Zhu Ying smiled and said to Song Zhong next to him: "It seems that Di Yusen is quite capable. Just with a few observations, he was able to conclude that I am capable of martial arts."
"This kind of eyesight can easily find clues in the investigation. I must have practiced it for a lot of time."
As Zhu Ying's personal bodyguard, Song Zhong naturally knew about His Highness Taisun's martial arts skills.
However, how deep your skills are can only be known by playing.
Of course, he didn't say that he wanted to have a fight with His Majesty Taisun. He didn't dare to win or lose because it would be embarrassing.
"Excuse me for being ignorant, but how did His Highness Taisun know that Di Yusen noticed that His Highness was practicing martial arts?" After hesitating, Song Zhong expressed his thoughts.
Zhu Ying said with a smile: "When he raised his head just now, his eyes were always subconsciously focused on my hands and legs."
"I saw that kind of look a lot when I was in the Western Regions. Many wanderers and desperadoes came to make judgments one by one."
"He probably learned this method because he was often exposed to death and had to deal with some gangsters."
Seeing Song Zhong's confused look, Zhu Ying said: "You naturally don't need to be familiar with these in the army. After all, after a battle is won, the level of martial arts is not important."
"When fighting in the army, it's more about opening and closing, and strength is particularly important. But when traveling in the world, it's different. Most of the time you're alone."
"At this time, you have to use your wits. Otherwise, if you offend someone you can't afford to offend, your life will be lost."
"It's just a romance novel about drawing swords and killing people at every turn. Just talking about the Western Regions, most swordsmen and swordsmen don't take action easily, and they don't want to take the initiative to cause any trouble. There is no good thing, as long as it doesn't bring trouble to themselves.
, they all choose to avoid it.”
"The more times you fight, the more grudges you will have. Even if you are a strong martial artist, you can easily be attacked by others."
Listening to His Highness Taisun's brief introduction, Song Zhong couldn't help but feel some yearning in his heart.
In the early Ming Dynasty, novels were popular, and some fabricated martial arts stories were also very popular. Even Song Zhong would occasionally read two of them.
Zhu Ying talked about some of the past events, feeling a little sad in her heart.
Since entering the capital, except for that time on the Qinhuai River, when he was boating with Zhu Gaochi and Xu Miaojin.
There was no chance to take action again.
Zhu Ying is not very interested in finding a few guards to train with him.
Because his swords, guns, swords, halberds, fists and kicks are all aimed at vital points. With his strength, he may strike at will and subconsciously cause casualties.
There's really no point in beating one's own people.
Because of Ye Yueqing's pregnancy, Zhu Ying's original plan to visit Liaodong this year also came to nothing.
Now naturally, seeing the child born first is the key.
So we simply arranged to conquer the grassland forces near Liaodong in the spring of next year.
The mobilization of the army is an extremely complicated matter. It does not mean that everything can be ready and set off immediately after giving an order.
That was a professional army, and the current Ming Dynasty is mostly composed of field soldiers.
When the guard station mobilizes troops, after receiving the military order, the first thing to do is to talk about food and grass. The first thing is to practice first, just like driving a duck to the shelf.
After practicing for half a month and a month, and feeling almost ready, you can start to gather.
Although the guard system has the advantage of reducing the food consumption of the treasury, it also has certain disadvantages.
....
The news that the capital will conquer the Liaodong grasslands in the spring of next year soon spread like wildfire and spread widely among civil and military officials.
The civil servants have nothing to say.
After all, this can basically be said to be His Majesty's decision. The current situation in the Ming Dynasty can only be said to be Zhu Yuanzhang's decision, especially when it comes to foreign wars.
Even the Minister of War, Ru Yun, had little say.
And war is excellent news for military attachés. It is a good opportunity to make achievements.
A general without merit is still a general.
Now that the Ming Dynasty's military power is at its peak, all military attachés have an extremely strong desire for war.
Even the older generation of warriors long for the past of fighting in all directions on horseback.
But fighting on the grasslands is completely different from fighting the Japanese.
Soldiers, ghosts and spirits are not much expensive.
To conquer the Japanese country, it means to occupy the territory of the Japanese country, which requires a large enough population to suppress it, including some local education, farming and a series of other things.
For the grassland, cavalry is the key. If there are too many infantry, there will be great restrictions, such as food and grass problems, and mobility problems.
Lan Yu's famous battle, the Battle of Yuerhai, was the victory of the Northern Expedition with an army of 150,000.
