On the outskirts of Beijing, the Imperial Garden.
The Han general blew the horn, which represented the emperor's personal visit to the imperial garden.
The commanding platform in the center of the imperial garden.
Emperor Hongzhi wore dragon-patterned cloth armor and stood high on the stage.
The civil servants live on the left side of the military platform. Their task today is not to accompany Emperor Hongzhi on hunting, but to write poems and paintings to praise the majestic scenes of the emperor's hunting.
In front of the ordering platform, all the generals participating in the hunt were already on horseback, carrying bows and arrows. The leader among them was naturally King Xing.
Chang Feng, a military attaché of the Jinyi Guard, was also among them.
He thought mockingly to himself: Xiaoyan is good at archery. It's a pity that she is a female and cannot participate in hunting. If she were here today, she would definitely come out on top.
Emperor Hongzhi finished ordering his troops. Just about to announce the departure for hunting.
Suddenly, Liu Jin led a little mule to the ordering platform.
On the little mule sat the eight-year-old prince Zhu Houzhao. Zhu Houzhao wore a smaller cloth armor. He held a small bow in his hand.
Emperor Hongzhi smiled and asked: "Zhao'er, do you also want to participate in hunting?"
Zhu Houzhao replied: "Back to my father, I also want to show off my skills in the imperial garden today!"
At this moment, Li Dongyang walked out of the civil service class. He shouted: "Prince, no!"
Zhu Houzhao asked: "Sir, why not?"
Li Dongyang was Zhu Houzhao's teacher after he came out of the cabinet. Therefore, Zhu Houzhao called him "Sir".
Li Dongyang spoke like a teacher: "Have your Highness forgotten what I taught you? A gentleman does not build dangerous walls, does not go to strangers, and does not enter deep waters!"
"The emperor will not climb high when he is old! The prince will not shoot when he is young!"
Zhu Houzhao is a very independent child. However, children who have independent opinions are often regarded as rebellious and disobedient by adults.
Zhu Houzhao's teachers were all civil servants. These teachers usually complained in front of Emperor Hongzhi, saying that His Royal Highness did not respect teachers and did not listen to their words.
Li Dongyang said earnestly: "Your Highness, you are still young. You should learn the words of the saints. It will not be too late to wait until you are in your weakest years before you can participate in hunting again."
Zhu Houzhao replied in a childish voice: "Sir, what you said is wrong! I heard Liu Jin say that when Taizu raised troops in Haozhou, he had hundreds of 'boys with red scarves' under his command."
"They are only a few years older than Gu. But they are all brave. They found out about the enemy, laid traps, and made many meritorious deeds."
Emperor Hongzhi nodded slightly: "That is indeed the case."
At this moment, Li Dongyang's literati nature was fully revealed: "Your Highness, as the crown prince of a country, how can you listen to the words of a eunuch? Please return to the East Palace quickly and study the scriptures of the saints."
Li Dongyang was usually worried that Zhu Houzhao relied too much on Liu Jin.
In his view, master and disciple are like father and son. The prince could only rely on him, a serious teacher. How could he obey a eunuch?
Emperor Hongzhi asked Zhu Houzhao: "Zhao'er, what do you say?"
Although Zhu Houzhao is young, he is extremely alert. His answer was well-founded: "Father, Emperor Gao conquered the world on his own horse. My son participated in hunting because he wanted to imitate Emperor Gao since he was a child!"
Li Dongyang became anxious: "Your Highness is only eight years old, how dare you compare yourself to the Emperor Taizu?"
Zhu Houzhao choked Li Dongyang so much with just one sentence: "Sir, didn't you teach me yesterday to emulate the sages?"
Li Dongyang was furious. Laozi is a dignified imperial teacher and reserve teacher. Was he actually contradicted in public by an eight-year-old Prince Prince student?
Li Dongyang did not position himself correctly. The relationship between monarch and minister is far greater than the relationship between teacher and student.
No wonder Zhu Houzhao didn't want to see him when he grew up.
The seeds of conflicts between students and teachers, and conflicts between civil servants and future emperors were sown.
Emperor Hongzhi doted on Zhu Houzhao very much and was obedient to him. Emperor Hongzhi suffered a lot when he was a child and did not want his son to suffer the slightest injustice.
Emperor Hongzhi laughed heartily: "Zhao'er said it well. I allow you to participate in today's hunting."
Li Dongyang was speechless.
Emperor Hongzhi gave an order, and everyone rode horses towards the depths of the imperial garden, shooting wolves, deer, pheasants, and rabbits raised in the imperial garden along the way.
