"How dare you be so presumptuous!"

Zhu Qizhen may never have dreamed that he would be ridiculed by a eunuch one day, which really broke the bottom line of his self-esteem.

Looking at Zhu Qizhen's angry appearance, Xining smiled stupidly and did not continue to tease.

After all, the majesty of the emperor has not dissipated so quickly for a long time, and now he is wantonly bullying and riding on Zhu Qizhen's head, Xining does not have the courage after all.

Seeing that the monarchs and ministers of the Ming Kingdom were starting to "civil strife" now, a playful smile appeared on his face first, and then he pretended to be peaceful: "Your Majesty, why should you be angry, the foreign minister thinks that what Father-in-law Xi said is very reasonable." ”

"Those who know the times are handsome."

For the Mongols, respect is based on strength, and today's Zhu Qizhen is no longer the high-ranking Ming Emperor, only by cooperating with the Mongols can he show his value.

Otherwise it's worthless!

Zhu Qizhen also understood the truth, but he couldn't easily persuade himself to accept it, so he could only pick up the wine glass on the table and drink it all, and took a sip of stuffy wine.

He didn't care about the grievances and resistance in Zhu Qizhen's heart, he just needed the other party to recognize his situation and reality. Now that there is a basis for cooperation, he ordered his subordinates to select one person from the captured Jinyi pro-army to go to Beijing to report with the emperor's token.

It's time to give full play to the value of Zhu Qizhen's "meat ticket".

On August 19, the thirteenth year of orthodoxy, Liang Gui, a thousand households of Jinyi Wei, returned to Beijing with Zhu Qizhen's letter, which once again caused turmoil in the court, and also made Daming fall into extreme passivity.

Because for a large unified dynasty that is relatively stable internally, the rulers of the court and the elite class of officials are not very afraid of the emperor dying on the battlefield.

On the contrary, the most troublesome thing is that the emperor is still alive!

The emperor died, and then a new emperor ascended the throne, anyway, Ming Yingzong Zhu Qizhen still has an eldest son, Zhu Jianshen. It's really not good, the bloodline of the first emperor and there is a servant king Zhu Qiyu, and there is no need for a side branch to inherit the throne, and it can be smoothly transitioned.

As long as the new emperor succeeds to the throne, then everything will be settled, and the Ming Dynasty will have the backbone.

As a result, Zhu Qizhen did not die, and the new emperor was not rightly named. In addition, in the more than ten years since Zhu Qizhen succeeded to the throne, the battle of the civil fort was sparsely fought, but the imperial technique was very played, and the forces of all parties in the court were suppressed to the death, and they were in a state of balance.

Balance means that the power is evenly matched, and no one dares to stand up and say that a new emperor will be established, otherwise he will be seized by political opponents, and in the future, he may become the evidence of his own crime of stealing his own family and beheading.

In addition, along with the news that Zhu Qizhen was alive, there was also a handwritten letter, which said that the imperial court should prepare "Nine Dragons Python Dragon Satin and Pearl Six Trusts, Two Hundred Taels of Gold, and Four Hundred Taels of Silver", and give it to Ye Xian in order to redeem himself.

If it is troublesome enough for Zhu Qizhen to be alive, then the worse situation is that the emperor has also become a hostage and openly demanded ransom from Daming.

In general, robbers may release the hostages after receiving the ransom, considering the consequences of aggravating the crime. In the war between countries, there is naturally no such thing as a law or a crime, and there is no shortage of money, the question is whether the money can be redeemed if it is given to the emperor?

Back then, Zhao Song gave the entire royal woman as a ransom to the Jin people, and the two emperors of Song Huizong and Song Qinzong were not taken away and not sent back, so why would the Mongols keep their promise?

What if the money is given and the person doesn't send it back, or if the ransom is demanded every once in a while?

In order to solve this thorny problem, Zhu Qizhen, the king of servants, convened the ministers at Zuoshunmen in the Forbidden City to listen to the government and see if he could brainstorm to find a solution.

Compared with the panic of learning of the defeat of Tumubao, this time the faces of the ministers were more solemn and angry. The emperor's capture is a great shame, and the precedent of the Zhao and Song dynasties takes history as a mirror, and the Ming Dynasty must not follow in his footsteps!

"Ministers, what should the imperial brother do when he is in the hands of the Tartars, and he sends a decree to give gold and silver treasures to redeem himself?"

Although Zhu Qiyu, the king of servants, has been officially appointed as a supervisor of the country, he has not dealt with military and political affairs after all, and he is indeed a little panicked and doesn't know how to deal with it, so he can only pin his hopes on the ministers.

In the face of King Yu's inquiry, the Minister of Civil and Military Affairs standing in the open space of Zuo Shunmen stared wide-eyed, and no one dared to be this bird.

