Chapter 47: A Way to Make Money

"The Imperial Edict has arrived!"

Chu Feng and Zhu Kang immediately went forward to receive it.

They were already aware of the situation that had occurred in the Capital some time ago.

They had originally assumed that the Emperor would be born from among the five princes.

Who would have thought that the throne would ultimately fall to the Sixth Princess, a woman.

Today, the two had even been exchanging opinions on the Sixth Princess succeeding to the throne.

They did not expect the Imperial Edict to arrive the very next moment.

"By the grace of Heaven, the Emperor decrees!"

"Border Colonel Chu Feng has fought with bravery and has repeatedly rendered meritorious service!"

"Ahem!"

"Specially promoted Chu Feng to Polu General, Sixth-Rank Lieutenant!"

"Stationed in Anwu County to defend against the barbarians!"

"Respect this!"

"This subject accepts the decree!"

Chu Feng received this Imperial Edict feeling somewhat confused.

How did he suddenly get promoted to a Sixth-Rank Lieutenant?

Although Zhao Ping had mentioned it to him, if it were like this, he should have been stationed at Dingning Pass to receive the appointment.

But why was he being arranged to be stationed in Anwu County?

Chu Feng let his thoughts wander, and finally, he thought of Zhu Kang.

After all, besides this kid, no one else had this kind of capability.

"Eunuch, you have had a hard journey; this humble general is deeply grateful and has specially prepared a small gift, hoping you will kindly accept it!"

Chu Feng ordered someone to bring over a chest.

The eunuch was very satisfied after seeing the contents inside.

Although this Chu Feng was very young, he was very good at handling affairs.

"General Chu, I have already accepted your kind intentions; there are urgent matters at the border, so I shall not disturb you further!"

"Safe travels, Eunuch!"

After seeing off the envoy, Chu Feng turned his head to look at Zhu Kang.

"Congratulations to Brother Chu on your promotion to Lieutenant!"

"Old Zhu, was this your doing?"

The two had become quite familiar during this period, so naturally, their relationship had become much closer.

"Hehe, indeed!"

Zhu Kang did not hide or cover anything up, directly indicating that these were all his own actions.

"You doing this makes it very difficult for me!"

Chu Feng pulled a long face, though in his heart he was already blooming with joy, "How am I supposed to explain this to the Dingyuan General!"

"Hehe, Brother Chu, are you truly content to spend the rest of your life as an ordinary general within Dingning Pass?"

"Oh?"

Chu Feng raised an eyebrow, as if he had grasped something, "Then what is Brother Zhu's meaning?"

"Although Great Wei is now stable, the hidden crises cannot be underestimated."

"The Crown Prince of Great Wei has led his remnants to flee and his whereabouts are unknown; the Empress ascending the throne will surely leave many ministers dissatisfied, and they will certainly impeach her constantly."

"Outside, the Xiongnu, Turkic, and other alien tribes harass us frequently, and Pingjing Fortress faces an even greater threat from the Demon Race."

"Brother Chu, do you not want to do something?"

After listening to what Zhu Kang had to say.

Chu Feng could not help but look at the young man before him with newfound respect.

Well now!

You look quite honest, but I never expected your ambition to be so great.

"Now that you put it that way, I know what I should do."

Chu Feng smiled slightly, "I am now a Lieutenant and have the authority to form my own army; I hope Master Zhu will help me recruit soldiers, four thousand in number!"

"That is easy!"

Zhu Kang agreed without even thinking.

This matter was not difficult for him.

It was just that what Chu Feng said next almost scared Zhu Kang to death.

"Additionally, I want to train a unit of Heavy Cavalry, so I need Master Zhu's full support!"

"Damn it..."

Zhu Kang, a scholar, cursed on the spot.

Training Heavy Cavalry, your appetite is not small at all, kid!

"Cough, cough, cough..."

"Old Chu, you aren't joking, are you?"

Zhu Kang said with a nervous expression, "Do you know how many resources it takes to train Heavy Cavalry? Can we even afford to raise them?"

As far as he knew.

Even an important pass like Dingning Pass only had light armored cavalry.

There is basically no Heavy Armor.

Other places do have such troops, but there are not many, as it is too expensive after all.

"Whether it can be afforded is another matter, I am just asking if you, Lord Zhu, are willing to help or not!"

"But I am also willing but unable!"

"Just give whatever you have, I will find a way for the rest!"

Chu Feng put his arm around Zhu Kang's shoulder and reached out a hand toward him.

He wanted him to provide some military funds.

"I only have eight thousand taels of silver here, take it; consider it my support for you!"

Zhu Kang was ultimately willing to help Chu Feng out.

But this was all the money he could come up with.

Heavy Cavalry is truly a gold-devouring beast.

"Many thanks!"

