Chapter 41: Rest assured, I definitely won't say anything to Li Duo

Inside the military tent at Youmountain Pass, Chen An unfurled a yellowed sheepskin scroll.

The moonlight streamed through the lattice window, falling upon the paper and making the dense columns of inked characters clearly legible.

This was the military strength roster compiled by Zhang Xiaojing.

"One hundred active-duty light infantry, one hundred reserve infantry."

"Fifty active-duty heavy armored infantry, one hundred reserve heavy armored infantry."

"Two hundred active-duty cavalry, one hundred reserve cavalry."

"Twenty active-duty heavy cavalry, thirty reserve heavy cavalry."

"One hundred logistics personnel and supply camp."

"The Tiger Battalion totals eight hundred men."

However, the full authorized strength of the Tiger Battalion was only one hundred and twenty men, and any expenses exceeding this establishment had to be resolved by Chen An himself.

"These eight hundred men look quite imposing, but the ones who can actually take to the battlefield are only a little over two hundred."

Chen An could not help sighing as he pinched the bridge of his nose. "Actually, if you want to be a general, whether you can fight or not is secondary; logistics alone is enough to crush a man to death."

"Next, the military pay and rations: three thousand two hundred liang of gold and silver, and one thousand five hundred and thirty dan of grain and forage."

Although the numbers looked impressive, they could not withstand the consumption of so many mouths and horses.

The heavy armored infantry required three catties of rations per day, and coupled with the warhorses of the heavy cavalry, the forage alone was enough to sustain an ordinary peasant household for half a year.

He calculated silently in his mind: "By this reckoning, at most three months."

Just as Chen An was deep in thought and feeling troubled, Zhang Xiaojing suddenly rushed in holding a bamboo tube.

"Chen An! A message carried by a pigeon, it's from Wu Ergou!"

Unrolling the narrow strip of paper, Chen An's eyes lit up.

Wu Ergou's handwriting was crooked, yet it radiated excitement: "The border trade market has opened, cattle and sheep are everywhere across the grasslands, and grain and forage are piled up like mountains. Come quickly, I have major matters to discuss with you."

"You want to go to the trade market? Then what about here?" Zhang Xiaojing was the first to voice his opposition.

"We are currently in a crucial period of development, having just raided the Feng and Wei families. Many matters have only just begun to unfold, and every detail, big or small, requires your final decision."

Chen An quickly interrupted him. "No, no, no. I precisely believe that now is the best time for me to leave. Think about it: the Feng and Wei families are at least Cheng Qian's lackeys, and Cheng Qian will certainly make things difficult for me just like last time. If you casually cook up an excuse for me—say, investigating enemy intelligence—wouldn't that also be a way of protecting me? As for making decisions, my good brother, when it comes to leading troops, aren't you much better than me? Don't worry, once I leave, everyone in the Tiger Battalion will obey your orders!"

"Are you trying to wash your hands of everything and play the lazy boss again?" Zhang Xiaojing saw right through Chen An's little scheme.

"It's not playing the lazy boss; it's being the helmsman! I'm going out there to secure benefits for everyone!" Chen An said righteously, spouting nonsense with a straight face. "Now our troop strength has tripled. Although it's organized as a single colonel's battalion on paper, we are actually supporting the equivalent of five colonel's battalions. We can't just sit around and eat through our reserves..."

Zhang Xiaojing stopped arguing. What Chen An said made a certain amount of sense, but more importantly, once Chen An made up his mind, not even three or five horses could pull him back.

"The border trade market?" Zhang Xiaojing changed the subject.

"That place is a complex mix of all sorts of people, mostly a gathering place for various grassland tribes and border merchants. I heard that quite a few merchants from the Western Regions have arrived this year as well."

Chen An held the letter paper up to the candlelight to burn it, and the ashes drifted out of the window on the wind. "We happen to be short on grain and forage, so it wouldn't hurt to go take a look."

He turned around and took down the soft armor hanging on the wall. "I leave everything here in your hands. You just need to maintain normal patrols."

