national surname chiming

Chapter 184

After Chen Xinjia got the good news, he didn't inform Zhou Yanru, and immediately came to Chongzhen to show his merits.

So much so that when Zhou Yanru learned that the emperor summoned him late at night, he was terrified, thinking that something happened again, or he had received bad news.

Fortunately, Wang Chengen, who came to deliver the message, was quite kind. Although he did not make friends with foreign ministers, he was also good at observing words and demeanor. Seeing that Zhou Ge was frowning, he couldn't bear it, and reminded him:
"Why does the old man do this? Tonight is a happy event. Someone has made meritorious service in the Liaodong War. Your Majesty asks the old man to discuss the reward."

After hearing this, Zhou Yanru finally settled down: "Thank you, Eunuch Wang, for your advice."

After a while, they came to the Wenhua Palace, and someone passed on the transmission, and Chongzhen didn't seem to care about the transmission, so that when Zhou Yanru entered, he was still chatting with Chen Xinjia.

Zhou Yanru didn't eavesdrop on it deliberately, but he listened inadvertently.The discussion between Chongzhen and Chen Xinjia seems to be the final determination of the responsibility for the annihilation of the Liaodong War.

According to Chen Xinjia, Hong Chengchou was blamed for the defeat. In the final analysis, there was no problem with the dispatch of the Ministry of War, but the frontline command was ineffective, especially Hong Chengchou's incompetence in commanding the troops, and he could not maintain military discipline and morale.

Zhou Yanru shook his head secretly when he heard this, but he would not tear down Chen Xinjia's platform.He has a good relationship with Chen Xinjia, so there's no need to be a villain.

With people like Liu Zongzhou and Huang Daozhou making trouble for Chen Xinjia, it was enough for him to drink a pot.

Chongzhen didn't dwell on this issue any more, so he accepted Chen Xinjia's statement and sighed:
"Oh, I didn't expect that Hong Chengchou was able to boost morale and straighten up the army's morale when he dealt with the bandits in the past, how could he be so demoralized when he met the Tartars.

That's all, for the sake of his fighting and martyrdom, I will regard the deceased as the greatest, pay homage to him, and let the courtiers work hard to die for the country with great morale.But in private, it is still necessary to sum up his lessons clearly and file them with the Ministry of War to admonish those who come. "

The meaning of Chongzhen is that to the common people and the general public, don't publicize Hong Chengchou's crimes, but openly honor them.But for those in the circle, a lesson must be learned.

This is to take into account the morale of the illiterate soldiers and prevent the cunning people from being lazy.

After talking about Hong Chengchou, Chongzhen turned to Zhou Yanru: "Zhou Qing came just in time, and was about to discuss with you about some rewards. Chen Qing, please tell me about the situation."

It was only then that Chen Xinjia relayed to Zhou Yanru the circumstances of the persons who had contributed to the rescue of Cao Bianjiao and Li Fuming in a series of battles, especially focusing on describing the civil servants involved.

Zhou Yanru listened very carefully, and from this we can see how cautious Wang Chengen was when he called him just now—Wang Chengen just told him not to be nervous, which is a good thing.But Wang Chengen didn't say a word about the specific situation of the battle and who made meritorious deeds.

To work by the emperor's side, what is needed is to be as tight-lipped as possible.

Chongzhen was originally suspicious, seeing that Zhou Yanru listened carefully and didn't rush to answer at all, it was very natural, so he knew that he didn't know anything on the way here.

As long as Zhou Yanru dares to show a few traces of "has long been a temple", I am afraid that Chongzhen will immediately suspect him of "making friends with his courtiers"——

This is really not the black Chongzhen. Zhou Yanru was the right-hand man in the Ministry of Officials, and Wu Changshi, the doctor in charge of the Wenxuan Department, had historically been killed by Chongzhen a few months later because he sought out the ministers in advance to make friends and inquire about news.

Thanks to Zhou Yanru's genius, this little flaw was perfectly avoided.

After listening, he carefully considered: "Your Majesty, the promotion of civil servants should be verified by the Department of Literature and Selection, but if your Majesty asks, I can draft one or two according to the established rules.

Civil officials were involved in this battle, and the first contribution should go to Shen Tingyang, the servant of the Nanjing household department, who made a decision and prepared to build a water guard.With the scale of rescuing 5000 officers and soldiers and annihilating the two Jiala of Zhentar, it is not an exaggeration to be promoted to Minister of the Nanjing Household Department.

