There are still more than ten days to celebrate the Spring Festival, and the three years of Longwu are about to come to an end. Pen, fun, pavilion www. biquge。 infoHengzhou City, where the Son of Heaven is stationed, is full of festive atmosphere.

A lot has happened in this year. At the beginning of the year, the Qing army marched south and even surrounded Hengzhou, but it was eventually repulsed and the crisis was resolved. Subsequently, Pang Yue led the army to recover Guangdong, captured Li Chengdong and Tong Yangjia, which shocked the world and encouraged people. Then Emperor Longwu made overall planning, appointed talents, restored the governance of the two Guangzhous, increased tax sources, etc., which also made the operation of the imperial court gradually on the right track.

Although there are still various shortcomings, overall, the year has been more joyful than sad.

In the palace, Emperor Longwu, as usual, got up early, left the dormitory and came to the imperial study. This is the main place where he usually meets with ministers and reviews the recitals, but due to the national crisis, it is extremely simple, and the brazier lit in the corner of the house can not completely dispel the chill.

Emperor Longwu's personal chamberlain was named Zhao Xi, who had been serving in the Tang Dynasty in his early years, and was loyal and deeply trusted. At this time, seeing that Emperor Longwu, who was concentrating on reviewing the recital, was trembling a little, Zhao Xi hurriedly brought a big coat and put it on him. After quietly waiting for Emperor Longwu to approve a book, Zhao Xi finally couldn't help but speak: "Emperor, don't you take advantage of the year to let the Internal Affairs Office repair this imperial study?" Even if you add some heating and cold stuff. Otherwise, this day is getting colder and colder, and the emperor stays here every day, don't hurt the dragon's body because of the severe cold. ”

Emperor Longwu coughed and shook his head: "No need, it's impermeable and doesn't leak rain." And why spend money? Now the soldiers in front of them are sleeping in the open, and hundreds of people are displaced. How can I seek my own enjoyment with peace of mind? After that, there was another series of violent coughs.

Zhao Xi hurriedly stepped forward and patted Emperor Longwu on the back. Looking at the homespun dragon robe on today's body, I felt a sadness. As the king of a country, he is so thrifty, and he is not much more worried than the emperor back then.

After a while, there was a rush of footsteps outside the door. Before I saw him, I heard his excited voice: "Emperor, great victory!" What a victory! ”

Immediately after, a figure rushed in, but unexpectedly walked too quickly and tripped over the threshold. Fell into a sturdy knot.

"Yo, Grandpa Ma, you can be careful!" Zhao Xi hurriedly stepped forward to help the person up. This somewhat reckless intruder was none other than Ma Wenqian, the eunuch of the ceremonial eunuch.

Ma Wenqian didn't care when he fell, he quickly picked up the pond newspapers scattered on the ground, and sent them to the dragon case in three steps and two steps, his face was still full of excitement: "Emperor, the news just came back." This northern expedition, our army has won a great victory! Dingwu Hou led the army to annihilate more than 20,000 Qing captives, and beheaded the puppet Zhishun Wang Shang Kexi, the puppet Shun Gong Shen Zhixiang and many other puppet generals and deputy generals. Jingzhou has been declared recovered! ”

"What did you say?" Emperor Longwu's voice trembled a little, as if he suspected that he had heard it wrong, and then before Ma Wenqian could repeat it, he couldn't wait to take the Tang newspaper and read it. After reading it carefully, it was read twice. Finally laughed out loud: "Good! Good! I know that Pang Aiqing has always known soldiers and will never live up to my expectations. Now it's true! Kill the puppet king. Annihilating tens of thousands of enemies and recovering important towns, how many years has our dynasty not had such a great victory? I have such good generals. Why worry that the ancestral industry is not prosperous, and the rivers and mountains are gone! ”

It was rare for Emperor Longwu to be so happy, and Zhao Xi also had a smile on his face. He bowed again and again and said, "The slave and maid congratulate Your Majesty!" Congratulations to Daming! ”

Ma Wenqian also nodded again and again, and said with a smile: "This great victory depends not only on the brave battles of the soldiers in front of you, but also on the blessing of the saints!"

Emperor Longwu smiled and waved his hand: "Don't talk about this, you quickly invite Yuanfu and other ministers to enter the palace and discuss related matters." Pang Aiqing has made great contributions again, I can't say nothing! ”

"Slave Command!"

