Zhu Yunwen's words made the cabinet ministers instantly stunned, and they all stared at each other with big eyes and small eyes.
Yu Xin, Zhang Yan, and Xie Jin have read the report. The content seems to be, probably, not as serious as the emperor said, right?
What people are saying is obviously:
In various places along the coast, pirates often appeared, ranging from a few to hundreds, causing endless nuisance. Guangzhou City commanded the envoy to lead three thousand soldiers to fight in Yangjiang, Guanghai, Xinning, Wuchuan, Suixi and other places. At the cost of thirty deaths and fifty injuries, five hundred pirates were killed.
This should be said to be a document to report merits, but how come it turned out to be a document asking for help when it reached the emperor?
Could it be that there is some mystery?
Xie Jin was quick-witted. With a turn of his eyes, he understood the emperor's thoughts and shouted loudly: "Your Majesty, Guangzhou is the southern gateway of the empire and cannot be lost. I believe that only important ministers are not qualified for the job."
"oh?"
Zhu Yunwen looked at Xie Jin with satisfaction. This one of the three great talents truly lived up to his reputation.
"Qing Xie, who do you think can take on this important task?"
Zhu Yunwen asked with a smile.
Jie Jin opened his mouth to say it, but suddenly realized that if he said this name, he might get into trouble.
After all, although he has entered the cabinet, his foundation is still shallow, and compared with those powerful nobles, he is still obviously insufficient.
Xie Jin saluted and said, "Your Majesty, you can ask the officials about this matter."
Zhu Yunwen smiled lightly, knowing that Jie Jin had seen through his own thoughts and that Jie Jin was playing tricks, but he didn't mind. He looked at Qi Tai and asked, "Qi Qing, who do you think can take on this important task?"
The Ministry of Personnel is responsible for recommending talents.
Qi Tai, the Minister of Civil Affairs, came out and shouted: "I think Wu Jie, the Marquis of Anlu, can take up this post."
Zhu Yunwen frowned and said: "Marquis Anlu is training troops in Zhejiang and taking care of maritime defense. I'm afraid he won't be able to leave."
"Then Marquis Wu Gao of Jiangyin..."
"Wu Gao is not in good health recently..."
"Commander Shi Gucheng..."
"Gu Chengzhen has other plans, which is inappropriate..."
Qi Tai recommended several people one after another, but Zhu Yunwen blocked them all.
Qi Tai is not a fool. If he can't think of twists and turns at this time, he will be in the officialdom for nothing.
Obviously, the emperor already had a candidate in mind, but due to his status as emperor, he couldn't say it himself, so he asked his ministers to recommend him. Xie Jin didn't want to say it, so he kicked the ball to himself.
But Qitai was confused. He didn't know who the emperor wanted to trick. He couldn't let King Yan go, right?
Qi Tai, who was trembling, looked at Zhu Yunqi carefully. Zhu Yunqi slightly turned his head towards the general Xungui. Qi Tai turned his head and looked over. The emperor seemed to be looking at Wei Guogong Xu Huizu.
wrong!
Xu Huizu was training the new army in the Beijing camp at this time, and he would definitely not be able to leave.
Who else could it be?
Qi Tai suddenly stared, swallowed, calmed down, and shouted loudly: "I believe that this matter is related to the peace and prosperity of the country and the people, and it is necessary to use thunderous troops to completely kill the pirates. If you can take on this important task, I will open the Ming Dynasty." The one who wants to conquer peace in the south must be Duke Cao."
Li Jinglong, who was dozing off, suddenly trembled when he heard that his name was called.
I drank too much last night and didn't sleep well.
Didn't you hear hallucinations just now?
Just when Li Jinglong was a little confused, Zhu Yunwen nodded with satisfaction and said: "What Qi Aiqing said is true. This is the first battle since the emperor ascended the throne. We need to ensure that everything is safe. First, show off the power of our Ming army, and secondly protect me." The territory of the Ming Dynasty, San'an, our citizens of the Ming Dynasty! We must send an important minister! In this case, Duke Cao!"
