Chapter 203

Seeing Lv Ben like this.

Lady Lv could no longer suppress her fear.

She also felt that what she had done today seemed truly too foolish.

Listening to what Lv Ben said, what Lady Lv felt in her heart at this moment was a deep sense of lingering fear.

"Father."

"What should I do?"

"Will the Emperor and the Crown Prince be dissatisfied with me?"

"Will they take away my authority to manage the internal affairs of the Donggong?" Lady Lv asked with a worried expression.

"If it were only because of this matter, it might make the Emperor and the others dissatisfied, but you are deeply favored by the Crown Prince, so they might perhaps think you are a short-sighted woman who does not understand much, and perhaps they will not be angered," Lv Ben analyzed carefully.

"But if the Emperor has noted it, then for your daughter, and for Yunwen, it will not be a good thing."

"Your daughter was truly wrong today," Lady Lv said with a regretful expression.

"Continue, did anything else happen in front of the Emperor today?" Lv Ben asked with a serious expression.

Lady Lv thought for a moment, and a look of disgust immediately appeared on her face: "Father, something almost went wrong in the hall today."

"That base-born brat Zhu Yuntong is indeed not honest; he actually thought about telling the Emperor and the Crown Prince about his situation in the Donggong. Fortunately, I used the maid beside him to threaten him; otherwise, he really would have said it."

"Although I am confident that others in the Donggong will not tell the truth to the Crown Prince, if it attracts the Emperor's attention, that would not be a good thing."

Upon hearing this!

Lv Ben's expression did not recover; instead, it became even uglier. He stared fixedly at Lady Lv with intense disappointment.

"Foolish, how could you be so foolish today."

"Father... Father doesn't know what to say to you anymore," Lv Ben sighed heavily, looking at her with utter helplessness.

At this moment, he was even more helpless than when he heard Lady Lv ask the Champion Marquis to be Zhu Yunwen's martial arts teacher.

"Wha... what's wrong?" Lady Lv looked at Lv Ben, puzzled.

"Do you really think the Emperor is that easy to fool?"

"You threatened Zhu Yuntong in the hall, and so deliberately; do you think the Emperor and the Crown Prince are the kind of foolish people who wouldn't see it?" Lv Ben said in a deep voice, utterly helpless.

Upon hearing this!

Lady Lv recalled the situation from earlier.

She had coughed.

And then took out her silk handkerchief.

It seemed unintentional, but it was exactly when Zhu Yuntong was answering the Emperor's question.

It would be strange if Zhu Yuanzhang, sitting in the main seat, could not see such deliberateness.

"Father, what should I do?"

"I... I really didn't think that much."

"When the Emperor asked that base-born brat Zhu Yuntong, if I hadn't threatened him, he might have really said something unfavorable to us."

"I had no choice."

Lady Lv said in a panic, her face becoming extremely ugly; she was truly terrified.

Ever since the Chang clan died, she had finally obtained the power to manage the inner court of the Donggong; although she was not the Crown Princess, she held the authority of the Crown Princess, and she had the opportunity to let her son ascend. She had been careful at every step, but in the end, there was still a lapse.

At this moment.

Lady Lv was terrified that because of her actions this time, all her previous plans would come to nothing.

"Based on my many years in the imperial court, the Emperor will definitely be wary of you."

"Also, he will definitely have the Crown Prince investigate how Zhu Yuntong is actually doing."

"After all, the Emperor treats the Crown Prince with the attitude of a true relative; the reason the Donggong has no Embroidered Uniform Guard is fundamentally because the Crown Prince dislikes the Embroidered Uniform Guard, so the Emperor did not touch the Crown Prince's nerves."

"So even if the Emperor becomes suspicious, he will have the Crown Prince investigate, rather than sending the Embroidered Uniform Guard," Lv Ben said with a thoughtful expression, analyzing carefully.

"Then what should I do?"

"If the Crown Prince investigates, he will surely be able to find something. If he finds out about me, I will definitely lose the Crown Prince's favor."

"Although Zhu Yuntong is not liked by the Crown Prince, he is after all the legitimate son, and he has Huaixi standing behind him."

"If he really finds out about me, those fierce generals of Huaixi will definitely take the opportunity to cause trouble," Lady Lv looked at her father in terror.

At this moment.

Lady Lv was completely panicked and had even lost her own judgment.

Facing such a situation.

Lv Ben was not completely panicked, but was thoughtful, thinking of countermeasures.

After a moment of contemplation.

Lv Ben said: "For this matter, we must find a scapegoat."

"Whoever manages Zhu Yuntong's stipend, and the eunuch in charge of his daily life, push all the blame onto him."

"For this matter, you must be clean."

"And it must be arranged properly tonight to ensure there are no accidents."

