Chapter 10: Friendly Sponsorship
The new deputy commander was quite savvy, revealing a hint of cunning beneath his slick demeanor. Standing alongside Kaiser, he didn't seem out of place at all.
The twenty thousand soldiers were naturally not within Sand Capital. Uno couldn't hand over the elite troops guarding Sand Capital. What Uno handed over were some soldiers stationed west of Sand Capital. They weren't logistics units, nor were they the old, weak, sick, or disabled, nor were they new recruits. They were a defeated army, just pulled back from the front lines.
Uno couldn't hand over logistics units, the old and weak, or new recruits. The Sand Emperor wasn't a figurehead; Uno didn't dare go too far.
In Uno's words, this defeated army became frontline elites temporarily pulled back to rest. But a defeated army was a defeated army; their morale was unimaginably low.
When Su Xiao arrived at the west of the city, large tents came into view. Soldiers were standing or sitting among the tents, all somewhat dispirited. Most had a faint smell of blood on them, a result of their injuries. Beneath their light armor were bodies wrapped in white bandages, scarred and battered.
"Fall in!"
The new deputy commander, Oss, shouted and then unhooked the horn from his waist. He blew it with all his might. The sound wasn't long or drawn out, nor did it have the deep resonance of impending battle. It was more like a loud, long, muffled fart.
Hearing the horn, all the soldiers among the tents tensed up, then relaxed and slowly stood up.
After nearly twenty minutes, the soldiers finally assembled in a nearby open area. They formed twenty battalions, each with a thousand men, but their stances were crooked and uneven.
Seeing this scene, the new deputy commander, Oss, felt his heart sink. Leading such troops, let alone attacking Segona City, they might be wiped out by the Secretu Kingdom's "Brave Ram Cavalry" before even reaching the front lines. At most, two charges would break their formation.
Oss was different from his predecessor. He had been on the battlefield, crawled out of piles of corpses. His biggest mistake was flattering the wrong person, patting a fierce dog's balls. The dog hadn't bitten him to death only because he had considerable merits.
"Sir, I suggest we rest for a day before heading to the front lines."
Oss was subtly suggesting winning over the soldiers' hearts first, boosting morale, before considering going to the front.
"Baha, how's Kaiser doing?"
"Should be about done."
"We move out in half an hour."
Su Xiao turned his gaze to Deputy Commander Oss. Oss's lips parted, but he finally nodded and smiled obsequiously. His edge had been worn down by harsh reality. He was no longer the Haixi Fort Oss who wielded a scimitar and roared while holding an enemy general's head. His body was starting to gain weight, and his fighting spirit was gone.
The Sand Flame Kingdom had six Grand Commanders. Counting Su Xiao, there were now seven. Below the Grand Commander were Army Commanders, each commanding up to fifty thousand soldiers. Below them were Division Commanders, each in charge of ten thousand soldiers. The ranking was as follows:
Grand Commander (30,000 soldier establishment) → 6 Army Commanders (each commanding 50,000 soldiers) → 30 Division Commanders (each commanding 10,000 soldiers).
Below Division Commanders were Thousand Commanders, Hundred Commanders, and even Ten Commanders. There were many of these low-ranking officers.
In this era of poor communication, once battle started and soldiers from both sides were locked in melee, fighting in small units of ten was the best approach. When the fighting reached its peak, even Ten Commanders couldn't find their own subordinates.
If Su Xiao had 300,000 soldiers and was at the front lines, he could appoint Army Commanders commanding 50,000 soldiers. As for Thousand Commanders and Hundred Commanders, they were just a casual word away.
But these positions couldn't be handed out too casually. Once the army under his command took shape, this was the best leverage to win people's hearts. For Su Xiao, the cost was very low, but for the soldiers, it was a life-changing event. Higher status meant higher pay, allowing their wives and children to live better lives.
It took a full hour for the soldiers to pack up the tents. Most of these tents were already torn, brought back from the front lines.
Over a hundred White Horn Beasts were harnessed with rope saddles, pulling huge wooden carts. The White Horn Beasts looked similar to rhinos but were many times larger. They had gentle temperaments and great endurance, making them an excellent choice for transporting supplies.
Deputy Commander Oss was at the very front of the column, followed by the soldiers in formation. The middle section consisted of over a hundred White Horn Beasts, and the rear was also soldiers.
Viewed from above, the soldiers looked like a long, winding dragon moving forward.
Su Xiao sat on a bundled thick cloth tent. It wasn't time yet. Kaiser needed at least a morning to get out of Sand Capital. Once Kaiser had handled things, it would be time to stabilize morale.
