Wang Shouren led his troops to advance on the grassland.
News from the capital was very lagging behind, and as for the city of Nanjing, it was even less possible to learn about Wang Shouren's "glorious achievements" in the first place.
But that doesn't seem to be important anymore, because after Zhang Zhou completed the task of making Zhu Houzhao famous, he still had another important task, which was to defeat the vassal. He asked Yang Peng several times to send people to Nanchang, but Yang Peng was He was extremely nervous because he thought Zhang Zhou was going to operate on Ning Fan.
The grievances between the Ming Dynasty royal family and Ning Fan have been going on for a long time. The ministers in the court were not unaware of Emperor Taizong's "wrong treatment" of the first Ning Prince Zhu Quan. Otherwise, they would not have found excuses to deprive Ning Prince of his bodyguards. .
In fact, it was to prevent Ning Fan from rebelling.
Yang Peng went to Zhang Zhou's residence alone that day, explained to Zhang Zhou what he knew, and expressed his concerns about operating on Ning Fan.
"King Xiao Ning has just ascended the throne, and it has only been a year. If he wants to get rid of Ning Fan, I am afraid that the clans everywhere will feel in danger. And there must be a reason before starting." Yang Peng was obviously waiting here. In fact, I still support Zhang Zhou's decision, but it just shows that you, Zhang Zhou, don't be too conceited. Zongfan is not something you can control.
Especially for a big lord like Ning Fan, if you make trouble, others can take care of you and keep you in check.
Zhang Zhou smiled and said: "When did I say that I wanted to get rid of Ning Fan? Or take action against Ning Fan?"
"What about you?"
Yang Peng didn't understand.
If you don't want to target Ning Fan, why do you always send people to Jiangxi and Nanchang? The posture he put on was still to investigate the clan.
Zhang Zhou said: "If you want to investigate the clan, you must have evidence. Even if I really came to investigate the clan, it cannot be Ning Fan. In fact, I told you clearly, it is King Zhongling."
"Prince Zhongling?" Yang Peng's eyes widened, somewhat subverting his outlook on life.
King Zhongling was also a side branch of Ning Fan. The contemporary King Zhongling was named Zhu Jinzui. He was the son of King Ningjing. He was knighted in the eighth year of Chenghua. He was famous for his "loyalty to the country" in history.
The so-called "serve the country with loyalty" does not mean that he really served the country with loyalty, but that he kept telling the emperor that he wanted to go to the frontier to lead troops to kill the enemy. He kept recommending himself, and even trained private soldiers to forge weapons in the palace, but was dismissed by the Minister of War. Ma Wensheng sued.
"... I foolishly thought that the generals recommended in the imperial edict were rejected by the royal family. However, the skills of bows and horses were not good, and it was not suitable for a king to marry. Now King Zhongling recommended himself for no reason. He is suspected of being a subordinate for a while, or there may be some strange plans. The imperial court kisses , it is advisable to go to the place as early as possible. Please surrender and send people to tell King Ning to strictly warn King Zhongling, order students to be close to Confucian scholars, and take the Dongping and Hejian of the Han Dynasty as the law, and have a break with the country. If you are not shy, you should also be more secret. Hear it and you won’t regret it…”
What Ma Wensheng meant was that you, King Zhongling, recommended yourself without any trouble and had "different plans". Please ask King Ning to properly discipline this side King Zhongling, get closer to the scholars, and don't always think about "serving the country with loyalty."
Then in the 18th year of Hongzhi, Zhang Peihuan, the concubine of Zhu Jinzhui's son Zhu Chenmei, reported that after Zhu Jinzhui failed to self-recommend last time, he drank alcohol at home and killed anyone who disobeyed him, and then the concubine ran out. Later, it was reported that Zhu Jinzhui secretly made weapons at home...
In order to defeat Ning Fan, Zhu Youtang expelled Zhu Jinzui from his title and sent him to Fengyang Mansion to see the imperial mausoleum. This could be regarded as eliminating a potential rebellion for Zhu Houzhao before his death.
When Zhang Zhou came to Nanjing, it was impossible to attack Prince Ning directly.
Even though he knew very well, Zhu Chenhao's ambitions were much greater than his uncle.
When Zhu Chenhao first received the title, he went to Beijing with the emperor and said: "King Ning expressed his gratitude for being granted the title of beggar, and sent a letter to stop it."
This means that as soon as he was granted the title, he requested to visit Yique, that is, to go to the capital to thank him, but the emperor vetoed it.
Prince Ning's faction has always spared no effort in gaining prestige, connections, and resources.
But the problem is that Zhu Chenhao has just become Prince Ning. Even if he is ambitious, he is not qualified to challenge the court. It is unrealistic to find evidence of his "rebellion".
