Capital city, Taiji Hall.

The newly crowned Crown Prince Yin Zhao did not feel the slightest joy of ruling the world at this moment.

The dragon throne was cold, the palace was empty, and memorials piled up like mountains, almost every one of them containing bad news.

Prince Jin Yinxi's "Jingnan" army has expanded to more than 80,000 people, growing like a snowball.

Although they did not directly attack the capital, they had already controlled a large area north of the capital.

In particular, the occupation of the Mengjin ferry directly cut off the main grain route to the capital, causing grain prices in the capital to soar and people's hearts to be unsettled.

Li Chenghua and Yang Dingguo's advance was still slow, and they were close to but not close to the main force of the Prince of Jin's army.

Several engagements failed to achieve decisive results and instead resulted in some casualties.

The censor's memorial subtly revealed the two generals' hesitation and the low morale of their subordinates.

What worries him even more is the north!

The attack of King Zuo Xian of Beidi is like a tide, and the land of Yanyun is in a state of emergency. Youzhou has become an isolated city and is in danger!

Countless urgent reports requesting reinforcements and food supplies were suppressed by Gu Dingming, Lu Bingjun and others.

However, Yin Zhao knew very well that if Youzhou was captured, the northern Di Tartar cavalry would be able to march straight into the Central Plains.

Even if he defeated King Jin, he would still have to face a mess full of holes.

As a last resort, he could only adopt Gu Dingming's advice: to resist foreign aggression, one must first stabilize the country.

The Tatars hoped to use peace talks to satisfy their greed with money, and even cede land in exchange for a ceasefire.

After dealing with the Prince of Jin, who posed the greatest threat to his throne, he would organize a large army to deal with the Tartars.

Although both were facing 100,000 Tartar cavalry, Shuozhou was in a much better situation than Yanyun.

Although Zhao Muyun is dead, the troops under his command can still guard the border!

It’s a pity that if there were more good generals like Zhao Muyun at the border of Dayin, how could he have such a headache?

"Trash! They're all a bunch of trash!"

Yin Zhao threw another memorial requesting help from the front line to the ground.

His face was ashen, his eyes were bloodshot and frantic:

"Li Chenghua and Yang Dingguo have tens of thousands of elite troops, so why can't they defeat the Jin Prince's rebels?"

"How could the Northern Di barbarians be so rampant?"

Cao Chunfeng, Gu Dingming, Lu Bingjun and Cui Kaiji stood below and exchanged glances.

Cao Chunfeng stepped forward and whispered, "Your Majesty, calm down. Li and Yang might be afraid of the enemy and are not advancing, or perhaps they are... waiting and watching."

He paused deliberately, leaving room for imagination. "The most urgent task is to send a trusted and capable person to supervise the army, supervise the battle, and...prevent any unexpected events."

Cui Kaiji also echoed:

"Eunuch Cao is absolutely right. Although the Tartars are besieging Youzhou, they are only after wealth and property. The most pressing threat is the King of Jin."

"Minister Su and the Minister of Rites have always had many dealings with the Northern Di people and will definitely be able to facilitate peace talks."

"The most urgent task is to quickly eliminate the King of Jin. Then, we can unite our forces and march north. We will surely be able to drive out the Di and reclaim the lost territory."

"We must remain patient for now and issue strict orders to Youzhou and other cities to defend to the death."

Yin Zhao looked at the important officials below the imperial steps with a vicious look, breathing heavily.

He also knew that what the two said was the only option at the moment, but the feeling of powerlessness and the anger of being forced almost drove him crazy.

He suddenly looked at Cao Chunfeng: "Who do you think is suitable as the military supervisor?"

Cao Chunfeng's eyes gleamed, and he bowed, saying, "I am willing to share your majesty's worries and personally lead the army! I will urge Li and Yang to fight the Prince of Jin as soon as possible, and keep an eye on them for your majesty."

He deliberately emphasized the word "optimistic".

Seeing Cao Chunfeng volunteering, Yin Zhao immediately agreed as if he had grabbed a life-saving straw:

"Alright! Cao Qing will go! I grant you the Emperor's Sword, giving you the power to make decisions on the spot. If anyone dares to disobey, or hesitate to fight, you can execute them first and report to me later!"

"Old slave, obey the order!"

Cao Chunfeng bowed deeply, with a barely perceptible curve at the corner of his mouth.

Control of the military, that is where the real power lies.

"Your Majesty, I believe that we must order Hedong Jiedushi Pei Lun and Guannei Jiedushi Tian Zun to lead their troops to block the Prince of Jin's retreat and cut off his connection with Jinyang."

"Also, promote Zhang Zhongfang, the garrison commander of Xijing, to the rank of General of the Central Army. He must defend Xijing and Tongguan. We must not allow Li Jingang's rebels to capture Xijing."

Lu Bingjun was worried about the situation in Xijing.

However, without the five battalions in the capital, and the troops from Guannei, Longyou, Jiannan, and Hedong, Zhang Zhongfang had less than 10,000 troops, and it was unclear whether he could hold the city.

"Permission granted!"

Yin Zhao waved his hand, hurried away, and headed straight for the harem.

Stress needs to be released.

And Concubine Xiao's fascinating body is the best outlet for his emotions.

…

Mengjin Ferry

The camp of Prince Yinxi of Jin.

Prince Jin's mood was equally complicated.

The Jingnan Army was in good momentum and many people defected.

Most of those who came to seek refuge were officials who were unsuccessful in the service of the prince, and naturally there were also some speculators.

But the five battalions of the capital led by Li Chenghua and Yang Dingguo were the elite of Dayin after all. After experiencing the battlefield in Xijing, the bloodiness of these arrogant soldiers seemed to be awakened.

The five battalions of the capital were like a hard bone standing in front of him, which he could not swallow, and also delayed his pace of advancing into the capital.

What worried him even more was the invasion of the Northern Di people.

He was fighting under the banner of "pacifying the rebellion". If he sat back and watched the Tartars destroy the country, it would be against the righteousness, and Yin Yao was still there in Shuozhou!

"Your Highness, the latest battle report: The defenders of Zhendi Fort in Shuozhou have fought bloody battles for five days and have temporarily repelled the Tartar vanguard, but over half of their troops have been killed or wounded. The situation is critical."

"Weizhou and Yinzhou were also attacked by the Tartars, but they are safe for the time being."

"But the situation in Yanyun is not optimistic. The Tartars' left wing army of 100,000 men has broken through the various checkpoints in Yanshan and surrounded Youzhou."

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