weaving

The capital of the Ming Dynasty, the Forbidden City, and the Wenhua Hall.

Emperor Chongzhen sat quietly in the east wing hall. He was very worried about the suppression of bandits in Henan at the moment. He used to think that with Ding Qirui in the south, the Xuanda border army led by Yongning Earl in the north, and the Zhenbao official army led by Governor Zhang Fuzhen supporting them, not only the siege of Kaifeng could be lifted, but even the disaster of banditry in Zhongzhou could be eliminated in one fell swoop.

But who could have imagined the current situation. Ding Qirui and Zuo Liangyu were defeated and fled in Zhuxian Town, while Earl Yongning, Zhang Fuzhen and the bandits continued to be deadlocked in Zhuxian Town. The war in Zhongzhou has made no progress.

Emperor Chongzhen was very anxious about this, but although the court was full of civil and military officials, he could not choose a talent that could be used. Whenever he felt this way, he would miss the former cabinet minister Yang Sichang deeply...

Today, in order to suppress the bandits in Zhongzhou, he specially ordered the chief minister of the cabinet, Zhou Yanru, to come to the Wenhua Hall for a private meeting.

At this moment, I was thinking that it was fortunate that I had gone against all odds and reappointed Zhou Yanru as the chief minister of the cabinet. Otherwise, I really wouldn’t know who to turn to for help in solving today’s problems!

Although Emperor Chongzhen dismissed Zhou Yanru and sent him back home in the sixth year of Chongzhen, he actually knew that Yanru was still a man of quick action. Most of the cabinet chief ministers who came after him were not as experienced and capable as Zhou Yanru, so he deserved the title of "number one prime minister".

Even Emperor Chongzhen adopted his "proposal" on how to deal with the three defeated generals Ding Qirui, Yang Wenyue and Zuo Liangyu.

Now, in order to urgently rescue Kaifeng, or even eliminate the threat of bandits in Henan, Emperor Chongzhen was unable to choose a candidate to be appointed as the commander-in-chief.

Only then did he issue an imperial decree to summon the chief minister of the cabinet, Zhou Yanru, into the palace, preparing to interview him alone in the Wenhua Hall.

Zhou Yanru's reinstatement to the position of Prime Minister of the Cabinet was mainly due to the help from the Donglin Party and the Fushe leader Zhang Pu. Although he could not be said to be very grateful to the Donglin Party members, he became a member of the Donglin faction and would take the interests of the Donglin Party into consideration when doing things.

Today, when he heard the eunuch's order that "Emperor Chongzhen summoned him to the Wenhua Palace for an audience alone", he guessed that it was about the bandit problem in Zhongzhou, and began to calculate the interests of all parties and the candidate for the re-appointed commander.

Zhou Yanru’s idea was actually very simple, which was to take into account the interests of the Donglin faction, prevent power from flowing to other factions, and make Emperor Chongzhen recognize and feel satisfied.

Just like the last time when Ding Qirui, Zuo Liangyu and others were defeated in Zhuxian Town, the suggestions he drafted for Emperor Chongzhen were very much to the Emperor's liking and made him very satisfied.

…………

Inside the Wenhua Hall.

After the Prime Minister Zhou Yanru paid great respects to Emperor Chongzhen, Emperor Chongzhen granted him a seat according to the old custom. After Zhou Yanru sat down, Emperor Chongzhen asked, "Now in the entire province of Henan, only the Yongning Earl's troops are left, and they are struggling to confront the bandits in the southern suburbs of Kaifeng. I am afraid that I cannot do it alone. In order to quell the rebellion of the bandits in Zhongzhou, who else can you send to Henan to lead the army to suppress the bandits?"

Zhou Yanru slowly lifted his butt off the corner of the chair, bowed and stood up to reply: "General Zuo Liangyu, who was promoted by Hou Xun, still remembers the favor. Your Majesty, has anyone told you about it?"

Emperor Chongzhen nodded gently: "I have heard something."

Zhou Yanru then continued, "Although the bandit Zuo Ping has fled from Zhuxian Town, his elite troops are still there. After retreating to Xiangyang, they will be able to gain a firm foothold and will soon recover their strength and fight again.

