Chapter 245 Dispatching Generals

Wenyuan Pavilion.

With the resignation of Xie Qian, the chief minister of the cabinet, on the grounds of old age and frailty, there was only one university scholar left in the cabinet, Yang Tinghe, the university scholar of Wenyuan Pavilion.

And Yang Tinghe naturally took over the position of the chief minister of the cabinet and took charge of the cabinet alone.

This situation certainly caused dissatisfaction among the court officials, but Yang Tinghe was the teacher of Emperor Zhengde, so no one dared to say anything.

However, it was precisely because there was only one university scholar in the cabinet that the burden on Yang Tinghe's shoulders became much heavier, and he needed to take on the operation function of the entire cabinet organization alone.

At this moment, Yang Tinghe was exercising the power of "voting", that is, reviewing memorials and making decisions on behalf of His Majesty the Emperor.

However, a memorial soon caught Yang Tinghe's attention, which was the memorial of Xiong Xiu, the left assistant minister of the Ministry of War.

The memorial detailed the fact that the people of Hebei were deeply harmed by the horse politics. Yang Tinghe frowned when he read it, especially the matter of the Hebei bandits mentioned by Xiong Xiu at the end of the memorial, which made his face change drastically.

The bandits robbed the disaster-stricken grain and then distributed it to the people in the disaster area. This was clearly an act of buying people's hearts. If it was not handled well and the court did not pay attention, then this group of bandits would likely become... a rebel who gathered to cause chaos!

Yang Tinghe carefully looked at the time of the memorial. It was two months since the memorial was submitted, which was obviously unreasonable. He immediately ordered someone to go to the Tongzhengshisi to inquire who had passed through the hands of the memorial on the way and why it was delayed.

He immediately took the memorial and went to the emperor to ask for an audience.

At this moment, Zhu Houzhao was still reading the storybook with relish, which came from the fantasy story written by the wild man Tang Hao.

Yang Tinghe had a smooth journey and soon met His Majesty the Emperor.

"Your Majesty, the situation in Hebei is not good!"

Hearing this, Zhu Houzhao raised his eyebrows and immediately put down the storybook and took over Xiong Xiu's memorial.

"It's really outrageous!"

"It's obviously a national policy that benefits the country and the people, but it has become a means for corrupt officials to seek profits!"

Zhu Houzhao angrily scolded, and then realized the problem.

"No!"

"Why did this memorial appear at this moment?"

"Come here, go to the Tongzhengshisi to check immediately, why did this memorial arrive now!"

After such a long period of training and growth, Zhu Houzhao is no longer the little emperor at the beginning. He just found the problem at a glance.

It is clear that someone deliberately withheld this memorial and waited for the situation in Hebei to deteriorate!

"Your Majesty, the Tongzhengsi must investigate!"

"If this is true, then their actions are definitely not limited to this!"

Yang Tinghe said with a sullen face, and just when he was about to speak again, an accident happened.

An eunuch rushed in with a pale face and said in a hurry: "Your Majesty, hurry up!"

"The bandits Liu Liu and Liu Qi from Bazhou gathered people to rebel, captured Wen'an County, killed all the officials, quickly developed more than 10,000 people, and even took Boye, Raoyang, Nangong and other counties..."

Unexpectedly, Zhu Houzhao did not get angry when he heard this shocking news, but looked at Yang Tinghe expressionlessly.

"Master Yang, you really got it right."

"Hey!" Zhu Houzhao sneered, "What a big deal!"

"They are forcing me to transfer Zhongshan Hou to quell the rebellion! A group of traitors with wolfish ambitions!"

At the end of the words, Zhu Houzhao couldn't help it after all, and kicked over the table fiercely.

This is the second time!

The second time someone openly gathered people to rebel!

For every emperor, rebellion is absolutely intolerable.

What's more, not long after Zhu Houzhao, the Zhengde Emperor, ascended the throne, a major case of mass rebellion broke out in Shandong. Now, only two or three years have passed, and such a major rebellion has occurred again!

What would the people of the world think?

Is he, the Zhengde Emperor, really so incompetent and unjust?

Otherwise, why do people rebel so frequently?

First it was the White Lotus Sect, and now it's the bandits in Bazhou!

One rebellion after another will only greatly undermine the imperial prestige of his Majesty Zhu Houzhao!

Zhu Houzhao gnashed his teeth and clenched his fists tightly.

"Your Majesty, Zhili cannot be in chaos, this is an important place in the capital!"

