eldest son of Ming dynasty

Chapter 950 Great Loyalty and Righteousness

Chapter 950 Great Loyalty and Righteousness

Zhu Houzhao just thought that there was nothing important in the country and that the situation was stable everywhere. He even went down to the people to observe their sentiments. But he received this urgent military report halfway.

Speaking of which, after Emperor Taizong conquered Annan, he established the Jiaozhi Provincial Administration here, which had jurisdiction over 15 prefectures, 36 states, and more than 180 counties. Its ruling area was roughly the area north of 17 degrees north latitude in present-day Vietnam.

However, this administrative region existed for only more than 20 years before being abandoned by Emperor Xuande.

This is certainly one of his major crimes.

This crime not only resulted in the loss of the territory left to him by his grandfather, but also caused trouble to Zhu Houzhao.

The reason why Emperor Xuande gave up Annan was, firstly, because it was one of the countries that Zhu Yuanzhang listed as not to be conquered, so he had this basis; secondly, the local rule of Jiaozhi Provincial Administration was not smart, which led to constant rebellions, and the Ming army was defeated later, which led Xuande to believe that "the area has been in turmoil for several years, and the royal army has been repeatedly sent to the area", so he had the idea of ​​abandoning it.

Although Zhang Fu and other ministers in the court strongly opposed it, the Three Yangs went with the flow and finally formally abolished the Jiaozhi Provincial Administration in the third year of Xuande, which was exactly 100 years ago.

And the trouble he brought to Zhu Houzhao,

He is the ancestor, and since the ancestor made this choice, later generations have reason to emulate Xuande.

No matter how powerful Zhu Houzhao was, he could not possibly use the surname Zhu to scold his ancestors. Such a treasonous king is unimaginable to the world.

So he was prepared to listen to all these useless nonsense from the ministers after returning to Nanjing.

It's not very useful. The only real use it has is that it makes him angry.

The emperor did not return to the palace until the next day. When he arrived, he immediately issued an edict, ordering all the important officials who accompanied him to enter the palace.

Zhu Houzhao wore a formal dragon robe and a hat and was waiting for them in the palace.

"My dear ministers, I have received two military reports in the past few days." He held everything in his hands. "One is a report from Xinjiang Governor Wang Xian. In July of the 22nd year of Zhengde, Xinjiang General Han Shierlang led 60,000 elite cavalry to defeat 17 tribes of the Kazakh Khanate on the banks of the Ili River, and continued to march westward to attack the Kazakh Tahir Khan. I think it won't be long before Yi Bohai will return to our Ming Dynasty."

Gu Renyi took the lead in kneeling, "Congratulations to the Emperor for this unprecedented achievement!"

"It is indeed a great achievement. Jiang Yong, how much money did the Ministry of Revenue spend?"

"Your Majesty, we have allocated more than 23 million silver dollars for this expedition against the Kazakh Khanate. If we want to complete the entire operation, the amount may be more than 50 million."

Now the Ming Dynasty has changed its name to Yuan from top to bottom.

Fifty million is approximately the original five million taels of silver. Although there are still fluctuations in the currency value, this is the overall regulatory target of the Ming Dynasty and the error is within an acceptable range.

As for the balance in the Ministry of Revenue, it is over 300 million.

It was these things that gave Zhu Houzhao the confidence to send troops to fight in such a distant place.

"This is one of the good news. The other one is not so happy. You can take a look at it."

You Zhi stepped forward to take it, and then passed it down.

When the ministers saw this, their expressions changed.

"Your Majesty, I think this matter happened suddenly. You should immediately ask people to make inquiries from various sources to understand the specific situation before making plans." Wang Tingxiang said immediately.

"I second the proposal."

Jiang Yong and Jiang Mian also followed.

Zhu Houzhao did not even wait for what the Prime Minister Gu Renyi wanted to say, and said directly, "If we want to uphold justice as a supreme ruler, we naturally cannot decide the court's policy based on the words of the Guangxi governor. However, if we want to raise an army to attack, this one word is enough."

Gu Renyi asked, "As the saying goes, if the name is not right, then the words will not flow, and if the words are not flowing, then the matter will not be accomplished. I wonder what name Your Majesty wants to use to send troops?"

