Shaanxi, Tongguan, Yuan Chengzhi's army finally arrived here after a long journey. The old Western Army camp was still there, and the Hebei Army stationed directly. Marshal Yuan led a team of Ma Bian into Tongguan to pay a visit to his father.
Nowadays, the gap in official positions between father and son is very small. In just a few months, Yuan Chengzhi was promoted from a Jinshi who had not served as an official to the governor of Jiliao, the prince Shaobao, and the title of minister of the Ministry of War. He was only one rank lower than his father.
With the title of Imperial Envoy, a son who has achieved such great achievements naturally hopes to be praised by his father, but after meeting Yuan Chonghuan, Yuan Chengzhi was shocked.
His father is old. Speaking of which, he has never seen his father since the day of the Western Expedition. Two years have passed. His father, who used to be so heroic in the past, now has frost-like temples, skinny cheeks, and bloodshot eyes. He looks more than ten years older.
age.
"Father!" Yuan Chengzhi's eyes burned, he lifted his robe and knelt down. However, Yuan Chonghuan did not have the excitement of father and son meeting, and just said calmly: "Get up and talk."
Yuan Chengzhi stood up and saw his father spreading out the map, pointing to a few points on it and saying: "The Xixia Army has arrived here, and the next step here is Tongguan."
Yuan Chengzhi was shocked. No wonder his father went straight to the topic without even exchanging greetings. It turned out that the military situation was so urgent that there was no need to delay. In just a few months, the Xixia Army came all the way from Jiayuguan and quickly advanced eastward along the thousands-mile Hexi Corridor.
, defeated Lanzhou, Baoji, and Xi'an in an instant, and now they have reached the gate of Tongmen, and are only the last step away from the Central Plains!
When Liu Ziguang was serving as the general of the Western Expedition, he fought consecutive battles and defeated many with less. His troops left Jiayuguan and fought all the way to Hami, the hinterland of the Xixia people. Unexpectedly, in less than a year, he actually made a huge comeback and was defeated by others.
At the doorstep of his home, could it be that the more than 100,000 soldiers of the Western Army, countless cannons and muskets, and ammunition and equipment were all made of paper? Made of clay? Yuan Chengzhi was puzzled.
As if seeing his son's doubts, Yuan Chonghuan put down the map and said sadly: "It's all Liu Ziguang's fault. Not only did he conspire to rebel, but he also incited the Hexi army to rebel. In order to prevent the danger of raising tigers, my father had no choice but to detain their grain and grass."
Unexpectedly, they ignored the national justice, betrayed the enemy, led the Xixia army into the pass, and Lanzhou guard Liu Zongmin rose up to resist. However, he was outnumbered and died for his country. The mountains of arms and supplies in Lanzhou City fell into the hands of the enemy, totaling a heavy
Fifty armored tanks, one hundred heavy guns, more than five hundred small guns under eight pounds, twenty thousand muskets, countless shells, bullets, rice cans, and clothes. These are all the people's wealth of the Ming Dynasty! They fell into the hands of the enemy in vain.
, became a weapon to massacre us."
Yuan Chengzhi only felt dizzy for a moment, and he sat down on the chair and could not get up again. What it meant for such a huge amount of arms to fall into the hands of the enemy could not be clearer. The Xixia people were already extremely powerful, starting from Galdan and below.
All of them are like gods in the military, fearless of death, and have extremely strong field combat and maneuverability. Coupled with the help of the Red Shirt Army rebels and such a large amount of advanced munitions, it is simply... He dare not think about it anymore.
The natural barrier of Tongguan, where one man can guard the barrier and no one can attack it, is not as useless as dregs in the face of heavy artillery.
Judging from the tired look on his father's face, he must have exhausted his energy for the war these days. Looking at the troops in Tongguan City, they are also very weak. The task of resisting the foreign invaders will fall on him.
Yuan Chengzhi calmed down and said: "Father, don't worry. My son has brought 100,000 troops with first-class weapons and equipment. If we join forces, we will definitely be able to keep the Xixia people out of Tongguan. In addition, we will send a telegram to the court to ask them to come back again."
Recruit new soldiers and manufacture arms. Our Ming Dynasty has vast resources and a large population. Are we afraid that we can't defeat the small barbarians?"
Yuan Chonghuan sighed and said: "The imperial court is in chaos now, and some people are spying on my father's military power. If the news of the defeat spreads, I am afraid someone will come to take the seal immediately."
Yuan Chengzhi said: "Why did my father say this? Today, I am wise and wise, and Eunuch Wei is loyal to the sun and the moon. Who dares to do anything bad to my father? My son will be the first to let him go!"
Yuan Chonghuan said: "This is politics. You are too young to understand."
Yuan Chengzhi did not dare to argue in front of his father, so he had to lower his head and say, "Father, I have learned from you." Then he looked up and looked around and asked, "Where's Brother Zhang?"
When he asked about Yuan Chonghuan's pain points, he slapped Shuai An and said: "Wu Sangui has been jailed."
Yuan Chengzhi was shocked and said: "Why are you in prison? Brother Zhangbo is brave enough to be the leader of the three armies. He is filial to all sides. He is the pillar of the Ming Dynasty. Who framed him?"
