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◎Warm and delicate, it is also what he longs for day and night.◎
Because the two princes had gone to change their clothes, according to the distance between them and the little princess's tent when they met, Zhang Su could go in first.
But he stopped outside the tent and waited for Hou Wanzhong, Deng Kun and the other five people behind him.
When all six people arrived and were informed, Jie Yu lifted the curtain and invited them in.
Although Hou Wanzhong held no title, he was one of the four commanders of the Beijing Camp. He and Deng Kun, the Duke of Dingguo who inherited his father's title, stood on the left and right of him at the front. Of course, there was room left for the two princes in the front.
Fu Kui's official position was ordinary among the others, but he was the distinguished son-in-law of the emperor, standing directly behind Hou Wanzhong. Deng Kun and Qin Liang were cousins, and both were disliked by Yongkang. Before the Fu family was stripped of their titles, Fu Kui dared to do as he pleased, drinking with whomever he pleased. In recent years, he has learned his lesson and no longer dares to offend Yongkang.
Zhang Su took the initiative to stand behind Fu Kui. One was the grand consort and the other was the future consort. It was not wrong to arrange them this way.
Meng Changhe held a higher official position than Cheng Zhixu, so there was no need for him to be polite and give way to him. The two of them stood behind Deng Kun, one in front and one behind.
After everything was arranged, Deng Kun, noticing Hou Wanzhong had no intention of speaking, asked first, "What orders does the princess have?"
Deng Kun had received a lesson from the little princess when she was nine years old. Although they had seldom interacted with each other in recent years, the little princess always scolded Prince Yong so much during the day that he could no longer act like an uncle. Naturally, Deng Kun did not dare to be careless anymore.
Qingyang: "Please wait a moment. We will talk together when Prince Yong and Prince Jing arrive."
Deng Kun didn't think much about it. Only Zhang Su and Hou Wanzhong, who noticed that the two princes were walking back from the little princess's side, guessed what had happened.
After a while, two hurried footsteps were heard outside. Jie Yu, who was guarding the curtain, waited patiently until he heard the message from the personal guards and the little princess behind the main seat nodded. Then Jie Yu lifted the curtain and led the two princes in.
Qin Bing and Prince Yong both wore armor. After coming in, they looked at Deng Kun and Fu Kui who were only wearing black battle suits. Seeing that both of them were there, the uncle and nephew exchanged glances quickly. It turned out that wearing battle suits was okay, but the other four were too serious, including the little princess who was also wearing armor.
"It's so early in the morning, and the kitchen just started cooking. What's going on?"
Standing in front of Hou Wanzhong, King Yong curiously asked his niece if he could have slept for another quarter of an hour if his niece had not passed on the message.
Qingyang first granted seats to Prince Yong and Hou Wanzhong, and gave Hou Wanzhong the proper respect as a commander according to his military rank.
The six people standing there immediately became two on each side and four on each side. Qin Bing received his sister's signal and cooperated by standing in front of the two princes-in-law.
Qingyang then said, "This Northern Expedition will consist of a force of 400,000 soldiers heading into the Donghu front, but they will also deploy two special forces of 10,000 soldiers to raid the Donghu rear. General Hou, please explain this to Deng Kun and the other three."
A map had been hung on one side of the tent. Lieutenant General Hou Wan called Deng Kun, Fu Kui, Zhang Su, Meng Changhe, and Cheng Zhixu, who had been kept in the dark, to the front of the map and began to explain it in a low voice.
Qingyang observed the expressions of the five people and found that except for Deng Kun, the other four had indeed only learned about this matter today. It was obvious that his eldest brother had not revealed the secret to his eldest sister, and Zhang Jie had not said a word to Zhang Su, who was participating in the battle. As for Deng Kun's words...
Qingyang glanced at the two princes of the Lao Qin family.
Neither the uncle nor the nephew understood the little princess's expression. Qin Bing even whispered to his sister, "Didn't you say we had to keep it a secret?"
He didn't tell Meng Yao about such a big thing, for fear that Meng Yao would worry that he would be in danger if he went deep into the grassland and would be unable to sleep or eat well if he stayed in the capital.