"All land under heaven belongs to the king, and all the people are his subjects. Annan was once the territory conquered by Emperor Taizong. What other reason do I need to conquer it?" He then said with great vigor and enthusiasm: "I will not only conquer Annan, but also send a capable minister to govern it well, so that the people there can live in peace and there will be no war! Eventually it will become the inherent territory of our Ming Dynasty!"

"But……"

"No need to but." The emperor pinched his waist and raised his eyebrows and said, "The land of our ancestors cannot be given to others. This is my bottom line. When governing the world, benevolence comes first. I understand this principle. Don't worry, I will implement benevolence there after we conquer it."

He actually didn't know.

When this incident happened in history, Emperor Jiajing also stationed troops at Zhennan Pass and re-established the post of Annan Governor-General.

If he really turns a blind eye, he would be worse than the old alchemist.

Gu Renyi still wanted to fight for it. "Your Majesty, more conquests not only waste the people's wealth, but also cause countless casualties. And our dynasty has already conquered Japan, Luzon, and the Kazakh Khanate. In just a few years, the military has been intensive. I am worried that decades of national strength will be wasted, and your Majesty's efforts will be in vain."

He sounded serious, but in fact these countries were all small. This was different from Emperor Wu of Han who concentrated all his forces to fight the Huns. The Huns had such a strong national force that of course people's livelihood would be devastated in the end.

If it were some other small-time country, there would be no need for that. General Daoqi could send out troops to deal with them all at once.

This is where Zhu Houzhao's good luck lies. He is the crown prince of Emperor Hongzhi. He has no obstacles at home and no strong enemies outside. He has been emperor for more than 20 years and after he has restored order, he should have achieved success.

"Lord Gu, I don't want to debate with you about the saint's views on war. There are naturally disadvantages and advantages to a country starting a war. I know and understand that, but the same is true for not starting a war.

Now the Ming Treaty has been in effect for less than three years, and if it is to be truly implemented, it must rely on the power of the Celestial Empire. If the Annan Kingdom changes and the Ming Dynasty does not respond, the vassal states will certainly have all kinds of thoughts, and when the time comes, there will be wars everywhere, which will be a real trouble.

Moreover, I say today that the suzerain state must not be afraid of war. The moment it starts to be afraid, no matter how grand the banquet is, it is the beginning of the end. I am confident that this sentence can stand the test of thousands of years of history. "

This is how the emperor's attitude towards war changed after the 22nd year of Zhengde.

In fact, he might have reasons to say so. For example, Annan was close to the border and internal disputes would affect Guangxi and the stability of Southeast Asia. At least business would not be able to be done there. Even since Mo Dengyong was an ambitious person, he might even invade Champa in the south.

But the emperor didn't mention any of these reasons.

In fact, the real reason behind this was that he saw the rise of the cotton textile industry and the emergence of plantations and slaves in China, which indicated that the Ming Dynasty's capitalist road had begun, so it was always eager for markets.

In the eyes of his subjects, the emperor had reached the peak of his civil and military achievements and began to use the power of the country, just like all the previous emperors. How many countries did the Tang Dynasty destroy during its heyday? You can't count them with two hands. Do all of them need reasons?

This kind of emperor's pioneering and enterprising spirit is unstoppable.

He ordered the Ministry of Revenue to start preparing money and the Ministry of War to start requisitioning food, firearms and horses. Once the order was delivered to the Grand Council, how could the army not move?

Otherwise, what's the point of calling him an emperor with real power?

As for the opposition from scholars and literati, that is their business.

Others said that this was called political pressure, but Zhu Houzhao didn't care about it. In the end, Gu Renyi had to obediently write a manifesto for him to fight against the enemy!

In this way, the state machinery began to move.

But things that followed were also troublesome. One of the problems was that the southern part was mostly composed of garrison troops, and there were no large military regions like Xinjiang, Hetao and the Beijing Garrison District, which meant a lack of top combat power.

It is also not advisable to transfer troops from the north.

The long journey is not the main issue; the key point is that northerners are not suited to the southern climate.

this point is very important.

The generals who lead the troops into battle must also be carefully selected.

After three days,

The emperor summoned them again to discuss specific matters.

