No matter how rich his imagination was, Tang Hui could not have imagined that he would be promoted just after losing the battle.
Even if he is just an agent, a temporary transitional prime minister in charge of military affairs of the five provinces.
But this is also the military affairs of the five provinces of the Prime Minister!
Tang Hui himself was stunned, and his friends were even more stunned...
Many of them thought that Tang Hui would be arrested and imprisoned soon, and many of them had already violated Tang Hui's policies and did not take Tang Hui seriously.
But in the blink of an eye, good guy, not only was Tang Hui not dead, but he was promoted?
Although many people have guessed that the reason why Tang Hui was able to receive the imperial edict for promotion at this juncture must be because the court had not yet learned about Zhong Xiang's defeat.
After all, it takes time to report the news. It is very likely that when the imperial edict was issued, the news of Tang Hui's defeat was not known yet.
However, this is still a promotion.
Then many people began to think about what they should think when the princes of the imperial court and His Majesty learned that Zhong Xiang was defeated and that the whole of Northern Chu was about to be destroyed.
Maybe, maybe, maybe he will be furious...
Everyone else would think so, and Tang Hui himself could naturally think of this.
So now he has no joy at being promoted. Instead, he is even more worried about his future...
In fact, this is indeed the case. Not long after the imperial edict for Tang Hui to take charge of the military affairs of the five provinces was issued, at the end of July, the princes of the imperial court had already learned about the defeat of Yicheng. Many of the officers and soldiers garrisoned in Yicheng fled without fighting. As a result, they were attacked by the rebels when they were crossing the river, leaving only a few thousand people fleeing.
Tang Hui was forced to lead his troops to retreat to Zhongxiang.
At this time, the princes of the court felt as if they had just eaten delicious food, only to find out that the delicious food was made of feces and urine...
As disgusting as it is.
But this is just disgusting.
After all, although Tang Hui was inevitably responsible for the defeat of Yicheng due to his ineffective supervision of the battle, the main reason was that the civil and military officials in Yicheng were not effective enough. They actually ran away when the rebel army was still dozens of miles away from Yicheng.
But when the news of Zhong Xiang's defeat reached the capital around mid-August, the court was shaken and His Majesty was furious...
If the previous imperial court promoted Tang Hui to be the military agent of the five provinces and just ate a disgusting delicacy made of human feces and urine, then now they have discovered that the delicacy is not only disgusting, but also fucking poisonous...
If Tang Hui was defeated in Yicheng because of his ineffective supervision and coordination, then Tang Hui personally commanded the battle of Zhongxiang, but it was fought like this, and the 20,000-strong army was wiped out in one day.
It wouldn't matter if Tang Hui died in battle or committed suicide. After Lu Xiangsheng died in battle, the imperial court gave Lu Xiangsheng great posthumous honors. Not only did his family members receive good treatment, some people even said that Lu Xiangsheng's death in battle was a tribute to the imperial court. Biggest loss in decades.
Even Emperor Chongzhen expressed his position in public. Lu Qing's heroic death was like cutting off one of my arms.
In short, although Lu Xiangsheng also suffered a heavy defeat, he died on the battlefield. In this way, no one held him responsible for the defeat. Instead, he began to sigh and remember him.
If Tang Hui also died in the Battle of Zhongxiang, the imperial court would also give Tang Hui great posthumous honors after learning the news.
However, Tang Hui did not die in Zhongxiang. Instead, he abandoned the army and fled back to Wuchang with only a thousand men.
Such Tang Hui was considered a heinous crime in the eyes of the court officials.
The princes were shocked and began to have a headache again, wondering what to do with Tang Hui.
It would be necessary to beat Tang Hui to the end or even imprison him in a prison. He would be killed or exiled in the future.
But it is very simple to abolish Tang Hui. The question is who will take over the military affairs of the five provinces?
This detour has led back to an old issue, which is who should be chosen to replace Lu Xiangsheng and assume the responsibility of prime minister for military affairs in the five provinces.
Regarding this issue, the princes in the imperial court had many disputes, and there was no conclusion in the past two or three months. Otherwise, they would not have settled for the second best and let Tang Hui act as the military affairs agent for the five provinces.
Tang Hui, he was originally a transitional role. No one expected him to secure this position, even though Tang Hui himself knew that he would not stay long.
After all, officials who are in charge of military affairs in several provinces usually have the title of Censor of the Right Capital or Minister of War, but Tang Hui had neither...
The imperial court only allowed him to take charge of the military affairs of the five provinces, but did not give him the titles of Censor of the Right Capital or Right Minister of the Ministry of War.
Everyone knows what this means. It is nothing more than a transition. In a few months, the court will select a real prime minister and overseer of military affairs in several provinces to come to Huguang to take charge.
And what about the real candidates for prime minister’s military affairs in the five provinces?
There is only one person who is most suitable for this position, and that is Lu Xiangsheng.
It can even be said that the position of prime minister for military affairs of the five provinces was specially set up by the imperial court for Lu Xiangsheng. Without Lu Xiangsheng, this position would not have existed at all.
It is a pity that Lu Xiangsheng was defeated and died before he could officially take up the position. Once he died, the princes of the court were in trouble because no one was suitable to choose.
First of all, this person needs to know the military. After all, the prime minister of the five provinces' military affairs has to lead troops to fight. In the past, he had to deal with Gao Yingxiang and other bandits, but now, he mainly deals with the army of protecting thieves.
Therefore, the officer must be proficient in military affairs.
In addition to being proficient in military affairs, one also needs to have sufficient prestige and political qualifications.
