A Thousand Hills

Chapter 161

The fifth prince has always been very filial to his father, he is very serious about his errands, and he is very worried about the situation of the old Mu's family. After talking with his wife in the evening, the fifth prince went to the palace the next day, and specially told his father The issue of the Fujian navy.

It happened that the prince was also there, and the fifth prince actually wanted to talk to his father in private, mainly because he felt that he and the prince had some differences on some issues.However, in terms of brothers, the prince is a brother and he is a younger brother; in terms of a monarch and a minister, the prince is a monarch and he is a minister, and he can't ask the prince to avoid him no matter what.In fact, if the Fifth Prince is unwilling to speak, he can find a reason to prevaricate it, and it is the same to talk about it in a private interview.However, the five emperors thought again that Fujian is next to the Jingjiang palace, so it is a major national event, and the crown prince is the prince, so there is nothing wrong with knowing it in his heart.The fifth prince said, "My son has been thinking wildly these days, and he always feels that Fujian is not very stable, and the sea soldiers are new trainees, so we should be more careful."

Before Emperor Mu Yuan could speak, the crown prince laughed first, and said, "That's fine, why did Fifth Brother think about the sea soldiers?"

The fifth prince said, "I just remembered it suddenly, and my heart was really uneasy, so I hurried into the palace to talk to my father and the prince."

The prince laughed, "Fifth brother is too worried. Last year Yongding Hougang won a big game. Since the training of troops in Fujian, the land is stable and peaceful. Fifth brother can just rest assured."

The fifth prince moved his mouth, but finally didn't say any more.

When the fifth prince hit a snag, the crown prince said to him in private, "I know you want to join the feudal clan, but it's not easy to talk about military and state affairs." The pig teammate fell ill, so the matter had to be shelved for the time being.

The fifth prince has always been a serious person, so he couldn't help feeling anxious when he heard this, and said, "I'm not talking nonsense!"

"Fujian has always been stable, what's wrong with you, fifth brother? Could it be that there is some private news?" The prince also knows that the fifth prince is not a person who likes to joke, but the prince thought that the fifth prince came up with such a method because he wanted to get rid of the feudal clan. .

The prince asked, and the fifth prince couldn't say that I was chatting with my wife at home. The fifth prince was anxious and blurted out, "My brother had a dream, it happened!"

The prince hardly fainted from laughter.

The fifth prince was a little embarrassed, the prince smiled and patted him on the shoulder as a gesture of intimacy, "Okay, you may be a little tired, it's good to rest for a few days." When chatting with Emperor Mu Yuan, he joked about this once, and the corner of Emperor Mu Yuan's lips twitched. Qiao, "Xiao Wu is an honest person, don't laugh at him."

The prince laughed, "How can my son laugh, the fifth younger brother is also worried about state affairs."

The fifth prince felt too shameful about using sleep talk as an excuse, so he didn't tell Xie Moru, and went to the Ministry of War to ask the eldest prince to find out about Fujian.The first prince has a good opinion of the fifth prince recently. One is that Zhao Lin has been persuading him to befriend the younger brothers. The first prince is now trying his best to develop into a good brother; A series of events fueled the flames, and at the critical moment, the fifth prince, who did not know whether it was intentional or not, brought his three young children into the palace to please the Queen Mother, so the Queen Mother was even more reluctant to let the princes surrender.Therefore, the matter of the feudal clan was shelved.

Anyway, the Fifth Prince did something that was beneficial to the First Prince, and the First Prince has been getting close to the Fifth Prince recently, so when the Fifth Prince inquired about things in Fujian, the First Prince taught him with all his heart. How to transport and prepare weapons, and of course, the construction of ships at sea, these are the affairs of the Ministry of Industry.It goes without saying that the Fifth Prince and the Fourth Prince are inseparable from each other in the Ministry of Industry.It was the Marquis of Nan'an, because of the friendship between the fourth concubine and Xie Moru, the two bought land together last year, and started building a house this year, and they are very close.Therefore, the four princes and concubines often said good things about Xie Moru in front of their natal family, and Xie Moru's best friend, Jiang Xingyun, also had friendship with Mrs. An. Therefore, Mrs. Nan'an Hou, who is a woman and a mother, can't help but feel Xie Moru. It will be bad.Therefore, although Xie Moru had a deep grudge with Duke Cheng'en, her relationship with Marquis Nan'an was decent.