But not everyone is as careful as Zhu Jinjun and his son. Just like Zhu Jinzhui, who secretly makes weapons at home. As long as Zhang Zhou catches him as an example, he can use it as a negative teaching material to investigate the conflicts on both sides of the Yangtze River. Zongfan, investigate whether they have privately made weapons, and then extend this to block Zongfan's use of power for personal gain.
"Eunuch Yang, King Zhongling may not be a showy person before, but he is still a martial man. You should have heard that he usually does not cultivate knowledge, often talks about military strategies, and talks about border affairs. "
"So I suspect that he secretly makes weapons in his house and may train private soldiers. From this, I can infer that he may have disobedient intentions."
Zhang Zhou's tone was very relaxed, as if Zhu Jiaconi could be held and played with casually.
After Yang Peng knew that Zhang Zhou was not targeting Ning Wang Zhu Chenhao, but only Zhu Chenhao's uncle, he seemed to be relieved, but he still said cautiously: "If you want to thoroughly investigate this matter, I'm afraid it won't be possible." Not easy."
Zhang Zhou smiled and said: "If you want to investigate, you will naturally have to have witnesses and physical evidence, so empty talk is not acceptable. I heard that there are people from the Prince of Zhongling's Palace doing business in Nanjing... People who do business in Jiangnan say that this person is from the Jianggan Ning clan. Several members of the clan do not follow the rules when doing business, and often exploit and plunder, and merchants and people also complain a lot."
"Who said that? Can you find any evidence?" Yang Peng's eyes widened.
He was thinking, do you even know the plight of businessmen in Nanjing?
Zhang Zhou said: "No talent, my old Taishan, whose surname is Jiang Mingdezhong, has been doing business in Nanjing. Every time he tells me about such things, he treats them like treasures. Also because his wine often does business with the royal family of Zongfan, so Know the reason behind it.”
Yang Peng swallowed.
Zhang Zhou had a father-in-law who was a businessman, and he knew this. There was not much contact between Yang Peng and Jiang Dezhong.
Zhang Zhou said with a smile: "If you want to make weapons privately, you must purchase raw materials, that is, iron. Find the royal ships traveling between Jiangxi and Nanjing, detain the people, and interrogate them. Then send people to the palace of Zhongling to search... I think my inference shouldn’t be wrong, right?”
Yang Peng was startled.
Are you wrong in your own inference? You actually ask me?
Then Yang Peng understood something and said: "Even if Master Zhang is wrong in your inference, you can make him right."
"Tell me the evidence." Zhang Zhou smiled.
It seems that Yang Peng is very good at framing people.
This is different from people like Xiao Jing and Mou Bin. Yang Peng seems to be better at doing things by any means.
"Yes, yes." Yang Peng nodded hurriedly, "I am on an imperial mission, how could I not provide evidence? There is still some evidence if I look carefully."
…
…
After Yang Peng knew Zhang Zhou's intentions in detail, his enthusiasm for doing things became much higher.
In Yang Peng's opinion, it was too easy to use an unknown Prince of Bell Ling as cannon fodder... Even if he might offend people from Prince Ning's faction, as the owner of Dongchang Factory, would he still be afraid of this?
After Zhu Houzhao completed the cultural conference, he was so satisfied that he should put his return to Beijing on the agenda.
But more importantly, it was to let the emperor know Zhu Houzhao's "excellent performance" in Nanjing.
As Zhu Houzhao appeared in Nanjing as the prince, within just five days, the news had reached the capital and was known to the ministers of the court. Not surprisingly... the government and the public were in an uproar.
The prince of the Ming Dynasty was actually "abducted" by Zhang Zhou to Nanjing?
No wonder the prince never showed up to give lectures on the Sutra Banquet Day before, and even the lectures in the East Palace lectures were suspended. He said he was sick, so he was just following Zhang Bingkuan to fool around?
After the ministers found out, they naturally wanted to use this as a topic to criticize Zhang Zhou. Kidnapping the prince out of the capital was a big crime... In the eyes of many ministers, this was Zhang Zhou's sinking.
It was also at the court meeting on September 17th.
Zhu Youtang took the initiative to raise this topic right after the court meeting began. Of course, his focus was not on Zhang Zhou, but on his son's performance in Nanjing.
"...My dear friends, I sent the prince to Nanjing to pacify the people. Along the way, he comforted the drought in the Central Plains and the floods in various places in the south of the Yangtze River. At the same time, I gave him more experience. I never thought that the prince would compose three poems in Nanjing. Read his poem to everyone present."
Zhu Youtang looked very proud.
My son is only ten years old, and he is still ten years old, and he can compose poems.
