Emperor Chongzhen was too extreme.

Chapter 154 It's time for a motivational speech.

Chapter 154 It's time for a motivational speech.
After Huang Ze ordered the troops to retreat.

Lu Xiang-sheng chased after him for quite a distance before stopping.

Just as prepared in the beginning.

Lu Xiang-sheng really risked his life this time.

Do it.

The purpose was to attract Huang Ze and others' attention as much as possible, so as to gain their trust.

At the same time, he was working so hard so that he could help His Majesty as soon as possible.

If he, as an inside man, could gradually rise through the ranks of powerful families in the Hebei region.

They even hold some core power.

That way, His Majesty will have to put in much less effort when he recovers Hebei.

you could put it that way.

If Lu Xiang-sheng had gained the enemy's trust an hour earlier, perhaps tens of thousands fewer people of the Ming Dynasty could have been spared from suffering.

Under this powerful psychological suggestion.

The scene of Lu Xiang-sheng charging and pursuing just now naturally appeared extremely brave, not much less so than the fierce generals recorded in historical books.

Similarly, his fearless figure left a deep impression on everyone who followed him.

Things have come to this point,
Even if Huang Ze and others wanted to bestow great rewards and make Lu Xiang a model, they couldn't.

If Lu Xiang-sheng fails to receive the reward he deserves, the morale of the entire army will be shaken.

If even such fierce generals don't receive the rewards they deserve, then who would risk their lives for them?

It was also until this time.

As the bloodlust in Lu Xiang-sheng's heart slowly subsided, he gradually began to feel the exhaustion and pain in his body.

He looked down at his body.

Although there were still a dozen or so arrows stuck in the armor.

However, due to the superior skills of His Majesty's personal guards and the relatively good coordination between the two sides.

In reality, these arrows did not damage any bones or muscles; they only broke the skin and caused a lot of bleeding, which made them look rather frightening.

However, they were determined to see the play through to the end.

After stopping, Lu Xiang-sheng pretended to be exhausted from fighting and fell heavily off his horse.

This scene naturally caused a great psychological impact on the soldiers who charged alongside Lu Xiang-sheng.

A raging soldier, and a raging nest.

If the commanders and generals of their army were all such brave men.

How could they have been so easily defeated by the Northern rebels' army in a single encounter?
To know.

Many of the soldiers who just died were their close friends and family members!
In a short time, people's hearts also changed.

Human nature is to admire strength, and this is especially true in the military.

So in a very short time, many rank-and-file soldiers in this army began to yearn for Lu Xiang-sheng to be their commander.

no way.

The contrast between Lu Xiang-sheng and the other generals was just too stark.

The saying "no comparison, no harm" is true.

This development was something even Lu Xiang-sheng himself hadn't anticipated.

However, he had no time to pay attention to these things at the moment.

He knew that if he wanted to climb higher in this army, the most important thing was to gain the favor of Huang Ze and others.

Therefore, they waited until Lu Xiang-sheng was carried into the city.

Lu Xiang-sheng only "woke up" at the opportune moment when Huang Ze and the elders of the other three families, as well as other senior executives of the aristocratic groups, gathered around him.

now.

Looking at Lu Xiang-sheng, who appeared completely exhausted, Huang Ze was quite moved.

He never expected this.

It was just a young man brought along on a whim, yet he played a role that shocked everyone.

Such well-rounded individuals, who are both courageous and resourceful, are exactly what they need most right now.

Seeing that Lu Xiang Sheng had woken up, Huang Ze stepped forward, gently patted his shoulder, and said:

"Take good care of your injuries. Everyone saw your performance just now. Tomorrow I will promote you to deputy commander of my Northern Expeditionary Army."

"After the Northern Expedition is over, we will help you step by step to become the Governor of Hebei."

"Your family will surely rise to the top along with you."

The Shijia Group was formed based on mutual benefit, so naturally, the way to win people's hearts was by offering substantial rewards.

The other three family heads showed no dissatisfaction with Huang Ze's promotion and future promises.

Lu Xiang-sheng's performance tonight was outstanding.

If we don't promote such capable generals, then who should we promote? They wouldn't do anything that would disappoint people or undermine our own strength.

Upon hearing this, Lu Xiang-sheng naturally forced himself to sit up and expressed his gratitude profusely, appearing as if he would die for someone who understood him.

At the same time, he was also mentally calculating what he had gained this time.

Originally, his position in the army was just a commander-in-chief, commanding about a thousand men.

There are more than a dozen of them of this caliber in the entire army.

The deputy commander is completely different; he has already entered the core management of the team.

