Ming Dynasty: pacifying the rebellion and defending the border, dominating the world

Chapter 467 Unbelievable, a Reassuring Reassurance
The imperial court was completely silent.

Zhu Jinzhen was too confident; his composure and strong self-confidence left the assembled officials somewhat dazed.

Zhang Mao cautiously reminded him, "Your Majesty, although the Sui Dynasty's national strength has greatly decreased after the Sui Emperor's three campaigns against Goguryeo and the construction of the Grand Canal, the four major clans still have a deep foundation and the country is full of experts. The Liao Dynasty is a tiger and wolf country, no weaker than the Mongol Yuan Dynasty."

"Although small countries like Tibet and Dali are small, they are not easy to deal with."

"The Jin Dynasty even has the ambition to surpass the Western Xia and Tibet, and to compete with the Liao and Mongol Yuan dynasties. We must be wary of it."

"Although the Mongol Yuan and Western Xia have not yet loosened their grip, it is only a matter of time."

"With the various countries joining forces, and even rumors circulating that the emperors of the Sui and Northern Song dynasties have sent envoys to places beyond the Western Regions and the Turkic Khaganate to seek assistance from small foreign countries, I fear the situation may escalate to an uncontrollable point. We must deal with it as soon as possible."

Zhang Mao held military power for forty years, so he naturally had a thorough understanding of the situation in the country.

The Ming Dynasty was very strong; there is no doubt about that.

However, in Zhang Mao's view, no matter how strong the Ming Dynasty was, it could not withstand being surrounded by wolves and attacked by a pack of tigers.

After all, whether it was the Sui Dynasty, the Northern and Southern Song Dynasties, or the Mongol Yuan and Liao Dynasties, which were major threats to the Ming Dynasty, they were all powerful nations of their time and could not possibly be much weaker than the Ming Dynasty. Their alliance was definitely not as simple as one plus one.

"Your Majesty, I second that suggestion."

"The various nations are coming with overwhelming force; we must be on guard!"

"Yes, Your Majesty. The Liao Dynasty is a wolfish and treacherous nation. Several years ago, it even joined forces with the Mongol Yuan Dynasty to raid our borders, showing no sign of giving up its ambition to destroy our Great Ming. Although the Southern Song Dynasty has made peace with our Great Ming, we must still be wary of it."

"Wei Chen seconded the proposal."

At this moment, the Vice Minister of War stepped forward, bowed, and said: "Your Majesty, I believe that rather than waiting to be killed, we should take the initiative to attack. The alliance between the Sui Dynasty and the Northern Song Dynasty is unreliable, and the strategy of forming an alliance is not something that can be accomplished overnight. It is merely a helpless move out of fear that if the lips are gone, the teeth will be cold, and if the nest is overturned, no egg will be intact."

"With the combat strength of Cangyun or Tiance, they can defeat them one by one before their alliance strategy is completed."

"Your Majesty, I think this is an excellent plan. The Tian Ce Mansion has a history of destroying a country in a single day. Let them launch a swift and decisive attack, which will catch them completely off guard."

"Your humble servant seconded this suggestion. The Southern Song Dynasty borders our Great Ming Dynasty. Instead of being content with its lot, it is attempting to form an alliance against the Ming. We should destroy its country to deter other nations."

"Your Majesty, I believe that Tian Ce and Cang Yun can launch a simultaneous attack. Their iron cavalry is invincible. They can also send some troops to launch surprise attacks on small countries such as Dali, Tubo, and Jin. Even if they cannot destroy these countries, they can still deter them from waging war."

The ministers and officials offered a constant stream of advice and suggestions.

At first, there was a heated discussion about how to break the alliance between the various countries. However, as the discussion progressed, the proposals became increasingly outrageous. From the Vice Minister of War taking the initiative to destroy the Southern Song Dynasty to intimidate the other countries, to later taking into account the combat strength of Tian Ce and Cang Yun, the proposal was to divide the troops into several routes and launch surprise attacks on the various countries.

Ultimately, it evolved into a scenario where the generals of Cangyun and Tiance each led 5,000 Tiance or Cangyun soldiers, while the Ministry of War and the Five Military Commissions mobilized troops from various garrisons and the Nine Border Regions to simultaneously attack the Sui, Northern Song, Southern Song, Liao, Jin, and Dali kingdoms, turning this wolf-hunting-tiger scenario into a tiger-hunting-wolves scenario.

