I am Emperor Wanli

Chapter 444 Li Chengliang, we must unite!
Xu Wei looked at Li Chengliang, who was angry, and asked calmly, "What did Qi Yuanjing impeach you for?"

Li Chengliang's tone stagnated. "Mr. Wenchang, you are in the Supervisory Office assisting in military affairs. You should have seen the impeachment memorial of Qi."

Xu Wei's expression remained calm. "Ruqi, I can see it, but I still want to ask you, what did Qi Yuanjing impeach you for?"

Li Chengliang's face turned pale and red, and then he replied awkwardly: "I am accused of condoning my subordinates to rob and rape. I robbed more than 3,000 people from the Eastern Khalkha tribe who surrendered, and tens of thousands of cattle and sheep, and sold them all to Duoyan and other six wings."

"Is it true?"

Li Chengliang was silent for a while, "It's true, but the brothers were just in a hurry and wanted to make some money."

"Is there any shortage of food, wages and rewards from the court?" Xu Wei asked.

Li Chengliang shook his head repeatedly: "Not a penny less."

He quickly explained: "But brothers used to fight like this, and it's hard to change the habit."

Xu Wei said bluntly: "The past is the past. Now you are the soldiers of His Royal Highness the Crown Prince!"

Li Chengliang remained silent, but the unwillingness on his face was clearly engraved there.

Xu Wei said angrily, "Since the Crown Prince took office, he has worked tirelessly to collect food and money, fearing that if he delayed the payment for even a day, you would starve and freeze. Is this how you repay His Highness?"

Li Chengliang was startled and quickly explained: "Mr. Wenchang, we are loyal to His Highness and will obey his orders without hesitation, even if it means going through fire and water!"

Xu Wei chuckled, "Ruqi, we are family and we are talking privately behind closed doors, don't worry. Let me ask you, do you think that His Highness's military discipline and regulations are too pedantic?"

"Pedant?" Li Chengliang waved his hand quickly. "I know that generals like me are short-sighted and only care about killing enemies and gaining merit. Your Highness, on the other hand, cares about long-term peace and stability."

Xu Wei sighed, "Ruqi, you understand the truth, why don't you change your ways despite repeated admonitions? You allowed your soldiers to plunder, and Qi Yuanjing doesn't need to impeach you. The Jinyiwei have already reported it to the West Garden.

If it weren't for Lord Cao, Lord Tan and others' strong guarantees, your title of Earl of Guangning would be in jeopardy!"

Li Chengliang's Adam's apple could not help but tremble a few times, and he explained awkwardly: "Mr. Wenchang, I know my crime. I did not take the marching discipline issued by the crown prince to heart. I felt that it was a bit pedantic and thought it was just a small matter. As long as I can make meritorious contributions, it will be enough."

Xu Wei pointed at him and said bitterly, "Ruqi, what can I say about you? Your Highness the Crown Prince promulgated military discipline, is it really just to win the hearts of the people in the south and north of the desert?"

"Isn't it? In this great victory in the Northeast, the soldiers gained merit, the court gained benefits, and Your Highness gained fame. Praising military discipline, spreading benevolence, winning the hearts of the people, and seeking eternal stability, isn't that the case?"

"You only saw the first layer and couldn't see deeper!" Xu Wei sighed.

Li Chengliang stood up, bowed, and said respectfully: "Please teach me, Mr. Wenchang!"

"Your Highness is a man of decisiveness. How many people have you ordered to be killed? Would you show mercy to the herdsmen in the north and south of the desert thousands of miles away? Indeed, Your Highness promulgated military discipline to win the hearts of the people and seek long-term peace and stability in the north and south of the desert. But the more important point, Ruqi, why can't you see it!"

Xu Wei glanced at Li Chengliang and asked, "Besides talent, what else does a monarch value in a general?"

Li Chengliang's mind raced, and he immediately thought of something, "Loyalty!"

"Yes! Chi Zhong! Ruqi, on the one hand, we ask you to win battles and defeat the enemy bravely; on the other hand, we ask you to follow military discipline and treat the enemy and civilians kindly. It seems very pedantic, but it is really difficult to do in practice, right?"

Li Chengliang nodded: "Yes."

"It's difficult! Even though it's difficult, Qi Yuanjing still issued strict orders to each unit, and even went to each unit in person to inspect day and night. Once he found any violation of military discipline, such as what you, Ruqi, did, he would immediately impeach them and attach a letter of apology.

Xiao Jiqing pursued Tumen Khan for fourteen days and fourteen nights. During the journey, he kept in mind His Highness's military discipline and would rather borrow money or pay out of his own pocket than violate military discipline.

