After a month and a half, the sluggish imperial court finally reacted and sent a condolence group and an imperial envoy to deliver the edict. The eunuch who delivered the edict was Eunuch Hong, the chief eunuch in charge of rituals. This father-in-law belonged to the two factions between the Queen Mother and Huang Huangrong.
It seems that this edict was the result of some struggle and compromise among the powerful people in the capital.
Eunuch Hong strode to the back of the incense table, coughed and said: "Xuzhou Capital Commander Yuan Chonghuan and his generals have received the order~~"
Suddenly, a large number of people knelt down. Yuan Chonghuan took the lead, and the generals, deputy generals, and guerrillas followed closely according to their ranks. Liu Ziguang, who had no formal rank, was half-kneeling and half-sitting at the back. Everyone was listening to the imperial edict with their ears pricked up.
.
"By God's blessing, the emperor decrees..." Eunuch Hong's tenor voice was mellow and impassioned, and he read out the imperial edict with a lot of mournful tone particles. The imperial edict was very long. Liu Ziguang could not understand the profound ancient prose and was made dizzy by the long speech.
As he was sleeping, he cheered up when he suddenly heard his name, "Liu Ziguang, a righteous soldier among the people, was loyal and courageous. He beheaded generals and captured camps. In recognition of his merits, the imperial court promoted him to the rank of General Training Officer of the Shandong Provincial Army Preparation Regiment and Military Academy Colonel."
"Mr. General...why does this official title sound so awkward? Liu Ziguang was still wondering when the imperial edict had been read out, "Yuan Shaobao, why don't you accept the edict to express your gratitude?" Eunuch Hong rolled up the imperial edict with a smile and said to Yuan Chonghuan.
"I accept the edict to express my gratitude!" Yuan Chonghuan looked serious, and could not tell whether he was happy or not. After leading everyone to bow and kowtow three times, he received the imperial edict and said, "I have thanked you, Eunuch Hong. Please rest in the post office tonight.
Then I will take care of my father-in-law."
"It's easy to talk about it. When Yuan Shaobao becomes prosperous in the future, it would be better if he forgets about our family. Although Shaobao is the host in Jinan and our family is the guest, but our family
After all, he is here on behalf of the imperial court and the emperor. He is hosting a banquet at our house in Guihe Building in the evening, entertaining all the generals, and asking everyone to show their respect." Eunuch Hong had a harmless smile on his face, and took a few imperial guards back to rest.
Already.
After sending Eunuch Hong off, Yuan Chonghuan turned around with his brows furrowed: "The imperial court wants to...sigh...".
The generals began to talk about it, and only then did Liu Ziguang understand. It turned out that the imperial court promoted Yuan Chonghuan to the position of Prince Shaobao, senior political officer, and left minister of the Ministry of War. However, the position of the Xuzhou Army's Commander-in-Chief was taken away.
That is to say, he was promoted openly and secretly, and was deprived of military power. The other generals each received rewards, and basically they were all promoted to one level. As for the money and food reinforcements that everyone hoped for, there was still no sign of it. The imperial edict said that the imperial court was busy with the war in Fujian and the northwest.
During the war, the money, food and soldiers were almost exhausted, so I had to reluctantly give up the opportunity to go straight to Huanglong. In the recovered states and counties in Shandong, the court had arranged for officials at all levels to come and take office. The territory that the Xuzhou Army had worked so hard to conquer would benefit me.
Nothing was caught, only a few hundred jars of royal wine sent by the promotion and consolation groups. As for the report from Yuan Chonghuan about Cui Chengxiu's collaboration with the enemy, the court's decision was to have Eunuch Hong take the person back to the capital and report it to the Ministry of Punishment.
, Dali Temple, Jinyiwei Santang joint trial. Since Cui himself also holds the position of the Metropolitan Procuratorate, there is no Metropolitan Procuratorate in the trial unit. It sounds fair, but in fact, anyone who understands can see that Jiu Qian is still trying to protect him.
of godson.
The person who succeeded Yuan Chonghuan is the current right minister of the Ministry of War.
