On April 27, the forty-seventh year of Wanli, three hundred Kaiyuan soldiers, led by the fifth military camp of the capital, entered the city from Zuo'anmen.
There were still scattered eunuchs seeking employment near Zuo'anmen. Before Liu Zhaosun and his captured soldiers arrived at the capital, more than a dozen armed fights of different scales had already occurred in the nine gates of the capital.
It was not until April 25th that the enthusiasm of the eunuchs for job hunting finally moved the Ming Dynasty's ceremonial supervisor and the Ministry of War. The big bosses sent the Beijing camp to reinforce the army and horses, and took multiple actions to temporarily drive these enthusiastic job seekers out of the capital.
Liu Zhaosun looked at the eunuchs lingering around Zuo'anmen with mixed feelings in his heart.
Kang Yingqian next to him had a relaxed look on his face, and from time to time he would tell the general some stories about the eunuchs of the imperial dynasty.
"Liu Shen will know that our dynasty is different from the Yuan and Song dynasties. Castration is strictly prohibited. Except for the widespread castration during the Emperor Chengzu's calamity, Renzong, Xuanzong, etc. all issued repeated orders to strictly prohibit self-imposed palaces. Once discovered, they will be attacked in the lightest way, or sent to the army in the most serious case. I remembered something. In the first year of Zhengtong, there was a monk from Tianjin Wei who came from the palace and worked as a ceremonial supervisor. When Emperor Yingzong found out about this, he kicked him out of the palace, revoked the monk's right to be exempted from corvee, and sent him to Liaodong, maybe we are in Kaiyuan, hahaha,"
When Liu Zhaosun saw Kang Yingqian smiling happily, he couldn't help but feel that this person was quite interesting. He insisted on going to Liaodong to hang out with him instead of serving as a good civil servant and supervising the army. This kind of spirit of grabbing chestnuts from the fire for power was unparalleled.
"If that's the case, then why can't it be banned? I just heard from a commander in the fifth military camp that there are at least tens of thousands of eunuchs who have entered the palace this year, and there will be more next year."
Kang Yingqian smoothed his beard and said with a smile: "In addition to the Forbidden City, there are two capitals and thirteen provinces in the Ming Dynasty. How many vassal clans and noble relatives are there? These gentlemen also need to be served by eunuchs. In addition, I heard that In remote areas of Fujian and Guangdong provinces, powerful landowners like to castrate their tenants, so self-castration is often forbidden."
"In short, General Liu, you have to remember that our Ming Dynasty has no shortage of eunuchs. You can also support some eunuchs. These people are helpless and the most loyal. Sometimes, they are more loyal than others."
When Kang Yingqian said this, he turned around and glanced at Jin Yuji, then lowered his voice and said:
"Sometimes, she's much better than that woman of yours..."
Liu Zhaosun was speechless.
~~~~~~
Everyone entered Wengcheng, and Liu Zhaosun ordered the soldiers to rest and recuperate in the city.
From a distance, he saw officials from the Li Supervisor, the Royal Horse Supervisor and the Ministry of War coming to greet him. Kang Yingqian was worried that the martial artist did not know the rules of the capital, so he quickly pointed to the people opposite and explained them one by one to Liu Zhaosun in a low voice. When Liu Zhaosun looked up, he found Eunuch Wei following a senior eunuch, nodding and smiling at him. Liu Zhaosun quickly smiled at his eldest brother. The senior eunuch walking in front noticed something strange about the two of them and turned around to glare at Wei Zhongxian.
Liu Zhaosun had no choice but to lower his head and listen to Kang Yinggan's chatter. From time to time, he raised his head to look at the group of eunuchs and civil servants opposite.
The two sides quickly approached, and Liu Zhaosun followed Kang Yingqian's instructions and saluted each superior officer one by one.
He found that the officials who went to Kaiyuan last time to verify their merits were also among this group of people. Compared with others, they were quite polite to Liu Zhaosun and Kang Yingqian.
Other eunuchs and civil servants also expressed their greetings to Liu Shenjiang. Upon hearing that he came from the sea, an official from the Ministry of War even asked him if he was seasick.
Liu Zhaosun was just a general at this time, and he was far away in Liaodong. In the past, such a small role would naturally not be noticed by the officials in the capital.
