After the decision of the southern expedition was discussed in the court, the various yasmen began to make preparations. By the end of this year, the Ming naval fleet will arrive at Saigon Port in Zhenla according to the plan; However, the northern sea route was not smooth, and the rest of the time was not easy.

Navy officers, sailors, and other personnel with a total strength of nearly 30,000 are being mobilized from Liujiagang to the Beijing Division. The soldiers arrived at the university field and after a short training, they could set sail.

The army entered the city from the outer Jinchuan Gate and passed through the Hongwu Gate, the main gate of the imperial city; Then go out of Zhengyangmen and arrive at the barracks of Daxiaochang. Some officials set up a guard of honor at Hongwu Gate, and when the army passed, the emperor would inspect the navy by the way.

Zhu Gaoxu took a sedan chair through the thousand-step corridor and arrived at Hongwu Gate. As soon as he got out of the carriage, he saw that on the tower of Hongwu Gate, there was a yellow umbrella cover, as well as a throne and other things. Zhu Gaoxu watched for a while, and understood that there was a little problem in communication between the Honor Guard Division and the Honglu Temple and other yamen, because he did not plan to sit on the city tower to check the army.

He looked up at the tower for a while, and then looked in that direction at the sky, and saw that the sky was gray today, and the clouds were very low.

He didn't wear a dragon robe today, but he was wearing a cyan military uniform with a big-brimmed hat on his head. This dress is not in the etiquette system, but the emperor is also nominally the commander of the whole army of the Ming Dynasty, and it is not necessary to wear military uniforms; It's just that this kind of dress only appeared a few years ago.

According to the military dress established during the Wude period, the army is gray and the navy is cyan. Zhu Gaoxu's blue clothes ordered by the Weaving Bureau are no different from those worn by the naval officers. However, the accessories on his body are orange and glowing, and he looks more noble. The solid gold badge, the gold and jade belt, and the goose feather scabbard around the waist are also extremely gorgeous, and the gold-encrusted scabbard is also decorated with various gems and jade. Even mocskinskin boots have patterns on them.

Since the Tang and Song dynasties, the architectural costumes in the world have been developing in the direction of complexity, and Zhu Gaoxu's equipment today is not abrupt.

He didn't go up to the city tower, and when Xungui Zhao Ping brought a brown horse over, he stepped on the stirrup and turned over on the horse with a vigorous body. The crowd had no choice but to follow on foot. The civil and military officials in the Hongwu Gate had no choice but to march out of the Hongwu Gate.

There are a lot of people outside the city gate today, probably all of them who heard the wind and came to see the strangeness. The imperial court deployed a large-scale military operation, and there was almost no possibility of secrecy in advance, and the movement was too great. However, the country of Zhenla is far away in the sky, and it is estimated that there are no spies in the Ming Dynasty.

There were also many young women with oil-paper umbrellas on the roadside, well-dressed, and many of them could be called flowery. They estimated that they were the families of officers and soldiers, and because of the Ming Dynasty's politeness, young women from decent families would not crowd on the side of the road and show their heads. And the naval officers and men are not poor, they belong to the Beijing camp, have military salaries, have a settlement allowance before going to sea, and a reward after returning, and the pension given by the imperial court is not thin; They were probably richer than ordinary people.

The crowd across the street didn't recognize Zhu Gaoxu at first. First, he didn't wear a dragon robe, and second, the distance was too far, and he was wearing a hat, so it is estimated that people can't see it clearly.

However, soon the emperor's honor guard went out of the city gate, and all kinds of umbrella covers, card corners and other objects were the royal family's ritual weapons at a glance. Knowledgeable people on the side of the road may have guessed that the man on horseback was the emperor, and they knelt on the ground one after another, and the people around them also obeyed the crowd and bowed down. The sea of people fell to the ground, revealing a large area of his back, and Zhu Gaoxu suddenly felt some kind of religiously grand scene.

And the Jinyi guards in line, as well as the plainclothes Jinyi guards who were mixed in the crowd, were all looking around nervously, paying attention to the safety of the four places.

Zhu Gaoxu behaved very calmly and naturally. Although he has lived in the palace for a long time, he pays more attention to exercise on weekdays, and his body has not yet been blessed, and he still looks tall and strong when he sits on horseback. As the emperor of the people of the world, his vigorous spirit and majestic image may also be very important, which can give the world a stable atmosphere of strong power.

At this moment, the whip of "popping" sounded, and then the musician of the teaching workshop played the tune of "Wanli Jinling", and the sound of horizontal blowing and percussion instruments permeated the inside and outside of the city tower.

"Click, click......" The sound of neat footsteps in the distance resounded through the streets and alleys one after another. The soldiers in blue clothes lined up in a phalanx and appeared in sight. The soldiers carried firearms, and the generals' swords walked on the side of the team. The momentum and music of the army were very loud, and the noise of the crowd was also hidden.

The war horse under Zhu Gaoxu's seat was slowly moving its hooves, as if it was affected by the momentum, but it was not frightened and ran away.

When the front team walked to the front of Hongwu Gate, they only heard the shouts of the generals, and the troops raised their firearms with a "whoosh", and turned their heads to Zhu Gaoxu to clasp their fists and salute. Zhu Gaoxu also immediately clenched his fists in return. The scene of the purge attracted people's attention, many people raised their heads, and there was a commotion in the crowd.