Even if we put aside the above-mentioned restrictions on personnel and qualifications, the range of candidates for this position is actually very narrow.
According to the Ming Dynasty's regulations for selecting senior officials, the title of such a person who is responsible for the military affairs of several provinces is generally the title of Youdu Censor or Right Minister of the Ministry of War.
Such high-level officials were either transferred from the existing governors, such as the Governor of Xuanda, the Governor of Jiliao, the Governor of the Five Provinces, etc., or they were promoted from the various governors.
Among these officials, apart from those who are unable to escape, are not good at leading troops, or have suffered huge defeats, there are not many left to choose from.
For example, people like Tang Hui definitely can't do it.
After the princes in the imperial court learned that Zhong Xiang was defeated, before the discussion began, the furious Chongzhen ordered Tang Hui to be arrested and escorted back to the capital to await trial.
Referring to the fate of the governors and governors who had suffered defeats before, there were only two endings waiting for Tang Hui: either exile from the army, or direct questioning and execution.
Tang Hui is definitely going to die. The imperial edict to arrest this person is already being drafted, so the matter of selecting the prime minister for military affairs in the five provinces cannot be delayed any longer.
But there are not many suitable candidates. After all, there are only a few governors, and even fewer have been exposed to war. They are basically governors in several places where war has broken out.
For example, the newly appointed Henan patrol officer, the censor of the Youqian capital, appointed Chen Biqian;
Governor of Fengyang, Zhu Dadian, the right minister of the Ministry of War.
The governor of Xuanfu and the censor of Youqiandu, Chen Xingjia.
The governor of Shaanxi, the censor of Youqiandu, Gan Xuekuo, and several others.
What to say about these people, it cannot be said that they have no ability. In fact, some people have it, and they are pretty good.
Take Chen Biqian, for example, who became famous because he discussed the Jishi and Hongwan cases in his early years. He was later dismissed from office because of this. He was not restored to power until the early years of Chongzhen, and is now the governor of Henan.
He is a very good official in science and education, not afraid of the powerful, just to clear his name!
This man has a similar experience to Xuan Mo and other governors. He is good at trolling people. As for fighting, it is a matter of opinion.
There is also Chen Xinjia, this man has more contact with military affairs. He has been working in the border towns in Jiliao area all year round. He is good at logistics, camp affairs and other matters. When Dalinghe New City was destroyed, he was dismissed from office, but his relationship is strong enough. , but he was not beaten down, and he got up soon.
Zhu Dadian? This man is very interesting. When he was the governor of Shandong, he was promoted to the right minister of the Ministry of War because of his contribution to quelling the Dengzhou Rebellion. In February of this year, he was transferred to the position of Governor of Water Transport and Governor of Lu, Feng, Huai, and Yang Prefectures, responsible for the war in Fengyang.
This man was quite good at commanding the army. In the early years, he had kept Wu Sangui and other generals in check.
However, when he was in charge of Fengyang, he did not do well. Now he has been impeached many times for "losing the state and county, and overdue the thief", and his demotion is imminent...
Gan Xuekuo? This man had previously served as the censor of Zhejiang, the governor of Jiangnan, and the chief minister of Dali Temple. He was good at relief work, education, and administration. It was said that he had a very high reputation and high moral character.
It's just that, let alone leading troops, he had never even seen guns and artillery before...
Who knows what the princes of the imperial court were thinking before they sent such a person to Shaanxi as governor to suppress thieves...
It's not good to let Gan use his talents and let him govern the local area or play an official role or even educate him. He has to let a typical civil servant lead the troops to fight.
Therefore, Lao Gan’s recent experience in Shaanxi has been very unsatisfactory. He tried to appease the bandits when he couldn’t suppress them, but the appeasement failed, and then the princes in the court were dissatisfied...
Looking around, the governors in charge of military affairs in various provinces in the Ming Dynasty are basically the above-mentioned types of people. After becoming governors to engage in military affairs, they are either unable to do what they want, or they do things blindly.
Now faced with the chaos in Huguang, the princes of the imperial court and even Chongzhen were cautious. They did not directly mention the above-mentioned people for reuse, but considered other people. In the end, they discussed it again and again, and they remembered Ding You's announcement at home. Yang Sichang, the Grand Governor and the Right Minister of the Ministry of War.
However, if you want to resurrect Yang Sichang, you have to face a serious ethical and even more serious political impact problem, that is, you can only win the favor by issuing an edict.
Ding You, for the traditional Chinese dynasty, this is not just a simple custom, but has evolved into a political practice.
The Ming Dynasty repeatedly emphasized that "all officials who hide their mourning must be sent to the people of their origin" and "officials, both internal and external, big and small, are not allowed to recover".
What for? The purpose is to prevent high-ranking officials from staying attached to their posts, and to allow officials to circulate and ensure channels for advancement.
Therefore, the emperors of the Ming and Qing dynasties generally did not use it when they could use it, regardless of whether the outcome was good or bad, but the impact was extremely bad.
Today you are in love and come back, and tomorrow he can be in love and come back, and in the end, no one has to worry about Ding anymore...
Zhang Juzheng experienced a relapse in love, which triggered political turmoil in the Ming Dynasty at that time. It is unknown how many people protested and were dismissed from office and demoted.
Therefore, if he wanted to revive Yang Sichang, even Emperor Chongzhen would have to take certain political risks.
But...
Emperor Chongzhen was not an ordinary emperor. He didn't care about political influence at all, so after the imperial edict was issued, he had to seize the favor of Yang Sichang.
There was a lot of discussion in the court about this, but no one could change Chongzhen's mind!
