Ming Dynasty: Summoning game players at the beginning

Chapter 294 Where did the troops come from?

At first Ruth did not believe it.

According to the rumors, the "righteous army" that originally dominated five and a half provinces now has only two and a half provinces left - half of Chungcheong Province, half of Gyeongsang Province, and one of Jeolla Province, plus some remnants of Gangwon Province.

As he imagined the rumored map of North Korea in his mind, Lu Demeng seemed to see a hot knife cutting a piece of lard called North Korea.

The false king has already recaptured 60% of the territory.

This nationwide uprising has only just begun for over a month. Is that possible?
The pseudo-king's royal camp and imperial guards had just been expanded, and the local bandit-catching camp had almost no combat power. It was full of illiterate peasants. Even if they had been trained by the heavenly soldiers' instructors for some time, they were still useless.

On the other hand, let’s look at the strength of the two classes.

The private armies of each family are elite and capable, and can fight against the defecting government troops. Each family has sufficient reserves of money and food, and they are supplemented by the arsenals of the prefectures and counties. They are much stronger than those peasant troops.

In terms of military strength, combat effectiveness, and the "degree of unity" of the two classes in the north and the south in this matter, even some of the hunted Tartars were taken into the hands of the two classes.

The total strength of the "righteous army" that rebelled against the government was no less than 100,000. How could the false king destroy such an army?
Even if the fake king has an army of 100,000, it will take a long time to quell this large-scale uprising.

When Emperor Guangwu of the Han Dynasty implemented the "Land Measurement Order", it caused rebellion throughout the country. It took him more than a year to suppress it with great effort.

If the generals are afraid of the enemy and do not advance, or if they underestimate the enemy and advance rashly, the time to quell the "rebellion" will increase several times.

If the situation is delayed until the end, the king may reach a compromise with the rebels.

Are you, a fake king, worthy of comparing yourself to Emperor Guangwu of Han in the Central Plains?
Even if there were 100,000 wild boars scattered across Korea, the pseudo-king would have to send out a dozen reliable and brave soldiers to capture them. How could he possibly catch 60% of the wild boars in just one or two months?
Where did the fake king get so many well-trained, combat-experienced, highly organized, obedient soldiers who endured the cold of late winter and were bent on killing?

The heavenly soldiers don’t have such efficient means of suppression, right?

If the Ming Dynasty really existed, why would it have allowed all kinds of bandits to cause chaos for several years?

Moreover, it will take time for the pseudo-king's army to suppress the "rebel army".

How is it possible that as soon as the order was issued, it was like a highly intelligent carrier pigeon, able to spread the message to all the armies in a very short time?

The armies also fought bravely and completed the suppression mission on time and in excess of the target. They then reported the victory back to the capital, where the king made quick judgments and made arrangements for the next stage.

That meant that the pseudo-king could communicate with all the loyal generals through his special "long-distance voice transmission" and control them at any time and place as if they were his own arms, and manipulate them on how to suppress the rebellion efficiently.

Do not!impossible!
Just by thinking about this "conjecture" in his mind, Lu Demeng felt shocked.

This was completely beyond his life experience.

Before he first saw the "ellipsoidal kite" that could carry people flying, he never imagined that people could fly.

Unless it's really a ghost!
Ludwig was not an absolute materialist and was somewhat wary of sorcery and metaphysics.

Rumors of sages were circulating among the Heavenly Soldiers. Some said the Beiwei Army had their own dedicated sorcerer, while others said the false king had befriended some sages while a hostage...

However, Lu Demeng had already found out that those masters were seriously injured in the night attack and would need at least several years of recuperation before they could perform their magic again.

The fake king has insufficient troops and no magical skills to help him. How can he win against the "rebel army" with great advantages?
Lu Demeng concluded that the fake king spread the false rumors just to boost the morale of the government troops.

Only losers need lies to deceive themselves, and in the process of lying, they end up deceiving themselves.

Fighting is a matter of life and death. It would be foolish if you keep winning by talking but the battle line is pushed to your doorstep.

Judging that the pseudo-king's rule was about to end, Lu Demeng was not in a hurry. As long as the main army in the south completed its assembly, it would inevitably pass by his home.

By then, he only needs to keep sending letters to Seoul, and the last straw that will bring down the fake king will fall easily.

By supporting a new king in swaddling clothes to ascend the throne, these "nobles" will become the masters of the country in the next few decades.

With a good feeling of being able to manipulate national affairs behind the scenes, Lu Demeng has stayed at home in recent days to play Go with his housekeeper.

Just like the “rebels” who won big, he also beat the steward in more than ten games.

But the news circulating in recent days has become increasingly dire. The false king has recaptured two-thirds of the territory, and the rebellion has only remained in the three southern provinces...

As more and more yangban and defeated soldiers fled south, Lu Demeng finally realized that something was wrong.

The "rebel army" that has been winning all the time should be heading north, why are they all heading south?
To the south, there are only two provinces, Jeolla and Gyeongsang. If you go further, you will reach Jeju Island on the other side.

Realizing something was wrong, Ludmeng quickly disguised himself and went to Seoul with only two servants.

He saw a lot of fleeing soldiers along the way, a mixture of soldiers and two squads moving slowly southward, like a giant gray centipede.

Ludemeng was quick-witted and quick-handed. He grabbed a nobleman from the Yangban class who was in tattered clothes but still had his crown on and asked for information.

However, seeing that he was dressed like an ordinary commoner, the other party disdained to answer him. It was the nobles who came from behind who answered him.

The rebel army in Gangwon Province was completely defeated. The tens of thousands of troops were defeated by 800 people in one battle. The defeated soldiers were scattered and most of them were wiped out by the government army within just a few days.

