Chapter 133 Discussions in the Warm Heart Pavilion
It’s March 13th, the ninth year of Chongzhen’s reign, in the Warm Heart Pavilion of the Imperial Palace in Peking
A middle-aged man wearing a yellow robe was sitting on a light yellow soft chair. His originally delicate face showed a haggard look, and there were obvious dark circles around his eyes. It was just this man.
The middle-aged man had a trace of anger on his face at this moment, and behind him stood an old man wearing a eunuch's uniform with his head lowered.
There were two men standing in front of this middle-aged man. One was a man about fifty years old, with an easy-going demeanor but a sense of majesty. The other was slightly younger than him, elegant and heroic, with a handsome face.
There was an expression of calmness and self-power in them, but at this moment, both of their faces had a look of helplessness and anxiety.
"I'm not sure, I'm not sure. The Tatars have been surrounding the capital for nearly half a month, and you still say you're not sure. Tell me, can you do it well? If not, I can find someone else to do it!" The man in yellow robe said.
The man slapped the armrest next to the chair and roared angrily, his voice buzzing in the small room.
After hearing the anger of the man opposite, the two middle-aged men knelt down and kowtowed: "Your Majesty, I am guilty!" It turned out that the three people in the Nuanxin Palace were Emperor Chongzhen, the supreme ruler of the Ming Dynasty, and the Minister of War.
Yang Sichang and Lu Xiangsheng, the governor of Xuanfu and the right minister of the Ministry of War.
"Guilty, guilty, you can only say guilty, can't you say something else?" Chongzhen, who was furious, did not save any face for his two ministers. He stood up and roared: "Now forty thousand Tatars
The Tatars are at the gate of the capital, but you have 80,000 troops but you dare not fight a decisive battle with the Tatars. I ask you, in this case, what is the use of the huge sums of money spent every year to raise these soldiers?"
The excited Chongzhen spoke so much that his saliva flew everywhere and almost sprayed on the two of them.
Yang Sichang and Lu Xiangsheng knew Chongzhen's temper well, and knew that speaking out at this time would only arouse Chongzhen's anger even more, so they just knelt on the ground silently and bowed their heads without saying a word.
After scolding for a while, Chongzhen probably felt tired, so he sat back down and closed his eyes to rest, but he did not let the two people in front of him get up. They had no choice but to kneel on the ground silently.
After a while, Chongzhen, whose breath calmed down a little, opened his eyes, looked at the two people still kneeling on the ground and asked lightly: "Are you tired?"
The two of them quickly replied, "If you go back to the emperor, I will not be tired."
"Hmph, you people are just telling the truth. That's what I dislike the most about you." Chongzhen snorted lightly and raised his hand slightly.
The eunuch who had been standing behind Chongzhen glanced at Chongzhen, quickly took a step forward and whispered: "Why are you still not up? Do you want the emperor to invite you?"
"Thank you, Your Majesty, for your grace, and thank you, Eunuch Wang!" Yang Sichang and Lu Xiangsheng looked at each other before slowly standing up. Because Yang Sichang was older, his blood vessels were somewhat blocked after kneeling for a long time, and he swayed when he stood up.
Seeing that he was about to kneel down again, Lu Xiangsheng beside him quickly stretched out his hand to subdue him.
Chongzhen, who was still angry at first, saw the look of Yang Sichang, and the anger in his heart also subsided a little. He said to the old eunuch beside him: "My eldest companion, give them a seat. After the news is spread, let the hundred people go."
The officials say that I, the emperor, mistreats the ministers."
This old eunuch was none other than Wang Chengen, the eunuch who was most trusted by Chongzhen in the palace. After hearing Chongzhen's instructions, he waved his hand, and two young eunuchs immediately came over from the side, each holding two yuan.
The stool was placed next to Yang Sichang and Lu Xiangsheng’s cutest dog.
"Thank you, Your Majesty!" The two people who knew Chongzhen's temper knew that Chongzhen's giving him a seat meant that most of his anger had dissipated. They thanked the emperor with their hands and sat down on the round stool with half of their buttocks, straightening their bodies and respectfully.
looked at Chongzhen.
Chongzhen glanced at the two of them and said angrily: "Come on, don't pretend to be so pitiful. Now I want to ask you one last question, can you drive away those Tatars?"
Lu Xiangsheng didn't have any expression on his face after hearing this. He just glanced at Yang Sichang sideways, and his meaning was obvious: "Your official is older than me, so you should tell me!"
Yang Sichang sneered in his heart and said, "This Lu Jiandou, others say that although you are a scholar, you have the temper of a warrior. Now it seems that the rumors are wrong."
Although he was very dissatisfied with Lu Xiangsheng in his heart, he still said respectfully: "Your Majesty, it's not that I don't want to fight, but now is not the time. Although there are 80,000 troops gathered outside the city, these soldiers come from all over the country.
The training is uneven and it is quite difficult to command. If we force a decisive battle with the Tatars, it will be easy to win, but if we lose for a while, we will not be able to mobilize enough troops to stop the Tatars' attack."
"Humph, you are quite experienced in holding the country." Chongzhen didn't even bat an eyelid. He just said something that was either a compliment or a scold. Then he turned his eyes to Lu Xiangsheng and said, "Lu Qing's family, others
They all say that you, Lu Xiangsheng, can fight, but I have never seen it with my own eyes. The reason why I called you here today is to see with my own eyes your ability to lead troops in war. Do you have the confidence?"
