Chapter 41 Negotiations

After Zhu Youzhen received the order, he had nothing from then on, so he left Beijing. After leaving the capital, no one ever saw him again, some people said that after he and his wife left the city, they did not go far, and they were killed in a secluded place, and some people said that he and his wife went into the mountains and lived a hermit life.

But all in all, from the moment he received the order, he was destined to disappear from the stage of history.

He is already a small person, whether he is dead or alive, and no one will care. At this moment, everyone's eyes are on Liaodong and Japan.

Hong Chengchou and Mao Wenlong sent troops, the two of them can be said to be step by step, cautious, just as Lord Yue instructed, if you can't fight, don't lose. Hong Chengchou was on the frontal battlefield, his soldiers and horses went straight to Jinzhou, and the Prince of Li, who stayed in Shengjing, Dai Shan, heard that the army was coming to attack Jinzhou, Jinzhou was an important place, he was worried about the loss, and immediately sent heavy troops to sit in the town. Hong Chengchou saw that there was no way to take advantage of it, and knew that there was no chance of winning, so he camped on the spot and did not continue to advance.

Mao Wenlong's soldiers and horses went to toss Liaoyang, and Daishan also sent 20,000 elites to defend Liaoyang, but Mao Wenlong saw that there was no chance and did not attack Liaoyang. However, this guy is very cunning, and Pai Shang Kexi secretly led an army, secretly detoured to Tonghua by water, and attacked Hetuala.

This is the birthplace of the Jurchens, and Mao Wenlong sent troops to attack once, but that time, the people here all ran away. But this time, the fate was not so good, Shang Kexi led nearly 30,000 people, as well as artillery, to smash Hetuara to pieces, there were not many defenders in the city, although they knew that they could not hold it, but they did not dare to escape. Because there are rules in the army, if you can't hold it for ten days, the soldiers and horses will flee first, and after you go back, you will have to be all beheaded, so you can only be a monk Kexi desperately, and the result is that the whole army will be wiped out. Shang Kexi then ordered the slaughter of the city and killed all the people in Hetuara City, and he didn't care whether you were a Jurchen or not, even if it was a Mongol or a Han slave of the Tartars, he didn't leave any of them. The soldiers also grabbed some gold and silver, and basically did not take anything else, and burned all of them in a fire. Then, it's time to leave.

There are many Ming soldiers, and they can take the waterway, pick a weak place to slaughter, Huang Taiji took away the main force, and left Dai Shan's soldiers and horses, not very many, and was pinned down by Jinzhou and Liaoyang, and even worried that the other party would attack Shengjing like last time, and there was no way but to send someone to send a letter to Huang Taiji.

Huang Taiji attacked Laiyuan Fort, and the attacks again and again were all crushed by the Ming army defending the city, and now it has reached the point of a dilemma. Seeing the letter sent by Dai Shan, he could only sigh, led the army back to Liaodong, and waited for another opportunity.

Unfortunately, such an opportunity is no longer available. Knowing that Huang Taiji had collected his troops, Yue Su first asked Hong Chengchou and Mao Wenlong to collect his troops, and then ordered that trade with Mongolia was prohibited, and all the passes of the Great Wall were sealed and would not be opened again until the Jurchens were eliminated. The explanation to the Mongols is very simple, that is, because of the trade and mutual market with you in Zhangjiakou and Laiyuanbao, the Jurchens took advantage of the opportunity and attacked several times. Of course, the cessation of trade is only temporary, and after the Ming Dynasty destroys the Jurchens and recovers Liaodong, it will continue to trade with you. If you want to trade with my Ming Dynasty as soon as possible, then help deal with the Jurchens with my Ming Dynasty.

This policy caused an uproar among the Mongols and anger on the Jurchens. All the Jurchens hated the Ming Dynasty to the core, and gritted their teeth. However, it wasn't always very friendly before. If it weren't for the Great Wall, it is estimated that it would have entered the Central Plains long ago.

In the early days of the decree, the Mongolian ministries still told Huang Taiji that everyone was friendly and peaceful and would never help the Ming Dynasty. But with the passage of time, the life of the Mongols gradually became difficult, and the Tartars had no credit, and in order to live, there would be no Mongolian tribes to send people to Daming to secretly communicate with each other. said that as long as your Ming Dynasty sends troops to attack the Jurchens, we will definitely attack from the flanks and help your Ming Dynasty recover Liaodong. Moreover, our tribe will always be friends of the Ming Dynasty and accept the canonization of the Ming Dynasty.

