The sky was bright.

Zhu Youzhu was walking on the way to Fengtian Palace, and Li Zhang was still reporting everything the prince had experienced outside the palace last night.

“…… Go to listen to books and bet with people first, and then go to the Shouning Marquis Mansion to get the silver? How much did you take? Zhu Youzhu asked.

Li Zhang said: "I don't know the specifics, but it is said that Shou Ninghou gave a wooden box first, and there are hundreds of taels of silver in it." ”

"Huh." Zhu Youzhu couldn't help but smile when he heard this, "It has always been his brother who moves silver out of the palace, and now there is also a time when they send their own silver to the palace." Ha ha. ”

He was responsible for delivering money to his brother-in-law, while his son moved it home from his brother-in-law.

It seems that his son is more capable than himself.

"Then was he in the Shouning Marquis Mansion after that?" Zhu Youzhu continued to ask.

Li Zhang looked very cautious and said, "His Royal Highness the Crown Prince did not amuse in the Hou Mansion, but immediately came out and went to ......."

"Where did you go? Is it some unclean place? When Zhu Youzhu saw that Li Zhang was hesitant, he felt that it might not be a good thing.

Li Zhang hurriedly said: "The prince went to Jian Changbo's mansion, but was told that Jian Changbo was not at home...... In fact, Jian Changbo has always been in the Shouning Hou Mansion, and he may not have met him. Then the prince went to Changningbo's mansion to ......"

Zhu Youzhu originally thought it was a little interesting for his son to ask his brother-in-law for money.

Hearing that his son's relatives were leaving, he couldn't help frowning, and said, "Listen to this, is it begging for money from house to house?" What do you think? Did they play today? ”

The sons went to extort and extort from each family, and this belonged.

Li Zhang said: "I don't know yet. ”

"And where did he stay?" Zhu Youzhu looked at the sky, and then looked at the Fengtian Hall not far away, and it seemed that he was not in a hurry to leave.

Listening to Li Zhang talk about his son's affairs seemed to make him more concerned than listening to the ministers talk about court affairs in the court.

Li Zhang said at this time: "Later, the prince went to the place in the city to tell stories, listened to the book for more than an hour, and then ...... I didn't know where to go, and it wasn't until the second half of the night that Jinyiwei found the whereabouts of the prince in an inn, and the slave didn't know where the prince had gone during this period. It's useless to be a slave......"

Zhu Youzhu said angrily: "So many people are staring at him, can he actually run away?" ”

Li Zhang didn't dare to squeak.

Zhu Youzhu said: "No, I can't let him out of the palace in the future, he is so stubborn, he is still ......."

Zhu Youzhu was also a little speechless about this.

The son may have found that someone was following him, and he was able to get rid of him, and he didn't know where he went for at least two hours in the middle, which made the father very powerless, and he thought he could easily control his son, but now he knows that this is a demon king of the world, even if he is the emperor, he seems so incompetent in front of his son.

"Your Majesty......"

Li Zhang saw Zhu Youzhu standing there, silent, and not moving forward, so he couldn't help but remind.

This is going to the court, should we wait for the end of the court discussion first, and then get the prince back to clean up?

"Go and call the prince back!" Zhu Youzhu said, "Tell him, this time it's to give him face." Let him be ready to be punished! If you let him run away again...... Go now! ”

Zhu Youzhu seemed to feel it.

When the son leaves the palace, he may not just go to the street to play, but he may go to the northwest or Jizhou Town.

Otherwise, why did the son need the silver so much?

He's not just messing around, is he?

"The slave and maid will go." Li Zhang hurriedly took the order and left.

……

……

Courts.

Because of the absence of Zhang Zhou and Xie Qian's presence in the court, it looked lifeless, and in the middle section, even Zhu Youzhu couldn't help but think of Xie Qian.

Thinking that although Xie Qian's ability is not very high, gags in the court can make the atmosphere more cheerful, and those who are emperors will also feel that maybe this group of old ministers is still a little valuable...... Atmosphere group.

"Your Majesty, now that the northern fronts are stretched too long, and the supply of the household department is also stretched, if you can't end the war within five days, you should send someone to urge, and you can't let the war continue, otherwise you will experience a cold winter soon, and I don't know when it will snow......"

Zhu Youzhu listened for a while, closed his eyes and closed his eyes to recuperate, and then stopped when the minister reported, and asked again: "Does Qin Tianjian have anything to say?" ”

Fu Handao, who had recently been retransferred back to the Zuo Shilang of the Ministry of Rites, said: "Your Majesty, Qin Tianjian can't make an accurate prediction of the weather in the north. ”

Fu Han is a member of the traditional civil official faction, and he was previously considered to be the best candidate to succeed the Shangshu of the Ministry of Rites, but this time he was transferred back to the Ministry of Rites as Zuo Shilang, which is more like a last decent reservation for the traditional civil servants.