Qingyang understood. Deng Kun had gotten the information from Uncle Wang's big mouth, or perhaps Uncle Wang had told Qin Liang first, and Qin Liang had then told Deng Kun. However, Uncle Wang and Deng Kun were both focused on achieving merit, and for their own safety, they would never spread the news. Logically, Qin Liang wouldn't either, but the emperor had detained Qin Liang temporarily...
After Hou Wanzhong finished speaking, Qingyang temporarily put aside his suspicion of Qin Liang and focused on the present.
Hou Wanzhong took his seat again, and Deng Kun and the other six stood in two rows again. Qingyang looked at the six and asked, "If I send you to lead a surprise attack on the Donghu, do you have a chance of success?"
Qin Bing, Deng Kun, and Fu Kui were all so confident and arrogant that they could win even in the face of danger. Zhang Su, Meng Changhe, and Cheng Zhixu all answered "we will definitely go all out", but the six of them expressed their opinions almost at the same time, which was enough to prove that they all had the courage to go deep into the grassland and were willing to fight this dangerous surprise attack.
Qingyang chose them because she was certain they wouldn't flinch, and the facts proved just as she expected. So she made the arrangements: "The main army will attack from Jizhou via the central route. Then, 10,000 cavalry will be dispatched from Jinzhou and Liaozhou respectively, from the east and west routes to raid the Donghu's rear. The necessary war horses, light armor, and dry food have been prepared in advance by the border troops of the two states. Second brother, Fu Kui, and Zhang Su, you will lead 500 of my personal soldiers directly to Jinzhou. At your speed, you should reach the Jinzhou army by the tenth day of May. Once you arrive, you will personally select 9,500 brave soldiers from the Jinzhou army. I will give you about two months to train and integrate the troops. The specific time to dispatch the troops will be determined upon our information."
"Deng Kun, Meng Changhe, Cheng Zhixu, you will lead 500 personal soldiers to Liaozhou... Remember, with the exception of Generals Chen Sheng and Meng Ji, you are not to reveal any secrets of this battle. This includes your own 10,000 elite soldiers. You will reveal the truth to them once you have reached the grasslands. If your leaks cause the Donghu to prepare in advance, you will be punished by military law even if you return victorious."
The six people obeyed the order in unison!
Prince Yong was unhappy and asked anxiously, "What about me? It was agreed that I would..."
Qingyang: "Uncle Wang is one of the most renowned generals of Great Qi. We believe that the Donghu already know the candidates for the main generals of Great Qi for this battle. Therefore, Uncle Wang must accompany the army to avoid arousing the Donghu's suspicion."
Hou Wanzhong nodded.
The more reasonable the words seemed, the angrier Prince Yong became. He glared and said, "Then I've come all this way for nothing. I've come all this way, only to have to sit there and watch?"
Qingyang's expression was serious. "Our army boasts 400,000 men, but in reality, we'll need to leave about 60,000 in the three states to continue guarding the borders, and 100,000 soldiers will be allocated to transport weapons and rations. Add to that 20,000 special forces, and we only have 220,000 men capable of actual combat, and most of them will be infantry. The King of Donghu is ambitious and very likely will advance instead of retreat, proactively deploying troops to attack us. This way, not only will Uncle Wang have something to fight, but he'll also be the anchor of our 200,000-man army."
After a day of scolding, Prince Yong was suddenly praised so highly by his niece that he almost laughed out loud. He shifted his hips and swayed his body. Prince Yong frowned to appear deep and steady: "That being said, what if the King of Donghu is a coward and doesn't dare to attack us?"
He, together with Chen Sheng, Meng Ji, Guo Yanqing and Hou Wanzhong, could indeed scare the King of Donghu.
Qingyang: "The enemy retreats and we advance. With sentries exploring the way, we always encounter a few groups of Hu soldiers. Because of the limited food and grass, we cannot linger in the battle, but it is not impossible to fight."
The fear of marching into the grasslands was that the battle line was too long and food supplies would be wasted, but this time Da Qi had made two preparations and would definitely not return empty-handed.
Satisfied that there was a war to be fought, King Yong no longer objected to his niece's arrangement for Qin Bing, Deng Kun and the other six.
Qingyang gave the six men some more instructions. When he heard the faint sounds of the 100,000 soldiers waking up and moving around outside, he finished explaining everything he needed to say. Finally, he said, "Second brother, Zhang Su, stay."
