Um?
Holding Chen Lingwu in her arms, Su Wan'er raised an eyebrow. From Chen Longxiang's question about his family background, she had already guessed the identity of the skinny boy in front of her. He should be the younger brother of the current emperor, Chen Huai'an, the Prince of Jin, Chen Longxiang!
In Chen Longxiang's burning gaze, she also saw a hint of tenderness unique to young men in the throes of first love.
Su Wan'er was no innocent, naive girl. Years of life in the harem and her experience of ruling from behind the curtain, coupled with the harsh realities of her months of exile, had forced the young Su Wan'er (twenty-four years old) to become adept at understanding people's hearts, especially the hearts of men who coveted her beauty.
Just as Su Wan'er was pondering how to answer Chen Longxiang's question, the young Chen Lingwu, who was being held in her arms, suddenly called out to Chen Longxiang in a childish voice, "Daddy, hug me!"
After shouting, it stretched out its chubby arms, asking Chen Longxiang for a hug!
Clearly, it was the young Chen Lingwu who mistook Chen Longxiang, who was wearing that set of golden armor, for his godfather Chen Huai'an.
In Chen Lingwu's memory, back when he was at the Jiangyin Daxin Naval Camp, his adoptive father Chen Huai'an had hugged him while wearing this set of golden armor.
The child wasn't shy at all. When he saw Chen Longxiang wearing the same golden armor, he thought it was his father coming to pick him up!
Because after being sent to Jiaozhou City, Chen Lingwu kept clamoring to his mother, Su Wan'er, to find his father.
Left with no other choice, Su Wan'er had to coax and lie to the young Lingwu, telling him that his father was a great general who was fighting on the front lines, and that his father would come to Jiaozhou City to take him home when he grew up.
Under this constant suggestion, young Chen Lingwu mistook Chen Longxiang, who was wearing golden armor, for his father, which is why he asked for a hug in public.
Xiao Lingwu's word "Dad" immediately broke Chen Longxiang's composure, who was trying his best to straighten his back and look like an adult, causing him to blush deeply.
He quickly waved his hand and explained, "Child, I am not your father, my brother is your godfather."
However, the little Lingwu, held in Su Wan'er's arms, didn't care about any of that and kept calling Chen Longxiang "Dad" and asking for a hug.
Faced with Xiao Lingwu's antics, Chen Longxiang, who was still a teenager, immediately seemed at a loss and could only turn to Su Wan'er for help.
After this commotion, Su Wan'er, who was initially uncomfortable under Chen Longxiang's intense gaze, finally found a reason to ease the awkwardness.
While comforting Xiao Lingwu, she explained to Chen Longxiang, "Your Highness, please calm down. This child lost his father at a young age and mistook the prince in golden armor for his father. Please forgive him!"
As she spoke, Su Wan'er bowed slightly to Chen Longxiang to express her apology.
The little Lingwu, whom he was holding, was still crying and fussing, demanding that his father hold him.
It wasn't until Su Wan'er pinched him hard that he stopped crying for his father to hug him and started wailing, feeling extremely wronged.
This made Chen Longxiang feel somewhat reluctant.
Whether out of sympathy or for some other purpose, Chen Longxiang inexplicably took Chen Lingwu, who was crying loudly in Su Wan'er's arms, into his arms.
He even imitated how adults coax children, saying to Xiao Lingwu, "Little Lingwu, be good, don't cry, Uncle will take you home, okay?"
Strangely enough, the little Lingwu, who had been crying loudly, stopped crying immediately after Chen Long held him in his arms and started giggling non-stop, looking incredibly happy.
"Your Highness, I'm so sorry to have troubled you!"
Seeing this, Su Wan'er could only smile apologetically and thank Chen Longxiang.
On the other side, Qi Jiguang, the Duke of Dingguo, who was exchanging pleasantries with Long Fengxiang, the garrison commander of Jiaozhou, suddenly noticed that not far away, Prince Chen Longxiang of Jin and the former Empress Dowager and her son were chatting and laughing. He couldn't help but frown slightly.
