Is Ning Tong a miserable person?
Zhang Zhou felt that this was probably a joke. It would be understandable to say that Ning Tong's marriage was not going well, but with Ning Tong's temperament... it was understandable that whoever was with her would be miserable.
Because Ning Tong is really a master of PUA. She can make an ex-husband who is not interested in women feel full of guilt and all kinds of self-blame and compensation. Who can compare with this method?
"It's okay. Your ex-wife rented a shop in the city, and the master and servant ran some of her daughter's Rouge Hangzhou fans there. They made the woman's business known to everyone. She is also a capable person." Zhang Zhou sighed with emotion.
In the capital city, it is actually very difficult for women to do business.
Although women these days are not said to be stuck in the front door, most of them are hiding in the boudoir. Even if women love beauty, they cannot tap into their consumption potential.
The land south of the Yangtze River is relatively open, maybe even better. There are high-ranking officials and dignitaries at the feet of the emperor in the capital. Everyone imitates the three obediences and four virtues that the destined woman must do. If a woman like Ning Tong can do decent business, then It’s really rare.
Zhu Feng said: "She...is doing business?"
"Yes." Zhang Zhou said, "I didn't pay attention either. If you want to go and see it, don't drag me along."
Zhu Feng said with a hint of shame: "For me, she still went out to show her face. She shouldn't have been like this."
Zhang Zhou pushed the teapot in front of Zhu Feng, probably saying, "Would you like to drink a cup of tea first to calm down your anger?"
Are you out of your mind or something? The person who pulled her out to do business in the first place seems to be your ex-husband, right?
"Pick up your mood and go to face the saint. I won't accompany you. After returning to the capital, I will be more responsible for the affairs of the Yanwu Hall. The main focus of the students of the second phase of the Yanwu Hall is no longer artillery, but firecrackers. Every three days Class, if you have anything to do, come see me, the class schedule has been arranged for you... Let’s talk about it, Mr. Zhu!”
"oh."
Zhu Feng looked like a dead pig who was not afraid of boiling water. It seemed that for him, wherever he was, it was just a matter of dawdling.
…
…
Liaodong.
Lu Wan and Wang Xian's troops had already retreated beyond the boundaries of Tongliao in later generations. They still had to go more than 400 miles to reach the Ming Dynasty's Acropolis in Shenyang.
The mobile combat force was mainly in charge of Wang Xian and Peng Quan. The escort of prisoners and the transportation of artillery were mainly in charge of Lu Wan's Liaodong Town soldiers and horses. The light artillery was in the position where the team was delayed. Once the Tatar pursuers approached, they would need to have Mobile artillery units rushed forward to harass and block.
This is the fourth day of their retreat.
The road remains difficult.
That night, Wang Xian and Ma Yongcheng went to Lu Wan specifically to discuss the matter.
Ma Yongcheng saw that Lu Wan seemed to have a memorial written in his hand, so he couldn't help but ask: "Lu Zhongcheng, have you sent any sentry cavalry to report the victory in advance?"
Lu Wandao: "We haven't exited the dangerous situation yet. We are victorious now. If we are ambushed or pursued by Tatars later and start a war, the result will be unpredictable. I am afraid that there will be a situation where joy will turn into misery. Besides, it is not too late to have a good meal. Why? Why can't we wait until we enter the ground at the border before we start our victory?"
"Haha...you are really not in a hurry." Ma Yongcheng couldn't help but look at Wang Xian aside.
Wang Xian looked very serious. Ever since Lu Wan didn't call Zhang Yong and Zhang Heling over, he seemed to sense that Lu Wan had some ulterior motive.
Wang Xiandao: "The war is over. If we delay in achieving victory, I'm afraid there will be criticism in the court."
Lu Wan shook his head: "That's not right. This battle was planned by Zhang Shilang of the Ministry of War, and you and I are just the ones who executed it. No matter what our merits or demerits are, the primary credit must go to Zhang Shilang. This point You should know better than me. Even if the battle report arrives a few days late, His Majesty will not rush it. If there is no result, will the people in the court still criticize it casually?"
"But……"
Wang Xian couldn't let Lu Wan do this.
Because Wang Xian knew that once the soldiers and horses entered the territory of Shenyang and reached Liaodong, it would be Lu Wan, the governor, who had the final say. When the time comes to discuss the merits of both parties, Lu Wan would definitely suppress the achievements of the Jizhou soldiers and horses.
Only before entering the Liaodong boundary, everything seems to be negotiable.
