When Li Hongyu arrived in the capital, it was already April of the fourth year of Chongzhen, and the bandits in Shaanxi and Gansu delayed him for a while, and he could only shake his head and smile bitterly in the face of the rebel teams that sprung up like mushrooms after a rain, which seemed quite helpless. 、

Obviously, in order to completely quell the rebellion of the common people, it is necessary to solve a fundamental problem, and this problem is to eat.

As soon as he entered the city, Li Hongyu learned of an unexpected but reasonable thing, Emperor Chongzhen summoned Yuan Chonghuan to discuss the matter, and sent the Ming Dynasty's Jiliao Governor to prison for questioning.

Yuan Chonghuan is mainly charged with two crimes, one is to steal money for the city, and the other is to behead the commander for seeking money, as for the failure to rescue when the Houjin army hit the capital, it is simply not worth mentioning compared with these two crimes.

Li Hongyu's arrival eased the tense situation in the capital, and after entering the city, he went home to bathe and change his clothes, and then went to meet Emperor Chongzhen.

Compared with three or four years ago, Emperor Chongzhen is no longer the young son of heaven who first ascended to the throne back then, he seems to be much more mature and stable, and he is very happy about Li Hongyu's arrival and holds a banquet to entertain him.

The envoys of the Yarkand Khanate said that the envoys of the Nagong had arrived in the capital after the year, which made Emperor Chongzhen very happy about this, which can be said to be the happiest thing for him in recent years.

If it is said that the expansion of territory is a sign that a country has entered the prosperous era, then Li Hongyu led the Ming Western Expeditionary Army to capture Turpan has reached this mark, which is a major achievement that even Ming Taizu and Ming Chengzu have not achieved, and the result has been realized here in Emperor Chongzhen.

"Your Majesty, the minister heard that Yuan Chonghuan, the governor of Jiliao, was imprisoned and questioned about his crimes, but I don't know what crime he committed?"

When the banquet came to an end, Li Hongyu, who was chatting and laughing with Emperor Chongzhen, suddenly changed his voice and asked quietly.

In fact, Li Hongyu didn't want to get involved in Yuan Chonghuan's case, but as the Taibao of the Ming Dynasty and Yuan Chonghuan's friend of the same department, he had to open this mouth, otherwise he would be derelict in his duty and unable to explain to the outside world, which would be unkind.

"Hmph, this person lived up to my imperial grace and said that he would take five years to level Liao, and I was very kind to him, but as a result, Jiannu actually hit the capital in a grand manner, and five years of Pingliao became a joke, and I also became a joke, which is simply hateful!"

Hearing the mention of Yuan Chonghuan, Emperor Chongzhen's face suddenly turned cold, and he said coldly to Li Hongyu, looking a little angry.

Indeed, in order to solve the problem of Liaodong that plagued the Ming Dynasty, Emperor Chongzhen, who had not long ascended the throne, was moved by Yuan Chonghuan's words, so he pinned his hopes on the restoration of Liaodong after his defeat.

But with Huang Taiji leading the army to attack the outside of the capital, Emperor Chongzhen's trust in Yuan Chonghuan has disappeared, and it is obvious that Houjin, who has the ability to hit Beijing City, will definitely not be wiped out within five years as Yuan Chonghuan said, and Pingliao has undoubtedly become a big joke in five years.

At this time, all the contradictions about Yuan Chonghuan were intensified, and it was impossible for Emperor Chongzhen to vigorously protect this courtier who had deceived him and embarrassed him.

As a result, Yuan Chonghuan, who was the governor of Jiliao, was arrested and imprisoned.

"Alas!"

Seeing that Emperor Chongzhen seemed to hate Yuan Chonghuan to the core, Li Hongyu couldn't help but smile helplessly, this may be the so-called deep love, hatred, when Emperor Chongzhen's hope for Yuan Chonghuan came to naught, the anger in his heart can be imagined.

Li Hongyu couldn't intercede for Yuan Chonghuan, at this time Emperor Chongzhen hated Yuan Chonghuan, if he interceded, it would not only add fuel to the fire, but also provoke Emperor Chongzhen's annoyance.

After all, Emperor Chongzhen is not the Emperor of the Apocalypse, and his personality seems to be a little stubborn, Li Hongyu has seen this a long time ago, so it is better to avoid provoking Emperor Chongzhen.

Of course, the charges convicted by the imperial court of Yuan Chonghuan are not groundless, and the two most important crimes of "stealing money in the city" and "beheading the commander if you seek money" are all true.

The so-called city rice theft does not refer to Yuan Chonghuan's sale of grain to Houjin, but refers to Yuan Chonghuan's sale of grain to the Karaqin Department of Mongolia after serving as the governor of Jiliao.

