With 100,000 elite soldiers at the start, what should you call me?

……

Inside the government office of Jianning Prefecture.

At this time, the government office had become the residence of Zhu Changhu, the Prince of Yunxi.

Zhu Changhu, the Prince of Yunxi, was a member of the Ming imperial family. He was living a peaceful life when he was discovered by the rebel army led by Wang Qi. Under the banner of the Ming imperial family, he began to resist the Qing.

At first, the rebel army launched a fierce offensive, quickly recovering several prefectures and counties in Jianning Prefecture, and even repelling the Qing army's suppression. For a time, they were unparalleled in their glory.

Zhu Changhu even fantasized about one day recovering the entire country, restoring the former glory of the Ming Dynasty, and making the Ming Dynasty great again.

But the good times didn't last long.

In December, the newly appointed Governor-General of Zhejiang and Fujian, Chen Jin, led an army of 60,000 south to suppress the rebellion.

They routed the rebel army, crushing them all and slaughtering them one after another.

Jianning Prefecture had been besieged for months, morale was low, and supplies were running low. It was only a matter of time before Jianning Prefecture was breached. Given this situation, Zhu Changhu was extremely anxious every day, pacing back and forth in the hall waiting for something, his eyes occasionally glancing at the gate.

At this moment, a burly man with a dark face walked over, and Zhu Changhu seemed to have found his pillar of support, so he immediately stepped forward and asked.

"Grand Preceptor, is there any news of reinforcements?"

Wang Qi cupped his hands, his expression somewhat strange; "Your Highness, it seems we can't count on Prince Lu's reinforcements."

Upon hearing this, Zhu Changhu felt as if he had fallen into an ice cave; "I should have realized it sooner. After besieging the city for months, we sent messengers more than ten times. If Prince Lu had known, he would have sent troops to attack the Qing army from both sides!"

"It must be that treacherous minister Zheng Cai who is secretly obstructing us!" Zhu Changhu thought of Zheng Cai as he spoke, and angrily denounced him.

"The world is about to perish! And yet they're all still harboring their own ulterior motives, coveting that little bit of power!"

"They're all a bunch of bastards!"

Zheng Cai was a cousin of Zheng Zhilong. After the death of Emperor Longwu, Zhu Yujian, Zheng Zhilong surrendered to the Qing court, while Zheng Cai supported Prince Lu, Zhu Yihai, to continue resisting the Qing.

Although Zheng Cai was a righteous man who resisted the Qing Dynasty, he was obsessed with vying for power and influence. He even went so far as to kill Xiong Rulin, the Grand Secretary of the Eastern Pavilion and the Grand Tutor of the Crown Prince, and force Zheng Zunqian, the Marquis of Yixing, to commit suicide, which shows the extent of his power.

After Zhu Changhu finished his tirade, he noticed that Wang Qi next to him seemed to have something else to say, so he calmed down and resumed his usual well-mannered prince demeanor.

"I, the Imperial Advisor, have just lost my composure."

"Zheng Cai hasn't sent troops to rescue us, yet the Grand Preceptor remains unmoved. Could something else have happened?"

Wang Qi cupped his hands in greeting; "There is indeed one more thing."

"I just received intelligence that the people of Lijia Village said that an army of no less than 100,000 people has been discovered at the foot of Yunji Mountain. Their clothing and attire are in the style of our Chinese people, so they should be the righteous army that has come to provide support."

Upon hearing this, Zhu Changhu's face immediately lit up with a smile; "So you're from the south?"

"Oh dear, it must be the Duke of Jian Guo who sent troops to rescue us. I wronged an innocent man just now, and I must apologize to the Duke of Jian Guo afterwards."

Wang Qi shook his head with a wry smile. This prince's temper changes faster than flipping through a book. "The banners of that army are unknown, and we don't know which unit it belongs to."

"Not Zheng Cai's troops?" Zhu Yihai's expression froze, he coughed, and then asked seriously;

"No matter where the troops are from, as long as they are righteous people resisting the Qing, we should be tolerant and accepting. National Preceptor, we must send someone to contact them immediately."

"Your subject obeys."

After Wang Qizheng left the government office with this plan in mind, he immediately summoned several people.

"Yan Ying".

"Your subordinate is here." A man wrapped in a white cloth stepped forward and bowed.

"Take a few brothers and follow Brother Xiang Shui to make contact with the rebel army in Yunji Mountain."

"Assess their strength and find out whose unit they belong to."

"Yes, General."

Yan Ying turned and left with the others, accompanied by a thin man wearing a hat.

This man was Li Xiangshui, the third son of Li Zhenyan, the chief of Li Family Village. He was the one who went into the city to deliver the intelligence to Wang Qi.

Meanwhile, on the other side...

In addition to sending his third son, Li Xiangshui, into Jianning Prefecture, Li Zhenyan also sent his second son, Li Xiangqing, to the Qing army camp.

"What this servant said is absolutely true, my lord. I would never dare to utter a single falsehood. If there is even the slightest lie, may my whole family die a horrible death!" Li Xiangqing knelt on the ground and spoke with absolute certainty.

Vice Minister Li Shuaitai frowned slightly and knelt on one knee to pay his respects to a man seated above him.

"Your Excellency, regardless of whether what this lowly commoner said is true or false, if there really is an army of 100,000, we can simply send a scout team to verify it."

"If that's true, the siege of Jianning Prefecture will probably need to be reconsidered!"

The newly appointed Governor-General of Zhejiang and Fujian, Chen Jin, was incredulous when he heard that Ming troops and reinforcements had arrived. He immediately went to the map.

"That shouldn't be the case. If Zheng Cai made any moves, how could a lowly commoner have noticed?"

"Pass on my order to send a scout team to find out the truth."

"The officer previously responsible for monitoring intelligence in the south shall be punished with ten lashes!"

The Qing army's main camp was located five miles north of Jianning Prefecture.

The Yunji Mountain to the south is only a dozen miles away from the Qing army's main camp!

With an army of 100,000, not a single scout could spot them. Those idiots deserve to be killed!

A distance of more than ten miles can be covered in a few quarters of an hour by galloping at full speed.

Several scouts arrived at a high point and, looking into the distance, indeed saw a dark mass of people.

What are they carrying on their shoulders?

"It looks like a gun, but it's different from the ones we use."

"Huh? There's no camp, no campfire, not a single horse, not even armor. Where did these lowly commoners come from?"

Several scouts took turns analyzing Li Tian's army in the distance.

This army was strange; it couldn't really be called an army, yet each of them carried a musket.

"Tiezi, quickly tell the general what's going on here. I and the others will continue to keep an eye on things."

"Okay, big brother!"

Tiezi ran down the hillside, mounted his horse, and immediately returned to the camp to inform Chen Jin of the situation he had discovered.

"Huh, that's strange? They only have guns!"

Chen Jin stroked his beard, a slight smile playing on his lips; he had his answer.

It is estimated that they are a rebel army composed of displaced people who gathered in some county.

One hundred thousand people sounds like a lot, but in Chen Jin's eyes, they were nothing more than a bunch of chickens and dogs.

Three thousand infantry and cavalry could scatter one hundred thousand men in a single charge.

He encountered many such displaced rebels, and they all became part of his achievements.

"Minister Li."

Li Shuotai stepped forward.

"I order you to lead five thousand infantry and cavalry across the Jianxi River, circle around to the back of Yunji Mountain, and launch a surprise attack from behind to annihilate this army. Do not let a single person escape into Jianning Prefecture."

"This subordinate obeys!"