Chapter 27: Fighting for the country and using all possible means

It was mid-autumn, and Zhou Yanru became the chief minister of the cabinet.

That night, Zhou Yanru thought about the changes in government affairs in the past two days and felt quite worried.

First, a mere warrior was promoted from a commoner to the rank of general in one day. His appearance was quite pleasing to the emperor. That's nothing. Although it goes against the ancestral system, if you think about it carefully, it doesn't make sense to only have one general.

Those who work hard govern others, and those who work hard govern others. A mere warrior is just a sword for the imperial court, so what if it is sharp? As the chief minister of the cabinet, how he wants to manage it is not just a question of one sentence?

The key is the prince's supervisor's suppression of thieves. This is the source of Zhou Yanru's fear and uneasiness.

Prince Zhu Cihao, if others don’t know about it, doesn’t Zhou Yanru know about him? He has been different from ordinary people since he was a child. Some commentators compare him with Taizu and Chengzu, and regard him as the master of the resurgence of the Ming Dynasty in the future.

But the Ming Dynasty’s ZTE leader is not his ZTE leader, nor is he the ZTE leader of the group of people behind him. What they need is a mediocre or even mediocre emperor. If the emperor is too powerful, where will he and other figures have the opportunity to take power, accept bribes, and dominate the world?

As a minister, especially at his level, where one person is inferior to ten thousand people, the only thing he wants is probably to become a powerful minister like Zhang Juzheng, who is naturally opposed to the imperial power. What's more, he doesn't dare to disobey the people behind him.

Because of the prince's existence, these people have always been afraid. But the prince lived in seclusion and never made mistakes. They had no clue what they could do, so they could only cover up the prince's sagacity and treat him as a transparent person. This is also the reason why Prince Zhu Cihao's wisdom is not widely known.

Just because public opinion is controlled by these people.

But now, the prince has stepped forward!

This left Zhou Yanru with a ray of light on his back. Especially the prince has never been close to them, this is the key.

Once this wise prince who is not close to them gains power and even ascends to the throne, will they still have a good life?

They don't care about a warrior. But a wise prince, the sharpest weapon wielded by a future emperor, combined into one, is terrifying.

Zhou Yanru's sharp ears and eyes had already known what happened during the day. I became even more anxious when I learned that the prince ordered the warrior to go to Liaodong to mobilize troops.

So after thinking about it, I came up with an idea.

He ordered his servants to take the invitations and go to invite people.

But before the servant left the house, the two men came uninvited.

In the study, the lights were dim.

Zhou Yanru and the two cabinet ministers Chen Yan and Xie Sheng sat opposite each other.

Chen Yan is the Minister of the Ministry of Household Affairs, the Bachelor of Wuyingdian, and the Second Assistant to the Cabinet. This is not the key. The key is that Chen Yan is the representative of the Donglin Party in the government.

And Zhou Yanru was the figure that the Donglin Party brought to the forefront after Wen Tiren stepped down.

In other words, Chen Yan is actually the real chief assistant in the cabinet.

As for Xie Sheng, he is actually a wallflower. When the Qi Chu Zhe Party, or eunuch party, represented by Wen Tiren, was in power, Xie Sheng listened to Wen Tiren. But now that the Donglin Party has taken over the cabinet, he will listen to the Donglin Party.

As for Wei Zhaocheng, another cabinet minister who is not here, he is the only remaining representative of the eunuch party. He has been squeezed out by these three people and has no right to speak at all.

Naturally, it was impossible for Zhou Yanru to also invite Wei Zhaocheng.

In this small study, three of the four cabinet ministers were present.

The lights were dim, and at first glance, it looked like a fox camp and a dog dog.

Zhou Yanru said solemnly: "Originally, everything about suppressing the thieves was under control. But it's okay for the prince to come out and hold a sharp knife. The prince has never been close to us. If the suppression of the thieves is successful, the prince will have the power. What can I do?"

