Before hanging himself, Chongzhen lifted the table

Chapter 189: A man should serve his country with loyalty

Five riders lined up, trotting forward. With more than 1000 riders, there was also a very long queue.

For ordinary people, that tall horse is a kind of pressure that rushes towards them.Especially for the people along the coast of Fujian who didn't have many horses, so many cavalry troops were even more shocking.

There were no cheers, banners, etc. as expected when the emperor went out on patrol. They were just ordinary soldiers. However, this gave people the feeling that they were more intimidating.

Emperor Chongzhen was still wearing a military uniform, but Fang Zhenghua beside him had changed into a scarlet robe worn by the eunuchs in the palace.However, he is half a horse's head behind the emperor, which highlights that the emperor is the protagonist.

On the other side of Emperor Chongzhen was Yan Yingyuan, the commander of the navy. He was tall and long-armed, and looked very similar to Guan Gong. He was also a horse's head behind Emperor Chongzhen, which further highlighted the emperor's identity.

After that, there were nearly two hundred horsemen of the Jinyi Guards, all wearing flying fish uniforms at this time.It's okay here in the south. If you were in the north, if you saw so many imperial guards in flying fish uniforms, no matter how old they were, they would walk around.

Behind the Jinyiwei troops were more than 1000 cavalry officers and soldiers directly under the Imperial Guard's Biao Battalion, led by Jin Zhensun.

The sound of hoofbeats rumbled, bringing up a lot of dust, but no one was covering their mouths and noses. Instead, their upper bodies were straight, rising and falling regularly with the running of the horses under their crotches.

Neither the prefect of Quanzhou Prefecture nor Zheng Zhilong dared to neglect him when they saw this.

Needless to say, the magistrate of Quanzhou Prefecture, Zheng Zhilong is considered a man of great rank, and he has seen many cavalrymen.Not in Fujian, but in the Japanese country. He had friendship with Tokugawa Hidetada, the second general of the Tokugawa shogunate, and naturally he had seen the Japanese cavalry.

At the first time, Zheng Zhilong naturally compared the two. He found that the pressure on him from the cavalry army led by the emperor was much greater than that from the cavalry army led by the Japanese general.

Still far away, the prefect of Quanzhou Prefecture took the lead, followed by Zheng Zhilong, kneeling down to welcome him: "Long live my emperor, long live, long live!"

Emperor Chongzhen approached, reined in his horse, and looked down at the people in front of him, especially the two leaders.

A civil official and a military general, it goes without saying that you can know who the two of them are.

Therefore, Emperor Chongzhen said cordially: "Your Majesty, please wait for me!"

Then, he stared at the general in front of him.

This Zheng Zhilong also has a talented appearance and a kind-hearted appearance. He gives the impression that he is an easy person to get along with.But only those who know his background know that this amiable man came from a great pirate background and is by no means a kind-hearted person.

When Emperor Chongzhen saw them both getting up, he said directly: "It's getting late today. I'm going to rest in Quanzhou Fucheng all night. Early tomorrow morning, I'll go to Zheng Qing's house as a guest to see how many years you have been building the house?"

Upon hearing this, Zheng Zhilong was also a little shocked. He did not expect that the emperor would say this so directly.As soon as anyone heard this, they would know that the emperor came looking for him!

Moreover, instead of calling Zheng Zhilong to speak, he is going to be a guest at Zheng Zhilong's house. This is a favor and a sign of goodwill.

For ordinary people, it is definitely a good thing that they can only dream of.

However, for Zheng Zhilong, he suddenly felt a lot of pressure.To be honest, he would rather the emperor summoned him to speak, then he would be more relaxed.

What's even more troublesome is that the emperor actually decided to visit the big house in Jinjiang.That big house has actually reached the ears of the emperor?

Doesn’t this mean that the decision we made before to move to our hometown for a period of time was actually in vain?

Zheng Zhilong was still thinking when he heard Emperor Chongzhen say to him again: "I know that your daughter-in-law in the Japanese country has returned, and your son Zheng Sen. I want to see you when you come back. Please go and make arrangements, and I will stay in Fujian." I don’t have much time, so don’t waste my time!”

After saying this, he drove his horse to Fucheng.

The prefect of Quanzhou Prefecture had no time to say anything to Zheng Zhilong and hurriedly ran forward to entertain the emperor.

Zheng Zhilong, on the other hand, knelt down to send him off again, feeling a little awe-inspiring in his heart.

The emperor seemed to be very kind to him. Not only did he want to visit his house, but he also wanted to meet his wife and children, just like old friends. However, his words did not allow him to refute, which showed the emperor's strength.

Those who come are not good, and those who are good will not come!
This was the thought that came to Zheng Zhilong's mind as he stepped aside and watched the cavalry pass by him.

At the same time, he was still a little shocked.

