The First Gongsheng of Ming Dynasty

Fusi, North Town, inside the imperial edict.

Zhu Hui, the Duke of Bao Guo, was escorted to Beijing and detained in the imperial prison. The Zhu family also moved around through various relationships, and finally had the opportunity for Zhu Hui's eldest son Zhu Qi to visit his father in the cell. When father and son met, they also met each other. Being speechless made Zhu Hui burst into tears.

"It's all my father's fault. If I had been more resolute in sending troops for my father, I wouldn't have ended up like this. Zhang Bingkuan harmed me!"

Zhu Hui seemed to have realized where his mistake was. After thinking about it these days, he had found the crux of the problem, which was the rise of Zhang Zhou.

If it weren't for Zhang Zhou, why would the emperor continue to trust these people and let him, a coach who "won the battle," be sent to prison without anyone to speak for him?

"Is everyone in the house okay?" Zhu Hui asked.

Zhu Qi lowered his head, not knowing how to deal with this father. Zhu Qi himself was nearly forty years old, and he was already half an old man. In addition, the changes in his family also made him look a little more vicissitudes of life.

"My father has known everything for a long time, why do you have to hide it? Just tell me!" Zhu Hui was quite impressive in front of his son.

Zhu Qi said: "The family is in a very bad situation. Initially, my son, Tianlin and Tianxiang were both sentenced to prison, and all the family property was confiscated. Even my married sister was implicated. But fortunately, we can smooth out the relationship later, so we won't let it go for the time being." Despite our crimes, we can barely survive now only with the help of some old colleagues."

Zhu Hui frowned and said, "Then where are you staying now?"

Zhu Qi was a little reluctant to say it. After Zhu Hui's continuous questioning, he said: "I found a village to stay outside the city. Most of the servants at home have been transferred to official positions. There is no place to stay in the city. The officers and soldiers They also come for extortion one after another, especially Jin Yiwei. Every time he comes, he has to be pawned and borrowed from his family in order to cope with it, otherwise... the consequences will be disastrous."

"Bastard!"

Zhu Hui was disheveled and had a few straws on his head, but he was still furious, "Those bastard turtles, I gave them a lot of benefits at the beginning, why did you do this to me? Now it's just me. That’s all, but you’re blackmailing my family? Didn’t you find someone to report it to?”

Zhu Qi said: "It's useless. His Majesty ordered a strict investigation, and father... you may have offended too many people before, so now no one is willing to help speak."

Zhu Hui was stunned for a moment.

He has been waiting for someone in the court to speak up for him, showing that he also had a role in dispatching in this battle. The victory on the battlefield was at least the result of him containing and paralyzing the enemy. How could he win a big victory? The commander should be arrested and interrogated first. of?

After the good news, there is no one to speak to the coach?
In Zhu Hui's opinion, is this still justified?

But the current situation of the court is like this... Wu Xun himself is not favored by civil servants, and Zhu Hui seems to be in opposition to Zhang Zhou, which led to today's results. The so-called enemy of the enemy is also a friend, and civil servants should speak for Zhu Hui.

The problem is that Zhu Hui himself did not say how close he was to the civil servants, and his performance in this battle was indeed shocking. This made Zhu Hui a loner in the court, and everyone was afraid to avoid him.

"Zhang Bingkuan... Cai Guogong should move around more. I sent a message back to the capital earlier, asking you to send gifts. Didn't you send them?" Zhu Hui then thought that the only person who could save him now was Zhang Zhou.

No matter how much you hate Zhang Zhou in your heart, when your life is hanging by a thread, you should still turn to the most powerful minister in front of the emperor for help.

Zhu Qi said helplessly: "I went to give gifts a long time ago, and even met Cai Guogong in person. However, he may have learned some information from His Majesty in advance and did not accept the gifts. Moreover, Cai Guogong personally came forward in the subsequent house searches and other matters. It seems that His Majesty wants to take the lead, and our family... may have been framed by Cai Guogong."

"Be careful what you say, my son!"

When Zhu Hui was in Jinyiwei's prison, he did not hesitate to scold Jinyiwei for being ungrateful, but he did not dare to speak ill of Zhang Zhou casually.

Just because Zhu Hui knew that if he scolded Jin Yiwei, he would be targeted and hostile by Jin Yiwei at most, but if his attack on Zhang Zhou fell into the ears of the emperor, he would be close to death.

