Zhu Yuanzhang: My second son is invincible!

Three days later, the army arrived in Datong.

General Fu Youde of Datong went out of the city for thirty miles to greet him.

This veteran general was an old acquaintance of Xu Da. Upon meeting him, he punched him in the face and said, "Xu Tiande, I've been waiting for you for half a month!"

"We were delayed on the way," Xu Da replied with a smile, introducing Zhu Hui and Zhu Di.

Fu Youde was exceptionally respectful to Zhu Hui, and news of the Yellow River's drying up had already reached the border.

The group began to enter the city and then gathered at the commander's mansion to discuss matters.

Fu Youde spread out the map and said, "Wang Baobao is cunning. His main force is hidden in the old city of Karakorum on the northern foothills of Yinshan Mountain. He only sends cavalry to harass us. When we attack, he runs away. When we return to the city, he comes again."

"It's a strategy of exhausting the enemy; he wants to drag things out until winter, when our supplies run out," Xu Da nodded and said.

"Therefore, we must act quickly. This place is called Wild Fox Ridge, and it is the only way to Karakorum. Wang Baobao must have set up an ambush there."

Fu Youde pointed to a valley on the map and said to everyone.

Zhu Di's eyes lit up, and he said, "Then shall we ambush them?"

Xu Da shook his head and said, "He knows the terrain well; he'll suffer if he forces his way in."

The generals were abuzz with discussion.

Zhu Hui sat to the side, listened for a while, and suddenly asked, "Is that Halahelin far away?"

Fu Youde said, "It's over 500 li; a fast horse can get there in three days."

"Oh! Uncle Xu, why don't I just go and bring him back?" Zhu Hui said after thinking for a moment.

The room was completely silent.

Fu Youde coughed and said, "Your Highness, Wang Baobao has at least 30,000 cavalrymen with him, as well as shamans..."

"It's alright, I'll fly over," Zhu Li said.

"Fly..." Fu Youde was stunned.

Zhu Hui walked out of the marshal's mansion and stood in the courtyard.

The tattoo on his left arm felt slightly warm. He didn't summon the shield, but instead communicated with a being far away in Yingtian through his mind.

Half a cup of tea later, a loud cry came from the sky.

A giant golden shadow descended from the clouds, its wingspan reaching three zhang (approximately 10 meters). It was the Golden-Winged Roc that Zhu Hui had subdued.

The large bird landed and affectionately nuzzled Zhu Hui's hand with its head.

The once unruly Golden-Winged Roc has now been tamed by Zhu Hui.

Zhu Hui climbed onto the bird's back and said to Xu Da, "Uncle Xu, I'll be right back. You guys take your time."

"Your Highness, please wait... This is far too risky..." Xu Da hurriedly said.

"No risks, just grab someone... Big Gold, do you know the way..." Zhu Hui said, patting the bird's neck.

The large bird raised its head and cried out, indicating its recognition. It was originally the demon king of the north, so it was very familiar with the terrain of the northern desert.

Zhu Di rushed out and shouted, "Second Brother! Take me with you!"

"You're too heavy, Da Jin can't carry two people," Zhu Li said honestly.

Dajin shook its wings in agreement.

Zhu Di choked, and couldn't help but compare himself to his second brother Shen Chengcai, where...

Xu Da knew he couldn't dissuade him, so he could only say, "Your Highness, please be careful. If things become unmanageable, return immediately."

"I know. By the way, give me a piece of Wang Baobao's clothing, or something he used. Da Jin can recognize people easily." Zhu Li nodded and added.

Fu Youde quickly sent people to search for it, as they had captured Wang Baobao's cloak during the last battle.

The cloak was brought out, and Zhu Hui let Da Jin smell it.

Da Jin nodded.

"I'm leaving..." Zhu Li waved her hand.

The golden-winged roc spread its wings and soared into the sky, instantly becoming a golden dot on the horizon.

In the courtyard of the general's mansion, a group of generals stood with their heads tilted back, not moving for a long time.

Fu Youde swallowed hard and looked at Xu Da, saying, "Brother Xu, this prince... has always been like this..."