"I'm here!"
Li Jinglong hurriedly came out of class to salute.
"I appoint you as the general of Zhennan, Li Zengzhi as the commander-in-chief, Xu Zengshou as the deputy commander-in-chief, and Li You, Xu Hong, Chen Yue... eight as staff generals. Starting tomorrow, you will rush to Guangzhou to work with the Guangzhou Dusi to eradicate the pirates. , protect my Ming Dynasty!"
Zhu Yunwen stood up and shouted majestically.
Not negotiable!
No doubt!
Zhu Yunwen's order struck Li Jinglong like a thunderbolt, and he silently thanked him for accepting the order.
In the main hall, the officials were whispering to each other and discussing.
Use the great prince to fight the small pirates?
How serious are the pirate bandits in Guangzhou?
Does this battle give too much face to those pirates?
Could it be said that Guangzhou has completely fallen?
Never heard of it!
"Your Majesty, I believe that the Duke is the pillar and mainstay of the empire and should not be used lightly. Although there is trouble caused by pirates in Guangzhou, it only takes one governor or a marquis to put an end to the trouble."
The Jingwei commander commanded the envoys and commanded Wang Zuo, the chief minister, to go out to oppose the attack.
"I second the proposal."
A few inconspicuous officials appeared.
Zhu Yunwen looked at these officials who opposed him coldly, and said sternly: "The people of Guangzhou are in dire straits, and you are still thinking about who to use?! Wang Zuo, let you go, can you guarantee that you will win? I deeply understand You know, if the pirates are not eliminated, Guangzhou will be uneasy! The reason why the empire is uneasy! As a commander, can’t you even understand this?!"
"Cao Guogong is a person I trust, and he is the Queen of Qiyang. He is good at military affairs. Once he takes action, he will definitely achieve miraculous results! Completely wipe out the pirates and give me a stable southern gate. What are your intentions for opposing? "
Wang Zuo looked at the angry Zhu Yunwen in surprise and quickly knelt on the ground and kowtowed.
If he refuses to give in, Wang Zuo doesn't know whether the pirates will be eliminated or not, and his head will definitely be removed.
Zhu Yunwen said sternly: "I appointed Duke Cao Guo to tell the people of the world that I will not hesitate to use the Duke for the safety of the people of the empire! Even if it is needed in the future, I can step forward, wear armor, and go into battle to kill the enemy! Duke Cao, you Do you have the courage to defeat the pirates and share my worries?!"
Li Jinglong, Duke of Cao Kingdom, quickly knelt down and shouted loudly: "I have courage and am willing to share the emperor's worries!"
If you don't bow your head at this time, it will be over.
The emperor has already spoken. If you don't come, I will come on my own. It's up to you.
What else could Li Jinglong see?
Who dares to let the new emperor lead the expedition in person?
As a minister, if you can't share the emperor's worries, then how can you hang out in the court?
What's more, Zhu Yunwen was "trustful" and "will not hesitate to use the prince". He also made some murderous and passionate words, which were enough to make Li Jinglong willing to go on the road.
Seeing that Li Jinglong had been dealt with, Zhu Yunwen glanced at the ministers who opposed him and said, "Wang Zuo and others, please go out with the army. Use your eyes and your hearts to see the suffering people, and then come back and tell me, My decision is not correct!"
Everyone in the court was shocked.
This objection means he was directly sent to the army?
Isn't this too harsh?
Although he is not going to be a leading soldier, he is still going out with the army after all. The battlefield recognizes no one. If the pirates come and kill them, they might just hang there and die heroically.
In fact, Wang Zuo was more worried about being heroic on the road.
The journey from Nanjing to Guangzhou is still three thousand miles, and it is a bumpy journey south. It will take at least two or three months to get to Guangzhou. If the climate is not suitable, I will leave it to the mountains and rivers of the Ming Dynasty.
However, Wang Zuo's plea had no effect.
Zhu Yunwen didn't give him a chance.