Then, Lin Fengxiang said to him, "Duke, let's go back to the city first. I have already prepared a small feast in the city to welcome you and the naval commanders!"
"Duke, this way please—"
"please!"
......
According to the operational plan for the expedition to Goguryeo, the Tang Dynasty's naval fleet would stay in Jiaozhou City for several days, partly to replenish the supplies needed for the expedition, and partly to wait for the Goguryeo Peninsula to warm up in spring.
The expedition plan for Goguryeo was personally formulated by Emperor Zhaowu Chen Huai'an, with the Tang Dynasty's naval fleet as the main force.
At the same time, the Tang army will also gather in the Liaodong area, creating the illusion for the Goguryeo Dynasty that the Tang army will attack from the Liaodong area.
In reality, it created an opportunity for the Tang Dynasty's naval fleet to launch a surprise attack on the capital of Goguryeo.
This battle plan was developed by Emperor Zhaowu Chen Huai'an based on the lessons learned from the three defeats during the reign of Emperor Gaozu of the Great Xin Dynasty, Zhao Mang, in his campaigns against Goguryeo, and was put to use by the Tang Dynasty.
Goguryeo was located on a peninsula with complex terrain, making it easy to defend and difficult to attack.
If an attack is launched from the Liaodong region by infantry and cavalry, the Goguryeo army, which has the advantage of terrain and is well-rested, will often catch the enemy off guard. Even if the attack is successful, the casualties will be extremely heavy.
However, if the Goguryeo Dynasty were to launch a naval expedition, bypassing Incheon and Jeju Island to land on the beaches and launch an attack from south to north, the geographical advantage that the Goguryeo Dynasty relied on would no longer exist.
In addition, the Goguryeo Dynasty had always amassed a large army on the side bordering Liaodong in order to deal with the threat from the Central Plains dynasties.
Therefore, using a naval fleet to bypass the heavily defended areas of Goguryeo and directly attack its capital is undoubtedly the most advantageous military tactic for the Tang Dynasty at this stage.
As a result, Emperor Zhaowu Chen Huai'an placed high hopes on the Tang Dynasty's naval fleet led by Qi Jiguang.
Qi Jiguang was well aware of this, which is why he kept revising his battle plans during his rest period in Jiaozhou.
Chen Longxiang, the vanguard general of the naval fleet, would frequently visit the place where Empress Su Wan'er of the previous dynasty was staying during his rest period.
All of this was observed and remembered by Qi Jiguang, the Duke of Dingguo.
With a major battle imminent, he hesitated whether to report the matter to the emperor.
At the same time.
Pyongyang, the capital of the Goguryeo Dynasty.
The then-king, King Takazō, also keenly perceived the threat from the Liaodong Peninsula.
According to reports from scouts stationed on the Liaodong front, since the beginning of the new year, the Tang Dynasty has been frequently mobilizing and assembling troops in the Liaodong region, and the number of troops assembled in the region has been increasing rapidly.
The cabinet in the imperial court had already split into two factions regarding whether to fight or make peace with the newly established Tang Dynasty.
The pro-war faction believed that the Goguryeo dynasty should maintain its integrity and independence and fight against the newly established Tang dynasty in the Central Plains to the end.
Conservatives believe that Chen Huai'an, the founding emperor of the Tang Dynasty, was far superior to Zhao Mang, the founding emperor of the suzerain state of Daxin, in terms of both civil and military achievements. To avoid the war spreading to the Goguryeo Peninsula, envoys should be sent to the Tang Dynasty to negotiate peace in a timely manner.
As more and more Tang troops gathered in the Liaodong region, King Gojang of Goguryeo faced his first test after inheriting the throne.
Whether to fight or make peace with the Tang Dynasty became a pressing issue for Gaozang.
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