Chapter 33 Loyalty is the most important

There are no loyal ministers in the court and there are traitors within the court. We must raise troops to punish them and purge the emperor's side!

These are the words spoken by our great-grandfather Zhu Yuanzhang himself. Perhaps his original intention was to establish an 800-year-old empire like the Zhou emperor, or even to aspire to establish a thousand-year empire.

However, it was of no use. Not even a thousand years had passed. Just one year after Zhu Yuanzhang was buried, the beacon fire was lit again, quickly spreading from the Prince of Yan's Mansion to the surrounding areas.

Officials Zhang Bing and Xie Gui of Beiping were lured to be executed. That night, Deputy Captain Zhu Neng led several hundred people, shouting the slogans of Taizu, and seized the nine city gates of Beiping! The entire battle ended quickly with nine enemy soldiers killed at the cost of one wounded.

The only difference between Prince of Yan and other vassal kings is not how much actual power he has, but that he has led troops in the north for many years and has established a deep reputation among the military.

The banner of "Feng Tian Jing Nan" was erected on the towers of Beiping, and the proclamations denouncing the treacherous officials in power were quickly posted from the legal height and moral perspective of Taizu's "ancestral teachings". The Prince of Yan organized the army and boosted morale, and the whole of Beiping was shrouded in frenzy .

Within two days, the Prince of Yan led his people out of the city to fight against Song Zhong's 30,000-strong army. Song Zhong spread rumors among his own army that "the Prince of Yan killed the family members of the imperial guards" to boost morale. Unexpectedly, when the two armies faced each other, the family members of the imperial guards appeared in front of the battle formation. Song Zhong's army quickly collapsed, and the Prince of Yan won a great victory.

In less than a month, Tongzhou, Jizhou, Zunhua, Miyun, Juyongguan, Huailai, Yongping Prefecture... were successively taken by Prince of Yan. Prince Gu abandoned his fiefdom and fled. The banner of "Fengtian Jingnan" spread like wildfire across the North China Plain, and it had already become a prairie fire.

The curtain of war has been raised rapidly, and all other ways to solve the problem have become a bubble. Since the founding of the Ming Dynasty, an unprecedented war is inevitable.

Zhu Gaoxu witnessed the methods used by Prince of Yan with his own eyes, and he had only one feeling in his heart: One cannot live in this world without tricks, and the methods used by Prince of Yan in his rebellion were very steady and methodical.

...

It was still dark in the capital, but outside Donghua Gate were already filled with civil servants of all kinds, waiting for the gate to open for court.

Countless lanterns and torches illuminated the surrounding ground. The faces of the officials were very solemn in the firelight. The news of the war in the north had already spread throughout the capital.

Every day, reports from various places flew into the government office in the capital like snowflakes. Everyone knew that the situation was not good, and most of them were reports of surrender and rebellion.

The time had not yet come, so no one could get in. However, a few people had already been brought into the palace from other gates.

"The emperor didn't sleep a wink all night." Eunuch Wu Zhong said softly.

At this moment, Huang Zicheng accidentally discovered that Qi Tai's face was pale, his steps were not steady, and his hands in his sleeves were even shaking a little. Huang Zicheng suddenly felt unhappy and thought to himself: You are still in charge of the Ministry of War, so you are so cowardly?

"Qi Bu Tang, Bu Tang..." Huang Zicheng called out twice.

Qi Tai finally came to his senses and turned to look at Huang Zicheng, "What?"

"What is Qi Budang thinking about?" Huang Zicheng asked casually.

Qi Tai murmured, "I didn't expect things to really turn out like this... Maybe our method is a bit insecure, or something is not very thorough, or there is a slight mistake in the timing..."

Huang Zicheng made a scolding sound from the tip of his tongue and said, "King Yan has been ambitious and full of resentment for a long time. He wants to rebel. Can you and I stop him? Qi Budang, don't think about the past anymore. Now the whole world is To attack a corner, it’s business to think of a good general to counter the rebellion.”

