Ming Dynasty: The Crocodile King of Han Prince Zhu Gaoxu's Family

Chapter 259 The enemy is at the gates of Daluo City in Jiaozhi!
Zhu Zhanhe led the enthusiastic Yunnan army and navy out of Guilin Prefecture in high spirits. After several days, the army and navy finally separated in Nanning Prefecture, which is now Nanning City. The navy headed towards Fangchenggang in Guangxi, while the army continued straight towards Jiaozhi, the administrative center of Annam.

"General Jiang, what is the current situation in Annam?" That day, Zhu Zhanhe and his army set up camp in the border area near Annam. At night, Zhu Zhanhe once again summoned the army generals together, looking at the topographical map of Annam while inquiring about the current situation in Annam from the commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard.

"Your Highness, the former Provincial Governor of Annam was named Chen Xian, a native of Shouzhou in our Great Ming Dynasty. He had participated in the Jingnan Campaign with His Majesty Emperor Taizong and was awarded the title of Earl of Rongchang after accumulating meritorious service. After Chen Xian's death, his son Chen Zhi inherited the title of Earl of Rongchang and was later appointed as the Provincial Governor of Annam."

According to the investigation by the Embroidered Uniform Guard, Chen Zhi was incompetent and cowardly, lacking any military strategy or ability. He only gained command of Annam by inheriting the title of Earl of Rongchang from his father, Chen Xian. Upon hearing Zhu Zhanhe's question, Jiang Xiaohu respectfully replied, and first reported the situation of the current commander of Jiaozhi.

"Your Highness, this is not the most important issue."

The main problem is that Chen Zhi is not only incompetent, but according to information I have recently gathered, his character as an official is also seriously flawed.

The rebellion of Le Loi in Annam had been ongoing for over a year. Emperor Ren Tong had ordered him to raise an army to suppress it, but Tran Tri, using the pretext of pacifying Le Loi, held onto his troops but did nothing, repeatedly deceiving the court and watching the rebels grow stronger. Only after being severely reprimanded by Emperor Ren Tong on several occasions did he finally launch an attack, but each attempt ended in defeat.

Secondly, Chen Zhi and Fang Zheng, the governor of An'an, disagreed. Despite Le Li's siege of Longzhou for months, Chen Zhi refused to come to Fang Zheng's aid. Currently, Governor Fang Zheng remains besieged in Longzhou.

"I suspect that Fang Zheng won't be able to hold out for much longer. The city will be breached by the rebels by the end of this year at the latest!" Jiang Xiaohu then gave a brief overview of the current rebellion in Annam and pointed out Fang Zheng, a figure that Zhu Zhanhe could currently utilize.

"Hmph! One incompetent general can cause the death of the entire army!"

"Useless! This Chen Zhi is so weak, keeping him around is a waste of resources!" After hearing Jiang Xiaohu's report, Zhu Zhanhe was utterly disgusted by Chen Zhi's performance and made the final decision about him. In an instant, everyone felt a huge wave of pressure crashing down on them, as if it would crush them.

"Your Highness, please calm down!" Seeing that Zhu Zhanhe was angry, everyone knelt down in fear and begged him to calm down.

"Fang Zheng sounds promising. Let's save him. Yunnan needs talent like him." Zhu Zhanhe let out a long breath, calming himself down. With just one sentence, he decided a person's fate.

"Yes!" Everyone agreed in unison to Zhu Zhanhe's request. After all, it was just a matter of saving one person on the side, and as long as it made His Highness happy, that was all that mattered!
"Hu Tian!" Zhu Zhanhe called Hu Tian over again to assign tasks.

"Your subordinate is here!" Hu Tian, ​​who was already kneeling on the ground, quickly responded loudly.

"Send cavalry to inform Chen Zhi to come and meet the emperor. I want to see this cowardly fellow with my own eyes!" When Zhu Zhanhe spoke of Chen Zhi, the murderous intent on his face made all the generals know that Chen Zhi was definitely doomed!

"Yes!" Hu Tian immediately responded to Zhu Zhanhe's words. "Send cavalry to Longzhou City again, and have Fang Zheng come to receive the emperor. I want to see if Li Li has the guts to truly oppose Yunnan!" Zhu Zhanhe's move not only demonstrated his willingness to rescue Fang Zheng, but also tested Li Li's attitude, and provided himself with a perfect pretext for sending troops. After all, what could be a more suitable reason to suppress a rebellion than one that defied a prince!

