The ink on the paper was still wet, and everyone quickly recognized that it was a map of Ningxia Town.
"Your Majesty, my lords. In order to express my thoughts more intuitively, I drew this map of Ningxia Town. You can just take a look at it. Eunuch Liu carried the map for me so that the Emperor and your lords can see it more clearly.
"Zhang Yanling took the map by its corners and handed it to Liu Jin.
Liu Jin's nose was almost crooked with anger, and she frowned and said, "Hang it on the wall."
Zhang Yanling said: "There is no space on the wall, so father-in-law can just take it."
Just as Liu Jin was about to speak, Zhu Houzhao was eager to know what Zhang Yanling's purpose was in drawing this map, so he said, "Liu Jin, just hold it for him for a while."
Liu Jin had no choice but to grab the two corners of the paper with two fat hands, and spread his arms out like a scarecrow. Liu Jin was already short and fat, and this rice paper covered his entire body from top to bottom.
It seems extremely clumsy and ridiculous.
"Your Majesty, gentlemen, please look at this map. This is the map of Ningxia Town. Do your Majesty and your gentlemen see anything from it?" Zhang Yanling said.
Everyone stared at it for a while, really confused.
Xu Guangzuo said in a deep voice: "If you have something to say, just say it. Why bother?"
Zhang Yanling smacked his lips and said: "Okay. You see, the location of Ningxia Town is very special. First of all, Ningxia Town protrudes to the north and is embedded in the hinterland of the Tatars. It is shaped like a sharp knife, piercing into the desert west of the Tatars, nailing
There, he became a thorn in the side of the Tatars.
A thorn in the flesh. I think this is the reason why the Tatars have attacked our Ningxia Guard many times over the years. I have made statistics. From the Chenghua period to the 17th year of Hongzhi, in the past few decades, we have been attacked by Tatars on all sides of the Ming Dynasty.
There were more than 300 attacks, and nearly half of them were in Ningxia Town."
Everyone was a little dazed. They had never made such statistics. This Zhang Yanling was really thoughtful and actually made such statistics. I don’t know if what he said was right. But it seemed like this in their impression.
"The reason why the Tatars like to attack Ningxia Town is not only because they break into Tatar territory and isolate the lands of Modong and Monan, making it impossible for the Tatars to completely control the Hetao. It is also because of the terrain of Ningxia Town.
It is unique, isolated, and extremely difficult to supply. From the Tatars' point of view, it is a place that is easy to capture and complete the occupation." Zhang Yanling said in a deep voice.
"How come they dare to occupy this place?" Zhu Houzhao asked with a frown.
"Your Majesty, please take a look. To the northwest of Ningxia Town is Helan Mountain, which stretches for hundreds of miles, criss-crossing the north and south, and forms a natural barrier. To the east is the Hetao Land, and the Yellow River passes diagonally from south to north, forming a natural defense line. The entire northern part of Ningxia Town is surrounded by
The Yellow River is cut off by the lazy waist. Divided by the Yellow River
It was divided into two areas: north and south. The area north of the Yellow River was flanked by the Tatars on both sides. Once the Tatars captured this area, they could firmly control it. If the court wanted to take it back, it could only take it back from the south.
We will attack across the river in the direction of Lingzhou. Think about how difficult it must be."
Zhang Yanling used the brush in her hand to draw circles and poke dots on the rice paper map. Several times, she hit Liu Jin's face through the rice paper. The blow made Liu Jin's face hurt, which made him very angry. His arms were also sore and numb.
, but he could only try to restrain himself and hold on for dear life.
Zhu Houzhao suddenly realized. Indeed, the terrain of Ningxia Town is indeed special. There are mountains to the west, the Hetao Desert to the east, and the Yellow River to the south that divides the terrain diagonally toward the northeast. With the Yellow River as the boundary, it looks like a piece of tofu cut with a knife.
Hanging in the northwest of the Ming Dynasty, it is abruptly embedded between the Hetao occupied by the Tatars and the Alxa Plateau. This kind of terrain is indeed dangerous and strange.
"What you said has anything to do with this rebellion?" Jiao Fang said solemnly.