This is a good thing, but for Yue Su, now is not the time to send troops to Liaodong, although the Jurchens are living a tight life and many people are no longer able to eat, their combat effectiveness is still there, and they should not be underestimated. Similarly, Yue Su also knew that Huang Taiji would never give up his existing territory and let his people return to the mountains to graze, so that if he wanted to solve the food problem and consolidate his position, he had to continue to grab it. If you can't grab the things of the Ming Dynasty, you can only rob the Mongols, and when the Jurchens and the Mongols completely break with each other and kill them, this is the best time for the Ming Dynasty to send troops.

The Ming Dynasty strictly guarded the pass, did nothing, and only rested and recuperated.

On this day, the officials sent by the Ministry of Rites to negotiate in Japan returned to Beijing, and he also brought back a group of Japanese and many Han prisoners. The Japanese who accompanied him were arranged to rest in the post house, and those Han Chinese were captured and sent to the Criminal Department by the officials of the Ministry of Rites, and then he went to the Ministry of Rites to restore his life.

When asked by Liu Ce, the secretary of the Ministry of Rites, he learned that the results of the negotiations were not satisfactory, and the request made by Lord Yue could not be accepted by Tokugawa Iemitsu, the shogun of the Tokugawa shogunate, who was actually in power in Japan. At most, he handed over the Han people in Chiba, that is, Sun Zhong's subordinates, and in addition, he could also hand over the 200,000 yuan received by Date Masamune, as well as the proceeds of the looting at the Rizhao Anmin Bank, 300,000 yuan, and apologize to the Ming Dynasty, as for the rest, there was no concession. In order to maintain the friendship between the two countries, Tokugawa Iemitsu sent the shogunate's important minister Koichi Sasaki to negotiate.

After Liu Ce listened to the report, he hurriedly went to the cabinet and told Yue Su about the situation, Yue Su was angry in his heart, but his face was silent, and he just said lightly: "Then you can talk to that Sasaki tomorrow, but you have to remember that you must not take half a step back." ”

"The subordinate obeys." Liu Ce hurriedly agreed. Regarding Lord Yue's sky-high asking price, Liu Ce knew that the Japanese side would definitely not be able to agree, and the negotiations would inevitably break down in the end. If the negotiation is not proper, what will Lord Yue do in the end?

He couldn't figure it out, but he couldn't help but listen to Lord Yue's words, so he could only go back and wait for tomorrow's negotiations. Of course, for such a major event, Yue Su also had to order someone to inform the emperor and the queen mother.

It was nearly evening, Lord Yue got off work and went home, the golden cicada opened the road in front, and the iron guard was beside the sedan chair. At this moment, Yue Su had already transferred Jin Chan, Tong Zhou and others back, and asked Wu Sinan to choose another good general and garrison Zhangjiakou and Laiyuan Fort.

When he came to the front of the mansion, he saw a carriage parked next to the gate of the mansion, and Jin Chan expected that a guest had come to the door, so he turned around and said hello to Yue Su, so he went to the front of the mansion to ask. The porter of the house said that a Japanese had just come and said that he was giving a gift to Lord Yue, and we told him that Lord Yue never accepted gifts and asked him to take them back, but he did not take them away, and only said that after Lord Yue saw it, he would be satisfied. The gift was placed in the car and waited for Lord Yue to take a look. The Japanese finished his sentence and left.

After listening to the porter's narration, Yue Su's sedan chair had come to the door, Yue Su stepped down from the sedan chair, and Jin Chan stepped forward and relayed the porter's words. After hearing this, Yue Su raised his eyes and looked at the carriage, waved his hand lightly, and said, "Ask the horseman to send the carriage back to the post house." ”

"Yes, sir." Tie Qiu said yes and was about to walk over.

There was a coachman standing next to the carriage, this man saw Yue Su's style, and thought it was Lord Yue, the first assistant, he hurried over, but before he could get closer, he was stopped by Yue Su's guards. The horseman hurriedly shouted: "This is the first assistant of the Ming Dynasty......

