Recaps

Zhu Ying celebrated his wedding to Shen Yu'er with his border soldiers, honoring fallen comrades and those still stationed at the frontier. In Beiping, Zhu Di learned of the marriage and lost his chance to arrange a match for Zhu Ying, while Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Biao also received the news in Yingtian.

• Lin Fu reflected that he had fulfilled his late madam's charge by seeing Zhu Ying marry, and vowed to devote the rest of his life to caring for him.
• Zhu Ying thanked his soldiers for their wedding blessings, offered three bowls of wine to fallen comrades, border troops, and the men gathered at the feast, then invited them to celebrate freely.
• Zhu Ying lifted Shen Yu'er's bridal veil and affirmed her as his wife.
• Zhu Di welcomed Zhang Yu back from Liaodong and asked him about Zhu Ying, whose courage and loyalty impressed Zhang Yu.
• Zhu Di considered arranging a marriage alliance for Zhu Ying, but Jin Zhong reported that Zhu Ying had already taken Shen Yu'er as his principal wife.
• Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Biao received news of Zhu Ying's marriage in Wenyuan Pavilion and pondered it in silence.

In Wenyuan Pavilion, Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Biao discussed the marriage plans they had lost with Zhu Ying and mapped out a future campaign against Northern Yuan. Jiang Yan then revealed that the Shen Family had arranged Zhu Ying’s dangerous assignment to Daning to escape a marriage agreement, leaving Zhu Yuanzhang demanding to know what would happen to the Shen Family.

• Zhu Yuanzhang accepted Zhu Ying’s marriage to Shen Yu'er and told Zhu Biao to send a generous imperial wedding gift.
• Zhu Biao proposed Lan Yu for the next Northern Yuan campaign, and Zhu Yuanzhang chose Guo Ying to lead, with Lan Yu as his deputy and Zhu Di as a commanding general.
• Jiang Yan reported that Shen Yu'er was Shen Wansan’s daughter but had been raised as a servant, and that her mother and true origins remained unknown.
• Jiang Yan revealed that the Shen Family had bribed a recruiting officer to send Zhu Ying from Beiping to Daning so he might die and their marriage agreement would end.
• Jiang Yan said Prince of Yan had uncovered the scheme, punished the recruiting officer, and implicated his entire clan; Zhu Yuanzhang then asked what had happened to the Shen Family.

Zhu Yuanzhang ordered the Imperial Guard to watch the Shen Family after learning that the investigation into their role in Zhu Ying’s transfer found no proof. Zhu Biao canceled Zhu Ying’s proposed marriage to Lu clan’s daughter, while Lu clan and Lu Ben discussed using the Shen Family’s wealth and warned Lu Hao to avoid reckless actions.

• Jiang Yan told Zhu Yuanzhang that the Prince of Yan and the Imperial Guard had found no evidence tying the Shen Family to the recruiting officer’s abuses, so Zhu Yuanzhang ordered the Imperial Guard to monitor them and punish any future crimes.
• Zhu Yuanzhang warned Zhu Biao that merchants could use wealth to corrupt officials and gain power, while Zhu Biao said he intended to reform the Imperial Guard when he ruled.
• Zhu Biao and Zhu Yuanzhang discussed the Shen Family’s broken marriage arrangement, Zhu Ying’s success with the Daning Border Army, and Zhu Di’s disappointment at losing a promising commander for the Northern Peace Army.
• Zhu Biao told Lu clan that Zhu Ying had married and that their marriage arrangement was canceled; Lu clan concealed her relief and sent Rong Lin to warn her father about Zhu Biao’s mention of her elder brother.
• Lu Ben questioned Lu Hao about his conduct, warned him not to endanger Yun Wen’s future, and discussed exploiting the Shen Family’s wealth while distrusting their ambitions.

Zhu Ying expanded his plans for recruiting and training deathsworn, received generous wedding gifts from Zhu Biao, and learned that Shen Yu'er was pregnant. He opened three treasure chests and gained two brewing methods and a military formation, leaving him eager to put the rewards to use.

