Feng Ziying came out of Qi Yongtai's house a little depressed.
There is already a bit of coolness in the capital city in early autumn, especially in the dark evening. The northwest wind carrying dead leaves brings up a burst of dust on the deserted streets, making Feng Ziying subconsciously want to shrink her neck and squint her eyes. , looking at the flickering lights on the street.
The area where Qi Yongtai lives is mostly populated by officials, but they are not the rich and powerful, but mostly ordinary officials. Of course, Qi Yongtai's residence is much larger than them, but it is among this group of ordinary residences. , the simple exterior decoration makes it look inconspicuous, but the small cars and carriages gathered around prove that the owner of this house is not an ordinary person.
He had long expected that Qi Yongtai would not easily accept his point of view. After all, with the absolute advantage of the frontier army, anyone who wanted to start a rebellion under such circumstances would look like asking for death.
Qi Yongtai didn't even believe that Niu Jizhong would be so unwise, so he said, "Unless Niu Jizong suffers from heart failure," he would follow Prince Yizhong in rebellion.
Qi Yongtai's judgment of Niu Jizong was based on the position of Governor Xuanda and his ability to control the border troops in Xuanfu Town, Datong Town and Shanxi Town.
The main troops that Niu Jizong could control came from Xuanfu Town, such as Datong Town and Shanxi Town. Niu Jizong did not have much influence. This was the conclusion reached by the Ministry of War.
In Xuanfu Town, the officers from the general to the deputy general, as well as to the generals and guerrillas are indeed mainly military-honored, but most of the soldiers are selected from the guards along the border wall, with most of them from Shanxi and Beizhili. Some are also from Shandong and Henan.
Even if officers with military honors as the main force are willing to follow Niu Jizong in rebellion, most of the soldiers are from the North. Will they follow these officers in rebellion?
Qi Yongtai asked Feng Ziying a question that was difficult to answer.
Could he say that if the soldiers felt that following their commander would help them obey the dragon, they might dare to fight? After all, this is the Zhang family's own struggle for the throne. Even if they fail, ordinary soldiers like them will not be implicated. But if they succeed and even make a contribution in this brotherly feud, then it will really be the glory of their ancestors and their ascension to heaven.
Feng Ziying felt that as long as he could successfully arouse this kind of mentality in the soldiers, he might not be able to incite these soldiers to fight.
It is neither possible nor realistic to hold the families of these soldiers accountable. This has not been done in the past dynasties. Especially since this is still a brotherly struggle for the throne. Whoever takes the throne is the Zhang emperor. How can we hold the soldiers below accountable for this? Responsibility.
Qi Yongtai also raised another question, that is, the three towns under the rule of Governor Xuanda, and Niu Jizong can only control Xuanfu Town. Faced with the attack from Shanxi Town, Datong Town, and Ji Town, even if he wants to rebel, there is no chance that he will rebel. What's the chance of winning?
If there is no chance of winning, then we can only flee south. But if we want to flee south, how many people can we take with us along the way?
Going south, thousands of miles away, how to get supplies in the middle?
Could it be that they relied on plundering and plundering the prefectures along the route?
Will that slow down its speed south and cause it to be overtaken by pursuers?
This series of issues are very realistic before us. Any general will think carefully before making a decision. After all, it is related to everyone's wealth and life. If you don't think about others, others will also consider whether they will follow you. , or even directly switch sides and give you as a sacrifice to your opponent.
Feng Ziying also didn't expect that Master Qi could think about this issue in such detail and thoroughness. Even he had never thought about it so profoundly. This shows that the princes of the court did not not consider this matter, but after some analysis and judgment.
It seems that they have come to the conclusion that if Niu Jizong wants to lead Xuanfu Town to rebel on the spot, he has no chance of winning. He has to go south. Due to the limitations of logistical supplies, the morale of the soldiers, and the pursuers, with little possibility of success, the soldiers They would not agree, and Niu Jizong could not take Xuanfu Town away to the south.
If the elite frontier army in Xuanfu Town is lost, just the Denglai army with Wang Ziteng, Feng Ziying will have to admit that Jiangnan has no chance of winning, not even 10% chance of winning, and can only be swept away by the imperial court with thunderous force. In this situation Could it be that Prince Yitada failed to see that he would risk the world's disapproval and seek death?
So the answer that Master Qi came up with was no, that would be unwise.
Feng Ziying also admitted that according to this analysis, Prince Yi Zhong would not choose to rebel from any angle. However, the clues obtained from Weng Qiyang and the Anfu merchants were true and credible. Jiangnan was promoting the plan in an orderly manner. In preparation for war, Prince Yoshitaka will not do anything in vain.
At the Qi Division, Feng Ziying also received bad news, that is, the emperor, the cabinet, and the Ministry of War had agreed that Chen Jixian would be the commander-in-chief of Huaiyang Town, and King Zhonghui would be the military commander of the Beijing Camp and the general of the fifth military camp.
This cannot be regarded as bad news. Chen Jixian left the Fifth Military Camp, completely eliminating the hidden dangers in the capital. The entire three major camps of the Beijing Camp - the Fifth Military Camp, the Shenshu Camp, and the Shenji Camp, finally bid farewell to Yuan Xi at this time. era, entering the Yonglong era.
