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Chapter 817: Extra: National War (I)

The war came unexpectedly!

The winter of last year was extremely cold for the Rouran people, and a large number of cattle and sheep froze to death. Many people in all tribes starved to death. As soon as the weather warmed up, the Rouran Khan Fumingdun summoned all the tribal cavalry to assemble in large numbers and attack the border.

The two patrolling sentry battalions of the border troops encountered large groups of cavalry and were completely wiped out.

General Fan reacted quickly, immediately closed the city gates, and sent someone to send an urgent report to the capital.

What Jiang Shaohua held in his hand was the memorial written by General Fan himself.

Her Majesty's face was covered with a layer of frost, and her eyes flashed with cold murderous intent. She glanced at the familiar faces in the military tent and first pointed at the name of General Zuo: "Marquis Weiyuan, take a look at this memorial first."

General Zuo stood up and took the memorial, read it quickly, and then said in a deep voice: "Your Majesty, in the past few years, there have been only minor frictions at the border, and no major wars. This time, the Rouran suddenly launched a large-scale invasion, and they will not stop until they have killed enough and robbed enough."

"Fan Zhongliang can barely defend the city. If we really go into battle, he is no match for the Rouran. Even if I am in the frontier army, I can only defend the city first and avoid the enemy's attack."

However, this also meant that the initiative was in the hands of the Rouran cavalry. The Rouran people could bypass the fortified city and burn, kill, rob and abuse along the way. More than a dozen border towns would suffer.

Even if the imperial court sent troops to the front, no matter how fast they moved, it would still take a long time to get there. During this period of time, we would have to rely on General Fan.

Jiang Shaohua exhaled deeply and said, "Zuo Feng!"

"I am here!" General Zuo bowed.

"I order you to lead 80,000 elite soldiers from the Yingwei Camp to the border. Destroy the Rouran and kill Fu Mingdun. I will confer upon you the title of Duke."

General Zuo's eyes flashed with a fierce light: "I obey your orders! Even if I risk my life, I will definitely destroy the Rouran cavalry."

Jiang Shaohua looked at General Zuo steadily: "How to fight is your business. I don't want your life, I want the Rouran cavalry to be destroyed."

"My personal guards will also go with you. They will obey your orders."

"Liu Hengchang, Qin Zhan, Meng Dashan."

The three personal guard commanders bowed together and said, "I am here."

Jiang Shaohua glanced over and said, "Remember, you all have to obey the orders of General Zuo on this trip. Anyone who disobeys the orders can be punished by military law."

"If anyone relies on being my personal guard to cause trouble for General Zuo, I will never forgive him easily!"

Liu Hengchang and the other two were awed by the thought and did not dare to meet the Empress's bright and sharp gaze. They all bowed their heads and accepted the order.

Jiang Shaohua looked at the other three generals and said, "The Imperial Guards will stay in the capital and cannot move. Leave 10,000 men in each of the Shenwu Camp and Yongwei Camp, and send all the rest out to follow General Zuo."

"We have won this national war, and you have all made contributions. I will not treat you unfairly. If anyone dares to make trouble and disrupt the overall situation, I will personally use my spear to take his head."

General Bao was fine, but General Sima and General Song were terrified. To be honest, military commanders regard their troops as their lifeblood. If they lead troops to fight, the credit must go to themselves. Who would be willing to give their troops to others?

But now, Her Majesty the Empress has made it clear that she will fully support General Zuo. They have no room to refuse and can only bow their heads and accept the order.

Jiang Shaohua looked at Minister Feng: "Minister Feng, I will only give you ten days. The Ministry of Revenue must raise the military expenses and food for the army."

Without saying anything, Minister Feng bowed and responded: "I will go to the Ministry of Revenue immediately." Without waiting for the Empress's instructions, Prime Minister Chen said: "I will go to the Ministry of Internal Affairs."

At times like these, all available strength must be used.

Jiang Shaohua nodded slightly, and finally, his eyes fell on General Zuo's face again: "The Yingwei Camp has 80,000 people, the Nanyang Guard Camp has 30,000. The Shenwu Camp and the Yongwei Camp each have more than 40,000 people. Adding up, it's nearly 200,000 people."

"I will issue another imperial decree to let General Fan obey your orders."

"Including the border troops, there are nearly 300,000 soldiers and horses."

"Zuo Feng! I trust you and hope you will live up to my high expectations!"

General Zuo's blood boiled, his eyes became calmer and sharper, and he said in a deep voice: "I will not say anything nice. Everything will be determined on the battlefield! I will summon the generals to the military tent to discuss how to march and fight."

……

For an army of 200,000, let alone how to fight, just the marching arrangements are a daunting undertaking. How many miles to march each day, how to set up camp and settle down, and the daily drinking water, eating, and excretion all need to be carefully arranged.

General Zuo led a group of military commanders to hold repeated meetings and discussions in the military tent. After staying up for several sleepless nights, they finally came up with a set of rules.

General Zuo went to the palace in person and presented a thick memorial to the emperor.

Jiang Shaohua had been busy with the collection of food and fodder these days, and had not slept well. She looked through the memorials and said to General Zuo, "You are the one who decides on all these matters. I only do one thing, which is to ensure the army's military supplies, baggage, food and military expenses."

When a military general meets a wise leader, there is nothing to say and he will just fight with his life!
General Zuo said no more and bowed.

Before the army set out, Jiang Shaohua specially summoned Liu Hengchang into the palace.

"Liu Hengchang, I know you have great ambitions and passion. But you have only come to prominence in the past few years, so you are still young and lack prestige."

Jiang Shaohua said in a gentle voice: "I have put all my wealth into this national war. We can only win, not lose. I chose General Zuo because he has been in the border army for 20 years and is most familiar with the Rouran cavalry. Secondly, it is not easy to march and fight with an army of 200,000. At present, only General Zuo has this ability."

"There can only be one commander in the army, and that can only be Zuo Feng."

"I want you to put aside your prejudices, discard all distractions, and follow the orders of General Zuo."

Liu Hengchang replied sternly: "Your Majesty, rest assured, I have no dissatisfaction with General Zuo."

Jiang Shaohua said calmly: "You are not dissatisfied, but someone in the personal guard camp is dissatisfied for you."

The guards were so skilled in the battle formation, which could be said to be all Liu Hengchang's credit. In their opinion, their commander was much more powerful than General Zuo. And he was a legitimate descendant of the emperor, so why should he obey General Zuo's orders?
Seeing that the emperor knew about it, Liu Hengchang couldn't help but smile bitterly: "I have also said that to them. They don't say anything, but they are always a little dissatisfied in their hearts."

Jiang Shaohua looked at Liu Hengchang: "In short, I have told you everything I should say today. When marching or fighting, the personal guard camp must obey orders. Those who disrupt the morale of the army and the battle situation will be punished according to military law. Don't be arrogant and reckless just because you are my personal guard camp."

Liu Hengchang responded with a solemn expression.

A few days later, the army finally set out. General Zuo raised his own flag and ordered the red dragon flag to be raised.

An army of two hundred thousand strong marched towards the border.