Zhang Yanling frowned and said: "Master Jiao, isn't this obvious? Why would King Anhua dare to rebel? With his prestige, all the feudal kings in the world rebelled, and it was not his turn to be King Anhua. Could it be that he, King Anhua, could Is it possible to win the hearts and minds of the people of the world, snatch the throne from the emperor, and win the support of the people of the world? This is obviously impossible."
Li Dongyang said in a deep voice: "Master Zhang, pay attention to your words. What do you mean that all the feudal princes in the world are rebelling? Don't say this nonsense."
Zhang Yanling said: "What I mean is, how virtuous is Zhu Zhixiu? What strength does he dare to rebel and seize the throne? He has neither reputation nor strength. He wants money but no money, wants people but no one, what he wants is nothing. Why would he dare to do this?"
Everyone was silent. What Zhang Yanling said was true. Everyone was really surprised to learn that Zhu Zhixiu had rebelled. Everyone had no defense against King Anhua before, because he was in the northwest and was a A vassal king with little strength and reputation. Zhang Yanling's words were rough and unreasonable, and all the vassal kings in the world rebelled. I'm afraid it won't be King Anhua's turn to steal the limelight because he is really not popular.
"But the fact is that he did rebel. What Zhang Houye said is meaningless." Xu Jin said in a deep voice.
Zhang Yanling nodded and said: "Yes, that's why we need to find out why he dared to do this. Either he is crazy and doesn't want to live anymore. Or he has something to rely on, and something makes him think that the rebellion will succeed. That’s what he would do.”
Zhu Houzhao frowned and said: "Are you saying that it is the unique location and terrain of Ningxia Town that makes him feel confident?"
Zhang Yanling pointed his finger and praised: "The emperor is indeed very smart and understands what I mean. I have worked hard to draw this map and talked about it so much, just because I want to make this matter clear."
Zhu Houzhao felt proud. His mind kept following Zhang Yanling's words. He was an extremely smart person and he understood what Zhang Yanling meant at once.
"That's it, that's it. This thief has a good plan." Zhu Houzhao sighed.
"Your Majesty, I don't quite understand. What is the connection between this terrain and Zhu Zhixiu's rebellion?"
Li Jie, the Minister of Rites, felt dizzy when he heard this, as if he were listening to a book from heaven. As he was old, his brain was not bright and he could not keep up with the thinking of young people. So he couldn't help but ask aloud.
In fact, not only Li Jie, but most of the people here still didn't understand what Zhang Yanling and the emperor understood.
"What the Marquis of Jianchang meant was that the reason why Zhu Zhixiu dared to raise troops to rebel was because Ningxia Town was isolated and easy to defend but difficult to attack. If the Tatars can gain a foothold here, then Zhu Zhixiu can also stand. Stop. If the imperial court wants to quell the rebellion, it can only attack across the river from the south, because there is the Helan Mountain to the east and the Hetao occupied by the Tatars to the west. Even if it attacks from the south, there are natural dangers in the Yellow River. He only needs to send troops and horses to guard the Yellow River crossing in the south. It can stop the attack of the imperial army. Is this what you mean by Jianchang Marquis?" Zhu Houzhao said in a deep voice.
Zhang Yanling nodded in praise and said, "Your Majesty is wise, and this is what I mean."
At this point, everyone suddenly realized. They stared at the map and thought carefully, and finally nodded, indicating that it indeed made sense.
"I would like to add a few more points." Zhang Yanling took the brush and stamped it on the picture again. Liu Jin fell to the ground with an ouch. It wasn't that Zhang Yanling stamped on his nose and eyes, but that he couldn't hold it anymore. His hands were numb, he was unsteady and fell to the ground.
"What's wrong?" Zhu Houzhao asked.
Liu Jin sat on the ground and gasped: "Slave, I can't lift it anymore. My arms are sore and numb. Your Majesty allows me to rest for a while."
Zhang Yanling said with a smile: "Actually, there is no need to raise it. The emperor and all your lords also understand the terrain well. Thank you for your hard work, Eunuch Liu."
Liu Jin glared at Zhang Yanling fiercely and sat on the stool with the table propped up. Zhang Lun and others couldn't help but laugh out loud, knowing that Zhang Yanling was deliberately trying to punish Liu Jin.