Zhu Youzhu said: "I can't be sure if it's snowing, and I don't even know what impact it will have on the war after it snows, so what's the matter if the war drags on for a few more days?" But the war still needs to be rushed...... Now that it takes eight or nine days to send people from here to the front line to urge, do you think it still makes sense? Or do you think it makes sense to stop now? ”

Zhu Youzhu didn't seem to be in a hurry at all.

Winning or losing, in the eyes of the emperor, is indifferent.

Let's not talk about the fact that now all sides are sending troops and blooming at each point, even if they really lose any way, he doesn't think it is a loss to the prestige of the Ming army.

There have been too many victories before, and the emperor seems to be down-to-earth about the victory or defeat in front of him.

Even the ministers felt that it seemed that the emperor's attention to the battlefield had dropped a lot this time.

"Ahem!"

Zhu Youzhu coughed twice and said, "I have been ill recently, and some things may not have time to pay attention to, tomorrow or one day, if you have something to do, you can just play it directly." If there's nothing to do, let's retreat first. ”

The minister felt very unwilling.

You were in good shape throughout the whole meeting, but you coughed a little twice at the end of the day, and said that you were sick?

Pretending to be sick and dropping out, this doesn't look like it.

"Your Majesty, the old minister thinks that the affairs of the north should be stopped in moderation." Liu Jian hurriedly came out to make a statement.

The war cannot be expanded unlimitedly, otherwise it will be the expansion of Zhang Zhou's power, the longer it drags on, the longer Zhang Zhou's military power is in his hands, and all parts of the Ming Dynasty must be coordinated for it, and Zhang Zhou's right to speak in the court will be maintained to the maximum.

Zhu Youzhu said: "It's easy to say in moderation." Will the Tatars understand the principle of moderation? Liu Ge Lao, I understand what you mean, you don't have to say it, and I won't break it. That's it for the first time, if there is no new battle report tomorrow, the day after tomorrow ...... I'll send someone to urge you. ”

Liu Jian was also speechless when he heard it.

Your Majesty, you yourself know that it will take about ten days to get the news to the front line if you stop it now, and this may not be the time it will reach a lone general like Wang Shouren.

But you obviously didn't take the truce seriously, otherwise why would you be in such a hurry?

Zhu Youzhi didn't seem to bother to argue with Liu Jian and the others, so he stood up and walked out.

"Your Majesty......" and what the official wants to say.

Li Zhang glared at the official viciously, with a kind of scaring intention.

It's a good trick to use.

Because of the harmonious relationship between the emperor and the officials, it has also deteriorated since Li Zhang became the prince of Dongchang, and now Li Zhang is tantamount to carrying the black pot for the emperor, everyone thinks that he Li Zhang is a model of treacherous ministers, and they all think that Li Zhang has ruined the harmonious relationship between the monarch and the minister.

……

……

The wind is howling, and the wind and sand are all over the sky.

The army led by Zhang Mao finally passed through Yansui, reorganized more than 26,000 soldiers and horses, and was still marching towards Ningxia, but Zhang Mao was already miserable at this time.

The soldiers also seemed to feel the torment of the biting cold wind, and every soldier did not have much fighting spirit, and every day there were soldiers who could not continue to move independently due to injuries and other problems, and the carriages loaded with the wounded and sick became more and more crowded.

It was hard to stay up until dark this day, and Zhang Mao was already thinking that there were still two days left to reach the ground in Ningxia.

But it was Zhang Rui who brought the news that made Zhang Mao very unhappy.

"Father, the thief army in Ningxia seems to have withdrawn, it may be that there is a war in the grassland, it is expected that Xinjian Bo will lead troops into the grassland, and there will be a trilateral king Zhongcheng who will kill the generals from the land of Hetao, or join forces with Xinjian Bo's men and horses."

Zhang Mao's already tired heart is even more vicissitudes at this time.

But it seems that the sorrow is greater than the death of the heart, and he has been able to deal with the bad news in front of him, and even "happy" in it.

"Haha...... Sure enough. When Zhang Mao smiled, his expression was a little desolate.

Zhang Rui said: "Father, it is probably not possible to march like this now, it is better for the sons to take all the way to the border of Ningxia with cavalry, kill them from Huamachi, and block the Tatars on the way back, father, you can transfer troops." ”

Zhang Mao said coldly: "Son, no matter how hard you try, it's useless." You are not Zhang Bingkuan's person, and he will not help you. ”

"Father's ......"

"Say no more!" Zhang Mao said, "My father can think of the next Zhu Dongyang, that is me, and the eminence of my father for half his life will be the most painful price because of his connivance and acquiescence to Zhang Bingkuan." What saves your life, and what helps my Zhang family...... In the end, he just buried himself. ”

Zhang Rui heard the frustration in his father's words, and hurriedly said: "Father, the routes of the soldiers and horses are different, and we have done nothing wrong, Your Majesty will not pursue it." ”

"You're wrong. Your Majesty wants to investigate, will you still hear to distinguish? To say that you didn't do your best is that you didn't do your best. Otherwise, why did Zhu Dongyang get mixed up to the point of raiding his home? No matter how hard you work for your father, you can't satisfy Your Majesty. Zhang Mao said.