At the end of the court meeting, Zhu Yunwen left, and the ministers looked at Li Jinglong with smiles.
Three cabinet ministers, Yu Xin, Zhang Zhen, and Xie Jin, raised their hands in congratulations and said: "The new emperor ascended the throne and used Duke Cao Guo in the first battle. This shows that Duke Cao Guo is deeply favored by heaven."
Li Jinglong smiled unnaturally.
Deeply blessed by heaven?
Why didn't I feel it?
Looking back now, why does it feel like I was sent to Guangzhou spontaneously?
After accepting the sincere or insincere congratulations from the ministers, Li Jinglong returned to the Qiyang Palace with some confusion. Looking at his younger brother Li Zengzhi, he suddenly asked: "The emperor's arrangement seems to be for our people, right?"
Li Zengzhi frowned, thought about it carefully, and said: "Except for Xu Zengshou, most of them are our people! Brother, the emperor must have noticed something with this arrangement, right?"
Li Jinglong sighed and said: "That's right. The emperor has never taken any action and has been indifferent to our dealings with King Yan. Haha, I thought it was because he was weak. Unexpectedly, it was because he was hiding his strength! Our emperor is not simple!"
"Then what should we do? Should we go to Guangzhou?"
Li Zengzhi was a little depressed.
Li Jinglong fell into deep thought.
During this time, the Li family was developing relationships with King Yan and King Ning. Seeing that the period of hot filial piety was about to pass and these vassal kings were about to leave, they could still stage a farewell of saying goodbye and seeing each other again someday.
Unexpectedly, before they left, he had to leave first.
Once they go to Guangzhou, it means that the Li family cannot be a help to King Yan, King Ning and others.
Li Jinglong still understands the principle of being out of reach.
Li Zengzhi didn't think so much, but said: "Brother, we have always wanted to be the number one among the nobles, surpassing Xu Huizu. Now, maybe this is an opportunity."
"Opportunity, don't you think this is a trap?"
Li Jinglong had a cold face.
To go to a place as far away as Guangzhou, the round trip would take at least half a year, or even a year.
If you don't do a good job, you may end up staying there for a long time, living at sea every day.
If he did well and Zhu Yunwen was happy, he would be assigned the title of Captain of the Bandit Suppression Brigade and be stationed in Guangzhou for a long time to fight pirates, then his life would be over.
This is simply a big pit that traps people without paying for their lives.
Li Zengzhi said with a smile: "Brother, don't worry, the emperor won't let us stay in Guangzhou for a long time. Even if we stay, we won't be able to stay."
"Why?"
Li Jinglong looked at his brother in surprise.
Li Zengzhi smiled and said: "First of all, if we complete the suppression of the pirates, it will be natural for us to be the master. Secondly, if the emperor does not allow it, we can still go to the queen mother to intercede, right? Thirdly, isn't there the third son of the Xu family? ? If we don’t come back, how can the third son of the Xu family not come back? If he comes back, then we have to come back too, right? "
"The most important point is that as long as we use some strategy, the emperor will definitely need us to leave early and return early. And by the time we return, the Duke of Wei, Xu Huizu, will only be under his eldest brother."
Li Jinglong looked at Li Zengzhi curiously and asked, "What's the plan?"
Li Zengzhi came close to Li Jinglong's ear and said softly: "Secret report to the emperor, saying that King Ning and King Yan have two minds."
Li Jinglong stood up suddenly, pointed at Li Zengzhi, and said angrily: "How could we do such a thing!"
"Brother, please be patient. What we told the emperor is not the issue of two kings having two minds, but the close relationship between Xu Huizu and King Yan. You know, they are in-laws. Once King Yan gets into trouble, what will happen? Can the emperor rest assured about Xu Huizu, the uncle of King Yan? Can he hand over the imperial army to his command? I definitely can’t!"
Li Zengzhi looked confidently at the pensive Li Jinglong and added: "Brother, please note that the most important thing for royal employees is loyalty, followed by ability. Our abilities are not as good as Xu Huizu's, but if we keep loyalty, hehe..."
