Ming Dynasty: I, Zhu Yunwen, started by resurrecting my grandmother.

Ming army camp.

Zhao Ning'er knew some medical skills and was bandaging the wounds of the injured soldiers.

Zhu Yunwen also came to visit the wounded soldiers.

Zhao Ning'er was very worried.

She told Zhu Yunwen, "The military camp is currently lacking in medicine, and there isn't much gauze left to bandage wounds."

Zhu Yunwen frowned: "I will immediately send someone back to Qi Tai to demand those supplies."

Zhao Ning'er couldn't help but ask, "Didn't you say that your plan went very smoothly this time?"

How come they managed to escape later?

"Our original plan was called 'luring the snake out of its hole,' but we never expected it would actually attract that giant two-headed snake monster."

Just when we were about to annihilate Chen Shiliang and his men in one fell swoop,

Chen Zuyi arrived.

And they brought with them a gigantic monster, which resembled a snake or a giant python, only that the snake was far too large and ferocious, and it had two heads.

While bandaging the wounded, Zhao Ning'er said, "Chen Zuyi is too wicked. He created this giant squid thing earlier..."

Now they've created a two-headed snake monster; it seems his pirate career wasn't for nothing.

"There are many monsters in the deep sea that have not yet been recognized by humans. These monsters are often huge, extremely ferocious, and possess enormous energy, which ordinary people cannot deal with."

the next day.

The soldier who had been sent to the capital to request supplies returned at top speed and reported to Zhu Yunwen and Chang Yuchun.

Qi Tai refused to distribute any supplies and rebuked Zhu Yuntong for how he fought the battle. He said that he could have annihilated Chen Zuyi and his son Chen Shiliang in one fell swoop, so why did he release them? What was his intention?

Upon hearing this, Zhao Ning'er flew into a rage: "What exactly does that old man Qi Tai mean? The soldiers are wounded, are you just going to watch them die?"

Zhao Sili was so angry that he didn't say a word.

Chang Yuchun thought for a moment and said, "It seems that Qi Tai is targeting us intentionally. The pirates have tens of thousands of men, ships, cannons, and even monsters. We already have few soldiers, and some of our soldiers are injured but not treated."

Zhu Yunwen was also very annoyed.

However, it seems inappropriate to fall out with Qi Tai over this matter.

He said to Ling'er, "Didn't the Emperor bestow a sum of money upon us last time?"

We will set aside a portion of the funds to purchase a thousand warhorses.

We can recruit soldiers on the spot now, and if we recruit another 1000 men and strengthen their training, we will have an additional 1000 cavalrymen.

As for those supplies such as medicine and food, didn't the imperial court refuse to distribute them?

Let's take some more money and go to the market to buy some.

Upon hearing this, everyone had no choice but to agree.

Zhao Sili shook his head: "Recruiting soldiers privately is a capital offense."

If Qi Tai finds out, he will surely impeach us before His Majesty.

Zhao Ning'er said, "How can we possibly use such a small force?"

Why worry about so much!

The imperial court won't send us any troops; isn't this just driving us to our deaths?

Which of those feudal lords didn't privately recruit soldiers?

If Zhu Di hadn't recruited soldiers, could he have repelled the Northern Yuan army?

"With the fire raging, let's take care of what's in front of us first."

Everyone agreed that Zhao Ning'er's words made sense.

Therefore, Zhu Yunwen and Chang Yuchun stationed their troops in the Suzhou area and recruited a thousand soldiers on the spot.

Then, Zhao Sili conducted the training.

Zhao Sili was originally a military commander, so he was very familiar with this kind of thing and handled it with ease.

night.

Beiping, the Prince of Yan's Mansion.

The hall was brightly lit, and people were singing and dancing.

Zhu Gaochi sat in the center, enjoying the song and dance performance.

Zhang Xin, the Commander of the Army and Cavalry, sat beside him.

A red carpet was laid out in the center of the hall, where sixteen girls in green dresses would sometimes dance gracefully in a square formation.

They were graceful and elegant, with light and graceful dance steps, and each of them was as beautiful as a flower, as lovely as an angel.

I was so dizzy from looking at that letter.

Zhu Gaochi offered a toast in a neutral manner, while Zhang Xin accepted all toasts.

Just then, the curtain was lifted, and a girl in red walked in from outside.

This woman had a slender figure, with a curvaceous bust and buttocks, fair and tender skin, and eyes that were like a pool of clear water, sparkling and shimmering.

This woman was none other than Hongyu, the young lady from Heming Tower.

It turns out that Zhu Gaochi had also noticed her when he was in the capital.

So they sent someone to redeem her from her servitude at a high price and brought her to Beiping.

Zhu Gaoxu was overjoyed when he learned of this. He had originally thought that Zhu Gaochi was going to reward him with Hongyu, and he was so excited that he couldn't describe it.