Because this army only has one commander-in-chief and three deputy commanders-in-chief.

This means from now on.

He can easily gather important intelligence from within the enemy ranks, and he can also influence decisions on various major events.

Thinking of this, Lu Xiang-sheng felt a surge of joy.

However, he also knew that gaining the other party's trust was only the first step, and there was still a long way to go.

Lu Xiang-sheng suppressed his inner turmoil and continued to probe Huang Ze for information:
"My lord, what I am most worried about right now is how we should deal with the Northern rebel army next."

"The army of the false emperor is truly too skilled in battle!"

"I dare to say something disrespectful, but I am worried that if we are not handled properly, we may face annihilation if we make a single mistake!"

Huang Ze listened to Lu Xiang Sheng's words and looked at the man covered in blood, and was deeply moved.

What a great kid.

At a time like this, the first thing to worry about is how to deal with the bandits.

Although the other party was essentially thinking about their own future.

But in terms of insight and perspective, he is already far superior to those good-for-nothings in his family.

If all the scions of noble families were like this.

How could the Ming Dynasty have fallen to such a state?!
If the occasion hadn't been so inappropriate, Huang Ze would have simply adopted Lu Xiang-sheng as his godson.

Huang Ze coughed twice, comforting Lu Xiang Sheng:
"The combat capabilities of the pseudo-emperor's army are indeed beyond imagination, but you don't need to worry about it."

"The current force of over 10,000 people is just the vanguard; another 100,000 troops can be mobilized from the entire Hebei province."

"Moreover, it won't be long before the Later Jin army arrives at the capital, and the southern provinces will continue to provide us with support."

"So although the false emperor was lucky enough to succeed in a sneak attack once, he could not escape the fate of dying and disappearing."

Lu Xiang-sheng pretended to be relieved after hearing this.

After exchanging a few more pleasantries with him, the people inside told him to take good care of his injuries and then left.

And after everyone left.

Lu Xiang-sheng's heart was suddenly filled with a storm of emotions.

This bastard actually colluded with the Later Jin?!
And they actually managed to muster another 100,000 troops within the entire Hebei province?!

Lu Xiang-sheng was powerless to help the Later Jin.

However, he needed to prepare for the events within Hebei Province in advance.

He now knows that after His Majesty succeeds in his attack, he will feign sending troops to Tianjin but actually attack Baoding Prefecture.

By the time.

He had to persuade these people to redeploy as many troops as possible from the surrounding area to defend it, so as to help His Majesty take Baoding Prefecture first.

There is.

Currently, His Majesty faces a rather critical problem – the military strength in the capital is somewhat insufficient, totaling only tens of thousands of men.

Although the quality of these troops was far superior to that of the aristocratic families, the advantage in quality was not enough to completely offset the disadvantage in quantity.

However, this disadvantage cannot be effectively remedied in a short period of time.

Only by recovering lost territory can one be qualified to recruit soldiers. And even if one is qualified to recruit soldiers, it is unlikely to be very effective.

Thinking about these things, Lu Xiang-sheng frowned for a moment.

He currently doesn't know how to solve the problem of lacking troops and can only take it one step at a time.

at the same time.

In the capital city.

The team that went to raid the aristocratic family's army returned to the capital and immediately gave Zhu Youjian a detailed report on what had just happened.

After listening to his subordinates recount Lu Xiang-sheng's valiant performance...

Lu Xiang-sheng's impression on Zhu Youjian deepened even further.

At the same time, this person's strategic influence also increased.

But these are all things for later.

Time is precious, but opportunities are even more precious.

After the surprise attack succeeded.

Zhu Youjian first ordered the victory to be widely publicized throughout the city, in order to at least calm people's minds down a bit.

immediately.

He immediately began to plan in detail the tactical route for the feint attack on Tianjin.

Just as he was about to order an army to be deployed the next day.

Wei Zhongxian suddenly rushed in.

As he ran, Wei Zhongxian excitedly shouted throughout the palace, "Your Majesty! Your Majesty!"

"We have just received reliable intelligence! Sun Chengzong, the Minister of War during the Tianqi era of the previous dynasty, led his entire family in a valiant effort to kill the Prefect of Baoding and a group of sycophantic officials yesterday!"

"Now he has completely taken control of Baoding Prefecture, and has even circulated the heads of the bandits throughout the counties of Baoding! He has also declared that he will be loyal to the Ming Dynasty to the death!"

"He also sent his eldest son to the capital, saying that you can send troops to garrison Baoding Prefecture at any time! He, Sun Chengzong, will obey your every command!"

