Several days later, Li Mengdie, the King of Mengdie County, looked at the intelligence in his hand with a grim expression and slammed it onto the desk.
He surveyed the room and asked coldly, "Now my good Empress has dispatched an army of ninety thousand to讨伐 me, and yet after more than ten days, you haven't even caught a shadow of these bandits. What have you been doing? Can't even catch a few mere bandits?"
The generals who were scolded lowered their heads, their faces filled with shame.
They had initially thought that the so-called bandits were just some villagers from the mountain villages, lacking food after winter, who had come out to plunder. Who knew they would be so cunning and so difficult to deal with.
"Your Highness, it's not that your subordinates haven't tried hard, but rather that these bandits appear and disappear like shadows, and they don't seem to be the brainless bandits commonly seen before. This general believes that these so-called bandits might be private armies raised by some noble families and powerful officials. Why doesn't Your Highness send someone to investigate and see who is raising them?"
Qu Han suggested with gritted teeth.
"Raised private armies?"
King Li Mengdie was stunned. If these were private armies raised by noble families and powerful officials, it would be manageable. But what if they weren't?
Prime Minister Fan Ju cupped his hands and bowed, "Your Highness, as far as this minister knows, the supplies that the noble families and powerful officials transported to us earlier seem to have been intercepted by these bandits. Their numbers are not just over a hundred as Your Highness imagined, but nearly ten thousand!"
"...Nearly ten thousand cavalry?"
Li Mengdie's mouth twitched. An army of this scale, perhaps even the imperial court didn't have it? Where did they come from?
This was not only a puzzle for Li Mengdie, but also for Fan Ju and the other generals of the King of Liu, and even for those noble families and powerful officials whose supplies had been intercepted by these bandits.
Ten thousand cavalry could support fifty to sixty thousand infantry. This was a force that could not be ignored in any of the surrounding countries. Who could afford to raise such a force?
Could someone really manage private armies of this size?
"Are you sure this nearly ten thousand cavalry is privately raised?"
Li Mengdie asked with great doubt.
Fan Ju chuckled dryly, "Well, this minister is not sure, but this is the theory that came from those noble families and powerful officials. This minister doesn't know on what basis they deduced this."
"Then, those noble families and powerful officials have clashed with these bandits many times, and they haven't found out any information? Are they truly willing to watch their supplies be intercepted for no reason?"
Li Mengdie asked with great interest.
Although those noble families and powerful officials supported her uprising, Li Mengdie didn't have a good impression of them. It was just a matter of mutual benefit.
"They come and go without a trace. Those noble families and powerful officials are strong in their connections, but not in the military. Even we, united as one, cannot deal with them, let alone them being scattered like sand."
Fan Ju sneered, speaking ill of the noble families and powerful officials. Then, his expression turned serious, "Of course, those fellows are not entirely without gain. It is said that they once joined forces with the martial arts sects of Shizhou to set an ambush for this cavalry, causing them to lose nearly two thousand men."
"However, after that, the bandits never fell for the trap again, and the local martial arts sects of Shizhou were subsequently targeted by the Six Doors of the imperial court, bringing them great misfortune."
"Even after an ambush, they only lost less than two thousand cavalry? What a bunch of trash!"
Li Mengdie's face darkened, filled with disdain.
"However, after they jointly attacked the bandits, they were investigated by the Six Doors. Could it be that these bandits have some connection with someone in the imperial court?"
Li Mengdie's delicate eyebrows furrowed as she pondered the relationship.
"Replying to Your Highness, this subordinate has indeed heard some news, though I don't know if it's true."
"Speak freely."
Fan Ju organized his thoughts and said with a strange expression, "This minister heard that the reason the martial arts sects of Shizhou were targeted by the Six Doors was because this cavalry is very likely raised by the current Prime Minister, Chu Chen. There are also rumors that Chu Chen has far more private armies than just these ten thousand cavalry, and in some deep mountains and old forests, he also raises bandits in groups of hundreds or thousands."
"..."
King Li Mengdie fell silent, as did the other ministers of the King of Liu.
It wasn't that they didn't want to believe it, but it was too preposterous. The Prime Minister had power, but Prime Minister Chu Chen had only been in office for less than a year. Where did he get such substantial capital to support so many private armies? Ten thousand cavalry! That was a cavalry unit that would take at least two to three years to train and barely form an army, not just simple infantry.
Setting aside the difficulty and time of training, the cost of food and supplies alone seemed to be something that a Prime Minister who had only been in office for a year couldn't afford, right?
Where did the military pay come from? From the monthly salary of a hundred taels? Or from corruption?
And where did they obtain so many weapons and armor in large quantities?
All of these were practical issues that needed serious consideration. The sudden appearance of people was actually the simplest problem, as many noble families and powerful officials had a tradition of concealing people.
"Fan Ju, are you sure you dare to speak nonsense in front of this king without verifying the truth?"
King Li Mengdie stared at him with a very displeased expression and asked sternly.
"Your Highness, how would I dare? The rumors are indeed circulating like this. This minister is merely recounting what he has heard. This minister himself does not believe it. But if we don't believe this explanation, then what other explanation is there for where this cavalry came from?"
Fan Ju cried out in injustice and quickly knelt on the ground to defend himself.
"Lord Fan, could it be that this cavalry is from the northern Yan and Zhao kingdoms, or even further north, from the Northern Barbarians?"
Suddenly, a general asked curiously.
"That is absolutely impossible! Because this minister also considered this possibility and sent people to investigate the situation in the Yan and Zhao kingdoms. Although both countries have a large proportion of cavalry, once a large cavalry army invades, our imperial border troops are not useless. A few hundred or a thousand might be possible, but a force of ten thousand could never sneak into the Yunyue Kingdom without a sound, even if sent in batches, it is absolutely impossible!"
"The food and fodder for people and horses is not a small sum!"
Fan Ju retorted loudly with absolute certainty.
Hearing him say this, everyone became even more puzzled. It wasn't this, and it wasn't that, so where did this nearly ten thousand strong bandit cavalry come from? It was truly a headache.
"Forget it. Since we can't find out their origin, let's stop investigating. We'll just keep an eye out from now on. The urgent matter now is to discuss how to deal with this bandit force. With their interference nearby, the cost of transporting grain and fodder has greatly increased. If this continues, my already tight purse will be completely emptied."
King Li Mengdie said wearily, waving her hand, and looked at her ministers with anticipation, hoping they could provide a feasible solution.
But Fan Ju and the others were very troubled, their expressions shifting between gloom and brightness.
They were not dealing with this bandit force for the first time. They had tried all the methods they could think of before, but none of them worked. Their schemes were not falling for it, and they only honestly robbed the transport teams. This was truly infuriating.