Zhang Su stepped aside and let Prince Yong and others leave.
Qin Bing asked casually, "What else?"
Fu Kui, who was part of Qin Bing and Zhang Su's Jinzhou special forces group, secretly slowed down his pace of departure, feeling uneasy. He was the only one among the three who was not left behind. Could it be that because his father was suspected of collaborating with the enemy in the past, the little princess asked Qin Bing and Zhang Su to be wary of him?
Then, Fu Kui heard the little princess' voice: "We are about to leave, please share breakfast with me."
Fu Kui: “…”
.
With fewer people, the main tent in Qingyang seemed spacious and quiet.
Qin Bing glanced at Zhang Su, who stood aside with his eyes lowered, then at his sister, whose armor only enhanced her heroic spirit without diminishing her beauty. He smiled and teased her, "Actually, you just wanted to stay with Zhang Su for a while longer, leaving me to cover for you, right?"
Qingyang: "Second brother, if you think so, it means you don't miss me at all."
Qin Bing gestured for Zhang Su to take Hou Wanzhong's seat. He sat next to his uncle and looked at his sister. "That's impossible. I just wanted to tell you something. The three thousand personal soldiers were assigned by the emperor to protect you. Why would you give us one thousand? When we get to Jinzhou and Liaozhou, each state has a hundred thousand border troops. Will we be able to find ten thousand elite soldiers?"
Choosing 9,500 is a choice, choosing 10,000 is also a choice, there is not much difference.
Zhang Su also looked at the little princess sitting in the main seat. He knew what the little princess meant, but he hoped that she would have more trusted soldiers around her.
Qingyang: "I have an army of 200,000 men. If danger strikes, 2,000 personal soldiers are more than enough to protect my retreat. You, on the other hand, are unfamiliar with the border troops. Bringing 500 personal soldiers who are fully obedient to orders will help us gather the newly selected border troops more quickly. We only have three months to train the troops, so we should do it as quickly as possible. The most important thing is to complete the military order."
Qin Bing became more and more impressed by his sister. She really considered everything carefully. He had confidence but never thought about such details.
The food was delivered from the kitchen, with a large pancake and a big bowl of vegetable porridge for each person.
Qin Bing buried his head and started eating.
Qingyang looked at Zhang Su and saw that he was also looking at her.
Qingyang smiled at him. Of the Liaozhou surprise force, Deng Kun was brave, while Cheng Zhixu and Meng Changhe were both calm and strategic. Meng Changhe was also the son of a noble family. Together, the two, along with her chosen personal guards and Meng Ji's Liaozhou troops, were more than enough to suppress Deng Kun. On the Jinzhou side, her second brother and Fu Kui were more courageous than strategic, but she believed Zhang Su alone could hold them both accountable.
This battle is crucial to both Da Qi and her. The more Qingyang trusts Zhang Su, the more he should send him to do what he should do.
As for their love affairs, they still have plenty of time after marriage.
After the meal, Qingyang escorted the two men out of the tent.
Qin Bing was walking in front. Just as Qin Bing's figure disappeared and the curtain fell, just as Zhang Su was about to lift the curtain with his back to the little princess, a pair of arms suddenly came around from behind and hugged his waist tightly.
Zhang Su's right hand hovered in the air, and his bound body was as stiff as a rock.
Qingyang leaned against his hard and cool back armor and whispered, "Come back safely. I'm waiting to marry you."
She knew that Zhang Su should be anxious, but Qingyang had never been anxious. However, she liked him and would miss him. The farther away they were, the more she missed him.
Zhang Su's left hand covered the little princess's hand, which was warm and delicate, and what he had been thinking about day and night.
I never had these extravagant thoughts when I was a child, but the older I get these past two years, the harder it is to control myself.
But King Jing had already gone out, and if he didn't leave, it would arouse King Jing's suspicion.
"Yes, Your Highness, please take care."
Zhang Su slowly grabbed the little princess's hand, took her to the side, let go, and then walked away through the curtain without looking back.
【Author’s words】
Here they come, 100 little red envelopes, see you tomorrow!
ps: Keep asking for nutrient solution, [kiss][kiss][kiss]
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