Ming Jiajing: Starting from Immortality

Chapter 268 The death of the prince consort, killing the captives and taking credit for it!
As soon as the east gets bright, the windows light up.

Zhang Juzheng, who had been resting in the Cabinet's residence last night, put down his pen, stood up and blew out the candle in the lantern, and then ordered outside the door: "Please serve in your official uniform."

Shen Yikuan, the secretary of the cabinet, was waiting outside the door. Upon hearing the sound, he came in with two people carrying clean water for washing faces and official uniforms.

Zhang Juzheng looked at Shen Yikuan for a long time before he walked to the washstand, picked up a towel and wiped his face. He did not untie his hair or comb it again, and directly changed into a red robe.

"Jianwu (Shen Yikuan's pen name), follow me to the audience." Zhang Juzheng stood up and said.

Shen Yi Guan was stunned.

Zhang Juzheng was obviously in a bad mood and asked, "Are you going to ask me why?"

"Don't dare."

Shen Yi Guan immediately replied: "Yes."

Zhang Juzheng ignored him and walked outside. The weather was not very good with drizzle. The sedan chair carried by the chief minister of the cabinet was ready, so he sat on it.

Shen Yikuan acted as the sedan chair head and walked in front until they reached the gate of Yuxi Palace. The sedan chair slowly descended and the two of them climbed the stairs and entered the main hall.

Huang Jin was on duty today, and was combing Zhu Houcong's hair. When the cabinet minister arrived, he had almost finished combing it, so Zhu Houcong said, "That's it."

Huang Jin put away the comb and stepped aside to wait.

"Saint Anne!"

Zhang Juzheng and Shen Yikuan knelt down and kowtowed.

Zhu Houcong walked up to the two of them and said, "Get up."

"Thank you, Your Majesty."

The two men stood up one after another. Shen Yiguan wanted to retreat a little further, but he heard Yuan Fu speak, "Your Majesty, Chen Yiqin, the elder Chen, sent a memorial from Shanxi at midnight last night, proposing that Shen Yiguan, the secretary of the cabinet, be the first governor of Beiyuan Province."

Zhang Juzheng took out the memorial from his sleeve and raised his hands above his head.

On the selection of the first governor of Bac Nguyen Province.

He and the second prime minister Gao Gong were almost at a loss for words, but they never expected that Chen Yiqin, who was far away from the capital, would suddenly get involved. No one supported him and elected a "newcomer".

He thought about it all night and finally figured out the connection. If nothing unexpected happened, Chen Yiqin's recommendation was instructed by the emperor.

As a result, the fight between him and Gao Gong became a joke in the court.

With his talent for multitasking, he did realize that the Secretary of the Central Secretariat next to him was indeed the right person.

There are no factions, no cliques, and no self-interest.

In terms of ideology, he was not a traditional Confucian, but had some research on Taoism and had a good knowledge of Buddhism.

How to describe it? It is very suitable for the current court.

Shen Yikuan widened his eyes and wanted to point at himself and say "Me?"

Even in my dreams, I dare not dream of such a thing.

The reason why he entered the cabinet was because Fu Yingzhen, the former secretary of the cabinet and a disciple of Yuan Fu, deliberately humiliated Hai Rui on the day Hai Rui came to Beijing, which angered Hu Zongxian, the elder Hu.

Then, Fu Yingzhen was forced to leave the cabinet, and under the arrangement of Yuan Fu, went to Lingling to serve as the magistrate, officially embarking on the career of a county, prefecture, and provincial official.

The position of Secretary in the Cabinet is small but powerful, but he can always observe how the cabinet ministers govern the country, which has endless benefits.

For Shen Yi Guan, this was like pie falling from the sky.

However, he had only been in the position of Cabinet Secretary for three months, and before he could even get fully comfortable in the position, he was hit by a vinegar dish, a toothpick, and two cloves of garlic falling from the sky.