His Highness naturally treated such loyal and victorious generals with special favor and hosted a banquet for the first batch in the West Garden.

Ruqi, you are not even as good as a 15-year-old boy. You can't see things as clearly as he can!"

Li Chengliang kept swallowing his saliva.

Oh my god, how could His Royal Highness, who lives in the West Garden, be so cunning? I almost fell into his trap when I wasn't paying attention. Being a close minister in the capital is too risky. Just guessing His Royal Highness's thoughts can dry my brain.

I'd better stay in the border town honestly, serve as a frontier general, make achievements, and seek marquis status soon.

However, Li Chengliang was also fortunate. He admired Xu Wei's talent and had known him for a long time. He also agreed to be a teacher for several of his boys.

Okay, let Wen Chang be the teacher. Those brats in my family will definitely have a bright future!

Xu Wei said in a serious tone: "Ruqi, for His Highness, a general who commands the army must not only be good at fighting, but also be loyal! Now you know why His Highness values ​​Qi Yuanjing so much and appreciates Xiao Jiqing so much!"

Li Chengliang replied with conviction: "Mr. Wenchang, I understand everything. Thanks to your teachings, otherwise I would still be stubborn and if I really angered His Highness one day, alas..."

He couldn't help but shudder.

"Sir, you are my benefactor! From now on, I will follow your advice and obey your orders meticulously without any compromise."

Xu Wei was delighted to see that Li Chengliang listened to his advice and was willing to say more.

"Ruqi, now that the external threat is fading and internal strife is starting, you and I must be extremely cautious!" Li Chengliang's heart skipped a beat, and he felt that it was the right decision to visit Xu's house today.

"Mr. Wenchang, I am a crude warrior. Please give me some advice and guidance."

"Since the reign of Hongzhi, the Ming Dynasty has been under pressure from foreign invasions and trapped by internal troubles. Internal and external troubles have come one after another. The Jiajing New Deal, the late emperor was determined to make a difference, but in the end, he was unable to achieve his goal and failed.

The late emperor placed his hopes on His Royal Highness the Crown Prince. His Royal Highness lived up to the late emperor's high expectations and first stabilized the internal situation before resisting foreign aggression. He first took drastic measures to eliminate foreign threats and then took cautious measures to resolve internal threats.

Now Haixi and Jianzhou have been recovered, and Liaodong has become the hinterland; Tumen Khan has surrendered, and the left wing of Mongolia has become the wing of the Ming Dynasty; Altan Khan's majesty in Datong has been completely damaged, and since then he has been trapped in internal friction and has no energy to fight externally; Eastern Japan and Korea have surrendered; the Mo family of Annan has been destroyed, and the Zheng and Nguyen families have been overthrown in the blink of an eye; Spain has suffered repeated heavy losses, Portugal was ordered to withdraw from Malacca, and the South China Sea was silent; looking around the Ming Dynasty, only a few chieftains in Guangxi, Yunnan and Guizhou are making trouble.

With the external threats suppressed, Your Highness can devote all his energy to solving the internal problems of the Ming Dynasty. After several years of investigation and investigation, Your Highness has a very clear understanding of the Ming Dynasty's assets and local conditions.

After several party struggles, Your Highness has a good idea of ​​the temperaments of the civil servants and the methods of the local noble families. The chess pieces are set, and the game begins. "

Li Chengliang smiled and said, "It is His Royal Highness the Crown Prince who is solving the internal troubles and dealing with the civil servants and local noble families. It has nothing to do with us. We can just sit back and watch."

Xu Wei stared at him and said word by word: "Ruqi, if you think like this, it will be dangerous!"

Li Chengliang was startled. "Mr. Wenchang, don't scare me. Why is it dangerous?"

"Ruqi, remember, we are here to help His Highness solve his internal problems. We are the basis for His Highness to heal his internal wounds!"

Li Chengliang's face became solemn and he nodded slowly.

Yes, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince took action against his people, the two most brutal ones were once against the Shanxi merchants and the Shanxi Party.

That was after the Japanese pirates in the southeast were completely wiped out, and Hu Zongxian, Tan Lun, Qi Jiguang and others were successively transferred north to take charge of the three borders of Beijing Camp, Ji-Liao, and Shanxi Xuan-Da. After winning two great victories in Xianghe and Luanhe, and taking control of the military power of the nine borders and Beijing Camp, they traced back to the Gengxu Incident and dealt a thundering blow to the Shanxi Party and Shanxi merchants.

