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Chapter 660 Drawing a pie

Du Wenhuan was a military general, but he was not lacking in cultural accomplishment. Second- and third-generation generals like him had basically read a lot of books and were much happier than first-generation generals who had to work hard to get by.

"...Where did this ancient person come from?" Hearing the emperor evaluating the character of officials in the court, he knew it was not easy to respond, but it would be even more inappropriate to keep silent, so he simply found an opportunity to change the subject.

"Uh...his last name is Lie, I can't remember where it came from. But Zhao Pu did say to Emperor Taizong of Song that if China is at peace, the barbarians will submit. Therefore, if you want to resist foreign aggression, you must first stabilize the country.

This statement is very appropriate for the Ming Dynasty. If you want to solve the border problems, it is putting the cart before the horse to only focus on Mongolia and the Jurchens. First, the new policy should be rolled out to ensure that the people are well fed and clothed. Only then can the court free up its hands to focus on foreign affairs, and only then will there be money in the granary to train more land forces.

The most important thing is that I don't want to be like Emperor Rui, who had to fight the northern barbarians in the front and be on guard against being stabbed in the back by treacherous villains. Taowu, you are the son of a general and have close contacts with your comrades in the army. I want to ask you a question, and it would be best if you can answer truthfully. "

Lenin said that a castle is most easily breached from the inside. If we have to talk about seniority, I'm afraid even Dala Sun can't be ranked. Hong Tao knew that he was talking about Tulu, so he didn't explain too much. He changed another saying of the ancients and used it as an introduction to test Du Wenhuan's true thoughts.

"Your Majesty, please ask, I will tell you everything I know!"

After going around in circles, he failed to get out of this topic and ended up running into a dead end. Du Wenhuan looked at the emperor's calm face and felt his heart tighten. He began to regret having said so much.

"There is no need for me to go to Shaanxi to deal with the disaster. Even if I went, it would be useless except for adding burden to the local government. But I still insisted on going. Do you know why?"

"…This…Your Majesty is probably worried that local officials will misinterpret your will and fail to carry out disaster relief work."

This question was beyond Du Wenhuan's expectation. How could he suddenly turn to civil affairs when he was talking about the chaos in the court? He really didn't have any idea about these government affairs. He racked his brains to come up with a possibility, but he didn't feel good when he heard it.

"Although I have personally approved the New Disaster Relief Law, I have never been to the disaster area in person, let alone any experience to speak of. How can I guide local officials? You followed me out of Shanhaiguan, but why did you go out of the pass at that time?" Hong Tao shook his head and continued to ask.

"…to lure the entire Jurchen army forward, and then gather together to annihilate them!" After this question was asked, Du Wenhuan finally understood something. However, he still couldn't figure out who the emperor was planning to lure in this time, and why.

"That's right. Now I have no rivals in the court, but there are still many dissatisfied people outside the capital. If I sit in the Forbidden City all day, they will have no chance to take action and can only endure it.

They can afford to delay, but I can't. If I don't completely eradicate these people, I can't deal with the northern barbarians with all my strength. So I have to find an excuse, travel light and go to the border towns, deliberately giving them a great opportunity to recreate Tumubao.

What I wanted to ask you just now is, if you meet an old friend or a clan member standing in the opposite army, would you kill him? Don't feel pressured, I won't punish you for this. It is human nature to miss old friendships and family affection, but if you say it insincerely, it is a crime of deceiving the emperor, and it will also implicate your uncle. "If Du Wenhuan deliberately didn't get close to him during this trip, Hong Tao would not plan to tell him these heartfelt words. Before the trip, all army generals who were not from the Haihu Division, the Cuju Team, and the Navy would be closely monitored by the General Staff, and if there was any abnormality in their performance, they would be immediately arrested by the Cuju Team.

Although Wang Chengen was weak on the battlefield, he was ruthless in interrogating prisoners with severe punishments. The more pain the other party suffered, the more excited he became. He was a bit of a pervert. Now that Du Wenhuan had come up to him, he should be given another chance.

"Your Majesty has been very kind to me and my uncle. The Du family is willing to follow you until death! Your Majesty's enemies are also the Du family's enemies. On the battlefield, each of us serves his own master. There is no difference between who can go down and who cannot!"

This time Du Wenhuan answered very straightforwardly. If he had not been on horseback, he would have fallen to his knees. He thought that this time accompanying the emperor on a tour was a good job. As long as he was careful and there were no major accidents, he would definitely be assigned a real job after returning.

I never thought that the emperor would risk his life as bait to lure out all the potential dangers hidden in the border troops and destroy them. If I had known this would happen, I should have applied to be stationed in Songshan Port for a while to avoid this muddy water.

But as the saying goes, if I had known I would wet the kang, I would have slept on a sieve. Who could have thought that the emperor would be so cruel, and would fight for his life at the slightest sign of trouble. Most emperors in ancient and modern times, both in China and abroad, cherished their lives extremely, but this one was a psychopath, who was particularly afraid of death at one moment and wanted to die at another.

But it was too late to say anything now. Facing the emperor's question, not only did he have to answer, but he had to answer with absolute decisiveness. Any hesitation would bring disaster to himself and his family.

"Well, that's good. Although it's not easy to suck the blood of soldiers and eat empty salaries by following me, it's not difficult to become rich. In terms of making money, I say that Ming Dynasty is second to none, and I'm afraid no one dares to say that they are first. What's more interesting is that I will let you see a world that others can't even imagine in their lifetime, and personally incorporate it into the territory of Ming Dynasty.

Fenglangjuxu, Guanjunhou and so on are just a small test. There are many countries and many kings in the west. I will lead you all the way to fight. Those who follow me will prosper and those who go against me will perish. When we reach the end of the continent, we can choose a castle by the sea and let all the kings and queens dance together to cheer us up.

You might be able to become a governor and command the Western countries for the Ming Dynasty. Let them learn Chinese, write Chinese characters, wear Chinese clothes, and read classics. It's easy to say that you should cultivate yourself, manage your family, govern the country, and bring peace to the world, but few people have the opportunity to realize it. Do you want to try?"

Is Du Wenhuan sincere? Hong Tao didn't think much about it. Even if he was sincere, he would. Since he and Du Song chose to stand on his side, they couldn't just work, but also give some benefits. Who would be willing to risk their lives for others without benefits?

What benefits are given? The ancients often said that high positions and generous salaries are good. It cannot be said to be wrong, but it is not accurate. For ordinary people, high positions and generous salaries are indeed a goal worth pursuing desperately, but for people with a certain wealth and status, the temptation is not so strong.

For example, Yuan Keli's family was very well-off, and he would not be short of money even if he did not become an official. At this time, if you offer him a high position and generous salary and ask him to devote his entire life to doing things at great risk, it is highly likely that you will not get positive feedback.

But for brothers like Li Ruzhang and Li Rumei, although their families were not short of money, they would soon fall into decline after losing their military power. Giving them high positions at this time was equivalent to giving the Li family a way out, and they would follow him even at great risk.

(End of this chapter)