The First Gongsheng of Ming Dynasty

Chapter 506 Use good steel on the back of the knife
Another morning.

As soon as the ministers entered the palace, news about the great victory in Ningxia spread. This time there was no cover-up, and even the cabinet was informed of the situation early.

The minister did not have much preparation for this sudden "big victory", because the previous discussion in the court was that if Yang Yiqing and other groups could not catch up with the Tatars, they would let the Tatar cavalry cross the Yellow River and plunder around Ningxia Town. …

With a twist of face, the good news came, and the Tatars followed the rules and retreated outside the pass. They wanted to use the topic to show off before, but how can they show it now?

"Mr. Liu Ge, do you think this is happening?"

Ji Zhong, the Minister of Household Affairs, went to Liu Jian to mention the matter.

He wanted advice.

He was originally the target of public criticism. The traditional civil servants in the DPRK wanted to use the power of the Ministry of Household Affairs to control the emperor's control of military affairs and the problem of northwest dispatch. The lack of money and food could always be used as a reason to dispel the emperor's unrealistic ideas. However, this It should be based on the fact that the Tatars left after plundering.

Zhang Zhou must be suppressed first before he can talk about gathering power.

Now that the good news has come, Zhong Zhong feels that his mission has come to an end. The rest depends on how the cabinet will characterize the matter.

Liu Jian said nothing, and Li Dongyang on the side reminded: "We will wait until the Hulu leave the border and everything returns to stability as to the outcome of the war. It's too early to say now."

Good news is good news, but it does not mean that this victory must be followed by the Tatars fleeing in despair. Who dares to say that the little Tatar prince has no options?

Zhong Zhong nodded. He was relieved. At least the cabinet did not force him to mention anything excessive to the emperor. He could watch the performances of other people in the court with peace of mind.

……

……

The meeting begins.

Zhu Youtang was sitting on his throne. Different from the past when he seemed very excited every time there was good news, he seemed a bit depressed that day. After the ministers finished the ceremony and took their seats, he coughed a few times, indicating that he Now I'm sick.

Xiao Jing came out to read out the good news from the northwest, and only Yang Yiqing had a copy.

Yang Yiqing fully affirmed Cui Yuan's role in the victory report and did not steal the credit. He even stated that because of Cui Yuan's bravery and fearlessness, the war progressed very smoothly and finally achieved a great victory... He also stated that his troops were just Made a little bit of cooperation from it.

"...In this battle, 160 enemy heads were beheaded, 720 were captured, 200 large livestock were seized, and more than [-] pieces of weapons and armor were captured. When the bandits were defeated and crossed the river, they were in a state of disarray, and the number of bandits washed away was also high. One [-] people…”

When Xiao Jing finished reading, he stood back to his original position.

At this time, many people discovered that Zhang Zhou, who was originally the protagonist of the incident, was not present. In this moment of glory with the emperor, Zhang Zhou did not go to court?
What a big heart.

After Xiao Jing finished speaking, Zhu Youtang was supposed to comment a few words, but Zhu Youtang still looked bad, so Li Rong on the side concluded on his behalf: "After this battle, the bandits will not be able to deal with our Ming Dynasty border troops, but the Ming Dynasty border troops The army marched and fought in a hurry for days, and was very tired. In addition, several groups of troops who set out for the Hetao expedition were unable to rush to help and follow up. It was unlikely that they would fight with the Tatars in the future. In the memorial of Yang Yiqing, the governor of Ningxia and other places, he mentioned that he had There was nothing to stop the Tatars from withdrawing from the pass.”

Qu Shen, the commander of the military department, came out from the incident and said: "Your Majesty, the local people in Ningxia are unable to fight the Tatars with all their strength, which gives the Tatars a chance to withdraw. Yang Yiqing, the governor of Ningxia, blatantly shirks the excuse of being incompetent. He should be charged with slacking off the military. Discuss it.”

How dare you, Yang Yiqing, to report that you are unable to stop the Tatars?

Even if this is true, you should risk your life to stop it, even if it means death. At most, we will treat you as a loyal martyr of the Ming Dynasty, but you still have the nerve to complain now?
Li Rongdao: "The local defenders of Ningxia have been attacking for hundreds of miles without rest for days and nights. The soldiers have long been tired and have consumed too much fire and ammunition. The advantage of fighting the Tatars no longer exists. If we want to fully defeat the Tatars at this time, To encircle the Tatars or even to annihilate all the prisoners, it is necessary to have the full cooperation of all the people."