He speaks Chinese fluently, but it can be heard that he is not Chinese, but should be a widow. Yue Su nodded slightly, and said, "This official is Yue Su, do you have anything to say?" ”

"The gift in the carriage was carefully selected by our Tokugawa Shogun and given to my lord, representing the friendship between Japan and the Ming Dynasty, and I hope that Lord Yue will definitely accept it. We, the Tokugawa shogun, said that when you see this gift, you will definitely like it. The groom said in a earnest tone.

"No need, Tokugawa Shogun's gift, the official thinks he can't afford it, please bring it back, his kindness, the official understands it. If he really wants friendship between the two countries, then please hand over Date Masamune, the culprit of the massacre of our Ming soldiers and civilians, and his men, and compensate me for the losses of the Ming Dynasty. Yue Su said lightly.

"How to compensate for the loss, this will be determined after the negotiation between Lord Sasaki and Daming. This gift does not affect anything, and it represents a piece of our Tokugawa shogun's heart, and I hope that your adult will accept it. After the groom finished speaking, he knelt down, and continued: "If the adult does not accept it, the villain will go back, and he will definitely be executed if he cannot explain to the general, and I hope that the adult will save the villain." ”

"Humph!" Yue Su snorted coldly and said, "What does your life or death have to do with me?" You go back and tell Tokugawa Iemitsu, I, Yue Su, said that killing people to pay off debts and paying off debts, even if it is a little less, my Ming Dynasty will not give up. Let's go! ”

After speaking, Yue Su waved his hand, then turned around and wanted to walk towards the mansion.

"Adult ......"

"Anything else?" Yue Su said coldly.

"Please see the gift, and then decide whether to accept it, I don't know if it's okay?" The coachman said in a pleading tone.

Seeing that what this kid said was true, Yue Su couldn't help but be curious, not to mention him, the same was true of the golden cicada and the iron qiu beside him. The Tokugawa family has a big tone, dare to say that Lord Yue will like it when he sees it, our Lord Yue is a very popular minister, and the treasures of the world are just not rare, if you really want something, it is not a matter of words, what is there that can impress our Lord Yue?

Yue Su didn't answer, the coachman saw the opportunity, quickly high-fived him three times, and said, "Come out!" ”

As soon as they heard his words, the guards guarding Yue Su's side all showed their weapons in case of accidents.

At this time, the curtain of the carriage was opened, and two young girls walked out of it, both of whom were dressed in kimonos, although they were without makeup, but they were as beautiful as flowers, and they were incomprehensible. Compared with Du Shi Niang, it can be regarded as a young man, but he is young.

"It's so beautiful......" Yue Su's subordinates, after seeing these two beauties, all exclaimed.

Two girls in kimonos, Ying Ying took two steps forward, then bowed deeply, and said softly almost at the same time: "The little woman greets the adults in the sea and the sky." "The little woman, Mai Hatano, see the adult."

Seeing these two women, Yue Su couldn't help laughing, and the horseman thought that Yue Su was happy, and hurriedly said, "What do you think, adult?" If you are satisfied, please accept it. ”

"Satisfied? Hum! Just with just two women, do you want to compensate for the lives of thousands of people in my Ming Dynasty? It's a dream! Let's go. After speaking, Yue Su strode towards the mansion.

"Your Excellency......" "Your Excellency'......" "Please accept us, if you don't accept us, we will definitely die when we go back......"

Cang Haikong and Mai Hatano shouted together.

"If I take you, I will surely die." Yue Su didn't look back, and even ignored the two of them, and walked straight into the mansion.

As soon as he entered the mansion, Jin Chan and Tie Qiu entered with escorts, and only the guards, grooms, and two daughters were left outside the mansion.

The porter glanced at the three of them and said, "My family is an upright official, and I don't like women, you are like this, it's a shame to my family, let's leave quickly." ”

"Hehehehe......" The coachman did not get up, but smiled sadly, and suddenly, took out a knife from his sleeve.

His move startled the porter, and he hurriedly retreated, hiding in the door, and the guards guarding the door raised their swords and guns, guarded carefully, and said loudly: "What do you want to do?" ”

"Our general has an order, if I can't deliver the gift to Lord Yue, I don't have to go back. Now that Lord Yue didn't accept the gift, then naturally I won't go back! ”

As he spoke, he heard the sound of "tearing", and the groom tore off his clothes, followed closely, shouted, and plunged the sharp knife in his hand straight into the lower abdomen. The tip of the knife entered the abdomen, and the groom slid down to cut the abdomen directly.

