The two walked for a while longer, their bodies gradually warming. Jiajing, who had always favored nature and peace of mind, stopped and sat at a stone table, slowly saying,
"Lu Fang, tell me, what is Yan Song trying to achieve by doing this?"
"What else could it be? He just wants Prince Yu to step down..."
"Then why does he insist on Prince Yu stepping down?"
Lu Fang wasn't sure whether to speak. After all, Prince Yu was the crown prince. It was rare for a crown prince of the Great Ming to be deposed. Strictly speaking, only the crown prince appointed by Emperor Yingzong was deposed by Emperor Daizong, but Emperor Yingzong reinstated him after his restoration. Apart from this, several died of illness and were not deposed. There was also the son of Emperor Jianwen, who disappeared at the time and was not considered deposed.
And now, if Prince Yu were deposed, it would be the first time a biological father deposed his son, which would naturally cause great shock. But if he were not deposed, and Prince Yu had committed these acts, all of which involved royal secrets, then Yan Song and his son would naturally be the subject of gossip from officials, ministers, and the people of the world. Normally, one would not care what others said, but at this critical juncture, rumors could easily be exploited by the Yan faction across the empire, leading to a more serious crisis.
Pondering for a moment, Lu Fang replied casually,
"Old Yan Song, unwilling to yield to anyone his whole life, naturally wants to make up for this great loss..."
"You're being perfunctory too?" Jiajing shot him a cold glance.
He thought of all the frustrating things and couldn't sit still. He stood up and walked a few steps before saying again,
"Deposing him is easy, but won't Yan Song become even more greedy? Prince Yu has committed an offense, but he has no selfish motives... If he is deposed like this, people will say it is the royal family's fault, and that his Yan family are good people?"
He was very worried. If Prince Yu were deposed now, the Yan faction would say that the royal family was at fault in the first place, otherwise, why would the crown prince be deposed? At that time, his Yan family would be able to cry injustice even more. And then, if they pressed further, there would be no means of suppression.
Speaking of this, Lu Fang interjected,
"But what about the situation in Liaodong? If Yang Bo doesn't exert himself, the capital will still be in peril..."
At this point, the situation was very clear. If Yang Bo had not remained on the fence, Liaodong would not have reached this point. Although people had been sent now, if Yang Bo still remained on the fence, it would still be useless.
Jiajing sighed and said with a wry smile,
"This world, it seems, belongs to me and my son, and has nothing to do with them... But if the Tumen break into the capital, will they be any better off?"
However, he knew very well that such things were not the first time in the Great Ming Dynasty. Just think of the Tumu Crisis and the Jingtai Crisis, weren't they all like this? These treacherous officials simply didn't care. In their eyes, at worst, they would just change the emperor, and even if the Tumen came in and became emperor, everything would go back to the way it was after a short while...
Thinking of this, Jiajing also made up his mind, saying with pain,
"Then let Prince Yu go to Anlu for ancestral rites first..."
Lu Fang had already anticipated this outcome, but his heart still ached. He asked,
"Under what pretext?"
Jiajing pondered for a moment and said slowly,
"Use the pretext of 'Wan Shou Di Jun' (Emperor of Longevity)..."
Lu Fang nodded and quickly returned to the palace to draft the imperial decree.
...
At the same time, outside Miyun Guard, at the foot of the mountain.
The Shenshu Battalion of fifteen thousand men had approached Gubeikou.
This time, Wu Dui received a secret order from Lu Fang. After informing the Commander of the Capital Garrison, Li Tingzhu, he selected the Assistant Commander Guo Hu to go on the expedition. On the night of their departure from Deshengmen, the eunuch in charge of imperial documents, Huang Jin, brought Prince Jing and Li Shizhen to Juyong Pass. Guo Hu was initially unaware of the reason, but later, Wu Dui's secret letter also arrived. Guo Hu then understood that the Emperor intended for Prince Jing to distinguish himself in this crisis.
Before departing, Wu Dui had also roughly drafted a strategy: to patrol the Gubeikou area, to wait for the enemy to tire, to observe the movements of Liaoyang and Jizhou, and not to engage rashly.
