Prince Chongzhen

Chapter 388 Banquet
As the news of Zhang Xianzhong's death gradually spread, the situation in central Sichuan stabilized after a slight fluctuation.

The reason why it is called a fluctuation is that the key is that Hauge's previous arrangement took effect.

Although only Liu Jinzhong had colluded with the Tartars before, there were also many people who were waiting and watching.

But at that time Zhang Xianzhong was still holding out in Guangyuan, and the Ming and Qing dynasties were either keeping their troops in place or making no progress, so even if these people wanted to rebel, they could only wait and see.

But now.

The Ming army had already marched northward in large numbers, but the Qing army was still blocked in the Jinniu Road. Even if some wanted to take advantage of this opportunity to seek wealth and glory in danger, they would be completely wiped out after just a few bounces when faced with forces seeking stability.

Therefore, when Zhu Cilang led more than 10,000 infantrymen to Langzhong, each city had either been conquered by an edict or had letters of surrender on the way, and the situation in Sichuan gradually became stable.

In such a situation, Zhu Cilang did not feel that the army's strength was wasted because it was not used.

After all, it was precisely because of these people that the forces leaning towards the Ming Dynasty were able to gain an absolute advantage, and his mind was already focused elsewhere, so such a small matter that was almost certain to succeed naturally would not take up too much of his energy.

"Wen Xiu is just a foolish and reckless man, but I didn't expect that he would be valued so highly by His Majesty. What a loser."

"My dear minister, you should call yourself a minister. How can you still use such self-deprecating words?"

Seeing that Liu Wenxiu seemed moved by his kindness, Zhu Cilang, who was used to using this trick, struck while the iron was hot.

He arrived in Langzhong in the afternoon, and after some procedures, the army set up camp outside the city.

Liu Wenxiu and other generals of the Dashi Army did not say much about the fact that the emperor actually lived in the military camp instead of spending the night in the city, but even the accompanying general Hu Yiqing could see their surprise.

But this is also expected.

After all, apart from people like Xiang Rensheng who have followed Your Majesty since Yingtian, who else is not surprised by Your Majesty's habits?

It is not difficult to imagine what happens next.

The Ming Emperor, who valued Liu Wenxiu very much, decided to hold a banquet in the guard camp to celebrate the return of the great general to the Ming Dynasty. Not only was Liu Wenxiu so moved by the emperor's kindness that he was speechless, but all the generals of the Dashi Army had the same expression.

At night, the generals of Dashi arrived as promised, and after three rounds of wine, the scene just now appeared.

"Your Majesty, I am ashamed of my duty."

"It's okay, it's okay. There were reasons behind your uprising back then. Tonight is a wedding banquet, so let's not talk about those old things."

Seeing Liu Wenxiu, who was already a little drunk, saying this, Zhu Cilang was very generous and threw all the past events into the trash.

With his earlier experience, he already had a lot of experience in recruiting surrenders and rebellions.

Although Liu Wenxiu said these words at this time with the intention of showing goodwill to him, he also knew that even if he had no intention of pursuing the matter, tonight was not the time to discuss these things in depth.

After all, Zhang Xianzhong's bandits also played a significant role in the Ming Dynasty's loss of Jiangbei, and the generals under his command also knew that the court officials despised and hated them.

Otherwise, when Liu Wenxiu behaved like this, why would the generals who followed him become unnatural?
"I promise you that from tonight onwards, no one is allowed to mention those past events. All you generals need to do is to serve the Ming Dynasty with peace of mind."

"Your Majesty is magnanimous!"

"Thank you for your mercy, Your Majesty!"

"I will do my best for the Ming Dynasty!"

It has to be said that this is a very generous gift, which will play a great role in alleviating the doubts in the hearts of the defeated Dashi army.

After all, in Zhu Cilang's eyes, no matter if they were bandits or rebels, they were essentially just ordinary people who were forced to survive because of the world's bad conditions.

At this time, Zhang Xianzhong was dead, and the remaining troops surrendered to the Ming Dynasty under the leadership of Liu Wenxiu. So the events of the past should naturally be written off to avoid being brought up again in the future, which would have caused considerable trouble.

As Zhu Cilang finished speaking, all the generals of the Dashi Army present bowed down on the spot.

