254: Chapter 0254 Possessed by the God of War

The cabinet ministers were in an uproar!

"Your Majesty, who will lead the army?" Prime Minister Yang Gengzhong asked.

"Lu Sanchuan," Emperor Hong said in a low voice.

Immediately, everyone's expressions turned exceptionally grim, and the atmosphere in the Imperial Study dropped to freezing point.

"Great General Lu Sanchuan of the Silver Armor Army has dominated the battlefield for over thirty years. Aside from one defeat at the hands of the Northern Barbarians' Marshal Suhe when he was young and overly competitive, he has remained undefeated ever since."

Minister of War Wei Mingzhuang recalled with a frown, "I remember that year there was a great drought in the north, which already caused a famine, and the Northern Barbarians were also attacking aggressively."

"It was also because he pursued the enemy too deep and fell into Marshal Suhe's trap, resulting in heavy losses for the Silver Armor Army. The central defense line of the northern border was left wide open, and Cang Province was utterly routed."

"This led to the battle that made the young Great General Mu famous throughout the world, where he led ten thousand Golden Scale Guards north overnight to repel Marshal Suhe's thirty thousand iron cavalry outside Stone Fortress..."

Beside him, Official Xie Tong, the minister of personnel, lightly nudged Wei Mingzhuang with his arm, signaling that he had said enough.

Only then did Wei Mingzhuang notice the coldness in Emperor Hong's eyes, and he fell silent.

"What, now that Mu Tiexin is gone, is there no one in my Great Gan who can subdue Lu Sanchuan?"

Emperor Hong snorted coldly, "Prince Bai wants to use his numerical advantage to crush the Seventh Prince's Azure Dragon Guard, but Jiang Wanli isn't someone to be trifled with either!"

"Father is absolutely right!"

Crown Prince Li Chenghao, who had been silent, stood up and said, "Your son believes that since Lin Xiao has truly persuaded the Zhao family's Cold Iron Guard to surrender, it would be better to have the Zhenbei Army and the Cold Iron Guard concentrate their forces and march south immediately!"

"By then, Prince Bai's army of two hundred and fifty thousand will be caught in a pincer attack and will surely be defeated!"

The cabinet ministers present fell into silence.

Prime Minister Yang Gengzhong said calmly, "Your Highness, if the Zhenbei Army is to join the battle in Gan Province, they must either take a detour through treacherous mountain paths or pass through Sha Prefecture."

"Currently, a plague is spreading in Cang Province, and the Zhenbei Army has its own problems to deal with. To expect them to assemble tens of thousands of troops, take Sha Prefecture first, and then arrive in Gan Province within a few days... I'm afraid that's asking for the impossible, isn't it?"

Li Chenghao's face stiffened. He had indeed overlooked that Yan Shifeng of Sha Prefecture was in the middle, and that old fellow was Prince Bai's lackey!

How embarrassing! The Crown Prince himself making such a low-level mistake!

"Crown Prince, go back and study the maps of our territory!!"

Emperor Hong was already in a bad mood, so he naturally didn't look pleased.

"Your son admits his mistake..." Li Chenghao hurriedly lowered his head, a flash of annoyance in his eyes.

"Lin Xiao is indeed a pillar of the state, but the Zhenbei Army is still beyond reach."

Emperor Hong looked at the ministers, "Why are you all silent!? Could it be that all my senior cabinet ministers combined are not as good as Prince Bai's advisors!?"

"Your Majesty, please calm your anger. We are at fault..."

The ministers knelt in shame one after another.

A hint of amusement flashed in Prime Minister Yang Gengzhong's eyes as he said, "I have a plan that might constrain Prince Bai and prevent him from attacking Qin Province with full force."

"Oh? Prime Minister Yang, speak quickly!" Emperor Hong's spirits lifted.

"Your Majesty might consider using the pretext of 'protecting the Emperor' to order the opening of Yucheng Pass, allowing the Prince of Nanling's Red Flame Iron Cavalry to cross the border, then detour around the capital and strike Yong Province directly!"

As soon as these words were spoken, the scene fell into a dead silence once again!

"Prime Minister Yang! Once Yucheng Pass is opened, the Prince of Nanling's army only needs to break through Qixia Pass in the southwest to reach the capital directly!!"

Minister of Revenue Wang Qirui said in shock, "At that time, how can we rely on only twenty thousand Imperial Guards to stop the Prince of Nanling?!"

Prime Minister Yang Gengzhong shook his head and said, "The Prince of Nanling is Your Majesty's younger brother of the same mother. Since the decree of bestowing favors was promulgated, he has never openly opposed it."

"Now that Prince Bai is powerful, if he is allowed to smoothly absorb Prince Qing's forces, it's only a matter of time before he dominates the north."

"Surely the Prince of Nanling knows very well that once Prince Qing is eliminated, he will be next."

"Therefore, as long as Your Majesty gives the order, the Prince of Nanling will never defy the imperial decree."

Emperor Hong narrowed his eyes and turned around to ponder for a moment.

"Prime Minister Yang's words make sense, but what if this brother of mine refuses to leave?"

Prime Minister Yang Gengzhong said, "Even if the Prince of Nanling has rebellious intentions, he won't be the first to stick his neck out; he will likely wait and see the movements of the other vassal kings."

