Bright Spring

Zhu Gaoxu turned his head and said, "Continue talking."

Qi Tai said, "The most unfavorable situation for Ming Dynasty on the northern grasslands is a leader who is good at fighting and annexing all the tribes; then they will gather their strength and use all their strength to invade and harass the south. If Alutai did not wholeheartedly support the Yuan Dynasty's clan as a khan, the tribes would They will merge with each other in the chaotic situation until a figure like Genghis Khan appears. However, it is very difficult for the Yuan Dynasty clan to dominate the grassland."

Zhu Gaoxu quickly responded, "There is some truth, at least it is the opinion of the family."

Just like that Tatar Hatu, who just arrived in the capital, he wanted to do whatever he wanted. As long as the grassland tribes had the opportunity, most of them would probably want to invade the south, which was almost an inevitable choice.Materials in the north are relatively scarce and people's livelihood is difficult, and there is a huge and rich agricultural land next to it. How can the tribes stop the idea of ​​plundering|plundering?

This situation may not be changed until the cavalry completely loses their advantage.Or they themselves have worries about survival and cannot gather troops to attack.What Qitai meant was the latter, to prevent the various tribes of Mongolia from being screwed together so that they could restrain each other.

Zhu Gaoxu said, "Thinking about the leaders in the north, they should first concentrate their strength and eliminate their worries; then they have to wait for the opportunity. The best time to act is when the Ming Dynasty declines, or when the military equipment is relaxed for a long time."

While everyone was discussing, the maids began to patrol the tea.Gao Xianning drank the oolong tea from Fujian Province, and his previous retching symptoms seemed to have eased.

Gao Xianning put down his teacup and said, "Qi Butang's words are general, but I feel a little puzzled about some trivial matters. Since the remnants of the Tatars escaped from the hands of the Wacha tribes in Western Mongolia and went to Hamiwei; it seems that At first, the Oach people probably didn’t know that Ben Yali Shihan had a son among them. Later, the Oach people suddenly threatened King Hamiwei Zhongshun, so they should know this secret. How did the Oach people know?”

He glanced left and right, and said, "Perhaps the Wacha people will always have a way to find out the news. However, the Tatars in the east are thousands of miles away, so how can they get the news in time; You know, Ben Yali Shihan has a son, so he is in Hamiwei?"

Both Qi Tai and Hu Wei nodded slightly, probably feeling that what Gao Xianning said was a bit strange.

However, it is impossible for everyone to know such specific things while sitting in the imperial palace of the capital thousands of miles away.Zhu Gaoxu thought for a while, and then said, "Send someone to Ningxia Mansion, ask He Fu to send an envoy to ask King Zhongshun, and report everything Hami Wei knows in detail."

Qi Tai, Minister of the Ministry of War, clasped his hands and said, "I will issue the official document of the Ministry of War as soon as I receive the decree."

Zhu Gaoxu looked at Hu Wei again, "Hu Butang can promise the Tatar envoys to allow the remnants of the Tatars living in Hamiwei to return home by way."

Hu Mei bowed, "I obey the order."

The tea was almost finished, Zhu Gaoxu got up.Several people then stood up and thanked each other to leave.

Zhu Gaoxu has prepared for a long time for his hunting tour in the north, and now the itinerary has been confirmed, the brigade will leave Beijing in late June.The guard army has two guards, about 1 cavalry, and guards of honor, eunuchs, entourages of civil and military officials, etc., with a total of more than [-] people accompanying them.

Civil officials included Gao Xianning, Hou Hai, etc., accompanied by generals Qiu Fu, Wei Da, Wang Bin, and Chen Dachui and Wang Yu who led the troops.Of course, in addition to these civil and military officials, there are also many scribes.The Ming court has entered into the civil service system in an all-round way, and all affairs run up and down, relying on a large number of official documents, and it is impossible to do things effectively without officials.

There were two imperial concubines accompanying them out of the capital, Imperial Concubine Mu Zhen and Xian Concubine Yao Ji, as well as their concubines, Duan Xuehen and Shen Baoyan from their respective palaces.Zhu Gaoxu agreed with Miao Jin and let her stay in the capital this time.

Because the prince Zhu Zhanhe is still young, he cannot supervise the country.During the emperor's departure from Beijing, the official memorials were changed from Zhu Bian to Lan Bian, and the method designed by Wu Dechu was still used.

