Chongzhen revived the Ming Dynasty

Chapter 188 The promise of knighthood
Listening to Qi Changguo's detailed explanation of the emperor's purpose of setting up a protective army, Yu Zigao vaguely understood:

Qi Changguo and Li Shunzu came with a mission. Maybe what they said before was what the emperor asked them to say.

The two of them seemed to be chatting with him, but in fact they came with a mission. He should pay more attention to the things explained in the conversation.

This guess is good, because what Qi Changguo said was what Zhu Youjian told them.

The purpose behind the words was not only to improve the status of military generals and prevent them from being wantonly suppressed by civilian officials. It was to warn Yu Zigao to restrain himself, so that he would not take advantage of his familiarity with maritime affairs to seize power in the Navy Yamen and usurp the power of the military envoy——

That would trigger a counterattack from the civilian officials, suppressing both the status of the military guardian and the admiral.

In addition, Zhu Youjian was also very concerned about several other things and gave special instructions.

Qi Changguo thought about the emperor's words and said to Yu Zigao:
"Brother Yu, do you know what aspect your Majesty attaches most importance to after dealing with Wei Ni?"

Yu Zigao had some guesses about this, pointed to the northeast and said:

"It should be Jianlu from the Northeast, right?"

"His Majesty appointed Mr. Sun Ge as the governor, and appointed three admirals, three military envoys, and the governors of Tianjin and Denglai, Shandong to follow orders."

"Why are so many important ministers gathered in Liaodong for the purpose of building a captive army?"

"And in order to eliminate the Jianlu, the entire land of Liaodong was used as reward."

"Such a grand gesture was probably rare even when the country was founded."

Confucian scholars may think that the purpose of Jingtian feudalism is to implement the rule of three generations, but in the eyes of generals like Yu Zigao, it is actually to reward merit.

It can be said that the emperor promised the entire Liaodong as spoils of war and rewarded meritorious ministers.

If such a large reward was not for the purpose of eliminating Jianlu, Yu Zigao would never believe it.

That was why he was so excited when he was appointed admiral of the navy and stationed in Port Arthur. Not only was there no fear that Lushun might fall, but the team that had been operating for many years was brought over from Fujian to participate in this war——

Because he knew very well that with the enfeoffment of so much land, there would definitely be titles to reward the meritorious officials.

As a descendant of Zhenhai Bo Yu Dayou, as long as he makes some achievements, the title of Zhenhai Bo may become hereditary.

Therefore, Yu Zigao believed that after the emperor overthrew Wei Zhongxian and took power, his biggest goal was Liaodong. Everything we do now is for this.

Qi Changguo nodded slightly, then shook his head and said:

"It is true that Your Majesty wants to eliminate the Jianlu, but the most important thing at the moment is not this."

"To eliminate the rebels, you need an army and enough money and food. So what your Majesty values ​​most now is actually taxes."

"Only when the Jiubian pay arrears are resolved, and the Liao pay is partially reduced, and the internal affairs of the Ming Dynasty are stabilized, can the court concentrate on dealing with the Jianlu."

"So your Majesty is now mainly besieging and blockading Jianlu, and is not launching a war."

"You are the admiral of the navy, you must understand this -"

"The most important thing for the Navy now is to collect taxes, rather than rushing to attack."

Yu Zigao suddenly realized and said:

"Yes! Yes!"

"Soldiers and horses have not moved, food and grass go first."

"Jiubian owes so much in wages. Money and food are indeed the most important thing."

Already thinking about how to build the General Administration of Customs, provide enough tax revenue, and obtain rewards from the emperor.

He believed that as long as he did this well, after Liaodong was recovered in the future, it would be possible for him to obtain a knighthood just for his logistical achievements.

Having made this point clear, Qi Changguo mentioned Zheng Zhilong's matter and said: "In addition to increasing the source of money and food, the most important thing is to reduce expenditure."

"The imperial court is currently deploying troops in Liaodong, and the She'an rebellion in the southwest has also involved the energy of five provinces."

"Coupled with the battle to suppress bandits in the northwest, it can be said that troops are deployed on three sides."

"So in the southeast, there must be no more chaos under any circumstances."

"Fujian not only cannot consume money and food, but also provides taxes."

Explaining the battle line theory proposed by the emperor to Yu Zigao, Qi Changguodao said:
"I don't know what the grudge between Brother Yu and the Zheng family is, but His Majesty said that at present, the Ming Dynasty can maintain a maximum of 2.5 lines of warfare."

"So Zheng Zhilong must be recruited, and Brother Yu must understand this."

"If people from the Zheng family are willing to come north, Brother Yu must make good use of them."

"The land in Liaodong is very large, and there is even more land overseas. There is enough land for enfeoffment."

"Brother Yu, don't worry about your merits being misappropriated. You have the highest military leadership position among the generals. Not only is Your Majesty paying attention, people from our family are also watching you."

"As long as you can make meritorious deeds, no one can take away the credit of the Yu family."

Yu Zigao was overjoyed when he heard this, and realized that it was almost a promise that he might obtain a hereditary title.

The four generals praised by the emperor must set an example. Apart from him, who has the highest military leadership position, who else can be qualified to serve as this role model?

Qi Changguo's words also showed the attitudes of the Qi family and the Li family. They all wanted to make the Yu family's title hereditary so that they could follow his example and obtain a hereditary title.

It can be said that the Yu family's ennoblement was encouraged by the emperor and supported by the generals. As long as he is not a loser, he can get the title.

This made Yu Zigao sigh with emotion:
"The Emperor's grace is mighty!"

"The emperor's grace is truly magnificent!"

"When Yu is born and meets a wise king, he will surely make great achievements."

"Yu remembers what Brother Qi and Brother Li said."

"I will send a few family members to go south with His Majesty's special envoy to recruit Zheng Zhilong."

Qichang National Road:

"When you make a decision, do it quickly, otherwise it will change if you wait too long!"

"You came here on a speedboat. You can send a boat south to send this news back."

"I will apply to His Majesty to send an envoy to accompany the ship."

This was the emperor's purpose, and Yu Zigao heard it.

Thinking about how he arranged for the army to fight Zheng Zhilong before leaving Fujian, Yu Zigao felt a little worried and said:

"Brother Qi is absolutely right. I will send a ship south to pass the news back."

"Brother Qi is waiting for good news. Zheng Zhilong will definitely accept the recruitment. He has been preparing for this for a long time."

Tell them about Zheng Zhilong's deeds.

As a pirate leader, Zheng Zhilong is different from many pirates who are cruel and easy to kill. Although this man was young, he was quite intelligent. When he plundered the coast, he never killed anyone wantonly. It can be said that he has been keeping a line in order to be recruited.

If Yu Zigao hadn't wanted to monopolize the maritime interests, he would not have allowed Zheng Zhilong to share them. Maybe Zheng Zhilong had been recruited long ago instead of being delayed until now.

It can be said that the current war on the coast of Fujian is actually a dispute of interests that can be resolved through negotiation.

(End of this chapter)