Father can be an enemy to the country

Finally, the army was scheduled to leave Shengjing Pass on the 13th day of the twelfth lunar month.

At the second watch of the same day, His Highness the King of Chu ordered people to kill pigs and sheep, and divide them among his subordinates to roast them as a farewell to the army.

"You just have to fight the enemy at the front with peace of mind. I will leave everything in the rear to my king. I will never let the army starve." His Highness the King of Chu toasted to several princes and generals: "Back then, Zhuge Liang was in Yunnan Capturing Meng Huo seven times has left a lasting legacy. I also wish you all the best to capture King Liang alive and not let Wu Hou alone be the most beautiful!"

"Please rest assured, Your Highness, we don't have to hold on for so long. Our three armies attack Yunnan together, and we will definitely destroy this imperial palace and sing a triumphant song!" After Yingchuan Hou finished speaking, he smiled and said: "Today, Your Highness will help us. Let’s have a farewell party with wine, and in half a month, I will invite His Highness to Kunming to celebrate the New Year!”

"So confident?" King Chu couldn't help but said with great joy: "Then this is how I report it to the court?"

"Ah..." Fu Youde tensed up when he heard this, and hurriedly waved his hands and said: "This is what we said in private. We still need to be lenient with the court. If you talk too much, you will be passive."

"Hahaha." Everyone burst into laughter, and King Chu personally poured a bowl of wine for Fu Youde and said: "Then as the general said, let's kill this windlass without retribution. But on the first day of the first lunar month, the king wants to invite a beautiful woman to go boating on the Dian Lake. , I hope the general will make it happen."

"Don't worry, Your Highness, the New Year's Eve dinner and the first day of the new year's boat trip have all been arranged." Fu Youde wiped his sweat and did not dare to talk nonsense again.

"Hahaha, don't be stressed, fight as you should." Zhu Zhen smiled again to relieve him of the pressure. The advantage of being a leader is that he alone can speak the pros and cons.

~~

At dawn, the gate of Xiguan City slowly opened, and the army marched out of the gate and entered the border of Yunnan.

While waiting for the arrival of the army, the former army officers and soldiers had already cleared the Yuan army from the right side of the Baishi River to Shengjingguan. Beacon towers were built along the way and rangers were sent to patrol the area to prevent the Yuan army from approaching Shengjing Pass again.

Therefore, the army did not encounter any enemy troops along the way. Two days later, it finally left the endless mountainous area and entered the Qujing Basin.

Seeing that the scenery in front of them suddenly opened up, and there were no longer mountains blocking their sight, the soldiers couldn't help but cheered.

Although they had long known that they were not far from Wumeng Mountain after passing Shengjing Pass, it was not until this moment that the soldiers of the Ming Army had the real feeling of returning to the world!

Naturally, morale was greatly boosted, and the march speed accelerated a lot without the need for officers to urge them.

We arrived at the northern end of Qujing Bazi that night, less than twenty miles away from Qujing City.

The Marquis of Yingchuan ordered to set up camp in the village, bury pots for cooking, and let the soldiers have a good meal and rest.

At the same time, Xiping Hou Muying led four thousand cavalry to quietly leave the main force under the cover of night and rush to the lower reaches of the Baishi River first.

At night, heavy fog arose by the river. When the Ming cavalry approached the Baishi River, they could only hear the sound of the river but could not see the water surface.

"What's going on here?" Qi Xiang followed closely behind Mu Ying, looking up at the sky and seeing thick fog everywhere. He couldn't tell where he was or what time it was.

"Don't panic, follow each other closely, and don't fall behind." Mu Ying whispered: "The heavy fog is good for us to cross the river. We went south along the river and heard the sound of the water slowing down, which meant we were reaching the lower reaches, so we Try to cross the river.”

This is why he insisted on leading the team in person. Otherwise, the soldiers would be filled with complaints and their combat effectiveness would naturally be greatly reduced when encountering such a situation. You may even fail to complete the task directly.

He personally led the team, and the soldiers had a backbone. No matter what happens, as long as he doesn't panic, they won't panic.

~~

Marquis Xiping's words really put the soldiers at ease. He nodded silently, followed his comrades in front, and swam down the river.

After walking for almost two hours, the sound of rushing water finally became soothing.

"If you don't want to go down, just cross the river here." Mu Ying raised her hand to signal the troops to stop advancing and prepare to be the first to go into the water to explore the way.

"Master Marquis, let me do it." Qi Xiang held him back and said with a smile: "I am already this age, and I am still a member of a thousand households. If I don't show my face, I will have no chance."

"..." Mu Ying knew that Qi Xiang wanted to take risks on her behalf, but he taught her riding skills, so there shouldn't be any problems, so she nodded and said: "Be careful."

"Don't worry. We can survive today only because we are careful." Qi Xiang smiled, then slowly urged the horse to enter the river and try to wade across.

The reason why Mu Ying dared to cross the river directly with the cavalry was because Ma was born to be able to swim.

When they enter deep water, they will automatically float due to their huge size, but they will not float very high. Only the horse's head can be exposed to the water, and the rest of the body will remain underwater.

But when they fill their lungs with enough air, their buoyancy will increase, and they can even swim with people on their backs.

However, because the pressure on the heart and lungs under water is too great, the horse's swimming time is relatively short, and the distance cannot be long. Crossing the Baishi River is okay, but if it is replaced by a large river such as the Yangtze and Xiangjiang Rivers, it will be impossible.

Moreover, in fast-flowing rivers, horses may lose their balance and be swept over by the current and die. Therefore, you must choose to cross a section of the river with slow water flow, and the rider must always control the horse's head and not choke on the water.

Because horses cannot hold their breath, they are likely to panic, lose control, or even drown if they choke on water.

Mu Ying and others watched nervously as Qi Xiang tied a rope around his waist and rode his horse into the cold river. But the man and the horse quickly disappeared into the thick fog, and only the safety rope was slowly pulled out, indicating that everything was normal.

After an unknown amount of time, the rope stopped being pulled out, and then shook three times, which was a sign that everything was normal.

Mu Ying breathed a sigh of relief, looked at the remaining rope, and whispered: "The river is one hundred and thirty feet wide, no wonder the water flow slows down."

So four thousand cavalry lined up in a line and carefully crossed the river along the safety rope.

By the time the last group of cavalry came ashore, an unknown amount of time had passed.

Mu Yingyue touched it, and it was almost half past midnight. That is to say, the night is long in the twelfth lunar month, otherwise it would have been dawn.

"But daybreak is coming soon," he whispered to his subordinates: "We have to hurry up, otherwise the fog will dissipate at any time after dawn, and our true identity will be discovered, and this method will not work."

The soldiers wrapped the horses' hooves in thick felt and headed up the river again at twice the speed.

Finally, an hour later, a mountain range appeared in front of them. The soldiers were not surprised but overjoyed.

Because this shows that they are on the right track - this mountain on the riverside is the destination of their trip, Liokuo Mountain.

When Mu Ying led the crowd to the top of the mountain, they saw a red sun dispersing the thick fog, and they had a panoramic view of Qujing City, Baishi River, and the two armies confronting each other across the river.

However, Mu Ying did not take action immediately. Instead, she ordered her subordinates to prepare the flags, gongs, and drums they had brought, and then rested on the spot, ate some dry food, and waited for the right time.