However, it turned out that wasn't the case.

Zhu Gaochi took Hongyu into his care and hired people to train her in singing and dancing.

Zhu Gaoxu was very displeased.

Tonight, Zhu Gaochi hosted a banquet for Zhang Xin and also invited Miss Hongyu.

Hongyu was impeccable in both figure and appearance.

Zhang Xin had long coveted her, and he never expected to see her again today.

When the music ended, Zhu Gaochi waved his hand, and the sixteen girls in green retreated, leaving only the girl in red.

Miss Hongyu understood.

She walked slowly to Zhang Xin's side and smiled sweetly: "General Zhang, you've worked hard. Please have a few more drinks."

Hongyu breathed softly, and as she spoke, she sat down next to Zhang Xin and poured him wine.

Since Hongyu entered the hall, Zhang Xin's eyes have never left her.

At this moment, seeing her personally pour him wine, he was overjoyed beyond words.

Hongyu poured herself three cups: "Come, General Zhang, let me toast you three times."

"Okay, good." Zhang Xin picked up his wine glass, tilted his head back, and drank the wine in one gulp.

Zhu Gaochi saw all of this.

He smiled slightly: "General Zhang, how are you settling into life in Beiping?"

Zhang Xin put down his wine cup and clasped his hands in a fist salute: "Thank you for your concern, Your Highness. It is kind of you, but it is inconvenient to live without a woman by my side."

"So, what do you think of the girl Hongyu beside you?"

Zhang Xin stared at Hongyu, and Hongyu lowered her head.

"Miss Hongyu is not only beautiful in her dancing, but also in person."

"If I were to bestow her upon you, what would you say?" Zhu Gaochi challenged him with words.

Upon hearing this, Zhang Xin thought he had misheard.

Zhang Xin turned to look at Hongyu beside him, her head lowered, a blush creeping onto her cheeks.

He looked at her by the light and found that the girl in red jade was even more beautiful and charming.

"Your Highness, you must be joking, right?"

Zhu Gaochi laughed heartily: "General Zhang, you work so hard for the country, how can you not have a woman by your side to take care of you?"

If you wish, let Hongyu serve you.

You can take her away tonight.

Zhang Xin's heart leaped into his throat, fearing that Zhu Gaochi would take back what he had said.

"Miss Hongyu, would you be willing?"

Hongyu parted her lips slightly: "I will obey Your Highness's orders."

Zhang Xin thought it must be true.

He quickly rose from his seat and knelt before Zhu Gaochi, saying, "Your Highness's kindness is beyond my ability to repay."

Zhu Gaochi shook his head: "It's not that I want to bestow Hongyu upon you, but rather that someone else wants to bestow her upon you."

"Oh, I wonder who this person is that the young master is talking about?" Zhang Xin wondered.

Just then, someone coughed softly, and a person walked out of the inner room. The person was tall, walked briskly, and was as steady as a mountain.

Zhang Xin rubbed his eyes, glanced around, and saw that the person who came was not Zhu Di, the Prince of Yan, but who else could it be?

Zhu Di laughed heartily, walked over to Zhang Xin, and helped him up with both hands: "General Zhang, you've worked hard!"

Zhang Xin was also dumbfounded. He looked Zhu Di up and down and couldn't help but ask, "Your Majesty, aren't you crazy?"

"Do I look like a madman to you?"

Zhang Xin shook his head: "It doesn't seem like it, but what exactly is going on?"

Zhu Gaochi stood up and offered his seat to Zhu Di, who then sat in the spot where Zhu Di had been sitting, with Zhu Gaochi standing behind Zhu Di.

Zhu Di waved his hand, and the girl named Hongyu tactfully withdrew.

At this moment, only Zhu Di, Zhu Gaochi, and Zhang Xin were in the hall.

Zhu Di sighed: "The reason I pretended to be crazy was out of necessity."

Back in the day, Prince Ziying of Qin feigned madness before he came to power, but eventually he ascended to the throne of Qin.

Although Ziying was a very talented person.

He had just become King of Qin when he killed Zhao Gao.

However, the Qin Dynasty was already teetering on the brink of collapse, and he was powerless to turn the tide.

During the Three Kingdoms period, when Liu Bei was out of favor, he sought refuge with Cao Cao.

Cao Cao discussed heroes over wine, saying that among all the people in the world, only Liu Bei and he, Cao Cao, were the true heroes.

Liu Bei was so startled that he dropped the chopsticks in his hand.

To avoid attracting attention, Liu Bei had to grow vegetables at home.

Finally, he managed to fool Cao Cao.

Later, Liu Bei seized an opportunity and asked Cao Cao for permission to attack Yuan Shu, thus finally escaping Cao Cao's control.

I am somewhat similar to Liu Bei; we both had no choice but to do things.

Some time ago, Timur of the Northern Yuan led an army of 100,000 to invade the border.

