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

Chapter 470 Preparing for War
However, Emperor Longwu never played by the rules! He deliberately created a powerful and influential figure like Wang Lanjiang! Besides trying to win over and sow discord among the powerful, he also had the intention of monitoring and dismantling their power!
Of course, it's perfect timing since Wang Lanjiang isn't engaged yet!

Meanwhile, other noble families, looking at Wang Lanjiang kneeling on the ground, were also filled with doubt! Could it be that this marriage was really just a decision made by the Empress by drawing lots on a whim?

Even many of his ministers looked at Emperor Longwu on the terrace with puzzled expressions! They dared not speculate on Emperor Longwu's thoughts! They could only silently accept everything!
However, regardless of what the ministers in their seats below the terrace were thinking.

In short, the matter of the arranged marriage is continuing in an orderly manner!
"A beautiful young lady of the Bing generation! Serving at the Imperial Pharmacy! Fifteen years old!"

"The selected lady, born in the year of Bing, draw result: Haifeng!"

"A selected young lady of the Ding family! From the Imperial Wardrobe! Sixteen years old!"

"The candidate for the imperial concubine, drawn by lot: Sun Liting!"

Then, one by one, the elegant and beautiful young women ascended the terrace, knelt respectfully on the ground, and held the boxes high in their hands, allowing the Empress to decide their future fate and choose their future husbands!

As one after another the young ladies ascended the stage, one after another the civil and military scholars rose from their seats, passed by one scholar after another, and came to the passageway in front of the terrace. They respectfully prostrated themselves on the ground and bowed to Emperor Longwu and Empress Xia on the terrace!

Then, they respectfully welcomed their future principal wife! After all, a marriage bestowed by the emperor could only be a marriage between the principal wife and his wife!
In the end, all eighteen young women were chosen by Empress Xia! And all eighteen scholars found wives!

Who would have thought that a Qionglin Banquet could lead to winning a wife for free?! And through such a thrilling lottery system no less! That's incredibly exciting!
However, some observant officials noticed that among the many scholars at the Military Academy and the Imperial Academy, unmarried scholars from the Military Academy occupied eight of the spots for the imperial concubine selection, while unmarried scholars from the Imperial Academy occupied ten spots!

On the surface, it seems that the scholars from the Imperial Academy have the advantage!
However, it should be noted that there are over one hundred students in the Imperial Academy who are ranked in the third class! But the Military Academy only has twenty students in the third class!

The difference is obvious!
More importantly, among these scholars selected for marriage, 70% were from humble backgrounds! In contrast, scholars from powerful and wealthy families accounted for only 30% of those selected for marriage.
Furthermore, among these 30% of powerful and wealthy scholars, the majority were from lower and middle ranks of the elite! Not a single top-ranking powerful and wealthy scholar was granted a marriage!

If someone were to say that the Empress had simply drawn lots randomly and that there was no foul play involved, then all the court officials would definitely slam them in the face!
At the same time, this bestowed marriage sent a chill down the spines of the seasoned veterans in the court! They knew that the political landscape of the court was about to undergo a dramatic shift!

"The arranged marriage is officially over!"

The grooms should go back and prepare; after a few days, they can simply get married!

For any issues related to the marriage, you can go directly to the Crown Prince's residence to seek his help.

Next, the Qionglin Banquet officially begins! After the marriage decree was concluded, Emperor Longwu briefly reiterated the matter before announcing the official start of the Qionglin Banquet.

Immediately, rows of eunuchs and palace maids appeared, carrying trays of exquisite dishes as they moved between the various tables.
Meanwhile, the betrothed young woman, who was originally behind the screen, also covered her face with a handkerchief and gracefully retreated as the screen was carried away by the eunuchs.
A spectacular display of fireworks erupted.
The exquisite dance performance in the palace began.
Various unique acrobatic acts also began to be performed.
Emperor Longwu, seated on the terrace, looked down at the lively scene below and unconsciously grasped the hand of Empress Xia beside him, his eyes filled with a sense of accomplishment.

