"Because this expedition is going to cross the sea, engage a strange army, and besiege a strong fortress, we need all your strength and experience!"

"I am an officer of the kingdom, the Dutch are enemies of the empire, even if you don't give me a little share, I will do my best!"

"No, no, no, that's not enough!" Zhao Youcai smiled, he stretched out his finger and poked Silva's chest: "I want you to be one of us, you have to fight for yourself, understand?" For yourself, not for your king! If you win, you'll be able to live like a king! With that, he patted Silva on the shoulder, laughed and walked out the door, leaving Silva standing alone, muttering to himself, "For myself!" Live like a king! ”

Capital.

Just played the fourth watch, Liu Cheng got up from the bed, and changed into the general's court clothes under the waiting of his own soldiers, although he wanted to leave the Beijing division as soon as possible and return to Ningxia, but after all, he was in the rivers and lakes, and he couldn't help himself, and he took it for almost two months in the Beijing division before it was his turn to face the saint, especially the news that Hu Kejian came out of the Heavenly Palace before yesterday, and the Son of Heaven planned to summon the right platform, which made Liu Cheng more and more nervous, and it was recorded in the history books that Emperor Chongzhen was impatient and moody, would he say the wrong thing and cause any trouble?

"Your Excellency, Your Excellency! Is it white or brown inside today? The soldier asked in a low voice.

"White!" Liu Cheng replied subconsciously, still thinking about the many rules of the upcoming face saint and the letter from Che Sang he received two days ago, in which Che Sang told Liu Cheng that he had successfully ascended to the first seat of the Jokhang Temple, and in addition, he also listed a lot of information from Ah Gui's mouth. Among them, there are two most important things: Huang Taiji has organized large-scale hunting since last winter; They used very tough means to buy grain and cloth from North Korea at low prices. The former means that the Jurchens are training their troops and stockpiling military rations for expeditions by the way; In order to avoid being attacked from many sides, Huang Taiji's tactics against enemies in different directions are completely different, such as fighting and pulling Mongolia to promote peace, and fighting to promote peace with Ming, and not fighting North Korea. The reason is very simple, in the eyes of Huang Taiji, the Mongols are potential enemies and thugs who can be co-opted; Ming is a formidable enemy; However, because of its weak force, North Korea has no threat to Houjin, and can provide considerable materials. After all, after forcing them to submit, the Later Kim generally adopted a soft policy towards them, after all, if they plundered the barren land of North Korea and the basic social order collapsed, then even the traditional ginseng and fur trade partners would be gone. Huang Taiji did this for only one reason - there would be no material reward for this expedition, and he had to obtain grain and cloth from Korea to compensate for the damage to agricultural production that the expedition would inevitably cause.

"My lord, you are going to see the Holy Lord today, is it appropriate to wear white clothes inside?"

The voice of the soldier woke Liu Cheng up from his thoughts, and he thought for a while and said, "Then let's wear brown clothes!" “

When they were dressed and just dawned, the envoys who greeted them came, and after a few words of greeting, they rode to the imperial city together. Along the way, he saw that there were many refugees under the eaves on both sides of the street, moaning and crying from time to time, Liu Cheng saw in his eyes, Rao is he had already experienced a hundred battles at this time, his heart was as hard as iron, and he couldn't help but feel a little sour, so he asked the envoy: "My lord, as far as I know, the Dongyu has not broken the hole in the past two years, why are there so many refugees in the capital?" ”

"Lord Liu doesn't know! In the past two years, although the Dongyu has not broken the gap, but there was the Denglai Rebellion first, and then there was a drought and locust plague, and the three plagues of soldiers, drought and locusts were intertwined, how could there be fewer refugees? “

"Hmm!" Liu Cheng nodded, his mood was quite heavy, he rarely went out these days when he came to Beijing, and the province caused unnecessary trouble, like the scene just now or the first time he saw it with his own eyes, the impact was naturally different, Liu Cheng even began to think about it, if Chongzhen wanted to let himself lead the Mongolian soldiers into the interior to exterminate the thieves, should he agree?

The two dismounted outside the right gate of Chang'an on the west side of Chengtianmen, entered the imperial city, sat down in the deserted courtroom, and waited for the eunuch to deliver the decree.

After about half a cup of tea, a eunuch walked out of it and passed Liu Cheng to the platform to face the saint. Liu Cheng hurriedly said goodbye to the envoy and entered the palace with the eunuch. He walked over from the west side of the Imperial Palace, passed through the Youshun Gate, and when he came to the front of the platform, Emperor Chongzhen was already on the coiling dragon throne on the platform. Liu Cheng saw many eunuchs standing on both sides of the throne and behind them, they held yellow umbrellas, long-handled feather fans and many other ceremonial ceremonial guards, two one-person-high bronze crane incense burners were smoking green, and there was a strange sound wafting all over the hall, and there were two rows of brocade guards standing outside the hall, and the rising sun shone on their brocade clothes and weapons in their hands, shining with golden light. Liu Cheng first performed the regular court salute on Danbu according to the previous etiquette officer's teaching, and knelt on the ground paved with white marble with his head bowed.