The twenty-nine-year-old Emperor Hongzhi was in his prime, but his health could not even keep up with the aging Ma Wensheng.
After riding the horse for only two moments, he was so tired that he was out of breath. I had to dismount and rest. Li Guang was waiting on the side.
The rest continued to hunt.
Let us say that Chang Feng has been riding a horse and following the prince Zhu Houzhao who is riding a mule.
Suddenly, a wild pheasant appeared twenty steps in front of Chang Feng.
Chang Feng immediately raised his bow and nocked an arrow. After a while, he put down his bow and arrow and said to Zhu Houzhao: "Your Highness, look, there is a wild pheasant in front of us."
Chang Feng just wanted Zhu Houzhao to get over his addiction to archery.
In his opinion, an eight-year-old child was still using a small bow and arrow. How is it possible to shoot a wild pheasant twenty paces away?
Unexpectedly, Zhu Houzhao drew his bow, nocked the arrow, aimed and loosened the string in a decent manner.
"Whoosh!"
The arrow flew straight towards the wild pheasant. "puff"! Unbiased, right in the belly of the pheasant!
Chang Feng was stunned: "Your Majesty, your Majesty is a great shooter!"
Zhu Houzhao was actually a blind cat who met a dead mouse. He said proudly: "What is this? Gan Luo became the prime minister at the age of eight and governed. It is not unusual for Gu to shoot a wild pheasant at the age of eight."
Zhu Houzhao is very much like his ancestor: Taizong Zhu Di.
A Han general stepped forward and picked up the prey that Zhu Hou had illuminated.
Chang Feng thought: Bring the prey back later. I wonder how embarrassed Li Dongyang, the prince's teacher, would be.
At this moment, Shi Wenyi ran over on horseback: "Master Chang, the emperor has dismounted and rested. He asked you to follow the prince closely."
Chang Feng nodded: "Well, I will definitely protect the prince."
Let's say that twenty miles north of the Imperial Garden, Fenwuying is stationed.
In the Tumu Fort Incident, all three battalions were lost. In the battle to defend the capital, the three major battalions were rebuilt.
After the war, Yu Qian selected capable soldiers from the new three battalions and divided them into ten battalions for regiment training, which were called regiment camps.
After Yu Qian's death, the regiment camp was abolished.
During the Chenghua period, Emperor Chenghua established Tuanying again. Organized into the 12th Regiment Battalion.
They are the four martial camps: Fenwu, Yaowu, Lianwu, and Xianwu.
Four camps of bravery: bravery, courageous results, courageous results, and courageous encouragement.
The four prestige camp: establishing prestige, extending prestige, promoting prestige, and promoting prestige.
Among the twelve regiment camps, Fenwu Camp is the most powerful. Belongs to the elite among the elite. Similar to Napoleon's Old Guard in later generations.
All soldiers in Fenwu camp are selected from veterans who have fought in battles and killed people. Mainly cavalry. If there are good horses and weapons in the army, priority will be given to equipping the Fenwu Camp.
At this moment, military exercises are taking place in the school grounds of Fenwu Camp. Governor Shi Wenzhong and supervising eunuch Zhang Yong issued military orders in an orderly manner.
Zhang Yongsheng is very strong. If he weren't wearing eunuch uniform, others might mistake him for a military commander.
Shi Wenzhong, the eldest brother of Jin Yiwei's "Big Brother" Shi Wenyi, has a good personal relationship with Zhang Yong.
Under the joint training of the two, the combat effectiveness of the 12th regiment and battalion has steadily improved.
Shi Wenzhong smiled and said: "Eunuch Zhang, Fenwu camp now looks like Huo Qubing's Qingqi of Huo Qubing in the Han Dynasty. Going deep into the hinterland of the grassland, a surprise attack on the Tatar camp will not be a problem."
Zhang Yongdao: "It's a pity that there are too few people in Fenwu Camp. There are only six thousand people."
"If you can train ten martial arts camps, what is the little prince of Tartar? Just a piece of meat on the chopping board."
While the two were talking, a member of the camp came running over in a hurry.
Hundreds of households handed over their hands: "Shi Shuai, Eunuch Zhang, something big has happened. There is an assassination attempt in the imperial garden! A Han general under the Jin Yiwei Chang Ye came to ask for help!"
Shi Wenzhong's expression changed: "What? Where is that big Han general?"
As soon as he finished speaking, two soldiers came over carrying a big Han general with blood on his face.
The big Han general had several obvious stab wounds on his body, and he looked like he had escaped from a tight encirclement with a narrow escape.
Shi Wenzhong asked: "What's going on?"
