Bright Spring

"Under the solitary lamp at night, I am sitting alone in the cabin. There is Du Shiniang in the cabin, waiting for my husband. Suddenly, I heard someone calling Du Shiniang outside the window. Holding the window railing and looking around, why can't I see my husband... ..."

The tune of this little tune is strange, Qi Tai didn't know the title of the tune, so he only listened to the lyrics.In this majestic palace, a popular song was sung in Chen's melodious voice, both Qi Tai and Zhu Gaoxu turned around and listened attentively.

Although it's a bit off-putting, Qi Tai remembers what Zhu Gaoxu said: The Ming Dynasty was not a barbarian state, we should not only have great ambitions and hegemony, but also a prosperous culture, which will make all nations admire and yearn for it.

Probably the Holy One felt that vulgar music is also culture.

Qi Tai understood the lyrics, sighed secretly, and said in his heart: Your Majesty is really well-intentioned and thinks highly of me, how can I only care about myself?

Chapter 649 Battle

At the beginning of April in the seventh year of Yongle, the layout of the Northern Expedition was basically completed.Zhu Gaoxu's imperial conquest, generals Ping'an, Qu Neng, Wang Bin, Wu Gao, Zhang Fu, Liu Sheng and others accompanied the army in the northern expedition; the total force of the imperial court was about 25 cavalry (actual number); Qi Tai, Minister of the Ministry of War, was in charge of supervising the movement Food and pay along the way.

A decree has been issued earlier to transfer 3000 guards from Zhaowangfu in Beiping, 1 guards from Luwangfu in Yanzhou, Shandong, Zhouwangfu in Luoyang, Xi'an Qinwangfu, Taiyuan Jinwangfu, and Datong Daiwangfu; Su Wangfu and Qing Wangfu each mobilized 3000 cavalry.The northern feudal king's guard army will gather [-] people!

Then more than 25 elite soldiers were dispatched from the Nine Borders and other provinces;The total strength of the Ming army in the Northern Expedition will reach [-] troops!

The guards of the northern kings ranged from [-] to [-] at least, and more than [-].Zhu Gaoxu did not transfer all their troops at once, but it also reduced the guards of the vassal kings by half.

The ministers of the DPRK and China were almost silent on this matter.

Except for Qi Tai who was about to leave Beijing, no one objected, and no one wrote a letter to speak for the feudal lords.Before Qi Tai set off, he wrote a memorial and sent it to the palace through the Secretary of the General Administration.The memorial states that Emperor Taizu established various vassal states in various places, with the original intention of guarding the territory and shielding the border; now that the imperial court is taking the initiative to attack the Hulu in the north, the vassal king should send troops to accompany him.

Zhu Gaoxu sat in the East Nuan Pavilion of Qianqing Palace, searched through the memorials of the past few days, and found no one else to write a letter about this matter.Maps of all parts of Mongolia are still hanging in Dongnuan Pavilion. In the past two days, he reviewed the memorials and returned here.

It is inevitable for people to be influenced by others, and occasionally Zhu Gaoxu would secretly question himself: Is it too urgent?

This kind of mood is often encountered on the battlefield. Whenever the battle situation becomes confusing, the coach will inevitably waver from time to time.However, state affairs are more abstract and complicated than battles. Zhu Gaoxu felt that his slight wavering was just a normal expression.

It was already dark, and Zhu Gaoxu had his dinner in Dongnuange.

Many oil lamps were already lit in the house.After Zhu Gaoxu took the throne, he hadn't encountered a particularly urgent situation, and he didn't have to work overnight; so it was the first time he saw the scene of Dongnuang Pavilion under the orange lights.

The light from the fire is naturally not as bright as lighting the lamps. Even if many lamps are lit, there are only relatively bright colors in Dongnuange that can be seen clearly, while the walls, tables, chairs, and bookshelves with darker colors become hazy. up.

At this moment, Zhu Gaoxu felt someone bypassing the partition.When he looked up, he saw Miao Jin walking in wearing a big shirt and a phoenix crown.She clasped her hands in front of her belly and bent her knees, bowing gracefully: "My concubine pays homage to the Holy Majesty."

The imperial concubine's ordinary clothes are also complicated and gorgeous, with gold silk, precious stones and pearls shining under the lights.Zhu Gaoxu froze for a moment, he still rarely saw Miao Jin dressed up like this.

Accustomed to her wearing Taoist robes and plain clothes in the past, Zhu Gaoxu couldn't help but look at her now.

But Zhu Gaoxu suddenly felt that the elegant and gorgeous costumes should be more suitable for Miao Jin.Her figure is tall, her neck is straight and her shoulders are straight, she has a bit of dignity; The makeup and the jewelry of the phoenix crown add a bit of color.

The glamorous appearance and the gorgeous clothes match each other, complementing each other and adding color.

Zhu Gaoxu stared at her in a daze for a while, then Miao Jin slightly raised his head and glanced at him.

"Excuse me, come and sit here." Zhu Gaoxu hurriedly said at this time, "I sent someone to tell you to go to bed, thinking that you would find an excuse to shirk again; so I accidentally forgot about it, and I haven't returned yet. bedroom."

Miao Jin stood up straight, her red lips slightly parted, but finally she didn't say anything, she just looked at the memorials and files on the imperial case, and then looked up at the map behind Zhu Gaoxu.

Zhu Gaoxu asked again: "I heard that the concubines meet the queen in Kunning Palace, and you almost never go there. Does Miao Jin have any dissatisfaction?"

Miao Jin showed a forced smile, shook her head lightly and said, "Your Majesty, don't be distracted, you know that I have such a temperament. Although I seldom go to see the queen, I still send someone to speak. Take this matter to heart. Please rest assured, Your Majesty."

