Liu Hongxun said with a wry smile: "Since the beginning of the party struggle, no one has ever done it like him. He relied on the huge benefits brought by the trade with Liaodong and the terrifying amount of Liao salary. He colluded to win over the eunuchs and Donglin , the Jin Party, the clan, nobles, relatives, and Liaodong generals. They actually formed a group that transcended parties and was bound by huge economic interests. It had an independent military force and a large number of supervisory, administrative, and judicial officials. From the center of the imperial court They went to the local grassroots level to form a terrifying Liaoning interest group."
"This group has huge cash flow. One is to kidnap the imperial court with the huge annual military expenditures of the Guan Ning Army. Dong Lin has obtained Liao's salary, which will eventually be reimbursed by them. Otherwise, Liao's salary will lose the rationality and legitimacy of its existence. Even though the people in Donglin knew that he was colluding with other forces, they didn't dare to fall out with him. After all, with such huge interests, let alone him being two-faced, even if he let them eat shit, they would admit it."
"Since the Jin Party and the eight major merchant groups were defeated by Dingyuan Bo, Zhangjiakou was destroyed. Donglin took the opportunity to establish the Rehe Province in the eastern part of Monan Mongolia. This was to block their trade routes with the Jiannu. Now Jin The only hope of the party and the eight major business groups is him. So they don’t dare to offend him.”
"After all, Xun Gui, Concubine Zheng, and Prince Fu still have Mao Wenlong in their hands, and they are relatively least dependent on him. In other words, the only force in the north that he has not yet taken control of is the gang of lords in the capital. If he controls the capital, Once the forces are secured, he can form a cabinet."
Yang Fan was silent, he didn't expect Yuandu Du to be so generous.
This shows how important it is to have a strong army of your own in this end of the world. Without Guan Ningjun, he would be nothing. But now, knowing that this guy is nobody and extremely ambitious, I still want to win him over by pinching my nose.
No one can have too much power. When people go to high places, they naturally have to be at the top of the mountain to be able to see the mountains and small mountains at a glance. Moving towards the highest power is the inevitable direction for anyone who is an official.
This has nothing to do with character. When the power is achieved, the thoughts will naturally be reached.
Wasn't Cao Mengde's biggest ideal at the beginning just to be a general who conquered the West? In the end, I would like to be King Wen of Zhou. This is all the result of the expansion of power, and people's ambitions are consistent with their strength.
"The nobles and the King of Fu faction are relatively aloof, and they are very calm about the Liao Rating Group. They are worried that Yuan Chonghuan's ambition will expand in the future, and some unspeakable things will happen. So they began to make plans to increase their power in the capital. Hui'anbo Zhang Qingzhen After the governorship of the capital camp, the British government was worried that Yuan Chonghuan's ambition would expand in the future and no one would be able to control it. So he and I discussed adding a clause in Hui'anbo Zhang Qingzhen's imperial decree to governor the capital camp and also manage the capture camp."
Hui'anbo Zhang Qingzhen was Yang Fan's former admiral in charge of military affairs in the capital, and he also knew Yang Fan. They were both members of the same noble lineage. The permanent armed forces in the capital are mainly soldiers and horse divisions and patrol battalions. The Military and Horse Division is also responsible for public security. The patrol battalion was equivalent to the armed police in later generations, with more than 13,000 people and 5,000 cavalry. Strong.
If something happens in the capital, the patrol camp is very important, because without the joint order of the imperial edict and the Ministry of War, the capital camp cannot enter the capital.
This operation alarms the fewest people and basically keeps it quiet.
However, Hui'anbo Zhang Qingzhen's imperial edict from Governor Jingying included this provision, and he could use it whenever necessary. At that time, it will be legal to mobilize the patrol battalions in the city. This is the back-up plan laid by Xun Gui.
Normally, when there is nothing going on, I would not publicize this matter at all. The patrol camp may not know. Imperial decrees are always made in duplicate or even triplicate. There is a background record in the palace. But when the situation is urgent, there is no chance for outsiders to go to the palace to verify. Basically, this imperial decree will work.
At this time, Yang Fan finally understood the ins and outs of this matter. To do this, we need the cooperation between the palace, the Fifth Military Governor's Office, and the cabinet. Concubine Zheng's people are in charge of the palace, Xungui is in charge of the Governor's Office of the Fifth Army, and the chief assistant Liu Hongxun is in the cabinet. Only then can we get this thing done.
However, this also shows that Chongzhen and Concubine Zheng have been fighting for so long, and there are actually Concubine Zheng's people in the Li Prison. Otherwise, how did the extra words in this imperial edict come about? After the imperial edict was written and left the ceremonial office, it was impossible to add writing to it.