The second time was to investigate the salt administration and take action against the salt merchants in Yangzhou. Then, he made a feint to the east and attacked in the west to wipe out the nobles in Nanjing and some of the forces of the Jiangnan families gathered in the six ministries in Nanjing.

That victory was easy, and only part of the East China Sea Navy and some of the battalion guards were mobilized.

The rest of the rectification of the various vassal states and the recent uproarious case of the scum in the Confucius Mansion, in the eyes of those who are concerned, are not considered to be huge waves, and are far inferior to the first blow of His Royal Highness the Crown Prince back then.

But looking back, His Highness's first strike was really swift, accurate and ruthless. With one strike, the biggest obstacle to controlling the Nine Frontiers, the Jin Party and the Jin Merchants, were wiped out. Even several of their leaders either changed sides or admitted defeat and kept their tails between their legs.

From then on, the boat has passed through thousands of mountains!
"Ruqi, don't underestimate the enemy. Those civil officials are not as good as us in conquering the borders. But they are good at fighting in the court and in factional struggles. The court is their home turf.

Your Highness, if you take action to eliminate internal troubles, how many aristocratic families and wealthy families will be affected? Just the land survey alone has caused a turbulent tide in the nine borders, the capital, Shandong, Shanxi, Henan and Shaanxi, and even the Yanshenggong Mansion has been pushed to the front by them. "

Li Chengliang's eyebrows jumped. "Mr. Wenchang, are you saying that these guys secretly fanned the flames of the Kong family's scum case this time, and wanted to use the Yanshenggong Mansion to compete with His Highness's new policy?"

"That's right! But they didn't expect that His Highness's methods would become more and more skilled and advanced. First, let Lord Gangfeng puncture this big abscess."

Li Chengliang nodded and said, "I have read the impeachment memorial of Lord Hai in the Imperial Ming Dynasty Newspaper, "Please punish the scum and traitors in the Yansheng Palace and provide relief to the local people." In the memorial, Lord Hai even impeached Confucius, saying that if the family education is not strict, the descendants will become scum."

Xu Wei smiled and replied, "Mr. Hai has impeached the late emperor and Emperor Taizu, so impeaching Confucius is no problem. Besides, he did not say anything bad about Confucius, but only said that his family education was not strict, and his descendants were in trouble. It is not easy to criticize him because he is telling the truth.

Hai fired the first shot, which surprised everyone, but also made sense. "

Indeed, who is Hai Rui? Is there anyone in the world that he dare not impeach?

Besides, the dirty deeds done by those people in the Confucius Mansion had long been known throughout the country. When others pointed it out, some people would bury their heads in the sand and not believe it. But when Hai Rui pointed it out, even if you didn't believe it, everyone in the world would believe it.

Xu Wei continued, "Your Highness dispatched the Director of the Grain Transport Bureau, Wang Zijian, to Shandong to handle this matter. From what we can see so far, Wang Zijian has handled the matter well, leaving some dignity for Confucius and Duke Yansheng, so the Confucian scholars in the world can no longer say anything."

Xu Wei's tone changed, and he spoke in a serious tone, "Ruqi, look, a case like this, with all the hidden swordplay, isn't it more dangerous than the battle you and I went through in Mo Nan?"

Li Chengliang was also a little scared after hearing this.

These civil servants and the gentry families have so many evil intentions!
Moreover, if I cannot win the war, I can still run away and save my life before making long-term plans. This is an open and covert struggle, there is no place to hide!
I can’t afford it!

I don’t dare to play!
Xu Wei seemed to see through his thoughts, "Ruqi, these things don't have anything to do with us just because we don't want to get involved!"

Li Chengliang's face changed: "Sir, what should we do?"

Xu Wei leaned back in his chair, frowning and squinting.

"We are secondary. The key is Mr. Tan and Mr. Hu. They are the backbone. Now Mr. Tan has been recalled, and Mr. Hu will be recalled soon. They are the target of public criticism. I am worried about them. If they fall, we will all be in trouble!"

Li Chengliang nodded in agreement.

Tan Lun and Hu Zongxian were not only highly respected and virtuous, and had great prestige among the generals in the north and south, but they were also civil servants, civil servants who had passed the imperial examinations. When the overall situation had not changed, they could compete with those civil servants.

"Ruqi, so we must unite and work together. If we are in chaos first, the other side will have an opportunity to take advantage of us. Then, we will be in trouble. Ruqi, although we are in a good situation now, it was achieved with untold hardships under the leadership of His Royal Highness the Crown Prince. We must not allow it to fail!"

Li Chengliang was silent for a while and then replied: "Don't worry, sir, I know what's going on!"

(End of this chapter)