Shen Tingyang's house on Haisha Island cannot be said to be magnificent, but it covers a large area and has a large courtyard-style building layout of one house and three courtyards. The black tiles and white walls are all covered with water. From a distance, it looks like a dark place. The front facade is broad, and the entrance is paved with bluestones, which extends to the pier. There are rows of horse stakes standing outside the door, and horse pens and warehouses are built next to them.
There are many houses in the yard, some of which are very old and were obviously built many years ago. Some are brand new and look like they were built not long ago.
However, the decoration of all the houses is very simple, the furniture used is ordinary, and the house is very damp, so living there is obviously not very comfortable.
Emperor Chongzhen, Queen Zhou, Empress Zhang and Li Xuanshi were arranged to live in the middle courtyard of the house. The middle courtyard was a courtyard with two entrances, the outer courtyard was used as a temporary court hall, and the inner courtyard was the residence of Chongzhen and others. Zhu Cixiang and his Fujun Grand Marshal's Mansion were merged into the east courtyard, and the minister-level ministers who followed were crowded into the west courtyard of the house.
There are some attached courtyards outside the big house, and some shops have been built near the dock. They are also front shops and backyards. They are now arranged to house the civil and military officials who followed Chongzhen and Zhu Cixiang.
As for the soldiers of the new army who overcame the difficulties, they could only live in tents in the open air. After several rounds of expansion, the number of the new army to overcome the difficulties is now quite considerable, with a large establishment of three divisions and twelve associations. The troop strength is close to 20,000! There were also many Tianjin volunteers (including residents of Wang Qingtuo) who came with Chongzhen and Zhu Cixiang, about 20,000 to 30,000 people. If we include Shen Tingyang’s sailors, the officers and soldiers of the Tianjin Guards Navy, the original merchants and people in Dagukou, and the officials and nobles who left Beijing on March 16 and 17, family.
On the ninth day of April, the total number of officers, militia, and soldiers gathered at Dagukou reached as many as fifty or sixty thousand! Of course, it is impossible for so many people to live on Haisha Island. They can only live in Haisha Island and Dagukou City. Dagukou City is already full, so many people can only set up tents outside the city. live.
And so many people, carrying a large amount of luggage, horses, vehicles, and 500,000 shi of grain stored in the Dagukou warehouse, have far exceeded the transportation capacity of the Shachuan Gang and Tianjin Guards Navy, and can only be divided into installments. Transported in batches.
It is really not an easy task to transport so many people and materials! In addition, Zhu Cihong also had to arrange for the right division of the New Army and Su Guansheng to go to Dengzhou, and he also had to worry about Wu Sangui, his second uncle who had gone astray. Therefore, after settling in for a while, Zhu Cihong and his Fujun Grand Marshal's Mansion became busy again.
...
"Master Chitose, although Haisha Island is safe and sound, it is too crude and not suitable for the imperial court to live for a long time..."
The person who was talking to Zhu Cixiang in a simple study room with almost no decoration was Wei Zaode, the chief minister of the dynasty.
He came to see Zhu Cixi today because of one thing - how to maintain the running of the government during the temporary stay in Dagukou during the imperial visit?
In his opinion, going to court is just making do to maintain the situation. Whether it is reform or the New Deal, it is not too late to discuss it slowly after arriving in Nanjing.
"A month!" Zhu Cixiang smiled, "I will always stay here for a month when I go to court... Chief Assistant, do you know why I have to stay here for a month?"
"Master Qiantose is for the army at Shanhaiguan, right?"
Zhu Cixiang smiled and shook his head: "How far can we go to Dengzhou? It only takes a day or two to come and go on the sea. I live in Dagukou not just for Shanhaiguan!"
"Is it for Beijing City?"
Zhu Cixiang smiled and shook his head. Instead of continuing, he changed the topic: "To be honest, I want to put the imperial court in order in Dagonkou."
"In charge of the imperial court?" Wei Zaode frowned, "Master Qiansui wants to replace Ge Lao and Liu Bu..."
"The Pavilion Elders will not be replaced!" Zhu Cihong said, "If we do not remove any of the four Pavilion Elders now, and we have to add another one...this is all a trivial matter."
"Chitose's big deal is..."
"There are only two big things," Zhu Cixiang raised a finger, "First, the rules of government discussion and administration must be drastically changed! Everyone can speak without talking, but no one is responsible. This will not work. "
Wei Zaode didn't quite understand Zhu Cihong's words, because he had never seen a more efficient government than the Ming Dynasty.