After another night of fish and dragon dances, the next day arrived quickly.

Inside the Hall of Supreme Harmony in Longdu, Grand Secretary Xia Yuanji, Second Grand Secretary Huang Zhong, and the ministers of the six ministries gathered to discuss the Long Kingdom's preparations for sending troops to Tibet. "Your Majesty," said the Minister of War, "the Ministry of War believes this battle is necessary!"
The mere tribes of Tibet dare to provoke the might of my glorious Dragon Kingdom!
Without a fight, the Mughals cannot be appeased!

In fact, without a fight, it would be insufficient to deter the Mughal steppe!

Therefore, I believe that this battle must be fought, and it must be fought well! Minister of War Qian Guozhong, this veteran soldier, spoke very eloquently.

Because Qian Guozhong knew perfectly well that since the Emperor had personally spoken, the battle was inevitable! He figured he might as well just declare his support directly! Besides, the battle was in the best interests of the entire military!

"Does the Ministry of War have a strategy for the expedition?" The Minister of Revenue turned to the Minister of War and asked a crucial question.

After all, war is never a trivial matter! The costs involved are unimaginable! Since war is going to be fought, and it will be a major war, as the Minister of Revenue, he must figure out the strategy for sending troops in order to make corresponding adjustments to the supplies!
"Your Majesty, the Ministry of War has tentatively decided to dispatch the First and Second Army Corps of the Army, dividing them into two routes to eliminate the various tribes of Tibet one by one."

This time, we will also bring along all the students from the Military Academy, so that they can have a good training experience!
At the same time, let the Mughal tribes act as the vanguard! I believe they've been tormented by those barbarians in Tibet for so many years, they'll definitely put in a lot of effort!

The above is submitted for Your Majesty's final decision! The Minister of War's strategy for the expedition was simple and direct: the two major army corps of the Dragon Kingdom would directly sweep across the tribes of the U-Tsang grasslands!

No fancy strategies! After all, the most unbeatable tactic is the most powerful sweep! The reason why the Central Plains have historically suffered more defeats in battles against the grasslands is mainly because they could not find armies from the Central Plains to fight against.

But this time, the First and Second Legions of the Dragon Kingdom will bring along the victims of the Mughal tribes!
Having endured years of torment at the hands of the Tibetan tribes—who abducted people and seized their livestock—and suppressed by the Chinese Empire for just as long, the Mughal people must have finally had enough of this pent-up hatred. It's time for them to unleash their fury on their enemies!

"The general strategy is fine, but what about the candidates for the commanders-in-chief of the two armies?" Emperor Longwu did not object to the Minister of War's general strategy; instead, he readily agreed. Now, he only wanted to hear the Ministry of War or the Cabinet's selection of the commanders-in-chief of the two armies.

After all, Emperor Longwu clearly knew that the simpler the tactic, the more unsolvable it was! Of course, that was only true if one had sufficient strength!

"Your Majesty, General Qian is mature and prudent, and is worthy of being the commander of the First Legion!"

General Jiang's tactics are flexible, and he was appointed commander of the legion in the second year! "The Grand Secretary Xia Yuanji gave the most reliable answer to Emperor Longwu's question!
After all, these two veteran generals have both come through the flames of war! They have also led troops independently for many years and are highly experienced!

Moreover, both of them are the emperor's confidants, and there is absolutely no problem for them to continue serving as commanders of the army!
"The two of them are fine."

However, the military still needs to quickly cultivate new talent! Our Dragon Kingdom's three major army corps and three major navy corps must ensure that there are at least six promising young commanders!
Otherwise, when they all grow old and there are no younger generation of generals, are we supposed to carry them to the battlefield?! Emperor Longwu naturally had no objection to the list of commanders-in-chief proposed by his father-in-law, Xia Yuanji.

However, at this time, Emperor Longwu still expressed his demands: the Dragon Kingdom must have a new generation of leaders! There must be six army commanders and six navy commanders simultaneously! A clear standard of one commander for each naval task!

(End of this chapter)