In the war between great powers, the battle is about national strength.

However, as far as the Ming Dynasty and the grassland are concerned, the gap is really huge.

Those who know a little bit don't think there is a possibility of losing at all.

The biggest reason why the Northern Expedition has been delayed until now is because of the train.

Now that the train has reached Jiubian, it is completely possible to obtain the grassland at the minimum cost.

Because of the great historical significance, it must be featured in the historical records, so Zhu Ying asked the old man to lead the expedition in person, so that all the honors would belong to the emperor.

On March 3rd, Xuanyuan was born.

It was the birthday of the Yellow Emperor, and the Great Court Meeting finally arrived.

This day was not like a usual court meeting. Almost all high-ranking officials in the capital were participating.

This includes all military attachés.

The Great Court Meeting was not held in Fengtian Hall because too many people came, so it was held in Fengtian Square.

Zhu Yuanzhang would sit at the gate of Fengtian Hall and on the steps of Fengtian Square.

In order to build momentum, Zhu Ying specially arranged for the Twelve Guards of the Beijing Camp to accompany him in the military parade.

The Twelve Guards of the Beijing Camp were the most elite soldiers of the Ming Dynasty. There were more than 80,000 soldiers in total. Each one of them was covered with armor. They were elite soldiers in the true sense.

These 80,000 soldiers will serve as Zhu Yuanzhang's personal bodyguards.

This northern expedition to the grassland is known as a million lions.

Among them, the number of combat soldiers reached an astonishing number of more than 400,000, and the remaining more than 500,000 auxiliary soldiers were also equipped with swords, fire and blunderbuss, and could be used at any time.

For this Northern Expedition, just after the New Year, the military posts in various parts of the Ming Dynasty had already begun to mobilize the population.

Of course, they don't need to go directly to Jiubian, which is far and slow.

You only need to arrive at the train station from Nanjing to Jiubian, and then you can take the train directly to Jiubian.

It was about nine o'clock in the morning.

Officials from the capital were already waiting in line at Fengtian Square.

The hundreds of officials are false. The number of officials who arrived at Fengtian Square today is already nearly 5,000.

This has been very rare throughout the ages.

This is not of a national nature, but only of the capital, like the Han Dynasty's grand gathering of tens of thousands of people, where officials from all over the country would rush over.

The reason why there are such officials is because Zhu Ying continued to increase the number of officials over the years and continued to subdivide specific tasks.

In the past, a yamen might have only a few officials handling affairs, but now there are at least twenty people in a yamen, responsible for various categories.

This method first reduces the burden of work on officials themselves, and secondly restructures power so that power can be dispersed and arbitrariness will not occur.

Today's officials arrived at Chenshi and have been standing in Fengtian Square for half an hour.

But no one complained. After all, it was easier than before, and a major event like the Northern Expedition was worth it.

The Jin Yiwei displays the ceremonial guard of the halogen book, the Jiaofang Department displays the great music, and the Etiquette Department displays the envoys from various countries.

Set up a censor to monitor all officials and supervise those who like to doze off or whisper to each other after standing for a long time.

At this solemn moment, anything that violates the etiquette is a great disrespect to the royal family. It can range from killing someone with a stick to serving someone, or it can lead to the loss of hair.

Finally, at a quarter of a hour, a figure appeared on the steps of Fengtian Square.

At this time, the drums and music were playing in unison, and all the officials knelt down to worship.

He shouted respectfully: "Welcome your Majesty, long live your Majesty! Long live your Majesty!!!"

The sound was deafening, and every official shouted at the top of his lungs.

It’s okay if you don’t shout loudly. The censor Jiuyi next to you is watching closely. Anyone who wants to fish in troubled waters will definitely be severely punished.

Three salutes.

After all, it was useless for Zhu Yuanzhang to shout at this time. Without a loudspeaker, he could not be heard from behind.

Fortunately, the following etiquette procedures have been arranged in advance.

Today's Zhu Yuanzhang is not wearing a dragon robe, nor is he wearing a court uniform.

Instead, he wears bright armor, dragon head and shoulders, a deep red cloak, and bright tassels, like a general.

This set of armor is made of a unique design and unique materials. It looks heavy, but is actually very light.

But in terms of luxury, it is definitely second to none.

After all, it was impossible for Zhu Yuanzhang to actually go into battle to kill the enemy himself. Appearance was more important than practicality, and what stood out was that he was gorgeous and noble.

On the deep red cloak, there is a gold silk embroidered dragon with dark patterns, which is extremely dazzling under the refraction of the sun.

Just standing there gave me an indescribable sense of nobility.