"Xuanningxia General Soldier Liu Cheng is here-!" A eunuch walked to the front of the hall and shouted in a long voice with a clear voice, Liu Cheng hurriedly stood up, bowed down and climbed the steps from the left, walked into the hall, saluted again, and pressed his forehead to the ground.

Chongzhen sat on the throne and looked up and down at Liu Cheng who was kneeling on the ground with curious eyes, in his imagination, this fierce general who has repeatedly broken the thieves and Tartars in just over two years should be five big and three thick, with a full beard, just like Zhang Yide and Wei Chi Jingde in the play. But although the man kneeling on the ground was very tall, with long hands and feet, and a weathered face, he was emaciated, fair-skinned, had a slightly round face, and had a short beard under his chin.

"The northwest is eventful, the thieves jump off the beam, the captives ride the breach, and I have worries about the west. Qing destroyed the thieves, captured the captives, cleared the thief atmosphere, relieved my worries, was loyal and diligent, and I was very relieved! ”

After Fang Cai's tossing, Liu Cheng's waist and legs were already numb, and when he heard Chongzhen's words, he was even more amnesty, so he hurriedly raised his head and replied: "The minister is stupid, and he has to be promoted to the army by Yang Zhijun, and then he is valued by Lord Hong, and he has to trust the court to be blessed, and he has to use his life to do things, and he is lucky to win!" ”

Hearing Liu Cheng mention Yang He, Chongzhen remembered Yang Sichang's letter recommending Liu Cheng to lead troops into the mainland to break the thieves, and couldn't help but nodded: "Although Yang He has been a thief, he has promoted you, a useful talent, and it can be regarded as meritorious." You don't forget the old kindness, and you also have the style of the ancients! Speaking of this, Chongzhen asked the eunuch to take out the silver and python satin and give them to Liu Cheng, and Liu Cheng hurriedly kowtowed to thank him.

"Now there are thieves in the east and thieves inside, and there are ministers in the outer court who advise the Mongolian soldiers to go south and pacify the thieves, what do you think?"

"Sure enough!" Liu Cheng thought secretly in his heart, and the miserable scene of the refugees he saw on the road flashed through his mind, but as soon as the words reached his mouth, Chesang's letter prevailed again.

"I'm sorry, everyone has to do what they have to do in this day and age!" Liu Cheng closed his eyes, and when he opened them again, his eyes were as firm as iron.

"Your Majesty, the end will be a policy to bring disaster to the country and the people for this, and you must not do it!"

The eunuchs were taken aback, it was the first time they saw a military general who dared to speak like this in front of the Son of Heaven, Wang Chengen on the side secretly glanced at Chongzhen, thinking that he would be angry, he saw that the young emperor's originally pale face suddenly turned red, but instead of getting angry, he was a little dumbfounded, and after a while he asked: "Liu Qingjia, why do you say that, it is also ancient to capture the thief!" ”

"Your Majesty, the minister is not talking nonsense, this is a confession from the captured Dongyu, please also ask Your Majesty to read it!" After that, Liu Cheng took out the letter written by Qiesang to himself from his arms, presented it with both hands, Chongzhen nodded, Wang Chengen walked to Liu Cheng's side, picked up the letter and forwarded it to Chongzhen. Chongzhen finished reading the letterhead, and asked with some doubts: "Liu Aiqing, what does what is written in this letter have to do with what you said?" ”

"Your Majesty, the detailed confession said that since last winter, the chief has organized many hunts and practiced martial arts. This is a sign that the Eastern Captives are preparing to send out a large army, and it must be known that there is not enough forage in winter, and if you want to hunt on a large scale, you must use the grain to feed the horses, if you don't have to use troops on a large scale the following year, why do you have to do this? Secondly, if he wants to cut down on me and buy grain, rice, and cloth from North Korea, he can use my grain for him, so why do you need to do this? Therefore, Weichen speculated that the purpose of the captive chieftain was Mongolia! ”

Hearing Liu Cheng say that Houjin could enter the customs because of the food to the enemy, Chongzhen's face flashed a trace of green anger, which was a harbinger of his imminent anger, but he still held back this time and asked in a deep voice: "Because of this, you are not willing to send troops to quell the thieves?" ”