After Ma Wenqian left in a hurry, Emperor Longwu couldn't hold back his joy and read the Tang Bao again. Looking at every victory, and even every number of enemies destroyed, I felt extremely comforted in my heart. For today's stormy Daming, such a victory seems so exciting.

In addition to joy, Emperor Longwu also sighed a little, although he was the Son of Heaven, but for various reasons, what he did for the Northern Expedition was quite limited, and even the grain and grass needed by the army could not be allocated, just gave a name to a teacher. But even so, Pang Yue still led the army north without complaint, not only relieved the siege of Xiangyang, but also played an unprecedented victory, relieving the long-term threat of the Qing army in Hubei to Changde, Changsha and other places. Having such loyal ministers and good generals is really a blessing for the Ming Dynasty.

Thinking about the current events, Emperor Longwu couldn't help but think of two years ago, Pang Yue and Wang Dongri were both one of the heroes who supported him to ascend the Ninth Five-Year Plan, and they could be called the two great martial arts. Now, the status and strength of these two people have long been beyond what they could have compared with the beginning, and they have been named marquis, with tens of thousands of troops under their accounts. One led the army to guard northern Hunan and guarded the northern gate of the imperial court, and the other led the army to garrison Guangdong to resist the enemy in Fujian. To a certain extent, it is precisely because of the existence of these two people that the Ming Dynasty was able to keep Hunan and Guangdong, and the situation would not further erode away.

However, every king is inevitably wary of his or her generals, no matter how loyal they may have been. Emperor Longwu was naturally not exempt from vulgarity, and when Wang Dongri and Pang Yue were given almost the same status and power, there were factors of checks and balances to consider. Later, when he learned that Pang and Wang were disliked, he even secretly breathed a sigh of relief. But now, if Pang Yue makes another great contribution, his reputation and prestige will surely rise, which means that the previous balance situation will undergo some changes.

Although so far, Pang Yue has shown loyalty everywhere in both words and deeds and actual deeds, but a commander with too much prestige and an army that is too large and powerful will eventually make the monarch feel a little worried while being gratified.

Thinking about this, after the initial joy, Emperor Longwu actually had a different emotion in his heart, a trace of unease.

Alas! What's wrong with me? Emperor Longwu, who had come back from his contemplation, remembered the fleeting thought just now, and couldn't help but smile self-deprecatingly. Will he eventually be like some faint kings, inevitably suspicious of loyal ministers and good generals? This is a taboo for kings. At least in this time of life and death. And it also went against his original intention when he ascended the throne.

As a former distant clan, a king who endured hardships before ascending to the throne. Emperor Longwu greatly respected the Emperor Guangwu of Han, who had a similar situation to him, and also pondered many times about his glorious history of recovering the Han Dynasty. Originally. The Emperor of Han Guangwu was a true self-made man, and the situation he faced was even more dangerous than today, but in the end, he still revived the Han family and continued the national honor of the Han Dynasty. Moreover, the 28 PTZ generals will all have a good death.

After thinking for a while, Emperor Longwu was finally relieved, if he really had the heart and courage of the Emperor of Han Guangwu, why worry that Pang Yue would not become one of the "28 generals of Yuntai" of Zhongxing Daming? After banishing the distractions in his mind, he returned to the dragon case and sat down and picked up his pen.

…………

Yuezhou

Pang Yue's victory class is here. After resting for two days, the Eastern Route Army led by Li Guo also returned here. Compared with the great victory of the Western Route Army, Li Guo felt extremely regretful.

According to the plan, Li Guo should also cooperate with the good show staged in Yuezhou, first deliberately withdraw the army and return to the south, and then secretly send an elite army to the north to set up an ambush on the way. If Luo Xiujin really responded to Shang Kexi's invitation and went west to attack Pang Yue's headquarters, which had been "running out of food and grass and panicked", then this ambush could just catch him off guard.

In fact, Luo Xiujin believed in the "Yuezhou Change". This choice was made for a variety of reasons. He left Wei Shouzhi, Yu Shizhong and others to defend the city, and he personally led He Yun, the chief soldier of the Biao Battalion, and Zhang Guozhu, the chief soldier of Wuchang, to march to Jingzhou along the Han River by boat. At that time, the ambush troops sent by Li Guo had also arrived in the area of Xiaobie Mountain. Just waiting for Luo Xiujin to take the bait.

It's a pity that people are not as good as heaven, and I don't know what went wrong, Luo Xiujin actually sensed the danger in advance. Hurry back. The ambush was also in vain.

