The First Gongsheng of Ming Dynasty

Chapter 507: The shelf life of military achievements

In Qingning Palace, Yongkang was waiting for Queen Mother Zhou to come out to see her.

But the Empress Dowager Zhou also took pains to deal with this granddaughter. Last time she said she wanted to cause trouble for Zhang Zhou, this time she said she wanted to find connections to put pressure on Zhang Zhou to get a good job for Cui Yuan... Relationships are good things. is yours.

Just do it.

I haven't come out to see you yet, so I'll let you wait outside.

"Is the Empress Dowager's worship of the Buddha over?" Yongkang waited for a long time. When he saw the eunuch Jiang Lu coming out, he hurriedly stepped forward to ask.

Jiang Lu apologized and said: "Back to the eldest princess, the Empress Dowager is still worshiping the Buddha, and the servants don't dare to come forward to disturb you. I think you should go back early. I think the Empress Dowager will not have time to see you today."

Yongkang frowned and said, "Does it take a day to worship Buddha?"

Jiang Lu smiled bitterly and did not answer.

If you have any objections, tell the old lady. Why are you staring at me, a servant who is delivering a message?

Yongkang had no choice but to go back and wait. Just when she was impatient and even wanted to break in, the eunuch Wei Bin, the eunuch Bingbi, the chief of etiquette, arrived. He brought Princess Yongkang the emperor's words: "...Your Highness, you You should go back earlier. His Majesty has ordered that you are not allowed to enter the palace without being summoned. What you are doing is against the rules."

Yongkang said: "It is for filial piety that I come to the palace to pay my respects to the Empress Dowager. Isn't this also wrong? My brother, the emperor, is the one who values ​​filial piety the most."

Wei Bin said: "Consort Cui has made great achievements again in Ningxia, killing 2000 enemies. Your Highness, you probably don't know about it, right?"

"What?" Yongkang's eyes widened upon hearing this.

Originally, she thought that Cui Yuan's performance in Shigou City was the limit of what her "useless husband" could do, so she wanted to quickly win over her husband while the freshness of her husband's achievements had not worn off. Errands from Jingying.

As a result, the shelf life of Cui Yuan's battle in Shigou City had not yet passed, and he received a greater achievement here, which really surprised Yongkang.

Even she was thinking, is the consort so powerful?
Why didn't I feel that before?Did I insult him?He is obviously a prince consort, so he has set a high standard on me!
"If you kill two thousand enemies, you can be awarded a title! I want to see the emperor!" Yongkang immediately realized that due to his husband's contribution, he could even get a title in one fell swoop.

Instantly, her target value also increased. Before, she just wanted to work as an errand in the Beijing camp, but now she wants to get a title. Even if it is worse, it should be equivalent to the title of Zhang Yanling, her sister-in-law's family. She should be a count, right?

Wei Bin seemed to have expected Yongkang's reaction, and he immediately smiled and said: "Your Majesty has something to tell you, saying that it is Cui Prince Consort's contribution that determines everything. Cai Guogong's opinion comes first. Cai Guogong thinks he can get Your Majesty will accept any kind of reward. Without Cai Guogong's recommendation, all of this... would not count."

"Brother, what are you talking about? The title was given by the royal family, could it be given by Zhang Bingkuan?"

Yongkang became angry when he heard it.

In order to get an errand in the Beijing camp, the emperor had given her a difficult problem and asked her to admit her mistakes to Zhang Zhou. Now that her husband has achieved such great achievements, he still has to be controlled by Zhang Zhou?

The key is that I am a member of the royal family, and Zhang Zhou is just a minister of the Ming Dynasty.

The royal brother doesn't take care of his own brother-in-law, but actually takes care of an outsider?There is no justice!

Wei Bin shook his head and said: "Your Majesty, since you already know what your Majesty said, there is no need to bother the Queen Mother anymore. Your Majesty also said that the Queen Mother will not pay attention to this kind of thing. You should go to the right person for this matter. Things may get done smoothly.”

Yongkang said: "Then you want me to beg Zhang Bingkuan? He is a minister of the Ming Dynasty."

Wei Bin hurriedly said: "Who is not a minister of the Ming Dynasty? Cai Guogong is now in charge of the Ministry of War, and Cui Guogong's contribution in this battle should at least be credited to Cai Guogong. Your Majesty uses Cai Guogong's opinions to determine the rewards of meritorious soldiers, which in itself There is nothing wrong with that. Therefore, Your Highness, you should observe etiquette and etiquette, and do not create any more problems for His Majesty."

