Chongzhen Daming: Starting from Coal Mountain

Time soon came to the New Year's Eve of the eighteenth year of Chongzhen.

Chongzhen brought Prince Zhu Cihong and his wife, Prince Ding Zhu Cijiong, Prince Yong Zhu Cixuan and Wang Chengen and other eunuchs to the Qing Palace in the Forbidden City of Nanjing to watch the year.

Several more palaces were restored in the Forbidden City in Nanjing.

However, it is still very early to restore the weather of the Taizu period.

Because of a heavy snowfall two days ago, the square in front of Qianqing Palace was covered in silver makeup.

However, in a piece of silver makeup, there are a lot of fireworks, all prepared for New Year's Eve.

Zhu Cizhao still had a childlike innocence, and said impatiently: "Father, the time is almost here, let's hurry up and set off the fireworks, otherwise others will be the first!"

"His Royal Highness, don't worry." Gao Qiqian said flatteringly, "If the palace won't let it go, no one else will dare to let it go first."

"Then let's play it, and don't care about the time or not." At such a moment, Chongzhen couldn't bear to shake Zhu Cizhen's childlike innocence, so let's get used to him for a while.

"Oh, let off the fireworks!" Zhu Cizhao was overjoyed upon hearing this.

Even hundreds of little eunuchs entered the courtyard to light fireworks.

There are quite a lot of fireworks prepared by Ma Mingpa, including casserole made of mud, flower tubes made of paper, and flowerpots in baskets, but more of them are firework that can fly into the sky and explode, and even show different colors .

Soon, bunches of fireworks shot up from the square in front of Qianqing Palace.

After the royal family set off fireworks, officials, gentry and common people also set off fireworks and firecrackers one after another.

In an instant, the sky above Nanjing was illuminated by colorful fireworks, just like day and night.

"It's so beautiful, father, the fireworks are so beautiful." Zhu Cizhao jumped and cheered excitedly, her little face was also flushed.

Chongzhen is also deeply moved, after the sound of firecrackers, it means that the eighteenth year of Chongzhen has passed, and the next nineteen years of Chongzhen, a new year and a new look!

The first major event of this year is to put down the chaos in Shadingzhou, Yunnan.

Wait until the Shadingzhou Rebellion is settled, and see if there is a chance to solve Zhang Xianzhong by the way?Once Zhang Xianzhong was eliminated, there were only two main opponents left in Daming, Puppet Shun and Jian Nu.

This is the advantage of strong comprehensive national strength.

Last year's Xuzhou battle, the price Ming paid was not insignificant, but he was able to recover in less than half a year.

On the other hand, it is not so easy to establish slavery. After years of wars in Beizhi, Shanxi, and several prefectures in Shandong under the rule of slavery, a large number of populations have been lost, and agricultural production has been severely damaged. Therefore, after the setback in the Xuzhou battlefield, no one It may be difficult to recover in two years.

At least in the nineteenth year of Chongzhen, Jiannu was unable to launch a large-scale offensive.

So throughout this year, Chongzhen can use troops to the southwest.

However, the world is impermanent, and Chongzhen's wishful thinking soon came to nothing.

While he was thinking, Gao Qiqian ran over yelling and said repeatedly: "Long live Lord is very happy, very happy!"

At such a good time, Chongzhen would no longer give Gao Qiqian a cold look, and asked with a smile, "Why is there such a thing?"

"Long live, there are three great joys!" Gao Qiqian smiled until his eyes narrowed, "First joy, the weapon department has developed a grenade designed by you, Long live!"

"Oh? Have you researched the grenade?" Chongzhen smiled slightly.

This is really good news, although the grenade is not a decisive weapon, but it can also come in handy.

Gao Qiqian went on to say: "Second great joy, the medical school has completed the first caesarean section, Fu Zhangyuan personally performed a surgical operation to cut a litter of piglets out of the sow's abdomen, and the sow and piglets were as soon as possible. All survived."

"This is really a big joy." Chongzhen said with great joy, "Gao Banban, what about the third big joy?"

Gao Qiqian said with a smile: "The third happiest thing is that the good horse presented by Xu Shun will arrive in Nanjing tomorrow."

"The war horses have finally arrived?" Chongzhen said with more joy when he heard the words, "I am really anxiously waiting for these ten thousand war horses, and I am also anxiously waiting for my ten thousand cavalry battalion."

"Uh..." Hearing what Chongzhen said, Gao Qiqian was suffocated.

"What?" Chongzhen's face darkened, "Gao Banban, is there any problem?"

Gao Qiqian said in a low voice: "Long Live Lord, there are only two thousand war horses, not ten thousand."

"What? Two thousand horses?" Chongzhen's face instantly collapsed, "What's going on? Lu Zhenfei and Lu Daqi have changed their minds again? Want to detain eight thousand horses?"

"No, it's not Elder Lu Ge and Lu Butang." Gao Qiqian waved his hands and said, "It's He Butang."

"You mean He Tengjiao?" Chongzhen said with a dark face, "It's unreasonable. He even dared to detain [-] horses from the Ministry of Internal Affairs without permission. Who would lend him the courage?"

