The fierce grandson of the Ming Dynasty

Chapter 164 Naha's Despair

Late that night, at Jinshan's yamen.

In the flickering light of the oil lamp, Nahachu sat on the tiger-skin throne.

There was mare's milk wine beside him, but he didn't touch it.

His eyes had long lost their former luster, appearing empty as he stared intently at the map!

But after being moved away from the lost places like Gyeongju, I felt my blood rush to my head and almost vomited blood.

Then he thought of the food supplies in Jinshan Army, which were only enough to last for three days.

Even the Jurchen strongholds are almost gone!

According to Guan Tong's report, Li Wenzhong was leading his troops to assemble and arrive.

Thinking of this, Nahachu suddenly felt a headache coming on.

He was just about to call his advisors to discuss countermeasures.

Unexpectedly, a guard rushed in from outside the tent, filled with terror, and knelt down with a thud.

"Grand Commandant, something terrible has happened! The Jurchen stronghold of Kutun has been lost!"

Has Kutun been lost?

Nahachu suddenly stood up, almost stumbling, and stared intently as he asked, "Where's Guantong? Could it be that Li Wenzhong has come to attack?"

"Guan Tong—he led his troops to surrender!"

After hearing the full story...

Naha's expression changed.

Then, in a fit of rage, he kicked over the table, spilling mare's milk wine all over the floor.

He immediately took two quick steps, grabbed the servant's clothes, still somewhat disbelieving, and shouted sternly, "Say it again!"

""

The guard trembled with fear and could only stammer, "Just yesterday, Li Wenzhong led his troops to besiege Kutun—"

This matter has been confirmed.

Naha could no longer hold back and spat out a mouthful of blood, staggering and almost falling to the ground.

"Grand Commandant!!"

The guards quickly surrounded them.

Naha broke free from his support and muttered, "It's all over, everything's over!"

This Guan Tong was actually his own nephew, and also the person he trusted most.

That's why the flank defenses and some supplies were entrusted to them for defense!

I never expected this outcome!

The news spread.

In a short time, many generals gathered here.

Someone, with red eyes, drew a scimitar and shouted angrily, cursing Guan Tong as a traitor.

Some people's expressions changed, revealing their intention to surrender.

In everyone's eyes, the man at the back, named Aharin, stepped forward first, bowed, and said, "Grand Commandant, we are now out of supplies and have no reinforcements!"

"After three days, when our remaining food supplies run out, I'm afraid we'll fall into chaos even before the Ming army comes to attack!"

"At this point, there is no other way; we must prioritize the greater good!"

a few days later.

Early that morning, under the protection of his maternal uncle Chang Mao and others, and accompanied by his fourth uncle Zhu Di, Zhu Xiong Ying inspected the area surrounding Beiping.

By the time they returned to the West Camp, it was already dusk.

Inside the tent, I drank some plum juice to relieve the summer heat.

Zhu Xiong Ying also had time to talk with her fourth uncle about the future resettlement of border migrants.

Then, Chang Mao, the eldest uncle, rushed in, holding a military report in his hand, and laughed loudly, "Good nephew, look! Duke Cao has captured Kutun!"

Hearing this, Zhu Xiong Ying understood perfectly well that it was probably the story of the child being cursed.

Before he could say anything...

His fourth uncle, Zhu Di, tugged at his beard and eagerly looked up, asking, "Has the enemy general surrendered?"

Chang Mao handed over the letter, nodding and saying, "Excellent!"

"As soon as Duke Cao's troops arrived at the front, that brat Guan Tong led more than 10,000 men to surrender. In this way, our Ming army captured Kutun without losing a single soldier!"

"Luckily, Guan Tong knew what was good for him and surrendered quickly! Otherwise, his head would have been sent to Beiping in a few days!"

Upon hearing this,

Zhu Xiong Ying took the letter first.