It is very unfortunate that the Karaqin tribe, like the Horqin tribe, were Mongolian tribes who took refuge in Houjin, and as a result, the Karaqin tribe resold grain to Houjin, which was causing a grain shortage, which was an indirect enemy.

In the first year of Chongzhen, the Karaqin Department received the help of the Later Jin, and the combined forces of the two sides defeated the Mongol army of Lin Dan Khan in the old land of Karaqin.

Although the Karaqin tribe also accepted the reward from the Ming Dynasty in September of the first year of Chongzhen, this was a common method used by the Mongol tribes caught between the Ming and Later Jin forces to curry favor with each other in order to seek maximum benefits.

It is worth mentioning that in the first month of the second year of Chongzhen, in order to increase military strength and national strength, Huang Taiji ordered the Mongolian tribes of Horqin, Aohan, Naiman, and Karaqin to join the Houjin Eight Banners, which means that these tribes have become the Eight Banners of the Houjin.

It can be seen that the Karaqin Department has taken refuge in Houjin, which Yuan Chonghuan should know that he is qualified Jiliao Governor, but even so, he wrote to Emperor Chongzhen in March of the second year of Chongzhen, and sold it to the Karaqin Department who was short of grain on the grounds of wooing the Karaqin Department to prevent it from taking refuge in Houjin, and finally obtained the imperial permission of Emperor Chongzhen.

As a result, just five months after Emperor Chongzhen's imperial permission to sell grain, the Great Khan of the Karaqin Tribe, who had obtained the grain, sent people to Shenyang to form an alliance with Huang Taiji, indicating to the outside world the failure of Yuan Chonghuan's appeasement policy.

As for how much grain the Karaqin Ministry secretly got from the Ming Dynasty to Houjin, who was also short of food due to famine, it is impossible to verify now, but it is certain that Houjin must have received a large amount of grain from it, and how dare the Karaqin Ministry disobey Houjin's orders.

You must know that Mao Wenlong's Dongjiang army, which had a major role in the Houjin at that time, was also short of food, but Yuan Chonghuan did not ask the imperial court for assistance for him, but used grain to appease the Karaqin Department that had allied with the Houjin, and then caused the grain to flow into the Houjin, and it is not an exaggeration to say that it is an enemy.

As for the beheading of the commander by seeking money, this is already very clear to the outside world, and the so-called "seeking money" refers to the negotiation of peace.

In fact, as early as when the Emperor of the Apocalypse was alive, Yuan Chonghuan had already started to negotiate peace with the Later Jin, hoping to stabilize the Later Jin and give the Ming Dynasty time to train his troops in order to recapture Liaodong, hoping to obtain the power to "act cheaply", and as a result, he got the imperial permission of the Emperor of the Apocalypse.

Originally, the negotiation of peace was a delaying tactic for the post-Jin Dynasty to buy time for the Ming Dynasty to strengthen the defense of important towns such as Guanwaining and Jin, but because of this matter, Mao Wenlong, the commander of the Dongjiang Army, was implicated, and Mao Wenlong was killed by Yuan Chonghuan.

Although Mao Wenlong was not in a thousand ways, he was the main force of the Ming Dynasty to resist the Houjin, causing very big trouble to the Houjin.

Because there was no water division, Hou Jin was helpless against the Dongjiang Army, and as a result, Yuan Chonghuan was helped Hou Jin get rid of this henchman, killing the commander of the Dongjiang Army and Mao Wenlong, who was also the soul of the Dongjiang Army.

As a result, with the death of Mao Wenlong, Huang Taiji no longer had any worries, and directly attacked the city of Beijing, which undoubtedly made people miss the Dongjiang Army.

If Mao Wenlong is still there, then under the control of the Dongjiang Army, the Houjin will definitely not dare to go deep into the hinterland of the Ming Dynasty, otherwise the Dongjiang Army will turn the Houjin upside down.

Taking 10,000 steps back, Mao Wenlong is a military attache of the imperial court, and Yuan Chonghuan, who holds the title of the crown prince, is also a first-class person, even if he has Shang Fangjian, he can't kill Mao Wenlong without authorization, and Mao Wenlong also has Shang Fangjian.

But Yuan Chonghuan unexpectedly did this, which surprised the outside world, so that outsiders didn't know what his motive for doing this was, and naturally suspected that it had something to do with Hou Jin Yihe, otherwise why was he so anxious?

After all, Yuan Chonghuan had promised Emperor Chongzhen that he would pacify Liao within five years, but this was obviously an impossible task.

