"I, Feng Yuanyang, the governor of Tianjin and the censor of Youqiandu, came to see the emperor."
"I, the Commander-in-Chief of the Tianjin Guards and the Left Commander, Cao Youyi, come to see the Emperor."
Seeing two loyal ministers of the Ming Dynasty prostrating themselves, Emperor Chongzhen was so excited that he almost cried. Ever since Zhu Cihong launched the palace coup a few days ago, he had never seen a "loyal minister of the Ming Dynasty" with troops at hand.
When he was in Tongzhou, he had some expectations for Song Quan, the governor of Shuntian. But I didn't expect that Song Quan was not a true loyal minister. He didn't care about his father being imprisoned by the prince at all. He only wanted to escape for his life... Just because he only cared about escaping, he knew that he was a party to the prince!
Cao Huachun, whom he met near Wang Qingtuo, had a bit of a "conscience". He served in front of and behind Wang Qingtuo all the way, and after arriving at Wang Qingtuo, he even freed up his mansion to house Chongzhen. But what satisfied Chongzhen the most was that Cao Huachun arranged for Zhu Cixiang to rest in Cao Huayu's original house.
In this way, Chongzhen and Zhu Cixiang separated! Moreover, Zhu Cihong and Chen Jie, Lin Zengzhi, Wu Xiang, Wu Sanfu, Huang Dabao, Li Ruolian, Zhu Chunjie and other potential confidants were too tired. After arriving at Wangqingtuo, everyone took the time to rest. No one had the time to care about Chongzhen, the polished emperor, so Chongzhen was given a little room to maneuver.
There is a little space, but it is impossible to regain power. Because Cao Huachun is not a fool, how dare he touch an egg with a stone? On Wang Qingtuo's side, the troops controlled by Zhu Cixiang include the third battalion of Kenan, the first battalion of guards, the first battalion of dragon cavalry, the first battalion of tiger guards, and the first battalion of Shuntian patrol. There are seven battalions in total, with 7,000 soldiers on staff. Everyone!
Although Cao Huachun had more than 2,000 and almost 3,000 troops at hand. But how can his servants Minzhuang compare with the 7,000 soldiers on Zhu Cixiang's side? They are all regular troops no matter what! He was fully equipped with weapons and armor, had received some formal training, and his morale was actually quite high thanks to Zhu Cixiang's encouragement. Cao Huachun was mentally retarded, so he tried hard to take care of Chongzhen because of Zhu Cixiang's order... Now that the entire Cao family is in Zhu Cixiang's hands, how could Cao Huachun oppose Zhu Cixiang? No matter how treacherous he is, he is still a great eunuch who sacrifices his life for the prosperity of his family!
But how could Emperor Chongzhen know what Eunuch Cao was thinking? He never tried to figure out the thoughts of his ministers, nor did he consider their interests. He is now thinking that Cao Huachun has 3,000 people, and Tianjin has at least 5,000 people. Adding both ends together is 8,000 people, which is 1,000 more than Zhu Cixang's 7,000 people!
If there are more people on my side, can the power be taken back?
When he thought about the possibility of taking back his power, Emperor Chongzhen suddenly became energetic and raised his hand to signal the two loyal ministers to stand level. Then he ordered his two "aunts" Wei Qinghui and Wu Wanrong to move two embroidery piers for Feng Yuanyang and Cao Youyi to sit on.
He doesn't trust eunuchs anymore. Eunuchs are unreliable... Eunuchs are greedy for foreign money and no one wants it. Emperor Chongzhen has no money. What can he do to buy the eunuch's loyalty? The two old ladies and palace maids were different. Their eyes lit up when they looked at Emperor Chongzhen! Chongzhen knew that they both wanted themselves and nothing else!
Therefore, after Chongzhen arrived at Wang Qingtuo, he immediately sent away the eunuch Huang Dabao had arranged to serve him and replaced him with two old maids.
"Feng Qing," Emperor Chongzhen said, "Supervisor Li Jiantai is out and missing. His post of Grand Scholar is vacant, and I want you to join the cabinet. In addition, the post of Minister of the Ministry of War is also vacant, so I'll give it to you. "
What? Will I be the Minister of the Ministry of War for you? Isn’t that the end of life?
Feng Yuanyang was startled by Chongzhen's words to win over him, and cold sweat broke out on his forehead.
Among the more than a dozen Ministers of War in the Chongzhen Dynasty, only Feng Yuanyang's brother Feng Yuanbiao was considered to have retired honorably. That was because he was too ill to do much...
"Your Majesty, my talents are limited. I'm afraid I won't be able to cope with the current situation, and I will betray the Holy Grace..."
