Ming Jiajing: Starting from Immortality

Chapter 263: Beat him up in front of the emperor and subdue him with force!
The corridor of Xiyuan.

Countless imperial guards bowed their heads in despair.

Huang Jin was leading a white horse, on which sat Wang Chonggu. Behind them were the court officials on the Deshengmen tower, ministers from the six ministries and nine government offices, and envoys from fifteen unconquered countries.

After that, the generals went on a northern expedition and defeated Lai Sun, Senggelinqin and other steppe nobles.

They marched in a mighty procession towards the Yongshou Palace and the Wanshou Palace.

Huang Jin saw Wang Chonggu's uncomfortable look on horseback and couldn't help but laugh: "Except His Majesty, no one else can ride a horse in the palace. I don't know who else can have the honor of being the Grand Marshal!"

Wang Chonggu was silent for a moment, thinking of the civil officials and military commanders who died during the Jiajing period, and said with emotion: "It's embarrassing. It's better to let you, Eunuch Huang, ride on it and let me lead it from below."

The greater the achievements and the more power one has, the more suspicious the emperor will be. As an official, one step closer to death.

As he walked along the way, he stepped on the corpses of countless people.

In order to protect himself and his family, he betrayed the Shanxi merchants and obtained the position of the Grand Marshal of the Northern Expedition in exchange for the corpses of hundreds of thousands of Shanxi merchants and their families.

He led the troops to the battle, and together with the cavalry of Sun's army, he killed hundreds of thousands of northern barbarians and won the honor he has today.

One will be a million bones.

His achievements are unparalleled.

Even if His Majesty did nothing, he was still a little scared.

If it could end here, he would still be a famous official and a famous general.

If he goes further, Wang Chonggu is worried that his future will be in jeopardy.

"Ouch!"

Huang Jin didn't dare to respond and said, "You said that, how could this servant have such great luck?"

Wang Chonggu knew that Huang Jin was not a talkative person. Looking at the inner court, he was the most honest person. In a voice that only the two of them could hear clearly, he sighed and said, "It is fate or disaster. Who can tell?"

“It’s fate.”

Huang Jin was very confident and answered, "The Grand Marshal conquered the grasslands with one battle and resolved the border troubles of the Central Plains for thousands of years. Your contribution is unprecedented in the history. The emperor once summoned the elders to discuss the matter of ennobling you as a king of a different surname, but was dissuaded by the elders. Instead, you were awarded the title of Duke. However, your merits are not yet exhausted, and your children and grandchildren should also be made marquises. Three Dukes in one family is unique in the world. Grand Marshal, isn't this destiny?"

As soon as the king was crowned.

Wang Chonggu was almost frightened off his horse.

There are currently two kings of different surnames in the Ming Dynasty court, King Shun'an Dalaisun and King Shunyi Senggelinqin.

The reason why he was granted the title of king was for the sake of unity in the Central Plains and the grasslands, and for the stability and well-being of the Ming Dynasty.

Dalai Sun and Senggelinqin were not fools. Although the court promised to let them continue to manage the east and west wings of the grassland, the two of them tactfully expressed their desire to live in the capital, and even put on an act as if they were determined to do so.

Didn’t Sun and Senggelinqin know that after entering the capital, they would be monitored by the Embroidered Uniform Guards for the rest of their lives?
The two knew it very well, but there was nothing they could do. If they really stayed on the grassland, they would probably die of illness in two or three years.

The power struggle between the emperor and the prime minister is terrifying enough. If there is another king's power, Wang Chonggu is worried that he will die without knowing how he died.

Wang Chonggu had just put his mind at ease when he heard Huang Jin say that the title of king was dissuaded, but then he heard that the merit of being crowned king would be shared and that he, his son, and his underage grandson would be granted the title of Duke of Ceshang.

From ancient times to the present, has there been any dynasty with three dukes or three marquises in one family? Such families can be counted on one hand.

In the Ming Dynasty, there were only two families with two dukes of different countries.

One is the family of Xu Da, the founding hero and King of Zhongshan. His eldest son inherited the Dukedom of Wei, and his third son secretly assisted Emperor Chengzu Wen in the Jingnan Rebellion. After Emperor Chengzu Wen ascended the throne, he posthumously awarded him the Dukedom of Dingguo.

The second is Feng Sheng, Duke of Song, one of the six founding dukes. His elder brother Feng Guoyong persuaded Emperor Taizu Gao to take Nanjing as a base when Emperor Taizu Gao was rising. He later died in the army. After the founding of the country, he was posthumously named Duke of Ying.

The second dukes of the Xu and Feng families were both conferred posthumously. There was no such thing as a living second duke, or even a third duke.

At this time, Wang Chonggu was wondering why he did not die on the grassland battlefield. In this way, his children and grandchildren would each have a duke and he would not have to worry.

Men of letters are unwilling to sit at the same table with warriors and barbarians.

Therefore, the generals who went on the northern expedition, the grassland nobles and the envoys from various countries were arranged to have a banquet in the Wanshou Palace.

Wang Chonggu, court officials, and provincial governors were arranged to have a banquet in Yongshou Palace.