• Zhu Ying inspected Liu Lei's hidden forest stronghold, approved continued recruitment across Daning Prefecture, and ordered loyal deathsworn trained under Xiao Han.
• Zhu Ying received Zhu Biao's wedding gifts and an ordinary treasure chest from Golden Guard commander Luo Yang, then discussed plans for the distillery and taverns with Lin Fu.
• Zhu Ying learned that Shen Yu'er was pregnant and ordered the household to care for her.
• Zhu Ying opened two ordinary treasure chests and a Tier 1 treasure chest, obtaining the Distilled Winemaking Method, Fine Medicinal Wine Brewing Method, and Yellow Tier Low-grade Dragon Gate Trapping and Killing Military Formation.

Zhu Ying celebrated Lunar New Year with his guards and Shen Yu'er in Daning, while Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Biao attended a stiff palace banquet that reminded them of their lost family. The chapter ended with them arriving outside Kunning Palace to pay respects to Empress Ma and Zhu Xiongying.

• Zhu Ying discovered the Dragon Gate Formation in a treasure chest and planned to recover and train his troops while awaiting the Emperor's campaign against the Northern Yuan.
• Zhu Ying hosted a Lunar New Year's Eve feast for his seven hundred guards, declaring that his residence was their home, then celebrated the new year with Shen Yu'er.
• Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Biao began the imperial family banquet in Ying Tian, and Zhu Yuanzhang asked why Zhu Biao had not brought Yunteng and his sisters.
• Zhu Yuanzhang remembered an earlier Lunar New Year's Eve when Empress Ma, Zhu Biao, Crown Princess Consort Chang, and Zhu Xiongying had filled the hall with warmth and laughter.
• After the present-day banquet ended, Zhu Biao and Zhu Yuanzhang went to pay respects to Empress Ma and Zhu Xiongying at Kunning Palace.
• Zhu Yuanzhang admitted that he often missed the palace but feared entering it, and Zhu Biao comforted him as they stood outside.

Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Biao paid their respects to Empress Ma, Chang, and Zhu Xiongying before a tense family banquet exposed the Lu clan’s ambition for Zhu Yunwen to become heir. In Daning, Zhu Ying handed the trained Huizhou Guard to Mu Sheng and rushed home when he learned Shen Yu'er was in labor; the chapter ended with a newborn’s cry.

• Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Biao entered Kunning Palace and mourned before the spirit tablets of their loved ones.
• At the Eastern Palace family banquet, the Lu clan resented the distinction between legitimate and illegitimate children and vowed to make Zhu Yunwen the legitimate heir.
• Zhu Ying reviewed the disciplined drills of the fifty thousand reorganized surrendered soldiers and complained that Huizhou Guard’s commander had not arrived.
• Mu Sheng arrived with his appointment as Garrison Commander, and Zhu Ying entrusted Huizhou Guard and its training program to him.
• Xiao Han reported that Shen Yu'er was about to give birth, so Zhu Ying hurried back to Daning City.
• Zhu Ying reached the Zhu Residence, where a newborn’s cry came from Shen Yu'er's bedchamber.

Zhu Ying welcomed his first son, named him Zhu Xi, and discovered that the family panel had granted the child the Governance talent. Meanwhile, the court prepared for a spring campaign against the Northern Yuan, and the chapter ended with Zhu Yuanzhang telling Zhu Biao that Zhu Ying had an heir.

• Shen Yu'er safely gave birth to a son, and Zhu Ying named him Zhu Xi.
• Zhu Ying unlocked the descendant and family panels, accepted a random talent assignment, and Zhu Xi received Governance.
• Bu Wan congratulated Zhu Ying and gave him a record showing supplies for three hundred thousand troops were being sent to Daning and Beiping for a likely spring campaign.
• Zhu Di learned that Zhu Ying's son had been born and ordered a generous gift sent to Daning.
• Tang Duo, Zhao Mian, Chen Jing, and Shen Jin reported on troop replenishment and Liaodong's recovery and administration to Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Biao.
• Zhu Yuanzhang celebrated Liaodong's integration and told Zhu Biao that Zhu Ying had an heir.

Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Biao discussed Zhu Ying’s military success and planned to summon him to Yingtian after the Northern Yuan campaign, while ensuring his family remained under court oversight. In the Eastern Palace, Lan Yu warned Lu clan not to let her son seek what belonged to the legitimate heir, then asked Zhu Biao to let him take Zhu Yunteng to the military camp for training, leaving Zhu Biao undecided and Lu clan anxious.

• Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Biao agreed that Zhu Ying should be summoned to Yingtian after Northern Yuan was settled and that his family should remain there to keep his military power in check.
• Lan Yu arrived at the Eastern Palace, insulted Lu clan’s status as a concubine, and demanded to see Zhu Yunteng.
• Lan Yu warned Lu clan that her son must not covet what belonged to the legitimate heir, then urged the timid Zhu Yunteng to remember his status and speak up if anyone bullied him.
• Zhu Biao arrived, dismissed Zhu Yunteng to his studies, and listened as Lan Yu asked to take Zhu Yunteng to the military camp for training.
• Zhu Biao considered Lan Yu’s request without deciding, while Lu clan grew anxious.

Zhu Biao denied Zhu Yunteng a place in Lan Yu’s army, then offered Lan Yu a chance to earn a dukedom in the Northern Yuan campaign. In Daning, Zhu Ying expanded the Black Guard and prepared his forces after an imperial decree ordered the Daning Border Army to assemble in Beiping Prefecture.

• The Lu clan persuaded Zhu Biao to keep Zhu Yunteng in the Imperial Academy, disappointing Lan Yu and leaving Zhu Yunteng under her care.
• Lan Yu asked to command the campaign against the Northern Yuan, and Zhu Biao assigned him an army while promising to recommend him for a dukedom if he distinguished himself.
• Zhu Ying reviewed the Black Guard’s newly trained third batch and ordered it to expand into Beiping Prefecture and attack Shen Family caravans outside Daning.
• Zhu Ying celebrated Lunar New Year with Shen Yu'er and their infant Zhu Xi, anticipating that war would come in the new year.
• An Imperial Envoy delivered an edict ordering Zhu Ying to deploy the Daning Border Army to Beiping Prefecture, and Zhu Ying ordered the Thousand-Household Battalions to assemble there.

Zhu Ying mobilized the Daning Border Army for the Northern Expedition, while the Ming court appointed commanders and prepared a force of more than four hundred thousand troops. As Zhu Ying approached Beiping, Zhu Di and Li Jinglong went out to meet him, with Zhu Di eager to see the renowned young general.

• Zhu Ying ordered the Daning Border Army to march for Beiping, said farewell to Shen Yu'er and their son, and led twenty thousand soldiers out of camp.
• Zhao Mian and Tang Duo reported that provisions, weapons, and military supplies had reached the expeditionary forces, while Zhu Biao announced Guo Ying, Lan Yu, and Zhu Di as commanders of the two armies, with Li Jinglong serving under Zhu Di.
• Zhu Di learned that the Daning Border Army and Mu Sheng's troops were approaching Beiping, and confided to Zhang Yu that he resented having a deputy commander assigned to him.
• Li Jinglong arrived at Zhu Di's camp with a command tally, and Zhu Di welcomed him warmly before they discussed their roles in the campaign.
• A guard reported that Zhu Ying had reached the prefectural border with the Daning vanguard, and Zhu Di and Li Jinglong went out to meet him.

Zhu Ying arrived with the Daning Border Army and met Zhu Di and Li Jinglong ahead of the Northern Expedition. Zhu Di was shaken by how closely Zhu Ying’s eyes resembled his dead nephew Zhu Xiongying’s, while Zhu Ying learned that the army would be led by Guo Ying, with Lan Yu and Zhu Di commanding separate forces.

• Zhu Ying halted his twenty thousand cavalry outside the Northern Peace Army camp, impressing Zhu Di and Li Jinglong with their discipline and battle-hardened presence.
• Zhu Di saw Zhu Ying’s face and was stunned by his resemblance to Zhu Xiongying, but recovered and warmly greeted him.
• Zhu Di introduced Li Jinglong as deputy commander, and Zhu Ying privately worried that Li Jinglong’s poor military ability could endanger the campaign.
• Zhang Yu led Zhu Ying to arrange the Daning Border Army’s camp, and Zhu Ying asked who would command the Northern Expedition.
• Zhang Yu explained that Guo Ying would be Great General, with Lan Yu and Zhu Di commanding the two armies and Chang Mao and Li Jinglong serving as their deputies.
• Zhu Ying reflected that defeating the Northern Yuan would not end the threat to the Ming frontier and recalled the future damage of Zhu Qizhen’s Tumu Crisis.

