Chapter 800 Xu Zhaojie’s wait!

November 1, noon
In a side room next to the study in the Governor-General's Mansion in Yijing, Ye Mingsheng was having lunch. Although he now owned almost half of the world, Ye Mingsheng was still very frugal. His lunch consisted of only three dishes and one soup...

The three dishes were tofu with green onions, braised spareribs, blanched prawns, and a ginseng chicken soup. Although the dishes were a bit simple, Ye Mingsheng enjoyed it in an extraordinary way.

"Husband, this is the soup I spent the whole morning cooking. Would you like to try it and see how it tastes?" Bai Yuanyuan handed the chicken soup to Ye Mingsheng, her eyes full of anticipation.

Although Bai Yuanyuan said that she cooked the soup herself, Ye Mingsheng knew that it was most likely cooked by a cook in the small kitchen in her yard. However, out of Bai Yuanyuan's kindness, Ye Mingsheng hesitated for a moment but still took a sip.

Ye Mingsheng was still amazed when he tasted the chicken soup. The taste was very mellow and mixed with the light sweetness of ginseng. The most important thing was that it didn’t taste greasy at all!

This is almost the best chicken soup Ye Mingsheng has ever tasted, even better than the one cooked by the chef in his own house!
Unconsciously, Ye Mingsheng took a few sips and all the chicken soup went into his stomach. Bai Yuanyuan seemed to see that Ye Mingsheng was very satisfied with the chicken soup, so she happily poured another bowl for Ye Mingsheng, and then said to Ye Mingsheng in a very ambiguous tone:
"My husband, I have learned a lot of new dishes recently. Come and try them when you are free!"

When talking about the word "dish", Bai Yuanyuan emphasized her tone intentionally or unintentionally, and it was unclear whether she was talking about real food or fake food································
Hearing this, Ye Mingsheng drank his soup while looking at his concubine. Among the women in his harem, Bai Yuanyuan was the oldest. If he remembered correctly, she should be 35 years old this year.

Bai Yuanyuan is very sensitive about her age, so in order to delay aging and maintain her appearance, she pays great attention to maintenance. In addition, she is also very proficient in makeup. Therefore, although she is already 35 years old, she looks like a girl in her 27 or 28. Compared with young girls, the plump Bai Yuanyuan also has a mature charm!
Of course, what he liked most was that when they were making love in Wushan, Bai Yuanyuan understood him very well. He didn't even need to say a word. With just one look, she knew how to cooperate with him and allowed him to achieve the state of unity between man and nature.

Just when Ye Mingsheng was about to say something, a peeled shrimp appeared in the bowl and a sound like a silver bell came to his ears.

"Sister Bai, you are angry again, husband, please ignore her!"

"Husband, don't forget that it was she who caused you backache for several days last time. She is a nuisance!"

While saying this, Jinyu held Ye Mingsheng's arm. Hearing Jinyu's criticism of her, Bai Yuanyuan rolled her eyes at Jinyu, then hugged Ye Mingsheng's arm and puffed out her chest as if in protest.

Seeing that noon was almost over, Ye Mingsheng asked the two girls to massage his sore back which had been sitting for the whole morning. Then, under their reluctant gazes, he ended his fulfilling lunch break. When he returned to the study, Ye Mingsheng saw Ye Cheng waiting for him there...
Seeing Ye Mingsheng return, Ye Cheng immediately reported:

"News came from the Coordination Office that Lin Shize passed away in Hanyang five days ago!"

Upon hearing the news, Ye Mingsheng nodded slightly with some indifference. As the Prime Minister of the Great Zhou who had been influential for decades, the news of Lin Shize's death was needless to say. If it was two years ago, it would definitely be a shocking news to the world, and this event might even change the world's political landscape!

But unfortunately, things are different now. With the collapse of the southern tour court, Lin Shize fled to Jingchu. Lin Shize's power and political influence have dropped to the lowest point in his life. Now he is just an outdated politician, an old man who is barely surviving and depends on others.

Therefore, his death was not news worthy of Ye Mingsheng's attention!

Just as Ye Mingsheng was about to continue his work, Ye Cheng continued:

"Sir, Director Huo from the Coordination Office sent a message saying that the Lin family has important news to report to you!"