"Wei Gang, you are from Shandong. When you arrive in Liaodong Dusi, you have returned to your own territory." Lu Wan said, informing him of the battle report he had just received, "Although we have not found large groups of Tatars during our retreat now. Tartar cavalry, but in the north and west, there are unknown numbers of cavalry attacking one after another. You should be more cautious in dangerous areas. In order to avoid any disputes, after passing Maoshan, you have to go south or to Shenyang, or It’s up to you.”
About the meaning.
If you want to go together, go together. If you don't want to go together and want to go your own way, no one will stop you.
Wang Xian said with a straight face: "Although I am from Shandong, I do not belong to the Liaodong capital. How to use troops does not depend on where I am from. That's it!"
The boundaries of Shandong in the Ming Dynasty include Liaodong, but Liaodong is mainly a military area and is only under the Shandong Chief Envoy. Just like Lu Wan, the governor of Liaodong Town, has no control over the affairs of the state capitals in the Shandong Peninsula.
Wang Xian knew that there was no result in discussing military achievements, so he angrily took Ma Yongcheng away.
…
…
Wang Xian and Ma Yongcheng returned to the camp.
After Ma Yongcheng made sure that no one was watching, he said: "Why should we retaliate with him? Let's retaliate ourselves. Just as he said, if we walk out of the grassland, an unfamiliar place, we will divide our troops and go south. We will not be able to return to the Ming Dynasty. What are the boundaries of ?”
"Eunuch Ma, do you think the court will accept the credit we have given ourselves?"
Wang Xian's words surprised Ma Yongcheng.
"This... is there anyone who refuses to accept this? All the heads are on our side..."
Wang Xian sighed: "But the problem is that this dispatch of troops is nominally for Liaodong Town soldiers and horses to enter the grassland. Due to the situation, we have to return to Jizhou from Liaodong. Even if we go through Yizhou, Ningyuan and Shanhaiguan, the whole road is from Liaodong. Territory, when our troops go south, they must deal with the soldiers of Liaodong."
"this……"
Ma Yongcheng had no experience in leading troops, and he was not very knowledgeable. He didn't know so many twists and turns.
Wang Xiandao: "And I'm afraid that the minister Zhang in the court would rather get the credit from the people in Liaodong."
"Why is this?" Ma Yongcheng was still puzzled.
Wang Xian sighed: "First of all, I am not the governor of Jizhou, and I am not even an official in the border town. But Liaodong is now under the control of Zhang Shilang. The reason why Lu Zhongcheng dared to delay sending a good news is because of him. I am sure that Shilang Zhang will be on his side and will take credit for the soldiers of Liaodong, because considering the overall situation, stabilizing the morale of the Liaodong army is more important than stabilizing thousands of us..."
After thinking about it, Ma Yongcheng said: "That's right. Liaodong has been struggling for so long, with nearly 40,000 troops dispatched from different cities and fortresses, and so much food, grass and baggage mobilized. If the limelight of this battle is completely overshadowed by us, then they will..."
Wang Xiandao: "Unless we pass through Daning, we will no longer go to Liaodong."
"this……"
Of course Ma Yongcheng didn't want to do this.
For the sake of military merit, the soldiers have to give up the safe path and take the dangerous path. For eunuchs like Ma Yongcheng who are on the battlefield for the first time, they don't have that much courage.
Wang Xian sighed: "But I'm afraid that even if we return to the army and are not hijacked by the people from Liaodong and pass the customs more smoothly, we will still be criticized by the court. But you are willing to give the first credit to those people from Liaodong. Really? Those heads...if we take them away, I'm afraid there will be a dispute!"
After Ma Yongcheng thought about it, he shook his head and said: "We won't start a military rebellion just because of the heads of those Tatars, right? Then our sin will be huge."
Wang Xian said angrily: "But what can we do now?! Do you and I have to look at the faces of those generals in Liaodong? What's the point of being a general if he can't win military honors for his generals?"
Ma Yongcheng advised: "A good man will not suffer the immediate loss. As long as he can return to the ground of Jizhou or return to the capital, even if he files a complaint, he cannot cause discord at this time. Mr. Wang, you must hold back." Ah. After you go back, you will probably be promoted to Governor Zhongcheng. You have a bright future, but don’t be caught out at this time!"
"well!"
Wang Xian could only sigh heavily.
…
…
On November 18, the situation in the grassland still had not been reported back to the capital.
There were even more voices of criticism from the government and the public. There was still no court meeting early that morning, but after Li Dongyang left the palace gate, he was stopped by Tu Fu, the Minister of Civil Affairs.
"Bin Zhi, now there are discussions in all the yamen in the capital. Let's take a step to speak."
Li Dongyang waved his hand and asked his bearer to leave first.
And he got on Tu Yu's carriage.
The carriage was moving, which meant that Tu Jian was taking Li Dongyang back to his hometown in a carriage.
