The fierce grandson of the Ming Dynasty

Chapter 145 The Crown Prince Offers a Clever Scheme

late at night.

Outside Beiping city.

Inside the military tent, Zhu Xiong Ying, along with his fourth uncle Zhu Di, had just returned to the camp.

Considering the urgency of the battle at the front.

Without resting, he immediately summoned his uncle Li Wenzhong, maternal uncle Lan Yu, maternal uncle Chang Mao, and other generals to meet him, to inquire about the military situation, and also to write a letter to Zhu Yuanzhang.

After they entered, he offered them seats one by one.

Zhu Xiong Ying walked to the unfolded map and said, "I summoned you elders here tonight to inquire about the situation at the front!"

"After all, this battle is of great importance! And before leaving the capital, my grandfather specifically instructed me to comfort the troops and oversee military affairs—"

Upon hearing this, Zhu Di, who was sitting to the side, and Lan Yu and the others sitting to his left all nodded.

Then, they looked at Li Wenzhong, who was outstanding in military talent and had the highest prestige.

The next moment, Li Wenzhong stroked his beard, stood up, and spoke first in a deep and powerful voice: "May I inform Your Highness that several days ago, according to our scouts, Nahachu had already assembled his entire main force of 150,000 troops along the Jinshan line, constructing three lines of defense!"

"Among them, Nairbuhua led 30,000 men to defend Daming. Pingzhang Guolai led 15,000 men to garrison Qingzhou. Nahachu himself was stationed at Jinshan Fortress, and the three formed a mutually supportive defensive position!"

Li Wenzhong paused, pointed to the location circled on the map, and said, "This Qingzhou area was originally a crucial grain and supplies base for the remnants of the Yuan army led by Nahachu, where a large amount of military equipment and food were stockpiled!"

"As for Guo Lai, he is a confidant of Nahachu, a brave warrior, and an arrogant man!"

"And then there's Daning—"

After Li Wenzhong explained the enemy's situation, Zhu Di glanced at everyone, stroked his beard, and said, "My nephew doesn't know! In recent days, General Feng, who is in Tongzhou, has intensified his reconnaissance efforts—"

Upon hearing this, Zhu Xiong Ying's heart stirred.

In the 20th year of the Hongwu reign in history, during this Northern Expedition, the Ming army seemed to have found a breakthrough in Qingzhou, catching the remnants of the Yuan rebels off guard!

Why not give it a try now?

He pondered for a moment, then looked up at everyone and asked, "Uncle Li just mentioned Qingzhou; what is its terrain like?"

Upon hearing this, Lan Yu straightened up and said with a smile, "To be honest, Grandson Emperor, the day we led our men on patrol, we made our way to the Qingzhou line without making a sound! It was only on our way back that we encountered the enemy—"

"Therefore, no one understands the actual situation in Qingzhou better than us!"

Seeing the eldest grandson of the emperor's searching gaze, Lan Yu continued, "The city here is not high, the city wall is only three zhang high, and it has been in disrepair for many years! As for the troops stationed here, most of them are remnants of the Yuan cavalry—"

Upon hearing this, Zhu Xiong Ying immediately felt reassured.

The remnants of the Yuan dynasty were not good at defending cities!

Heaven is truly helping the Ming Dynasty!

As Sun Tzu said in "The Art of War": Attack where the enemy is unprepared, appear where the enemy is not expecting you.

He stared at the direction of Qingzhou, turned to the side, and said, "As the elders have advised!"

"Qingzhou is our breakthrough point!"

Seeing his nephew's confident demeanor.

Zhu Di composed himself, looked on with interest, and did not interrupt.

People like Li Wenzhong, Lan Yu, and Chang Mao all had thoughtful expressions in their eyes.

By candlelight, Zhu Xiong Ying paced back and forth, analyzing, "Elders, please look! Naha has now concentrated his elite troops along the Jinshan line! It turns out he saw General Feng's large army gathered in Tongzhou, and therefore assumed our Ming army would attack from the front!"

"Furthermore, according to what my maternal uncle just said, the defenses of Pingzhang Guolai's troops in Qingzhou are greatly relaxed—as a result, the enemy will certainly not expect that we will circle around to the rear and attack this place first!"

"This also confirms the saying: The key to warfare is to take advantage of the enemy's unpreparedness, to attack them by unexpected means, and to strike where they are least expecting it."

