"Your Majesty, today's battle report is here."
"I know, let's go down."
Zhu Houzhao twisted the piece of paper folded into a square, opened it and glanced from top to bottom.
This memorial comes from Guyuan Mansion.
Yang Yiqing would like to report that the Fire Sieve Division invaded Huamachi. The Ningxia defenders of Huamachi City fought fiercely with 300 light cavalry from the Tatar Division. Our army suffered 121 casualties, and a total of 131 Tatar soldiers were beheaded. .
Exactly ten more.
Zhu Houzhao was not a general who led troops. He actually had no idea about the combat effectiveness of his troops. He just had an inherent concept that dynasties in the middle ancient times always had insufficient logistics, so he tried his best to support him in terms of money and food.
To be honest, whatever the result was reported today, he had to accept it.
Fortunately, after years of hard work, the Ming army at least did not dare to leave the city because of fear of war.
Yang Yiqing then reported the tactics he planned to adopt.
Let Zhu Houzhao say, this is actually a wild dog tactic, which is to accumulate big victories through continuous small battles.
While I was thinking, a clear female voice came from behind.
"See Your Majesty."
Zhu Houzhao was still looking at the map with his back on his back. He asked: "There are 40,000 soldiers and horses from the Huosi Department plundering from Huamachi. There are hundreds of miles of open area between Huamachi and Lingzhou. The Tatars are four light cavalrymen." Wan, he fights bravely and is unstoppable. Do you have anything to tell me?"
Wang Zhi held it with both hands and placed it in front of her body. There were soft and sparse black hair hanging down on both sides of her face.
"In the seventh year of Yongle, Emperor Taizong appointed Duke Qiu Qi as the chief military officer. He wore the seal of the general who conquered the captives and led the Marquis of Wucheng, the Marquis of Tong'an, the Marquis of Jing'an, the Marquis of Anping and 100,000 elite cavalry to conquer the Tatars in the north. Later, Qiu Qi The Duke led more than a thousand men to advance rashly, underestimating the enemy, and were eventually captured and killed. Taizong was furious.
The little girl has little knowledge, but since hearing about the war, everyone seems to feel that the country's strength is growing and that this battle will not be difficult. Your Majesty asked me what I had to say. It was the edict that Emperor Taizong warned Duke Qiu Qi: I have heard that there are people in the army who are easy to capture. Be careful not to believe it, or you will be defeated if you believe it. "
Zhu Houzhao shook his head, "What you said can be said about anything. Military affairs must be cautious."
There were Yang Yiqing and Wang Shouren there, so they would not make such a low-level mistake that would lead to defeat.
Wang Zhi did not dare to look at the emperor. The emperor was too smart and could easily see through her thoughts.
"Since I guessed wrong last time, I know that I am not proficient in everything. Military and political matters are not my responsibility."
"But the way you said it does make sense. It's possible that the little Tatar prince just doesn't have enough courage. So it's okay to say something wrong. Just don't say anything that's right."
"It's not necessarily true that everything is right... How the war in the northwest will go depends on Mr. Yang Ge. All your Majesty can do is to remind them to be more cautious."
yes,
Just like Zhu Di and Qiu Fu back then.
Zhu Di was so powerful, and he kept reminding Qiu Fu during the process, but Qiu Fu was wrong when making the key decision. What could Zhu Di, who was far away in the capital, do?
"I understand. That's why I announced your arrival. I can't let my ministers see that I, the emperor, can't do anything and can only worry blindly, right?"
Wang Zhi opened her mouth slightly, no wonder.
She also wondered why she, a little girl, was talking about such things so much.
It turned out that I just wanted to chat and relieve the worries that were difficult to express in front of the minister.
In fact, Zhu Houzhao knew a lot about big strategies, such as whether to fight or not to fight. But how the fight goes, he can only wait. How anxious it is to wait for this process, especially when the results are important.
