Jingnan Strategy

Chapter 544 Everyone has their own thoughts

"kill!!"

In the southwest mountainous area, when Zhu Gaoxu had just arrived in Mobei and before Wang Hui arrived in Beijing, the blood in the southwest swallowed up the entire river, and the red river rolled down.

All this stems from the war that broke out in the upper reaches of the river.

"put!"

"Boom boom boom——"

The dull sound of artillery continued, and two miles in front of the artillery position was a large army composed of tens of thousands of Bamar people.

Myanmar's land reform has not yet begun, but the Xuanwei envoy of Myanmar's Xuanwei Department, that is, Meng Yangtama, the king of the Ava Dynasty of Myanmar, assembled 30,000 troops to launch an attack on the Ming army in the Manmo area.

In order to facilitate the attack on Myanmar, the Ming army was stationed on the west bank of Manmo to facilitate the Ming army on the east coast. However, the Burmese army's surprise attack caught the Ming army by surprise.

There were less than 2,000 Ming troops stationed on the west bank of the Dajinsha River, and Wang Xuan had not yet returned from returning to Longchuan to organize supplies. There were only 3,600 Ming troops on the east bank, and the situation was not optimistic.

The Ming army on the west bank relied on artillery and trenches to defend themselves, while the Bamar raided the Ming army's shipyard and burned many ships.

There are only about ten boats that can still cross the river now, and they can only escort a few hundred people at most.

The Burmese army on the west bank pushed heavy shield vehicles to approach the Ming army's position step by step, using the humid morning fog to launch a surprise attack, which reduced the ignition rate of the Ming army's flintlock guns.

Gradually, the two sides began to switch from shooting at each other to hand-to-hand combat. Facing the gradual collapse of the west coast defense line, the Ming army on the east coast could only rely on the more than ten ships to continuously rush for reinforcements.

But because the number of people was too small, the tactics were as ineffective as adding fuel.

Seeing this situation, Dong'an's command made Mu Yi's eyes red with anxiety, and finally he had no choice but to loosen his clenched fists: "Let them retreat in an orderly manner..."

"Commander!" Upon hearing this, thousands of officials around him were unwilling to give in.

They were just caught off guard. If they fought head-on, the Burmese army would not be their opponent at all.

"When you are beaten, you must admit it, withdraw it and then counterattack. Don't worry about gains and losses. The right way is to retain your strength and wait for opportunities to counterattack!"

Mu Yi understood clearly that the Burmese army came well prepared, but the Ming army was unprepared, so it was normal to be caught off guard.

When enough warships are built and the whole army crosses the river, then we can choose a day with good weather to launch an attack. The 30,000 Burmese troops will soon be overwhelmed. There is no need to despair because of a temporary failure.

"Uuuuuu——"

Suddenly, the sound of a horn sounded from the fog on the west bank, and the message conveyed by the horn sound refreshed the Ming army's spirits.

"It's brothers Meng Yang from the north who are here to help!"

"Brothers, kill the barbarians!"

"Roar!!"

For a time, the morale of the west bank position rose instantly, and Mu Yi on the east bank reacted quickly when he heard the horn sound.

"Brothers from the north are coming to help. The Burmese army has too much to take care of. They will definitely reduce the intensity of their attack on the dock and send everyone to the west bank now!"

"Yes!"

The sound of a horn instantly activated the Ming troops on both sides of the east and west banks, and the leader of the Ava Kingdom, Meng Yangtai, who was riding a war elephant, also looked north in panic.

In the thick fog, the dull sound of horse hooves came from the north.

In order to make it easier for the army to camp, the barbaric Ming army on the west bank cut down the jungle and dug out tree roots to create thousands of acres of flat ground for camping.

Because of this, the Burmese army was able to take advantage of the heavy fog to launch a surprise attack so smoothly.

However, this flat area is not only convenient for the Burmese army to raid, but also convenient for the Ming army's cavalry to gallop.

"kill!!"

In the thick fog, fire appeared, followed by the crackling sound of muskets.

Hundreds of cavalry rushed out of the thick fog, firing their flintlock guns several times before firing.

They knocked down more than a hundred Burmese soldiers, but there were thousands of Burmese soldiers behind them.

Although their formation mainly faced the east, and the Ming army flanked the Burmese army from the north, only a few hundred cavalry could not penetrate thousands of people.

In other words, in the perception of the Burmese army generals, it is impossible for hundreds of cavalry to penetrate ten thousand people.

But for the Ming army, this kind of thing is not impossible!
"kill!!"

"Buzz rumbling..."

Hundreds of cavalrymen wearing heavy armor attacked, and at this moment, a strong wind suddenly blew in the Manmo Realm.

