Ming Empire

89 Ransomware
It is already the beginning of March in the 15th year of Chongzhen, and the north has also come to the warm spring. The grass is sprouting, the willow branches are green, and it looks full of vitality.However, Cao Yue, as the chief military officer of Datong, didn't have any time and mood to enjoy the beauty of Datong.

Li Yan's army was only a hundred miles away from Datong, and Liu Zongmin's army directly bypassed Taiyuan and rushed towards Datong. Only a few troops were sent to harass Taiyuan, and it was only two hundred miles away from Datong.The war was about to break out, Cao Yue didn't dare to be careless.

After working in Datong for half a year, Cao Yue won the approval of Wei Daben, the prefect of Datong, and Zhang An, the governor of Datong, with his ability and decisive character. He was not like other places in Datong. It can be said that his opinion is the most important.

Of course, this has something to do with his identity as the quasi-consort and the power of the Shang Fang sword in his hand.

Originally very prejudiced against Cao Yue, and almost clashed with the acting king Zhu Chuanqi, he was frightened when he heard that an army of 10,000+ bandits was coming to attack Datong.He can only pin all his hopes on Cao Yue, because all his wealth is in Datong, and if Datong is not guaranteed, everything will be over for him.Therefore, he no longer acted condescendingly in front of Cao Yue, and even went to Cao Yue's camp to encourage him personally.

When Zhu Daiqi came to Cao Yue's Xingyuan, Wei Daben, the magistrate of Datong, and Zhang An, the guard eunuch, were present. They came to discuss with Cao Yue how to resist the siege of the rogues.Cao Yue is still quite confident about whether he can defend Datong City and repel the bandits.

But now he is worried about a few issues, that is, money, grain and military pay.The salary of Datong's [-] troops is basically raised by himself, and the same is true for food.With his hard work, he can cope with it for the time being.But now it is early spring, it can be said that it is a time when the crops are in short supply, and it is a bit difficult to raise food.Cao Yue didn't know how long it would take for the war to stop, and whether Datong would be besieged by bandits.

More food must be raised to avoid food shortages due to unexpected circumstances, which will be very troublesome.

Wei Daben originally suggested whether to invite the Dai Wang to come over to discuss together. Although the court stipulated that the vassal king should not interfere with local military and political affairs, the Dai Wang is a member of the royal family anyway, so it is not good not to consult his opinion on such a major matter.Moreover, Dai Wang's family has a lot of property, so he can be mobilized to donate some.Cao Yue was not interested in paying attention to Zhu Chuanqi at first, and did not intend to send someone to invite him.However, Wei Daben's proposal still made him interested, and he thought about finding an opportunity to squeeze some money and food out of Zhu Chuanqi's pocket.

It was a bit surprising that Zhu Chuanqi came to visit in person, without an invitation.Zhu Chuanqi came today, probably because the bandits are about to attack Datong.Cao Yue also immediately thought of taking this opportunity to give the vassal a good shot.

His Royal Highness Dai Wang, who has a big family and a big business, must be worried that the bandits will break into the city, so he can use this to make him bleed.

"General Cao, I heard that 10,000+ bandits are going to detour to attack Datong, what should I do?" Zhu Chuanqi did not hide his worry at all, and directly expressed his fear, "10,000+ bandits are the main force of the Datong defenders. Several times, maybe there will be follow-up rogue reinforcements, Cao Zongbing, can you find out with this king, can you hold Datong City?"

Cao Yue and Wei Daben glanced at each other, and they both saw contempt in each other's eyes.This acting king came in such a hurry to ask such a question, how can anyone answer it?Why didn't the guy ask if his help was needed?

"Your Highness, please don't worry. The fighting power of the bandits is not as strong as that of Jiannu, and Datong City is extremely strong. As long as the soldiers and people in the city work together to fight against the bandits, it will not be difficult to defend Datong City." Seeing Zhu Chuanqi's expression after hearing his words After a little relief, Cao Yue immediately said: "However, what I fear most is the long-term siege of Jiannu. In that case, we will have no reinforcements outside, so it will be difficult to deal with it."

Cao Yue's last words raised Zhu Chuanqi's heart, "Then what should I do?"

"Today, I am discussing with Mr. Wei and Eunuch Zhang how to defend against the enemy. After our discussion, we found that Datong is now in the midst of a crisis, and there is not enough military food in the city. If the rogues besiege for a long time, there will be a shortage of food. Also, Since the establishment of the Datong New Army, the imperial court has not paid enough money, and the humble officials are worried that after the rogues besiege the city, the morale of the army will be unstable, and there may be chaos." Cao Yue said, sighing heavily, and then said: "Just now The humble staff is discussing with Mr. Wei and Eunuch Zhang about military supplies, and the discussion has not yet come to a conclusion!"

When Wei Daben and Zhang An heard what Cao Yue said, they immediately understood that Cao Yue was going to ask Zhu Chuanqi for money.Just now Cao Yue suggested that he hoped that His Royal Highness, who had a rich family, would donate some money and food.Now that Cao Yue and Zhu Chuanqi were complaining, they made it clear that they were going to ask for money and food directly from His Royal Highness.

Hearing what Cao Yue said, Zhu Chuanqi also immediately understood Cao Yue's intentions, and immediately followed Cao Yue's words and said: "The king understands Cao Zongbing's meaning, and the treasury must be empty now, and Long Live Lord does not have enough money and food to supply the Datong Army. .How about this way, this king will go to the memorial ceremony with a few adults to ask for money and food, and the court should give some!"

Cao Yue secretly scolded the old fox, Zhu Chuanqi pretended to be confused, so he could only clarify his words, "The intention of acting as the king is very good, but the distance can't solve the near fire, and it will take a lot of time to come and go. , and it is difficult to guarantee that the payment will be made in a timely manner. Just now, after discussing with several adults, I decided to solicit some money and food from the wealthy households in Datong City. I and several adults are going to take the lead in donating, and I hope His Royal Highness can help raise some member."

Hearing that Cao Yue made such a clear request, Zhu Chuanqi immediately lowered his face, but he didn't get angry immediately, but said very tactfully: "Cao Zongbing, I don't want to hide it, this king has always been content with the status quo, and I haven't made a living in these years." , relying on the salary of the imperial court, it is very difficult to support a large family, and I really don’t have the ability to donate money and food. How about this? Take it as a little wish from this king.”

"100 taels of silver?" Cao Yue, who probably owned Zhu Chuanqi's family business, was almost amused. This is to send beggars.He said unceremoniously at the moment: "His Royal Highness is really an iron cock. Are you planning to donate all your family property to the rogues as their military pay? I have found out that the reason why the rogues came to attack Datong was to The wealth of His Royal Highness Dai Wang came. Everyone is saying that His Royal Highness Dai Wang’s family business alone can support 10 horses. The war is approaching, and the bandits are about to invade the city, but His Highness Dai Wang took 100 taels of silver Come to fool us, it seems that he really wants to donate his family property to the rogues as a military salary, and he will report this matter to the imperial court in Japan."

Cao Yue's words immediately annoyed Zhu Chuanqi. He didn't expect that this little guy would threaten him, King Pan, so blatantly, asking for money and food. This is too much.

(End of this chapter)