Gao Qiqian was so frightened that he knelt down on the ground with a plop.

The emperor was angry, blood flowed, and Gao Qiqian had already felt Chongzhen's anger.

Chongzhen was really angry. After Gao Hongtu was executed, no minister dared to treat him like this. Even Xie Xuelong fell into a well because of his words. What does He Tengjiao want to do?
For He Tengjiao, Chongzhen only knew that he was a capable minister.

Now it seems that this He Tengjiao wants to imitate Zuo Liangyu?
Chongzhen really wronged He Tengjiao this time, at least the current He Tengjiao had never thought of imitating Zuo Liangyu, it was the four chief soldiers of Wuchang Town who wanted to imitate Zuo Liangyu.

……

At the same time in Wuchang.

The governor's yamen was also brightly lit. Huguang governor He Tengjiao was hosting a banquet for a group of civil officials headed by Hubei governor Zhang Kuang and Zuo Liangyu's former ministry headed by Ma Jinzhong.

Ma Jinzhong's name is "Mixed Hundred Thousand", together with Jin Shenghuan, Hui Dengxiang, Wang Yuncheng, and Li Cheng, he is also known as a senior colonel of the Five Outer Battalions, and he is the most capable unit under Zuo Liangyu's command except for the members of the headquarters.

After Zuo Liangyu died of illness, Zuo Menggeng couldn't return to Wuchang for a long time. Ma Jinzhong, Hui Dengxiang, Wang Yuncheng and Li Cheng divided up Zuo Liangyu's old department and the family assets accumulated over the years. They once wanted to expel the Ming officials. Then follow the example of Li Zicheng and Zhang Xianzhong to establish a regime and become emperor himself.

But Ma Jinzhong and the others refused to accept each other, and everyone wanted to be emperor, so they fell into a stalemate.

At this time, He Tengjiao, the governor of Huguang, who had been ordered by Chongzhen, rushed back to Wuchang at Xingye.

It has to be said that He Tengjiao's abilities are quite strong, and his wrists are also extremely sophisticated. He seized the god-given opportunity that Ma Jinzhong and the other five had already had a grudge, and first had a secret talk with Ma Jinzhong.

In fact, Ma Jinzhong didn't promise He Tengjiao anything.

But Prime Minister Hui Deng didn't know, so when He Tengjiao came to him and said that Ma Jinzhong had chosen to surrender, Prime Minister Hui Deng also decisively joined He Tengjiao's command, and then He Tengjiao took advantage of Prime Minister Hui Deng's momentum to subdue Wang Yuncheng, and then Li Finally, the soldiers and horses led by Hui Dengxiang and the three men overwhelmed He Jinzhong, who was the strongest.

Under a single operation, He Tengjiao took over the military and political power in Wuchang without bloodshed.

However, this is only superficial control, because the military power of Wuchang Town is still firmly in the hands of Ma Jinzhong, Hui Deng, etc., and He Tengjiao only has nominal command over the soldiers and horses of the four towns.

He Tengjiao had no other way to control the matter other than making an appointment with the imperial court and asking Ma Jinzhong and the other four to be earls.

Even Wuchang's money and food were divided up by Ma Jinzhong and the four. Ma Jinzhong even sent his own army to guard the key points of Wuchang and collect taxes separately.

Maybe it's because I'm used to being a snake in Wuchang, and I don't know the heights of the sky and the earth.

Or maybe they felt that the Ming Dynasty had to ask their four towns to guard Wuchang.

So when the [-] war horses were transported to Wuchang, Ma Jinzhong and the others seized [-] horses without hesitation, and more than half of the cattle and sheep were also seized by them, and they even claimed it as military resources. .

He Tengjiao didn't say much about this, but acquiesced in the actions of the four.

So Ma Jinzhong and the other four became more rampant, and their behavior became more outrageous.

This time He Tengjiao hosted a banquet for his subjects in the Governor's Mansion, and the four of them brought their cronies and servants to the banquet. They never thought that He Tengjiao would dare to be unfavorable to them.

Sure enough, when the four arrived at the governor's office, He Tengjiao was very polite to them.

They even arranged hundreds of servants of the four to drink tea in the courtyard outside the lobby.

After three rounds of wine and five flavors of food, He Tengjiao got up with the wine bottle and said loudly: "In the past six months, thanks to the full support of all my colleagues here, I finally managed to stabilize Wuchang and Huguang."

Ma Jinzhong interrupted He Tengjiao and said, "He Butang, you mainly have to thank the four of us."

"That's right." Xiang Hui, who was also slightly drunk, patted the table and said, "If the four of us hadn't sent troops to support you, He Butang, you wouldn't have been able to enter Wuchang City at all."

Li Yuncheng and Li Cheng also burst into laughter when they heard the words, looking extremely crazy.

Zhang Kuang, Fu Shangrui, Yan Qiheng and other civil officials present here also dared to be angry but did not dare to speak.

He Tengjiao just smiled when he heard the words, and he was not angry at all: "What the two generals said is very true. It is because of the support of the generals that the governor is able to control Wuchang."

Speaking of this, He Tengjiao suddenly straightened his face and said: "But there is something that the governor has to do today."