He entered the cabinet after Lord Chen Yiqin left Beijing. It can be said that the two had never met before, but he received unimaginable support. For a time, he was moved and terrified at the same time.

I was moved towards Lord Chen and I was terrified towards the Prime Minister and the Second Prime Minister.

Yuanfu had figured out the source of his strange temper in the morning. He was quite open-minded and would probably not take it too seriously with him. He could not imagine how furious the narrow-minded Cixiang would be when he heard the news.

Furthermore, the current court, the cabinet elders, the six ministries and the nine officials have all added new regulations, which are the experience of the chief officials at the county, prefecture and province levels. If a cabinet secretary goes to Beiyuan Province to serve as the first governor, he will probably spend the rest of his life as a frontier official and will not be eligible for the position of one of the three dukes or nine officials.

However, Shen Yikuan knew very well which one to choose between the frontier position that was within reach and the vague position of one of the three dukes and nine ministers.

Zhu Houcong glanced at Shen Yiguan who was trying to suppress his excitement, nodded and said, "The cabinet will draft a clear edict to inform all ministries and provinces that, except for the military troops in Beiyuan Province, all personnel and affairs in Beiyuan Province will be controlled by Shen Yiguan as the first governor."

Zhang Juzheng: "Yes."

Shen Yi Guan knelt on the ground and kowtowed, "Thank you, Your Majesty, for your grace!"

Zhu Houcong turned around and prepared to return to the abode, but Zhang Juzheng spoke again, saying, "Your Majesty, your son-in-law Li He has asked someone in the cabinet to ask you several times to bring him back to the capital from the grassland and find him another position."

His Majesty currently has five daughters, but three of them died before they got married. The remaining two grew up and got married: Princess Ning'an and Princess Jiashan.

Let’s not talk about the little princess Jiashan for now, and let’s talk about Princess Ning’an first.

In the 15th year of Jiajing's reign, Concubine Duan Cao gave birth to the emperor's eldest daughter, Zhu Shou'an, and was therefore named Concubine Duan.

Unfortunately, the eldest princess died at the age of fourteen and was posthumously named Princess Chang'an.

In the 17th year of Jiajing, Concubine Wang Hui gave birth to the second daughter of Emperor Shizong of the Ming Dynasty, Princess Sirou. However, Princess Sirou also died at the age of 12.

Since the emperor's first two daughters died young, his third daughter, Princess Ning'an, became his first daughter to grow up successfully and get married.

Princess Ning'an was named Zhu Lu'ai, and her biological mother was Concubine Cao Duanfei, which means that the eldest daughter and the third daughter were sisters from the same mother.

Princess Ning'an was born in the 18th year of Jiajing's reign. When she was born, her mother, Concubine Cao Duan, was already very favored.

But when talking about Concubine Cao Duanfei, we have to talk about the incident in the 21st year of Jiajing, namely the "Renyin Palace Change".

The place where the emperor was assassinated was in Concubine Cao Duan's palace. Concubine Cao Duan could not escape the blame. While the emperor was still unconscious, she was executed by the late Empress Fang.

When the emperor woke up, Concubine Cao Duan had already died tragically, and Princess Ning'an was only three years old. Therefore, after Concubine Cao Duan's death, Princess Ning'an was handed over to be raised by Imperial Noble Concubine Shen.

Imperial Noble Consort Shen treated Princess Ning'an as her own daughter. The Emperor did not hold any grudge against Princess Ning'an because of Concubine Cao Duan. Instead, he doted on her more than any other son or daughter.

In the 34th year of the reign of Emperor Jiajing, Princess Ning'an married Li He, the top scholar in the martial arts competition at that time. This prince consort was strong and handsome, and logically speaking, they were a perfect match.

But being in the cabinet, Zhang Juzheng heard a lot of things, that Prince Consort Li had many boys and servants for his own use.

Since it concerns the royal family's reputation, no one in the court dares to mention it, and no one among the people dares to spread the story.

Zhu Houcong stopped, anger rising and falling in his chest. What kind of a son-in-law is this?

