Because the King of Chu had transferred his men away, many tents on the island were empty and there was no one there, so the three teams moved very quickly.
And because the other side never expected anyone to sneak into the military camp, even the patrolling soldiers found a place to sleep leaning against each other.
The three hundred elite soldiers ruthlessly slaughtered the rebels as if they were in an empty field. If one of them hadn't gotten up in the middle of the night and noticed something was wrong, they probably would have all been killed by Guard Zhang without them even realizing it.
However, they were discovered rather late, and Mr. Huo had already led his men into the military camp.
Gu Yuzhi was utterly shocked, her mouth agape wide enough to fit an egg.
He had never seen the Northern Desert Army under Bai Jiwu's command, but he had seen it after General Lu took command of the Northern Desert Army.
Not to mention the at least four people on guard at the gate, there were also four people on the watchtower.
There are four patrol teams in the military camp, each responsible for their own area. They change shifts every hour, and each shift has a specific code word. The code word changes about once a week.
Even at the end of the 1-3 AM time, when people are at their most exhausted, as Mr. Huo mentioned, the patrolling soldiers were still full of energy.
General Lu also established very strict military regulations. If any soldier was found to be slacking off during patrol, he would be punished with ten strokes of the military rod.
Gu Yuzhi had seen the military batons used by the Northern Desert Army; they were thick and heavy.
Even though he had exercised, it was still very difficult for him to hold that military baton.
Ten solid strokes of the military rod could leave the punished person with torn and bleeding skin.
He scratched his head and said, "Is it because these people are too relaxed, or because..."
Gu Yuzhi thought for a moment and said, "Or is it because they are inherently like this?"
If the private army led by the King of Chu is like this, then wouldn't they be nothing to fear?
The thought of these soldiers being utterly incapable of fighting and getting beaten so badly when they fought against them made Gu Yuzhi want to cover his mouth and chuckle to himself.
The young prince's expression was too easy to guess. Mr. Huo saw through it at a glance and coughed lightly, saying, "The main reason we were able to win this great victory was because the other side lowered their guard."
Chief Secretary Xie nodded and said, "Yes, there were more than 6,000 people on Houhu Island. Apart from those annihilated on the spot, we captured 3,000 rebels. The preliminary count before we came showed that there were 1,000 former Jiangnan naval troops."
At this point, both Xie Changshi and Mr. Huo looked rather unwell.
It was only after capturing many naval forces on Houhu Island that they truly realized that the King of Chu had indeed turned his navy into his own private army.
After this matter is over, it is still unknown who the Emperor will ultimately send to take command of the navy.
With so many private soldiers, it's impossible to kill them all; the most likely scenario is that they will be incorporated into the army...
Chief Secretary Xie's mind raced, several names flashing through his mind before finally settling on the Duke of Qi.
Based on his understanding of the Emperor, Qi Chengjun, the heir apparent, would eventually return to the capital and join the cabinet. In his opinion, the Duke of Qi, the heir apparent's father, was the most suitable person to lead the navy.
However, Xie Changshi could not tell the young prince about these matters. After all, the emperor's mind was unpredictable, and he had his own considerations about who he would choose to take over the navy.
When Gu Yuzhi heard that the other party was just careless and not really lacking in strength, he pouted unhappily.
But he soon recalled the two battles during the relief of Huizhou, and realized that the enemy's strength was indeed considerable.
However, his frustration was only momentary, because Chief Secretary Xie said that more than a thousand sailors had been captured.
This thousand, plus the two thousand they had persuaded before, that makes three thousand!
No wonder Mr. Huo said we could launch a counterattack!
Gu Yuzhi's big eyes darted around: "Mr. Huo, where should we attack first? Should we save Jiangzhou and Yangzhou for last?"
It was mentioned before that the garrison in Jiangzhou was probably the largest, and the people of Jiangzhou were likely to be very obedient to the King of Chu, so attacking Jiangzhou first was definitely not a good idea.
Secondly, there's Yangzhou.
On the way here, Xie Changshi had told him about the current situation in several prefectures in Jiangnan. Fan Qiuyuan, the prefect of Yangzhou, was originally the prefect of Lingnan. He was promoted to the position of prefect of Yangzhou by the power of the Prince of Chu. Perhaps the prefect of Yangzhou is very knowledgeable about the Lingnan navy.
Besides Yangzhou, Jiangzhou, and Huizhou, there are six other prefectures...
Gu Yuzhi rested his chin on his hands, thinking with some melancholy, "Could it be that Fan Qiu will talk to my brother, the Prince of Chu, about the Lingnan Navy?"
If that's the case, then wouldn't the Duke of Qi and his group be in danger again?
Chief Secretary Xie stroked his beard and nodded, saying, "Your Highness is right. We do indeed intend to leave Jiangzhou and Yangzhou for last. As for the other six prefectures..."
He paused for a moment and then said, "Does Your Highness still remember the master of Tianquan Manor?"
Gu Yuzhi slapped his forehead and exclaimed, "Oh! I remember! Didn't these three martial arts factions say they wanted to pledge allegiance to me? Where's Guard Zhang...?"
Before setting off for Houhu Island, didn't he send Guard Zhang to investigate these three Jianghu forces?
I wonder if he found out anything yet, and if he did, what was the result?
Just as Gu Yuzhi was about to send someone to fetch Guard Zhang, he heard Mr. Huo say, "Tianquan Manor is located in Yunzhou, which is a vital transportation route connecting Lingnan, so it has not been valued by the King of Chu over the years."
Lingnan is infested with insects and ants, as well as miasma. Over the years, it has been the second most common place for officials to be exiled and prisoners to be exiled, after the northern deserts.
Yunzhou is connected to Lingnan, and the King of Chu avoided it for many years. He never went to Yunzhou, fearing that the insects and miasma from Lingnan would spread to Yunzhou.
The officials of Yunzhou sent gifts to curry favor many times, but were never summoned by the King of Chu. After this happened several times, they understood why.
The King of Chu only wanted his gifts and had no intention of promoting him. Therefore, apart from sending tributes on a daily basis, the Prefect of Yunzhou really did not have much contact with the King of Chu.
According to the owner of Tianquan Villa, the prefect of Yunzhou had already prepared everything in Yunzhou after learning of their arrival. He was a step behind them and would arrive in Huizhou in a couple of days.
Chief Secretary Xie continued, "So, barring any unforeseen circumstances, it should be the remaining five prefectures. With three thousand naval troops and these three Jianghu forces, taking these five prefectures shouldn't be a problem for us."
Gu Yuzhi's big eyes darted around as he silently made plans in his mind.
Even if the battle in one of the five states ends in a day, plus travel time and rest, it will take at least half a month...
If the Emperor's reinforcements had not arrived by the time half a month had passed, he would suspect that the special passage through which Guard Jiang and the others escorted the Emperor had been bribed by Prince Chu.
Gu Yuzhi secretly patted Xiaobai, thinking that if his elder brother's reinforcements hadn't arrived by half a month, he would send Xiaobai to deliver a message.
If Xiao Bai was able to successfully find Prince Qi before, he should be able to find his elder brother smoothly too, right?
Gu Yuzhi was just thinking when he saw Guard Zhang rush in, his face beaming with undisguised joy...
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