"What's the matter?" Li Yuncheng slapped the table and said, "He Butang, just tell us, we will take care of it for you."

"Then the governor will not be polite to the four generals." He Tengjiao said in a dark voice, "The governor wants to use your four heads to clean up military discipline. I wonder if the four generals are willing?"

"Hey, I think it's something great..." Ma Jinzhong suddenly got stuck when he said this.

Although he was a little drunk, he still understood the meaning of He Tengjiao's words, and immediately became furious: "He Tengjiao, the four of us respect you, you are the governor, if we don't respect you, you will be asshole!"

Hui Dengxiang, Li Yuncheng and Li Cheng also stood up together, ready to summon servants.

However, at this moment, a group of armored soldiers suddenly rushed out from the corridor.

"Close the door!" A general in mountain armor and a phoenix-wing helmet shouted sharply.

Immediately, the main entrance of the lobby was closed, and Ma Jinzhong and the others were blocked in the lobby.

He Tengjiao retreated quickly, while the general stepped forward and shouted, "Kill him on the spot!"

The armored soldiers immediately rushed forward brandishing their sabers, slashing down at random.

"Lu Ding!" Ma Jinzhong shouted, staring, "You sinister villain, I'm really blind!"

"Looking for death!" Lu Ding, the general in mountain armor, chopped down Ma Jinzhong with a single blow.

Ma Jinzhong's martial arts were originally far superior to Lu Ding's, but it's a pity that he drank too much wine tonight and got drunk.

Almost at the same time that Ma Jinzhong and others were felled, a large number of archers also appeared on the corridors around the courtyard and on the ridge of the roof, shooting random arrows at the courtyard below.

The hundreds of servants who were having a banquet in the courtyard were caught off guard, and they were only wearing war jackets, and were quickly shot into hedgehogs.

When all the dust settled, Zhang Kuang, Fu Shangduan and other civil officials were already terrified, and only He Tengjiao said to Lu Ding without changing his face: "General Lu, please clean up the mess here, and the governor must go immediately." The military camps outside the city will collect the morale of the soldiers so that the officers and soldiers outside the city will not mutiny after hearing the news."

Lu Ding said: "It's better for the last general to lead the standard battalion and go with the department hall."

"No need." He Tengjiao said, "Since Ma Jinzhong and others have been executed, the governor is no longer in danger."

After a pause, He Tengjiao said again: "In any case, the four towns of Wuchang are all my Ming Dynasty officers and soldiers!"

He Tengjiao walked to the entrance of the hall, and suddenly turned back to Zhang Kuang and said, "Zhang Futai, please send a messenger to express the reason for tonight to the Holy Majesty and the cabinet within [-] miles."

Zhang Kuang said: "The next official takes orders."

……

This year, for Lu Zhenfei and the other four elders, there is really no way out.

Especially Mrs. Qian Qianyi, who drank a few sips of wine after watching the New Year's Eve, was about to take advantage of the strength of the wine to be tender with Mrs. Ru Liu Rushi for a while, but was stopped by the old servant halfway.

Hearing that the Chief Assistant Lu Zhenfei had called him, Qian Qianyi didn't dare to neglect him, so he hurriedly put on his clothes and got up.

When Qian Qianyi rushed to the cabinet to check the room, he saw that Lu Zhenfei, Zhang Shenyan and Meng Zhaoxiang had already arrived, and he was the only one waiting.

"Elder Qian Ge is here too, let's start." Lu Zhenfei said.

"I'm sorry to call you here in the middle of the night."

"But there is no way, something happened to the horses and cattle and sheep of the pseudo-shun."

"It's nothing more than cattle and sheep. The key is the war horses. The Huguang Governor's Office actually confiscated [-] horses!"

"There is such a wait?" Zhang Shenyan, Meng Zhaoxiang, and Qian Qianyi all changed their faces, isn't this too arrogant?Is He Tengjiao trying to rebel?

Zhang Shen said: "Shou Kui, does the Holy Majesty have a will?"

Lu Zhenfei said: "I have already sent someone to ask for an order, and the Holy Majesty said that it will be handled by the cabinet."

Qian Qianyi said: "After all, He Tengjiao did not rebel, but only seized cattle, sheep and horses, so it should be handled by our cabinet. What do the cabinet elders think?"

Meng Zhaoxiang said: "Didn't Huang Shu, the imperial censor of Huguang, return to Nanjing a few years ago to report his duties? Let him return to Wuchang quickly, reprimand He Tengjiao severely and order him to send the detained horses, cattle and sheep to Nanjing as soon as possible."

"It's not right, it's not right." Zhang Shenyan waved his hands again and again, "This is not right."

Meng Zhaoxiang said unhappily: "Dare to ask Mr. Zhang Ge, what's wrong with doing this?"

"I'm afraid it won't help the matter." Zhang Shenyan said, "the governor of Huguang detained the horses, cattle and sheep. There may be other reasons. Although He Tengjiao is headstrong, he has no disrespect for the court and the Holy One. I think this is Wuchang. Those arrogant soldiers in the town threatened He Tengjiao."