Father can be an enemy to the country

The second day of February in the nineteenth year of Hongwu was the day when the Northern Expedition army set out.

Early that morning, cannons and trumpets were fired from all the military camps in and around Tongzhou City. The soldiers of the Ming army, fully armed, lined up neatly out of the camp gate. Braving the flying snowflakes, we gathered outside the north gate of Tongzhou City.

At Chen time, the 100,000 troops in Tongzhou were assembled.

In front of the generals' platform outside Tongzhou City, there is a two-foot-high banner with the big word "明" on the yellow flag, which is still bright red like fire in the snow!

One hundred thousand helmeted and armored sergeants were arranged into twenty neat square formations with guard posts as units. The snowflakes all over the sky dyed their armor white, and their beards and eyebrows were covered with ice, but the soldiers remained motionless, standing upright like javelins.

At three o'clock in the morning, cannons were fired again from the top of Tongzhou City, and the Northern Expedition generals gathered in a carriage and came out of Ningcui Gate.

When the carriage stopped in front of the general stand, Xu Zengshou helped Xu Da, who was dressed in military uniform, get out of the carriage.

When the soldiers saw the general, they were immediately excited. Many veterans who had been with him for many years shed tears on the spot.

Because he is not only the best general in the world, a symbol of victory, but also the military soul of the Ming Dynasty. He is still a marshal who treats his subordinates with kindness and severity, and loves his soldiers as much as his son. Many of the soldiers present were fathers and sons who had served under him for a long time. They had long been accustomed to fighting under the leadership of Xu Da. Without seeing him, they felt empty...

The news that the former general was seriously ill has spread like wildfire, and there are also rumors that he has passed away. Now that he is still alive and can appear at the swearing-in ceremony, the morale of the officers and soldiers of the three armies has been boosted. vertex.

"Welcome to you, General!" When Xu Da, supported by his son, stepped onto the general stand, the officers shouted and saluted Xu Da in unison.

Xu Da was as excited as the soldiers. He gently raised his hand to greet the soldiers of the three armies.

The one hundred thousand soldiers of the Northern Expedition immediately became silent and stared at their commander intently.

"Sirs, many of you, or your fathers, followed me into Dadu in the first year of Hongwu. At that time, we expelled the Tartars and recovered Yanyun. How heroic were we? I thought we would be able to do it soon. I won the victory, but I didn’t expect that I would guard the border in this bitter cold land for nearly 20 years.”

"Why is this? Because the Beiyuan Dynasty has not been destroyed, and our mission has not been completed." Xu Da paused. Although there was a large urn buried under the stage, which has a good amplification effect, it was like this in the cold wind. Talking loudly still quickly exhausted his energy.

But he still gritted his teeth and persisted, using great perseverance to instill firm belief in the soldiers:

"The cunning remnants of the Northern Yuan Dynasty took advantage of the boundless grasslands and deserts to play a game of cat and mouse with us. This game lasted for more than ten years, and we were still unable to eliminate them. The mice were trapped in the snow, and we After overcoming countless difficulties, I finally waited for this day. I have a feeling that this will be the final battle between us and Bei Yuan! mission!”

"Aw! Aw! Aw!" The soldiers shouted in unison. Everyone had been waiting for this day for too long.

"It's a pity that because of my illness, I can't go to the battlefield with you. I will be here to watch you. My heart will always be with you. When you triumph, I will personally welcome you!" Xu Dayou said to the soldiers emotionally.

"Triumph! Triumph! Triumph!" the soldiers responded with a roar.

"As for who will lead you to victory." Xu Da waved to Fu Youde behind him and said loudly to the soldiers:

"He is my handsome big brother, the world-famous Marquis Yingchuan!"

"In the Battle of Poyang Lake, the Marquis of Yingchuan took the most credit. After the founding of the Ming Dynasty, he made even more outstanding military achievements, and no one could surpass him. He was the commander of the expedition to destroy Mingxia, restore Sichuan, conquer Yunnan, and pacify Dali. Invincible and victorious in every battle!" Xu Da praised Fu Youde highly:

"And he also fought in the desert. In the battle of Lingbei, the troops were divided into three groups. My commander's middle army was defeated miserably, so Cao Guogong's east army had a similar victory and defeat. Only the west army led by him achieved seven victories in seven battles. Return victorious. Therefore, I am completely relieved to leave you in his hands, and please rest assured that Duke Ying will lead you back triumphantly as always!"

After saying that, Xu Da took off the sword from his waist, raised it high and said: "This is the general sword given by the emperor. All generals under my command, who do not obey orders, can be killed first and then punished! Now my general will This sword is handed over to Marquis Yingchuan. You must obey his orders and follow his orders. Otherwise, don’t blame me for not warning you if you are killed by the sword! Did you hear this clearly?

"Yes!" the soldiers responded in unison.

Xu Da then handed over the general's sword, staff, command flag and other items one by one to Marquis Yingchuan in front of the entire army.

At the same time, Fu Youde's handsome flag was also raised next to the banner, and the big "Fu" character was fluttering along with the military flag.

Fu Youde wore a sword with a serious look, held the flag, and completed the handover of command. After accepting the salutes of all the soldiers, he said loudly and energetically:

"Sirs, Naha went out in Liaodong and killed and plundered more than 20,000 of our defending soldiers and civilians. Now the time has come for him to pay for his debt with blood! I will lead you in the Northern Expedition. I will never destroy the Tartars, and I swear not to return the throne!"

Although his words were brief, they were sonorous and powerful, giving people strong confidence.

"I will not destroy the Tartars, and I swear not to return the throne!" all the soldiers shouted in response.

"Serve the wine!" Fu Youde shouted.

Ten thousand soldiers who stayed behind carried five thousand large wine jars to the military formation. Bowls were filled and delivered to the soldiers on the expedition.

All the generals on the stage also had a bowl of wine in their hands, and 100,000 people were holding wine and looking at Xu Da.

"Victory!" Xu Da said loudly, holding the wine bowl in both hands!

"Triumph!" The soldiers also shouted loudly and raised their wine bowls high.

Then the generals on stage and off stage drank all the Zhuangxing wine at the same time.

Xu Da turned over the bottom of the bowl and found not a drop was left.

The soldiers also turned over the bottom of the bowl, not a drop was left.

"Destroy the enemy!" Fu Youde slammed the wine bowl on the ground.

"Destroy the enemy!" Xu Da and the soldiers also slammed the wine bowl on the ground, and there was a continuous cracking sound.

"The three armies set off!" Fu Youde shouted again and gave the order.

At the sound of the powerful horn, the soldiers turned left in unison, lined up northward, and headed for the grassland!

The four brothers Zhu Di, Zhu Zhen, Zhu Chun, and Zhu Bai...oh no, five of them also mounted their horses together and went north with the army.

The people of Tongzhou sent each other through the streets, stuffing cooked eggs, millet, and cotton-padded clothes into the hands of their own soldiers, and then watched with tears in their eyes as they disappeared from their sight along with the long queue...