Chapter 342: Grandpa Xu's troubles

Liukou is just playing a Tongling City, why is Nanzhili so chaotic? Not only the gentry and the common people were flustered, but even some officials thought the same way. But when you think about it, it doesn't seem so difficult to understand. Since the founding of the Ming Dynasty, although the south has experienced the rebellion of the Japanese invaders, it has generally been peaceful for too long. The original rebellion was much worse than the current rogues.

The rogues swept through the Central Plains, and there were too many things to do, and under all kinds of rumors, layers of panic were buried. Nanzhili was in a mess, and the officials of the six ministries in Nanjing urgently consulted, but they couldn't come up with a decent idea. At this time, someone thought of the old man Xu Hongji, if someone can still lead the Beijing camp and fight a tough battle, it must be Grandpa Xu. The other generals are still able to fight, but their control over the Beijing camp is still too weak.

Ruan Dacheng was elected by the officials of the Six Ministries because of his relationship with Xu Hongji, and led people to the Wei Mansion in an attempt to persuade Xu Hongji to lead troops to the battle. Since Ruan Dacheng was driven to Nanjing, his life has not been very good, he is a bit arrogant and not very good at managing relationships, but his inner desire for power is not small at all. Originally, there were also ideas to ease relations with the Donglin Party and the Restoration Society, and when there was this opportunity, they naturally did not want to let it go.

Xu Hongji was in poor health, but he was recovering very well overall, and when he heard that Ruan Dacheng was visiting, he just said lightly: "Let him wait!" ”

In the quaint room, Xu Hongji, who was dressed in a purple and gold robe, grabbed his hair with some distress. Although he is not old, his hair has turned gray and he looks much older than his actual age. However, Xu Hongji inherited the excellent genes of the old Xu family, with a burly figure, masculine appearance, and a sharp aura exuding all over his body. In front of him, a woman in her twenties sat in front of a mirror, slowly combing her hair.

Through the mirror, you can vaguely see that she has a beautiful appearance, and there is a faint heroic spirit between her eyebrows. This woman is none other than Xu Hongji's daughter-in-law Xu Zhixin.

"Girl, the young man Zhou I just told you, you think about it, it took a lot of effort to pick out such a person for your father!" Speaking of this, Xu Hongji couldn't help frowning, and his heart was full of sorrow. For the sake of her daughter's marriage, she couldn't eat any more food, but this little aunt didn't care at all.

Sure enough, Xu Zhixin put down the comb and hummed softly. As he slowly got up, the enchanting and tall figure was undoubtedly revealed, "Daddy, you picked a Zhou Shigui for a long time?" This person gave birth to a good skin in vain, in addition to fiddling with a few sour poems all day long, that is, lingering on the bank of the painting boat river, how could his daughter fall in love with this kind of person? ”

Xu Hongji couldn't help but be a little dumbfounded, the young handsome man he finally picked out was said to be useless by his baby daughter in the blink of an eye. is obviously a handsome son, but in the blink of an eye, he has become stinky shit.

"Hey, my little aunt, what do you mean by fiddling with sour poems? Lingering on the painting boat, but any young man with a little knowledge, which one is not like this, this is called elegance. Hey, don't stare at your father, then tell me, what are you looking for? ”

At this time, Xu Hongji was also a little angry. Seeing that the baby girl is getting older and older year by year, can you not be angry? A woman's age is a big enemy, and if she piles up year by year, it will become more and more difficult to marry. In the entire city of Nanjing, everyone who is not married at the age of twenty is beautiful, and there is only one girl of their own, and I heard that this matter has become a topic of conversation. What makes Xu Hongji even more angry is that the threshold for marriage proposals has been almost flattened a few years ago, but in the past two years, there have been fewer and fewer people.

Xu Hongji also understands in his heart that as his daughter gets older and older, she is a little unpopular. Who is Xu Hongji? The dignified Duke of Wei, can he still be a little arrogant in his heart? The more you are not optimistic, the more you have to find a young and handsome man as a son-in-law. But when I actually put it into action, I realized that it was not like that.

There are also a few young heroes in Nanzhili, but when they heard that they were talking about marriage with their daughters, their heads shook like rattles. Those who are a little talented and willing to talk about marriage, Xu Hongji is a little disdainful, this Zhou Shigui searched for many months before finding out. Zhou Shigui has a good family background, he is a good learner, and the most important thing is that he Xu Hongji is also pleasing to the eye. Everything is fine, but the baby girl can't look at it alive or dead.

The father and daughter all had cold faces, staring at each other, and after a while, Xu Zhixin said lightly: "My daughter's crush, that is a man who stands up to the sky, but there is danger, he can stand in front of his daughter." What my daughter thinks is that he is a good man who is both civil and military."