Zhang Jing, the Minister of War, said: "Guangxi has 100,000 mountains, and the north and northwest of Annan are also high and steep. Such terrain is not suitable for large-scale elite cavalry to charge quickly, and the many mountain roads make it difficult to supply. The court can store more ammunition and artillery shells, but the preparation time is too short, so the quantity is bound to be limited, and once they are used up, there is a possibility of shortage."

Of course, the materials can be transported by the crazy people who don't care about the cost. But destroying such a small country needs to consider the cost. To be honest, if it weren't for Japan, Zhu Houzhao would not be so willing to mobilize 100,000 troops at once.

This time, there is no need to do so in the case of Annan.

"In addition, since the early years of the Zhengde era, the Army Academy has conducted a lot of research on how to fight Mongolian cavalry inside and outside the Great Wall. Our soldiers are also better at this, but as for how to command and deploy troops in the mountains and dense forests... there are not many generals with this experience."

"What Minister Zhang said makes sense, but it also lacks some logic."

The person who said this was Wang Shouren.

"Oh? I don't know what's wrong?"

Wang Shouren bowed to the emperor and then said: "The object of comparison for Minister Zhang is the Ming army fighting outside the Great Wall. In order to eliminate the enemy in the north, the emperor worked hard for several years and finally achieved something. In this way, whether it is the supply of food and horses, or the talents of soldiers and generals, we can reach the invincible situation today.

But the comparison between the two is meaningless. This time our army is not going to fight against the northern border troops, but the rebels led by Mo Dengyong. Do they have the strength of our Ming Northern Army? "

Zhu Houzhao nodded, thinking that it made sense. Now everyone is used to fighting wars of abundance, and suddenly turning back to fight a war with restrictive conditions will make people worried about everything.

"Annan is a small country with few people, and it is also a time of turmoil caused by powerful ministers. Morale is probably not high. On the contrary, the situation in our Ming Dynasty is just the opposite. The emperor has worked hard to govern the country, and the country is at its peak. He wants to go to war with us, and first of all, he has such pressure. He knows that he may win once or twice, but can he say that he can eventually fight against the Ming Dynasty? Even if he says it, he believes it, but will those under him believe it? If not, what will be his fate?"

Many people came to their senses after hearing this.

Wang Shouren immediately reported to the emperor, "Your Majesty, I think that if this war is to be launched, it must be quick, while the new dynasty is not yet stable and the people's hearts are not settled, and the army must be attacked. If they fail, they will surely collapse. Do not delay preparations. Even if there are not enough firearms, it is okay to use spears and swords. As for how to arrange the march and formation in a mountainous and dense forest environment, this is a tactical issue. I have a man who is very good at this, and I would like to recommend him to Your Majesty."

Zhu Houzhao laughed, "Okay, okay, tell me where such a talented person is hiding."

"Your Majesty, the person I want to recommend is Wang Shouren, the Earl of Xinjian, who was personally appointed by the Emperor."

Recommend yourself?

Not only Zhu Houzhao, but also Gu Renyi, Wang Tingxiang and others changed their expressions.

"I once fought against bandits in Fujian and Jiangxi, which are mountainous and hilly areas, so I think I can handle this important task!"

Zhu Houzhao instinctively wanted to refuse, "But you are not in good health, and it is not appropriate to send troops on a long expedition."

"Your Majesty, this is wrong." Wang Shouren said stubbornly, "The emperor should put the country and the people first, how can he be disturbed by personal feelings? Does your Majesty think that the life and death of one minister is more important than the life and death of millions of civilians and soldiers, and that the survival of one minister is more important than the survival of the Ming Dynasty?"

Zhu Houzhao's heart ached at this, and he said in a light tone, "I just think that the small country of Annan doesn't need to act like it's facing a great enemy."

This is wrong.

Gu Renyi said immediately: "Your Majesty, even a lion will use all its strength to fight a rabbit. Moreover, the military is a major issue for a country, a matter of life and death, a matter of survival and destruction, and it is something that must be carefully considered. If you allow your army to be arrogant, it will be too late to regret it in the future!"

Wang Shouren pleaded again, "Your Majesty, please make the decision!"

His words, filled with great loyalty and righteousness, shocked everyone present, including Zhu Houzhao.

(End of this chapter)