Chapter 813 Disaster
The decisive battle in Yiluo ended in May of the third year of Taiwu.
In the following three months of June, July, and August, not only did the Taishan Army show great restraint, but the chaos in the entire world also decreased.
The reason for this phenomenon was not that the princes wanted to join forces in private to form an alliance, but that the next three months were really too hot.
July and August of this year were the hottest two months in the Eastern Han Dynasty when Zhang Chong came. Even the Luoshui River near Kyoto was almost dry, which shows the rest of the world.
Therefore, in the three months after May, it is not that the fighting has decreased, but that all living beings have reduced their activities outside the home.
The scorching sun directly put a brake on the turbulent world situation.
……
Several miles of pavilions had been erected under Jin Yong City outside Kyoto. The candidates for the Xiuyi Guard who had been arriving from various counties in the past few days finally arrived in Kyoto.
The current Kyoto is not called Kyoto here in Taishan Army, but called Xingying, because the king does not seem to intend to make the capital here.
Although in the past few months, some "civilians" have written letters to advise Zhang Chong to make his capital in Luo. These people have simply used the most beautiful words in the world to the city of Kyoto, as if Kyoto is the only capital of the emperor in the world.
Of course, some of these people's reasons are not unreasonable. After all, in terms of defense, the size of the capital, the transfer of money and grain, and the transportation situation, Luoyang is really the best place for the emperor.
But Zhang Chong still hates Kyoto and hates the air of vanity that pervades Kyoto.
In this city, you can always smell a strong smell of powdered powder in the air. This is not used by the female relatives in the city, but by those left behind by the officials.
After Zhang Chong broke the city, he quickly devoted himself to the defense of Kyoto. Therefore, except for the criminals who were detained and punished, the ministers and their accomplices left in the city were not cleaned up.
The next five months were spent fighting against Guanxi in the west and Yuan Shao in the south. Zhang Chong was not in the city, and Xun You and others who stayed in Kyoto could not take charge of this matter.
As a result, the old and young in Kyoto seemed to be forgotten, and even they forgot what the Taishan Army started.
Therefore, the old ministers who were still dormant began to become active again.
They are very smart. They don't directly engage in any series of connections, or privately use their daughters to marry the generals of the Taishan Army. Instead, they hold various academic discussions very openly.
These ministers are originally masters of Confucian classics. Even if they are not themselves, there are some who are involved in them. In addition, academic discussions are very popular in this world.
There are often some great Confucian scholars who lecture on Confucian classics in public when they are at their most famous, in order to bless ordinary scholars.
Of course, in the past, this kind of sermon might not be held once every few years, but what about now? Under the organization of these ministers, there were one small meeting every three days and one big meeting every five days in Kyoto.
I don’t know how much this grand occasion of preaching attracted the scholars from around Gyeonggi Province. After hearing about the academic atmosphere in Kyoto, they rushed to Kyoto with their servants and wooden boxes on their backs.
For a time, there was an endless stream of people coming from the south to Kyoto.
Such a grand scene of streams flowing into rivers and seas almost makes people think that the prosperous times have reappeared.
However, in the bustle of this grand lecture event, a countercurrent seems to have emerged. In the atmosphere of high-minded academic lectures, a kind of political correctness seems to have emerged to criticize the great masters.
Of course, except for some delusional people who directly criticize the Taishan Army, most people do it in a subtle and sideways way, and the drought in June and July seems to be an excellent reason for these people to criticize Taishan.
In the spiritual world of the Han family, disasters are not just disasters, they are God's condemnation and warning to the world.
Since Dong Zhongshu first proposed the concept of destiny based on the interaction between heaven and man, this concept has become mainstream among scholars after the Han Dynasty.
In the minds of these people, all disasters in the world are caused by the failure of national politics.
When national politics is still in its infancy, God will send disasters and condemn it.
To condemn them but not change them is to be frightened when they see something strange. The person who is horrified does not know how to fear, and the consequences will be even worse.
These complete chains of behavior fully reflect the "benevolence" of "Heaven". It can be said that he truly practiced the three teachings that Confucius did not do and then punished him.
This concept of heaven and man, full of personal introspection, perfectly fits with the classics of Confucianism. It seems that as long as the emperor conducts self-examination properly, even disasters can be prevented.
Logically speaking, when the warning of the day had appeared, did the ministers, who had read the books of sages and sages, have the moral obligation and mission to persuade the emperor to do things that were in line with Confucian values?