"And that eunuch in charge must take all the blame; only then can the Crown Prince not find out about you."

Upon hearing this!

Lady Lv immediately nodded: "I will go and handle it personally in a moment."

"The Crown Prince still trusts you very much, so only by finding a convincing reason and resolving that 'prime culprit' will the Crown Prince not continue to dwell on this matter."

"Apart from this."

"In the future, you must be even more guarded against that Zhu Yuntong."

"The maid beside him is his weakness; you must handle it well. And in the future, in front of the Emperor and the Crown Prince, you must never be too deliberately clever."

"The Emperor came from a humble beginning; how smart was that Hu Weiyong back then? He still fell into the Emperor's hands."

"The Crown Prince has been cultivated by the Emperor for many years; you can imagine his sharpness. The reason he is not concerned about Zhu Yuntong is ultimately because the Chang clan died in difficult labor back then, and he also trusts you, which is why he did not restrain him."

"In your current situation, you have no choice but to be cautious, unless you do not want to compete for that position for Yunwen," Lv Ben said earnestly.

"Your daughter understands."

"In the future, your daughter will definitely be careful and cautious," Lady Lv nodded heavily, and her heart gradually calmed down.

After this incident, she would become even more cautious and prudent.

In this struggle between legitimate and illegitimate, she had no way out. If Zhu Yuntong were to become the Imperial Grandson or even the Crown Prince in the future, she would be finished; not only her, but her sons would be as well.

Northern Frontier!

Where the Great Wall is.

After several months.

After initially creating a momentum of the entire army pressing north, they successfully made the Northern Yuan tribes retreat north again. Afterward, Guo Ying did not let the infantry go deeper, but withdrew them back to the Great Wall.

During this period.

A portion of the troops escorted the slaves and surrendered soldiers obtained from the conquest of Northern Yuan toward the heartland of Great Ming, handing them over to the Ministry of War, and later they would be handed over to the Ministry of Revenue, or even the relevant departments of the imperial court regarding slave registration.

Apart from this.

Another portion of the troops was repairing the Great Wall.

Back when the Northern Frontier fell into the control of Northern Yuan, this Great Wall was pushed down by them and wantonly destroyed.

After all, for them, this Great Wall was a barrier blocking their advance into the Northern Frontier; they naturally did not need it.

Now that Great Ming has taken it back, they cannot take the land of the Northern Frontier, as there are no cities and they cannot go deep, so repairing the Great Wall is also key.

Guo Ying ordered an army of 100,000 to repair the Great Wall; the current Great Wall is no longer as dilapidated as it was a few months ago.

Through the army's repairs, they have initially repaired some of the Great Wall; it only needs time, and with future coordination from the Ministry of Revenue and the Ministry of War, it will surely be possible to fully repair this Northern Frontier Great Wall.

"The scenery of the Northern Frontier is truly good."

"It is worthy of being the scenery of the Northern Kingdom."

"When the cold winter arrives and heavy snow covers the land of the Northern Frontier, that will be the most beautiful scenery of the Northern Kingdom," Zhu Di said, wearing a cloak, with Guo Ying and Zhu Quan standing beside him, looking far into the north.

"Indeed."

"Scenery of the Northern Kingdom."

"This year, life will not be easy for Northern Yuan," Guo Ying praised the scenery of the Northern Kingdom while also mocking Northern Yuan.

After this battle.

Northern Yuan was completely driven out of the ancestral land of Huaxia, with no cities in Huaxia to rely on.

They were driven back to nomadic life.

And having experienced this battle, Northern Yuan suffered heavy losses. In the past, they still had these territories occupying the ancestral land of Huaxia as granaries, but now they have lost the granaries too. In the future, they will become like the nomads of the Northern Frontier in the past; winter will be their most dangerous moment, and one wonders how many will freeze to death.

Clearly.

For the Great Ming military generals, this is something to be glad about.

It is better for them to die than for the people of Great Ming to die.

And after all.

The ancestral land of Huaxia taken back from Northern Yuan is not small, and quite a few Northern Yuan people have been relocated. As time passes, they will surely feel the difference between the Northern Frontier and Great Ming.

"I wonder how the Champion Marquis and the others are doing."

"They have been killing into the Northern Frontier for over two months."

"There is still no news back, and soon it will be winter. If they cannot return before the heavy snow falls, it will be dangerous," Zhu Quan said with a worried expression.

Hearing this.

A look of worry also appeared on Guo Ying's face: "Indeed! The Northern Frontier is vast; a slight carelessness and one will be lost in it. Although our Great Ming dispatched 100,000 cavalry, they have entered a foreign land after all, and although Northern Yuan was defeated, its national strength still exists, and I don't know what the situation is."

But beside him.

A flash of indifference crossed Zhu Di's eyes.

