Zhang Yu, the grandson of Zhang Xi, the deputy commander-in-chief of Datong, was specially selected for the mission because he led hundreds of cavalry and followed Wang Yuan around him. He also joined the emperor in killing enemies in the valley.
Zhu Houzhao liked this young man very much. Not only was he handsome and about the same age as Wang Yuan, he was also very brave in killing enemies on the battlefield.
Zhang Yu took his cavalry and more than a thousand Mongolian prisoners to escort Bu Chi back to the grassland.
Buchi was about to be fifteen years old (the Tatar Khan could take charge at the age of fourteen) and was taken to the battlefield by Dayan Khan for training. Unexpectedly, he came back in such a mess.
When leaving Datong Mansion, Zhu Houzhao and Bu Chi agreed that the two sides would no longer attack each other.
Bu Chi did not dare to refuse and had no reason to refuse. His third uncle had half of the Tatar army and commanded the entire right-wing Mongolia as deputy khan. After he became the Khan, he would definitely lead troops to kill Bu Chi. He had no time to prepare for his third uncle.
, how can you still have the energy to provoke Daming?
When Zhu Houzhao's class returned to the DPRK, the good news had already been quickly spread back to Beijing.
On this day, Yang Shen was going out of Dongcheng to greet his father. He returned to Beijing to resume his duties at the end of last year after Ding You's period of mourning for his mother expired. However, his father Yang Ting and his father, Yang Tinghe, had not returned to Beijing until now.
The Yang family has suffered a series of deaths in the past few years. First, Yang Shen's stepmother died, then Yang Shen's grandfather died. Last year, Yang Shen's son died in infancy. Yang Shen's wife, Mrs. Wang, and Yang Shen's uncle, Yang Tingping, were all seriously ill at this time.
If history remains unchanged, people will die of illness.
Yang Shen was depressed and unhappy. He was no longer as lively and unrestrained as before, and he no longer held literary parties all day long. Instead, he spent more time on official duties.
Yang Ting and Ding You also did everything at home. They built canals, bridges, and temples in their hometown. They also used the money the gentry gave them to build a scholar's archway (archway) to repair their hometown county. Naturally, the local gentry followed suit and donated money to build the city. Then.
Set up a charity field again to help the widows and widowers in their hometown.
For a time, Yang Tinghe's reputation in his hometown was so high that even beggars would give him a thumbs up.
While Yang Tinghe was still in Ding You, he had already received a letter from his confidants saying that the emperor had slipped out of the capital and gone to the border town. He could only sigh secretly and pray that there would be no more "Tumu Fort Incident". Ding You immediately rushed back to the capital after his term was over.
.
Shuiyi Pier.
Yang Shen bowed and said, "Father is well!"
Yang Tinghe nodded and asked: "How is the situation in Beijing?"
"It's a complete mess," Yang Shen explained, "Liang Chu, Yang Yiqing, Jin Gui, and Lu Wan, these four people are fighting endlessly, each cultivating cronies. Although the imperial concubine is virtuous, it is difficult to reconcile the contradictions between the four people, and many affairs of the six departments cannot be carried out.
."
Historically, both Yang Yiqing and Jin Gui had become officials at this time.
Yang Yiqing was too upright and repeatedly rebuked the sycophants, so he was forced out of the court by Jiang Bin and Qian Ning. Jin Gui was responsible for presiding over the examination, and a fraud case occurred in the Zhengde Sixth Year Examination. His servants stole and sold the examination contents.
Now he ran out to preside over the general examination, which immediately attracted criticism from the government and the public. He resigned and returned to his hometown to live leisurely.
However, Zhu Houzhao went to Bianzhen a year in advance and did not even participate in this year's palace examination. Naturally, Yang Yiqing would not be forced to leave by Jiang Bin, and no one approved Jin Gui's resignation.
The emperor was not here, and neither was Jiang Bin. Qian Ning only focused on making money, while the civil servants could not find a target to attack, so they simply started fighting among themselves.
First, Lu Wan launched an attack to eliminate Yang Yiqing's cronies left in the official department. Yang Yiqing naturally had to fight back. The fierce struggle between the two completely caused Liang Chu, the chief assistant, to lose control of the official department, so Liang Chu also hurriedly joined in.
.
As for Jin Gui, he had conflicts with Liang Chu.
After Liang Chu became the chief minister of the cabinet, he replaced Jin Gui's confidants in the imperial office and suppressed Jin Gui's party members in the Hanlin Academy. In the past, when the emperor was in Beijing, Jin Gui was willing to be a lone minister and always spoke with weight. The emperor left Beijing.
After that, Jin Gui had no holy family to take care of him, and his voice in the cabinet plummeted. How could he tolerate Liang Chu suppressing and ostracizing his confidants?
Three cabinet ministers and one official minister started fighting in a scuffle.
Yang Tinghe frowned and said, "Lu Wan is such a duplicitous person that I don't know him well!"
Before Yang Tinghe returned to Dingyou's hometown, Lu Wan was his absolute confidant. Unexpectedly, in just three years, Lu Wan not only rebelled, but also stood completely opposite to Qingliu.
Yang Shen said: "The imperial concubine has been confused by these four people. She is arguing about everything and doesn't know who to listen to. However, Yang Yiqing is slightly more favored at the moment because he talks about matters most of the time and is gradually becoming more popular.