Although the expected flowering on both sides eventually became a standout in the west, winning Shang Kexi ran away from Luo Xiujin. But Pang Yue still felt satisfied. After all, judging from the current balance of forces between the enemy and us, it is an unexpected gain to be able to take Jingzhou. Conquering Xuchang again may not be digestible, but will further stimulate the Manchu court and accelerate the pace of its retaliation.

Even from the point of view of the East Road Loyalty Camp itself, it did not suffer a loss, and did not defeat Wuchang, but it looted all the big households in the surrounding prefectures and counties, and made a lot of windfalls. Not to mention anything else, at least the supplies for most of the next half year have been settled, and they can be regarded as a full return.

Although there are only ten days left before the Spring Festival, Pang Yue is not in a hurry to rush back to Chenzhou for the New Year, because there are still a few things that need to be solved in Yuezhou first.

The first is the handling of prisoners. The Qing army prisoners captured in the First Battle of Jingzhou, in addition to the officers above the general level, the personal soldiers of the Qing generals and a small number of diehards of the Eight Banners, who were killed on the spot, there were also six or seven thousand people, all of whom were escorted to Yuezhou. If you want to retain it, you should have a specific plan for how to allocate and organize it as soon as possible.

The second is the place where the Zheng Siwei Department of Toucheng went. If it was possible, Pang Yue certainly wouldn't mind integrating it into the second-line troops of Huguang Town. But this matter not only needs Zheng Siwei's heart, but also needs the will of Emperor Longwu, otherwise it will be unjustifiable, and it will leave hidden dangers.

Then there is the question of the ownership of Yuezhou and Jingzhou. As for Yuezhou, Pang Yue is of course in his own hands, after all, this place is the gateway to northern Hunan Province, and it is adjacent to Dongting Lake. As for the newly recovered Jingzhou, Pang Yue did not mind leaving it to the loyal battalion to garrison, and had already handed it over to Gao Yigong for temporary management before returning south. But the final belonging, we have to wait for the rest of the loyal battalions such as Li Guo and Yuan Zongdi to make up their minds. Because although Jingzhou Mansion is rich, it will also face the front of the Qing army going south first in the future, and it is also a question whether the loyal battalion dares to ask for it.

Just when Pang Yue was planning the best solution, another army of soldiers and horses went south to Yuezhou. The leader is none other than Wang Guangtai, who broke through after the incident in Xiangyang and broke through after the city was broken.

When the city of Xiangyang was broken, because Pang Yue had led the army to enter Jingzhou, the main force of the Qing army besieging the city had no time to pursue and suppress the remnants of the Wang army, but most of them went south, and Wang Guangtai escaped. Originally, Wang Guangtai was going to continue westward and go to the eastern area of Sichuan and Hubei to rest and recuperate, but later he heard that Pang Yue's defeat in Jingzhou was still gratifying and his army was completely annihilated, so he started to go south again.

When he received a letter of contact from Wang Guangtai's envoy, Pang Yue was already on his way back to the south, and immediately welcomed Wang Guangtai's intention to return south. He also wrote a letter and sent it back to the messenger.

With Pang Yue's permission, Wang Guangtai finally breathed a sigh of relief. Although the terrain in the east is dangerous. But it is not as rich as Hunan, not to mention that now Daming is employing people. Going south is obviously more promising. With such an idea, Wang Guangtai reorganized the remnants of the army and went south, and finally caught up with Pang Yue in Yuezhou after a long journey.

Knowing that Wang Guangtai was coming, Pang Yue deliberately put down what he was doing and met with him.

When he saw Pang Yue for the first time, Wang Guangtai was a little nervous, firstly because Pang Yue was "notorious", and secondly, because there were less than 2,000 remnants left around him, and his strength was greatly damaged. There is a lack of confidence in my heart.

