Han ride

Chapter 384 Princess Changping and Queen Zhou
"My lord, the capital can't stay for long, it's better to go back to Yunzhong earlier." Shi Yuanzhi nodded, since Chongzhen agreed to send troops, a decision on this matter should be made early.Now Li Xin only brought [-] soldiers and horses to appear under the capital city. If something happened, or the Emperor Chongzhen turned his back on his promise, Hong Chengchou's army would follow closely behind.

"How much food and grass did Hou Xun send? It will be used for a few days." Li Xin nodded and turned around to ask.

"If you go back to the lord, you only have one day's food and grass." Zhao Guang said quickly.

"So, my army only has four days of food and grass left. Humph!" Li Xin's complexion changed, and he couldn't help snorting coldly: "What excuse is Hou Xun using?"

"They said that it is difficult to prepare properly in a hurry, so we will send one day's food and grass first, and prepare it tomorrow." Zhao Guang said hastily.

"Hmph, what a good excuse!" Li Xin didn't believe what was going on here.He has seen many officials of the Ming Dynasty, but it is a pity that he is not Chongzhen. If he were Chongzhen, all these officials would be driven out, all of them were incompetent.Let them do things, all find excuses to shirk.He didn't believe that Hou Xun really couldn't prepare food for several days.

"My lord, it is really embarrassing to prepare the food and grass for the army in a hurry." Shi Yuanzhi explained.

"Sir, do you know how much silver our North Army will get if we capture this city?" Li Xin pointed at the distant city of Beijing with his whip, and said, "At least tens of millions of taels of silver." Li Xin is not talking nonsense. According to historical records, after Li Zicheng captured Beijing, he took over the capital and got 7000 million taels of silver. This amount of silver was enough to tax the Chongzhen Emperor for several years.If Li Xin invaded Beijing now, he would easily get three to forty million taels of silver.

"So many? What if this can be snatched?" After hearing this, Gao Meng's eyes lit up, and he couldn't help but said loudly.

"Presumptuous." Li Xin couldn't help but whipped Gao fiercely.

"So much?" Shi Yuanzhi and Zhao Guang's eyes lit up, and they couldn't help but glared at Gao Meng. The two of them didn't care about comparing themselves with Gao Meng.It's just that I didn't expect there to be so much silver in Beijing.

"Emperor Chongzhen's silver is not in the treasury, but in the officials of the city." Li Xin shook his head. The emperor Chongzhen is really a coward. To borrow, and more importantly, before borrowing, those courtiers are like beggars, no one gives a few hundred taels, these hundreds of taels of silver are not even enough for them to eat a meal.Poor Emperor Chongzhen really doesn't know what to do?

"Most of the court officials are like this, my lord should be happy." Shi Yuanzhi said with a smile, "If all the court officials are like Lu Xiangsheng and Hong Chengchou, wouldn't that be my lord's sorrow?" Not to mention, in the civil and military affairs of the Manchu Dynasty, both Lu Xiangsheng and Hong Chengchou were considered talented people, and they could also be regarded as capable ministers.A courtier like Wen Tiren wanted as much as he had.

"That's right! It's the Emperor Chongzhen's misfortune to have such people in the court, but it's our luck." Li Xin nodded. The more fatuous ministers there are in the court, the more ambitious people like Li Xin will be. a good thing.

"My lord, there is a person outside called Cao Sanxi begging to see my lord." At this time, the soldiers outside the tent said loudly.

"Cao Sanxi? Let him in!" Li Xin thought for a while, and suddenly thought of who it was, he glanced at Shi Yuanzhi and the others, and said to Shi Yuanzhi: "Sir, go back and rest for a while, I want to see you This Cao Sanxi has been in Beijing for such a long time, let's see if he can get us some food and grass."

"Yes, my lord." Shi Yuan was stunned for a moment, and quickly retreated with the generals.

"Sir, who is this Cao Sanxi! How can the lord see him?" Zhao Guang said in surprise as he looked at the Chinese military tent behind him.He saw Gao Meng standing there like a giant spirit outside the big tent, not allowing anyone to approach.

