Xuanfu.

Ma Zhongxi was meeting guests in the General Military Officer's Palace, where he was temporarily staying.

After Zhang Zhou led the troops to the expedition, he was not embarrassed to live in the governor's yamen, or in his opinion, he was a person who was about to resign, and he didn't have a few days left in office anyway, so it didn't matter if he lived there.

The guest he saw was Lin Ting, the new head of the Ministry of Industry who followed Zhang Zhou to Xuanfu, and Lin Ting came to visit Ma Zhongxi on behalf of his father Lin Han.

"Ma Zhongcheng, there is a result......"

Not long after Ma Zhongxi and Lin Ting came down, the subordinate official ran in with a hurried and hasty look.

Ma Zhongxi frowned and said, "Why is it so rude? The result? ”

The subordinate official was panting and hurriedly said, "It's Wei Ninghai...... There is a war report...... Deputy General Ma and Chief Wang led their troops to break through the enemy of Weininghai, beheaded 1,300 people, captured more than 16,300 old and weak women and children of the Menggol Levin Department, and captured more than 20,000 cattle, horses, camels and other large animals, and more than 70,000 sheep......"

"What?"

Ma Zhongxi stood up in shock.

His eyes were instantly bloodshot, as if the bloodshot was about to burst and spurt blood out at any moment.

Lin Ting next to him hurriedly asked, "The soldiers and horses have withdrawn?" ”

The subordinate officer took a breath and said, "No ......"

When he heard "no", Ma Zhongxi somehow suddenly breathed a sigh of relief, he didn't know why he had such a reaction, and he was also thinking in his heart, shouldn't he expect Ma Yi and Wang Shouren to bring the troops back smoothly? But if Zhang Zhou, who was impeached by me, dispatched Ma Yi, who was also impeached by me, to achieve this victory...... Is there still room for my old face?

"I'm not done." The subordinate finally said it all.

"Ahem!"

Ma Zhongxi was choked by his own saliva, glaring angrily at the subordinate officials, and his eyes looked like murder.

What the are you fooling me?

"On the way back, the deputy commander-in-chief of Ma escorted the captives and cattle and sheep, and all the way with the Tartars, beheading six people. Evacuated to the north of Maoerzhuang more than 40 miles, encountered more than 8,000 Tartar soldiers and horses from all walks of life, and then withdrew troops in the grassland and mountains, and killed and beheaded more than 1,900 Tartars after a fierce battle...... Then Zhang Zhitai's soldiers and horses arrived to cover the retreat of the soldiers and horses, and it is estimated that this will have been withdrawn to the Guannei......"

"Ma Zhongcheng, you ......"

The subordinate officer hadn't finished speaking, but seeing that Ma Zhongxi couldn't stand anymore and was falling backwards, he hurried to help but it was too late.

Fortunately, there was a forest court standing next to him, and he hurriedly reached out to support him.

"It's okay, it's okay." Ma Zhongxi calmed down his mind, and his words didn't seem like he was saying to the two people around him, but more like he was stabilizing himself.

Lin Ting said with a happy face: "This is really a miracle, and it is not much better than Wei Ninghou." ”

Speaking of this, Lin Ting's expression was a little gloomy.

also followed Zhang Zhou to the northwest, but why did Wang Shouren go out with the army because he was the head of the Ministry of War, and I was just the head of the Ministry of Works, so I could only stay in Xuanfu and wait for the mine?

But the problem is, everyone has finished fighting, and my mining business has not yet been settled, otherwise why would I have nothing to do to come to visit this Ma Zhongcheng? Don't you want to use your father's relationship to let him find me something to do?

Right now......

It's hard to put into words.

Ma Zhongxi's face was dark, and he said that he had won the battle on the front line, but his expression gave people the feeling that Ma Yi and Wang Shouren had been wiped out in Weininghai.

The subordinate official said: "The battle report has been sent to the Beijing Division, this is only reported to the General Military Office, and Zhang Zhitai also has another official document, saying that it will be delivered in a few hours later, and there is an order for the defense of the surrounding areas of the Wanquan Division." You see......"

Ma Zhongxi closed his eyes and waved his hand, which probably means that you bring all the words, and I also know, you can stay where you can stay cool.

Lin Ting said: "Ma Zhongcheng also made great contributions to this battle. ”

It was originally a compliment, but to Ma Zhongxi's ears, it was similar to killing people, he looked ashamed, and his cheeks instantly turned red and almost angry: "Such a credit, the old man would rather not!" Put my Ming soldiers in danger, full of dangers, not pragmatic in defense, pure thinking, can you know the impact of the defeat on the Ming Pass? ”

In fact, when Lin Ting finished saying that, he felt that he might have said the wrong thing.