The decision-making body is the cabinet and the Dianbao Department, and its government offices are all in the Hall of Martial Arts, so the rules are a bit complicated.There are mainly three ways to deal with various government affairs and memorials.

Most of the memorials received by the Secretary of General Administration are normal inscriptions. Generally, if there is no dispute, the plan with the most support in the cabinet will be decided; then it will be sent to the Department of Treasures for reconsideration. If there is no objection, the memorial will take effect.

In the second case, if the matter is very controversial.After the cabinet deliberated and reluctantly made a decision, the memorial was sent to the Dianbao Department, and one of the six people in the Dianbao Department objected; the person who opposed it stated the reason, and then shelved the processing, and the memorial was sent to the emperor's palace in the north for Zhu Gaoxu to personally judge.

In addition, there are some matters that some people in the Code Department object to and cannot be dealt with immediately; but the matter is more urgent and cannot be delayed.When those people on duty in the Hall of Martial Arts encounter such a thing, they will discuss it with the Dianbao Office. As long as three people agree that the matter is indeed an emergency memorial, then the decision of the memorial will be immediately approved based on the conclusion of the cabinet.

All government affairs summaries will be recorded on the file and sent to the palace regularly for Zhu Gaoxu to have a look at.

After the expansion of the cabinet ministers, there are 11 people, six people from the Dianbao Department, seventeen people belong to different yamen, and there are even honorable military generals and eunuchs; there are also officials from the old and new factions.Therefore, everything is mutually restricted and involved, and the result of decision-making is generally not too absurd.

Zhu Gaoxu felt that the set of rules he had set up was better than the prime minister's management of politics, where all important matters were placed on a person's morality, ability, and self-awareness of not forming a party and authorizing power.Perhaps as time goes by, new problems will arise; but so far, the operation of the cabinet and the treasure department is still relatively good.

During the Hongwu period, there was a prime minister Li Shanchang.When Emperor Taizu discovered that there was a problem with the prime minister, he wanted to correct the distribution of power, so he had to clean up the party members of the prime minister's party on a large scale.

And Zhu Gaoxu speculated that if someone had a problem with his own method, he only needed to replace one of them from the position of the yamen hall official.Stability is better than prime minister system.

Before the escorting brigade was about to set off, Zhu Gaoxu asked the Sixth Section Office to copy a copy of the residence newspaper and convey it to the various government offices north of the river.Order the chief ministers and officials of prefectures and counties in all places not to drive the people out of the city to greet them without authorization, but to show up.It is not allowed to plunder the common people and transport supplies to reward the army.Wherever the army went, they set up tents by themselves, or sent people to requisition houses.The food and fodder needed for guarding soldiers and horses will be transferred from official documents issued by the palace to various public treasuries; other expenses will be purchased by officials sent by the palace and cash...

In late June, Zhu Gaoxu led the crowd to sacrifice to the mausoleum of Emperor Taizong in the capital, and then crossed the river with a large group of people.After crossing the river, they will first go to Fengyang, the central capital, to visit the tomb of the Zhu family's earlier ancestors.

The weather was fine, and the sun had just risen, and the weather was a bit muggy.Civil and military officials sent them all the way to the ferry of Shangyuanmen, and saw them off by the river.Zhu Gaoxu first drove out of the city on a four-horse luan, and got out of the car when he got on the boat, accepting the farewell etiquette of the officials on the case.

After the ferry broke down, Zhu Gaoxu boarded the poop of the big ship.As the warship slowly left the shore, he was on the river, watching the scenery of the capital on the shore.

Inside and outside the continuous city walls, magnificent city towers, and countless pavilions gather in the capital, and a tall pagoda stands among them.On the big river and on the river, the sails are like clouds, and the painted boats are cruising.Even outside the capital city, the population living in the city is increasing, and there are many beautiful manors and other courtyards.Looking at the capital from a distance, it is really prosperous.

However, when Zhu Gaoxu's boat gradually moved away from the capital, he was in a very good mood at this time, as if he had entered a wider world, refreshed.Looking back on the past, he has always been a person who likes to go around, and in the years after the Northern Expedition, he has never left Beijing.How he held back for such a long time, he himself did not know clearly.

After a while, Mu Zhen also came over.Zhu Gaoxu turned his head to look, and saw that she was wearing a robe, combing her hair in a bun, and she was dressed as a woman disguised as a man, vaguely as if she sneaked out of the Mu Palace when she was in Yunnan.However, her clear and thin handsome appearance many years ago has become more feminine and charming. Only her eyes still have a beautiful smile, making people look like a spring breeze.

