A gentle breeze blew by, and Li Ru tugged at the reins in his hand, looking up at the distant horizon.
The sky was a clear, cloudless blue, and the sunlight was dazzling, warming my skin.
However, Li Ru had no time to enjoy it all.
At the edge of his vision, the outline of a city appeared faintly.
Behind him were 40,000 Xianbei and Xiongnu cavalrymen, who marched in a net-like square formation, each a thousand men, on the flat ground.
The eastern part of the Kushan Empire consists mostly of plains and arable land, making it ideal for cavalry warfare.
It's a pity that the vast tracts of fertile land beneath the horses' hooves, and the crops that had just sprouted green shoots, were destroyed.
At this time, half a month had passed since Li Ru led his army eastward.
During this period, Li Ru did not rush to lead his troops into battle. Instead, under the banner of the Second Prince, he carried out extensive destruction of villages, farmland, and various infrastructure projects along the way.
Nearly one million acres of fertile land were destroyed and can no longer be cultivated this year. More than 100,000 farmers were robbed and forced to become destitute refugees.
The refugees were driven eastward to flee.
Although no one was killed, this method was even more terrifying than murder.
Of course, if the third prince is willing to spend a huge amount of money to restore production and resettle the refugees, these refugees will not have to worry about starving to death.
Effectively destroying the opponent's production capacity and using a large number of refugees to deplete the opponent's resources—this was one of Xi Zhicai and Li Ru's plans.
Suddenly, several scouts appeared not far ahead, galloping towards Li Ru.
An officer who was with Li Ru rode up to meet him and asked a few questions.
"Sir, according to the scouts, the city ahead is called Canno, with a population of about 20,000. There are only about 1,000 guards on the city walls, and the flags flying are still the original Kushan flags!"
Li Ru grunted and looked up, gazing ahead: "It seems that the Third Prince hasn't taken control of this area yet!"
“Sir, there are more than eighty cities of varying sizes in the east. He should be busy taking over those large cities right now!” the officer replied.
"Heh~, this idiot, what time is it and he's still moving so slowly!"
Li Ru chuckled lightly, his words revealing extreme disdain for the Third Prince.
Now, three parties are vying for supremacy, and it won't be long before they fall into a chaotic war.
Anyone with a modicum of insight should have quickly occupied all the passes and cities as soon as possible, and then slowly absorbed the rest of the cities.
But this third prince is doing the opposite. He has led 40,000 cavalrymen into the country and caused such great damage, yet they haven't received a single word from him. This is truly unbelievable.
According to Li Ru's speculation, by the time the Third Prince had taken over those large cities, they and their group would have almost destroyed the entire rural area of the eastern region.
If the countryside perishes, the cities will become rootless duckweed.
If the farmland in the territory becomes unproductive and millions of refugees are starving, the third prince will be lucky to even survive, let alone compete for the throne.
"Looks like we have to give him a hand!"
Li Ru chuckled lightly, then ordered the officer, "Order the entire army to speed up the march!"
"yes!"
The officer agreed, then rode away to relay Li Ru's orders.
Soon, the army quickened its pace and charged toward the city of Canno ahead.
In less than half an hour, Li Ru led his army to the vicinity of the west of the city.
Rumble!!
Forty thousand cavalrymen galloped about, their momentum like a raging flood, terrifying the defenders of Canno.
"Where...where did these cavalrymen come from?"
As the officer guarding the city ordered the city gates to be closed, he also looked pale-faced at the densely packed cavalry outside the city.
One of his men suddenly pointed to the large banner in the ranks outside the city: "That looks like the Second Prince's banner!"
"The Second Prince?"
Upon hearing this, the garrison officer looked closely and indeed saw that it was the Second Prince's banner.
The officer guarding the city breathed a sigh of relief, but also asked with a puzzled look, "When did the second prince get cavalry, and why did he send troops here?"
Just then, Li Ru led 40,000 cavalrymen to a place not far from the city of Kanno.
Subsequently, Li Ru ordered the west, south, and north gates to be surrounded, leaving only the east gate open.
"What are they doing...?"
Seeing the actions of the army outside the city, the officer guarding the city became even more puzzled.
Just then, Li Ru sent a Kushan guide to the city.
“Listen up, people on the city walls! The Third Prince, Damoshi, has plotted to poison His Majesty and has seized the eastern cities in an attempt to rebel. The Second Prince has ordered us to come and quell the rebellion.”
"The Third Prince poisoned His Majesty and plotted a rebellion...?"
Upon hearing the shouts from outside the city, even the officer guarding the city was momentarily stunned.
His place was just a small town, with no geographical advantages, no bustling commerce, and very limited access to information.
"Those who know what's good for them should open the city gates immediately, or they will all be considered traitors and will be executed without exception after the city falls!"
Just as the garrison officer was in a daze, shouts from outside the city startled him awake.
Looking at the strong cavalry outside the city and then at the mere thousand old and weak men on the city wall, the defending officer couldn't help but sigh.
Then, the garrison officer ordered his men, "Open the city gates!!"
Just as his subordinate shouted "Understood!" and was about to leave, a soldier guarding the east gate rushed over with a messenger.
"General, the Third Prince has sent someone with urgent orders!"
"The Third Prince?"
The garrison officer paused slightly, then looked at the messenger: "What orders does the Third Prince have?"
"General, the eldest prince plotted to poison His Majesty and seize the throne. His Highness has luckily escaped the capital and is preparing to raise an army to punish the rebels."
Therefore, His Highness sent me to inform the general to take precautions and recruit able-bodied men into the army in preparation for suppressing the rebels!
"What? You mean, the eldest prince poisoned His Majesty?"
After hearing the messenger's words, the city guard officer was also taken aback.
The second prince's men had just claimed that the third prince had poisoned His Majesty, when the third prince immediately sent someone to say that the eldest prince had poisoned His Majesty.
What kind of situation is this?
Is His Majesty capable of being poisoned twice?
For a moment, the officer guarding the city was at a loss as to whom to believe.
"General, who is the army outside the city?"
At the same time, the messenger also noticed the army outside the city and his expression changed.
"Oh, they claim to be the Second Prince's men. According to them, the Second Prince poisoned His Majesty..."
The garrison officer then recounted the events to the messenger.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
