"What do you think about Liao's salary?"

Facing his first assistant, Chongzhen directly talked about the topic, and did not beat around the bush. [~]

"The situation of the thieves in Henan is urgent, and the outside must first be settled, the slaves must be destroyed first, and the distribution of Liao salary to calm the internal thieves must be the first. Both inside and outside the government and the opposition also knew that this was a last resort, so the ministers had no objections. ”

Zhou Yanru's words are half-true and half-false, and the government and the opposition know that it is a last resort to divide the Liao and the Tao and level the civil strife, but it is not that there is no objection at all. Not to mention anything else, let's say that these riddles came, and the officials of the Kedao Supervision Department went up to no less than thirty songs, all of which were for the imperial court to pay regardless of salary, but without exception, these notes were suppressed by Zhou Yanru at the behest of the General Administration. Even if a few of them were sparsely entered, they were deliberately ignored by Chongzhen himself.

"I was also forced to use this strategy out of desperation, and when the good news from Henan came, the Liao salary was still dedicated."

Chongzhen sighed, if he had silver, why did he bother to tear down the east wall and make up the west wall. With a wry smile, he suddenly took a few steps forward, lowered his voice and said to Zhou Yanru: "If I transfer the Liao army into the customs to quell the chaos, does Shoufu think it is feasible?" ”

"This"

Zhou Yanru groaned slightly, nodded and said: "The country is troubled today, both inside and outside, the thieves and the eastern captives are both the country's henchmen, but when this stormy plan, the two cannot use troops at the same time, and one must be chosen to deal with it with all their might." However, the country's use of troops over the years has greatly damaged its vitality, and if it is not certain to win, it is still the best policy to hold on to it and not to send it. ”

After Zhou Yanru finished speaking, Chongzhen didn't understand, did this Shoufu agree to transfer the Liao army into the customs, or did he disagree?

He was still young, and Xingzi was in a hurry, so he glanced at Zhou Yanru with some unhappiness, and said in a muffled voice: "Shoufu might as well be clear." I also know that the Tao of the Devil makes the soldiers weak and strong, and the battlefield is violent, which not only damages the vitality of the country, but although I can't bear it, I can't bear to see the foundation of my ancestors destroyed in my hands. There are only two people here, me and Shoufu, I humbly ask for advice, and I hope Shoufu can tell me sincerely. ”

Chongzhen said this, Zhou Yanru knew that this pass could not be avoided, glanced at the screen with a side face, turned his head, and finally said: "The emperor is the king of Yao Shun, benevolence is in the grass and trees, and the love of soldiers is like a child." In terms of the current situation, it is not easy to deal with both internal and external resistance to the thieves, and it is difficult to deal with both military and financial difficulties. In terms of the current situation, the eastern side suffered a defeat in Jinzhou, and it will definitely not be able to attack the south in the short term, but on the other hand, our side is also a miserable victory. Zu Da Ji Liao army annihilated, closed the door, Jizhen soldiers and buried in Xiaoling River, Ningjin line, I can use less than 5,000 soldiers, and the soldiers are tired, if you rashly draw troops into the pass, then Ningjin is undoubtedly an empty city. If Donglu finds out the truth and the soldiers are pressing, I'm afraid" Speaking of this, Zhou Yanru did not say any more, but looked at Chongzhen worriedly.

"According to Shoufu, the Liao soldiers are not allowed to enter the customs even if they are not a soldier?" Zhou Yanru's words made Chongzhen a little disappointed, but he also knew that what Zhou Yanru said was the truth, the victory in Jinzhou was indeed a tragic victory, although Dongyu's vitality was greatly damaged, but Daming was also struggling, and he couldn't struggle at all.

"It's not that you can't draw Liao soldiers, if it is" Zhou Yanru hesitated in his heart, but seeing that the emperor was distressed by the lack of soldiers to quell the chaos, he thought that if he could succeed in what he proposed, he could solve the king's great worries and determine the country's future, so he couldn't help but muster up the courage to say: "If the peace negotiation can be successful, then the Liao army can also be transferred into the customs." ”

"Peace?" Chongzhen was taken aback and looked at Zhou Yanru with wide eyes.

Zhao Quan was also taken aback, and looked at Zhou Yanru with his mouth wide open. Behind the screen, a vague figure trembled slightly, but soon calmed down again.

Zhou Yanru was very calm, and he met Chongzhen's gaze without any shame or embarrassment.

Half-loud, Chongzhen said faintly: "If it is a peace, can the foreign dynasty have opinions?" ”

Zhou Yanru said calmly: "This minister thinks in private, and no one else in the foreign court knows the way. ”

After listening to Zhou Yanru's answer, Chongzhen was a little relieved, and he really thought about the matter of discussing peace with Jiannu, and he did think about it, last year, Shaoqing Zhang of Taifu Temple gave him a lesson, and mentioned all kinds of benefits of peace.

However, the Dongyu army is strong, the Ming army is weak, one side is offensive, one side is on the defensive, and the Ming army will lose every battle, the Jin army is arrogant, where is there a way out of half a point for peace. In addition, the civil unrest in the northwest had not yet spread, so the Manchu Dynasty did not think of negotiating peace with the easterners, but tried their best to fight the main war.

The situation is just like when Yingzong was captured, and the government and the opposition are still fighting. Since the founding of Taizu, for 200 years, the Son of Heaven has guarded the country, and the king has died, which seems to have become a national rule. For foreign races, the war will be fought to the end, and there will be no harmony or peace, and the DPRK and China will be proud of the main battle. Under this general trend, Chongzhen did not dare to risk the world's great fortune and open the door to peace with Dongyu.

