Ming politicians

On the sixteenth day of the first lunar month, Su Tiancheng and Zheng Zhilong entered Beijing by decree, and the decree went directly to Dengzhou, and Zheng Zhilong was directly mentioned in the decree. Su Tiancheng knew that the emperor already knew everything. This time, in order to save the Zheng family, in order to be able to After achieving the goal, Su Tiancheng gritted his teeth and took out 100 million taels of gold, which is equivalent to 1000 million taels of silver, which was regarded as Zheng Zhilong's donation. Su Tiancheng had already written a secret document and reported it to the emperor.Although Qu Qingze disagrees and feels sorry for so much gold, Su Tiancheng knows that after doing this, he will get more benefits in the future. This 100 million taels of gold can calm the anger of many people in the court, and some people will Before he and Zheng Zhilong arrived in the capital, he helped to say good things, and Zheng Zhilong himself still had some connections in the court, so it must not be a big problem.

Zheng Zhilong was very moved when he learned that Su Tiancheng took out 100 million taels of gold and handed it over to the court, in order to get the court's understanding and maintain the prosperity of the family. Ten thousand taels of gold, I will take it out and make it up to Su Tiancheng.Unexpectedly, what Su Tiancheng said made Zheng Zhilong even more moved and surprised. Su Tiancheng said that the Zheng family still needs money to maintain such a large family fortune. , These gold and silver, the Zheng family keeps it for themselves, let Zheng Hongkui and Zheng Chenggong in Fujian, take these gold and silver, and do things with peace of mind.

On the way to the capital, Su Tiancheng's mood was very complicated. Because of the Liaodong incident, a crack had already appeared between him and Zhu Youjian. This crack cannot be completely eliminated, and it is also a crack that will inevitably appear as time goes by. .Some weaknesses of Zhu Youjian's own character can never be overcome. As the emperor, no one will help Zhu Youjian like his parents and brothers, or speak heartfelt words to point out Zhu Youjian's weaknesses.This is the tragedy of Zhu Youjian, and it is also the weakness of almost all emperors. It will be like this after hundreds of years. Those who hold great power are surrounded by flattering people. No one will offend you. .

Hall of Mental Cultivation.

Zhu Youjian was inside alone. After Su Tiancheng entered, he was about to kneel down when Zhu Youjian spoke.

"Su Aiqing. No need. I want to talk to you alone. There are only Aiqing and Zhen here. I have a lot to say."

"Whatever orders the emperor has, I will obey them."

"You and I have not seen each other for a while. Since you arrived in Dengzhou, I have rarely heard from you. The construction work in Dengzhou and Laizhou is busy. I also know that you have worked hard. This time Zheng Zhilong actually wanted to attack Weihaiwei. Fortunately, Aiqing was able to make a decisive decision. There are two things that I want to know. The 100 million taels of gold was requested by Aiqing from Zheng Zhilong."

Su Tiancheng hesitated for a moment.

"That's true, Your Majesty. Zheng Zhilong returned to the imperial court and never came to the imperial court as an official. He has always been in Fujian, so there are some deviations in his understanding. The minister once taught Zheng Zhilong that everything should be the imperial court. If you think about your own interests , I forgot to be loyal to the emperor and the court, and the time of destruction is not far away. Zheng Zhilong took it for granted, and took out 100 million taels of gold as a tribute to the court. Happy event."

"What Aiqing said makes sense. Another thing, Jiang Ningying attacked Zheng Zhilong's mansion and did not harm Zheng Zhilong's family. From what angle did you consider it?"

"I believe that Zheng Zhilong's influence in Fujian is not small. The navy he owns has made great contributions to maintaining the stability of Fujian, Guangdong and the coastal areas of Zhejiang. From this aspect, Zheng Zhilong has made contributions. Besides, Yes, Zheng Zhilong is in Quanzhou, Fujian, helping the common people so that the local common people can live and work in peace and contentment. This is also a contribution to the imperial court. In the future, maintaining the stability along the coast of Fujian will depend on the Zheng family. The Jiangning camp attacked the Zheng family’s mansion in Quanzhou. We wiped out Zheng Zhilong's [-] soldiers and prepared to disband the [-] sergeants formed by Zheng Zhilong. This is also based on the stability of Fujian. These troops cannot be dispatched by the imperial court, so there is no need for them to exist. At the same time, this will also form a separatist regime The cancer on one side should be eradicated as soon as possible."

Zhu Youjian nodded frequently.

"My prediction is not wrong. Aiqing has always considered for me, Daming. I have already approved Aiqing's suggestion. I will make a decree tomorrow. I have considered it. In order to let Aiqing do things better, I am going to be canonized Zheng Zhilong's wife is Gao Ming's wife."

"I thank the emperor for his kindness. As a result, Zheng Zhilong's understanding has fundamentally changed. He is grateful for the emperor's kindness and will do his best to serve the emperor."

The following words involved the issue of the Fujian Navy. According to Su Tiancheng's thinking, the Fujian Navy, also the Daming Navy, was responsible for maintaining the safety of the coast. Maybe Zhu Youjian didn't pay much attention to the Navy, or maybe It was due to lack of understanding, Zhu Youjian did not pay special attention to these aspects, and fully agreed with Su Tiancheng's suggestion, and did not even send a supervising army to Fujian, which was beyond Su Tiancheng's expectations.