Generally speaking, eunuchs were not allowed to express their opinions in the court, but served more as a converter of messages between the emperor and ministers.

To put it bluntly, it is a messenger.

And Li Rong came forward to speak for Yang Yiqing and the local Ningxia generals, and the emperor was not angry at all. In the eyes of experienced ministers, this was entirely the emperor's order. In other words, Zhu Youtang knew early on that there might be someone He used the opportunity to attack Yang Yiqing and allowed the Tatars to withdraw.

"Cough cough."

Zhu Youtang suddenly coughed twice. Just when the ministers thought he was clearing his throat to prepare for his opening remarks, Zhu Youtang fell silent again.

Li Rong continued: "In this battle, Bao Guogong and others performed unsatisfactory and missed the opportunity."

Another statement that is inconsistent with Li Rong’s identity.

This should have been said by others, and the official who directly remonstrated should have participated in the impeachment, and it should not have been Li Rong who started the topic.

Even if Yan Guan went to participate in the impeachment, maybe the emperor would protect Zhu Hui. After all, Zhu Hui was sent by Zhu Youtang to lead the troops. Zhu Hui's poor performance now shows that the emperor's "unclear appointment at the time" is not a fight. The emperor's face?
Qu Shen, who had just finished speaking before and had not yet returned to the court, continued: "During the war, Baoguo Gong was afraid of the enemy and delayed his fighter planes many times, making the Tatars gallop through the territory of the Ming Dynasty as if they were in an uninhabited land. Is that so? If a general cannot protect his people, he must be executed for his crime!"

Now let’s not talk about the crime, let’s just talk about the crime and punishment.

After all, Yang Yiqing still had military merit as a basis. At most, he could only discuss one crime, and then "the merits and demerits would balance out."

If it were Zhu Hui, although this old boy also had military exploits for killing enemies in the Loop, those achievements... couldn't be compared with his faults at all. He could just kill him, and depriving him of his title would be an advantage. !

Do you really think you don’t need to be responsible when you go out to lead troops?
Li Rong did not answer this time, but looked back at Zhu Youtang.

Li Rong was still qualified to stir up a topic and express some opinions in the court, but if he wanted to judge Zhu Hui's behavior or even accuse him, the emperor would have to speak in person.

"Yeah." Zhu Youtang just made a sound in his throat, seeming to agree with Qu Shen's statement.

That bastard Zhu Hui... seems to be better off dead, and he betrayed my trust in him.

But just this sound didn't seem to be enough to sentence Zhu Hui to death. Then Zhu Youtang glanced at Liu Jian and the other three cabinet members, but he only made eye contact and said nothing, as if to say, your cabinet won't come out and make a statement. Opinion?
The ministers were somewhat overwhelmed.

The emperor just made this sound in his throat and coughed. Although he was not full of breath, he didn't seem to lose his voice. Why didn't he say a word today, but instead he was playing riddles like this?
Liu Jian had to speak out at this time. He raised the wat board and said: "Your Majesty, this battle has not yet reached a final conclusion. If we use this moment to judge merit and crime, I am afraid it will have an impact on the morale of the army. When the results of the battle appear, After that, we can negotiate.”

"Ah."

Zhu Youtang responded again.

Not only do you agree with Qu Shen's statement that Zhu Hui should be punished, but you also agree that it is not the right time to discuss the crime?

What exactly is the emperor's intention?Let us guess?

Upon seeing this, Xie Qian came out and showed his eloquent nature and said: "Your Majesty, from what I can see, this battle has at least passed the middle game. At this moment, if we can coordinate all the troops and horses to block it, or If we can achieve another great victory, especially the soldiers and horses at Yansui and Datong, they should come out in time at this time."

Zhu Youtang frowned upon hearing this.

Li Rong looked back at the emperor and asked to help, "What does Mr. Xie Ge mean by this?"

Xie Qian said: "As far as I know, the little Tatar prince is personally leading the army this time. If we miss this good opportunity, it will be even more difficult to capture and kill him in the future."

Li Rong answered: "Didn't Mr. Xie Ge hear this? Governor Yang reported that he is no longer able to fight anymore, or he can only look for good opportunities in the future."

Xie Qian said with a slight smile on his face: "Aren't there still Baoguo Gong and others? People from all walks of life have never made meritorious deeds, so why not give them a chance to redeem themselves and make meritorious deeds?"