Chu Feng cupped his hands to express his gratitude to Zhu Kang.

Afterward, Zhu Kang had someone send the money to Chu Feng, and he himself went to help Chu Feng recruit soldiers.

From now on, the safety of Anwu County would depend entirely on Chu Feng, so Zhu Kang was also doing his utmost to help Chu Feng.

A few days later.

Zhu Kang had already finished recruiting four thousand soldiers for Chu Feng.

The people of Anwu County learned that it was Chu Feng who was recruiting soldiers.

Everyone signed up enthusiastically.

This was the great hero who saved their Anwu County, and everyone hoped to become a member under his command.

On the day of recruitment, more than ten thousand people even showed up.

Some people, because they were not selected, could only kneel at the camp entrance, wailing and crying, hoping Chu Feng would accept them.

It left Chu Feng speechless for a while.

After the soldiers were recruited, the next step was the training of these ordinary people.

The Qi Refining Technique and the Eighteen Wind-Chasing Sabers, these military skills, also began to be popularized among everyone.

It was unknown when the Turkic and Xiongnu would invade.

Therefore, they had to seize the time to transform these people into soldiers capable of fighting.

In terms of daily life.

Chu Feng also brought out the best things to feed his soldiers.

He wanted to cultivate all these soldiers into elites.

Of course, to cultivate these soldiers, the daily expenditure was also an astronomical figure.

The money Zhu Kang gave was spent very quickly, and the remaining money was not enough for three days of expenses.

"Damn it!"

"Raising soldiers is really expensive!"

Chu Feng looked at the sky and said helplessly.

It seemed that distilled liquor also had to be put on the agenda.

Otherwise.

It would be impossible to maintain such large expenses at present.

"General!"

Chu Feng heard someone calling him, turned his head, and saw that it was Niu Yuan running toward him quickly.

"What is it? Why are you in such a panic!"

"General, it's bad, Brother Zhang He, he..."

"What happened to Zhang He?"

Chu Feng instantly furrowed his brows.

Zhang He was a soldier under the same command as him, and also his guide.

He had even played an important role in treasure hunting and exploration many times.

"Brother Zhang returned from Dingning Pass with serious injuries and is still in a coma!"

"Take me there to see him immediately!"

"Yes!"

The two immediately headed straight to the place where Zhang He was.

After arriving at the scene.

The military doctor had already bandaged Zhang He and administered the Healing Medicine.

"How is Zhang He's condition?"

"General, Centurion Zhang's injuries are very serious, but he has already taken the Healing Medicine, so there is no major problem now."

"That's good!"

Chu Feng breathed a sigh of relief.

Fortunately, Zhang He was still alive.

Otherwise, he would have lost an important old friend.

It was also at this moment that Zhang He slowly woke up from his coma.

"Gen... General!"

Zhang He immediately tried to climb out of bed, but Chu Feng waved his hand to signal him to stop.

"That's enough, Zhang, healing your wounds is the priority!"

"Yes, General!"

Seeing that Zhang He had awakened, the heart Chu Feng had been holding in his throat finally settled back into his chest.

"Zhang, what exactly happened? How did you suddenly end up like this?"

"Sigh, General, it's a long story!"

Zhang He sighed.

He told Chu Feng about his encounter in full detail.

It turned out that while Zhang He was returning from visiting his family at Dingning Pass, he passed through Pingnan County.

On the road, he encountered a merchant caravan.

This caravan was preparing to head to Anwu County to conduct business.

Since Zhang He was heading in the same direction, he decided to travel with them.

Who would have thought they would run into a group of bandits halfway there.

The other side had superior numbers and impressive strength, causing the caravan to suffer heavy losses.

He himself had to fight for his life just to break out of the bandits' encirclement.

"How bold, to actually dare to lay a hand on my people!"

Chu Feng's anger flared instantly, and he slammed his palm onto the table in front of him.

He had not expected that a mere group of petty bandits would dare to act so brazenly before him.

"General, this group of bandits is by no means ordinary!" Zhang He added.

"Oh? How are they not ordinary?"

"This group of bandits has been entrenched in Yishan for many years, specializing in raiding homes and plundering merchant caravans for a living; the Yizhou Prefecture has sent troops to surround and suppress them many times, but all have returned without success."

"Now, ten years later, not only has this group of bandits not been wiped out, but they have become even more powerful, with their numbers reaching over ten thousand!"

"It is rumored that this group of bandits has a rather ambiguous relationship with the Yizhou Prefecture!"

"Oh?"

After listening to Zhang He's account, Chu Feng suddenly felt that this matter sounded quite familiar.

After a brief moment of thought, isn't this just the organized crime from his past life!

The Yizhou Prefecture is their protective umbrella.

And they, in turn, do some shady business for the Yizhou Prefecture.

"So, this group of bandits must be quite wealthy then?"