Chapter 186 Please obey the public opinion!
The civil servants and gentry were very interested in His Majesty the Emperor's civil service, but they had little interest in His Majesty's martial arts, and were even disgusted! Rebuked as an unkind and unwise act by the king!
Moreover, they can cite many such examples, such as Emperor Sui Yang who conquered Goryeo.
Just like in the original history, after the righteous Zhu Houzhao in the original history won the victory in the Battle of Yingtian, the civil servants directly said at the beginning that the emperor was defeated.
And now, the same is true for the current civil servants of the Ming Dynasty. They are not unwise, but instinctively hope for such a result, making each and every false rumor become reality.
Xu Jin, the second assistant to the cabinet who stayed in the capital, Liu Yu, who was newly transferred to the Ministry of War, and Tu Yu, the censor of Zuodu, were really panicked after hearing the news. They were really worried that something might happen to His Majesty.
After all, the Ming Dynasty doesn’t have a prince yet!
Of course, there are also many officials who are secretly rejoicing. They are saying that this is nothing more than the second civil fortress incident. It is best that the emperor is dead. If even if he is not dead and captured, he can choose a vassal king to be the emperor temporarily. , imitating the example of the previous dynasty!
"Second Assistant! And all the ministers! If Your Majesty really doesn't return from the northern expedition, I don't know who can be Yu Qian!"
Liang Chu, the left minister of the Ministry of Rites and the director of the Hanlin Academy, said this at the urgent court meeting convened by Xu Jin. However, Xu Jin and Liu Yu, the minister of the Ministry of War, both had dark faces. They did not dare to do what Yu Qian did. After all, no one could Know what happened to Yu Qian.
"That's right! As the young master said, if the emperor really refuses to return to the northern hunt, he cannot give up the country because of the emperor. We should make plans early!" Li Tiantian, the thirteenth censor, agreed.
"What plans have you made in advance? The Ministry of War has not received the report from Datong, and the Cabinet and the Supervisor of Ceremonies have not received the approval of His Majesty's decree. Everything is just a rumor. It is not known whether the Emperor will hunt in the north!"
Xu Jin, the second assistant, knew at this time that the only thing the capital had to do now was not to cause chaos because of any news. Therefore, no matter what the civil servants below said, he still did not take any measures on the grounds that the official document had not arrived.
But at this time, the civil servants had already begun to accuse Xu Jin.
For example, at this time, He Tai, the official of the Ministry of Science and Technology, said: "Master Second Assistant! Now you are in charge of the capital! Your Majesty is going to the border town with the Chief Assistant of the Cabinet and the Chief of Ceremonies. If they go with Your Majesty to hunt in the north and have not returned, , naturally it is difficult to report to Beijing for a while, but you can't be stubborn, you should deal with it as soon as possible! This is what Zaifu did!"
Xu Jin knew that these civil servants were clearly forcing him to be Yu Qian, and led them to establish a new vassal king as the emperor. First, implement this matter. By then, no matter whether Zhu Houzhao is dead or alive, as long as the capital has an emperor , then Zhu Houzhao can naturally be abandoned.
"What kind of prime minister? I don't have a prime minister in the Ming Dynasty, only ministers! Are you trying to force Xu to be a person who wields power!"
Therefore, Xu Jin was not polite and directly responded to the words of the science and technology official He Tai. He knew that at this time, as a member of the Zhongjun Club, it was best to remain unchanged in response to the changes before getting the exact news. strategy.
At this time, Tu Fu, the censor of Zuodu, couldn't help but ask: "Then according to what you said, how should we change?"
"Of course, you have to enter the palace, ask the Queen Mother to give you an edict, choose a new king, first coordinate the officers and troops left in the capital, and then order the soldiers and horses from all over the world to come to the capital to serve the king, just like Zheng Jingtai's example!"
At this time, Cai Zhen, the commander-in-chief of the Prince Consort, suddenly stood up and said that he was Zhu Houzhao's uncle, and he was Princess Chun'an, the daughter of Chenghua. As a representative of the ancestral relatives, he knew that none of the officials present dared to speak out about establishing a new emperor. Because of this, The previous incident involving Zhang Sheng, the Minister of Rites, so he took the initiative to stand up.
"Why did the Prince Consort get involved? Why didn't he avoid being suspected of interfering in politics?" Xu Jin replied coldly.
"This Captain is your Majesty's uncle! The establishment of a new emperor is a family matter of the Zhu family, so I cannot get involved!"
The Prince-in-law Cai Zhen was furious. As a man who was famous for interrogating Liu Jin in history, he was not willing to just be a retired relative in this life. This was because the emperor Zhu Houzhao wanted to use force externally and hegemony internally. His governance style has also affected the interests of his relatives.
"I want to say one more thing! I will never believe any rumors before getting an official document! And His Majesty had already said before leaving Beijing that his trip to Datong this time was not to personally conquer the Great Wall, but to hunt outside the Great Wall and unite with other people. Let’s kill the stubborn bandits together! Your Majesty has repeatedly told me that no matter what happens, the capital must not act rashly before receiving the imperial decree. If not, I have the right to kill them first and then report them!”
Xu Jin said, taking out Zhu Houzhao's Shangfang Sword, and shouted again: "Now is not the time to disturb the Queen Mother! If anyone among you dares to be the second Zhang Sheng and wants to force the palace, then first ask me about the Shangfang Sword in my hand. Can you agree?”
"Vulgar! Vulgar! Since he is a member of the imperial court and the second assistant is the pillar of the country, why do you do such a martial act! It is really unreasonable and unreasonable!"
Mao Cheng, the Minister of Rites, was quite unhappy about this. He did not expect Xu Jinwei to directly draw his sword and threaten him.