Zhu Ying opened three treasure chests and ordered Liu Lei to prepare their poison and combat-enhancing formulas for the Black Guard. Meanwhile, Zhu Di and Yao Guangxiao discussed Zhu Ying’s resemblance to the dead Imperial Eldest Grandson, and the chapter ended with them observing the Daning Border Army’s disciplined morning drill before the Northern Expedition.

• Zhu Ying told Zhang Yu that the Northern Expedition offered a chance to earn military merit, while privately setting his sights on Fenglangjuxu and the Imperial Seal.
• Zhu Ying opened three treasure chests, obtaining 100 Fine Steel Sabers and formulas for Throat Seal Poison and Blood Burst Powder, then ordered Liu Lei to have the Black Guard prepare and carry them.
• Zhu Di told Yao Guangxiao that Zhu Ying’s eyes reminded him of Zhu Xiongying, and Yao Guangxiao asked to meet Zhu Ying to examine his features and fate.
• Zhu Di agreed to summon Zhu Ying to the camp the next day, while Yao Guangxiao insisted that Zhu Xiongying was dead and that Zhu Di would still gain the white hat he had promised.
• Zhu Ying led his personal guards and the Daning Border Army in their morning drill, startling the neighboring Northern Peace Army with their battle cries and synchronized running.
• Li Jinglong told Zhu Di that the Daning Border Army trained every day in all weather, from Zhu Ying down to the common soldiers, leaving Zhu Di astonished.

Zhu Di summoned Zhu Ying to meet Yao Guangxiao, who examined Zhu Ying’s supposed fate while Zhu Ying concealed his real birth date. Zhu Ying then negotiated a discreet wine-selling arrangement with Zhu Di, leaving their cooperation poised to expand into Beiping Prefecture.

• Zhu Di praised Zhu Ying’s practice of training alongside his soldiers, then ordered him to come to the tent after breakfast.
• Zhu Ying told his generals that more than 400,000 men would join the Northern Expedition and instructed Chen Heng to keep drilling the Dragon Gate Formation.
• Zhu Ying met Zhu Di and Yao Guangxiao, recognized Yao Guangxiao, and suspected Zhu Di had been cultivating ties with him for future rebellion.
• Yao Guangxiao read Zhu Ying’s fate from a false birth date, and Zhu Di relaxed after concluding Zhu Ying was not Xiongying.
• Zhu Di proposed expanding Zhu Ying’s wine business into Beiping, and Zhu Ying offered to supply Zhu Di’s taverns at cost while opening separate ones himself.
• Zhu Ying cautioned Zhu Di to conceal his involvement in trade, and Zhu Di said he would use private merchants’ names to keep the taverns discreet.

Zhu Di and Zhu Ying arranged a profitable partnership while Zhu Ying ordered the Black Guard to destroy the Shen Family’s trade operations. At the Northern Expedition’s military council, Guo Ying divided the 300,000 troops into two routes and ordered Lan Yu to attack Zhenhan City and the surrounding border cities.

• Zhu Di told Yao Guangxiao that he intended to seize every opportunity, while Yao Guangxiao praised Zhu Ying’s cleverness and unusual accomplishments.
• Zhu Ying sent Liu Lei with a letter for Uncle Lin to settle their Beiping Prefecture trade agreement, then ordered the Black Guard to seize the Shen Family’s goods and kill its people across multiple prefectures.
• The 300,000 troops assembled on the Beiping Prefecture border, where Guo Ying arrived and was greeted by Zhu Di, Zhu Ying, Li Jinglong, Mu Sheng, and the other generals.
• At the military council, Zhu Di presented his knowledge of Northern Yuan’s forces and cities, and the generals discussed Northern Yuan’s internal divisions and its ten border cities.
• Guo Ying announced that the army would advance along two routes, led by Lan Yu and Zhu Di, and ordered Lan Yu to take 150,000 troops against Zhenhan City and uproot the five nearby border cities.