Chongzhen listened to Feng Yuanyang's words of refusal, but he just nodded and said: "The current situation is indeed difficult. I fell ill at Huangjimen before, and left a huge burden to the prince. I really failed the expectations of my ancestors. However, Now that my body has recovered, I can finally shoulder this heavy responsibility again. Both of them are loyal ministers of the Ming Dynasty, and they will definitely use their sincerity to assist me in governing the country of the Ming Dynasty. "
"I am willing to serve your Majesty to the death!"
"I will do my best to assist His Majesty!"
He is indeed a loyal minister!
Chongzhen was overjoyed when he heard this and said with a smile: "With two assistants, great things will surely happen!"
What does this mean?
Feng Yuanyang and Cao Youyi were both shocked by Emperor Chongzhen's words. It turns out that these two people didn’t know about the changes in Huangjimen Palace! You can't just send a newspaper about this matter everywhere, how can you say it? Are you talking about the change of the crown prince's uterus and pretending to be an emperor?
Feng Yuanyang and Cao Youyi are far away from Beijing. Where can they find out?
Cao Huachun did know a little bit. Huang Dabao was ordered to tell him (by Zhu Cihong's order), but he did not tell Feng Yuanyang and Cao Youyi about it. Therefore, Feng and Cao had no idea that Chongzhen was having a conflict with the prince. Of course, they didn't know that the "big event" Chongzhen said was to regain power, and they thought they were going to regain Beijing!
"Your Majesty," Cao Youyi knelt down in front of Chongzhen, "I am guilty. The number of my troops is tens of thousands. In fact, there are only 4,500. I can personally use less than a thousand..."
Chongzhen nodded, "I know that this is a common malpractice everywhere, not just in Tianjin Town."
Cao Youyi said again: "I only have a few thousand soldiers, which is really not enough to conquer Shenjing, and they can't even resist the rebel group. When I left Tianjin, I received a report that the rebel cavalry had arrived near Tianjin, and their group would arrive soon." . I sincerely request your Majesty to stay in Nanjing as soon as possible. After arriving in Nanjing, the capital, you can summon Zhongliang and regroup."
"I also have this intention," Emperor Chongzhen raised his hand to signal Cao Youyi to stand up, and said warmly, "There are still thousands of rivers and mountains to go to and from the capital, and I have to rely on you two to escort you all the way. I wonder how many troops and horses you have brought today?"
Cao Youyi was relieved and replied: "Today, the Chinese army from Tianjin Town is coming with the ministers, and there are only 1,500 people."
"That's it..." Emperor Chongzhen frowned slightly, "Are all the remaining troops at Tianjin Guard?"
Feng Yuanyang said: "My patrol has gone to fight against the bandits, and there are still about three thousand soldiers in Tianjin City."
"Okay!" Chongzhen said, "In that case, you two and Cao Huachun will escort me to Tianjin tomorrow... When we get to Tianjin, I will be out of the tiger's mouth!"
The two loyal ministers did not understand that the tiger's mouth that Chongzhen was referring to was Zhu Cihong's mouth, so they both breathed a sigh of relief and repeatedly expressed their willingness to serve Emperor Chongzhen to the death.
…
At the same time, Tianjin Bingbei Daoyuan Yuzong was drinking and talking with General Hao Yaoqi of the Dashun Army, plotting how to arrest Emperor Chongzhen or Zhu Cixiang.
Hao Yaoqi had received Li Guo's report last night and knew that Emperor Chongzhen had escaped from the capital and was probably on his way to Tianjin. Then I received news from Yuan Yuzong that the Ming Prince or Chongzhen had passed through Tongzhou and was heading towards Tianjin quickly.
Yes, Yuan Yuzong didn't know that Emperor Chongzhen and Zhu Cixiang were on their way to Tianjin. Because Zhu Cixiang was too narrow-minded, he only issued an order to Feng Yuanyang and Cao Youyi to greet him and prepare ships when he was in Tongzhou City. He did not state that he and Emperor Chongzhen were going to Tianjin Guard.
But even if he is a prince, it is a huge contribution!
Yuan Yuzong patted his chest and said: "General Hao, Feng Yuanyang and Cao Youyi have all gone to greet him. It is Xiaguan who makes the decision in Tianjin City. The two deputy generals are also of the same mind as Xiaguan and are willing to serve Emperor Dashun. Chongzhen If father and son both come to Tianjin, the lower officials will catch them like two dogs with ears!"
"I'm afraid it won't be that easy!" Hao Yaoqi stroked his beard, "According to the report of not collecting people at night, there may be ten thousand soldiers and horses following the red thieves! How many people do you have on hand?"
"Xiaguan has 4,000 elite soldiers!" Yuan Yuzong said, "You can set up an ambush in Tianjin Guards City... If the general is worried, you can sneak into Tianjin City with Xiaguan. With the general's heavenly soldiers, it will be easy to capture the red thieves. It's just the general. We have to put away the banner of being a king, otherwise the news will leak out."
"Eh, I know!" Hao Yaoqi laughed, "As long as I can capture the red thieves, I can pretend to be a Tatar!"