The strong wind blew away the thick fog bit by bit, revealing the banner of the Ming army.

The eye-catching "Song" and "Zheng" excited the Ming army on the west bank, and they shouted: "King Song and King Zheng led their troops to help, brothers, kill!"

"Please stay alert and don't embarrass your two highnesses!"

Two flags representing the vassal kings appeared on the battlefield. They were well prepared and put on their equipment to launch an attack on the flank of the Burmese army.

There was a prepared equipment attack, as well as the strong headwind that appeared in conjunction with the cavalry attack.

The coincidence of all these events made the Burmese soldiers who believed in ghosts and gods feel heartbroken.

Hundreds of cavalrymen, led by Erwang Banner, penetrated the waist of the Burmese army's central army and went straight towards the great banner of the Burmese army leader Meng Yangta.

Meng Yangtai still wanted to calmly urge the twenty war elephants to trample the Ming army cavalry, but he saw all the soldiers around the war elephants suddenly raised their weapons and stabbed the war elephants.

"Asshole! What are you doing?!"

Meng Yang was panicked. He didn't understand how his soldiers could attack him.

This scene is so absurd, but it actually happened!

The war elephants were frightened and began to trample on the camp in panic in an instant.

Originally, the Burmese army could form a formation to resist the charge of the cavalry led by the two kings of the Ming army, but now they are in disarray and can only become the party that is harvested.

Within a quarter of an hour, more than 20% of the Burmese soldiers were killed or injured. A large number of Burmese soldiers began to flee, and the leader of the country, Meng Yangtai, also fled southward under escort.

"Cut off the armor and chase with light cavalry!"

In the team, Zhu Zhanqi gave the decisive order, and everyone pulled out their knives and cut the ropes connecting the vests.

The vest fell on the battlefield, and the weight of the war horse was reduced. The knight carrying his back began to chase the Burmese army.

In less than an hour, the attack planned by the Burmese army for more than half a year failed. Even the leader of the country, Meng Yangtai, was chased by Zhu Zhanqi and Zhu Zhantan's cavalry for more than 20 miles before they could escape.

When they returned, Mu Yi had already led everyone on the east bank across the river and began to clean up the battlefield.

Facing the two kings, although Mu Yi was the eldest son of Mu Chun, he still saluted respectfully: "Commander Mu Yi, see His Highness King Song and His Highness King Zheng!"

"Xu..."

Zhu Zhanqi reined up his horse and turned over, stepped forward to help Mu Yi up and praised: "Without Commander Mu's calm command, the army would not have been able to support my two brothers. I will report this matter to the Supervisor and Your Majesty afterwards." ”

"The general is ashamed. This battle was due to the general's negligence, which led to the Burmese army's successful sneak attack..."

Mu Yi lowered his head in shame. It was true that he had been negligent in this battle, which led to the Burmese army's successful sneak attack, so he was ready to apologize to his father and the court after the war.

"Where does this come from?"

Zhu Zhanqi shook his head and said: "If we want to accuse them, we should also accuse Xichang and Jinyiwei. They did not collect intelligence in time, which led to our army being raided without knowing anything about it."

"Of course, the general also made mistakes. For example, the Tangqi was deployed too close and failed to detect the Burmese army's surprise attack immediately. But overall, the merits outweigh the faults."

In a few words, Zhu Zhanqi excused Mu Yi.

Seeing this, Mu Yi could only respond: "In that case, I will go clean the battlefield first."

"Thank you!" Zhu Zhanqi bowed his head to express his gratitude, while Mu Yi turned around and left in shame.

After he walked away, Zhu Zhantan said unhappily on horseback:

"Second brother, this guy was negligent in this battle. Why are you being polite to him?"

"You're welcome?" Zhu Zhanqi put away his smile and commented:

"There is indeed something wrong with Mu Yi in today's battle, but don't forget that he is only twenty-three years old. He serves as a commander at such a young age and can deal with an enemy army six times his own for more than an hour. This generation of There are not many honorable ministers who can surpass him."

"I heard that his younger brother Mu Jing is also a good player. It would be good for you and the fourth child to meet him sometime."

Zhu Zhantan said this while taking a look at the thick fog blown away by the strong wind.

"Second brother, how do you know that the flanks of this group of Burmese troops are empty, and you can also predict that there will be strong wind to help?"

Although Zhu Zhantan was brave and good at fighting, to put it bluntly, he was only at the level of a thousand-man general. Naturally, he could not understand Zhu Zhanqi's methods.

"When marching and fighting, it's nothing more than harmony between heaven, earth and man. If you can't even predict the strong wind, how can you win the battle?"

