Chapter 717: Zhenla is in danger, ask Daming for help
As for external affairs, Zhu Yuanzhang has basically let go of his affairs to Da Sun.
Just pay attention to the general situation.
The Zhenla matter may seem troublesome, but in fact, from Zhu Yuanzhang's point of view, it's not a big deal.
Even if Chenla destroyed the country, so what? Do you still dare to invade the Ming Dynasty?
The Ayutthaya dynasty of Siam and the Malacca of Malacca, united together, are just a slightly larger ant on the sea.
The Ming's armada can easily crush them.
I only dare to make some small moves secretly. If it gives Ming an excuse to start a war, then I really have to thank them.
From Zhu Yuanzhang's perspective.
Regardless of the Manraka, Ayutthaya dynasty, or even the Sukhothai dynasty in Northern Siam, they were all his younger brothers in name.
The Ming Dynasty was powerful all over the world. As a state of etiquette, it would easily cause panic in neighboring countries if it rashly went to war with its younger brother without being violated.
Zhu Ying was not in a hurry.
After all, that is Lan Yu, Duke Liang.
If he died in the hands of the Ayutthaya Dynasty, then the Ming Dynasty would naturally send out troops to avenge Duke Liang.
There is no need for the Ayutthaya dynasty to exist.
No bathing today.
Now the court meetings are held every three days.
Now that it is spring, Zhu Ying feels bored in the palace recently and is planning to take his children and concubines on an outing.
Tianjie Temple, Ambassador Hall.
Amona didn't sleep all night.
He received an urgent letter from the eldest prince Senlepa Piya, which should be said to be the King of Chenla.
With the help of Li Jinglong, it was obvious that the eldest prince Shenlie Popiya had succeeded to the throne of King Chenla.
The letter described in detail about Manchuria and Siam's newly established dynasty, Ayutthaya, jointly sending troops to Chenla.
If Duke Liang of the Ming Dynasty hadn't discovered Ayutthaya's conspiracy when he entered Chenla, he would have fought a battle with Ayutthaya's 100,000 soldiers along the coast.
Then it is very likely that Chenla has already perished.
When Amona saw the content of the letter, his back instantly became wet.
Even now, I feel a little scared.
In the letter, His Majesty the King told him that Chenla was now unable to cope with the Ayutthaya Dynasty, and the only way to save Chenla was to ask for help from the Ming Dynasty.
When he succeeded to the throne, Siam wanted to invade. Duke Cao Guogong of the Ming Dynasty sent a letter to Siam, so that Ayutthaya's troops at the border could not move, allowing him to seize the throne.
Because many nobles were executed after inheriting the throne, Chenla is now very weak.
Sereppa Piya hoped that Amona would tell Sultana and ask him to ask for the help of the great grandson of the Ming Dynasty to mediate the war between the Ayutthaya Dynasty and Chenla.
Although the Liang Kingdom is now retaliating against the Ayutthaya Dynasty, Shenlie Piya himself knows that it is difficult for the Ming Dynasty to directly intervene in the war, and it is the best way for the Ming Dynasty to mediate.
This will not affect the Ming Dynasty, and Zhenla will also have a chance to breathe.
At dawn.
Amona hurried out without even bothering to explain anything to his colleagues.
It was more than a month ago that the letter arrived at Amona, and he was really worried that Chenla was now on the verge of national collapse.
Every breath seemed so urgent.
As a foreign envoy stationed in the capital of the Ming Dynasty, it was impossible for Amona to go directly to the palace.
If he wants to ask to see His Majesty the Ming Emperor, or if he wants to see the current Sultana and Concubine Dan, he must send a message through the Ministry of Rites.
After getting permission, he will be given a specific time and will be led into the palace by the eunuchs in the palace.
Among the many foreign ministers, only Amona has this power, because Empress Danfei is their princess of Zhenla.
"Hey, isn't this Amona? Where are you rushing to in such a hurry?"
"Oh, look at my memory, the news about Zhenla came last night. It's been more than a month, and I don't know if Zhenla has subjugated the country."
"It would be very interesting if the country was destroyed."
Amona looked fiercely at the person speaking in front of him. He knew that it was Kanaye, the chief envoy of the Ayutthaya Dynasty.
Obviously, Kanaye also received news about Chenla.
It's not a coincidence that we met here.
Chenla and Ayutthaya have been at war, and the relationship between Amona and Kanaya is of course very bad.
After Kanaya received the news last night, he specifically asked his subordinates to wake him up earlier, just to see Amona's panic.
Now that I have seen it, I feel very happy.
