hiss!
He declared himself emperor in the north, donned the yellow robe, and established a new dynasty!
Fan Wuji's words, word by word, were like thunderclaps in the mind of Pang Xianchu, the commander of the Longcheng army's northern expedition, causing him to shudder and gasp.
If this had happened in the past, anyone who dared to utter such treasonous words in front of Pang Xianchu, the valiant general personally appointed by the late Emperor Zhao Mang, would probably have drawn their sword and killed the traitor long ago.
But now, Pang Xianchu, the commander of the Longcheng Northern Expedition who was adopted by the late King Chen Polu since childhood and whose loyalty, filial piety and integrity were engraved in his bones, was frowning and silent.
After a long while, Pang Xianchu finally raised his head, looked at Fan Wuji with piercing eyes, and said decisively, "Fan Wuji, I will pretend I didn't hear what you just said!"
"You must never mention this to anyone again!"
As he spoke, a murderous glint flashed in Pang Xianchu's deep eyes, and his tone suddenly became sharp: "Otherwise, don't blame this general for not showing any mercy!"
"General!"
Fan Wuji wanted to say something more, but was rudely interrupted by Pang Xianchu: "Enough!"
Then, Pang Xianchu shouted sternly, "Commander-in-Chief of the Vanguard, Fan Wuji, listen to my command!"
"Your subordinate is here!"
Although Fan Wuji had a lot to say, he had no choice but to step forward and await orders.
Pang Xianchu ordered, "I hereby command you to immediately organize the army and personally lead the vanguard of 10,000 light cavalry to search and advance towards the north. There must be no mistakes!"
"Your subordinate obeys!"
Fan Wuji immediately clasped his hands in acceptance of the order. When he turned to walk to the exit of the central command tent, he paused for a moment. However, he did not turn back in the end. Instead, he sighed and left the tent without looking back.
Watching Fan Wuji's dejected figure leave, Pang Xianchu sighed and shook his head helplessly.
He knew perfectly well what Fan Wuji was thinking: nothing more than the eight words, "A minister who follows the dragon will be ennobled and appointed prime minister!"
This is understandable.
The brothers risked the extermination of their entire families, putting their lives on the line to follow Prince Jin in raising an army in Longcheng to quell the rebellion, all for the sake of future titles and privileges for their wives and children.
Although, since the uprising in Longcheng, His Highness Prince Jin has never shown the slightest sign of wanting to become the sole ruler.
However, the generals of the Polu Army who followed Prince Jin in his uprising were all well aware of the truth.
Prince Chen Huai'an of Jin was renowned for his civil and military achievements, which were widely praised in his fiefdom of one city and thirty-six counties. He far surpassed the ambitious, tyrannical, and capricious Second Emperor Zhao Gan of the Daxin court.
If the Jingnan Rebellion succeeds, the Prince of Jin will certainly not continue to address Zhao Gan as ruler and subject.
Taking control of the world and upholding the nation would be a natural course of events.
However, Fan Wuji's suggestion to have Prince Chen Huai'an of Jin declare himself emperor in Shuobei and establish a new dynasty seemed a bit too hasty.
Currently, with the Turkic cavalry invading Shuobei from the outside, their forces pointing directly at Longcheng, and the 1.5 million-strong army of the Great Xin Dynasty eyeing the city with predatory intent from within, neither the timing nor the conditions are sufficient to support His Highness Prince Jin's ascension to the throne in Shuobei.
If the time is right, Pang Xianchu would be happy to give Chen Huai'an an extra layer of clothing while it's cold – a yellow robe embroidered with a five-clawed golden dragon!
"Report—"
"General, the Prince of Jin requests your presence in the main tent for a meeting!"
Suddenly, the sound of a messenger's order pulled Pang Xianchu back to reality from his reverie. He hurriedly grabbed the intelligence report from the desk about the Turkic army's night raid on Shuobei and the capture of a key border town, and rushed to Chen Huai'an's tent.
Before you see him, you hear his voice.
"Your Highness, urgent military intelligence—"
"A Turkic army of 100,000 launched a night attack on Shuobei City, and this important northwestern border town fell into enemy hands!"