Tu Jian asked eagerly: "Is there no news at all? If this continues, Liaodong may be invaded by the Tatars next. Jizhou reported that it is snowing everywhere outside Beiguan. I heard that places with thick snow can Someone is tall. Just like this, I am afraid that the soldiers of the Ming Dynasty will never come back."
Li Dongyang looked calm and said: "The troops in Liaodong and Jizhou did not leave the customs to go north and west after the snow. They should be aware of it."
"Haha." Tu Yan smiled bitterly, "Do you still want to say that because there was snow on the road, the battle report was delayed and not sent back to the capital?"
Li Dongyang said: "If this battle occurs in spring, summer, and autumn, the battle report will pass through Daning and go directly south. The road will naturally be closer and relatively flat. It will be difficult to travel before the pass at most. But if it is everywhere in the grassland The snow is accumulating. Shouldn’t the soldiers and cavalry delivering the battle report have to go to Liaodong? There will be delays along the way, which is not surprising."
"But it's been ten days now! There's been no news in these ten days. Don't you think something might have happened?" Tu Yu asked.
Li Dongyang opened the transom of the carriage, pointed at the people on the street outside, and asked: "Do you think you and I are different from them?"
Tu Yu was not in as good a mood as Li Dongyang and said, "I don't know what you mean."
Li Dongyang said: "You and I, like ordinary people, are ignorant of things on the battlefield. Before the exact results of the battle are reported, any criticism you make will be considered by His Majesty as having ulterior motives."
"Then we don't care about the soldiers who went out to the grassland?" Tu Yu asked.
Li Dongyang said with a calm expression: "Don't say ten days, so what if it's a hundred days? The criticism in the court is not on you and me, but on Zhang Bingkuan. The longer time goes on, the greater the pressure on his shoulders will be. He is the one , at this time, instead of watching the fire from the other side, you still want to distinguish right from wrong for him?"
"you……"
Tu Yu wanted to retort, but suddenly he was speechless.
Li Dongyang said: "I know what you and your colleagues in the DPRK are thinking. You want to take this opportunity to suppress him and make him lose His Majesty's trust. But you can't suppress him without results, because many of the things he planned were not done beforehand. Not to mention that there is no result, there is not even a sign, it all depends on his mouth. No matter what you say now, you think it makes sense, but it is meaningless to His Majesty."
Tu Yan frowned and said, "Binzhi, are you speaking for Zhang Bingkuan?"
"Humph." Li Dongyang's face became indifferent, "The cabinet does not deal with the affairs of the ministries. Officials are evaluated and promoted. It is your responsibility to inspect the capital and make plans. The use of troops mostly relies on the system, governors, generals, and guards. Lieutenant Commander, you should not say or do anything out of the ordinary at this time. You should criticize me as much as you want in the court, as long as you don't bring things to your Majesty's side."
Just when Tu Yu was about to say something else, Li Dongyang said: "We're here! By the way, one more thing, do you think His Majesty can't hear the noise in the court? Hum hum! Let's go!"
…
…
Inside the Hubu Yamen.
Zhou Jing met Tu Jing, and Tu Jing explained in detail the details of his meeting with Li Dongyang.
"Hey, why can't I figure out the attitude of the cabinet?" Zhou Jing was also curious.
Tu Yu said: "You and I are the ones who treat people in this court in a peaceful manner, unlike those of the Fa Si, who are radical in their words and deeds. It is probably because of this that Binzhi said this."
Zhou Jing said with a smile: "Does this mean that we will ignore the controversy between North Korea and China and ignore it?"
"That's probably it." Tu Fu looked helpless, "Actually, I also understand that if Zhang Bingkuan has to be implicated in this way, His Majesty will not listen. In fact, from the beginning, who supports beating the three guards of Duoyan? It's like a piece of cake. It’s useless to get it, but until now, no war has been fought head-on with the little Tartar prince.”
Zhou Jingdao: "But Your Majesty seems to care about this very much. Tu Butang, don't you mean to say that Zhang Bingkuan is also a master who bullies the weak and is afraid of the strong? He insists on finding soft persimmons, so much so that he doesn't dare to confront the little Tatar prince, right?"
Tu Tong slapped the table and said, "If he is really allowed to fight, the whole court will have to circle around him! Besides, whether he fights or not, who does he hit, what does it have to do with me?"
Zhou Jing nodded.
The officials of the Ming Dynasty were most concerned about the dominance of the court. They finally convinced Wu Xun, but it was Zhang Zhou's turn to take the lead.