Looking at Wang Guangtai's embarrassment, Pang Yue didn't care, and greeted him enthusiastically: "General Wang, don't come unharmed?" Goodbye to Wanshou Bridge, we haven't seen each other for a few days! ”

Hearing Pang Yue mention Wanshou Bridge, Wang Guangtai was even more embarrassed: "Pang Shuai forgives his sins!" At the beginning, the brother and the criminal general were also confused for a while, and mistakenly entered the Tartar camp, so they did the evil act of aiding and abetting. I still think about it, and I regret it. If you offend Pang Shuai, you also dare to implore Pang Shuai Haihan! ”

"General Wang is too worried. I didn't mean that. After kindly inviting Wang Guangtai to sit down, Pang Yue smiled a little and sighed a little seriously, "What's more." General Wang's righteous deeds in Xiangyang have already explained everything. The general's courage and loyalty, no one, including me, Pang Mou, can blame him. As for the former. It's all gone, and the general doesn't have to dwell on it. People are not sages. Who is without fault? ”

"Don't dare, don't dare." Wang Guangtai said continuously. "Pang Shuai is humble and open-minded, regardless of previous suspicions, he will be really grateful and ashamed."

Regarding Pang Yue's polite words, Wang Guangtai didn't take them completely seriously, but after a few words of conversation, the initial nervousness has improved a lot.

After harmonizing the atmosphere, Pang Yue greeted Wang Guangtai very patiently, talking mostly about the current situation of his subordinates, what they lacked, and the hardships along the way. Seeing that the time was almost up, the first key question was raised: "In the letter at that time, I made it clear that General Wang intended to return to the south, and I extremely agreed with and welcomed it. Now that the imperial court is employing people, it is good that the general can decisively abandon the darkness and turn to the light. It's just that I don't know what specific plans the general has for himself and the future of the soldiers under his command? But the general said that it was okay, so that I could ask the court and the saint for a decree to meet the needs of the general. ”

These words seem to be cold and warm, but in fact, they imply another meaning: Since you have arrived here, your future is in my hands. I can give you a good future, but I can also give you nothing. It's up to you.

Wang Guangtai obviously heard something, and was very cautious when answering: "The sin will have no other luxury, just to be able to serve the Ming Dynasty in the future, to atone for the sin, and to have a place to settle those soldiers who will be born and die with the sin."

Wang Guangtai said the same vaguely, and he really didn't ask for too much extravagance, all he wanted was officials and territory.

This answer did not surprise Pang Yue, so he nodded and said with a smile: "General Wang Xiangyang has made great contributions to righteousness, of course, this request is not too much."

Then he deliberately pondered for a moment and continued: "It's just that although the land of Hunan is not narrow, there are not a few people who guard the town, such as the Changde Ma Junmen, the Wugang Liu Junmen, and the Youxian Huang Junmen, etc., all of which are guarding the same place, and they all have their own subordinates and families to support, and I am afraid that they will not be able to be generous to the generals." Changsha's He Duxian has always been upright and vicious, and his misunderstanding of the general may be difficult to eliminate for a while. As for the two Guangzhou, the situation is more or less the same as that of Hunan. However, since the general has returned anyway, he is my robe and sibling. Naturally, I will not sit idly by and watch the general's affairs. Well...... Let me think about it. ”

Wang Guangtai is also an old oilman who has been in the battlefield and officialdom for many years, how could he not hear the deep meaning of Pang Yue's words? To be honest, he didn't mind being restrained by Pang Yue, otherwise he wouldn't have easily led his troops south. As a military general, he is also accustomed to the law of respect for the strong, since Pang Yue can take the heads of Shang Kexi and Shen Zhixiang, he naturally has the strength to restrain him Wang Guangtai.

It's just that Wang Guangtai also has his own bottom line and his own interests, if there are no tangible benefits, he will not willingly listen to anyone's call. Otherwise, he would not have broken away from the Manchu camp and started an incident in Xiangyang. At this time, he had secretly made up his mind, if Pang Yue's price was high enough, then naturally everything would be easy to say. If not, he will not be accompanied, although there are only 2,000 men and horses left around him, they are all the elites of a hundred battles who have followed him for many years, where can he not make a big difference?

Having said that, looking at Pang Yue in contemplation, Wang Guangtai was still a little stunned. He didn't know whether Pang Yue was really thinking of a way at this time, or was deliberately waiting for him to make a statement. If it is the latter, I am afraid that if I don't speak for a long time, I will inevitably anger this killing god, and the situation will be a little bad at that time.

The more Wang Guangtai thought about it, the more frightened he felt, and at this time he even regretted that he had entered the city in person. Damn, if I knew it, I would have sent someone to talk about it first.

Just when Wang Guangtai was hesitating whether to express his position, Pang Yue finally spoke: "I wonder what General Wang thinks of the land of Yuezhou?"

"Yuezhou?" Wang Guangtai was taken aback, and even wondered if he had heard it wrong. (To be continued.) )