The rain kept falling, and it got heavier and heavier. It was even impossible to ride a horse when I went to court the next day, so I had to take a carriage. It was still dark in the early morning, and the rainstorm was pouring. I couldn't see the road clearly. I could only fumble forward, and the raindrops were pounding me.
On the oilcloth shed of the carriage, it was deafening. Liu Ziguang opened the curtains to see what was going on outside. A stream of rain immediately swept in and wet his sleeves. This rain was really rare in a century.
Unexpectedly, we arrived at the Meridian Gate. The two arc lamps that had been on at the Meridian Gate were also extinguished. Maybe the wires were soaked by the rain. A guard wearing a rubber raincoat came over and took a look and found that it was the carriage of Marquis Zhenwu.
, he loudly said to the coachman that the emperor had a decree that the carriages and horses could go directly to Fengtianmen to prevent the ministers from getting sick from the heavy rain, so the carriage rushed directly to Fengtianmen. Liu Ziguang got off the car and found that there were many carriages parked around him. It seemed that
Many people arrived first, and the guards held up a big umbrella to protect him from the rain, but the huge oilcloth umbrella could not block the raging rain. Liu Ziguang's boots and the hem of his court uniform were soaked through.
When we arrived at the Fengtian Hall, a few sticks of sesame oil and wax were lit on the main hall. The glass lamps we usually used were not turned on. The generator placed outdoors must have been damaged by the rain. The ministers all frowned and sighed.
Everyone has a puddle of water under their feet. The emperor is sitting on the throne with a sad look on his face.
Liu Ziguang came a little late. The heavy rain caused a lot of trouble. He had to go around several times on the way here. Several low-lying roads were flooded up to his chest, making it impossible to walk. He was not the only one who came late.
, many ministers were late, and most of them present were officials from the Ministry of Revenue and the Ministry of Industry. Song Yingxing's court clothes were half wet, and he held a wat board and said to the emperor: "The heavy rain is raging, the water level of the Yangtze River is rising rapidly, flood peaks are everywhere, dams are breaching, Huguang is
The country has become a state, and the people have been displaced and miserable, so we ask the emperor to issue an order for disaster relief."
"Disaster relief is easy, but if the money, food and materials are in Zuo Liangyu's hands, I'm afraid it will only strengthen his army, and the people will not get any benefit at all. So what should we do?" A minister from the Ministry of Revenue came out and said, this man was named
Huang Xiaotian, who is also the pillar of Donglin, has now eclipsed Shangshu Hu Xuezhai, and he basically has the final say in the Ministry of Household Affairs.
Huang Xiaotian is telling the truth. In the original administrative division of the Ming Dynasty, the two capitals and thirteen provinces, Beizhili in the north, Shanxi, part of Shaanxi, and part of Shandong were all under the rule of the Manchu Qing Dynasty. Henan, Huguang, Sichuan, and Jiangxi
, Yunnan, Guizhou, and Guangxi provinces all listen to the tune but not the propaganda. They are provinces of the Ming Dynasty in name, but in fact they are semi-official vassal towns. They never pay money and food to the Ministry of Household Affairs, even if the court has any major ceremonial activities, these
The warlords only sent representatives to participate, which was like enfeoffment among the princes. The only areas the court could control were Southern Zhili, part of Shandong, Zhejiang, Fujian, Guangdong and Taiwan. Fortunately, these areas were rich in money and food, so the court could
Maintain it, otherwise it would have been annexed by our own people. Now that the floods in Huguang are suffering, all the people of the Ming Dynasty are suffering. How can this not make people with conscience feel distressed? Huang Xiaotian raised the issue of the vassal town at this time. Although it is cold, it is true
It is a reality that has to be faced.
Zuo Liangyu, a native of Shandong, is tall and strong, and is called a red-faced man by his neighbors. Although he has never been to school, he is very smart. He has learned martial arts since he was a child. He is especially good at archery and is skilled in shooting left and right. After joining the army,
He was more useful, and because of his intelligence and resourcefulness, he was quickly promoted to the commander of Liaodong Cheyouying. When he was under the command of Hou Xun, the governor of Changping, he was recommended as deputy general by Hou Xun. Later, he suppressed rogue bandits in Shaanxi, Henan and other places.