Tu Yu said: "No matter what the use of the northwest is for recruiting troops, if it involves the capital, warehouses, and storage, there must be set limits. It is not suitable to send troops in the coldest months of winter, it is not suitable to send troops to the fields in the beginning of spring, it is not suitable to send troops to the rainy weather in summer, and it is not suitable to send troops to ensure harvests in autumn... …”
"Hahaha." Zhou Jing said with a smile, "I understand, it is not appropriate to send troops any time of the year."
Tu Yan said coldly: "As long as you understand, the northwestern part of the Ming Dynasty has always been focused on defending. It's rare that the Tatars have stopped now. He has already obtained Zhang Bingkuan's military exploits, and even the Duke of the country has obtained them. What else can he ask for? He has to go through all kinds of troubles." From top to bottom in the Ming Dynasty, how can he achieve his goals by letting the court revolve around him? He is in the Ministry of War, but in fact the one who can most restrict his actions is your Ministry of Husbandry."
"Yeah." Zhou Jing nodded.
As the Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, and as the head of the six ministries outside the cabinet, Tu Yu had sufficient say.
Zhou Jing suddenly asked: "I heard that many people in the six departments have secretly wanted to give gifts to Zhang Bingkuan. Do you want to participate in the impeachment?"
"What?"
Tu Yu seemed surprised by this.
For example, when Li Guang was in power before, everyone from the government to the public gave gifts to Li Guang. Now that Zhang Zhou is in power, because Zhang Zhou is a scholar himself, the civil servants in the court and Zhang Zhou are rarely close to each other due to conflicts of interest.
As a former professional gift-giver, Tu Yu was a little surprised when Zhou Jing mentioned people and things that gave gifts to Zhang Zhou.
I'm probably thinking... I haven't given it away yet, who is so ignorant?
Zhou Jingdao: "Because of Zhang Bingkuan, His Majesty established the Office of Listening, which clearly had the intention of threatening the cabinet and the six ministries. There is no set rule for the appointment of ministers. Zhang Bingkuan's wishes were given priority. The Yanwu Hall was filled with people of all kinds who were close to him. It is not surprising that some people want to take this opportunity to become an official in the court."
Tu Yan said angrily: "Then you go tell the people in the Sixth Section that you don't have to mention it to me. The matter of participating in the impeachment of Zhang Bingkuan has nothing to do with me for the time being!"
"Yeah." Zhou Jing seemed to understand.
Even though Tu Fu was willing to use some means to limit Zhang Zhou's rise, he did not dare to antagonize Zhang Zhou too directly. He mostly wanted others to be the leaders, and everyone wanted to hide behind and be the hunter.
…
…
"Your Majesty, this is a report from Liaodong. Someone mentioned the dispatch of troops. It is said that in the past two days, the herdsmen on the ground near Liaodong, the three guards of Duoyan, have not moved at all."
"Ye Bushou was ordered to go 150 miles deep into the grassland, but there is still no news about the Liaodong troops led by Lu Zhongcheng."
Xiao Jing carefully presented the battle report to Zhu Youtang.
Zhu Youtang didn't even want to see it.
The lack of news was not good news for him, but a kind of torment, which made him even more anxious. He was afraid that God would take back all the things that had been given to him before.
Zhu Youtang said: "If I had known earlier, I should have waited a little longer for Zhijie to arrive, and then he would have led the troops to dispatch from Jizhou."
Xiao Jing smiled bitterly and said, "Even if Marquis An Bian goes to such a war, nothing will be changed."
"What do you mean, you want me to send Bingkuan?" Zhu Youtang frowned.
Xiao Jing said hurriedly: "I have no such intention."
Zhu Youtang said coldly: "You'd better not mean this. I heard that when Lu Wan and Heling sent troops from Liaodong, they had many troubles when they withdrew their troops, deployed their generals, and mobilized their baggage and horses. Do you know? ?”
"I don't know, this slave." Xiao Jing hurriedly explained.
"Because of this, our trip was delayed for three or four days, otherwise we wouldn't have caught the heavy snowfall, and we should have received news by now." Zhu Youtang said.
When Xiao Jing heard this, he thought to himself, is your Majesty shirking responsibility?
If the troops go smoothly, it's all Bingkuan's credit. If the troops don't go well, it's everyone else's fault?
"Bingkuan told me that after the weather gets better in the past two days, two groups of troops from Liaodong and Jizhou will move closer to Liaodong. When the time comes, the battle reports will come over to report the success or failure, and whether it will be a victory or defeat, and then Or a lukewarm response to the withdrawal of troops. It just depends on these two days. In the past two days, I asked Bingkuan to come to the palace to pray for blessings and eliminate the bad luck. I am upset, and it just solves the bad luck in my heart! "
(End of chapter)
