The First Gongsheng of Ming Dynasty

Chapter 350
In the ice and snow, Tang Yinzheng, as the envoy of Ming Dynasty, was walking on the way to Hanyang, the capital of North Korea.

Besides Xu Jing, the only person around him who could talk to him was Liu Gui, a hundred household of Jinyiwei sent by Zhang Zhou. For Liu Gui, who was born in the south, it was the first time he had come to such a bitter cold place.

"Brother Bohu, I'm going to Gyeonggi-do soon. It is said that they will greet you as an envoy, but where is the envoy they greet?"

After staying at the nearby posthouse, or a private house this day, Xu Jing specially went to find Tang Yin.

The most tireless person along the way is Xu Jing, only Xu Jing's eyes are always shining with the enthusiasm before departure, and this journey is for Tang Yin to criticize the people who greet North Korea.

It was as if he was Daming's envoy.

On the contrary, Tang Yin seemed easy to speak.

Tang Yin was holding a pen in his hand, and was going to write a letter back to Shenyang, and then bring his letter back to the capital through Lu Wan and others, but after picking up the pen, he couldn't write a thousand words.

Tang Yindao: "The one surnamed Zhong who came with us said that they will send a minister as an envoy. It is said that he is a confidant of the Korean monarch. In addition, they will send people to give some wine and food."

"That's right." Xu Jing sighed, "We used our own money for food and drink along the way. When we got to this place, we didn't even have money to spend. I don't know that in such a small country, how could Master Zhang think that he is qualified to fight with me?" Send troops together to wipe out those Jurchen alien races in Jianzhou?"

Tang Yin's expression was still very reserved.

At this time, Liu Gui came in from the outside. Because the door was a sliding door, Liu Gui almost took the door down when he opened it.

"Slow down." Tang Yin said.

Liu Gui came in and said: "They have already sent someone in the vanguard, saying that they will pick up the two adults to their capital tomorrow, and they also said..."

"What?" Xu Jing asked for Tang Yin.

Liu Gui said with a bit of a smirk on his face: "I also said that a woman came. I asked them, and they said that she was the daughter of Yue Ji, who is equivalent to our Da Ming Jingshi Jiaofang Secretary, and came to condolences to the two adults."

When Xu Jing heard something strange in his eyes, he glanced at Tang Yin and said, "Bohu, look at North Korea's arrangements here are very thoughtful."

It seems that Xu Jing thinks that Tang Yin is romantic and uninhibited, so he should be very keen on this tune.

Tang Yinze seemed less interested and said: "A daughter of a foreign race, who doesn't even understand the language, what kind of thoughtful arrangement do you call? Besides, you forgot what the errand you came for today is for?"

Xu Jing resentfully said: "They have made such an arrangement, and it's considered a good intention. Along the way, I feel that North Korea is quite proficient in my Ming's language, and Ming's writing can be seen everywhere. I hope their courtesy will be higher."

Tang Yindao: "Send the word out, we will continue to set off tomorrow morning, it doesn't matter whether the envoys they come to greet come or not, and it doesn't matter where we meet. There is no longer waiting here!"

Xu Jing asked, "Why are you so divided?"

"We have delayed the errand. This involves the First Battle of Liaodong, so we can't take it lightly." Tang Yin was very anxious.

Zhang Zhou asked him to arrive in Hanyang in one month, but he walked for one month and four days, and there were still two or three days away from Hanyang, which was equivalent to not fulfilling the emperor's order.

As for women... It's not that Tang Yin didn't want to, but he looked down on Fanbang people in his heart. Besides, the other party was only Le Nu. To him, this didn't fit his identity.

……

……

When marching early the next morning, two carriages followed behind the team.

One carriage was said to be carrying a gift for Tang Yin, and the other was carrying a woman. Even if Tang Yin didn't accept it, the woman would still enter Hanyang City with Tang Yin.

Halfway through the journey, Tang Yin received a report that the envoys from North Korea had also arrived.

Tang Yin could only stop the team temporarily, and went to greet him, but saw that there were also a lot of people coming from the other side. There was a team of four to five hundred soldiers and horses, but except for the two horses in the lead, all of them were wearing black and white military uniforms , infantrymen holding banners.

After dismounting from his horse, the other party hurried over to greet Tang Yin, saluted Tang Yin, and said in very pure Chinese: "I'm serving as a soldier, Cao sentenced Shu Chengjun, and I have met Mr. Tang."

