In fact, when he first planned to let the prince lead the army into battle, Ming Chengzu had already made up his mind that the Shenji Battalion must follow him.
If not for anything else, it is because the Shenji Battalion's invincible combat power can ensure the safety of the prince, ensure the victory of the Ryukyu Kingdom war, and increase the prince's reputation in the eyes of the officials.
This sudden statement about not wanting the Shenji Camp really disrupted Ming Chengzu's arrangements for a while.
"Your Majesty, His Highness the Crown Prince has said that there have been a lot of incidents in the army recently. It is much more important to keep the Shenji Battalion in the capital and with you, the Emperor, than to follow him." Song Jian, the Minister of Punishment, said tactfully.
"What do you mean by the prince, let the Shenji battalion guard the capital?" Ming Chengzu chuckled, "There are no less than a dozen guard posts in the capital. The Shenji battalion is a weapon for combat. It really surprises me that the prince does not bring it with him. However,
, if he thinks so, I will comply with his wishes."
Ming Chengzu had a happy smile on his face.
When going out to fight, don't forget the safety of the base camp. The prince is becoming more and more mature.
Two days later, Zhu Gaochi took Wang Changlian, Xiao Chen, and the Daning Dusi, a total of more than 25,000 people, and set out from the capital in the direction of the Zhejiang Dusi Songmen Guards.
The food and fodder needed by the army was prepared by Zhejiang Dusi and set off at the same time as the army set off from the Songmenwei defense zone.
A team of more than 20,000 people traveled more than 3,000 miles. Although Zhu Gaochi had ordered an urgent march, it was already more than 20 days later when they arrived at Songmenwei.
After receiving the order from the imperial court, all the large troop transport ships from the Coastal Guard Station have arrived at Songmen Guard.
After some handover procedures, Tang Xing, the commander of Songmen Guard, mobilized sailors and docked all the troop ships at the guard port to wait for the arrival of the army.
At dusk, the prince finally arrived at Songmenwei.
On the official road outside Songmen Guards, Commander Tang Xing and most of the deputies of the Qianhu Office fell to their knees on the ground.
Xiao Chen stopped his horse and approached Zhu Gaochi's carriage.
"Your Highness, the Songmen Guards have arrived. Commander Tang Xing and most of the military attachés are waiting for you in front?"
"Oh, we're finally here." Zhu Gaochi opened the curtain of the carriage and walked out with a tired face and a hint of excitement.
Xiao Chen coughed softly.
"Commander Tang Xing of the Songmen Guards, together with his subordinate military attachés, are waiting for His Highness the Crown Prince." Hearing Xiao Chen's signal, Tang Xing said hurriedly.
"Okay, okay." Zhu Gaochi said with a smile, "Are the warships ready?"
"Prince Qi, everything is ready and ready to set off at any time."
"Where's the food and grass?" Zhu Gaochi asked again.
"The food and fodder that is enough for 30,000 troops for two months has been loaded on the ships and is ready to set off with the army at any time."
"Then board the ship and set off." Zhu Gaochi waved his hand.
Before Tang Xing could respond, Xiao Chen hurriedly came up and said in a low voice: "Your Highness, it is getting late now. The soldiers of Daning Dusi are all northerners and have never been on a boat. The lights are dark and the boat is swaying.
, the soldiers were so dizzy that they vomited it out."
"Huh?" Zhu Gaochi was stunned.
The fact that the Northern Army was seasick cannot be ignored.
"What do you mean?" Looking at Xiao Chen, Zhu Gaochi frowned slightly.
"It won't be too late for us to start our journey early tomorrow morning. By then, everyone will be able to see the scenery outside, and the degree of seasickness will be reduced a little. If everyone holds a piece of garlic in their mouth, the phenomenon of seasickness will basically disappear.
Appear."
"Wouldn't it be the same if I gave them each a piece of garlic in the evening?" Zhu Gaochi's mind had already flown to the Ryukyu Kingdom.
On his first expedition, Zhu Gaochi was looking forward to the Ryukyu War.
"Your Highness, the army has been trekking for more than 20 days for nearly a month, and it is already exhausted. It is necessary to rest before boarding the ship. Furthermore, for the Ryukyu operation, where we will land from, we also need to study it carefully.
.”
"Okay, then order the army to rest and call several commanders to the Songmen Guards. We will formulate a battle plan overnight." Zhu Gaochi agreed.
"Yes." Xiao Chen walked towards the messenger.
In the hall of Song Gate Guard, seven or eight burning lamp basins were lit, illuminating the hall like daylight.
Six Eight Immortals tables are spliced together to form a huge "combat platform".