"Di Bao made it clear that my mother once regarded you as a righteous daughter. However, the three of Wei'er and the others knew the truth. Maybe it was a bit embarrassing at first..." Zhu Gaoxu mused, "Neither the queen nor I will blame you .”

When Miao Jin heard this, her eyes were moved, and her tone was softer than before: "Is the Holy Majesty busy arranging the Northern Expedition?"

Zhu Gaoxu said: "The arrangements are almost in place. I am not in a hurry to go north. Now let the Beijing camp and all the troops march to the territory of Beiping's chief envoy; I can wait for about two months and lead the army at the end of June and early July. There is still plenty of time for the cavalry to go north."

Miao Jin stopped talking about her own affairs while Zhu Gaoxu was talking about business.Following Zhu Gaoxu's topic, she said, "The Holy Majesty seems to have encountered a problem."

Zhu Gaoxu glanced at her. During the campaign against crimes, the two of them had been together day and night for a long time, and his mood seemed to be unable to hide from Miaojin's eyes.He said, "Miaojin doesn't have to worry about common things."

Miao Jin suddenly looked concerned, and asked, "Will the Holy Majesty be in danger when he personally conquers Mobei?"

Zhu Gaoxu shook his head and explained: "In a dynasty, internal affairs are often more troublesome than external ones. After the fall of the Yuan Dynasty, Emperor Taizu of the Ming Dynasty dispatched troops to continue to attack the forces of the Northern Yuan Dynasty in Liaodong and Mobei; the current Mongolian tribes are underpopulated. , it is difficult to unify the various ministries. With their current strength, if they want to wipe out the 30-strong army of the Ming Dynasty, they may not have the teeth to swallow it. Therefore, although our army's northern expedition may not achieve much results, as long as it does not Suicide, the Mongolian army has nothing to do with us.

I'm just a little worried about whether the northern kings can accept this troop transfer calmly. "

Miao Jin listened carefully, and said softly: "I don't dare to interfere in politics, but the Holy Majesty must be cautious when going out to fight."

Zhu Gaoxu said kindly: "Miao Jin is not only a noble concubine, but also my confidant." While speaking, he stretched out his hand to hold Miao Jin's jade hand naturally.

Miao Jin glanced at Zhu Gaoxu's hand, but did not resist.

Zhu Gaoxu put his hand there and said nothing for a moment.He couldn't help thinking about what he just mentioned...

For the time being, he is not trying to weaken the vassal, but is trying to weaken the northern kings.If it's not painful, it will appear that Zhu Gaoxu has a guilty conscience, and it won't be effective; but if it is too extreme, the kings will be persecuted too much, and it may trigger another civil | war!Therefore, Zhu Gaoxu issued an edict this time to transfer half of their guards to see the aftermath!

At the end of last year, when the Mongolian tribes attacked the border, the people suffered greatly.court

The troop was deployed for the Northern Expedition to the Hulu!At this time, if the vassal king dares to make disturbances regardless of the overall situation, he will lose the righteousness first!

So Zhu Gaoxu still tended to think that the kings would not act rashly.

Back then, Emperor Taizu's idea of ​​entrusting the kings was really good, but in fact it was obviously a mistake, which caused great trouble for the subsequent emperors; two civil wars broke out within ten years, which is a clear proof.

Taizu originally wanted the kings to be outside, so that they could not only guard the territory, but also deter the civil and military affairs of the imperial court in the capital, and protect the Zhu family's imperial order; moreover, there were still court officials in the vassal state, and there was no tendency to divide the territory and disrupt the great unity.

The seemingly perfect method failed to develop according to Emperor Taizu's vision.The result is that those vassal kings either don't do business, indulge in extravagance|sexuality|all kinds of illegal activities, causing great damage and burden to the local government; or they want to rebel and threaten the central government.It can be said that things backfired, and the disadvantages outweigh the advantages!

Maybe this is human nature?

Just because there are no real feudal princes, the land and vassal states are not the private property of the princes; the princes have no motivation to govern the place, and they are already honorable, so why don't they be greedy for money and enjoy themselves?And if a person with both civil and military skills is very ambitious, why doesn't he want to conspire to conquer the world, instead of entrusting the power of life and death to the emperor, and is subject to restrictions and suspicions everywhere?

"Fighting is really scary." Miao Jin's voice suddenly said.

Zhu Gaoxu was holding her hand, as if she had sensed his heart; but it wasn't like that, he just inadvertently held Miaojin's hand tightly just now, showing nervousness.

"Thus, those who do not hide from the world, it is best to strive for strength." Zhu Gaoxu said in a deep voice.

Miao Jin forced a smile: "I was originally a person who avoided the world, but now I am also in it and it is difficult to escape?"

Zhu Gaoxu said in a joking tone: "We have talked about it a long time ago. I am afraid that your method of hiding from the world is not realistic. Living on the mountain is inconvenient. Let alone bandits, small mosquitoes can make people's lives very uncomfortable. , It's a waste of life."

Miao Jin was silent for a while, without arguing.

Zhu Gaoxu stood up, pulled Miao Jin and said, "It's getting late, let's go back to the bedroom."

The two of them walked to the door of Dongnuan Pavilion, Miao Jin gently withdrew her hand, and walked next to Zhu Gaoxu, a little behind.When he walked out of the room, he could see many eunuchs and maids on duty outside.

After walking for a while on the corridor with lanterns, Zhu Gaoxu turned his head to look at Miao Jin, and said, "This year's northern expedition to Mongolia, the grassland and desert are really too bitter, so Miao Jin doesn't need to go."

Miao Jin responded, and said: "The book written by my concubine has just been added, deleted, and polished in the past few months; the book will be completed when the Holy One returns in triumph."

Zhu Gaoxu asked, "What's your name?"