This is to remind Yongkang that even if you are a princess, in the eyes of the emperor, you are all ministers, and your status depends on the emperor's mood. No one denies that you are a relative of the emperor, but when it comes to court affairs, it is not about the emperor. Relatives must have privileges.

On the contrary, Zhang Zhou, as the Minister of War, was qualified to judge the merits of the meritorious soldiers in the northwest. Is it wrong for the emperor to leave the matter of merit evaluation and reward to Zhang Zhou?

Is it in line with the principle of fairness and justice to let you Yongkang use the relationship between the emperor and the country for nothing?

"Then I dare to ask Eunuch Wei, what if Zhang Bingkuan is causing trouble for the palace and the prince-in-law, and does not want to give a reward, or he thinks that everyone else owes him?" Yongkang asked sternly.

"Haha." Wei Bin couldn't help but smile after hearing this, "Your Highness, Princess, you may have any misunderstandings about Duke Cai. Cai Guogong is able to achieve his current status and win your majesty's trust precisely because of him. Not only are they outstanding in talent, but they are also magnanimous, just like Marquis Anbian, Uncle Xinxin, or even Prince Consort Cui, who would not be recommended by him?"

Yongkang said: "The prince-in-law relied on his own ability to excel in the assessment."

Wei Bin said: "Your Highness, you may not know that Prince Consort Cui got the lesson plan from the Minister of Household Affairs Wang Shilang before the assessment, and Wang Shilang was the teacher of Yanwu Hall, and Yanwu Hall was founded by Cai Guogong. , you said... without Cai Guogong's permission, could this lesson plan be given to Prince Consort Cui casually? No one else would receive this treatment."

"You mean, all this is due to Zhang Bingkuan's special care?" Yongkang frowned.

Wei Bin's words are obviously different from her previous understanding. In her opinion, Zhang Zhou has opposed so many people since his rise. In essence, there is no big difference between Zhang Zhou and Li Guang. They are both villains who succeed in a short period of time, and she As the eldest princess, she holds a golden rice bowl.

A sycophant who is a loyal servant of the imperial court, no matter how awesome the sycophant is, can he be compared to the emperor's sister like me?
Wei Bin was about to salute and leave, but he did not forget to remind you: "Your Highness, I have reminded you of what should be said and what should not be said. Please don't cause problems to others anymore. If you are sincere, you want to come to Cai Guo The guild may give you the necessary help, or maybe give your consort a marquis. It is said that the titles of Marquis Weining and Marquis Anbian were obtained with the help of Cai Guogong, what do you think?"

Yongkang frowned.

As the eldest princess, a high-ranking lady, now she has to humble herself to beg Zhang Zhou?

"If I don't go, your majesty won't reward the consort for his merits?" Yongkang still wanted to struggle.

Wei Bin said: "There will definitely be acres of land and manors, but other things... Your Highness, a moment of loyalty can't change anything. If you and your consort can't maintain... a good relationship with Cai Guogong, then how can your Majesty rest assured in the future?" Why leave the military affairs to Prince Consort Cui? Duke Bao Guo’s failure to advance the army this time is not a small one. There are already people in the court who have participated in the impeachment. If you think about it carefully, you will understand! "

This is tantamount to explaining the emperor's purpose of doing this.

Let’s not talk about the relationship between Cui Yuan and Zhang Zhou. Let’s just say that you, the eldest princess, hold a grudge against Zhang Zhou, which means that your relationship is not good.

What I want in the future are generals who can obey Zhang Zhouyan, so that I can carry out my plan to pacify the grassland. Even if you are the imperial sister, if you and your wife cannot submit to Zhang Zhou, why should you ask for titles or official positions from me?
Take a negative example, Zhu Hui. Even if he was a general whom I trusted, just because he was not a member of Zhang Zhou’s faction, he would be severely punished if he made a mistake this time, and even use this to punish some people in the court. The old ministers gave them some rectification.

Now I only need Bingkuan's party members to control the military and government. If you and your wife are not, then please step aside.

Yongkang was angry, but he still followed Wei Bin and left Qingning Palace.

She was thinking angrily in her heart: "Brother, this is simply nepotism. You only trust Zhang Bingkuan, so you are not afraid of backlash? Since ancient times, rebellious ministers basically started from powerful ministers. Brother, you are playing with fire and burning yourself."