Li Rong wanted to hit someone after hearing this.

Are you Xie Qian trying to make a point or something?

Knowing that Zhu Hui and others did not even participate in the frontal battlefield, they actually sat on the sidelines of a battle, and actually asked them to make meritorious service for their crimes?They do!But the problem is...the Tatars are not stupid enough to give them a chance.

"This is a very good proposal." Zhu Youtang finally spoke, his voice a little hoarse, "According to what Mr. It would also be good if we can take the opportunity to expand the results at this time. It can also be considered as giving some people...a chance to make up for their mistakes."

As soon as the emperor's words came out, even Xie Qian, who made the suggestion, was a little surprised.

In my opinion, is this how you want to be welcomed by the emperor?

Originally, I was just adding insult to injury to Zhu Hui, or I came out to express the civil servants' views on this matter, and to ridicule Wu Xun. Why does it seem that His Majesty is more enthusiastic about this matter than me?
Li Dongyang and Liu Jian both glared at Xie Qian with reproachful eyes, and Xie Qian had no choice but to retreat.

Zhu Youtang said: "In this battle, Prince Consort Cui Yuan performed very well. Some people even compared him with the champion. I think it is exaggerated, but his bravery is what I have seen. But he always relied on Bingkuan's planning. , he has the opportunity to perform like this, and his ability to run the army still needs to be improved."

Cui Yuan was praised, but Cui Yuan was belittled.

It seems...the emperor is not too optimistic about Cui Yuan.

This is in line with the opinions of the ministers present. After all, Cui Yuan is from the relatives' faction and has not had much communication with them. In other words, this person was not in the court system at all before and was just a consort in the name. Now let us support him to join. Go to court or even enter the Governor's Mansion to run the army?Why?
Zhu Youtang said: "I trust Bingkuan's vision now, and I hope you will stop causing trouble for him."

Xie Qian came out again and said: "Your Majesty, I don't understand what you mean. We are both serving the imperial court. How can we make things difficult for each other?"

"Xie Qing's family, I hope you remember what I said today." Zhu Youtang had agreed with Xie Qian's point of view just now, but now he seemed to be deliberately sarcastic and said to Xie Qian, "What you said in the past to make fun of him, I am still in my ears, and I also know that many people think that I think too highly of him. But others don’t know why, but you are in the court, don’t you know?”

Xie Qian went back in despair this time.

"It has been almost three years since Bingkuan entered the court. I believe you all have noticed the improvement in the situation in the northwest border towns. I want the country to have a strong military and will attach importance to those capable ministers. There is nothing wrong with that. Ahem. "Zhu Youtang coughed twice and seemed to have finished half of what he said.

Then Li Rong came out and said, "Zhang Zhou, the Minister of War, submitted a copy."

When the ministers heard this, they wondered, was the emperor paving the way for Zhang Zhou to play a big game?
As soon as the emperor said he valued him, there was his memorial...

Li Rongdao: "The Ministry of War would like to allocate 20 taels of money from the imperial court to be used for shipbuilding and other matters in the south of the Yangtze River. The specific expenses have been sent to the Ministry of Accounts. Please give your Majesty's approval."

As soon as he won the battle in the northwest, Zhang Zhou began to ask for money and food from the court. It was not to contribute to the stability of the northwest frontier, but to increase funds for the shipbuilding in Jiangnan that had been stalled before?Or let the court directly make arrangements?

If Zhang Zhou was building ships based on his personal ability before, now Zhang Zhou seems to be testing the bottom line of the ministers.I can win the war, so I have the final say. I think we should continue to build ships, and you have to give me money...or you can come out to oppose it, and see who is more righteous!

This time Li Dongyang came out, with a hint of annoyance in his tone: "Your Majesty, the matter of Jianghuai shipbuilding has been recognized by the court early in the morning and should be suspended. Why do we need to bring up the old matter again today? I believe that this matter We should follow the previous advice and use money and food for urgent needs instead of using it for unnecessary planning."

You Zhang Bingkuan said that shipbuilding is to prevent pirates, but the problem of piracy does not seem to be that serious. You are obviously alarmist.

We are not saying that it is wrong to deny what you did. We are just saying that good steel should be used on the blade. Your approach of using the back of the knife to test our bottom line is simply shameless.

Li Rongdao: "Then Mr. Li Ge is opposed to this matter?"

"Yes." Li Dongyang replied very politely.