Yuan Chonghuan said: "The crime is colluding with the rebel Liu Ziguang. My father knows that this child will never have anything to do with Liu Ziguang, the traitor, for fear that he will stumble on the affair of his children. This child is good at everything, but he is too much."
Too infatuated."
Yuan Chengzhi nodded and seemed to understand something. The eldest uncle's family had a lovely wife and a beautiful family, and it was the number one in the Qinhuai River in the past. This was a well-known thing, but Wu Sangui had been away fighting for many years, and the red apricots were not available.
The wall is strange, I am afraid that some powerful people will be imprisoned because of the woman's affairs. Alas, there is really nothing I can do to help with this kind of thing."
Yuan Chengzhi looked sad on the surface, but in his heart there was a hint of joy. When it came to the young heroes of the Ming Dynasty, Liu Ziguang was naturally the number one, and the second number was known as "the fairest young man in the world."
Wu Sangui, who has a good reputation, now that both of them are finished, the crown will naturally fall on his head.
When the country is facing internal and external troubles, it is a good time for true heroes to show their talents. The Xixia Empire is in full swing, and its troops are directed towards the Central Plains. This is an opportunity. With a hundred thousand troops in hand and countless literary, Taoist and military strategies in mind,
, it can do more than just confer titles and honors as prime minister. Even if it starts from scratch, it is impossible to achieve a lasting legacy.
"Chengzhi, come and see." Yuan Chonghuan picked up the map again and called his son. Yuan Chengzhi quickly pulled his thoughts back from his wandering thoughts and came to his father's side. He studied the strategy in a decent manner, but his inner calculations began to take place.
.
The capital was in turmoil, the six ministries were paralyzed, and all the imperial censors with some integrity left their posts. The emperor was frightened and bedridden, and his power fell further. Wei Zhongxian's power reached its peak, and the cabinet was like a doll in his hands.
The entire government was controlled by him. In order to further control the army, he urgently appointed and dismissed a group of generals above the general level, and sent supervisory troops to the Imperial Army in Beijing. Each camp had a eunuch and four Jinyi guards.
The position of the military supervisor is higher than that of the battalion officer. In order to prevent rebellion, the key to the arsenal is in the hands of the military supervisor. It cannot be used without his approval. All capable people in the army are squeezed out, and sycophants are promoted.
The Beijing Forbidden Army, which originally had some fighting capacity, was quickly destroyed.
Wei Zhongxian didn't care about this. At this time, he was very proud and his confidence was extremely inflated. He thought that it took Huang Huangrong decades to climb to the position that he had reached in a few years. Although he has not given himself the title of nine thousand years old,
But those are all matters sooner or later. Now the imperial court is full of his own people. He has Hou Xun in literature, Yuan Chengzhi in military affairs, and the tax revenue in Jiangnan exceeds tens of millions. The grain, grass and weapons produced are enough to make him confident.
Fear of any invasion from foreign enemies.
The Donglin Party is all weaklings. Except for some smelly and tough guys who signed away, most of them still surrendered to their sect, and every one of them called Eunuch Wei to be affectionate. Huang Zongxi was a worldly expert, so
Fighting for power with himself, he was forced to arrange for several of his relatives to serve in military positions. This also made Wei Zhongxian very satisfied. The only person he feared in the world was Liu Ziguang, who was far away overseas.
But this is not a big deal. When the big gunboats are built by Jiangnan Shipyard, no matter how far he escapes to the ends of the earth, Ling Chi must be captured and executed before he can let go of the burden in his heart.
Wei Zhongxian knew the secret of Zhu Youxiao's infertility. It was precisely because of this that he was keen to massacre those clan children. He had already thought of the follow-up plan. After a while, he would offer a pregnant woman to the emperor as a concubine. After ten months
After that, a prince will naturally be born, and then he will be able to cover up the world. This child will naturally come from their Wei family. When he talks about this, he gets angry. The two nephews Wei Liangqing and Wei Liangdong failed to live up to their expectations. One of them was burned to death in the fire.
A person disappeared mysteriously. If we want to continue the family line, we have to find someone else. Alas, it would be great if our family is still here.
In the early morning, in the Forbidden City, Wei Zhongxian was reviewing memorials. It really fulfilled the old saying that the emperor was not in a hurry and the eunuchs were in a hurry. Zhu Youxiao was not diligent in political affairs. Wei Zhongxian was very diligent. He got up early every day and used a red pen to review the memorials submitted from various places.
, with a strong sense of diligence and love for the people.
Suddenly, a young eunuch ran in from outside the door with small steps. Wei Zhongxian frowned and was about to scold him when the young eunuch whispered: "Eunuch Wei, something serious has happened. A large group of cavalry has been discovered in Jiangbei."
"Oh, how many people are there and what banner are they holding?"
"I don't know. The local security guard said they don't have a flag, but they don't look like they are from the Central Plains. They must be at least 10,000 people."
Wei Zhongxian's brows gradually furrowed. His first thought was that Liu Ziguang's remnants were resurrected, but this was not terrible. Not to mention the natural chasm across the Yangtze River, there were hundreds of thousands of Beijing troops and the tall and thick Nanjing city wall.
So what if tens of thousands of people come.
"Hmph, you've come just in time. Our family will go to the city to watch."