Be an emperor from drawing cards

Chapter 75: The tiger's power is still there, and the people are suffering! 【Seek the first order】

After confirming from various channels that the Jin army was really withdrawing its troops, Huang Jingming urgently promoted him to generals.

"The Jin army has already withdrawn, and it's wasting money and food for us to stay here. The general manager has decided to withdraw troops one after another starting today, leaving only 1 troops stationed here to monitor the movement of the Jin army."

Huang Jingming looked around at the generals and said in a deep voice.

"As for the candidate for the guard, General Fang Chaofang."

Fang Chaoyue, who was named by Huang Jingming, clasped his fists.

"Chairman, the end will be here."

"Although the Jin army is withdrawing, don't be careless. You lead troops and horses to garrison here, and discuss everything with Wang Canjun."

"Follow the Commander's instructions."

Arrange the order of withdrawal of the generals, and this meeting ends here.

But Huang Jingming was still a little worried, so he personally told Wang Duruo.

"Du Ruo, although Fang Chao is cautious, it's hard to prevent Lu Linyuan from having any back-ups, so I can only give you a hard time, Du Ruo."

There is no way, Lu Linyuan is undisputedly known as the No. 1 general in the world, but the No. 2 general who follows him is right.

When dealing with this person, no matter how cautious you are, it's worth it.

In the past few years, he has left too many famous generals to kill...

Huang Jingming didn't want his fame to be ruined by this.

Wang Du Ruoning nodded and said: "Don't worry, Your Majesty, I understand the importance and will assist General Fang well."

The prestige of the tiger is still there.

No one dares to underestimate this Zijin Liang and White Jade Pillar of the Jin Kingdom.

However, neither Huang Jingming nor Wang Duruo expected that this time because of the earthquake in the Jin Dynasty, Lu Linyuan had no intention of playing with the Chu army, and retreated extremely neatly.

This time, the top and bottom of the Chu army's approach to the enemy could only be regarded as winking to the blind, and it was a waste of effort.

"When is the prince going to return to Beijing?"

Wang Duruo asked.

"After the second wave of soldiers has withdrawn, the old man will return to Shenjing with the Black Wolf Guard."

Huang Jingming had no intention of hiding it from his confidants, but now that he asked about it, he told him directly.

"It's pretty much what Xia Guan guessed." Wang Duruo said, "It's just that I think it's better for the prince to write a letter to Marquis De'an before departure and let him find an opportunity to test the attitude of the officials in the court."

"That's a very kind word." Huang Jingming thought for a while before agreeing.

"The old man will send a letter to Wen Bo to let him act according to plan. It's time to end the farce of these days..."

…………

"If you have something to play, you will retreat if there is nothing!"

Gao Lishi's sharp voice resounded in the Taiji Hall, and another day's court meeting began.

All the officials in the court looked at me and I looked at you, but they didn't speak.

"Your Majesty, I have an instruction book!"

Huang Wenbo held the wat board and said loudly.

Above the steps, Zhao Yu's eyes passed through the crown and fell on the submissive De'anhou.

"speak."

Zhao Yu's voice echoed in the hall.

As soon as Huang Wenbo bowed to the ground, his voice was as loud as a bell.

"Reporting to Your Majesty, I have recently received news that King Taihe has lived up to His Majesty's great trust and has forced the invading Jin army to retreat, and is now leading the troops back. Congratulations, Your Majesty, and Great Chu!"

As soon as Huang Wenbo's words came out, it was like throwing a huge rock into a river, causing huge waves to rise immediately.

"Is this true?"

"Then Lu Linyuan retired like this, there will be no fraud, right?"

"Have you forgotten what is the relationship between Marquis De'an and King Taihe? Marquis De'an can say this, he must have received definite news."

"Brother Li, tell me, did Marquis De'an say these words, was there someone's instruction?"

In the Tai Chi Hall, the courtiers were whispering and whispering, and countless eyes could not be fixed on Huang Wenbo and Zhao Yu.

It's a pity that Huang Wenbo's back was turned to everyone, and Zhao Yu was high up on the imperial court, and his face was covered by a hat, so his expression could not be seen clearly.

"quiet!"

Seeing that the court hall was as messy as a vegetable market in the early morning, Jiang Guangtao, the imperial censor in charge of court discipline, frowned.

As soon as these words were spoken, the noise in the court gradually disappeared.

Censor Zhongcheng is the boss of the Overwatch Council. No one among the hundreds of officials in this court wants to be written down in a notebook by the crows of the Overwatch Council for such a trivial matter.

"Taihe Wang Zuoshu has not arrived in the capital yet, and Marquis De'an's words are a bit premature." Zhao Yu said lightly, "However, if King Taihe really repels the Jin army, I will not forget what I said that day and lead all officials Go out to the outskirts of the city to welcome the army back in victory.”

After lightly revealing the incident, Zhao Yufang looked at the court officials.

"Do you have any important matters to play, gentlemen?"

"Your Majesty, I have the original play."

A voice sounded, and Zhao Yu looked, but it was Zhang Liuqi, the Minister of War.