However, in the past two months, he had won consecutive battles, greatly boosted the morale of the Ming army, and even killed the slave chief Amin. This time, if you lead the troops in the capital to sacrifice prisoners, you will definitely win the favor of the Holy One. In addition, everyone has heard that the martial artist named Liu also found Chu Dang (Xiong Tingbi) as his backer, so everyone naturally looked up to him and did not dare to neglect him.
The Royal Horse Supervisor and the people from the Ministry of War quickly transferred food and tents. Liu Zhaosun quickly asked Wang Erhu and Deng Changxiong to organize soldiers to camp in Wengcheng. He also ordered Pei Dahu to lead people to take care of the prisoners and heads. The prisoners would be sacrificed tomorrow. This was not possible at this time. Anything goes wrong.
The capital of the Ming Dynasty has no shortage of spectators. Although the four groups participating in the Battle of Sarhu this time are mainly guest soldiers from Liaozhen, Xuanda, Jizhen, and Zhejiang, there are also some children from the capital participating. When everyone heard that Today, a group of elite soldiers came from Liaodong who defeated the Jiannu slaves. They escorted the prisoners and their heads to the prisoner's palace, and the capital was suddenly shaken.
The streets around Zuo'anmen were already bustling with people, and the people of the capital were pouring in from all directions. It seemed that Houjin's dead soldiers were attacking the city. No one even watched the beheading of the defeated soldiers at Caishikou. The Jin Yiwei and Wucheng soldiers and horses Si Ru faced a formidable enemy, and everyone was arranged to guard the gate of Wengcheng. If there were not enough manpower, he had to go to the Beijing camp for rescue, and asked them to mobilize manpower to evacuate the crowd.
Liu Zhao and Sun Ji sat on a horse and looked up at the sky above the Wengcheng in the square courtyard, feeling quite like sitting in a well and looking at the sky.
This was Liu Zhaosun's first visit to the capital, to this mysterious and majestic center of imperial power.
Although he has the blessing of the time traveler, to be fair, his understanding of Liaodong and the Ming Dynasty in these days is not comprehensive enough, and there is no lack of prejudice, just like sitting in a well and looking at the sky at this moment.
Jin Yuji, dressed in military uniform, stood quietly beside the officer to protect her. In fact, like other soldiers, it was her first time to visit the capital of the Ming Dynasty.
However, she did not stare at the towering city walls and towering watchtowers like other soldiers around her, with a look of awe on her face.
In Jin Yuji's view, the layout and regulation of the capital city of the Celestial Dynasty were basically similar to those of Seoul, with a central axis running through it and being divided into two sections, the north and the south.
Of course, this place is much, much bigger than Seoul.
Kang Yingqian was busy saluting all the officials in the capital in return. Because Liu Zhaosun was a military commander, he was exempted from some of the etiquette among civil servants. He watched Kang Yingqian keep bowing and handing over like a roly-poly, and couldn't help but want to laugh.
Taking advantage of Kang Yingqian's free time to socialize with civil servants, Liu Zhaosun quickly got in front of Wei Zhongxian. Without having time to greet Wei Eunuch, he asked his eldest brother about the situation in the capital.
"Brother, where will we sacrifice the prisoners tomorrow?"
"At the Meridian Gate, the Minister of Punishment, Huang Kezuan, will come in person, and officials from the Six Ministries will also come,"
"Where is the Emperor?"
Wei Zhongxian looked back at the Meridian Gate Tower, and when he heard Liu Zhaosun asking the emperor, the eyes of this fierce eunuch with a background in the trade suddenly turned sad:
"I can't say for sure. Your Majesty, I've been suffering from severe foot pain recently. I feel dizzy at night. The hospital said it was a cold syndrome, but it didn't heal after I prescribed medicine."
Having said this, Wei Zhongxian quickly glanced around. A dozen steps away from the two of them, Lord Kang was tugging on Lu Shou's sleeves and laughing. Lu Shou wanted to turn his head several times and look this way, but Kang Yingqian pulled him back. .
"You said the emperor..."
Liu Zhaosun swallowed back the words he was about to say. He remembered that Shenzong died in the 48th year of Wanli. Could it be that because of his time travel, he changed history and also changed Zhu Yijun's natural lifespan?
