Chapter 369: Discussing matters in the East Palace, taking precautions
Hearing Zhu Gaojie's words, Yang Rong smiled and said:
"It is your highness, your majesty, that prevents these people from making mistakes easily."
The Jin Yiwei commander Shen Qingyu grinned and wanted to say something but then closed his mouth.
Under Zhu Gaojie's order, he not only expedited the interrogation of the guard generals and Confucian scholars, but also closely monitored those ministers who were obviously restless.
It can be said that the situation has been grasped for a long time. Even if the ministers unite together and want to conspire against Zhu Gaojie, it will be of no avail.
The military camp outside the capital has long been watched by Zhu Gaojie...
And those generals of the guard who dared to disobey orders had already been ordered to be beheaded.
With Zhu Gaojie's current reputation in the army, dealing with a few insignificant generals is not a big deal at all.
"However, the handling this time was still a bit hasty."
Zhu Gaojie thought for a while and decided to have a serious discussion with a few people.
After all, the situation he will face next can be said to be very stressful, and it is hard to say whether he will be backstabbed by those wealthy families.
"Shen Qingyu, please explain the news carefully to the two adults."
Yang Rong and Xia Yuanji looked at each other, slightly confused, what happened?
Shen Qingyu did not dare to neglect and quickly told the situation in detail.
It turned out that the spies sent by Genjue Jinyiwei to the north reported that there seemed to be something strange on the Tatar side.
Not only has there been rapid recruitment of troops in the country recently, but small groups of troops have also been raiding the border from time to time.
"Isn't that true?"
"Do the Tatars want to go to war with our Ming Dynasty?"
After Xia Yuanji listened to Shen Qingyu's report, he frowned.
As the Minister of Household Affairs and the court's moneybag, he did not want to go to war.
War is fought with money and food, and soldiers and horses go ahead with food and grass before they move. Although the Ming Dynasty is prosperous today, the family is not rich, and the court is far from having enough food to spare.
If the Tatars were really deliberately provoking a war, the finances of the Ministry of Revenue would disappear in an instant, and there might even be tax increases, which would be very detrimental to the people of the Ming Dynasty.
Moreover, he was thinking very long-term. Once the two sides went to war, the old emperor Zhu Di was seriously ill and he had no idea when he would be visiting the country. The most important thing for Zhu Gaojie at the moment was to smoothly ascend the throne and take over the throne smoothly.
If we are dragged down by the Tatars, many branches may arise and many troubles may arise.
Those aristocratic families would not be so kind and charge into battle for the Ming Dynasty. It would be good if they did not hold them back...
But Yang Rong on the side had something more profound in mind.
As the chief minister of the cabinet, he wanted to control the overall situation of the court and how to better help Zhu Gaojie manage the government and state affairs.
Although it was very dangerous for the northern Tatars to suddenly appear when the old and new thrones were changing, it also brought a good opportunity to Zhu Gaojie.
If Zhu Gaojie could take this opportunity to win a few more battles and drive the Tatar army back to the northern grasslands, it would undoubtedly make Zhu Gaojiao's reputation skyrocket and reach an extremely high level throughout the Ming Dynasty.
Both the government and the opposition will be impressed by Zhu Gaojie's great achievements! The world will be decided in one fell swoop!
What's more, maybe we can take advantage of this opportunity to take action against these wealthy families in the north...
What should be broken up should be broken up, what should be solved should be solved, and what should be utilized should be used. In short, these wealthy families can no longer be allowed to get together. They must be broken up and beaten!
The future Ming Dynasty will not need these overly powerful aristocratic families, but only countless small families who are willing to dedicate themselves to the Ming Dynasty!
Thinking of this, Yang Rong smiled and said:
"That's probably it."
"Xia Shangshu, you also know that this country of Tatars is fierce by nature and likes to bully the weak and exploit every opportunity."
"Perhaps they also got the news and thought that our Ming Dynasty was too busy taking care of itself. It was a time of weakness and they wanted to take a bite out of Ming Dynasty."
snort!
Xia Yuanji snorted with some disdain. He looked down on these foreign Tatars in the north.
They have all been driven to the desolate grassland, and they still have no hope of survival.
"If they want to bite us, be careful not to chip their teeth!"
"Do you really think that today's Ming Dynasty is something they can humiliate?"
Zhu Gaojie also smiled and said:
"I see, these aliens just remember to eat but not to beat. They have only lived in peace for a few years. They don't remember the days when they were beaten severely by our Ming Dynasty. They want to be beaten again..."
"Ha ha."
Several people suddenly laughed. Indeed, with the 300,000 Northeastern troops there and Zhu Gaojie on command, they were not that afraid of the Tatars in the north.
Isn't it just a war? At most, the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Affairs can bite the bullet and tighten their belts from top to bottom.
"However, we cannot take it lightly."
After Zhu Gaojie laughed for a while, he said seriously:
"These nomadic peoples in the north still have some strength."
"Although the place they live in is bitterly cold and desolate, they have been riding horses and shooting arrows since they were young. The harsh environment has developed their fierce and powerful skills."
"Especially since every herdsman can be regarded as a soldier. If they really want to attack our Ming Dynasty on a large scale, they may really bring us some trouble."
Yang Rong nodded upon hearing this. As the chief minister of the cabinet, he also had some knowledge of the Tatar's combat power.
"What His Highness said is absolutely true. We really cannot take it lightly."
"Especially at such a critical time."
Xia Yuanji thought about it for a while and then said to Zhu Gaojie:
"Your Highness, since the Jin Yiwei has found out the information that the Tatars are about to invade, should we discuss it first at the court meeting so as to make preparations?"
Zhu Gaojie shook his head slightly and said calmly:
"I have ordered that some troops and horses from the northeast be allocated to the border and work with the existing defenders to protect the front line."
"Even if necessary, we can temporarily give up part of the frontier area and retreat to defend it."
"There is no need to discuss the Tatar invasion in court first. According to the Jin Yiwei's report, this Tatar invasion is probably not that simple. It also has a certain relationship with these aristocratic families in the north."
Um?
Yang Rong and Xia Yuanji suddenly frowned, and their expressions changed accordingly. Could it be that these people have taken advantage of others? How dare they collude with foreigners?
"Your Highness, have you found out who is colluding with the Tatars?"
Yang Rong said in a deep voice:
"This trend must not rise! Severe punishment is necessary!"
Xia Yuanji on the side also nodded. He also hated those who colluded with foreign races.
If the Tatar invasion succeeds, the people of the Ming Dynasty will suffer again, and the entire Ming Dynasty will also suffer heavy losses!
Therefore, we must not forgive those who collude with foreign invaders!
Zhu Gaojie smiled slightly:
"No rush, I just want to wait for these people to jump out."