inspire-indiana Chapter 241 The Northern Barbarian Prince Goes Up the Mountain and Gets Targeted by the Lin Family
Chapter 241 The Northern Barbarian Prince Goes Up the Mountain and Gets Targeted by the Lin Family
"I hereby order you to mobilize 50,000 troops each from the eastern and southern borders. You shall personally go and discuss this matter with the vassal kings of the two borders. Reinforcements must be provided within one month at the latest, without delay!"
Minister Lin never expected that the Empress Dowager would send him personally to the two borders to seek help.
Are the regional princes so easy to talk to?
They'd be lucky if they didn't take the opportunity to attack the capital and seize the throne; why would they send reinforcements?
Wouldn't this cost him his life?
"Your Majesty, this... I fear the regional vassal kings will be unwilling to send troops..."
"Why doesn't the Empress Dowager summon the Marquis of Pingxi to the capital to provide support? The Marquis of Pingxi has 100,000 troops under his command and is also related to the Lan family by marriage. He would surely obey your orders."
Minister Lin offered advice and strategies despite the pressure.
His Lin family has been having a lot of bad luck lately, and he is exhausted and has no desire to leave Beijing for business.
The Empress Dowager stared coldly at Minister Lin and said sternly, "Minister Lin, are you going to disobey my decree?"
"Your Majesty, please calm your anger! I dare not! I was just afraid of delaying military intelligence!" Minister Lin was so frightened that his legs went weak and he immediately knelt down and kowtowed.
"The troops under Marquis Pingxi's command need to be stationed to guard the western border. The barbarian tribes in the western border are no weaker than the northern barbarians. If the western border army is mobilized without authorization, how will the western border defend itself! And you are the Minister of War!"
All the officials knew that the Western Wilderness Tribe and the Northern Barbarian Tribe were equally formidable enemies.
Moreover, the Marquis of Pingxi was also feared by the emperor.
Otherwise, the emperor would not have confiscated the property and exiled the Mu family, the husband's family of the Empress Dowager's elder sister, Lan Jiarou.
Empress Dowager Lan Zhaoyi and Lan Jiarou are biological sisters.
However, the Lan family only had two legitimate daughters in the Empress Dowager's generation. The eldest legitimate daughter, Lan Zhaoyi, married the previous emperor, and the second legitimate daughter, Lan Jiarou, married the now-impoverished Lord Mu.
But no one expected it.
Mu Hongqi, the eldest son of Lord Mu, actually married the eldest daughter of Marquis Pingxi, thus establishing a marriage relationship with the powerful Marquis Pingxi.
The emperor then suspected that the Empress Dowager wanted to collude with the Marquis of Pingxi.
There were no male heirs in this generation of the Lan family, and under the emperor's suppression, the maternal clan's power gradually diminished.
Lan Zhaoyi gave birth to three sons in total.
The eldest son was the emperor, but he was the most mediocre of the three brothers.
The second son is the fourth prince, who enjoys traveling and sightseeing, and his fiefdom is in the southern border.
The third prince was the most intelligent of all the princes, and he was both wise and brave.
However, she was killed by the emperor at a young age, so the empress dowager and her eldest son, the emperor, were not close.
The emperor ascended the throne at a young age, and the empress dowager held great power, controlling the government and rivaling the emperor.
The emperor had been secretly undermining the power of the Empress Dowager's maternal clan.
After the emperor consolidated his power, he gradually eliminated all the forces supported by the empress dowager.
This includes the Xie family and the Mu family.
With the Empress Dowager in charge of state affairs, the civil and military officials felt reassured.
"Your Majesty, I believe your decision is correct, but without the military tally, it would be difficult for Lord Lin to get things done."
The Vice Minister of Rites immediately stepped forward to help Minister Lin out of the predicament.
Reminded by this, Minister Lin suddenly had a flash of inspiration and immediately changed his words, saying, "Your Majesty, if I had the military tally, I would certainly be able to accomplish this. Please give me a chance to redeem myself!"
Upon hearing this, the Empress Dowager narrowed her eyes slightly.
Before she could even think it over, the officials immediately offered their advice.
They suggested that the Empress Dowager and the Emperor hold the military tally, hoping to expedite the process.
