A thousand-year-old family begins with one fighting against ten thousand.

Du Hong, the military governor of Hedong, smiled slightly. "Pinglu and Fanyang are both important towns in the north, and are the second line of defense set up by the imperial court after Yunzhou."

"Which of you here hasn't had some interaction with An Lushan or Shi Siming?"

"That's right. Due to its geographical location, Hedong has indeed had many exchanges and interactions with An Lushan and Shi Siming."

"But it's impossible for you all to say there's absolutely no connection, is it?"

"What the imperial court wants is to completely take back power in all regions. Without military power, you will lose even human and financial power. You will all be fish on a chopping board, at the mercy of others."

"At that time, any imperial decree will be enough to take the heads of everyone here."

"Who among you dares to bet that the imperial court will turn a blind eye to your past actions and show you leniency?"

"If you were truly that confident, you wouldn't be here right now."

"Instead, like those other military governors, they contacted the imperial court early on and obediently handed over their power."

There are more than 30 regional military governorships in the country. In addition to the 27 that have formed an alliance, there are several other regional military governorships that are loyal to the imperial court.

Upon receiving the imperial edict, they immediately relinquished all power and continued to govern the region for the court.

But these people were all loyal ministers of the court, and had always been devoted to the court.

But what about them?

If they were truly loyal, they wouldn't be here.

Speechless after being told off by Du Hong, the military governor let out a dissatisfied snort.

"Gentlemen, since we have gathered here, we all have the same goal: to preserve our own power."

Zhang Huai stepped in as a peacemaker, saying, "I share General Du's view: if we really relinquish our power, even if the court keeps its word now, what about the future?"

"The late emperor was once a wise and powerful ruler, but later he still favored his relatives and eunuchs, which led to a dark court and the rise of treacherous officials."

"No one can say for sure how long the imperial court's promise will last."

"Even if the court changes its mind then, what can we do? Will we still have the power to resist?"

Although Zhang Huai did not explain everything, his attitude was self-evident.

Almost everyone else had the same idea, which is why they didn't relinquish their power but instead banded together for mutual support.

"What if the imperial court's promise remains valid?"

Someone couldn't help but say, "This is treason, a crime punishable by the extermination of nine generations of one's family."

If they fail, they will be nailed to the pillar of historical shame.

Making this decision is no easy task.

"The Prince of Yan did not participate."

The military governor of Mengzhou spoke, and with one sentence, he killed the game.

With just a simple statement that the Prince of Yan was not involved, the idea of ​​peaceful coexistence between all the military governors and the imperial court present was immediately dispelled.

If the court can truly persuade the Prince of Yan to participate, given the Wei family's reputation, they are willing to trust the court and will not seek revenge after they relinquish power.

But in fact, it doesn't exist. So why doesn't it exist?

Did the imperial court intend to settle scores from the very beginning?

Otherwise, why didn't the imperial court ask the Wei family to endorse it?

"It seems everyone has made their decision."

Zhang Huai stood up, and the other eight military governors also slowly rose, their faces showing a grim expression.

They are not good-for-nothings; good-for-nothings wouldn't be alive today.

"If anyone wants to withdraw, it's not too late."

Zhang Huai said calmly.

No one spoke, and no one left.

"Our oath must be supported by law. What do you all think of this?"

Zhang Huai took out a bright yellow scroll and handed it to everyone. After seeing it, everyone's faces lit up with joy, and they all nodded in agreement.

"Alright, then let's prepare for the oath."

Zhang Huai ordered someone to lead out a white horse and bring it to a high platform that had already been built.

The regional military governors also gathered their troops here, and the banners of the various regional military governors fluttered in the wind.

These troops were all elites from various regions, and none of them wanted to be inferior to the other military governors for no reason.

All the soldiers were fully armored, mostly in bright armor, with only a small number in lamellar armor.

Some military governors' pupils constricted when they saw the soldiers and horses of Yunzhou fully armored.

While each military governor had between 3 and 5 troops under his command, the armored horsemen were the most coveted by each governor, and many governors couldn't even muster a legion of 2 with their armored horsemen.

That not only requires enormous financial resources, but also demands the utmost discernment in the selection of warhorses.

Full armor is a standard six-piece set: face shield, neck guard, breastplate, body armor, back guard, and parasite. A typical combat full armor set weighs between 70 and 90 jin (35-45 catties). Add to that the 60 jin (30 catties) of bright armor, the 120 jin (60 catties) of rider, and equipment such as the longsword and saddle, and the total weight alone reaches a full 300 jin (150 catties).

The requirements for these warhorses are extremely stringent; they are selected from among the best.

The "hundred" refers to warhorses, not all horses.

Only the Hequ horses and Xiliang horses from the Hetao and Liangzhou regions of the entire Tang Dynasty could meet such requirements.

Just selecting 2 qualified warhorses was a challenge, and half of the military governors present couldn't find any. And this was only because they were all military governors from the north. If they were from the south, they probably wouldn't even be able to gather 1000 horses.

The feed for these warhorses was secondary, although it was still a burden that the regional military governors could hardly bear.

A warhorse is fed a fixed daily diet consisting of more than 5 catties of soybeans, millet, and black beans, 10 catties of high-quality hay, supplemented with salt blocks and bone meal.

Although the regional military governors controlled local tax revenue, how could a small territory afford to support so many warhorses?

Even Yunzhou, if it weren't for the secret Huang Ce discovered, would probably not have been able to sustain such a huge expenditure.

These military governors were all extremely familiar with the army, but a quick glance revealed that the entire Yunzhou army had as many as 3 fully armored soldiers.

This is still the situation right in front of us; each military governor brings 3 troops.

What about what's hidden?

How many heavily armored cavalrymen were there in the entire Yunzhou?

All the military governors were extremely wary of Yunzhou, which was also the purpose of Zhang Huai and Huang Ce.

The previous election of Yunzhou as the leader was a temporary measure.

Now that everyone is going to rise up in rebellion and form an alliance, the leader of this alliance is extremely important.

If they can actually reach Luoyang, according to the law, the leader of the alliance will be qualified to establish a new dynasty and become emperor.

Other feudal lords could only be granted fiefdoms and titles; this was the difference.

Therefore, Yunzhou must flex its muscles to persuade the other military governors to willingly relinquish their leadership position.

This also came at a price: during the southward campaign against the Tang Dynasty, Yunzhou had to fight tooth and nail.

A pure white horse was bound to a wooden stake. The swordsman swiftly cut the horse's blood, which flowed down a wooden trough into a large bronze cauldron on the platform. The crimson blood gushed and churned, and the stench of blood permeated the entire sacrificial site.

White Horse: Why am I always the one who gets hurt?!