Whether it was Duke Zhang Mao of Yingguo, the Vice Minister of War, or the Deputy Commander-in-Chief and Assistant Commander-in-Chief of the Five Military Commissions, they all gradually felt a little awkward when they tried to speak, and one by one they started counting on their fingers with a bewildered expression.

Then they arrived at a conclusion that was hard for everyone to believe.

"No, no, this is completely wrong." Cold sweat beaded on Zhang Mao's forehead, and his face looked strangely blank. The worry he had just shown had vanished completely.

"Even if the 300,000 Tian Ce soldiers are divided into eight routes, each route can still form an army consisting of 45,000 Vajra Realm experts, 5,000 Finger Profound Masters, and dozens or hundreds of Celestial Phenomena."

"With such fighting strength, let alone small countries like the Jin, Western Xia, Dali, and Tibet, it would be more than enough to destroy the Southern and Northern Song dynasties, and even the Liao and Sui dynasties!"

"Not to mention, there's still my Great Ming Dynasty and the Cangyun Army!!!"

"Two hundred thousand Azure Cloud Armors, if we include..." "Hiss!!"

The officials in the court were not stupid. After they gradually realized what was happening, they found that Zhu Jinzhen had been sitting calmly on the dragon throne watching them argue. Li Chengen and Xue Zhi from the Ministry of War and the Five Military Commissions had also remained silent.

How could they not know that they were worrying unnecessarily?!
Zhang Mao smiled bitterly to himself: "No wonder His Majesty can sit calmly on the high platform and remain unperturbed. It turns out he is confident. It seems I was too short-sighted and completely forgot that Cangyun and Tiance are not comparable to ordinary armies!"

"I have seen the patriotic heart of the Duke of Yingguo and all my beloved ministers," Zhu Jinzhen said slowly, his voice carrying undisguised laughter. "But, as I said before, the Ming Dynasty is not afraid of the alliance of all the countries in the world, nor is it afraid of the world attacking us. If you ministers have such thoughts, you should consider how to govern the world after conquering the surrounding countries."

"Are there enough officials in the Ministry of Personnel?"

"Does the Ministry of War and the Five Military Commissions need to recruit more people to maintain stability in various countries?"

Zhu Jinzhen's voice was not loud, but it clearly reached the ears of all the civil and military officials in the Fengtian Hall, causing them all to tremble.

Everyone knew that Zhu Jinzhen was giving them a reminder.

Instead of worrying about invasions from other countries, we should consider the more pressing issues of governance and rule.

The side also gave them a signal.

The unification of the world by the Ming Dynasty is inevitable, and all other countries will surely perish. As officials of the Ming Dynasty, they will have the opportunity to participate in this grand feast.

Zhu Jinzhen thought for a moment, and since he had nothing else to do, and there was no rush to test the rat talisman, he spoke up:

"Alright, seeing how restless and distracted you all are."

"Let me give you another reassurance."

Everyone was stunned and didn't know why.

Zhu Jinzhen looked at Cao Zhengchun: "Prepare the carriage at the Beijing Garrison's drill ground, and all officials will come."

"Yes."

Cao Zhengchun nodded respectfully, and then immediately gave instructions to the imperial carriage.

Zhu Jinzhen stepped down the steps and looked at Yang Ning, who was in charge of the Beijing Garrison, and said, "Select one thousand soldiers from the Tian Ce Army stationed in the capital for a military exercise, so that my esteemed ministers may see the fighting strength of the Tian Ce Army."

"Instead of selecting the elite, we choose the worst thousand men."

The last word of advice was loaded with meaning.

Yang Ning immediately understood.

How can one thousand of the worst soldiers from the Tian Ce Army be chosen to fight against the entire capital garrison?

The officials in the court widened their eyes in surprise.

It should be noted that the 13th Regiment of the Capital Army had a total of more than 60,000 men. Even after Yang Ning took over and conducted several rounds of screening, more than 50,000 men were still left.

A martial arts demonstration of 1,000 against 50,000?

Are you serious?

(End of this chapter)