Therefore, from the beginning, telepathy became a means for ministers to discipline the imperial power.
In the Han dynasty, disasters and disasters were always related to political activities. The admonitions of ministers and the charges compiled for the purpose of political struggle were endless in the books.
However, this method was reversed after the Eastern Han Dynasty. It seemed that the object of disaster warning was no longer the emperor himself, but the three Dukes who served as assistants to the government.
Whenever a disaster occurs, the three ministers at the table will take the blame and resign. In the later stages, it will be even more extreme. It can almost reach the tenth month and all three ministers will be in trouble.
This frequent change of auxiliary ministers has greatly damaged political stability, making it almost difficult for continuous policies to be passed by the court.
To a certain extent, Hanting was in a state of incompetence most of the time.
And now, when a continuous drought strikes, those former Han officials who preached scriptures seem to intend to restore this "excellent" political tradition again.
They all pointed the finger at Duman, who was presiding over the work in Yecheng, believing that as the chief disciple of the eldest prince, he was equivalent to the three nobles of the Han family.
And in the face of such a huge disaster, the person did not take the blame and resign. This is the most fundamental reason why the disaster has not been solved.
The accusations that occurred in the academic circles of Kyoto soon spread to Ye Jing.
In excitement and helplessness, Duman really asked Zhang Chong to leave his position as chief.
This is not because Duman believes in the theory of telepathy between heaven and man, but because he wants to understand the horror of these rumors.
The hateful nature of this rumor does not mean that Duman can just ignore it.
If Duman ignores it, this rumor will soon be a fatal blow to his personal morality.
This is a very simple logical chain:
God has given such a warning and issued such a strong disaster, but you are not willing to take the blame and resign. This shows how attached you are to power.
And a prime minister who can abandon the life and death of the people in the world and is not willing to leave his position of power, what morals can he have as a prime minister?
And if he does this, then what kind of regime does the great lady he serves have?
It can be said that in this set of political slander, where does it point to him? But it is clearly directed at the eldest daughter, attacking the eldest daughter's legitimacy in power.
Moreover, these people are quite smart. Didn’t your wife talk about Huang Tian? Don’t you, the Taishan Army, always say that you want to realize the Age of Huangtian?
And now these disasters are the warnings Huang Tian has brought to the world. It is precisely because of this set of rumors in the name of Huang Tian that they can have a certain influence among the Taishan Army.
Some people may not believe this very much, but they also feel that if Duman goes to work to resolve disasters, then there is no harm in going there.
The worst thing is, once it's no longer useful, just reinstate the officer to his original position.
The terrible thing is that this kind of idea is not uncommon among the military. They believe that as long as there is a way to eliminate disasters, no matter how absurd it is, there is no impact in trying it.
And if you are unwilling to give it a try, does that mean you really have a moral problem with Duman?
After all, if it were them, as long as they could exchange the lives of civilians, what if they even gave up one life, let alone a place?
And isn't this what their Taishan Army has always done?
What can Duman say? He couldn't say anything, because he knew that there was really no shortage of such people in the army. At this time, the Taishan Army was pure, so pure that it was inhumane.
But it is this purity that makes it easy for others to take advantage of it.
Soon, Duman's resignation form was sent to Xingying. Zhang Chong was furious after seeing it and wrote a sentence directly to Duman:
"If you only care about the country's life and death, how can you avoid it because of good or bad fortune?"
Zhang Chong used this sentence to express his attitude.
In fact, he understands that it is not wrong to have these ideas in the military and the system. After all, this matter seems to be of little cost. Isn't it just a matter of giving in and then asking for it?
It's just a matter of invalidating a few edicts. What if it works?
Zhang Chong used this sentence to tell these people that even if it was really effective, he would not allow this to happen.
If a political rumor can remove the country's prime minister, then how can we talk about independent appointment of cadres? What about the stability of the political atmosphere?
Those who use such evil spirits and pretexts to coerce people's hearts and force the country will be punished.
In fact, Zhang Chong had a more comprehensive understanding of this matter than Duman and the others, because he, Zhang Chong, already knew when the old and young people started to mix up and conspire.
Although the current embroidery guards were not fully staffed, with some intelligence networks, Meng Ju still discovered this matter early and began to make arrangements.
But now, when this matter has become so popular that even the chief's subordinates have begun to resign, Zhang Chong ordered Meng Ju to start closing the net.