Xu Da smiled wryly and said, "You'll get used to it."

Zhu Di gazed at the sky, his fists clenched, his eyes filled with envy and a complex mix of emotions.

Five hundred li away, at the northern foot of the Yin Mountains.

In the old city of Karakorum, inside Wang Baobao's large tent.

This last great general of the Northern Yuan Dynasty is listening to a shaman perform divination.

"The stars are moving strangely; a great calamity is about to befall us," the old shaman said in a hoarse voice.

Wang Baobao sneered, "Who will Zhu Yuanzhang send to his death this time? Xu Da, Fu Youde, or that newly appointed Prince of Wu?"

The voice just fell.

Exclamations came from outside the tent, followed by the neighing of horses and the screams of soldiers.

Wang Baobao grabbed his curved sword and rushed out.

Then he saw a giant golden bird land on the flagpole, and a young man in a blue robe jumped off its back.

The young man, carrying a giant bronze axe, looked around before fixing his gaze on Wang Baobao.

"Are you Wang Baobao..." the young man asked, his accent a little strange.

Wang Baobao gripped his knife tightly and asked, "Who are you?"

"Prince Wu of the Ming Dynasty, Zhu Hui, my father asked me to invite you back as a guest. Let's go!" The young man walked over and said politely.

Wang Baobao, enraged, laughed coldly, "With your...?"

He blew his bone whistle, and hundreds of his personal guards surrounded him, drawing their scimitars.

Zhu Hui glanced at the group and sighed, "They insist on fighting..."

He raised the axe and gently slammed it onto the ground.

thump.

The ground shook.

Centered on him, everyone within a hundred feet radius, including Wang Baobao, collapsed to the ground and fainted.

Zhu Hui walked over, picked up Wang Baobao, and then looked at the unconscious soldiers, saying, "Never mind, take them all back! We're short-handed for road construction."

He whistled.

When Da Jin flew down, Zhu Li tied up Wang Baobao and threw him onto the bird's back. Then he used ropes to string together dozens of officers of centurion rank and above, hanging them up like dried meat.

Daikin protested, "It's too heavy."

"Hang in there, I'll give you extra food when we get back." Zhu Liu patted it.

Da Jin resignedly took off.

Before leaving, Zhu Hui remembered something and chopped down the tallest stone palace in the city with his axe.

Boom!

The stone palace collapsed, raising clouds of dust.

"Alright, they shouldn't chase us anymore." Zhu Hui nodded in satisfaction and jumped onto the bird's back.

The golden-winged roc flapped its wings with all its might, dragging dozens of people along, and flew south in a wobbly, unsteady manner.

On the ground, the surviving Northern Yuan soldiers stared blankly at the sky, forgetting to give chase.

Two hours later, on the walls of Datong.

The sentry suddenly pointed north and exclaimed, "What...what's that?!"

As everyone looked, they saw a large golden bird descending from the sky, with a long string of black dots hanging from its claws.

The large bird landed, and Zhu Li jumped down, throwing the unconscious Wang Baobao to the ground, saying, "Uncle Xu, the man has been captured. These are for you."

He then pointed to the string of generals and said, "These should be able to earn some merit too, right?"

Xu Da looked at the Northern Yuan Qi King, who was bound like a dumpling on the ground, and then at the dozens of generals who were also unconscious. He opened his mouth, but couldn't say anything for a long time.

Fu Youde murmured, "That's...it's over?"

Zhu Hui nodded and said, "Yeah, they're not very durable."

Zhu Di rushed over, looked at Wang Baobao, then at Zhu Hui, his eyes filled with complex emotions.

Zhu Hui patted him on the shoulder and said, "Fifth brother, next time you can go first, I'll hold the fort."

Zhu Di said with a wry smile, "Second Brother... with you making a move, what's the point of me fighting?"

"There's always someone you can handle," Zhu Li comforted her.

Xu Da finally came to his senses, took a deep breath, and said, "Order the entire army to break camp and take over Karakorum!"

The Northern Expedition began and ended in an instant.

And all of this took less than a day.