Liu Heju, the former commander of the Yongding Guards, surrendered to the Suzaku Army after being captured. He claimed that he had been slandered and squeezed out by the generals around Duke Cheng, and that he was seeking revenge. Zhang Ning was not very interested in his stories of intrigues among the bureaucracy, but Liu Heju recommended him.
One person aroused great interest in Zhang Ning: the criminal general Feng Youxian.
Feng Youxian was Zhu Yong's former cavalry commander. He was imprisoned in the military camp for a crime and was unable to participate in the final battle of Gaodu City. Liu Heju claimed with certainty that if Feng Youxian was still leading the cavalry in Xicheng at that time, the Suzaku Army would never
It might be that "easy" to win.
So Zhang Ning asked people to investigate the whereabouts of Feng Youxian. A few days ago, the Suzaku Army took advantage of the victory and captured Zhu Yong's camp about five miles to the west, capturing a group of people, and the criminals detained in the army were taken prisoner.
They were treated the same and all were brought together; then the general responsible for counting the list of prisoners reported that there was indeed a man named Feng Youxian in the prisoner camp. At this time, Feng Youxian was at the horse farm of the Suzaku Army. Because the army was short of manpower,
Some soldiers familiar with the horses' habits were selected to help take care of the horses.
After being instructed by the general who was guarding the stable, Zhang Ning, Wang Xian and two or three other soldiers walked over. As expected, there was a man in the stable carrying a bucket and concentrating on washing the horse. This man should be Feng Youxian, who looked better than expected.
Not quite the same. This man is very young, probably in his twenties. He is completely different from the powerful generals such as Liu Heju. He looks like a scholar. According to Liu Heju, this man is originally a landlord from Chenzhou Prefecture.
The family is not a hereditary military household, but one becomes a general through the military examination of the Ministry of War.
At this moment, Feng Youxian turned back to look at Zhang Ning and the others, and temporarily stopped what he was doing. Zhang Ning was wearing a gray military uniform. At first glance, his clothes were not much different from those of ordinary soldiers, but he wore a
Wearing a scarf and hat; Feng Youxian's eyes paused for a moment on the gold buckle of Zhang Ning's belt, and he saluted: "General, are you here to get the horse?"
Zhang Ning was stunned for a moment, nodded and said: "I want to choose a mount from the military horse, but I'm not very good at horses. Can you help me choose a good one?"
"General, please follow me." Feng Youxian walked a short distance into the stable and pointed to a brown horse. "This horse should be the best horse here. Most of the others have mediocre qualifications because there are very few truly good horses.
, he has been chosen by those who know the goods a long time ago."
"It's not necessarily true. There is a saying that thousand-mile horses often come with horses but not great horses. Maybe some good horses are just not appreciated by others." Zhang Ning teased. He said in his heart that I am a layman in judging horses, but I still have some experience in judging people.
Feng Youxian smiled and said: "A thousand-mile horse may not want to be favored by others. No matter whether it is running for the powerful or not, it is still a thousand-mile horse and does not need to cling to others."
Zhang Ning also smiled, pointed at the horse and said, "What's so special about it? And it's smaller than the horse next to it."
Feng Youxian said: "It is small because it has not fully grown up, and this horse has not been fully tamed. It is not a military horse at all. How it ended up in the military horse stable, I don't know..." He stepped forward and broke it apart.
Ma Zui glanced at Zuo Ya and patted the horse's shoulder, "The meat is very beautiful, with brown hair all over the body and white hooves. This horse's name is Qianli Xue. It is a rare good horse. However, it will take some time to grow as a military horse."
"I didn't realize it just now, but after you said it, it looks really perfect." Zhang Ning saw the toned muscles on its body and couldn't help but go up and give it a slap. "Brother is really good at handling horses."
Feng Youxian stroked the horse's facial bones and said lightly: "Horses are the most dignified animals. They walk with their heads held high and their postures elegant. They are usually very noble. They need to be fed with fine food and have someone to wait on them, but they can also put down their bodies to pull.
It is a car to endure hardship and heaviness. It can be neither arrogant nor impetuous when being treated as a treasure, and can endure silently when being whipped. It is neither humble nor arrogant. Not to mention animals, there are very few people who have this kind of tolerance. Horses are very understanding of human nature.
, even if they are treated cruelly, they will not attack people, but war horses can charge bravely among thousands of troops. They have courage but do not abuse it..." He suddenly came back to his senses, with a sense of loss and melancholy, and said apologetically
, "I have said too much, the general wants a good horse, this horse will not let you down."
"A thousand-mile horse often comes with a horse but not a bole, and wise men and generals even less often. General Feng is a horse with a thousand li, but Zhu Yong is not a bole. It's a pity." Zhang Ning said, "Does General Feng know why he was imprisoned? Zhu Yong was defeated with six thousand men.
Our army is unwilling to take responsibility and wants to shift the blame to others, so General Feng is the scapegoat. It is a pity that we have lost a good general and the price is too high."
"You are..." Feng Youxian said.
Zhang Ning said: "I am Zhang Ning, whom Zhu Yong wanted to capture in his dreams. Of course, my original surname is Zhu. General Feng has also seen it. Our Suzaku Army is by no means a grassroots bandit. We raised the army for justice. Back then, King Zhu Di of Yan rebelled and illegally attempted to seize the land.
In the Ming Dynasty, there will always be justice and right and wrong in this world. We cannot succumb to injustice and cruelty. As long as General Feng joins our Suzaku Army, this is the place where you can realize your ambition. No one will persecute you for no reason.