After all, if he said the wrong thing, Emperor Zhu Qizhen couldn't come back, and if he got sick one day and let him back, then there would really be good fruit to eat......

But now, pretending to be dead is not a solution, as a former eunuch of the Ministry of Labor Wang You stood up and replied: "King Yu, there is not much gold and silver needed in Your Majesty's letter, and it is a drop in the bucket for my Ming Dynasty." ”

"For the sake of Your Majesty's safety, the minister suggests that a ransom be paid!"

What kind of silk, pearls, gold, silver, and other property, in terms of the importance of the emperor, regardless of whether the other party has the idea of returning the hostages, it is better to believe it or not.

What's more, after the defeat of Tumubao, the ministers have transferred their anger to Wang Zhen, who was the original leader of the imperial expedition. As a member of the eunuch party, Wang You has been trembling recently, for fear of being burned.

As long as the emperor can come back, then even if there is no Wang Zhen, there will definitely be Zhang Zhen and Li Zhen in the future. Wang You is now in urgent need of a thick thigh to hold on to stabilize his position and power.

"It's okay to pay the ransom, how can you guarantee that the Tartars will be returned to Your Majesty?"

Qian Xili, who had long seen Wang Zhen and other eunuchs, immediately stood up to refute Wang You. Paying money is a bottomless pit to say that it is ugly, and now it seems that the ransom is not much, and when the appetite of Mongolia is fed in the future, I am afraid it will evolve into an astronomical amount.

"Who dares to guarantee this kind of thing, is it the duty of a courtier to watch Your Majesty suffer outside the fortress?"

Wang You retorted loudly to Qian Xili, and in a sense, he could be regarded as saying the current predicament. If you pay the money, people still can't come back, if you don't pay the money, the public opinion can drown, and you can find out what is wrong.

"The minister agrees with what Shao Sikong said, it is the duty of the courtier to eat the king's Lu and be loyal to the king!"

Naiheng, the head of the household, immediately stood up to support Wang You's point of view. For the former members of the eunuch party, after Wang Zhen's death, the emperor was his biggest backer, and he had to come back to preside over the overall situation.

"Whether a minister abides by his duty or not is not a manifestation of the payment of the ransom, the minister thinks that what the young uncle said is very true!"

Another minister stood up and clearly supported Qian Xili's proposition, and this kind of ransom payment must not set a precedent.

"Do you want to put Your Majesty in danger?"

"Nonsense, paying money will make the Tartars not let go of Your Majesty!"

Soon the courtiers of Zuo Shunmen quarreled, and no one could convince the other party.

Looking at the civil and military ministers below who were as noisy as women and children in the market, Zhu Qiyu, the king of servants, only felt that his head was about to explode. At this moment, he suddenly understood the difficulties of his imperial brother Zhu Qizhen, it seems that supervising state affairs is not so simple.

After the ministers quarreled for a while, Zhu Qiyu looked at Yu Qian, who had not spoken, and asked him, "Young Sima, what are your countermeasures?" ”

"The minister does not recommend paying the ransom."

As soon as Yu Qian's words came out, the originally noisy Zuo Shunmen instantly quieted down, and now the squire of the military department has been authorized by Yi Zhi to supervise the military horses of each battalion, which means that the military power of the entire Beijing division is in his hands, and his status is no longer the same as before.

"Why?"

Zhu Qiyu wanted to hear Yu Qian give a convincing reason.

"Cut five cities today, cut ten cities tomorrow, and then have a peaceful night?"

Su Xun's "On the Passage of Qin" is a masterpiece through the ages, and as long as he is a scholar in the Ming Dynasty, he can basically memorize it backwards.

Paying the ransom to the Tartars is equivalent to bribing Qin from the Qi State, thinking that cutting land and seeking peace will not buy stability.

In the same way, if you want to rely on gold and silver treasures, you can't redeem the emperor!

As soon as Yu Qian's words came out, many ministers woke up from a dream, and the camp that refused to pay the ransom occupied the vast majority.

"Yu Shao Sima, if you refuse to pay the ransom, what should you do if the Tartars hurt Your Majesty's dragon body?"

Ma Shun, the commander of the Jinyi Guard, questioned Yu Qian, the Son of Heaven's pro-army is completely dependent on the emperor's henchmen.

If Zhu Qizhen can't come back, no matter who becomes the emperor, Ma Shun's career will definitely come to an end.

"You gave the ransom, and you can guarantee that the Tartars will not harm Your Majesty?"

"Strong words!"

Ma Shun felt furious, Yu Qian was completely ignoring and insisting on three points!

But what Ma Shun never expected was that his appearance completely detonated the anger of the ministers against the eunuchs.