Just now, they saw the dignified Supervisor of Ceremonies, the eunuch in charge, and the powerful Liu Jin, holding a map and standing there with a bulging belly. Zhang Lun, Xu Yande, and Zhu Lin had been secretly having fun for a long time. They all thought: Zhang Yanling is too bad. He was really brave. Liu Jin probably hated him to the core.
"Your Majesty, I believe that the purpose of Zhu Chixiu's rebellion is not to seize the world. With the few soldiers and horses in his hands, it is more than enough to guard the Yellow River crossings and various passes. But if he wants to attack it, he will fight with the imperial court. A decisive battle between soldiers and horses is not seeking death. He is not that stupid. I believe that his goal at this moment is to segregate himself in Ningxia Town, a dangerous place, expand his strength, and slowly make plans. As long as he can gain a firm foothold and be able to stabilize With the hearts of the soldiers and people of Ningxia Town, he can be his king of Ningxia. Although Ningxia Town is located in the northwest, it has Helan Mountain to block the cold wave in the north, and there is a large fertile land for farming in the bend of the Yellow River. It has always been known as the South of the Yangtze River. Here we have a separate regime, and we can be self-sufficient in rice, food, war horses, and we don’t worry about being trapped and die here. As long as he is not stupid, he will never act rashly. Therefore, I said that Lingzhou is not in danger. Lingzhou is on the south bank of the Yellow River, and the rebellion Although the army can attack Lingzhou directly into the hinterland of the Ming Dynasty, it is unwise to cross the river to attack Lingzhou without sufficient strength. Once the troops and horses are lost, the gain will not be worth the loss. If he really sends troops to attack Lingzhou, it will be a big blow to the court. This is the much-coveted opportunity to annihilate the enemy." Zhang Yanling said in a deep voice.
The British Duke Zhang Mao no longer had any anger in his heart at this moment. He stroked his beard and nodded slightly, looking at Xu Guangzuo. Xu Guangzuo looked relieved and had a smile on his face. What Zhang Yanling said was reasonable and reasonable. I'm afraid that's what happened. I thought he was talking nonsense before. At this moment, I realized that he had already thought about it clearly.
Not only the two princes, but also the other ministers nodded their heads. Even Liu Jin, Jiao Fang and others all agreed with Zhang Yanling's words.
Zhu Houzhao nodded and said: "The words of Marquis Jianchang are very reasonable. However, how do you think the court should respond? You just said that when the border troops wake up from the thieves, the morale of the army will be weakened. Now you also said that Zhu Chixiu needs time to stabilize Military morale. What should the court do?"
Zhang Yanling thought for a while and said: "It is necessary to gather troops and prepare well. However, I feel that it is not advisable to act too hastily. The Yellow River is naturally dangerous, and if the rebels defend tightly, the cross-river attack will pay a huge price. Once defeated, the morale of the rebels will increase. This played into Zhu Zhixiu's plan. As long as he wins a few battles, his military morale will immediately stabilize, and the people's morale in Ningxia Town will also stabilize. If he wants to attack, he must conquer it without any mistakes. This requires the court to be fully prepared, to assemble several times the enemy's troops, and to prepare a large amount of supplies, food, warships, troops and horses. It cannot be accomplished overnight."
Zhu Houzhao frowned and said nothing, and everyone else also lowered their heads in thought.
Liu Jin suddenly sneered and said: "Mr. Zhang's words are inconsistent. Just now we heard you say that the rebels are just a mob and there is nothing to worry about. Why are you so alarmist now? Do we really listen to what you said?"
Jiao Fang laughed and said: "No, I have forgotten this. Mr. Zhang's words are confusing and confusing. Do you believe what you said?"
Zhang Yanling said solemnly: "When I say there is nothing to worry about, that means that if I go to quell the rebellion, there will be nothing to worry about. If it is someone else, it is a different matter."
Everyone looked up at Zhang Yanling in surprise.
Liu Jin said slowly: "Let's ask Mr. Zhang, if Mr. Zhang goes to quell the rebellion, how many troops and horses will be needed? How many days will it take to successfully quell the rebellion?"
Zhang Yanling chuckled and said: "If I go, with ten thousand elite soldiers, we can defeat the enemy in ten days."
"What?" Everyone was stunned and lost their voice. Xu Guangzuo even tilted his body and almost fell off the stool.