Dream of the Red Chamber: Start by gaining Zhao Yun's martial prowess, and be ennobled in a sin

"Generals, there is urgent intelligence. His Highness summons you to the military headquarters for a meeting!"

Just as the two were talking and having a good time, a burly soldier strode over and called out to them.

Chen Ruiwen and Qi Jianhui exchanged a glance, wondering what had happened. Under the protection of their personal guards, they descended the city wall and galloped for half an incense stick's time to reach the military headquarters in Jizhou City.

Upon entering the yamen, one immediately senses an extremely solemn and dignified atmosphere.

The Prince of Nan'an, clad in armor, stood with his hands behind his back before a table covered with military reports, his face grim. Mu Chen, Ma Shang, Xie Jing, and others sat on either side, their expressions solemn.

Seeing that all the generals had arrived, the Prince of Nan'an tossed a freshly opened military report onto the table, his sharp gaze sweeping over the group as he spoke in a low voice:

"Generals! We have just received intelligence from Tongzhou. Jia Jing has ordered the 12th Regiment to set off in three routes towards the various garrisons around the capital. Tongzhou City has already been occupied by the imperial army, and the main force will arrive at the walls of Jizhou City in no time!"

It must be said that Jia Jing arrived too quickly, somewhat catching the Prince of Nan'an off guard.

He originally thought that as long as the various guards did not openly rebel, it would at least delay the uprising for one or two months, giving him enough time to make his plans.

Unexpectedly, the imperial army was mobilized in less than half a month!

Given this urgent and pressing situation, all the previous plans will likely have to be changed!

Fortunately, Jia Jing, being arrogant and domineering, did not lead the troops himself this time, but instead sent an unknown person as the commander-in-chief. This was an opportunity!

Upon hearing this, Mu Chen, Ma Shang, Chen Ruiwen, and the others all changed their expressions, realizing the gravity of the situation. Chen Ruiwen was the first to exclaim in alarm:

"They arrived so quickly?! How could Tongzhou City have been captured so soon? Isn't Commander Liu one of our men? How many troops did the imperial court send this time? Was Jia Zijie personally leading the army?"

Chen Ruiwen was clearly very surprised and asked four or five questions in one go.

The Prince of Nan'an said in a deep voice:

"The 12th Regiment dispatched nine battalions, totaling approximately 140,000 men, divided into three routes: one heading towards Jizhou, one towards Baoding, and one towards Tianjin."

"The commander-in-chief was Lan Yu, the battalion commander of the Yangwei Camp. He commanded five battalions, totaling about 80,000 men, forming the central army, which headed straight for Jizhou. Jia Jing, on the other hand, remained in the capital and did not personally go to the capital."

"As for the fall of Tongzhou, it was merely a sudden and unexpected event; Liu Shun was caught off guard and caught completely off guard!"

The Prince of Nan'an did not mention the bombardment of Tongzhou, so as not to affect morale.

"140,000..."

Qi Jianhui gasped, his face paling, shocked, and remained silent for a long time.

You should know that they have only managed to train 50,000 elite troops in all these days. Although they still have tens of thousands of garrison soldiers, they are mostly useless and have little combat power.

"Jia Jing has staked everything! Tongzhou is not far from Jizhou. If Lan Yu's central army moves quickly, they may be able to reach the city by tomorrow."

"Your Highness, have you received any replies from Xuanfu and Shanhaiguan? And what about the garrisons in Hejian and Yongping? Are they willing to join us in this uprising?"

The Prince of Nan'an, his face grim, slowly shook his head:

"Xuanfu and Shanhaiguan are far away, and we haven't received a definite reply yet. The attitudes of several garrisons in the Hejian and Yongping areas are ambiguous; they dare not openly respond to us, nor do they dare to openly rebel against the court."

"They'll see how things go before making a decision. These opportunists will only add to the good times, not offer help in times of need. We can't count on them for now."

It is worth mentioning that not all of the more than one hundred guard posts in the capital region dared to risk their lives to join the Prince of Nan'an and others in raising an army to purge the court of corrupt officials.

Some of the garrison commanders who did not embezzle much land or commit many illegal acts and were not afraid of the court's military reforms were not won over by the Prince of Nan'an, while others were observing the situation.

Of course, such people are in the minority!

Ma Shang sat at the lower end, his thin face long and drawn out. Suddenly, he said in a sarcastic tone:

"Who is Lan Yu? In all my years at the Five Military Commands, I've never heard of anyone named Lan Yu."