"Your subordinate obeys!" Hu Tian was a quick-witted man, and he immediately understood what Zhu Zhanhe meant. His face lit up with surprise. After all, in ancient times, any military expedition required a justifiable reason, and the reason Zhu Zhanhe provided was perfectly appropriate.

Zhu Zhanqi, who was standing to the side, watched all of this silently and couldn't help but admire his elder brother even more, because he had learned another skill!
Time flies, and soon Zhu Zhanhe and his entourage, consisting of more than 100,000 people from three major camps, arrived at Daluo City, the central city of Jiaozhi Province.

Beneath the walls of Daluo City, the people of Annam formed a welcoming procession stretching for miles, kneeling and bowing, trembling with fear. They had never seen such a magnificent and imposing army before; the swords and spears soaring into the sky, the gleaming armor, and the menacing cannons sent chills down their spines!

Where is Chen Zhi, the Provincial Governor of Annam?!
"His Highness the Crown Prince of Han has arrived at Daluo City! Why don't you kneel down to greet him!" About a mile from the city gate of Daluo City, Zhu Zhanhe and his entourage stopped far away. One of the messengers rode his horse directly to the city gate and shouted arrogantly at the people standing at the gate.

Although the local officials in Annam didn't understand what the cavalrymen were shouting, they clearly sensed the arrogance and contempt of the newcomers. The Annamite officials, however, dared not speak out against it. Even the translators in the local government offices, responsible for interpreting between Annam and Chinese, shrank back, not daring to utter a sound. For the menacing presence of the approaching cavalry was overwhelming!
"Shangguan, please calm down! Shangguan, please calm down!"
Annam is a barbarian land, and they do not understand the laws of my Great Ming Dynasty. It is my fault for being rude.

"This humble official will go and pay his respects to His Highness the Crown Prince right away!" The leading official, dressed in a blue Ming Dynasty official robe, was about forty years old, plump, and had a fawning face. He stepped forward first and quickly bowed to the messenger, apologizing profusely, as if he wanted to kneel down before the messenger right now.

"Governor-General Fang Zheng of Annam and the Annam interpreter have also come forward to pay their respects to His Highness the Crown Prince!" The messenger didn't waste any words. After speaking, he immediately rode away, completely ignoring Chen Zhi and the interpreter's ugly expressions.

"Lord Chen, what should we do? His Highness still wants to see Governor Fang!" The interpreter wasn't stupid; he keenly sensed the fervent emotions of the soldiers not far away. It was clearly not a simple matter of passing through Annam and returning home; it was more like they wanted to divide up Annam!
More importantly, His Highness the Crown Prince of Han has just returned from Guangdong and Guangxi with an army of over 100,000. Previously, another 30,000 to 40,000 naval troops went to Guangdong and Guangxi. Now, on his return journey, he is passing through Annam. This is not a matter of borrowing a passage; it is clearly a matter of borrowing lives from Annam!

Of course, although the interpreter was in a bad mood, he only subtly informed the unreliable superior in front of him. As for whether Chen Zhineng could understand, that was up to his luck.

"Lord Fang is currently suppressing the rebels. I will report this truthfully to His Highness the Crown Prince. I believe His Highness will understand!" Sure enough, although Chen Zhi was not very capable, he still had some basic common sense. After hearing the interpreter's words, he immediately thought of a way to deal with it and stroked his beard with self-assurance.

"Uh~" After hearing Chen Zhi's words, the interpreter was speechless for a moment, silently twitching his lips. In his heart, he said helplessly to Chen Zhi: The Crown Prince of Han has directly called out his name, which shows how well he understands Annam. You still think you can fool him? My lord, you should consider yourself lucky. I can only save my life first!
Zhu Zhanhe stood at the very front of the group on his horse and saw two people trotting towards him from afar.

"Your humble servant, Chen Zhi, the Provincial Administration Commissioner of Annam and the Earl of Rongchang, pays his respects to Your Highness the Crown Prince!" Although Chen Zhi lacked ability, he still possessed some basic discernment. He noticed the unfriendly gazes of the Crown Prince of Han and the surrounding cavalry generals, so he quickly bowed and knelt before Zhu Zhanhe, invoking his family's inherited title to remind everyone, "I am also one of our own; please think twice before acting!"
"Your humble servant Huang Zhong, the Chief Interpreter of Annam, pays respects to Your Highness the Crown Prince. May Your Highness live a thousand years!" Compared to Chen Zhi's noble status, Huang Zhong, the Chief Interpreter, was just a nobody, only in charge of a few translators in the city. Therefore, he knelt down very readily and thoroughly.

(End of this chapter)