Ping An Biography

The troops of Wang Shishun of the King of the Han Dynasty approached the city of Jiujiang; after defeating the main force of the Shenji Battalion, the Yongding Camp of the Zhuque Army also chased to the city from the west.After a short confrontation between the two armies outside the city, Zhang Ning ordered the army to retreat ten miles to ease the situation.At that time, there were already many imperial officials and troops in Jiujiang City. The right side of Shenji Battalion and the two sentries on the left and right, and the main forces of the three armies were wiped out. The docks connecting the defenders in the city with Jiangbei were also cut off.The only difference is who gets what's in the bag.

After a while, the army of the king of Han sent envoys to negotiate.Since it was late in the evening when he arrived in the Yongding camp, Zhang Ning arranged for his staff member Chen Maocai to receive him temporarily, settle down for board and lodging, and wait until the next morning to meet with the envoy to discuss official business.Chen Maocai went to Nanjing for several times, gave gifts and made friends among the bureaucrats in Nanjing, and knew many people there, so it was most appropriate for him to come forward to receive the envoys.

That night, another messenger came to the camp, sent by the Ministry of Internal Affairs to deliver a letter for Mrs. Yao.The letter only asked Zhang Ning to return to Wuchang to discuss matters as soon as possible after the military affairs abroad were slightly delayed, but he did not mention anything in the letter.

Because of this, Zhang Ning made several guesses in his heart, what important and confidential matter did he not want to mention even a single sentence in the letter?Knowing that the military affairs in Jiujiang City are important, Yao Ji still sent someone to urge them, which shows that this matter is no small matter.He remembered that he had received a letter from the Ministry of Internal Affairs not long ago about monitoring Prince Wenkui's army, and he couldn't help thinking: Could it be that Wenkui fell into the hands of the "spies" of the Ministry of Internal Affairs after failing to raise an army, and was even killed directly?

Thinking of this, Zhang Ning was already thinking about bargaining with the people of the King of Han Army, and just wanted to rush back to Wuchang City as soon as possible to see what happened. [

At this time, Zhu Heng, Chen Maocai and others entered the account, and Chen Maocai replied: "I have made arrangements for the envoys, let them rest in the camp for one night, and the food and lodging expenses are all right, as long as they are not allowed to "chaos" in the camp." Walk."

Zhang Ning remained silent without comment, and everyone didn't take it seriously. He didn't have to ask about such things.

Zhu Heng went on to say: "Wang Shishun was ordered by Nanjing to dispatch troops from Nanzhili to Jiangxi to reinforce Jiujiang City. Unexpectedly, he was defeated in front of the Beijing camp. He must want to take back Jiujiang City. Fortunately, he has something to say in the Hanwang Mansion." To avoid being punished. If they sent people to say who owned Jiujiang City, the veteran thought that they could give Wang Shishun a favor. First, the Yongding Camp occupied Jiujiang City, and the Suzaku Army’s front line would be drawn to Jiangxi, which would lead to a shortage of troops; The safety of the Eastern Front cannot be guaranteed even after entering Jiujiang City. Poyang Lake must be operated, but we have no navy here, so we have to turn to the King of Han Army for help in the end. For the sake of disputes in Jiujiang City, Wang Shishun is definitely not the opponent of Yongding camp if he wants to "coerce" him with force, but why should we go to war with the King of Han army, or worsen the relationship is not the best policy."

Several people present listened, some nodded in agreement, and some sighed slightly.This is unavoidable. The Chief Secretary of Jiangxi is also a land of fish and rice in the south of the Yangtze River, and Jiujiang City has the advantages of water and land transportation, rich products, developed commerce and handicrafts, and the people are rich. It is a piece of fat.But I can't eat the meat that reaches my mouth, because I'm already full and my stomach can't hold it, which is a pity.

Liang Yanjin said: "Military expenses are difficult recently. If Jiujiang City is handed over, we can add a condition to the negotiation tomorrow, and sell the captured batch of guns from the Shenji Battalion to the King of Han Army."

Liang Yan's suggestion is still valid.Matchlock guns are easy to damage. The batch of munitions sent to the Hanwang army before was mostly destroyed because of poor maintenance. However, the Hanwangfu sent people to imitate the munitions, but they could not produce qualified firearms because of bureaucratic problems. , The materials and workmanship are shoddy and cannot be used on the battlefield.Later, the Han Palace tried to ask Wuchang to donate another batch of arms... The request was obviously rejected in the end. The firearms of the Suzaku Army were also laboriously manufactured, and the people needed money and food to support them. How could they be given away in a restrained manner?It can be seen that the lack of firearms in the army of the King of Han was just the time when they were needed.

In addition, the generals of the Suzaku Army were unwilling to use the large matchlock guns they had seized. It was an advantage to have a longer range, but it was also important to be unaccustomed to cumbersome operations.The specifications of the firearms are different, the weight of the "medicine" and the size of the lead have to be changed, and the lead can be made temporarily by yourself. The lead block is baked and processed with a clip, and the size of the clip does not match, which is very inconvenient.Therefore, it is of course very cost-effective to resell the firearms that you don't want to use.

Everyone discussed for a while, Zhang Ning finally said: "The decision about Jiujiang City will be decided by Zhu Butang after discussing with everyone. I will go back to Wuchang tomorrow."