The reason why Lan Yu was able to become a famous general was not only because of his devastating blow to the small court of the Northern Yuan Dynasty.
Another reason is that the Mongolian Yuan lost about 100,000 people.
However, the losses of the Ming army were negligible. It is said that they "spared no troops to achieve the effect."
Not only that, more than 77,000 people and 47,000 horses were captured.
In addition, the Ming army's trophies included 4,840 camels, 112,452 cattle and sheep, more than 3,000 vehicles of various types, and a large amount of logistical equipment.
Since the main force of the Northern Yuan Dynasty suffered a devastating blow, the small court of the Northern Yuan Dynasty was not spared.
A large number of members of the royal family are in prison, including the wife of the late monarch Aiyou Shiridara, the concubine of the current monarch Tuogu Si Tiemur, and his second son Dibaonu, princess, etc.
A total of 2,999 dignitaries of all kinds were imprisoned.
With more than 77,000 prisoners, this is the best combat force.
The combat effectiveness of the Mongolian cavalry is rare in the world. These more than 77,000 people will naturally belong to the Ming Dynasty official army.
And the 47,000 war horses are a top strategic resource for the entire Ming Dynasty.
There was once a plague in the Henan area, and most of the 40,000 cavalry accompanying Zhu Ying when he came to Henan were cavalry trained by Lan Yu's harvested war horses.
People and horses, as well as the exaggerated battle loss ratio of "zero casualties" in this period of the Ming Dynasty, led to the grant of Duke Lan Yuliang.
When news of the victory reached the capital, Zhu Yuanzhang was overjoyed and sent an envoy to Laojun. In the edict, he compared Lan Yu to famous generals such as Wei Qing and Li Jing.
However, the current blue jade and the previous blue jade have undergone great changes.
Although there seems to be no special changes, the year Zhu Ying came to Lan Yu has been full of ups and downs.
This ups and downs do not mean changes in Lan Yu's official position.
It's his mood.
Because of the list, Lan Yu knew that she had been on the verge of death once.
The arrogance brought about by his past achievements has been almost smoothed away by Zhu Ying's several operations.
Now Lan Yu, instead of making greater contributions, thinks more about how to save his own life and gain the trust of His Highness the Grand Sun.
When the news of the second Northern Expedition spread, Lan Yu became a little worried.
In a restaurant.
Lan Yu looked at Cao Zhen, Marquis of Jingchuan opposite, and said somewhat depressedly: "Since I defeated the rebels in Shaanxi and returned to the capital, I have only met His Highness Taisun a few times."
"Your Majesty does have some routine rewards, but I don't care about them anymore. This time we are going to the Northern Expedition again. From what I heard from your Majesty, I probably want His Majesty the Grand Sun to lead the army in person."
When Cao Zhen heard this, he couldn't help but exclaimed: "His Royal Highness Taisun is marching in person? This is unlikely."
"The importance of His Highness Taisun to Your Majesty is almost obvious. How can it be possible for His Highness Taisun to conquer the army himself?"
"It's not like I got the wrong idea."
Lan Yu shook her head and said: "Although His Majesty's heart is difficult to fathom, this time he said it almost clearly."
"Furthermore, we can also hear some news from the Governor's Mansion. The Northern Expedition will consist of approximately hundreds of thousands of troops, but the tens of thousands of cavalry on the capital side have now begun preparations and training."
"These cavalry have been trained for many years and are extremely powerful. Many of them are former Mongolian Yuan cavalry."
"Including the Gunpowder Department, they have been producing firearms around the clock recently."
"Coupled with some of His Majesty's words, His Highness the Grand Sun is the most likely candidate for such signs."
"Of course, the key to this is that I accidentally heard that the Qunying Chamber of Commerce is hoarding a large amount of food and grass."
Lan Yu himself is an extremely excellent commander.
Naturally, I am extremely sensitive and familiar with these things.
In addition, there are many subordinates scattered in various departments in the capital, so the source of the information is very reliable.
If this still fails to infer the possibility of Taisun leading the army, then he has failed to live up to the reputation of Duke Liang.
After hearing this, Cao Zhen couldn't help but said: "Since Taisun is leading the Northern Expedition, then my eldest brother must be the first choice."
"Brother is very familiar with the terrain and the conditions of the grassland. His Majesty will definitely not miss him."
"However, I still think it is not very likely that Taisun will personally conduct the Northern Expedition. As His Highness, Taisun will personally conduct the Northern Expedition. No matter how you look at it, His Majesty will not agree to it."
