Chapter 544: "Surprise"

On April 15, on the day when the Gansu Admiral Shi Yide reported that Cewang Alabutan soldiers invaded Hami, Kangxi issued an order, sending 3,000 Manchu soldiers in Xi'an, and 2,000 soldiers from Shaanxi and Gansu Admiral were given. The Gansu Admiral sent troops to Hami to rescue him as appropriate.

The Manchu soldiers who went to Hami to rescue were led by Xi'an General Xi Zhu, the Shaanxi-Ganxi Governor General was led by a deputy general, and the Gansu Governor was led by a green camp.

In addition, Fu Ning'an, the Minister of Personnel, brought ten Manchu guards to the army. In addition to them, there were also ministers and guards from Erut and Barhu who were born in the army, as well as detectives.

At the same time, the imperial court also used the Qinghai Left Wing, Kharkhazak, etc., and ordered each to be prepared for defense.

In just half a day, the court responded to the incident of Cewang Alabutan's soldiers committing Hami.

Several ministers who originally advocated "issuing decrees to reprimand" finally extinguished the sound when they looked at the court.

It seems that there is only one voice left above and below, that is "war".

The princes who squinted their eyes, sniffed their snuffs, and had their big belly shining, their eyes were shining and their chests were involuntarily raised.

Cao Yong stood in the court, watching coldly, but he was surprised in his heart.

After traveling thousands of miles to mobilize troops from Xi'an, it seems that Kangxi was wary of the Western Mongolian tribes. However, he sent ministers and guards from Erut and Barhu, who were born in the family, to come, which was somewhat inconsistent with the court's policy of expelling Mongolia.

When the war broke out, although Cao Yin was a civil servant, he was also worried.

The Erut Junggar tribe was the most stubborn. In the past, Galdan rebelled, and now he personally led the army to fight three times. It took ten years to pacify the northwestern border.

This peaceful year is less than twenty years old, so will the war be set off again?

Back then, after pacifying the Three Feudals, regaining Taiwan, and forcing the withdrawal of the Oros, the powerful generals were tempered and their morale was upright. Now, after more than ten years of luxurious life, how can we expect those eight-banner playboys who like to carry cages and hold birds to go to the battlefield for blood?

Nowadays, there are already elderly emperors.

Although his eyes were still so sharp, his body inevitably aging.

The emperor is old and his reserve is empty. If the border period is in chaos, there will be no one who can take charge of the overall situation. How can it not be worrying?

Although the troops were dispatched this time, although the troops were sent to the northwest soldiers and Qianliang was served by Xi'an Governor Yongtai, the Ministry of War was also very disturbed.

When the court meeting came back, several officials returned to the ministry and summoned their subordinates, and they talked about the preparations for war.

Although there was no order from above to prepare for war, they did not dare to take it lightly in their posts. They immediately clutched and understood the soldiers and generals in the northwest, and then became familiar with the border supply routes, etc.

In this case, when Kangxi thinks of asking, they will know what to do. Otherwise, a foolish hat will cause some hindrance to come out.

Compared with the Ministry of Revenue and Taipu Temple, the biggest difference between the Ministry of War is that there are many bannermen. Officials from the Eight Banners of Manchu, Eight Banners of Mongolia, and Eight Banners of Han Army account for 80% of the officials above and below, while ordinary officials account for only a small number.

Although Cao Yong had the rank of a gentle prince, the officials of the Ministry of War did not see it much.

Military and national affairs are the top priority. Most of the officials who can serve here are from Manchu noble families.

Cao Yong was demoted from a government official to a doctor in the Ministry of War. Many people were waiting to see jokes, and some people even expected to see this prince-in-law being defeated.

Cao Yong was not a foolish person. After a half month in the Ministry of War, he was mostly used to understand his own affairs and refused to say too much to others. Even those who wanted to give him a warning could not catch his braid.

With Nersu's relationship, it's not easy for others to be too deliberate, so they had to leave it alone.

Speaking of the reports from various departments of the Ministry of War, the lack of horses in the Eight Banners ranch was also a major incident. Yin Tebu, the Minister of War, frowned and looked at Cao Yong, but could not speak.

He had already known this in his mind, and for this reason, he, the Secretary of State, was also implicated. However, Cao Yong took office for half a month, so he could not blame him for this matter.

Cao Yong was not worried about the ranch. Even if Kangxi had prepared for war, the national treasury was empty and it was impossible to send troops on a large scale.

Now, in addition to the Northwest Eight Banners and Green Camp soldiers ordered to be sent today, is it time for the Mongols to be the turn?