The capital was stable, but the price was that Chen Jixian had to take charge of Huaiyang Town, but Huaiyang Town was still an empty shell. When Chen Jixian took office, he first had to face dual pressure from the imperial court and the Nanjing Ministry of War.
In addition to the establishment costs of Huaiyang Town being paid by the Ministry of Household Affairs, the annual supply of Huaiyang Town will be mainly handled by the Nanjing Ministry of Household Affairs. However, the power to appoint major generals still lies with the Imperial Ministry of War, and the Nanjing Ministry of War can only appoint middle and low-level military attachés.
At the same time, Chen Jixian's attitude was also very vague. Even Feng Ziying couldn't see clearly what this person was thinking.
It is rumored that Chen Jixian's transition from General of the Fifth Military Camp to Commander-in-Chief of Huaiyang Town was a compromise reached after several disputes between the imperial court and Jiangnan. Neither the imperial court nor Jiangnan were actually interested in Chen Jixian, and both wanted to recommend their most trusted candidates, but it happened that It was impossible for both sides to accept the candidate that the other party most wanted to introduce. This gave Chen Jixian, a candidate that everyone disliked but was not too resistant to, a chance.
This is also what Feng Ziying is most interested in.
A candidate that everyone was not very optimistic about or disliked was finally able to step into the position of the commander-in-chief of Huaiyang Town during the game between the two parties. Feng Ziying did not believe that this was a coincidence.
The fog shrouding Chen Jixian's head seems to be getting thicker, making it impossible for people to see through his true face.
"Let's go." Feng Ziying took a deep breath and said to Wang Wenyan, who was following closely beside her, "Let's talk about it after we get in the car."
Wang Wenyan came with Feng Ziying, but of course he couldn't participate in the conversation between Feng Ziying and Qi Yongtai, so he could only wait outside the door.
"Sir, it's not going well?" Wang Wenyan inferred from Feng Ziying's facial expression. In fact, he felt that Mr. Qi Ge was unlikely to agree with Feng Ziying's judgment.
"Well, Master Qi thinks that Jiangnan or Prince Yi Zhong do not have the conditions to rebel, unless they both want to commit suicide or suffer from mental illness." Feng Ziying said calmly: "I put forward all the signs I have, but Master Qi thinks This may be a gesture to put pressure on the court, or it may be a means of commercial profit-making. After all, a severe drought in the North this year is a foregone conclusion, and the businessmen are just preparing for a rainy day in advance and grabbing more huge profits. "
"But food can be explained like this. What about iron materials and copper materials? What about gunpowder and saltpeter? The prices of these two items are very stable in normal times, with basically no fluctuations. Except during war periods, these types of materials remain at a very small price. Logically speaking, due to the large increase in iron production in Yongping Prefecture, the price of iron materials should continue to fall, but the current signs are that it has greatly exceeded the normal increase, and it is clear that someone is tampering with it."
Wang Wenyan was a little anxious.
Before the news brought back by Weng Qiyang and Anfu merchants, Wang Wenyan and Wu Yaoqing collected information through their own intelligence channels and made some prejudgments. They concluded that someone in Jiangnan was purchasing various strategic materials. There is no doubt about this.
But what Jiangnan wants is difficult for Wang Wenyan and Wu Yaoqing to explain. Before the war starts, anything is possible, and it would be too dangerous.
Feng Ziying also specifically mentioned this issue to Qi Yongtai. Qi Yongtai still attaches great importance to this point. After all, even people who do not understand economics understand the importance of steel. However, Qi Yongtai also said that it is just because the price of steel is abnormal. It would be biased to assert that there might be any changes in Jiangnan, which left Feng Ziying speechless.
The steel issue alone cannot really explain anything, but combined with the increase in food prices, gunpowder, salt, supplements, medicinal materials, cowhide, etc., which are obviously war preparation materials, it is enough to explain the problem. In the end, Qi Yongtai just felt that something was suspicious. But I still don’t believe that Jiangnan dares to rebel.
Because this was unbelievable in his mind, for one reason: Jiangnan's military equipment was not worth mentioning at all, otherwise thousands of Japanese would not have been killed from Songjiang landing all the way to Zhenjiang as if they were in uninhabited territory.
This point is indeed difficult to explain, and Feng Ziying also feels a little contradictory, but he firmly believes that Prince Yi Zhong has been unwilling to work hard for so many years. He will definitely not just bluff, but will definitely make a desperate move, no matter how small the possibility is, he is afraid of leaving. For his sake, even if he didn't want to do it, the people below would coerce him and rush forward.
"Let's discuss this matter again. Master Qi still believes some things, but it's not enough to overthrow his original ideas." Feng Ziying smiled bitterly, "He always felt that there was no orthodoxy, and no one among the scholars dared to risk the disapproval of the world. , Prince Yi Zhong is not Zhu Qizhen, he has only been a prince, and he does not have the ability to influence the officials in the entire court. As long as the emperor has a decree, no one will listen to Prince Yi Zhong. "
This point left Wang Wenyan speechless. Yes, given the current situation, Prince Yi Zhong had no right to challenge Emperor Yonglong. Even the Supreme Emperor would not be able to support Prince Yi Zhong, otherwise even the Supreme Emperor would be questioned.
