Chongzhen expected that the five and a half cavalry divisions in India would be passive and lazy after receiving the reward, because the reward this time was indeed quite large, enough to make people lie flat.
However, Chongzhen did not send a telegram to remind Zhu Cijiong.
Chongzhen knew it better than anyone else, and reminders were of no use.
Because military regulations are military regulations, and those in power cannot break their word.
Once this kind of thing happens once, it will happen twice, and then three times...
Breaking a promise once or twice will not shake the foundation of the Ming Dynasty, but breaking one's word repeatedly will inevitably bring the credit rating of the Ming royal family to a freezing point.
Once the trust of the Ming army officers and soldiers was lost, the rule of Lao Zhu's family would be in doubt.
Therefore, Chongzhen would not break this exception, nor would he allow Zhu Cijiong to make an exception.
Moreover, Chongzhen did not mind if the five and a half cavalry divisions sent to India lay flat.
Even if the 110,000 soldiers of these five and a half cavalry divisions had to return to the Ming Dynasty with the huge bonuses they received, or even go to Jiangnan to buy property and land before settling down, Chongzhen would be happy to see it happen.
Because this can greatly change the composition of the gentry in eight prefectures and prefectures in the south of the Yangtze River.
The reason why the conservative forces in the ideological field of the Ming Dynasty were so strong was because they had the basic base of gentry from eight prefectures and one state in the south of the Yangtze River. Most of these traditional gentry in the south of the Yangtze River were die-hard fans of Cheng-Zhu Neo-Confucianism, even though they had grown out of this wave of industrial and commercial development.
Even though he reaped the dividends, he still clung to Cheng-Zhu Neo-Confucianism and refused to let go.
However, the influx of hundreds of thousands of gentry with huge wealth was enough to change the composition of the gentry in eight prefectures and states in the south of the Yangtze River, and fundamentally destroyed the foundation of Cheng-Zhu Neo-Confucianism.
Furthermore, the influx of such a huge amount of capital into Jiangnan is equivalent to a flood of water for Jiangnan's industry and commerce. It may lead to a certain amount of inflation, but it will undoubtedly promote economic development.
The fact was just as Chongzhen expected. When Zhu Cijiong announced the reward for five and a half cavalry divisions to go to India, the 110,000 generals suddenly burst into joy and excitement.
However, when Zhu Cijiong was preparing to assemble his troops and return to Central Asia, a large number of patients "broke out" in the army. Even Xu Wuniu, the captain of Zhu Cijiong's personal soldiers who had followed Zhu Cijiong for many years, fell ill.
Seeing Xu Wuniu lying sickly on the bed, Zhu Cijiong felt his teeth itching with hatred.
"Wuniu, are you really sick?" Zhu Cijiong said bitterly, "The prince is also a king. If you pretend to be sick, I will definitely accuse you of deceiving the king."
"Prince Ding, I'm really sick." Xu Wuniu said helplessly, "I have no appetite for food, I have no strength all over my body, I can't do anything energetic, I just want to sleep."
Zhu Cijiong turned his attention to the military doctor beside the bed.
After the military doctor completed the medical examination, he made a diagnosis: "Prince Ding, Captain Xu is really ill. In traditional Chinese medicine, it is called stagnation of liver qi. It is mainly caused by a lack of acclimatization and homesickness."
"It's liver qi stagnation again." Zhu Cijiong said angrily, "How come this king doesn't have stagnation?"
When Xu Wuniu heard this, he rolled his eyes in anger and cursed in a low voice, "You have always kept your beautiful maids with you. After you captured Delhi, you also grabbed several princesses and princesses from the Mughal royal family. You have so many stunning beauties to accompany you."
It's not too happy to be a bridegroom every night with your old man, how can you suffer from stagnation of liver qi?
Zhu Cijiong suddenly turned around and said sternly: "Wuniu, what are you talking about?"
"I have nothing to say." Xu Wuniu said hurriedly, "Your Highness, you are in good health."
"That's right, I am in good health. Unlike you, I couldn't bear it less than two years after leaving home." Zhu Cijiong snorted and said, "You are talking about stagnation of liver qi, isn't it just that you want to return home?"
Home?"
Xu Wuniu did not deny it, but said sarcastically: "King Ding, we have been away from home for two years. We are really tired. Why don't we go home and rest for a while before launching the Western Expedition?"
Zhu Cijiong stared at Xu Wuniu and said fiercely: "I'm wondering if I should follow Cao Cao's example and borrow your head. Do you think that if I reluctantly kill you, can it stop the evil trend?"
"Prince Ding, you are unreasonable." Xu Wuniu said with a sad face, "I am really sick, not pretending to be sick."
While they were talking, Xia Wanchun came in with a telegram and said to Zhu Cijiong: "Prince Ding, Your Majesty is calling from Manlajia."
Zhu Cijiong received the telegram, and after reading it, the expression on his face softened, and he said to Xu Wuniu: "Wuniu, now you have got your wish. My father called me from Manlajia, saying that he will soon lead the navy to India to take us back to China.
, we don’t have to walk thousands of miles back by land, we can directly go back to Daming by sea.”
"Really?" Xu Wuniu was overjoyed when he heard this.