But Zhu Cixi knew very well that the current Ming Dynasty was a central government with very low decision-making and administrative efficiency. It will not work without reform!
To carry out such a drastic reform, you can't go to Dengzhou, let alone Nanjing. Only when everyone in the industry is in crisis can the resistance to the reform be minimized.
If we don't reform now, when we get to Nanjing, haha... Zhu Cihong will have to face an extremely large bureaucracy that fails to accomplish anything but fails a lot!
"I don't understand..." Wei Zaode asked.
Zhu Cixiang smiled and said: "Let me put it simply... There are too many officials in this dynasty who can participate in discussing military and state affairs, and most of the people who speak are irresponsible and do not participate in actual administration. However, It’s just a matter of standing up and talking in an empty manner, which is of no use to the problem and is just for the sake of fame! This rule only ends at Dagokou!”
Wei Zaode was silent.
Zhu Cixiang then added: "The second major thing is that the Procuratorate must undergo major changes!"
"Inquisitor's Office? Metropolitan Inquisitor's Office?" Wei Zaode frowned, "Master Qiansui, this dynasty's remonstrance system was passed down from our ancestors..."
"We've reached Dagukou!" Zhu Cixi paused, "When our ancestors passed down this system, the world was already in turmoil... But now we are in troubled times! In troubled times, we don't need a group of gossips. Clean flow, troubled times need a Metropolitan Procuratorate that can actually do things!
As long as these two things can be done! My Ming Dynasty will be saved, and I will be able to clean up the country of Ming Dynasty. "
He looked at Wei Zaode and said with a smile: "If it doesn't work out, I will not leave Dagukou...Does the Chief Minister understand?"
What? If you can't handle it, don't let him go? Wei Zaode was shocked, how dangerous it was here! I don't know when Li Zicheng called... This bandit wants to use a stick to torture and force him to pay. How can he let people live?
"I understand!" Wei Zaode said.
Zhu Cixiang smiled: "Chief Assistant, let me tell you what I mean! As long as the reform can be completed, everyone will be able to board the ship and go to Dengzhou soon."
...
Seaside palace, royal study room.
Emperor Chongzhen of the Ming Dynasty seemed a little irritable and just walked around in the simple and narrow study. He put on a bright yellow semi-old uniform, and after running to the Tianjin Guard, he turned out the emperor's uniform and put it on. It seems that he wants to remind everyone that he is the emperor of the Ming Dynasty!
However, most of the courtiers who followed Zhu Cixiang and ran away from Beijing, or who spent money to buy edicts from Zhu Cixiang and ran away, classified themselves as part of the prince's party.
There is nothing we can do about this! Everyone knows that Emperor Chongzhen does not tolerate treacherous ministers. Over the years, the number of ministers he has killed or imprisoned by his orders is countless.
As for the ministers who were killed and imprisoned, none of them opposed Chongzhen's control of the world! But if the prince's party who followed Zhu Cixiang were really guilty, all of them would be beheaded!
Everyone dislikes beheading, so there are really not many confidants of Emperor Chongzhen in Dagukou.
But it is not completely absent. The original governor of Tianjin, Feng Yuanyang, the governor of Shuntian, Song Quan, the old prince Zhou Kui, the Prince Consort Gong Yonggu, the Prince Consort Wan Wei, the Marquis of Xinle Liu Wenbing, and Cao Huachun are now all Crowded into this study room, everyone stood there, looking at their noses and noses, looking at their hearts, without squinting, and with expressionless faces, all looking like virtuous ministers.
But just without saying a word...
Emperor Chongzhen was really a little annoyed when he looked at these loyal ministers who had no idea. He snorted loudly: "I am not the king of the subjugation of the country, but the civil and military officials of the whole dynasty are the ministers of the subjugation of the country. Until now, I can't even sacrifice myself for my father. Second strategy!”
The ministers who were reprimanded by Chongzhen said to themselves: Your Majesty, don't worry, the Ming Dynasty cannot be destroyed now, because there is a cruel and cunning Prince Fujun supporting it...
Feng Yuanyang, the governor of Tianjin, was old and not in good health, so he was thinking about becoming an official. After hearing what Chongzhen said, he wanted to retire, so he went out and said: "Your Majesty, I am old and old, and it is really difficult for me to take on important responsibilities... "