For this reason, if Yuan Chonghuan can reach a peace agreement with Houjin, so that Houjin will no longer go south to invade the border, then Yuan Chonghuan will have steps to go down, so that he will not be unable to explain to Emperor Chongzhen.

In fact, Li Hongyu is not the only one who thinks so, but also the officials in the officialdom in the capital, after all, everyone is not stupid, and they can naturally see that Mao Wenlong died strangely.

At noon the next day, Jinyi Weibei Town Fusi was imprisoned.

"Taibao, this is the room where Yuan Chonghuan is held."

A brocade-clothed guard Qianhu bowed down and led Li Hongyu to a single cell, pushed open the door and said respectfully, Li Hongyu had asked Emperor Chongzhen to come to visit Yuan Chonghuan yesterday.

Since Yuan Chonghuan was a criminal in the imperial case appointed by Emperor Chongzhen, outsiders naturally could not see him without the approval of Emperor Chongzhen, and the relationship between Li Hongyu and Yuan Chonghuan naturally had to come to visit him.

"Mengsheng, when did you return to Beijing?"

In the cell, Yuan Chonghuan was sitting on the haystack in the corner of the wall with his eyes closed, and when he saw Li Hongyu coming, he hurriedly got up in surprise and greeted him.

He naturally knew that Li Hongyu went to Guanxi, and he also won several battles, not only solving the Moxi Mongolian tribes, but also recovering the territory of the Seven Guards of Guanxi and capturing Turpan, which can be said to have made great achievements.

"Arrived in Beijing yesterday." Li Hongyu smiled when he heard this, and asked the entourage following behind him to put the wine and food in the food box he carried on the table.

"It's so fragrant, this is the craft of the chef of Mochizuki Tower."

After the entourage set up the wine and food and left, Yuan Chonghuan leaned over and smelled the aroma of the wine and food, and said to Li Hongyu with a smile, this Moon Tower is one of the best restaurants in the capital, a place for dignitaries and nobles to gather, and the chef's skills are extremely superb.

"Elemental, it's been a long time since we've been drinking together, and today we're not drunk." Li Hongyu smiled when he heard this, motioned for Yuan Chonghuan to sit down, picked up the wine jug and poured wine for the two.

Indeed, the last time Li Hongyu drank with Yuan Chonghuan was in Liaoxi, and later Li Hongyu was ordered to enter the customs and went to Guanxi again, while Yuan Chonghuan stayed in Liaoxi, and it was difficult to have a day of gathering.

"Okay, don't get drunk and go home." Yuan Chonghuan laughed when he heard this, picked up the wine glass and touched it with Li Hongyu, and the two drank it all.

The atmosphere of the wine party was warm and cheerful, very harmonious, Li Hongyu and Yuan Chonghuan were talking and laughing, staggering, and recalling some interesting things in the past.

Li Hongyu did not ask Yuan Chonghuan why he killed Mao Wenlong and the matter of making peace with Houjin, which is a mystery that everyone in the outside world wants to know, and Yuan Chonghuan did not ask Li Hongyu about the facts of his case, the two of them tacitly did not want to disturb the wine.

Yuan Chonghuan knew very well that he was imprisoned because of the wrath of Emperor Chongzhen, and the current Emperor Chongzhen was not as easy to talk as when he ascended the throne, and he had already shown the tough side of the emperor.

Although the court is now in charge of the officials of the Donglin Party, but even so, Yuan Chonghuan was still imprisoned, which shows Emperor Chongzhen's hatred for him, so how can Yuan Chonghuan hope to live?

Li Hongyu was able to come to see him in the edict prison has made Yuan Chonghuan's heart very moved, you must know that others avoid him when he encounters this situation, for fear of being involved with him, so as not to burn himself, but Li Hongyu resolutely came to visit him.

Indeed, Li Hongyu is powerless about Yuan Chonghuan's case, aside from other factors, Yuan Chonghuan, who is the governor of Jiliao, is unprepared, making the Houjin attack on the capital, and someone must be responsible for this matter, and Yuan Chonghuan is the person who is responsible.

However, although Li Hongyu did not know the real reason why Yuan Chonghuan killed Mao Wenlong, which I am afraid only Yuan Chonghuan himself knew, it was not a secret that Yuan Chonghuan made peace with Hou Jin, after all, he had been allowed by the imperial court.

As far as Li Hongyu knows, the imperial court knows that there are two peace talks, in history, when Yuan Chonghuan first negotiated peace, Huang Taiji was secretly preparing to attack Korea, and when the second peace was negotiated Huang Taiji was preparing to go south to conquer Ming.

Therefore, for Yuan Chonghuan or Huang Taiji, it was a strategy to buy time.