However, as far as I know, Qiu Weizhen, the current Secretary of the Ministry of Household Affairs in Nanjing, is 65 years old. It seems that this year he has reached the age of retirement. "

Chongzhen frowned when he heard this: "The imperial court's promotion of rewards is naturally done immediately after the approval of meritorious deeds. How can it be postponed? Where is the imperial court's trust?"

Zhou Yanru hastily added: "Your Majesty, don't worry, there are also examples of this matter that can be used for reference. In the past, when the supervisors were released and a few towns were restrained, they would be given the title of Minister of the Ministry of War. Now, Shen Tingyang can be given the title of Minister of the Ministry of Households first.

However, adding titles does not mean actual granting.You can send someone to persuade and comfort him, and tell him that after Qiu Weizhen retires this year, he will directly take over as Minister of the Nanjing Household Department. "

Chongzhen thought for a while, and then nodded: "Okay, then first give Shen Tingyang the title of Minister of the Ministry of Households, and coordinate and supervise the affairs of the southeastern provinces such as grain, three salaries, and lijin, so as to ensure the southern financial resources for the imperial court."

In the Ming Dynasty, the six ministers in the northern and southern capitals enjoyed the same level of treatment in theory, but the real power was very different.Therefore, after adding the title of minister, he can go to Nanjing to take over in the future, and there is no conflict.

Chongzhen and Zhou Yanru also considered that Shen Tingyang's promotion was too fast, and he became the servant of Nanjing only last year, and he will be promoted immediately after just one year, and there is no reward in the future.Wait for Qiu Weizhen to retire naturally, maybe half a year later.

After Shen Tingyang is settled, the rest is Zheng Chenggong.

It was easier for Zheng Chenggong to do it, after all, it was originally only a six-rank Haidao promotion, and the head level of a certain department of the Nanjing Ministry of Households.

After calculation, Zhou Yanru believed that according to the old practice, he should be promoted to the local magistrate if he was credited with the military merits of killing a leader of the Tartars and repelling Kong Youde.

And Zhou Yanru had received a large amount of gold and silver from Shen Shuren and Zheng Chenggong before, and he had also taken the "franchise right" promise from the Shen family, so of course he knew that he wanted to find a house for Zheng Chenggong within Shen Shuren's jurisdiction.

Fortunately, there were many cases where the magistrates in Shen Shuren's jurisdiction were vacant or needed to be replaced. Zhou Yanru easily found two options for the emperor to directly decide——

In fact, even if Zhou Yanru wanted to give only one option and report the answer directly, it was not impossible.But he knows how to be a man, and he hoped that the emperor would have a more sense of control, so he gave two of them.

"Your Majesty, the Xiangyang Mansion in Huguang has been vacant since Zhang Xianzhong attacked and killed King Xiang and local officials last year. Since then, Tongzhi and other officials have assisted Futai and Qiandu Yushi to manage the government. I think that Zheng Chenggong can be transferred to Xiangyang. Prefect.

In addition, before Zheng Chenggong was promoted to the water transportation department, his original job was Huguang Yanfa Road Investigator, responsible for the collection of business taxes and lijin between Huguang, Jiangxi, and Nanzhi. He once investigated the case of gangsters in Jiangxi.

If His Majesty thinks that Zheng Chenggong is too young, it is not appropriate to hand him over to such a young man, because Xiangyang is an important military base, and he is close to the thief Zhang Ni, it is also possible to transfer him to Jiujiang.

However, as far as I know, the Jiujiang magistrate has actually approved a candidate by the Ministry of Officials a few days ago. His name is Shi Dun. "

Chongzhen waved his hand, feeling that he was in control: "Let Zheng Chenggong go to Jiujiang! Shi Dun's appointment has not yet been issued, right? Change him to the prefect of Xiangyang!"

Anyway, Chongzhen felt that as long as the things reported from below, he adjusted the order within the scope of the list, there would be no mistakes, and it could also prevent the people below from accepting benefits for personal gain and committing fraud.

After the two most important promotions were settled, Chongzhen asked a little bit about other relevant personnel who made less contributions.

Anyway, after a big defeat, there is an occasional small victory, and we must do our best to promote morale.

And the Shen family obviously did a good job in preparing their homework in advance. After a little investigation, they can find that several officials from the Shen family have made contributions in helping Shen Tingyang "organize" the Cao Cao Army.