However, no one expected that the civil unrest, which was only in the northwest, would spread in just two years, and the thief rebellion would even spread to the Central Plains, which had shaken the foundation of the country. In addition, two years ago, Dongyu entered the Kou Pass, Gyeonggi fell, and after Jiannu left the customs, Chongzhen was left with a pile of rotten messes, which was really sad that he didn't think about it.

Under the internal and external difficulties, Chongzhen's mind also began to waver, and he felt that if he could negotiate peace with Dongyu, and then concentrate on suppressing the thief rebellion, it seemed that it was not an impossible way to go.

However, can Dongyu negotiate peace with me?

For some reason, Chongzhen's mind suddenly appeared Yuan Chonghuan, who was killed by him two years ago.

Now that I want to negotiate peace with Dongyu, is Dongyu willing?

"Would you like to make peace with me?" Chongzhen was a little worried.

Zhou Yanru was very sure: "When Yuan Chonghuan was here, there were rumors that Dongyu and my Ming Dynasty negotiated peace, which shows that Dongyu has always had the intention of making peace with my Ming Dynasty." Today, the minister thinks that Dongyu must be more eager to negotiate peace than my Ming Dynasty! ”

Chongzhen's mouth opened slightly: "Why is Shoufu so sure?" ”

Zhou Yanru said: "The Dongyu is a barbarian tribe outside Tibet, and there is no doubt that they are robbers, and they have no great ambitions. When the soldiers are strong and the horses are strong, the robbers naturally act and are more greedy. In the past, I fought against him many times, but his heart will be big, and he will ask for more. However, in the first battle of Jinzhou, Dongyu suffered a heavy blow, and I have already learned that the Ming Dynasty is powerful, where do I dare to be strong again. In addition, the rain outside the customs has been uneven in the past two years, and the products are not abundant, so the minister thinks that it is good for me to negotiate peace, and it is good for him to take prisoners, they are all ready to fly, and they have to be sent. If you continue to fight, you can only lose both. ”

After Chongzhen heard this, he also thought it was, but he was still embarrassed: "If you really want to negotiate peace, won't I become a partial Zhao Gou, leaving behind infamy through the ages?" ”

Seeing that the emperor was tempted to discuss peace, but he was worried about infamy, Zhou Yanru hurriedly and generously said: "Since ancient times, there has been no one who can win externally without stopping internal strife. Therefore, if you are outside, you must first settle inside, and this must be unswerving. Although the situation of the country today is critical, it is not comparable to the situation of the Southern Song Dynasty.

Although the east is repeatedly stuffed, sāo disturbs Jifu, but from Liaohai in the east, to Datong in the west, and the important town of Xiongguan is in my hands. Therefore, for the sake of the country's plan, it is better to impose a policy of restraint on the eastern captives, delay the time, and suppress the thieves in the fire pass internally, and then force the thieves to bow down; If he still harbors different aspirations, it is not difficult to get rid of them.

Once the country has no internal worries, His Majesty can organize the army and fight against the east, and the shame of snow and today will never be the trouble of the border. ”

Hearing this, Chongzhen was a little excited and said: "I also know very well that if you are outside, you must first settle inside, well, although the negotiation of peace will leave me with infamy, it will be beneficial to the country." If it is as Shoufu said, then I will personally lead a large army out of the customs to destroy slaves!"

Zhou Yanru hurriedly knelt down and said, "The emperor is wise! ”

However, Chongzhen was still a little uneasy, and whispered to Zhou Yanru: "This matter must be carried out quickly, and it must not be made known to the officials of the outer court. ”

Zhou Yanru hurriedly agreed: "The minister knows the way." ”

"If the matter is successful, the country will have no worries about the east, and I can immediately transfer the Liao army and the Xuanda strong army outside the Guanxi to suppress the thieves and put down the civil strife."

Thinking of the benefits that the success of the peace talks brought to himself and the country, Chongzhen's heart couldn't help but be turbulent, and he couldn't calm down.

Zhou Yanru was also full of ambition, full of ambition, and with a smile on his face.

The two monarchs and ministers looked at each other so happily, Xu felt the joy in the emperor's heart at this time, and Zhao Quan also smiled knowingly and looked at it stupidly.

For a while, Chongzhen remembered an imminent event, that is, Gao Qiqian's transfer of Liao soldiers into the customs.

Although the negotiation of peace is good, it always takes time, but the hole thief did not give Daming time. If we can't transfer Liao troops into the customs as soon as possible, the Confucian thieves' rebellion can't really be said to be the same as the civil rebellion in the northwest, and it will become a spark and a prairie fire, and it will be out of control.

"The matter of peace negotiation must be handled by the first assistant as soon as possible. But at the moment, I am in a hurry to transfer Liao soldiers into the customs. Shoufu should know that Zhu Dadian's Beijing camp has been defeated, and the Confucian thieves have been killed in Qingzhou, if there is no strong army to pacify, I am only afraid that Shandong and Denglai will be poisoned by the Confucian thieves. Chongzhen's tone was a little anxious.

No, Zhou Yanru didn't feel embarrassed at all at this time, nor did he say anything empty words, but said confidently: "As far as the minister knows, the Confucian thieves are only two or three thousand Liao soldiers, and the rest are mostly coerced and vulnerable. The emperor doesn't have to worry about the rebellion of the Confucian thieves at all, and if he wants to solve the urgent need now, there is a ready-made army available. ”

"Oh? What does Shousuke mean? Chongzhen was a little confused, and he didn't understand which army Zhou Yanru was referring to.