Chapter 242: Wanted List! Hero List! The Wuxi Duke Pursues the Bandits?
Every time the Wuxi Duke led his troops, the enemy managed to escape the encirclement perfectly, indicating that there must be a traitor leaking information to them! The Wuxi Duke was very angry because there was nothing worse in the world than betrayal, especially for someone as stubborn and self-willed as he was!
Therefore, he began to reorganize his army, attempting to root out the traitors. With the attitude of rather killing a few innocent than letting a single guilty escape, the Wuxi Duke captured and executed hundreds of people as a warning to others. However, even after doing this, the Western Army’s subsequent operations failed, and the enemy still managed to evade capture.
The Wuxi Duke was infuriated and killed another group of people.
“This won’t work!” he exclaimed. He had no idea how many traitors had infiltrated his army, and no matter how many he killed, they seemed to be never-ending.
In the end, before even annihilating the enemy, his own army fell into disarray.
So, he adopted a new approach. He sent his trusted subordinates to lead separate armies, temporarily assigning missions, and making them act independently. At the same time, each group within the army and every individual kept a close eye on one another and reported any suspicious circumstances immediately.
With this, he hoped to reduce the chances of information leaking.
Yet, even after several consecutive operations, they still failed, and there was no trace of the enemy.
The Wuxi Duke couldn’t understand. Despite surrounding them layer by layer, with soldiers sealing off any possible escape routes, how were they managing to escape every time? Were they gods flying away from the heavens?
In a hidden tunnel, a large group of people was hiding.
Princess Ziyue secretly felt relieved, “Luckily, the military strategist (Lin Beifan) helped us come up with the strategy of tunnel warfare! Otherwise, we would have long been besieged by the Wuxi Duke’s forces!”
Everyone admired, “Indeed, the military strategist is brilliant, and victory is decided before the battle!”
Thanks to the tunnel warfare strategy, they had evaded the Wuxi Duke’s repeated encirclements numerous times, ensuring their survival.
Following that, the members of the Slanted Moon group continued guerrilla warfare against the Wuxi Duke. They struck and vanished, leading the Wuxi Duke in circles and continuously inflicting casualties.
The news of this situation quickly spread throughout the world.
Everyone found it amusing.
“The Wuxi Duke has encountered a formidable opponent!”
“His so-called million-strong army is being played around by an unknown force!”
“I heard they’ve already lost tens of thousands of men, but they have no idea who their enemy is!”
“Suddenly, they discovered this mysterious force uses sneaky tactics, avoiding the main force and targeting smaller groups. Once they’re done, they slip away, not engaging in direct confrontation!”
“Though it’s sneaky, it’s effective. The Wuxi Duke is getting a headache! Haha!”
“Couldn’t agree more!”
…
Everyone was amused and entertained by the situation. Some gambling houses even opened bets on who would win or lose in this peculiar rivalry.
In the Northern Hebei Region, at the residence of the Northern Hebei Prince, upon hearing the news, he laughed heartily, “Ah, my royal brother, you have brought this upon yourself! Those who stray from the right path will naturally face adversaries!”
This person feared comparisons the most; although I may be miserable, as long as you are more miserable than me, I am content!
“Bring out my treasured wine; I want to get drunk and forget all this, haha!”
In the Southern Jiang Region, at the residence of the Southern Jiang Prince, upon learning the news, he also felt delighted, “My poor royal brother, who have you offended? Why are you constantly targeted by others? Have you been involved in too many wicked deeds? Haha!”
Recently, the Southern Jiang Region suffered from food shortage and economic collapse, making his mood not very beautiful. But compared to the Wuxi Duke, he found that these troubles were nothing. Although he lacked food, at least his people were still alive, and where there were people, there was hope. However, the Wuxi Duke had neither enough food nor sufficient troops, and the battle hadn’t even started yet, and he was already done for!
He couldn’t help but sympathize with the Wuxi Duke. It seemed like he had encountered a string of bad luck. Last year, he lost over 300,000 soldiers, and at the beginning of this year, he began losing troops again, to the point that he couldn’t even gather enough soldiers. His so-called million-strong army had become a laughingstock.
“Is my royal brother feeling very sad right now? As his elder brother, I cannot ignore his feelings!”
The Southern Jiang Prince called out, “Someone come!”
Two people walked in from outside, bowing respectfully, “Your Highness, what are your orders?”
The Southern Jiang Prince said with a mournful expression, “Send my paper to the Wuxi Duke! Tell him that even if not a single soldier is left at the end, I will send my paper to mourn for him!”
“Yes, Your Highness!”
At the Great Wu Court.
The Empress was radiant and smiled, “Everyone should have heard about the situation in the Wuxi Region, right? A mysterious force has risen there, consistently targeting the troops of the Wuxi Duke! My dear ministers, what are your thoughts?”
The Minister of War, Li Kaiguang, stood up and spoke loudly, “Your Majesty, I have learned that this mysterious force appears and disappears, moves swiftly, and within half a month, has already eliminated tens of thousands of Wuxi Army, causing significant trouble to the Wuxi Duke! This situation is very advantageous for our court! However, the origins of this mysterious force are unknown, so we must remain cautious!”
“Good!” The Empress nodded in satisfaction.
Her gaze shifted towards Lin Beifan among the officials, her eyes somewhat strange. She smiled and asked, “Minister Lin, what are your thoughts on this matter?”