Zhu Zhanqi walked back to the horse, got on the horse and pointed at Zhu Zhantan:

"You have been here in Yunnan Xingdu Division for more than half a year, and you still haven't seen the situation clearly?"

"There are millions of barbarians in this place, but I, the Han people, are only over 100,000."

"You and Lao Si are stationed at Mengyang and Menken respectively, which are the two major barriers to the west and south of Yunnan respectively."

"If we don't have a good relationship with the Mu family and the Wang family, you will have your shoes to fill in the future."

"Don't forget, your Majesty loves the prince, not my brothers..."

As Zhu Zhanqi spoke, Zhu Zhantan's face became uncertain. After a while, he continued:
"Both Wang Xuan and Muchun have bet on the prince, and they won't help us even if something happens to them."

"That won't happen." Zhu Zhanqi shook his horse's reins and began to gather hundreds of cavalry to march towards the military camp on the west bank, as if he was going there to rest.

"You are the vassal king after all. The crime of betraying the lord is enough to make the two of them fall from the clouds to the bottom."

"Keep your one-third of an acre of land well until I leave..."

Zhu Zhanqi took a deep breath, then exhaled and looked at the sky: "I don't know who else can protect you."

"Second brother..."

Looking at Zhu Zhanqi's appearance, Zhu Zhantan couldn't help but tighten his horse's reins.

At the same time, the victory report of their battle was also sent to Beijing after being counted by Mu Yi.

Zhu Zhanqi and Zhu Zhantan also wrote down what happened respectively and sent them to Beijing.

When the three good news passed through Kunming, they were written down and quickly sent to Beijing. This is the content of the letter in Xu Shuo's hand.

"However, does it mean that Xu Shangshu thinks that fighting side by side means that the beam is biased?"

Putting the letter back on the table, Gao Guan was not undeceived by the content of Xu Shuo's letter.

It is impossible for Mu Yi to defect to Zhu Zhanqi. If Mu Yi is judged to have defected to Zhu Zhanqi just based on a battle report, then Xu Shuo's understanding is too shallow. In front of Gao Guan, Xu Shuo put the letter away and then said:
"I am reminding Lord Bo not to think that his position is as secure as Mount Tai."

"Some things are better to be cared about all the time."

After the words fell, Xu Shuo continued: "I understand Wang Weizhong, but I don't fully understand him."

"Although I have been friends with him since childhood, we have different ambitions and different methods."

"In the past, he joined Yan Li's family. I thought his ambition was too small."

"Since the Yan Li case, I have learned that he has lofty ambitions, far beyond what I can match."

Xu Shuo lamented Wang Hui's ambition, but then looked at Gao Guan: "I don't argue or make trouble because I can't make trouble."

"There must be people from the East Palace in the court, but there must also be people who are upright."

"You are forcing people to take sides now, which is nothing more than causing further division between the north and the south."

"Only if I am in you and you are in me, the interests are entangled and it is difficult to separate them, and the north and the south can be close."

"Yi Zhong is different from you, and he is even more different from me. I am not surprised that he was reinstated. But his reinstatement is so quick, which only means that things in the south have become too big, and His Majesty is not happy."

"If he doesn't get up, then you will be the one to handle this case, and the only one among you who has the strength to handle this case is Shang Degong."

"Shang Degong has seen it clearly, but he can't explain it too clearly. That's why His Majesty asked you to come here to ask me and let me explain the matter clearly to you."

"Now I have made things clear. Whether Wang Weizhong should be reinstated depends on what you think."

Xu Shuo said that Shang Degong was Wang Ji, and what he said was nothing more than saying that Wang Ji did not dare to tell these things in Chunhe Hall, because once he said it, it would be like putting Zhu Zhanhe on the fire.

Someone has to deal with Jiangnan's affairs, let Wang Hui handle it, that is to support another larger force in the temple.

If Wang Ji is left to deal with it, Wang Ji's reputation will definitely be ruined, but the power of Dong Palace's subordinates will definitely increase.

Although Wang Ji is the head of the civil servants in the East Palace, if Wang Ji alone is used to replace hundreds of officials below to be promoted, then presumably everyone will support letting Wang Ji handle it.

If Zhu Zhanhe vetoes this matter, the officials below will undoubtedly think that he is too emotional.

If Zhu Zhanhe agreed to this matter, it would undoubtedly chill Wang Ji and others.

In short, if Wang Ji made the matter clear, it would undoubtedly let Zhu Zhanhe understand the matter and make choices. No matter what he did, Zhu Zhanhe's reputation would be ruined.

Thinking of this, Gao Guan could only smile helplessly.