The defeat at Zhuxian Town was actually due to the fact that the commander-in-chief, the governor-general and the general who suppressed the bandits could not work together, so a minister who was highly respected and loved by them was selected to be the commander-in-chief, which might have the effect of..."

Emperor Chongzhen suddenly interrupted Zhou Yanru and asked, "Are you referring to...Hou Xun?" "Yes, Your Majesty. I'm afraid...only Hou Xun can command the Zuo Ping bandit."

Emperor Chongzhen's face darkened instantly, and he said bitterly: "Zuo Liangyu is arrogant and domineering. I have tolerated him in every possible way, but he still does not repent!"

Zhou Yanru was trembling all over, fearing that Emperor Chongzhen might suspect him, and hurriedly said carefully: "Although Zuo Liangyu has repeatedly failed the emperor's grace, the banditry in the Central Plains is becoming more and more rampant, and there is no peace yet. Although Yongning Bo leads the Xuanda Frontier Army in Kaifeng, it is still difficult to support it alone.

Although Zuo Liangyu was a little arrogant and domineering, he was, after all, a rare general with experience and strategy. I hope Your Majesty will look at the big picture and allow him to make up for his mistakes with his merits.

If Zuo Liangyu can be revived, not only will the Xian thief be intimidated, but even the Chuang thief who is currently confronting the Earl of Yongning will be cautious and will not be able to act recklessly in the Central Plains. "

After hearing his words, Emperor Chongzhen fell into deep thought. After a moment, he still did not dare to believe it and asked, "Zuo Liangyu... can he really recover and cheer up quickly?"

"Zuo Liangyu has led troops to fight against bandits for many years, and his prestige is well-known. He is also good at controlling troops, which is far beyond the reach of ordinary generals. I have seen in his secret report that after Xiangyang, he will definitely endure hardships and recruit his old subordinates..."

The more Emperor Chongzhen thought about the defeat at Zhuxian Town, the more upset he became. Before he could finish his words, he interrupted him and asked, "In your opinion, will Zuo Liangyu come to Kaifeng again to help?"

When Zhou Yanru heard Chongzhen's question, he felt a sense of peace in his heart, but on the surface there was no change at all, which showed how self-cultivated and scheming he was.

“It depends on how you steer it.”

"Hou Xun, can you really control him?"

How could Zhou Yanru be so foolish as to guarantee Hou Xun? He said cautiously with a sincere face: "I dare not guarantee that Hou Xun can definitely control him, but I know that he does regard Hou Xun as a benefactor and has not forgotten it to this day!"

Emperor Chongzhen showed hesitation on his face. He did not dare to make a decision for a moment, so he muttered in a low voice: "Let's give it a try?"

Seeing that Chongzhen's tone was softening, Zhou Yanru immediately said, "Whether to release Hou Xun from prison and appoint him as the commander of the army to aid Bian, please let the emperor decide."

Emperor Chongzhen had no other good ideas, and it seemed that this was the only feasible method at the moment...

Although Yongning Earl Zhang Cheng won many battles, the bandit Li is no longer the same as before. Two consecutive Shaanxi governors were killed in battle by him. Without the help of other government troops, it is likely that Yongning Earl's Xuanda border army will find it difficult to defeat the bandit Li.

The number of official troops that Emperor Chongzhen could mobilize was very limited. Although Wu Sangui, Cao Bianjiao and others in Liaodong were capable of fighting, they had not yet reached an agreement with the enemy, so they did not dare to be easily transferred elsewhere. The several official troops in Huaibei had to deal with the Xian thieves and the Five Gezuo thieves, so they could not go to support Henan.

Now, it seems that our only hope is that Zuo Liangyu can regain his strength and lead his troops to aid Henan again.

However, Emperor Chongzhen had other concerns in his mind, so he asked: "Even if Hou Xun can control Zuo Liangyu, Henan already has Baodu Zhang Fuzhen in charge. If Hou Xun is sent to be the commander-in-chief, won't it repeat the mistake of Ding Qirui and Yang Wenyue hindering each other?" (End of this chapter)