Fan Wuji, the deputy general of the Longcheng Southern Expeditionary Army, was one of the earliest veterans of the Polu Army who followed the new emperor Chen Huai'an in launching the Jingnan Rebellion in Longcheng. In this dramatic way, his short but brilliant life came to an end.
The cannonball fired by the barbarian bronze cannon landed squarely next to Fan Wuji, the vanguard general who had led the charge and climbed the city wall of the Southern Yue capital.
The shrapnel from the exploding shell, by sheer coincidence, bypassed Fan Wuji's fully armored helmet and pierced through his chin.
Fan Wuji did not die immediately, but endured the pain until the valiant General Pang Xianchu climbed the city wall of the Southern Yue capital, and held on until the 100,000-strong Longcheng Southern Expeditionary Army conquered Yangcheng.
On the western city wall, Pang Xianchu, his eyes bloodshot, knelt on the ground and picked up Fan Wuji, who was on the verge of death and unable to speak.
His eyes held both reproach and reluctance, and with tears welling up in his eyes, he said, "General Fan, please hold on a little longer. I will definitely have the military doctor cure you."
As he lay dying, Fan Wuji shook his head with difficulty, his eyes filled with both reluctance and unwillingness in his final moments.
yes!
Having followed the Emperor in raising an army in Longcheng to quell the rebellion, Fan Wuji has survived countless major and fierce battles, and has faced death many times.
This time, however, he fell on the city walls of the capital of Nanyue, before the new emperor Chen Huai'an established the dynasty, and just when he should have been rewarded and appointed as a marquis and prime minister.
Anyone in that situation would probably feel resentful and reluctant, right?
Pang Xianchu, standing to the side, finally couldn't hold back his tears. This seven-foot-tall man cried like a two-hundred-pound child, saying between sobs, "You, you've followed the late emperor and the current emperor in their more than twenty years of campaigns, enduring countless major and difficult battles;"
"We were so close to the Emperor's coronation ceremony, so close to the arrival of a new and prosperous dynasty, and now you've fallen."
"It's also my fault, I shouldn't have let you be the vanguard commander in the first place..."
Fan Wuji, on his deathbed, couldn't recall what Pang Xianchu said afterward; his mind was racing, replaying his short but brilliant life:
Fan Wuji was born in the later period of the "Five Barbarian Invasions". Like Pang Xianchu, he joined the army of the late Emperor Chen Polu as the son of a slave. He rose from an ordinary soldier to a general through military merit.
This is why Fan Wuji has such an ingrained obsession with being granted a title and position;
It seems that only by reaching the highest position in the government and securing titles and privileges for his wife and children could he soothe the psychological shadow and trauma caused by his childhood as the son of a slave.
Before his consciousness faded, Fan Wuji seemed to hear the voice of his deputy, Tang Ziyi:
"Report—"
"Reporting to the General, Emperor Li Zongmin of Nanyue and Crown Prince Li Shiyu have been captured by our army. The barbarian leader of the Atlantic Kingdom, Markel, was also captured by our cavalry while fleeing to the docks."
"According to the confession of the barbarian prisoners, it was none other than the barbarian leader Markel who finally attacked General Fan with the bronze cannon!"
Um?
Upon hearing this, the valiant General Pang Xianchu's brows furrowed, exuding an imposing aura without anger.
He glanced at Fan Wuji beside him, whose pupils were rapidly fading, and choked out, "General Fan, you heard it all, didn't you? The Emperor and Crown Prince of Nanyue have both been captured."
"The barbarian chieftain who attacked you was also captured by the cavalry;"
"Our army has won the southern expedition against Nanyue!"
Upon hearing this, Fan Wuji's eyes completely lost their light and he lost all vitality.
But those pale eyes refused to close.
Pang Xianchu continued, "Rest assured, I will personally draft a memorial to report our military achievements in the southern campaign against Nanyue to the Emperor. Your merit is undoubtedly yours."
"Your Majesty, Your Majesty will certainly not treat you or your widow and family unfairly!"
"Don't worry, based solely on your outstanding contribution to the southern campaign against Nanyue, your name will definitely appear on the list of those to be enfeoffed in the new dynasty!"
With that, Pang Xianchu covered Fan Wuji's eyes with his calloused right hand and said silently, "General Fan, you can close your eyes in peace now!"
When Pang Xianchu released his grip again, Fan Wuji, who had previously refused to close his eyes, now peacefully closed them.
A smile still seemed to linger at the corners of his mouth.
Pang Xianchu composed himself and calmly ordered, "Pass down the order: the military medical officer must spare no effort to preserve General Fan's body from decay and send it back to Longcheng for burial tonight."
He paused, then continued, "General Tang, you shall immediately lead the Longcheng army to take over the Nanyue Kingdom and resolutely annihilate any remaining Nanyue rebels who stubbornly resist."
"As for the captured Atlantic barbarians, apart from their leader Markel, who will be personally escorted back to Nanjing by this general, let all the other barbarians be buried alive with General Fan!"
"Your subordinate obeys!"
After giving all these instructions, Pang Xianchu personally carried Fan Wuji's body back to the central army tent. He wanted to draft a report on the victory of the Southern Yue Kingdom overnight and send it to the Jinling Imperial City by express courier.
This time, the usually rational and valiant General Pang Xianchu used a great deal of emotional praise in his memorial to the new Emperor Chen Huai'an to recount Fan Wuji's achievements in the southern expedition and his life.
For the sake of his comrade-in-arms of twenty years, Pang Xianchu risked his own future and fate, petitioning the emperor to grant Fan Wuji a marquisate.
That night, Pang Xianchu's memorial and Fan Wuji's corpse departed from the capital of Nanyue almost simultaneously.
However, the memorial was sent to the imperial city of Jinling by express courier, while the corpse was sent to Longcheng, the old home.
Pang Xianchu himself will personally escort the emperor and crown prince of the Southern Yue Kingdom, as well as Markel, the barbarian leader from the Atlantic Kingdom, to the Jinling Imperial City to report back.
Let's look at it from both sides.
When the war on the front lines of the Nanyue Kingdom was over and the emperor, crown prince and members of the royal family were captured;
Although the urgent message sent from the front lines was still on its way, the new emperor Chen Huai'an, who was in the capital city thousands of miles away, had already received news that the southern expeditionary army had recovered the Nanyue Kingdom.
[Ding!]
[Congratulations, host, on achieving a new system achievement—"Unifying the World," unlocking unlimited troop production privileges!]
Inside the Imperial Study of the Jinling Palace, the new Emperor Chen Huai'an, who was reviewing memorials, suddenly heard that familiar synthesized mechanical voice in his mind. It was a new notification from the [Born to Be an Emperor] system.
Um?
After a moment of hesitation, Chen Huai'an finally realized that achieving the "unification of the world" meant that another southern expeditionary force led by the valiant General Pang Xianchu had recovered the territory of the Nanyue Kingdom.
Thus, the final piece of the puzzle for the new dynasty's territory was completed.
Chen Huai'an has taken over the entire empire of the Great Xin Dynasty into his own hands!
Hahaha!
After a brief silence, Chen Huai'an finally couldn't help but burst into laughter.
From this day forward, he is the undisputed king of this new dynasty's more than 13 million square kilometers of land, the supreme emperor.
Now that the country is unified, how far am I from becoming an emperor comparable to Qin Shi Huang and Emperor Wu of Han?
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