Chapter 917 - 141: Ivan Thousand Households and Kuchlug
Western Liao, Samarkand.
Within a week, the newly appointed Ivan Thousand Households had successfully cleared his territory of bandits, but now faced a new threat, the once prominent Khwarezmia, which had once controlled Samarkand in Central Asia.
His territory was completely treated as a buffer, placed on the western side of Samarkand.
Now, Western Liao was in a precarious situation, with the remaining controlled land only stretching from Samarkand to the Bukhara corridor. Thankfully, the elite troops were still intact, preventing Ivan Thousand Households from having to consider when to switch sides just after boarding the ship.
Recently, Ivan’s troops had swelled to ten thousand strong after absorbing numerous bandits.
Among them, he picked out five hundred trusted men and trained them as armored cavalry using the Mamluk method, supplemented by a thousand light cavalry to serve as the mobility strength of Ivan’s forces.
Unfortunately, he hadn’t been there long, and whether it be Khwarezmian Gulam or Egyptian Mamluk, all require training from a young age as slaves, which takes considerable time, teaching them martial arts as well as the spirit of "fighting for the sacred fire" and "fighting for the master."
Beside him, Baron Fulk, having just finished training new soldiers, crouched down next to him: "Recently, the grain prices in Samarkand have risen significantly, and the prices of military equipment and warhorses sold by Sogdian merchants have doubled. We don’t have much time left for rest."
Ivan smiled indifferently: "Hey, what’s there to fear? How can one achieve merit without war?"
He had poured both gold and silver into military preparations, wasn’t it all for the purpose of fighting?
Fulk snorted coldly: "Do you think that Ju’er Khan is being so lenient with you, silently watching as you recruit soldiers and buy horses without saying a word? Do you believe that the price hikes by those Sogdian merchants are orchestrated by the Qidan people behind the scenes? If this keeps going, even with a mountain of gold and silver under you, it’ll soon be emptied."
Ivan chuckled: "Forget it, having so much wealth under us makes me anxious every day, it’s better to spend it all, consider it as bribing those Qidan aristocrats."
Fulk frowned: "A half-fed hunting dog is the easiest to command. The Qidan people want us to work hard but don’t want to see us grow too powerful. I think mixing with them isn’t worth it."
"Alright, you’re quoting proverbs now. If I had known you had this ability, I would have surely ensured you pursued studies at Al-Azhar University, perhaps you could become a renowned theologian overseas."
Ivan displayed a roguish smile, knowing well the treatment by Qidan people was not good at all. The pasture land allocated to them was just a barren and narrow place, filled with bandits and Khwarezmian people, and could be reclaimed at any moment.
Fulk added: "And this land was snatched by the Qidan people from the Khwarezmians."
Ivan’s expression slightly shifted: "You want to side with the Khwarezmians?"
He naturally didn’t feel any loyalty towards Western Liao. When he betrayed his master Taqidin and decided to become a mercenary, he had already vowed that he would live for himself in the future.
"I don’t know."
Fulk shook his head: "Siding with the Khwarezmians, we might immediately be pushed out as the vanguard against the Qidan people, no one is reliable, for us outsiders, establishing a footing in this land is as difficult as climbing to heaven."
Ivan patted Fulk on the shoulder: "Don’t worry, I’m aware."
As the two talked, a group of cavalry bearing the Qidan flag arrogantly entered the tribe.
Fulk hurriedly stood up, frowning: "Here comes the Qidan envoy."
The envoy was a Sogdian, perched on horseback, with nostrils in the air, shouting arrogantly: "Where is Ivan Thousand Households? The Great Khan summons immediately to the imperial palace for discussions, don’t delay!"
Ivan smiled as he instructed the interpreter: "Tell him for me, I know, and I’ll head there immediately."
This interpreter was a newly bought slave, fluent in Saracen, Turkic, Persian, and Khitan languages; he could even speak a few words in Chinese. Yet, before he could say much, the Sogdian whipped down in anger.
"You scoundrels, he said immediately, don’t delay. Are you deaf? You lowly beings dare defy the Great Khan’s order!"
Even though Ivan didn’t understand Khitan, he could see that this guy was spewing nonsense, and immediately angered, he grabbed the reins of the man’s mount and, with all his might, threw the tall "River Warhorse" to the ground.
Breathing heavily, like a demon god descending, he cursed angrily: "A merchant-born Sogdian acts like this in front of me? Do you believe I wouldn’t slaughter you just like a pig?"
Having spent more time in Central Asia, Ivan increasingly understood the situation in the Qidan Kingdom. It’s said that when it was founded, Husi Woreda had eighty-four thousand and five hundred adult males, with about two adult males per household, which meant about forty thousand households.
It means that in its heyday, Western Liao should have a population of millions nationwide.
Although he didn’t know how much power the Qidan Kingdom retained, a force of ten thousand troops also held some weight.
Sogdians were used to relying on their connections, but didn’t expect this Mongolian and other Central Asian man to be so fierce. Without even shouting out in pain, he urgently reminded: "Don’t... don’t kill me! I’m from Kuchu Law Khan!"
Ivan sneered: "The Great Khan summoned me, surely to address the Tatars, do you think my ten thousand troops are more important, or you, a mere Sogdian slave?"