Chen Yan nodded slightly and said, "This is why we came here to have a secret talk with Brother Zhou."

He said: "The prince is too wise, too wise, and prone to act arbitrary, which is very harmful to the world. We set an example for the world and must put an end to such hidden dangers."

"In order to praise the emperor..." Xie Sheng stretched out his hand and made a gesture on his neck, which was particularly sinister.

Zanhuang is Chen Yan’s nickname.

Chen Yan smiled slightly: "Hey, this statement is very inappropriate. The prince is the emperor's legitimate son and the heir apparent of the Zhu family, how can he be so disrespectful?" After a pause, he said with a smile: "Although the thieves are a mob, there are hundreds of thousands of them. Ji, although the prince is wise, he has no experience, so defeat is natural."

When Zhou Yanru heard the words, he couldn't help but think about it for a moment and said: "Although the words of the praising emperor are reasonable, the warrior has to be on guard. You and I both know what the situation in Liaodong was like before. But with the power of that one person, that person can The ferocious Tartars were defeated. Although there are many bandits, how can they defeat the Tartars?"

Xie Sheng couldn't help but nod his head and said yes.

Chen Yan was unmoved and said with a smile: "Tatars are Tatars, and bandits are bandits. In terms of combat power, bandits are certainly not as good as the Tartars. But if Hong Chengchou hadn't planned the Liaodong war, the warrior alone would have done it. What can be done? The war is not decided by just one person. Especially bandits, they run around the world, and if they can’t be beaten, they run away. They are everywhere in the world. What can the warrior do if he has ten legs? "

"Besides, we are in control of the food, grass and military pay. Do you think the soldiers and horses in the towns in Liaodong should listen to the cabinet or the prince?"

After hearing this, Zhou Yanru and Xie Sheng couldn't help but look at each other and secretly said that Chen Yan was vicious.

What he said was clearly that after the prince sent out troops, he would start with food, grass and military pay to force him to defeat. The auxiliary method is to threaten the soldiers and horses of the towns in Liaodong.

Xie Sheng interjected: "It is best to keep the soldiers and horses of the towns in Liaodong stationary. The prince has no soldiers to use. He will go back home after leaving the capital. He is about to spread a joke and let the prince's reputation be ruined."

This person is even more vicious and wants to take this opportunity to knock the prince into dust.

When Chen Yan heard this, his eyes lit up and he said with his palms: "Brother Yi Jin, these words are very kind!"

So he thought about it and said, "I heard that the warrior will go to Liaodong tomorrow to mobilize troops. In this case, we can send people to go ahead and communicate with the general troops of the towns in Liaodong to understand the situation and understand the reason. We dare not violate it."

Then he said: "In this case, if you don't do it, you won't stop. Isn't Ding Qirui of the Ministry of War in Henan to suppress thieves? But it's like this..."

The remaining two people couldn't help but marvel when they heard this, and even praised the emperor for his exhaustive plan.

Finally, Zhou Yanru added: "We must also be careful about the reputation of the warrior in Liaodong. Although Hong Chengchou planned to defeat the Tatars, the role of the warrior cannot be underestimated. The warrior who respects the most powerful warriors in the army must be the one who wins. The towns in Liaodong are quite prestigious. If the towns in Liaodong think that they have control of the troops and horses, and do not obey the orders of the cabinet, but still obey the warriors, it will be bad."

Chen Yan pondered when he heard the words, then nodded: "Good. So how should I deal with Brother Zhou if I only see him?"

"It's best to kill the warrior once and for all." A ruthless look flashed in Zhou Yanru's eyes: "The warrior is strong and the prince is wise. The two are combined into one. Even if he can stop the prince this time, he will not be able to do it next time. It may not be possible to stop him. The best solution is to cut off his roots."

Xie Sheng said: "But that warrior among all the troops has never had his fur injured, how can we kill him?"

"As long as he is not a god, why can't he be killed?" Zhou Yanru chuckled and looked at Chen Yan.

