Chapter 248 Sending envoys to seek peace
"Seek peace?"
Chen Cao knocked on the desk, then looked at Wang Xiaojie: "How is it? What do you think?"
"Jiannu probably wants to delay time. They have robbed so many people and supplies, and it will take a while to digest them all. Moreover, although Jiannu went south to enter the pass and looted wantonly, their soldiers were limited. If the final general You guessed it right, they will add Han people into their army."
Wang Xiaojie's words coincided with Chen Cao's thoughts. Judging from the way the slave army was unified more than ten years later, this was indeed the case. However, even after the regency of Dorgon, the Manchus were blocked. Beyond Shanhaiguan, it is also difficult to invade the Shanhaiguan on a large scale.
The most powerful pass in the world is like a wall of separation in the apocalypse. If you want to allow Jiannu to enter the pass smoothly, you have to start from the inside.
Chen Cao just went to Wang Xiaojie's military camp today to see the training. The sudden letter from Xin Zhao left him unable to find a staff officer. Huang Chunyao went to Suzhou Mansion again. Xia Yunyi and the others were obviously not suitable to advise on such confidential military affairs.
However, judging from Chen Cao, it is very likely that the emperor would openly refuse to negotiate for peace, but privately he would choose to strike out with Jiannu. After all, both the victor and the loser had shortcomings that were hard to show.
The Ming Dynasty suffered too many losses, the guardsmen had no combat effectiveness, the frontier troops were too scattered, and the court had no money to reward them, and they had no fighting spirit. Such soldiers were unable to fight at all;
Not only that, the civil uprisings in Shaanxi and other places were also the biggest problem that hindered the entire Ming Dynasty. Although the biggest problem in Emperor Chongzhen's heart was Chen Cao himself, since Songjiang Mansion did not raise the flag to rebel, controlling the civil uprisings was the first priority;
Secondly, after the new emperor ascended the throne, slaves entered the country and plundered Shandong. In order to rely on the Donglin Party, the emperor had to obey the Donglin Party's request to thoroughly investigate the eunuchs, and cracking down on the eunuchs became a priority for the court in recent times. top priority;
Therefore, given the choice of the lesser of two evils, the Donglin Party would definitely incite the emperor to strike privately and clear the court first.
In addition, the situation of establishing slaves is estimated to be no different from Wang Xiaojie's analysis. They have a small population and must recuperate after the war. Moreover, they have just conquered North Korea and need to digest it even more, so they will definitely not attack Guangning again this year.
Thinking of this, Chen Cao sighed silently. After thinking about it, he was still too wishful thinking. He actually had to wait until Jian Nu broke through the barrier before he raised his troops. It seemed that he had to think of a new countermeasure.
..
Six days later, Chen Cao met Huang Chunyao who had returned from Fengchen in Suzhou Prefecture, but this time he failed for the first time.
"Zhang Pu also persuaded the students to be internal responders anyway. They failed to fulfill the father-in-law's request. The students are really ashamed and ashamed..."
Chen Cao laughed and used his own reaction to relieve Huang Chunyao's pressure: "It doesn't matter, I heard Fu Yingxing say that Zhang Pu and other Fushe scholars are all talented people, and none of them are in trouble in their families, haha How can people like this be used, given their origins?
The main purpose of asking you to contact them is to inquire about the reputation of Suzhou Prefecture. In this case, then formulate a new countermeasure. "
Huang Chunyao learned from Chen Cao that the imperial court had received the news that the Jiannu sent envoys to sue for peace. He thought for a long time, and then became worried: "If the imperial court intends to strike out with the Jiannu in private and liquidate the remnants of the eunuchs, they will definitely We will target our father-in-law again and then surround our Songjiang from all sides."
Chen Cao also thought of this, but his first thought was that the imperial court would focus on the civil unrest in Shaanxi.
As soon as these words came out, Huang Chunyao hurriedly shook his head: "My lord, you are overthinking it. The princes in the imperial court regarded Jin Bing as a slave of Jianzhou. Jiannu defeated our soldiers of the Ming Dynasty in a row. Even so, they did not take Jiannu seriously. What's more, the civil unrest in Shaanxi?
In their eyes, civil unrest is just a scabies disease. As long as it is controlled in Shaanxi, it is only a matter of time. "
Looking at Huang Chunyao's expression, Chen Cao suddenly realized that as long as Shanhaiguan was in the hands of the imperial court, it would be absolutely impossible for Jiannu to move south in a large scale. For example, entering the pass through the weak points of Xifengkou or the Great Wall Pass would only be a small matter. There are only so many soldiers and horses, not to mention that it is only the first year of Chongzhen now, which is incomparable with more than ten years later. There are only so many soldiers and horses to build slaves, no matter how many there are, they will not be much more. Didn’t the Ming Dynasty die because of the surrender of the border troops? In hand?
In addition, in the original history, Sun Chuanting and Lu Xiangsheng fought under the pressure of Gao Yingxiang and Li Zicheng. If Chongzhen hadn't been so stupid and listened to the eunuchs of the supervisory army and killed Lu Xiangsheng, it is unknown whether the peasant army could continue to be rampant.
Of course, this also includes the fierce general Cao Wenzhao and his nephew Cao Bianjiao.
However, what makes Chen Cao happy now is that most of the famous generals in the late Ming Dynasty are under his command.
Huang Chunyao saw Chen Cao's contemplative eyes rolling around and then his expression changing, so he asked, "Does the Master want to start trouble in advance?"
Chen Cao raised his eyebrows and looked at Huang Chunyao: "I sometimes feel that you are like my Zhang Liang and Zhuge Liang. Yes, I didn't sleep well for several days after receiving the news some time ago. At that time, you went to Suzhou. This kind of What can we do if we discuss the matter with those who lead the troops?"