The Marquis of Nan'an has his own political stance, but his political stance is not exactly the same as that of his family. Anyway, for various reasons, the Marquis of Nan'an did not perfuse the Fifth Prince when he came to ask him about training in Fujian.Nan'anhou said, "Soldiers are impermanent, and water is impermanent. The situation cannot be judged as good or bad, nor can it be seen clearly at a moment."

The Fifth Prince said, "I'm always worried."

"What is Your Highness worried about?"

"After all, Jingjiang has been in business for a long time, and Jingjiang is a land of fish and rice, rich and rich. This has existed since ancient times. Since the king of Jingjiang became a vassal, Jingjiang has been entrenched for many years without paying food and taxes to the court. How can Fujian be able to train troops for several years?" To counter?" The fifth prince said, "I know that Marquis Yongding is also a veteran general, but it takes time to train troops, and it cannot be done overnight. Marquis has led troops in Nan'an Prefecture for many years, how long will it take to train a usable army? day?"

Nan'anhou said, "It takes at least three years to fight the enemy. If it's a strong team, it's not from training, but from fighting."

The fifth prince thought about it, and couldn't help sighing, Nan'an Hou said, "It is very unlikely that the soldiers of Fujian will face the Jingjiang Palace now. Moreover, Jingjiang is now a court vassal after all, not a strong enemy of the court, and it is impossible to say that they will face each other." Go up. In my opinion, there is nothing wrong with only defending in Fujian."

The fifth prince was obviously relieved. Although the female relatives of the two mansions had a good impression of each other, the Marquis of Nan'an himself had no friendship with the Fifth Prince's mansion. The fifth prince sincerely asked for advice, but Nan'an Marquis could answer truthfully.

The Fifth Prince said, "Then, according to Lord Hou's wishes, what should Fujian do?"

The Marquis of Nan'an was startled, there is no one who uses troops without care, not to mention that in the imperial capital, Marquis of Nan'an is highly valued by Emperor Mu Yuan, but he can only be more cautious.Nan'an Hou pondered for a moment and said, "Your Highness is asking too much."

The fifth prince said, "I'm talking about the use of troops." He continued, "Don't worry, Lord Hou, because Fujian is my fiefdom. Although I can't take it for the time being, I am naturally concerned about whether it is my fiefdom. What the Lord Hou said, come out." Get it in your mouth, get it in my ear, and I won’t tell anyone else about it.”

Since the Marquis of Nan'an is in charge of the Ministry of War, it is impossible not to pay attention to the affairs of Fujian. This is why he is unwilling to say.There are quite a lot of important officials in Fujian, and Emperor Mu Yuan specially sent Marquis Yongding to train troops. Marquis Yongding is the father-in-law of the eldest prince and an important minister in the court. Therefore, Marquis Nan'an is unwilling to say much about the affairs of Fujian.The fifth prince asked earnestly, and the Marquis of Nan'an thought for a while and said, "When people talk about military matters, they think of war, but in fact, I have been in Nan'an Prefecture for more than ten years, and I have spent far more time defending than fighting. , you must first be able to defend, don't rush to attack, if you defend firmly, you will naturally attack one day."

The Fifth Prince asked again, "Does Hou Ye know if there are any generals in our dynasty who are good at water warfare?"

The Marquis of Nan'an shook his head, "During Taizu's reign, he was busy with wars in the western barbarians. Later, South Vietnam was restless and he was busy with South Vietnam affairs. In recent years, the four seas have been peaceful, but Jingjiang has become more prosperous. Most of the naval battles are ship battles, and the weather on the sea and the plains are also big. It’s not the same. There was no naval battle before, and there was no famous general in this field.” The last sentence is a polite remark from the Marquis of Nan’an. In fact, not to mention the famous naval generals, even the navy is practicing now, using Yongding Hou, the ancestors of Yongding Hou never fought sea battles.