Seeing this, Zhu Cilang tried to appease them again, and after all the soldiers stood up, the banquet continued.

"Your Majesty, the general has been standing there for half the night. Why don't you give him a few drinks?"

Hearing this, Zhu Cilang couldn't help but smile bitterly and glanced to the side.

He was not a mean person, so he would not force him to guard beside him when everyone was drinking happily.

But no one knew what kind of drug had been administered to Hu Yiqing in Yingtian. He was originally a brave and capable general, but this time he became a rigid person.

When it comes to the banquet tonight, not only will he stick around, but he will also follow a lot of rules just like those guys in the palace.

Faced with such a situation, Zhu Cilang also spoke twice quietly, but as soon as he opened his mouth, he was pushed back with the words "it's my duty".

Therefore, when the general finished speaking, the dignified Emperor of the Ming Dynasty felt a little embarrassed.

"Yiqing, everyone is happy tonight, why not just do it."

"Your Majesty, it is my duty to do so."

"Good good."

Waving his hand helplessly, Zhu Cilang picked up the wine glass in front of him. Then he drank the wine in the glass first, and then spoke after turning the glass upside down.

"Yiqing is quite honest, so I will drink this cup for him. After a few days when he has rested, you can let him get drunk."

"Your Majesty is serious."

"it is good!"

As Zhu Cilang finished speaking, the atmosphere in the room became heated again. However, at this moment, he saw Liu Wenxiu drinking alone. He wanted to greet him but in the end he could only sigh in his heart.

Most of Zhang Xianzhong's adopted sons were orphans he had always kept by his side. Although this Eighth King was a bit strict and had been somewhat distant from Liu Wenxiu and others in the past year or so, it was still extremely difficult to give up this kindness.

At this time, his adoptive father and brothers had all passed away, so it was a bit too much to ask Liu Wenxiu to remain in that state.

As time went by, the night gradually darkened, and as the generals kept urging people to drink, not only did the generals present sway, but even Zhu Cilang's eyes became slightly blurry. "Wenxiu, come closer."

Although Zhu Cilang's voice was not very loud and even his pronunciation was a little unclear, when the words fell, everyone in the tent's attention was still drawn here intentionally or unintentionally.

"What's your majesty's order?"

"I know what you are thinking, but the dead are gone. I still need you to turn the world around and bring peace to the people."

Zhu Cilang lowered his head slightly when he spoke, as if the strength in his neck was a little insufficient. When the words came out, Liu Wenxiu's expression froze for a moment, and only improved slightly after the rest of the words came out.

To be honest, Liu Wenxiu still had some good feelings towards the young emperor of the Ming Dynasty.

He was not like the previous emperors who were indifferent to the lives of ordinary people. Every time he pacified an area, he would gather refugees to reclaim wasteland and cultivate the land. Even though he had all kinds of utilitarian intentions, in reality he really gave the people a way to survive.

If the emperor at that time had such an idea, then most of these people would still be digging for food in the fields, and how could they be forced to the point of splitting up the land and establishing their own regimes?
"Your Majesty is wise and wise. I will go through fire and water for you without hesitation."

"You don't know that I really care about the people."

"Your Majesty is a holy king, my subject."

"I'm not dealing with the gentry because they are against me, it's really because these idiots are rich and unkind, and one family has taken advantage of several counties and prefectures. If we don't deal with them, the people will have a hard time getting enough food and clothing."

Hearing words that he would never hear under normal circumstances, Liu Wenxiu didn't know whether the little emperor was really drunk or just pretending to be drunk in front of him.

At this moment, Hu Yiqing suddenly appeared between the two of them and immediately grabbed Zhu Cilang's arm.

"Your Majesty, why don't you go back and rest first."

"Food and clothing. Food and clothing"

Seeing that his Majesty was already quite drunk, Hu Yiqing, the military commander who had saved the emperor, helped him up. He then nodded slightly towards the tent and went out of the tent under the protection of several guards.

"alert."

According to common sense, they should go straight to Zhu Cilang's tent since they were in their own camp. However, after only taking a few steps, Hu Yiqing said something in a deep voice to the guards, and then those guards used their bodies to completely cover Zhu Cilang.

It was because Zhu Cilang was quite drunk, otherwise he would have thought that Hu Yiqing had been drugged in Yingtian.