He knew that Wang Ji knew about this matter, so Wang Ji was guiding it, and Lu Yu also knew about it, and Lu Yu was also guiding it.

The two of them were guiding Zhu Zhanhe to send people to understand Wang Hui, and they knew that the person Zhu Zhanhe trusted most besides Jiang Huai was themselves.

So when Zhu Zhanhe asked, he was destined to go there.

Whether you ask Wang Hui personally or ask Xu Shuo sideways, you can always get the answer.

Thinking back to the fact that Wang Ji had been talking about Wang Hui's appointment as the Minister of the Ministry of Revenue, without mentioning anything about being a bachelor of the palace, Gao Guan quickly understood what they meant.

It was inertia that His Highness proposed to serve as the Minister of the Ministry of Revenue. After all, the Six Ministers had more authority than the Grand Scholar of the Imperial Palace. Wang Ji and Lu Yu were discussing the advantages and disadvantages of Wang Hui's appointment as the Minister of the Ministry of Revenue.

Looking back now, it sounds like it has both advantages and disadvantages, but in fact it also shows that only by letting Wang Hui serve as the Minister of Household Affairs can the things in Jiangnan be sorted out.

"Master Bo, listen to me, the East Palace is not suitable for you..."

Xu Shuo's voice floated into Gao Guan's ears. Gao Guan could only smile bitterly, and after thinking about it, he said:

"How does Xu Shangshu feel about letting Wang Hui serve as the Minister of Household Affairs?"

"Then I'll be busy here." Xu Shuo picked up the tea cup and took a sip. The fact that he was in the Ministry of Punishment also meant that when Wang Hui was the Minister of the Ministry of Revenue, a major case would break out.

Although he already knew the result, Gao Guan remained silent for a long time after hearing this, and finally said: "Why did Xu Shangshu say these things to me?"

Gao Guan already knew what Wang Ji and Lu Yu were thinking, but he didn't know why Xu Shuo would help him.

In response, Xu Shuo picked up the teacup, took a sip and said, "It's just a favor."

Xu Shuo had already figured out who the prince trusted the most. One of them was Nanjing Hubu Shangshu Jiang Huai, the second was Gao Guan, and the third was Zhang Bohai.

As for Wang Ji and Lu Yu, they all attached themselves to the East Palace for future power. Although Zhu Zhanhe trusted them, he did not fully believe them.

Jiang Huai is so thoughtful that he can even guess the emperor's thoughts based on clues. Although it is feasible to win over him with his own thoughts, it is difficult.

Although Zhang Bohai can win over, Zhang Bohai represents not only the New Deal, but also Bohai, so his favors are meaningless to him.

Only Gao Guan is not the most trusted person by the prince, and he has no background. Even in terms of ability, he can only be said to be at the middle level, and he is the most suitable to accept his favor.

"It's really difficult to work with you..."

Gao Guan smiled bitterly and looked at Xu Shuo at the same time: "In that case, why did Xu Shangshu say that the East Palace is not suitable for me?"

Faced with the problem, Xu Shuo put down the tea cup in his hand and slowly said:

"Even if you are a relative, it is inevitable that there will be quarrels in front of you every day. Although Lord Bo always thinks of His Highness in everything, he will eventually be complained about as time goes by."

"If the High Lord has little trust in me, it would be better to delegate him to a local official and wait for promotion. This will make His Highness miss you all the time."

"Isn't this... just a conspiracy?" Gao Guan's mouth turned bitter. Xu Shuo did not deny it, but nodded directly:
"If a treacherous minister can plot, it will be a disaster. If a wise minister can plot, it will be a blessing."

Xu Shuo felt that he had said enough to Gao Guan, so he put his tea cup back on the tea set, with obvious intentions.

Gao Guan also noticed it. He stood up slowly, bowed, and finally said: "Before leaving, can I ask Xu Shangshu a question?"

"But it doesn't matter." Xu Shuo was a little confused. He had already helped him solve enough questions, so how could he still have problems?

In Xu Shuo's confusion, Gao Guan took a deep breath and said, "What would Xu Shangshu think if I went directly to ask Wang Weizhong?"

"..." Gao Guan fell silent after speaking to Xu Shuo.

After a long time, Xu Shuo said quietly: "If we go deep into it without the prince's order, we may not be able to escape intact."

"I understand." Gao Guan turned around and left. Xu Shuo also looked at his back and shook his head.

"This guy is really brave and upright..."

A figure walked out from behind the bookshelf. If you look carefully, you can see that it is Zhao Gui, the right minister of the household department, who was also promoted to the capital.

As Xu Shuo's old partner, he would naturally come to ask Xu Shuo's opinion on matters such as Wang Hui's return to Beijing.