As a traverser, Liu Cheng naturally would not regard Chongzhen as an idol of a half-human and half-god like the people at that time, but as a **** monarch, the wrath of thunder is by no means a lie. As soon as Liu Cheng's words came out, he regretted it a little, after all, he was not a bunch of scholars and doctors who could rely on his peers, but the eight leaders of Qiu, if he annoyed Chongzhen, he would be completely locked in prison. However, if you don't pull out the pus of this acne, you won't be at peace in Ningxia, and who knows if you will pull yourself to the mainland to this bottomless swamp one day with a piece of edict. Thinking of this, Liu Cheng gritted his teeth and said in a deep voice: "Yes, the Chahar and Tumut tribes are all newly defeated, and the surrender is forced by the situation and has not been convinced. If the last general drives the crowd into the pass and the thieves, the eastern captives will take advantage of the void to enter. If the property of his wife and children is taken captive by others, how can a minister make his children? I'm afraid that the Denglai rebellion will return, and it will be out of control! ”

Listening to Liu Cheng's words, Chongzhen's mind was also shaken, he was a person with a very high self-esteem and an impatient temperament, after ascending the throne cleanly eliminated Wei Zhongxian and his henchmen, the court regarded him as the lord of Yingmai, he was also full of ambition, hoping to quickly calm down internal and external troubles, realize the prosperity of the Ming Dynasty, and leave a name in history. But with the passage of time, Chongzhen gradually found that dealing with state affairs was not as easy as eliminating the Wei Zhongxian group, theoretically he had supreme power, and the courtiers must unconditionally obey his orders, but theory is one thing, reality is another, after all, he is just a mortal, the physical limitations determine that he must entrust power to others to execute, and the lessons of several failures make him have to be cautious, but deep down Chongzhen still likes those courtiers who make radical suggestions and boast of Haikou. For example, this time, Yang Sichang's plan to capture the thieves was vetoed by the old ministers represented by Wen Tiren, but he still remembered it in his heart, and giving Liu Cheng the treatment of calling a military general platform was also for this matter, but he had to face up to the question raised by Liu Cheng - if the Houjin attack on Mongolia was successful, how could we ensure that those Mongolian soldiers in the interior who had lost their hometown and family would not become the next chaotic army? He thought for a moment and asked, "Then if the Eastern Captives come to attack according to what you said, how are you going to deal with it?" “

"The soldiers are coming, and the water is coming to cover the earth!" Liu Cheng's voice was not loud, but it was very firm: "The minister has 3,000 iron cavalry, and he plans to rebuild the naturalized city, use the river as a pool, and attack his rear road with a cavalry team, so as to wait for work, although he does not dare to claim victory, but he has more than enough self-defense." ”

"Rebuild the City of Naturalization?" Chongzhen looked at Liu Cheng, on the one hand, he felt that Liu Cheng's strategy was quite reasonable, but on the other hand, he felt that under the situation of internal and external pressure, it was a bit of a waste to put such a strong team there, in case the situation changed, the urgency was not good, and when he hesitated, his eyes glanced at Wang Chengen on the side, and asked in a low voice: "Wang Daban, what do you think should be good?" ”

"Emperor, the old slave thinks that the transfer of troops into the customs is a major matter, and he must discuss with the cabinet minister, but if it is really a matter of invading the west, it is better to let General Liu return to the town as soon as possible to prepare! In order to pacify the thief, it is still necessary to be cautious. ”

"Hmm!" Chongzhen nodded, Wang Chengen's answer carried a lot of weight in his heart, he raised his head and said in a cold voice: "Qing Saddle Horse is tired, go and rest." As for the reconstruction of the naturalization city, we can carefully discuss with Hong Chengchou, Lu Boqi and others to see how to proceed. ”

Hearing Chongzhen's reply, Liu Cheng hurriedly kowtowed and resigned. As soon as he left Youshunmen, he met a eunuch who said that the emperor had given him wine and food at Zuoshunmen. Although Liu Cheng had already become impatient, he still went east with the eunuch. The emperor's wine and rice are usually a formality, and there are only four kinds of dishes, which cannot be eaten seriously; You can't drink the wine seriously, you can only pour the wine in the cup on the ground, and you have to kowtow again to thank you. However, at that time, this was considered a special favor of the Son of Heaven, and it was also a rare honor for courtiers, especially Liu Cheng was a military general. When Liu Cheng kowtowed to the north, stood up after shouting long live, saw Hu Kejian hurrying over, hurriedly greeted him, and asked, "Grandpa Hu, what's the matter?" “

"The emperor has a reward!" Hu Kejian raised his voice and shouted, and the little eunuch behind him walked up with a tray. Liu Cheng was still in a daze, and when he saw Hu Kejian's eyes, he hurriedly knelt down, it turned out that Chongzhen took a set of saddles from the imperial horse prison and gave it to Liu Cheng, and waited until the salute was completed. Hu Kejian took a step forward with a smile and said in a low voice: "Brother, this is a rare grace in the world!" (To be continued.) )