I am Emperor Wanli

Chapter 226 The Prince Still Wants Military Power
Zhu Yijun put his hands in his sleeves and walked around the room a few times.

No one said anything, everyone was secretly guessing the prince's intentions.

When investigating the Lianghuai salt administration, we must eliminate the masterminds behind it.

But there were many people behind the Yangzhou salt merchants, including relatives and nobles in the capital, aristocratic families in the south of the Yangtze River, high-ranking officials in the court, and even the concubines and eunuchs in the Forbidden City.

The nobles and officials in Nanjing city can only be regarded as one of the groups. Because they are close to each other, they have frequent contacts and are particularly conspicuous.

His Royal Highness the Crown Prince investigated the Lianghuai Salt Administration, and then "took advantage of" the Zhenwu Camp mutiny as an excuse to bring out some of the nobles in Nanjing. Did he want to be the chicken that scares the monkey?
It's just that this chicken is a bit big.

Xu Jie and others all knew that most of the nobles in Nanjing City were descendants of founding heroes who were canonized during the reign of Emperor Taizu, and some of them were killed and stripped of their titles during the Hongwu period.

Later, several former emperors, grateful for the achievements of these heroes, found their descendants and granted them back their titles.

Only a small number of them were descendants of heroes who had made great contributions to the Jingnan Rebellion during the reign of Emperor Chengzu and were moved to Nanjing to stir up trouble.

These people were of noble status, and most of them held important positions in the Central Military Governor's Office and the Nanjing Garrison Office. They controlled the troops and garrisons in Southern Zhili, and together with the six ministries of Nanjing, they watched over the prosperous Jiangnan area for the Zhu family.

Thinking of this, Xu Jie had an idea in mind.

His Royal Highness the Crown Prince is going to take action against the troops and garrisons in Southern Zhili!
The Southern Zhili and the six ministries of Nanjing were abolished, and each established a provincial government. Jiangnan was in a hurry, but the prince was not.

Xu Jie was very clear about one thing: the prince would not abolish Nanzhili and set up a provincial government unless he laid a solid foundation in Jiangnan.

What foundation?
Of course it is military power.

His Royal Highness the Crown Prince actually started his career in the southeast.

In the southeast, he controlled an army and obtained financial resources with the help of Hu Zongxian and Yang Jinshui to suppress the Japanese pirates. Later, Cao Bangfu, Wang Yi'e, Yin Zhengmao, Wang Chonggu and Huo Ji took turns to serve as governors of Zhejiang, Fujian, Jiangxi and Guangdong. They had already carefully cultivated these places and turned them into the territory of the prince's party.

Now, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince has taken the opportunity of investigating the salt administration in Lianghuai to transfer Wang Yi'e to be the Governor-General of the Grain Transport System, and the Governor of Huai'an, Fengyang, Luzhou, Yangzhou and other places. It is very clear where the next step will be.

Just like in the 41st year of Jiajing, under the pretext of suppressing the Japanese pirates, first it was for financial resources and then for military power.

This time, the purpose was to clarify the Lianghuai salt administration, seize the financial resources of the salt administration, and then the military power.

Xu Jie sighed softly in his heart. His Royal Highness the Crown Prince was only fourteen years old, but he was well versed in political strategies and knew how to seize power step by step, and each step was taken very steadily.

With money, food and soldiers, he is the true emperor of Xiyuan!
It is now obvious that these nobles in Nanjing, in addition to acting as a pawn to intimidate the forces behind the Lianghuai Salt Administration, will also be removed so that the prince's party can take over the military power of Southern Zhili.

Li Chunfang, Chen Yiqin, Huang Guangsheng, Gao Gong and Hu Zongxian all had different thoughts, but none of them wanted to speak out and be the first to speak out.

Zhu Yijun turned around for more than ten times, then sat down on a chair, picked up a cup of tea and took a few sips, then said slowly: "I know you have concerns. Well, let's start with Zhenwuying.

Hu Bingbu, please tell me the origin of Zhenwu Camp. "

"Yes, Your Highness." Hu Zongxian bowed and began to speak, "The Zhenwu Camp was formed by Zhang Gong, the then Minister of War in Nanjing. He selected elite soldiers from various camps and the most agile young men from Huai'an Prefecture and Yangzhou Prefecture, totaling 3,000 people. He appointed meritorious officials as commanders to defend the coast."

"Why should we set up the Zhenwu Camp?" Zhu Yijun asked.

"Southern Zhili's military preparations were in disarray, and the garrisons were deserted. It happened that the Japanese invasion was rampant, and the coast guard was dispatched. In order to protect the safety of Southern Zhili, Mr. Zhang established the Zhenwu Camp."

Zhu Yijun glanced at everyone's faces. "The army that was originally supposed to defend the country has become a riotous army that plunders the people! I heard that the Zhenwu Camp has rioted for pay three times, and this time, it's a total of four times.

