Chapter 513 Smuggling
The emperor sat at the head of the tent, his gaze involuntarily drifting to the map. The eunuch beside him naturally understood what the emperor meant and turned to Commander Wu with a smile.
"Commander, what is the recent situation at Mengjin? Could you please tell His Majesty?"
Commander Wu clasped his hands in a fist and addressed the emperor: “Your Majesty, the King of Chu has about 40,000 troops at the ferry on the other side of the river. They arrived the day before yesterday and should be reorganizing their forces outside the ferry. It seems they will launch a general offensive in the next two days.”
The emperor nodded, then turned to look at the Duke of Jin: "Duke of Jin? How many cases did we bring this time? Let's hand them over to Commander Wu."
Duke Jin stepped forward, clasped his hands in greeting, and a hint of mockery flashed in his eyes. To be honest, he didn't think the emperor could defeat him, nor did he think Commander Wu could stop the King of Chu.
However, since His Majesty is still the same one before him, the Duke of Jin said with a hint of respect, "There are currently 8,000 troops remaining in the capital. After His Majesty transferred 10,000 away, the remaining 20,000 have all come with us. Commander Wu? What do you think?"
Commander Wu frowned. If he remembered correctly, Luoyang had at least 40,000 standing troops. How come the emperor still wouldn't deploy all his forces even now that they had reached Mengjin?
Including the more than 10,000 troops in his city, the total force was barely 30,000. And King Chu was known for his military prowess, so this troop strength was somewhat...
Of course, he didn't dare to actually say these words out loud; he just looked somewhat embarrassed.
"Your Majesty, the 40,000 troops on the other side of the river are just a conservative estimate. There may be other large armies arriving one after another. With the troops here, we will have a total of 30,000 men. Defending the city should not be a problem."
It seems unlikely that they could launch an attack and confront the King of Chu.
The emperor could tell what was going on just by looking at the general's expression, and he smiled reassuringly at Commander Wu.
"Commander Wu, there's no need to be nervous. I'm not good at military matters. It would be good enough if we could hold the city until reinforcements arrive. I won't blame you."
Upon hearing this, Commander Wu silently breathed a sigh of relief: "Thank you for your understanding, Your Majesty."
He had thought that the emperor had come to ask him to lead his army back to fight.
Now that the emperor has said this, he has finally put down a huge weight on his mind. As long as the people here don't interfere in the war or meddle, he is confident that he can hold Mengjin.
After all, His Majesty has already brought reinforcements. More than 30,000 men will have a tough time fighting the enemy, but defending the city shouldn't be a problem.
Commander Wu pondered for a moment, silently calculating where His Majesty had sent the remaining men. He knew the strength of the loyal garrison, and now they were short more than 10,000 men.
Commander Wu's mind raced for a moment, then a thought suddenly flashed through his mind. He hesitated for a moment, glanced at the emperor who seemed to have victory in his grasp, and silently swallowed the words he was about to say.
The King of Chu had already mustered his troops when he heard a report from the other side that night.
"Report! Your Highness! News has arrived from Mengjin City that the Emperor has personally led 20,000 troops on an expedition and has reached Mengjin City!!!"
The King of Chu suddenly stood up from his seat, his eyes filled with disbelief.
"What did you say? The emperor has personally led the expedition?"
The soldier who came to deliver the message knelt on one knee, clasped his hands in a fist and bowed, and earnestly reported to the King of Chu: "Yes, Your Highness, according to the information sent back by our secret agents, the Emperor arrived in Mengjin City early this morning, accompanied by the Duke of Qi, the Duke of Jin, and 20,000 garrison troops from the capital."
Both Qin and Zhao wore expressions of joy. If the emperor himself was leading the expedition, it meant that as long as they captured Mengjin and took the emperor prisoner, they could march straight to the capital!
Both men were somewhat excited and hurriedly knelt down before the King of Chu.
"Your Highness!! This is a golden opportunity! Please give the order immediately, and we shall begin our attack on Mengjin tonight."
"Your Highness! I second that proposal!"
While the emperor is currently in Mengjin, if we can seize the city in one fell swoop, the prince can naturally ascend the throne. However, if we wait two more days and the emperor runs away, it will be much harder to find him.
This will also leave many hidden dangers for his future ascension to the throne.
The King of Chu frowned, seemingly deep in thought. After gesturing for the two to rise, he suddenly said, "I don't think this matter is so simple. Mengjin City currently has 30,000 troops defending it, so it should be safe. However, it will be difficult to take Mengjin in a short time."
Old Qin shook his head: "Your Highness, rest assured, there are many ferry crossings in Mengjin. We have already seized nearly half of the waterways. Half a month is enough time, even if we launch a full-scale attack, to take Mengjin."
Moreover, the emperor is now in the city. As long as Mengjin is captured, the throne will be within the prince's grasp.
Thinking of this, both Qin and Zhao were somewhat excited. After the excitement subsided, the King of Chu suddenly asked, "The garrison in the capital is at least 40,000. If someone were to remain behind, 10,000 troops would be sufficient, but the emperor only brought 20,000..."
The King of Chu looked at Old Qin and Old Zhao: "I think there might be a trap in this matter."
After thinking it over, Lao Qin and Lao Zhao also felt that what their prince said made sense.
It's rather strange that the emperor hasn't sent out all his troops even though they've already reached the gates.
Old Zhao was somewhat unsure: "Could it be that they all stayed in Beijing?"
Old Qin shook his head: "It shouldn't be. Even if we leave people in the capital, it won't do any good. Once Mengjin is captured, it's only a matter of time before we enter Luoyang. The emperor has no need to go to such lengths."
The King of Chu slowly sat down in the chair, picked up a cup of tea and drank it all in one gulp, a hint of doubt flashing in his eyes.
His nephew is probably not so simple either. He suddenly threw out 10,000 troops. Could it be that he went to raid the supply route?
The King of Chu pondered and thought about it carefully, but after a long time he still couldn't figure it out, and he sighed softly.
"Alright, we'll deal with whatever comes our way. Tomorrow morning, we'll follow my plan: one team will launch a feint attack, while the other team will seize the crossing and advance."
Old Qin and Old Zhao quickly accepted the order.
We are preparing to attack Mengjin early tomorrow morning.
Lin Changning was leading his troops and provisions toward the place where the King of Chu was stationed when he suddenly discovered a group of imperial troops who had bypassed the ferry crossing and split into small groups to slowly circle around to the back.
Lin Changning frowned. His intuition told him that this group of people were definitely not up to any good. On guard, Lin Changning hesitated for a moment before leading his men to follow them.
This group of people numbered about 4,000, neither too many nor too few. They seemed to be in a hurry, crossing the river at high speed and heading in one direction.
Judging from the direction, it's neither Weihui nor Shunde.
Lin Changning hesitated for a moment, but ultimately did not pursue. The most urgent task at present was to go to Mengjin, capture Mengjin, and take control of Luoyang.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com