Chapter 52: For Whom I Excel

  Hundreds of thousands of people formed into squares, like nails nailed to the ground. The gentle morning breeze blew by, and all the soldiers' helmet tassels fluttered in the wind. On the solemn flat ground, a large flag in each square was rolled up by the wind.

  "Boom, boom, boom," with the sound of drums, the military band of the Sui army took the lead in performing, with 180 large and small drums, pi, long whistles, medium whistles, etc., and 20 bronze drums and golden cymbals, all playing together.

  In the quiet morning, troops of military bands marched out in grand attire, followed by the Imperial Guards, then the imperial carriage, and finally the various ministers, as well as the Emperor of Sui himself. Everyone today was dressed to the nines, this day, for the Sui court, was truly worth remembering and celebrating. They had finally severely punished Goguryeo, and victory was in sight from now on.

  "Hurray, hurray, hurray!" Amidst the thunderous music, row upon row of troops erupted in deafening cheers, like thunderclaps and waves crashing. The excited and joyful soldiers waited for their emperor's inspection, especially those who had made great contributions in this battle, they were also waiting for the emperor's generous rewards.

  The mountain calls were transmitted to the distance like waves, and all the Goguryeo people in Liaodong City were suddenly shocked. The emergency military horn sounded throughout Liaodong City, and the soldiers who had been exhausted also woke up one after another, fortunately, they had already gotten used to sleeping without taking off their armor after being besieged. All the Goguryeo soldiers grabbed their weapons and rushed to the city wall, each taking their position. The chaotic footsteps were heard everywhere, although those Goguryeo soldiers had been besieged for so long and were physically and mentally exhausted, no one dared to slack off. Everyone knew that if Liaodong City was breached, their fate would be doomed, as the Sui army had failed to take it down several times before.

  As the national gate of Goguryeo, the most elite warriors of Goguryeo were also stationed here. Before long, all the soldiers had climbed up onto the city wall. However, for a long time, there was no sign of the Sui army's main force appearing, and even the several branches of the Sui army that were still besieging the city below remained motionless outside.

  "Your Highness, something seems off. The Sui army is making such a big commotion, but why is it so quiet?" said Jin Chengzhong, the commander of the Western Gate's defense.

  The highest commander of Liaodong City was the younger brother of King Gaozhenwu of Goguryeo, who personally sat in town. Although Gao Jianwu was the younger brother of King Gao Yuan of Goguryeo, he was also a famous general within Goguryeo. During the second campaign against Goguryeo by the Sui Dynasty, Gao Jianwu faced off against the Sui army's 100,000-strong naval force and initially pretended to retreat, luring the commander-in-chief, Yuwen Shu, to Pyongyang. Yuwen Shu led an elite force of 40,000 soldiers in pursuit all the way to the city walls. Gao Jianwu then led his troops out to battle again, pretending to lose once more, and lured the Sui army into the city. After entering the city, Yuwen Shu's troops began looting, losing their unified command, and the hidden troops within the city rose up. Nearly all 40,000 Sui soldiers were killed, and Yuwen Shu led the remaining troops in a desperate bid to escape, being pursued all the way back to where the Sui ships were anchored before managing to narrowly escape with his life. When the numbers were tallied, only several thousand men had survived.

  After this battle, Gao Jianwu became the general of Goguryeo with a reputation second only to Eulji Mundeok. When the Sui army came to conquer Goguryeo for the third time, Gao Jianwu also volunteered to take charge of the defense of Liaodong.

  Gao Jianwu listened intently for a while, nodding his head. "This is the Sui people lining up for inspection, listening to this momentum, it seems that the Sui people are celebrating something." Although the upper-class nobles of Goguryeo were located in the far east, they had a deep admiration for Central Plains culture. The upper-class nobles, including the royal family, had always been learning about Central Plains culture, so Gao Jianwu clearly heard the mountain calls of the Sui army officers and the meaning of the military music being played.

  "What's there to celebrate? Why the celebration?" The city of Liaodong was tightly besieged, although the Sui army had not yet breached its walls. But the people inside were unable to leave either. They had been trapped for a month, completely cut off from news of the outside world. Yet based on past experience, every time the Sui army launched an attack, they would split their forces into two routes: one besieging Liaodong and the other attacking Pyongyang. Now that Liaodong city remained uncaptured, yet the Sui army was celebrating with jubilation... had something happened to Pyongyang?

  It's not just the general who thinks this way, the soldiers on the city wall are all wondering, asking each other, but no one can figure out what's going on. Everyone is worried to death. If Pingyang falls, they will really be surrounded on all sides, and if that happens, they will be finished.

  Gao Jianwu's face was also gloomy, and he shouted to the soldiers beside him, "The Sui army is preparing to attack the city, everyone must be prepared. No matter how many Sui soldiers come, they will not be able to take down Liaodong City. We will make the Sui people suffer a great defeat like the previous two times. Victory belongs only to Goguryeo, long live Goguryeo, long live the king!"

  Under the leadership of Gao Juren, the Gaogouli people also started shouting, but unfortunately, there were not many soldiers in the Liaodong City of Gaogouli, and they were all scattered among the four cities. After shouting for half a day, they couldn't compare with the momentum of the Sui army at all.