The two newly built magnificent halls still emit a faint smell of paint and wood. In order to cover up the smell, four incense burners are set up in each hall. The burning ambergris calms the mind and the fragrance lingers long outside the hall.

The cabinet elders and ministers of the six ministries and nine departments were arranged on the left side of the hall. Wang Chonggu sat in the first seat on the right side of the hall, followed by the governors-general and provincial governors.

Led by the chief minister Zhang Juzheng, the ministers first knelt down in front of the empty throne and shouted "Long live the emperor" before they sat down.

No one found it strange that the emperor was not there. Over the past twenty years, all the civil and military officials in the court had become accustomed to this way of giving banquets.

Palace maids and eunuchs brought in plates of imperial meals like flowing water.

"The Book of Zhou: Heavenly Officials: Cooks" states: "In the king's food, the six kinds of grains are used for food, the six kinds of clear water are used for drinking, 120 kinds of food are used for food, and eight kinds of precious things are used."

Chunao: rice with meat and soy sauce.

Chunmu: Yellow rice with meat and soy sauce.

Paotun: roasted, fried or stewed suckling pig.

Paozhang: stewing, roasting, frying or braising lamb.

Roasted beef, lamb or deer tenderloin.

Pickled: beef and mutton with wine lees.

Boil: Spiced beef jerky.

Liver fat: grilled dog liver with lard.

The ancient Eight Delicacies Banquet is reproduced, and the taste today is far superior to that of ancient times. Such a grand banquet, with excellent color, aroma and taste, can be called the first state banquet.

His Majesty is not here.

Zhang Juzheng, the chief minister of the cabinet, was the leader here. I took over the emperor's position temporarily, raised the wine cup, looked at Wang Chonggu opposite, and congratulated him: "This battle in Mobei has forever eliminated the threat of the grassland to our border. It has benefited the present and the future. On behalf of the people of the world, I ask the Marshal to drink this cup!"

Although Wang Chonggu escaped from his control and killed his brother, those things could not be counted in detail. Today was a celebration banquet, and there was nothing else to say. Zhang Juzheng had nothing else to say except congratulations. "The merits of this generation will benefit future generations. Please drink this cup to the full, Marshal!"

After Zhang Juzheng, all the officials in the hall raised their wine cups and toasted to Wang Chonggu.

"Thank you all." Wang Chonggu also raised the wine cup, and everyone drank the wine in the cup together.

The banquet had begun and the atmosphere in the hall suddenly became lively. Hu Zongxian, Hai Rui, Xu Guo, and some governors-general toasted Wang Chonggu respectfully.

After a few drinks, even though Wang Chonggu had a good alcohol tolerance, he couldn't hold it anymore. Seeing this, some people gave up the idea of ​​toasting and sat back at the table.

In the midst of the joyous atmosphere, Shandong Governor Yuan Hongyu left his seat, held a cup of wine and came to Wang Chonggu, saying: "Grand Marshal, you have made great achievements in the war, but why do you look so melancholy now? Come on! I will also toast you a glass, please drink it up!"

Dissonant sound.

The hall suddenly became quiet.

Some meticulous officials had long discovered that there was a lingering sadness between Wang Chonggu's brows, and some even guessed the general purpose of Wang Chonggu's sadness.

It's nothing more than worrying that the emperor would abandon him after he has done his job, or even destroy the bridge after crossing it, but no one wants to mention it when we are happy. Unexpectedly, there are actually people who would deliberately disrupt our fun.

Wang Chonggu, who couldn't drink anymore, declined twice, but Yuan Hongyu still pestered him. Seeing this, many people in the hall frowned.

Wang Chonggu never accepted the toast, so Yuan Hongyu simply drank the wine in his glass and said, "I only wish the great commander-in-chief that from now on there will be no more achievements to be made."

The hall fell completely silent.

Hai Rui looked at Zhang Juzheng. Zhang Juzheng's heart sank. He looked across at Yuan Hongyu and said, "Yizhi, you are drunk."

"I'm not drunk, I'm sober."

Yuan Hongyu ignored Yuan Fu's good intentions, continued to stare at Wang Chonggu, and said with a smile: "The day when the Grand Marshal's horse is released to the south mountain means peace in the world! The greater the achievements made by the Grand Marshal, the more casualties the soldiers will suffer, the greater the cost to the national treasury, and the greater the suffering of the people.

To exchange the suffering of the people of the world for the glorious achievements of the Grand Marshal alone is something that the Grand Marshal would not accept!"

During the Ming Dynasty, anti-war speech has always existed from official circles to the public. In the eyes of some officials and civilians, it is bitterly cold outside the Great Wall and it is difficult for people to survive. Once the war starts, soldiers will be killed and wounded, the national treasury will be depleted, and victory is also defeat.

In addition, the barbarians who surrendered were wild and difficult to tame. They would cause trouble wherever they went, making it difficult for the court to manage them. The officials who paid close attention to the distinction between Chinese and barbarians could not tolerate it even more.

In the eyes of these officials, the people of the Ming Dynasty had just started to live a better life, but the current emperor started a war for the so-called civil and military achievements, and let hundreds of millions of people achieve the title of a saint. This was simply foolish.