"
Feng Youxian said: "Please forgive me, Your Highness. I have the intention but the inability to do so. I am just a criminal who delayed the opportunity of fighting. I am really not a capable horse. I am afraid that I am currently being used by Your Highness, but in the end my qualifications will be mediocre and I will miss important things."
After hearing his euphemistic attitude, Zhang Ning smiled calmly: "General Feng, there is no need to rush to answer. I hope you will think about it again. Now that Zhu Yong has been completely defeated, your charges have been cleared, and you may be added to the list."
For being accused of colluding with the enemy, your family will be humiliated because of you, and you will no longer have a future in the court. Is this really what you want? We will capture Chenzhou Mansion in the near future, and I hope that by then
Can we see General Feng again?" He turned around and called the generals outside to come in, and ordered, "Feng Youxian is no longer a prisoner, let him go home."
Feng Youxian said in confusion: "Your Highness is serious about what he said, why did you let me go so easily?"
Zhang Ning took off the reins of Qianli Xue, brushed its back and said, "Such a good horse, it has a noble attitude, neither humble nor arrogant, and its perfect muscles are full of strength and courage. If I can't tame it for my own use,
Would I be willing to kill it? I would rather release it into the grassland and wild forest, and let it live in its own place... It's a pity that the world is so big that it is already dominated by people, and no place is ownerless. Sooner or later, it will be taken over.
Someone captured him."
…
The Suzaku Army and the captured officers and soldiers led by Liu Heju soon launched a campaign against Chenzhou Prefecture. Some people were worried that Liu Heju's surrender would be repeated, but Zhang Ning still boldly appointed this man and asked him to command the surrender and adapted troops.
Guard troops, because the strength of the Suzaku Army is really stretched thin.
After being besieged by the Miao army for several months, this ancient city was once again subjected to ten days of artillery bombardment. Three of the Suzaku army's mortars were destroyed due to long-term use. The defenders could no longer bear it and finally ravaged under the artillery fire.
When a large number of troops later entered the gap, they had no strength to fight in the streets, and the defending general surrendered to the Suzaku Army. At this point, the entire territory of Chenzhou fell into Zhang Ning's hands.
The entire territory of Chenzhou, Gaodu in Changde Prefecture, Cili Shimen, Lizhou and other places in Yuezhou Prefecture are now under the rule of the Suzaku Army. The entire plain area on the west side of Dongting Lake, except for the periphery of Changde Prefecture, is occupied by Zhang Ning.
The main force of the Suzaku Army is in Chenzhou, and its position in other areas is very weak. The official army is temporarily unable to mobilize troops to attack these areas, but the more than 2,000 Yuezhou soldiers close to Lizhou have a chance to regain the three counties of Yuezhou.
However, Qin Yousheng, who served as the commander-in-chief of the Yuezhou army, was unable to advance in the face of three almost undefended empty cities.
The staff around him said: "Gong Cheng Guo has been defeated. The situation in Huguang is currently in chaos. The general may be criticized for delaying the march, but there is no real blame. On the contrary, if the three counties are captured, there will be no reinforcements."
If it is recaptured by the rebels again, the general will be fully responsible for the loss of the city and the territory."
Tan Yousheng was not from Huguang, but a general who came with Zhu Yong. After listening to his staff's suggestion, he felt that it made sense. He immediately ordered a halt to the march and declared that the previous military order might have changed, and that he needed to go to Changde Mansion first to inquire.
Will the Duke continue his previous strategy?
This is completely unnecessary. In Zhu Yong's battle plan, the main part is to attack Gaodu County. Now that the main battlefield has failed, is there any plan left? Zhu Yong has no intention of taking care of the affairs of the three counties of Yuezhou at this time.
He tasted the intense pain and humiliation of defeat. In fact, victory and defeat are common for military strategists. A battle between two armies is either victory or defeat. However, after being defeated by a completely inferior opponent, the sense of shame and unwillingness to regret were particularly torturous. That year
Emperor Jianwen probably felt the same way after his defeat.
Zhu Yong could not savor his feelings carefully. He had to rack his brains to think of how to explain to the emperor and how to write this apology letter.
The failure of this battle will have a great impact on Zhu Yong, especially his status in the eyes of the emperor. Not long after Emperor Xuande ascended the throne, he would have a new evaluation of his opponents, civil servants and generals, but Zhu Yong
This opportunity was missed.
To say that it is gratifying, Zhu Yong is certain that he will not die for this, nor will he be deprived of his title. In any case, Emperor Xuande will definitely think of his father Zhu Neng's hard work and merit and let him go.
.
If there were not those generals who fought bravely and risked their lives in the "Battle of Jingnan", how did the Zhu Di family obtain the Ming Dynasty? And Zhu Yong's father, Zhu Neng, died in the face of hundreds of thousands of troops charging into the battle.
Emperor Xuande should at least reminisce about his old friendship!
Moreover, what Emperor Xuande faced was not just emotion. If he punished Zhu Yong and executed him, it would most likely trigger a deep political struggle. In the Yongle, Hongxi, and Xuande dynasties, the heroes of Jingnan were among the most distinguished.
He plays a very important role in the distribution of power. Moving Zhu Yong may be seen as a signal of power reshuffle... Just like the later Chongzhen Dynasty, you can't just touch the eunuch Wei Zhongxian casually, although the emperor is really very powerful.
I don't like the disgusting Nine Thousand Years Old; the Nine Thousand Years Old was moved with such great fanfare and public opinion praised him, but the Chongzhen Dynasty was obviously worse than the Tianqi Dynasty.