Shame!
The imperial court has repeatedly condoned a group of ruffians who have rebelled and disturbed the people. Are they going to wait until they raise their troops to the north and raise the banner of clearing the court of corrupt officials before they stop? "

Zhu Yijun spoke in an extremely harsh tone, and his words were so serious that Xu Jie and the others knelt down in panic, saying in unison: "We have failed in our duty and deserve death!"

Zhu Yijun glanced at the ministers who spoke in unison and waved his hand, his tone slowed down, "I know this matter has nothing to do with you gentlemen, please stand up.

Qi Yan, help Mr. Xu down, he is old and his legs are not very flexible. "

"Yes."

"Thank you, Your Highness." After everyone sat down, Zhu Yijun began to make decisions again.

"The Zhenwu Camp mutiny must be severely punished. Hu Bingbu, according to the Ming military law, how do you punish those who raise troops to cause chaos?"

"Behead!" Hu Zongxian answered without hesitation.

"All officers above the rank of captain in the Zhenwu Camp should be beheaded!" Zhu Yijun said bluntly.

Everyone was shocked when they heard this.

Prince, you are so cruel!
However, everyone knew that nine out of ten officers in the Zhenwu Camp were relatives or servants of noble families, aristocratic families, and powerful families, and the remaining one or two would also go along with the crowd.

Kill them all, there may be some innocent people, but does that matter?

Zhu Yijun continued, "All those below the rank of captain who leave the camp will be killed. Those who stay in the camp will be exiled to the nine frontiers. The Zhenwu Camp will be disbanded."

After that, he turned to Hu Zongxian and said in a serious tone, "Nanzhili is the capital of the former capital, and it governs the important area south of the Yangtze River. More than half of the grain and taxes in the country come from it. The military equipment is in such a poor state now, and the Ministry of War has a great responsibility!"

Hu Zongxian immediately stood up, clasped his hands, and humbly said, "This is my failure in duty. I apologize!"

"It's good that you know you failed in your duty. Hu Bingbu, you have served as a governor in the southeast and are familiar with the situation there. The current governor of the grain transport, Wang Yi'e, is also an old subordinate of yours. You should select a few capable men to go to Nanzhili and reorganize the military preparations there."

"As ordered. Your Highness, Datong General Xue Lin, Guangdong General Liu Xian, Datong Deputy General Chen Wu, and Fu Yingjia are all capable and skilled generals. They can be transferred to Nanzhili to improve military preparations and train new soldiers."

Zhu Yijun thought for a moment, "I know Xue Lin and Liu Xian, they have fought for the court for many years, and they are the pillars of the army in the north and south. Chen Wu and Fu Yingjia are both outstanding generals who stood out from the suppression of Japanese pirates in the southeast. They have been guarding the border in Shanxi for several years and have made many military achievements.

They are going to Nanzhili, I don't worry, Hu Bingbu will handle it."

"Follow the order."

Xu Jie and Gao Gong raised their eyebrows slightly.

You two are acting here!

What will happen next? Let’s wait and see!

Zhu Yijun looked at Xu Jie and Gao Gong and continued, "Now it is the turn of the nobles of Nanjing. They have people like Lingbi Marquis Tang Gong who are loyal to the country and abide by their duties, but there are more people like Wei Guogong, Longping Marquis, and Xincheng Earl.

He does nothing on weekdays and just sits there doing nothing. When things go wrong, he is afraid of death and evades responsibility. The Ming Dynasty does not need such nobles!

There is also Liu Shiyan, the deposed Earl of Chengyi. He was the one who instigated the Zhenwu Camp mutiny! How can he claim to be the descendant of Mr. Bowen? "

Zhu Yijun cursed for a while, but when he saw that no one was willing to speak, he sneered in his heart.

"You are unwilling to speak, and peace is the most important thing. So I will have to continue."

Xu Jie hurriedly bowed and said, "Your Highness's orders will be obeyed."

"Since you think it's difficult, I'll deal with them separately. People like Xu Pengju, Zhang Tong, Zhao Zuzheng, and Liu Shiyan should be arrested by the Jinyiwei first and sent back to Beijing.

All the other nobles in Nanjing were summoned to the capital, and the court held a meeting to punish those who should be punished and reward those who should be rewarded.

Those who have made great contributions to the country will be granted titles by the imperial court! Those who endanger the country and the people will not be easily forgiven by the imperial court! "

After Zhu Yijun finished speaking, Gao Gong suddenly reported: "Your Highness, these nobles are in charge of the military preparations of Nanjing City. If they are all summoned to the capital, wouldn't it be empty?"

Zhu Yijun waved his hand, pointed at Hu Zongxian and said: "The Supervisory Office and the Ministry of War should send a letter as soon as possible to summon Xue Lin, Liu Xian, Chen Wu, and Fu Yingjia to the capital. I will talk to them with you, and then rush to Nanzhili to take over the military defense.

Zhang Ge Lao is in Nanjing, paying homage to the Xiaoling Mausoleum, and will stay for a while. The Supervisory Office sent an urgent letter of 800 miles, asking him to keep an eye on Nanjing City, and after Xue Liu and others arrived, he would take the Nanjing nobles back to the capital together.

"Follow the order!"

(End of this chapter)