Chongzhen's domineering

Chapter 46 A Clash of Wits: A Misunderstanding

Around 9:00 AM.

Zhu Juecai had just finished reviewing the memorials when he became restless.

He thought about it carefully, then asked, "Ruoyu, the uniforms of the Imperial Guards and the uniforms of the soldiers in the Beijing Garrison seem to be quite similar, don't they?"

That's pretty much it.

Liu Ruoyu nodded repeatedly and said, "Yes, Your Majesty, the uniforms of the Imperial Guards and the uniforms of the soldiers of the Capital Garrison are the same in terms of base color and pattern, only the patterns on the cuffs and collars are different, which are generally not noticeable unless you look closely."

Then there's no need to go out of your way to retrieve the military uniforms of the Beijing garrison soldiers.

Zhu Jue nodded slightly, then decisively said, "Cheng'en, you and Zheng Hua each select fifty experts, have them all change into Imperial Guard uniforms, prepare warhorses, and also bring a set for me and Ruoyu."

Are you going out with only about a hundred people?

Wang Chengen was stunned for a moment before bowing and taking his leave, then hurried away.

Zhu Jue then instructed in detail: "Ruoyu, have someone convey my oral decree, ordering Jiandou to bring General Sun, General Zhou, General Huang, and a hundred elite cavalrymen over here immediately. Also, send someone to tell the Empress and Consort Zhou that I will not be returning to the palace for lunch, and that they need not wait for me."

Upon hearing this, Liu Ruoyu hurriedly walked to the door and summoned two trusted eunuchs, giving them detailed instructions.

Lu Xiang-sheng was currently training the Beijing garrison soldiers at the South City Grand Training Ground with three generals; he arrived quite quickly.

They had just changed into their Imperial Guard uniforms when Lu Xiang-sheng, accompanied by three generals, strode in, cupped his hands, and bowed, saying, "Your humble servant greets Your Majesty."

Zhu Jue nodded slightly, then decisively said, "I want to go and see the newly built city walls and factories in the East City. You will accompany me with them to protect me."

Ah!
Do you only bring this few people with you when you go out?

Lu Xiang-sheng also knew that the current emperor's word was law, and once he made a decision, it was not to be questioned.

He hesitated for only a moment before decisively saying, "General Sun, put your armor and helmet on His Majesty."

The general's armor provided quite good protection; at least ordinary swords, spears, and arrows couldn't injure his vital organs.

Zhu Jue didn't waste any time. He put on his armor and helmet, then waved his hand and said, "Let's go, General Zhou and General Huang. You lead the way, and Zheng Hua will cover the rear. Don't run too fast, or you might bump into pedestrians on the street."

Their group of over two hundred riders crossed the Jade Belt Bridge, passed through the narrow passage between Wansui Mountain and the Imperial Palace, turned out through the Dong'an Gate, and soon arrived at the Ten Princes' Mansion Street outside the Imperial City.

Zhu Jue, or his predecessor, Prince Xin Zhu Youxiao, had indeed never left the capital. He was quite familiar with Shiwangfu Street, having lived there for two years.

However, instead of heading south to the Ten Princes' Mansion, they turned north directly onto Chaoyangmen Street, exited the inner city through Chaoyangmen, and arrived at the outer eastern city.

At this point, Zhu Jue ordered people to change the map of the capital. The outer city in the south was changed to the South City, and the outer city under construction in the east was called the East City. Later, there would also be the West City, the North City, the Northeast City, the Northwest City, and so on.

He was a man of the world, and the sights on the streets outside the capital city didn't strike him as anything special—just shops, restaurants, teahouses, and houses. However, the reactions of the ordinary people on the streets struck him as rather odd.

Upon hearing the sound of hooves, everyone quickly moved to the sides of the street without showing any unusual expression; many didn't even glance at them.

After they left Chaoyang Gate, he couldn't help but ask, "Jiandou, do you often train on the streets? Why do people on the street seem to take it for granted?"

We wouldn't be running around in the streets doing drills.

Lu Xiang-sheng quickly explained, "Your Majesty, it's not that we often drill in the streets. It's that Wei Zhongxian has been leading tens of thousands of Imperial Guards out of the city through Chaoyang Gate these days. People on the streets are used to seeing tens of thousands of troops, so our few hundred troops are naturally nothing in their eyes."

It turns out that Wei Zhongxian was parading around the city every day with tens of thousands of Imperial Guards!
This guy certainly knows how to put on airs.

But that's fine too; the more flamboyant this guy is, the less attention they'll attract.

