Hearing that the imperial court actually sent Cao Huachun, one of Chongzhen's two most trusted eunuchs and who was also the commander of Dongchang, to personally come to the military camp to announce the decree, all the generals in the camp couldn't help but be shocked, and a thought involuntarily appeared in their hearts, "Could it be that something big happened in the capital?" ”

Although Lu Xiangsheng was also shocked in his heart, after all, he was not as calm as the generals, and after being slightly stunned, he immediately said solemnly: "Since the emperor has a holy decree, all the generals will go out with the governor to greet him!" ”

Soon, the generals followed Lu Xiangsheng to the gate of the camp, and welcomed a eunuch and more than a dozen brocade guards wearing brocade robes and wearing embroidered spring knives into the camp. Pang Gang secretly looked at the head of the eunuch who was described as greedy for money, cunning, shameless, afraid of death and other notorieties in the history of the opposition, and took the lead in opening the city gate and betraying Chongzhen when Li Zicheng led the rogues to surround Yanjing, and found that this "notorious" eunuch in history had a kind and kind face, and the good life and stable conditions in the palace made him look like a man in his forties, and his beardless and white appearance under his chin was easy to make people have a good impression of him.

Cao Huachun walked side by side with Lu Xiangsheng, and said with a smile: "Lu Shilang, you played very well yesterday, and Long Live Lord praised you yesterday." ”

Lu Xiangsheng arched his hand and said gratefully: "The emperor's kindness, we as courtiers can't repay it even if we die, but I don't know what will the emperor has to announce when he orders his father-in-law to come to the camp?" ”

Cao Huachun squinted his eyes and smiled: "Lu Shilang, don't worry, you'll know later." ”

At this time, Da Zhuang, who was following closely behind Pang Gang, muttered in a low voice: "It's really strange, Inspector Lu is obviously the governor of the five provinces of the governor, why does this father-in-law call the governor a squire?" Could it be that the squire is an official who is bigger than the superintendent? ”

"Gollum!" With a bang, a guerrilla on the side couldn't help but chuckle when he heard this, but it made Pang Gang blush. Pang Gang glared at Da Zhuang viciously and said, "You idiot is talking nonsense again, if you don't speak, no one will treat you as a dumb person, now you quickly shut up for me." ”

Da Zhuang saw that Pang Gang was angry, and knew that he had said something wrong again, so he quickly lowered his head and obediently followed behind Pang Gang, and no longer dared to talk nonsense.

Looking at Da Zhuang's somewhat aggrieved face, Pang Gang was angry and funny in his heart, this kid is indeed a good hand at fighting, but he just doesn't want to study, he used to be a poor military household in Lingshanwei when he was a poor military household, but now he has become a hundred, and he can be regarded as a six-grade military attache who is a serious eight-grade military attaché, or a surname who dozes off when he sees a book, if it weren't for Pang Gang's rule that officials with more than 100 households are literate, they are not allowed to lead troops, this kid may still be an illiterate person who can't read big words.

When everyone came to the big tent, the incense table had been placed in the big tent at this time, and Lu Xiangsheng led the generals to start paying respects. Cao Huachun held the holy decree made of yellow silk silk, changed the previous image of a good old man with a smile on his face, and recited with a solemn face: "Fengtian carries the emperor's edict that the Tartars invade the border and kidnap my people to destroy the lives of the people, Lu Xiangsheng was ordered to resist the enemy and fight fiercely with the Tartars on the outskirts of Beijing. In the end, I lived up to the grace of the saint and hit the Tartars hard, and I was very relieved, and I ordered Lu Xiangsheng to immediately bring the generals into the palace to accept the reward! ”

After Cao Huachun finished reading, Lu Xiangsheng and everyone stood on the spot, and they didn't react for a while. Cao Huachun looked at the generals who were standing on the spot and said a little strangely: "Lu Shilang, why don't you hurry up and thank you?" ”

Looking at Cao Huachun, who was slowly rolling up the holy decree, Lu Xiangsheng said in a trembling voice: "Gonggong Cao, the Tartar has just retreated, shouldn't the Tartar immediately pursue the Tartar to get back my captive people and property?" Why did the emperor want us to enter the palace? ”

"We don't know about this." Cao Huachun shook his head and said, "Our family is an errand runner, how dare you figure out the holy will?" ”

"But the Tartar just left overnight last night, how did the emperor know about it, and he made a holy decree so quickly, is there any reason for this?" Lu Xiangsheng was so anxious in his heart, seeing that the Qing soldiers must not have gone far, he was about to ask his troops to chase him, but the emperor called them all into the capital with a holy decree, what is this called.

Cao Huachun sighed lightly, walked to Lu Xiangsheng's side and whispered softly: "Earlier today, before dawn, Yang Shangshu, Wen Shoufu and Chen Shilang entered the palace together, and soon after, the emperor sent our family out of the city to announce the decree. ”

"Bastard! Wen Tiren and Yang Sichang misled the country! Hearing this, Lu Xiangsheng didn't know what was going on, so he was so angry that he scolded in the big tent.

