"Are you going back to China directly now?"
"Exactly."
Under the shade of a tree in the front yard of the Toulouse Consulate, the two naval officers, a man and a woman, were urging Zhou Feng to leave without stopping.
Qin Zizhen thought for a while and said, "We have confirmed with the embassy in Paris that there are only two flights to Yingtian in July, the day after tomorrow, and the next one will be at the end of the month."
The latter asked helplessly: "Is this what the princess meant?"
The two of them didn't say a word, which was regarded as acquiescence.
Obviously, Zhu Lingjing no longer dared to let him do whatever he wanted outside. If he stayed for one more day, something might go wrong, so it was safest to return to the capital as soon as possible.
So she managed to do something and asked the Ministry of War to send a message to the Toulouse Consulate, asking Zhou Changfeng to suspend the inspection mission and return home immediately.
Just imagining the scene of facing her after returning home, Zhou Changfeng felt uncomfortable all over. No matter what, he would at least get criticized.
But now he has to deal with...Xia Xiaoshi.
"Zhou Kexing, how dare you do this?"
Facing the glaring Xia Xiaoshi, Zhou Changfeng just replied nonchalantly: "This has nothing to do with whether you dare or not. I think it is indeed necessary, so I went."
"you you……"
"Okay, stop talking."
Although it was hard to believe at first when she learned that Zhou Changfeng lied to the military expedition team and secretly went to Spain to join the war, Xia Xiaoshi quickly figured it out.
Given his temperament, doing something like this can only be said to be unexpected and reasonable.
But no matter what, this is still very confusing!
She even thought about whether she should kill her relatives out of justice, otherwise if she didn't give him a long memory, she might do such inappropriate things again in the future.
But she couldn't bear it, because she would definitely be punished after the Dong Chuang incident, dismissed? imprisonment? It's all possible.
However, what made Xia Xiaoshi very unhappy was that she herself was quite entangled and upset, while the person involved, Zhou Changfeng, looked indifferent and acted relaxed.
Co-authored: The emperor is not in a hurry, but the eunuch is, right?
Finally, when the DC-3 passenger plane they were on landed at Gaoqiao Airport, Xia Xiaoshi, who had been holding it back all the way, couldn't help but gritted her teeth and asked: "What are you thinking about every day?"
Zhou Changfeng glanced at her and said, "I have so many things to think about, such as what to eat in the morning, what to eat at lunch, and what to eat in the evening."
Xia Xiaoshi: "..."
"Ahem, on a small scale, I want to make the Ming army's technology and tactics top-notch and avoid detours; on a big scale... I have to consider the future of the country. This is too grand and cannot be explained clearly."
Regarding his answer, Xia Xiaoshi chose to believe it, because there seemed to be nothing worth doubting?
Zhou Changfeng felt much more comfortable after returning to his homeland after a long absence. It was not pleasant to be alone in a foreign country.
The sun was shining brightly, and although everyone in the group was exhausted, no one except Xia Xiaoshi could rest yet - the person arranged by Zhu Lingjing was already waiting at the airport, and she asked to take Mr. Zhou to the scheduled hotel as soon as she got off the plane. Meeting place.
After watching Xia Xiaoshi leave, Qin Zizhen and others took Zhou Changfeng to their old place in Beicheng District - Weiyang Bank.
The latter had a very deep impression of this place. It was here that he met Zhu Lingjing for the first time.
As for now...
To be honest, before he crossed the threshold, Zhou Changfeng, who was worried, felt as if there was an evil spirit inside.
Sure enough, as soon as she entered the door, she saw Zhu Lingjing in a dark purple shirt and skirt sitting on the carved imperial chair, drinking tea leisurely.
"Isn't it great to have fun at Fo Langji's place?" She glanced sideways at Zhou Changfeng and said calmly: "If I hadn't sent someone to come to your door, would you have wanted to stay here forever?"
The latter shook his head slightly in embarrassment, "Your Highness, I'm not happy. The battle was cruel. Moreover, the Spanish government was unable to hold on to the wall. The internal fighting among various parties and factions has never stopped."
"The civil strife has reached this point, and the party struggles are still endless. There is no cure." Zhu Lingjing took a sip of herbal tea and said coldly: "So, tell me why you left your post without permission."
Zhou Changfeng took a deep breath and stated the words he had organized before, "A force of several thousand people is a watershed, so I want to put it into practice. And there are also some personal emotions involved. The interventionist and rebel forces are facing each other. To be honest, the indiscriminate killing of local people is difficult to calm down. Moreover, the humiliation and ridicule of the Italians who captured us at first...well, I can't swallow this breath."
Ouch? You are kind and righteous.
