roccoschili Chapter 17 Yongle's Personal Expedition!
Chapter 17 Yongle's Personal Expedition!
Urgent report from the North
This created a solemn atmosphere inside the Hall of Supreme Harmony.
"Has Anda Khan gone mad? Where did he get the guts!" Minister of War Yang Bo held the military report, his hands trembling.
"In previous years, although he frequently raided the border, he only ever plundered the frontier; he never dared to venture this far! This time, he has amassed an army of 100,000, clearly intending to strike at the heart of the enemy and bring Beijing to its gates!"
The officials were in an uproar, and everyone was filled with unease.
The shadow of the Tumu Crisis still lingers. The arrival of the Oirat army at the city gates is an indelible humiliation for the Ming Dynasty.
"What's there to be afraid of!"
"With His Highness the Regent and the Emperor Emeritus now in command, what do we have to fear from a mere 100,000 barbarians! I request permission to lead our troops north to meet them!"
"No! The enemy outnumbers us, and the Mongol cavalry are swift as the wind. Our main force should not leave the city for a decisive battle. We should focus on holding the city and then send orders to the troops of the nine border garrisons to encircle and defend the emperor!"
For a time, the pro-war and pro-defense factions were arguing fiercely in the imperial court.
Just then, Zhu Di, who had been resting with his eyes closed, slowly opened them.
He listened to the chaotic argument below and a disdainful smile appeared on his face.
"One hundred thousand?"
He stood up, stretched his limbs, and made a series of crackling sounds.
"Back when I was fighting Arughtai on the banks of the Onon River, he had far more men than this. Didn't I still chase him down and beat him until he was crying for his parents?"
Zhu Di's voice wasn't loud, but it instantly silenced the entire hall.
Everyone stared at him, only to see the retired emperor take off his ordinary clothes, revealing the black chainmail that had been prepared and sealed away for over a hundred years!
With the armor on, the iron-blooded aura honed in the mountains of corpses and seas of blood burst forth instantly!
He was no longer the grumpy old man who drank tea and cursed in the back hall.
He is the Great War God of the Ming Dynasty, Emperor Yongle! Judy!
"You," Zhu Di said, pointing at Xu Jie and the officials, "stay obediently in the capital, implement the new policies, and fill the national treasury for me!"
"Regarding the matter in the north," he picked up the Yongle sword held by the guard beside him, and drew it with a clang, "I'll go and take care of it. I'll be back soon."
The officials were all dumbfounded.
The retired emperor... is he going to personally lead the army?
"Your Majesty, you mustn't!" Xu Jie was the first to kneel down. "Your Majesty is of inestimable worth; how can you personally risk your life! The capital garrison still has 100,000 troops, more than enough to defend against the enemy!"
"The Beijing Garrison?" Zhu Di scoffed. "A bunch of pampered soldiers who haven't fought in twenty years. Sending them there would be like offering their heads to Anda."
He completely ignored the officials' advice and walked straight out of the hall.
"Gather three thousand elite Xuanjia cavalry and assemble outside Desheng Gate in half an hour!"
His orders were not to be questioned.
Zhu Zaiyi looked at his war-spirited back and smiled slightly. He knew that the blood in his great-grandfather's veins had not yet cooled.
He took out several pre-drawn talismans from his sleeve and handed them over.
"Great Ancestor, please take this with you."
Zhu Di took it and saw that the yellow paper was covered with mysterious runes, with faint flowing light moving around it.
"What is this?"
"The Divine Speed Talisman allows you to travel a thousand miles a day. The Vajra Talisman makes you invulnerable to swords and spears. There are also a few Explosive Talismans. If you find it troublesome to chop people up, just throw them out. One talisman can flatten a small hill," Zhu Zai-rui explained casually.
Zhu Di's eye twitched.
Looking at the few thin sheets of yellow paper in his hand, he felt that his understanding of war had been completely overturned.
……
Half a day later, in Datong Prefecture.
On the city wall, General Zhang Biao, the commander-in-chief of the city, looked solemnly at the dark, boundless Mongol camp outside the city.
"General, Anda Khan has sent someone to persuade us to surrender. He said... he said that as long as we open the city gates, he guarantees he won't massacre the city..." a lieutenant whispered.
"Bullshit!" Zhang Biao spat a mouthful of phlegm onto the ground. "Tell those Tartars that my bones are made of iron! If they want to enter Datong City, they'll have to step over my dead body!"
Despite this, his heart was ice-cold.
The city was defended by fewer than 20,000 troops, while outside the city were 100,000 fierce Mongol cavalry.
How do we fight this battle?
Just as he was filled with despair, a huge cloud of dust suddenly rose from the horizon behind him!
"Report!"
A scout scrambled up the city wall.
"General! A reinforcement army is coming from the south! About three thousand cavalry are galloping towards our Datong City!"
"Reinforcements? Sent from the capital?" Zhang Biao's spirits lifted.
But when he raised his binoculars and looked through them, his heart sank.
Only three thousand people?
Three thousand cavalrymen charging into a camp of one hundred thousand men—isn't that like throwing meat buns to a dog?
However, as the reinforcements drew closer, and when Zhang Biao saw the banner they were holding high, he was struck dumb, frozen in place.
It was a black flag with a golden dragon.
In the center of the flag, embroidered in blood-red hues, are two bold and domineering characters...
Yongle!
"Yong... Yongle..." Zhang Biao's lips trembled, thinking he was seeing things.
The soldiers around him also saw the flag. At first, they were puzzled, then shocked, and finally, they became endlessly enthusiastic!
"It's Emperor Chengzu! It's Emperor Chengzu's banner!"
"The Emperor Emeritus has appeared! The Emperor Emeritus has come to save us!"
The entire Ming army on the walls of Datong erupted in jubilation! They threw down their weapons, knelt down in unison facing the banner, and kowtowed and prayed like madmen!
Morale exploded at that moment!
Altan Khan, outside the city, also noticed this small reinforcement force and the strange behavior of the Ming army on the city wall.
"Yongle?" He looked at the flag and sneered disdainfully, "Playing tricks! Send down the order to send ten thousand vanguard soldiers to crush those three thousand men and that tattered flag to pieces for me!"
Ten thousand Mongol cavalry, like a black tide, swept towards Zhu Di's three thousand Xuanjia Guards.
Zhang Biao, standing on the city wall, was on tenterhooks.
However, what happened next left him speechless.
Faced with the surging army of ten thousand horses, the general in black chainmail at the head did not retreat, but instead spurred his horse forward alone!
He ran faster and faster, until finally he transformed into a black lightning bolt, crashing headlong into the torrent of steel!
"A madman! He's a madman!" Zhang Biao exclaimed in shock.
Just then, Zhu Di had already rushed to the front of the Mongol army.
He looked at the massive Mongol army outside the city and a broad, satisfied smile appeared on his face.
He turned his head and, facing the Datong city wall behind him, let out a deafening roar:
"Open the city gates!"
"I'd like to go out and have a talk with them!"