"Shh

As soon as Lu Xiangsheng said this, even Cao Huachun was startled, and hurriedly lowered his voice to warn Lu Xiangsheng, "This matter is the will of the Holy Lord himself, how can you, as a courtier, discuss the Holy Will!" ”

Lu Xiangsheng shouted angrily: "But Lu is really unwilling, he can give a heavy blow to the Tartars, but the emperor wants us to enter the palace immediately, which is obviously to return to the mountain!" ”

Cao Huachun also shook his head: "Lu Shilang don't have to be sad, after you wait for the attack to meet the saint, maybe things will take a turn for the better." ”

"It's late, it's late!" Lu Xiangsheng shook his head helplessly, "After entering the palace to face the saint, not to mention whether the emperor can allow me to pursue the Tartars, even if the emperor allows us, when we come out of the palace, it will be after noon, and the Tartars have been gone for almost a day, where can we catch up?" ”

Looking at Lu Xiangsheng, who was looking up to the sky and sighing, Cao Huachun had no choice but to stuff the holy decree into his hand and then walked out of the big tent.

Pang Gang's follower Lu Xiangsheng and a group of dozens of generals and more than a dozen brocade guards rode into the heavily guarded city, as the capital of the Ming Dynasty, the capital at this time also deserves to be the first city in the world, and it can even be said to be the world's largest city, there is an imperial city with a circumference of six miles outside the Forbidden City, and an inner city with a circumference of fourteen miles and fifteen miles. This is not counting, in the Jiajing period, due to the expansion of the population, and in the south of the capital to build a heavy city, with a circumference of twenty-eight miles.

By the time of Chongzhen, the area of the capital had reached nearly 100 square kilometers and the population exceeded one million. And in the West at the same time, even at the beginning of the eighteenth century. The populations of London and Paris are less than half a million. Daming Jingshi was once the most prosperous place in the world, and I don't know how many people yearn for it, but after a period of prosperity, the Jingshi at this time has shown signs of decline.

Pang Gang rode on horseback and looked at the quaint and old streets and houses of Jingshi, as well as the ragged beggars on the streets, Pang Gang thought with some sadness: "Is this the world's largest and most populous city in the world?" ”

Looking at the endless homeless beggars and many corpses on the side of the road, Pang Gang sighed and said to Liu Zeqing beside him: "Brother Liu, this capital is not good, it is not as good as our Shandong, at least in Lingshanwei, which is under the jurisdiction of the lowly position, those homeless people still have food to eat, but when they arrive at the important land of Beijing and the feet of the Son of Heaven, why is it like this?" ”

"Shhh Liu Zeqing secretly looked left and right before whispering: "These things are not something that we generals can criticize, we just need to take care of our own one-third of an acre, and you don't interfere in the affairs of the court." ”

"Alas!" Pang Gang let out a long sigh and stopped talking.

Walking along the way to the inner city, Pang Gang saw some brightly dressed powerful businessmen, rich family slaves in fresh clothes and angry horses, hugging each other passing by on the street, looking at their arrogant demeanor and the surrounding homeless beggars that were numb or envious, but Pang Gang saw more hateful eyes, Pang Gang finally felt the artistic conception of Zhumen's wine and meat stinky road with frozen bones today, seeing this, he shook his head secretly, and said in his heart: "No wonder the Ming Dynasty will perish, if the imperial court that has lost the hearts of all the people at the bottom does not perish, then it will be hell." ”

In Pang Gang's view, poverty is not terrible, what I am afraid of is that the gap between the rich and the poor is too great and the gap is too large, when the vast majority of the people at the bottom can not even solve the most basic problem of food and clothing, the people at the top live a life of singing and dancing, drunk and dreaming of death, which is bound to intensify the hatred of most of the people against the upper class. It is no wonder that after a few more years, since Li Zicheng's rogue army, most of the people in the capital have flocked to greet Li Zicheng like a New Year.

After walking for a long time, everyone finally came to the Forbidden City, looking at the towering city and many soldiers who kept patrolling back and forth, everyone who came to the palace for the first time was also nervous for a while, but Lu Xiangsheng, who was walking in front with Cao Huachun, turned around and comforted the generals: "You don't have to be nervous, now the emperor and your lords are in the early dynasty, you just need to remember to stand with the governor, but don't stand wrong, otherwise those officials will impeach you." ”

The generals even claimed that it was, looking at the nervous expressions of the generals Pang Gang couldn't help but feel a little emotional, it is said that these generals are also members of the second and third grades, but these people are still terrified before seeing the emperor, and they dare not have a trace of disrespect, which shows how important the imperial power is in this era.

The generals passed through the palace gate and came to the outside of the Taihe Palace, and after being checked by a cadre of guards inside and out, everyone finally came to a large hall, from the outside of the main hall, Pang Gang saw that from outside the palace gate, countless civil and military officials wearing various official uniforms stood quietly outside the hall, and these people lined up to the innermost until the end of the main hall

(To be continued)