He has repeatedly performed extraordinary feats in battles. He was worshiped as the "Ping Thief" general and was promoted to Prince Shaobao. He has more than 100,000 elite soldiers under his command. He is unrivaled in several provinces in the Central Plains. He is currently entrenched in the important town of Wuchang and governs the fertile land of Huguang. As the saying goes,
It is said that Huguang is familiar with the world, and Wuchang is a large port in the middle reaches of the Yangtze River. There is a lot of trade, and the revenue from setting up cards and collecting ship tax is also considerable. Wuchang also has a technologically advanced shipyard that can produce advanced steam ships, so he
The overall strength is relatively strong among the warlords.
Zuo Liangyu had been favored by Hou Xun, the current Minister of Rites, so he was emotionally inclined to the Donglin Party. He never paid tribute to the court when the Queen Mother was in power. Later, when Donglin seized power, the two parties had more contacts, and the court was more interested in money.
On Qianyi's suggestion, he was given the title of Prince Shaobao, hoping to subdue this general, but Zuo Liangyu was used to being a local emperor.
The emperor was a little addicted, and he went his own way as always. He even put He Tengjiao, the governor of Huguang sent by the imperial court, under house arrest, and the guards were disarmed. However, he did not commit violence brazenly, and just spent his time like this, following the example of Emperor Taizu in the past.
He has been accumulating food and slowly becoming king, waiting for changes to occur. This person has great ambitions and strong strength, and is a worry for the court.
"The displaced people are all the people of the Ming Dynasty, not Zuo Liangyu's people. I don't believe that he can unconscionably swallow up the court's disaster relief money and food! Disaster relief must be provided without delay!" A minister went out to retort, and then there were
More ministers joined the debate, and generally
They are divided into two factions, one is the rational type, hoping that the flood will consume Zuo Liangyu's strength so that the court can reap the benefits, and the other is the emotional type, who does not want to see the people suffer and advocates immediate disaster relief, but the two factions have a unified understanding, that is,
Money and food must not fall into Zuo Liangyu's hands.
However, Huguang was Zuo Liangyu’s sphere of influence, and all the local officials had the surname Zuo. How could the imperial court prevent money and grain from becoming military pay and rations for the Zuo army? There was only one way, that is, the imperial court would send imperial envoys to provide disaster relief and provide food. The problem came again.
court committee
He dared to put the governor under house arrest, let alone an imperial envoy. If the imperial envoy led a large group of soldiers, it would inevitably cause a war. No matter who wins or loses, the unlucky people are always the people. Floods and civil wars are the only ones to gain.
It's the Manchu Qing Dynasty in the north.
"The people of Li must be saved, and the land of Huguang must be saved. I don't care what methods you use, I just want the results." Zhu Youxiao coldly stopped the debate among the ministers. The young emperor finally understood that this seat was not easy to sit on.
Just as I thought about the military campaign to conquer the Qing Dynasty, floods came and the Yangtze River overflowed. The Huaihe River was not much better. Fortunately, Nanjing had just received its first heavy rain. I heard that such heavy rains had lasted for more than ten days in the upper reaches of the Yangtze River.
.Those river embankments have been in disrepair for a long time and cannot withstand the impact of floods. They collapsed in many places, and countless people drowned. The fertile land has become Zeguo. These are the properties of Zhu Youxiao. It is nonsense to say that he does not feel sorry for them, but for
Zuo Liangyu is an unreasonable and illiterate warlord. The emperor has no choice but to act arrogant and let the ministers take responsibility. Anyway, I am a commoner and I have to get it, and I also need the land of Huguang. How to implement it is up to you.
"Your Majesty, I have a plan. Hou Shangshu of the Ministry of Rites has a long-standing kindness to Zuo Liangyu. Why not let him carry out disaster relief, distribute money and food, and repair dams. I believe that Zuo Liangyu will not go out of his way to seize the disaster relief supplies."