Amona snorted coldly and did not pay attention to Kanaye. The domestic situation was the most urgent.
Seeing Amona's hurried look, Kanaye chuckled, turned around and walked towards his house.
He got up too early, he still had to go back to sleep.
Amona jogged all the way and soon arrived at the Rites Yamen in Tianjie Temple.
There is a sign hanging on the door: Ministry of Rites, Host and Guest, Qing Officials Division.
This is a two-entry courtyard.
Apparently Amona arrived a little early and the courtyard door was closed.
Amona also knew that he was early, so he could only wait.
I don’t know how long I have been waiting. Anyway, in Amona’s heart, I feel that the day has passed, but in fact, the sky has just brightened.
With a creaking sound, the courtyard door slowly opened.
Six government officials came out and stood on both sides.
"Amona, the envoy of Zhenla, requested to meet with the head of the Ministry of Etiquette."
After saying that, Amona took out the waist badge issued to him by the Ministry of Etiquette.
The officer in front of the door took it, checked it, handed it back to Amona and said, "Please come in."
Amona then hurriedly walked in.
He is very familiar with this place, or every envoy is familiar with it.
When paying tribute, the envoys would come here to discuss with the officials of the Ministry of Rites about the price of the goods.
There are also new envoys who have to come here to receive Ming etiquette training.
This is so that if you are summoned by His Majesty, you will not be displeased by being rude.
Although ordinary envoys are rarely summoned by His Majesty.
Amona came to an office lobby and once again explained the situation to the government servant on duty at the door.
After the yamen officer went in to report, he came out and said to Amona: "Go in."
Amona nodded and walked in.
Seeing the officials in the lobby, Amona's eyes lit up, and then he bowed and said, "Mr. Li."
Manager Li was writing something on his eucalyptus. When he heard the voice, he looked up and said with a smile: "It turns out to be you, Amona. We just opened the door and you rushed over."
Chief Li is the chief officer of the Department of Hosts and Guests of the Ministry of Rites, and is the sixth rank.
There are three principals here, who are jointly responsible for foreign affairs.
Amona quickly apologized and said with a smile: "I am in a hurry. There are frequent wars in Zhenla. I would like to request an interview with our princess, Concubine Dan, and I would also like to ask Chief Li to help report."
Manager Li frowned slightly, thought about it and said, "I'm afraid this matter won't be easy to handle."
When Amona heard this, he immediately took out an envelope from his sleeve, walked a few steps forward to Director Li, put the envelope into the books on the table and tucked it away.
He bowed and whispered: "Please help Mr. Li, and I will thank you very much afterwards."
Amona was also fortunate that after the eldest prince became His Majesty the King, he immediately sent a lot of money to his side.
Otherwise, like the current situation, he really doesn't know how to open the way.
Manager Li smiled, took out the envelope from the book, put it on the table, and pushed it toward Amona.
Then he said: "Aren't you harming me? As the head of the Ministry of Rites, how can I accept bribes?"
But he cursed secretly in his heart: How could you give a gift like this? You are such an idiot.
Amona thought that Mr. Li thought he was short of money, so he took the envelope and was about to open it. There were hundreds of treasure notes here, a total of twenty, or two thousand.
However, Chief Li took the first step and put his hand on Amona's hand, and then explained: "It's not that I won't help you report it, but it's just that you can't report it now."
Amona heard this and asked, "What do you mean, sir?"
Chief Li explained: "I am the chief guest of the Department of Etiquette and the Qing Officials Department, which is under the Yamen of the Department of Etiquette. Above me is Doctor Zhang."
"If I report it for you, I must first hand it over to Doctor Zhang, who will then hand it over to the Yamen of the Ministry of Rites."
"Normally there would be no problem, but Mr. Huang, the right minister of the Ministry of Rites, has been transferred to James Mansion."
"Our host and guest, the Qing Officials Department, has always been under the jurisdiction of Mr. Huang. After Mr. Huang left, this became vacant, and there is no arrangement for the Ministry of Officials."
"The former left minister, Mr. Ren, has been promoted to minister of the Ministry of Rites, so our Ministry of Rites now has vacancies for both the left and right ministers."
"Who can help you report this situation to the palace? It's impossible to report it to Lord Shangshu. So even if I help you, it will have no effect."
Amona couldn't help but ask: "Mr. Li, how long will it take for the new minister to take office?"
Manager Li shook his head: "Who knows, it could be as short as a few months or as long as several years."
Amona exclaimed: "How is this possible?"
Manager Li was obviously very dissatisfied with Amona's fuss. Did he teach etiquette in vain?