Zhang Rui said: "So father, please give the order, my son is willing to lead the troops and enter the grassland first." ”

Zhang Mao said angrily: "Why are you so stupid? If you take the troops, it is tantamount to rushing to send troops, which is disobeying the emperor's orders! If you are defeated, our Zhang family will be completely doomed! Now I still have a reason, I can demote the lord to the rank of Lu, or transfer to another place as an errand, but if you are defeated, our Zhang family will be completely finished! ”

Zhang Rui was speechless for a while.

"That's it! According to the normal march, we must go to Ningxia the day after tomorrow and see how to clean up the mess...... Listening to the rest of the people, we will take a look at the excitement next to us...... The old man seemed to understand the original sentence, what is Feng Tang Yi Lao Li Guang is difficult to seal, probably that's it......"

……

……

Zhang Rui saw Zhang Mao, and was also infected by his father's frustration, and he was extremely unhappy in his heart.

When he returned to the camp, it was Ma Yi who came to meet him.

"Little grandfather, why are you ......" Ma Yi didn't quite understand why Zhang Rui was still high-spirited before, and he turned his face like this.

Zhang Rui said: "Uncle Ping, it seems that I have no chance to make a contribution, my father did not allow me to lead the troops out of the customs, only said that everything must be according to the plan." ”

Ma Yi didn't seem to understand and said, "That's what Grandpa said?" But all walks of life are sending troops, if we follow the steps, then we will not be left behind? Now we have all the artillery and firearms, the men and horses are also complete, and there is no shortage of food and grass, if we don't go out of the customs, it would be a pity, right? We will soon be at Huamachi, which is connected to the rear of the Tartars, and if we send troops from there, we will get twice the result with half the effort. ”

Zhang Rui said helplessly: "If you think it is appropriate to send troops, you can mention it to your father." ”

Ma Yi was also in a hurry.

This time, Ma Yi was finally transferred back to the northwest, thinking that he could continue to make contributions and follow Wang Shouren, and he could also have a good future.

As a result, Wang Shouren sent him to follow Zhang Mao, making him feel that he was being left out, and then learned that Wang Shouren personally led troops into the grassland......

If this is not well behaved in Zhang Mao, he feels that his political future will be bleak.

"Little grandfather, do you think it's going to be like this...... Let's ...... together Dispatch troops? Ma Yi said tentatively.

"You mean ......"

"That's right, we can send our troops on our own according to the situation. Anyway, I will go to Huamachi immediately, and with your prestige in the army, I will transfer my 6,000 soldiers and horses...... Out of the pass, what's the problem? ”

Ma Yi is also a ruthless person.

Zhang Mao does not agree to transfer troops, then we will act on our own.

Zhang Rui said: "Uncle Ping, you are disobeying military orders. ”

"When will you disobey military orders? I came with my troops, and I was originally cooperating with the British duke, when did I say that I would listen to the British duke's orders? If you don't dare, then I didn't say it...... My 6,000 soldiers and horses will still be able to get something out of the grassland. "Ma Yi doesn't care about it now.

When Zhang Rui heard it, he felt that it seemed to make sense.

Ma Yi is the chief soldier of Datong in the end, he was transferred by Wang Shouren's military order, which actually did not go through the relationship of the imperial court, for which some people also accused Wang Shouren of transferring troops without authorization.

Ma Yi cooperated with Zhang Mao at most, and didn't say that he wanted to listen to Zhang Mao.

Ma Yi continued: "If the little grandfather is really embarrassed, you can do this, you can go out of the jam with the men and horses of the last general, so that we can advance and retreat together." ”

"This ......"

Zhang Rui also seemed to be tempted.

Since Zhang Mao is cowering, and even a little self-pity, he wants to mention his father, but his father won't listen, so why should I follow my father?

Besides, my father's goal is to march to Ningxia, and then make a fool of myself, and he also knows that he will be held accountable by the imperial court for doing so, why should I hang myself on a rope with him? Can't a son have his own opinions?

"Little grandfather, I'm going to lead the troops away tonight, without further ado, I'll give you an hour to think about it, if you don't do it, then I can only say...... Good luck to Lingzun and you. Ma Yi said.

"Wait."

Zhang Rui still stopped Ma Yi, "It's ...... Under ......"

Ma Yi stepped forward, grabbed Zhang Rui's hand and said: "Little grandfather, I have always felt that you are heroic and courageous, we can't be like Ling Zun, so we don't want to be aggressive." ”

When Zhang Rui heard this, although he was smiling bitterly, he still nodded and said, "Then I'll pack up and go with you." (End of chapter)