Huang Chunyao was extremely moved when he heard this. Chen Cao's words simply told him to treat him as a confidant. Unconsciously, the corners of his eyes became wet, and he quickly said: "Thank you for your respect, the student will definitely not let him down." The father-in-law’s expectations;
The student actually has an idea, the father-in-law can imitate Cao Cao..."
Chen Cao raised his eyebrows: "It is a good thing to coerce the emperor to order the princes, but once you do this, which vassal king is the most suitable? In addition, I have told everyone that I will not usurp the throne indiscriminately. Once I coerce the emperor to order, The princes are in wrong positions."
This is the first time that Chen Cao has said such words as "the position is not right". Even Zhao Xin and Song Che have never heard it. When Huang Chunyao heard this, he did not feel strange at all, but felt a little excited in his heart: "If Mr. Not wanting to hold the emperor hostage to order the princes, the student has another plan."
Under Chen Cao's expectant eyes, Huang Chunyao said mysteriously: "Imitate the past events of Emperor Cheng Zuwen..."
Chen Cao frowned instantly: "Qingjun side?"
"The Rebellion of the Seven Kingdoms broke out in the third year of Emperor Jing of the Han Dynasty. At that time, the seven vassal kings all sent troops to attack Chang'an in the name of Qing Jun. Emperor Jing of the Han Dynasty killed Chao Cuo, the imperial censor, in order to cut off the vassal king's words, thus destroying the vassal state. The king’s excuse gave me the official excuse to cut down the feudal vassal.”
Huang Chunyao said and looked at Chen Cao: "My lord, Emperor Chengzu sent troops to Qingjun's side, but Emperor Jianwen did not kill Huang Zicheng and Fang Xiaoru."
It doesn't need to be said too clearly. It is obvious that even if Chen Cao takes the title of "Qing Jun Side", Chongzhen will definitely not kill his ministers for this excuse. Doing so will only chill the hearts of the scholars and officials.
"Who do you think Yunsheng is pointing the finger at?"
Huang Chunyao lowered his head and smiled: "Young master, don't worry. As long as every one of the Donglin Party officials who are not from the eunuch Party and who are relied upon by the emperor, including a few of the emperor's teachers, is counted, once the flag is raised, the emperor will be roasted." The servants at the side of the rack add more firewood depending on how big the fire is..."
"Just because we are using the name Qingjunzi, I still worry that for the sake of justice..."
Huang Chunyao's expression immediately changed: "Master, have you forgotten that we still have an important figure in our hands?"
Chen Cao suddenly understood and looked at Huang Chunyao as if he was being electrocuted: "How could I forget him?"
Huang Chunyao saw that Chen Cao seemed to suddenly become enlightened, and he said confidently: "When Emperor Shenzong was in power, he loved Prince Fu because of Concubine Zheng, and even a lot of conflict broke out before Lord Taichang ascended the throne. If it weren't for Fang Congzhe and several members of the Zhejiang Party, maybe the emperor in front of them is still Prince Fu, I don't know."
"did you mean?"
Huang Chunyao said with a sycophantic smile: "Master, as long as you win Prince Fu, there will be people in the world who say..."
It is true that King Fu is Emperor Wanli's favorite son, but the current Chongzhen is Taichang's biological son. Moreover, most of Emperor Taichang's children died early in life. The only remaining sons are Tianqi and the current Chongzhen, and Tianqi has no heirs. If Tianqi does not pass on the throne to Chongzhen after his death, he can only choose among the close branches of the previous line.
Thinking of this, Chen Cao finally understood Huang Chunyao's nonsense, and then he thought deeply. After all, among Taichang's brothers, only King Fu was the most qualified. And the key is that many people in the Donglin Party favored King Fu. If the person who became the emperor had not fought fiercely between the Zhejiang Party and the Donglin Party, and the Donglin Party was at a disadvantage at that time, it is impossible to say that the emperor would not have had the chance to be the short-lived ghost in Taichang.
Thinking of this, Chen Cao suddenly felt that the unofficial reference to Taichang in future generations might really have been poisoned, otherwise Li Kezhuo would not have offered the red pill.
Of course, even now, the Hongwan case has long been classified as a counter-case, and Li Kezhuo has long been reduced to dirt.
"Could Taichang's death really have something to do with King Fu?"
As soon as this idea came out, Chen Cao suddenly shuddered. If this was true, was Prince Fu also involved in the death of Emperor Tianqi?
If this is really the case, will King Fu have any thoughts?
"Outside the door, go quickly and find Xin Zhao for me."
When Zhao Xin ran into the lobby in a hurry, Chen Cao was discussing the next step in Suzhou with Huang Chunyao. When he saw this, he stepped in: "Why are you in such a hurry to find your subordinates?"
"Send someone to check on King Fu's whereabouts."
Zhao Xinke looked at Chen Cao without knowing what was going on: "Why are you looking for Prince Fu? It's a coincidence. Yesterday, several of his Tiqi just returned from Nanjing to inquire about news, saying that they encountered Prince Fu's chariot outside Nanjing..."
"What a coincidence?"
Chen Cao raised his head and took a deep breath: "Go and send a message to Zou Weilian to find out all about Prince Fu's movements."
Huang Chunyao stood up immediately: "Master, the student is willing to go to Nanjing. When the time comes, he will invite Prince Fu to meet him."
"He won't come."
Chen Cao directly rejected Huang Chunyao's opinion: "He is a prince, so it is impossible for him to come. Don't think about it."
Huang Chunyao thought about it and said, "Then the student will try to stop him halfway, and the father-in-law will go and meet him."
