The group continued their journey out of the city, and the sky gradually brightened.
The streets were already packed with onlookers.
"Is this His Majesty's entourage?"
"Oh my, our new emperor is quite diligent. He's only been on the throne for less than a year, and he's already left the palace twice."
Several emperors before Zhu Youjian were all extreme homebodies, only leaving the palace once a year for the purpose of offering sacrifices to Heaven.
By the late Wanli period and the Tianqi era, even this annual tradition had disappeared, which explains why the people of the capital were so surprised.
"So, does this mean our Ming Dynasty has produced a wise ruler?"
Upon hearing this, the other people smiled and shook their heads.
"Your information seems to be outdated. Recently, everyone in the market has been saying that our officers and soldiers suffered a defeat."
The man who had spoken earlier was taken aback: "Then why is the emperor leaving the city now?"
The others sneered.
"What else can we do? Pretend things are fine!"
"Let's go, let's go out of the city and see what's going on!"
Hearing the distant chatter of the people, Shi Kefa gradually calmed down.
He mustered his courage and said to Zhu Youjian:
"If Your Majesty admits your mistake now, you will still have a chance to correct it."
"But if we wait until all the people of the city have left and see the defeated army, it will be too late to regret it!"
Zhu Youjian chuckled softly.
"Oh? Too late to regret?"
"Could it be that you're convinced the imperial troops can't defeat those Jurchens?"
Shi Kefa hesitated for a moment, then nodded and shook his head.
"I have met Li Ruolian and know that he is a capable man, but I really cannot praise the Beijing Garrison under his command."
"If we send Li Ruolian, this fierce tiger, to lead a pack of wolves, they will most likely be no match for the Jurchen tigers."
Wang Chengen, who was serving nearby, immediately frowned:
"How dare you!"
"How could the Jurchens be called a pack of tigers? They were nothing but a bunch of chickens and dogs."
"It's just that our Great Ming Dynasty has too many things to do and hasn't been able to focus its energy on Liaodong, which allowed them to grow so powerful in a short time!"
That's just polite talk; it's completely making a mountain out of a molehill.
Zhu Youjian glared at Wang Chengen with displeasure, thinking to himself:
"Doesn't this lackey know how powerful the Jurchens are? Why does he still say such things!"
In anger, Zhu Youjian spoke directly:
"Nonsense! The Jurchens are a thorn in the side of our Great Ming Dynasty. How could they be so easy to deal with?"
"Shi Kefa is not wrong. If only the Beijing Garrison is sent to fight the Jurchens, they will definitely suffer a great defeat."
"But I made preparations in advance, and with the protection of Heaven, the Mandate of Heaven is on my Great Ming, which is why the Jurchens suffered a great loss."
Shi Kefa was completely confused and didn't understand what Zhu Youjian meant.
However, Zhu Youjian did not underestimate the Jurchens; he understood their intentions.
"Since His Majesty knows the Jurchens' power, he certainly won't act rashly, nor will he send the Beijing Garrison to their deaths."
"So...it's possible that the officers and soldiers really did win this battle?"
"But how is that possible?"
Shi Kefa was in a state of turmoil. He lowered his head and fell into deep thought, no longer daring to argue with Zhu Youjian.
After Zhu Youjian finished speaking, he turned to look at the silent Shi Kefa and suddenly understood why Wang Chengen had said those things.
"This lackey is saying this on purpose, to play along and act as the good cop/bad cop."
"This whole affair has only highlighted my power!"
He chuckled softly at Wang Chengen, "You've gotten quite a bit smarter lately!"
Wang Chengen quickly shook his head and said in a low voice:
"It's all because this servant has been by Your Majesty's side and has been influenced by what you see and hear, that's why I've made some progress."
"Sycophant!" Zhu Youjian chuckled and cursed, but his mood had improved considerably.
After all these events, the group had already left the city gate.