Disembowel!

The coachman died, but the man died, and the body did not fall, so he knelt in front of the door of Yue's mansion.

Cang Haikong and Mai Hatano glanced at each other, with a sad look in their eyes, nodded to each other, and then took out scissors from their arms and plunged them into their lower abdomen together.

"Pounce!" "Pounce!" With two sounds, the scissors were inserted into the lower abdomen, reaching the handle, and the body no longer had any strength, and fell to the ground obliquely.

Seeing this scene, the porter hurriedly ran inside, shouting as he ran, "Master, it's not good, the three people at the door have committed suicide!" ”

Yue Su didn't walk far when he heard the shouts of the porter, stopped, and asked, "What's wrong?" ”

Tie Qiu then shouted, "My lord asks you, what's wrong?" ”

"Back to the words of the adults...... The porter panted and ran to Yue Su's side, bowed down and said: "A boy and a child outside the mansion committed suicide when they saw the adults enter the mansion. In particular, the man actually cut open his abdomen with a knife. ”

"Caesarean section?" Yue Su secretly said in his heart: "I didn't expect that Little Japan would have the spirit of bushido at this time." It seems that if there is a real war, it will not be easy to defeat them. ”

Yue Su nodded and said, "Jin Cicada, take someone to send the corpse to the post house and hand it over to that Sasaki." Tell him and let him tell Tokugawa Iemitsu that he doesn't eat that. ”

"Yes, sir."

Jin Chan received the order, immediately led people out of the house, threw the three corpses into the carriage, and sent them to the post house.

Yue Su returned to his study and called Jiang Jie.

The matter of the suicide of the three Japanese at the door has been rumored in the house, Jiang Jie has naturally heard about it, and knows that Yue Su is looking for him, and he is asking about it.

Sure enough, after Jiang Jie entered the house and sat down, he heard Yue Su say: "Mr. Jiang, I think you have heard about the incident outside the mansion just now." ”

"Yes, sir. The subordinates heard about it. Jiang Jie replied.

"What do you think, sir?" Yue Su said.

"The subordinates are thinking that this matter should be intentional by Tokugawa Iemitsu. Although he is in Japan, it should not be difficult to find out the official voice of adults, but he is still like this, obviously killing two birds with one stone. If the adults accept it, it is naturally the best, if they don't accept it, let them commit suicide outside the house, which can also serve as a demonstration. Jiang Jie said.

"What the gentleman said, as I thought, it is rumored that the Japanese people have always been fierce, and many of them are not afraid of death, and today it seems that it is indeed good. It is not difficult to see from this that this Tokugawa Iemitsu is ready for war. What do you think we should do now, sir? Yue Su said flatly.

"My lord has said it to the point, and my subordinates think that Japan will never give in, just see if we make concessions, if you are unwilling to give in, for the prestige of the Ming Dynasty, there is only one war. The subordinates can feel that the adults want to fight, but right now, the Jurchens are not in a position, and they are fighting with the Japanese people, and the chances of winning are really not big. Jiang Jie shook his head at the end.

"The Japanese have always come to fight in our native China, which has caused my life to be miserable, but I, China, have never set foot on the Japanese country, and the state of etiquette sometimes suffers. This neighbor has been eyeing each other, if my China is strong, he will be vain, if my China is weak, he will call him mercilessly. At present, my Daming is still strong, he still dares to bully the door, if one day my Daming is weak, wouldn't he be bullied. Be prepared for danger in times of peace, the right way, take advantage of this opportunity, I think we should teach the Japanese a lesson. Yue Su said in a deep voice.

"What the adults said is the same, the subordinates see that the adults have made up their minds, and they have nothing to say, they just hope that the adults are cautious. If the army is really exchanged, but the lord has orders, his subordinates will do their best, and they will be ruined. Jiang Jie bowed and said.

"I knew that my husband would be on my side. It's not early now, Mr. hasn't eaten yet, so call them today, let's have a drink together, we haven't drunk together for a few days. Yue Su said with a smile.