……

……

When Zhang Zhou was in the laboratory that day, the palace sent someone to deliver the reward. He did not send it to his home, but sent it directly to the courtyard of the laboratory.

More than a dozen boxes were placed across half of the yard, so that the craftsmen inside came out to join in the fun. At the same time, Zhu Feng and Xu Jing also came to join in the fun.

"Mr. Zhang, I heard that you contributed a lot to the great victory in the northwest. You are considered a god in this world. You can be sure of everything. Even if Kong Ming was alive, he would not be as good as you." Xu Jing did not It was a rare opportunity to meet Zhang Zhou despite being a promising person, and he obviously tried too hard to flatter him.

Zhu Feng looked on with envy.

But at the same time, he was also a little disappointed.

Because Zhu Feng remembered what his eldest brother had said to him, the Duke of Chengguo originally expected Zhu Feng to stabilize his position in the court, but as a result, Zhu Feng was unable to hold up the wall, and was willing to be an idler even though he was guarding his unique resources. , so that now it is almost sunset at Chengguo Gong's Mansion, which is not much better than Baoguo Gong's Mansion.

Zhang Zhou said: "The victory in the northwest is due to the bravery of the soldiers in killing the enemy, but there is also your merit in developing and manufacturing firearms. Let's take some out and share them with the people in the R&D department. According to the level of R&D points, each will get some. If there is anything difficult to separate, I can use some more money."

After all, many of the things the emperor rewards cannot be measured by money, or cannot be divided.

Zhang Zhou can take out some money on his own and give it as "bonus" to the people in the "R&D Department".

In fact, the R&D department is also responsible for manufacturing. The department is just a pretext. There is also "military merit" here. Whoever makes progress in certain aspects or can complete some necessary tasks for a long time can earn points, and use this to gain promotion and promotion. The rewards have already been formulated in detail.

Zhang Zhou uses an enterprise model to manage the Daming Firearms R&D department. Although Zhu Youtang is nominally the boss, in fact everything is under Zhang Zhou's control.

"Thank you, my lord!"

A bunch of people are still very happy, which means they have benefited from it.

Just when Zhang Zhou arranged for Liu Gui to take several valuable boxes to calculate the value, Zhu Feng came over and reminded him in a low voice: "Brother Zhang, these are gifts from the emperor. If you continue to distribute them like this, I'm afraid it won't be enough." Is it appropriate?"

Zhang Zhou said: "Your Majesty's intention is to reward those who have made meritorious services. If I am all alone, wouldn't it be criticized by others?"

Zhu Feng reminded: "I'm afraid that someone will say that you are buying people's hearts."

"I haven't bought the ministers of the court. How can the people who work for me be criticized if I give them some of the things given by His Majesty? Zhijie, it's good that you have such awareness, but Sometimes you need to be more open-minded as a human being."

As Zhang Zhou spoke, he turned back to Liu Gui and said, "Bring me 200 taels of silver."

"Yes." Liu Gui hurriedly led people to do things.

Zhu Feng still followed up and said: "Brother Zhang, after this battle, when will the next battle be?"

Zhang Zhou frowned and looked over, smiled and said: "How do you know that you are determined to go to the battlefield? I heard that even Cui Prince Consort can make contributions on the battlefield. Can't you suppress the excitement in your heart, rekindle your fighting spirit, and prepare to fight for the Ming Dynasty? Will you perform another extraordinary feat?"

Zhu Feng said with an annoyed look on his face: "I don't want to go, it's just..."

Finish.

Zhang Zhouyi knew after hearing this part of the words that Zhu Feng was "involuntarily". Even if Zhu Feng wanted to be a soft persimmon, the Chengguo Palace would put pressure on him, but Zhu Feng seemed to be very independent. That person, in Zhu Feng's opinion, is a trustworthy person who will usually do whatever is entrusted to him.

Zhang Zhou said: "Just wait, there will be a chance. We have agreed to go to the battlefield together next time. Unless there is a war that you must go to, otherwise you can continue to wait." Zhu Feng said: "I'm afraid I can wait, at home People can't wait. Recently, my family has made a marriage arrangement for me, and I will get married soon."

Zhang Zhou patted him on the shoulder and said, "Getting married is a good thing. Be independent as soon as possible. I'm optimistic about you."

At first hearing this, Zhu Feng was a little moved, feeling that Zhang Zhou was deeply trusted.

But when I thought about it again, I felt it was a bit nonsense. Is this my first time getting married?At my age, am I still not independent?It's really sarcastic without using any curse words.

