Guangzong Yaoming

Chapter 307: Being timid before fighting

The most different thing from all previous dynasties is the emperor himself.

Otherwise, when news came from the nearby border police, they would always urgently send orders to other troops to come for reinforcement.

But the same thing is: there is not only the emperor in Beijing, but also many officials who value their lives.

As soon as the enemy appeared outside Gubeikou and Xifengkou, there was movement.

Even if the military intelligence has now reached the Privy Council directly, only the other four ministers outside the Privy Council should know about it.

But it just so happens that there is a State Council meeting in the Fengtian Hall which is "under training".

It is already a little hot in May, so today's training will be held in the main hall of the Qianqing Palace.

A bit cooler.

But now the atmosphere in the hall is gloomy.

"What is a military secret? A military secret." Zhu Changluo looked at the people in the group coldly. "Since it is a secret, I used it as an example to explain the principles of state governance. That means I trust you. Who leaked the secret when the whole city knew about it?"

No one spoke. Tian Le also came today. He looked at everyone, then at the emperor, then stood up and said, "The news may have leaked to the Privy Council, the post station, and the border troops. After all, the border wall of Jizhen is not far away."

Some people looked at the emperor nervously and looked at Tian Le's back with gratitude.

This is of course Tian Le giving a way out.

How could the emperor not know how the news spread? It started among the court officials, and some people even submitted memorials, and then yesterday many people began to discuss it.

No matter how much information the post stations and border troops leak, how can it compare to the urgent military situation reports?

There is always a difference in time.

"This is not a small mistake." Zhu Changluo signaled Tian Le with his eyes.

It's enough to just stand up and make a gesture, but what needs to be done must be done.

"I use the example of the war in the northern border to illustrate the principle of division of labor." Zhu Changluo's tone was still cold. "Since the Privy Council is established, the Privy Envoy, the Deputy Privy Envoy, the Chief of Staff, etc. are all civil officials, and the other councils don't need to interfere! If you can't trust your colleagues, then those who know about military affairs should join the Privy Council; if you don't know about military affairs, you shouldn't make random suggestions! With your intelligence, don't you understand that this is also a test for me? The current situation makes me very disappointed!"

Xiao Daheng sighed and stood up to plead: "Compared with this matter, the government office and system reforms planned by Your Majesty have been leaked out, which is even more worrying."

"That's not a big deal. We need to get some information. Everyone wants to make progress and everyone has friends and relatives. It's not surprising. How can I not understand that?" Zhu Changluo waved his hand. "Since you don't think these ideas are inappropriate in principle, then we have actually entered the stage of perfecting the details. It would be a good thing to exchange opinions in a small circle in private and bring them up again."

Zhu Changluo's tone did not soften, and he still stared at the ministers: "But military affairs are another matter! Not to mention that I will delegate power and appoint prime ministers in the future, and I will rely on the Privy Council even more! I have already talked about responsibility and accountability several times before. You are all important ministers, and you should understand that military affairs cannot tolerate multiple opinions, let alone being influenced by external opinions! Is it best to hope that this battle will not be won, or are you afraid that you will be at a loss after the reform in the future?"

Seeing that the emperor was determined to find out who among these people who were at least third rank and above was not careful with their words, four people turned pale.

The 77-year-old head of the Zhanshi Palace, Yang Shiqiao, the Minister of Dali Temple, Guo Zhengyu, the Minister of Honglu Temple who succeeded Shen Yongmao at the time, and the Minister of Punishments, Huang Kezun.

Maybe some people have better psychological qualities.

Seeing that the emperor did not go down the stairs led by Tian Ledi, Liu Ruoyu could not help but hold his breath.

Do we really need to punish important officials for this? At this moment?

Yang Shiqiao came out, slowly took off his hat and knelt down: "I am ashamed of my poor consideration. Please forgive me, Your Majesty."

Zhu Changluo looked at him without saying anything.

Ye Xiang lowered his head trembling with fear. This was the system of the Imperial Study.

Yang Shiqiao took the lead, and Guo Zhengyu, Fan Chunjing, and Huang Kezan hesitated for a moment and also apologized.

There is one each in the Imperial Study, Jinxianyuan, Jianchayuan, and Shizhengyuan.

Zhu Changluo looked at them and didn't say anything for a long time.

After a long while, he finally spoke: "I have good intentions and have said so much honestly. I have said more than once that it is the duty of the monarch and his subjects to plan for the long-term interests of the country! Would it be harmful to the country to want to eliminate the threat from the north? It is not wrong to worry about defeat before thinking about victory, but is it worth worrying about so much? I just want to know one thing now, are you four just worried about the victory or defeat of this battle, or do you have other ideas?"

Tian Le came out to plead again: "Your Majesty, since we have learned that it is the Khan's chieftain who has come in person, the situation on the border will sooner or later be known to the whole city. At this time, it is not appropriate to suspect and deal with everything at the same time! If the ministers are not careful in handling things, they are naturally worried about the safety of the capital. Since we have been granted the grace to discuss state affairs, even if we only talk about the benefits, the foresight is the initiative, how can we have other intentions?" Zhu Changluo looked at his eyes, took a slow breath, and said: "I don't want to suspect, and I don't want the important ministers to suspect each other. The war situation is ever-changing. If the ministers cannot learn to trust the civil and military officials of the Privy Council, then the Ming Dynasty will not use troops in the future. Since Tian Shumi said so, then everyone will only be fined for three months as a warning."

Several people expressed their gratitude together, feeling bitter.

Deducting salary is a small matter, but it will leave a bad impression, especially since the emperor clearly said it was a test.