The accompanying officials and ordinary people of the capital also stopped and looked into the distance.
"Where are the imperial soldiers? Have they all deserted, leaving not even a few to fill the ranks?"
"If that's the case, then it would be a real joke!"
Some people were already sneering.
But before their laughter had even subsided, the sound of horses' hooves could be heard.
They looked up and saw a troop of cavalry approaching.
The officials were all somewhat frightened.
"The Beijing garrison doesn't have any cavalry. Where did these cavalrymen come from? Could they be Jurchens?"
"Oh no, we need to get back to the city immediately!"
But someone quickly realized what was happening.
"That's not right. Those cavalrymen are all wearing the flags of our Great Ming Dynasty. How could they be Jurchens?"
The others looked up and realized that what he said was true.
Behind the cavalrymen, as expected, were the flags bearing the inscription "The Sun and the Moon Shine Together".
Zhu Youjian was also somewhat surprised to see this scene.
"Li Ruolian's report said that he had captured a lot of warhorses, but where did these cavalrymen come from?"
At this moment, Luo Yangxing came over and quickly reported:
"Li Ruolian recruited officers who could ride horses from the army, and it seems he also borrowed some people from Shanhaiguan to make up the numbers, which is how he managed to put together these cavalry."
"Although ordinary soldiers don't know how to ride horses, the officers do."
"If we send them into battle, their horsemanship is not good enough, but it's fine to show off."
Zhu Youjian nodded knowingly, a smile playing on his lips, and said, "Li Ruolian is quite thoughtful."
As they were speaking, the cavalry unit had already arrived in front of the column.
Li Ruolian dismounted, bowed, and shouted, "This humble general greets Your Majesty!"
Zhu Youjian walked out laughing and helped Li Ruolian up.
"General Li, there's no need for such formalities. This great victory is all thanks to you, and I will reward you handsomely!"
Li Ruolian quickly shook her head.
"Your Majesty flatters us. The reason we were able to defeat the Jurchens this time was firstly thanks to Master Gao's cannon, and secondly thanks to General Qin's White Spear Soldiers."
"As for this humble general..."
He gave a wry smile: "My troops collapsed almost immediately; it's a complete joke!"
Zhu Youjian wasn't angry; instead, he laughed inwardly: "Haha, if the Beijing Garrison hadn't made a fool of themselves, I wouldn't have any jokes to watch now!"
Just as Li Ruolian was bowing, the white-clad soldiers slowly approached.
The group was carrying over a thousand Jurchen prisoners, all of whom wore ponytails and had exceptionally fierce physiques; they were not fakes at all.
Even the most unwilling person would find it hard to deny it when faced with these prisoners.
"The officers and soldiers actually won?"
"This...how is this possible?!"
Am I dreaming?
Zhu Youjian turned around and carefully examined the expressions of these people, almost bursting out laughing.
He then looked at Shi Kefa.
"Scholar Shi, what do you have to say now?"
Shi Kefa's face kept changing between red and white, and he couldn't speak for a long time.
Seeing this, Zhu Youjian thought that he had at least died for his country in history, so he did not make things difficult for him.
"Alright, you may leave now."
Shi Kefa breathed a sigh of relief, lowered his head in shame, and shrank back into the ranks.
By this time, the people further away could also see what was happening ahead.
At first, they also thought that the court was faking it again, calling a major defeat a major victory.
But when they discovered what had happened, they were actually happy.
"Has the imperial court won the battle?"
"Good! Good! Good!"
"We've finally dealt with the Jurchens!"
Some people even shouted to the white-clad soldiers, "Well done!"
His magnanimity and breadth of vision far surpass those of those ministers.
Not long after, they shouted "Long live the Emperor!" to Zhu Youjian.
Zhu Youjian laughed triumphantly and immediately ordered his troops to return to the palace.
Meanwhile, in the palace, Gao Qingyun suddenly frowned.
What's all that's going on outside?
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