After saving the Empress, I became the top scholar in the imperial examination.

The old woman was dressed in a scarlet flying fish robe. Although her back was slightly hunched, her aura was still like that of an aged mountain king.

Awe-inspiring, chilling.

It was so striking that one dared not look directly at it.

His thin, dark hand instinctively reached up, only to find his waist empty and his hand grasping nothing.

The Embroidered Spring Blade had already been handed over at the Meridian Gate. Without the sword that gave her the greatest sense of security, her rapid and heavy heartbeat could not be slowed down.

My heart pounded like a drum, and even breathing seemed to become difficult.

The gazes of everyone in the hall fell upon her one after another.

"name?"

"Another name?"

"What name? What did Lu Chong say?"

The group looked at each other, somewhat puzzled.

"Vice Envoy Ning..." Gao Congzhe asked, puzzled, "He has another name?"

"That's right." Yan Yuqing nodded.

The words were spoken with absolute certainty, but the feelings in their hearts were truly indescribable.

When she saw what Lu Chong said, she was shocked and wondered if he was talking nonsense.

However, considering the timing and previous doubts, this matter is not just a matter of being close to the truth, but rather an undeniable fact.

After all, when Lu Chong wrote this letter, Ning Jiexiao was just the name of a talented scholar from the north, not yet capable of stopping children from crying in the Shanxi area.

"Your Majesty, Vice Envoy Ning... he..."

After a few moments of silence,

The old woman raised her head, looked at Her Majesty the Empress above, and slowly said:

"It is Ning Jiexiao!"

……

……

The boundless night spread from north to south, enveloping the earth.

On the main road from Huai'an to Chuzhou, the sound of hooves and footsteps, like muffled thunder, continued incessantly.

Fifty thousand Eight Banner soldiers, plus more than seventy thousand civilian laborers, roamed the official road like a black dragon whose head and tail could not be seen.

The sounds of armor clashing, whips cracking as horses were thrown to their feet, and the occasional bursts of laughter from the cavalrymen startled wolves and birds on the shadowy road, eliciting the cries of owls.

This army of 50,000 was the main force of the Plain Yellow Banner, Bordered Yellow Banner, Bordered Red Banner, and Bordered White Banner in the Northeast fighting against the Russians.

Among them were a full 20,000 cavalry!

The daily cost of food for people and horses was an astonishing figure, not to mention that he also brought hundreds of cannons south!

Just transporting these cannons required tens of thousands of laborers along the way.

The Emperor has ordered Zhang Tingyu, a Grand Councilor, to oversee the transport of grain to him from Shandong and Henan provinces.

Governor-General Li Wei of Jiangnan is now extremely busy, constantly digging grain from various places in Huainan and sending laborers to transport it to him.

He will lead his 50,000 main force, along with the three battalions that were already in Huainan, south to Jiangnan.

This battle was the culmination of ten years of effort by the Emperor, and involved the entire nation's resources. Yue Zhongqi understood that there was absolutely no room for failure!

One of the advisors, Chaldan, the Manchu commander of the Plain Yellow Banner, wearing a suit of armor with yellow trim, came to report:

"General, shall we set up camp now?"

Chardan did not look down on Yue Zhongqi because he was Han Chinese; his tone was quite fair.

Logically speaking,

It was already night, and we should have set up camp half an hour ago.

However, Yue Zhongqi was eager to get to Chuzhou as soon as possible, so he led the entire army on a march that lasted an extra half hour.

"We'll walk for another hour and then set up camp in Gejia Town."

Chardan, forty-five, frowned and advised:

"Many laborers have nymphomania, and some people in the Eight Banners also have this problem. It is not advisable to march for too long at night."

The peacocks are blind at night. Now that night has fallen, if we don't set up camp, the laborers will have difficulty marching, and there's no telling what might happen.

Moreover, they also had to guard against night attacks by the Southern Dynasty.