The expressionless Zhu Lingjing stared into his eyes for a few seconds and said calmly: "Lying about being sick and taking leave, huh, have you ever imagined what would happen if the court found out?"
Hearing this, Zhou Changfeng nodded and replied: "Of course, but this can only be regarded as 'absconding'. According to the second level, it is only fifty years of staff and three years of apprenticeship. This is still the ultimate without taking into account the merits." Bad situation. I haven’t offended anyone, and no one will take advantage of it.”
"Gong? What kind of merit is there?"
"Uh... It's mainly intelligence. The training regulations that the German army tried out last year, and the field regulations that the US military issued three years ago. And I also brought back a new type of German-made land mine. I personally think it's quite useful."
Zhu Lingjing said without saltiness: "It's quite thoughtful, and there is no phlegm in my mind."
But she immediately asked: "But how can these things be connected with your sick leave? How could you get these while you were recuperating in France?"
"Your Highness, I originally planned to return to the expedition team when my sick leave time was up, and then I would find a way to fool me, but you asked someone to directly let me return home." Zhou Changfeng replied with some helplessness.
"Oh, the blame is on me instead?"
"Don't dare."
Zhu Lingjing picked up the folding fan, flicked it away, and said with a sneer: "Okay, then you want to tell me, how can you reasonably hand over all these things you have? God will reward you?"
Zhou Changfeng had thought about this question before, and he answered without hesitation: "I can directly surrender and confess."
? ? ?
Why don't you listen to what you're saying?
Hearing this answer, Zhu Lingjing was stunned for two seconds. She tried her best to hold back her emotions, "You only care about yourself, right?"
"You mean international influence? But the court doesn't care, and I'm afraid some people like to hear about this kind of thing."
"Yes, the court doesn't care," Zhu Lingjing replied through gritted teeth, "You must know that you are mine. This is the so-called honor and disgrace!"
This is called inability to control your subordinates and being incompetent! I will be laughed at by others behind my back!
Zhou Changfeng, who looked confused, said he couldn't understand, "But Your Highness, you can definitely say that this was your secret instruction. This would reflect your foresight and it would be a win-win situation."
It was so funny, Su Yiyi who was waiting next to her almost laughed out loud.
At this point, Zhu Lingjing, who had black lines on her head, had realized the problem - this guy didn't take her attitude and feelings into consideration at all!
You are making trouble outside without saying a word. Do you take me seriously? How outrageous!
So is this guy "not thinking about it" or "knowing that he will be dissatisfied, but still going his own way"?
The two are very different in nature.
So Zhu Lingjing stared at him and asked tentatively: "How would you feel if your subordinates made decisions without asking for instructions?"
"It depends on the situation. Fighters are fleeting, and you can't fight a war just by asking your superiors for instructions." Zhou Changfeng continued in a matter-of-fact tone: "Even when the situation is urgent, you can disobey orders, as long as you can catch Just give it a chance to win.”
"Is this your attitude?"
"No, this is an unspoken rule that is common in the military. Without this unspoken rule, the army will have no enthusiasm at all."
For example, 101 clearly stated this issue in a tactical summary meeting: "When the situation changes, it is okay not to execute the order... You can not follow the order, but if you follow the order, it will be wrong. So according to the situation, new The flexible handling of changes is correct..."
Therefore, Zhou Changfeng is not worried that he will be severely punished. As for Zhu Lingjing's personal feelings, he actually doesn't care much.
There is no place for me to stay here, I have my own place to stay. There are too many dignitaries and factions in the Ming Dynasty. With the ability in hand, there is no need to worry about having no way out.
Zhu Lingjing, who frowned slightly, hesitated to speak. After a while, she said leisurely: "Early tomorrow morning, go to the Military Justice Department of the Ministry of War to confess your mistake. Go ahead."
Zhou Changfeng nodded, saluted and then turned and left.
After watching him disappear, Zhu Lingjing, who was annoyed and depressed, stood up directly.
She wandered around the room twice and said, "He thinks he has never offended anyone and is not afraid of being tricked? Oh, he has offended me now! Get ready."
Su Yiyi on the side asked doubtfully: "Your Highness, where are you going?"
"Enter the palace."
"yes."
Ever since, when Zhou Changfeng, who had returned to his long-lost station in Jiangxinzhou, was surrounded by everyone asking questions, a bright yellow Junda car slowly stopped outside Xi'an.
It is approaching Shen hour, which is the hottest time of the day. Cars these days do not have air conditioners, only electric fans. You can imagine how hot it is all the way here.
Don't you hesitate to go to the palace to ask for an audience at this time? Zhu Shiyan was curious about what happened to his daughter, who had been so proud of herself recently.