Before it was time to fall, Cao Yong heard that someone was looking for him outside.

When he left the yamen, Cao Song came up in his guard costume.

"Isn't it Xu Mu?" Cao Yong calculated the days in his heart, and said a little strangely, "This is... leaving Beijing..."

Cao Song nodded vigorously and said, "Well, I just received the news from the guards. My younger brother has already cleaned up. Now I will meet with Master Fu in the Ministry of Personnel."

Cao Song's face was not as joking as before, but with a bit of perseverance in his solemnity.

It takes thousands of miles to travel to Lanzhou and Hami, and you can imagine the hard work.

Although Cao Yong didn't care about it, he didn't show it on his face. After all, he was a young man in his twenties, and it was inevitable that he would go out to experience the ups and downs. If he was his mother-in-law, he would have been restrained and lost his temper.

He thought about it and ordered Xiaoman to take his mount over.

This is a yellow-fat horse, and it was brought by the Mongolian prince Sukhbaru from the wild horse group when Cao Yong first took over his entourage in the 48th year of the Kangxi reign.

When he was a little foal, Cao Yong transferred Baoya to him. He didn't expect to grow extremely tall for a few years. When Baoya got married, he did not bring the horse, but asked his sister-in-law to send it back to Cao Yong.

Cao Yong's original mount was infected with horse disease after going out of the mouth in the first month of the year, so he changed to this yellow-fat horse to ride.

Cao Yong touched the horse's neck, handed the reins to Cao Song, and said, "It's not convenient to call the horses at the post station, and ordinary horses cannot support this far road. This horse plus your mount, it's almost done if you change it."

Cao Song hesitated for a moment and asked, "Brother, I've used it for me, what do you use for my brother?"

Cao Yong smiled and said, "It's just a transportation service. Which horse can't be used at home? This is a Mongolian wild horse. It has good footwork and is not ripped off. You should be able to control it." As he said, he looked up at the sky, waved his hand, and said, "Go quickly, so that it won't delay the hard work of other adults. Don't worry at home, your brother and sister are sensible, and we are still there, so you don't have to worry about it."

Cao Song nodded and took Cao Yong's horse with his elders.

"Slow down..." Cao Yong called out loudly.

Cao Song stopped and turned around.

Cao Yong originally wanted to say that the war was dangerous and told him to be careful, but when he said that the words were right, he thought that these guards wanted to protect the Minister of Personnel in the Central Army and would not fight to the front line.

He changed his mouth and said, "Talk less and do more, don't be reckless. If you don't understand, please ask your older colleagues more."

Cao Song responded solemnly and then got on his horse and left.

Cao Yong had not cared about this war before as if he was watching a show. Now that Cao Song has gone, he can no longer relax.

The troops dispatched this time were only thousands of people. These people rushed to Hami, and they were already exhausted. How could they defeat the fierce Eruts?

Cao Yong is completely unfamiliar with this history.

He only remembers that two or three years later, Cewang Alabutan led his troops to occupy Tibet, and the Qing army was dispatched, and the 14th prince became the "General King".

Before this, Cao Yong didn't know how Cewang Alabutan was trying to do it. Should he be glued up in the war, retreated to the Tianshan Mountains, or seeking peace from the court...

Although he lived for two lifetimes, Cao Yong lived in peaceful times. He was curious about war, but he was more unfamiliar with it.

With all kinds of doubts, Cao Yong returned home and saw the old butler coming forward and said, "Uncle, the master just ordered me to come back and go to the study to speak." As he said, he handed over the famous post and went up to him: "Thirteenth Master also sent someone to send the famous post over, saying that there was something to discuss, so please go over."

Cao Yong received the famous post and nodded, "I understand."

The foreign goods shop that the Thirteenth Prince is going to open was originally scheduled to open on April 18 this month. In just two or three days, it was time to open. I wonder if it was for this.

Wang Quantai has already joined the account opening of the Thirteenth Prince's Mansion.

It was said that Wang Quantai agreed to be a member of the banner after accepting the suggestion of his wife Zheng. For outsiders, it would be really unhappy to be able to join the prince's mansion.

Although Wang Quantai has also been in the officialdom, he is still as honest as a Shandong man and is unwilling to flatter and serve the powerful.

The Thirteenth Prince is different. He is the person Cao Yong treats him differently. Although the Thirteenth Prince does not have a title and is not valued by the current superiors, his life experience is unpredictable. Who can guarantee what tomorrow will be like?

The couple is not convinced by the Thirteenth Prince, but they believe in Cao Yong's vision.