Yue Zhongqi shook his head directly and said:

"If we travel an extra hour today and an extra hour tomorrow, we can reach Chuzhou sooner. Tell them to prepare plenty of torches and not to be stingy. We will set up camp after traveling an extra hour."

Chardan hesitated for a moment, then after a few breaths, he couldn't help but say:

"What if the Southern Dynasty launches a night attack?"

Yue Zhongqi sneered:

"I'd love for them to launch a night attack, but the Southern Dynasty probably doesn't have the guts!"

Chardan tugged at the reins, calming the unease of the dappled horse beneath him, and obeyed:

"Since the General already knows what's going on, I will not try to persuade you any further."

Yue Zhongqi pressed down on the horse's reins and hummed in response, but before the other person left, his expression softened, and he smiled faintly at him:

"Commander-in-Chief Chardan has gone to great lengths. This time, as our army marches south, I, Yue, will surely take Jiangnan and restore peace to the world for His Majesty."

"This year, the laborers helped my army transport grain south. Next year, when the world is at peace and the harvest is plentiful, they will naturally praise Your Majesty's benevolence."

"Commander-in-Chief, you can rest assured. With the merit of conquering the country first, I, Yue, am a man who does not hold back. As long as we can recover Jiangnan, I, Yue, may only be granted the title of First-Class Duke and then return to the capital to enjoy my old age. However, since you commanders are the Emperor's own people, it is probably inevitable that the Emperor will grant you the title of Prince to guard Jiangnan."

"At that time, I'm afraid I'll have to trouble you counselors to take care of my unworthy descendants."

Chardan was taken aback for a moment, then immediately understood what General Yue meant.

If the other party is a Han Chinese, the emperor will naturally not grant a title to a Han Chinese king, but it is different for Manchus and Mongols.

After conquering Jiangnan, in order to stabilize the people's hearts, many official positions will inevitably become vacant, and there will be at least one, and perhaps three or four, princes.

Besides, with the Jiangnan region, the Eight Banners will have an immeasurable amount of iron ore crops to eat.

Chardan smiled and nodded, saying:

"General Yue has worked tirelessly for the country, yet he has not rewarded himself for his achievements. No wonder His Majesty trusts him so much. I thank you in advance, General."

Yue Zhongqi cupped his hands in thanks: "Thank you for your service, Commander."

Chardan solemnly replied, "General, rest assured, Chardan and my Plain Yellow Banner will be willing to give our lives for the Emperor."

……

……

It was like a thunderclap in a clear sky.

The Qianqing Palace was deathly silent.

Everyone stared wide-eyed at the white-haired old woman in the middle of the hall.

"Ning... Ning Jiexiao?" After a moment, someone murmured a question.

Luan Zongyuan, the Minister of War, stood up, took a few steps, and, stroking his beard, said:

"Lord Yan, what...what did you just say?"

Scholar Liu and a group of literary luminaries also expressed their surprise and doubt at this moment.

"Ning Jiexiao?"

"That calligraphy from just now..."

"Bai Xuan is Ning Jiexiao, that talented scholar from the North? How is that possible!"

"Oh...oh..." Old Crane's eyes widened, he tilted his head back, and patted his fan a few times in his palm. "That makes sense...that makes sense..."

"Qing Yu An, Die Lian Hua, Bi Hai Nian Nian... Ning Jiexiao?"

"Wei stele style?"

While the literary luminaries looked around in bewilderment, Luan Zongyuan, Gao Congzhe, and Yang Zhiyu, the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of War, were visibly shaken!

As people knowledgeable in military affairs, they had also obtained information about the two cities north of the Yangtze River, as well as the Embroidered Uniform Guard and the Directorate of Military Affairs in the past few days.

"Ning Jiexiao?"

"Ning Jiexiao, the leader of the Heavenly Principle Sect?"

"Ning Jiexiao, who assassinated the Northern Emperor and escaped from Beijing?!"

Luan Zongyuan gripped his sleeves with both hands and said in a trembling voice:

"How is this possible?!"