Ming Dynasty: Charge, Emperor Yongle!

Bayanbulage, the Yuan army camp, the central command tent.

"It was agreed to be thirty days, but after thirty days it was another thirty days."

"Did your troops from Liaodong crawl here?"

Nairbuhua was furious and loudly accused the envoy sent by Nahachu, the Grand Commandant of the Northern Yuan.

"General."

The envoy was somewhat intimidated by Nairbuhua.

"Nai'er doesn't spend money."

Wang Baobao stopped Nai'er Buhua, turned to the messenger, and said in a deep voice, "Go back and tell your Kaiyuan King."

"When the nest is overturned, no egg remains unbroken; stop thinking about harming your neighbors."

"Even if I don't care, how will His Majesty explain this?"

"Yes."

The envoy bowed with his arms crossed, not daring to utter a word in response.

"Go down."

Wang Baobao waved his hand, issuing an order to leave.

"Yes."

The Liaodong envoy turned and walked out of the tent, wiping the sweat from his forehead before leaving.

Facing the Qi King, who was the most powerful figure in the Northern Yuan, let alone him, even if Naha were here, he probably wouldn't dare to say a word.

Nai'er Buhua stared fiercely at the departing figure of the Liaodong envoy, wishing he could kill him as soon as possible.

The three most powerful princes of the Northern Yuan Dynasty—Kokötemur, Prince Qi; Nahachu, Prince Kaiyuan; and Dorjiban, Prince Qi—control the northern deserts, Liaodong, and Hehuang regions respectively. The Ming army launched a three-pronged attack, heading straight for Karakorum.

Nahachu, the Kaiyuan King of Liaodong, commanded an army of over 200,000 and relentlessly marched south to attack Liaoyangwei, ignoring the northern desert.

The Qi King Duoerzhiban of the Hehuang region suffered repeated defeats and sought to preserve his strength.

Only Qi King Kökö Temür was left to face the two Ming armies alone, but he could not hold out against them alone.

If this continues, the Yuan army's defeat is only a matter of time.

"Nai'er, don't waste your time, come with me for a walk."

Wang Baobao gave a greeting and walked towards the outside of the central command tent.

"Yes."

Nai'er Buhua hesitated for a moment, then followed closely behind.

The group strolled across the vast grassland, while the accompanying Yuan cavalrymen watched their surroundings with keen vigilance.

"Do you also think that I should withdraw my troops?"

Wang Baobao spoke as he paced back and forth.

"Yes, Your Majesty."

Nai'er Buhua said indignantly, "Nahachu, that's an ungrateful wolf."

"I dare not believe a single word he said anymore."

"Furthermore, Your Majesty, Karakorum is right behind us. How many of those princes and nobles truly care about the revival of our Great Yuan Dynasty as Your Majesty does?"

"When Emperor Zhu's army arrives, at least half of the people will choose to surrender."

"I only have one thing to worry about right now."

"explain."

Wang Baobao glanced at him.

"Your Highness."

Nai'er Buhua said with a solemn expression, "You are on the front lines; what if something happens to you?"

He didn't say what came next, but Wang Baobao had already guessed it.

You're right.

Wang Baobao gazed at the Ming army camp in Bayanbulege not far away and said in a deep voice, "But precisely because of this, I must continue the fight."

"Your Majesty!"

Nai'er looked at him with worry in her eyes.

"If we lose Jiangnan, we can return to the Central Plains."

"Now that the Central Plains are lost, we can return to Dadu."

"We lost Dadu, so we returned to Shangdu. We lost Shangdu, so we returned to the northern desert."

"If we lose the northern desert, where can we go?"

Wang Baobao turned around and stared at Nai'er Buhua, who fell silent.

"This battle must be fought, and we must win."

"Only in this way can our people be inspired to continue fighting."

"Fighting in the frontier is my only chance to defeat Xu Da. If he returns to the Great Wall, who else can defeat this Duke of Wei?"

"My biggest regret now is that I shouldn't have felt so much pity for Haibie back then."

Wang Baobao felt some regret. If he hadn't disregarded the fact that his children were in Geng Bingwen's hands, and had instead wiped out the Ming army's vanguard in one fell swoop, he wouldn't be in this stalemate.

"Your Majesty!"

Nai'er Buhua hesitated, as if she wanted to say something but then stopped.

There is no medicine for regret in this world.

Wang Baobao sighed deeply, and images of the past flashed through his mind, filling him with worry.

...............

Meanwhile, at the Ming army camp.

Xu Da gathered the generals of the central army and held a meeting.

"General."

"This place is too far from Beiping and Taiyuan."

"A prolonged stalemate is detrimental to our army's supply lines."

Even Geng Bingwen, a Ming general known for his defensive prowess, voiced his opposition.

"General, our enemy troops are abroad; we should fight quickly."

"This humble general believes that Marquis Changxing's words are reasonable!"

"yes."

The generals expressed their support for Geng Bingwen's judgment.

"Where's Tang He?"

Xu Da ignored the crowd and turned his gaze to the chief secretary, Gu Cheng.

"Reported to the General."

"General Tang He was less than 100 li away from Duantou Mountain (about 300 li northeast of present-day Ningshuo, Ningxia)."

Gu Cheng answered without hesitation.

"Um."

Nodding slightly, Xu Da surveyed the crowd and said in a deep voice, "Our army is holding on, and Kökö Töre is also struggling to hold on."

"When two armies clash, it's simply a matter of who can't hold out the first."

"The Yuan troops were all cavalry, which were highly mobile. Our army was a mix of infantry and cavalry, and once we withdrew, we would inevitably become separated."

"Kokko is most skilled with cavalry. Once he seizes an opportunity, he will send his entire army to charge and try to kill the enemy in one blow."

"What we need to do now is to remain unchanged in the face of all changes."

"Over time, Kuokuo himself can't keep up."

"Yes."

Seeing that Xu Da was determined, the generals dared not utter another word.

"The chief secretary."

"Your subordinate is here!"

Gu Cheng immediately stood up.

"Immediately send a message to the Liaodong Military Command, ordering them to send troops to harass Nahachu."

"I want to make sure that I see every single soldier of Nahachu on the grasslands, and I will hold them accountable."

Xu Da gave the order in a deep voice.

"Yes."

Without a word, Gu Cheng accepted the order and left.

"If you have nothing else to do, then each of you should perform your duties."

"The Marquis of Changxing, please stay."

"Yes."

All the generals left the command tent, leaving only Geng Bingwen standing there.

"This kid is Zhu Chongba's son. He marched straight into the northern desert for more than a thousand miles, and there has been no news of him for half a month."

As the saying goes, no news is good news.

"Marquis Changxing, what do you think?"

Xu Da got up from his position as commander and walked to Geng Bingwen.

"Is the General trying to keep Kuokuo occupied while waiting for His Highness the Prince of Yan to send back good news?"

Geng Bingwen saw through Xu Da's plan at a glance.

"What is his status? A prince, a royal prince."

"Can I really use him as a pawn in the front lines?"

"Think of my brother, think of the Empress and the Crown Prince, they are all in the capital, eagerly waiting for him to return."

"I still don't dare to send a military report to His Majesty. What would I say if I did?"

Xu Da patted his forehead, looking distressed. That brat Zhu Di was always causing trouble.

"What does the General intend to do?"

Geng Bingwen asked cautiously.

"You personally make the arrangements to send twelve scout cavalry units to Karakorum."

"Whether he's dead or alive, we need to get some news."

Xu Da gave instructions.

"Yes."

Geng Bingwen immediately went down to make the arrangements.