Listening to the comfort from Cao Zhen, Lan Yu raised her glass and drank, and her mood improved a lot.
Some things will easily change if they are not implemented.
Hearing Cao Zhen's question behind him, Lan Yu shook his head and said, "His Royal Highness Taisun wants to establish his prestige in the military, so he will inevitably lead the army himself."
"It can be said that the conquest of the Japanese country was promoted by His Highness Taisun. It is obvious that His Highness Taisun had the idea of splitting the country and sealing the territory."
"That's why even His Highness the Grand Sun must achieve enough achievements."
"The Japanese country is too far away, and navigation on the sea is full of dangers. It is not very safe and it is easy to encounter some unpredictable accidents."
"But over in Liaodong, it's completely different. If there are 40,000 cavalry guarding us, even if we are defeated, there won't be any problems."
Listening to Lan Yu's account, Cao Zhen's eyes were a little surprised.
Is this still the blue jade I know? Why does it give people the impression of a minister of the Ministry of War?
While Cao Zhen was surprised, he raised his glass and said, "Don't worry, brother. Now King Yan is in the country of Japan. He has been looking around the court, and there is no one with more prestige than brother."
"Eldest brother and His Highness the Grand Sun are still related by blood."
"If eldest brother is worried, I think it would be better to go to the palace and talk to His Highness the Grand Sun."
"I heard that the grandson is pregnant, and my eldest brother just took this opportunity to celebrate her highness."
Hearing this, Lan Yu said with a smile: "Well, Cao Zhen, you have a lot of clever ideas now."
"What you said makes sense. It's time for me to pay a visit to His Highness Taisun. Then I will naturally know what His Highness Taisun means."
Lan Yu is extremely eager to follow His Highness Taisun in his Northern Expedition to the Grassland.
No matter how His Highness Taisun treats him, he is already tied to the same boat as His Highness Taisun.
If anything unexpected happens to His Majesty the Grand Sun, he will no longer be able to tolerate it in His Majesty's eyes.
His Royal Highness Taisun is his only hope for future prosperity, wealth and life.
....
Ministry of Industry, Arms Bureau.
It's a lively scene now.
A large number of top craftsmen gathered here to study a portrait in full armor.
A eunuch said loudly: "This is the order that His Highness Taisun has specially given to our Arms Bureau. This armor, which was ordered by His Highness himself, must be crafted carefully."
"Every piece of armor here must be made of the best steel. It must be invulnerable to invulnerability, water and fire."
"If there are any mistakes, it's the least serious thing."
The armor picture currently displayed in the Ordnance Bureau of the Ministry of Industry was specially created by Zhu Ying after he specially found a palace painter and made his own adjustments.
It is very different from the armor in today's army.
It can be considered that it already belongs to the ranks of heavy armor.
Among the current frontier armies of the Ming Dynasty, the soldiers on each frontier are wearing mail armor, battle skirts, arm shields and other equipment that weigh a total of forty-five kilograms; their helmets and headbands weigh seven kilograms;
.
The bow quiver weighs ten kilograms, the waist knife weighs three and a half kilograms, the pear bone weighs three kilograms, the quiver weighs one kilogram, and the battle hook with the leather upper and lower clothes weighs eight kilograms, totaling eighty-eight and a half kilograms.
Converted to calculations in later generations, it has reached fifty kilograms.
According to the armor pattern on the current portrait, if it were all made and worn, it would weigh one hundred and fifty kilograms.
It can be said that except for the eyes, the rest of the body is wrapped in thick armor, and with the withered pattern, it really looks like a celestial general.
Regarding war, Zhu Ying still cherishes his life.
And with this armor, not to mention firearms, not even crossbow arrows can penetrate it.
If you want to penetrate this armor, you can only shoot it with siege crossbows or blast it with cannons.
This armor is good in everything, but its only shortcoming is obvious, and that is that it is too heavy.
The choice of war horses alone is extremely picky. It cannot be carried unless it is a top-class war horse, and it must be a tall horse.
Coupled with a long spear that is eight feet long, if you are in the enemy camp, you will really be like a tiger among the sheep, and you will be invincible.
Some craftsmen questioned: "This kind of armor is made like a decoration. Can soldiers really wear it and use it?"
The official scolded: "Don't ask so many questions, just follow His Highness the Grand Sun's orders."
"We have plenty of time. I'll give you three months to work together to create this kind of treasure armor."