Ping An Biography

When Hu Ying came to meet Yang Rong at the appointment, Yang Sihai was also invited, but the other diners and staff were not present; there were only a few people, so it was more convenient to talk.The living room where we met was deep in the Inner Palace and there were no other people around. The living room was spacious and decorated in a simple and elegant way, and the lighting was also good, so it was secluded but not gloomy. It was indeed a very suitable place.

In addition to Yang Rong, Si Hai, Hu Ying and his entourage, there was also a clerk in the side room next to the room, who was responsible for recording the content of the conversation.The layout of the side room is a bit like the "Zanzheng Pavilion" in the Yamen Office, but there is a curtain hanging at the door, and the scribes don't show up; As if asking for a confession, it obviously affects the atmosphere of the meeting.At the same time, the role of scribes is not only to keep useful information in words, but also plays a certain role in witness proof; when a minister of the Ministry of War and a minister have a secret meeting in a non-public place, Yang Rong feels that it should be kept secret to a certain extent, but they are not plotting any conspiracy. .

"His name is Xiao Liu, and the entourage next to Yan Ruofei, my close friend, just returned from Huguang in the first ten days of this month." Hu Ying led the people around him as soon as he arrived.

Xiao Liu is in his thirties, with a humble but calm demeanor, he looks like someone who has been in and out of the government for a long time and often deals with people of status, so he can behave calmly and decently in front of the officials at the ministerial level, he came forward to pay homage: "The villain see Master Yang... Yang Langzhong."

Yang Rong nodded his head in response.Just now Hu Ying mentioned that Yan Ruofei, her confidant, had been prepared for listening to the voice, and had already guessed the reason for today's meeting. [

Sure enough, dealing with an old man in the officialdom like Hu Ying is sometimes quite easy, and he is a completely sensible person.I think the gray-haired Mr. Hu is inferior to Yang Rong now, but his luck is bad, and it's not because he doesn't know how to be an official... Last year in the battle of Yuanshui in the south of Dongting Lake, the officers and soldiers lost [-] soldiers. Hou Xuelu also lost his head by just a little bit. Wuyang Hou was a meritorious official who had devoted his life to the Zhu family since Emperor Yongle started his army. Now he has lost his official position and returned to his hometown for retirement. His grandfather and other military ministers only spared his life for the sake of honor, otherwise he would definitely not be lightly spared; but Hu Ying, who also participated in this matter, was still in the position of governor of Huguang to control the military and politics at that time. The position of the servant is one of ability.

Hu Ying and Yang Rong have known each other for a long time, but they didn't have a close relationship before, otherwise Hu Ying would not have been excluded from the circle of power when she supported the protection. It is very good and highly appreciated by the Ministry of War. As the Minister of the Ministry of War and the governor of Huguang, he urgently reports to the Ministry of War for a ruling in case of indecision, which is a gesture of respect for the central authority.Later, he was able to commit crimes, and it was also the credit of these colleagues who did not have a deep friendship.

At this time, Yang Rong said: "I noticed the news about Yuan Jie (Hu) about an incident at the end of last year in Ji'an Mansion in Jiangxi Province. It seems that Sihai reminded me..." He looked at Yang Sihai calmly, " Yuan Jie thought that the one who failed to raise troops in Jiangxi was really Prince Jianwen?"

Since Hu Ying had been psychologically prepared, he responded quickly at this moment, but he did not express his own opinion, but only stated in a statement: "The matter Taizong ordered me to investigate back then originated from the "Jingnan Battle" in Nanjing after the end. The whereabouts of Emperor Jianwen and the crown prince were not found. After the fire in the palace was extinguished, several of the charred remains were examined in detail, and there were no Jianwen father and son. The old man mainly investigated these two people. At the end of last year, I heard that someone in Jiangxi named Prince Jianwen The old man could not help but send his friend Yan Ruofei to go out to find out what happened. But it was not in time, and when he arrived at the border of Ji'an Mansion, the rebel army had already collapsed. However, Yan Ruofei brought back two very useful news."

After finishing speaking, he turned his head and said to his followers: "Xiao Liu, please report the truth to Yang Butang again."

"Yes, my lord." Xiao Liu cupped his fists and said, "The first thing is, after the defeat of the rebel army, the Ji'an government army seized a large number of firearms. Of course, those things cannot be produced by the local government, let alone military supplies allocated by the court. , should come from the 'Xiangwang' rebel army, and the firearms used by the rebel army in the past are different; Brother Yan took the opportunity to contact the government for inquiries, and found out that this batch of arms was escorted from Changsha, Huguang. The second thing is to build The real body of Emperor Wen appeared in Wuchang City, and when he first arrived, he got off the carriage and appeared in front of everyone; after our people saw it, they drew a portrait according to his appearance."

After Xiao Liu finished speaking, Hu Ying took out a roll of paper from his body and unfolded it, "This is the appearance of Jianwen that Yan Ruofei and others saw. He has not appeared for more than 20 years, but he looks like himself. In addition, the Jiangxi rebels are related to the 'King of Xiang', but they are not a group of people called the Suzaku Army, and their combat effectiveness is too far apart."