Xu Jing beside him didn't quite understand.

Tang Yindao: "I'm just the head of the military department of the Ming Dynasty, you don't have to greet me with a verdict."

"Should be."

Cheng Jun looked at Xu Jingdao at the side again, "Who is this?"

Tang Yin pointed to Xu Jing and said, "This is Xu Jing, the deputy envoy accompanying the army."

"I've met Mr. Xu." Even though Cheng Jun didn't know Xu Jing's identity, he was able to be a deputy envoy in the team of Daming envoys, and his status was naturally extraordinary.

Afterwards, Cheng Jun and Tang Yin got on their horses respectively, and they led the team all the way to the direction of Hanyang City.

Daming's cavalry and the North Korean infantry brought by Cheng Jun also walked side by side.

On the other hand, the horses on Daming's side were still carrying cannons, which caused the North Korean soldiers to look sideways. They were obviously not as neat as Daming's side on the march.

Cheng Jun said: "Envoy of the Tang Dynasty, you must have seen it all the way along the way. The Jianzhou Guard ignored the laws of the state and repeatedly invaded our Korean land. , to rob the village..."

Cheng Jun poured bitter water in front of Tang Yin, as if he wanted to share the anger of the Jianzhou Jurchen.

After describing their losses in an exaggerated way, he said: "In the middle of last year, the monarch of our dynasty submitted a letter to Daming, requesting to send troops to deter the barbarians in Jianzhou. The border of Liaodong has become an obstacle to the communication between Ming Dynasty and North Korea."

Tang Yin said in a calm tone: "I went to the Dingliao Right Guard, and did not pass through the territory of the Jianzhou Guard, nor did I see any loss from you."

This made the scene very awkward for a while.

But beside Cheng Jun, on another horse, a person who looked like a clerk was listening to the conversation between Cheng Jun and Tang Yin, and at the same time recording their conversation with a pen.

Even Tang Yin and Xu Jing were amazed at the "super power" of this kind of person, who could be a clerk while riding a horse...

When this person heard Tang Yin say this, he looked over with surprised eyes, as if he was surprised at how the Ming envoy could be so direct?
Xu Jing smiled and said, "Continue writing?"

The man was also in a dilemma, wondering if he should record it truthfully.

Seeing that Xu Jing's attitude was narrow, Cheng Jun couldn't help explaining: "Forgive me, the two envoys. Our Korean monarch attaches great importance to welcoming the envoys of the Ming Dynasty. He specially sent someone to record the words and deeds of the envoys. Hangeul is basically not allowed to be used in North Korea, and if you want to ask, you can take it away at any time for verification.”

North Korea created its own writing in the fifteenth century, but until the middle of the twentieth century, Chinese was still the mainstream writing in North Korea.

Although North Korea also promotes its own characters because of nationalism, but because they themselves are imitating Chinese phonetic notation, their use is obviously not as recognizable as Chinese characters. His evil deeds were recorded, especially after the Wuwu disaster in the 11th year of Hongzhi, Lord Yanshan forbade the dignitaries to learn Hanwen, and Hanwen was only used as a translation of Chinese.

Tang Yin said: "I hope to see your monarch as soon as possible to discuss important matters."

Cheng Jun tentatively asked: "Are you going to send troops to build slaves? As far as I know, your Excellency brought so many cannons and soldiers and horses to discuss the matter of sending troops. Your Excellency also forgive me. It is still divided into two factions, the main war faction and the main peace faction. The so-called main peace is to build fortresses on Ping'an Road and other places to prevent the slaves from marching in my direction."

Xu Jing asked with a smile: "Then you are the main battle, or the main peace?"

Cheng Jun was about to say something, but when he looked at the clerk who was in charge of recording his words and deeds, he seemed to be afraid for a moment and said: "I am a military judge, and I am more likely to obey the orders of the monarch, and also obey the court council. As a result, there is no right to decide whether it is war or peace."

Tang Yin said: "Since you can't decide, then I'll talk to your monarch."

……

……

That night, the party still lived in a place close to the folk courtyard.

Tang Yin entered the room early and declined Cheng Jun's invitation to drink, eat and listen to music, while Xu Jing went to socialize first and brought Liu Gui back.

