Tang Dynasty: Taking the Empress Dowager to a brothel, Father Emperor, what a coincidence!

The army stretched for miles along the official road.

"Ouch... my foot!"

Changsun Chong plopped down on a roadside rock and refused to move.

In order to cultivate the spirit of hard work and perseverance among these scions of noble families, Li Chengqian forbade them from riding horses.

We must follow the army closely.

"Young Master Changsun, no one should fall behind during the army's march. Please get up immediately."

Two guards from the Eastern Palace walked up to Changsun Chong and tapped his shoulder blade with the hilt of their swords.

Changsun Chong said with a mournful face:

"Brother, could you please make an exception? I have five blisters on the soles of my feet."

My father is the Duke of Qi. When we return to Chang'an, I'll give you one hundred... no, five hundred strings of cash."

The guards remained unmoved; these guards were actually Li Chengqian's shadow guards in disguise.

"His Highness has ordered that anyone who falls behind shall be treated as a deserter and executed immediately."

If you don't get up, young master, I'll have to offend you.

As they spoke, the two men were about to draw their swords.

Startled, Changsun Chong hurriedly stood up and began to move forward.

Li Chengqian then rode over on horseback.

"Cousin, your stamina isn't what it used to be. Didn't you say you were the best at fighting in Pingkangfang at night?"

"Why are you giving up after only fifty li? Are you calculating your distance by the second?"

Changsun Chong said with a face full of grievance:

"Your Highness, is that the same thing? If I keep walking, my legs will be ruined."

And look at Cui Hao, what gives him the right to lie down like that?

Not far away, Cui Hao was being carried forward on a stretcher by two guards.

Upon hearing Changsun Chong mention his name, Cui Hao turned his head with difficulty.

"Changsun Chong... you son of a bitch... I'm fainting on the stretcher..."

As soon as Cui Hao finished speaking, he leaned over the stretcher and started vomiting.

Fang Yi'ai, carrying a large black pot on his back, huffed and puffed as he walked beside the two of them, and said:

"You two should be grateful. My dad made me carry this burden so I would behave better, and now my back is about to break."

The surrounding soldiers burst into laughter at the sight of the miserable state of these young masters who were usually so high and mighty.

The fatigue from the march also dissipated considerably at this moment.

The sun was setting in the west, and the sky was gradually darkening.

Li Chengqian reined in his horse and shouted:

"Order the entire army to halt their advance and prepare to set up camp."

As the bugle sounded, the army slowly came to a halt.

At the rear of the procession, Li Jing sat in the carriage, resting with his eyes closed.

The lieutenant then approached the carriage window and inquired:

"General, His Highness the Crown Prince has ordered the camp to be set up."

Should we go ahead and keep an eye on things? Your Highness has never led troops before, and there's a lot to learn about setting up camp. If you choose the wrong place, things could easily go wrong.

"How about I go and help with the arrangements?"

Li Jing slowly opened his eyes and waved his hand.

"Don't rush, I want to see how he tries to stab me. Once he makes a mistake, I'll step in to correct him and, in the meantime, curb his arrogance."

Young people are often arrogant and naive; they need to suffer a bit to learn their lesson.

The open space ahead.

Li Chengqian jumped off his horse and had someone bring him a sheepskin map, which he then laid directly on the horse's back.

He didn't actually need to look at the map.

Before setting out on the expedition, Du Ruhui had thoroughly investigated the army's marching route, the terrain along the way, and even where there were water sources and where ambushes were likely to occur.

He even wrote a book called "A Fool's Guide to Military Marching" for Li Chengqian.

Li Chengqian had already memorized it perfectly.

He pointed to the terrain ahead and began issuing commands.

"Send the order! The vanguard battalion shall retreat two miles and set up camp on the unnamed hill on the left. Prepare plenty of rolling logs and stones, and have archers and crossbowmen stand guard on the high ground."

The central army dispersed on the spot and set up camp around Crescent Lake on the right.

Remember, the camp must be set back 300 paces from the lakeside to prevent the lake from rising suddenly at night and to guard against anyone poisoning the water upstream.