A moment later, Zhu Cilang's tent appeared in everyone's eyes. Needless to say, after the little emperor of the Ming Dynasty was settled on the couch, Hu Yiqing held a spear and stood guard outside the tent with a group of guards.

"General, now that His Majesty has rested, why not have a word with Generals Xiang and Mei?"

"What? Just that they don't take off their helmets in such hot weather?"

After casually retorting to the guard, Hu Yiqing stood outside the tent like a sculpture again.

He was indeed a brave general, but that didn't mean he was a reckless man. Moreover, his thief-looking cousin often sent him letters, so Hu Yiqing naturally had to be extremely cautious in doing things at this time.

According to what he had thought before, a little abnormality did not mean anything, and doing this was just his duty.

But I don't know whether he had a "thief in his heart" or he really thought of some details. After guarding outside the tent for more than an hour, he gave an order to the guards and left the tent unexpectedly.

To be honest, his current position is actually quite embarrassing.

Although he has been the emperor's personal bodyguard since His Majesty arrived in Ganzhou, he is not like Xiang Rensheng who has a background in the imperial guards and has a bond with His Majesty in times of trouble, nor is he like Mei Chun who has a legitimate family background and has nothing to do with guarding His Majesty.

Not only can he not integrate into the imperial guards, but he also has some competition with Xiang Rensheng.

What's more, he had no evidence to prove what he was thinking. Everything just originated from a momentary movement of his mind.

According to his original idea, as a guard, he only needed to ensure the safety of His Majesty, and he had neither the qualifications nor the ability to interfere in other matters.

just
Alas~~, if you offend someone, then offend them.

At this time, the military banquet had ended and all the generals had returned to their camps. However, when Hu Yiqing was walking hurriedly in the camp, the lights in Liu Wenxiu's camp on the other side of Langzhong City were still on.

"I heard that you have a crush on the little emperor. Why don't you just return to the Ming Dynasty?"

According to common sense, no one in his own camp would dare to speak to Liu Wenxiu in such a teasing tone. However, contrary to common people's expectations, when these words spread, General Funan of Dashi turned a deaf ear to them. It was unknown whether he was lost in his own thoughts or for other reasons.

Seeing this, the young general who spoke showed disdain on his face, but the older one next to him said something to turn around after a moment.

"Don't be fooled by his lies. Most of the wealth in the world is occupied by those 100,000 clan members. If he really cares about the people, he should start from here. What can he do by eliminating one or two wealthy families?"

After all, older people have seen more of the world, and although what they say may be a bit sophistry, it cannot be said that they are completely unreasonable.

Sure enough, after these words fell, Liu Wenxiu, who seemed like a sculpture, finally moved. After turning his head and looking at the two of them deeply, he spoke in a slightly hoarse voice.

"You don't have to waste your words. I have already promised and I will not regret it now. But you need to remember what I said before and don't do anything that goes against your promise."

"Don't worry, since the prince has already agreed, he will naturally protect their lives, not to mention the situation has come to this. Humph!"

From the young general's last sneer, Liu Wenxiu clearly felt the strong disdain and arrogance, but according to the current situation, the world would eventually fall into the hands of the Tartars. Even if he was unwilling, he could not say anything to refute.

"Ah~~~~, it's because the little emperor has too many rules, otherwise he would have died several times today."

Perhaps thinking that the young general shouldn't provoke Liu Wenxiu like that, the older man changed the subject. But when he finished speaking, the young general's attention was drawn, and they began to discuss it.

"It is indeed our fault. We have heard that the little emperor usually sleeps in the army. How could we have forgotten about it today?"

"Who said it wasn't true? But I really didn't expect that he would hold a banquet in the camp."

As he spoke, the older man inadvertently glanced at Liu Wenxiu's face, as if he wanted to see whether this guy who was held responsible would have other thoughts because of the young emperor's attention to him. However, Liu Wenxiu was just staring at the lights in a daze, with no expression on his face. In this situation, he continued chatting with the young general.

"Good things take time. I heard from the people we sent that most of the generals are already drunk. Once the time comes, we will be able to perform another miracle. By then, we will need Brother Aobai to speak a few good words for us in front of the prince."

"Oh! Marshal Wu is really polite. I am the one who needs your support."

(End of this chapter)