There are three songs at once, and each one sounds so awesome.
Xiao Jing immediately came out and read out three poems by Zhu Houzhao in front of everyone with a smile.
In fact, most of the ministers present have heard of these three poems, and some have heard some rumors. Some said they were written by Cheng Minzheng, and some said they were written by a ten-year-old boy named "Zhu Shou". Now the emperor took the initiative to say that the young man was the prince... It seemed that everything was cleared up.
Regardless of whether the poem was actually written by the prince or ghostwritten by someone else.
Even the emperor said this, but Cheng Minzheng didn't fight for it. It seems... this poem was not written by Zhu Houzhao, but by him.
After Xiao Jing finished reading, he went back.
Zhu Youtang sighed with emotion: "The words are very plain, but they contain profound meanings. I just want him to read thousands of books and travel thousands of miles. His trip to the south has increased his knowledge and knowledge, and it also makes me feel relieved." Scholar Wang, what do you think of the prince's poems?"
The emperor felt that it was not appropriate to brag on his own, and he needed someone to brag with him.
If you can't ask Liu Jian and the others directly, they are likely to find fault. Then go directly to Wang Hao, the bachelor of the Hanlin Academy.
After all, Wang Hao is also my son's husband. In terms of faction, he is not completely a traditional faction. He is still Zhang Zhou's disciple. I am still very optimistic about him.
Wang Hao came out and said: "The poem is simple and unpretentious, but it shows the inner piety and perseverance of the poet. The poem is comparable to the masterpieces of the Tang Dynasty, and I feel ashamed to be inferior."
"Wow……"
There was a lot of discussion at the scene.
Everyone thinks that Wang Hao is a bit "exaggerated". Good things are good. If you are ashamed of yourself, you are ashamed of yourself. What does it mean to add "comparable to the masterpieces of the Tang Dynasty"? The prince recited three hundred Tang poems by heart, and even wrote three of them himself. Will he be a model for scholars all over the world in the future?
But Wang Hao also spoke tactfully.
I only admire the poet, not the prince.
The ministers may not know what that naughty child is like, but Your Majesty, you should know. Even you, Your Majesty, don’t know. Don’t I, the gentleman, know?
I don’t believe a poem was written by the prince.
Just three songs?
Zhu Youtang said: "I actually doubt in my heart, where did the prince get the experience to write such a poem? But I guess he has been cultivated and taught by Wang Xueshi and others, and he has been improving in knowledge. I am also You can see it. Donggong’s official contribution is indispensable... By the way, there is also Bingkuan..."
coming.
The ministers present thought to themselves that after the emperor talked in circles for a long time, he finally returned to the topic of "Bingkuan is awesome" that he was passionate about.
"Before Bingkuan was a bachelor of Hanlin Academy, but after he was transferred to Nanjing as Minister of the Ministry of War, the errands of the Hanlin Academy were never returned to him. My intention is to promote him to a bachelor of the Hanlin Academy and take charge of the affairs of the Hanlin Academy in Nanjing."
Zhu Youtang was also rude.
When he promoted Zhang Zhou to an official position, Zhu Youtang was like a generous hawker. He would give away the fame and official positions that others valued, and he would often buy one and get two free.
Liu Jian came out and asked, "Your Majesty, does the prince's poetry writing have anything to do with Duke Lai?"
Zhu Youtang said: "Maybe there is no connection. But I have seen the prince's growth all the way... and at the Nanjing Cultural Conference, the prince used his mind to compete with people from other schools, and won the favor of the scholars. He also proposed to worship Bingkuan as his teacher and carry forward Bingkuan's teachings. I have conveyed Zhunyun's decree back to Nanjing."
My son wants to ask his best friend to be his teacher, which I really want to do.
I have always asked Bingkuan to teach the prince, and now he is officially a disciple. After becoming a disciple, my son can establish a reputation in the literary world... Such a good thing, I am simply making money for nothing.
Li Dongyang said: "The debate about Neo-Confucianism and Psychology involves differences between traditional and emerging concepts. If the prince rashly praises one side, it will be useless to the education of scholars. Please withdraw your order."
If you just let the prince ask Zhang Bingkuan to be his husband, then what do we think?
Strictly speaking, the big guys in the East Palace are all the prince's teachers, but the prince now only admits that he is Zhang Zhou's student?
Wasn’t our previous teaching in vain?
Zhu Youtang looked impatient and said: "I don't want to interfere in the so-called dispute between psychology and Neo-Confucianism, and it does not involve the imperial examinations of the Ming Dynasty. If I want to stop it just because the prince admires the study of mind, it is tantamount to Tell the world that the imperial court intends to standardize and orthodoxy. Instead, let the prince make his own choice. I think it is more conducive to enlightenment."