Hearing this, Ye Mingsheng became a little confused, and immediately asked Ye Cheng:

"Report to me? What do they want to say?"

Upon hearing this, Ye Cheng introduced:
"The person sent by the Lin family this time is named Lin He, a distant cousin of Lin Yi. According to him, he wants to report a shocking conspiracy to you, involving Jing Chu and Xu Zhaojie!"

"Jing Chu and Xu Zhaojie?"

Hearing this, Ye Mingsheng frowned slightly. The conspiracy of Sun Liangyu, Xu Zhaojie and Lu Jianchao had been reported to him by the Coordination Office yesterday. He already knew that Hou Zhen led 30,000 troops to encircle Kangyin...
Therefore, if Lin He came to report this to me, it was too late!
Seeing that Ye Mingsheng didn't speak, Ye Cheng hesitated for a moment and continued:
"According to Director Huo's report, Lin He hinted that the conspiracy he mentioned was not limited to the current situation, but he insisted that he would only tell you everything in person!"

Ye Mingsheng became slightly interested after hearing this. After thinking for a moment, he felt that it would be okay to meet this Lin He. Although his time was very precious, his intuition told him that the information in Lin He's mouth should still be very valuable and it was worth his time to give him a chance!

Thinking of this, Ye Mingsheng asked:
"Where is this Lin He now?"

Ye Cheng said without hesitation:
"It's in the government office of the Coordination Office!"

"Then let him do it!"

"Yes!"

Half an hour later, a handsome young man was brought in front of Ye Mingsheng. Seeing Ye Mingsheng, Lin He knelt down and kowtowed to Ye Mingsheng without saying a word, and said while kowtowing:
"I, Lin He, pay my respects to Marshal Ye!"

After taking a deep look at this young man with an extraordinary appearance, Ye Mingsheng said calmly:

"You have half a cup of tea!" Hearing Ye Mingsheng's words, Lin He, who was kneeling on the ground, took a deep breath and said loudly:

“Report to Marshal Ye, Xu Zhaojie has evil ambitions and is plotting against Jingchu…”

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Huainan Shunde, Sanlinyuan
The battle had lasted for a day and a night. Under the fierce artillery fire of the Fengwu Army, the Zhennan Army suffered heavy casualties. The several small hills originally occupied were also captured by the First Division of the Fengwu Army. Despite this, the Zhennan Army still did not give up. They continued to resist stubbornly under the command of Xu Zhaojie.

At the moment of Chenshi, the Fengwu Army launched another attack. As before, it used the standard mode of the Fengwu Army. Dozens of red cannons first bombarded the camp of the Zhennan Army, and then under the cover of the cavalry's raiding formation, tens of thousands of soldiers of the First Army launched an attack.

At this time in Xu Zhaojie's central military camp, more than a dozen messengers were coming and going to Xu Zhaojie, reporting the latest battle situation!

"My Lord, the northeast corner of the camp has been breached by the enemy, and Commander Liu Han is leading his troops to try their best to stop the enemy!"

"My Lord, the main gate of the camp was attacked fiercely by the enemy. General Cheng Zhe was hit by the enemy's tiger squat cannon and is unconscious!"

"My Lord, the granary on the east side of the camp was hit by enemy artillery, and Commander Lu Zhen is organizing a small number of people to put out the fire!"

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Faced with a lot of news one after another, Xu Zhaojie remained very calm. He calmly dispatched troops to ensure the safety of the camp.

Although under the command of Xu Zhaojie, the Zhennan Army trapped in the camp countered the Fengwu Army's offensive one by one, a hint of worry emerged in the depths of Xu Zhaojie's eyes. Although he tried his best to train these new recruits for more than half a year after the defeat in Hebei and Henan, in the final analysis, a battle-hardened army is not trained, but fought on the battlefield!
What's more, he had to face the most elite ace of the Fengwu Army, the First Division with glorious military achievements. Although he had expected this, from the moment the war began, the Zhennan Army under his command was completely at a disadvantage, and even had no power to resist at one point!
Fortunately, he decisively commanded the entire army to retreat to the camp, otherwise the Zhennan Army would have collapsed on the first day of the war!

