Transmigrating to the Primordial Era as a Peerless Great Witch, Changing Fate in the Primordial Worl

Those forces that had been hiding, observing, and sitting on the fence for years could no longer conceal themselves.

Whether forced or voluntary, they all began to take sides.

Secretly planning how to choose in this upcoming final showdown to protect his life and fortune, and even secure future benefits.

However, the reactions of countless ordinary people who suffered from war, oppression, and famine were completely different from those of the powerful forces when they heard the news.

They felt no fear, only ecstasy and anticipation.

The reputation of Yangzhou as a place of "strict laws, clean governance, reasonable taxation, and peaceful life" has long been deeply ingrained in people's minds.

Countless people living under the brutal rule of the Qing government, the Three Feudatories, or other warlords eagerly awaited the arrival of the legendary "royal army" to rescue them from their suffering.

"May God grant us that Lord Wei's army will arrive soon."

"I heard that in Yangzhou, farmers only pay 30% rent for their land, and the government doesn't arbitrarily conscript people."

"Thanks to the Bodhisattva's intervention, Lord Wei won this battle and seized power. Now we can finally live a good life."

Countless simple prayers and hopes quietly rose in the fields, in dilapidated huts, and on the roads of refugees.

These faint thoughts converged into a stream, traversing thousands of mountains and rivers, and invisibly converged towards the northward-bound army and the young city lord with black armor and a silver spear.

What the people desire is what destiny will bestow.

The projected body of Wei Xiaobao could clearly feel that the expectations and beliefs of all the people were more surging than ever before.

He looked north, his eyes burning with even stronger fighting spirit.

He was determined to possess this world, this destiny, this supreme power and responsibility, projecting himself into Wei Xiaobao.

The Northern Expedition has officially begun.

The final chapter of the Deer and the Cauldron world will soon be written by him personally.

Report.

A panicked and urgent roar shattered the oppressive silence of Wu Sangui's camp on the Yunnan front.

A messenger, covered in dust and with blood-stained armor, practically tumbled and crawled into the central command tent, kneeling on one knee.

Holding a letter adorned with three red feathers—symbolizing the highest level of emergency—high aloft with both hands, he reported in a trembling voice:

"Your Highness, the Yangzhou Army under Li Dian has sent a challenge."

This is being presented with utmost urgency, for Your Highness's perusal.

"A challenge?"

Sitting upright in his command seat, Wu Sangui, whose face was already extremely gloomy due to the unfavorable war and heavy losses over the past few months, suddenly frowned upon hearing this, his eyes flashing with cold light.

He reached out and took the sealed letter of challenge from the guard, its cover inscribed with "To Wu Sangui, Prince of Pingxi," written in cinnabar. Without even glancing at it, he tossed it to the strategist beside him and shouted:

"read."

The strategist quickly unfolded the document, scanning it rapidly. His face instantly turned pale, and his voice trembled almost imperceptibly.

"This is to inform you of Li Dian, the Legislative Minister of Yangzhou and Imperial Governor of Yunnan."

By order of Lord Wei, the lord of Yangzhou, I hereby issue this proclamation to the false king Wu Sangui:

You were originally a Han official, and your family has been favored by the Ming Dynasty for generations. However, you betrayed your lord for personal gain, led the Qing army into the pass, and ravaged the land. Your sins are heinous.

He later rebelled against the Qing and established his own regime, displaying a fickle and capricious nature. He was truly a treacherous hero in a chaotic world and a great scourge to the nation.

Today, our royal army in Yangzhou, acting on the orders of Heaven, punishes the guilty and mourns the people. We have pacified Jiangnan and our military might is at its peak.

Your occupation of Yunnan and your stubborn resistance are like a mantis trying to stop a chariot, showing a complete lack of understanding of destiny.

Upon receipt of this proclamation, you are given three days to open the city gates, surrender, and come back bound. In return, you may be spared death and your entire family may be spared.

If you remain stubborn and refuse to listen, when my heavenly army arrives, I will surely raze Kunming to the ground, exterminate your entire clan, and leave no one alive.

Don't say it is unpredictable.

Yangzhou, Li Dian, on a certain day of a certain month of a certain year.

"You arrogant brat, how dare you insult me ​​like this?"

