"Your subject believes that we should first transfer the 100,000 troops from Chenzhou to aid Marquis Jing'an."

"According to the scouts, Princess Qingyao has committed suicide."

"We really don't need to waste our forces on a dead man."

"It would be better to concentrate all the troops under the command of Marquis Jing'an and let him focus on attacking the Jin Kingdom."

"As for the Northern Rong Kingdom, we will attack it after we have dealt with the Jin Kingdom to avenge my sister."

The Emperor frowned deeply: "What about Lu Ziqian? Are we just going to ignore him?"

Chu Zhongyuan said with a heavy heart, "Father, we can't worry about that now."

"He is a general, and his duty is to protect the country. His personal life and death are insignificant in the face of the nation. I believe General Lu will understand."

The Emperor hesitated for a moment: "How am I to explain this to the Empress?"

"Moreover, he is Lu Jingming's son, and I cannot forget his kindness."

Chu Zhongyuan continued to persuade him: "Father, you must consider the bigger picture. I believe the Empress and Lord Lu will understand."

"Besides, Father has always been worried that Lu Jingming has rebellious intentions, so why not take this opportunity to get rid of this trouble once and for all?"

"This world belongs to you, not the Lu family. Does the Great Ming Kingdom perish if Lu Ziqian is removed from its borders?"

"Outrageous!" The Emperor angrily slammed down the memorial.

Chu Zhongyuan was not afraid at all; he knew how much his father doted on him.

If he were to say he wanted the throne now, his father would give it to him right now.

Unfortunately, with the Empress and the Crown Prince blocking his way, as well as the rules of etiquette and the attitudes of civil and military officials, the Emperor had to consider many things.

Chu Zhongyuan did not kneel down, but continued to persuade him: "Father, you are getting old and becoming more and more benevolent."

"If this were when you were young, you wouldn't have worried about such a trivial matter."

"Lu Ziqian's forces only numbered a few thousand, which is no different from being wiped out."

"Why would you need to send in another 100,000 troops just for him?"

"Is his personal safety more important than that of 100,000 people?"

The emperor was so angry that he blew his beard and glared at the ground: "Pick it up for me."

Chu Zhongyuan obediently picked up the memorials and neatly placed them on the imperial desk.

“I don’t care about Lu Ziqian’s life. I’m angry at your reckless words. How could you casually say something about the destruction of a country?”

Chu Zhongyuan immediately admitted his mistake and reminded the emperor to take care of his health, saying it wasn't worth getting upset over such a small matter. He appeared obedient, sensible, and filial, which made the emperor laugh in no time.

"Alright, we'll do it your way."

"I will issue an imperial decree immediately. Send someone by fast horse to deliver it to Chenzhou, so that he may change his route to support Marquis Jing'an."

"Yes, Your Majesty, I obey the decree."

“That man in Chenzhou is stubborn and inflexible. I’d better go there myself to avoid him disobeying the imperial decree.”

The Emperor waved his hand dismissively: "Go, take a few more guards with you, so your mother won't worry."

"Father, rest assured, I will definitely protect myself."

Lu Ziqian stood in a corner of the imperial study, listening to the conversation between the father and son. His face turned ashen with anger, and his fists clenched tightly.

He couldn't even control his temper and rushed up to beat Chu Zhongyuan.

Unfortunately, he is now just a ghost, filled with anger but unable to do anything about it.

He can't even crush an ant, let alone hit someone.

It turned out that the reason he hadn't received reinforcements was because the route to Chenzhou had been changed.

With just a few casual words, the father and son decided the lives of tens of thousands of soldiers in the Lu family army.

The soldiers' horrific experience of gnawing on tree bark, digging up tree roots, and eating corpses was all because of a few words from Chu Zhongyuan!

He hated it, and he wanted to avenge his soldiers with his own hands!

His soul involuntarily followed Chu Zhongyuan.

Chu Zhongyuan personally delivered the imperial edict to Chenzhou, who, as expected, disobeyed the edict.

He was forced to lead his troops to support Marquis Jing'an only after Chu Zhongyuan threatened him with his family.

"Jiaojiao, it was I who caused the deaths of 30,000 Lu family soldiers."

“I hate myself for being so powerless; I can’t change anything.”

Although he knew Su Yujiao couldn't hear anything, he still poured out his grievances to her.

Su Yujiao turned and left, and the scene changed, and he actually followed Su Yujiao to Hutou Pass.

A year ago, he occupied most of the Jin Kingdom and even reached the Jin capital.

Unexpectedly, in just six months, the Jin army has once again forced their way to Hutou Pass!

Lu Ziqian saw that the Marquis of Jing'an was feasting, with his tent filled with delicacies and beautiful women accompanying him.

This doesn't look like a war at all; it's clearly a sightseeing trip.

"My lord, the military rations sent by the imperial court are all old and rotten rice, much of it is moldy, and the soldiers are all suffering from severe stomach pains after eating them."

Marquis Jing'an was drinking a toast with the beautiful woman beside him when he impatiently waved his hand and said, "Go away, wash it several times before putting it in the pot."

"From now on, there's no need to report such trivial matters."

"But……"

"Get lost, don't disturb my enjoyment."

Seeing that Marquis Jing'an didn't care about the lives of his soldiers, Lu Ziqian's face darkened with anger.

He followed the deputy general to the supply depot, and before they even got close, they could smell a stench of decay and mold.

Was the rice soaked in water? How could it have become so moldy?

"Lieutenant General, what did the Marquis say?"

"This rice is completely inedible; eating too much of it will kill you." The military doctor grabbed a handful of moldy rice, his face full of worry.

Lu Ziqian glanced at it and realized it was more serious than he had imagined.

All the rice grains were covered with yellowish-green mold; if you didn't tell him it was rice, he would have thought it was hairy wheat.

How can anyone eat this? It's deadly!

Marquis Jing'an must have embezzled military rations to be so nonchalant about it.

If the imperial court had actually sent him this kind of rice, he would have already submitted eight hundred memorials to the capital.

Now that he's turning a blind eye, one can only say that he's benefited from it, not only refusing to report it but also trying to cover it up.

As for those powerless and lowly soldiers, even if they were to die, they would have no way to plead for help and could only die in vain.

Afterwards, his soul followed Su Yujiao to many places and saw many scenes.

The soldiers of the Great Ming Kingdom were weakened by the decaying rice, and the Jin Kingdom took the opportunity to open the gates, resulting in a defeat for the Marquis of Jing'an.

Chu Zhongyuan personally led his troops to turn the tide and repel the Jin army.

Afterwards, Chu Zhongyuan collected evidence of the embezzlement of military funds by the Minister of Revenue and the Marquis of Jing'an, and obtained a list of embezzlers from the Minister of Revenue.

The corrupt officials on the list, whose secrets were in the hands of the Third Prince, all became his men, and used them to undermine the Crown Prince in court.

The crown prince was framed and deposed, and imprisoned in the palace.

The Eighth Princess and the Tenth Princess were kidnapped and violated by remnants of the previous dynasty, dying tragically. The Empress lost all three of her children, suffered a mental breakdown, went insane, was deposed, and imprisoned in the deep palace.

The crown prince fled the palace, raised an army in rebellion, and was killed by a hail of arrows.

Subsequently, the Emperor made Consort Jing Empress, and the Third Prince successfully became Crown Prince.

Two years later, the emperor abdicated, and Chu Zhongyuan ascended the throne, becoming the supreme ruler.

Upon seeing this scene, Lu Ziqian broke out in a cold sweat and suddenly woke up from his dream.