General Zhao’s flight was entirely within our expectations. Half a month in advance, I had already organized my people and arranged for a fleet of vessels to wait nearby, ready for the day they would be framed for rebellion. This would leave them with no path to turn back; whether or not they actually rebelled, they would be branded as traitors nonetheless.
When they finally fought their way out of the frontier, his elite personal guards numbered in the thousands, and with their families included, the group totaled nearly ten thousand. To ensure these generals would hold no grudges against me in the future, I had long since stationed thousands of ambush troops to cover their retreat. Though they were bewildered by the sudden appearance of reinforcements, they had no time to think—they simply clung to their wives and children, fighting for their lives as they pushed forward.
Once my forces had dealt with the pursuing troops, I approached to explain the situation and invited them to join us. We were quite forthright, telling them we were from Yunxiu City. I noted that we had previously purchased over 300,000 gold soldiers, and we were currently in need of commanders just like them. As everyone knew, Yunxiu City was led by a female City Lord, and her personal guard was quite small; we were hoping these generals would be willing to join our ranks.
Chapter 199