Just as Yang Zhengshan was mustering troops, Prince Qing Mansion in Qinghua Prefecture was also preparing for the battle soon to come.
It was not as if Prince Qing had no troops in hand. The Prince Qing Guard was organized as one guard, with 5,600 soldiers. Apart from the Prince Qing Guard, he also had the Qinghua Guard in hand, which meant he controlled the forces of two guards.
However, this was only on the surface—no, that was not right; it did not even count as being on the surface. On the surface, he could not mobilize a single soldier or horse.
The Qinghua Guard belonged under the jurisdiction of the Liaoyuan Regional Military Commission, while the Prince Qing Guard was under the dual leadership of the Liaoyuan Regional Military Commission and Prince Qing. Strictly speaking, a prince of Da Rong could not mobilize the army, and the Guard Bureau's duty was only to safeguard the security of the royal city.
But Prince Qing had been operating in Qinghua Prefecture for thirty years. The Guard Bureau and the Qinghua Guard had both fallen under his control. Still, his meddling in the affairs of the Qinghua Guard could not be hidden from outsiders, so this counted as a secret known to everyone.
Aside from the troops of these two guards, Prince Qing had also cultivated a fair number of forces in secret.
For example, a fleet.
The existence of Prince Qing's fleet was no secret either; it was just that everyone assumed they were merchant ships.
At this moment, inside the prince's mansion, Prince Qing was sitting in the study, reading a letter.
Duan Heng came to the study, cupped his fist, and said, "Your Highness, the Tenglong Guard is mustering troops. Should we also start making preparations?"
Prince Qing raised