The ministers present, especially the staunch old Neo-Confucian scholars, felt angry.
What kind of fallacy is this?
Asking the prince to become Zhang Zhou's disciple and to promote Xinxue was actually to balance the relationship between the two parties? Is this called favoritism?
If all the princes join the Xinxue side, how can Neo-Confucianism develop?
Zhu Youtang said: "Last night, there were several memorials criticizing Bingkuan, which involved Bingkuan taking the prince out of the capital. What I want to tell you... Bingkuan did not know about the prince's trip south in advance."
This is true.
But to the ministers' ears, it sounded like he was shielding Zhang Zhou.
How could the prince go to Nanjing at the same time by such a coincidence? What cultural events did we attend together in Nanjing? It's unclear. Is Zhang Zhou behind everything?
…
…
"Is there any battle report coming from Ningxia and Liaodong?"
Zhu Youtang found that it was not easy to brag to his son in front of ministers.
These two poems were so good that he never tired of reading them hundreds of times. The minister actually had no intention of praising them at all, and even Wang Hao only said some high-sounding words.
So at this time, Zhu Youtang could only change the topic.
Xiao Jing said: "Your Majesty, the Tatars on the West Road of Ningxia are still harassing and harassing people. Anbian Hou personally led his troops to deal with them, but there has been no result yet. However, the supervisory censor has reported the losses in various places in Ningxia this year. According to preliminary estimates, all the captives lost...nearly a hundred..."
The implication.
Ningxia's losses are quite big this time.
Not counting the injuries to the soldiers, the number of captured men alone was close to a hundred.
If you add the old, weak, women and children, there may be two to three hundred people. If you add the losses of soldiers... this battle of the Ming Dynasty can be said to be a disastrous defeat.
Chai Sheng came out from the military department and said: "I impeach the governor of Ningxia, Yang Yiqing, the censor of Qiandu, and the chief military officer Anbian Marquis Zhu Feng. They advanced rashly and lost troops and lost their generals. They also lost firearms and made the Tatars stay for a long time without leaving, causing harm to people and animals." If they don't go to rescue them, it will be difficult for them to store autumn grain in the fields. The censor should be responsible for finding out the two men's crimes and put them in jail for questioning."
No matter how much Zhu Youtang praised Zhu Feng before.
But the indisputable fact now is that Yang Yiqing and Zhu Feng did not repel the 50,000 soldiers and horses of the little Tatar prince in Ningxia.
On the contrary, the Tatars intensified their efforts. While wreaking havoc on the Ming border, they also robbed a lot of food, making the Ming border troops almost afraid to leave the fortress to fight.
In name, Yang Yiqing and Zhu Feng were ordered to lead the troops to attack on their own initiative, but they already retreated to defend themselves halfway... It wasn't that they didn't want to go out to fight, but that they couldn't get out. They suffered losses as soon as they fought, and even the Tartars You can’t even bring back the Tatar’s head, and the harvest from the cannons is getting smaller and smaller...
This also seems to mean that Yang Yiqing and Zhu Feng's errands in Ningxia have come to an end.
Zhu Youtang said: "It is too late to change the generals before the battle. It is estimated that in a few days, there will be reports of the battle in Xinjian Bo Yu Saibei, and the little Tatar prince may withdraw his troops and return eastward."
The emperor's words seemed to be comforting himself.
If you can't beat them, do you expect a tactic of attacking the grassland to be successful?
Those critical ministers were also thinking, could it be that Wang Shouren led more troops than Yang Yiqing and Zhu Feng? Or is it that the right time, place, and conditions that Wang Shouren can occupy are better than those of Zhu Feng and Yang Yiqing?
If not, then why could Wang Shouren be completely victorious and even recruit the main Tatar army back?
But Zhu Feng and Yang Yiqing can't?
Li Dongyang said: "With Uncle Xin Xin's method of sending troops, if we don't move him back to the pass, I'm afraid we will be trapped in a tight siege."
Li Dongyang is also pragmatic.
He saw it.
The Tatars' withdrawal now seems to be the strategic result pursued by the Ming Dynasty.
But when the little Tatar prince withdrew, he must have strangled Wang Shouren, who was advancing alone.
Now Ningxia has only lost a hundred and eighty people along the way. They can still falsely report the results later and save a little more...face can basically be saved.
But if Wang Shouren's entire army was wiped out on the grassland, then the Ming Dynasty's overall strategy would have completely failed.
Let alone northern Liaoning, there is no need to fight. Even the border areas of the Ming Dynasty will be constantly harassed by the Tatars, and the fangs of the fire sieve will be installed again... The Tatars will take the Ming Dynasty as their scapegoat. .
(End of chapter)
