The Great Ming Demon Pill: Your Majesty, please address me as the Crown Prince!

Zhu Di coughed lightly.

"What about the military training?"

Zhu Zhanjun chuckled.

"Grandpa, I've been teaching them very seriously."

"They were once decadent sons of noble families."

"Now, however, they are veterans of our Wolf Fang Battalion."

Zhu Di: "..."

He said irritably.

"A bunch of teenagers, all turned into veterans?"

Zhu Zhanjun said solemnly.

"Grandpa, since you're questioning the results of our military training, the simplest way is to verify it, wouldn't that tell you?"

Zhu Di looked puzzled.

"verify?"

"How do you verify it?"

Zhu Zhanjun said solemnly.

"We are going to hold a military exercise."

"I will lead my Wolf Fang Battalion, and my grandfather will choose a team to fight against each other."

"If I lose, it proves that the military training was ineffective, and I won't bother with it anymore."

"If I win, all doubts will disappear, and naturally the royal family's reputation will remain intact."

[Ding! You have obtained a golden treasure chest!]

Zhu Di was completely bewildered, and somewhat doubted his own ears.

"You? With those brats?"

Do you think you're Han Xin?

He swallowed the last sentence back.

Zhu Di couldn't help but say.

"Are you serious?"

Zhu Zhanjun shook his head.

"certainly."

Zhu Di stroked his beard.

It's not a bad thing to let this kid suffer a setback.

Jade cannot become a useful object without being carved.

"Okay." He nodded.

........................

Two days later.

Fragrant Hills, on the western outskirts of Kyoto.

This area is part of the Yanshan Mountains, with undulating terrain, dense vegetation, mainly pine, cypress and maple trees, interspersed with ravines, streams and natural caves.

The hillside is gentle on the south and steep on the north, with narrow valleys on the east and west sides. There are several flat terraces at the top of the hill, offering a wide view overlooking the entire exercise area.

Below the mountainside, the area is covered by dense forest, with numerous winding paths that provide cover.

On the high platform.

Zhu Di, accompanied by his crown prince Zhu Gaochi, his eldest grandson Zhu Zhanji, Prince of Han Zhu Gaoxu, Prince of Zhao Zhu Gaosui, and some civil and military officials, ascended to the "Battle Observation Platform" on the south side of the main peak of Xiangshan Mountain.

The terrain here is high and unobstructed, offering a clear view of the jungle, valleys, and the initial encampments of both armies below the mountainside.

On the stage were yellow silk canopies and chairs, with guards standing around and eunuchs such as Meng Ji attending to them.

Zhu Di sat in the center, his gaze sweeping across the area below with great interest.

"Zhan Jun's Wolf Fang Battalion has fifty men, and Xunwei Cavalry has thirty men."

"Gao Xu, in your opinion, who will win?"

All eyes fell on Zhu Gaoxu.

The eyes of the Marquis of Fengcheng and the Duke of Cheng, in particular, were complicated.

When they heard that the Prince of Jiyang was going to bring his son and grandson to a military exercise, they were almost speechless with shock, thinking that the Prince of Jiyang had gone mad.

Zhu Gaoxu grinned.

"Although the Imperial Guards are only responsible for guarding the palace and taking turns on duty at the Meridian Gate, they are still far superior to a group of children."

"However, as a father, I don't want to boost the morale of others while diminishing the glory of my own child, so I believe Zhanjun will win!"

Zhu Di smiled upon hearing this, and a low chuckle rippled through the crowd.

The title of Xunwei Sanqi was specifically for the second sons of dukes, marquises, earls, governors, and commanders to be given a gilded decoration.

These noble sons could not inherit the titles, but they could still rise through the ranks through connections.

While the fighting strength of the Imperial Guards could not compare with that of the regular army.

But when you think about it, it's obvious who will win between a group of twenty-year-olds and a group of children under ten.

Zhu Zhanji looked at the battlefield beneath his feet with a half-smile, inwardly sneering.

This time, the commander of the Imperial Guards was Yuan Zhu, the son of the Imperial Son-in-Law Yuan Rong.

