Chapter 141: Glorious Triumph
After half a month of careful consideration, several officials selected by Shen Ning, led by Duke Jin, finally agreed to surrender and were willing to listen to the will of the regent and the princess from now on and contribute to Nan Zhao.
Shen Ning had expected this result long ago. Hearing this, he said nothing more and quickly made arrangements for them.
Nan Zhao was once under the command of Princess Zhao Hua. In the past few days, under the call of Princess Ying, they were scattered and organized into an elite force that was not elite.
Because they were all warriors under Princess Zhao Hua, but after Zhao Hua got into trouble, Han Xun was worried about chaos in the army and urged the emperor to dismantle the army.
After two years, the prestigious soldiers in the army were killed and expelled, and there were almost no soldiers left, and the number of troops was reduced by half.
And after two years of deliberate grinding, I don’t know how much of the original combat effectiveness can be left.
Shen Ning looked at the familiar faces in the army, and his mood was complicated for a while.
She asked Concubine Ying to make a good arrangement and decided to respect their ideas. If anyone was willing to follow her to conquer the world and regain the fighting spirit when they followed Princess Zhaohua, they would be incorporated into the new army. If anyone was unwilling, they would not have to force it.
Concubine Ying's maiden name was He Hongying. After the fall of Nanzhao, she was no longer Concubine Ying, but a deputy general beside Shen Ning.
With her, it was more likely to convince these warriors who had fought bravely but were calculated by traitors to return to the battlefield after facing the fall of their country and their families.
After He Hongying's running around for several days, the number of soldiers and horses that could be found was only 15,000, including some old and injured ones. After deducting all the other numbers, there were still about 10,000, all of whom were young and strong elite soldiers.
Shen Ning named this group of troops the Feifeng Army and asked He Hongying to be responsible for the subsequent training.
Soon it was the hottest June.
Ji Yucang left Chu Yunxiao to guard Nanzhao, and he took half of the troops and horses with Shen Ning to return to Yong State.
The Feifeng Army followed Shen Ning back together.
From the departure in the first month after the Chinese New Year to the return in June, the army sent by Ji Yucang destroyed the Nanzhao Kingdom in just half a year, which can be described as a swift operation.
After the return trip, no one dared to despise Ji Yucang and Shen Ning's status in the Yong Dynasty. If there were still people who dared to secretly be enemies, and there were still people who did not obey the regent, and there were still courtiers who were dissatisfied with Shen Ning, then from today on, everyone will learn to be a silent quail and dare not say a word.
The army was stationed outside the imperial city.
Ji Yucang and Shen Ning rode on tall horses and slowly stepped into the imperial city. Behind them, an elite army followed behind them, with a majestic momentum that shocked people.
The people of the imperial city knelt on both sides along the way to greet him, shouting: "Long live the Regent! Long live the Regent Princess!"
"Long live the Regent! Long live the Regent Princess!"
"Long live the Regent! Long live the Regent Princess!"
"Long live the Regent! Long live the Regent Princess!"
The shouts were majestic and resounded through the sky. Even if this sentence was presumptuous, it seemed that there was nothing wrong with it at this time.
After all, it was well known that the emperor in the palace was not only young, but also had a bad brain. At present, his situation was so miserable that he only had the title of emperor.
How long this title could be maintained depended on the mood of the Regent.
Entering Shangjing City, there were fewer and fewer civilians along the way, replaced by dignitaries and officials in the court.
In the past, when the Regent went to court, other dignitaries with little real power but high ranks, such as the Duke of Zhenguo or the Prince's Mansion, would at most bow and greet, maintaining superficial courtesy and etiquette.
However, things are different now.
The regent and his wife imprisoned the emperor and marched south to conquer Nanzhao. On the day of the army's triumphant return, even if the regent immediately proclaimed himself emperor, no one dared to say anything.
Or he proclaimed himself emperor in Nanzhao and then led troops to attack Yongguo, and he could still become the emperor of Yongguo.
No one dared to doubt his strength, it was just a matter of time.
Facing such a regent who could depose the emperor and destroy the country at any time, one can imagine how smart people would choose.
The whole mansion of the Duke of Zhenguo went out to welcome him, and the mansions of the princes of the major clans went out to welcome him.
And during the regent's reign, those princes who hid at home and waited for the regent and the emperor to lose both sides - the brothers of the current emperor, did not dare to be invisible anymore, and finally showed their heads with the princes.
On both sides of Shangjing City, powerful officials lined up to welcome him until the main gate of the palace.
Such a scene had never happened before. Shen Ning held the reins with both hands, feeling the eyes that fell quietly on his face on both sides of the imperial road, without looking sideways, and his heart was calm.
After returning from Nanzhao, she was no longer the cynical Shen Ning, nor the hateful Yan Jiuli. She had lost all her hatred and was reborn. The name was not important.
From then on, she was just herself.
Well, she could also be the Regent Princess.
Shen Ning turned her head and looked at Ji Yucang who was riding side by side with her.
It is said that comrades on the battlefield are friends who have shared their lives. She and Ji Yucang are not yet considered comrades, because the person leading the troops this time is Chu Yunxiao.
But she knew that they would be comrades sooner or later.
She felt that comrades were closer and more precious than husband and wife, and it was a kind of feeling and trust that could be entrusted with life.
The palace was in sight.
To welcome the return of the Regent and the Princess, all nine city gates were opened.
The army rushed to the gate of the palace like a tide.
The civil and military officials of the whole court gathered outside the main gate, and some came from both sides of the imperial road to gather. Everyone knelt down to welcome the Regent and the Princess.
Ji Yucang and Shen Ning dismounted from their horses.
I saw several vaguely familiar but unfamiliar faces, all of them were in their twenties, young, noble, and dressed in gorgeous clothes.
They were unfamiliar because Shen Ning had never seen them before, but they were familiar because the princes all had vague similarities in appearance. Standing in front of the officials, they looked like they were from noble families.
Shen Ning guessed their identities.
She had not seen the three princes of the royal family since she married Ji Yucang, the sons of the previous emperor.
It is said that after Ji Jin ascended the throne, these princes stayed at home all day and did not go out. They were either fighting crickets, reading books and painting, or drinking and having fun.
They almost never attended any occasions where they could meet the regent outside, and they were always sick.
They were not deliberately opposing Ji Yucang, nor did they look down on the current emperor - or rather, both situations were present, but they could not be seen on the surface.
Their purpose was to sit on the mountain and watch the fight between the tigers, wait for Ji Yucang and Ji Jin to come to an end, and then they would come out to clean up the mess, and see who would benefit from it.
However, they waited and waited, until the regent had removed the poison, imprisoned the emperor, arrested Qin Guojiu's family, waited until Princess Pingyao killed the queen mother, waited until the regent and the princess attacked Nanzhao together...
If they waited any longer, they would have no other chance in their lives.