After hearing this, Yang Rong pondered for a long time, and only said: "It does make sense, there are several points of truth." He didn't express his opinion too much.

At this time, Sihai said: "Students should inform Lu Qian, the governor of Jinyiwei Nanzhen, about the matter, and ask him to send someone to further investigate the clues left by the Jiangxi rebels. Let Jinyiwei go to investigate, and then he has the right to ask the government for assistance. That’s enough, the students think it’s the most appropriate. With the information we have so far, we can further support the previous theory from the sidelines, but without evidence to prove it, it is difficult to present the false and ominous content to the emperor, and it is inconvenient to make corresponding correspondence. Policy."

"Si Hai's words are very true, so it's quite appropriate to do so." Yang Rong glanced at Hu Ying and said with a smile, "Young people are awesome."

After hearing this, Hu Ying also looked at each other and smiled.For a moment, he really envied the young Yang Sihai. Although Sihai's current position is lower than his, but he has just entered the officialdom, there are still many opportunities, and he can go further if he grasps it well; The ambition is almost over.However, from the few times Hu Ying had made friends with Yang Sihai, it seems that this person is talented and intelligent, and he is indeed too short-lived. It is impossible to say exactly where he is short-lived. In short, it is just a feeling, and it depends on his future fortune... Human nature does not necessarily mean that the older the more experienced, the better it is. It is not uncommon for an old man to be inferior to a young man in his thirties.

Si Hai was praised by Yang Rong, and he did not act arrogant or impetuous, but he became more active in speaking, "Huguang Xiang Wang, known as the third son of Jianwen, must have ambitions in rebelling against him; It is true that there are many remnants of Jianwen, but they hold the real power. They must have mutual suspicion with Jianwen and his prince. If the court can really find out the grievances, a little bit of separation will make the rebels overwhelmed internally; Emperor Jianwen's alliance broke up and attacked each other, resulting in his reputation of deceiving the world and stealing his name, and revealing his treacherous and despicable wolf ambitions to the world.

"Hey..." Yang Rong uttered a meaningless tone, as if to stop him, but it was too late.Hu Ying was right in front of him when he said the abacus so clearly. It seemed that if he could make a great contribution this time, he would not be able to exclude Hu Ying at all.

However, Yang Sihai's plan won Yang Rong's heart.

It may seem like a conspiracy, but this kind of tactic is the usual method of the Ming Dynasty. It divides the opponent's internal forces and uses clever means to make them restrain each other and drag them back. The trick has risen to a strategy.In Mongolia, Jiaozhi, southwest Tibetan areas, and northwest frontiers, the imperial court has been using this strategy, but sometimes it works, and sometimes it doesn't.If it doesn't work, then use the emperor's own soldiers to attack by force to weaken its overall strength.

Among these court tricks or strategies, Minister Yang Rong is one of the main characters, actively planning the layout and doing too many "bad things".Therefore, in the early and middle period of the Ming Dynasty, the forces around the empire had almost no chance to develop and grow, and they were calculated as soon as they appeared; the imperial court created a very unfavorable international environment for foreign fans.Even if the foreign fan accidentally seized the opportunity to make progress during the difficult period of the imperial court, it was only temporary, and it was still in a state of being suppressed for a long time.

Since Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty defeated the Huns in the north, the powerful wexe was temporarily eliminated, but many forces in the periphery of the Central Plains Dynasty have never stopped.In the Tang Dynasty there were Tubo, Huhua in Hebei, and Huihe in the north; the situation in the Song Dynasty was even worse. Xixia, Liao, Jin, and Mongols rose up in turn, with aggressive force, and the important land of Yanyun was never regained.For thousands of years, it is not uncommon for the son-emperor who has been a vassal and the state of brothers who have been virtuous brothers to give women money and silk to cut land for protection and peace.

Of course, there are many reasons for the formation of those situations, such as the legacy of history, the fate of the world, and so on. It is not just a matter of imperial strategy.However, for at least 200 years from the founding of the Ming Dynasty to the rotten and hopeless period, no foreign power could really rise, and its court strategy still had a certain influence.

Yang Rong sat on a chair looking at the sunlight outside, holding his beard thoughtfully, as if lost in thought. [

After a long time, Hu Ying said: "Jin Yiwei's Lu Qian had a lot of contacts with the lower officials when he was in Huguang. How about letting the lower officials come forward to discuss the matter of further investigation? Please show me."

"Okay, I'll ask Yuan Jie to do it." Yang Rong nodded.It is impossible for Hu Ying to stay out of the matter now, he is willing to contribute, and he will follow his will.

Hu Ying got up and said: "So, I won't bother you any more. Let me take my leave."

Yang Rong got up politely and made a gesture to see him off. Hu Ying hurriedly said: "Don't dare, please stop Yang Butang. The lower official position is not in line with etiquette." Yang Rong then shouted: "Come on, see off."

Si Hai calmed down for a while, seeing that Yang Rong didn't intend to stay, thinking that there was nothing to discuss in private, he also got up to leave.

Yang Rong sat alone for a while, then walked to a table by the wall, looked at the endgame of a game of Go on it, stretched out his hand and picked up a sunspot and dropped it.