Guo Ying assigned the Ming forces their Northern Expedition targets, while Zhu Ying planned how to break through Northern Yuan’s border defenses. In New Capital, the Northern Yuan Emperor gathered tribal reinforcements but hesitated to withdraw the troops guarding his restive tribes.

• Guo Ying ordered Lan Yu and Li Jinglong to attack separate groups of five Northern Yuan border cities and kept Zhu Di at headquarters for his safety.
• Li Jinglong asked Zhu Ying and the other generals how to attack the five cities, and Zhu Ying recommended simultaneous assaults to divide Northern Yuan’s defenders.
• Zhu Ying volunteered to lead the attack on Zhenxia City, while Zhang Yu and Mu Sheng offered supporting attacks on nearby cities.
• The Ming army broke camp and advanced toward Northern Yuan as the Northern Yuan court learned that the invasion force could number hundreds of thousands.
• Shiliemen urged the Northern Yuan Emperor to mobilize more troops, and several tribal commanders pledged reinforcements.
• Guilichi called for the emperor to withdraw another two hundred thousand troops from the Northern Frontier, but the emperor hesitated for fear of losing control over the tribes.

The Northern Yuan court mobilized troops and summoned the Jian slaves as the Ming Army advanced on Zhenxia City. Zhu Ying led the Daning cavalry through the city's cannon and arrow fire, reaching the gates with a Charged Saber Slash.

• Guilichi and the Northern Yuan generals urged the emperor to prioritize the war against Ming, and Shiliemen proposed mobilizing troops while conscripting Han Chinese men and summoning the Jian slaves.
• A messenger reported that Ming generals Guo Ying, Zhu Di, Lan Yu, Chang Mao, and Li Jinglong were advancing, prompting the Northern Yuan emperor to order reinforcements to the border.
• Zhu Ying's five hundred cannons bombarded Zhenxia City with needle-filled shells, inflicting heavy casualties while Mahawu ordered the defenders to hold the city.
• Zhu Ying led his personal guards and twenty thousand Daning cavalry toward Zhenxia City as Zhu Di and Li Jinglong watched from the central army.
• The Yuan defenders fired cannons and volleys of arrows at the charging cavalry, but Zhu Ying cut through the incoming projectiles and reached the city gates.

Zhu Ying shattered the fortified city defenses and led his troops into the city, where the Ming Army began routing the Northern Yuan forces. Zhu Di and Li Jinglong watched in disbelief as Zhu Ying’s advance revived talk that he was the Hegemon-King of Western Chu reborn.

• Zhu Ying split the sealed city gate, cracked the wall behind it with the Frenzied Dance Saber Technique, and charged through the breach on Black Edge.
• Zhu Ying cut down the Yuan soldiers’ arrows and shattered their shield formations, while system notifications rewarded him with attributes and lifespan for his kills.
• Liu Lei led Zhu Ying’s seven hundred personal guards into the city, and they smashed through the Yuan defenses with their enhanced strength.
• Chen Heng and Wei Quan led the Daning cavalry into the pass as Mahawu struggled to rally the frightened Yuan Army and stop the advance.
• Zhang Wu led thirty thousand infantry toward the city, while Zhu Di and Li Jinglong watched the breach and wondered how Zhu Ying could have accomplished it.

Zhu Ying led the Daning Border Army in a bloody assault that broke through Zhenxia City’s defenses and sent the Yuan Army into retreat. As Zhu Di and Li Jinglong watched the victory unfold, Zhu Di grew increasingly wary of Zhu Ying and the strength of his army.

• Zhu Di feared that Zhu Ying’s battlefield strength could make him a future rival and resolved that Zhu Ying must not rise to a powerful ministerial position if he could not be won over.
• Zhuang Wei ordered the Daning archers to suppress the Yuan defenders while Daning infantry climbed the walls and cavalry pushed into Zhenxia City.
• Zhu Ying’s troops cleared streets near the gate, and Zhu Ying killed the Yuan commander of ten thousand with a spear, causing the commander’s forces to collapse into a rout.
• Mu Sheng waited outside the city for the Daning Border Army to enter before advancing with the Huizhou Guard, and he admired Zhu Ying’s command.
• Zhu Di and Li Jinglong praised the Daning Border Army’s performance and discussed reporting its success to the emperor, while Zhu Di privately remained suspicious of Zhu Ying.