Chen Yan also laughed: "Knives and guns can't kill, and there are firearms and cannons. Firearms and cannons can't kill, isn't there any other way? I heard that the warrior caught the Tatar artillery on the battlefield, and his power was so great. He is strong and difficult to kill. But since he is still a human and needs to eat and drink, why can't he be killed?"

Xie Sheng was relieved.

So Chen Yandao said: "The matter here has been decided at the court meeting, and the idle conspiracy cannot prevent the warrior from going to Liaodong to mobilize troops. However, the deployment of troops must be accompanied by the imperial decree. There will be eunuchs to follow and eat and drink with them. In this way, from the capital to Liaodong , there are many opportunities.”

...

Early the next morning, Wang Yisheng came in person and rushed out of the city with Zhao Yu.

When we arrived at the city gate, the prince arrived early and came to see him off.

A set of fish scale armor was also given as a gift.

The prince held Zhao Yu's arm and said deeply: "There must be obstacles on the way forward. Brother Zhao, the future of the Ming Dynasty rests on your shoulders!"

How wise is the prince?

Over the years, the government has been in a state of chaos, and he has watched clearly from the outside. The disadvantages are well known.

Now that he wants to step onto the stage, if he does not comply with the wishes of some people, he must use conspiracy to obstruct him. In particular, dispatching troops to Liaodong is a top priority. Without the soldiers and horses of Liaodong, it would be extremely difficult to exterminate the bandits.

That's why he was entrusted to Zhao Yu, because only Zhao Yu was the most suitable and the most reassuring for him.

It's appropriate because Zhao Yu's feats in Liaodong will spread widely throughout the military towns in Liaodong and can best intimidate the military's morale.

Don't worry, it's because Zhao Yu is strong and not afraid of swords, guns and artillery. Therefore, we have the greatest possibility of breaking through the obstacles and mobilizing troops.

If there is no Zhao Yu, Wang Yishengze is the most suitable candidate. But Wang Yisheng is not made of steel. He is not afraid of ordinary swords, but he cannot withstand guns and cannons.

In comparison, Zhao Yu and Wang Yisheng are not suitable.

Zhao Yu is also a smart man, how could he not understand what the prince meant?

The Ming Dynasty has fallen to its present state. One of the reasons is that the emperor was unable to do anything, and the other is that all the civil and military officials in the dynasty have become moths. These moths are the prince's greatest enemies and natural enemies in turning things around.

In this way, if the prince wants to take power, those moths will definitely not be willing to do so.

In just a moment, Zhao Yu had many thoughts in his mind. Those morons must try their best to push the situation and make the prince fail, so as to attack the prince.

But then he laughed and said: "Prince, don't worry. I'm not afraid of those scumbags and little Taoists. Prince, just wait for me to mobilize troops and horses to wipe out the thieves and help the prince to turn things around!"

The prince looked deeply at Zhao Yu, calmed his expression, nodded, and said no more. Then he turned around and led Zhao Yu to the pavilion not far away.

There is a team of people waiting quietly.

Upon closer inspection, it was clear that the first few eunuchs were accompanied by about fifty guards in royal robes.

The group of people saluted the prince, and the prince introduced him: "These father-in-laws are going to Liaodong with you, Brother Zhao. There is an imperial edict to mobilize troops."

They met each other again.

The prince added: "This is very important. Brother Zhao must ensure the safety of the imperial edict."

Zhao Yu clasped his fists sternly: "Prince, don't worry. The general is here, no matter how evil he is, as long as he jumps out, kill them all!"

After saying this, he also glanced at the group of people delivering the message.

The prince nodded and gave the last instruction: "Brother Zhao's reputation has been spread throughout the world today. If the thieves know this, they will definitely not stand by and watch indifferently."

After a pause: "Xiao Wang is waiting for the good news from Brother Zhao!"

Zhao Yu looked at the prince's eyes, glanced at the eunuchs without any trace, nodded, and said again: "Prince, just don't worry!"