"And recently, Cai Guogong was not in Beijing. I thought he was going to Ji Town to lead the army, but I heard that he was going to mine. The factory guards were targeting officials' families in the local area, including Yongping Mansion. Due to conflicts over mining in the local area, six or seven families were confiscated, which made everyone in the local area feel in danger." Zhu Qi told his father all the news he learned.

I also want Zhu Hui to help with the details.

Zhu Hui said: "He is not in Beijing? Does it mean that His Majesty has something to do and it is not convenient for him to come forward?"

"Father, you mean..."

Zhu Qi knew that although this old father had always been a veteran in military management and had no potential to be a famous general, his political consciousness was not low.

Especially now that Zhu Hui is still in prison, when every move of Zhang Zhou is related to Zhu Hui's life, Zhu Hui's political consciousness is also very high.

Zhu Hui sighed: "As a father, I am just guessing. Your Majesty relies so heavily on Cai Guogong just for mining, and you will not let him go to Yongping Mansion. Or if there are any major purges, reforms, etc. in the capital, Your Majesty wants Cai Guogong to go first." What about avoidance? When the grassland war broke out, he also went to Nanjing, and after the war was settled, he returned to Beijing. Things were not that coincidental. "

Zhu Qi nodded and said: "What my father said is possible. At present, His Majesty has sent orders to the border towns, asking them to send troops to patrol the grasslands in an attempt to force the Tatars to retreat to the desert. Father, you see Is it related to this matter?"

Zhu Hui shook his head and said: "In the original battle on the grassland, Zhang Bingkuan avoided it because he was not yet the Minister of War. Now he is the Minister. If it is just for fighting, how can he avoid it? Your Majesty has not taken any action against high-ranking officials in the DPRK recently. Knife?”

"No...I haven't heard of it." Zhu Qi thought about it seriously.

Although the Zhu family is in trouble now, there are still many news channels. The point is that the Zhu family now relies on these news channels to support them.

Zhu Hui said with a sad look on his face: "If this is the case, wouldn't this knife fall on my father's neck?"

"Father, you should be more open-minded." Zhu Qi did not believe his father's judgment this time.

Obviously, Zhu Hui is now a tortoise in trouble, unable to even stretch his head out. Who gave you the courage, father, to think that His Majesty is going to use a knife on you, and you still need to ask Zhang Bingkuan to avoid it?
"It's hard to say. In this way, your father's fate depends on whether you can move." Zhu Hui said, "I heard that although Zhang Bingkuan seems to be upright, he is also greedy for money and lust. His greed for money is for His Majesty. Now We can’t give it to you, so we can only start with another item.”

Zhu Qi said: "But father, our family doesn't have the ability to do other things now."

Zhu Hui said angrily: "Don't you still have two daughters? And your two younger sisters..."

"Father!" Zhu Qi was not happy when he heard this. He wanted to make the Zhu family a laughing stock in the court.He quickly defended, "My younger sister has already married into the Xu family. Besides, my younger sister is arrogant and arrogant. It is impossible for her to be willing to be treated as a concubine."

Zhu Hui had two daughters. The eldest daughter married Xu Qi, the Marquis of Yongkang, but she died within two years.

Then the second daughter... renewed Xu Qi's marriage and filled in the house.

This is also very common in the Ming Dynasty. After the wife dies, the sister-in-law is used to fill the house... But most of them come from ordinary families, mainly due to complicated matters such as resignation, and this situation is rare for wealthy families.

"As a father, you can marry your own daughter however you want. Aren't family matters more important? Doesn't the Xu family dislike us for marrying our daughter and hurting them? But there is no need to maintain this marriage! The Zhu family does not need to look at other people's faces. ! Especially those who are married to in-laws!"

Zhu Hui also found out from his son that he was in trouble, and even his daughter who married into the Yongkang Marquis' mansion was also affected, and the Xu family was about to kick people out.

That's why Zhu Hui felt that his women should make some sacrifices for the family.

In order to protect himself, Zhu Hui did everything he could.

"Then I went to pay a visit to Mr. Xie Ge. I heard that he had a chivalrous heart, so I went to tell him that my father had learned that His Majesty would take advantage of Zhang Bingkuan's departure from the capital to carry out some sort of clean-up in the court. We'll tip him off in advance in exchange for letting him speak for us," Zhu Hui said.

Zhu Qi said: "Father, just with this news, it will be difficult for Mr. Xie Ge to help."

