"Good heavens, it's actually Shangguan Yun!"
Everyone was shocked. The Emperor had actually used this veteran general; it seemed he was truly determined to destroy Xiliang.
Shangguan Yun is the current empress's brother, making him the emperor's brother-in-law, and his status in Great Ning is quite high.
However, this person didn't rise to the top because of his sister; he earned it through his own abilities.
When Li Anlan rebelled, Shangguan Yun was one of the main forces.
With his military prowess, he routed Li Ruyun's forces and was the first to enter the capital, where he joined forces with Li Anlan to capture it. So this guy was no pushover; he was definitely a formidable general.
However, due to his status as a relative of the emperor's family, he chose to retire to avoid causing trouble for his sister and nephew; otherwise, the position of Grand Commandant might not have been awarded to Qin Li.
Now that they've reappeared, it seems the Emperor is determined to deal with Xiliang.
"Your subject, Shangguan Yun, obeys the imperial decree!"
From the crowd, Shangguan Yun sighed and stepped forward, accepting the task under his nephew's expectant gaze.
Since his younger sister became empress, the Shangguan Family has basically had no way out. Their fate is intertwined with that of the Li Imperial Clan. Now that Great Ning is facing a crisis, he cannot turn a blind eye.
However, if he were to return to the martial world in this way, he would likely find it difficult to escape unscathed.
Upon seeing Shangguan Yun accept the mission, Li Anlan was overjoyed and exclaimed excitedly, "Excellent! With the Imperial Uncle and the Imperial Clan Minister on the case, we will surely be able to defeat the rebels in Xiliang and safeguard the safety of our Great Ning in the north!"
This old man is not only highly respected, but more importantly, he is the Empress's brother. With the cooperation of Li Ruyu, the Imperial Clan Minister, this army of 500,000 will never fall into the hands of others.
As for the outcome, he was never worried.
An army of 500,000 men attacking Xiliang would be overwhelming, even at its Xiliang.
Li Anlan was full of confidence, but Shangguan Yun frowned and sighed, "This battle will not be easy!"
He mentally simulated the battle of Xiliang, which involved a total of 500,000 troops. Of these, 200,000 were stationed in Great Wasteland Commandery, which could be dealt with directly. However, he needed to make a decision about whether to send his own 300,000 troops into Xiliang.
They can either take the waterway to approach Great Ning Port and then directly attack Ningchuan Commandery; or they can take the land route, passing through Great Wasteland Commandery and Youning Commandery, and join up with Ning Kun.
Taking the waterway is the shortest route, but it's very risky!
Crossing a river with an army of 300,000 would take a considerable amount of time, meaning a significant portion of that time would be spent on the water, which is extremely dangerous.
If the enemy is prepared, they will likely deploy a large number of catapults and siege crossbows, making our side easy targets.
Taking the land route is the safest option!
However, to enter Youning Commandery, this army of 300,000 would have to take a very long detour, and by the time they arrived, several days would have passed, which would delay the timing of the battle.
The only solution is to split the army into two groups and fight separately. Ning Kun's army will draw Xiliang's attention, while the rest of the army can take the opportunity to cross the river. This is the best option.
After giving instructions to the emperor, Shangguan Yun and Li Ruyu set off.
Upon arriving in Ningchuan Commandery, Shangguan Yun and his companion dared not linger and immediately boarded a boat to enter the Great Ning River, getting closer to observe the situation at Ningchuan Port.
As expected, the other party was indeed well-prepared.
Not only were ports built along the coast, but walls similar to those of a city were also erected, clearly indicating that preparations had been made long ago, making a sneak attack by our side impossible.
"Damn it, the enemy is on patrol!"
Just as he was about to take another look, he suddenly spotted enemy patrol ships. This made Shangguan Yun's pupils shrink. The enemy was really cautious; they even had patrol ships!
He didn't dare linger and quickly retreated back to the shore.
"Brother Shangguan, this battle is going to be tough!" Li Ruyu said with a wry smile.
Not only were the enemy so well-prepared, but Lin Yi also had the advantage of a navy, making it virtually impossible for them to easily break through.
It's likely that the army will be discovered by the enemy as soon as it enters the water.
Shangguan Yun took a deep breath, looked at Li Ke beside him, and said in a deep voice, "The other side is no longer going out to sea to fish. Is anyone patrolling at night?"
If the enemy isn't patrolling at night, we can sneak over in the dark.
Even if the enemy discovers us by then, it will be too late; we can simply fight our way in.
"Your Majesty, not only do they patrol at night, but they also occasionally come to provoke us!" Prefect Li Ke of Wuning Commandery said with a wry smile.
Depend on!
Li Ruyu's lips twitched. In that case, a sneak attack was out of the question, so the only option was to fight head-on.
He couldn't help but smile wryly, "As expected, Xiliang was already prepared. If we try to force our way across the Great Ning River, we'll probably suffer considerable losses."
It seems we really need Ning Kun to make the first move and draw the enemy's attention so we can seize the opportunity to cross the river!
kindness!
Shangguan Yun nodded. There was nothing he could do about it; the other side had already made preparations. This river was not like the land, so it was better to be cautious.
The number of troops remaining in Xiliang is certainly not large; at most, they may receive some reinforcements from Northern Liang. Prince Ning Kun has an army of 200,000, which is enough to throw Xiliang into disarray, and he may even be able to directly invade.
However, he was somewhat worried because Lin Yi had accurately predicted that Great Ning would take action against Xiliang Liang, and had already made preparations.
Therefore, he has no reason not to be wary of Ning Kun, and this battle may be subject to unexpected changes.
Great Ning Port!
Upon receiving news of the troop deployment from Great Ning, Xun Yu immediately rushed to Great Ning Port to assess the situation.
"With this arrangement, the enemy would have to pay several times the price to attack!"
After inspecting the area around Great Ning Port, he couldn't help but smile. With these arrangements, his side had a significant advantage, making it quite difficult for the enemy to attack.
Gan Ning smiled and said jokingly, "Prime Minister, this Li Anlan is using the pretext of eliminating the traitor Xun Yu to attack you. Aren't you angry?"
Liu Feng, standing to the side, couldn't help but laugh and cry. Thinking about this question, he couldn't help but laugh. This Emperor of Great Ning really knew how to make excuses. This was complete nonsense!
He twisted the plan to attack Xiliang into an act of helping the lord quell the chaos.
No wonder he could become emperor; with that shamelessness alone, he has already surpassed many others.
Xun Yu chuckled and said quietly, " Li Anlan just wants a pretext to send troops. If he's not targeting Xun Yu, he's probably implying that the Brocade Sail Navy has stopped fishing and is plotting a rebellion!"
Hahaha!
Gan Ning couldn't help but burst into laughter. These are the experts who can come up with excuses; they're all so good that you can't argue with them.