Gain the trust of the imperial concubine."
"Is there any news from the border town?" Yang Tinghe asked again.
Yang Shen shook his head and said: "The little Mongolian prince invaded the border at the end of September or the beginning of October. Your Majesty personally led the troops to fight. I don't know what the situation will be at the moment."
Yang Tinghe sighed: "Oh, I don't ask for victory or defeat, I just want your majesty to be safe and sound."
Yang Shen comforted him and said, "Fortunately, we have Wang Ruoxu following us. He is a man who can fight and is highly trusted by your majesty. He may be able to persuade your majesty at the critical moment."
"It's difficult," Yang Tinghe said with deep concern as he got on the carriage, lifted the curtain and admired the scenery on the roadside, "I watched your majesty grow up, and when his stubborn temper flared up, even the late emperor's resurrection could not stop him.
Your Majesty is smart, just because you are so smart, you always feel that everything you do is right."
The father and son entered the city in a carriage, while on the other side of the capital, a horse on a fast horse also galloped into the city.
The military messenger in charge of reporting the news held up the cloth and shouted along the way: "Great victory, great victory in Yingzhou! Your Majesty personally captured the Tatar grandson alive, and Wang Shilang killed the little Mongolian prince in formation. Our army captured more than 8,000 Tatar heads (real number), and captured
We have more than four thousand war horses (real number), and three thousand Tatar thieves captured (double the false report)!"
Over in the West City, everyone inside and outside the city went crazy, chasing the military envoys and telling each other on the streets.
The military messenger went straight to the Ministry of War and the Governor's Mansion. After delivering the battle report, he once again held the cloth high and rode around the city on a fast horse.
"Great victory! Great victory in Yingzhou..."
Yang Tinghe said suddenly: "Stop the car, what is shouting from the front?"
The coachman replied: "It seems to be shouting victory."
Yang Shen immediately got out of the car and listened carefully. The sound moved from far to near, and finally he could hear it clearly. He turned to his father and said: "There was a great victory on the front line. Wang Ruo killed the little Mongolian prince in vain, and your Majesty personally captured the Tatar grandson alive. There is another story.
Twenty thousand were beheaded, 3,000 were captured, and more than 4,000 horses were captured.”
Yang Tinghe thought about it: "The news that Wang Yuanzhen killed the young Mongolian prince should be true. Such a big thing cannot be false. Your Majesty personally captured the Tatar grandson alive. Haha, how could it be such a coincidence? It was probably one of the generals who contributed.
As for beheadings and prisoners, as long as the heads are not brought back to the capital, who can tell how many they will be?"
Yang Tinghe never expected that Zhu Houzhao had marinated more than 8,000 heads in lime and was moving them to the capital.
"No matter what, we will undoubtedly win this battle," Yang Shen said.
Yang Tinghe nodded and said: "But for a great victory, just killing the little Mongolian prince is an undoubted victory. The Ming Dynasty's borders can be stable for decades. Alas, I don't know whether I should be happy or worried as a father."
"Since we have won, what is there to worry about?" Yang Shen asked.
Yang Tinghe explained: "His Majesty already likes military affairs. This time he came back with great victory from his personal expedition. He will definitely intensify his efforts in the future. After defeating the little Mongolian prince, he will definitely go to find other enemies. Either to fight against the Jurchens in Liaodong or against the Jurchens in Liaodong.
He went to fight against the Three Guards of Duoyan, even though these places were conquered by him, and he also went to the southwestern frontier to find trouble in Annan and Laos. Every time he fought, no matter the outcome, the lives of the people all over the world became more difficult."
"In the states and counties of Northern Zhili, it is true that the number of thieves has increased this year because of His Majesty's personal expedition." Yang Shen had a different opinion, "But I think it is all worth it. Because the little Mongolian prince is dead, the northern border of the Ming Dynasty can be stabilized."
In this way, a lot of military personnel will be reduced, and countless money, food and corvee can be saved."
Yang Tinghe asked: "What if your Majesty has been resorting to violence?"
"This...isn't it?" Yang Shen said in shock.
Yang Tinghe sneered: "I am his teacher. I raised him from a young age. No one knows better than me what kind of person His Majesty is. Just look at it. He won a big victory this year. Next year, His Majesty will definitely go to the border town.
.Either deal with the Duoyan Three Guards or the Liaodong barbarians! If the Ming Dynasty were rich and full of officials, I would like him to win more battles. But what is the Ming Dynasty like now? Can it withstand his continuous use of troops?"
Yang Shen stopped answering.
Yang Tinghe added: "Even with Wang Ruoxu's assistance, your majesty can win consecutive battles. But in the end, if you win against foreign enemies, the people within the Ming Dynasty will definitely be in dire straits, and rebels will be everywhere!"
Yang Shen sighed and said, "Well, winning is better than losing."
Yang Tinghe smiled bitterly: "That's why I said, I don't know whether I should be happy or worried."
Yang Tinghe was indeed very clear-headed and had a deep understanding of the Ming Dynasty and the emperor. He also knew that in order to solve various difficulties, in-depth reforms must be carried out, but Yang Tinghe did not believe that the reforms could be successful, so he had no desire or determination to reform.