Seeing Chongzhen asking himself this question, Lu Xiangsheng felt hot in his heart. He stood up and said loudly: "It's okay to ask Wei Chen to fight this battle, but Wei Chen has a condition. If you can agree to Wei Chen's condition, Wei Chen
Although I am not sure that I can defeat the Tatars, I can still force them to withdraw from the border."
As soon as Lu Xiangsheng finished speaking, Yang Sichang's voice came from next to him: "Governor Lu, please don't talk too much. You must know that the water will overflow when it is full."
Lu Xiangsheng said angrily: "What do you mean, Master Yang? This official is also sharing the emperor's worries. The 80,000-strong army confronting the Qing soldiers outside the capital costs tens of thousands of taels of silver every day. If we don't get rid of those Qing soldiers as soon as possible."
Can we maintain such a large expenditure if we drive away our household department?"
Not to be outdone, Yang Sichang stared at Lu Xiangsheng and sneered: "What does Mr. Lu mean to say that these expenses are unnecessary? It is best to disband the army and let them go back to their homes?"
"Xiaoguan didn't say that. I just don't want the imperial court to be overburdened." Lu Xiangsheng has been raping in the officialdom for so many years. How could he not hear the trap in Yang Sichang's words? He said proudly: "Does it mean that Xiaguan wants to target him earlier?
Isn’t it right to drive away and share the emperor’s worries?”
"That's enough, you all shut up." Seeing the two ministers in front of him quarreling in front of him, Chongzhen frowned and cursed: "You are all high-ranking officials of the imperial court, and you have lost your dignity in front of the emperor.
How unbecoming."
Yang Sichang and Lu Xiangsheng stopped arguing and bowed their heads when they saw Chongzhen getting angry.
No one spoke, and there was a brief calm in the Nuanxin Pavilion. After a long time, Chongzhen asked slowly: "Lu Qing's family, what did you mean by what you said just now? If I heard you right, did you mean that if it was up to you?
Come to unified command of the army outside the city and you can defeat or route the Tatar soldiers and horses outside the city?"
Lu Xiangsheng lowered his head and said: "I can't guarantee this, but what I can guarantee is that even if I fight, I will not let the Tatars underestimate my great power."
"Hmph! Grandstanding!" Yang Sichang's voice came from the side again. Yang Sichang has always disliked Lu Xiangsheng. Although Lu Xiangsheng is not as old and experienced as him, it is indisputable that Lu Xiangsheng has been more and more valued by Chongzhen in recent years.
In fact, now that the Tatars have surrounded the capital, the two have different opinions. One of them is fighting against the other, and they are having a big fight. Now that he sees that Lu Xiangsheng wants to take over the military power of tens of thousands of Ming troops outside the city, he is naturally anxious.
You Lu Xiangsheng, forget it about suppressing bandits in Jiangbei, Henan, Shandong, Huguang, Sichuan and other places. Now that you have returned to the capital and want to command the troops outside, where do you put me, the Minister of War? Therefore
As soon as Lu Xiangsheng's words came out, he immediately objected in confusion.
"Lord Lu, as a supervisor, you naturally know your ability to lead troops. However, the capital is at the feet of the emperor. The current situation of the Tatars on the border is so critical, and we only have such a small number of troops. You are in such a hurry.
If something goes wrong in the decisive battle with the Tatars, you and Lu Jiandou will die, but you can kill me with one blow. What will happen to the emperor? What will happen to my Ming Dynasty's hundreds of years of foundation?"
Yang Sichang was worthy of being called the Internal Prime Minister, but he suddenly described a good thing as a bad thing and acted recklessly regardless of the safety of the Ming Dynasty.
Chongzhen also hesitated after hearing what Yang Sichang said. He was a very suspicious man. Historically, in his short seventeen-year emperor career, he had replaced more than fifty cabinet ministers. This
No one could break the record until the 21st century. However, although he was very suspicious, he trusted Lu Xiangsheng. Therefore, although Yang Sichang's words made him hesitate for a moment, he then said: "Two Qing family members
Needless to say, I have made up my mind, and I will issue an order later, ordering Lu Aiqing to command all the troops outside the city during the siege of the city by the Tatars, in preparation for the decisive battle with the Tatars!"
"Thank you, Your Majesty for your kindness!" Lu Xiangsheng, who had his wish granted, immediately bowed to Chongzhen to thank the Emperor for his kindness.
Chongzhen's expression became serious at this time. He pointed at Lu Xiangsheng and said: "Lu Qing's family, although I have given you military power, I have also given you a time limit. If you still cannot satisfy me within five days, not only will I have to
Are you willing to take back your military power and punish your crimes?"
Lu Xiangsheng laughed miserably: "If I can't get rid of my position in the capital within five days, why should I be punished by the emperor? I can just do it myself."
Seeing Lu Xiangsheng's appearance, Chongzhen couldn't bear to say: "In the Lu Qing family, it's not me who is bickering with you, but the Tatars who are bickering with others!"
Lu Xiangsheng's face gradually became resolute, and he said loudly: "In that case, Your Majesty, I will accept this job!"
Chongzhen nodded and said: "Lu Aiqing, I promise you that I will go to the city wall to cheer you on during the decisive battle with the Tatars..." (To be continued.