Yang Shiqiao is okay, after all, he is old, but the other three are different.

"If I am not in chaos, the court should not be in chaos! If the court is not in chaos, the people will not be in chaos! The city gates are wide open, and everything is back to normal. The court newspaper should publish the victory news of Liaodong, and also declare that the Ming Dynasty must fight this battle to eliminate the threat from the north!"

Now, the emperor wanted to appease some officials, saying in a stern tone: "Those who always talk about withdrawing troops and seeking peace, those who always talk about the foundation of Nanjing, and those who always throw themselves into disarray, what is their intention? Over the years, the northern barbarians have repeatedly invaded the border. When we hear that the government troops have the courage to go out of the border wall to drive out the barbarians, shouldn't we unite against the enemy and encourage them? The barbarian chieftain has come at the right time. This is the time for the country to fight! Those who drag their feet are actually traitors to the country!"

The four people's faces changed again. Fortunately, the emperor added a sentence: "Pass these words on. Forgive the past and forgive the past. If the officials and gentry still lose their temper and make noise in the future, no matter what their intentions are, they are cowardly and ignorant people, and they are not qualified to take on such a great responsibility! As soon as the enemy showed their heads outside the border wall, they thought of the Gengxu Rebellion during the Jiajing period. Those who spread alarmist words and confuse the people before the government army has suffered a single defeat will be executed!"

In comparison, the word "behead" shows that the emperor did show mercy to them and gave them a chance, and it also shows that the emperor was indeed very angry.

Zhu Changluo was of course angry.

When looking through history, there are always peace advocates at such times, but in Zhu Changluo's eyes, it may be more due to their stance and power struggle.

But after personally witnessing this situation, the discussions were really outrageous. Zhu Changluo couldn't help but think that some people just didn't want the Ming Dynasty to win this battle, and some people wanted to take advantage of the situation to do something.

Back then, Altan Khan did break through Gubeikou and plundered the area around the capital for eight days.

But Lin Dan was a young ruler, and everyone in the court knew it; he had no military achievements, which was also true; the year before last, Duoyan invaded Shanhaiguan, and last year they were all captured and killed, as reported in the court newspaper.

Is it just that some people have a deep-seated fear of the Northern Barbarians?
Your knees are so weak, and you don’t have any courage in your stomach?
The rules were set, and Zhu Changluo was in no mood to say anything more today, so he just kept the five ministers.

"What's the reason?" Zhu Changluo asked Tian Le who was pleading again and again.

"Your Majesty..." Tian Le smiled bitterly, "The victory in the Korean War was ugly, and the people's burden was increased. The chaos in Bozhou lasted for a long time. This time, from Xuanda to Liaodong, the commotion is still big, and the opponent is the Tartars, which is inevitable. I have to say it harshly. The last time we fought against the Tartars, we had such a big battle, and then we had Tumu Fort. It has been more than a hundred years since the argument that it is better to defend against the Tartars. During the Jiajing period, there were several discussions on restoring the system, but in the end it was nothing, and then there was the Gengxu Rebellion."

"..."

What else can Zhu Changluo say?
Emperor Taizu Zhu Yuanzhang founded the country by expelling the Tartars. Zhu Di personally led several military campaigns, and the Ming Dynasty was originally very powerful.

The change in Tumu Fort was so terrifying.

And no matter how brilliantly the imperial edicts described the victory over the enemy during the Wanli reign, it turned out that the victory was of little use after all?

Tian Le's point was that they really didn't have any ulterior motives. At least the officials in the capital knew the emperor's temper now, and they knew that this war was both external and internal.

So you're really just worried about failure?
When talking about the proposal to restore the system during the Jiajing period, the people who came to mind were of course Xia Yan who was killed by Yan Song and Zeng Xin who was wrongfully killed.

Zhu Qizhen's legacy is endless, and at least his political opponents always find excuses that are difficult to refute: the main reason for shelving the plan at that time was that the Ministry of War could not guarantee victory.

Admittedly, logistics, money and food were also problems, and Zhu Houcong himself was afraid of losing.

But when it comes to war, who can guarantee victory?
Zhu Changluo said with a straight face: "In terms of strategy, if we dare not even fight, we can only swallow our anger and suffer bullying! Regardless of other things, at least now I am determined, the Privy Council is trying its best to plan, and the soldiers are fighting! If only a real big victory can correct some people's bones, then even if it doesn't work this time, the monarch and his ministers should think about actively preparing and planning carefully, and must win such a big victory. Otherwise, how can we talk about protecting the country and the people?"

"...I will bear this in mind." Ye Xianggao hastily expressed his opinion, "I will admonish the Imperial Study Room and its staff."

"Remember, the ruler and his subjects should be of one mind, and the government should also be of one mind!" Zhu Changluo still wanted to remind him, "What annoys me is not that the subjects submitted memorials, but that they, as officials, spread fear to the outside world! In the eyes of the people, if the court and the government are not upright, how can they believe that the court can ensure their safety and happiness? Not to mention the dangers of war, isn't it difficult to handle government affairs in normal times? The court selects talented people to let them face difficulties! If they can't stand a little difficulty, what's the point of being an official?"

Li Tingji also responded: "I will keep it in mind."

After all, selecting talented people and appointing them to positions is the responsibility of the Jinxianyuan.

Zhu Changluo impatiently ended the handling of the matter, leaving only Tian Le.

The king and his ministers looked at each other in silence.

Finally, Tian Le said, "It's obviously a good sign, but now your Majesty knows about it. It's not your Majesty's fault. How can the trend be changed?"

(End of this chapter)