Ruan Dacheng, a man with a reputation for talent, who is especially good at composing and singing. He was also a member of the Donglin Party in his early years. Now he is considered a member of the Queen Mother's Party. The eunuch who came to supervise the army is a direct descendant of 9,000 years old. It seems that the personnel arrangements in Shandong are very important.
The imperial court had made a lot of considerations. These newly appointed officials have arrived in Jinan and are waiting to build new yamen for them.
Everyone was aggrieved. The imperial court did not want to regain its homeland, so it knew how to use these political methods. The military generals would seize their military power if they had a little credit. They transferred Marshal Yuan, who knew the military, to the capital as a minister, and made a boring man who could only write lyrics and music.
If a literati becomes the commander-in-chief, how can we fight the war if this continues? They all expressed their intention to boycott Ruan Dacheng's succession, and even wrote a collective letter to persuade Yuan Chonghuan to stay. Some even said that they would not accept the orders of the foreign emperor, and simply ignored the court and collected taxes in Shandong.
Forget about being self-reliant on food.
"presumptuous!"
The more Yuan Chonghuan listened, the more outrageous he became. He couldn't help but slap the table, "Are you going to rebel? The court has its own reasons for such an arrangement. The court has internal and external troubles, and it is understandable to fear that the generals will become powerful. We used to guard a corner of Xuzhou.
, there is nothing to worry about. Now the whole territory of Shandong is under the control of my Xuzhou Army. The court dare not provide money and food for fear of raising tigers. That’s all. I will go to Beijing. After Ruan Shilang takes over, you will be waiting for me.
Follow the general’s orders carefully and do not neglect them!”
The generals were very unconvinced. Someone said: "The court's intention may not be the emperor's will. Who doesn't know that the eunuchs and relatives are now in charge of the government." After hearing this, Yuan Chonghuan was silent for a while and said: "The emperor will take charge after his wedding.
, Your Majesty is wise and wise, and the Ming Dynasty is about to be revived. We must not be chaotic at this juncture. I will report the battle situation to the court in detail when I go to Beijing this time, and strive to get the support of the navy to cross the Yellow River and go straight to Beijing. In
During this period, you cannot act rashly and create excuses for others."
The generals dispersed angrily, and Yuan Chonghuan left Liu Ziguang alone, and the two sat in the back hall to discuss secretly. "It seems that the fight between the Queen Mother and Huang Eun is evenly matched this time. One is in charge of the army and the other is in charge of the army. Both want to seize the throne."
If they had seized Yuan's military power without allowing the other party to gain power, huh, if these people had spent their energy on dealing with foreign enemies, the Ming Dynasty would have restored its original territory long ago. Needless to say, the number of officials in the entire province of Shandong was divided between the North and the Central Government.
They are the product of the compromise between the Shandong faction and the Qing dynasty. Poor Shandong elders have just been liberated from the harsh rule of the Qing Dynasty and are about to be exploited by these people again!" Yuan Chonghuan sighed and continued.
"If Yuan takes up his position and does not leave, the situation will inevitably worsen. The imperial court will send troops to encircle and suppress, and the Manchu and Qing Dynasties will wait for an opportunity to counterattack. Then war will ignite in Shandong again. The families of the soldiers are also in Xuzhou or Jiangnan, so we must not
You openly fell out with the imperial court, General Liu, do you think so or not?"
"What the Marshal said is absolutely true." Liu Ziguang replied. He couldn't understand the complicated politics, but he knew that rebellion was definitely not a good idea now. The strength of the Xuzhou Army was not enough to fight against the imperial court. "What good strategy does the Marshal have?"
"I heard that the Emperor's wedding is not far away. After the wedding, the Queen Mother will no longer be able to listen to politics from behind the curtain. Since the power of the Queen Mother is going to shrink, she will never allow Huang Eun's power to take the opportunity to grow. She will definitely try to weaken Huang Eun.
In this way, the crane and the clam fight, and the fisherman will benefit. The emperor is the fisherman, and we loyal ministers must help the emperor gradually gain power. Since the founding of the Ming Dynasty, the Hu Lan case and the Jingnan War have been self-defeating.