Seeing Chief Li's frown, Amona quickly explained: "The war in our country in Zhenla is extremely urgent right now. If we can't contact Empress Dan, I'm afraid something big will happen."
Mr. Li is very unhappy. You have Dan Fei on your left and Dan Fei on your right. Do you think I am afraid?
Okay, I'm really scared.
He said in an unhappy tone: "My position as the Minister of Rites has been vacant for three years. Do you think I'm bluffing you? OK, if you don't believe me, I'll report it to you. As for how long it will take, that has nothing to do with me."
After that, he picked up the tea cup and drank tea without paying any attention to Amona.
This is the meaning of serving tea as a farewell to guests.
Of course Amona can understand, but he doesn't dare to leave.
Immediately he said: "It's my fault, I was too hasty and it was disrespectful."
"It's just a matter of my Zhenla's safety, so I ask Mr. Li to help me."
After saying that, Amona opened his palm and stretched out his fingers and said: "If Master Li is willing to help me, I will definitely not let Master Li's work go in vain. I am willing to pay this amount."
Manager Li glanced at his open palm and knew it meant five thousand strings.
The tea cup he was holding was slowly put down.
Didn't you tell me earlier that this count would be over? Do you still need my twists and turns?
I have said so much, but I am just telling you that the matter is very troublesome, and if you want to handle it, you have to spend more money.
Seeing Mr. Li put down his tea cup, Amona breathed a sigh of relief.
Then I heard Manager Li say: "Go to Baifang Alley in Daming Dynasty, and there is a Zhenbaoxuan shop. The antique calligraphy and paintings there are very good. Not only do I like them, but also Zhang Langzhong and Ren Shangshu also like them."
"Your matter needs to be reported directly to Minister Ren by Dr. Zhang. This can be considered as a step-change report and breaks the rules of our Ministry of Etiquette."
Amona quickly gritted his teeth and said, "Please rest assured, Mr. Li, I understand."
Manager Li smiled and nodded: "Okay, I will report it to Dr. Zhang for you later. As for how long it will take to complete this matter, it depends on your sincerity."
Amona thanked her profusely.
Manager Li was very happy to see Amona leave.
I did the math in my mind.
Five thousand guan, how can I have a reward of two to three hundred guan?
Big deal.
The Zhenbaoxuan in Baifang Lane was not opened by the Ministry of Rites, but by the Jinyiwei.
Zhu Ying knew that these foreign ministers would definitely bribe them with money, so he asked Jin Yiwei to make a secret rule.
If there is a bribe, go to the store opened by Jin Yiwei to buy antique calligraphy and paintings.
Of course, those so-called antique calligraphy and paintings are all fake.
The antiques are just ordinary porcelain bowls, which can be bought for more than a dozen yuan each on the Calligraphy and Painting Street.
Most of this money will be confiscated into internal funds.
And 10% or 20% will be used as public funds for the Ministry of Rites. For someone like Director Li, according to the usual practice, about half of the commission will be given.
The matter of the Ministry of Rites collecting money is definitely not allowed on the surface.
It's impossible for Zhu Ying to come forward and say it's okay.
Naturally, this was Jin Yiwei's private behavior.
If one day I want to abolish it, it will only be a matter of one sentence.
After Amona left Tianjie Temple, he paid for a carriage to go to Zhenbaoxuan in Baifang Lane.
I gritted my teeth and spent six thousand guan of treasure money to buy an ordinary porcelain bowl for eating.
Of course he could tell that this was really an ordinary porcelain bowl for eating, and the bottom of the bowl was stamped with the words "Made in the 27th year of Hongwu's reign".
The shopkeeper opened his eyes and told lies, saying that this was a legend from the Tang Dynasty and was worth six thousand strings.
The round trip took almost two hours.
Amona bought a sesame seed pancake for breakfast and lunch on the road, and hurried back to Tianjie Temple to wait for news.
It was almost dinner time in the afternoon, and Amona thought it would be impossible today, but the eunuch came and asked Amona to follow him into the palace.
Zhu Ying took his concubine and children for a spring outing.
We didn’t go far, we were right at Xuanwu Lake.
I came back after having lunch.
The news reached Kunning Palace through the eunuchs.
In Kunning Palace.
After half a day of playing, Zhu Ying's concubines have returned to the apse.
But in Zhu Ying's body, there is still her eldest daughter Zhu Yuting.
Xiao Yuting will be six years old this year, two years older than Xiao Wencheng.
As the saying goes, a daughter is her father's little cotton jacket.
Xiao Yuting likes to cling to Zhu Ying the most.