The letter from Uncle Li Wenzhong read: "Your subject Li Wenzhong, on the thirteenth day of the fifth month of the twentieth year of Hongwu, led his troops to the Jurchen stronghold of Kutun! Guantong, fearing the might of the Ming Dynasty, led his trusted followers to surrender, and later submitted with ten thousand men!"

"In this battle, without suffering any losses of troops, we recaptured Kutun, seizing over three thousand shi of grain and countless weapons!"

"Now that Nahachu has lost all his wings, the pacification of Liaodong is just around the corner!"

Reading complete.

Zhu Xiong Ying handed the report to his fourth uncle, Zhu Di, and exclaimed with gratitude, "Uncle has indeed lived up to everyone's expectations!"

"Now that Guantong has surrendered, the Yuan invaders have lost their last line of defense! Even if Naha gives up his stored grain, it might only last a few days!"

"As for Nai Ciwu, Nai Er Bu Hua, and the others, they happened to arrive at Jinshan these past two days, so let them wait a little longer! When that time comes, it will be Naha Chu's turn to be anxious—"

Zhu Di put down the letter, smiled, and nodded, saying, "This is all thanks to my nephew's strategy!"

"Such a meticulous, step-by-step approach, cutting off their supply lines! Otherwise, a complete cut wouldn't have been so smooth!"

His fourth uncle wasn't wrong about what he said.

Looking at the Northern Expedition as a whole.

Although he was not on the front lines, he provided many decisive strategies that enabled the Ming army to advance more smoothly!

For example, the surprise attack on Qingzhou, the northern outflanking maneuver, the persuasion of Nairbuhua to surrender, and the capture of the Jurchen village of Kutun.

Even during his time staying in Beiping, he learned a lot from his fourth uncle, Zhu Di.

Even if we return to Beijing, we can still give Old Zhu and Biao'er's father a satisfactory answer!

Zhu Xiong Ying hadn't even said a few words of modesty.

Chang Mao couldn't help but ask, "So, when will Nahachu be able to surrender?"

"When the time truly comes to surrender, my good nephew must make a trip there—"

Seeing that his uncle was getting restless, he thought he should join in the fun.

He had already decided to stay in the rear and lay low.

If we really wanted to see Nahachu, Guantong, and the others, why go through all that trouble?

We'll just wait for them to come to Beiping.

Zhu Xiong Ying picked up the plum juice, took another sip, and said carefully, "Uncle, don't be in a hurry!"

"Judging by the days, Nai Ciwu and Nai'er Buhua should arrive at the Jinshan camp as early as tomorrow!"

"And Nairbuhua's letter was delivered to Nahachu very early on. After the news spread, didn't General Feng write to say that in the past few days, many tribes that had submitted to the remnants of the Yuan dynasty have begun to surrender?"

"Furthermore, with the news of the children's surrender this time, the people under Nahachu's command will become even more fearful!"

"If we can get rid of them, their mission will go much more smoothly!"

"Jinshan is quite far from Beiping, so let's not go and join the crowd!"

Zhu Xiong Ying then changed the subject, recalling the letter Old Zhu had sent a few days ago. He glanced at his fourth uncle and pondered, "But then again, even if Nahachu surrenders tomorrow, it will still take us several months to receive over 100,000 surrendered people, settle the civilians, and reorganize our defenses—"

"All of this requires the combined efforts of Fourth Uncle, Uncle, and everyone else!"

Chang Mao's eyes lit up, and he patted his chest, saying, "Of course!"

"As long as our good nephew speaks up, we'll go through fire and water without batting an eye!"

Although Zhu Di did not react as strongly as Chang Mao, he nodded and stroked his beard, saying, "On the way back to camp today, I benefited greatly from my nephew's words on border defense! I will take some time to sort things out these days so that I can submit a memorial to Father Emperor explaining how to strengthen border governance!"

Zhu Xiong Ying, having calmed down, said, "Then I'll have to trouble you, Fourth Uncle!"

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