But before he could speak, Gao Guan had already arrived, and he sat behind the bookshelf as a bystander and heard everything.

His evaluation of Gao Guan was impartial. Xu Shuo nodded after hearing this:
"The king must have such an upright person around him, especially the one in the East Palace."

Xu Shuo's words were a bit excessive, but there was no one else here, and he wasn't afraid of being betrayed by Zhao Gui.

"After listening to what you just said, it seems that the burden on me, the right minister of household affairs, will be heavier than before."

Zhao Gui sat where Gao Guan had been sitting before. Xu Shuo nodded and said, "Not only is it heavy, it's also messy."

"What if I am transferred?" Zhao Gui asked, Xu Shuo immediately shook his head:

"At this point, it's best not to act rashly."

"Just follow Wang Weizhong's instructions. With Wang Weizhong's means and his position as the Minister of Revenue, if Zhang Mengcun has brought people to join him, even the Three Yangs will find it difficult to deal with him."

"They don't have many people, but they can't stand up to the high-ranking officials in the capital, and they are mainly in the Metropolitan Procuratorate and the Sixth Section."

"Even without the help of Jin Yiwei and Xichang, this incident will not stop him for long."

After he finished speaking, Zhao Gui sighed and said, "I have never seen anyone like him in history books."

"You have known him since childhood, have you never discovered this side of him?"

These words reminded Xu Shuo of the time when he and Wang Hui were catching fish and shrimp at the beach to support their family.

It's a pity that even after the memory was over, he still shook his head, pondered for a moment and then sighed: "Everyone will change."

"If we really talk about it, why haven't you and I changed a lot?"

"That's true..." Zhao Gui smiled bitterly and looked at the gradually yellowing sunlight outside the window.

"Sometimes I think that the so-called big case is nothing more than a word from His Majesty. If Your Majesty doesn't say anything, we will have to delve into His Majesty's thoughts in every possible way."

"If things go on like this, all the officials will focus on delving into His Majesty's thoughts. Who else can focus on doing business?"

What the people above can explain clearly in two or three sentences, the people below have to constantly figure it out, fearing that they will understand it wrong.

Such things have never been lacking since ancient times.

In this regard, Xu Shuo didn't know what to say, and the two could only end the conversation in silence.

Gao Guan, who had gone away, also returned to Chunhe Hall and saw the group of officials still kneeling in front of the East Palace Gate.

He returned to the East Palace without saying a word and walked into the Chunhe Hall.

After entering the palace, he turned his attention to Wang Ji and Lu Yu, but the two men were still there and did not react at all.

Zhang Bohai's eyes showed a slightly worried look, and his eyes pointed at him. Apparently, he had guessed the emperor's intention, as well as Wang Ji and Lu Yu's thoughts, which were hinting him not to speak.

"In the end, it's still the three of us..."

Gao Guan smiled helplessly in his heart, but Zhu Zhanhe stepped forward and asked solemnly: "Gao Guan, what did Xu Shuo say?"

Meeting Zhu Zhanhe's eyes, Gao Guan was helpless, but he still expressed Xu Shuo's statement in a subtle way.

"Xu Shangshu said that if Wang Weizhong is not allowed to be the Minister of Household Affairs, Mr. Shangde may personally lead the Fifth Division to Jiangnan to inspect the capital."

He told the matter, and Wang Ji and Lu Yu had known about it a few hours ago, but they could not say it through their mouths, nor could they mean that they knew about it.

After going around in circles for several hours, Gao Guan finally said this matter, and he became the one who put Zhu Zhanhe on the fire.

Of course, he could choose not to say anything, but he didn't want Zhu Zhanhe to be kept in the dark.

"This..." After hearing this, Zhu Zhanhe looked at Wang Ji hesitantly, and Wang Ji bowed and said:

"Don't worry, Your Highness, I am willing to personally lead the Fifth Division of Beijing Investigation!"

Wang Ji took the initiative to ask for a job. If this move was spread, even if the job was eventually snatched away by Wang Hui, the people below the East Palace would naturally not be angry with him.

The people below would only complain about the prince, but the prince would not anger Gao Guan because he knew that Gao Guan was upright and did not know how to hide it.

But if Wang Ji had told this matter, then Zhu Zhanhe would not be as tolerant as he was to Gao Guan after being framed.

This is the reason why Gao Guan knew that Wang Ji and others did this, but did not bear any grudge against them.

Individuals have their own difficulties. One thing may have one result for one person, but it may have another result for another person.

Gao Guan could just say nothing and slowly remove himself from this matter, but his character did not allow him to do so...

(End of this chapter)