When entering the door, Xu Jing was still talking: "Look at those North Korean soldiers, they can only sleep in the open. Are they afraid of freezing to death in such weather?"

Liu Guidao: "Master Xu, I think they all lit fires, probably because the tents are not enough."

"Haha."

Xu Jing came into the room while laughing.

Tang Yin commented: "In this kind of place, it's not bad to have tiles to cover your head. Have all the soldiers on our side settled down?"

Xu Jingdao: "I've seen it. They brought dried meat and boiled broth. It tastes very good. Seeing their soldiers outside are very greedy. It seems that many of them can only eat some wild vegetables. It is said that last year, There was also a drought in their territory, and there was almost a situation of cannibalism."

Tang Yin frowned and said: "That's it, I really can't expect much help from them."

Xu Jing asked: "Didn't it mean that the purpose of their existence is just to make a fuss?"

Liu Gui asked from the side: "My lords, dare to ask, that is to say, let us be in the east and be responsible for helping the Ming soldiers to attract the attacks of the Tartars, then don't we..."

Xu Jing said with a smile: "What is there to be afraid of if you stay in the fortress?"

"Huh?" Although Liu Gui is not afraid of trouble, he is also afraid of death. He can bear such a hard job with Tang Yin. Who let Zhang Zhou help him gain fame and fortune?
But the problem is that he is not good at fighting, and he was just fooling around with Wang Shouren back then, who would have thought that he would really make a name for himself?

Tang Yin said: "Before Lai Guogong left, did you give me a kit?"

"Is it a clever plan for marching?" Xu Jing was very interested.

Tang Yin shook his head and said: "It's not about marching, but about the structure of monarchs and ministers in North Korea today, including the names of his main ministers, and their tendency to fight or make peace."

"Then this Bing Cao verdict?" Xu Jing asked curiously.

"He is in charge of the battle. Although he is the military judge, which is equivalent to the Minister of the Ministry of War of my Ming Dynasty, the person who advocates sending troops the most in North Korea is a man named Li Kejun. He has experience in leading troops, and he is from a family of generals. But Duke Lai also explained that the drought in their territory was very serious last year, which is why the North Korean king said before that he would go to the Jurchens, but the result has not yet happened."

With the help of Zhang Zhou's "tip bag", Tang Yin is naturally very familiar with the current personnel structure in North Korea.

Moreover, Zhang Zhou also told him that the current North Korean monarch is a "ruthless character", and he will soon be unpopular.

Of course, some things were not explained through the kit. Before leaving, Zhang Zhou had talked with Tang Yinshen.

Xu Jing asked: "Since their disaster is serious, and they are about to eat each other, can they still be expected to send troops?"

Tang Yindao: "It was just their wishful thinking before, but now with the support of Daming, and the great help of His Majesty and Duke Lai, it is equivalent to an order from Daming to send troops. How can they refuse? But we must also be careful what they say Officials... It is said that in North Korea, the style of Taiwan's remonstrance is prevalent, and it can often influence the king's thoughts."

Xu Jing nodded and said: "As long as we don't let us go to fight against Confucianism."

"Are you scared?" Tang Yin looked up at Xu Jing.

Xu Jing shook his head and said: "I'm afraid that when a scholar meets a soldier, he talks about sending troops with a group of foreign people. I always think it's playing the piano against a cow."

Liu Gui smiled and said: "I think what Master Xu said is good for playing the piano with cattle. That group of people is just a group of cattle. It seems that none of them are normal. It's our Daming soldiers who are tall and powerful. I hope they will come to play the piano." Tartar, it’s still not realistic.”

……

……

Tang Yin arrived in Hanyang City in the afternoon of the second day.

Although the city could not be said to be full of streets to welcome thousands of people, there were also a lot of people who came out to greet the envoys from the state. The enthusiasm of North Korea was beyond Tang Yinye Xu Jing's expectation.

They have come along the way, but in fact they have not received too much treatment. Now they probably know that it is not that North Korea does not want to receive them well, but because their northern areas have experienced drought, and local officials have no ability to welcome them well. Instead, it is the capital. The place where the North Korean dignitaries are located, they are more willing to establish political ties with Ming Dynasty, and they are more willing to welcome the envoys of Ming Dynasty.

Cheng Jun and Tang Yin rode into the city together, also looking very proud.