Liang Chu, the left minister of the Ministry of Rites, and Jiang Mian, the minister of Zhan Shifu, both glared at Xu Jin because of this. They did not expect that Xu Jin would be insecure and refused to obey the public opinion on this matter.
But Li Tiantian, the thirteenth imperial censor, still stood up: "In any case, Sir Cifu, please obey the public opinion!"
He Tai, the science and technology official, also stood up: "Please, Mr. Cifu, please obey the public opinion!"
……
Because of a rumor, people in the capital were restless, and they even wanted to stage a drama of forcing the second assistant to establish a new king. At this time, the people in Bian Town were also restless because of this.
It stands to reason.
After the main force of the little prince was completely wiped out, and even he himself was captured alive by the Guards Battalion, this was the best time for the Ming Dynasty army to regain the Hetao. However, at this time, the Ming border troops were worried that His Majesty might be captured. The little prince may come home with a great victory and dare not leave seclusion rashly.
In fact, some important officials from the border towns such as the governor general and the general soldiers began to gather troops and move closer to the inland to prepare for the visit to the capital!
At this time, Ma Wensheng had just received the news that His Majesty was personally defeated, and fearing that he had not returned from hunting in the north, he rushed to Yansui and ordered the border troops from all over the country to strictly guard their places and not to move rashly! At the same time, he also sent his confidants to Datong to inquire about when His Majesty would personally recruit troops.
Shaanxi Chief Caikuan was also rushing to Yansui. He was also afraid that if His Majesty was captured alive by the little prince, he would hold Emperor Yingzong hostage and hold him captive. He really didn't know how to deal with it then.
……
At this time, Yansui Governor Liu Meng was pacing the room anxiously.
"Master Zhang! Are you telling the truth? Didn't you really return in defeat? Is the person you captured really a little prince?"
Liu Meng paced around and then turned around and asked Zhang Lun.
"Guaranteed replacement if fake!"
After Zhang Lun and his cavalry from the Guards Battalion escorted the little prince to Shenmu Castle, they just saw Liu Meng, the governor of Yansui, and explained his identity. They fell to the ground and fell asleep due to overwork. The same is true for the cavalry of other Guards battalions.
Because of this, Liu Meng instinctively believed the result and spread the news. But now that Zhang Lun woke up and asked again, he realized that this was not the case.
"But, but, how can you defeat the little prince! He is the Great Khan of Mongolia, with fifty thousand cavalry under his command! This is impossible, how is this possible!"
Liu Meng had a headache. He didn't believe the result, and he didn't even want to think about how he would handle the next thing if he believed the result.
A chill flashed through Liu Meng's eyes. He wanted to kill Zhang Lun and the cavalry of the Imperial Guard Battalion beside him, but he was also afraid of revealing the secret and provoking the court to punish him. After all, according to Zhang Lun's confession, His Majesty is still in Datong. , and Zhang Lun’s identity is not simple. Once he dies, someone will definitely hold him accountable.
However, Liu Meng knew that he seemed to have made a huge mistake now. He could guess that after the capital heard the news, some civil servants who had the same thoughts as him would definitely do something extraordinary. If once If he makes a big fuss and creates a new emperor, then he will really not be able to escape the involvement!
At this time, Yansui's Ji Gong censor Yanying asked: "Futai! Should this matter be reported again? In addition, His Majesty commanded the Guards cavalry to unite with the Mongolian right wing to kill the little prince, and Zhang Lun also had the merit of capturing the little prince alive. Does this matter need to be recorded and reported immediately? ”
"No rush! Don't rush to report this matter. We can't listen to Zhang Lun's words. The little prince is such a powerful person, how can he be captured so easily. You must be careful now! This matter cannot be made public. If you write your credit book like this, just say I misheard a rumor last time, so I As for the error in the military report, His Majesty did not personally fight in this battle, and there was no great defeat, but it was not a great victory. The army killed only a hundred enemies! It was a small victory, and it is not enough to be publicized! To guard against the little prince’s revenge! I have decided to guard it strictly!”
Liu Meng said and secretly asked: "Find a way to put the little prince back, and then intercept him on the way! Don't record that Zhang Lun captured the little prince alive! Otherwise, the nobles will rise again!"
……
Cai Kuan, the commander-in-chief of Shaanxi Province, arrived at Yansui first. When he saw Liu Meng and Zhang Lun, he hurriedly asked: "What's going on? I received two official documents from you along the way. One said that your Majesty's personal expedition was defeated." , The northern hunt has not returned; once you say that this battle is a small victory, Your Majesty is fine! Is that true?”
"Cai Zong Zhi! None of this is true. Specifically, it is a great victory! A real great victory! His Majesty personally commanded outside Datong City, which can be regarded as a personal expedition, but if you want to say it, it is General Qiu who takes the greatest credit for this battle. , Of course, my young master did not fall off my door and captured his little prince alive this time!”
Zhang Lun said proudly, he was still young and innocent, and now that he had captured the little prince alive, he naturally wanted everyone in the world to know that he was a great hero.
At this time, Liu Meng smiled and said: "Report to the General Zhi! It's the latter. This battle is just a small victory. Your Majesty is fine! There are no major casualties among the officers and soldiers!"
"You're talking nonsense! I obviously didn't tell you that! I even took prisoners..." Zhang Lun's eyes darkened and he suddenly fainted.
Cai Kuan was shocked when he saw this and shouted: "Master Zhang, what's going on with you!"
Liu Meng also panicked when he saw this, and hurriedly ordered the doctor to come, and explained to Cai Kuan: "Master Zhang has spent too much energy in this battle. He was seriously injured and lost a lot of blood. He has fainted several times and is still alive." Please rest assured, Mr. President, the doctor has seen it before and it’s nothing serious. You just need to sleep for a few days.”
(End of chapter)