weaving

Chapter 1494 The Great Ming Dynasty is Mighty, Long Live the Emperor!
Eight hundred cavalrymen stood in two columns on the east and west sides of the main road, followed by a thousand infantrymen.

The armored shield bearers and spearmen in the front row naturally attracted a lot of attention, since armored infantry were extremely rare in this era, and most government troops only wore armor on their cavalry.

It's extremely rare to see infantrymen like today, all fully armored!
Even some voices of doubt were heard from within the crowd...

"Did the Marquis of Yongning give all the armor of his entire army to these few thousand men?"

"Don't talk nonsense! There's a reason why the Marquis of Yongning's Xuanda army was able to defeat Li Zicheng's bandits!"

"Good heavens, if even the infantry under the command of the Marquis of Yongning are armored, how much silver must that have cost..."

"Isn't it said that the Earl of Yongning confiscated the property of many large merchants in Shanxi, and must have made at least several million taels of silver?"

"More than that... I think there are tens of millions of taels of silver."

“I say… it’s only thanks to the Earl of Yongning that I’m willing to spend money. If it were me, I would have buried the silver in my own backyard long ago. How could I bear to give the soldiers armor?”

"It's true, these days helmets and armor are rarer than human lives!"

"Look, the ones in the back don't have armor anymore...wait, what's this thing?"

While people were discussing the matter, the shield bearers and spearmen in front had already entered Nanxun Gate, and the five hundred warriors behind them were all musketeers.

They were all wearing red military uniforms that were neither new nor old. As they marched forward, they resembled a red cloud slowly drifting by. In particular, the muskets they carried on their shoulders were all standardized models.

The orderly marching was something everyone had already witnessed from the shield bearers and spearmen ahead, but they were still quite surprised to see a line of musketeers right in front of them.

In the Ming Dynasty, muskets and cannons were no longer a rarity among the government troops, but uniform designs like those of the Yongyi Army were quite uncommon.

The thousand-strong infantry column marched without a sound. Each soldier stood tall and proud, ignoring the murmurs and chatter of the people on both sides of the road.

"The strictness with which the Earl of Yongning disciplined his army is evident!"

Hearing Prince Zhou praise the Yongyi Army again, Chen Yongfu's face was full of pride. He interjected from the side, saying, "Since the time when the Earl of Yongning came to the aid of the Emperor in the eleventh year, he has won many battles. Last year, he also made outstanding contributions in the Liaodong campaign. This time, he defeated the rebel leader Chuang in another battle. His military might is so great that he is worthy of being personally awarded the title of 'Bravest of the Three Armies' by the Emperor."

At this moment, Provincial Governor Liang Bing interjected, "It is true that the Xuanda army of the Marquis of Yongning is capable of fighting, but it cannot arbitrarily seize farmland."

Everyone knew he was referring to the military farms, so no one dared to respond. Wu Shijiang, the prefect of Kaifeng, glanced sideways at Li Banghua and Ling Yiqu, observing their reactions.

Both of them had ashen faces, showing no change whatsoever. Unable to fathom their thoughts, I didn't continue the conversation.

Bian Yongqing, who was in charge of supervising Yongyi Army, was very disgusted by this. He said in a shrill voice, "The actions of the Earl of Yongning are for the sake of stabilizing the region. They are all for the benefit of the people of Henan. There is not a single selfish motive involved. We dare not slander the Earl of Yongning behind his back."

He was already standing next to King Zhou, and with his distinctive voice, everyone around him could hear him clearly, so naturally no one dared to say anything more about the military settlements.

Fang Zhenghua, who was in charge of supervising the Baoding Army, smiled and said to Chen Yongfu beside him, "The Baoding Army has also made great contributions in repelling the rebels this time."

Chen Yongfu dared not argue with Fang Zhenghua, and said with a forced smile, "Yes, yes, the Baoding Army has indeed made great contributions."

Just as the situation became slightly awkward...