Even so, Xu Zhaojie understood that if the situation continued to develop in this way, even with the protection of the camp, under the artillery bombardment of the First Division, the tens of thousands of Zhennan troops under his command would not be able to hold out for too long, and would collapse in two days at the shortest and three days at the longest!
Thinking of this, Xu Zhaojie couldn't help but look towards the corner of the tent, where a little old man wearing coarse linen clothes and with a hunched back was standing there somewhat nervously.

The coarse linen clothes on this little old man were full of patches, and his hands were full of calluses from working. At first glance, you could tell that he was an authentic old farmer...

Old man Xue, who was brought to the central military tent, was already a little nervous. When he saw the majestic commander of the Zhennan Army looking at him, he was frightened to the extreme, and even his legs were shaking. Without thinking much, he knelt down to Xu Zhaojie.

Seeing that Old Man Xue knelt down to him again, Xu Zhaojie walked to him without hesitation, helped Old Man Xue up personally, and asked seriously:
“Are you sure it will rain in the next two days?”

Seeing that the Zhennan Army commander really asked him the same question again, Old Man Xue said patiently:
"My Lord, I am sixty-eight years old this year. I have lived in Sanlinyuan since I was a child. Every year in early November, it rains in Sanlinyuan, either light or heavy rain. In short, it will definitely rain. It has almost never stopped since I can remember!"

"Moreover, there are obvious signs of rain in the past two days. For example, swallows are flying low, and ants and earthworms are all moving. I guarantee that it will rain in the past two days, and it looks like the rain will definitely not stop!"

Seeing how confidently this old man Xue was, Xu Zhaojie felt much more relieved. He patted this old man Xue on the shoulder and said:

"As long as it rains in the next two days, this Marquis will reward you handsomely!"

Hearing what Xu Zhaojie said, Old Man Xue's eyes suddenly lit up and he said very carefully:

“Thank you, my Lord, for the reward…”

While Xu Zhaojie was praying for rain, on the front-line watchtower of the Fengwu Army, Ma Zhongjun, with a serious expression, was holding a telescope and observing the attack situation of the Fengwu Army.

After the war started yesterday morning, the Zhennan Army deployed their troops and seemed to be determined to fight the Fengwu Army to the death. However, due to fear of Xu Zhaojie, Ma Zhongjun did not start the fight directly, but used cavalry to test their strength!

Seeing that the Zhennan Army's formation was showing signs of chaos under the charge of their own cavalry, Ma Zhongjun took decisive action. Under the full-scale attack of the First Division, the situation on the battlefield immediately became one-sided. However, at the critical moment of life and death, Xu Zhaojie reacted very quickly and immediately led his troops to withdraw to the camp.

At this point, the originally agreed field battle between the two armies turned into an offensive battle. Although it was a pity that he did not seize the opportunity to defeat Xu Zhaojie in one fell swoop, but if the current situation continues, Ma Zhongjun is still very confident that he can break through the enemy camp and defeat the arrogant Zhenyuan Hou Xu Zhaojie!

Even if I'm luckier, maybe I can chop off this guy's head. Given the grudge between the Marshal and him, if I can chop off his head and present it to him, the Marshal will definitely look at me differently, and my promotion to commander-in-chief will be a natural thing in the next step...

Just when Ma Zhongjun thought that everything was under control, he sensed something was wrong. Although there was no evidence yet, his intuition told him that Xu Zhaojie seemed to be waiting for something!
From Xu Zhaojie's unusual challenge to the current battle situation which is full of weirdness, it seems that Xu Zhaojie is planning something.

Realizing this, the first thought that came to Ma Zhongjun's mind was the 30,000 Chu troops that retreated to Zhucheng. Sure enough, Hou Zhen, who was rumored to have a fierce quarrel with Xu Zhaojie, did rush towards Sanlinyuan immediately after the battle broke out in Sanlinyuan!

However, when Ma Zhongjun discussed this with Zhang Meng, he had already anticipated this situation. The Fourth Army stationed in Kangyin was waiting for this guy!

Although he expected Xu Zhaojie to have such a plan, Ma Zhongjun felt that Xu Zhaojie's plan was not that simple. In addition to Hou Zhen's 30,000 troops, Xu Zhaojie must be waiting for something...

Just as Ma Zhongjun was thinking hard, he suddenly felt a chill as raindrops fell on his face. He subconsciously looked up and saw that the sky was already covered with dark clouds and a rainstorm was about to fall!
(End of this chapter)