Ming Empire

Chapter 287 How to deal with Zheng Zhilong

After two days of rest, Cao Yue also had a secret talk with Sun Chuanting.

The second was to meet and talk in the private room of a teahouse by the Qinhuai River. Their whereabouts were kept extremely secret and they didn't want people to speculate too much.

"Old man Sun, during my absence in Nanjing, did anything unusual happen in Nanjing's official circles?" Cao Yue sipped his tea and said to Sun Chuanting lightly, "Tell me about the situation in Nanjing later, and pick the important ones." Say!"

"You want to hear from the old man," Sun Chuanting, who was also sipping tea, ignored Cao Yue's inquiry, and joked with a smile: "You brat, you are doing very well. Jiannu was beaten away. To be honest, I never thought that this hasty Northern Expedition would eliminate the threat of Jiannu. You really have two talents. Surprisingly, I convinced you. It's just that you kid, with such an arrangement, why didn't you reveal it to me? Are you afraid that the old man will reveal the secret?"

"Old man Sun, you now know that my strategy is far superior to yours?" Cao Yue rolled his eyes at Sun Chuanting in dissatisfaction, "Don't think that you are incompetent, others are just like you!"

These words immediately made Sun Chuanting stare bull-eyed, "Boy, you will be proud if you praise you? Huh, don't think that this old man has never commanded a war, I have made a lot of military exploits!"

"How can you brag about your tragic situation of being hunted down by bandits all over the world?" Cao Yue looked at Sun Chuanting with a look of contempt: "If I hadn't taken you in at the beginning, you would have been exiled to nowhere. If you are not convinced, how about letting you command the troops next time to wipe out the bandits of Li Zicheng and Zhang Xianzhong?"

Sun Chuanting couldn't help being furious when his scars were exposed. He stood up all of a sudden, but sat down again immediately, and smiled: "Stinky boy, you dare to use aggressive methods on me. I can't be fooled by you. The old man just stays there." Nanjing is fine, I don’t want to go anywhere. I am not familiar with the situation of the army you have trained, and I can’t command your army. After the war, I will not care about it, and you will be responsible for it. I am old. , I don’t want to bump on the horse’s back anymore, throw this old bone on the battlefield, and stay in Nanjing to enjoy the happiness in the future. Hehe, brat, don’t use aggressive methods, I won’t be fooled, even if I convince you, okay? ?”

"It's good to know the gap between yourself and others!" Cao Yue was also very proud of Sun Chuanting, but he also told Sun Chuanting honestly: "Old man Sun, in fact, this Northern Expedition can drive Jiannu away. , It was really a mistake, I never thought it would be like this beforehand."

"Ah?! It's like this!" Sun Chuanting didn't expect Cao Yue to say this, and he was a little surprised, "So this is not what you planned, and you didn't think about taking back Beijing after this battle?"

"Before the Northern Expedition, I always thought that Jiannu, who had wiped out nearly a million Ming troops, was very difficult to deal with. Who knew that Jiannu, who was originally known as the world's invincible, would be so ungrateful and helpless against the large-scale use of firearms by our Ming army. , the battle turned out to be one-sided, Jiannu only had to be beaten, and they lined up to die every day. Then I will not be polite, and directly send the navy to attack Beijing," Cao Yue said, and sighed with emotion He said, "Old man Sun, do you know that those tens of thousands of horses were originally planning to attack Cangzhou after attacking Tianjin Guards, and force Jiannu to return to Beijing to help Beijing. Who knew that Jiannu would turn out like this in the final battle? Driven away!"

"Hehe, you boy, your luck is really not ordinary!" Sun Chuanting was surprised when he heard that, but he couldn't help laughing happily, "Jianu is so easy to fight, you let the sailors attack directly I went to Beijing, and I didn’t expect Beijing to be easily breached. Haha, it seems that my Ming fortune has come back, and Jiannu’s vitality is exhausted! Boy, did you really defeat Jiannu with firearms? No other tricks?”

"Old man Sun, are you underestimating firearms now? Let me tell you, unless Jiannu is equipped with firearms on a large scale like our Ming army, there will be no chance of defeating our Ming army," Cao Yue glared at Sun Chuanting proudly , said with a look of contempt: "You have never commanded a large-scale use of firearms. One day, I will let you see for yourself how a large-scale use of firearms is fought. But I can tell you responsibly , Jiannu will never have a large army equipped with firearms, they don't have the technology and financial resources, which means they will never be able to defeat my Ming army."

"You mean, my Ming army is invincible?" Sun Chuanting stared at Cao Yue in disbelief, "Just brag, how is it possible?"

"Don't believe me, the Ming army commanded by me, Cao Yue, is invincible in the world. I will bring the war into a new mode, a mode you are not familiar with, and that is to use a large number of firearms. The huge lethality of firearms is far from Bows and arrows are comparable, but the development of firearms requires a lot of manpower, material resources, and financial resources. Only I, Daming, can afford it, and only I, Cao Yue, can fully understand these things. You old man Sun will never understand, and you will never understand. And understand how firearms will develop, let alone the ultimate trend that firearms will completely dominate the development of warfare, and bows, arrows, knives and guns will completely withdraw from the battlefield. Forget it, I won’t waste any time with you. Let’s just say it clearly. Don't worry about it, just leave it to me, it will definitely make you stunned!"

Sun Chuanting didn't care about Cao Yue's ridicule like this. He laughed and replied: "Boy, don't think that you can blow away in front of this old man just because you have made military achievements. No old man can fill you in for you in Nanjing. You Do you really think that you can completely control the government and firmly control those ministers? Hmph, isn't it because of your extraordinary ability that the old man will help you regardless of everything and help you accomplish things? If it were someone else, would you think Will you help me wholeheartedly like this old man?"

"Old man Sun, don't we just help each other? You help me achieve success, and I help you become famous. We don't want to do anything. We just want to save Daming from danger, so that people all over the world can live a prosperous and healthy life? Hmph Hmph," Cao Yue didn't bother to talk to Sun Chuanting about this, and after muttering a few words, he abruptly broke the topic, "Old man Sun, most of the ministers in the court are willing to listen to us. I also believe that they dare not mess around in front of you and me. I know the situation if you don’t talk about it today. But have you ever thought that there are many people outside the court that we can’t control?”

"Boy, the words are straightforward enough, the old man likes it!" Sun Chuanting stroked his gray beard and gave Cao Yue a thumbs up, "But I still want to tell you about the situation in Nanjing during this period, whether you know the situation or not. Also, what you said just now should be referring to Zheng Zhilong from Fujian, right? The old man also wants to tell you about this person, and I want to ask how you plan to deal with this person?"

(End of this chapter)