“Your Majesty, I have been busy with spring farming recently and do not know much about this matter. Therefore, I have no thoughts on it. Please forgive me, Your Majesty!” Lin Beifan replied seriously.
The Empress arched an eyebrow, finding it ridiculous that this behind-the-scenes mastermind claimed not to know about the matter.
“Do you think I don’t know you’ve been in touch with Princess Ziyue? You’re really good at pretending!”
“My minister, go ahead and speak your mind. If you say something wrong, you will be pardoned!”
Lin Beifan said, “I think we should let them fight it out! As the old saying goes, when the snipe and the clam fight, the fisherman profits. We just need to guard the Phoenix Mountain Range and prevent them from crossing over.”
“Your words are in line with my intention!” The empress nodded in satisfaction.
In the Wuxi Region.
The Wuxi Duke was extremely angry and troubled. As a powerful leader with an army of a million soldiers, he was being laughed at by everyone! If he didn’t deal with these rats that were running amok everywhere, and regain his dignity, he might really die from anger!
“Military advisor, do you have any good strategies?” the Wuxi Duke asked.
Feng Chu, the wise advisor, cupped his hands and said, “Your Highness, this group of rats focuses on attacking our small units and avoids our main forces, which shows that their strength is not strong! Therefore, the best plan for now is to recall all the dispersed troops; they won’t find opportunities to strike!”
“You’re right! But I want to eliminate this lawless group of rats even more! Otherwise, my grudge will be hard to extinguish!” the Wuxi Duke replied.
Feng Chu continued, “Your Highness, after withdrawing the troops, we can send out skilled experts to deal with them! These experts have powerful martial arts and move swiftly, which will make it much easier to deal with them!”
“But the Wuxi Region is too vast, and we have too few experts. How can we manage that?” The Wuxi Duke frowned.
“There may be few experts, but we can hire people!” Feng Chu smiled and said, “Your Highness, half a year ago, there was a problem with horse bandits in the Northern Hebei Region. The bandits were rampant, causing havoc everywhere, and the people were suffering. Do you know how the court resolved that issue?”
“I heard that they released a reward list and a hero list…” the Wuxi Duke said.
“Exactly, Your Highness!”
Feng Chu smiled and continued, “Back then, when the Northern Hebei Region had a problem with horse bandits, the court released a reward list, offering a reward of ten taels of silver for each bandit to lure them with money. Later, they also released a hero list to promote fame. Those who became great heroes for exterminating the bandits could also request a not too unreasonable condition promised by the court!”
“It was because of these three conditions that the court resolved the issue of the horse bandits in the Northern Hebei Region at a very low cost! One must say, the person who proposed this plan is truly brilliant!” Feng Chu was full of admiration.
“I see! But what does this have to do with the current situation?” the Wuxi Duke asked, still puzzled.
“Your Highness, this group of rats running amok everywhere is equivalent to the horse bandits for us, aren’t they? Let’s do the same and issue a reward list. We’ll offer a reward of ten taels of silver for each of these Western bandits! And then release a hero list to spread the word! Those who become heroes for exterminating the bandits will have the chance to propose a not too unreasonable condition to Your Highness! This way, we can call on heroes from all over the world to deal with these bandits!” Feng Chu explained.
The Wuxi Duke excitedly slammed the table, “Brilliant! It’s truly brilliant! Military advisor, do it as you said! I entrust this matter to you, don’t disappoint me!”
“I will obey!” Feng Chu replied promptly.
After Feng Chu left, he immediately set about the task and issued the rewards to the world. To solve the issue of the Wuxi Region’s bandits, the Wuxi Duke offered a generous reward of ten taels of silver for each bandit’s head. At the same time, a hero list was announced to be spread throughout the world. The top ten bandit killers would be recognized as heroes, and their names would be known far and wide.
Once this list was released, everyone in the world was stunned.
“A reward list? A hero list? Isn’t this the court’s method to exterminate bandits?”
“Yes! I participated in the bandit extermination half a year ago, and it left a deep impression on me!”
“I didn’t expect the Wuxi Duke to use the same tactic; it seems he was driven to desperation by those bandits! Haha!”
“It seems like a good opportunity to try it out!”
…
After seeing this, many people were tempted. The grand event of bandit extermination half a year ago was still vivid in their memories. Many unknown individuals became heroes in the fight against the bandits, and their names echoed throughout the land. Especially the renowned bandit extermination hero – Big Bull, who even committed the crime of treason but was pardoned, has now been recruited by the court, enjoying the benefits of being in the imperial service and living a comfortable life.
Now, another rare opportunity presented itself before them! As a result, many people rushed towards the Wuxi Region.
In the palace, the Wuxi Duke was delighted, “Advisor, you are truly remarkable! To so easily enlist the heroes of the world to serve me, after this is accomplished, I will remember your great contribution! Hahaha!”
“Thank you, Your Highness!” Feng Chu, with a pleased expression, bowed and smiled.
At the same time, Princess Ziyue also received this news and felt extremely anxious. The Wuxi Duke’s plan was too ruthless, involving heroes from all over the world to deal with her! In this way, the troops she worked so hard to cultivate might suffer heavy losses! What should she do?
At this moment, a figure suddenly came to her mind.
“The situation is critical; I will go consult the military advisor! Until I return, do not act rashly!”
“Yes, Your Highness!” Everyone responded.