"Look... the Commander-in-Chief is here!" The words of the newly appointed guerrilla commander Zhu Zhicang drew everyone's attention. At this moment, a commotion broke out in the crowd, with cheers rising and falling, and people were shouting the name of "Earl of Yongning is mighty... Earl of Yongning is mighty..."

Prince Zhou and his officials under the Nanxun Gate looked in the direction of the sound and saw a young general, dressed in armor that shimmered with golden light, riding a tall and magnificent horse slowly toward them.

Wherever they went, people cheered and shouted...

King Zhu Gongxiao of Zhou looked at the people around him and said to Li Banghua, "Mr. Li, let's go and welcome the Earl of Yongning together."

Although Li Banghua was not fond of Zhang Cheng, since the King of Zhou had spoken and was willing to lower himself to welcome him, how could he refuse? He could only smile and follow behind the King of Zhou, Zhu Gongxiao, to greet the Earl of Yongning.

…………

When he saw Prince Zhu Gongxiao and his officials approaching him, the Earl of Yongning immediately reined in his horse. He spurred his horse forward, raised his arms, and shouted, "The Great Ming is mighty! Long live the Emperor!"

Upon hearing this, those who were closer to the scene immediately joined in with the Earl of Yongning's words, shouting in unison, "The Great Ming is mighty! Long live the Emperor!" The roar instantly resounded throughout the entire area.

At this moment, Zhang Cheng, the Earl of Yongning, dismounted and strode towards King Zhu Gongxiao of Zhou. From ten paces away, he clasped his hands and shouted, "Zhang Cheng pays homage to King Zhu Gongxiao."

King Zhu Gongxiao of Zhou valued Zhang Cheng highly, so he quickly stepped forward and helped the Earl of Yongning, who was already kneeling on one knee, to his feet, saying, "The Earl of Yongning is wearing armor, so there is no need for such a grand ceremony."

All the officials and generals of Kaifeng Prefecture stepped forward one by one, clasping their hands in greeting and paying homage to Zhang Cheng, the Commander-in-Chief of the Bandit Suppression and Earl of Yongning. Even the Censor-in-Chief Li Banghua and the Minister of the Court of Judicial Review Ling Yiqu did the same.

Everyone reacted differently...

For example, Li Ruolian, the deputy commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, acted as if he was very familiar with the Earl of Yongning, introducing Zhang Cheng to Li Banghua, the Grand Censor, Ling Yiqu, the Minister of the Court of Judicial Review, Yu Shangyou, the Censor, Wang Tiaoding, the Director of the Department of Military Affairs of the Ministry of War, Ma Jiazhi, the Director of the Department of Civil Affairs of the Ministry of Revenue of Henan, and other officials from the capital, as well as the Grand Eunuch Li Fengxiang.

Chen Yongfu then started chatting with Li Fuming, He Zhenxiong, Lin Fangping and other generals behind the Earl of Yongning. Even the newly appointed guerrilla general Zhu Zhicang was already very familiar with the generals of the Yongyi Army and they were all chatting together.

Surrounded by numerous civil and military officials, Prince Zhou and the Earl of Yongning entered through the Nanxun Gate and headed straight for the Zhou Palace.

What they didn't see was that behind the Earl of Yongning were a thousand infantrymen and a chariot battalion of soldiers driving mule-drawn carts, following the Earl of Yongning into Kaifeng.

…………

For the people of Kaifeng, today has truly been an eye-opening day.

They witnessed firsthand the disciplined formations, strict military discipline, and excellent armor and weapons of the Yongyi Army. What impressed them most was the scale of the wagon barracks at the rear of the column.

Sixty sidecar chariots, plus twenty large sports cars, slowly drove past, their imposing presence even greater than that of the cavalry and infantry formations in front.

"Oh my goodness... This is terrible, this is really terrible."

"No wonder the Marquis of Yongning was able to defeat the rebel leader; look at all the equipment he has!"

"Indeed, our Commander Chen's troops are really no match for the Earl of Yongning."

"Of course..."