A grown man actually has the same hobby as Wu Zetian.

Let him join the army as a captain, so that he won't be an eyesore in the capital and still have the nerve to think about coming back.

"Delusion!"

The sound of holy anger descended. Zhang Juzheng looked at his nose and his heart, and continued: "In addition, he also brought you more than a dozen baskets of berries from the grassland, and was about to bring them up for you."

"Throw them all into the Jinshui River!"

There was a sound of anger.

Zhang Juzheng and Shen Yikuan hurriedly took their leave.

"Huang Jin."

"The servant is here."

"Please convey my oral instructions to Qi Jiguang and Yu Dayou. I don't want to see my consort Li He again."

……

Saibei.

The people from the East Factory delivered an oral order.

The three words "let's see what happens" still echoed in Qi Jiguang's mind.

Just when he was lost in thought, Yu Dayou came.

On a major case.

There was an imperial decree conferring titles on the generals who stayed behind on the grassland.

As expected, Qi Jiguang, who became the new Grand Marshal of the Ming Dynasty, jumped from the title of Earl of Jiangyin to Marquis and became Duke of Jiang.

Yu Dayou himself rose from the Earl of Jinjiang to the rank of Marquis and became the Duke of Jin.

The decree also announced that the cabinet minister Wang Chonggu, his son Wang Qian, and his grandson Wang Zhizhen, three generations of the family, were conferred the title of Duke.

Wang Chonggu: Duke of Weiguo.

Wang Qian: Duke of Anguo.

Wang Zhizhen: Duke of Shun.

In the Northern Expedition, the Ming Dynasty conferred the title of five dukes in total, and in addition, it awarded twenty-four marquises, two earls, six viscounts, and nine barons.

Among them, Zhang Juyi, the younger brother of the deceased chief minister of the cabinet, Zhang Juzheng, was also canonized as earl, with the title of Zhongyi.

However, the imperial court had abolished the hereditary system of titles before this, and the so-called loyal and loyal earl was established and terminated at will.

The court also rewarded a group of soldiers who died in the Northern Expedition. Unlike the empty titles, they were given generous compensation and a series of preferential treatment.

Seeing that Qi Jiguang was frowning, Yu Dayou called his personal guards to convey the decree of conferring the title to the entire army in order to motivate people.

"Yuan Jing (Qi Jiguang's pen name), what happened?" Yu Dayou asked.

The three strongest friends in life are classmates, comrades-in-arms, and prostitutes.

In terms of comrade-in-arms friendship, Qi Jiguang and Yu Dayou were as close as brothers. Although there was a difference in rank between them, they could address each other by their courtesy names when talking privately.

"It's Li He..."

Qi Jiguang recounted the "instructions" given by the eunuch from the East Factory after he delivered the imperial edict, and said helplessly: "The emperor doesn't want to see the prince consort again, but asked me to do it."

Even in the army, the reputation of Li He, the son-in-law of the emperor, was quite big. Even Yu Dayou had heard of him, but it was not a good thing. He heard that some pale-faced soldiers entered Li He's tent at night and had difficulty moving the next day.

Out of consideration for the royal family's reputation, Yu Dayou even asked his deputy general to remind Li He. After that, Li He seemed to have restrained himself a little, or maybe he had restrained himself "when doing things". In short, he was no longer so conspicuous.

When I heard Li He's name at this moment, I knew that the prince consort had completely angered the emperor and no longer cared about Princess Ning'an's happiness.

Of course, given the habits of her husband's wife, Princess Ning'an might have lost all her happiness.

"If Yuan Jing is not convenient, let me arrange it." Yu Dayou said.

Now, Qi Jiguang is the Grand Marshal and the General. It is not difficult for him to kill a royal concubine, and he does not have to do it personally.

Qi Jiguang's eyes lit up and he asked, "Zhi Fu (Yu Dayou's pen name), what's your plan?"