Two thousand men were detached from the rear guard to establish a defensive line at the Hulu Pass in the rear, blocking the retreat route and forming a pincer movement. This would allow them to support the central army should an enemy attack occur.

The messenger quickly took notes.

Li Chengqian continued:

The cooks were making a fire downwind to prepare the meal.

The latrines were dug 50 paces downwind from the camp, dug deep, and filled with quicklime at the bottom.

Anyone who dares to urinate or defecate anywhere in the camp will be dealt with according to military law.

The scouts were sent out thirty li away from the orphanage.

The sentries work in three shifts, one open and one covert, and the password changes every half hour. Tonight's password is "roast lamb leg."

Li Jing, sitting in the carriage, was stunned after hearing Li Chengqian's series of arrangements.

Didn't they say this kid has never been on the battlefield?

How come they know even the details that some veterans would overlook?

Li Jing lifted the carriage curtain and stared in astonishment at Li Chengqian's retreating figure.

Even if Li Jing himself were to come up with this plan, it would only be at this level at best.

Even in terms of health and epidemic prevention, Shanghai was not as thorough as Li Chengqian.

Li Jing's opinion of Li Chengqian changed at this time.

This kid has definitely been hiding his true abilities all along.

The struggle for the crown prince position in the Tang Dynasty seems to be getting more and more interesting.

Cheng Chumo and Yuchi Baolin then approached Li Chengqian.

Cheng Chumo asked, looking puzzled:

"Your Highness, my father said you've never even read the Six Secret Teachings. Where did you learn your skills in arranging troops and deploying formations?"

It sounds even more mystical to me than what my dad taught me.

Yuchi Baolin also chimed in:

"That's right. My dad said you're just going to Liaodong to get some experience, and that we should just protect you and make sure you don't run around."

Now it seems my dad was worrying for nothing.

Li Chengqian laughed and began to ramble on:

"I had a dream a few days ago. In the dream, an old man with a white beard insisted on talking to me about military strategy."

I wouldn't listen, and he even hit me on the head with his cane. Annoyed by the tapping, I decided to write it down.

Cheng Chumo looked at Li Chengqian in shock and asked:

"Dreaming? Was that old man holding a fishing rod, named Jiang Ziya?"

Li Chengqian nodded, suppressing a smile, and said:

"Pretty much. Anyway, that's how I learned it."

Cheng Chumo said with annoyance:

"Why don't I dream about old men like that? All I dream about is my dad hitting me with the sole of his shoe."

Yuchi Baolin, standing to the side, deeply sympathized:

"Me too. Last time I dreamed I was eating roast chicken, but as soon as I took a bite, my dad slapped me awake."

On the other hand, while setting up camp, Changsun Chong fully performed his duties as the grain supervisor.

Before coming, he thought he would just be recording some simple numbers.

But after he arrived, he realized how terribly wrong he had been.

With an army of 100,000, the daily consumption of food and supplies for both men and horses is astronomical.

According to the list handed over by Cui Mingan in the imperial court, the 100,000 dan of grain and fodder, plus the amount allocated by the Ministry of Revenue, should be enough to last until two months of fighting on the Liaodong front, if consumed sparingly.

But as he and several grain officers took inventory, he increasingly felt that something was amiss.

"Someone come here! Untie all the sacks off these vehicles."

Changsun Chong pointed to the row of grain carts on the left bearing the Qinghe Cui clan's mark and roared.

Several soldiers quickly stepped forward, drew their knives, and cut open the sack.

Splash!

The top layer was indeed pure white rice, but as the sack was completely ripped open, what flowed out made Changsun Chong almost curse.

It was moldy, blackened grain husks, mixed with some yellow sand and gravel.

"This car too. Slash it open. Slash it all open."

Changsun Chong snatched a waist knife and personally rushed forward, slashing seven or eight sacks.

Without exception, they all had a layer of good grain on the surface, but underneath was all sand and rotten grain.

"Cui Mingan! You son of a bitch!"