If the emperor knew about his eldest son and even knew about his big house, it would not be surprising, but why could even the Tagawa family know about it when they returned from Japan?

You know, it didn't take long for him to bring the Tagawa family back, and he didn't publicize this matter to the outside world. After all, it was just one of his women who came back.However, the emperor had been in the north before, how did he know?Could it be that one of his subordinates told the emperor?If so, who could it be?
For a moment, he really couldn't figure it out.

Then, there is another troublesome thing now. The emperor has decided to visit the big house in Jinjiang, and he also wants to meet the Tagawa family and Zheng Sen, but they have already gone to their hometown.

Either fall out with the emperor, or send someone to chase him immediately and take his wife and children back to Jinjiang overnight!

As a maritime merchant, Zheng Zhilong was very good at calculating, and he knew very well that falling out with the emperor like this would definitely be a loss-making business!

Therefore, what he can do is to try his best to satisfy the emperor's request first, see what the emperor wants to do, and then decide whether to turn against him or not.

If possible, he didn't want to fall out!Because in that case, the price would be too high!
So, with no other choice, Zheng Zhilong went to work quickly.

Emperor Chongzhen, after settling in Quanzhou Prefecture, did not want to be accompanied by local officials. He could enjoy the cool under the eaves, drink Fujian black tea, and enjoy the summer sunset.

Of course, his residence, food, etc. were all taken over by the Jinyi Guards.

At this time, while drinking tea, he asked Yan Yingyuan, who was sitting below him: "What is Yan Qing's impression of seeing Zheng Zhilong today?"

As soon as Yan Yingyuan heard the emperor's question, he quickly put down his tea cup and replied seriously: "To be honest, if His Majesty hadn't said it first and it was just the general's impression, I would have thought he was an easy-to-talk businessman."

However, the emperor has said that he has more than 20 men, controls a huge navy, and is the largest pirate king with an annual income of tens of millions of gold!

It has to be said that people should not be judged by their appearance!

After hearing this, Emperor Chongzhen immediately smiled and said: "Their identities are both sea merchants and pirates, and now they have become officers and soldiers. He can stand out among many people because he can calculate, has more brains than others, and knows how to make choices. . Be soft when you should be soft, be hard when you should be hard, and be ruthless when you should be ruthless. This person is definitely very smart."

Hearing this, Fang Zhenghua, who was waiting next to him, became a little worried and asked, "Long live Lord, since this person is so powerful, do you want to send a message to the governor of Fujian and ask him to send more troops?"

After hearing this, Emperor Chongzhen turned to look at him and said with a smile: "In Fujian, it is his territory. Even if he is the governor of Fujian, if he wants to deal with him, there will be people everywhere in the officialdom and the army who inform him. , what’s the use of sending troops here?”

After saying this, he paused and said: "But don't be nervous. Just because he is a smart man, I am sure to hold him. On the contrary, those who are brave and foolhardy will achieve their goals by relying on words. not easy."

After hearing this, Fang Zhenghua was still a little worried, but he had no other way, so he could only explain it and let the Jin Yiwei soldiers be more careful.

While they were chatting, they suddenly saw the Jinyi Guards hurriedly entering and presented a quick horse report to Emperor Chongzhen.

There was no way, since he was the emperor, even if he left Nanjing, there would still be memorials that he had to deal with, and he would be chased after him.

Emperor Chongzhen was also accustomed to his identity at this time, so he immediately opened the memorial and read it.

Yan Yingyuan did not continue drinking tea, but looked at the emperor, wondering what the content of this memorial was?
After Emperor Chongzhen quickly scanned the contents of the memorial, he said with a smile: "Draw up the decree and let all the pursuing officers and soldiers return to Nanjing to block Yinxi's troops and guard Huguang."

When Fang Zhenghua heard this, he quickly agreed, took the memorial handed to him by the emperor, and hurried back to the lobby to draft the decree.

Emperor Chongzhen saw Yan Yingyuan looking a little curious, so he explained to him: "Zuo Liangyu's remnant army fled into Guangxi, and Li Zicheng's remnant army fled into Yunnan and Guizhou."

Hearing this, Yan Yingyuan was immediately puzzled and quickly said: "Your Majesty, the report two days ago said that the chieftains of Yunnan had rebelled. Now the situation is in chaos. Why did you recall the general soldiers from all the pursuit?"

After hearing this, Emperor Chongzhen smiled slightly and answered the question inappropriately: "The imperial court has been unable to implement the reform of native land and return to local circulation. I have been thinking about how to solve this problem!"

Upon hearing this, Yan Yingyuan immediately understood and understood what the emperor meant.

Tusi is a system that has been left since the founding of the People's Republic of China and has been passed down to this day.

If in the past it was thought that the court wanted to recruit chieftains, the chieftains would send troops, and then the court would not have to worry about governing those poor and remote places, which would be convenient.