"How many men are you planning to take with you?" Zhang Xiaojing asked with concern.

"Just take five light cavalrymen; disguised as a merchant caravan, that will be more than enough," Chen An instructed.

"Then take Wu the Dullard with you. With him around, I'll feel at ease."

...

Three days later, at dawn, an inconspicuous merchant caravan appeared on the official road leading to the grasslands.

Chen An was dressed in a long brocade gown, with a medium-grade jade pendant hanging from his waist, making him look very much like a silk merchant traveling far and wide.

Wu the Dullard wore a short tunic, his honest and simple appearance making him look like a wealthy landlord's foolish son.

The five personal guards were disguised as hired hands, driving two carriages loaded with coarse cloth, and slowly blended into the stream of people heading toward the trade market.

The closer they got to the grasslands, the more distinct the scent in the wind became.

The complex aroma of green grass and earth, mingled with the mellow fragrance of fermented mare's milk, rushed toward them.

On both sides of the road, more and more grassland herdsmen appeared, driving their flocks of sheep past the caravan and bargaining in awkward Han Chinese.

At the entrance of the trade market stood a wooden pole a zhang high, with a wolf-head flag fluttering from its peak.

Just as Chen An reined in his horse, a man dressed in a brocade robe came trotting over eagerly, a slick and flattering smile plastered across his face.

"Boss, you've finally arrived! I've been waiting here for half a day!"

It was none other than Wu Ergou.

The two men seated themselves in a private room in the back courtyard of the inn. Wu Ergou turned and shut the door behind him, the fawning expression on his face instantly shifting to one of solemnity.

He dragged a wooden box out from under the bed, and the moment he opened it, the gleaming light of silver was dazzling to the eyes.

A full thousand liang of fine silver ingots were neatly stacked inside.

"This is..."

"What I've earned during this period!" Wu Ergou patted the box with a proud expression.

"Camp Commander, that method you taught me back then—rendering beef tallow until it's fragrant and then tossing in slices of mutton—has driven the nobles of the grasslands completely wild! Now, throughout the entire trade market, who hasn't heard of my Wu's Hot Pot?"

He lowered his voice. "Moreover, my cover identity is exceptionally well-maintained. Aside from a handful of people, no one knows I'm tied to military affairs."

Chen An picked up a silver ingot and weighed it in his hand, a smile finally touching the corners of his mouth. "It seems I didn't teach you this craft in vain. With this, I can rest easy about our military pay."

"Indeed!" Wu Ergou beamed with radiant joy.

"I've also heard about what happened at Youmountain Pass recently. With the five thousand liang of silver you gave me, I'm preparing to open a branch establishment."

After the two men briefly exchanged some intelligence, Wu Ergou chuckled.

"Since it's still early, why don't I take you for a stroll? This trade market is much livelier than Huyang Pass, and you can find all sorts of rare treasures here."

The stalls on both sides were laden with furs, medicinal herbs, curved sabers, and gemstones.

Western Asian merchants in long robes were displaying glassware inside their tents.

Herdsmen gathered around bonfires to roast meat, the dripping fat hissing and sending up sparks as it hit the flames.

Looking at this scene of bustling prosperity, Chen An suddenly understood why successive imperial courts had valued trade and communication with the grasslands so much.

Only when the economy flows can it be called development.

When they reached the eastern side of the trade market, Wu Ergou suddenly gestured with his chin toward a narrow alley.

"That place is the 'money pit' of the grasslands; it's even livelier at night."

Chen An followed his gaze and saw that the tents lining the alleyway were draped with pink gauze curtains.

Faint sounds of women's laughter drifted out from behind the curtains, and several intoxicated grassland men were wrapping their arms around heavily painted women as they walked inside.

"Unlike the pleasure houses of the Central Plains, the women here are mostly of mixed blood from various tribes, carrying a wild and untamed beauty."

Wu Ergou wore a wicked grin. "Camp Commander, would you like to try it out tonight? Don't worry, I certainly won't tell Li Duo!"