The Han general said in a weak voice: "A group of Tatar cavalry secretly crossed the Great Wall. They colluded with the spies in the capital and found out that the emperor was hunting in the imperial garden today."
"There are more than 3,000 of them, and there are only 800 Han generals accompanying them. We are outnumbered."
Zhang Yong became anxious and grabbed the Han general by the collar: "How is your Majesty?"
The Han general was at a loss for words: "Your Majesty, woo woo woo!"
Zhang Yong felt something bad in his heart: "Don't squeeze the horse's urine! Tell me, what's going on?"
The Han general said: "The emperor was killed by the Tatar cavalry, and the dragon died."
Zhang Yong and Shi Wenzhong were stunned on the spot.
The current emperor was killed by the Tatars? The sky of Ming Dynasty has fallen!
The two looked at each other, their faces ashen.
The Han general took out a troop mobilization order from his arms: "His Royal Highness King Xing ordered Fenwuying to go to the imperial garden immediately to destroy the Tatar soldiers and protect the prince!"
In the Ming Dynasty, troop deployment was an extremely sensitive matter. The procedures for deploying troops are very cumbersome.
The order to mobilize troops must be stamped with the emperor's seal, the official seal of the Minister of War, and the commander-in-chief's seal of the commander-in-chief of the five armies.
If the transfer is to the border army, it must be stamped with the seal of the local commander-in-chief.
However, the troop deployment order produced by the Han general was only stamped with King Xing's personal seal and Chang Feng's signature.
Zhang Yong took a cursory look and said: "I have seen Chang Feng's memorial, it is his handwriting."
Shi Wenzhong said seriously: "When the Ming Dynasty is in crisis, the two of us should make a decisive decision!"
Zhang Yong said categorically: "Summon all the soldiers of Fenwu camp immediately. Hurry to the imperial garden."
Six thousand soldiers from the Fenwu camp mounted their war horses, wearing armor and carrying sharp weapons, and marched towards the imperial garden in a mighty manner.
The two of them were fooled!
But they didn’t fall for it because they were stupid.
If it were any general who was loyal to the emperor and the court, he would hear that the emperor was in danger and died, and that the prince was in danger. Regardless of whether it is true or not, we will definitely lead troops to find out.
At the same time, in the imperial garden.
Emperor Hongzhi took a rest under a big willow tree. The big willow tree was surrounded by more than a hundred guarding Han generals and dozens of serving eunuchs.
Li Guang fanned Emperor Hongzhi on the side.
It is three miles away from the big willow tree. Prince Zhu Houzhao discovered a wolf.
In the imperial garden, the highest-level prey is the wolf.
Zhu Houzhao was overjoyed. But he knew how much he weighed. With the small broken bow in his hand, he would never be able to hit the wolf.
Zhu Houzhao showed the talent of commander in his mother's womb.
He commanded in an orderly manner: "Chang Feng, you lead ten people and go from the left. Shi Wenyi, you lead ten people and go from the right."
"Liu Jin, you lead ten people around to block it. I'll take the main force of the Chinese army and stay still to avoid scaring it away!"
"Wait until you are surrounded on three sides, then I will lead people to rush over!"
Hey, not to mention, Zhu Houzhao, who was riding on a short mule, was quite heroic as a young general when he dispatched troops and generals.
Chang Feng thought to himself: Although this method is not necessarily clever. But at the age of eight, the prince knew that it was not easy to make a circuitous encirclement.
Everyone acted separately according to Zhu Houzhao's instructions.
However, the wolf was very cunning and ran away quickly. Zhu Houzhao was so angry that he shot a few arrows over the mule to vent his anger.
Suddenly, Chang Feng and others heard the sound of "boom, boom".
Qian Ning beside him was a little surprised: "Why is there thunder in the clear sky?"
Chang Feng frowned: "It doesn't sound like thunder. It sounds like the sound of horse hooves from a large group of cavalry."
Qian Ning was confused: "Cavalry? The man in charge of guarding the imperial garden is General Jin Yiwei. You didn't let them assemble and march!"
Chang Feng covered the sun with his hands and looked into the distance. Suddenly, he found a mass of black cavalry appearing at the end of the horizon!
The cavalry march stirred up billows of yellow dust.
Chang Feng was shocked: "Did the Tatars cross the Great Wall?"
Qian Ning's eyes were much better than Chang Feng's: "No. They are wearing mandarin duck jackets! They are the Ming army!"
Chang Feng took a breath of cold air: "It could also be Tatars pretending to be the Ming army. Today the Ministry of War and the Governor's Mansion have not transferred the troops stationed in the Beijing camp to accompany them!"
Qian Ning was shocked: "Ah? What should we do?"