"Okay, let's have a drink today."

The next day, it was the day of negotiation, and Liu Ce, the secretary of the Ministry of Rites, became the focus of attention. Lord Yue explained to him, in fact, that night, Zhang Yan also sent Zhao Zhi to meet Liu Ce and instructed him to knock on the side.

Zhang Yan doesn't want to go to war, and she also doesn't want the two countries to talk about things down, and then they can't fight, and they lose face. Therefore, let Zhao Zhi tell Liu Ce, this negotiation is almost the same, the main thing is to save face, earn back face, and other things are easy to say.

At the negotiation table, Sasaki also seemed to know Zhang Yan's thoughts, and the condition he gave was to give you face, and there was no substance. The prisoner gave it to you, the silver received was given to you, and the 300,000 yuan that was robbed is definitely not right, but it is said that it is 300,000, and all of it will be returned to you in the Ming Dynasty. Moreover, Japan can also build a special temple to worship the victims, and the Daimyo Date Masamune, who knows the mistake, will personally mourn, and according to the etiquette of the Ming Dynasty, he will bring his soldiers to wear linen and filial piety at sea to show condolences for the victims. As for compensation, Japan is very poor, and I really can't get it, and the Ming Dynasty is a big country in the Celestial Empire, and it is estimated that we can't afford this little money. Otherwise, it means that if you give eight thousand, forget it.

The gap between the number of compensation is too big, how dare Liu Ce call the shots. Although the other party basically met the requirements of the Queen Mother, but it was really inconsistent with Lord Yue's requirements, Liu Ce did not dare to offend Zhang Yan, but he was even more afraid of Yue Su, Yue Su's words, for him, were more powerful than the holy decree.

Today's negotiations ended here, Liu Ce returned to the cabinet in vain, and handed over the negotiation records to Yue Su and the other to the celebrant supervisor.

Yue Su read the negotiation record, and then asked the cabinet ministers to circulate it, and only after everyone read it did Yue Su say: "Ladies and gentlemen, Japan's attitude, you can also see from this negotiation record, the compensation for our Ming Dynasty, that's all." However, if nothing else, the loss of our Anmin Bank is far more than this number, and they simply fool us as three-year-old children, which is unbearable. Tell me if you can accept their conditions? ”

In this meeting, Yue Su made clear his position as soon as he came up, and he would never accept the conditions of the Japanese. He is the first assistant and the minister of Tuogu, and he is the number one person in the dynasty, and he has already expressed his position, and the other ministers naturally dare not talk nonsense. Moreover, for the compensation mentioned by the Japanese side, it is really a bit of a bully, because Anmin Bank is jointly established by the imperial court and the Li family, and the Rizhao branch can be said to be the largest at present, and the amount of silver stored in it is also the largest. Don't look at it as the head office, but the business volume is the largest, and there must be a large amount of silver flowing every day, how can there be less silver stored in it.

Because there are all kinds of silver in the account books, it is also very clear how much silver is stored in them, and it has now been ascertained that the total amount of silver dollars is more than 5.3 million. The other party only said that it was a fraction, which is not too much deception.

"My lord, the lower officials think that the Japanese only said that they had robbed 300,000 yuan, which was really too much of a deception to me, and I would never agree to it, and I must let them return it in full. If they can return all the 5.3 million yuan, their other conditions are acceptable. Lu Weiqi said.

"Lord Lu is right, at least the 5.3 million yuan must be returned, and there is still something to talk about. So much silver, although it belongs to the Anmin Bank, but it has half of the imperial court, how can they swallow it. Qi Shijiao also said.

Lord Yue's mind was not a mere 5.3 million yuan, but this time, Yue Su was quite satisfied with the fact that the cabinet minister could speak like this.

Yue Su looked at Lu Weiqi and said: "Lord Lu, you have also heard the words of your lords, this number, my Ming Dynasty will never compromise, tell that Sasaki tomorrow, not only to compensate for the civil property that was robbed and burned in Anmin Bank, but also to compensate." ”

Liu Ce was in a dilemma, and said carefully: "But the emperor ...... there"

"The Japanese deceived me Daming, can't the emperor see it, and the emperor can agree?" Yue Su said in a deep voice.

"Yes, Xia Guan understands." wW