Zhu Hui said coldly: "How do you know if you don't try? When my father was in the government and the public, his interpersonal relationships were pretty good. He also made it clear to Xie that if he didn't help, there was no guarantee that someone would treat them like this in the future. The group of people are used as a backer. When someone gets into trouble, they don’t come to help, and they still expect others to rely on them?"

Zhu Qi asked: "Then father, are you here to curry favor or to threaten?" "According to circumstances!" Zhu Hui said, "Remember not to always think about coming to see your father. Use your money where it should be used, but you must remember to curry favor." Good Lord Cai Guo. He may be the last hope of my Zhu family! My father’s life doesn’t matter, the title... was earned by your grandfather with his life. If you lose your father... I will have no face to face you!"

……

……

The Royal Palace, inside Kunning Palace.

In front of the table, Zhu Youtang sat on one side, Queen Zhang sat on the other side, and Concubine Xian sat on the other side. In the absence of several children, Zhu Youtang rarely felt the harmony of the family.

This was something he had never felt before, a sense of male pride.

Xiao Jing stood aside, smiled and displayed a list in front of Zhu Youtang, and said: "Your Majesty, this is the list of tributes from Duoyan Guard, as well as Duoyan Guard's left governor A'er Qiman and his two sons, and Many leaders have decided to submit to the Ming Dynasty and accept the arrangements made by the Ming Dynasty, all in accordance with the etiquette of submission in the fire sieve."

Zhu Youtang looked proud and said with a smile: "Very good. This army has just set out for the campaign. Before the border troops everywhere made any moves, the Duoyan Guards had already surrendered. It seems that the two years of fighting were not in vain." beat."

Xiao Jing said: "This is your Majesty's great kindness. There is also Cai Guogong strategizing from the side."

Zhu Youtang looked at Queen Zhang and said: "Queen, look, Duoyan has surrendered. They used to be entrenched on the grassland. They were vassals to the Ming Dynasty, but in fact they were just a group of bandits, serving as the little Tatar prince of the grassland. Lord, I am impressed by the military power of the Ming Dynasty. I will move to the borders of the Ming Dynasty in the future. Some of them will be allowed to graze, and some will be allowed to farm directly. This is the best."

Queen Zhang didn't seem to be interested in this, but she put down a piece of silk in her hand and said, "Your Majesty, if they surrender, will they not have to fight in the future?"

"It's a little early to say this." Zhu Youtang said, "Duoyan has been defeated before, and they were not a threat in the first place. Speaking of which, in addition to Bingkuan's credit, Ji Town Governor Liu Yu sent troops in time, and also If he can act as a deterrent, he should be able to take credit.”

Xiao Jing didn't know how to describe this matter.

Duoyan Wei surrendered, but it just happened to happen that Liu Yu sent troops to the direction of the ancient city of Daning. Who knew that Liu Yu would take a big advantage?
"I'm issuing a commendation." Zhu Youtang said, "I feel more and more that since Bingkuan is willing to go out to see Liu Yu before going to find the veins, he must have certain abilities, and such a talent should be taken seriously. "

Xiao Jing said: "What your Majesty said is absolutely true. Governor Liu must be capable, but everything is not yet certain. Cai Guogong has not recommended this person before."

"Oh, Bingkuan hasn't recommended him yet... There are so many talented people around Bingkuan, so it's time to check out Liu Yu and say hello to the officials. If this person can continue to make meritorious services, he can be transferred back to the capital as appropriate. Entrusted with important tasks.”

At this point, Zhu Youtang seemed a little too obsessed with Liu Yu's abilities.

Xiao Jing reminded: "Your Majesty, even Yang Yiqing, the governor of Ningxia who has made outstanding contributions, is not qualified to return to the court and be entrusted with important tasks."

Zhu Youtang said: "This is different. Although Yang Yiqing was recommended by Bingkuan, he is arrogant and rude, and he may not be willing to be used by Bingkuan. But this Liu Yu is different. From the news that was sent back before, he In terms of Bingkuan's courtesy, it can be seen that he is willing to follow Bingkuan's lead, and only such a person is more suitable to assist Bingkuan in running the army and using troops."

Empress Zhang reminded: "Your Majesty, my concubine's two younger brothers are also willing to serve the court."

"Haha." Zhu Youtang said with a smile, "I have already thought about it. Didn't I have people go to show merit to Yan Ling before? Although Yan Ling did not actually achieve great achievements in Ningxia, it is said that he dared to take the lead. , His courage is commendable, although there is still a gap between him and Cui Yuan, but the gap will become smaller and smaller."

