Ming Dynasty: Domination of the World from the Imperial Examination

Chapter 396 Tang He returns to Beijing!

The tenth day of the first lunar month in the twentieth year of Hongwu.

The weather is cold.

Yingtian Prefecture was rarely lively as Tang He returned from Yuhang.

Early in the afternoon, Zhu Yuanzhang held a banquet in the palace to entertain his old brother. At the same time, he also called up the generals who were staying in the capital. At first glance, it seemed that he was preparing to mobilize the troops for the war after the beginning of spring this year. Therefore, many generals were ready to fight, and some even had already thought about how to ask for battle.

For a while.

Most of the military commanders in the capital were in high spirits.

Looking forward to the party in the evening.

Wenhua Pavilion.

Zhu Biao was wearing a long cloak, leaning against the stove in a relaxed manner, flipping through many letters of request for battle presented by the generals, but his eyes were full of smiles. He did not look up, and said lightly to the side: "Xia Zhibai, you really played these people hard."

"Now almost all the generals in the capital think that the court is preparing to send troops to Naha. They are rubbing their hands and want to fight. It's been less than half a day, and there are almost ten or twenty letters of request for battle. You have caused me so much trouble."

Zhu Biao put down another memorial and looked away with a smile.

Xia Zhibai smiled faintly and said, "It's a good thing that the generals are willing to work. As for the misunderstanding, that's their business. When has the court ever said that they will send troops to attack Naha in the spring? Even if they really want to send troops, they won't be led by people like Chang Sheng and Chang Mao. At most, they are just joining in the fun and want to gain military merit."

"As for causing trouble for His Highness, it's not my fault."

"If it weren't for your majesty's order to summon Duke Xin back to the capital, how could there be such a misunderstanding?"

Zhu Biao laughed and felt that what he said made sense.

He stretched his palm to the fire, rubbed his fingers, and said slowly: "You don't have to be present at today's dinner. You know the reason. The generals of the Ming Dynasty are not very knowledgeable, but they are not stupid. Once you arrive, anyone will think that anything that is a little outrageous and unexpected is your idea."

"The attitudes of the military officers are unclear right now. If someone takes advantage of the alcohol to attack you, I'm afraid it will be difficult to resist."

"You don't have to be there."

Xia Zhibai touched his nose awkwardly, feeling a little amused and helpless.

He did not think that his ideas were original or ingenious. Why did everyone treat him as an "alternative"? He felt really wronged. He also understood that Zhu Biao was indeed thinking about him. With the hot tempers of people like Lan Yu, he was fully prepared to ask for a fight, but the court suddenly changed the subject and did not mention the war at all. Instead, they turned to talk about other things. He could not help but feel angry.

When he's drunk, he can easily get into trouble.

With his thin arms and legs, he really couldn't withstand a few punches from Lan Yu.

Xia Zhibai said: "Thank you for your concern, Your Highness. This dinner was originally a banquet for His Majesty and military officers. As a civil official, it is not appropriate for me to be present. In addition, as someone who has no experience, it is also inconvenient for me to say more about the things we are discussing."

"Just one thing your highness needs to be careful about."

"It's the difference in treatment between the living and the dead."

Zhu Biao frowned.

He looked at Xia Zhibai suspiciously, and asked puzzledly: "What do you mean? Shouldn't it be determined according to the original merits?"

Xia Zhibai shook his head and smiled bitterly, "Yes, but no. The dead are gone, and the living are still here. Oftentimes, merits are more about taking care of the living. The dead are the greatest, but the living have the final say. If the balance is not right, something bad may happen."

Zhu Biao concentrated.

He looked at Xia Zhibai deeply and understood what Xia Zhibai wanted to say.

Generals like Chang Yuchun, Li Wenzhong, and Zhu Wenzheng had to fight in many battles. It cannot be said that these people were not strong, but if you want to erect a monument for them, you must give priority to the living ones, because from a political perspective, the living generals have more political significance, which cannot be compared with the dead generals. However, Chang Yuchun and Xu Da are probably exceptions.

After all, they are my father's brothers, and their contributions to the Ming Dynasty are known to the world. I am afraid that no one among the generals in the court would dare to take the lead and say that their current military achievements have surpassed these two. Even Feng Sheng and Fu Youde would not say so. And even if they dared to say so, Lan Yu, Chang Mao and others would definitely come forward.

But this is not necessarily the case for other generals.

When people leave, the tea is cool.

The circle of military generals also follows this principle.

After all, the Ming Dynasty still has to place importance on the living generals, because these talents are the ones that the Ming Dynasty can rely on now. If they cannot be reconciled, tonight's banquet will turn into a bad thing and stir up disharmony between the monarch and his subjects.

Zhu Biao said: "I'll remember this."

"Things in the world are always complicated. Many times, people say that rewards should be given according to merit, but in the end, they never really do it. Now, when writing biographies and carving monuments for military generals, there are the same concerns. It's even impossible to be fair."

"Ugh."

Zhu Biao let out a long sigh, his eyes looking quite helpless.

But this helplessness was fleeting. As a political talent, he would not be affected by too many emotions. The only thing that could affect them was politics. He was sure that he himself would be affected to a certain extent, but His Majesty would definitely not.

The more so.

The more he respected Your Majesty.

He knew the hardships His Majesty had gone through along the way, and also knew how difficult it was for His Majesty to make decisions along the way, and how much scolding and pressure he had to bear, but his father never said a word, silently took it all on, and handled these matters very properly.

only.
His Majesty has become increasingly cruel and ruthless.

Everything is done from a political perspective and is not mixed with too many personal thoughts.

It makes people feel heartless and ungrateful.

Mean and ungrateful.

But this is the path that political strongmen must take.

It is also a compulsory course.

Emotions are too luxurious for this kind of people, so luxurious that they should not exist. They are just too purely political creatures, which makes people feel frightened, because in the eyes of these people, in the end there are only interests and rights, nothing else.

Xia Zhibai stood quietly aside, staring at the flickering campfire with lifeless eyes.

The most ruthless imperial family.

Once you embark on the political path, many things are beyond your control. Even if you are lucky enough to still have feelings in your heart, in the end, in the face of interests and power, the soft self in your heart will gradually be killed, because softness will only become a weapon for others to attack you.

If you don’t kill the softness in your heart, you can’t reach the top of the mountain.

even.
If Zhu Biao was given a certain amount of time, he would become like that. To be precise, any political creature is exactly the same. The only difference is the different cognition of the world and the different ways of dealing with the world, that's all.

But Xia Zhibai didn't care much.

The emperor has his way, and he also has his way.

For a short time, their goals were aligned, and that was enough.

(End of this chapter)