Cheng Jundao: "After hearing that Daming's guru, the Duke of Lai, taught the barbarians in the grassland hard for a year, my North Korean people also agreed that it is necessary for Daming to help us clean up the land on the border. The Korean people's admiration for Daming is increasing day by day, and if there is a chance, I hope that the Duke of Lai Kingdom can visit our North Korea in person, and our North Korean people will definitely welcome him with the gift of a master."

"Hehehe..."

Xu Jing laughed beside him.

Xu Jing was probably thinking about it.

You expect Zhang Zhou to come?I'm afraid it's not that you don't know how powerful he is.

If someone from Zhang came, it is estimated that they will be completely subdued by force, and I am afraid that your coffin boards will not be enough.

Tang Yin and his party arrived at the imperial city, the capital of North Korea.

Because of the low buildings along the way, Tang Yin didn't take the imperial city of Joseon too seriously at first, but when he saw the imperial city of Joseon, he immediately felt that North Korea seemed to have a lot of architectural aspects compared to Daming. They have something in common, and the architectural splendor is also similar.

At the gate of the Korean Imperial Palace, a group of people, led by a man in a red official robe, were waiting for the arrival of the Ming envoy.

Cheng Jun reminded him from a distance: "Envoy Tang, that is Yin Bishang, our Minister of State Council, who is against sending troops. He is equivalent to the Chief Minister of the State, and has a great reputation in the court. You have to be careful. "

In fact, Cheng Jun said this to avoid the clerk, which is equivalent to a personal warning to Tang Yin.

Tang Yin nodded.

He already knew from Zhang Zhou's reminder that Yin Bishang's status in North Korea is very prosperous now, and it is also because after the Wuwu Shilin faction in the 11th year of Hongzhi was suppressed, Yin Bishang became the king of Yanshan. The most authoritative minister...Of course, his glory can only last for another three years.

……

……

North Korea received Tang Yin as a state envoy.

And Tang Yin will not enter the Joseon Imperial Palace right away, but will prepare a gorgeous post house for him next to the Imperial Palace, which is modeled on the one built by the same hall of the Ming Dynasty, and it is a place specially for the envoys of the Ming Dynasty to live , If you come from other places, you are not qualified to live in it at all.

Except for a few people with official positions such as Tang Yin and Xu Jing who can move in, even the soldiers brought by Tang Yin don't need to be outside the city, but can bring artillery and so on into the courtyard to fill up the houses in the courtyard. Originally, the North Korean side wanted the Ming soldiers to live in the nearby posthouse, but Tang Yin refused.

Tang Yin directly asked the extra soldiers to camp in tents in the yard.

Then the North Korean side sent charcoal and firewood, as well as exquisite food.

Tang Yin and Yin Bishang met in the main hall of the post house.

Yin Bishang said: "I heard that Daming's artillery is invincible, and last year it was used to destroy Duoyan's troops in Liaodong. I wonder if it was brought by Mr. Tang?"

Tang Yin looked at Cheng Jun who came with Yin Bishang.

Although Tang Yin knew very well that one of the two was from the war faction and the other was from the peace camp, but neither of them had any obvious political opinions on the surface. It seemed that Yin Bishang was the main fighter.

Tang Yin shook his head and said: "The ones I brought are all light cannons with average power, but in the middle of last year, Daming attacked the Weining Sea by surprise and severely damaged the fire-stricken Mengguoljin Department. This kind of cannon was used, with a range of one mile. .”

"... Such a small cannon can hit so far?" Yin Bishang was obviously not convinced.

Cheng Jun asked: "Does Daming want to bring us the technology of this cannon?"

Tang Yindao: "It's not that Daming is unwilling to give you the technology of casting cannons. It's because your ability is not enough to cast it. This requires very good coal, which is the kind of coal that has no smoke after burning, and you need to use To a large number of craftsmen and technologies, in the past, only the Duke of Lai Guo mastered such technologies in Daming."

"Duke Lai...how is your health?"

Yin Bishang was mature and prudent, and was a little at a loss when faced with the bragging of a young man like Tang Yin, and finally asked a question that sounded very different.

Even Cheng Jun couldn't help but look at Yin Bishang.

It seems to be saying, ask how the Duke of Lai is in good health, don't let the envoys of the Ming Dynasty misunderstand, thinking that we hope that the awesome Duke of Lai will die early.

(End of this chapter)