To put it more exaggeratedly, people’s appetite will drop a lot.
"Sit down." Zhu Houzhao made an invitation gesture.
"Thank you, Your Majesty."
"Is your ankle feeling better?"
Thinking of this, Wang Zhi couldn't help but blush on her cheeks, "...Okay, much better."
"That's good. I don't know why, even the foreign ministers in the harem are difficult to talk to, but they think they can talk to you. In the report in the morning, Yang Yingning said that he was going to adopt Wang Shouren's method of admonishing him, and first conduct a continuous exhausting Defeat the enemy, exhaust the enemy, weaken the enemy, wait for the right time, and then attack the main force. What do you think of this strategy?"
Wang Zhi thought for a while, "Remember...last time, Yang Ge always showed weakness to lure the enemy. After defeating Huo Si that time, Huo Si will not think that Yang Ge is just an ordinary person, so he will not divide his troops again this time. . And if we can’t defeat them one by one, the current method is not bad.”
"It's okay, but every small battle is an adventure. If the Tatars get a big result, the situation will be difficult."
"It's not that easy. Your Majesty and Mr. Yang Ge have been preparing for this for a long time. Now, your Majesty should trust Mr. Yang. Even if...even if something goes wrong, with your Majesty's perseverance, you can try again."
She said it politely.
But Zhu Houzhao understood.
Yes, what are you worried about? Anyway, there is money in sea trade. If I lose, I will spend more money to recruit soldiers and continue to work with this Dayan Khan!
Having said that, I really felt a lot more comfortable.
"I should have announced your entry into the palace earlier."
"Your Majesty is overly complimentary. Your Majesty..." Wang Zhi hesitated to speak.
"What's wrong with you?" Zhu Houzhao felt strange.
"I have something to say, but I don't know whether to ask it or not."
Zhu Houzhao was now in a better mood and said generously: "When you first taught Uncle Wei Ning, you made him be as honest as a child and talk about everything. You know what I like. So if you have anything to say, say it to me. Where can’t I hold a few words?”
With that said, the girl left her seat and knelt down.
"...Outside, the Jinyi Guards are arresting people. I wonder if Your Majesty knows?"
Zhu Houzhao was slightly stunned. He had not expected that Wang Zhi would ask such a question.
"You're taking such a risk to ask. Is this important to you?"
"important."
"Why?"
"Why...I haven't thought about it. I just feel that many people have been arrested."
"I know that Jin Yiwei is arresting people. The woman's thoughts are really strange. Why do you care about this kind of thing?"
This man's boldness exceeded Zhu Houzhao's own imagination.
But actually, he wasn't that angry.
Sometimes when you become an emperor, you lack these people around you.
Wang Zhi didn't seem to understand it himself, so he remained silent anyway.
Zhu Houzhao guessed: "You want to know what kind of person I am, right? Do I kill innocent people indiscriminately, am I unreasonable, and am I really as kind and kind as I say."
Wang Zhi was shocked and said quickly: "The little girl doesn't dare!"
Dare not, dare not, dare not...
I don't know when was the last time someone could talk to him normally. Maybe it was the last life.
"Actually, the question of what kind of person the emperor is is very complicated. For example, I killed many corrupt officials. From the perspective of the relatives of corrupt officials, I am a bad person; but I also gave many people a way to survive. Perhaps in the eyes of the people, I , I am not a bad person. In this world, there is no simple black and white, and there are many things that are difficult to confirm.
But one thing that can be confirmed is that I am not doing this for myself. In the world of the Ming Dynasty, of course there are drawbacks, but there is nothing wrong with saying that there is peace in all directions. If it is just for oneself, it is easier to be a conservative king than to revive the world.
As a girl, you may care more about the temperament and character of the friend you make. But I am an emperor, and I don’t care what the emperor is like. I care about what the country is like. If you need to kill, then kill, if you need to spare, then spare. This is not something that can be done willfully. When people are in ruins and people are in dire straits, what is the use of my character, benevolence, and harmony? "
After saying these words, Wang Zhi suddenly felt that maybe she had misunderstood the emperor.