The imperial court has appointed Zhang Bing, Xie Gui, and you as the three of you to take up your posts in Beiping.

Everyone can see clearly that what is called a post is actually a way to hinder and supervise me.

In addition, the three military commanders Song Zhong, Xu Kai, and Geng Huan were stationed in the areas of Kaiping, Linqing, and Shanhaiguan, effectively surrounding the entire city of Beiping.

Furthermore, they investigated and examined the guards of the Prince of Yan's residence.

Tell me, under these circumstances, how can I not show weakness?

The court will surely turn its attention to me.

"I discussed this with my strategist Yao Guangxiao. Besides feigning madness, what other good ideas do we have?"

Upon hearing this, Zhang Xin understood and gave a thumbs-up in praise: "Your Majesty, you are truly remarkable! Your acting skills are superb!"

That time, it terrified me. You put that brick in your mouth and bit into it, and even said it tasted good!

"What else do you have to say? The Jade Emperor is your brother, and the Queen Mother of the West is your sister-in-law. They sent you down to save the common people."

Zhu Di laughed heartily: "That time, you bit off one of my teeth."

Sigh, there was really no way around it. That's when I realized that Huang Gai's self-inflicted injury ruse wasn't so easy to act out.

General Zhang, you are my former subordinate, and we have always had a pleasant working relationship.

Although there was a minor hiccup in the middle, and I had to punish you for a mistake you made,

However, I believe you've already realized that it was all just for show.

If you commit a crime, and I, the king, do not utter a single word...

How will we gain public trust in the future?

Later, the princess pleaded for you, and I gave you a few lashes, then let you go.

Zhang Xin laughed and quickly said, "Your Majesty, that's nothing. What's a little physical pain compared to that?"

For us military generals, it's utterly insignificant.

"I heard that when you were in the capital, you were very interested in Miss Hongyu. Therefore, I had Zhu Gaochi spend a large sum of money to redeem Miss Hongyu from her servitude."

Since you like her so much,

I will grant your wish.

"You can't live here in Beiping without a woman to take care of you." Zhu Di also admired Sun Quan's ability to move people with emotions, and now he was able to use that skillfully as well.

"Your Majesty has shown me such great kindness, how can I possibly repay you?" Zhang Xin was so moved that tears streamed down his face.

"Zhu Yunwen is my nephew, but he is too young. He can't withstand the slanderous words of the villains Qi Tai and Huang Zicheng speaking ill of me in front of him."

This led Qi Tai to target me directly, wanting to reduce my fiefdom.

Over the years, as you have seen, I have guarded Beiping, fought against the Northern Yuan, and risked my life countless times. Look at the wounds on my body, they are all scarred.

He was utterly loyal to the imperial court; how could he possibly harbor any rebellious intentions?

However, those two bastards, Qi Tai and Huang Zicheng, are always speaking ill of me in front of the Emperor.

The emperor is easily swayed, and over time, he actually started to believe that I would rebel.

"I do not want to rebel from the bottom of my heart, but things have come to this point, and now I have no choice but to rebel."

Zhang Xin was taken aback: "What does Your Majesty mean?"

"Didn't Zhu Yuntong send you, Zhang Bing, and Xie Gui here last time?"

On the surface, you are still in the position of the Beiping Military Commander.

In fact, you are my confidant.

Now Xie Gui is the commander and you are the deputy. You need to find a way to arrest Xie Gui and seize his military power. That way, the military power of the Commander-in-Chief's Office will be in your hands.

As for Zhang Bing, he was just a civil official who did not hold military power, so he was nothing to be afraid of.

When you have complete control of the Commandery...

Keep a close eye on the movements of Song Zhong, Xu Kai, and Geng Huan.

Now, I hear that Zhu Yuntong and Chang Yuchun are fighting against the pirate Chen Zuyi.

I can take this opportunity to request the court to send troops to support Zhu Yunwen, and then we can jointly attack Chen Zuyi from both sides.

The imperial court will surely agree.

Because if we defeat Chen Zuyi, the pirates will be wiped out, eliminating a major threat to the imperial court.

In other words, our defeat by Chen Zuyi weakened the military strength of Beiping, a situation the imperial court was happy to see.

Therefore, in this way, regardless of victory or defeat, it will be beneficial to the imperial court.

After hearing this, Zhang Xin spoke with great passion: "Your Majesty is right, Qi Tai and Huang Zicheng are indeed villains."

I will obey Your Majesty's orders without question, even if it means going through fire and water.

Zhu Di, with his hand on the document, looked south and nodded: "With your words, I am at ease. If I conquer the world in the future, you will be the founding hero, with high office, generous salary, and all the riches and honors you could want."

Zhang Xin feigned indifference and said, "Your Majesty, I am not greedy for those things."

"With Miss Hongyu by my side, what more could I ask for in this life?"

His words made everyone laugh.