Yang Tinghe sighed, but still tried to persuade them.

Even if they saw through the sinister plots of those traitors, the problem was that the court had to send troops to quell the rebellion as soon as possible!

After all, this was a mass rebellion!

And these rebels also conquered several cities in a row with great momentum!

If the imperial court did not dispatch troops to quell the rebellion immediately and wipe out these rebels with thunder and lightning, then the prestige of the Ming Dynasty in the hearts of the people would instantly drop to the freezing point!

Not to mention that the Zhili area is on the south side of the capital. What if these damn rebels come to the capital?

This is something that no one can guarantee!

Zhu Houzhao did not answer, but ordered in a cold voice.

"Call the civil and military officials to discuss matters, immediately!"

Half an hour later, the nine ministers and the nobles all rushed over.

They also heard some rumors on the way to the palace, so as soon as the officials saw His Majesty the Emperor, they immediately requested to dispatch troops to quell the rebellion!

After all, Hebei is not called Hebei now, but "Zhili"!

Zhili is directly under the jurisdiction of the capital.

In the early years of Hongwu, Emperor Taizu Zhu Yuanzhang established his capital in Jinling, and made Yingtian and other fourteen prefectures and four states as Zhili.

In the early years of Yongle, Emperor Taizong Zhu Di decided to move the capital. In the first year of Yongle, he ordered Beiping to be renamed Beijing and called it the "Xingzai", which means the place where the emperor was. In the eighteenth year, the capital was officially moved and Beiping's governorship was changed to Zhili, which was called Beizhi.

Of course, Nanzhili was not ignored. After all, it was the birthplace of the Ming Dynasty and the main source of taxes in the country. The main examination hall of the southern imperial examination, Jiangnan Gongyuan, was also located here, occupying the position of economic center and cultural center. Therefore, Emperor Taizong still retained a set of central institutions of the same level as Beizhili in Nanzhili, although it was far less powerful than Beizhili.

Beizhili was the core area of ​​Hebei Province in later generations, including eight prefectures, two states and seventeen subordinate states, including the capital-Beijing.

Therefore, Beizhili must not be in chaos, after all, it was the center of the Ming Dynasty court.

Not to mention that these rebels are extremely brave and good at fighting. In just over a month, they have conquered several cities. If they really go straight to the capital and kill Beijing, let alone whether they dare to do so, as long as the situation collapses to this extent, what prestige does the Ming Dynasty have?

I am afraid that the world will really be in chaos!

So we must immediately dispatch troops to quell the rebellion!

It is easy to dispatch troops. The Beijing army has already recovered its combat effectiveness. It is enough to directly mobilize 20,000 or 30,000 troops to wipe out this group of damned bandits.

But the only problem is, who should be sent as the general?

Nowadays, the Ming Dynasty really can't pick out a decent general.

Zhu Hui, the Duke of Baoguo?

This is a tiger father and a dog son. Last time he led the army to resist Mongolia, he didn't even see the face of the Mongolian Tartars. He dared to directly ask for credit for 20,000 soldiers in one breath. Naturally, the civil officials and gentry would never let such a domineering waste go to command the troops again.

Not to mention that this guy had offended the emperor not long ago, and his family was directly confiscated by the emperor in disguise. Now he is still hiding at home and licking his wounds. Naturally, it is even more impossible for him to lead the troops to fight.

But except for this Baoguogong Zhu Hui, the rest of the nobles are all playboys and wastes, and there is no suitable candidate.

Could it be that you let Yinggong Zhang Mao lead the troops to fight?

Impossible!

So after thinking about it, after unanimous discussion by the civil and military officials, this matter must be handed over to the Zhongshan Marquis who is in charge of Shandong!

Zhongshan Marquis happens to be in Shandong, not too far from Bazhou. If he leaves immediately, he can quickly reach the battlefield, which is what the officials want to see.

However, Zhu Houzhao did not want to see this scene, or he did not want to fall into the trap of those traitors.

"Is there no other general in my great Ming Dynasty except Zhongshan Marquis?"

Zhu Houzhao glanced at the officials and scolded them harshly.

Han Wen, the Minister of Revenue, stepped out of the line and advised earnestly: "Your Majesty, now is not the time to act on impulse."

"Zhili must not be in chaos, and we must not allow the rebels to toss and turn. We must put down the rebellion as soon as possible with thunder and lightning, and deter those who have evil intentions in the world, otherwise..."