Zhu Ying’s Ming Army broke through Zhenxia City and captured much of its outer district, forcing Dibao Nu to retreat while Mahawu organized a desperate defense. After reaching 7,000 kills, Zhu Ying exposed and attacked Mahawu’s hidden ambush, leaving the Yuan forces under a deadly barrage of arrows.

• A Yuan messenger reported that Zhu Ying had breached Zhenxia City’s sealed gates, and Dibao Nu ordered most of his troops to withdraw toward Zhenhua City.
• Mahawu stayed behind with his men, ordered a defense of the outer city, and prepared archers and weapons to fight the Ming Army.
• Zhu Ying led his troops through the outer city as Chen Heng, Zhang Wu, and Liu Lei carried out his orders; his kill count reached 7,000 and earned him a Tier 1 treasure chest.
• After clearing the outer city, Zhu Ying arranged his troops to advance cautiously and halted when he sensed an ambush ahead.
• Zhu Ying ordered the archers to fire into the concealed Yuan positions, and the first volleys killed and wounded many of Mahawu’s soldiers.
• Mahawu ordered his forces to hold their positions, but Zhu Ying used the Golden Eagle to locate them and commanded his archers to advance and keep firing.

Zhu Ying led the Ming Army through Zhenxia City, breaking the Yuan ambush and slaughtering thousands as the Huizhou Guard joined the battle. After his attributes surpassed 6,000 and the Yuan defenses collapsed, Mahawu confronted him and challenged him to a fight to the death.

• Mahawu ordered the Yuan soldiers to reveal themselves and fight after Zhu Ying’s archers exposed their ambush positions.
• Zhu Ying broke through the Yuan shield line, charged into the formation, and killed the Yuan commander of ten thousand, raising all his attributes past 6,000.
• Zhu Ying continued killing until his personal enemy count surpassed 8,000, while Mu Sheng led fifty thousand Huizhou Guard soldiers into the city.
• Mahawu accepted that Zhenxia City could not be defended and charged toward Zhu Ying as the Yuan Army’s formation collapsed.
• Zhu Ying cut down Mahawu’s personal guards and met the Yuan general face-to-face; Mahawu introduced himself and attacked with his saber.

Zhu Ying killed the Yuan commander Mahawu and led the Ming forces to capture Zhenxia City before sunset. As his exhausted troops rested and counted their losses, he reviewed the battle’s rewards and found he had gained eighty years of lifespan and fifteen treasure chests.

• Zhu Ying dodged Mahawu’s strike, beheaded him, and rallied the Ming troops by announcing the Yuan commander’s death.
• A messenger told Zhu Di and Li Jinglong that Mahawu had fallen and Zhenxia City was close to capture, while Zhu Di privately worried that Zhu Ying might become his enemy.
• Zhu Ying pursued the retreating Yuan troops, and the Ming Army secured Zhenxia City before sunset.
• Zhu Ying ordered food distributed, the battlefield cleared, and the wounded treated while his exhausted soldiers rested.
• Liu Lei reported that none of Zhu Ying’s 708 personal guards had died, though more than half were injured, and the officers praised the guards’ combat strength.
• Zhu Ying counted his battle rewards, including fifteen treasure chests, and saw that his lifespan had risen by eighty years.

After Zhu Ying captured Zhenxia City, Zhu Di questioned him about Northern Yuan and the Crown Prince, while Lan Yu learned of the victory and ordered an all-out assault. Li Jinglong and Guo Ying arranged to send Zhu Yuanzhang an immediate report, leaving Zhu Ying wary of Zhu Di but focused on the campaign.

• Zhu Di praised Zhu Ying’s capture of Zhenxia City as Li Jinglong prepared to report the victory to Zhu Yuanzhang.
• Zhu Di asked Zhu Ying about Northern Yuan’s future and the Crown Prince, and Zhu Ying answered cautiously and respectfully.
• Zhu Ying suspected Zhu Di was testing his loyalty and privately decided to avoid conflict unless Zhu Di provoked him.
• Lan Yu learned that Zhu Ying had taken Zhenxia City and killed Mahawu, then ordered a full assault for the next day.
• Li Jinglong presented the battle report to Guo Ying, who approved an immediate carrier-pigeon message to Zhu Yuanzhang followed by a detailed urgent dispatch.