"It's just a spy under the lord's command. The general shouldn't inquire too much." Shi Yuan shook his head straight.He also had one of these spies. It is said that spies are divided into internal and external. The inner guard is in charge of monitoring the officials. Shi Yuanzhi only vaguely knows this, and spies like Cao Sanxi are in Shi Yuanzhi's hands.

After a while, a middle-aged man with a simple and honest face followed the soldiers, his eyes lit up when he saw Shi Yuanzhi, he just bowed his hands at him, and then he left and went into the big tent.

"Let's go! General." Shi Yuanzhi didn't speak, although he was curious why Li Xin wanted to meet Cao Sanxi.Is it really because Cao Sanxi wants to get some food and grass.

"Cao Sanxi, the commander of the Qilin Guard capital, pays his respects to the lord." It wasn't the first time Cao Sanxi met Li Xin. He also met Li Xin when he was marching on the grassland.

"Commander Cao got up and spoke." Li Xin nodded.This Cao Sanxi is also somewhat famous in history, a legendary figure transformed from a farmer to a giant businessman.

"Thank you, my lord." Cao Sanxi was a little afraid, and stood there quietly in the big tent.

"The development of Qilin Guard in the capital is very good. I am very pleased. I will keep all these in my heart, and I will be rewarded in the future." Li Xin nodded.

"Do things for the lord, don't ask for rewards." Cao Sanxi said hastily.He found that he enjoyed being in business, even though it did other things as well.

"I asked you this time because I have something to ask you, how much food and grass can you prepare for [-] cavalry?" Li Xin asked suddenly.

"My subordinate has some food and grass in Xishan, but it can only be used for three days." Cao Sanxi said with some embarrassment: "This subordinate is incompetent, please forgive me, my lord."

"Three days is enough." Li Xin said casually: "There is one more thing, which is of great importance." Li Xin paused, looking at Cao Sanxi.

"My lord, please give me instructions." Seeing Li Xin's appearance, Cao Sanxi was shocked, but she still said bravely.

"Look at this. This is a suggestion I made to the emperor today, but the emperor is still hesitant." Li Xin took out a piece of paper and wrote a few words on it. Cao Sanxi looked over, but his face showed A trace of hesitation came.Although he recognized these words, he didn't know the meaning of them.

"You don't need to know the meaning here, as long as you disclose these words when necessary, these words are said by the emperor." Li Xin hesitated for a moment, then Fang said: "As for what? When the time is disclosed, I will let someone notify you."

"Your subordinate obeys orders." Cao Sanxi listened in a daze, but he knew that Li Xin asked him to come this time. The so-called getting some food and grass was only a secondary matter, and the most important thing was the ten words in front of him.Immediately remember these ten words in your heart.

"Remember, I asked you to come today to prepare food and grass. Don't tell anyone about this." Li Xin put the piece of paper on the candle, and the flames slowly engulfed the paper and turned it into ashes.

"This subordinate understands." No matter how stupid Cao Sanxi was, he knew it. Li Xin's exhortation to this matter showed the importance of this matter. Right now, he could only nod his head desperately.

"Well, then go see Mr. Shi! He will arrange how to transport the grain and grass." Li Xin stepped forward and patted Cao Sanxi on the shoulder and said.

"Your subordinate will go now." Cao Sanxi was sweating coldly on his forehead, not daring to stay, and retreated quickly.In the big tent, only Li Xin was left quietly reading the book.

The Emperor Chongzhen, who was separated from him by a wall, was also frowning in the Xinuang Pavilion. It was time to eat, but he still showed no sign of eating.On the other side, Wang Chengen could only stay quietly by the side.After a while, I saw a head protruding from the door, but it was a little girl of three or four years old with beautiful makeup.Walked in staggeringly.

"Father." The little girl wobbled and hugged Emperor Chongzhen's thigh, raised her head, and opened her eyes wide.

"Oh! It turns out to be my little princess Changping!" When Emperor Chongzhen saw the little girl, his frown suddenly relaxed, and he hugged her in his arms. At this moment, he doesn't have the appearance of a king of a country. , is clearly a loving father.And this little girl is the famous Princess of Changping in history, Aimee Zhu, the one-armed god nun invented by those martial arts masters later.