How could such a high-end thing not have anti-counterfeiting measures? Whether it is handwriting or ink, it is easy to see. So, to
If you want it to be perfect, you can only add the handwriting from the Chief Ceremony Supervisor.
Then Liu Hongxun pretended not to see it when he reviewed it and passed it through the cabinet.
When we arrived at the Fifth Army Commander's Mansion, it was the noble's territory, so it was naturally fine.
The most interesting thing about this incident is that it actually leaked. Someone reported it to the emperor.
But something was wrong with the person who reported it. It was actually Zheng Qixin, the admiral of the patrol camp. This is an imperial edict drafted by the Ministry of War, transcribed by the Supervisor of Rites, approved by the Emperor, issued by the Cabinet under countersignature, and forwarded by the Fifth Army Governor's Office. It has half a cent to do with the patrol camp.
Where could Zheng Qixin have seen this edict? How did he know that there were a few extra words in the edict. Did you dream about it? Moreover, Hui Anbo will not make it public and will only be used in emergencies.
The situation at that time was as follows:
It was the practice of the Ming Dynasty that the commander of the Beijing camp (garrison force) and the patrol camp (Beijing armed police) could not be served by the same person. Everyone knows the reason. The imperial court appointed Zhang Qingzhen, Bo of Hui'an, to command the capital camp. The imperial edict actually included the words "also in charge of the capture camp". In this case, both armies would be under his command.
I don’t know what happened, but Zheng Qixin, the commander of the unrelated patrol camp, discovered it. He immediately reported it to the emperor.
Chongzhen was shocked, thinking that these idiots were going to stage a coup. Do you dare to change the edict? What is this going to do.
This cannot be a clerical error, but someone deliberately added these sentences. Just these four extra words can enable Zhang Qingzhen to command the patrol battalion!
Angry Chongzhen ordered a strict investigation. As soon as he ascended the throne and defeated Duke Wei, someone came to apply eye drops. It was really unbearable.
The results of the investigation made people angry. The cabinet reported that it was Tian Jiabi, a young eunuch in charge of copying who was the Supervisor of Ceremonies, who took the bribe. Later the edict was changed. A matter of such a serious and vile nature was actually delegated to a little secretary who was in charge of the ceremonial department! I don’t believe any ghosts.
Li Juesi, the imperial censor's spokesman, probably received instructions from Chongzhen, and pointed out the problem in public: "The appointment edict was drafted by the Ministry of War. After it was completed, it was submitted to the cabinet for review. The cabinet ministers reviewed and revised it and handed it over to the secretaries for copying. After writing, the cabinet ministers We will check it again before sending it to the emperor for his seal. The little secretary cannot cover everything with one hand. All ministers involved in this procedure must be strictly investigated and held accountable."
Chongzhen questioned the ministers in the cabinet, and they all said that they did not know and had nothing to do with him.
When I asked the Ministry of War, the Minister of War also said he didn't know. Only fools get involved in this kind of thing. Of course no one admitted it.
Chongzhen was furious. He knew clearly that all these people had problems, but everyone turned this into a Rashomon. They made up their own stories and refused to admit it. There was nothing he could do about it.
Finally, Zhang Qingzhen, who had benefited from the fake edict, was asked. Zhang Qingzhen actually said in front of the emperor: "The edict is under the jurisdiction of the cabinet. How can I know what's going on, young general? Besides, even if I command the patrol army, I can make more money." How much money, why do you have to pay a bribe?"
Zhang Qingzhen started to talk nonsense and act rogue.
Chongzhen was so angry that he was trembling all over. He actually said that the patrol camp admiral was a matter of making money and only benefited from robbing the people. This statement could really piss the emperor to death. Chongzhen angrily scolded him for speaking nonsense.
Finally, someone reported Liu Hongxun's instructions from the cabinet, and the young eunuch also confessed that Liu Hongxun was the instigator. Chongzhen dismissed Liu Hongxun and sent him into exile. Zhang Qingzhen suspended his salary for three years, and the young eunuch was executed with a cane. The matter was settled in a hurry.
Liu Hongxun was an insider and allowed the imperial edict to pass. But he was not the mastermind and the person who revised the edict. He was brought out to bear sin. This case was absurd in what happened, and how it was handled.
Yang Fan actually had a good impression of Liu Hongxun.
Chongzhen ascended the throne, eliminated Wei Zhongxian's eunuch party, and reactivated the persecuted loyal and good ministers. The cabinet was selected by lottery, and Liu Hongxun was lucky enough to be one of the six people to enter the cabinet. He was awarded the title of Minister of Rites and a bachelor of Dongge University, and participated in cabinet maintenance.