But by the end of the Ming Dynasty, most people no longer think this way.

Starting from the Wanli period, there were Tusi rebellions, and the scale was quite large.

The famous rebellion of Yang Yinglong, the chieftain of Bozhou, one of the three major campaigns of Wanli, was one of them.This rebellion further weakened the imperial court's manpower and material resources, and eventually led to the rise of Jianlu from Liaodong.

In addition, the She'an Rebellion that broke out from the Tianqi period to the Chongzhen decade even contained the entire northwest military strength of the Ming Dynasty.It can even be said that if it hadn't been for the She'an Rebellion, the Ming Dynasty might not have been so turbulent.All these are enough to prove that once there is any problem in the court, none of the chieftains will be kind-hearted.Once chaos occurs, the harm will be great.

In fact, since the founding of the People's Republic of China, there have been calls for reform, but the court has not been able to take action.Only if the chieftain can rebel or lose his sons and grandsons can he change his native land and return to his current status, the imperial court can intervene and carry out the reform of his native land and return to his current status.

In the southwestern region of the Ming Dynasty, so many chieftains used this method to change their land and return it to their current status. In nearly 300 years, only a few of them were changed.

Nowadays, the southwest chieftains are rebelling one after another, and the bandits have broken into the territory of the southwest chieftains, which just makes the situation more chaotic, which makes it easier for the court to fish in troubled waters.

Yan Yingyuan understood something, and immediately showed an understanding smile, but he still covered it up and quickly picked up the tea cup to drink water.

At this time, I heard Emperor Chongzhen say again: "It seems that I will return to Nanjing as soon as possible. The Central Plains is still in the hands of the bandits, and Shaanxi and Sichuan are also in the hands of the bandits. This year and next, the focus is to recover these places!"

Hearing this, Yan Yingyuan couldn't help but secretly praise, this is a good excuse!

For the imperial court, the Central Plains and other places were of course more important than the southwestern frontier.The emperor wanted to lead troops to recover the Central Plains first, and no one could find fault with that.

After recovering the Central Plains, Shaanxi and Sichuan, it is estimated that another two years have passed.

There have been two years for the bandits to stir up troubles in Yungui and other places. No chieftain should be able to avoid this whirlpool.Then the imperial court will send troops to conquer. With the army under pressure, there will be enough strength and reason to return to the country.

Even if there are still some chieftains who are really loyal to the court and it is not convenient for them to return to their hometowns, I believe there will never be many such chieftains.

In this way, the problem of chieftains in the Ming Dynasty was basically solved.This is something that the emperor has always wanted to do but failed to do since the founding of the Ming Dynasty. Unexpectedly, if the current emperor takes advantage of it, he can almost get it done!
Thinking of this, Yan Yingyuan looked at Emperor Chongzhen with genuine admiration.

However, when he looked at it, he suddenly discovered that Emperor Chongzhen's brows were slightly furrowed, as if he was thinking about some difficult problem.

It is the duty of a minister to relieve your worries.

Therefore, Yan Yingyuan immediately put down his tea cup and asked: "Your Majesty, is there anything that the general needs to do?"

When Emperor Chongzhen heard what he said, he looked up at him, understood his intention, and said with a smile: "It is easy to regain the Central Plains and other places, but the subsequent resettlement of people's livelihood will probably require a lot of food. In addition, it is just a matter of returning to the land." The use of force is not a long-term solution, and the people in the southwest border must understand that their lives will be better if they are under the jurisdiction of the imperial court, so that the chieftain cannot make a comeback! This is what I was thinking about just now."

Upon hearing this, Yan Yingyuan was speechless and unable to speak.

It was obvious that the emperor was thinking about problems at a much higher level than he was, and he could not think of a good solution to these problems at the moment.

Emperor Chongzhen saw it and said to Yan Yingyuan with a smile: "Yan Qing, there is no need to worry. I probably know everything. I am just thinking about how to do it better."

He is not bragging, it is nothing more than vigorously developing productivity.

For people in this era, it may not be clear what effective means can be used to vigorously develop productivity.But for Emperor Chongzhen, a time traveler, these are not problems.Many of the developments in science and technology are of epoch-making significance and can greatly improve productivity.

In the past, we were busy trying to save the nation and stabilize our fundamentals, so we had no time to take care of these things.

Now that Jianlu has been driven out of the pass, Li Zicheng's main force has also been defeated, and the situation has almost been stabilized.Next, while recovering the Central Plains and other places, we can already start to consider these things.

With these in mind, Fang Zhenghua had already completed the edict. After showing it to the emperor that it was OK, he stamped it with a jade seal and sent it out.

........................

Early the next morning, Zheng Zhilong came to pick him up early. He didn't show any dissatisfaction. Instead, he was respectful and seemed to be very happy that the emperor could come to his residence.