"Father, I'm hungry." Princess Changping blinked and said.

"Oh! Cheng'en, hurry up and drive to Kunning Palace." Only then did Emperor Chongzhen realize that it was time for dinner, and he turned his head and said to Wang Cheng'en.

"Your Majesty." Wang Chengen felt relieved, and was about to speak, but was stopped by Chongzhen.

"Stop yelling, let's walk." Emperor Chongzhen waved his hand and said, "It's just that I have something that bothers me, so please tell me about it." It can be said that the relationship between Emperor Chongzhen and Wang Chengen is very unique. The master and servant were either close friends, or even father and son. Although he was an eunuch, he was deeply trusted by Chongzhen.

"The slave is just a useless person, how dare he come up with any ideas." Wang Chengen hurriedly said modestly.

"To tell you the truth, just now Li Xin and I chatted in the city for a while, this man has a great talent. He knew that the court had no money, so he gave me an idea. I think it can still be operated, but it only involves The scope is wide, so I can’t be sure.” Emperor Chongzhen thought for a while, and said, “He told me that taxation should not be exclusively dependent on those ordinary people, but should be expanded. As long as they are my people, whether they are ordinary people or those gentry That’s right, everyone should pay taxes. The people themselves have no money, so paying more taxes can only force them to rebel. The gentry have money and land, but they don’t pay taxes. In this way, the tax I collect will be less. Li Xin suggested I practice that officials and gentry pay food as one, and work as one. Chengen! Do you think this can be done?"

"No, absolutely not, Your Majesty, Li Xin's idea seems to be for the Emperor's sake, but in fact he is putting the Emperor on fire. This man is ambitious. The Emperor must not do this idea." After hearing this, Wang Chengen's expression changed. There was a big change, and he hurried forward to stop the road.

"I also know that if I really do this, it will be tantamount to offending the scholars in the world. It's just that Li Xin's words are not wrong. Most of the world is concentrated in the hands of the gentry, and the common people have no money at all." Emperor Chongzhen also sighed: "If I don't do this, how can the court have money? If there is no money, how will the court train soldiers? Chengen, do you know that Hong Chengchou has beaten the 20 army this time to nothing but more?" It’s only [-] to [-], with such a small army, how to suppress the rebellion, how to conquer the slaves, and Li Xin, although he is now subject to me and is still loyal to me, but as said, his How many generals and soldiers are Han Chinese? These people are rebellious, and if they wear yellow robes in the future, I will have to deal with Li Xin, a powerful army. All of this needs money!"

"Hey, the gentry is the cornerstone of the imperial court and should not be offended. Otherwise, the emperor, would those gentry be used by the emperor? This old slave thinks that Li Xin is a wolf's ambition and should not be trusted." Wang Chengen thought for a while and said: "If the emperor Worried about Li Xin, taking advantage of Li Xin's only tens of thousands of troops, mobilize the Jingying and Hong Chengchou's troops to annihilate Li Xin under the capital city, and then send people to accept Li Xin's Northern Conquest Army. Block the gates and let them make trouble on the grassland, even if they think about it, they will not be able to break through the gates on the nine sides."

"Can the Beijing camp do it?" Chong Zhen shook his head. He also inspected the Beijing camp, and then saw Li Xin's army. He was obviously very disappointed with the Beijing camp.

"Your Majesty." Wang Chengen still had something to say.

"Okay, don't talk about it." Chongzhen shook his head and said: "Let's leave this matter alone! You don't want to spread it, I am just curious about this matter, but you are right, the gentry is the pillar of the court, and Da Ming and I We all need them, but Li Xin doesn't necessarily have bad intentions, he is really helping me, unfortunately, he is just a warrior, and what he thinks cannot be realized."

After hearing this, Wang Chengen breathed a sigh of relief. As long as Chongzhen did not follow Li Xin's actions, he would be relieved. After all, for the sake of the Ming Dynasty, Chongzhen really could not offend those gentry.