"Your Majesty, what Han Shangshu said is very true, Zhili must not be in chaos!" Wang Ao, the Minister of Personnel, also stepped out of the line to make suggestions.

Tianguan Ma Wensheng has officially retired a few days ago, and strongly recommended Wang Ao to succeed the Minister of Personnel. Zhu Houzhao has no objection to this. After all, Wang Ao's virtue and ability are obvious to all, and he is undoubtedly the best candidate.

"Your Majesty, I second the motion!"

"I second the motion!"

One by one, the nine ministers stepped out of the line to support the dispatch of Zhongshan Hou to quell the rebellion.

Zhu Houzhao looked at these people coldly, his face was ashen and his face was calm.

If they had encountered such a rebellion before, they would never let the barbarians lead the troops to fight, in order to limit the Zhongshan Marquis from grabbing military merits and continuing to be promoted!

Now it is extremely funny. Seeing that the fleet is about to be built and ready to go out to sea for trade, a rebellion suddenly broke out, and the ministers proposed one after another that the Zhongshan Marquis lead the troops to fight!

Even a fool can see the trick in this!

Zhu Houzhao clenched his fists tightly, looking at the people in front of him, and finally had to issue an order dejectedly.

"Issue an order to appoint Zhongshan Marquis as the general to fight against the rebels, and immediately lead the troops to Bazhou to quell the rebellion!"

"30,000 Beijing troops will set off immediately, led by Wuding Marquis Guo Xun, and rush to Bazhou to meet Zhongshan Marquis!"

After issuing the order, Zhu Houzhao angrily left, leaving the ministers looking at each other in bewilderment.

After returning to the bedroom, Zhu Houzhao called Chen Kuan.

"Da eunuch!"

"These traitors are really hateful!"

Chen Kuan also understood the whole story, and naturally understood why His Majesty was angry.

For the sake of the sea trade profits, the mastermind behind the scenes was so bold to start a rebellion, disregarding the people and the court, disregarding the country and the people... He deserves death!

The last time, Bian Xiong, Huang Xingfu, Zhu Maogong and others came once, secretly instigating the White Lotus Sect to rebel, and now it has only been a short time, and such a bad thing has happened again.

"Your Majesty, the factory guards are investigating the Tongzhengsi and catching the person who deliberately withheld the memorial!"

"If it goes well, it is possible to catch these traitors and kill them all!"

A fierce look flashed across Chen Kuan's face, and the old eunuch was really angry this time.

"We must catch these bastards!"

"Otherwise, I can't swallow this bad breath!"

As the imperial eunuch was issued, the Jinyiwei took action immediately.

However, they naturally knew the priorities. The most important thing at the moment was to quell the rebellion. Therefore, through the Jinyiwei's information channel, the emperor's order quickly reached Shandong.

Tang Hao was directing the soldiers to conduct firearms training, and Zuo Yidao immediately rushed over with a pale face.

"My Lord, something big has happened!"

"Liu Liu and Liu Qi in Bazhou rebelled with great momentum and conquered several cities in a row!"

"Your Majesty has ordered you to go to Bazhou to quell the rebellion immediately, and Guo Xun has also set out from the capital with 30,000 soldiers."

Liu Liu and Liu Qi rebelled?

Tang Hao was stunned when he heard this, and a hint of surprise flashed in his eyes.

It seems that there was indeed such a thing in history, but the problem is that the rebellion broke out at this moment. Isn't it a bit too coincidental?

Are those gentry and gentry really so crazy?

Aren't they afraid that they will really overthrow the Ming Dynasty?

Liu Daxia once said that the Ming Dynasty is now in trouble, and the people are poor and penniless, but it will take some time for it to completely collapse.

These gentry will never watch the Ming Dynasty completely collapse, after all, their base is the Ming Dynasty.

If they really sit back and watch the Ming Dynasty be replaced, then these gentry will not be able to ensure their vested interests.

Therefore, this rebellion is just a lot of thunder, but little rain.

"My Lord!"

"This is too strange!"

Tang Mu couldn't help but say: "Why did they rebel earlier or later, but at this time? Even a fool knows that there is something fishy here..."

"Well, then what?" Tang Hao sighed, "Even if we know there is something fishy here, we have to get in!"

"After all, this is Zhili, not an insignificant place, but the capital of the Ming Dynasty!"

"If there is a rebellion in Zhili and the court is unable to suppress it, what will the people of the world think?"

When these words came out, everyone shuddered.

If they can't even defend their own nest, who will still be in awe of the Ming Dynasty court?