It stands to reason that Eunuch Wei is now being suppressed by Eunuch Lu, and he should be looking forward to the emperor's death. After all, an emperor and a courtier, after Lu Shou stepped down, he also had the opportunity to ascend to power. However, Liu Zhaosun found that his face was full of sorrow when he mentioned that the emperor was seriously ill. I couldn't help but have a new understanding of this eldest brother. It seemed that my father-in-law was quite loyal to Wanli.
Wei Zhongxian leaned into Liu Zhaosun's ear and said:
"Our family estimates that we won't be able to survive this year,"
"My dear brother, listen to my advice and cut ties with Xiong Tingbi. The day the new emperor ascends the throne will be his death date. No one can protect it."
Liu Zhaosun also wanted to ask who was behind the impeachment of the Governor. At this time, there was a noise from the corridor of Wengcheng.
The people from the Five Cities Military and Horse Division, the Jinyi Guards, and the Beijing Camp all knelt down to greet them. Wei Zhongxian stopped talking, gave Liu Zhaosun a few hurried instructions, and then went to Lu Shou. Liu Zhaosun turned around and hurriedly went to the corridor to marry him. I knew that an important minister of the cabinet must be here.
The soldiers from Kaiyuan around them immediately formed a formation, and Kang Yingqian and several officials from the capital also walked that way.
A stooped and slow-moving senior civil servant, surrounded by a group of civil and military officials, walked through the corridor of Zuo'anmen Urn City and walked slowly towards Liu Zhaosun. Liu Zhaosun saw Xiong Tingbi following the civil servant with a tall figure. The tall Xiong Manzi stood out among a group of civil servants.
The slow, hunchbacked civil servant walking at the front had a bird patch inlaid on the chest of his official uniform.
Because it was too far away, it was not clear whether it was a first-grade crane or a second-grade golden pheasant.
At this time, all the fourth- and fifth-rank officials in the capital knelt down. Kang Yingqian, who was in the fourth rank, also knelt down and tugged at Liu Zhaosun's sleeves. Liu Zhaosun did not dare to neglect and quickly knelt down on the ground.
"This is Chief Fang. This time Lord Xiong is planning to visit Liaodong, he was recommended by Lord Fang! If you make friends with this person, the Liao salary will be enough for you in the future!"
Kang Yingqian raised his head and looked at the civil servants coming from the opposite side with a smile, and kept chattering to Liu Zhaosun secretly.
The old and decrepit Fang Shoufu finally walked up to Liu Zhaosun.
Fang Shoufu waved his hand and pushed away the two subordinates who were supporting him. Without looking at the kneeling civil servant in front of him, he went straight forward to help Liu Zhaosun up.
"Last General Kaiyuan, General Liu Zhaosun, pays homage to the Chief Assistant!"
Liu Zhaosun looked at his staggering figure and was worried whether Mr. Fang would fall down. Fang Congzhe suddenly caught Liu Zhaosun's arm and helped him up.
"Hurry up and get up! You really are a fierce general!"
Fang Congzhe's crooked mouth trembled slightly, he looked Liu Zhaosun up and down, looked up at the mountain armor on Liu Zhaosun's body, and laughed.
"Tsk, tsk, tsk, when I read the reports sent back to Tang by the Ministry of War these days, I thought he was a general like Zhang Fei and Fan Kuai. I didn't expect him to be so handsome. I thought Pan An and Ji Kang would be nothing more than this when he was alive!"
After being in contact with various Shangguan officials in the past two months, Liu Zhaosun has long been numb to such rhetoric, but today these words came from the mouth of the dignified Chief Minister of the Ming Dynasty, which still flattered him.
Liu Zhaosun was about to kneel down again, but was pulled back by Fang Congzhe. He clasped his fists with both hands, performed a military salute, and said loudly:
"The chief minister is overly praised. How dare the junior generals compare themselves to Ji Zhongsan? They only use Ji Yanzu (Ji Shao) as a model, work hard to kill thieves and serve the country!"
When the surrounding civil servants heard this, they all looked at Liu Zhaosun, and several imperial students behind Fang Congzhe looked even more surprised.
Of all the people present, only Xiong Tingbi and Kang Yingqian nodded slightly.
It's no wonder that no one would believe that a warrior with a general background knew the style of the Wei and Jin Dynasties and the Seven Sages of the Bamboo Grove, and he still wanted to imitate Ji Kang's son Ji Shao and use his flesh and blood to block the arrows of the monarch.
