Because the Jiannu retreated without a fight, the Ming army took Yizhou without bloodshed.

When Li Xingzhong led his troops into Yizhou City, he found that the city was full of ruins.

Not to mention a decent house, it’s hard to find even a slightly intact wall.

There was not a single living person.

The main force of the Ming army did not stop, but went straight through the city and set up camp on the bank of the Daling River.

They saw Jiannu soldiers on the other side of the river.

After cursing each other across the river, the two sides returned to their camps to eat and rest.

"Report! Li Xingzhong took Yizhou without bloodshed!"

When the messenger told Wang Yongji the news, he sat in his chair in a daze for a long time.

Not only he was stunned, but all the generals in the central army were stunned.

"Why did the Jiannu retreat without fighting?" Huang Degong was puzzled.

"It's normal to avoid war out of fear of our military's might." Gao Yigong tried to explain.

"It's not that simple," Wang Yongji felt something was wrong and said cautiously, "Wait a few days and see what happens."

In the following days, Li Xingzhong did not cross the river to attack.

The Jiannu did not cross the river to counterattack.

The two sides confronted each other across the river, and the war situation in Yizhou seemed to have stabilized.

After putting down Li Xingzhong's document, Wang Yongji was caught in a dilemma.

Li Xingzhong first reported the confrontation in an official document, and then asked Wang Yongji about his next plan.

There are only two plans.

One is to cross the Daling River and push the front line further north?

Another option was to repair the city wall of Yizhou while the main army was there, then leave some troops to defend it and transfer Li Xingzhong's main force back to attack Guangning.

The problem is, both plans have problems.

First, the first plan.

A hundred miles further north from Yizhou is the vast Mongolian grassland.

Not only would it be meaningless to advance the front line there, but it would also result in the loss of the natural barrier of the Daling River.

It's simply not worth it.

The second plan was even more problematic.

Three walls of Yizhou City were destroyed and it would take at least a month to repair them.

In other words, the main force under Li Xingzhong had to stay in Yizhou for a month.

He can't wait!

However, without Li Xingzhong's cavalry, Wang Yongji was not sure of defeating Jirgalang.

Secondly, even if the city walls were repaired, a certain number of cavalry would have to be left behind to guard against the Mongolian cavalry.

After all, the Mongols were good at bypassing cities and plundering deep into the hinterland.

He didn't want enemies to appear behind him when attacking Guangning.

After careful consideration, Wang Yongji gave Li Xingzhong an order.

"The Governor has ordered us to cross the Daling River and drive the Jiannu northward." Li Xingzhong passed the order down after receiving it.

Two days later, the well-prepared Ming army began to cross the river.

The Mongolian cavalry on the other side of the river only made a symbolic harassment and then began to retreat.

The Ming army drove northward according to plan.

The Mongolian cavalry did not engage in battle at all.

The Ming army chased them and they ran.

When the Ming army stopped, they stopped too.

When the Ming army retreated, they chased after them like leeches on their bones.

Time passed quickly as they pulled each other back and forth like this.

Faced with this situation, Li Xingzhong had no choice but to ask Wang Yongji for help.

Wang Yongji is under a lot of pressure.

It would have been bad enough that they failed to make any progress throughout the winter, but after the spring, their offensive was slowed down by the Mongols.

A hundred thousand soldiers and horses consumed thousands of stones of food and fodder every day.

He didn't dare to continue wasting time.

But the problem was that although he had a lot of soldiers, he didn't have enough cavalry.

The vast Liaohe Plain was the world of cavalry.

In order to solve the current dilemma, Wang Yongji had to risk impeachment and submit a petition requesting additional troops, and specifically requested cavalry.

He would rather be impeached than fight a battle he is not sure of winning.

When Wang Yongji's petition was sent to the Ministry of War, the entire ministry was in an uproar.

"What? Wang Yongji led 130,000 infantry and cavalry plus 30,000 navy, and asked for reinforcements less than a year after leaving the country. Isn't this too abnormal?" Zhang Boxing, the left vice minister of the Ministry of War, slammed the table and roared.

"It's definitely not normal! As far as I know, the Ping Liao army didn't suffer heavy casualties. Now they're suddenly asking for reinforcements. I'm afraid the request for reinforcements is fake, but the real request is to keep the troops for their own benefit!" said Meng Ling, the right assistant minister of the Ministry of War.

"Now is the critical period for pacifying Liao, so don't talk nonsense!" Minister of War Wang Jiayan reminded loudly.

"Your Excellency Shangshu is wrong," Meng Ling retorted, "Wang Yongji is away from home and cannot obey the orders of the emperor! As your Majesty's subjects, we should remind your Majesty to be on guard. I will not only say what I just said here, but also in the court!"

The next morning, early morning court session.

Because Wang Yongji made no progress and suddenly asked for more troops.

The Ministry of War took the lead in impeaching his actions.

"Your Majesty, Wang Yongji has his own army and is self-reliant. Please dismiss him and punish him!" Meng Ling, the assistant minister of the Ministry of War, took up the banner of impeaching Wang Yongji.

"I second the motion."

"I second this motion." Seven or eight ministers expressed their opinions one after another.

There are people from the Ministry of War, the Ministry of Revenue, and the Censorate among them.

The time has come to test Chongzhen.

If he showed any hesitation, all the civil and military officials in the court would immediately launch a saturation impeachment against Wang Yongji.

This is the most basic ability to read people's expressions.

But there are exceptions.

Although the cabinet chief Fan Jingwen had some doubts about Wang Yongji's behavior, he still supported him as always.

After all, Wang Yongji was the person he recommended.

If Wang Yongji was arrested, he would also be implicated.

"The Ping Liao army has neither lost the battle nor suffered any casualties. Impeaching Wang Yongji at this time is simply nonsense!" Chongzhen made a conclusion on the matter.

"But Your Majesty..." Meng Ling wanted to say something.

"Let's end this matter here and don't mention it again!" Chongzhen shouted harshly.

Unless Wang Yongji betrays the country, he must trust Wang Yongji.

If news of distrust of Wang Yongji spread at this time, conflicts within the Ping Liao army would erupt.

The generals and soldiers in the army will also lose their fighting spirit, leading to the demoralization of the army!

"Your Majesty," Fan Jingwen said promptly, "I think we can transfer 5,000 cavalry from Gao Jie to Liaodong for support."

"Five thousand cavalry may not be enough!" said Wang Jiayan, the Minister of War. "Although Wang Yongji did not specify how many cavalry he wanted in the official document, his words clearly indicated that the more the better."

"Although 5,000 cavalry are not many, they are enough to deal with the upcoming battle of Guangning!" Fan Jingwen paused, "In addition, the Shandong uprising has been quelled, and the cavalry under Li Dingguo can be transferred to Liaodong, leaving only the infantry in the area to deter the remnants of the rebels."

Chongzhen did not object, but reminded: "Let's do as you say about the troop deployment. What I want to talk about is the issue of money and grain! Last year, Song Quan went south to inspect the salt industry and solved the deficit last year. This year, there will probably be a deficit again. You have to think about how to make up for the deficit!"

Fan Jingwen glanced around and took the lead in saying, "Your Highness, we will obey your command," amid the envious and jealous gazes of the other ministers.