"Your Majesty, on the southwest border, the friction between our troops and the Burmese troops is becoming increasingly fierce, and morale is unstable. In order to prevent the Burmese army from raiding, I would also like to ask your Majesty to allocate weapons and ammunition, food and military pay, so as to reassure the soldiers."

As soon as you heard that Taihe Wang is about to return to Beijing, you have a backbone again?

Zhao Yu glanced at Huang Wenbo, who was retreating into the queue, and saw that his face was calm, as if what Zhang Liuqi was playing had nothing to do with him.

But he was sure in his heart that Huang Wenbo must have got the news that his brother was about to lead the troops back to Beijing, so he made an agreement with those partisans, and he was waiting to launch an attack in today's court meeting.

It's just that it's hard for Zhao Yu to judge what their intentions are.

"If I remember correctly, about four months ago, King Taihe just wiped out a group of rebels in the southwest."

"Your Majesty, the rebels are rebels, and the Burmese army is the Burmese army. The two should not be confused."

Zhang Liuqi, Shangshu of the Ministry of War, corrected him.

"My minister once worked in the Southwest, so I have some understanding of the situation in the Southwest. Although our court has deployed nearly [-] soldiers on the border, one of the soldiers lacks training, and they go into battle for the first time without a bloody battle; the other is that they lack weapons and equipment. Therefore, it is more than enough to defend a big city, but it is beyond our power to protect a small county.

Therefore, the capital city was relatively stable, but the county and villages were repeatedly plundered by Burmese soldiers and horses, which made the people panic and prices soared.In addition, the southwestern tribes are inherently rebellious and disobedient to the king.

If the court cannot allocate more food, grass and equipment, if the delay lasts for a long time, public dissatisfaction breaks out and the Burmese army takes advantage of the opportunity to enter the country, it will be too late to regret it. "

"Is it so serious?"

"The Jin bandits have not retreated, and the Burmese bandits have come again. It is really a turbulent autumn..."

"The state's affairs are so difficult. As ministers of the court, we should forge ahead." When the courtiers heard the words, their complexions changed slightly, and there were many discussions.

"Since Zhang Shangshu said so, is it possible to solve the current situation as long as the southwestern frontier army is provided with good food, grass and military equipment, and paid enough money?"

Zhao Yu asked with a frown.

Zhang Liuqi bowed and bowed again, respectfully saying:
"Returning to Your Majesty, what I said is only some of the factors, and may not solve all the problems. But at least it can stabilize the situation in the southwest so that it will not continue to deteriorate."

As soon as Huang Jingming finished speaking, Zhou Rui, the left servant of the household department who temporarily held the post of secretary of the household department, came out and played:

"Your Majesty, although Zhang Shangshu's words are old-fashioned and prudent, at this moment, the Ministry of Households has no extra money."

"how is this possible?"

Zhao Yu couldn't help but raise his voice, and said displeasedly:

"If I remember correctly, there are at least 1000 and 1000 million taels of silver in the treasury. Don't tell me that all [-] and [-] million taels of silver have been spent by your household department."

"Returning to Your Majesty, there are indeed so many silver taels in the treasury, but the silver is all there is, so you can't move it lightly."

Zhou Rui had a look of helplessness on his face and explained:
"Your Majesty, part of the 1000 two million taels of silver is the salary of the officials of the DPRK and Central Government for the whole year this year. The other part is to be used by the Ministry of Revenue to repair the main rivers in the territory as much as possible in the next spring. Some rivers have been in disrepair for a long time and must be re-strengthened and repaired. Otherwise, when there are heavy rains in the coming summer, there may be a risk of the embankments bursting. Hiring people to repair dams will cost a lot of money and food. In addition, The army’s military pay, food and salary, as well as the disaster relief expenses in Lingchuan Mansion, and..."

Zhou Rui is worthy of being from the Ministry of Household Affairs. The expenses at every place are poured out of his mouth like beans. The expenses at each place range from 10,000+ to tens of thousands. The amount does not seem too big, but he can't help but spend money. There are just too many.

Adding all these things together, the remaining 1000 two million taels of silver in the treasury is not even enough to spend.

"Your Majesty, the national treasury is really stretched, or your Majesty's internal treasury..."

It's not over yet, Zhou Rui, who was anxious to get angry, even set his eyes on Zhao Yu's internal treasury.

"I don't have many taels of silver in my inner treasury. In addition to all the expenses in the palace, I also have to leave some for Emperor Daxing to build the mausoleum... Mr. Zhou, please don't mention this matter again!"

Zhao Yu angrily interrupted the other party's words.

Zhou Rui stopped talking and returned to the queue.

"Gentlemen, let's discuss this matter. How should we deal with this matter?"

Zhao Yu asked with a headache.

"Your Majesty, as the saying goes, it's hard for a smart woman to live without rice. If it doesn't work, the only way to go is to increase taxes."

Zhang Chao, Minister of Dali Temple, came out and said in a deep voice.