As soon as he finished speaking, Pang Xianchu strode into the tent and handed the still-wet intelligence letter to Chen Huai'an.
"What?"
Upon hearing this news, Chen Huai'an, who was changing and washing up, was greatly alarmed.
As he wiped the water off his face with a white towel, he took the intelligence letter from Pang Xianchu's hand and began to examine it word by word.
"Damn it! That old scoundrel Wu Qingyun deserves to die! For his own personal grudge, he has caused such a disaster to 200,000 innocent people in Shuobei!"
"These Turkic barbarians deserve to die even more! How dare they occupy my important border town and slaughter my border people? Do they really think my Longcheng Polu Army is nothing?"
Chen Huai'an clenched the intelligence letter into a ball with his fist, and said angrily:
"Pang Xianchu, immediately order Fan Wuji to lead the vanguard of the Xuanjia light cavalry to search and advance towards Shuobei City. Under no circumstances should Timur's cavalry be allowed to outflank the Northern Expeditionary Army of Longcheng and launch a surprise attack!"
Pang Xianchu replied, "Your Highness, upon learning of the fall of Shuobei, I immediately ordered Fan Wuji to lead 10,000 cavalry to search for and advance towards Shuobei!"
Um!
Upon hearing this, Chen Huai'an nodded and said, "That's good!"
He paused, then continued, "Where is the Yunhui Army of Shuobei City now?"
Pang Xianchu said, "Your Highness, the scouts reported that yesterday, Liang Erhu, the commander of the vanguard of the Yunhui Army, led 80,000 Yunhui troops to Panlong Pass. They then set off overnight to return to Shuobei City and are currently wandering around the area from Shenfeng Ridge to Hutou Ridge outside Shuobei City!"
No sooner had he finished speaking than Chen Huai'an had already marked the exact location of the Yunhui Army on the marching map.
He then ordered, "Pass down the order: the army must set off immediately and seize the Panlong Pass, which is easy to defend and difficult to attack, before the Yunhui Army and the Turks can take it, cutting off the only way for Liang Erhu and Timur to lead their troops south!"
"Your subordinate obeys!"
Pang Xianchu immediately accepted the order.
After Pang Xianchu left, Chen Huai'an looked at the map thoughtfully.
He hadn't even had time to process the excitement of acquiring 10,000 elite Tiger and Leopard Cavalry last night when harsh reality poured cold water on him.
Chen Huai'an muttered to himself, "These Turkic barbarians led a large army in a night raid on Shuobei, completely disrupting my entire plan!"
Then, he threw the brush in his hand onto the map and said, "Nine thousand against two hundred thousand, a half-cooked meal. This battle in Shuobei is going to be tough!"
"Now, we can only hope that Chang Shiwan, the most powerful general in the Ming Dynasty, can quickly take Yunzhou City!"
......
Chizhou City.
The camp of the Longcheng Army's Southern Expeditionary Force.
Achoo—
Achoo—
Chang Yuchun, who had just gotten up, was puzzled. He thought to himself, "I don't have a cold or flu, so why did I sneeze so many times this morning?"
Could it be that some beautiful lady from Longcheng is talking about our old Chang behind his back?
"Report—"
"Reporting to the General, the scouts sent to Yunzhou City have reported that they have ascertained the enemy's situation there. The enemy commander stationed in Yunzhou City is Wu Qingyun, who commands a force of 100,000!"
Soon, the message brought back by the messenger brought Chang Yuchun back to reality.
With a wave of his hand, he declared with overwhelming authority, "Issue my order: the entire army shall immediately march toward Yunzhou without delay!"
"Your subordinate obeys!"
The messenger hurriedly accepted the order and left.
During this time, Chang Yuchun also drew his sword back from its sheath, his eyes burning as he looked at the incredibly sharp, gleaming blade of the ring-pommel sword in his hand, and said with slight excitement:
"Old buddy, I know you've been thirsty since the southern campaign. After the battle of Yunzhou, I'll make sure you drink your fill. Don't worry!"
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