For example, some of the [-] "family members" of the Shen family were recruited from the Huangzhou Army, and Zhang Huangyan, the prefect of Huangzhou, certainly contributed to the early training and supply of this army.There are several others involved in this way.

After Chongzhen heard about it, he was a little vigilant and suspicious, and suddenly asked: "In this matter, does the new Wanfu Shen Shuren have any credit?"

When Chongzhen asked this question, his tone was already slightly gloomy and cold, obviously he also had some bad associations, lest the Shen family would mess up things in the south.

However, after Zhou Yanru inquired, he told him very bluntly:
"Returning to Your Majesty, Shen Shuren has no direct credit. It seems that after he took over as Wanfu, he has other complicated official duties, which are not as good as helping his father. However, Shen Tingyang and Shen Shuren are father and son, even if they help each other, it is human nature."

When Chongzhen heard this, he was relieved. Indeed, there is nothing to blame for the private help between father and son.

Thinking of Shen Shuren, Chongzhen couldn't help sighing: "The Ming Dynasty has fallen to this point, and it is rare that there are still a few loyal and loyal families. As far as I know, Shen Shuren and Zheng Chenggong were originally classmates, right? They were all made by Yang Sichang Under the Nanjing Imperial College.

Although Shen Shuren didn't make any contribution this time, he would not refuse to do things for the court. He became governor at the age of 22, and Zheng Chenggong also became the magistrate at the age of 19. The Ming Dynasty has to rely on the efforts of these young people. "

Chongzhen heaved a long sigh, obviously thinking that these two heroes were too young.

Zhou Yanru knew that he was in charge of the official department and had to help the emperor share these issues, so he said casually: "Your Majesty, why worry, it is a good thing for someone to share the country's worries, and it shows that the people of the world are on Daming.

Shen Shuren had indeed been promoted too quickly before, remembering that the imperial edict to promote him to Wanfu was only issued at the end of last month.The minister thought that if he had more military exploits in the future, he could make a fuss about the plus sign.

For example, when Zuo Liangyu made meritorious service, there was no military position to be rewarded above the commander-in-chief, so he added the title of "Ping Bandit General".Last year, Liu Guoneng cooperated with Shen Shuren to destroy Erhe and added the title of General Dangkou.If Shen Shuren has great achievements in the future, if it is inconvenient to be promoted to governor, he can also be promoted first. "

Chongzhen laughed at himself playfully: "Could it be that Shen Shuren is also given the title of general to quell the thieves and bandits?"

Zhou Yanru: "Shen Shuren is a civil servant, so naturally he can't be given the title of general, but he can be named a knight. First, he starts with the earl, and there are princes above him. Why worry about not being rewarded for his meritorious deeds? He has already used it to suppress thieves and bandits. It is inconvenient to repeat it. It has been used since ancient times. Of the miscellaneous names at the same level, only General Polu remains, so why not call him Polubo."

Chongzhen frowned: "The use of words is so unlucky, the mountains and rivers are broken, and there are shortages in Jin Ou. I don't like this broken word!"

Zhou Yanru quickly changed it: "Then it's called Krupp. When Zuo Liangyu was given the title, he changed the ancient name from the old name to seek the thief general to the flat thief general, which means taking the auspicious meaning of the word Ping. The word Ke also has a time of restraining The meaning of firmness is much more auspicious than breaking a captive."

After hearing this, Chongzhen thought it was pretty good, thought for a while, and suddenly burst out laughing: "What are you thinking about, it's really unnecessary to waste time thinking about the way out for the ministers who haven't done any meritorious service.

That's all, Zhou Qing, Chen Qing, you all step back, and the things you explain tonight can be done urgently as instructed. "

"My minister retire."

……

Zhou Yanru and Chen Xinjia hurriedly bowed again and retreated.Especially Chen Xinjia, who was still busy going back to deal with Hong Chengchou's conviction and filing, public memorial service and other matters.

However, it seemed that God's will didn't intend to let them stop. Just as the two of them slowly exited the Wenhua Palace, another eunuch and someone who sent the Ministry of Military Affairs came in.

"Your Majesty! Urgent military situation! Urgent military situation in Henan! The trilateral governor of Shaanxi, Wang Qiaonian, has been besieged by Li Zicheng in the area of ​​Xiangcheng, southwest of Luoyang, since the middle of last month. It has been reported recently that Xiangcheng has been captured and Wang Qiaonian died in battle.