"But Zhang Shangshu seems to have considered this. In Zhang Shangshu's opinion, if the ship cannot be repaired before the coming year, it will not be able to make it to sea next year. There will be hurricanes every time it is hot in summer. Now is the time to plan for the coming year. At that time." Li Rong explained very seriously.

Li Dongyang said: "Then I dare to ask, can we make up for the consumption of 20 taels of silver by going to sea with ships? If not, what is the meaning of doing so?"

Li Rong smiled and said nothing, and looked back at Zhu Youtang. However, seeing that Zhu Youtang had no expression, Li Rong also stepped back and said nothing.

The atmosphere was a little weird.

Zhang Zhou's memorial was very inappropriate, and he once again put himself on the opposite side of the ministers.

"Let's discuss it later." Zhu Youtang said casually after the scene was silent for a long time.

Li Dongyang then returned with confusion.

Obviously Li Dongyang also felt that something was wrong. If he had been opposed to it before, when he was silent in the court, he suddenly seemed to realize that Zhang Zhou's actions seemed to have no meaning.

He was also thinking that it was Zhang Bingkuan who had stopped the shipbuilding project on his own before, but this time he suddenly brought it up again at such a juncture, knowing that we would definitely object, just to test whether we would succumb to his decision. ?

Next, Xiao Jing came forward and said: "There has been a detailed reply regarding the appointment and adjustment of the roster of local officials submitted by the Ministry of Civil Affairs. The Nanjing Ministry of Civil Affairs has not yet submitted a request for appointment of officials in Jiangsu and Zhejiang and other places. Your Majesty's intention, Nanjing will Many of the six ministries are slack in their duties, so we should send someone to supervise them."

The ministers present were confused for a while.

Send someone to Nanjing to supervise the work of Nanjing Sixth Department?What does this mean?
Xiao Jing said: "His Majesty's request is that Cheng Minzheng, Zuo Shilang of the Ministry of Civil Affairs and a scholar of Hanlin Academy, go to Nanjing to supervise and supervise the affairs."

Liu Jian came out and asked: "Your Majesty, I don't know what this means? If it is just to supervise the errands, just issue an imperial edict. There is no need to personally send important officials."

Xiao Jing replied on behalf of Zhu Youtang: "Mr. Liu Ge, Nanjing is the capital of Nanjing. It is involved in many affairs in the south of the Yangtze River, and officials do their own thing. Many of the previous invitations were suspected of appointing people for personal gain. Your Majesty, as the left minister of the Ministry of Personnel, Going there to supervise and supervise is for the purpose of making fair and arbitral decisions in employment. Referring to the major plans of the past years, we also need to review the officials in various parts of the south."

"This……"

Liu Jian couldn't say anything.

The emperor's careful management of officials is a good thing in the eyes of ministers.

If the person sent was Liu Jian's favorite, then there would be no problem at all, but the key is that the emperor sent Cheng Minzheng, and this was precisely the group of people who were first attracted by Zhang Zhou.

While the emperor was talking about rectifying the military affairs in the northwest, he was also going to take action on the officialdom in the south of the Yangtze River. Did he not tell the ministers present that the next step would be your turn?
Zhu Youtang said: "I don't think you have anything worthy of objection. Let's talk about the river work. This year's river work schedule has not been confirmed yet. I have just made a plan here. After it is reviewed by the Ministry of Household Affairs, I will make it to the court tomorrow. Let’s discuss it carefully.”

This time Zhong Zhong was a little confused.

The Ministry of Household Affairs gave out plans one after another. Regarding the allocation of money and food, the principle was to spread the rain and dew equally and not to favor one over the other.

The emperor didn't agree, but now he actually wants to take the initiative to come up with a plan and ask them to discuss it first and then bring it to the court to make a final decision?
Zhu Youtang didn't wait for the people present to express his words, and said again: "My dear friends, the news of victory in the northwest has arrived, and the next step is to discuss merit and reward. I will take the opinions of the Ministry of War and the Ministry of Rites. If you have any questions, It's best to make it clear in the memorial in the next two days. Merits, demerits, rewards and punishments are related to the vital interests of the soldiers, and I hope you will keep them in mind."

The minister felt uncomfortable hearing this.

Rewarding based on merit sounds reasonable and reasonable, but ministers have never been keen on spending money. It is best to punish them for faults, the more severe the better, and to downplay and praise them for merit.

The ministers of the DPRK like to do things such as arrears of silver rewards and official positions.