Liu Hongxun soon showed his shrewd and capable ability to govern the country. Soon he became the chief assistant of the cabinet, was awarded the title of Taibao, and was promoted to bachelor of Wenyuan Pavilion. In charge of national military and political affairs.
Liu Hongxun was the only reformist in the entire Chongzhen Dynasty. He was the only one who really wanted to reinvigorate the Ming Dynasty through reforms. It's a pity that his first assistant didn't last long.
He vigorously rectified the imperial bureaucracy, deposed Wei Zhongxian's remnant party and punished him, recommended a group of new people with both ability and political integrity and experience in governing the country to the imperial court, and firmly supported Yuan Chonghuan in his fight against the Qing Dynasty.
Although Liu Hongxun was talented in governing the country, he was not good at political strategy. Less than a year after taking office, he was attacked and framed by Yuan Hongxun, a remnant of the Wei Party, and others. In addition, Liu Hongxun blindly promoted the New Deal, regardless of the new emperor's establishment of authority.
He tried to remonstrate with the imperial court that he should be courteous and considerate to the people, but he was too upright, and even had a hint of disrespect in his words. This caused Emperor Chongzhen's displeasure and suspicion. Catching up with this edict incident again, Chongzhen ordered Liu Hongxun to be dismissed from his post and investigated.
This was the first person to be dealt with after being used by Chongzhen. Chongzhen used his courage and integrity to deal with the eunuchs. After liquidating the eunuchs, he will be useless. Because Chongzhen didn't want to reform sincerely. The hope for him was to use his daring to bite the eunuchs to get rid of Wei Du Gong's old troops.
Originally, the emperor wanted to kill him, but Liu Hongxun survived the remonstrance of the righteous ministers in the court and was banished to Daizhou in the first year of Chongzhen. At that time, Yang Fan also saw clearly what Chongzhen was like from this incident. This is not a wise king who can humbly accept advice.
His tolerance is too narrow to accommodate those who truly care about the world. Song Renzong was grabbed by his sleeve and sprayed by the minister, and his saliva was sprayed on his face, but the minister was not punished. However, Chongzhen could not do it. As long as the minister refused to do things exactly according to his wishes, he would not tolerate it.
He couldn't bear Liu Hongxun for a long time. Liu Hongxun's cabinet was the first cabinet after the collapse of the cabinet controlled by Wei Zhongxian. This cabinet was the only cabinet in the entire Chongzhen Dynasty that was determined to solve practical problems. However, the cooperation between the two parties was very poor.
Reform means resistance and offending vested interest groups. The throne of Chongzhen has not yet been firmly established, so naturally he does not want Liu Hongxun to make drastic changes now. So he finally chose to let Dong Lin form a cabinet again.
In the matter of changing the imperial edict, the cabinet did let loose, but this matter was not handled by Liu Hongxun. It's just that the emperor slammed the shit basin onto Liu Hongxun's head. This incident was just an introduction to his plan to deal with Liu Hongxun.
Liu Hongxun said: "Originally, this matter has been settled, and I will retire in Daizhou (today's Dai County, Xinzhou City, located in the northeast of Shanxi Province). I didn't expect that His Majesty would be so short-tempered and still hate me for what happened back then. I It seems that he wants to send me to Uzang as the resident minister. My old bones really can't stand the torment of the snowy mountains and grasslands. I also ask Uncle Dingyuan to lend a helping hand."
Liu Hongxun came to Yang Fan today just for this matter. .
He saw it when he was sent to Suiyuan to form a team with Zhang Wudian and Yang Fan. Chongzhen wanted him to accompany the master to the snow area. No one is a fool. Are there any fools who can be the first assistant?
Yang Fan thought for a while and said: "I have other considerations about the snow area. You are not a qualified candidate for the Zhongtang. If His Majesty allows you to go, I will write a letter."
Liu Hongxun didn't speak, and silently raised his hand to Yang Fan. It can be said that I am grateful to Uncle Dingyuan for his help.
Liu Hongxun sighed and said: "Your Majesty will use Yuan Chonghuan so highly. Sooner or later, bad things will happen. Although he boasted, he later realized it. However, the more he boasted, the day would come when his boast was exposed. Now he has gathered so many A big force may take desperate measures if he cannot fulfill his promise."
Yang Fan said: "If you are not in your position or planning for politics, why should Zhongtang worry about it? Whoever takes the shit will clean it up himself. Although Guihua City is not big, it is also located in the south of the Yangtze River. It has sufficient supplies and is free from anything. In the spring There are hundreds of flowers in autumn, a cool breeze in summer, and snow in winter. Don’t worry about other things, it’s a good time in the world.”
Liu Hongxun smiled and said: "Then I can retire in Guihua City with peace of mind from now on. Hahaha."