Li Wenzhong and Zhu Di were the first to realize what was happening, and their eyes showed approval.

In fact, judging from the enemy situation a few days ago, Gyeongju was the place where the opportunity for battle should have been!

With the addition of multiple Ming troops, they were already in position.

Furthermore, General Feng Sheng was stationed in the Tongzhou area, drawing the attention of the remaining Yuan forces!

To avoid the enemy's strength and strike at their weakness, thus capturing Qingzhou, is the best strategy!

Of course, what surprised them most was that the eldest grandson of the emperor, at such a young age, had already mastered the art of military strategy to a high degree!

Could it be like the young Emperor Taizong of Tang, Li Shimin?

Lan Yu understood as well.

He jumped to his feet, his tiger-like eyes wide, and said, "Does the Crown Prince mean that we can send light cavalry to launch a surprise attack on Qingzhou? To catch the enemy off guard!"

Zhu Xiong Ying pointed to the route and said, "What my great-uncle said is true!"

"If our Ming army could send an elite cavalry force out of Xifengkou, circle around to the west of Daning, march day and night, avoid the main force of the remnants of the Yuan army, and strike directly at Qingzhou!"

"We can then take advantage of the enemy general's unpreparedness, breach the city in one fell swoop, behead the enemy leader, and burn their supplies!"

"This will cut off Naha's retreat, and the morale of his army will inevitably fall into chaos!"

"When the time comes, General Feng will lead his army to attack Jinshan. How can we not achieve a great victory?"

Once the Yuan invaders were thrown into chaos, their morale would plummet.

With no way to retreat and a formidable enemy in front, Nahachu was forced to surrender under pressure!

Meanwhile, Uncle Li Wenzhong's cavalry force could also launch an attack from another direction and achieve even greater results.

After listening, Chang Mao, who had remained silent until now, excitedly slapped his thigh and exclaimed, "What a brilliant plan!"

Lan Yu also smiled and said, "We've disliked that kid Guo Lai for a long time. Last time, it was his men who injured us."

"If we were to lead our troops to attack Qingzhou this time, we would be there without hesitation!"

No one refuted Lan Yu's words.

Even Zhu Xiong Ying believed that his maternal uncle was the most suitable candidate!

After all, he had personally scouted the enemy's situation before, and had made his way all the way to the vicinity of Qingzhou, so he was extremely familiar with the terrain and other aspects!

However, once this decision is made, the consent of the commander-in-chief, Feng Shengzhi, is still required!

Besides, he, the eldest grandson of the emperor, is not the actual commander!

However, given Feng Sheng's military capabilities, he would surely understand the intention behind it and would likely not object!

Immediately afterwards, Zhu Xiong Ying glanced to the side and saw that Uncle Li's brows were furrowed, and he seemed worried.

He hurriedly asked, "Uncle Li, do you think there's a problem?"

Upon hearing this, Li Wenzhong hurriedly replied, "The strategy suggested by the Crown Prince is excellent, employing surprise tactics!"

"However, it's several hundred miles from Xifengkou to Qingzhou. If the cavalry were to set out, the commotion would be so great that it could easily attract the attention of the enemy, or we might end up surrounded!"

Zhu Di glanced at his elder cousin, then chimed in, full of protectiveness, "Brother, you should know! The greater the risk, the greater the reward!"

"Just as my nephew said, that scoundrel Nahachu would never have imagined that we would launch a surprise attack at this time. This is truly our Ming army's greatest advantage!"

"As the saying goes, speed is of the essence in war! In times of war, each of our Ming cavalrymen can carry two horses, abandoning baggage and only carrying dry rations and water. They can take turns riding, traveling day and night, and reach Qingzhou in less than three days, enough to catch us off guard!"

Zhu Xiong Ying listened.

He couldn't help but think to himself: This is the true nature of Fourth Uncle!

That said, Zhu Di, the Prince of Yan, was known for his fiery temper when he was young!

In battle, he was brave and daring, always leading from the front, and was especially skilled in cavalry warfare, adept at using surprise attacks!

With his military talent.

In another ten years or so, as long as Li Wenzhong, Lan Yu, and Mu Ying are all living well.

Including his fourth uncle, they are enough to become the four great guardian generals of the Ming Dynasty!