"There is a batch of grain and fodder that needs to be escorted to Liaodong Town. It is just right for the prince consort to do it. Although we can just head east from here, it is not uncommon to get lost and miss the deadline in the vast grassland. Once we arrive at Liaodong Town, we will ask Li Chengliang to kill him." Yu Dayou said in a cold voice.

Qi Jiguang thought about it and agreed.

The entire grassland fell into the hands of the Ming Dynasty. After the beginning of spring, there were auspicious signs. The weather was warm and sunny, and the wind blew the grass low, revealing cattle and sheep.

After a cold winter, cattle and sheep gave birth to calves and lambs, and the grassland ushered in an unprecedented livestock boom.

The new was coming down, the old was getting older, and some old cattle and sheep on the grassland were slaughtered in an orderly manner.

The grassland people, who have eaten enough beef and mutton and even pickled their bodies, have no desire for these meats. Instead, they are eager for rice, noodles and vegetables.

The grassland people don't eat it. The soldiers of the Beiyuan Construction Corps, who have been eating beef and mutton on the grassland for nearly half a year, can't eat it anymore after eating it for a long time. Therefore, beef and mutton are officially transported to the country. Although the cattle and sheep will be thinner and lose some fat when they are driven back to the country, it is a means to keep the flesh and blood from rotting in this warm season. When they arrive at the destination, they are slaughtered immediately.

The border troops of Liaodong Town, led by the commander-in-chief Li Chengliang, were attacking the Jianzhou Jurchens. Naturally, the first batch of beef and mutton would be enjoyed by these soldiers who were fighting for their country.

However, the war in Liaodong was strange.

In March, the Liaodong Army stepped out of the Great Wall, attacked the Jianzhou Jurchens, and conquered their leader Wang Gao.

Wang Gao's son-in-law Taksi surrendered first. Then, Taksi and his father Juechang'an went to Gule Village to persuade Wang Gao to surrender, but they were surrounded in the village due to the emergency of the war.

Under the command of Li Chengliang, Nikan Wailan, the lord of Tulun City of the Sukshu River Tribe of the Jianzhou Jurchens, lured Ata to open the city. After conquering Gule Mountain City, Li Chengliang massacred the entire city, and even Juechang'an and Taksi were not spared.

This massacre without distinction between friend and foe immediately strengthened the resolve of the wavering Jianzhou Jurchens who wanted to surrender.

The Jianzhou Jurchens, led by Wang Gao and Taksi's son Nurhaci, stubbornly resisted the Liaodong Army.

In the eyes of Qi Jiguang and Yu Dayou, Li Chengliang's behavior was suspected of killing the surrendered soldiers and claiming credit.

But the war is still going on, and for the sake of military morale, Li Chengliang cannot be asked to give a reasonable explanation immediately.

As the commander-in-chief, Li Chengliang not only did not think about easing the conflict, but instead issued an order to "plough the yard and sweep the holes."

During the Chenghua period, the scene of the Ming Dynasty's destruction of the Jianzhou Jurchens is still vivid in people's minds. It took the Jianzhou Jurchens a full hundred years before they could barely catch their breath. The past disaster recurred, and the Jianzhou Jurchens' resistance became even more resolute.

In the early days of the Liaodong Army's sweeping campaign, it did achieve considerable results. Nearly 80,000 Jianzhou Jurchens were killed, and more than half of the tribe were killed or wounded.

However, as the targets decreased and the battlefield became larger, it became very difficult to wipe out the remaining Jianzhou Jurchens. Li Chengliang continued to send people to investigate, but failed to find the whereabouts of Wang Gao and Nurhaci.

Just as Wang Chonggu said in front of the emperor, war is fought for food and fodder. The 50,000 Liaodong troops hunting outside the Great Wall spent tens of thousands of taels of silver in one day.

Although the imperial court is rich, it cannot waste it like this. If it continues like this, the entire Liaodong Army will be held accountable.

"Then Li Chengliang, could it be that he has ulterior motives?"

(End of this chapter)