Upon hearing this news, Zhu Youjian was genuinely somewhat surprised.

Because the various contingencies he had considered in the past two days were basically all harmful drawbacks to the Ming Dynasty.

Such a windfall was truly beyond his expectations.

Rulers must never place their hopes on such low-probability events, as this would affect their analysis of the situation.

But the surprise only lasted for a moment.

Zhu Youjian immediately ordered, "Bring me Sun Chengzong's resume!"

"Yes!"

Wei Zhongxian suppressed his excitement and hurriedly went to find all the information about Sun Chengzong.

Not long after.

After reviewing all of Sun Chengzong's official records from his more than ten years in office, Zhu Youjian made a decision in his heart.

There's not much more to say about Sun Chengzong's loyalty to the Ming Dynasty.

He has proven this with his actions.

What Zhu Youjian values most now is Sun Chengzong's ability.

The fact that he could handle Baoding Prefecture with such swift and decisive action demonstrates that he is a rare and exceptional military talent.

Using him to counter the powerful families would be extremely useful, no matter where he is placed.

But what Zhu Youjian cared about more was...

This is still based on Sun Chengzong's experience a few years ago when he commanded troops on the front lines outside Shanhaiguan and directly confronted the Later Jin.

Apart from the defeat at the Battle of Liuhe, Sun Chengzong did almost everything perfectly outside the Great Wall.

This can be seen from various battle reports.

During the years that Sun Chengzong guarded the pass.

Later, Jin Qiu dared not invade Shanhaiguan, and instead turned his attention to other parts of Liaodong.

Given the circumstances and conditions at the time, it was truly remarkable that they were able to take this step.

As for the defeat at Liuhe, it cannot be entirely attributed to Sun Chengzong alone.

The undercurrents and complexities involved are now impossible to investigate in detail.

Therefore, Sun Chengzong is such a talented person.

It would be a waste to use him only to deal with the small fry in Hebei.

Thinking of this, Zhu Youjian couldn't help but turn his attention to Yongping Prefecture in Hebei Province.

original.

Zhu Youjian had no intention of targeting Yongping Prefecture.

But now the situation is completely different.

With Baoding Prefecture captured without bloodshed, he could then concentrate his forces to take Shuntian Prefecture as well.

And most importantly.

The place where Sun Chengzong previously supervised the troops was Yongping Prefecture (Shanhaiguan was under the jurisdiction of Yongping Prefecture).

Sun Chengzong was very familiar with Yongping Prefecture, both the people and the place.

Many of the officials and generals in Yongping Prefecture today are former subordinates of Sun Chengzong.

It was to be expected.

Once Baoding and Shuntian prefectures are recovered.

The will to resist in Yongping Prefecture will also be greatly diminished.

At that time, all that was needed was to send Sun Chengzong to Yongping Prefecture to garrison.

Then, without lifting a finger, Yongping Prefecture could also be brought under the control of the Ming Dynasty.

Thus.

The three major strategic locations surrounding the capital were now completely under his control.

This has a significant impact on the overall situation.

then.

As long as I give Sun Chengzong my full support.

Sun Chengzong will surely be able to turn the important Shanhaiguan pass into an impenetrable fortress in a short period of time.

This would keep the Later Jin outside the pass, preventing them from easily setting foot on Ming territory again.

Zhu Youjian was well aware that it wouldn't be long before Huang Taiji realized that the Later Jin had been deceived by him.

At that time, whatever his reasons, he would definitely have thought of eliminating himself, his biggest threat, first.

If you look at it this way.

For the Ming Dynasty, Sun Chengzong was indeed a timely help.

However, there is still a problem.

To accomplish all of the above, a large army is required.

With tens of thousands of people in the capital and Lu Xiangshan as an important inside man, taking down Shuntian Prefecture wouldn't be too difficult.

However, how to defend these places after they are captured is a major problem.

Even if it means temporarily excluding Yongping Prefecture.

Tens of thousands of people.

I want to defend the capital, Baoding Prefecture, and Shuntian Prefecture.

This is clearly an impossible task.

At that time, the powerful clans will only need to send troops to harass the Ming Dynasty, keeping the entire Ming Dynasty busy.

It would be more worthwhile to give up these territories altogether.

therefore.

To achieve this goal, we need to recruit at least tens of thousands more troops in a short period of time.

Zhu Youjian turned his gaze back to Baoding Prefecture on the map.

Baoding Prefecture, where no unrest has yet occurred, is undoubtedly the best choice for recruiting soldiers.

However, given the current situation...