Xu Hongji frowned, a good man who is both civil and military, where the hell can I find it. Besides, with such a character, it's one thing whether people want to or not.

What a good man, hey, isn't it just that he has talent to learn, and he has to be able to fight? Xu Hongji still understands his daughter, this can fight, not that he can fight, but he can fight. Speaking of which, I also created a sin in my last life, giving birth to a baby girl, to have a figure, to have a good look, but this girl doesn't like red clothes and loves arms. It's those sons who abandoned the old Xu family one by one, and the father really doesn't know where to find such a person for you. Otherwise, how about you think about Zhou Gongzi again? What people say is also the Zhou family."

Xu Zhixin raised her hand and shook it in front of Xu Hongji's eyes: "Daddy, don't mention this matter again, if it's someone else, the child will still think about it, as for him, it's a waste." Okay, isn't Lord Ruan looking for something to do with you, it's still important to get down to business, maybe it's because of the military situation in Tongling, and Daddy shouldn't hurry up."

"You, you are your father, sooner or later, you will have to make you angry to death" Xu Hongji's fingers trembled for a while, sighed and left the house helplessly. After Xu Hongji left, a trace of sadness also appeared between Xu Zhixin's eyebrows, how could she not be at ease about marriage? But she really doesn't want to force herself, if she wants to live with a man she doesn't look down on for the rest of her life, she would rather die alone.

She didn't know about some rumors in the market, but she ignored them more often. Those people can say whatever they like, because they don't know anything.

Ruan Dacheng waited outside for about half an hour before he got the opportunity to meet. According to his violent temper in the past, he would have waved his sleeves and shook his face, but this time not only could he not do this, but he also had to put on a smiling face. Over the years, his temperament has also converged a lot, and after being beaten by reality, if he still goes his own way, he will be a fool.

Xu Hongji actually doesn't look down on Ruan Dacheng, this guy was in an important position in Beizhili at the beginning, and he can be described as high-spirited, but unfortunately he can't be a man, not only did he conflict with his colleagues in Donglin, but later some Donglin juniors reinstated the society, this guy also talked nonsense, and gradually, he had a bad relationship with many people around him. No, when Yuan Chonghuan was taken down, he was implicated, but few people stood up to speak for him, and in the end, although his life was saved, he was thrown to Nanjing to take on an errand.

In the past, Ruan Dacheng was a little contemptuous of these Donglin colleagues, but now, in order to climb up again, don't you obediently listen to others? Hey, power is really a bottle of poison, no matter how hard and stinky you are, it can give you poison and softness.

Walking into the living room, Xu Hongji naturally arched his hand and said: "There are some trivial matters in the back house, and it has been delayed for some time, and Lord Lao Ruan has been waiting for a long time." Lord Ruan, please take a seat, at this time, I don't know what Lord Ruan is doing when he comes to the house? ”

"It's okay, it's okay" Ruan Dacheng hurriedly returned the salute and hurriedly said: "Grandpa is busy with everything, and the lower officials can afford to wait, they can afford to wait." In fact, this time, my grandfather should have guessed some. Now that Tongling has fallen, the Liukou will ravage Nanzhili, Zhejiang and Tongling are close at hand, if the Liukou pass through the Ningguo Mansion, cause trouble in Zhejiang, the consequences are unimaginable. Therefore, the lower official implored the grandfather to be able to lead the army to the expedition as soon as possible and stabilize the situation. At present, Nan Zhili, who can stabilize the overall situation, is the only grandfather. ”

"Oh?" Xu Hongji frowned with embarrassment, he thought about it, coughed twice, and whispered: "Lord Ruan really thinks highly of Xu, Xu has been sick, and his ability to lead troops is also ordinary. However, it is the most suitable for Gu Tongen, Gu Daren, who is both civil and military, to lead the troops to the battle. ”

Xu Hongji looked sick, and his words were not without sarcasm. How could Ruan Dacheng not hear it? His face was so embarrassed that he could only pretend not to understand. Xu Hongji's words are not uncommon at all. For a long time, the Nanjing Sixth Division, as the follower of the Sixth Department of the Northern Zhili, has never had a harmonious relationship with the Wei State Mansion. Recently, the relationship has been very stiff.

Since the Zhengde period, the power in the hands of the nobles, especially the military generals, has been stripped away little by little. The power in the hands of the six departments of the cabinet has expanded a little bit, and by the end of Wanli, there is little military power left in the hands of the martial artists. In Nanzhili, only the Xu family of the Duke of Wei is still struggling to support it.

