When the eunuch saw the emperor's question, he immediately replied: "The emperor said that he was summoned in the Wenhua Palace, and he was already there at this time waiting for the holy driver. ”

"Yang Sichang hasn't arrived yet?" Since Chongzhen drove away Sun Chengzong, punished Xue Guoguan, and scolded Huang Daozhou, Ye Tingxiu, Liu Zongzhou and others, Wu Aheng has become the target of public criticism, so he had to re-turn Yang Sichang's brand.

"There was news just now that Yang Sichang was patrolling the city around Qihuamen, and the slave had already sent someone to summon him to break into the palace, and he should arrive immediately. ”

Chaoyang Gate was called Qihua Gate in the Yuan Dynasty, and until this time, the Ming people often habitually called it Qihua Gate. Yang Sichang had already received the report at this moment, and he hurriedly arranged for one of his staff members to inspect the city defense instead of him, while he rushed to the Forbidden City all the time.

Chongzhen, who couldn't swallow it, picked up an almost emerald green jasper cup from a rosewood coffee table next to him with a picture of fish play colored lotus inlaid with snails, agate, jade and Han jade, and gently took a sip of fragrant hot tea, and then vigorously shushed out the stuffiness in his chest.

The entire Chengqian Palace, from Concubine Tian to the palace maids and eunuchs, was so worried that they didn't even dare to come out. Chongzhen drank a few sips of tea with a frown, threw the cup back on the coffee table, waved his hand at Concubine Tian, who didn't dare to make a sound, and whispered to the eunuch beside him irritably: "Get up!"

When the emperor came to the Wenhua Gate on foot, the great eunuch was kneeling on the side of the white jade road, and he sang in a sharp voice: "The slave and maid take over!"

Chongzhen ignored him, and was supported by the eunuch to step down, through the front hall of the Wenhua Palace, and into the apse, where he had just sat down on a carved dragon chair with yellow satin cushions in the middle of the room.

Gao Qiqian followed closely behind and bowed in, he knelt down again, and bowed three times to Emperor Chongzhen, if it was those eunuchs who waited for the emperor in the palace all day and night, of course, there was no need for such red tape;

When Gao Qi sneaked through the Chang Dynasty salute of one bow and three kowtows, Chongzhen snorted, and he asked Gao Qi Qiandao, "How is today's news?"

Without waiting for Gao Qiqian to reply, Chongzhen continued to ask, "The sound of the cannon sounds closer." ”

Without shouting, Gao Qiqian knelt on the ground, lowered his head and replied: "The Dongyu army is very sharp, and it has passed Tongzhou today, and it will attack the Beijing division depending on the situation." ”

Chongzhen knew that the so-called Dongyu was called Dongyu because Manchuria was in the northeast of the capital, so it was contemptuously called Dongyu by the gentry of the Beijing Division. He listened to Gao Qiqian's words, and was silent for a moment; in fact, he could get a report from the military department at any time about all the military information outside the capital, and he didn't need to ask Gao Qiqian at all. He was summoned here at this time, but because of his strong self-esteem, Chongzhen refused to bring up the question he was anxious to know.

"Changping is important!" he said slowly, considering three sides, "that is where the ancestral mausoleum is located, and you must send heavy troops to defend it." ”

Lu Xiangsheng's Xuan, Da, and Shanxi armies have already been partially reinforced to Changping, and in the eyes of the slaves, Changping is not very important now. ”

Xuan and Datong were military regions on the territory of the Ming Dynasty, with jurisdiction over the two governors of Xuanhua and Datong, and the highest governor of the military region was called the governor, stationed in Yanghe; Lu Xiangsheng was also in charge of the Shanxi Military Region, and the army in Shanxi was also under his command.

Chongzhen was silent for a while. He silently took a cup of tea from the hands of a palace maid, and the faint fragrance of tea soaked into Chongzhen's heart and spleen, he gently smacked the clear tea soup with his thin lips, and thoughtfully looked at this azure Xuanyao Dark Dragon Cup, admiring this exquisite and precious work of art.

Gao Qiqian was the inner servant of Emperor Chongzhen at the beginning, and he was known as a soldier, and he and Cao Huachun and Wang Dehua were deeply respected by Chongzhen. In the fifth year of Chongzhen, he supervised the generals to conquer Kong Youde's rebellion; after the Du Ning and Jin armies jointly suppressed the peasant army; in the ninth year, Gao Qiqian served as the chief of the army, and he sent the generals to the Qing army to be defeated, and he was cowardly and did not dare to fight, but cut off the dead and risked his merits.

However, Gao Qiqian is considered to be the most military-savvy among the eunuchs, and among the people who know the most about military, Gao Qiqian is the most trusted by the emperor, so Chongzhen often sends him to supervise the army everywhere as his eagle dog.

Gao Qiqian, as Chongzhen's confidant eunuch, fully understands the emperor's thoughts at the moment, but he is waiting for the emperor to bring up that extremely important topic first, so as not to change the emperor's mind three times a day in the future, and he himself will not be able to eat and walk around.

The palace maids and eunuchs who were waiting beside them did not dare to breathe at all, they were all secretly looking at the emperor's facial expressions and observing his subtle movements as he looked at the teacup. These palace maids and eunuchs all knew that the emperor would ask Gao Qiqian about some confidential matters, but they didn't see the emperor's signal, so they didn't dare to avoid going out without authorization.

These palace ladies and eunuchs did not have to wait for the emperor to speak, and they would act according to the slightest movement of his eyebrows, lips, or beard, and they acted exactly as Chongzhen wanted.

When the emperor's eyes just left the teacup in his hand, a palace maid who stood with her head down immediately stepped forward, holding a plate with both hands that was piled up with lacquer and gold, and took the teacup in the emperor's hand;

At this time, in the entire Wenhua Palace, there were only two people left, the emperor and Gao Qiqian. Chongzhen stood up tiredly, paced back and forth in the warm pavilion of the Wenhua Hall for a few steps, and stopped when he walked back to Gao Qiqian's side, and then said to Gao Qiqian in a deep tone: "Gao Qiqian, you have often gone out to supervise the army in the past few years, and you still have some experience. I have asked you to be in charge of the world's Qinwang soldiers and horses, this burden is not light! You need to be careful, expel the Tartars, defend the Jingshi, and never let me down. ”

Gao Qiqian understood the emperor's intentions very well in his heart, but he hoped that he would "be careful!", but did not want him to fight bravely and bravely; and he was indeed afraid of war with the Qing soldiers in his own heart, but Gao Qiqian looked awe-inspiring, and replied to the emperor in a passionate and generous tone: "The slave and maid only wish to be shrouded in horse leather and go to the battlefield for the emperor to fight and die in battle, and will never live up to the emperor's grace for many years." ”

(End of chapter)