpetrators afterward, could you undo the suffering they endured?
No!
Besides leaving indelible trauma, all that remained was distrust towards him, Ye Feng.
Therefore,
To gather enough excellent administrative talents, Ye Feng was going all out this time.
"Exchange~!"
Taking out three random infantry summon cards from the warehouse, Ye Feng gritted his teeth and said:
"System, exchange one Imperial Guard summon card for me!"
"Huh?"
The system was startled for a moment, its tone full of hesitation:
"Imperial Guard, the Imperial Guard is a special unit?"
"So what?"
Ye Feng's heart skipped a beat, but he remained calm, his tone showing slight dissatisfaction:
"Didn't you just say three elite summon cards for one designated troop summon card?"
"Yes, yes..."
"Have I violated the rules?"
"No, no..."
"You inexplicably added a restriction, causing me to be able to summon only ten times a year, and I didn't say anything?"
"No, no..."
"Then what are you waiting for?"
Ye Feng's dissatisfaction reached its peak, and he suppressed his anger to say:
"Exchange it for me already!"
"Yes, yes..."
The system, with a wronged expression, operated the options while silently adding two summon cards.
"Damn it!"
"This is a huge loss this time!"
"Next time, next time I definitely won't let this guy talk. If I say no, it's no!"