Yuan Zhu and he were cousins.

He had already sent a message to Yuan Zhu, instructing him to beat Zhu Zhanjun into a sorry state, preferably to the point of making him cry.

With so many people watching, he's going to make Zhu Zhanjun lose face!

.......................

Zhu Zhanjun addressed his brothers, who stood in neat rows not far away, and shouted loudly.

"I don't understand why there are always rumors in Kyoto lately that our Wolf Fang Battalion is weak and immoral."

"It seems that this military exercise is destined to be disastrous for us."

"No matter how you look at it, the troop strength in the exercise is fifty to thirty, so the advantage is on our side!"

"Dry them to death!"

His "Orator" ability activated, and the group of mischievous kids immediately became excited.

"Dry them to death!"

Suddenly, a whistle blew from afar.

Zhu Zhanjun's expression turned serious, and he immediately spoke.

"action!"

"Yes!" Zhu Yi, Zheng Yu, and the others exclaimed excitedly.

...................

the other side.

Yuan Zhu leaned against a rock, looking bored, while his guards and cavalrymen also leaned lazily against a tree. They all carried bows and arrows, but the arrowheads were wrapped in a thick layer of cotton cloth.

According to the rules of the play, being shot means death.

He didn't actually take the performance to heart.

There's really nothing to be proud of in beating a bunch of kids.

A whistle sounded in the distance.

Yuan Zhu yawned.

"Let's begin."

...................

Zhu Zhanjun took out a cylindrical object made of brass from his pocket.

These were the binoculars he had had polished over the past few days.

He quickly climbed to a rock halfway up Fragrant Hills with a wide view, raised his binoculars, and looked toward the valley where Yuan Zhu's side was stationed.

The deployment and movement patterns of the thirty elite guards were clearly visible through the telescope.

Yuan Zhu and his men clearly underestimated their enemy and did not deliberately hide. Instead, they sat scattered in twos and threes in the clearing in the woods, with only a few people lazily patrolling the perimeter.

"They really don't take us seriously..." Zhu Zhanjun smirked, sliding down the rock and whispering to Zhu Yi, Zhang Mao, and the others who were hiding in the bushes, "Their main force is concentrated at the eastern entrance of the valley; there are only two sentry posts on the west side. Zheng Yu, take your group and sneak in from the west. Take out the sentries with arrows. Remember, shoot and then retreat; don't linger!"

"Yes!" Zheng Yu replied in a low voice, leading seven or eight children to quietly detour to the west under the cover of bushes and rocks.

Zhu Zhanjun then looked at Zhu Yi: "You take the second group and circle around to their flank from the north slope. When you hear the arrows from the west, use stones and blowguns to create a disturbance and attract their attention. Li Heng, you and your third group will ambush them on both sides of this path to the south. Once they are distracted, we'll intercept any stragglers!"

The order was quickly relayed.

After half a month of military training, these children are already very familiar with simple flag signals and hand gestures, and their actions have even shown some semblance of obedience.

On the viewing platform.

Zhu Di initially paid no attention, but soon he noticed that the dozens of small green figures in the forest below the mountain were unusually agile, dispersing and weaving, always avoiding Yuan Zhu and the others' direct line of sight.

"Hmm?" Zhu Di leaned forward slightly. "Is it Zhan Jun who's directing the manpower?"

Zhu Gaoxu also narrowed his eyes: "It seems like they've split into three or four teams, each with its own plans."

Everyone focused their attention, carefully observing the movements below.

Zhu Di stroked his beard and praised.

"Putting everything else aside, this camouflage uniform alone is refreshing."

"No wonder Zhan Jun fought in the mountains and forests; this clothing is good for concealment."

Everyone nodded in agreement.

Regardless of their opinion on the exercise, at least they approve of the camouflage uniforms.

Anyone with eyes can see the advantages of this outfit in field combat.

Upon hearing his grandfather's praise, Zhu Zhanji clenched his fists and inwardly scoffed.

You brat, wait a minute, I'll see how you make a fool of yourself!