After the Civil War, Xun Qi's strength was greatly reduced.
Under the auspices of Zhang Fu and Chen Mao, the Northern Expedition quickly regained its strength.
But for the Prince of Yan's family, because the title of Duke Cheng has not yet been finalized, it is always in a state of flux.
Taking advantage of this opportunity, Zhang Fu asked Zhang Shi to try to win over him, and now I think there should be progress.
Zhang Min was still angry, but when he heard Zhang Fu's question, he answered reluctantly.
"It's not that good. When Chengguo's palace collapsed, all the families were very panicked and had the intention of surrendering to us."
"But a few days ago, during the New Year's Day, the boy from Chengguo Duke's Mansion went to each government. I don't know what he said, but they all changed their attitude. I kept making insinuations, but I couldn't find out anything."
Zhang Fu also had a headache.
There must be something wrong with the sudden change of attitude of these honorable relatives.
However, he did not have the time or energy to investigate the current situation.
After pondering for a moment, Zhang Fu spoke.
"In that case, let's put this matter aside for a while. Second brother, please ask for leave from the Jingwei Commander's Department these days."
"I will take advantage of these two days to introduce some of my cronies from the Governor's Mansion of the Fifth Army to you. After I leave Beijing, you will have to take care of the Governor's Mansion of the Fifth Army."
There is actually no other solution.
It is better to improvise than nothing. Although Zhang Xi is in the Imperial Guard Command, he is a member of the British government after all.
Even if it is inconvenient to directly intervene in the affairs of the Fifth Army Governor's Mansion, Zhang Fu's departure will not completely cause the British Duke's people to lose their backbone.
Zhang Min nodded to indicate that he understood. Then, Zhang Fu glanced at Xue Heng beside him, hesitated for a moment, and continued to give instructions.
"In addition, for those companies that have good relations with us and those with Ningyang Houfu, you can continue to move around after I leave."
"Listen to the instructions from the Holy Mother. Once she makes a decision, she will cooperate. Ningyang Marquis will save her if she can."
"But if the Holy Mother finally decides to remain dormant, second brother, don't be impulsive. Just do what the Holy Mother says!"
To be fair, from Zhang Fu's point of view, even if he tried his best, he still wanted to rescue Ningyang Hou.
Even if you pay some price, it is worth it.
After all, they now really need such a senior relative with qualifications, military exploits, and prestige to take charge.
However, the palace may not think so.
Although it was a bit disrespectful to say this, Zhang Fu still had to say that the Holy Mother in the palace was a woman after all.
Maybe in normal times, I can take the overall situation into consideration.
However, facing the current situation where the envoy was about to go to Wala, she probably couldn't care about anything else anymore, for fear that her actions would affect the reception of the Emperor.
Come to think of it, in the heart of Empress Dowager Sun at this moment, as long as she can welcome back the Supreme Emperor, let alone a Marquis of Ningyang, she will not frown even if the British government is brought in.
And once her old man is really unwilling to rescue, then they can only follow her old man's wishes.
At this time, internal strife is a taboo!
This time, Zhang Xi was obviously reluctant, but in the end, out of his long-standing trust in his brother, he nodded.
Seeing this situation, Xue Heng hesitated for a moment and then spoke.
"Third Master, although we all hope to rescue Marquis Ningyang, we must prepare for the worst in everything. For example, if the Holy Mother's side...then we have to prepare early!"
Although the words were euphemistic, the meaning was expressed clearly.
Xue Heng is responsible for liaison with the palace, and because of this, he knows best what the palace's Holy Mother's attitude is on this matter.
Zhang Fu fell silent.
Although the Xunqi people were strong in numbers, the losses in the civil war were really heavy.
Nowadays, there are quite a few kinship families that can be used by the British government, but they are all young people in their teens and twenties who have just been crowned nobles.
These people had empty titles, but did not have enough prestige to allow them to interfere in the military affairs of the Fifth Army Governor's Mansion, let alone the imperial court. Zhang Fu himself was worried.
Nowadays, the people who call the shots in various mansions are basically uncles without titles. They are the descendants of honorary relatives and serve in the Governor's Mansion of the Fifth Army.
This is the basic position of Xunqi's side, or in other words, this is the British government's confidence in controlling the Governor's Mansion of the Fifth Army.
However, since they do not have titles, it is difficult for them to truly become the officers in charge of the Governor's Mansion of the Five Armies, and those with titles are too young and have insufficient qualifications.
This resulted in an actual vacuum in the upper echelons of the Fifth Army Governor's Mansion, which gave Li Xian and his gang the opportunity to exploit the loophole.
Now that the envoy is about to leave, Zhang Fu himself has to leave the capital. Although Zhang Fu is said to be temporarily supported, Zhang Fu is not from the Fifth Army Commander's Office after all, and he has no military exploits.
The Governor's Mansion of the Fifth Army is, in the final analysis, the military general's office.
If you want to convince the public, in addition to having a title and family background, more importantly, you must have solid military exploits.