In the Zhaoren Palace, Zhu Lingjing walked in slowly and bowed in a very polite manner, then took a sip of the herbal tea handed to her by the palace maid.
Zhu Shiyan wrote a sentence under a question book. After finishing writing, he raised his head and said, "But something urgent happened?"
The words that she had thought of before were a bit difficult to say now. Zhu Lingjing, who was slightly troubled, hesitated and replied: "Do you know about the decisive battle between the two sides in the Franco-Langji Civil War recently?"
Generally speaking, most people like others to speak directly, because talking in circles is a waste of time, and the same is true for Zhu Shiyan, but today he is in a good mood, and he is happy to chat more with his daughter.
"The fight is inextricable at the moment, but I see that the factional fighting in the government is fierce, and there are even attacks and mercenaries between factions. This kind of chaos is somewhat similar to the Hongguang and Longwu years. What the military department means is , it is almost impossible for the Republican Army to win in this decisive battle, and the rebels may be gaining power."
For Ming Dynasty, it doesn't matter what Spain, which is now only a third-rate country, will become in the end, and it is still so far away.
"Father, the Republican Army was victorious late last month. Well... there were soldiers from our country and Korea inside."
"It's that brigade, it's said that it fought quite well."
Zhu Shiyan thought she was talking about the 105th International Brigade. This brigade has five battalions, three of which are Ming people, and the other two are Koreans and Vietnamese.
"No, it's another one," Zhu Lingjing said cautiously, "The chief officer is an officer of our army..."
The calm Zhu Shiyan was silent for several seconds, and then asked: "Is he yours? Why did he go there? Did you ask him to?"
"Returning to my father was not ordered by my son, but he made his own decision."
"Is he from the Marine Corps? Where is he?"
Zhu Shiyan immediately understood Zhu Lingjing's intention of entering the palace, and the latter immediately gave a brief summary of the cause and effect of the matter.
"...My son, I thought about it over and over and didn't know how to deal with it properly, so I entered the palace."
Zhu Shiyan, who looked calm, smiled and said leisurely: "You, you are used to mediocre people in the past, but now you meet a talented person, you feel troubled."
After hearing the narration just now, he became somewhat interested for a while, and stood up slowly, walking around and said: "Mediocre and incompetent, but obedient and honest, why? It's because they have no other advantages other than that; Talents are outstanding, but they are also quite proud and have their own set of ideas. This is inevitable, and this is the difference between the virtuous and the mediocre."
Zhu Lingjing, who had been listening with her head lowered, raised her eyes and replied helplessly: "It's really worrying to talk to yourself and do your own thing like this."
"So I said, you are used to using mediocre people, and you never thought that the wise people use them completely differently."
"..."
Zhu Shiyan stroked his beard and smiled and said: "It is recorded in "Tongjian" that Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty said: 'A gentleman uses people like weapons, each taking advantage of their strengths.' First of all, you have to make it clear where to use them, such as those who know how to use them and are able to use them. It is naturally inappropriate to take charge of finances. You must know this, so I won’t go into details."
He paused, and then continued: "Smart people often disdain the rules and regulations when doing things. Ning You, let me ask you, what are the results of his making decisions without permission?"
"It should be... quite a few." Zhu Lingjing thought about it for a moment, "Some tactics and regulations from Germany and the United States, as well as a type of small weapon."
"Yes, this is an unexpected surprise. You must know that the army is a place where success or failure is judged by the results of the battle. If you put yourself in their shoes, you will know that this is not a wrong thing. It is only a wrong thing to return empty-handed."
"Um."
"So the reason for this is probably due to you. You have never thought about this. Your Majesty is not very capable. Many rules should have been explained in advance, but it seems that you did not tell them. If it were the prince, this kind of thing would not happen. "
Zhu Lingjing was slightly embarrassed and said awkwardly: "What the father said is absolutely true..."
"If you feel that this person is difficult to use, you might as well give it to the prince."
How can that be done? It took a lot of effort to develop something, wouldn't it be cheaper for Zhu Lichi to let him go now?
So she quickly refused, and the emperor didn't say much, just smiled.
Zhu Lingjing hesitated for a moment and then asked: "Let's talk about the matter, how should we deal with this matter? If it is made public, I am afraid there will be suspicion of treason."
"Oh?" Zhu Shiyan seemed to have heard a joke, "Who would believe it?"
He looked outside the palace and said nonchalantly: "If these people all betray the country, the Ming Dynasty will not have much time left."
Realizing that the emperor did not understand what she meant, Zhu Lingjing could only remind her: "Father, between the government and the public..."
"It doesn't matter. The storm is blowing and the rocks are exposed. I just take the opportunity to take a look."
(End of chapter)
