"Your Majesty, among the three, Hong Chengchou is the most difficult! There is not only the debate among the ministers, but also some thoughts between the minister and Mr. Sun Ge!"
Yuan Keli cupped his hands and his face became serious: "Hong Chengchou is the governor of the three sides. He is already the second rank. He is also the censor of Qiandu. The six departments of the cabinet have a dispute over what title should be given now.
The Sixth Ministry thought that the right deputy should be the censor of the capital, and the cabinet wanted to give him the title of minister of the Ministry of War.
The meaning of the Six Ministries is that Hong Chengchou already controls the military affairs of the three sides, and there is no point in adding the minister of the Ministry of War. It is better to be the deputy censor of the capital to help supervise the government affairs of Shaanxi.
The cabinet means that since Hong Chengchou has strong ability to command troops, he should be appointed Minister of War to strengthen his military affairs.
The two parties are talking about the public's reasons, and the mother-in-law's saying that the mother-in-law is right. It has always been empty! "
"Yuan Aiqing, sit down and talk!"
"My companion, give me some tea!"
Chongzhen put down the memorial, turned around and sat on the soft couch: "Yuan Aiqing, what do you and Yuan Aiqing think?"
"Your Majesty, what I said next is very disrespectful and arrogant. Please forgive me!"
"Yuan Aiqing, you understand me. As long as it is beneficial to Ming Dynasty, I can listen to it. Just say it!"
Yuan Keli sat down again and took a deep breath: "Your Majesty, since the Tumu Fort, the Ming Dynasty has emphasized culture over military affairs, so that there have been many humiliations when foreign enemies invaded the border.
The consequence of emphasizing culture over military affairs is the lack of talents with high strategic vision. This is why the Ming Dynasty repeatedly went to Mongolia, but did not gain much. "
"Since His Majesty ascended the throne, he has promoted many generals, such as Man Gui, Hei Yunlong, Yang Zhaoji, Sun Chuanting, Zhou Yuji, Cao Wenzhao, etc. They can all be said to be good generals and talented generals.
This is far from enough, because His Majesty wants the surrounding subjects to submit, which requires the commander to command the troops.
His Majesty's arrangements for the battles at Longjing Pass and the Grassland were like the Taizu's. However, after all, Your Majesty is the king of a country and cannot often go on expeditions. At this time, handsome talents are particularly important.
Judging from the current situation, there are two people in Ming Dynasty who have the potential to be handsome. I said they have potential, but it is hard to say whether they will succeed or not.
The first is Yuan Chonghuan, whose military ability is undoubted, but he is hampered by his character flaws: he is too domineering, confident, and irritable.
If this kind of character cannot be changed, he will always be a pretty good general.
And judging from previous performances, he is good at defensive battles.
The bigger problem is that judging from the results of the current investigation, loyalty to the Ming Dynasty still needs to be considered.
The second is Hong Chengchou. Although he has never experienced a war before, the scheduling, layout, and insight into people's hearts shown in this battle are all the best.
Moreover, since I entered the officialdom, I have experienced almost all levels of official positions. I am patient and decisive. If I am given the opportunity to train, I may become a handsome talent, or at least a semi-handsome talent!
But he also has shortcomings. He is too ruthless, upright, and unable to withstand and withstand pressure. He also needs someone to provide guidance and supervision. "
PS: Hong’s surrender was more than ten years later. Don’t force things that haven’t happened yet until now. Environment can shape people.
After hearing what Yuan Keli said, Chongzhen was stunned.
He really didn't expect Yuan Keli and Sun Chengzong to think so far and even think of cultivating a handsome man.
I never expected that I would be so optimistic about Hong Chengchou.
What is handsome talent?
There is a saying that those who can lead troops are called generals, and those who can lead generals are called commanders!
To put it more simply, it means strategizing and winning from thousands of miles away.
"Yuan Aiqing, do you think so highly of Hong Chengchou?"
"It's not a matter of optimism, it's a matter of choosing the most suitable one based on Ming's current situation. The most important thing is age. He is only thirty-six years old, which is the biggest advantage.
A few years later, after the ministers had left office, he had just grown up. Twenty years later, he was less than sixty years old.
By that time, the students in Jiangwu Hall will have grown up, and there will be successors. In this way, the Ming Dynasty will be able to suppress the surrounding countries for at least a hundred years. "
"Yuan Aiqing, what about you and Sun Aiqing? You two are famous officials in the world, aren't you handsome?"
"us?"
Yuan Keli did not expect that the emperor would ask such a question. He was stunned for a moment, but then said: "Your Majesty, I am already sixty-seven years old this year.
Throughout the more than 40 years in this officialdom, although I have led troops and made some achievements, I am more suitable for managing politics.
If I were twenty years younger, with the current situation and Your Majesty's trust, I might have become a handsome man.
As for Mr. Sun Ge, like his ministers, he was also good at managing politics, but he was too conservative and not handsome. "
"Yuan Aiqing is so humble!"
"It's not that I'm humble, it's just that I'm getting older. When people reach their twilight years, they have awe of certain things and lose the ferocity and drive of their youth. This is fatal to any army.
I am getting older and will not be able to live for a few more years, let alone work for a few more years. Some things need to be planned in advance and cultivated while I still have the energy!
Your Majesty is still young and has a lot of time in the future. I believe that even without the assistance of your Majesty, with your majesty's great talent and strategy, it will be a matter of time before all the barbarians surrender and all the nations come to court.
However, this may make His Majesty's journey easier in the future. "
"Yuan Aiqing..."
Chongzhen said softly, but he really didn't know what to say.
This veteran of five dynasties was really thinking about the Ming Dynasty throughout his life.
After being moved, Chongzhen became interested: "Yuan Aiqing, since we have talked about the issue of generals, let's continue talking about Qin Liangyu, Sun Chuanting, Mao Wenlong and others."
"Your Majesty, this..."
"It doesn't matter, just treat it as a casual chat, and today's talk will not be spread!"
After hearing what the emperor said, Yuan Keli put away the helpless look on his face and fell into deep thought.
Chongzhen also urged that although he came from later generations, these people were also famous generals. Some people said that Hong Chengchou was a master of strategy, and that after the death of the imperial court, the Ming Dynasty died, and so on.
But those are all historical records, and it’s hard to say whether they contain elements of advocacy.
Moreover, in the more than ten years between Yuan Chonghuan and Sun Chuanting, the situation in the Ming Dynasty was different, and everyone faced different enemy forces and environments, so there was no way to make a systematic comparison.
Then we can only find a far-sighted person to objectively analyze it and verify the historical records.
After a while, Yuan Keli opened his eyes, his eyes flashing with light.
"Your Majesty, a commander must meet two basic requirements. One is to be able to command a large army in combat, at least an army of 200,000 people;
The second is to have the ability to manage one side, to manage the world, and to be able to control the whole world. Therefore, it is called strategizing, not only to be able to fight, but also to be able to govern. "
"Qin Liangyu, the loyal lord, is the best choice for commanding troops, training troops, marching and setting up formations, fighting enemies, etc., as the numerous battles of the white-pole soldiers have proven.
But the biggest shortcoming is the small number of white pole soldiers. There is a big difference between commanding 10,000 troops and 100,000 troops. There are many things to consider. I dare not make unreasonable opinions.
However, it is unprecedented for women to serve on the battlefield. Their loyalty to military strategy is worthy of a man. If he were not a woman, he might be able to enter the legend of generals. "
Regarding Yuan Keli's evaluation, Chongzhen nodded secretly. The evaluation was considered very high.
Even such a famous official could not get rid of the secular view that men were superior to women.
"What about Sun Chuanting?"
