This inn called Shenggu Station has seen so many officials gathered around it like today, but there are not many in the past.
When people passing by saw the official accompanied by guards, most of them did not dare to approach him. They only looked away in awe, and then went about their own business. Even the horses had to be tied a little further away.
If something goes wrong and someone from the government comes to make trouble for you, how can a commoner dare to resist?
Therefore, Zhang Cong still obtained a quiet environment.
Needless to say, when people meet each other, it goes without saying that they should be polite and polite at the beginning. After indicating his identity and purpose of visit, Zhang Cong did not dare to neglect and invited people to come to the house to set up a banquet.
Because the people who came were the secret guests of the Shaanxi Governor's Yamen, which was similar to the feeling of an advisory group.
There are often a few to more than a dozen court guests in the governor's yamen. They assist the governor in handling government affairs. As to how important they are, it depends on the degree of trust the governor has in them.
Zhang Cong still couldn't figure out the role of Yi Dunyan in the Shaanxi governor Wang Tingxiang, but Yi Dunyan did bring a personal letter from the governor and the seal of the Yamen, so it couldn't be faked.
"The elder of the pavilion has a destiny, and the Prime Minister naturally dare not be careless. I was already waiting for the superior in the city, but the superior suddenly stopped, so I went out of the city to pick him up."
"Elder Ge has a destiny? Elder Yang?"
"Of course it's Mr. Yang Ge."
Zhang Cong's official position was not high, but his knowledge was fair. He knew that Yang Yiqing had been in the northwest for more than ten years, and he must have used many people.
Putting aside this point, he explained: "In Qingyang City, I am afraid that everyone will regard this imperial envoy as a scourge. He has already made frequent moves before entering the city. I wanted to find out some of the situation before entering the city, but I didn't I thought of asking Brother Atsuhiko to come out of the city to pick him up."
As he spoke, a glimmer of light flashed in his eyes. Since people from the Shaanxi Governor's Yamen can come, others should also be able to come.
You can't hide if you want to. In that case, it's better to open the door and welcome the guests.
Yi Dunyan thought to himself that it was not only a savage beast, but also a life-threatening hook.
"The difference is..."
Zhang Cong raised his hand, "My nickname is Bingyong, so it's better to call him this way."
"No, Zhang Yushi is an imperial envoy sent by His Majesty. I am just a guest of the court. How dare you exceed the rules? It is appropriate to call him a superior envoy."
Yi Dunyan's posture was very low, and he did not look down upon the man in front of him because he was very young. Moreover, in addition to his status as imperial envoy, the censor of the Metropolitan Procuratorate also held a low but high-power position.
Zhang Cong had only been a county magistrate in the past and had never been involved in major court affairs. The inertia of the past was too heavy. At this moment, I tasted power for the first time.
"Shangchao, what the elder Ge told Zhongcheng is to fully cooperate with Shangchai's actions in Ningxia. But Zhongcheng has something to ask me to risk my life and ask Zhongcheng for advice."
"Just say it."
"Okay. Zhongcheng wants to know whether this cleanup of military settlements will be in Ningxia or Shaanxi?"
Zhang Cong slowly put down the teacup in his hand. He understood why Shaanxi Governor Wang Tingxiang cared about this issue.
If we only investigate Ningxia, then it will be like the Zhejiang corruption case and what happened in Huai'an Prefecture. Individual people have exposed problems and made Long Yan unhappy. If they are investigated and dealt with, it will be nothing more than He Jinyi.
But if we really understand the meaning of cleaning up military villages, we should not just clean up Ningxia Town. There are many guard posts in the world, so what is the point of cleaning up only one town?
However, as the governor of Shaanxi, you have to be particularly careful if you really clean up the entire military camp in Shaanxi.
Zhang Cong thought for a moment and then said: "The military garrison has been suffering for a long time. Your Majesty wants to eliminate it and revitalize the world."
Yi Dunyan understood, and his palms trembled slightly, "So, a storm is coming."
"Under the sky, is it the king's land; on the shore of the land, is it the king's ministers. Once the imperial edict comes, who dares to disobey it?"
He didn't have much confidence before. Later, I didn't know who was telling each other in Qingyang City, but they actually sent him the situation of He Jinyi, Jiang Han, Yang Ying and other private sergeants working in the fields.
In addition, with the help of the Shaanxi Governor's Yamen, we naturally have a little more confidence.
"Brother Atsuhiko, I have changed my mind. How about entering the city now?"
Come in, even if he doesn't, others will come looking for him.
"yes!"
Okay, now Qingyang Mansion is going to get lively.
…
…
Before today, Zhang Cong had never received such courtesy.
The commander-in-chief of the town and the guarding eunuch treated him as a distinguished guest. When he entered the city, his travels had been arranged, and there was a dinner party that day.
All the military attachés in Ningxia town who caught the eye were present.
However, he, the person who made the official announcement, didn't say anything yet, so these people seemed to know everything. He couldn't look past just this kind of heart of being a minister.
In the barren land of the northwest, the buildings are not dilapidated, with red walls and black tiles, and green trees. In the confusion, I thought I was in the south of the Yangtze River.
There is nothing else going on in Ningxia Town today, except this imperial envoy from Beijing.
There is a long corridor in the courtyard, and flowers of different shapes are carved on the walls. Across the wall, Ningxia officials are waiting.
"It feels like the Hongmen Banquet." Yi Dunyan said.
Of course Zhang Cong knew that. He straightened his official hat and said, "I won't move a chopstick."
The other side.
Everyone is ready.
About a dozen people accompanied Zhang Cong through the door one after another.
After sitting down, Jiang Han also said: "Zhang Yushi, please prepare some wine to express your feelings. Do you think we can start?"