Yuan Hongyu's words were openly praising Wang Chonggu's brilliant achievements, and implicitly praising the current emperor's civil and military achievements.

As the saying goes, even a clay man can still have some temper. Wang Chonggu has been a civil servant and a marshal, so he naturally has a bad temper.

In his eyes, a provincial governor was not much bigger than the turtle in Yongding River, but he actually pointed at him and cursed the emperor.

Wang Chonggu suddenly had an idea and thought of a way to break the impasse for himself and his family. He said in a cold tone, "Yuan Hongyu, are you mocking me and His Majesty?"

The people in the hall immediately became nervous.

Yuan Hongyu's smile remained unchanged, but it was full of coldness. He said, "How dare I do that? After the battle in Mobei, the Grand Marshal's family will have three more dukes. I am really happy for the Grand Marshal. How can I say that this is ironic?"

"That's jealousy."

Wang Chonggu's tone also turned cold, and he laughed instead: "You are not holding a grudge against me and the current emperor just because you were not the one who was awarded the title?"

As soon as these words came out.

The expressions of the people in the hall changed.

This clearly means that Yuan Hongyu is jealous of others' military achievements and his own incompetence, so he turns around and blames those who have made contributions and the current emperor.

There are no gentlemen in officialdom.

It is the consensus of people all over the world.

However, moral character is an important criterion for the imperial court's evaluation, meritorious service and words, and posthumous evaluation.

Although Wang Chonggu did not curse Yuan Hongyu as a hypocrite, he also revealed that meaning.

As long as Yuan Hongyu had not reached the state of mind of a saint who was neither happy nor sad, he would definitely not be able to tolerate such questioning. As expected, Yuan Hongyu blushed and said, "You are also a civil servant, how can you not know that the Book of Shang says: Heaven's will is not constant, violence cannot be relied upon, virtue will gain the country, and without virtue, the country will be lost.

I spoke to you in the manners of a country, but I didn't expect you to be judged by your cautiousness. You are really a mean person."

"I am a villain?"

Wang Chonggu smiled coldly, patted his sword and stood up, saying: "Yuan Hongyu, where were you when the Tatars came south to raid the grasslands and looted the wives, daughters and property of our border people? The grassland cavalry roamed the border areas, and our border troops dared not take a single step beyond the Great Wall. Where were you?
How can the people of our great Ming Dynasty fall into the hands of barbarians? How can the ancestral land of our great Ming Dynasty be given to others?

Yuan Hongyu, I know you. You were born in Suzhou Prefecture, Nanzhili. You are the fourth-generation grandson of Yuan Yangfu, the constitutional historian of Fujian in the early Ming Dynasty. You come from a veritable family of officials. You have never known what hunger and cold are since you were a child. All you see are the common people in the south of the Yangtze River.

You are a wealthy place in Jiangnan, and you can survive by selling food rations. But what about the people on the border?
In your sage book, I'm afraid that "burning, killing, looting, and eating human flesh" are the only eight words that summarize the suffering of the border people. What a corrupt scholar you are!

In the fifth year of Jiajing, the Tatars plundered Liaodong on a large scale. In the ninth year of Jiajing, they raided the valleys under the city of Datong. In the eleventh, twelfth, and fifteenth years of Jiajing… In the thirty-sixth, thirty-seventh, and thirty-eighth years of Jiajing, the Khan of the grasslands personally led troops to plunder the borders of the Ming Dynasty. Now they say that violence is not enough, haha. "

The example cited by Wang Chonggu deliberately omitted the Gengxu Incident in the 29th year of Jiajing, when Altan Khan led the northern barbarian cavalry across the Great Wall and besieged the capital for three days and three nights. The battle to defend the capital reappeared, and the crisis when the Ming Dynasty was almost destroyed left a decent situation for the emperor.

But the almost annual Tatar invasions were listed as enough to shock the hearts of all anti-war officials.

However, how could they feel pain if the Tatar cavalry's swords did not cut these people's bodies?
Under the gazes of many colleagues, Yuan Hong was filled with shame and indignation, but he still insisted: "The country should be governed by virtue, not by force."

"well said!"

Wang Chonggu punched Yuan Hongyu in the face with such great force that he knocked Yuan Hongyu to the ground. His head tilted and two back teeth were exposed.

"you……"

Before Yuan Hongyu could finish his words, Wang Chonggu came forward and grabbed him by the shirt on his chest and lifted him up. He slapped him in the face, making him swallow his words, and knocked his official hat far away, saying, "Now, do you think violence is reliable?"

Another slap stunned Yuan Hongyu, but woke up everyone in the hall. No one had expected Wang Chonggu's sudden attack, but now everyone reacted. Zhang Juzheng was close to him, so he took a quick step forward and hugged Wang Chonggu. The ministers also hurried forward to separate them.

The literati and civil servants have little strength. Despite being pulled by several people, Wang Chonggu still punched and kicked Yuan Hongyu on the ground a few more times.

Gao Gong, Hu Zongxian, and Li Chunfang stood there silently, fighting in front of the emperor (fighting each other), things got serious...

(End of this chapter)