Fang Xiaoru, who was walking behind, said, "As a subject, being disloyal to the monarch is a crime that deserves to be punished by heaven and earth!"

Soon they entered the imperial gate and saw the emperor sitting on the throne in the candlelight, waiting. He did not move, as if he had been sitting there all along.

After several people bowed, Zhu Yunwen, who was in charge, asked directly, "Who will be the commander?"

Huang Zicheng turned to look at the Minister of War Qi Tai. Qi Tai showed no intention of saying anything, so Huang Zicheng stepped forward and bowed, saying, "I recommend Li Jinglong, the Duke of Cao."

Zhu Yunwen did not answer.

At this time, Qi Tai finally spoke, "Changxing Marquis Geng Bingwen."

The Imperial Gate, which could have accommodated civil and military officials, was empty with only a few people inside. With only a few people talking at this moment, it suddenly became very lonely.

Zhu Yunwen's voice asked, "Marquis Changxing is over sixty years old. Can he still lead troops? There are thousands of civil and military officials in the court. Is there no one left to use?"

Qi Tai bowed hurriedly and said, "Of course there are a lot of people. In the court, I can easily count dozens or even hundreds of people with military talent. However, Marquis Changxing has a reputation, so it is easier for him to command the troops."

Qi Tai paused for a moment and continued, "Your Majesty, I have read the reports from various places in Beiping and other places and found that the Yan rebels occupied many cities without firing a single arrow, and many surrendered. It is only because the Yan rebels are descendants of Taizu that the officials are wavering and have no intention of fighting.

At this time, the imperial court was in charge of the whole country, commanding millions of troops; while the Yan rebels were only in Beiping, with tens of thousands of people under their control. The imperial court army only needed to attack head-on, relying on its power that was dozens of times greater than theirs, and with the momentum of overwhelming pressure from a mountain, they could pacify the rebels... As long as the imperial court army did not surrender, it would be a battle that they would surely win! "

Several people around nodded, agreeing with Qi Tai's judgment.

Seeing this, Qi Tai said, "Therefore, the general who suppresses the rebellion does not need to be a genius, but only needs to be loyal to His Majesty. A loyal general is the most important person at this time.

The eldest son of Marquis Changxing married the emperor's sister, Princess Jiangdu, and is a relative of the emperor. Now the rebels of Yan are rebelling against the emperor, and the two sides are at war. As Marquis Changxing, he must be loyal to the emperor and has no reason to join the rebels of Yan. "

At this time, Huang Zicheng also said, "I second the motion."

After listening to the two's arguments, Zhu Yunwen quickly agreed, "Good!"

Zhu Yunwen asked Wu Zhong again, "Has the Marquis of Changxing come to court?"

Eunuch Wu Zhong said, "Your Majesty, the Marquis of Changxing arrived early this morning and is now outside the Xihua Gate, waiting for the gate to open."

It was still dark, and it was not yet time for the court session, but Zhu Yunwen and his ministers had been discussing matters for a long time. Zhu Yunwen said, "Send the Marquis of Changxing to see the emperor first."

"I obey your command."

After waiting for a while, I saw a burly old man striding to the outside of the imperial gate with his head held high. His hair and beard were almost completely white under his black official hat. He had a square face and walked steadily and steady.

If the person coming is not Geng Bingwen, Marquis of Changxing, then who is he?

Geng Bingwen strode into the imperial gate, pretending to kneel down, and said in full force, "Your Majesty, I pay my respects to you. Long live the Majesty!"

"Old General, no need to kneel." Zhu Yunwen's voice said.

Geng Bingwen calmed down easily, clasped his fists and said, "Thank you, Your Majesty, for your grace."

At this time, Qi Tai's voice asked, "Lian Po is old, can he still eat?"

Geng Bingwen raised his long white eyebrows, "Minister Qi is not convinced? How about we go outside the Imperial Gate and practice now?"

