"Your Majesty!" Han Du was hurriedly summoned into the palace by Zhu Biao, very confused as to what had happened.
Zhu Biao's face was heavy, he stood up with a memorial, walked to Han Du and handed it to him.
Han Du subconsciously took it and heard Zhu Biao's cold voice: "There is news from Mei Yin."
"Have things changed?" Han Du did not open the memorial to read, but followed Zhu Biao with his eyes and asked directly.
Zhu Biao raised his head slightly and looked outside the palace, sighing, "He said that the Yellow River burst its banks, causing flooding in Huai'an Prefecture, and the army could not travel."
Han Du frowned suddenly. Is this Mei Yin's attitude?
"Does he want to sit on a mountain and watch a tiger fight?" Han Du sneered.
Huai'an Prefecture is located in the lower reaches of the Yellow River, so it will indeed be affected by floods. But Huai'an Prefecture is hundreds of miles away from Xuzhou, even if it is affected, how big will it be?
And even if there is no way for all the 400,000 troops to return to the capital, it is still possible for more than 100,000 to 200,000 troops to return. This is an urgent matter of returning to the capital to rescue the troops, and Mei Yin does not send a single soldier?
Moreover, even if the road encounters flooding and it is difficult to move forward, Huai'an Prefecture is not far from the seaside. Mei Yin really wants to rescue the capital, so even if he goes down the river to the sea, he can get back by boat.
Does he want to wait until the dust settles before ushering in a new leader? But why does he have such confidence, relying on the 400,000 troops at his disposal?
The quiet sound of needles dropping could be heard in the hall, and the beating candlelight brought with it a hint of cold desolation. It was the kind of atmosphere that would make even the bravest people feel uneasy.
"Can the Fire Dragon Cannon really resist the Yan army?" Zhu Shou sighed quietly.
King Qin's army only came with 30,000 soldiers and horses from King Shu, and Mei Yin did not move at all. If the Yan army came to the city, the court would have no way to resist it. Zhu Biao had to consider how he would deal with the situation if the capital was captured.
Han Du understood Zhu Biao's considerations. If the capital was breached, he and Zhu Biao would either be caught by Zhu Di and live worse than death, or they could flee the capital and go elsewhere to issue orders to King Qin.
But since it didn't work the first time, it won't be of much use if you try it again.
Han Du raised his head, looked into Zhu Biao's expectant eyes, and nodded heavily, "As long as there are enough numbers, not only can we resist the Yan army, but we can even annihilate them all!"
"How much do you need?" Zhu Biao shouted sharply.
There seemed to be lightning flashing in Han Du's heart, "At least 50,000! With 50,000 we can resist the Yan army."
"Okay!" Zhu Biao nodded solemnly, "I will order the court to give top priority to the Arms Bureau in all matters. If there is a shortage of people, we will continue to recruit craftsmen. If there is a shortage of raw materials, we will send people to find them. If there is no one in the capital, we will go outside the capital. No matter what,
We must ensure that the Ordnance Bureau has enough people and raw materials."
Han Du nodded, agreed with Zhu Biao's approach, and added
Chong said, "Since Zhu Di blew up the Yellow River embankment, I have lost the whereabouts of Yan's army, and I don't know where Yan's army is now."
"You don't have to worry about this. Since I got the news, I immediately sent scouting horses to the north. Maybe there will be news soon." Zhu Biao was also waiting anxiously.
Han Du was relieved and hoped that Zhu Di would be hindered by heavy rain and floods and delay his march as much as possible.
Since Tan Ma was sent out for so long and still didn't get any news, it shows that Zhu Di is still far away from the capital.
Even Han Du thought that the later the news arrived in the capital, the better. The later it showed, the more time he had to prepare.
"Your Majesty, it's time for the navy to return to the capital to aid."
Don't even think about capturing Zhu Di's family at this time. The navy had already captured Peiping, but what they got was an empty city.
Apparently Zhu Di had already prepared for the imperial court's surprise attack by sea and had already moved his base.
And the whole north is so big, no one knows where Zhu Di will hide his lair.
"I understand." Zhu Biao also felt that it would be safer to have a navy guarding the Yangtze River.
Although Han Du said that the Fire Dragon Cannon was extremely powerful and could resist or even destroy the Yan army, this was a desperate move after all.
If the navy can block the Yan army to the north of the Yangtze River, it will naturally be safer.
Following Zhu Biao's order, the entire court was surrounding the Arms Bureau.
The people in the Ordnance Bureau felt unprecedented prosperity. In the past, when a high-ranking yamen was in a place like Beijing where there were as many dignitaries as dogs, who would take a second look at them?
But it's different now, completely different.
Even if he is a lowly raw materials collector in the Ordnance Bureau, even if he is a fifth-rank official in the capital, when he sees him, he will call him politely, "Brother, what else is lacking in the Ordnance Bureau?"
As long as there is still something missing, no matter what it is, this Beijing official can get it for the Ordnance Bureau.
Zhu Di is very high-spirited now. Ever since the Yellow River embankment was blown up and flooded Xuzhou, the smile on his face has never stopped.
As for the innocent people who were affected by the disaster, in his opinion, they were just dirt under their boots. Anyway, they would not notice them on ordinary days. Even if they were noticed by him, he would just wipe them off with a silk handkerchief!
Since Zhu Di backhandedly trapped the imperial army in Xuzhou, the civil servants and nobles who got the news went crazy and sent Zhu Di all kinds of things, including money, food, luggage, and even domestic servants and soldiers.