During the conversation, Zhu Youjian never mentioned the matter of Liaodong. Su Tiancheng was also very interested and did not mention the matter of Liaodong. It seemed that his main task as the governor of Jiliao was to build Dengzhou, Laizhou and Qingzhou That's right, including building the navy of Daming, and now we're looking at maintaining the safety of Daming's waters.

The conversation process has always been very harmonious.

After the conversation, when Su Tiancheng was about to leave, Zhu Youjian smiled and asked Su Tiancheng to wait.

The eunuch brought Zheng Zhilong in.

After Zheng Zhilong knelt down and saluted, Zhu Youjian spoke seriously.

"Zheng Zhilong, just now I and Su Aiqing specifically talked about your matter. If Su Aiqing hadn't interceded for you, I would not have spared you lightly. I think you have made a lot of contributions to the court. I approved Su Aiqing's proposal. At the same time, In response to Su Aiqing's request, I canonized your wife as the imperial wife, you must remember to follow Su Aiqing's side from now on so as to be effective."

Zheng Zhilong, who lowered his head, heard Zhu Youjian say this, and knelt down again with a plop.

"I thank the emperor for his kindness, and I will swear to serve the emperor and the court to the death."

The reason why Zhu Youjian said this was somewhat beyond Su Tiancheng's expectations. He couldn't understand the reason, but he keenly felt that Zhu Youjian didn't need to put all the credit on himself, so that Zheng Zhilong Being grateful to himself, Zhu Youjian's attitude made Su Tiancheng think of what happened in Liaodong, and an ominous premonition emerged.

After leaving the Forbidden City and returning to the official post, Su Tiancheng was about to go home. They would stay in the capital for a while. Thanks to the emperor and empress, this is a necessary procedure, after this matter is over, Su Tiancheng and Zheng Zhilong will return to Dengzhou at the same time.

Just after entering the room, Zheng Zhilong closed the door and was about to kneel down to Su Tiancheng. Su Tiancheng grabbed Zheng Zhilong and told him not to do this. Zheng Zhilong thanked him repeatedly, and took out a wooden box from the room He said it was for Su Tiancheng. There were some gifts inside. After opening it, there was a box of night pearls, ten pieces of ivory, two rhinoceros horns, and some spices. These things were very valuable in Daming.

Su Tiancheng didn't refuse, and he also knew that he couldn't refuse.

After Su Tiancheng and Zheng Zhilong left the Hall of Mental Cultivation, Zhu Youjian's expression returned to stern.

Wang Chengen came out from the next room.

"Your Majesty, this servant has carefully observed Mr. Su. I think there is no problem. Mr. Su is still trustworthy, especially when dealing with Zheng Zhilong's matter. Mr. Su thinks about the stability of the court. If Mr. Su destroys Zheng Zhilong and kills Zheng Zhilong The whole family, the warships owned by the Zheng family, will inevitably disperse and become pirates or thieves. Master Su recommended Zheng Zhilong because he thought of the stability of the coast. The slaves have noticed that Master Su did not recruit sergeants from the Zheng family in Fujian. , suggesting that these sergeants be dismissed, it can be seen that Master Su still thinks of the emperor and the court."

Zhu Youjian nodded slightly.

"I am a little worried. Su Aiqing has never mentioned the matter of Liaodong. I have thought about mentioning it several times, but I am afraid that Su Aiqing will not think well. The stability of Liaodong is entirely due to Su Aiqing."

"Your Majesty, this servant thinks that it is normal for Mr. Su not to mention the matter of Liaodong. If the Emperor does not mention it, Mr. Su will not take the initiative to mention it. This servant thinks that His Majesty does not need to worry. Mr. Su will definitely understand the arrangement of Liaodong. Yes, Mr. Su puts the court first, if he can't even understand the painstaking efforts of the emperor, he can't be regarded as the mainstay of the court."

Zhu Youjian's face looked a little better. In fact, the biggest advantage of removing Su Tiancheng's decision-making power in Liaodong is that the number of troops that Su Tiancheng can control is much smaller. These troops are now scattered to many people. It is good for the imperial court. It is definitely not feasible to deal with the affairs of Liaodong and the border in accordance with the principle of separating soldiers and soldiers. We can only find ways to avoid the situation where one family dominates as much as possible.

Chen Xinjia in Liaodong is already making preparations for an attack. In May at the latest, he will launch an attack on the Houjin Tartars. No one knows about this situation. Zhu Youjian has been looking forward to this day , I hope that the Ming army can defeat the Houjin Tartars and be able to feel proud again. For so many years, the Ming army has never taken the initiative to launch an attack on the Houjin Tartars. Now the conditions are finally ripe. The majestic Ming Empire, other Can be bullied by Hou Jin in a tiny place.

Zhu Youjian has already decided that after the first month, the cabinet will come to discuss this matter, and the news must not be leaked out, and Hou Jin must not be allowed to know the news. (To be continued..)