"Damn Li Xin, why did he come up with such an idea?" However, Chongzhen's words also alerted Wang Chengen.He is very familiar with Emperor Chongzhen. Although Emperor Chongzhen is not going to do what Li Xin said at the moment, it might be possible in the future.If it is true that the court cannot receive money, the desperate Emperor Chongzhen may really be tempted.It's just that this matter has a lot to do with it. If it doesn't work out, Daming Jiangshan will change his surname.The person who came up with this idea was either a lonely loyal minister or an ambitious person.But is Li Xin really a lonely and loyal minister?Obviously this is impossible, so there is only one possibility left, this Li Xin really put Chongzhen on fire!
"Father, look, mother." At this moment, Zhu Yu who was in Chongzhen's arms suddenly pointed to a light in the distance and said.Chongzhen looked over and saw that Empress Zhou was waiting there with two children, one was Huang Taiji Zhu Cihong, the other was the third son of the emperor Zhu Cijiong, and there was another son, who unfortunately passed away after he was born.

When Emperor Chongzhen saw Empress Zhou, he couldn't help speeding up his pace. Empress Zhou always respected him as a guest. When he was in the hidden mansion, he followed him. When Wei Zhongxian was in power, Zhu Youjian lived in darkness. Empress Zhou served him without complaint or regret, and in order to prevent Wei Zhongxian from poisoning him, she cooked herself. It can be said that Emperor Chongzhen's affection for Empress Zhou was unmatched by any woman in the harem.

"Your Majesty." Empress Zhou is not particularly beautiful, but she is extremely dignified. This is the same as Zhu Yuanzhang's requirements for the selection of concubines for the princes. She does not require the most beautiful, nor does she need to be dignified and virtuous.Undoubtedly, these Zhou queens have done it.

"Empress." When Emperor Chongzhen saw Empress Zhou, he hurried forward and helped Empress Zhou up.

"Chang Ping, your father has been working hard for the state affairs all day, come down quickly." Empress Zhou looked at Princess Chang Ping in Chongzhen's arms, and said slightly dissatisfied.

Princess Changping didn't dare to be negligent, she rolled down from Emperor Chongzhen's embrace, and looked at Empress Zhou worriedly. Although Empress Zhou was gentle, she was extremely strict with her children.Seeing that Princess Changping came down, the two children were asked to pay respects to Emperor Chongzhen, and the family entered Kunning Palace.

At the moment, there is a large table in the Kunning Palace. There are not many dishes on it, but they are very delicate, such as roasted chicken with bamboo shoots, goose with enzymatic enzymes, steamed and fried fish with willow, coal and iron-legged sparrow, stewed quail, Chicken brewing soup, Wutaishan Tianhua sheep tripe dish, chicken drumstick silver plate Magu, Donghai Shihua sea cabbage, dragon whiskers, etc., the combination of meat and vegetables is not as delicious as the legends outside.In fact, what Emperor Chongzhen ate every day was only 36 taels of silver, and the queen was only 11 taels of silver. These things are rare in the homes of ordinary people, but in the homes of rich families in the south of the Yangtze River, these things are really good. does not matter.What's more, the price of these things that the emperor ate had to be discounted in half, because the eunuchs in the palace had to get some kickbacks in the middle. In this way, the food that Emperor Chongzhen ate was not particularly good. grade.

After the Emperor Chongzhen asked Empress Zhou and others to sit down, the family began to eat. The Emperor Chongzhen took the main seat, and Empress Zhou also sat on the side. As for the crown prince and Princess Changping, they let the nanny take care of them.

After taking a few mouthfuls, Emperor Chongzhen did not speak, but continued to eat. The surrounding ladies and eunuchs were relieved when they saw this.It turned out that Emperor Chongzhen was suspicious. Every time he ate a meal, not only did the eunuchs have to taste it in advance, but if it was not delicious, then these imperial cooks would be in trouble. Of course, if it felt good, Emperor Chongzhen would not speak, but Continue to eat up.Undoubtedly, the royal chefs were relieved this time.

Empress Zhou saw all this and knew that Emperor Chongzhen was in a good mood, so she said with a smile, "Your Majesty, I heard that you met Li Xin, Marquis of Zhengbei today? How is he?"

After hearing this, Emperor Chongzhen glanced at Empress Zhou, and finally said: "This person is okay, but a little domineering." Then he seemed to think of something again, frowned, and did not speak.

(End of this chapter)