In fact, this is also the reason why it has been difficult for Zhao Rong, Guo Sheng and other descended generals to get involved in the Fifth Army Governor's Mansion.
Even with the emperor's forcible support, they were still struggling in the Fifth Army Governor's Mansion.
The core reason is that they themselves have little military exploits, and even the title of their fathers was obtained by surrender.
The officials of the Fifth Army Governor's Mansion include descendants of ancestral relatives with profound backgrounds, and some have been promoted from the bottom step by step through military merit.
The former looks down upon the family background of Jiang Jiang, and the latter looks down on their incompetence.
Now, Zhang Fu also encountered the same problem.
When Marquis Ningyang fell, the last of their relatives who had both seniority and family background and military merit was gone.
"Renli!"
Gritting his teeth, Zhang Fu spit out a name.
"He has just been promoted to a marquis. In terms of title and military merit, he can be suppressed. Second brother, you can follow me to the Ningyuan Marquis Mansion tomorrow. We will protect him and take Guo Sheng's position."
this……
Zhang Min and Xue Heng looked at each other, both hesitant.
For no other reason than because, strictly speaking, this ceremony is not a direct descendant of the British Crown Prince.
Ren Li was originally a soldier of the Yanshan Guards. He was successful in the Jingnan War, but he was not awarded a title. He only served in the Governor's Mansion of the Fifth Army.
His title came from his defeat of Adai Khan with Jiang Gui, Marquis of Dingxi.
So in fact, he belongs to the Dingxi Houfu faction.
Although it is said that the British Duke's Palace and the Dingxi Marquis Palace have a close relationship, there is a layer between them after all.
In addition to this, another reason is.
Ren Li's qualifications are not enough!
Although he was born as a guard in Yanshan, he was not a relative of Jingnan. He was awarded the title of nobility only after three years of orthodoxy.
Over the years, he has been fighting everywhere, and apart from the Dingxi Marquis Mansion, he has no deep friendship with other relatives in the capital.
This resulted in that his prestige was not very high in the circle of homies and relatives where seniority was very important.
In addition, because of the battle at Zijingguan, he was promoted to a marquis by the imperial court. Although it was a matter of course, he was not immune to people's jealousy.
After considering many reasons, Zhang Fu felt that there was something wrong with Zhang Fu's decision. After pondering for a moment, he spoke.
"Third brother, I know you are in a difficult situation now, but even if our British government is willing to recommend the appointment ceremony, I am afraid it will not be easy to appease the other distinguished families. After all..."
After all, it is not easy for a newly promoted noble to give orders to a group of veteran nobles.
However, Zhang Fu snorted coldly and said calmly.
"What's there to appease? If they have other candidates, let them put them forward. As long as they have sufficient qualifications and sufficient military exploits, the British government can support them!"
Zhang Min and Xue Heng looked at each other and said nothing.
But the dissatisfaction between the brows has not disappeared. Of course they understand the truth, but it is not so easy to cross this hurdle.
Seeing this, Zhang Fu felt helpless and had no choice but to say.
"What are you worried about? If I remember correctly, after this new year, Ren Li will be sixty-nine. Even if he enters the Fifth Army Governor's Mansion, how many years can he be in charge?"
"The situation is turbulent now. Look at how long Guo Sheng has been working. He can hardly keep his title. At this time, wouldn't it be good to let Ren Li charge into the battle for us?"
Zhang Min's face looked a little better now, he nodded reluctantly and said.
"Well, I will go to various mansions in the next few days to find out what they mean. This matter is not easy. If we want the emperor to nod, we alone are not enough."
The commander-in-chief of the Five Army Commander-in-Chief Mansion has always been decided by the emperor.
If they want to push people up, in addition to winning the favor, they can only rely on the joint efforts of all the mansions.
After all, all the people serving in the Commander-in-Chief’s Office of the Fifth Army are relatives from various families.
Their opinions will always be taken into account by the emperor.
Otherwise, appointing a governor for nothing will only end up being sidelined.
Zhang Fu nodded and said.
"This matter needs to be done quickly. In addition, if necessary, we can also join forces with the civil servants."
Seeing the doubts on the faces of Zhang Fu and others, Zhang Fu further explained.
"The emperor wants to replace the Fifth Army Governor's Mansion with his own people, which will affect more than just our side. He wants to support Li Xian and his gang. The first thing he needs to do is to get the Beijing Camp back."
"The civil servants, through the civil war, finally beat the emperor to the point where he couldn't lift his head. How could the emperor let the emperor re-employ him so easily?"
Zhang Min frowned and asked.
"You mean, you want to protect Yu Qian?"
It is no secret that Li Xian and others wanted to remove Yu Qian from his position as admiral of the capital camp because of his improper employment and ineffective suppression of rebellion.
If you want to stop them, you have to say something good for Yu Qian. This is an easy thing to understand.
Zhang Fu nodded and said.
"Not only Yu Qian, but also Wang Ji!"
"This emperor is certainly smart and wise, but he is still young and too impatient."
At this point, Zhang Fu, who had been frowning all night, finally had a smile on his face and said.