The fifth prince is a real person, and he said it himself, "This is also true. The ancestors never fought at sea."

Nan'an Hou said, "It's easy to get a thousand troops, but it's hard to find a general. When it comes to generals, the most eclectic. Some people have read all the military books, but they are just mediocre. Some people are born with a little bit of knowledge. This is general talent. Among the generals of the country, most of them are good at land warfare, but I haven't seen any geniuses in naval warfare."

The fifth prince solemnly thanked and said goodbye.

The fifth prince always ran to the Ministry of War, and his own officials reported the matter to the crown prince. The crown prince said, "Fifth brother is afraid that Meng Yan has caught him."

Xu Ning thought for a while, couldn't help but smiled, and said, "Your Highness the Fifth Prince is actually a man who knows everything." The Ministry of War is the territory of the First Prince. There was obviously a disagreement between the First Prince and the Fifth Prince in the past. Suddenly, the Fifth Prince was in the Ministry of War. The eldest prince didn't have any objection to the comings and goings, but he was chatting and laughing with the fifth prince, so people couldn't help admiring the fifth prince's communication skills.

The prince said, "Fifth brother is an honest man." I felt a little uncomfortable in my heart, especially when I thought that the fifth prince brought the children of the family to the Palace of Mercy, which aroused the empress dowager's reluctance to surge, and finally the vassal king gave up the vassal affairs. Let it go.But thinking about it this way, the prince vetoed his own idea first, because in the prince's view, the fifth prince inquired about and cared about Fujian's affairs in every possible way, and it was obvious that the fifth prince wanted to become a vassal. , the first one to mention the matter of enfeoffment and confinement in the court was the fifth prince.Therefore, the Fifth Prince didn't take the children to the Palace of Mercy because he didn't want to be a prince.

Thinking about it this way, the prince lost his suspicions again.

No matter what other people think, the Fifth Prince has a clear heart anyway, but Xie Moru asked him, "What kind of dream did I hear His Highness had outside? What's going on?" Dreaming or not, the two of them slept in the same bed every day Why didn't the fifth prince tell her.

Embarrassed, the fifth prince mentioned it to his daughter-in-law, and said, "The prince must have said it." The prince's mouth is really loose.

Xie Moru didn't laugh like the prince. She thought for a while and said seriously, "Your Highness, this is a good idea. Because the matter is our guess, it is indeed impossible to directly tell your majesty the prince. But I need another name. , It’s also good to borrow dreams.”

The fifth prince said, "What's the matter, people outside must say I've lost my mind and gone crazy."

Xie Moru sipped his tea, "Why bother with these insignificant people, His Highness is worried about the country, what do those people who laugh at His Highness know? They have done something beneficial to the country, but with His Highness's bright and open heart, Their vision and heart are nothing more than this, so they can laugh. Did Your Highness see that His Majesty laughed at you? Did Su Xiang laugh at you? Or did the Marquis of Nan An laugh at you?"

Xie Moru is very good at comforting people, the fifth prince thought to himself, the prince laughed at him.But when he thought that the prince had become a person with "nothing more than that in vision and heart" in his wife's mouth, the fifth prince was inexplicably relieved, and said, "Ignore those gossips. If you want to talk about the Marquis of Nan'an, I have always felt The Marquis of Nan'an is a little stern and not very friendly, but he really has one thing to say and another to say two things, unlike those old fritters who can only prevaricate."

"The Marquis of Nan'an is quite different from the people in Duke Cheng'en's mansion, huh?"

"It's completely different." The fifth prince came to his spirits, and said with a smile on his face, "At the beginning, I thought, just ask my elder brother. My elder brother is proficient in general affairs in the Ministry of War these years, but I still have to ask for advice on warfare. Marquis of Nan'an, veteran generals are different."