Fang Congzhe's beard twitched, and the look in his eyes towards Liu Zhaosun changed slightly. He turned back to look at Xiong Tingbi, turned around and said with a smile:
"Haha, I have heard from Mr. Xiong that you, General Liu Shen, are talented in both literary and military matters at such a young age. You are well versed in Confucianism and Buddhism. You have the style of an ancient gentleman. You are not comparable to ordinary warriors. Sure enough, it is true."
Liu Zhaosun wanted to say a few words of humility. Mr. Fang grabbed his arm, lowered his voice, and spoke to Liu Zhaosun in a low voice like a confidant:
"General Liu, I originally wanted you to rest for two more days. You saw it when you entered the city. The rioters are still making trouble. The soldiers, horses, and guards are busy. There is no time for leisure. There is no need for delay. Tomorrow, I will ask your troops to go to the Meridian Gate to declare victory. The Holy Father will watch the ceremony at the Meridian Gate Tower,"
After Fang Congzhe finished speaking, he raised his head and looked at Liu Zhaosun with a smile.
Although it was just a few words of greeting, the young general in front of him left a very deep impression on Fang Congzhe.
Although Fang Congzhe adheres to the principles of Cheng-Zhu Neo-Confucianism, he also likes to visit the bamboo forest on weekdays. Especially when he meets a "diligent and wise king" like Wanli, and is involved in the disputes between the Chu Party and the Zhejiang Party in Donglin, Mr. Fang yearns for the style of the Wei and Jin Dynasties in order to escape. The current quagmire-like situation.
So when we talked about the style of the Wei and Jin Dynasties, we immediately got closer to this warrior.
In fact, in the late Ming Dynasty when Shenzong was slack in government and the economy was prosperous, the pursuit of literati was no longer just to actively engage in the world. Some were addicted to Catholicism, while others devoted themselves to studying Western science...
Of course, a civil servant like Kang Yingqian who was obsessed with power and was willing to act as a poisonous scholar was definitely an anomaly in the officialdom of the Ming Dynasty, but this was related to Lord Kang's early experience.
~~~~~
In the early morning of the 28th, at dawn, in the Wengcheng next to Zuo'anmen, Ming army trumpets and drums rang throughout the city.
Under the command of Commander-in-Chief Deng Changxiong and Wang Erhu, three hundred Kaiyuan soldiers began to train in formation as usual.
Three hundred soldiers were wearing armor and holding guns, with a neat military appearance, and all their movements were uniform. Standing on the city wall and looking at it, it felt like all the movements were completed by one person.
This is the result of Liu Zhaosun's strict military management on weekdays. In terms of momentum alone, the Kaiyuan soldiers are stronger than many Ming armies.
Except for the Jinyi Guards and the Soldiers and Horses who patrolled the night, most of the soldiers in the Beijing Camp were still sleeping at this time. They were awakened by the shouts of killing in the Wengcheng. They stood on the city wall and stared blankly. Some officers pointed at Liu Zhaosun and the others. point.
Fang Congzhe was old and frail and could not get up early. Lu Shou, who had not interacted much with Liu Zhaosun yesterday, came early today with a group of young eunuchs, but Wei Zhongxian was missing. Liu Zhaosun was quite worried about this eldest brother.
Although Lu Shou is now the chief eunuch of the ceremonial department and is in charge of Dongchang, anyone with a discerning eye knows that this person is not a confidant of the emperor.
It is reasonable for Lu Shou to be replaced by Wei Zhongxian because of his shallow qualifications and lack of party members.
The last time the censor impeached Yang Hao, he failed to discover it in time, which caused a lot of trouble to the emperor, and Wanli distrusted him even more.
Yesterday, when Liu Zhaosun entered the city, Lu Meng and Fang Congzhe failed to welcome the captured general from Liaodong, which can explain some problems.
At this moment, Eunuch Lu was standing on the city tower, looking at Liu Zhaosun's troops. He judged that the momentum of these troops was not inferior to the Beijing camp border troops, and their combat power was not inferior to that of the Zhejiang chieftain troops.
Lu Shou thought that his time was running out, and when the new emperor ascended the throne, his eunuch Zhang Yin would come to an end, so he wanted to make friends with local military leaders like Liu Zhaosun, so that he would have a place to go if he was sent out of Beijing in the future.
Lewen
