The Red Mansion: From a Small Pawn to a Leader

Chapter 503: Ancestors’ Protection
The news of the Jurchen Tartar invasion finally reached the Mongolian grasslands south of the desert.

The snow and wind were howling outside, but inside the tent the only sound was the occasional crackling sound of the burning brazier.

The commanders of each camp have arrived.

Li Hu silently glanced at everyone and spoke: "The heavy snow has blocked the road. Even if we abandon all the food, fodder, bags, tents and other logistical supplies and lead the cavalry to march lightly, we may not be able to reach the capital in 20 days. In such weather, let alone whether the soldiers can withstand it, even if we make it to the capital, we will face hundreds of thousands of enemy troops who are waiting for us. This is no different from sending ourselves to die."

There was silence.

Li Hu glanced at everyone and continued, "No one is talking, so you should listen to my orders. The army will rest for a day and set out tomorrow morning to attack Korchin during the snowstorm. We will try to wipe out the entire Korchin grassland within five days, and then continue to advance eastward, attack Liaodong, and force Fu Kang'an to withdraw his troops and return to support! Did you hear that clearly?"

Almost all the generals said: “Yes!”

Li Hu still found that there was one person who did not reply, so he looked at him and said, "General Datong, you did not reply."

The Datong general stood up and said, "Your Majesty, everything you said makes sense, but..."

Li Hu picked up the tea bowl on the low table and took a sip. "If you have any good suggestions, please speak up. There is no guilt in speaking up."

Datong General: "Liaodong is not the prairie, and the Jurchens are certainly not the Mongols. Regardless of their combat power, as long as they 'defend their cities to the death', we have to gnaw at them one city at a time, and no one knows when we will reach Shengjing."

At this point, he looked at Li Hu again, "Your Majesty, I have a small suggestion. If it is right, Your Majesty will accept it. If it is wrong, I am willing to lead the military law."

Li Hu: "I have said that the speaker is innocent. Go ahead and say whatever you want to say."

Datong General: "Yes. What I mean is very simple, divide the troops. The prince leads the main force of the army to continue to advance eastward, and at the same time sends a small army to the south to enter the pass to defend the king. On the one hand, it can let the Supreme Emperor and the court see that the prince is loyal to the court, and on the other hand, it can also put pressure on the Jurchen Tartars, so that they dare not attack the city with all their strength, thus reducing the pressure on the capital."

Li Hu looked at him and asked, "You?"

Datong General: "Your Majesty, I am a humble general, but I am willing to lead the Datong Guards to the south to defend the king."

Li Hu remained silent and just asked, "Aren't you afraid of being ambushed by the Jurchens?"

The Datong general answered loudly: "I will be loyal to my king and serve my country. Even if I die, I will have no regrets!"

"Good!" Li Hu clapped his hands. "He is loyal and fearless. He is a man who can accomplish great things. You should all follow the example of the Datong general and serve the court."

"Yes." Everyone responded weakly.

"Who among you is willing to go back to the capital with the Datong general? If so, stand up now and I will accept your suggestion."

As Li Hu spoke, his eyes were fixed on the general of Xuanfu.

The general of Xuanfu lowered his head in a hurry. All the military scholars, led by the top military scholar, had died in the decisive battle to destroy the Xilinguole League and the Zhaowuda League. He would never believe that there was no trick involved.

He was not a fool and understood that Li Hu was cleaning up the Yongwei Camp and eliminating those disobedient people.

Now, except for the Datong Guard and Xuanfu Guard, all the other troops of the more than 100,000 troops were firmly controlled by Li Hu. He didn't know what Li Hu wanted to do, and he didn't want to know.

As for the calculations here, what does it have to do with him? For so many years, he was not even willing to give him a hereditary earldom.
Li Hu looked at the Xuanfu general again, and then said to the Datong general: "You go back and prepare. It's up to you to decide when to move camp and what supplies to bring."

The Datong general said: "Yes." He saluted, turned around and strode out.

Li Hu paused and said, "Notify the troops to rest for a day and set out tomorrow morning."

All the generals responded in unison: "Yes!"

Soon, only Li Hu and Wang Daniu were left in the central army tent.

Wang Daniu's eyes were blazing with anger: "My Lord, I will take some people to kill him."

Li Hu raised his hand and said: "Immediately select young and strong men from the civilian laborers accompanying the army to fill the vacancies in Datong Guard." Wang Daniu had no choice but to walk out in disappointment.

The only sound left in the central army tent was the crackling sound of the burning brazier.

Li Hu sat there, lost in thought for a moment, then pulled out a letter from the pile of documents, a letter from Zhang Cheng.