Zhao Yu frowned and said coldly:

"Zhang Qing, do you know what you're talking about? At the beginning of September, the autumn tax was just paid. It's only been three months, and the people have to raise taxes again. When I became the throne, I reduced or exempted the people's taxes. , now, do you want me to go back on my word?
Zhang Qing, I just want to ask you one thing. Do you want the people to poke me in the back and scold me? "

Hearing this, Zhang Chao's heart trembled, he knelt down on the ground and said:
"Your Majesty, I have no such intentions. It's just that at this time, there is no other way to increase the revenue of the treasury except to increase taxes. I think that, compared with infamy, what is really important is to prevent changes in the Southwest. If the Southwest If there is a rebellion between the Yue and Miao people, and the Burmese soldiers take advantage of the chaos to invade the pass, all the five prefectures south of the Jianing River will be in danger of being lost! Your Majesty, please take a closer look!"

The five prefectures mentioned by Zhang Chao were Baoxuan, Jiaxing, Jingyue, Annan and Suzhou, which occupied nearly a quarter of the entire territory of Chu.

These five prefectures are located in the southwest, and the folk customs are strong, and because they are located in the south of the Jianing River, across the river from the central part of the Great Chu, and because the Yue, Miao and other ethnic groups do not accept Wang Hua, the governance of these five prefectures has always been a problem for the Great Chu. central heart disease.

If these five prefectures really fell into the hands of Myanmar, then it would be very difficult to regain them.

Zhao Yu also knew that everything Zhang Chao said was the truth, but the problem he was facing now was to let him choose between national turmoil and loss of popular support.

The foundation of the ancestors and the hearts of the people, which is more important?
Although it is said that the two evils are the lesser, but when it was his turn to do this heavy multiple-choice question, Zhao Yu felt a little at a loss.

Because, his light will at the meeting will change the fate of tens of thousands, or even hundreds of thousands of people.

Seeing that Zhao Yu had not made a decision, Huang Wenbo glanced at him, and dozens of officials immediately came out, knelt down in front of the imperial steps, and said loudly:

"Please Your Majesty, for the sake of great Chu, please suffer the hardships of the people!"

Hearing the shouts of dozens of officials below, Zhao Yu's expression changed, and he felt something was wrong, but he was not sure what went wrong.

"Your Majesty, for the sake of Great Chu, this is a last resort, and please make a quick decision."

Jiang Guangtao, Zhongcheng of Yushi, Meng Chong, Minister of the Ministry of Officials, Zhong Yi, Minister of the Ministry of Punishment, and Zhang Liuqi, Minister of the Ministry of War, came out one after another to play the Tao.

Zhao Yu looked at the four people kneeling on the ground, and his heart suddenly became alarmed.

These four are all part of Huang Jingming's party!

So, is this all Huang Jingming’s instruction?
In order to destroy my low popularity among the common people?

Taking a look at Huang Wenbo standing in the line, Zhao Yu's heart tensed up.

This is not necessarily Huang Jingming's instigation, but Huang Wenbo definitely played a part in it.

Thinking of this, Zhao Yu only felt a toothache from hatred.

Damn it, if I hadn't been worried about Huang Jingming, I would have used the Zhang Ceka [Mountain Coin Mining] a long time ago. With four more veins, the finances would not have been so tight, let alone this group of ministers with ulterior motives. Put it on the fire!

"Your Majesty, please issue an imperial decree."

Dali Temple Minister Zhang Chao came out again and played loudly.

The Minister of Dali Temple is from the Empress Dowager Xuande, so the Empress Dowager Xuande teamed up with Huang Wenbo and the others?

That’s not right, this is adding insult to injury!

Zhao Yu's expression changed, his mind changed rapidly, and he thought of the key.

Seeing that the little emperor on the dragon throne still didn't move at all, Huang Wenbo smiled slightly and threw out his final trump card.

"Your Majesty, if it's too late, things will change. If the Southwest Frontier Army knows that His Majesty is hesitant about this matter, I don't know how they will feel in their hearts. Will they still be willing to shed their blood for Da Chu and fight the enemy bravely?"

Across the nine bead curtains, Zhao Yu glared at Huang Wenbo bitterly.

This old thief, is he threatening me?
He can not make this decree and increase taxes.

However, he dared not gamble.

Many generals in the Southwest Frontier Army are former disciples of Huang Jingming, and he dare not bet on Da Chu's country, betting that the Southwest Frontier Army will fight the enemy bravely and defend the country, instead of being defeated before the battle, it will be good Rivers and mountains are handed over to the enemy country.

It doesn't feel bad for the cub to sell his father's land.

He didn't dare to bet whether Huang Jingming would deliberately do this in order to damage the prestige of the Chu family's royal family.

After all, in the end, it was reported that the imperial court was unwilling to distribute food and salaries, which made the frontier army unmotivated and led to the loss of the Southwest.

In the end, this scapegoat will still be placed on himself, the emperor.

But after nearly three months of being an emperor, Zhao Yu gradually developed some of the depth of an emperor.

"Are Marquis De'an's actions threatening me?" Zhao Yu asked coldly.

Huang Wenbo fell to the ground to plead guilty.

"The humble minister has absolutely no such intentions."

"This matter is of great importance. Let's discuss it again. Retire!"

After the words fell, Zhao Yu stood up, and Gao Lishi, who was standing beside him, understood and sang loudly:

"Back—towards—"

(End of this chapter)