I'm afraid that by that time, the real chaos will come, and the smoke of war will rise everywhere!

"So, your majesty has to send this marquis to quell the rebellion!"

"Zhili cannot be in chaos, the capital cannot be in chaos, and the world cannot be in chaos!"

"The mastermind behind the scenes saw this point and directed such a good show!"

Tang Hao sneered, with murderous intent in his heart.

This is an open conspiracy.

Those people wanted Zhu Houzhao to make a choice.

Either choose the country or choose the benefits of maritime trade.

For an emperor, there is no doubt that he will definitely choose the former.

No matter how unwilling Zhu Houzhao was, he had to dispatch Tang Hao to quell the rebellion immediately.

"Zuo Yidao, lead 3,000 imperial guards and 2,000 combat soldiers to continue to garrison Qinghe Shipyard!"

"Without the order of your majesty and this marquis, no official shall spy on this place, otherwise he will be killed without mercy!"

"Those who take the opportunity to cause chaos will be killed! Those who get involved in the shipyard will be killed! Those who break in without authorization will be killed!"

Three consecutive "kill" words came out, even Zuo Yidao couldn't help shuddering.

But he immediately accepted the order without any hesitation.

In fact, Tang Hao wanted to leave Tang Mu to guard the Qinghe Shipyard, but the problem was that Tang Mu's identity was ultimately just a mere commander of the Beijing Army.

However, Zuo Yidao was a lieutenant commander of the Jinyiwei and the Four Guards Imperial Guards. Both of them were the emperor's personal troops and were only responsible to the Emperor of Ming Dynasty. Therefore, no matter who came, Zuo Yidao could keep them out!

In addition to the 3,000 Four Guards Imperial Guards and 2,000 Beijing Army soldiers under his command, no matter who wanted to take advantage of the opportunity to get involved in Qinghe Shipyard, they would have thought too much!

"Yidao, you must defend this Qinghe Shipyard!"

Tang Hao looked at Zuo Yidao with a stern expression.

"This is the result of our hard work for more than a year. It must not be taken away by some cats and dogs!"

Zuo Yidao took a deep breath and nodded heavily.

"Don't worry, Lord Hou, there will be no problem."

Even if he, Zuo Yidao, died in battle, he would not let any outsiders step into this shipyard!

Tang Hao nodded with relief and looked at Tang Mu.

"Tang Mu, collect the three-barreled guns in the army immediately, and let the firearms workshop produce three-barreled guns with all its strength. I want to see 5,000 of them within three days!"

"In addition, inform the generals and inspectors of Shandong to strengthen their vigilance immediately. If anyone tries to take advantage of the opportunity to cause chaos, kill them without mercy!"

"Tell them that if there is any chaos in Shandong during my absence, I will personally destroy them!"

In memory, the massive uprising of Liu Liu and Liu Qi not only affected Hebei, but also Shandong.

Shandong is now undergoing a reform of the garrison system and is responsible for the pilot project, so it naturally cannot be destroyed.

Zuo Yidao immediately went to pass the order and make all preparations for the war.

Three days later, Tang Hao only took the generals to rush to Bazhou at night.

At this moment, the bloody smell in the air of Raoyang County Government has not dissipated.

Qi Yanming sat on the seat of the county magistrate with a big horse and a golden sword, listening quietly to his staff.

Since they started the uprising, they have only killed officials and gentry, burned down government offices, looted arsenals, released prisoners, and recruited young and strong men...Today, they have grown to nearly 30,000 people.

It seems to be a huge force, but Qi Yanming knows in his heart that these are just illusions.

The court must have heard the news, and the next step is to send a large army to encircle and suppress them.

Most of these 30,000 men are young and strong civilians. Even if they are given armor and crossbows, they may not be able to use them. They have almost no combat effectiveness.

Moreover, as the team grows larger, they need more and more food, which almost forces the army to constantly attack cities and capture strongholds and plunder food!

As for hiding in the deep mountains and old forests, it is simply unrealistic.

Are we going to let everyone eat tree bark and grass roots?

When thinking of these problems, Qi Yanming couldn't help but sigh heavily.

At this time, the Jiangnan merchant who had instigated him to start a rebellion appeared again.

As soon as he saw this person, Qi Yanming seemed to have found the backbone.

"Mr. Fan, what should we do next?"

Jiangnan merchant Fan Wencheng chuckled, and then drew a grand blueprint!

"General, don't worry too much. Next, our army should..."