The Thirteenth Prince looked at Wang Quanta with pleasure, and was very moved when he saw that the other party was willing to stay at his disciple.

In the four or five years of branch office, this was the first time he had acquired a disciple except for the first time the Office of the Interior was the Thirteenth Prince.

It happened that his eldest son Hong Tung was six years old. When it was time to enlightenment, the Thirteenth Prince asked Wang Quantai to be Hong Tung's riding and shooting master.

The Thirteenth Prince was the Prime Minister in charge of national affairs in the future. Wang Quantai did not avoid it because of his temporary loss of power, and his future prospects were considered to be settled, which was a coincidence.

When he arrived at the study, Mr. Zhuang was there, and he was talking about the war with Cao Yin.

Seeing Cao Yong come back, Mr. Zhuang nodded, and Cao Yinze pointed to the chair next to him and asked him to sit down and talk.

"How about the Ministry of War? But they are in charge of fighting?" Cao Yin asked for a moment.

"That's true. When it comes to military merits, everyone's eyes are lit. Look at this meaning, no one hopes that Xi Zhu can win, and they all want to make a big noise!" Cao Yong replied.

"Northwest..." Cao Yin's eyes lit up, then dimmed again, sighed, and said to Cao Yong: "I was so passionate in my early years. Because I went to Jiangnan, I was extremely regretful that I could not fight with the Emperor. This war is not just a war. Once the war moves, the turmoil in all directions is not a blessing for the country."

Mr. Zhuang rubbed his beard and looked at Cao Yong and said, "It's okay to say anything else. If the war really starts, this money is urgently needed. The decree that Furuo had received before is more and more careful this time. If it is common for many years, even if you fail to fulfill the decree, Long Live will not care about you. With military affairs, Furuo must be extra careful to avoid being vented."

Cao Yong also thought of this, so he felt quite heavy.

However, he did not want the two parents to worry, so he smiled and said, "Don't worry, sir, I have already had a rough idea. Even if I don't think about anything else, I will always complete it. Even if there are shortcomings, I have some private production capacity just in case, sir, don't worry!"

Mr. Zhuang's expression was a little slow and said, "It's good that you know the importance. Since you rely on the Ministry of Internal Affairs to make money, you can let go. It's really not possible. It's better to think of a few more ways to accumulate. Even if there are unexpected things, you can get some other gains."

Cao Yong nodded and responded. Cao Yin looked at the post in his hand and said, "I heard that Thirteenth Master is looking for you, then you can change your clothes! It's getting dark, go and go back early, so that your mother won't worry about you."

"Yeah!" Cao Yong responded, got up and left with Mr. Zhuang, and went back to the inner house.

In the study, Cao Yin and Mr. Zhuang couldn't feel at all relaxed.

Cao Yin sighed and said, "'The king is worried about his ministers' hard work, and the king is humiliated and dies'. The Cao family has received the kindness of the Lord of Longsheng for several generations, and cannot repay him even if he is broken into pieces. The Lord of Longsheng is the most powerful. Although he insists on holding on at the court meeting today, he still doesn't know what the situation is."

Mr. Zhuang is different from Cao Yin. He has only respect for Kangxi and cannot be as caring as Cao Yin as he is.

"Sir, please be content. Although the Eruts are fierce, today is different from the past. Not to mention the Oros people who helped the fire, the Mongolian tribes in the northwest have just surrendered, and the borders are unstable. Long live the grace. The powerful and noble tribes in the Mongolian tribes are used to a comfortable and luxurious life. No one will be willing to give up their power and continue the bumpy and displaced battle life." Mr. Zhuang comforted with a smile.

Cao Yin smiled bitterly on his face, rubbed his eyebrows, and said, "Although he is worried about military affairs, the root cause is not on military affairs. To be honest, I am a little worried about Yong'er!"

Mr. Zhuang smiled and said, "Is it to earn money for the inner treasury? Look at Furuo's meaning, I already have plans in my heart, so I'm at ease."

Cao Yin shook his head and looked up to Mr. Zhuang, "Xia Qing, you are Mr. Yong'er. You have been by his side for many years. Didn't you see that he is inappropriate? Although he is purely filial, he does not have the will of loyalty to the emperor and patriotism. Even though the border chaos is on the rise today, even Cao Song is shared with the enemy and has the ambition to serve the country. Yong'er seems to be out of the matter, without any blood." At the end of his speech, he frowned: "He is the future head of the Cao family. Although he is indifferent to fame and fortune, if he passes, he doesn't know whether it is a blessing or a disaster."
To be continued...