Zhu Huoyan seemed to notice Qiu Tu's confusion and continued his report. "But Pei Jing did not come alone."
"He brought a force of three thousand Personal Guards."
"Li Tingdong is receiving him on behalf of New State. But he seems to have been probing for information about you, and he wants to meet you."
Qiu Tu nodded slightly.
No wonder Pei Jing had taken so many days to reach New State.
It turned out he had not come alone but had brought an army with him.
Still, that was understandable.
A general's core was his own army. A general without an army was like a tiger without teeth.
And when taking office in an unfamiliar place, without his own trusted troops to hold the fort, gaining control of military power in a short time was practically a fantasy.
Qiu Tu remembered that a few days ago, while playing cards with Tang Feifei, she had explained to him how to quickly build or take control of an army.
The simplest method was nothing more than "kindling."
Use one thousand veteran soldiers as the framework, recruit nine thousand new soldiers, and have each veteran manage nine recruits. Just like that, a ten-thousand-man force with a certain degree of combat strength could be formed.
Pei Jing's three thousand Personal Guards worked the same way. He could keep one thousand at his side as guards, then disperse the other two thousand among the middle ranks of various units.
Give them mid-level posts or supervisory positions similar to military inspectors. Before long, he could effectively sort out all of New State's military affairs.
Those two thousand men would be his eyes and ears, helping him quickly distinguish friend from foe and cultivate a group of loyal troops.
That would allow him to smoothly open