Mythical Qin: I, Gao Yao, will never be a eunuch!

As time went by, Feng Quji's expression changed subtly. At first, he showed a hint of indifference, but as he read more, surprise gradually appeared on his face. Then, his shock became more and more obvious, and finally, he couldn't even wait to start flipping through the accounts on his own without Gao Yao's reminder. Inadvertently, Feng Quji glanced at Gao Yao with a look of shock.

What Gao Yao showed Feng Quji was the situation in all aspects of the entire southern border, including money, food, armaments, population, transportation capacity, and the number of horses. Any one of these data was enough to make Feng Quji dumbfounded.

Feng Quji only saw the prosperity of the county town, but his understanding of the entire southern border was not comprehensive, nor did he know how much reserves Gaoyao had. What Gaoyao was showing now was the confidence in Gaoyao's hands.

"My Lord Prime Minister, I think one of the key reasons why you rejected my proposal is because you believe that this move will inevitably end in failure and be cursed by the world. What did you think the chances of the South Territory winning were?"

"Less than halfway."

"What about now?"

"Thirty percent!"

Listening to Gao Yao's words, Feng Quji did not make any excuses at this time. He looked at Gao Yao solemnly, with a flash of surprise and thought in his eyes. After a moment of silence, he slowly said: "I thought there were only 200,000 Qin troops in the southern border, but I didn't expect the actual strength to be as many as 280,000! And there is enough food and grass to sustain a million-strong army for more than a year. It seems that the situation in the southern border is indeed much better than he imagined."

Feng Quji secretly sighed in his heart. Although he was the former prime minister of the Qin Dynasty, his understanding of the southern border was still not deep enough. This conversation with Gao Yao made him realize that his previous assessment of the southern border was too conservative. Now that he knew this key information, he had to re-examine the entire battle situation.

War is not just a contest of the number of troops, but also involves factors such as money, food, economy and logistical supplies. Previously, Feng Quji believed that there were only 200,000 Qin troops in the southern border, which was difficult to fight against the enemy. But now the situation is different. The existence of 280,000 elite troops makes the southern border more powerful. In addition, sufficient food reserves mean that the southern border army can fight for a long time without worrying about food shortages.

The geographical location of the southern border is also one of the important factors affecting the war situation. The complex terrain and dangerous topography provide the southern border army with a natural defensive advantage. At the same time, Gaoyao built roads leading to the various ethnic groups in the southern border, making transportation convenient and facilitating the mobilization of troops and the transportation of supplies. Taking all these factors into consideration, Feng Quji had to admit that the situation in the southern border had indeed improved.

In Feng Quji's traditional concept, the southern border has always been a place with scarce supplies. Whether it is food or weapons and equipment, it cannot be compared with other places, not to mention the headache of transportation and the scarcity of horses. However, when he learned that Gao Yao actually had nearly 150,000 ordinary horses and more than 70,000 war horses, he was shocked. These numbers far exceeded his imagination, making him realize that the strength of the southern border may have far exceeded his expectations.

You know, although the Great Qin Empire is powerful now, the total number of cavalry troops in the country is only about 100,000. Due to the vast territory, troops are needed everywhere, so it is impossible to concentrate all the troops together. But the Southern Territory is different. They can go all out to deal with a war. This makes the Southern Territory, which Feng Quji originally thought had less than a 50% chance of winning, now have a 30% chance of winning.

In Feng Quji's opinion, even after Fusu ascended the throne, the possibility of quelling the civil strife and restoring peace to the world would not exceed 50%. Now Gao Yao already has a 30% chance of winning, which is shocking enough.

"Oh, by the way, since I returned to Xianyang, the entire southern border has not received any salary from the court, let alone food. The entire southern border is supported by me, including the soldiers. Their treatment has doubled the original court salary. The soldiers have three meals a day, meat every seven days, and daily rest." Gao Yao said slowly.

"Hiss..." Feng Quji took a breath and looked at Gao Yao with wide eyes.

Before Feng Quji could finish being surprised, Gao Yao said something that made Feng Quji gasp: "In addition to this, I have also set up schools, clinics and nursing homes in the southern border to provide free education, medical care and elderly care services to the people. These measures have not only been supported by the people in the southern border, but also attracted people from surrounding areas to come and seek refuge. Today, the southern border has become a prosperous place with a rapidly growing population and a good economic development."

"Your Excellency the Prime Minister probably thinks that this is only the case in Nanhai County. In fact, all counties in the entire southern border have basically reached this level. It's just that Nanhai County's business is particularly prosperous due to its geographical location. What are the chances of winning now?"

"Three and a half"

Listening to Gao Yao's words, Feng Quji had to admit the fact that the people's hearts and the military's hearts were in Gao Yao's hands, which meant that he had no internal worries and could focus on external affairs.

"My Lord Prime Minister, I have something that can improve my skills by at least half a percent, but I am not in a position to tell you directly for the time being. I think you should know whether what I said is true or false. I know that you have extraordinary abilities, but you just haven't had the opportunity to display them. Now you have the opportunity to show your strengths and even defeat Li Si head-on. In the future, the world should know the name of Feng Quji. How can it only know Li Si?"

Gao Yao's last words were undoubtedly the most important. Ever since Feng Quji became the prime minister of the Qin Dynasty, Li Si had overshadowed him in everything. Even in some places, people only knew that Li Si was the prime minister of the Qin Dynasty. Who knew Feng Quji's name? This was also a knot in Feng Quji's heart that he couldn't get over. Now Gao Yao had placed the opportunity to prove himself in front of Feng Quji. It depended on whether Feng Quji would accept it or not.

"Okay, sir, I have said everything I want to say today. Whatever you choose from now on is up to you. I will wait for good news."

After Gao Yao finished speaking, he stood up and left Feng Quji's courtyard, taking the people at the door with him and leaving Feng Quji alone to think about it.

"My lord, what are your orders?"

Walking on the road, Gao Yao waved to Erniu, and Erniu immediately stepped forward.

"Feng Quji, keep watching here and don't get discovered. He can either choose to join us or leave the southern border. He knows too much. Do you understand?"

"Here"

Gao Yao would not let Feng Quji go so easily. Although Gao Yao had offered sufficient conditions, if the other party was really unwilling, Feng Quji would definitely not be able to survive.