At court, Zhu Yuanzhang received a victory report saying Zhu Ying had captured Zhenxia City on the first day of the Northern Expedition and slain more than a thousand enemies. The report left the officials stunned, while Zhu Yuanzhang confirmed it was genuine and the court celebrated Ming’s first victory.

• Tang Duo reported that Guo Ying, Lan Yu, and Li Jinglong had reached the Northern Frontier, while Qin Da described the Ministry of Works’ production of new, more destructive cannon shells.
• Jiang Yan brought a carrier pigeon message from the Northern Frontier and announced that it contained tidings of victory.
• Zhu Yuanzhang read Li Jinglong’s report, which said Zhu Ying had breached Zhenxia City, slain more than a thousand enemies and over fifteen generals, killed the Yuan commander Mahawu, and captured the city.
• Yun Qi read the battle’s results aloud after Zhu Yuanzhang ordered him to omit Li Jinglong’s praise of Zhu Ying.
• The officials and Zhu Biao questioned the astonishing kill count, but Zhu Yuanzhang confirmed the report was true and said the full figures were even higher.
• Tang Duo and the other officials congratulated Zhu Yuanzhang on Ming’s capture of a Northern Yuan border city.

After Zhu Ying’s victory at Zhenxia City, Zhu Yuanzhang and Zhu Biao decided to record his battlefield merit for later rewards and grant his wife a Fifth-Rank Imperial Decree. At the Northern Frontier, Zhu Ying inspected the captured city and learned that the army’s count credited him with more than fifteen hundred kills, leaving Guo Ying and the other generals stunned.

• Zhu Biao asked Zhu Yuanzhang to recognize Zhu Ying’s achievements, and Zhu Yuanzhang ordered the victory recorded for later rewards while granting Zhu Ying’s wife a Fifth-Rank Imperial Decree.
• Zhu Yuanzhang warned Zhu Biao that Zhu Ying’s strength made him dangerous if he could not be controlled, while Zhu Biao insisted he could win Zhu Ying’s loyalty.
• Zhu Yuanzhang assigned Zhu Biao responsibility for handling Zhu Ying’s honors and instructed him to use favor to secure the general’s allegiance.
• Zhu Ying ordered his guards to smash the insulting Zhenxia City plaque and entered the captured city as the troops cleared the battlefield.
• Guo Ying told Zhu Ying that the army had killed nearly thirty thousand Yuan soldiers and captured more than twenty thousand, then revealed that Zhu Ying alone had killed over fifteen hundred.
• Zhu Ying attributed his extraordinary strength to his parents, leaving Zhu Di and Li Jinglong staring at him in shock.

Zhu Ying secured command of the attack on Zhentang City after arguing that the Huizhou Guard was not ready for a siege, while Zhu Di grew increasingly wary of his strength. Zhu Ying opened fifteen treasure chests and gained military supplies and advanced technology manuals as the Northern Yuan court learned of Zhenxia City's fall and appointed Guilichi to lead its counterattack.

• Zhu Ying advised Guo Ying to divide the army and attack the Northern Yuan's remaining border cities, and Guo Ying approved a three-route advance with Zhu Ying's Daning Border Army assigned to Zhentang City.
• Zhu Ying persuaded Mu Sheng that the Huizhou Guard's surrendered soldiers risked breaking in a difficult siege, and twenty thousand of them were assigned to reinforce the Daning Border Army instead.
• Zhu Di admitted to Yao Guangxiao that he feared Zhu Ying, and Yao Guangxiao urged him to focus on strategy and the support of armies rather than Zhu Ying's individual strength.
• Zhu Ying opened fifteen treasure chests and received skill points, weapons, armor, and manuals for steel refining, concrete, hot air balloons, and telegraph machines.
• A messenger reported Zhenxia City's fall and Mahawu's death to the Yuan Emperor, who appointed Guilichi Great General and promised him a royal title if he defeated the Ming Army.