"We swear to follow His Highness the Imperial Grandson unto death."
Upon hearing Zhu Ying's command, all the generals echoed in unison.
The Ming Dynasty had been at peace for nearly three years.
It appeared peaceful.
Yet to these military commanders, it was no different from torture. The battlefield and military merit were what they desired.
And just then!
"Report!"
"Your Highness!"
"Scouts from the border army bring urgent intelligence!"
"The Tatar tribe of the Yuan people has mobilized on a massive scale and is now marching toward the borders of the Ming Dynasty."
"By estimation..."
"The Yuan people have no fewer than three hundred thousand troops, perhaps even more."
Several scouting messengers galloped in at full speed and reported upon reaching the military camp.
"Report!"
"Your Highness!"
"Large numbers of troops are gathering in the territory of the Jianzhou Tatars."
"According to intelligence sent back by agents concealed in the Northern Frontier, it is not only the Jianzhou tribes. The Haixi tribes and Donghai tribes have also assembled a great army, with more than two hundred thousand troops."
"They are now advancing toward Liaodong in the Ming Dynasty."
At that moment, another urgent report arrived.
"One force is attacking Daning Prefecture, while another is attacking Liaodong."
"They have divided their forces into two routes."
"The Yuan people are still using the same old tactic of splitting their forces."
Hearing the two reports, Zhu Ying merely smiled faintly, without much alarm.
"Your Highness."
"Our main force is currently in Daning. Liaodong has only fifty thousand troops stationed there, so I fear our numbers may be insufficient." Lan Yu spoke up.
"It is nothing."
Zhu Ying raised a hand, a faint smile on his face. "The moment I received news of the Tatars' movements, I anticipated that the Tatars would join