Empress Zhang was very unhappy after hearing this, and seemed to pout slightly and said: "I don't believe that a prince-in-law is really that capable. It's up to Cai Guogong to give him a chance."

"Oh, queen, don't worry about such a trivial matter. Bingkuan will treat everyone equally. Next time, he must make a good plan for Heling and Yanling so that they can make contributions and show the prestige of the Zhang family. In this way, pass on to me According to the decree, Yanling will cooperate with Yang Yiqing to fight in Liaodong. As long as he can return triumphantly, I can make him the Marquis of Jianchang!"

"By the way, let Bingkuan write and give him some guidance. Don't say I won't give him a chance."

……

……

The news of Duoyanwei's surrender quickly spread throughout the court.

Although the threat of Duoyan Guard to the Ming Dynasty is not great, it is always a major hidden danger in Liaodong, and the surrender of Duoyan Guard this time happens to be at the same time as the emperor mobilizes troops from Jiubian to patrol the border, which will make all this seem incomprehensible. It was the result of the emperor's careful planning.

Look.

I worked hard and sent troops to scare the Tatars, but the Tatars actually surrendered without being scared!

How wise and mighty am I?
So when the civil servants heard the news, many people were not happy for the court, because for the civil servants in the middle of the Ming Dynasty, the idea they had always implemented was to suppress the expansion of imperial power, although no one in the Ming Dynasty was They express this point of view on the surface, but their usual performance has always been to demonstrate this matter personally.

"... Governor Duoyanwei and others will arrive in the capital in more than ten days, taking the road from Ji Town. If everything goes as planned, then from Ji Town to Daning, and hundreds of miles further north, there will be no There are signs of Tatar activity. The pressure in Liaodong will be reduced a lot..."

At Li Dongyang's house, Ma Wensheng explained the news he had learned to Li Dongyang in detail.

Li Dongyang asked: "Zhang Bingkuan is in Yongping, what's going on?"

By implication, how much does Zhang Bingkuan have to do with this matter?

Ma Wensheng shook his head and said: "It happened suddenly, and the news was actually puzzling. Logically speaking, the Tatars can completely move north, but they are not forced to move their clans to the north. The Ming Dynasty's border patrol war will not It might be drastic, but there’s really no reason.”

Even Ma Wensheng would feel that Duoyanwei is a bit useless.

The grassland is so big, Ming Dynasty was just doing some activities on the border. In name, it was patrolling, but in fact it was just to go in and walk around to show the emperor's majesty.

In the end, you were really frightened... and you took the initiative to surrender. You said that you Duoyanwei didn't even give up your ancestral family property, so you were so willing to serve as a hawk for the Ming Dynasty to shield the rest of the Tatar tribes?

Li Dongyang said: "In the past few years, there have been many things going on in the border areas, which are different from the past."

Ma Wensheng asked with a smile: "It's Zhang Bingkuan's contribution. So is it mostly the merit or the fault?"

It is difficult for Li Dongyang to answer this question.

If any normal person were to answer this question, they would think that Zhang Zhou’s merits outweigh his faults, or that Zhang Zhou had no faults, only merits.

But from the perspective of civil servants, there is no reason to highlight the prestige of political opponents.

Ma Wensheng said: "Bin, you looked down on Liu Yu before. This time Liu Yu sent troops to Daning, but it became the last straw that broke the Duoyan defense line. Your Majesty has issued a decree to reward you. I heard that the reward is higher than the previous supervision." Yang Yiqing, who is responsible for Ningxia's military affairs, is even bigger. Moreover, Liu Yu has more qualifications in the past. If he enters the court, he will probably start his official career as a minister."

This is a reminder to Li Dongyang.

No matter whether you take a fancy to Liu Yu or not, or you think this person is just unlucky, at least he is recognized by the emperor.

Although Liu Yu and Yang Yiqing were both Jinshi in the eighth year of Chenghua, their circumstances were different. Liu Yu's official career was obviously much smoother than Yang Yiqing's, and from the evaluation of the Ministry of Officials, Yang Yiqing's past achievements were not as good as Liu Yu's. And Liu Yu has richer official experience than Yang Yiqing.

The result is.

Liu Yu joined the court as a minister, which was a formal process, but Yang Yiqing could only continue to work hard in the border town and continue to look for opportunities. (End of chapter)