Sure enough, as they rode along the main road outside Chaoyang Gate, few people stopped to watch, and the people outside the city were used to it.

Zhu Jue was quite curious, as he had never left the city and had never seen such scenes of the agricultural era in his previous life.

He looked at the golden rice and wheat fields, then at the scattered civilians in the fields, and couldn't help but ask, "Jiandou, I've heard that the capital region has a large population, so why don't I see many people in these fields?" The sun was blazing hot.

Lu Xiang-sheng explained in detail: "Your Majesty, it's hot now, and working under the sun all the time is even hotter. So, ordinary people usually get up at the crack of dawn to do farm work, and when the sun is high in the sky, they go home to eat and rest, and at the same time, they dry the harvested rice and wheat. When the sun is about to set and it's not so hot, they go back to work in the fields."

Oh, it's really hot right now.

He was used to being in the deep palace, where he didn't have to do any work. He could sit there and review memorials while someone fanned the wind, and when he went out for a walk, someone would hold up a huge canopy to shield him from the sun, so naturally he wasn't hot.

Even when riding a horse under the sun, the wind is whistling and you don't feel hot.

If you're doing farm work under the blazing sun, it's a different story; you'll get sunburned and your skin will turn tanned.

He has no way to do that for the time being. It's not a matter of one or two years, or even eight or ten years, to move from an agrarian society to an industrial society. It would take at least ten years to create farming machinery to replace human labor.

Moreover, the Ming Dynasty is currently beset by crises and wars, so developing the military industry is the most urgent task. The development of civilian machinery can only be carried out after the military industry has met the demand.

As he was pondering this, the sound of horses' hooves suddenly came from the fork in the road ahead. A group of Imperial Guards galloped past, seemingly heading towards a village in the distance.

These guys were like bandits, grabbing people sideways and forcing them onto horses to run!
Are the Embroidered Uniform Guards abusing their power and acting recklessly?
If he didn't see it, that would be fine, but if he did see it, then naturally he has to do something about it.

The Imperial Guards can't bully ordinary people like this; those on horseback aren't wearing official robes at all.

He thought for a moment, then waved his hand and said, "Jiandou, follow that group of Imperial Guards."

Upon hearing this, Lu Xiang-sheng immediately said loudly, "General Zhou, General Sun, turn right onto the side path and follow that group of Imperial Guards."

The group turned onto the path leading into the village, and the village, which seemed a bit far away, was reached in no time.

At this moment, the entire village was surrounded by Imperial Guards. The team of Imperial Guards rushed in, but the Imperial Guards stationed at the village entrance seemed to want to block the road and prevent them from entering.

Seeing this, Zhu Jue coldly said, "Fight your way in."

This doesn't mean we have to storm in.

Upon hearing this, Zhou Yuji and Huang Degong immediately drew their spears and swung them around, sweeping them to both sides. Those Imperial Guards who tried to block their way were instantly swept into rolling gourds.

Upon seeing this, the other Imperial Guards immediately drew their swords, roared angrily, and surged forward.

These two fierce generals were truly extraordinary; no one could stop them wherever their spears passed.

Soon, they arrived at the large threshing ground in the village.

The imperial guards also dropped the people on horseback onto the ground, then turned their horses around and looked at them with tense expressions.

Something seems off about this scene.

There was nothing horrific on the threshing floor; there were just a few large square tables set up in the middle of the threshing area.

Tu Wenfu, Li Yongzhen, Wang Chaofu, Li Chaoqin, and others each occupied a table, seemingly taking notes in small notebooks. There were other people sitting next to them, fiddling with abacuses. The person who had just been thrown to the ground by the Imperial Guards bowed directly to the stage in front of them, then got up, rushed to Li Chaoqin's table, took out the "Fish Scale Atlas," and started calculating rapidly with the abacus.

When Zhu Jue looked up again, he saw Wei Zhongxian sitting on the stage, surrounded by a group of Jinyiwei commanders. There were people fanning the wind on both sides and people serving tea and water to him.

Uh, it seems like there was a misunderstanding.

At this moment, a Jinyiwei commander who had just been swept away rushed onto the stage and whispered a few words to Wei Zhongxian.

Wei Zhongxian raised his head, looked at Lu Xiang-sheng, who was dressed in a scarlet official robe, and asked inexplicably, "Lord Lu, what are you doing?"

If you weren't a favorite of His Majesty, I would have gathered all the Imperial Guards and given you a good beating, believe it or not!

So what if he's the Governor of Shuntian?

(End of this chapter)