The Yangtze River is a natural barrier, located on the north bank of Nanjing.

The 180,000 elite new army marched south to defend the emperor and set up camp on the north bank of the Yangtze River.

Looking out from a high vantage point, one can already vaguely see the outline of the magnificent architectural complex of Nanjing.

General Wu Sanjia, accompanied by his two lieutenants Zhao Kui and Tang Ziyi, arrived at the ferry and gazed at Nanjing City across the wide river.

At this point, eight months had passed since Wu Sanjia left Jinling City.

When we left, the Yangtze River was in its dry season; when we returned, it was in its high-water season.

This river, hundreds of meters wide, had now become the final insurmountable barrier for Wu Sanjia to return to Jinling City and stand at the pinnacle of power in the Great Xin Dynasty.

"General, we are now in the summer flood season, and the Yangtze River is swollen. Many of the soldiers in my Tiger Warrior Army are from the north and are not familiar with swimming."

Vice Admiral Zhao Kui said eloquently, "It seems that the only hope for crossing the river to the capital to defend the emperor can be placed on the naval commander Fang Tianyao."

"This humble general has heard that Fang Tianyao held the Emperor and Empress Dowager hostage, forcing the Emperor to issue an edict bestowing upon him the title of King of the Four Seas, only then allowing the Emperor and Empress Dowager to board a ship for refuge;"

snort!

At this point, Zhao Kui snorted disdainfully and continued, "I don't know what's wrong with this world these days. How can someone like Fang Tianyao, who comes from an island, be made a king?"

"And the Great General first fought valiantly in Ying and Mo prefectures, desperately resisting the southward-bound rebel army from Longcheng;"

"Now, he has been ordered to rush a thousand miles to the capital to defend the emperor, yet he has only been given the position of a general commanding all the troops in the country. This is simply unbelievable!"

"Yes, General!"

Tang Ziyi, the former garrison commander of Yingzhou who had just been promoted to deputy general, also chimed in, "General Zhao is absolutely right!"

"Our Tiger Warriors fought all the battles along the way, but when it came time to reward merit, it was opportunists like Fang Tianyao who got the upper hand. What right does a bandit from an island have to be made a king?"

"Moreover, this fellow knows perfectly well that my Tiger-like New Army needs the assistance of his naval fleet to cross the formidable Yangtze River as it marches south to defend the capital;"

"As a result, as soon as our army arrived, that scoundrel Fang Tianyao actually ordered all the warships to be sailed to Shanghai, and even brought the Emperor and Empress Dowager with them to the naval camp in Shanghai;"

"With him doing this, what's the point of our Tiger Legion New Army marching into the capital or serving the emperor?"

In the matter of denouncing Admiral Fang Tianyao, the two former deputy generals of the Tiger Army, who were originally at odds, surprisingly shared a common hatred and stood on the same side.

The story of how Tang Ziyi, the garrison commander of Yingzhou in the Central Plains, was promoted to deputy general of the Tiger Warriors New Army is quite dramatic.

Back then, outside Jinan, General Wu Sanjia personally led several hundred personal guards, single-handedly venturing into Jinan to pave the way for the Tiger Warriors' new army to march south.

Zhao Kui, the deputy general of the Tiger Army who had abandoned the city and fled, led several thousand remaining soldiers in pursuit.

This prompted Tang Ziyi, who had long coveted the position of deputy general of the Tiger Warriors, to immediately decide to kill Zhao Kui. He even dispatched elite infantry and cavalry to surround Zhao Kui and several thousand remaining soldiers, intending to execute Zhao Kui on the spot on charges of desertion.

Just as the Tiger Legion archers surrounding Zhao Kui and his men were about to shoot them to death with a hail of arrows, General Wu Sanjia finally arrived.

Next, when faced with the question of how to deal with Zhao Kui, the deputy general who had abandoned Mozhou City without authorization, Wu Sanjia, considering his past merits and hard work, and the fact that it was a time when people were needed, gave Zhao Kui a chance to redeem himself through meritorious service.

At the same time, Wu Sanjia also realized Tang Ziyi's motives in this matter, so he took advantage of the situation and promoted Tang Ziyi to the position of deputy general of the Tiger Warriors New Army, to assist him in handling important military affairs together with Zhao Kui.

This also allows the two to supervise each other, thus ensuring that they are loyal to each other wholeheartedly.

Let's get back to the main topic.

When faced with his two lieutenants' angry rebuke of Admiral Fang Tianyao, Wu Sanjia's face still held the same calm and collected expression as before.

He simply stated, "This naval admiral, Fang Tianyao, transferred all of my naval warships away when my elite army reached the natural barrier of the Yangtze River."

"It's nothing more than not releasing the hawk until you see the rabbit, hoping to reap the benefits without doing anything."

"His attempt to take the Emperor and Empress Dowager hostage to the naval camp in Shanghai was nothing more than a way to use the Emperor to command the other lords and thus make his naval officers and soldiers invincible."

After a pause, Wu Sanjia continued, "This general suspects that if the Tiger-Brave New Army could raise its own warships and cross the natural barrier of the Yangtze River to stabilize the situation in Nanjing;"

"Therefore, Admiral Fang Tianyao will certainly personally escort the Emperor and Empress Dowager back to the capital from Shanghai before the overall situation is settled."

"If Qin Ruhui and his newly formed armies from the Hunan and Hubei regions gain the upper hand and install Zhao Lingzhan, the son of the Prince of Daxin, as the new emperor;"

"Therefore, Admiral Fang Tianyao will still personally escort the Emperor and Empress Dowager back to Nanjing after the overall situation in the country has been settled."

"However, it was sent back to Qin Ruhui in exchange for ensuring that his throne as the King of the Four Seas and the interests of his naval forces would not be violated!"

hehe!

At this point, Wu Sanjia sneered twice and said, "This Great Xin Dynasty was ruined by countless black sheep like Qin Ruhui and Fang Tianyao."

"Half of the northern territory has already fallen into the hands of the traitorous minister Chen Huai'an, yet these civil and military officials in the court are still betraying each other and fighting to the death because of factional interests!"

"Little did they know, all their infighting here would only benefit that traitorous Chen Huai'an in the end!"

Wu Sanjia's words were filled with resentment, yet also seemed to express helplessness.

Along his journey, he witnessed nothing but infighting and backstabbing among the civil and military officials of the Great Xin Dynasty.

Many times, he began to doubt whether he, Wu Sanjia, could single-handedly pull the crumbling Xin Dynasty back on track.

After hearing Wu Sanjia's words, his two lieutenants also fell silent.

Aside from being able to vent their anger verbally and denounce these bad apples of the new dynasty, they seemed to be able to do nothing else.

Just like the city of Nanjing, which is so close at the edge of the view, yet is blocked by the turbulent Yangtze River.

"Report—"

"Reporting to the General, an urgent report from Jinan Prefecture!"

Suddenly, a messenger galloped up on horseback and dismounted before he could even rein in his horse.

Then, kneeling beside Wu Sanjia, he reported: "Chang Yuchun, Deputy Marshal of the Longcheng Army and General of the Southern Expedition, has led 150,000 Longcheng troops to the gates of Jinan Prefecture."

"Wu Qidong, the garrison commander of Jinan Prefecture, reports that the garrison of Jinan Prefecture can hold the city for another year or two. He hopes that the General will return to Jinan Prefecture immediately after quelling the chaos in Jinling!"