Along the way, Emperor Chongzhen did not talk about business, as if he was just visiting the mountains and rivers. Zheng Zhilong introduced the customs and customs along the way.

Quanzhou Fucheng is also quite far away from Anping City, about seventy miles away. By the time the cavalry arrived at Anping City, it was almost evening.

Everyone in the Zheng Zhilong family had been waiting outside Anhai Town for a long time. When they saw the holy driver appearing, they all knelt down to welcome the holy driver.

The leaders, including Zheng Zhilong's women headed by the Tagawa family, the second generation Zheng family headed by Zheng Sen, and Zheng Zhilong's brothers are all here.

What surprised Emperor Chongzhen was that he actually saw an old acquaintance here.

But he didn't acknowledge it, he just let them level up, then smiled and said to Zheng Zhilong beside him: "Zheng Qing, please introduce them to me!"

When the people of the Zheng family saw him like this, they felt that the emperor seemed to be very kind to them. Some people were relieved, while others were happy.

After hearing this, Zheng Zhilong quickly got off his horse and introduced him to Emperor Chongzhen.

First, he introduced his brothers, and Emperor Chongzhen just nodded, assuming he knew who was who.

After that, Zheng Zhilong pointed to his son and said: "This is the eldest son of the late general. He is still just a student of Nanjing Imperial College. His name is Sen, and his courtesy name is Damu."

When Zheng Sen heard that his father finally introduced him, he quickly paid homage with joy.

Emperor Chongzhen sat on the horse, looked down at Zheng Sen, asked him to level up, and then said with a smile: "I am smart at first glance, but I still lack experience. Are you willing to follow me to fight against bandits and pacify the world?"

When Zheng Zhilong heard this, his heart suddenly tightened. Wasn't this taking his son as a hostage?

We haven't even started talking about this yet, but if we do this first, if we agree, we will be very passive when we turn around.

So, he had to say thank you.

As a result, before Zheng Zhilong had time to speak, Zheng Sen was surprised and delighted to speak to Emperor Chongzhen: "Can the student really follow your majesty to conquer the world and make contributions?"

When Zheng Zhilong heard this, he was immediately dumbfounded.

Why is this son so quick to talk? How can I be polite?

Emperor Chongzhen saw Zheng Sen's appearance, nodded, and said with approval: "Follow me to conquer the world. It means fighting, bloody battles, and the possibility of dying on the battlefield. Are you afraid?"

Zheng Zhilong did not dare to listen any more and quickly said, "Your Majesty..."

Unexpectedly, his son spoke at the same time as him, and his voice was so loud that he drowned out his voice: "Your Majesty, a man should serve his country loyally. How can he be afraid of death? At worst, he will be buried in horse leather. Live up to this life!”

Zheng Sen's words were impassioned and full of young passion.

Zheng Zhilong: "..."

Emperor Chongzhen was very satisfied after hearing this, and immediately said: "Yes, if my people are all like you, the world has long been at peace, and the people have long lived and worked in peace and contentment!"

At this point, he shouted decisively: "Zheng Sen!"

"The students are here!" Zheng Sen was extremely excited and immediately clasped his fists in anticipation.

Emperor Chongzhen looked at him and said seriously: "You pack up first, and when I return to the north, help Fang Daban organize documents and other matters for the Jinyi Guards around me."

Zheng Sen was stunned for a moment after hearing this, and then asked: "Your Majesty, aren't you going to fight on the battlefield?"

Good guy, he would rather stab someone with a knife?
Zheng Zhilong beside him was so angry that he couldn't speak.But in front of the emperor, he couldn't show it.At this time, he was feeling very tormented!

Emperor Chongzhen heard this and said to Zheng Sen: "You are a supervisor of the Nanjing Imperial College. You should be more suitable as a clerk. Fighting in battle is not a child's play!"

Speaking of which, Zheng Sen at this time was just a second-generation rich man with a heart to serve the country and a passionate heart. After all, he was only 21 years old. Zheng Zhilong did not let him get involved in family affairs and even asked him to go to Nanjing to study.

Therefore, Zheng Sen only had eyes for the emperor, and could not see his father blinking at him. He loudly replied to the emperor: "Your Majesty can go into battle to kill the enemy, and fight in front of the battle. His reputation spreads, and students also want to imitate your Majesty. To fight for the country, not just to be a scholar by dancing and writing!"

When Emperor Chongzhen heard this, he immediately laughed and said: "If you are ambitious! Then go to the school grounds and let me see what you are capable of!"

When Zheng Sen heard this, he didn't show any timidity and immediately said to Zheng Zhilong: "Dad, let's go to the school ground!"

While he was talking, anyone who saw him like that seemed to feel that he was trying to show off his skills.

　It’s really hard to make [-] a day. I have persisted for more than two months and I can’t stand it anymore. Anyway, I will try my best to update as much as possible.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)