Chang Feng made a decisive decision: "Quick! Shoot the arrows and gather the generals of the Han Dynasty. Protect the emperor, the prince, and King Xing first!"
This is really a mistake. Chang Feng mistook the Fenwu camp who came to "protect King Qin" as Tatars who sneaked across the Great Wall in disguise and attacked the imperial garden.
Emperor Hongzhi was taking a nap under the big willow tree.
Suddenly, Li Guang shook his shoulders: "Your Majesty. It's not good."
Emperor Hongzhi asked: "What's wrong?"
Li Guang pointed with his hand: "Your Majesty, look!"
I saw eight hundred Han generals forming a large circle with the big willow tree as the center.
Chang Feng and King Xing strode towards Emperor Hongzhi. Zhu Houzhao swung his calves and followed behind.
Li Guangdao: "Your Majesty, something is wrong! Why did Chang Feng let the Han general surround you?"
A suspicious expression appeared on Emperor Hongzhi's face: "Yes. The hunting went well. Why did the Han generals suddenly gather and surround me?"
Li Guang pointed to the distance again: "Look, Your Majesty, a large group of cavalry has appeared in the imperial garden! Is it a coincidence between inside and outside?"
"Ah! Something bad has happened! Someone is plotting rebellion, Your Majesty!"
Due to some strange combination of circumstances, Yuyuan was thrown into chaos!
Chang Feng walked up to Emperor Hongzhi and said, "Your Majesty, there may be Tatars pretending to be Ming troops who crossed the Great Wall and drove directly to the Imperial Garden on the outskirts of Beijing."
"I will lead the Han generals and swear to protect the Lord to the death!"
Prince Xing should not have said more than he should have said: "My younger brother will also swear to protect the Lord to the death!"
The young prince Zhu Houzhao echoed: "My son, I will follow the Fourth Emperor's Uncle and Chang Feng to protect me to the death!"
It's too late, but it's soon. Gu Da, who was on the side, drew out his sword with lightning speed and placed it on Chang Feng's neck.
Gu Dayong said: "Chang Feng, are you going to collude with King Xing to rebel and kill the lord? Let the Han generals disperse. Otherwise, don't blame my ruthless steel sword!"
Li Guang echoed: "Yes! Chang Feng, King Xing, don't have wishful thinking!"
After speaking, Li Guanghu stood in front of Emperor Hongzhi, opened his arms, and made a gesture of protecting the emperor.
Chang Feng was anxious: "When did this happen! Gu Dayong, please stop messing around! If you delay King Qin's escort, the Ming Dynasty's sky will fall! Put down the sword!"
Gu Dayong sneered: "I put down the knife and let you stab the king and kill him?"
At this moment, Shi Wenyi ran over in a hurry: "Your Majesty, the cavalry on the outside is Fenwu Camp. They are commanded by Shi Wenzhong, the eldest brother of the minister, and Eunuch Zhang Yong."
Emperor Hongzhi became even more suspicious after hearing this: "I have never asked the Ministry of War to mobilize military camps to come to the imperial garden!"
Li Guang turned to Emperor Hongzhi and said: "Your Majesty, it is true that there is collusion between internal and external forces and rebellion!"
Let’s talk about Shi Wenzhong and Li Guang. The two led their troops to the imperial garden and noticed something was wrong.
Where are the Tatars in the Royal Garden? Where are the scenes of fierce battles between the Tatars and the Han generals?
Shi Wenzhong said: "It's strange. Could it be that the injured Han general just deceived us?"
Zhang Yong asked a thousand households in a loud voice: "Where is the Han general who was injured just now?"
Qianhu replied: "Eunuch Zhang, didn't you see that he was seriously injured and asked him to stay in the camp for bandaging and treatment?"
At this moment, Li Guang rode a horse and ran to a place more than ten steps in front of the two men.
Li Guang asked: "Why did you bring troops to the imperial garden without any purpose or order?"
Shi Wenzhong replied: "His Royal Highness King Xing and Chang Tongzhi asked us to protect the prince."
As soon as these words came out, Li Guang was ecstatic.
Li Guang said in a sinister voice: "It's a joke. What authority do the vassal king and his retainers have to mobilize troops in the capital camp?"
"Shi Wenyi, Zhang Yong, you are in trouble! Come with me to see the emperor!"
Shi Wenzhong was surprised: "Didn't the emperor pass away?"
Li Guang's expression changed: "Okay, let's not bring it upon ourselves! You colluded with King Xing and Chang Feng to mutiny and rebel."
"You thought Chang Feng had succeeded in assassinating Wang Shajia, right?"
(End of chapter)