"Sir, do you think you can arrange an errand for the students?" Xu Jing didn't dare to come forward at first, but when he saw that Zhang Zhou and Zhu Feng were almost done talking, he approached with a shy face.

Zhang Zhou said: "The iron mine in Yongping Prefecture still needs someone to take care of it. Otherwise, you can go to the Ministry of Civil Affairs and wait for selection, or you can use your ability to become a county magistrate around Gyeonggi. What do you think? "

"what?"

Xu Jing was startled. Judging from his expression, it was obvious that he was not happy.

It seems like you can do great things by following Zhang Zhou.

But if you accept the election and become a local magistrate, away from Zhang Zhou and the officialdom of the capital, it is a matter of course whether you will have the opportunity to continue to be an official in the future. The promotion of people to officials is just the beginning.

"If even the county magistrate is not satisfied, I don't know how to arrange it for you." Zhang Zhou waved his hand and said, "Then you go to the Yongping Mansion Iron Mine to provide support. Bohu will return to Beijing in a few days. You don’t need to call yourself a student in front of me, you and Bohu are equals."

Zhang Zhou was saying that Tang Yin is my junior brother and you are my student, which will harm your friendship with Tang Yin.

In fact, Zhang Zhou didn't intend to keep Xu Jing close to him. As for this person's abilities... Xu Jing was just a role model for a dandy. Tang Yin learned many of his arrogant characters from Xu Jing. No matter how you look at this person, there is nothing wrong with him. There is a stigma attached to the outstanding candidates, so if you really want to use them, you have to pay attention to other people's opinions.

I probably can only do some hard work and practice first.

……

……

Shouning Hou Mansion.

Zhang Heling got up very late that morning and didn't get up until noon to have breakfast, but the servant beside him was talking to him.

"How is the second brother doing? Has he received any military merits?" Zhang Heling knew that Cui Yuan had won military merits one after another. He was angry and remembered that he had also sent his second brother to the northwest this time.

The servant said: "Master, do you hope that the second master will have military merit or not?"

"Well...it's natural for an elder brother to want his younger brother to be better, but at his level, it's not that I look down on him. He will never have another chance in this life." Zhang Heling said bitterly.

The servant said with a charming smile: "I'm right, the second master did not receive military honors. I heard that he will be punished for slacking off in military affairs this time."

"Ha...ahem. What are you looking at? Do you think I am laughing at the second child?"

Zhang Heling breathed a sigh of relief.

Finally, the brothers have returned to normal levels and are starting from the same starting line.

The servant next to him looked embarrassed, as if to say, aren't you laughing?

Zhang Heling said: "Apart from the freeloader from the Cui family, who else has made meritorious deeds? Please report me to me. Let me see who they are."

The servant said: "Don't worry, sir. Apart from Cui Prince Consort, only the local soldiers and horses of Ningxia led by Governor Yang, as well as Uncle Xiangcheng and Marquis Wu'an may not be punished this time. The rest may have missed this battle." , I heard it almost caused a disaster."

"Really?" Zhang Heling said proudly, "Fortunately, I didn't go."

"I also heard that the person most responsible for the crime this time is Duke Baoguo. It is said that his whole family is now starting to feel in danger. If something goes wrong, the house may be ransacked." The servant continued to tell the gossip he had learned.

Zhang Heling sighed: "They don't understand my brother-in-law's character. Even if he loses the battle, he may not be charged with confiscation. Now he just made a small mistake, and at most he will be dismissed. It is estimated that he will make a comeback in a few years."

The servant was surprised. This marquis seemed to know the emperor quite well.

"That Zhang Bingkuan is so awesome. I asked him to catch up again and give me a greeting. I will treat him to a banquet later." Zhang Heling said.

The servant said: "Mr. Cai Guogong may not give you face. I heard that he doesn't accept banquets from anyone now, and he doesn't usually see guests. By the way, I had a letter sent to the eldest princess Yongkang's house earlier. Can you read it?"

Zhang Heling said: "The second brother is related to him by marriage, and I have nothing to do with their family. Why are you writing to me? When a man goes off to war, my mother-in-law can't bear it and wants me to knock on her door in the middle of the night?"

"what?"

The servant was stunned at first, then realized that his master had this habit of speaking.

By not saying it more harshly, it was already a favor to the eldest princess.

