Guo Xiyuan's report aroused Zhang Chu's great attention, and not only did the personnel of the Statistics Bureau mobilize, but also drew elite forces from the army to go deep into the grassland to investigate the situation.

The matter was soon found out, and the Mongol caravan to and from Fugu was attacked by a force of cavalry, and the people were killed and the goods were robbed, and this happened many times, and for a time the Mongol tribes were panicked, and no one dared to come back to Fugu to trade without a strong guard.

The cavalry of the security army sent out to investigate came to Zhang Chu with a few Mongolian merchants who were mixed up and wounded, although a long time had passed, the Mongolian merchants still had palpitations when they talked about what had happened, and their voices were a little trembling. They belonged to the Chahar tribe of the Mongols. Since Zhang Chu opened the Fugu Trade Street to trade with the Mongols, they have always come and gone between Fugu and Guihua City to do business, at the beginning the road was very peaceful, the tribes were also safe, and they also made a lot of money, but not long ago the caravan was robbed, and many people did not dare to take this trade route anymore. They also waited a few days, hoping that it was just the occasional robbery of some small tribe. Tempted by huge profits and temptations, they decided to take a risk, and they were halfway there, and a group of cavalry suddenly rushed out. This group of people is very vicious, not only robbed property but also killed people when they saw it, because they had prepared in advance, several of them were good at walking on the grassland all the year round, found the danger and left the goods and ran away desperately, the robbers still refused to let them go, they chased them closely, they rushed to kill several companions, and everyone who was alive was wounded, and it was difficult to escape from the siege, but fortunately they met the cavalry sent by Zhang Chu to pick them up.

The robbers retreated when they saw the large number of security guards, and these businessmen took their lives. Judging by the way they dressed and how they spoke, it was supposed to be a group of robbers and Mongols, and it was not clear which tribe it was. The men were skilled in horsemanship, well-armed, and much more powerful than the average Mongol, and the number of robbers and their whereabouts were unknown.

Zhang Chu then inquired about the situation on the grassland, and then ordered someone to take them down to heal their wounds.

The merchant's account was combined with the previous report of the Central Bureau of Statistics, and Zhang Chu gained a more detailed understanding of the situation of the Mongols outside the border wall.

By the end of the Ming Dynasty, the Mongols had declined, lost their former glory, and were divided into many tribes, large and small.

To the north, the Fugu side wall faces the vast Hetao Plain, which is one of the few places in the grassland where water and grass are fertile. It has also become a place where the Mongolian tribes are desperately fighting. A little further north, on the edge of the Yellow River, is a rare large city on the grassland. In later generations, the city of naturalization has developed into a large city on the grassland. It is the economic and cultural center of the Mongolian Autonomous Region.

When it comes to Naturalization City, we have to mention a strange woman on the grassland: the three ladies. The city of Naturalization was founded by the Three Ladies and his husband, Altan Khan.

During the reign of the Ming Dynasty, the three ladies urged him to have a good relationship with the Ming Dynasty, and the emperor of the Ming Dynasty canonized him as the king of Shunyi, and gave the Mongols a reward every year.

The Three Ladies have always had an important influence among the Tumut tribes. After the death of Altahan, according to the customs of the Mongols, the third lady married the son of Altahan, Huang Taiji, and the Ming Dynasty named Huang Taiji as the new king of Sanshun.

After Huang Taiji's death, the third lady married Huang Taiji's son Pullik, and Pullik was named the third king of Sanshun. As the wife of the three Sanshun kings, Sanniangzi's influence on the grassland is unparalleled, and the Tumut tribe under her governance gradually became stronger. For decades, the Tumut tribe has always occupied the Hetao area with abundant water and grass in the center of Guihua City, and has received rewards from the Ming Dynasty every year. After the death of the Three Ladies in 1612, the Tumut tribe began to decline.

By the time of Chongzhen, the most powerful Mongol tribe in the steppe had become the Chahar tribe, and the tribal leader Lin Danhan was ambitious and determined to unify the Mongolian tribes and restore the honor of the golden family of Genghis Han.

How could Lin Danhan be born at the wrong time, he faced the powerful Houjin people, and the opponent was Huang Taiji, who was more ambitious than him. The economic collapse of the Ming dynasty dwindled the Mongol bounty and weakened the power of Lin Danhan, who did not unify the Mongol tribes but was forced to move west under the pressure of the Later Jin. The old lands of the Chahar tribe were occupied by the Houjin.

Lin Danhan's strength is not good enough to deal with Houjin, but it is more than enough to fight other Mongolian tribes. After moving westward, Lin Danhan defeated the Tumut tribe in 1628 and occupied the city of Guihua, and at the same time conquered the surrounding Mongol tribes who refused to submit to him. Most of the Mongol merchants that Zhang Chu traded with were subordinates of the Chahar tribe Lin Danhan.

Zhang Chu couldn't help lamenting his fate, it was now the end of December in the third year of Chongzhen, and he was reunited with Yue Yue and Li Mei, wanting to have a good New Year, and then find a time to tie the knot again, so that he could get rid of the tragic fate of a single dog. Now these dreams have to be pushed back again, no matter what, these Mongols who harass the trade routes must be defeated, no matter which tribe they belong to, and cutting off the Chucai route is his enemy.

It is very difficult to deal with this kind of robber who grabs and runs away on the vast prairie. Sending out fewer men and horses is no match for them, and the large army of attacking robbers has fled to the depths of the grassland, leaving you with nowhere to look. Moreover, it is now the end of December of the third year of Chongzhen, the climate on the grassland is cold, the grass and trees are yellow, there are no materials that can be used, and it is very difficult for people who enter the grassland to survive.

The reality is that Zhang Chu has no time to wait for the weather to get warmer, and the trade route must be opened no matter what, and the security army can get one more day of supplies one day earlier, and he can become one more point stronger, and he will have one more capital to survive in this world chaos.

The situation was roughly clarified, and Zhang Chu immediately sent a messenger to Lin Danhan, the messenger was a Mongol who had joined the security army, and they brought a letter from Zhang Chu to Lin Danhan, explaining the situation of the caravan being robbed, and asking Lin Danhan to send more forces to protect the caravan, and at the same time provide information about the robbers.

Without waiting for the messenger to return, Zhang Chu began to prepare for the expedition to the grassland, and it was still up to the security army to fight the robbers.

The security army of Fugu once again carried out a general mobilization, and selected 5,000 fine taxes from the 10,000 cavalry, and 500 of the best cavalry from the 5,000 elites, and these 500 cavalry will be led by Zhang Chu himself.

The 5,000 selected people will go deep into the prairie to participate in the suppression of bandits.

The elite force of 5,000 people is strong enough to fight any force on the grassland, but it is very inflexible to move, which is like killing a chicken with a giant axe, and the momentum is terrifying, but it does not necessarily work. Robbers come and go without a trace, and you have to be more flexible than them to catch them. Therefore, the 500 cavalry under the personal leadership of Zhang Chu was the backbone of this crackdown on bandits. (To be continued.) )