I saw Zhao Xin, the imperial historian of the Imperial Inspectorate, who was righteous, and said: "King Qiyu, Your Majesty will suffer this calamity, and the fault is completely on the eunuch Wang Zhen." ”

"Now the eunuch king Zhen has exposed the corpse in the wilderness, but he can't offset his sins of endangering the sect, and he also asks the king to destroy the clan to calm people's hearts. If you don't obey the edict, you won't dare to retreat! ”

Originally, after Zhao Xin said this, it triggered a response from the ministers, but he suddenly turned to look at Ma Shun and said: "Shun, Zhendang, the same crime!" ”

As soon as these words came out, Ma Shun instantly felt a chill appear in his back, this is asking the teacher for sin!

However, the long-term pro-army prostitution of the Son of Heaven made Ma Shun still respond strongly: "Presumptuous, slander the ministers of the court, what crime should I be, come and pull me out!" ”

In the past, there was an emperor and Wang Zhenzhao, and no matter how powerful Ma Shun, the commander of the Jinyi Guard, was, the ministers dared to be angry and did not dare to speak.

Now that Wang Zhen is dead, the emperor is about to get cold, do you still dare to act majestic here?

The official of science and Taoism, who has always been afraid of the heavens and the earth, is not used to it, and Wang Hong was the first to get up and rush to Ma Shun, and shouted, "Ma Shun used to help the evil, and today so far, I don't know how to be afraid!" ”

Someone took the lead, and these civilian-bureaucratic groups that were oppressed by the eunuch party on weekdays suddenly came to the spirit of revenge and revenge. Dozens of people swarmed up and attacked him, and soon beat Ma Shun to death in front of Zhu Qizhen, the king of servants.

At this beginning, the angry civilian-bureaucratic group felt that it was not enjoyable, and took advantage of the situation to kill two of Wang Zhen's henchmen and eunuchs.

This scene stunned the servant king Zhu Qiyu, and the good and dignified imperial gate discussion turned into an all-martial act, and the question of whether the emperor Zhu Qizhen paid the ransom was also completely disturbed by the farce......

The turmoil of the previous dynasty soon spread to the harem, and Queen Yuan Peiqian of Zhu Qizhen was a virtuous and virtuous woman with a generous personality. The Empress Dowager Zhang, who was in power at the time, also valued her two points, so she came out of doubt in the queen's election, and was awarded the book treasure after three books and six ceremonies, officially becoming the queen of the Ming Empire, the mother of the world!

In Cining Palace, Empress Qian was crying with Empress Dowager Sun, and when she learned that the ministers of the previous dynasty were unwilling to pay money to redeem Zhu Qizhen, she panicked as if the sky had fallen, and she didn't know how to deal with it.

"The queen mother, a husband and wife for a hundred days, even though the ministers have thousands of reasons, but the concubines can't watch Your Majesty suffer at the hands of the Tartars."

"The queen's concubines have not spent much in recent years, plus His Majesty's palace rewards, there is still some money to spare. I am willing to pay all the money to the Tartars, and I only hope that they can treat Your Majesty well and let him return to Beijing as soon as possible. ”

Listening to the words of her daughter-in-law Queen Qian, Empress Dowager Sun was also teary-eyed. During the previous dynasty, she did not dare to show her weakness, and she had to maintain a calm image to appease her ministers.

Now in the harem, Empress Dowager Sun no longer needs to hide her emotions, she is the daughter of a little magistrate to enter the palace as the queen, orthodox seven years ago, the harem affairs are under the control of the Empress Dowager, how has she experienced such a big change.

"Queen, you have a heart."

Empress Dowager Sun stroked Empress Qian's back, and then continued in a firm tone: "Since the ministers are unwilling to pay the ransom, let us wait for the harem women to redeem Your Majesty!" ”

"The concubine is up to the queen mother."

In this way, under the premise that the civil and military ministers of the Manchu Dynasty refused to pay the ransom, Empress Dowager Sun, Empress Qian and other harem concubines made up eight carriages of gold, silver, jewelry, and silk and satin, and sent them to the tent of the leader of Warat through the eunuchs day and night.

On the other side, Zhu Yi led the group of soldiers of the pro-conquest army who had fled and counterattacked the four granaries and arsenals occupied by the Mongol army in four ways.

Among them, the most important Wanquan Left Guard Cang was led by Zhu Yi himself, and Shen Yichen was not idle, leading the Canghuo first-class guards to supervise the array.

In the silent grassland night sky, only the howls of wolves and insects came from time to time, and the Ming army slowly approached Wanquan Zuoweicang like a ghost. At this moment, the Mongol soldiers on the Acropolis may still be immersed in the joy of the defeat of the Ming army, and they did not notice that death was slowly coming.

"The proprietor, can you do it in person?"