Qi Tai was not angry either, he waved his hand and said with a smile, "I admit defeat! How can I, a mere civilian, fight with an old general?"

"Hmph!" Geng Bingwen uttered a sound.

Zhu Yunwen's voice said, "Don't misunderstand, old general. It was Minister Qi who recommended you to lead the army to suppress the rebellion. At first, I was worried about the old general's age, but now it seems that he is still strong and healthy."

"Northern Expedition to King Yan?" Geng Bingwen said, then paused for a moment, "Your Majesty, I have something to say."

"Please speak, old general." Zhu Yunwen said.

Geng Bingwen said, "This old minister's body is still useful in battle. But I know myself well. I followed my grandfather in many battles, big and small. I dare not boast about myself, and most of my achievements were mediocre... What I am most proud of in my life is that I defended Chang'an Prefecture with a few thousand troops and resisted the siege of more than 100,000 troops for more than a month!

Therefore, I think I am good at defense but not good at attack. Now the King of Yan is plotting a rebellion, and Your Majesty wants to mobilize troops to attack, but I am not a good choice.”

Qi Tai hurriedly said, "General, please do not refuse and fail His Majesty's high expectations. In this battle, General, you only need to use ordinary troops and you will surely defeat the Yan rebels."

Geng Bingwen shook his head and clasped his fists to his superior, saying, "It has been more than thirty years since our great grandfather established the foundation. Although only one out of ten of the old generals are still alive, there are billions of people in the Ming Dynasty, and every generation has its own talents, such as Sheng Yong. I would like to recommend someone."

The superior asked, "Sheng Yong? What is his official position?"

Qi Tai replied, "Your Majesty, I am promoted to the rank of Commander-in-Chief."

Geng Bingwen said hurriedly, "Although Sheng Yong is not in a high position, he can discern the situation clearly, is calm and steady, is not greedy for merit and is not impulsive. He is indeed a great general!"

The superior said, "I am afraid I cannot command the generals."

Qi Tai also advised , "Old General, don't refuse!"

Geng Bingwen was stunned for a moment, then he could only clasp his fists and say, "I obey your orders!"

Soon, the sky gradually brightened. The gates of the imperial city were opened, and all the civil and military officials entered from the east and west gates to pay homage to the emperor.

Fang Xiaoru was the first to step out and scold the Prince of Yan and other rebels. He also criticized the Prince of Yan's proclamation point by point, citing classics and Taizu's words, and scolded the Prince of Yan. From the perspective of legal principles and morality, the Prince of Yan was nailed to the pillar of shame for being disloyal, morally corrupt, ambitious, and doing evil!

Thus, the Ming Dynasty central government regained the righteousness of light, and the government army once again became the army of justice.

With the righteous cause, the emperor appointed Geng Bingwen as the "General of the Yan Campaign", specially appointed Sheng Yong and other generals to follow him, and immediately mobilized the army. He chose a day to swear an oath, and marched north with the righteous official army to quell the rebellion!

Geng Bingwen hurriedly said goodbye to his family, prepared everything including the Ministry of War documents, the commander-in-chief's seal, the king's decree, the imperial edict, etc., and prepared to leave Beijing.

Before going to the battle, the deputy general and the lieutenant generals such as Sheng Yong came to Geng Bingwen's house to pay their respects and to cooperate on the battlefield. Along with the generals, there was also the unrelated Xu Huizu.

When Geng Bingwen saw Xu Huizu, he was confused and didn't know what he meant. Geng Bingwen knew what he was thinking. He had thought about recommending Xu Huizu in front of the emperor, because his status and prestige were much higher than Sheng Yong's. But thinking that his sister was the wife of the Prince of Yan, Geng Bingwen quickly gave up to avoid making trouble.

At the mansion, Geng Bingwen greeted everyone and retreated to the back yard, where he met with Xu Huizu and Sheng Yong again. After all, Xu Huizu was a duke, and Geng Bingwen could not take advantage of his seniority and look down on him.