When Zhang Heling took the letter and read it, he immediately frowned, threw it aside and said, "It's really rare that I'm asked to be her lobbyist. I don't know what it means. I'm the kind of person who makes wedding clothes for others?"

"Master, what are you talking about?" The servant, who was illiterate, asked enthusiastically from the side.

Zhang Heling said: "That woman wants to reconcile with Zhang Bingkuan. She said that her man can get the title now, so let's talk about it. She also said that she will be deeply grateful when the thing is done. I thank her ancestors! I never do things for others, let alone She used to speak ill of me in front of my brother-in-law, and I will remember this grudge for the rest of my life."

The servant asked: "Do you need a reply?"

"Give her face." Zhang Heling stood up, rolled up his sleeves and said, "Bring me the seal from the Beijing camp. I have to go on patrol, and I will also go to the Yanwu Hall for a walk recently. From now on, don't call me "Master", just call me "General Zhang". No matter how unworthy it is, you can still call me Marquis! I am a teacher at the Yanwu Hall, and I have military exploits. Who dares to look down on me?"

"Yes, Lord Marquis!" the servant said with a shy face and a flattering look on his face.

……

……

The office of officials.

Li Dongyang arrived in person and met Ma Wensheng in the inner hall. The two sat down to discuss the planned rewards for their military exploits in the northwest, especially matters such as the promotion of meritorious officers and soldiers.

"In this battle, Prince Consort Cui Yuan performed very well. He defeated the Tatars with a small number and blocked the Tatars from crossing the river. In terms of merit, he can be promoted to the rank of Bo, but everything depends on His Majesty's wishes."

Ma Wensheng is relatively neutral on this matter.

First of all, Cui Yuan was not a member of Zhang Zhou's faction, but his status as a relative was not pleasing to the eye. He only talked about military achievements. Ma Wensheng felt that his ideas were not biased.

Li Dongyang said: "There has never been a commoner who has been in charge of the army before. When he first entered the battlefield, he made extraordinary achievements. Do you think, Mabu Tang, that he can be promoted to the title of world official? This will have a great impact on the order of the court. ah."

Obviously, the cabinet represented by Li Dongyang does not want to promote Cui Yuan.

Ma Wensheng smiled and said: "If compared with Wang Bo'an, Cui Yuan's achievements are indeed nothing."

It's okay to give him a title, but if you have to be careful and find a standard to use as a caliper, then use Wang Shouren.

Wang Shouren fought several battles, once again against Weininghai and Liaodong Ping Jurchen, and then made a surprise attack on the grassland, killing more than [-] enemies, and only managed to defeat Xinjian Bo.

In other words, in the future, those who have not surpassed Wang Shouren's meritorious service will not be discussed for promotion to a title.

Wang Shouren was the last of a series of people recommended by Zhang Zhou to obtain the title. He could also be regarded as the "keeper". Wang Shouren was regarded as an insurmountable standard. From now on, he would only make a fuss about promotions and financial rewards.

Li Dongyang said: "I heard one thing. His Majesty handed over the judgment of Cui Yuan's military merit to Zhang Bingkuan. He also took Zhang Bingkuan's opinion first to decide whether he could be promoted to a higher rank."

"How do you know?" Ma Wensheng was curious.

This is kind of a secret.

Your cabinet's news channels are all unique, so why haven't I, the Minister of Civil Affairs, heard about it?
Li Dongyang remained silent.

In this way, even Ma Wensheng figured out that if the news could be spread generally, then Li Dongyang had no need to cover it up and couldn't say...that means the channel was kept confidential, and this was probably news coming from the palace.

"Then Binzhi, do you think Zhang Bingkuan will look at Cui Yuan differently? In terms of talent and knowledge, I'm afraid he can't compare with Wang Bo'an. There are many people in the court who are better than him. In terms of bravery, Cui Yuan may not be better. He can be described as a layman when it comes to military matters."

Ma Wensheng was also unkind when he evaluated Cui Yuan.

Li Dongyang said: "Brother Futu, didn't you think before that he should be knighted?"

"Winning a title and gaining power are two different things. The imperial court dares to hand over the responsibility of defense in the northwest to such a fledgling relative? Even if His Majesty and Zhang Bingkuan have this intention, the military will not be convinced unless..."

"Unless what?" Li Dongyang asked.

Ma Wensheng said unceremoniously: "Unless he can have connections in the court to support him. Binzhi, you should know what I mean, right?"

The implication is that as long as our traditional faction supports him, he is qualified to gain a foothold.

(End of this chapter)