Not only that, Huang Taiji saw Yuan Chonghuan's eagerness to make peace, so the lion opened his mouth and opened harsh conditions:

For example, the Ming Dynasty gave Houjin 100,000 taels of gold, 1 million taels of silver and 1 million pieces of cloth every year as a gift of reconciliation, and wanted to exchange 10,000 pieces of Dongzhu, 1,000 mink skins, and 1,000 catties of ginseng for 10,000 taels of gold, 100,000 taels of silver, 100,000 pieces of satin and 300,000 pieces of cloth every year.

Obviously, Huang Taiji's request not only means that he has seen through Yuan Chonghuan's psychology, but also has no sincerity at all, and has played Yuan Chonghuan well and bought a lot of time.

Li Hongyu was already a little drunk when he returned home from the edict, and his mood seemed quite heavy, although he was powerless to save Yuan Chonghuan, this time it was the angry Emperor Chongzhen who wanted Yuan Chonghuan to die.

"Xianggong, is the element okay now?" Zhao Xin was waiting in the Taibao Mansion, and when he saw Li Hongyu coming, he hurriedly greeted him.

She came to the capital a month earlier than Li Hongyu, and as Yuan Chonghuan's classmate, although she couldn't visit Yuan Chonghuan, she still paid a lot of attention to him.

"It's just a pleasure in suffering." Li Hongyu shook his head and sighed, it was obvious that Yuan Chonghuan was just smiling in front of him.

"Xianggong, there is really no turning point in this matter?" Zhao Xin heard that he knew that Yuan Chonghuan's situation was not very good, so he asked with a worried expression.

"The emperor now hates the elements to the core, and there is no hope of maneuvering." Li Hongyu sat down on the seat, took a sip of tea and shook his head.

"Alas, the elements are really confused, how can they kill Mao Wenlong, if Mao Wenlong is contained, how can Jiannu be so arrogant to hit the capital, and Jiannu will not be angry if he doesn't go to the capital, so that he will be executed."

Zhao Xin couldn't help but sigh when he heard this, Yuan Chonghuan is a smart person, doesn't he even know such a simple truth.

"Five years of Pingliao hurt him!" Li Hongyu smiled bitterly, shook his head, and said, "If it weren't for this matter, why would he be in a hurry to make peace with Jiannu, so that he fell into the trap of Huang Taiji." ”

"Trap?"

Zhao Xin's eyebrows frowned slightly when he heard this, and then he looked at Li Hongyu in surprise, "Xianggong, are you saying that Huang Taiji saw the psychology of the elements who were eager to make peace, so he set a trap for the elements to kill Mao Wenlong first, and then deliberately went south to the capital, so that the emperor could kill the elements again?" ”

"Although Xianggong doesn't want to believe it, it is true from the current point of view."

Li Hongyu put down the teacup in his hand when he heard this, and said helplessly, "Huang Taiji's serial plan is really beautiful, except for the elements and Mao Wenlong, the two who pose the greatest threat to Jiannu, I am afraid that no one in the Ming Dynasty will be able to restrict Huang Taiji in Liaodong from now on!" ”

"This Huang Taiji is really cunning." Zhao Xin nodded thoughtfully when he heard this, and had to say that Yuan Chonghuan and Mao Wenlong were the two best candidates to contain Huang Taiji.

"If I knew this, maybe Xianggong should have been in addition to him after the Battle of Tieling." Li Hongyu remembered something at this time, and couldn't help but sigh.

After the Battle of Tieling that year, Li Hongyu deliberately let the leader of Ye He's department, that is, Huang Taiji's uncle Jin Taishi, set up an ambush to intercept Huang Taiji halfway.

As a result, Jin Taishi put Huang Taiji on his nephew's sake, and then fell into favor from Huang Taiji, which will help Ye Hebu's future development.

In addition, Li Hongyu didn't want Huang Taiji to die like this, he had already seen that Da Ming was terminally ill, rather than forcing the people to suffer, it was better to cut through the mess quickly and let Houjin give him the final fatal blow.

The so-called not broken and not established, only after the death of the Ming Dynasty can a new order be established on its ruins, and the people can truly live a stable life.

"Xianggong, if the first emperor was alive, maybe there wouldn't be so many troubles today." Zhao Xin thought of another thing and also sighed with emotion.

Obviously, the Emperor of the Apocalypse would never believe in the theory of five years of Pingliao, so that Yuan Chonghuan would not give himself a big set of drills, which would lead to a series of consequences.

It's a pity that there is no regret medicine in the world, and Li Hongyu and Zhao Xin have to face the current bad situation.

(End of chapter)