Upon hearing this, Wu Sangui flew into a rage, slamming his fist on the table in front of him, causing the writing brush, ink, paper, and inkstone to jump high into the air, and veins bulging on his forehead.

Wu Sangui, who had dominated the world for decades, had never been so openly criticized and called a "treacherous and wicked villain."

They were even ordered to "bring their hands together and return, so that you may be buried intact"?

This is an utter disgrace.

What alarmed him even more was the tone of the challenge letter—so forceful and confident, as if it had him completely under its control.

Clearly, the main force of the Yangzhou army did not relax its pressure on Yunnan due to the Northern Expedition; on the contrary, it was going to intensify its offensive.

"Your Highness, please calm down."

The strategist quickly advised,

"This is Li Dian's tactic of provoking us, intended to disrupt the morale of our troops."

"Hmph. Trying to demoralize my troops?"

He intends to stall me, giving me no chance to catch my breath, and preventing me from heading north to claim a share of the spoils.

Wu Sangui was a cunning old fox; he instantly saw through Li Dian's strategic intentions, or rather, the strategic intentions of Li Dian, who was actually Wei Xiaobao.

His face was so dark it seemed to drip water, and he gritted his teeth and said:

"Wei Xiaobao is incredibly cunning; he intends to have a decisive battle with Emperor Kangxi in the capital."

Fearing I would stab them in the back, they sent Li Dian, that cruel official, and Li Shi, that brute, to relentlessly pursue my Yunnan.

This is to completely pin me down here, allowing him to focus single-mindedly on vying for the throne with Emperor Kangxi.

Just as Wu Sangui had predicted, Li Dian met up with Li Shi after receiving Wei Xiaobao's secret order.

Immediately adjust strategy, no longer satisfied with standoffs and small-scale harassment.

Instead, they began to amass a large force, adopting a posture for a decisive battle, and launched fierce attacks on Wu Sangui's defenses day and night.

At the same time, the new laws were used to quickly establish rule in the occupied areas, consolidate the rear, and cut off Wu Sangui's possibility of resupplying locally.

Li Dian's military tactics were characterized by strict discipline and meticulous planning.

In conjunction with its new policies such as "granting land to military merits and distributing land to households,"

This greatly boosted the morale of the soldiers and civilians who accompanied them.

Li Shih, on the other hand, used his expertise in civil administration and logistics to ensure a continuous supply of food, fodder, and military equipment to the front lines.

The two, one skilled in literature and the other in martial arts, worked together seamlessly, their attacks relentless.

This left the already demoralized and internally unstable Triumphing forces exhausted and struggling to cope.

They simply couldn't spare any energy to pay attention to the war in the north, let alone go north to cause trouble.

In this way, the threat from the Southern Three Feudatories, which was Wei Xiaobao's biggest worry about his northern expedition, was firmly pinned down in Yunnan by Li Dian and Li Shi, and they were unable to move an inch.

The flanks and rear of the Northern Expeditionary Army were thus secured.

At the same time, the central expeditionary army led by Wei Xiaobao and the eastern detachment led by Zhou Yu were advancing toward the Forbidden City with unstoppable momentum.

Wherever Wei Xiaobao's projected army passed, its momentum was unprecedented.

Along the way, troops from various places continuously joined forces. Eight hundred thousand elite soldiers, their banners blotting out the sky, their swords and spears gleaming coldly in the sunlight, and the sounds of horses' hooves, footsteps, and wheels of carriages merged into a torrent that shook the earth.

This is not just an army, but more like a "great trend of the world" representing order, hope and new life, crushing the core of the old era.

What is even more impressive is the support from both the military and the people.

Along the way, in every prefecture and county that the army passed through, in every area covered or affected by the new policies of Yangzhou, the people welcomed the royal army with food and drink.

They spontaneously organized themselves to repair bridges and roads for the army, transport supplies, provide intelligence, and some enthusiastic young men even asked to join the ranks.

In areas not yet under Yangzhou's control, the people also took action, either secretly passing on messages or directly rising up against the local Qing government and opening the city gates to welcome them.

A sense of awe and a powerful, unstoppable momentum seemed to be gathering and rising with the march of this army.

Ultimately, it transformed into an invisible giant sword, its blade pointing directly at the Forbidden City, the city that symbolized the authority of the old dynasty.