There were no supplies of any kind, and no gold coins were sent before departure. In the current situation, let alone going to the front to fight, after a day's march, the 20,000 soldiers would be starving.
Gold coins had astonishing purchasing power and were the largest denomination currency. When Su Xiao had escorted a merchant caravan across the desert, he only received 28 gold coins as a reward. Remember, he escorted them as a Holy Soul. An ordinary Holy Soul crossing the desert risked their life.
Four gold coins were enough to open a small restaurant. Thirty gold coins were enough for a commoner to live a comfortable life for the rest of their days. If a soldier died in battle, the Sand Flame Kingdom's compensation was 37 gold coins.
After two hours of marching, the army's formation was even more chaotic. Some soldiers were even starting to chat and laugh with each other. At this rate, once they reached the front lines and engaged the enemy, they would scatter in no time.
"Halt the march."
Su Xiao's order was passed down layer by layer. Soon, the marching column stopped.
"Sir, are we...?"
Deputy Commander Oss spoke at the right moment. The previous deputy commander had died too miserably; he dared not be dishonest.
"Set up camp. Rest here."
"Yes."
After Oss relayed the order, the soldiers' chaotic chatter could be heard. They couldn't understand why they were stopping after only two hours of marching.
Su Xiao was waiting for Kaiser and Bubu Wang. Only if things went smoothly on their end could the plan continue.
Although the soldiers didn't accept Su Xiao as their Grand Commander, they still set up a very spacious tent for him. It was fully equipped with tables, chairs, and a bed, and even had cactus fruit placed on a low table.
Su Xiao sat cross-legged on the wooden bed inside the tent, holding a tablet computer, playing a puzzle-solving game. He just needed to wait.
Kaiser and Bubu Wang didn't keep Su Xiao waiting long. Five hours later, a large group of laborers led White Horn Beasts over from the distance. Conservatively estimated, there were over two hundred White Horn Beasts, all pulling various supplies.
The White Horn Beasts didn't cost any gold coins; they were requisitioned from the Quartermaster's Office. As a Grand Commander with a 30,000-man establishment, Su Xiao requisitioning over two hundred White Horn Beasts was something neither Uno nor Carros could find fault with.
The army under Su Xiao's command now consisted of 20,000 soldiers, 316 White Horn Beasts, supplies, and 310,000 gold coins.
Where did the supplies pulled by the White Horn Beasts and the 310,000 gold coins come from? The answer was "friendly sponsorship" from High Priest Uno. He just didn't know about it yet. Bubu Wang had visited the gold vault in his home, obtaining 80,000 gold coins and countless treasures.
The reason Kaiser and Bubu Wang were only arriving now was that they had been fencing the goods—no, wait—selling the treasures in cities near Sand Capital. Then they purchased supplies and commissioned the Sand Emperor to do something. The gold coins handed over to the Sand Emperor alone amounted to 352,800.
These gold coins were used to stabilize the army's morale. The Sand Emperor couldn't possibly keep these gold coins for himself. If he did, once certain things were made public, it would be an undeniable black mark in his history. That matter was: withholding the pay of soldiers' families!
That's right, Su Xiao commissioned the Sand Emperor to distribute those 352,800 gold coins to the families of every soldier and officer, according to their rank. For those without families, the pay would be distributed uniformly during the next rest period.
Besides these gold coins, Su Xiao also spent nearly 70,000 gold coins purchasing various supplies. He had to admit, the Sand Emperor's trusted aide, Red Sand, had been a great help. Without his help in greasing the wheels, acquiring these supplies would have taken at least one to three days.
Everything was ready. The army continued its march. The next target was near Anji City.
The yellow sand flew everywhere. As the sky darkened, Su Xiao could see the towering city walls in the distance. They had arrived at Anji City.
As soon as they neared Anji City, several thousand soldiers rushed out from within, along with a middle-aged man in black and gold clothing. This was the Governor of Anji City, the city's administrator.
Deputy Commander Oss immediately led over a hundred soldiers forward to negotiate. Soon, Oss and the Governor of Anji City were embracing each other, smiling and talking in low voices.
After seeing off the Governor of Anji City, Oss hurried back.
"Sir, Aikamai agrees to let us enter the city, but we must also camp outside. Soldiers can enter Anji City, but they cannot cause panic among the civilians."
"Mm. Have the soldiers assemble in two hours. Find fifty... no, three hundred men, and have them stand by near my tent."
"Yes."
Oss went down to relay the order. The soldiers began setting up camp again. This was already the second rest in one day, further eroding morale.
Su Xiao had many things to do, all of which needed to be completed tonight. Once he finished, these 20,000 soldiers might not become elites, but at least they would be willing to fight for him.