…
Just when Zhu Cijiong had no choice but to ask heaven, Pope Alexander VII summoned hundreds of cardinals from almost all of Europe to the Vatican to discuss a major matter.
The cardinals present at the meeting were still a little puzzled.
Why do you call the cardinals from various dioceses to come to the Holy See for a meeting if you think it’s no year?
Are you talking about electing the next pope? But Alexander VII didn’t say he would give up the throne?
After more than a hundred cardinals had arrived, a monk walked into the conference hall holding a stack of letters and distributed the letters one by one to the more than a hundred cardinals participating in the meeting.
"This is a letter written by Alfonso, the Portuguese Governor of Goa, India, to the Holy See."
Alexander VII picked up a piece of letter and said in a hoarse tone: "The letter mentioned an extremely serious matter. Today, we have summoned the cardinals from various dioceses to discuss a countermeasure."
The cardinals attending the meeting all looked at the letters in their hands, and they couldn't help but be shocked when they saw it.
There was a traitor named Bumig in the Catholic Church? This traitor actually tampered with the Bible and changed Catholicism from monotheism to polytheism? God also became a minister of the Jade Emperor in the East? Is this crazy?
After reading this letter, the entire conference hall exploded instantly, and more than a hundred bishops suddenly became quarrelsome.
"Quiet, please be quiet!" Alexander VII rang the bell several times before finally stopping the quarrel.
This chapter is not finished yet, please click on the next page to continue reading the exciting content! After the conference room returned to silence, Alexander VII said again: "The traitor Bomig has tampered with biblical teachings and blasphemed the dignity of the Catholic Church. He must be punished."
"Yes, this traitor must be punished."
"Take him back to Rome and crucify him."
"You idiot, crucify him, and he will become the next Jesus."
"Ah, yes, he cannot be crucified, so let him be burned on the stake."
"I agree. If such a treacherous traitor cannot be punished, where will the dignity of the Catholic Church exist?"
The more than a hundred cardinals present at the meeting were so indignant that they wished they could immediately summon a new Templar Order, and then lead the Templar Knights to the east to capture the evil traitor Bomig.
Alexander VII said quietly: "However, the traitor Boymig is protected by the Eastern Ming Empire. Is our Catholic Church really capable of capturing him and bringing him back to Rome for trial?"
In an instant, the conference hall became silent.
The reason is also very simple. Before Alfonso's letter was sent back to Rome, a lot of information about the Ming Empire had already been transmitted back to Europe by sea and land.
Now monarchs, nobles and missionaries throughout Europe already know that an empire called the Ming Dynasty has risen in the distant eastern continent. This empire has conquered many empires in Central Asia and South Asia, and also robbed the Netherlands, Portugal and Spain.
Many colonies in Southeast Asia.
A conclusion can be drawn by combining all aspects of information.
The Ming Empire not only had a powerful army, but also a despairingly powerful navy. An expedition fleet of more than 200 battleships organized by the Netherlands was defeated and was unable to fight back.
Such a powerful empire was by no means something the Roman Church could contend with.
"Your Majesty the Pope, we must mobilize the military power of the entire Western world." Cardinal Grayman, the most vocal person to succeed Alexander VII, said solemnly, "Just like when Urban II was on the throne, reorganize a Crusade.
Zheng, if we can gather the military power of the entire West, we will definitely be able to defeat the Ming Dynasty!"
"Ah, yes, yes, we can use the influence of the Catholic Church to issue decrees to various kingdoms."
"We must tell the kings and queens of each kingdom that this incident is very serious. If it cannot be dealt with promptly and decisively, not only the church will be unlucky, but also the kingdoms will not be spared."
"Not only the various kingdoms within the scope of the Catholic Church, but also the Orthodox and Protestant countries can fight for it."
"How can this be done? Orthodox Christianity and Protestantism are heretics. How can heretics be allowed to join the Holy Eastern Crusade?"
"Short-sighted, our biggest enemy now is the Ming Dynasty, and the heretical Catholicism of Boymage. In order to eliminate the heresy of Boymig, it is completely acceptable to give a certain amount of respect to the Orthodox Church and the Protestant Church."
"In that case, why not simply let the Green Sect join this Eastern Expedition?"
"What are you talking about? Are you crazy for asking the Green Sect to join the Eastern Expedition? How is this possible?"
"Nothing is impossible. You haven't even done it yet. How do you know it can't be done?"
"Silence, all silence!" Alexander VII rang the bell again and again, finally suppressing the quarrel among the cardinals, and then made the final supreme decision.
"Stop the doctrinal disputes with Protestants and Orthodoxy."
"At the same time, stop all disputes with Midorima."
"Immediately issue a decree to each kingdom and principality, calling on each kingdom and principality to fight for the dignity of the church and organize an army to launch the Second Crusade."
"Also, let the parishioners in each parish actively donate their property to form a new Knights Templar."
"Then recruit knights who are good at fighting from all over the Western world and lead the Knights Templar to participate in the Eastern Crusade."
"In short, this is a life-and-death battle for the Western Church. Whether it is Catholicism, Orthodox Christianity, Protestantism, or the Green Church in the Middle East, all must contribute their full strength."