"Yu Qian is now in the top three in terms of power and prestige in the court. During the time he was the admiral of the capital camp, he was also highly praised by the military. It can be said that he has a far-reaching reputation."
"Then there is Wang Ji. He received a title as a civil servant and was the first in the Ming Dynasty. Although the suppression of the rebellion has been slightly delayed, the use of troops in war is not constant."
"The emperor blamed Wang Ji for his hesitation, which was somewhat unreasonable. What's more, he forcibly replaced the chief military officer and grounded Yu Qian, making this matter a big deal."
"As long as we kill them and Wang Ji uses his troops correctly, which is a strategy based on the battle situation, then not only can we make good friends with the two of them, but we can also overturn the plans of Li Xian and others."
Xue Heng also breathed a sigh of relief and said.
"Third Master is very calculating. As long as we can work with those civil servants to protect Yu Qian and Wang Ji, then they will not be too much in the way of Ren Li."
"In this case, with the Second Master and Ren Li sitting in the Fifth Army Governor's Mansion, Li Xian and the others cannot take the opportunity to take back the capital camp, so they have no reason to attack our people."
The rain outside the window is getting heavier and heavier, but the faces of several people in the study have become lighter. Although they are still worried, they are no longer as sad as they were at the beginning.
After sending Xue Heng and others out of the gate of the British Palace, Zhang Fu returned to the study.
Looking at the heavy dark clouds outside the window, for some reason, he still felt uneasy in his heart, as if he had overlooked something...
Three days passed quickly.
On this day, the sky was bright and the sun was rising.
The vast honor guard team set off from Xuanwumen, left the capital, and embarked on the road to Oara.
At the same time, a major event also happened in the capital.
The emperor issued an edict, allowing the Ministry of Officials and the Metropolitan Procuratorate to request that the Beijing inspection be held from February to April.
All officials in the Gyeonggi region, ministries, academies, temples, and prisons, with grades nine or above and below four grades, whether they have passed the exam or not, are all included in the assessment.
As a result, the atmosphere in the entire court suddenly became tense.
Ministry of War, Yu Shan held a large pile of official documents and quickly came to the lobby of the Ministry of War. He respectfully placed these official documents on the case, stood at the head respectfully, and said.
"My lord, this is the official business that has been backlogged these days. Some of it is of great importance. The subordinates dare not specialize in it, so they can only wait for the lord to come back and deal with it."
In front of him, there was an old man wearing a crimson official robe, with a pale face, and a somewhat calm and confident aura.
It was Yu Qian, the Minister of the Ministry of War, who had been banned for a whole month.
It can be seen that Mr. Yu has lost a lot of weight this month, but his hands are not resting for a moment. A thick stack of official documents is in his hands, and it only takes a cup of tea to finish half of it.
This was familiar official business, and Yu Qian handled it with ease and speed.
However, when he reached one of them, he suddenly stopped, frowned slightly, and asked.
"In this regard, Datong is sending an order to add 5,000 troops to the army and request the Ministry of War to allocate beans and grain. Datong captured a lot of troops and horses in the battle at Oala some time ago. Now there should be 8,000 troops in the city."
"A few days ago, the Ministry of War has fully allocated this amount to ship food and grass for nearly three months. Why are there suddenly so many more troops and horses now?"
As the Minister of War of the Ming Dynasty, Yu Qian basically knew the armaments, troops, horses, and food and grass in various parts of the country, and could tell them from his mouth.
Because of this, he was confused. There had been no war in Datong recently, so how could there suddenly be so many more horses?
Yu Shan had known that Yu Qian would ask about this matter, so he quickly said so.
"My lord, I don't know something. During the period when you were banned, Datong sent military reports one after another, saying that the border was uneasy and that there was fear of movement in Oara. Guo Deng, the chief military officer of Datong garrison, asked the imperial court to increase the number of three thousand troops and allocate additional troops. Five thousand troops and horses.”
"Because the boss was not there at the time, the military report was sent directly to the palace. After the emperor read it, he felt deeply that the matter was of great importance, so he summoned his subordinates to the palace. According to the instructions of General Guo, a large number of soldiers were transferred from the Beijing camp. Military horses.”
"Counting the days, it should be almost time to arrive in Datong."
Yu Qian's brows furrowed.
Since there is an edict from the emperor, then dispatching troops is not a big deal. What makes him more concerned is...
"You just said that there was a military report in Datong saying that there would be unusual movements in Wala? Where is the military report?"
Yu Shan pointed to the military report sealed with red paint and wax on Yu Qian's case and said.
"These days, the boss is not in the ministry, so all the military reports are sent directly to the palace. Your Majesty will open them and read them, re-seal them, and then send them back to the ministry for preservation. They are all here."
Hearing this, Yu Qian didn't hesitate much. He sorted out the pile of official documents in his hand, took the military newspaper next to him, and raised his hand to open it.
After reading them one by one, Yu Qian's face finally became solemn.
"Prepare the sedan chair, I want to enter the palace to see His Majesty!"