Zhu Ying did not favor boys over girls. Among the seven concubines, only Xiao Xingxue, the daughter of Xiao Yuting and Chen Muyue, was a daughter.
Zhu Yuanzhang definitely prefers Xiao Wencheng.
Zhu Ying had no such thoughts.
It's just that Xiao Yuting can't stick to Zhu Ying every day.
Therefore, after returning from this trip, Xiao Yuting relied on Zhu Ying and refused to get off.
"Okay, we're all here. Your mother has returned to the back hall. It's time to come down."
"No, no, I just want a hug. Father, you haven't hugged me for a long time."
"Nonsense, didn't I hug you a few days ago?"
"That was all three days ago. I don't care, I want to hug you. I'm already growing up. If you don't hug me now, you won't be able to hug me when you grow up."
"How could it be possible? I can also hold your mother and the others. No matter how big you grow, my father can hold you."
"Huh, stingy, I'll ignore you."
"Then you should get off your father's body."
"I'm not coming down."
"It's up to you, you can hold me for as long as you want."
"Father, when will you take me to play next time? I have been doing homework all day, so boring. It was so fun to go out today."
"When you take the next assessment and your homework is all A-grade, your father will take you out to play."
"Yeah, Father, please take me to play. I will definitely be able to pass the A-level exam. But Father, can you just take me with you? My brothers are so annoyed."
"Okay, next time my father will take you to play alone. How about we go to the city to play."
Xiao Yuting giggled happily and kissed Zhu Ying hard several times on the face.
After a while, she was tired. Xiao Yuting's eyelids began to flutter up and down, and she soon fell asleep on Zhu Ying's shoulder.
The palace maid waiting outside, under the signal from Zhu Ying's eyes, gently took Xiao Yuting.
Then he bowed his head slightly and saluted Zhu Ying, then carried Xiao Yuting to the back hall.
Guo Zhong came in and reported: "Your Highness, Amona has come at the time of Zhenla."
Zhu Ying nodded: "Let Concubine Dan pass."
Guo Zhong bowed and said, "Yes, Your Highness."
Naturally, it is impossible for Amona to go to the back hall of Kunning Palace. In such a situation, he would be received in the East Palace.
When Sultana heard that Amona was looking for her in the palace, she followed the eunuch without thinking much.
After arriving at the main hall of the East Palace, Amona was allowed to finally see Sultana.
"Amona, why are you here? Did you bring me something good?"
After playing for a long time, Sultana was obviously in a good mood.
Miss Yunxia also came today, and she was very happy to play the harp and harp along with her.
Yunxia is her music teacher, and she often comes to the palace to teach her music.
"Your Highness, Zhenla is in great danger. Please help me, Princess." Amona's voice was trembling, and she was about to burst into tears.
Sultana wondered: "What's going on? Brother, isn't he already the king of Zhenla? He also got help from Duke Cao of the Ming Dynasty. Why is he in danger?"
Amona quickly told about the contents of the letter sent by His Majesty the King.
Especially when he mentioned that Zhenla was almost destroyed, he almost burst into tears.
Sultana was also shocked. She didn't expect so many things to happen in Zhenla during this period, and the country was almost destroyed.
"I'm going to ask my grandson to send troops, and I must teach the Ayutthaya Dynasty a lesson." Sultana had a direct temper, and immediately got up to go to Kunning Palace.
"Princess, you must not do this." Amona shouted quickly before she could cry bitterly.
Sultana couldn't help but frowned and said, "What's wrong with you?"
Amona explained: "Princess, Chenla, Siam and other countries are all countries affiliated with the Ming Dynasty. It is impossible for the Ming Dynasty to directly send troops to intervene in the war without violating the laws of the Ming Dynasty or violating the rules of the Ming Dynasty.
"
"If Taisun really sends troops to Zhenla because of the princess's plea, it will not be a good thing for Zhenla."
Sultana said a little irritably: "This won't work, that won't work either, then what do you think we should do?"
Although Shenlie Po Piya once wanted to use Sultana to go to Lancang for marriage, which made Sultana very unhappy, there was nothing he could do about it.
Later, when she became the grandson's concubine, Sultana forgave her eldest brother.
When she was young, the relationship between the two was very good, and the eldest brother protected her most of the time.
When I was able to freely come to Ming Dynasty, many people were against it. In the end, I had to support my eldest brother before I could come.
Sultana was also very happy when she heard that her eldest brother had become king.
When she first met Taisun, Taisun promised her that he would send an army to Chenla so that the child born between them would become the king of Chenla.