The sound of Lile and footsteps was very loud, and a group of people kept walking through Hongwu Gate, and Zhu Gaoxu didn't speak for a while, and even if he spoke, everyone couldn't hear clearly. In the midst of the bustle, you can only hear the loud singing of the officials of Honglu Temple and the shouting of the generals. Every team of people passed by, and Zhu Gaoxu and the soldiers saluted each other.

The magnificent Hongwu Gate, the civil engineering buildings on the top of the hanging mountain, the carved doors and windows, and the Hanfu dress of the people, everything is an antique scenery. However, the soldiers below Zhu Gaoxu have a modern atmosphere in military uniforms; The Chunhan gun equipped with is only an arquebus, but the shiny wrought iron barrel and the wooden butt at least look like a serious gun. At this moment, the outside of the Imperial City looked different.

The combination of classical and modern atmosphere, Zhu Gaoxu did not feel abrupt at all, perhaps he had already accepted such a scene in his memory.

There was also a civil official behind Zhu Gaoxu, who was actually sitting on the ground and painting hard, leaving the scene on paper.

Suddenly, there was a rumbling thunder in the sky, followed by a torrential rain of beans, and finally fell from the clouds. The civil servant who painted hurriedly began to collect the painting. The sound of the rain between heaven and ......earth became even more noisy, and the onlookers were in confusion, and many people got up and squeezed under the eaves to avoid the rain.

The eunuchs hurriedly moved the umbrella cover to cover Zhu Gaoxu from the rain. At this time, Zhu Gaoxu looked back at the eunuchs, shook his head slightly, shook the reins, and walked forward into the rain again. Because the soldiers were also unobtrusive, he was unwilling to make too noble appearances.

The ranks of the admirals on the streets had not changed in the slightest, and it was impossible for these elite soldiers to be scattered in front of the emperor because of a rain. In the noisy atmosphere, I don't know when there was a shout, and then the soldiers shouted "Long live" to Zhu Gaoxu in the rain curtain one after another, and the shouts were earth-shattering, and the aftermath echoed.

The rain soon flowed down the brim of his hat and onto Zhu Gaoxu's face, but he still held his fists, saluted the passing soldiers in return, and looked directly at the soldiers one by one, paying attention to the faces of the passing soldiers.

The men and horses in front of him were all young and middle-aged men, well-nourished, physically strong, well-equipped, and well-groomed. Even those who do not understand the art of war should be able to see that the members of the navy are elite officers and soldiers.

The Han Chinese were generally obedient, and after the imperial court allocated enough military funds, the regular army was allowed to go on an expedition, and no one resisted.

Because of the greater risk of going to sea, most of the merchant ships and warships at sea in the past were exiles and recruited refugees as sailors. This time, the Ming army marched to the sea, using regular Beijing battalion officers and soldiers. Maybe the price is not small, but Zhu Gaoxu thinks it should be worth it.

After the men and horses of various departments passed through the Hongwu Gate one after another, Zhu Gaoxu turned his horse's head and walked towards the city gate. His whole body was already soaked with rain.

When he entered the city tower, a eunuch and palace maid came with dry clothes, and the eunuch Wang Jinghong persuaded: "The emperor's dragon body is important, let the slaves and maids wait to change their clothes." ”

Zhu Gaoxu immediately refused: "It's just a rain." After a while, I have to go to the university to give a lecture, and after changing my clothes, I will soon get wet again, so why bother tossing again? ”

Wang Jinghong looked distressed, as if his father was drenched in the rain, and continued to persuade.

Zhu Gaoxu was already a little impatient, so he ordered: "You go and bring me a hot tea, let's drink the tea and set off." ”

Wang Jinghong had no choice but to bow down and say, "The slave and maid will go immediately." ”

All the civil and military officials walked into the city tower to bow down, and it was inevitable that they would sing praises again. Most of the civil officials of the Ming Dynasty are in very good health, and they are always proud of overcoming difficulties, for example, if the emperor does not come to the early dynasty before dawn, if the emperor does not come to the early dynasty, they are not satisfied, so it should not be a big problem for everyone to get caught in a rain.

After a while, Wang Jinghong came in with tea. Seeing that the important ministers were present, Zhu Gaoxu said: "Wang Jinghong, the main envoy of the navy who went to the south this time, is still Wang Jinghong, and he has rich experience. The rest were deputies, with the eunuch Meng Ji and others as deputies. ”

Officials chimed in. Wang Jinghong bowed and said, "The slave and maid receive the order." ”

Zhu Gaoxu continued: "The generals will be Tang Jing, Wang Heng, Lin Zixuan, Hu Jun, and Ha Tong. The envoy used Liu Ming and asked him to go south to make up for his mistakes. ”

Chen Ge, who was promoted to the official position of the Metropolitan Procuratorate, immediately came out of the ranks and bowed: "The ministers are sacred, Liu Ming is a guilty person, and he has been dismissed from the official and is at home to listen to the interrogation. ”

Zhu Gaoxu said: "I know. However, I have sent someone to find out that his relatives have violated the law, and Liu Ming did not know about it. Despite this, Liu Ming still couldn't get out of it, so I let him make meritorious contributions. As you all know, compared to the stability and comfort of Jingshi, it is not a good errand to go overseas, you think about Qian Xili, the people who went to Zhenla last time. There may still be officials who are born as Jinshi and are willing to serve as envoys, but who has Liu Ming's experience in going overseas many times? I just want to do everything I can. ”

Qi Tai, the secretary of the Ministry of War, Gao Xianning, the secretary of Dali Temple, and other ministers successively seconded the proposal. So the rest of the officials didn't have anything to say, and Chen Ge also retreated to the team.