Guo Hu was a talented individual within the Capital Garrison and was highly valued by Wu Dui. He had spent more than ten years in Xuan and Da, participating in numerous real battles. If Prince Jing were not also present, he would have certainly gone beyond the Great Wall to patrol and deter Liaodong. In his opinion, this was the only hope for relief. As for the numbers, he believed that over ten thousand men were sufficient, and more would be useless.
It was already the afternoon. Miyun Guard was extremely close to Gubeikou. The scouts had been probing for two days and had also uncovered some developments—
The Tumen Khan's main force was likely somewhere between Liaoyang and Gubeikou, numbering over fifty thousand, simultaneously threatening Jizhou and the capital. Jizhou remained inactive, and the fall of Liaoyang was probably imminent within the next two days.
Guo Hu was momentarily indecisive. He stepped out of the command tent, gazing at the vast mountains and wild terrain, thinking that the opportunity for a decisive battle might come suddenly, and how could he, a lone force, turn the tide? If he went beyond the Great Wall and was defeated, Tumen Khan would likely break through the passes. But if he did not go beyond, and Liaoyang fell, then on the line of Jizhou, Gubeikou, and Juyong Pass, the enemy could attack from anywhere, and he would be unable to defend everywhere, most likely leading to defeat as well...
This situation, in the final analysis, was caused by the paralysis of the court. The current court had no leader! The conflict between the Crown Prince and the Yan family late at night, while it could be hidden from ordinary people, how could it be hidden from himself? Although Xu Jie had become the Minister of the Court of Judicial Review, this person had always been a schemer, and the officials did not respect him at all. It was Zhang Juzheng of the Ministry of War who suggested sending him out with the Shenshu Battalion. If he were not still there, it would not even be possible to dispatch troops this time!
Thinking of this, he sighed deeply.
And at this very moment, someone behind him chuckled lightly,
"General Guo, why do you look so troubled?"
The voice was somewhat ethereal and stiff, as if spoken by someone who hadn't spoken in a long time, appearing disjointed, yet carrying a sense of fear.
This person was, naturally, Prince Jing, who had suddenly come to supervise the army.
Guo Hu had certainly heard some things about this Prince Jing. But none of it compared to his observations from their interactions over the past two days. He felt that this person was terrifying...
Yes! Terrifying...
He didn't know why, but the first impression this young man gave was like a venomous snake, capable of launching a fatal strike at any moment. But upon closer inspection, one would find that this talented individual was only in his early twenties, yet his face bore a strange sense of沧桑 (cāngsāng - vicissitudes of life), his eyes were unfathomably deep, and when he smiled, it seemed dazzling at first glance, but then one would see that only his skin was smiling, and his eyes were empty and devoid of anything.
This was the case now.
Guo Hu looked back and saw Prince Jing smiling at him with that somewhat eerie smile.
Guo Hu genuinely smiled and said with emotion,
"Your Highness Prince Jing truly possesses great strategic depth..."
This was not untrue. Over the past two days, he had found that this young man never spoke much, displaying a composure and calmness far beyond his years. And Guo Hu, who had fought for many years, naturally understood that this was the most valuable demeanor in warfare—unflappability in the face of change!
Thinking of this, he decided to speak frankly. After all, the time was drawing near, and victory or defeat would be decided in the next two days. Whether Prince Jing could gain merit was not something Guo Hu could determine.
"Your Highness, to be frank, I, Guo, am truly at a loss... Commander Wu has also spoken to me... But some things, I, Old Guo, cannot decide on my own... Heh heh..."
Seeing his frankness, Prince Jing also smiled and said,
"In war, who can predetermine victory or defeat? I am merely here for experience, General Guo need not overthink. Fight as you normally would!"
"Okay, okay."
Guo Hu pulled him into the command tent, pointed at the terrain, and said worriedly,
"Your Highness, I have no choice... You see, I cannot advance, nor can I defend... Jizhou remains inactive, and Xuancheng cannot move... And here, Juyong Pass, there must be absolutely no mistakes... Alas... Liaoyang has been like this for many days. I think the military report of its fall should arrive in these two days... Your Highness, it's not that Old Guo is unwilling to help, but there is truly no way..."