Wang Neng, who was standing in the rear, looked at the pro-conquest army that was slowly approaching, and asked Shen Yichen with some unease.

The armor and weapons of this pro-conscription army were "picked" off by Shen Yichen from the galloping reinforcements. As for the command level of middle and high-level officers, some of them were selected from the low-level non-commissioned officers and soldiers for rapid promotion, and the other part was drawn by Zhu Yi from the relatively complete cavalry of the pro-conscription army and the Xuanfu cavalry battalion led by himself.

It can be said that the current pro-conscription army is no longer the elite of the original Beijing camp army, but a ragtag army that was temporarily piled up after a big defeat.

Let them take the initiative to attack the Mongol army, even if the other party is slack and does not take too much precautions, I am afraid that the difference in strength between the enemy and us is not small.

"The defeat of the pro-conscription army is not the fault of the soldiers, I believe that as long as they can be given a chance, they can prove themselves."

Shen Yichen looked full of confidence, the defeat in the battle of Tumubao was full of chance, not that the Ming soldiers were inferior to the Mongolian iron cavalry.

A thousand years ago, the cavalry of the Han Dynasty was able to seal the wolf Juxu, drink the horse Hanhai, and be a Han as a Wuhu. A thousand years later, how could the Ming soldiers lose the face of their ancestors and the bravery of a nation?

Zhu Yi is right, what is lost on the battlefield can only be won back from the battlefield, including courage!

The dense number of pro-conquest soldiers has already lurked more than a dozen zhang of the city wall of Wanquan Zuoweicang. At this time, under the illumination of the moonlight, a little cold light suddenly lit up in the grass, which was the metallic luster refracted by the sharp arrow.

With the sound of breaking the air, the Mongolian sentries at the four corner towers of the city wall didn't even have time to scream, and they were shot through the neck by the strong bow and crossbow of the Ming army, and fell down from the top of the city tower.

"Enemy attack!"

A sharp roar pierced the night sky, and the Mongolian secret sentry at the corner of the city wall immediately discovered the anomaly of the corner tower. I have to say that the battle of Tumubao that the Mongolian army can win is not entirely an accident of luck, and the Taishi has also conquered and unified Mongolia for so many years, and has indeed trained a group of elite soldiers.

"It's the Han people who have killed it, prepare for war!"

"The barbarians are here to die again, and the Mongolian sons are ready to fight!"

Countless Mongolian soldiers who were immersed in the carnival, after hearing the warning of the enemy attack, their first reaction was not panic and fear, but a strange excitement and fanaticism.

This is the sequelae of the fiasco of the Ming army in Tumubao, the Mongol soldiers no longer regard the Ming army as a terrible opponent, but regard the Han people as a group of pigs and sheep who plunder and slaughter at will, and now they dare to take the initiative to attack is looking for death!

"Siege!"

After Zhu Yi heard that the enemy had already issued a warning, he also roared and ordered the soldiers to start attacking the city.

In an instant, countless ladders were lifted from the ground and placed on top of the not-so-tall walls of the Acropolis. At the same time, the crossbowmen and musketeers of the Ming army fired with all their might, suppressing the counterattack of the Mongol soldiers on the city wall.

The brave men of the pro-conquest army selected in the front row were the first to bear the brunt of the shield raised, followed by the halberd hand who followed the interference, and then the Ming saber and axe assaulter with short weapons.

Like ants, they clinged to the city wall with a circumference of nearly ten miles in the Wanquan Left Guard Cang, and rushed towards the Mongolian soldiers on the city wall without fear of death.

The Mongol soldiers were very good at cavalry field battles of the Great Army, but they were far from being the opponents of the Ming army for the attack and defense of the city. In addition, immersed in the joy of victory, he didn't expect that the Ming army still had the courage to counterattack, and all kinds of defense equipment were not prepared.

In an instant, some soldiers of the pro-conquest army broke through the defense line of the Mongol soldiers and climbed the wall of Wanquan Zuoweicang.

"Brothers, the opportunity for shame is right in front of you, kill these Tartars!"

"We have lost once, and we must not lose a second time!"

"Admiral Shen trusts our brothers, and even if he dies in battle this time, he won't be disappointed."

"For Admiral Shen, for the sake of Daming, kill!"

Crazy and fierce shouts resounded all over the city wall, and the hasty battle that had once occurred in the civil fort was now completely reappeared in the Wanquan Left Guard Warehouse.

After consuming the initial arrogance, the Mongol soldiers soon realized that they were not the opponents of the Ming army, and the other party was like a tiger and wolf with bloodthirsty killing, and the defenders of the Wanquan Left Guard Cang were defeated.

Looking at the firelight on the city wall from afar, Shen Yichen said with an indifferent expression: "Can the king see it?" The Mongolian Tatars are nothing more than a herd of native chickens and dogs! ”