The three generals under Wang Qiaonian's command sat by and watched as the governor fell, and refused to rescue him.Yang Sichang and Zuo Liangyu in Yancheng and Ye County were also unable to make progress and could not rescue them.

According to rumors, Li Zicheng's prestige of killing the two governors in succession has greatly increased his popularity among the thieves, far surpassing the two thieves Luo and Ma.A few days after Wang Qiao was killed, Li Zicheng actually lured Luo Rucai and Ma Shouying to death at the celebration banquet, and killed Luo Rucai and Ma Shouying. Now the three thieves have all been annexed by Li Zicheng's family!I'm afraid there are no fewer than 30 people! "

Hearing this sad news, both Zhou Yanru and Chen Xinjia were shocked: "Wang Qiaonian is gone too? It's only been three months since Fu Zonglong was killed, right? Fu Zonglong, the former governor of three sides of Shaanxi, was just killed in the twelfth lunar month. kill?"

The bad news of the Ming Dynasty is really one after another. Liaodong has just died, and Shaanxi and Henan are about to die again.

The two were surprised on their lips, but their hearts were extremely desolate: It seems that Shaanxi is really a bottomless pit. There have been catastrophes for more than ten years in a row, and no one who goes to Shaanxi can stop the boundless thieves.

But the emperor is very rigid, so he can't say this.

Chongzhen was also shocked when he heard the bad news, but apart from his grief, he felt a chill rising from his spinal cord: "He guessed it right!"

Zhou Yanru and the others were stunned for a while, looked at each other in blank dismay, and carefully asked: "Your Majesty guessed right?"

Chongzhen glared at them: "You are still ministers and cabinet elders, but you don't read! Haven't you read Shen Shuren's "On the Traitors"? I made the world say that all the ministers should read it carefully!
Shen Shuren categorically said that Zhang Ni, the intruder, had advantages that other thieves did not have.

I originally thought this was just an idle move by him to alienate the thieves, but I didn't expect him to hit the mark!Such a fortune teller can be called a wise soldier.If such a genius is allowed to be the governor of the three sides of Shaanxi, I wonder if he can predict the enemy's opportunity first and wipe out the intruders! "

Zhou Yanru and Chen Xinjia were stunned when he heard that, and quickly persuaded the emperor to calm down: "Your Majesty! Shen Shuren has just been promoted to Wanfu, and His Majesty is already afraid that he is too young to be rewarded for his meritorious service. Now that he has not made new achievements, how can he be promoted to the governor of the three sides? The duties of the governors of three sides are even higher than the governors of a province."

When Chongzhen thought about it, he was indeed in a daze of impulsiveness.

How can one think that those who are talented will be promoted regardless of everything in governing the country? The key is to have credit.Now is not the time when at the end of Qin Dynasty, King Huai of Chu could directly make Song Yi a general because of Song Yi's divine prophecy.

What's more, even if it was a dynasty that didn't talk about officialdom and seniority in the early years, Song Yi, who relied on God's prophecy to parachute to the top, was not killed by Xiang Yu's disobedience?
Chongzhen sighed: "Then what is the plan for today? How can Shen Shuren contribute to the encirclement and rampage of the intruders? There is always a way to contribute without being promoted?"

Zhou Yanru and Chen Xinjia thought about it for a while, and after a while, he made a compromise suggestion to Chongzhen: "Your Majesty, please choose another minister who knows the soldiers as the governor of Shaanxi on the three sides. Sun Chuanting, who was convicted and imprisoned before, may be available.

After Sun Chuanting takes over Wang Qiaonian's generals, His Majesty can order Yang Sichang and Zuo Liangyu to cooperate with Sun Chuanting, and not to hesitate as they did when they cooperated with Wang Qiaonian.In addition, Shen Shuren can be ordered to assist Yang Sichang. "

Of course these people didn't know that Shen Shuren didn't want to fight against Li Zicheng at all, but only wanted to deal with Zhang Xianzhong, so they sold Shen Shuren without hesitation.

Chongzhen also learned how to behave this time, fearing that the generals and civil servants would not listen to the announcement again, so he hurriedly said that he could promise benefits first, and asked Zhou Yanru to find a way to tell Shen Shuren that as long as he helped the war well and made credit, he would be named "King of the Army". Rupp".

(End of this chapter)