The emperor has great responsibilities. For the sake of the country and the people, there are many things he cannot control himself.
Perhaps because she felt certain emotions welling up in her chest, or perhaps because of the guilt she had just asked, she suddenly seemed to have made up her mind.
He knelt down and said, "My little girl knows that her knowledge is shallow, and military and national affairs are within the palm of your Majesty's hands, but there are some things you have to say. If your Majesty doesn't believe it, you can forget it immediately after hearing it."
"I've said it a few times, just say it."
Wang Zhi raised her head, revealing a beautiful face, "Your Majesty, where is the little Prince of Tartar now?"
"I haven't heard the report yet."
"What if he attacks Datong? The Ming Dynasty's national power is increasing day by day, and it is suppressing and blocking. For him, this is a desperate moment, so he may take risks and simply attack the northwest and force the capital all the way. Even , the elite are still under the command of the little Tartar prince."
Zhu Houzhao thought of it, so there was an equal exchange ratio as mentioned in the military newspaper.
Wang Zhi actually expected the emperor's reaction after saying this.
However, there seemed to be no reaction. She glanced at it curiously, and suddenly thought of another possibility in her mind, "Has your Majesty thought of it?!"
"Last time, you reminded me to that extent. I will more or less guess the same way."
"But I heard that the imperial edict to Datong still ordered them to send troops."
"On this point, just trust me."
Because Zhu Houzhao hid it from all the civil and military ministers of the Manchu Dynasty.
On that day, he asked Wang Zhi, what would happen if the little Tatar prince attacked Datong directly.
She said she didn't know.
That's right. He didn't think much about it at first.
But later I felt something was wrong. In war, if you take one step, I can take one step too. There isn't such a disparity in strength, so why don't you know?
After much deliberation, he finally understood. It wasn't that he didn't know, but it was hard to tell.
The little prince can enter Datong, and the Ming army can also close the door and beat the dog, chase him and bite him to death. After all, he is the expeditionary commander, and he is the one who takes the risk.
But this method of letting people in would shock the capital and threaten the emperor's safety.
Who dares to propose this kind of combat idea?
This is what Wang Zhi means by 'don't know'.
So he simply didn't discuss it with the minister. Even after discussing it, they were not happy.
Just pretend that Dayan Khan will not consider that Dayan Khan will divide his troops to attack Datong again.
In fact, the ministers of the Manchu Dynasty may have forgotten one thing. When he was planning to build this Ming cavalry, in order to ensure effectiveness, he gave the commander of this cavalry unit the power of "secret reporting".
According to previous rules, no one was allowed to read the memorials and correspondence between him and Zhou Shangwen.
It's the same this time, so no one will doubt it.
Outside the Qianqing Palace, there was a young eunuch who was running extremely fast. He was so panicked that he didn’t even catch his breath. He exclaimed: "Your Majesty, there is a police officer in Datong!!"
Zhu Houzhao didn't say anything but said, "Wang Zhi, you have to keep this matter a secret for me."
He could only wait anxiously to see how Yang Yiqing performed, but on the things he could control, he definitely did his best.
By this time, Zhou Shangwen should have received his confidential letter.
…
There is a slight discrepancy in time.
Zhou Shangwen opened it the day after this moment.
Because the secret was divided into two parts, the first part ordered him to send troops, and the second part strictly ordered him to open it after twenty days.
After Zhou Shangwen opened it, his face turned pale with fright.
He immediately yelled, "Someone is coming! Someone is coming quickly!!"
The soldiers outside thought something big had happened.
Because Zhou Shangwen himself rushed out of the camp, shouting as he walked:
"Send the order from the commander-in-chief to withdraw the troops!! Withdraw the troops!!"
(End of chapter)
