When the people present heard that the commander of the imperial army that was going to punish them was actually the eunuch Wang Zhen, they were all shocked.
They then showed expressions of shock and disbelief, followed by a look of joy on their faces.
Li Qin's advisor, Gu Deyuan, even stepped forward and said:
"Upon ascending the throne, that foolish emperor actually entrusted hundreds of thousands of troops to a eunuch."
Heaven truly helps the general.
We are certain to win this battle.
In this battle, our soldiers were superior to the enemy's, and our generals and officers were a thousand times, ten thousand times better than that eunuch Wang Zhen.
In this battle, our soldiers and generals are superior to the enemy's; how could we possibly lose?
Gu Deyuan then came out again to give the generals an analysis and comparison.
To others, it seemed as if they had already secured victory.
This completely pushed the atmosphere in the hall to its peak.
It seemed that defeating the imperial army of hundreds of thousands and capturing the capital was already within their grasp.
Looking at the generals before him, Li Qin, taking advantage of their high morale, addressed them:
"This battle will be fought around Shanhaiguan, and there are two wing cities, one to the north and one to the south of Shanhaiguan."
They are the wings of Shanhaiguan Pass to the north and south, and cannot be lost; therefore, it is necessary to send generals from all sides to guard them.
As he spoke, Li Qin looked at the generals in front of him, and finally focused his gaze on two people, namely Liu Chenghui and Wang Taihe.
Finally, Li Qin took a few steps forward, stood in front of the two men, and said:
"You two are both our trusted generals, so we will entrust the North and South Wing Cities to you."
I will allocate over ten thousand soldiers to the two generals to guard the northern and southern flanks of the city.
After hearing Li Qin's words, the two stood up and said to him:
"This humble general will never fail to live up to the high expectations of his superiors."
While Li Qin was making arrangements, in the capital...
Zhu Qizhen made his thirteen-year-old son, Zhu Jianshen, the crown prince.
He then ordered his younger brother, Zhu Qiyu, to oversee the country, with cabinet ministers assisting him.
He then led more than 200,000 soldiers from the capital and began to set off in succession, marching in a grand procession towards Shanhaiguan.
At the heart of the army, the dragon banner of the Great Wu Emperor fluttered in the wind, proving that the emperor was also among the troops.
At this moment, Emperor Zhu Qizhen of the Great Wu sat in his dragon carriage, swaying and heading towards Shanhaiguan.
However, he showed no concern for the impending war.
Instead, he was playing games with several palace maids.
Standing beside him was Wang Zhen, the supreme commander of the army that had set out on this expedition.
Wang Zhen stood carefully by his side, serving the emperor, Zhu Qizhen, for fear that he might not be happy.
After having a good time, Zhu Qizhen looked at Wang Zhen beside him and said nonchalantly:
"Wang Daban, this time we quelled the rebellion of Li Qin and avenged my son."
As the commander-in-chief of the army, you naturally have military merits.
That way I can bestow upon you the title of Duke or Marquis.
You'll be there to protect me then.
Those intellectuals don't need to keep chattering in my ear.
Upon hearing that the emperor intended to bestow upon him the title of duke or marquis, the eunuch's eyes widened instantly.
It should be noted that there has never been a precedent in this dynasty for a eunuch to be granted the title of noble.
He believed that only after he led his army to quell Li Qin's rebellion this time would his power rise to a new level.
She then immediately bowed to Zhu Qizhen and said, "This servant has no merit whatsoever. It was all Your Majesty's imperial might that boosted the morale of the soldiers and enabled us to quell the rebellion of Li."
Upon hearing Wang Zhen's words, Zhu Qizhen laughed heartily and patted Wang Zhen on the shoulder.
During their conversation, the two seemed to completely disregard Li Qin.
It was as if Li Qin's head was within easy reach.
However, the soldiers accompanying the emperor outside the imperial carriage suffered greatly.
Because the emperor and the army's commander, Wang Zhen, were always playing games and having fun inside the imperial carriage.
There was absolutely no coordination or deployment of the army.
This resulted in the army setting off.
However, the hundreds of thousands of troops were in great disarray during their march due to the lack of unified command.
After all, the human population is boundless, let alone an army of more than 200,000.
Including the laborers who transported grain for them, that numbered over 300,000.
Coordinating more than 300,000 people requires extremely high abilities.
This includes determining which army is in front and which is behind on a road, and how to provide cover and reinforcements if they encounter the enemy.
Soldiers' armor weighs dozens of kilograms; they can't possibly wear it while traveling. Where do they keep their armor?
We can't expect the soldiers to carry it themselves. They'd be exhausted after just a few dozen miles, let alone be able to fight. So someone has to carry it for them.
This requires auxiliary soldiers and laborers to carry it for them, but where do the people carrying the armor go?
How far away should we be from the soldiers?
Wait, there are too many big problems, and also small problems that need to be solved.
Although there are renowned generals like Zhang Fu outside, they can only rely on their prestige to solve minor problems at most.
Even when faced with those big problems, he had perfect solutions.
However, he was not the commander of the army, and the decision-making power was not in his hands.
He must find the army's commander, Wang Zhen, and let him make this decision.
Because he was the only one in this army personally appointed by the emperor.
At this moment, Zhang Fu led his generals to kneel before Zhu Qizhen's imperial carriage, requesting that Wang Zhen, the commander-in-chief of the three armies, come out and command the troops.
Zhang Fu, with a head full of white hair, handed a bag of silver to a young eunuch and said with a fawning expression:
“Father-in-law, we didn’t bring much money with us when this army went to war. Please take these first.”
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