Mu Zhen cupped her fists and said, "This concubine has seen the Holy Majesty."

Zhu Gaoxu stretched out his hand to gently support her up, pointed to the scenery to the south, and said casually, "In this city, people outside must want to go in, but people inside want to come out from time to time."

"What the Holy Majesty said is very true." Mu Zhen replied, then walked to the railing, and watched the scenery of the capital in the morning sun with Zhu Gaoxu.

The ferry slowly sailed to the north bank of the river, and Zhu Gaoxu's journey to the north this year began from then on.

……

……

Sorry everyone, the latest update is unstable.In the later stage of writing, the plot is not easy to arrange, and it is a bit stuck.I'll try to wrap it up as best I can, probably next month, and then I'll start a new book. )

Chapter 9: News of the Flower Girl

At the turn of summer and autumn, the climate in the south is no different from that in summer, while the autumn in the grasslands in the north is already obvious.The aquatic plants near the Fishing Sea gradually faded from their bright green color, and turned yellow when viewed from a distance, and the pastures began to set seeds.

The Tatar tribes who moved away due to the Northern Expedition of the Ming Army a few years ago returned to their respective pastures, and the Asut tribe where Arutai was located returned to the rich water and grass near the Fishing Sea.Eunuch Huang Yan was naturally among them.

He was lingering boredly on the shore of the fishing sea, sometimes sitting cross-legged, sometimes lying on the barren sand.

Tatars often eat meat and milk, Huang Yan not only did not gain weight, but became thinner.The cloth he was wearing was so dirty that he couldn't see his true color, and the animal skin hung on his body like a beggar. His face was so tanned that it seemed to be mixed with the color of the soil, and he couldn't clean it no matter how he washed it.

Huang Yan sat up, staring blankly at the fishing sea.In the autumn wind, the lake is sparkling, the scenery is good, and there is a kind of tranquil and pure beauty between heaven and earth.

At first, Huang Yan also thought that the lake and the pasture looked very good; but after a long time, these scenery became boring, and the only thing left was the mosquitoes in the grass, and the smell of cow dung in everything he ate and drank.

Before, it was difficult for him to even make a living. If it hadn’t been for the help of the Tatars who were doing business with the Uryanha people, he would have starved to death long ago.It wasn't until this year that the situation changed. Arutai, a Tatar nobleman, suddenly found Huang Yan through a Tatar man who knew Huang Yan.Arutai asked Huang Yan to write a letter to Daming Zhao Wangfu. In return, Arutai casually ordered that the Wuzhang Tatars be responsible for supporting Huang Yan.

So he had a more reliable source of food and clothing.

However, Huang Yan didn't live a comfortable life because of this. He didn't eat mutton all summer, let alone rice noodles.He ate mostly goat's milk, horse's milk, a kind of bob-tailed rat, and everything else he could eat.In addition, he also felt very bored. The joy of every day was to recall the life of the first half of his life in Daming.

At this moment, he heard someone calling: "Eunuch Huang, Eunuch Huang!"

Huang Yan turned his head and saw the flower girl from Wuliangha running towards this side.Huang Yan felt a burst of joy. The flower boy not only could speak Chinese, but also was the closest Mongolian to Huang Yan. Of course, Huang Yan knew the reason. gold and silver.

But I saw that the flower boy was a strong and dark man with a particularly thick chest, with animal skins like beggars hanging on his body, and exuding a familiar smell like urine being sunburned.I don't know who gave him the Chinese name, but it's called Huatong, probably because the transliteration is not accurate.

"Why did you come back so soon?" Huang Yan asked.

The flower girl said in Chinese: "I'm riding a horse, and I'll come back to receive the reward after delivering the letter for Alutai."

Huang Yan patted the sand on his body and said, "Go to my tent and treat you to tea."

The flower girl nodded happily.On the grasslands, tea is a rare commodity. After the mutual market between the Tatars and the Han people was cut off, it could only be obtained through underground transactions such as the Wuliangha people, and the price was very high.Ordinary herdsmen would rather chew grass to relieve their greasyness, and Huang Yan also chewed that kind of grass, which was as bitter as medicine.

"Passing past the pastures of the Wuliangha people, it is the place of the Horqin people. There is a leader of the Horqin tribe named Adai, who is a relative of Alutai. There are Tatars in our group, so we are not stopped, and we walk quickly. .” The flower boy talked eloquently, and his Chinese became better and better.