When he saw Ma Zhongxi's reaction, he understood that he was stepping on Ma Zhongxi's tail.

He is also angry in his heart, look at my cheap mouth, isn't mentioning this to him the same as killing him? I forgot that he was rejected by His Majesty in order to participate in the impeachment of Bingkuan, and he was in a mood to beg the old man to return to the field...... To what extent is the credit of others distorted in his eyes? Your Majesty asked Bingkuan to come to the northwest, isn't it just to send troops?

"Ma Laozhongcheng, you are angry, it is better to wait for the next time......

Lin Ting didn't seem to be very popular at first glance, and when he saw Ma Zhongxi's embarrassing scene, he said the wrong thing, if he didn't leave quickly, when would he wait?

Next time?

Never again!

Ma Zhongxi said: "Li Zhan, you stay away from Zhang Bingkuan in the future, it's not that the old man looks down on him, it's really because what he did was licking blood on the head of a knife, and such a clever person will definitely end no good!" ”

Lin Ting was embarrassed in his heart.

Don't you look down on him?

As soon as Zhang Bingkuan achieved great success, you degraded him to nothing, and he didn't go in the direction you expected, and he didn't lose his reputation, are you unwilling?

"Yes."

Lin Ting didn't think so, but he was still responding.

It can be regarded as giving Ma Zhongxi enough face.

At this time, Lin Ting's heart was also drumming, my sister was about to marry Zhang Bingkuan as a concubine, he treated me as a brother-in-law, and even my father was not as critical of him as before, even if I wanted to stay away from him, I was afraid that I would be bound together, right?

"Help the old man to rest. If Zhang Bingkuan's official letter comes, you don't have to show it to me, let the people of the General Military Mansion deal with it themselves! Profitably, don't send it! ”

Ma Zhongxi seems to have suffered a big injury in his heart.

There is too much blood to drip and go into the room to recuperate.

Lin Ting also said goodbye to Ma Zhongxi under the emotions of envy, jealousy and hatred in his heart.

……

……

The battle report went all the way to the east and soon reached the Jingshi.

Because this result is very effective in highlighting the prestige of the Ming Dynasty, the battle report is also like a net, leading a line from Yanghekou, interspersed with all parts of the nine sides, and even when it comes to the Beijing Division, all lines are opened.

Cabinet duty.

Liu Jian also took the initiative to greet the door, picked up the battle report and read it in his hand, and in the puzzled eyes of Li Dongyang and Xie Qian, Liu Jian closed the door that was originally open because of the hot weather, and walked in front of the two with the war report.

"Smack!"

Liu Jian's hand loosened, almost throwing the battle report on the table.

Li Dongyang hurriedly picked it up, this time he had seen it with Xie Qian, and both of them had mixed expressions on their faces.

"It really allowed him to win, killing more than 3,000 Di Yi and capturing more than 16,000...... I'm afraid Wang Weining's coffin board can't be suppressed, right? Xie Qian played his poisonous side, not only marveling at the incredibleness of the battle, but also ridiculing the change in the situation brought about by the battle.

"Good thing." Li Dongyang also learned from Liu Jian, and shook his hand lightly to put the music on the table.

At this time, Liu Jian had already sat down, his face did not have any joy, it was all melancholy, but he seemed to sigh and said, "How did you get to this step?" ”

The amount of credit is actually insignificant to Daming.

The Northwest has merit, and it has little to do with their cabinet, saying that their professional politicians will be happy for the good news in the Northwest, that is also for others to see, they are more concerned about the change of the power structure of the imperial court.

Li Dongyang saw Liu Jian's reaction, and he no longer hid it to say anything beautiful, he said: "Once this credit is confirmed, Zhang Bingkuan's influence in the Governor's Mansion can be described as unprecedented, if you want to balance him, it is even more difficult, but it is not as good as Wang Shichang before, pushing him into the Governor's Mansion, and since then there have been few festivals." ”

Xie Qian smiled and asked, "Binzhi, to speak lightly, do you think it's that easy?" ”

Until now, you Li Binzhi still think that Zhang Zhou is a civil official or a martial artist, which is a choice for the cabinet ministers, right?

Or, the emperor just wants him to be a civil servant on the one hand, and a martial artist on the other, and the two sides are huo huo together, do you want to be out of sight? Sorry, there is no such option.