But after Xiao Wenzhen was born, Sultana didn't want to do this anymore.
She wanted to take Xiao Wenzhen with her and live in the capital.
This place is more prosperous than Angkor, and she doesn't want her son to go so far away.
So at this moment, Sultana really wants to help her elder brother stabilize the situation in Chenla.
Amona hurriedly said: "The princess can ask His Highness Taisun to send envoys to Chenla to mediate the war between the two countries in the name of the Ming Dynasty."
"There were many obstacles to inheriting the throne. While eliminating these obstacles, it also made our country weak. As long as we give it some time, I believe that with the ability of His Majesty the King, we will definitely be able to make Chenla strong again."
Sultana nodded: "Okay, I will go to His Highness Taisun for help."
After saying that, he was about to get up and leave. Then he paused, turned to Amona and asked, "Have you brought the letter that my eldest brother gave you with you?"
After hearing this, Amona quickly took out the letter from his sleeve: "Here is the letter."
As the grandson's concubine, Sultana naturally could not have direct contact with her, so the eunuch next to her quickly walked over and took the letter over.
Seeing the letter, Sultana couldn't help but think of her day trip to Xuanwu Lake.
Xiao Wenzhen is also two years old.
While playing with his brothers, he suddenly came to Sultana and clamored for letters.
Not just Xiao Wenzhen.
Xiao Wenri and Xiao Wengao were also noisy.
After asking, we learned that Xiao Wenzhan turned out to be Princess Ananya of Champa. While playing together, he suddenly took out a letter and said it was from his grandfather. He also said that when he grows up,
You can go to your grandpa's place to play.
Xiao Wencheng and Xiao Yuting will naturally not be envious.
Xu Miaojinsheng's young literary youth often goes back to Xu Mansion, of course it doesn't matter.
Xiao Xingxue has a very quiet personality, but Xiao Wenri, the son of Princess Xiangzi of Japan, Xiao Wengao, the son of Princess Zhao Xiangxi of Korea, and Xiao Wenzhen, the son of Sultana, are all very envious.
It happened that the eldest brother also sent a letter, so Sultana wanted to send it to her son.
Amona was relieved when she saw the princess leaving in a hurry.
Now I am very lucky that the princess was able to marry the grandson of the Ming Dynasty.
If she were to marry into the Lancang Kingdom according to the previous plan, Zhenla would have to give up a lot of benefits to help her, and she might not be able to successfully ascend the throne.
Even if he ascends the throne, Lancang Kingdom will definitely sit idly by and ignore the current situation.
Sultana, on her side, has to go find Zhu Ying after leaving the East Palace.
Just now in the main hall, Sultana and Amona were speaking in Khmer, which the maids and eunuchs could not understand.
"Why are you here? Didn't I say I was going to Taisun's place?"
Sultana asked the eunuch.
There are two side doors in the alley next to Kunning Palace, one leading to the main hall and the other to the back hall.
The eunuch leading the way directly missed the side door of the main hall and went to the side door of the back hall.
The eunuch knelt down and kowtowed: "Your Majesty, according to the rules, if you go directly to the main hall like this, it is an overstep. You must obtain the permission of the Grand Concubine."
Only then did Sultana remember that there was indeed such a rule.
She rarely goes to see her grandson directly. Sultana's personality is relatively straightforward. Otherwise, when she first met Zhu Ying, she would have had an affair with him without knowing anything.
"Well, let's go find my sister for help first."
"I don't know who will be sleeping with me today. I have to switch with her."
Sultana said to herself.
In the back hall, Ye Yueqing naturally would not embarrass Sultana.
But what a coincidence, today she is still Princess Xiangzi of Japan.
Originally, it was yesterday's turn, but Ananya asked her to switch it to today.
And now, Sultana comes to see Princess Xiangzi again.
She doesn't know what happened to Anania last night. Usually, Sultana is studying music scores, or Yunxia from Wenxiang Pavilion comes to teach.
Xiangzi is only a little over 1.5 meters tall, which is the normal height for Japan.
In front of Sultana, who has long legs of 1.75 meters, she looks like a child.
Xiangzi's presence among these concubines is very weak, and her character is very docile. This may have a lot to do with her previous living environment.
Faced with Sultana's request, Xiangzi would not and did not know how to refuse.
It's just a pity in her heart, because Sultana's rotation is the day after tomorrow, and she can only see her great-grandson and spend time with her the day after tomorrow.
evening.
Zhu Ying knew that she couldn't wait for the little Loli today.
Long legs are also good.
Sultana might have been a little anxious, so when she saw Zhu Ying, she immediately pounced on him.