This is an effect that has been achieved after dozens of designs. Now, standing in the sun, the whole body seems to be emitting a faint light, as if a god has descended to earth.

Zhu Ying did not stand on the steps, but was listed in front of the officials together with other imperial uncles.

Of course, these princes and grandsons, including Zhu Ying, did not need to wait here for half an hour. They arrived a quarter of an hour before Zhu Yuanzhang was ready to come.

The officials saw the arrival of the prince and grandsons before, and knew that His Majesty was coming soon, including the Jiaofang Division, which also started preparations. This was equivalent to a signal that the event was about to begin.

"play music!!!"

When Zhu Yuanzhang stood on the steps, Liu He next to him immediately shouted loudly.

Liu He was old and could only shout so loudly, but there were special heralds nearby who had loud voices.

They would follow Liu He's voice and chant.

After nine orders, the great music begins.

The so-called voice of China is majestic.

The entire Ming Dynasty's rituals had been decided in Zhu Yuanzhang's early years, and even the descendants of the Ming Dynasty basically followed this etiquette system.

The great affairs of the country lie in sacrifice and military affairs.

The Mongolian and Yuan systems were chaotic, there was no hierarchy between the noble and the humble, monks' rituals were corrupted, and the ancient ritual system was destroyed in the Yuan Dynasty.

And because the Five Rites of the Yuan Dynasty were all based on national customs, Zhu Yuanzhang always tried to abandon the Huru of the Yuan Dynasty and restore Han culture. Therefore, the Five Rites of the Ming Dynasty mostly inherited the system of the Tang and Song Dynasties, rather than the customs of the Mongolian and Yuan Dynasties.

At the beginning of the founding of the country, Zhu Yuanzhang began to redefine the ritual system, revise ritual books, standardize order, and strive to restore the Chinese system, eliminate barbarians, and flaunt the legitimacy of his rule.

Major events such as the Northern Expedition and Zhu Yuanzhang's personal expedition inevitably required a ceremony.

The music project this time was selected by Zhu Ying, and it was "The Music of the King of Qin Breaking the Formation"

The music of the King of Qin breaking the formation has disappeared in later generations, and only the Japanese country has preserved it. Of course, the current Ming Dynasty version is naturally inherited from the Tang Dynasty original version.

Boom, boom, boom, boom.

Drum beats were heard continuously, and three thousand soldiers wearing armor and holding long swords and shields came from Fengtian Gate to the drum beats.

With the sound of drums, three thousand long knives hit the big shield, making a continuous sound of golden swords, and a primitive chilling air came oncoming.

The people present had goosebumps all over their bodies when they heard this, as if they were on the battlefield of thousands of armies.

The surrounding imperial guards were already engaged in battles amid the music.

The sound of the big drum shook the sky and spread for hundreds of miles. It was powerful and frightening.

A lot of fun.

Three thousand soldiers knelt on one knee and retreated, shouting "Long Live the Mountain".

Immediately afterwards, Zhu Yuanzhang issued an edict.

"I expelled the barbarians and unified China, and I have a destiny of thirty or three. However, beyond the borders, the people of the grasslands are always watching with covetous eyes, intending to cause chaos in China again, but I am worried."

"Now that the national treasury is abundant, the soldiers and horses are strong, and there are magical weapons to help me, I will bring millions of lions to the grassland, lay the foundation of the Ming Dynasty for eternity, and destroy the source of chaos in the grassland."

"Now the great grandson of the Ming Dynasty is a heroic hero. He is benevolent, filial and wise, and he is qualified for a big job. I personally conquer the grassland, and the grandson oversees the country. He can decide the world and carry out the affairs of the emperor."

After Liu He read out the edict, he came down the steps, bowed and said, "Please accept the edict from your grandson."

Zhu Ying accepted the edict and kowtowed: "I sincerely obey the edict."

Then Liu He continued to read out the second edict: "The king of Qin, Zhu Feng, is appointed as the commander-in-chief of the former army, and the army is controlled by 200,000 people."

King Zhu Xi of Qin, wearing armor, bowed his head and received the edict: "My son, I sincerely obey the edict."

Next is King Jin and King Yan.

"The king of Jin, Zhu Fan, was enthroned as the commander-in-chief of the left army, and he controlled the army of 200,000."

"Consecrate King Zhu Di of Yan as the commander-in-chief of the right army, and control the army of 200,000."

Zhu Fan and Zhu Di bowed to receive the order: "My son, I sincerely obey the order."

An army of one million, each led by three feudal lords with 200,000 troops, totaling 600,000 troops divided into three groups.

Zhu Yuanzhang was in charge of the central army and led 400,000 troops.
To be continued...