Xie Moru listened attentively to the fifth prince's advice from the Marquis of Nan'an, Xie Moru also said, "What the Marquis of Nan'an said is the truth."

The fifth prince sighed, "It's a pity that the court doesn't have any famous maritime generals." He added, "Actually, I thought to ask the Marquis of Nan'an to see how many years he thinks it will take for Fujian to suppress the Jingjiang Palace, so it's not easy to ask."

"This is too big a question. I'm afraid that if His Highness asks the question, the Marquis of Nan'an will not be able to answer it."

"That's right." The fifth prince said, "I'm not questioning my father's arrangements for Fujian, but the governors of Fujian are all high-ranking officials, and the Marquis of Yongding is also a high-ranking nobleman. I think there are still few people who can take the lead. .”

Xie Moru smiled, "Your Highness wants to be a fan."

The fifth prince nodded, "On the one hand, and what you said before, I am also really worried that the court may have a big defeat. A victory is a small victory, and a defeat is a big defeat. It is not easy for the court to spend this money on military training. If you spend money, you can earn more money, and if the court tightens up, you can squeeze out some more money, but the lives of soldiers, once they are gone, are really gone.”

Xie Moru couldn't help but suppress her smile, and said, "Your Highness has tried his best." Then, she turned to comfort, "Besides, you and I can guess things, it's not that there are no competent ministers in the court, Your Majesty has always been wise, and will not be incompetent." Prepared."

The fifth prince could not be easily persuaded, he said, "I really don't see any preparations?"

"If you don't keep secrets, you will lose your ministers, and if your ministers don't keep secrets, you will lose your status. Don't talk about your Highness, the crown prince may not know about such important matters." If the crown prince knew, he wouldn't laugh at the fifth prince's "dream".

The fifth prince gasped first, and then said, "Such a secret!" He believed it in his heart, and the prince didn't seem to know it at all.The fifth prince quietly said to his wife, "I think the prince doesn't even know about the crisis in Fujian. He just knows what good things to say in front of his father. What's the use of nice words, if something really happens, it's too late." Laughing at him, the fifth prince is in a high position, so he wants to save face, okay?

The fifth prince felt strange again, and said, "Su Xiang is the prince's tutor, why don't you remind the prince about such things?"

Xie Moru said, "Didn't Prime Minister Su say that Fujian should be cautious in training troops. I guess, if that's the case, Prime Minister Su must have said that."

"Is this a reminder?" The fifth prince was dumbfounded.

"Of course." Xie Moru said, "Isn't it prudent for the chief minister of a country to say the word 'cautious'?"

The fifth prince sighed, "Daughter-in-law, I am a fool compared to you." If Su Xiang said so plainly, "Fujian should be cautious in training troops", he would not have thought of the crisis in Fujian.My God, Prime Minister Su has said this sentence several times in court, so it turns out that this is Prime Minister Su's "reminder".

The fifth prince really convinced his wife.

Xie Moru smiled, "I'm a woman, so I'm naturally more careful. How can I be praised like a highness. It's your highness who is a person of great wisdom."

"Don't flatter me." The Fifth Prince used to think that he was not stupid, that he was not the best among brothers, but he was still in the middle.Later, when he worked as an errand in the court, his self-confidence gradually increased, his eyes were opened, and he gained insight. The more he was like this, the more he realized how extraordinary Xie Moru's vision was.Therefore, Xie Moru praised him like this, and he was really ashamed.

Xie Moru looked at the fifth prince with a smile, "I'm not flattering Your Highness, like His Highness borrowing dreams to talk things out, that's great wisdom."

The fifth prince said, "Although it is said that white people will not laugh at me, there are so many mediocre people in this world."

"Think about it, Your Highness. Many great sages in ancient times had dreams. Zhuang Zhou dreamed of butterflies, Confucius dreamed of Duke Zhou, and Your Highness dreamed of Minzhou. Isn't it the same thing?"

"The dream is real, I, I am just an excuse."

"No." Xie Moru said seriously, "Please remember, Your Highness, from now on, His Highness's dream is also true."

(End of this chapter)