Donglin official said
"Zuo Liangyu is a martial artist with a bad heart and a dog's lungs. What if it is not good for Hou Shangshu?" Lin Ruhai, the imperial censor, asked. When he mentioned the words "a martial artist with a dog's heart and a dog's lungs", he glanced at Liu Ziguang. His intentions are self-evident.
.
"It doesn't matter, you can do this. Hou Shangshu will bring a batch of money and food there first, distribute it in person, and then go on the road with the second batch. In this way, even if the first batch is occupied by Zuo Liangyu, the subsequent ones can be stopped in time, and the loss will be the loss of that batch.
What do you think?" Qian Qianyi, the boss of Donglin, finally spoke. His proposal is a feasible and good solution, but Zhu Youxiao's other request cannot be met yet.
"Not only do I want to provide disaster relief, but I also want Huguang to obey my orders."
"This is easy to do. Let Hou Shangshu lead 300 imperial troops to ambush Zuo Liangyu on both sides when the decree is announced in Wuchang. Take advantage of Zuo Liangyu's unprepared attack and take his head. Huguang can be determined." Qian Qianyi is determined.
The literati do not know enough about the cruelty of military struggle. If the three hundred Imperial Guard Army can deal with Zuo Liangyu, then Zuo Liangyu has been fighting in the army all these years.
A horse's career is like a dog's, not to mention that Liu Ziguang cursed in his heart: idiot. Even Zhu Youxiao shook his head repeatedly: "No, Hou Shangshu is a civil servant, how can he control the situation, even if he kills Zuo Liang
"Jade, if his gang of brave soldiers rebelled, wouldn't it be even more uncontrolled and the land of Huguang would be rotten?"
"Your Majesty, the Marquis of Zhenwu can take up this post." Wei Zhongxian, who was standing aside with Fuchen, whispered to Zhu Youxiao. Originally, there was no eunuch to intervene in the court meeting, but he really couldn't bear to give up this opportunity and wanted to push Liu Ziguang into this pit.
inside
In the face of Qian Qianyi, no matter whether the disaster relief was successful or not, he could always be kept away from the capital to facilitate his own power. Moreover, this move could also intensify the conflict between Liu Ziguang and the Donglin Party. Liu Ziguang's plan proposed by Qian Qianyi was clearly meant to rob him.
achievement.
Zhu Youxiao glanced at Wei Zhongxian with satisfaction and said to the officials, "Very good. Liu Aiqing went with Hou Shangshu to provide disaster relief. He captured Zuo Liangyu at the right opportunity. With Liu Aiqing's ability, it must be foolproof."
"Your Majesty, there has always been a rift between Zhenwu Hou and Hou Shangshu. Is it inappropriate for them to cooperate?" An official raised doubts.
"With the national crisis facing us, how can there be any personal grudges! I am willing to go on patrol with Marquis Zhenwu." Hou Xunyi said sternly, which surprised many people on the spot.
"The humble minister is also willing to go to Wuchang to share your Majesty's worries." Seeing that Hou Xun had expressed his stance, Liu Ziguang could not show weakness. In the face of a catastrophic disaster, he had no choice but to step forward.
The court meeting lasted until late that day. Zhu Youxiao asked the imperial kitchen to prepare meals for the ministers. Officials from the Ministry of Revenue, the Ministry of Industry, the Ministry of War, and the Water Transport Yamen were also busy sorting out information and the rice grains that could be transported.
, vehicles, civilians, information on the dams along the river, river maps, and troops that can be dispatched around the disaster area, all relief matters are under intense preparation.
As the Minister of Disaster Relief, Liu Ziguang naturally could not go home. He and a group of people from the Ministry of War and Nanchang were studying Zuo Liangyu's files and analyzing his weaknesses. They were so busy that yesterday's appointment had long been forgotten.
.
It was raining heavily. On the embroidered floor of the back house of Lin Yushi Mansion in Wuyi Lane, sister Daiyu was waiting with frowning eyes. It was dark outside the window. Only thunder and lightning flashed across the sky, and the handgun placed under the courtyard wall could be seen.
Wall ladder, it seems that person will not keep the appointment tonight...