This is really a hard work that pays off!
You rebel finally fell into my hands...Zhu Youjian was so excited that he almost shouted "Swordsman!" Kill them to avoid future troubles!
It's a pity that he didn't arrange a swordsman to cut people - because he knew that Li Zicheng was still capable! When the country is employing people, it needs generals like him!
And he also knew that the real national crisis in the Ming Dynasty was not the rogue bandits, but the Donglu!
Because the most capable troops of the Ming Dynasty were defeated and annihilated by the Donglu one after another, Zhu Youjian was trapped in the dilemma of being a major general, unable to completely exterminate the rogue bandits, and could only watch them gradually grow.
Moreover, those damned Donglu invaded the Pass five times to kill and plunder, killing and plundering all the areas in Beizhili, Shandong, and Datong Prefecture in Shanxi... Although Beizhili, Shandong, and Datong Prefecture in Shanxi were all It is not a financial and taxation center of the Ming Dynasty, but the annual land tax quota in Shandong is 2.85 million shi. The land tax quota in Beizhili is less, less than 600,000 shi, and the land tax quota in Shanxi Datong Prefecture is even less. The three places combined totaled 356,000 stones! This is only the land tax that went into Taikoo, not including the grain silver from Huangzhuang. The three hundred thousand acres of Huangzhuang directly owned by the Ming Dynasty royal family are all in Beizhili. The Donglu's burning and massacre in North Zhili turned the three hundred thousand acres of imperial estate into hundreds of acres of land. The amount of grain lost every year was not a small amount!
In addition, Beizhili has 50 million acres of cultivated land, and Shandong has 60 million acres of cultivated land. The total adds up to 110 million acres!
How much food must be produced in a year?
The Donglu invaders burned and killed five times, causing thousands of miles of white land in Northern Zhili and Shandong... The successive famines from the second to the seventeenth year of Chongzhen are definitely related to the burning and killing of the Donglu!
It would be outrageous to abandon half of the 110 million acres of land! We have to harvest tens of millions less wheat every year... It would be strange if there was no famine!
If Donglu could be kept out of the Great Wall, the Jiashen disaster would never have happened!
To stop the Donglu, we have to rely on northwest heroes like Li Zicheng to lead the emperor's army... Let Li Zicheng fight with Huang Taiji!
How wonderful it is to win to eliminate troubles and to kill to eliminate internal troubles!
Thinking of this, Zhu Youjian Zhongyu loosened his teeth, showed a smile, and said with a smile: "Okay, okay... You two are indeed good men! Li Hongji!"
"Yes!" Li Hong responded with a smile.
"Are you from Mizhi County, Yan'an Prefecture, Shaanxi Province?"
"Exactly," Li Hongji said, "The E family has lived in Mizhi for generations."
"Is this Li Jin your nephew?" Zhu Youjian asked again.
"That's right," Li Hongji said with a smile, "Although he is a few years older than Er and watched him grow up, he is younger, so he is Er's nephew."
Zhu Youjian nodded and said in his heart: You can't be wrong, these are the father and son Li Zicheng and Li Guo! The Ming Dynasty was almost destroyed in your hands!
"Did you voluntarily join the front army as soldiers?" Zhu Youjian asked again, "Did Lu Jiude tell you about the benefits of being a knight in the front army?"
"I've said it," Li Hongji nodded repeatedly, "Can you come if you don't tell me? Eunuch Lu told me that as long as he became a horse soldier in front of the account, he would have 500 acres of land, a house, and a sum of money to settle down every month. I can also receive another 2 taels of silver as salary...and, moreover, I will be given a wife! Your Majesty, is this true? Is it true that you will be given a palace maid as your wife?"
Not to mention, Li Hongji's psychological quality is really good. When faced with the questions from the Emperor of Heaven, he was not nervous at all, he talked and laughed happily, and was very comfortable.
When Zhu Youjian heard Li Zicheng ask his wife, he smiled and shook his head, "You are done... all the maids released from the palace have been assigned."
"Ah?" Li Hongji was a little disappointed, why is it gone?
But don't worry, Zhu Youjian hasn't finished speaking yet!
"There are no more maids in the palace, but I also asked some poor and helpless daughters of the sect to be chosen..." Zhu Youjian asked with a smile, "How about choosing two of them to be betrothed to you as your wives?"
"What does Shuzong mean?" Li Hongji didn't understand.
"Even the Ming Dynasty clan...Long Live Lord will also choose two noble eldest daughters to marry you!" Lu Jiude, who was speaking at the side, was so shocked that his voice changed a little, "Why don't you two kowtow to express your gratitude!"
