The Wu Kingdom's sudden attack caught the Mao Kingdom off guard, and it lost a large area of ​​territory in a short period of time. Although the actual leaders of the Mao Kingdom, Prime Minister Mu Hong and General Mutu, knew that the Wu Kingdom Emperor Ma Tianfang was a restless person, they were sure

They would not let go of the opportunity when Mao's domestic troops were empty. Attacking was only a matter of time. The brothers had been carefully guarding Ma Tianfang, but what they did not expect was that Ma Tianfang would rush out regardless of everything.

The number of standing armies of Mao and Wu was roughly the same, both at about five million. However, due to Ma Tianfang's incompetent management and the constant deduction of soldiers' pay, the overall combat effectiveness of the Wu army was much lower than that of the Mao army.

At this time, in Mao State, in order to support the Mu family headquarters in Chen State, Mu Hong sent all two million elite troops to Chen State. Those who stayed in the country were all old, weak, sick and disabled, and their combat effectiveness was also terrible.

Mu Hong and Mutu originally analyzed that even if Ma Tianfang took advantage of Mao's elite deployment to attack, the scale would not exceed two million. With the strength they had in Mao's country, it would be enough for defense.

But no one could have imagined that Ma Tianfang did not follow common sense at all. He immediately dispatched more than 80% of his country's total military strength, completely ignoring his own domestic safety.

In fact, the reason why Mu Hong and Mutu misjudged was because they did not study the Wu Kingdom's system and domestic situation thoroughly enough. Unlike the situation where the Mu family was the dominant family in the Mao Kingdom, Ma Tianfang and his royal family, although

It is the most powerful family in the Wu Kingdom, but they do not have absolute control over the Wu Kingdom. He needs to unite most of the aristocratic families in the country to stabilize the world. This is what we usually call the emperor and the aristocratic families ruling the world together. Ma

Another important reason why Tian Fang was able to secure the throne of the Wu Kingdom was that he was of average ability and would not pose a substantial threat to the interests of the aristocratic families. Otherwise, those aristocratic families would have already gathered together to attack him.

Ma Tianfang originally did not plan to dispatch more than four million troops to attack the Mao Kingdom from the beginning. However, after the families in the country heard that the emperor was going to attack the Mao Kingdom, they all felt that the Mao Kingdom was currently empty of domestic troops and was the best way to gain benefits.

At the right time, everyone was clamoring to send troops to relieve the country's worries. Especially the five major families of Zhao, Zhou, Liu, Li, and Liao, each of which dispatched about 500,000 troops. After two rounds, the Wu Kingdom finally dispatched 4 million troops.

above.

Unlike Emperor Ma Tianfang, Prince Ma Kui of the Wu Kingdom is much more capable. He is capable of both literary and military skills, and is especially good at leading troops in battle. But Ma Kui is a person who knows how to be patient, and he clearly knows the current situation of the Wu Kingdom.

, if he behaves too dazzlingly, he will definitely become a thorn in the eyes and flesh of the aristocratic family. Maybe he will be eliminated by the aristocratic family together before the day he ascends the throne as emperor.

Therefore, during the hundreds of years since he became the crown prince, Ma Kui has been silently managing his own strength, without any outstanding features. In the eyes of the wealthy families of the Wu Kingdom, he is just as mediocre as the emperor.

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This time when troops were sent to the Kingdom of Mao, the major families in the Kingdom of Wu were vying for the position of the head coach, and they all wanted to use their own people as the head coach. Just when all parties were arguing, they had already secretly taken refuge in Prince Ma Kui's Minister of War.

Zhang Yi took the opportunity to propose that the prince should be the head coach. The five major families considered that it was not an option to continue the dispute. The prince had a high status but mediocre ability, so he was the best candidate for the coach in their minds. Anyway, they won the battle and all the major families

The benefits will not be less. If the battle is defeated, there will be a prince who can take the blame.

But this group of people also played a trick and made a fuss about the title of the coach. At their insistence, the prince became the commander-in-chief of the attack on the country of Mao, not the coach. In their view, the commander-in-chief only addressed the four

An army of one million people has the authority to command, and the commander-in-chief has the authority to command these armies.

Ma Kui has been patient for hundreds of years, waiting for an opportunity to show off his talents. In his opinion, this time leading troops to attack the country of Mao is the best opportunity, so he happily accepted the commander-in-chief's offer.

Position.

As for the title of commander-in-chief or coach, it is completely meaningless to Ma Kui. He clearly knows that no matter what name he uses to lead the four million troops to attack the country of Mao, except for the 155 troops directly under the imperial court

, the armies belonging to major aristocratic families are not something he can easily command, so why not get hung up on a name.

After taking over as the commander-in-chief, Ma Kui did not designate marching routes and attack targets for the armies of the major families. Instead, he secretly sent people to constantly brag about how rich the country was and how empty its military strength was. And the places he focused on bragging about happened to be

The locations of the five fortresses that the Mao army focuses on defending. Of course, Ma Kui is not entirely bragging. The five states bordering Mao and Wu are indeed relatively prosperous places in the country.
Chapter completed!