……
On August 15, in the East Secretary's Room in the corridor behind the east gate of the Beigong, more than ten conductors in embroidered clothes were listening to Meng Ju's instructions from their superiors.
Today, Meng Ju put on the embroidered guard's dress, with a silk embroidered coat on the outside, a crimson straight coat on the inside, a brocade hat on his head, and a python painted on the embroidered coat.
It can be said that Meng Ju's set not only highlights his might, but also has a sense of beauty that transcends this era.
There is no doubt that the design of this dress must have come from Zhang Wang.
Wearing the dress designed by the king himself, Mengju's heart was heavy. He knew that the king had high hopes for their embroidered guards, so this time, Mengju was bound to win.
And if anyone blocks his way, he can only send him to death!
At this moment, Meng Ju glanced at the old subordinates in front of him with a pair of phoenix eyes. These people were brought by him from the Feijun Foreign Military Department, and they were all strong generals.
But he will still beat them to make them understand the stakes of this operation.
And these people are indeed strong generals who have been trained in external intelligence. Even if the sharp eyes of their old boss are directed at them, they still keep their backs straight and steady.
Meng Ju naturally understood the power of his fierceness, and he felt reassured when he saw that these people really had something.
But when he opened his mouth, he said harshly:
"Do you understand this operation?"
All the conductors clasped their fists together:
"Understood!"
Meng Ju nodded, then pointed his hand outside the hall:
"As long as you understand, this is the first operation of our Embroidery Guards. If any of you make a mistake, I don't need to tell you, and your life will definitely not be saved. But don't worry, our Taishan Army will still be the same as before. There will be no disaster. Bringing trouble to the family.”
Meng Ju's words were very soft, but his murderous intent was very fierce. Some of the commanders' breathing was obviously much faster.
Meng Ju just took a deep look at these short-breathing people and didn't say much.
Then, he began to assign tasks to these twelve commanders. A certain team went to Buguangli, a certain team went to Yongheli, and a certain team went to Jinshi.
Meng Ju has rehearsed this operation countless times. It can be said that everything that should be taken into consideration has been taken into consideration. Not to mention that it is absolutely perfect, but with these old ministers in the capital, it is definitely impossible to escape.
From this, it can be seen that Meng Ju also has a mountain of pressure on his shoulders. The king's various arrangements and special treatment for Xiuyiwei have actually put Xiuyiwei on his back.
If he gets frustrated this time and fails to get things done, not only will his political life come to an end, but even the newly formed Xiuyiwei will be revoked.
He understood that the king's original intention of establishing the Xiuyi Guard was to create a "Sword of Supervision", so no one would like this sword hanging over everyone's heads, not even Meng Ju.
Yes, even though Meng Ju had also been in charge of the Foreign Military Department before, that was foreign intelligence and had no stake in his colleagues in the military. On the contrary, it could complement the Youyi Department, which belonged to the military system.
But now that he is an embroidered guard, the situation is different. This can be seen from the fact that some colleagues and friends have gradually alienated him and become frustrated.
Meng Ju is not a lonely person. He likes to drink and brag with his old brothers, but now that the king has given him this job, he will continue to do it.
Even if he knew that this road was destined to be an independent minister, he was still willing to do so.
Because, the king's great kindness to him will never be forgotten for the rest of his life.
This is the pressure that belongs to Meng Ju. He has a bird's eye view of the overall situation and is naturally under the greatest pressure.
Although his subordinates are under great pressure, they only need to be responsible for their actions. As for the rest, he is the one who shields them from the wind and rain.
Although he thought so, Meng Ju still "encouraged" his old subordinates in the end.
His tone was loose and he put himself in his shoes and preached:
"Every one of you is a commander. According to the establishment assigned to us by the king, each of you must command five hundred people, and you must be a top-notch general in the army. But now that we are starting a business, we definitely don't have that many people. , each of you is a hundred people, and you are all social officials and rural soldiers from various counties and counties. You can wonder about the pressure here. "
He also knew that what he said was that the situation was quite difficult, so Meng Ju still made up for it:
"But the situation is like this. Although you have new people and not many, the people on the opposite side are also dead bones in the grave, and they will be broken if you push them. So as long as you are serious, this matter is not difficult."
After speaking, Meng Ju said everything he needed to say, and he issued the final order to the twelve commanders:
"Gentlemen, I am waiting for good news from you all in this hall. Please remember that the future of our Embroidery Guard lies with you."
All the conductors were solemn, clasped their fists together, and marched out in rows.
A big storm is coming.