There are too many massacres, so it is better not to resort to swordsmanship unless it is absolutely necessary. I still have some old friends in the capital. Now that I have been appointed as Minister of War, I will definitely go around to help the emperor contact some forces and petition collectively. I don’t believe in the Ming Dynasty.
There are no loyal people left
.”
It turned out that Yuan Chonghuan was planning to carry out a peaceful petition, and Liu Ziguang suddenly felt very boring. However, seeing that he was impassioned and concerned about the country and the people, he couldn't bear to be offended, so he had to make a few perfunctory remarks to bring the topic to his new official title.
"Commander, what rank do I count as the commander-in-chief of the military training regiment and the commander-in-chief of Xiuwu? How many people can I lead?"
"Well, General Liu should not care about these false names. Hasn't the emperor secretly awarded you the title of general? It's okay not to mention such a humble position." Yuan Chonghuan laughed and did not answer directly. In the last memorial
In it, he introduced Liu Ziguang's achievements in detail, but the imperial court actually gave him such an official position, which really made him embarrassed to face Liu Ziguang.
The two discussed for a long time but could not come up with any results. Liu Ziguang returned home with the official uniform awarded to him by the imperial court.
Shuyu was in the middle, and Liu Ziguang changed into his official uniform and came out from behind the screen. He was very excited to be an official for the first time. He wore a black gauze hat upright on his head, with two short hat wings trembling.
Dangling behind his head, he wears white-soled black official boots, a black-horned belt around his waist, and a locust wood wat board in his hand. He wears a large green round-neck patchwork uniform that looks majestic on his body. The official uniform is brand new.
, it still had marks that had been laminated for a long time, and the little maid who was waiting for the master to change his clothes couldn't even it out after a long time of tearing it.
Peng Jingrong chuckled at the side: "The imperial court has appointed an official. It's amazing. Didn't you say before that the emperor made you a general to protect the country and fight against rebellion? Why did you get a green robe with seahorse patches on it?"
It turns out that the strange animal on his chest is a seahorse. Why does it sound so unpleasant to my ears? Liu Ziguang took out his letter of appointment and showed it to Peng Jingrong, "Look at what rank this is? Why do I always find this boss's name so unpleasant to my ears?"
ah."
Peng Jingrong took the letter of appointment and glanced at it twice, then she smiled even more and said, "Xiuwu Lieutenant is the lowest rank, starting from the ninth rank. Bingbei Dao is a position in the border defense provinces. It is usually held concurrently by the Deputy Envoy of the Inspector General."
, the responsibility is to accept the orders of the governor, urge county officials to select and train the people, diligently prepare for war, provide materials, food and grass for the army, and supervise the training of the army. The military preparation road also has directly affiliated armies, called regiment training, which are usually recruited on the spot.
They are made of strong men with a little training, and there are also bandits and pirates who have been recruited. They are always small officials in the regiment training. They can't control many people. Anyway, they are far less prestigious than the imperial guards. Even if they are the same generals,
Your seahorse is not as noble as the seahorse of the Forbidden Army."
After waiting for a long time, he was the company commander of the reserve militia. Liu Ziguang was immediately furious. I said, "Why do you feel something is wrong? Everyone is wearing red robes and I am wearing green robes. It turns out that it is because my rank is too low. I went through life and death, beheaded Fan Wencheng, and captured Dorgon alive."
, the Fei Army conquered Jinan, only to get a low-level official position from the ninth rank, it is really unbearable, what is unbearable!
"The imperial court may feel that it is a great favor. You must know that you were originally a white person, and now you have suddenly become an official of the imperial court. You have to be grateful. In their eyes, your military achievements are worthless. However,
This leisure job is very suitable for you. If you are really made a general of the Forbidden Army, I'm afraid you won't have any freedom in the future." The eldest lady explained.
Liu Ziguang chuckled. He didn't care about being an official or not. Making money was the most important thing. There was also the banquet hosted by Mr. Hong, which was placed at Liu Ziguang's property - the most famous building in Jinan, "Guihe Crown".