Zhang Ning said such a sentence so suddenly that everyone was a little surprised.He came and went in a hurry, and he arrived at the Jiujiang battlefield before he said it all of a sudden.

He groaned for a while on the side of his head, and said: "The military pressure in the north is huge, and the number of the Suzaku army is stretched. Some people mobilized to expand the army. In order to expand the army, money, food and finance also need to find a way... As for the aftermath here, it is up to Zhu Butang to decide, and then write a message and send it back to Wuchang for my review."

Zhu Heng also wanted to ask Zhang Chengzong, the general who caused heavy losses to the Third Army, how to deal with it, but seeing that Zhang Ning frowned, as if he was thinking about a bigger plan, he swallowed the words that came to his mouth, thinking that this matter might I can also help to solve problems.

Unexpectedly, at this moment, Zhang Ning raised his head and suddenly said: "By the way, regarding Zhang Chengzong's matter, let him lead the third army, but he must be punished in other ways as a sign of punishment. You can think about the reasons for the punishment."

Zhu Heng breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Yes, I will definitely handle all the big and small things well."

Early the next morning, sure enough, Zhang Ning left the camp with his guards.He still rode in the carriage covered with a lot of cotton, but the fracture on his leg seems to be almost healed, and it is no problem to walk slowly without crutches, but he thinks he needs to take care of it for a while, otherwise he will stay in the future. It's always bad to walk with a limp under hidden disease.

...A few days later, Zhang Ning's horse team arrived in Wuchang City, and he went straight to the Chu Palace to see Yao Ji.The Chu Palace was still as quiet as ever. He saw the clean avenue in the palace, the green vegetation sprouting, and the beautiful pavilions. For a moment, he felt that the smoke of fighting outside was just a dream.But looking down at his dusty clothes and the gray and black soot on his body, he realized that the huge difference between inside and outside is real.

Seeing him like this, Yao Ji must have rushed over to meet him as soon as he returned to Wuchang City, so she told him what happened these days.

Zhang Ning was not shocked, but his preoccupied appearance made it impossible for Yao Ji to be happy for taking revenge on Empress Ma.

Yao Ji tried to explain: "The crown prince was defeated and disappeared, and our people happened to find out his whereabouts. The chance is very good. If you don't kill him this time, it will be very difficult to have a chance in the future. You raise troops It is under the banner of Emperor Jianwen, and Jianwen is also enshrined as Zhengshuo; when great things are achieved in the future, he must be enshrined as Emperor Jianwen, and the prince is still the prince. Who will pass on the throne in the future? It’s better to get rid of the hidden danger once and for all today.”

Zhang Ningdao: "My concubine's words are reasonable, but there must be some people in Yuchen who suspect that we did it, and Lord Jianwen will think so too..."

Yao Ji said apologetically, "Wen Kui is your elder brother after all, I did have something wrong, I should have told you before making a decision."

Everyone has been killed, so what's the use of talking about it now?But when it comes to his elder brother, Zhang Ning doesn't have any psychological burden. It's really hard to have any feelings for this elder brother. He has never even met him. He doesn't think Wen Kui is really his own brother. In the past, Zhang Shicai of the Zhang family could not compare.

The only thing Zhang Ning was worried about was Emperor Jianwen. He was trying to use the title of Emperor Jianwen to recruit soldiers recently. If something went wrong, the whole situation would be affected.The hundreds of thousands of troops in Jiangbei are staring at each other. It is too early to think about the power struggle after the achievement of the great event.

But Zhang Ning really didn't want to speak accusingly to Yao Ji, so he paused and asked, "Where's Empress Ma?"

Yao Ji hesitated slightly after hearing this, and immediately replied: "Our people have captured her, and she is being escorted back to the palace from Guizhou to 'reunite' with the emperor."

She couldn't help wondering why Zhang Ning suddenly asked Queen Ma, it was most likely because she had already understood her mentality.The reason why she killed Zhu Wenkui was for the sake of her future fame, but more importantly, it might be out of revenge for Empress Ma... Zhang Ning reminded her that she already knew.

Even though Zhang Ning never lived with Yao Ji since she was a child, she didn't fulfill her responsibility of raising him, and Zhang Ning said many times that he came from the future and refused to admit that he was her son; but Yao Ji realized that this world really understands The person she was thinking of was still Zhang Ning.

At this moment, Zhang Ning sighed slightly: "There is nothing wrong with what the mother concubine did, even if you tell me beforehand, I will agree."

He didn't say anything radical, but Yao Ji lost control of her emotions after saying a few words, and she said with a pale face, "I sent you to be raised by ordinary people since you were a child. My home, but I also have books, food and clothing. Those who come from Taiping naturally don’t understand what I have suffered! If you weren’t in the Zhang family in Nanjing... you wouldn’t understand, because you would have died a long time ago!”

Zhang Ning hurriedly said: "I understand. So Empress Ma's life must be saved, and you will torture her slowly when the time is right. But for now, don't tell her about Zhu Wenkui's death, otherwise it may be very difficult. It was stabbed to Emperor Jianwen."

"In the future? The head will be put in the ice box, but if it takes too long, it will change beyond recognition. How can I let that vicious woman see my son's head with my own eyes, how can I see her heartbroken expression? "Yao Ji's fingers were trembling.

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