"As long as the matter of the decree of bestowing favors is not settled, the Prince of Nanling will not openly rebel."

"Your Majesty, severe illnesses require strong medicine. If you hesitate and let Prince Bai succeed, that will be truly beyond redemption."

Emperor Hong fell into deep thought; this decision was truly difficult to make.

Allowing his own brother Li Sixun to bring a large army near the capital was equivalent to placing a knife at his own heart.

If the other party were to go mad, he might lose his life.

"Minister Xie, what do you think?"

Emperor Hong looked at Official Xie Tong, the minister of personnel.

Although Xie Tong was only a descendant of a branch of the Xie Clan, he had been a child prodigy and had risen steadily in his career, making him a popular candidate for the next Prime Minister.

"In response to Your Majesty, Prime Minister Yang's plan is a risky move, but I believe it is brilliant."

"Do you think Li Sixun will not betray me?" Emperor Hong continued to ask.

Official Xie Tong said, "I dare not judge the Prince of Nanling's character, but those who wish to take the world must do so with legitimacy."

"If he stays at Yucheng Pass under the pretext of protecting the Emperor, or even acts disrespectfully toward Your Majesty, how will the Prince of Nanling command public respect?"

Emperor Hong nodded.

"Zheng Yangwei, draft a decree ordering the Prince of Nanling's Red Flame Iron Cavalry to set out immediately, cross Yucheng Pass, and strike directly at the territory of Yong Province!"

"I want Prince Bai to be unable to attend to both ends!"

Zheng Yangwei immediately responded respectfully, "As you command—"

After coming out of the Imperial Study, several cabinet ministers shook their heads and sighed, lamenting that the world was becoming more and more chaotic.

The flames of war from the distant northern border were gradually burning toward the gates of the capital.

"Lord Xie."

Prime Minister Yang Gengzhong called out to Official Xie Tong, who was walking alone.

"Prime Minister Yang..." Official Xie Tong bowed with lowered eyes.

"Thank you for earlier in the Imperial Study," Prime Minister Yang Gengzhong said with a smile.

"Prime Minister Yang is too kind. In truth, Your Majesty is already wise and decisive; I was merely following the trend," Official Xie Tong said.

"Then, Lord Xie... what do you think of this plan yourself?"

"Good! Very good!" Official Xie Tong said affirmatively.

Prime Minister Yang Gengzhong said playfully, "In that case, why did Lord Xie wait for His Majesty to call on you before speaking?"

Official Xie Tong's eyes flickered, and he gave a self-deprecating smile, "I was just thinking about something else..."

"What is it?"

"I was wondering, since the Silver Armor Army has gone to Qin Province and only ordinary garrison troops remain in Yong Province, why must it be the Red Flame Iron Cavalry that goes to war?"

Official Xie Tong said with a look of confusion, "In fact, merely mobilizing the forces of the two southwestern provinces would be enough to threaten Prince Bai, and it would be safer for the capital, wouldn't it?"

Prime Minister Yang Gengzhong replied, "The garrison of Yong Province are elites and are well-supplied. If the ordinary Prefectural Army went there, even with fifty or sixty thousand troops, it wouldn't be enough to make Prince Bai wary, and thus wouldn't achieve the effect of pinning him down."

"I see... then I understand. Prime Minister Yang has indeed thought it through!"

Official Xie Tong smiled and cupped his hands, "I still have official business, so I will take my leave now!"

"Take care, Lord Xie."

Prime Minister Yang Gengzhong watched Official Xie Tong's receding back, a complex look appearing in his eyes.

...

A few days later.

The border of Qin Province.

A county seat named Jingtian County had become a strategic point contested by both Prince Bai's army and the Qing Kings Army because it guarded a vital pass!

Because the thirty thousand Azure Dragon Guards and the main force were being pinned down by Lu Sanchuan's Silver Armor Army, only thirty thousand Qing Kings Army and ten thousand Prefectural Army remained here, resisting tenaciously.

Lu Sanchuan sent out his general, General Xu Hong, who fought for two full days and one night.

With fifty thousand troops and hundreds of catapults, even after battering the city walls until they were full of holes, they simply couldn't take it!

The reason was that an obscure little garrison general had emerged from the Qing Kings Army's side, proving to be matchlessly brave.

Today, he even launched a sneak attack from the rear and killed the commander, General Xu Hong!?

Thanks to this miraculous performance, Jingtian County was held!

The main force of the Qing Kings Army on the front did not fall into a passive encirclement; after two days of fierce battle, they were at a stalemate with Prince Bai's army!

"Yang Hui! Well done! I really didn't see that you had such incredible agility!"

In the evening, the little garrison general, who was silently wiping the spear in his hand by the campfire, was patted on the shoulder by a burly man.

The big man was named General Cao Wang, the commander of Jingtian County.

During the day, he had witnessed his subordinate's divine performance and, in a daze, felt as if this guy had been possessed by the God of War.

"Thank you, General Cao. I was just doing my best."

This "Yang Hui" was naturally Lin Xiao in disguise; the real one had been killed in the chaos long ago, and his body was resting peacefully in his storage space.