Inside the "Big Restaurant", this magnificent restaurant was originally the property of Songshou's brother-in-law. The boy was a clever guy. Seeing that the situation was not going well, he escaped from Jinan. As a result, such a large restaurant lost its owner and hundreds of cooks and waiters.
The maid lost her job, but Marshal Liu was kind-hearted, so he spent a few hundred taels of silver to buy the restaurant, renovated it, hired some Manchu aristocratic ladies as service staff, and turned it into the most luxurious restaurant, accommodation, and restaurant in Jinan.
A comprehensive restaurant that integrates leisure and entertainment. Merchants traveling north like to stay in Guihe Building, where they can enjoy the services of former Manchu noble ladies and taste the unique Manchu-Han banquet.
It was because Mr. Hong heard about the famous Manchu-Han banquet here that he decided to hire Gui and Guangwang to entertain the generals. Although the price was a bit expensive, costing one hundred taels of silver per table, the court could still afford it. Besides, this price
The price was not that staggering in the capital. Those who received the invitation were all officers of seventh rank or above. As a junior officer of ninth rank, Liu Ziguang certainly did not receive the invitation.
Just as Liu Ziguang was about to take off his official uniform, a soldier came over and reported: "General, the shopkeeper of Guihe Building sent a boy to invite you. He said that something big happened in the store. Please come over."
The location of Guihe Building is two streets east of Liu's mansion. When Liu Ziguang heard this, he had no time to change his clothes, so he rushed over with two soldiers.
The imperial wine-granting ceremony was being held in Guihe Building. Military generals, dignitaries from the condolences group, and gentry from Jinan all gathered in the building to drink from cup to cup. The atmosphere was very lively. There were joint guards from the Imperial Forest Army and the Forbidden Army outside.
The security was very tight. If the Imperial Army hadn't known Liu Ziguang, he, the boss behind Guihe Building, wouldn't have been able to get in.
"What's going on? Who dares to make trouble on my property?" Liu Ziguang asked the boy leading the way as he walked, "I don't know, but there are guests in the housekeeping department who insist on seeing the shopkeeper.
I came back with a face, didn’t say anything, just sent me to invite the commander.” The boy spoke authentic Shandong dialect, and he was the apprentice recruited by Zhangqiu.
"How many times have you told me not to call me Marshal, but to call me Chairman, and you need to practice your Mandarin more closely. In the future, our store will receive more southern customers. If Mandarin cannot meet the standard of Level 3, just wait."
Get laid off." Liu Ziguang scolded the boy as he walked on the exquisite stone path to the yard. Most of the service staff in the housekeeping department were hired from other big inns. Logically speaking, they shouldn't make guests so angry.
.
The boy promised obediently and took Liu Ziguang to the guest room of Guihe Building. These are exquisite and elegant small courtyards. The people here are rich and powerful guests, including wealthy businessmen from the south and new officials from the capital.
Each occupied half of it. This apartment is exactly where the officials live. These mid-level officials who came to the capital to take office have no suitable residences to buy for the time being, so they have to live in Guihe Building. It is very close to all the yamen when they come here.
The hardware and software are indeed of high quality. The shopkeeper has been waiting there for a long time, and the five red finger prints on his face are clearly visible. As soon as the little old man saw Liu Ziguang, he came up to him and said in not very authentic Jianghuai Mandarin: "Chairman, he is from Beijing.
The official got angry because he thought the maid made the wash water too hot. I couldn't control the situation and had to invite you to come. I'm really ashamed." Liu Ziguang snorted lightly. Although this shopkeeper has opened an inn, he obviously
I have no experience in dealing with dignitaries, and my legs feel weak when I meet someone wearing official boots. It seems that I need to consider replacing him.
At the door of an upper room, a shivering maid was kneeling there. A copper basin was thrown next to her. The carpet in the room was soaked with water. On Xiang Fei's couch lay a woman smelling of alcohol and wearing red clothes.
The middle-aged man in a robe was a little surprised when he saw Liu Ziguang in a gauze hat and round collar coming over. However, after seeing clearly the seahorse pattern on Liu Ziguang's chest, he curled his lips again, smiled slightly contemptuously, and said "Nanjing".