Of course, Li Dongyang understood this, and he said: "Maybe you can start with Bo'an!" ”

Liu Jian looked at Li Dongyang and said, "Say it directly." ”

Li Dongyang no longer made any cover-up: "Bo'an is different from Zhang Bingkuan, most of the credit this time comes from his on-the-spot scheduling, the person who personally participated in the war, the merit is naturally his own body, Zhang Bingkuan only plays a role in making decisions and dealing with the aftermath." ”

Xie Qian continued to smile: "I'm afraid Your Majesty won't think so." ”

"Yu Qiao, can you wait for me to finish?" Li Dongyang was also annoyed.

Now that your eyebrows are burning, you don't have to help with advice on the side, just pour cold water on it?

Liu Jian said: "You don't have to say it, you don't have to say it anymore, to this step of the field, no one is to blame, it is really Zhang Bingkuan's multi-talented, it should not be different, but should be tolerated by the world." It's up to you. ”

With Liu Jian's meaning, he returned to his original attitude towards Zhang Zhou.

Since you really can't fight Zhang Zhou in some aspects, then let's not think about how to fight, let's still think about how to bring him over and let him go on the "right path".

If we are always engaged in confrontation, and we are not as good as him every time, the trust of the Son of Heaven in our Wenchen will definitely be decreasing day by day, so wouldn't we dig a pit and jump into it ourselves?

But if Zhang Zhou is co-opted by us as his own person, he is awesome, and we are awesome, and the emperor will trust our ministers even more.

Li Dongyang is naturally on Liu Jian's side, and he is still relying on Zhang Zhou to treat his son, which can be regarded as asking for help, while letting people help, while digging a pit behind his back to make a stumbling block, Li Dongyang feels that he is not able to do it.

But it's just a face that I don't think I'll do this, and I'm still not welcome when I should do it.

Xie Qian said: "I'm afraid that Zhang Bingkuan's heart will be empty, and he will have no one in his eyes at that time." When he first entered the court, he was a little arrogant, how could he be at ease in the future? Since ancient times, the princes have been busy with side affairs, and it is not wise to let him enter the governor's mansion. ”

Xie Qian obviously felt that Li Dongyang's previous proposal was more reasonable.

Since we are now at an absolute disadvantage in the matter of confronting Zhang Zhou, we cannot let him continue to stay in the DPRK and harm us.

It is to make him a martial artist, let him enter the Governor's Mansion, or even stay in the northwest.

It's a big deal that we don't ask much about the military affairs in the northwest, let him toss, but as long as he stays away from the court and keeps a distance from the emperor, as his merits increase day by day, and the suspicion of the monarch and the ministers rises, then his influence on the court affairs will naturally be weak, and even without our help, he will be gone as soon as he is short-lived.

Liu Jian shook his head and said, "In a year or two, don't think about it." Let's see how Your Majesty arranges it. ”

In the meaning of Liu Jian.

Now the matter is still under Zhu Youji's control, and it depends on how the emperor wants to use Zhang Zhou.

Xie Qian chattered endlessly: "The northwest has not been settled, what if he is left in the northwest?" Since ancient times, there have been many people who have used soldiers to attack plotters, how many people have a good end? ”

Li Dongyang said: "If he is just a scheming person with soldiers, it may be so, but His Majesty's trust in him does not stop using soldiers?" Yu Qiao, this matter cannot be forced, as Liu Lao said, standing on His Majesty's side in everything, without any opinion is not to cause trouble, it is better than taking humiliation on yourself. ”

"Humph!"

Xie Qian still looked very unwilling.

The main reason is the rise of Zhang Zhou, which is too untimely.

If he Xie Qian is the first assistant, or he will not have such a big opinion, the key is that he is still in the rising period of his career, but he met an unreasonable Zhang Zhou, then doesn't it mean that Xie someone's channel for rising has been blocked like this?

……

……

Inside the Qianqing Palace.

Xiao Jing carefully put the battle report he brought over in front of Zhu Youji.

Zhu Youzhu looked up at Xiao Jing, and then at Dai Yi and the others next to him, everyone's eyes revealed excitement, Zhu Youzhu smiled and nodded, "Okay." ”

Just now, Xiao Jing only said that he had received good news.

And it was a big victory, what the specific results were, Xiao Jing didn't elaborate, but Zhu Youzhu knew that his Bingkuan would not let him down.

"How many kills?" Zhu Youzhu was not in a hurry to ask all the details.

It's like opening cards, one by one.

Enjoy the joy of this wish coming true for a while.

Xiao Jing said happily: "More than three thousand." ”

"Oh, a little less, huh?" Zhu Youji's heart was already happy, but he still had to pretend that nothing happened, but the smile on his face obviously couldn't be hidden.