But it vanished quickly.

"The Champion Marquis and the Marquis of Yongchang are both skilled generals."

"I believe they will surely be able to lead our army to a triumphant return," Zhu Di said at the right moment.

"Now, we can only wait."

"It is not easy to transmit news in the Northern Frontier."

"Apart from waiting, there is no other way," Guo Ying said in a deep voice, looking up toward the Northern Frontier, also waiting expectantly.

It was precisely at this moment!

In the north.

Suddenly, a battle flag appeared from the distant horizon; looking from afar, it was the red battle flag of Great Ming, inscribed with the character "Ming".

Following closely, beneath the battle flag were hundreds of red-armored cavalry.

"Grand General, look quickly."

"That is our Great Ming's army."

"Are they about to return in triumph?"

Zhu Quan pointed to the north and said excitedly.

For him.

Coming to learn from this Northern Expedition army, he also saw the slaughter on the battlefield and the cruelty of the enemy. As a descendant of Zhu Yuanzhang, he naturally felt the sense of responsibility for defending the Northern Frontier.

"We see it."

"It is truly our Great Ming's army, and it is the personal guard."

"I just don't know if it is the Champion Marquis's personal guard or the Marquis of Yongchang's," Guo Ying also said with a smile, his face full of expectation.

Zhu Di also looked toward the north, his brow furrowed, watching with some panic in his heart.

They saw this cavalry approach the Great Wall quickly.

Soon.

They arrived beneath the Great Wall, which was already mostly repaired.

"Grand General."

"This is Liu Lei, the commander of the Champion Marquis's personal guard," Zhu Quan looked closely and immediately recognized the identity of the person holding the battle flag.

"Could it be that the Champion Marquis has succeeded in his triumph? So he sent his personal guard ahead to report the news?" Guo Ying said with anticipation.

Immediately.

Guo Ying did not hesitate at all.

"Open the passage below quickly," Guo Ying shouted loudly.

Although the Great Wall is full of standing passes, there are also mountain passes, and right here below is the location of a mountain pass.

"Could it be, he really succeeded?"

"Impossible."

"Northern Yuan knows his detailed troop strength, and also knows his target; as long as they set an ambush and deploy defenses, they can surely wipe him out."

"He only has 50,000 troops; how could he return?"

"What exactly is Northern Yuan doing?" Zhu Di was truly panicked in his heart at this moment.

Upon seeing Liu Lei, he already felt an indescribable anxiety.

After all.

Only he knew what Yao Guangxiao beside him had done, and only he knew who Zhu Ying's identity was.

As the pass gate opened.

Liu Lei led his hundred personal guards and quickly passed through the pass gate, entering the Great Wall.

And Guo Ying walked down quickly; Zhu Quan was naturally extremely curious and followed, as did Zhu Di.

It was just that among the three, one had different thoughts.

"Subordinate pays respects to the Grand General."

"Greetings to the Prince of Yan, the Prince of Ning."

Upon entering the Great Wall.

Liu Lei immediately dismounted and bowed.

"Commander Liu."

"How is the Northern Frontier?"

"How is the Champion Marquis?"

Guo Ying did not think much and asked directly about the main issue.

At this moment.

The key to the Northern Expedition, whether the road to triumph could be opened, was today.

"Reporting to the Grand General."

"Subordinate follows the Champion Marquis's order to return first and report the battle results."

"The Northern Expedition has succeeded."

"The Champion Marquis led our Great Ming's 50,000 soldiers to attack the Northern Yuan royal court, broke the Northern Yuan army at Mount Langjuxu, killed countless enemies, and in one battle beheaded Northern Yuan's newly appointed Grand General Ma Er Ke Er."

"After breaking the Northern Yuan army, we pursued them all the way, successfully found the location of the Northern Yuan's temporary royal court at Buyuer Sea, struck it in one battle, successfully broke the Northern Yuan royal court, killed countless enemies, and captured the Yuan Emperor as well as over 70 percent of his civil and military officials."

"Captured over ten thousand Northern Yuan nobles."

"This battle."

"Our army's Northern Expedition is a great victory."

"Northern Yuan will not exist in the future."

Liu Lei said with great excitement, and at the same time took out a military report written by Zhu Ying himself from his bosom and presented it respectfully to Guo Ying.

Guo Ying took the military report, but his face was already filled with indescribable excitement, and he didn't even want to open the military report.

Because Liu Lei's oral report was enough to hear the basic battle situation; what was stated in the military report was merely more detailed.

"The Champion Marquis is truly our Great Ming's number one brave general."

"Broke the Northern Yuan army, broke the Northern Yuan royal court, captured the Yuan Emperor."

"Sealing Langjuxu!"

Guo Ying gripped the military report, his expression excited.

(End of chapter)