Next to them, Wang Zheng, the commander of the Daning capital, Wang Changlian, the minister of rites, Tang Xing, the commander of the Songmen Guards, and Xiao Chen stood quietly.
At the top stood Zhu Gaochi, dressed in battle armor.
On the "combat platform", there is a map of the Ryukyu Kingdom that Matsumon guard made through various channels and took more than half a month to complete.
Looking at the slender map of the Ryukyu Kingdom, Zhu Gaochi smiled and looked at several military attachés and Xiao Chen: "You all have more experience in combat than I do. Let's talk about your opinions first."
Wang Zheng was the first to stand up, looking very confident: "As for this larger place, we can push it straight through from south to north, or from north to south."
Tang Xing continued: "The current situation in the Ryukyu Kingdom is not divided into two dynasties, the north and the south, as the Japanese pirate leader said, but it is divided into three forces: Beishan, Zhongshan, and Shannan. They fight with each other, and their troops are mainly used for fighting within the island.
, the coastal defense is in name only, it doesn’t matter where you land.”
Looking at Xiao Chen, Zhu Gaochi asked slowly: "Are the Japanese pirates who invaded our Ming Dynasty from Shannan?"
As he spoke, Zhu Gaochi stretched out his hand and touched the southernmost spot on the island.
"Yes." Xiao Chen said.
Zhu Gaochi looked at Tang Xing again: "Do you have any detailed information about these three forces?"
"King Taru of Shannan was a cruel man and indulged in drinking and sex. The royal palace was built in Dali Castle at the southernmost tip of Ryukyu Island. King Bashi of Zhongshan was a low-key person and occupied a large area. There were three in Guangda Castle. And the northernmost one
The King of Beishan occupies the largest area among the three forces. He is mysterious and the outside world knows very little about him, and his subordinates have not obtained any information about him."
Pointing at the map, Tang Xing explained it in detail.
Zhu Gaochi raised his right hand and pointed hard towards the southernmost point of the map: "Right here, we will land on the territory of King Talu of Shannan. We will sweep across to the north."
Yongle's nineteenth year, September 3rd.
After seven days of sailing, the army finally arrived at the outer waters of the southern tip of Ryukyu Island.
Facing the "overwhelming" large number of warships appearing on the sea, the scattered coastal defense troops on the coast mountain suddenly became confused.
A soldier held a short knife in his hand and hurriedly ran towards the house where his commander lived.
The people responsible for defending the beach here are composed of a district team, which is about a hundred people.
Although it is September, Ryukyu Island is still a bit hot.
In a house in the middle of the camp, the district captain was shirtless, holding a wine bottle in his hand and filling his mouth one mouthful after another.
Opposite him sat the district team deputy, also shirtless.
He didn't carry a wine flask in his hand, but a piece of cooked meat, as if he hadn't eaten meat for many years, he gnawed one bite after another.
The oil stains on the pieces of meat stained all over my hands.
It seemed that he felt uncomfortable with the oil stain on his hands, so he rubbed it on his naked belly a few times.
It makes the belly shiny and filthy.
"I really regret that I didn't go to Daming with the Seventh Brigade. I heard that they grabbed a lot of money and rice in Daming."
"How rich is the Ming Dynasty, but there is not much money and rice? It's just that we belong to the Sixth Brigade. We want to go, but we can't."
The deputy shook his head and took another vicious bite of the meat.
"A squadron leader of the 7th Brigade is a fellow countryman with me. He said that if I want to go, I can ask their captain to directly ask for someone from our 6th Brigade. They went to Daming on the orders of King Shannan. Whoever they want can be
Can’t I just ask anyone?”
"Why don't you agree to such a good opportunity? If you agree, all the brothers will follow you and enjoy the hot food." There seemed to be a hint of reproach in the deputy's words.
"I'm worried that if we are caught by the Ming army, we will only die. Instead of being afraid, it is better for us to live like this."
The deputy finished the last bite of meat, stuck out his tongue, and licked the oily fingers: "I used to hear that the Ming army was brave and good at fighting, but now I know that those were all rumors. The Seventh Brigade conquered more than a thousand Ming troops.
The soldiers are now working with the Seventh Brigade to rob the Ming Dynasty’s own people."
"Is this true?" The district captain was startled and put down the wine bottle in his hand.
"The first batch of supplies from the 7th Brigade has been sent back. A fellow countryman of mine is on duty in Dali City. The news is not false."
"The Ming army is so cowardly. Alas, the more I say it, the more I regret it." The district captain shook his head with great regret.
A figure flashed at the door.
"It's not good, it's not good." The defensive soldiers on the beach shouted, and rushed in from the door out of breath.