Dai Yi smiled: "Yes, Your Majesty, it's a little less, but who let Mr. Zhang personally go into battle?" It's nothing to get a little discounted. ”

"Hmm." Zhu Youzhu smiled and nodded.

It seems that the monarchs and ministers can agree on bragging and comforting each other.

"How many prisoners?" Zhu Youzhu continued to deal.

Xiao Jing's joy rose this time, stretched out his fingers, and compared one first, and then six.

Dai Yi asked on the side: "One thousand six?" ”

Zhu Youzhu said: "Kill all three thousand, Wei Ninghai is the headquarters of the fire screen, and it is a bit unreasonable to capture only one thousand and six...... But it won't be sixteen thousand, right? ”

Xiao Jing said in surprise: "What Your Majesty said is extremely true, it is more than sixteen thousand three hundred...... By the way, there are more than 20,000 large animals and more than 70,000 small animals......"

"Haha, huh?" Zhu Youzhu couldn't help it at all this time.

Dai Yi learned Zhu Youji's previous tone and said, "Are there so many people in Weininghai? ”

"Yes." Zhu Youzhu smiled, "Wang Weining attacked Weininghai and captured no more than 100 people, no matter how many of them are, it is a great achievement to reach a thousand people." Only send 3,000, kill 3,000, how can you capture so many? ”

Xiao Jing said with a smile: "It's all Mr. Zhang's gunpowder and firearms." ”

"Oh, then I'm going to have to take a good look."

Only then did Zhu Youzhi stretch out his hand and open the good news in front of him.

At this time, Dai Yi, Chen Kuan, and Wei Bin also turned their heads and wanted to take a look together.

When you see the detailed arrangement of the battle above, especially when you see more than 3,000 kills, it is just a conservative estimate, after all, there are many Tartars who were directly blown up to pieces, and there are no bones left, and there are still details of the two battles...... Zhu Youzhu let out a long sigh of relief and said, "It's not enough." ”

Several eunuchs next to him all felt that the emperor was a bit pretentious.

Isn't that enough?

So what kind of credit does it take to be worth writing?

"What I mean, the grassland is not peaceful, and there will always be troops in the future, and now the situation in the northwest is very different from before, and the troops used to be fought with bows and horses, and the Ming soldiers are obviously not like those Di Yi who were born on horseback since childhood, and there is always a disadvantage. But now and in the future, firearms should be given priority, and it is necessary to raise them as soon as possible, lest the Tatars learn the essence and fail to level the steppe. ”

Zhu Youzhu is still relatively rational.

The credit is great, and I am very satisfied, but I immediately thought that now it is a time difference, we will use firearms, and the Tartar has not learned and will not use, so now the advantage is ours.

What we need to do is to use our strengths to solve the problem once and for all, rather than waiting.

This is probably a bit similar to the Hongyi cannon in the late Ming Dynasty, which was obviously a killer weapon in the Ming army, but in the end it was learned by the enemy.

Dai Yi said with a smile: "Your Majesty, with Mr. Zhang in the northwest, I believe it will be completed in a few years." ”

"I don't need him." Zhu Youzhu shook his head and said, "I can see that in the northwest, there is no need for him to be in charge in person, his knowledge of people can be described as very sophisticated and unique, and he can always make miraculous results, whether it is Zhu Zhijie, or Wang Qiong, Wang Shouren, it shows again and again that his vision is right, and even Ma Yi can let him use it." It's not easy. ”

Xiao Jing asked, "Does Your Majesty want to keep him in Beijing?" ”

"It's nature." Zhu Youzhu nodded.

Dai Yi realized that he might have said the wrong thing.

Don't use an elephant to crack a nut?

To prepare for the affairs of the grassland, it is true that Zhang Zhou can preside over it, but it is not necessary to let Zhang Zhou go to the northwest to sit in the town, can the emperor leave Zhang Zhou now?

And he had to propose that letting Zhang Zhou be in the northwest would make the emperor have a ...... He was jealous of Zhang Zhou and wanted to transfer Zhang Zhou away from the emperor, wouldn't that ...... Asking yourself for trouble?

"Haha, I can't help it, I want to see the reaction of those ministers in the court tomorrow." Zhu Youzhu stood up on the spot, and suddenly seemed to be in a very majestic posture, looking at the world and full of strategy, "Bingkuan is considered to be fighting for me." ”

Dai Yi hurriedly remedied: "Your Majesty, it's time to give Mr. Zhang a knight." ”

Zhu Youzhu said: "Naturally, I want to give, but I don't plan to give any marquis or uncle, if I want to give it, I will give it to the country." The Tang and Song dynasties were knighted as prime ministers, so they wanted to give him the Duke of Laiguo. ”

(End of chapter)