And if the arrears begin, the person who will make the ministers hate is Zhang Zhou, who is in charge of the Ministry of War. As the saying goes, it is transferring the hatred of the generals below to our political opponents. It is not very beautiful.

But maybe the emperor had already expected that they would argue about their merits, so he vaccinated them in advance.

……

……

The discussion in the court is lively.

Zhu Houzhao hid behind and listened, a little bored. Even when it came to military affairs, he had little thought. Yawning repeatedly, he finally leaned against the wall, holding his hands on the wall and closing his eyes and squinting.

"Your Highness, let me help you."

Liu Jin came over to serve him and was very considerate and extended his hand to help him.

But at this moment, it was time to build a ship, and Zhu Houzhao stared instantly.

In Zhu Houzhao's heart, there is a dream of wandering among the stars and the sea, which seems to make him more happy than going out to the grassland.

But then Li Dongyang came out and rejected Zhang Zhou's proposal.

"I'm so angry! Are you not allowed to build ships?" Zhu Houzhao was furious and was about to rush out to argue with Li Dongyang.

Fortunately, Liu Jin had quick eyesight and caught him.

"Your Highness, you can't show your face. His Majesty won't let you go out."

Before Liu Jin finished speaking, Wei Bin, who had been guarding behind, also came over. He was also glad that he did not let the prince succeed. It was his duty to stop the prince from doing stupid things, but Liu Jin took the lead.

Zhu Houzhao said: "A group of mediocre ministers only think about themselves. No wonder the father is angry. In contrast, if someone can be appreciated by the father by being lazy every day, no wonder!"

Liu Jin and Wei Bin both heard this and had wry smiles on their expressions.

The summary is to the point, but the problem is that children's words are unbridled. Who will take your words seriously?

It's better to wait until you take charge.

Zhu Houzhao was no longer interested in the following content. Until the end of the court meeting, Zhu Houzhao almost fell asleep leaning against the wall.

"Is it over?" Zhu Houzhao stretched his head and looked forward. The ministers had retreated, and even his father had left.

Wei Bin said: "The meeting is over. Your Highness, you can go back to the East Palace to rest first."

"Ah."

Zhu Hou responded, then stepped away.

Liu Jin asked: "Eunuch Wei, doesn't the prince need to go to the inner hall to meet the saint?"

Wei Bin smiled and shook his head.

……

……

After Liu Jin and Zhu Houzhao left for the East Palace, Wei Bin hurried back to Qianqing Palace to resume his duties.

Inside the Qianqing Palace.

Zhu Youtang was not very angry or excited. He achieved good results on the battlefield and raised some objections to the ministers... which made him feel very calm, as if this was the daily life of the court. Of course, this kind of daily joy, anger, sorrow, and joy were still Zhang Zhou brought it to him after he entered the court.

"Your Majesty, I think Mr. Li Ge did not object intentionally. The shipbuilding matter is indeed worthy of discussion." This time it was Li Rong who came out to make some objections.

Obviously that's not what Li Rong wanted to say.

It was Xiao Jing who forced him to say this. The euphemistic name was to speak out, but in fact it was to put pressure on Li Rong. You can't say nice things every time and leave it to us to be the bad guy.

Zhu Youtang said: "It's normal for them to object, but it's unusual not to object. It's better than me being angry in the past."

Zhu Youtang recalled the days when there was no Zhang Zhou. He was like a fool. He would do whatever the minister said, show enough respect to the minister, and then... when he was an emperor, he was less like an emperor and more like a rubber stamp. .

It's different now. Zhu Youtang's vision has been much improved than before. It doesn't matter what kind of joy, anger, sorrow, or joy you have. The most important thing is to be a theatergoer and see how you act.

Wei Bin said: "Your Majesty, the Crown Prince has returned to the East Palace. When the servants came over, they heard that Princess Yongkang had gone to pay her respects to the Empress Dowager again."

"This Yongkang, she didn't take my words to heart. I told her not to disturb the Queen Mother. Did she turn a deaf ear? I asked her to admit her mistake to Bingkuan, but she was stubborn and didn't do it... Go and tell her, I asked her She will leave the palace immediately, and all the merits, demerits, rewards and punishments involving Mao Ren will be decided by Bingkuan. With Mao Ren's merits, he has the potential to be crowned a knight, but he cannot really be crowned a knight. Whatever I say to the Empress Dowager doesn’t count, it just depends on how Bingkuan comes to talk to me!”

(End of this chapter)