Zhang Cong nodded slightly, then he declined the others and poured himself a glass of wine. After the glass was full, he held it in his hand and said, "Generals, there is no need to drink. I would like to pay my respects to you first."
In a room full of warriors, he, as a civil servant, was not losing his momentum, and he immediately made people feel somewhat capable.
"How?" Yang Ying also stood up, "Zhang Yushi is the imperial envoy. Meeting the imperial envoy is like meeting the emperor. We should pay tribute to Zhang Yushi with this wine."
"No!" Zhang Cong's attitude was very firm. He waved his hand and said, "I have to drink this wine first today."
"Then..." Yang Ying didn't want to say anything anymore. She looked at Jiang Han and was told to sit down first.
"I am from Zhejiang. This is my first time in Ningxia. I believe that none of the generals have ever been to Zhejiang. Even if they had gone, they would not have recognized me, an unknown person. Commander Jiang, Deputy Commander Yang, Zhang Cong I'm afraid this is the first time I've heard of this name. What does it mean? I have no enmity or enmity with you. But..."
At this point, he paused and glanced at everyone at the table, "But we all know why there is this dinner today. You know why I am here, and I also know why you are here. All of us know. If you say that military men are just fine, then I, a civil servant, will not do it. His Majesty has given me orders to clean up the pastures and military camps. Everyone, this is an imperial edict!"
Zhang Cong's words were like a thunderstorm, exploding in these people's ears. They were originally going to use flattery to do things secretly, but now they have put it on the table. How to deal with this?
"But Your Majesty, the next generation of wise kings, has given more preferential treatment to the generals who defend the country and guard the borders than previous kings. The reason why you issued this decree is that the situation is dilapidated and you have no choice but to do it! Mr. Jiang, it is recorded in the Ministry of War that you should lead 50,000 troops. Yu, but do you really have 50,000 soldiers and horses? No, how many have escaped here? Are these soldiers young and strong enough to fight? No! How many of them are old and weak? Why? The root cause is The guards have garrisoned fields, but the soldiers have no fields to garrison! The world is so exhausted. If things continue like this, our Ming Dynasty will be like the Han, Tang, Song and Yuan Dynasties!
In the last years of Hongzhi, the Tatars invaded the border every year, and the Ming Dynasty suffered more defeats and fewer victories. However, in the days of Taizu Taizong, when the border troops were galloping, did the Mongols show their prestige? ! Your Majesty is well aware of the harm caused by encroaching on the military garrison, so he has to clean it up. There is no personal grudge in this, but he has to do it. This is one!
Furthermore, I also want to save the lives of all the generals. Guarding the country's borders is an act of loyalty and courage. If you disobey the holy will because you are greedy for temporary gain, not only losing your own future but also hurting your family, it is really not worth it. How many fields have been occupied will be returned. In this way, I will report to the court and explain the reasons. Your Majesty may even praise Ningxia for understanding the general situation and taking the overall situation into consideration. If you want to hide your territory and just want to fool things... Even if you can fool me, how can you fool His Majesty?
What's more, in the main hall that day, some people were worried that His Majesty's move would cause instability in the border towns and turmoil in the world. This meant that the generals were going to kill officials and rebel for the ten thousand acres of land in their hands! "
At this point, Jiang Han did not dare to sit any longer. He stood up quickly, knelt down and said, "Zhang Yushi Mingcha, no one from Ningxia Town has said such words or had such thoughts!"
Yang Ying also expressed her stance one after another.
They all know what style the current emperor is like. Too strong.
Zhang Cong alone, even if he has guards, only has a few with him. It's quite easy to kill him, but don't expect to have a good life afterwards. If you piss off the emperor, he will have to settle the accounts for you.
Zhang Cong helped Jiang Han up and said, "General Jiang, please get up."
In fact, the so-called words above the main hall were also made by him, just to frighten these people.
"On that day, I have already defended you in front of the emperor. Firstly, the emperor is cleaning up the army and has no intention of killing people. As long as he cooperates with the court, everything will be fine. Secondly, all the generals have been guarding the border for generations, and they are the loyal and loyal ones. How could you do something that would make people and gods angry? Thirdly, the Holy King came to the court, trained elite troops and defeated the Tatars. Your Majesty has 200,000 elite troops. How can the world be in chaos? Especially Ningxia, which borders Gansu to the west and Shuofang to the north. , even more impossible. Therefore, I have the courage to take on this task, because no matter where I go, I don’t believe that anyone would kill an official and rebel!"
There was something threatening about the last words.
But people like Jiang Han could only listen. It was really troublesome for people to use the banner of the emperor.
"That's right, that's right. Don't worry, Yushi Zhang. As a minister, resisting an order is a capital crime. How could we not understand this? We will do what your Majesty says."
"Okay!" Zhang Cong had not yet drank the glass of wine. This time he turned to Jiang Han and finally drank it all. "Then I will get straight to the point."
"Censor Zhang, please speak."
"Please clear out all the fields you have occupied. The governor's office also has people coming today, so I will hand them over to the governor's office to register them. I will check the names and quantities so that I can report them to the emperor."
This is a clear request.
Many people's faces turned ugly.
They did not dare to openly resist the imperial envoy, but they were certainly unhappy in their hearts.
Zhang Cong saw that no one said they disagreed, but how could this be so easy?
At that time, it will be nothing more than occupying 10,000 acres and handing over 1,000 acres. In this way, it's considered a payment, just make a difference.
So he held back his hand and continued pouring wine and toasting, "Zhang, I thank you all here. By the way, although His Majesty said he would not kill anyone, he would still not forgive those who violated the law. of."
clang!
Put down the wine glass.
(End of chapter)