The military power in the hands of the Duke of Wei can be said to be the last position of the martial arts, and everything must be kept. For this last position, Nanjing Sixth Division is naturally salivating and can't wait to take it. Two years ago, the Ministry of War planned to send someone to divide power on the grounds that Xu Hongji was ill, but Xu Hongji skillfully resolved it. Later, the Ministry of War planned to mix sand with the Governor's Mansion on the grounds of supervising military supplies, but Xu Zhixin found a reason to beat the dozen or so people to death.

Xu Zhixin beat those quartermasters half to death, in fact, she was slapping the face of the Sixth Division, and the relationship between the Sixth Division and the Wei State Mansion dropped to a freezing point. Actually, whether there is such a thing or not, the relationship with the six departments will not be good, Xu Hongji doesn't care too much, what he really cares about is that there is no successor. Those sons are really muddy and can't support the wall, and the successor Xu Wenjue was in charge of military affairs at the beginning, and it was a mess, and Xu Hongji was still thinking about how to teach that kid a lesson.

The baby girl can be literate and martial, but she is a girl after all!

For various reasons, Xu Hongji made it difficult for six parts, which is completely understandable. Ruan Dacheng knew this, but he still had to find a way to move Xu Hongji, in order to return to Beizhili, he must seize the opportunity in front of him. As for what to say to let Master Gu lead the troops to the battle, don't even think about it. Gu Tongen is a Confucian scholar and knows how to lead soldiers? Frowning and thinking about it, he smiled bitterly: "Grandpa, why are you like this? Although there was a lot of unhappiness before, the current matter is related to the safety of Nanzhili after all. If the Liukou wreaks havoc on Nanzhili, it won't do the grandfather any good. ”

Xu Hongji didn't deny it, but rolled his eyes without saying a word, which seemed to be saying: "It's not good for Grandpa Ben, but it's even worse for those masters in the six departments." ”

Ruan Dacheng understood Xu Hongji's eyes, and smiled bitterly in his heart. It's all because those people offended the Xu family too hard before, otherwise Xu Hongji wouldn't be so difficult. Ruan Dacheng didn't want to judge, nor was he qualified to judge, what he cared about was how to persuade Xu Hongji to go on the expedition. Xu Hongji naturally couldn't watch Nanzhili be in chaos, but if he wanted to go on the expedition, he had to pay something. After thinking about it carefully, Ruan Dacheng somewhat understood what the other party wanted.

"Grandpa, as long as your old man is willing to pacify Nanzhili and drive the Liukou out, after the official returns, he must inform his colleagues in the six ministries that the military salary materials stored before will be sent to the Governor's Mansion."

Seeing that the time was almost up, Xu Hongji did not embarrass Ruan Dacheng anymore, but looked at the other party seriously, and said softly: "Lord Ruan's words count?" As long as the military salary and materials are replenished, Xu's crippled body can still be used! ”

Xu Hongji's words are also very clear, as long as the military salary and materials are in place, he will go to the battle, otherwise there is no need to talk. Ruan Dacheng was anxious about Yucheng's matter, so he bowed his hand and left. As soon as Ruan Dacheng left, Xu Zhixin entered the door, she sat in the chair next to her, her eyebrows frowning slightly, "Daddy, although those people will make up for military salaries and other materials this time, but after all, it is a symptom but not a cure." ”

"Hey, so what, you can only take one step at a time. Could it be true to watch the rogue wreak havoc on Nan Zhili, regardless of whether he asked? Xu Hongji poked his head in annoyance. The contradiction between Wuxun and the Six Ministries is irreconcilable, and the two sides will inevitably fight for power, because power means interests. After the British government lost its military power, its influence was no longer what it used to be, and Xu Hongji didn't want the Wei government to follow in its footsteps.

But it's really not easy to fight against the sixth. The six ministries are monolithic, and they only need to do one thing, which is to strangle the military pay and materials. The Governor's Mansion had soldiers and horses, but there was no input, and the military supplies were all allocated by the imperial court. No matter who you serve as a soldier, you are all supporting your family, and if you don't make any progress, the power in the hands of the Governor's Mansion will naturally fall into the hands of the six ministries little by little. At the beginning, the power in the hands of the Governor's Office of the Five Armies of the Northern Zhili was not lost little by little? Nanjing Sixth Division, just repeating the previous means.

understands everything, but Xu Hongji can't help it, because although he is the Duke of Wei, he can't conjure up money, food and materials out of thin air.

As long as the military money and food of the Governor's Office are still restricted, then it will always be in a passive position. If it weren't for the influx of rogues into Nanzhili this time, those people would still not let go, and they would have intensified their efforts to mix sand with the Nanjing Governor's Mansion.