In fact, the eldest daughter was not valuable at all during the Chongzhen period. There were so many descendants of the old Zhu family, how could there be less eldest daughter? It is impossible to have only a son but not a daughter!
The princesses and county heads of the prince's family are relatively noble, so what do ordinary daughters of Shuzong count? But Zhu Youjian still discovered their value... they can be used to grant marriages!
It can be given to the officers and soldiers who are pro-army in front of the tent, and it can also be given to powerful profiteers such as Zheng Zhilong and Shen Tingyang. It is very worthwhile to use them to win over pro-army and imperial merchants.
Moreover, sending out clan daughters can not only win over people's hearts, but also transfer some burdens... There are too many people in the Ming Dynasty clan who are doing nothing, and they must be reformed.
But how can reform be so easy? What can the descendants of the clan do who are used to having nothing to do? After thinking about it, Zhu Youjian seemed to think that the only two options that were more realistic were eating soft rice and marrying a girl.
How did Li Hongji and Li Jin know that Zhu Youjian had no good intentions? As soon as he heard that he would be able to marry into a wealthy family, he immediately knelt down in front of Emperor Zhu and kowtowed his head in thanksgiving.
Zhu Youjian smiled and said: "If you marry your eldest daughter, you will be my brother-in-law or brother-in-law... You must be loyal to the Ming Dynasty!"
Li Hongji immediately said: "Your Majesty, don't worry, Your Majesty is so kind to you. Li Hongji can only repay it with all his heart and mind!"
Li Jin also said: "Your Majesty, Uncle Er and Uncle Er must be loyal to the Ming Dynasty... We must be the most loyal ministers of the Ming Dynasty!"
Li Hongji nodded repeatedly: "Yes, yes, we are the most loyal!"
Zhu Youjian looked at the two most loyal ministers of the Ming Dynasty and thought: Li Zicheng and Li Guo seem to be loyal ministers. I wonder if the rebels such as Zhang Xianzhong, Luo Rucai, and He Yilong can repent? The more loyal ministers in the Ming Dynasty, the better!
Thinking of this, Zhu Youjian regained his concentration, looked at Li Hongji and asked: "Li Hongji, you have good bow and horse skills. Who did you learn it from?"
Li Hongji learned his skills from his nephew Li Jin, but he was better than his old master, his skills were higher than Li Jin's, and he was a generation older. He didn't want to say that Li Jin was his teacher, so he said to Zhu Youjian: "Your Majesty, uh The skills are self-taught and there are no teachers to teach me.”
"Oh, you are self-taught!" Zhu Youjian nodded, "I will give you a name. From now on, you will be called Li Zicheng!"
"Li Zicheng...well, it's Li Zicheng!"
...
When Zhu Youjian summoned Li Zicheng, "the most loyal Ming Dynasty", in the Nanhaizi camp, guests were visiting Sun Yushi's house in Xila Hutong in Beijing. The visitor was a handsome scholar, in his forties, with fair skin and three locks of beard. He looked extremely elegant.
This elegant scholar entered the Chaoyang Gate early this morning. He did not come alone, but was surrounded by a group of people. Some of them looked very capable and seemed to be warriors with military background.
After the group entered Chaoyang Gate, they went straight to Sun Yushi's Mansion outside Donghua Gate of the Imperial City. Sun Yushi was Sun Chengzong, the Yushi of Zuodu. He was writing bullets in the Metropolitan Procuratorate, preparing to impeach a number of ministers. When his family came to report that Yuan Ziru had arrived, he immediately put away the bullets and reported them. After a half-day vacation, I went home to meet guests.
And this Yuan Ziru is incredible, he is Yuan Chonghuan who defeated the Donglu chieftain twice in Ningyuan!
Yuan Chonghuan has arrived in Beijing!
He was from Dongguan, Guangdong. He resigned and returned to his hometown one month before the death of Emperor Tianqi. It was a long and slow journey before he returned to his hometown. Before he could take a breath, Zhu Youjian's imperial edict calling him back to Beijing to serve as an official arrived. .
Along with the imperial edict, there was also a handwritten letter from his old boss Sun Chengzong, asking him to return to Beijing quickly. Now that the new emperor has taken office, although Wei Zhongxian and the Hakka family were dealt with with thunderous means, the eunuch traitors in the court There are a lot more! Moreover, such as Wang Zaijin, Yang Hao and others, although they are not eunuchs, but they are no less harmful than eunuchs, they have also been enabled. There are only a few gentlemen and honest people, and they cannot form a joint force at all. Therefore, Yuan Chonghuan must not refuse his official position and must return to serve as an official as soon as possible.
The Ming Dynasty and all the gentlemen need him!