  The majestic military music still echoed on the plain, where neat and tidy arrays of ten thousand people were shouting in unison "Long live our emperor, long live Great Sui!" Chen Kefu drew out his ring-headed knife and loudly commanded, "Draw swords!"

  Ten thousand soldiers of the broken army "swished" out their long knives, a dazzling knife light, snow-white and unparalleled. The other phalanxes also drew their knives under the command of the general, and the snow-white knife light illuminated the entire plain with unparalleled brilliance.

  Behind the emperor's procession, a group of civil and military officials with bright armor and magnificent clothes appeared behind the emperor. In this expedition to Liao, except for the ministers who stayed behind, most of the officials in the capital followed. Not only did the ministers come, but also many nobles from the capital followed.

  The Emperor of the Great Sui wore a crown on his head, a ceremonial robe on his body, a dark upper garment and a red lower skirt, with a knee cover, a sash, and red shoes. This was the most solemn attire worn only on grand occasions. This set of ceremonial robes was the highest grade of imperial attire, and it was only worn on grand occasions such as ascension to the throne or sacrificial rites. Today, Yang Guang even wore this crown robe, revealing his mood at this moment.

  The dragon robe has nine chapters embroidered on it, and the sun and moon are also arranged separately on both shoulders, with stars on the back. This is a symbol of "shouldering the sun and moon, and carrying the stars on his back". With an unparalleled elegance and imperial majesty, he walks at the front of the team, striding forward with a majestic gait, inspecting his elite soldiers.

  The emperor's noble temperament and majesty made the soldiers under him even more fanatical. For tens of millions of soldiers, the emperor was their god, a deeply ingrained concept. For many garrison troops, they may only have the opportunity to see the emperor once in their lifetime when it is their turn to enter the capital for duty.

  For these warriors, His Imperial Majesty is their god. When His Imperial Majesty calls, tens of millions of Su people put down their hoes, pick up their weapons, ride their war horses, and travel thousands of miles, abandoning their families and children, leaving behind their homes and villages, and even dying in foreign lands. At this moment, when they see that His Imperial Majesty is no longer wearing armor but instead wears a crown that shines with imperial dignity, everyone loses control of themselves. One by one, their faces flush with excitement, their eyes shine brightly, and they shout excitedly: "Long live the Emperor! Long live Su!"

  Not being in it, you can never feel that kind of atmosphere. Chen Kefu rode on horseback, looking at the excited and excited generals with some confusion, even the 10,000 broken army generals behind him were no different from other generals, all of whom had fallen into madness.

  Chen Kefu is not a man of this era, he is a traverser, he has long been not a child living in the feudal imperial society of China, he does not have that kind of fear and worship for the imperial power. However, under the influence of this atmosphere, the adrenaline of the whole person also rises involuntarily.

  Looking at the people on the imperial platform, Yang Guang was enjoying the cheers of his subjects. Chen Kefu couldn't help but feel a sense of longing. A great man should be like that. If one day he could also ascend to Yang Guang's current position, how wonderful it would be. No wonder so many people throughout history have rushed forward, one after another, towards that position, even if it means paying the price of exterminating nine clans. Yes, this position is too tempting. Especially for Chen Kefu, he knew that the Sui Dynasty would not last long, and how many more would claim to be king or emperor in this chaotic world.

  Didn't Chen Sheng say that? If the king and the prime minister are not of noble birth, can't he, Chen She, sit in that position? He is a man of later generations, and does not believe in things like heavenly mandate. If the Son of Heaven was appointed by heaven, how could someone like him believe it? Moreover, doesn't his body also have the bloodline of the imperial family? Isn't he still the eldest son of the crown prince of Southern Chen? In this chaotic world, who is the true ruler, and who is not?

  At that time, the overlord Xiang Yu once saw the majestic chariot of Qin Shi Huang, and at that time he also said a sentence "A great man should be like this". Han Gaozu Liu Bang also saw the majesty of Qin Shi Huang in those years, and also said similar words. This can be considered as ambition, or it can be considered as great ideals.

  Chen Kefu shouted "Long live the Emperor" along with the other generals, but in his heart he was thinking wildly. It was as if a seed had been planted in his mind, and it had taken root without him even realizing it. In the past, he had never thought about contending for the throne or hegemony; instead, he had only thought about how to survive in this chaotic world, and how to find a powerful patron to rely on in the future. But now, in this vast military camp of hundreds of thousands of people, Yang Guang's majestic presence had stirred something within him, and his thoughts had changed.

  I sing a wild song, empty and free, who is the hero? Thinking of Du Fu's poem to Li Bai, Chen Kefu's heart became even more determined. Du Fu felt that his previous carefree life was wrong, he needed not the emperor's call, but a kindred spirit like Li Bai. And what about himself? What did he need? Had he traveled through time to this ancient era just to think of how to survive? Shouldn't he strive for something, shouldn't he do something? Not mentioning the disasters that the people of China suffered after Sui dynasty, just thinking of the chaotic world at the end of Sui dynasty, where over 30 million people died in a decade, shouldn't he do something about it?

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