The remaining soldiers had just made it to central Korea when they were ambushed by several bandit-hunting battalions. With no other options, they decided to join the main force in Gyeongsang Province. However, upon reaching the border, they discovered that one of the main forces had also been defeated, and another was in much worse shape. Consequently, they all joined forces to join the main force of the Jeolla nobles.

Lu Demeng was shocked when he heard this. How could the situation have become so bad?

What about the agreement that the North and the South would raise a combined army of 100,000 to overthrow the false king?

How come the Northern rebel army was destroyed without any news, and the South was also in such a bleak state?
The "uprising" that was expected to last for a year or two is coming to an end before it even starts warming up?

Could it be that His Highness is truly a rare military genius, and that these people are simply fools who are trying to stop a chariot with an egg?

Lu Demeng was thinking when he suddenly heard a servant beside him shouting. It turned out that several defeated soldiers saw that they were carrying several packages and had evil intentions.

The defeated soldiers waved their swords and spears in front of him and demanded that they hand over their belongings.

Although Ludmeng looked down on the lowly soldiers, he had to bow his head under the knife. He quickly winked at the servants and handed over all the packages.

Seemingly satisfied with the dry food, cloth and a few strings of copper coins in the package, the defeated soldiers stopped pestering him, but before leaving, they slapped the three of them one by one.

"You rude soldier!" Lu Demeng stroked his beaten face and gritted his teeth in hatred.

As a noble man from a literary school, he had never suffered such a great humiliation.

If it weren't for the chaos and lack of personal protection, he would have torn this villain into pieces...

Just as he was looking at the fleeing soldiers and cursing inwardly, he suddenly heard someone shouting, "The government troops are coming."

In just a moment, the fleeing team that was originally advancing slowly suddenly became chaotic. The defeated soldiers waved their swords and spears to open a passage, and anyone who blocked their way would be stabbed with a sword.

In a moment, blood splattered everywhere, people shouted and horses neighed, carts were knocked to the ground by the crowd, and some slaves carrying shelves fell to the ground.

The yangban masters desperately pulled at the backs and shoulders of the people blocking the way in front of them, trying to squeeze out a passage with their hands.

Ludmeng was also pulled aside by the loyal servant, and sat down on the cold ground, staring at the tragic scene along the way.

"Death to the nobles who commit treason!" Several unstandard Korean sentences were heard in succession.

Four or five hundred tall and mighty armored soldiers came galloping on their war horses, and when they saw the armed fleeing soldiers and nobles, they would strike them with a sword.

Ludmeng watched helplessly as a cloud of blood spurted out of a noble's neck, and then he fell limply to the ground, allowing himself to be trampled by horses' hooves.

Blood, lots of blood.

Ludmeng was almost petrified.

He had personally led troops to suppress bandits, but this was the first time he had seen a living person being hacked to death at such close range, with a cloud of bloody red mist rising up, as if the person being killed was him.

Behind the more than 400 cavalrymen were thousands of infantrymen, among whom several men wearing strange "tight combat uniforms" stopped beside him.

Seeing that the master and his servants were all dressed in plain cloth, the other party probably thought they were civilians who had been hit by a warhorse. While kneading his arms and stomach, he asked him if he felt any discomfort.

The other party fiddled with him for a long time before Lu Demeng realized that the other party was a "doctor" accompanying the army and was treating him.

How could the military doctors of the government army do such "useless work"!
Considering the halting Korean spoken by the other party, as well as another familiar yet unfamiliar language, Lu Demeng immediately concluded that the other party was a military doctor of the Tianbing army!
It is unexpected that the military doctor of the heavenly soldiers has the leisure to treat passers-by while performing military duties.

Seeing that he had nothing to do, the other party wrote Chinese characters to ask him where he was going.

If there is nothing urgent, you can follow the government army south to quell the rebellion, and earn some rewards by transporting supplies for the government army on the way.

Lu Demeng guessed that those tall and mighty cavalrymen were the heavenly soldiers themselves.

No wonder the rebel army was defeated so quickly. It turned out that it was not enough for the heavenly soldiers to intervene in the two northern groups, and they had been fighting by "changing skins"!
These were the elite veterans who had kicked the Jiannu, beaten up the imperial traitors, and recovered the lost territory of Liaodong! No matter how strong the rebel army was, how could they defeat the Beiwei Army, a celestial force that could defeat five enemies with one soldier?
There was one thing Lu Demeng didn't understand. What were they, the soldiers of the Ming Dynasty, trying to gain by working so hard for Korea's internal affairs?
Did the fake king promise them double the benefits?

Lu Demeng naturally wanted to infiltrate the government army to find out the truth, but then he thought, if he stayed away from Seoul, how could he carry out his "mutiny plan"?

So he combined the two ideas and sent one of his personal servants to join the team of surrendered soldiers, while he himself took the remaining man and continued to rush to Seoul.

The strange thing is that since he stepped into the area where the government troops were active, there were fewer traces of defeated soldiers and bandits. Even if he occasionally saw some down-and-out militants, they did not dare to attack him directly.

All the way to Seoul, Lu Demeng was thinking about this matter -

While the heavenly soldiers were suppressing the rebellion, they actually had enough energy to restore local security.

Did the false king really put a bounty on your heads, Heavenly Soldiers, or are you simply full of energy and just enjoy fighting and killing?

When Lu Demeng stepped into Seoul, his doubts and shock became even stronger. The main forces of the Heavenly Army and the Imperial Camp Army were actually gathering in Seoul, and were about to march south to attack the rebels' lair.

The team of thousands of people he had seen earlier turned out to be the vanguard of the forward base.

Before that, the fake king decided to hold a grand military parade in the suburbs of Seoul to declare to all the rebellious thieves who is the real master of Korea.

(End of this chapter)