Even if Zhu Di didn't speak to them, they were still rushing to be the first, fearing that they would fall behind others.
After the floods flooded Xuzhou, the entire Jianghuai area, except for the consort Mei Yin, no longer had the soldiers and horses capable of resisting the army of King Yan. As for Mei Yin, haha, he is just a loser!
King Yan can easily conquer the capital as long as he goes south. If he ascends the throne in Yuanqiu then, he will be able to conquer the capital now!
Who wouldn’t want this credit?
As a result, the Yan army quickly expanded again after being damaged, and soon returned to a size of 600,000, and even continued to increase.
Moreover, there was sufficient food and grass, abundant baggage, and with such a large army, Zhu Di had full confidence in driving his eldest brother off that chair.
"Brother, you have resigned. You are too kind. How can the emperor be kind? When my father was in power, he killed so many people before he could stabilize the country. Why can't you learn from it?"
??.
"But fortunately, there is still this king. Father said that this king is the most similar to him. After this king ascends the throne, all those who are disobedient will be killed. The Ming Dynasty will naturally be impregnable!"
A few days later, Zhu Biao got the news and immediately summoned Han Du into the palace.
"The fourth child was in Lingbi ten days ago, and now he is missing." Zhu Biao sighed.
Although the Yan army was huge, they were guarded by scout horses during the march. The few people he sent did not dare to get close at all, and could only slowly explore the traces of the Yan army.
Han Du cupped his fists and saluted, then leaned forward to look at the map.
Han Du only glanced at it and said resolutely, "Lingbi is heading south, with Linhuai on the right and Sizhou on the left. I think the Yan army will definitely go to Sizhou."
"Oh? Why are you so sure?" Zhu Biao was very curious. The land of the Yangtze River and Huaihe River is vast and smooth. Logically speaking, it is possible for Zhu Di to go anywhere.
But as Han Du said, there are only two best roads from Lingbi to the capital, Linhuai and Sizhou.
Han Du pointed towards Linhuai, "Linhuai is close to Fengyang, where is the ancestral mausoleum. No matter how brave Zhu Di is, he dare not go to Linhuai to disturb the ancestral mausoleum. Therefore, he can only go to Sizhou."
Sizhou Zhu Biao looked at it again and again, and couldn't help but nod in agreement with Han Du's opinion.
Then he sighed, "It's a pity that I don't have many troops now. Otherwise, maybe I could intercept Lao Si in Sizhou."
Han Du had no regrets. He shook his head slightly and said, "It's too late. The news came too late. Maybe the Yan army has already passed Sizhou and is heading towards the capital. Even with a large army, there is nothing they can do."
The two looked at each other and could only place their hopes on the Yangtze River.
The natural barrier and fire dragon cannon are on.
As news came one after another, Zhu Biao finally caught the traces of Yan Jun. Yan Jun had indeed passed Sizhou and was heading straight towards the capital.
Zhu Di is surrounded by flatterers these days, but the first time he heard such flattery, he still felt very innovative and felt comfortable. But the more he listened to it, the more he began to smell the true smell of farts, which made Zhu Di a little bit
nausea.
Moreover, Zhu Di now had to face a big problem that stood in front of him.
The Yangtze River is dangerous!
The Yan army crossed the Chu River and approached the Yangtze River.
Seeing the warships neatly arranged in the Longjiang Water Village, Zhu Di's face turned as black as the bottom of a pot.
Zhu Di returned to the commander's tent angrily and looked at everyone, "Tell me, how can we cross the Yangtze River?"
How could it be so easy to cross the Yangtze River?
The Yangtze River is known as a natural danger, and even if you want to cross it on weekdays, you need to be careful. Now there are naval forces crossing the river. Even if all the six to seven hundred thousand troops are filled in, it will not be able to fill the surging river.
Who said you can throw a whip to cut off the flow? Just brag, this is the Yangtze River, let alone throw a whip, even if you throw people into it together, there won't be an extra bubble.
When Monk Dao Yan saw that Feng Sheng was helpless, he immediately knew that the opportunity had come.
He immediately said with a signature smile on his face, "Your Majesty, looking at the size of the navy, I think its main force should not be in the capital. This small number of warships can defend this place, but it is impossible to defend the entire Yangtze River."
Zhu Di was stunned when he heard this. His heart suddenly moved as if he had some understanding, but he just couldn't grasp the light.
"Tell me, what can you do?"
Dao Yan said, "Your Majesty can send a small number of soldiers and horses to feint attack here, and the army can go east to Yangzhou, and naturally it can easily cross the Yangtze River."
Feinting to attack Zhu Di also thought this was a good idea, but Yangzhou
"Yangzhou is a fortified city, and it will not be easy for me to capture it. Once the imperial court learns of the news, it will definitely send a navy down the river to intercept me."
Seeing Zhu Di's anxiety, Dao Yan finally felt that Zhu Di's previous feeling of relying on him came back. He glanced at Feng Sheng proudly and showed a victorious smile.
"Don't worry, Your Majesty, if Your Majesty attacks Yangzhou, he will definitely succeed in his ambition!"
You must achieve your ambition!
When Zhu Di heard these four words, he could no longer sit still, and immediately said without hesitation, "Okay, I will trust you again."
The next day, Zhu Di ordered his troops to bombard the Longjiang Water Village, and he led his army back east, heading straight to Yangzhou Prefecture.