The Empress Dowager knew that without the military tally, no one would easily persuade the regional princes to send troops to provide support.
In this urgent situation, the Empress Dowager had no choice but to agree and leave the main hall to go to the Emperor's bedroom to find the military tally.
Seeing the Empress Dowager leave, Minister Lin secretly glanced at the Vice Minister of Rites who had spoken up for him, and gave him a grateful look.
*
Cangzhou Prefecture.
Cangzhou Prefecture has been holding the city gates at all costs.
In other words, they were passively taking hits and never took the initiative to attack.
The worst fear is that the Northern Barbarian army will attack from both sides, and Cangzhou Prefecture will fall completely.
Behind us lies the capital city.
Neither the prefect of Cangzhou nor the commander of Zhechong Prefecture dared to risk sending troops.
The fear of Cangzhou Prefecture fueled the arrogance of the Northern Barbarian army.
The battle has been deadlocked for five days, and Bogda has confirmed that Cangzhou Prefecture does not possess any mysterious and powerful weapons that he fears.
He immediately gave the order and led the entire Northern Barbarian army forward fifty miles.
The eldest prince of the Northern Barbarians had long been tired of staying in the military camp, so he secretly led his subordinates out while the army was breaking camp.
Wufeng Mountain.
The Lin family's troops were blocked by the garrison of Wufeng Mountain and could not advance an inch.
Lin Wuchong believed that with five thousand militiamen under his command, he would definitely be able to break through from this side.
But the strength of the guards here far exceeded his expectations.
No.
It should be said that the mob militia under his command was weaker than he had imagined.
The Lin family was trapped in the mountains for several days and was unable to cross them.
"Third Uncle, my father is dying, what should we do?" Lin Jingchen was covered in dirt, and his stubble had grown half an inch long.
Lin Wuchong glanced at his elder brother, whose face was already ashen, indicating that there was no hope of recovery.
His son's coffin has not yet been buried; the guards have been carrying it with them at all times.
"What good plan do you have?" Lin Wuchong asked in return.
Lin Jingchen's mouth moved a few times, but he couldn't speak.
If he had a good plan, he would have said it long ago.
The two looked at Lin Wanwan at the same time, and seeing that she was dozing off, they did not make a sound to disturb her.
Lin Wanwan, who was having a dream, suddenly opened her eyes and realized that she had another precognitive dream.
She immediately ran towards Lin Wuchong and Lin Jingchen.
"Big brother, third uncle, I... I have something to tell you."
Upon hearing this, Lin Wuchong and his companion's eyes lit up immediately.
The two men immediately went to greet her and asked her questions.
"Wanwan, have you come up with a good idea?" Lin Wuchong asked eagerly.
Lin Wanwan nodded and said, "Perhaps things are looking up for us."
"Tell me quickly, what's the turning point?" Lin Wuchong urged.
"I dreamt that the eldest prince of the Northern Barbarians also came to Cangzhou Prefecture! He was in the Northern Barbarians' camp, and soon he would sneak out of the camp and take his men to hunt in Wufeng Mountain!"
Upon hearing this, Lin Wuchong's eyes immediately lit up.
Even Lin Jingchen felt his heart pounding wildly.
The uncle and nephew exchanged a glance, both seeing a glimmer of hope in each other's eyes.
Lin Jingchen immediately said, "In that case, let's quickly set a trap and capture him. Then we can negotiate with the Cangzhou Prefecture and ask them to let us into the city!"
Lin Wuchong shared the same idea.
"Yes, you're right. We must capture this Northern Barbarian prince; we cannot afford to lose him! This is our only chance to enter the city!"
Once the Northern Barbarian prince is captured, the Northern Barbarian army will definitely be more wary!
After all, the one who came was the eldest prince of the Northern Barbarians, the most beloved nephew of the Northern Barbarian General Bogda!
This news was known to all the nobles of the Dayong Kingdom; it was not a secret.
If it were any other prince, it definitely wouldn't work!
As long as the eldest prince is captured, the situation will be extremely favorable for Cangzhou Prefecture!
It's not impossible that this could force the Northern Barbarian army to retreat!
If they can seize this opportunity to achieve merit, the Lin family might produce a prime minister!
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