Zhang Cheng said in the letter that after the fall of Nanjing, they would sell the troops of Prince Nan'an in the Central Plains and let Xie Jing wipe them out. They would then take this opportunity to hide, and wait for Xie Jing and the Beijing camp to cross the Yangtze River. Then they would cooperate with Prince Nan'an to attack Xie Jing from both sides and wipe out the Beijing camp under the city of Nanjing.

Without the Beijing Army, the Central Plains would have no resistance. The troops from Shandong and other places had also come to Beijing to defend the king. Who could stop the Prince of Nan'an's troops?

In addition, after the Prince of Nan'an destroyed the Beijing Camp, he would definitely ascend the throne in Nanjing first, and then take advantage of the high morale of the army to march north and capture the capital in one fell swoop.

The Prince of Nan'an was a rebel. After he ascended the throne and became emperor, he would definitely reward his meritorious officials, and the rewards would be generous.

There is an old saying that goes, "A big reward will always bring about a brave man." There is also another saying that goes, "A big reward will always bring about a dead man."

Of course, Li Hu didn’t distrust Zhang Cheng and Chen Qiang, but he was worried that those generals would not be able to resist the temptation and sell them out!

Also, you need to prepare in advance for your father-in-law's place. Otherwise, if something goes wrong, I don't know how the person at home will cry.

Li Hu's eyes sparkled as he thought for a long time. Then he picked up a pen, spread out the letter paper, and began to write.

The sky in the capital is still clear.

In the distance, there were bursts of cannon fire and roars of killing.

In the bedroom, the Prime Minister sat on a low stool beside the bed with a pile of official documents on his knees, quietly looking at the Supreme Emperor, who had his eyes slightly closed, dark circles under his eyes, and a sallow face.

The Supreme Emperor fell ill, not because of the death of Prince Kang, nor because of the siege of the capital, but because he was frightened.

He had had a series of very unusual nightmares in the past few days. In the dream, he saw his father, the crown prince, the evildoer, and his sons and grandsons. They all accused him of destroying his ancestors' country and society. This made him feel terrified and uneasy. Every time he woke up from the dream, he was sweating profusely.

Several days of torture made him tired, weak, anxious and irritable, and coupled with the heavy workload, he finally fell ill.

The eunuch in charge of the seal brought a bowl of medicine, served the Supreme Emperor to drink it, and then helped him lean against the head of the bed.

The Supreme Emperor felt relieved and spoke: "How is the battle going?"

The Prime Minister opened a document and read: "Yesterday, the false Tartar Emperor Fu Kang'an personally led the right wing troops to attack Guangqumen. Our army fought a fierce battle with the Jurchen Tartars outside Guangqumen. The soldiers fought bravely from the morning to the afternoon. When the battle was at its most intense, our cavalry ambushed in the forest to the south suddenly attacked the Han army flag in front and successfully broke through the Han army flag formation.
The main force of the Jurchen Tatars retreated, and our army pursued them to the canal and returned with a great victory. This morning, the Jurchen Tatars attacked Zuoanmen again, and the battle is still going on."

Hearing this, the Supreme Emperor looked better: "Reward all the soldiers generously. Those whose families are in the capital will be given money and food immediately. For those who died in battle, the Ministry of Rites will send people to comfort them.
I don't care what means you use, you must ensure that the soldiers outside the city have enough food. It is unrealistic to eat hot meals and eat meat, but everyone must have a mouthful of broth. Do you understand?"

The eunuch in charge of the seal hurriedly praised the emperor: "The Supreme Emperor is as benevolent as the heaven!"

The Supreme Emperor glared at him and asked, "Is there any news from Jinling?"

The Prime Minister shook his head slightly: "Not yet. But there is a victory report from the Beijing camp." He then turned to another document, "General Xie Jing said in the military report, 'God bless us, the rebels' gunpowder depot suddenly exploded in succession. The main force of the rebels in the Central Plains was defeated in one fell swoop, and they are pursuing the victory.'"

"Good!" The Supreme Emperor sat up suddenly, "It's really the blessing of our ancestors!" As he said this, he started coughing.

The eunuch in charge of the seal hurried forward and gently massaged his back.

The Supreme Emperor: "Tell Xie Jing and Wang Ziteng that if they defeat Prince Nan'an, I will reward them with the first-class dukedom, a hereditary title." After saying this, he coughed twice.

At this time, the eunuch on duty came in excitedly and reported to the Supreme Emperor: "Your Majesty, the general of Shanhaiguan led the Shanhaiguan troops to Beijing to defend the emperor. With the cooperation of the Zuoanmen garrison, they defeated the Jurchen Tartars. The Tartar false emperor led his troops to withdraw to Nanhaizi."

The Supreme Emperor: "Quick, summon the general of Shanhaiguan to the palace."

(End of this chapter)