"Those people Jia Jing promoted from the Northwest—Zhou Yingyuan, You Shiyong, Qin Qiong from Liaodong, and his associates Zhang Yi and Ma Guocheng—were at least somewhat recognizable. Where did this Lan Yu come from?"

"Jia Zijie didn't even send a proper general, but instead sent some nobody to fob us off. Who does he think he is?!"

Chen Ruiwen's eyes flickered, and he took over the conversation, forcing a smile:

"Brother Ma is right. I don't think we need to worry too much! 140,000 troops sounds impressive, but most of the soldiers in the 12th Regiment are newly recruited. Only 20,000 to 30,000 have actually seen blood."

"Furthermore, Lan Yu is an unknown figure, a newcomer, and even the officers might not respect him. How can he possibly command anyone?"

Xie Jing abruptly stood up, a long-lost fierceness appearing on his sallow face. He surveyed the crowd and said solemnly:

"That's right! Brothers, listen to me."

"I, Xie, have also rolled through piles of corpses in the Northwest and Liaodong, and have faced life and death many times."

"At this point, words are useless. We might as well steel our resolve, risk our lives, and fight him to the death! Let's see who's the real deal!"

"In my opinion, we should muster our troops and confront them in Jizhou! Our ancestors were heroes who fought alongside the founding emperor to conquer the world; we cannot disgrace them!"

His words were menacing, his rough voice like sandpaper scraping against a piece of iron, which aroused a low murmur of approval in the hall.

Mu Chen also stood up, snapped his folding fan shut, and swept his gaze across everyone's faces. His voice, though not loud, carried the chilling confidence characteristic of a noble scion, as he said:

"Uncle Xie is right! Now that things have come to this, everyone has abandoned their families and livelihoods; what other way out do we have?"

"We are descendants of military heroes who shared the fate of the nation. How much blood and how many lives did our ancestors shed for this land?"

"Now, all we have is a small plot of land inherited from our ancestors, forcing us to flee to Jizhou, unable even to stay in the capital. It is the court's injustice that is to blame, not our disloyalty!"

"If I must utter a single disrespectful word, Jia Jing, that brat, has seized power and deceived the Emperor. Our uprising is not for rebellion, but to purge the court of corrupt officials! Even if we are defeated and die, we will have no regrets before our ancestors!"

The more he spoke, the more impassioned he became, to the point that even Chen Ruiwen, Ma Shang, and the others began to breathe heavily.

The Prince of Nan'an's gaze lingered on Xie Jing and Mu Chen's faces for a moment before he slowly nodded.

A friend in need is a friend indeed. Mu Chen and Xie Jing, who usually keep a low profile, showed real courage and spirit at this moment, and did not lose face!

The Prince of Nan'an straightened his back, the gloom on his face dissipating somewhat, replaced by a resolute and imposing aura.

In that weathered voice, there was no longer the slightest hesitation; he said decisively:

"Well said! When paths cross, the brave prevail. The imperial court's sword is already at our throats; if we don't fight, we die. Only by fighting can we have a glimmer of hope."

"I originally intended to follow the example of Emperor Chengzu, bypassing the Twelve Battalions and launching a surprise attack to directly seize the capital, but now it seems that this path is no longer viable."

"Although the main force of the Twelfth Battalion has come out, three battalions with forty to fifty thousand men have been left to garrison the capital. The city is now under martial law, and the Imperial Guards and the Imperial City Guards have also been mobilized. In addition, with that brat Jia Jing in charge, relying solely on the Duke of Cao's small force is probably not enough to make a difference!"

After all, the Duke of Cao was stripped of his post and was powerless, unlike when his ancestors were in charge of the city gates during the reign of Emperor Chengzu!

Besides, there are better strategies now!

The Prince of Nan'an walked to the map, drew a heavy line between Shenjing and Tongzhou with his finger, then pointed to the three branching arrows, and said in a deep voice:

"You have seen their deployment. They split their forces into three groups, which looks impressive, but in reality, they have violated the cardinal rule of military strategy: dividing forces."

"Lan Yu is an unknown figure with only 80,000 troops at his disposal. He first attacked Tongzhou and has already divided his troops to garrison it. When he arrives at Jizhou after conquering cities and strongholds along the way, his troops will inevitably be more scattered."

"Furthermore, the forces from Tianjin and Baoding are too far away to reach us; by the time the central army arrives at the walls of Jizhou, we will face at most fifty to sixty thousand troops!"

"It seems we are not without a chance of winning!"