Chapter 11 The Son of Heaven Summons Lu Xiangsheng
Just when Zhang Cheng was thinking wildly, a group of cavalry, numbering about a hundred in number, was galloping on the official road from Changping to Deshengmen in Beijing.
The horses they were riding on were all steeds, sometimes galloping, sometimes reining in a slow gallop, so that the sweating horses could rest.
The sound of horses' hooves tapping the ground is particularly loud in the newly frosted and dark countryside, just like a violent rainstorm, which often causes barking of dogs in the villages passing by on the way.
, one after another.
The frightened village guards hid in dark corners and looked towards the official road with bewildered faces, wondering if the Tartars had come to raid at night, until the loud sound of horse hooves on the ground gradually faded away.
Only when they were far away did their hanging hearts calm down.
The man in the middle of this group of knights is about forty years old, with a fair face and a thin body. He is riding a dark purple horse. This man is Lu Xiangsheng, the governor of Xuanda, and his beloved horse.
Wumingji.
It turned out that the governor Lu Xiangsheng, who had worked hard all day and was tired from running around, was about to go to bed when he suddenly received a report from the gatekeeper, saying that an official from the imperial court, Yang Ge, the Minister of War, had sent to see him.
Lu Xiangsheng immediately summoned the visitor and found out that he was the Minister of War. Yang Sichang, the cabinet minister, urged him to go to Beijing overnight, saying that His Majesty the Emperor would summon him alone on the platform tomorrow morning.
After receiving this news, Lu Xiangsheng was extremely excited, and the gloom and fatigue of the past few days were immediately swept away. He thought that the emperor was eager to summon him because he wanted to fight the Tartars, and wanted to ask him about the war guard's countermeasures.
He quickly ordered the servant Gu Xian beside him: "Quickly change your clothes with me."
Then he ordered hurriedly: "Quickly go and order the horses to be prepared!"
After everything was ready, he took his servant Gu Xian and others, as well as a hundred bodyguards, and braved the freezing night wind to rush to Beijing overnight.
Riding his horse on the way to Deshengmen in the north of Beijing, Lu Xiangsheng was still planning in his mind how to fight a bloody battle with the Tartars who broke in through the breach, and how to deal with the current emperor when he was summoned on the platform tomorrow morning.
Ask questions.
When Lu Xiangsheng drove past the ruins of Dadu in the Yuan Dynasty, known as the "Jimen Smoke Tree", he vaguely heard a wailing sound coming from the shack in the distance, which suddenly reminded him of his old father who passed away not long ago.
, a feeling of sadness came over my heart, and I couldn't help but shed tears.
When he arrived in front of Desheng Gate, he called the guards and opened the Desheng Gate. Lu Xiangsheng led a group of people straight to his mansion in the capital. It was already the middle of the night.
At this moment, a number of people were gathering in the residence of Lu Xiangsheng, the governor of Xuanda, almost all of whom were Lu Xiangsheng's official friends in Beijing. They knew that Lu Xiangsheng would definitely come to Beijing tonight, so they gathered here to wait for him, hoping that he would come to Beijing.
Before Lu Xiangsheng went to see the emperor, he conveyed everyone's inner thoughts and the recent public opinion in Beijing to him. They hoped that Lu Xiangsheng would resolutely lead the battle in front of the emperor and denounced the Minister of War, the cabinet minister Yang Sichang and the internal eunuch.
The despicable act of trying to make peace with others.
…
On the third night of October in the 11th year of Chongzhen reign of the Ming Dynasty, it was midnight.
Lu Xiangsheng, the governor of Xuanda, had just entered Beijing on horseback. In the living room of his mansion in the city, he was chatting with some friends who were officials in Beijing.
Of course, the court officials who could still gather around Governor Lu Xiangsheng so late at night must be those who actively advocated fighting the Tartars to the death.
After Lu Xiangsheng was seated securely, his friend Yang Tinglin, the censor of the Duchayuan and a native of Qingjiang in the south of the Yangtze River, said excitedly: "Nine elders, please forgive me for speaking bluntly. Mr. Lu is now the hope of the subjects and people of the world. If he is against the Tatars
If you don’t fight tooth and nail to negotiate for the money, how will the people of the capital view you? How will future generations judge you? I beg you, Mr. Lu, not to let down the loyal ministers and righteous people in the world!"
"Masters, please don't worry." After hearing Yang Tinglin's words just now, Lu Xiangsheng was not only a little excited, he stood up, clasped his hands into fists, and said in a choked voice: "With this ominous body, Xiangsheng was summoned to the capital.
King Qin, if I can die in battle and be wrapped in horse leather, that is exactly what I want. I will definitely not be greedy for life and afraid of death. I will not dare to fight hard in front of you. I will disappoint the expectations of the people of the capital and be despised by all generations!"
Everyone in Lu Xiangsheng's mansion continued to chat for a while about the war and defense of the Tartar invasion and the current situation in the capital. Everyone knew that Lu Xiangsheng had been busy and tired for the past few days, and he would have to get up early to go to the palace to pay homage to the current emperor tomorrow, and he was afraid of sitting down.
It has been too long, and it is not good for everyone to report to the Dongchang investigators who are all over the place. Although the Dongchang has been vigorously reorganized and abolished, it has not been completely abolished, but it is not as good as before.
It was just rampant, so after talking for a while, everyone got up and left.
After everyone left, his family member Gu Xian quickly helped Lu Xiangsheng go to bed to rest. Before going to bed, Lu Xiangsheng specially told him to wake him up before the fifth watch.
…
After breakfast, Lu Xiangsheng began to dress. Even if he entered the palace to meet the current emperor, he still had to put on mourning clothes and a white linen net scarf on the inside. He had just put on the second-grade civil servant court clothes on the outside and a gauze hat on his head.
Just as they were all dressed up, Minister of War and Cabinet Minister Yang Sichang rushed over. Naturally, the two of them were polite, and Yang Sichang rode towards the imperial city with Lu Xiangsheng.
On the way, Lu Xiangsheng, the governor, asked tentatively: "Now that the Donglu troops have arrived at the city, there are rumors that the court is still in uncertainty about war. I don't know what the emperor's intention is?"
"The Holy Master has called us to the platform today just to listen to a high-level discussion." Yang Sichang answered vaguely and vaguely.
Lu Xiangsheng still refused to give up and continued to ask: "My father is now in the position of auxiliary minister, and the holy family is prosperous. I don't know what the elder's intention is?"
Yang Sichang hesitated for a moment after hearing this, and then continued to say perfunctorily: "Students also take the lead in the battle."
"That's good!" Lu Xiangsheng heard Yang Sichang's words and was very happy to have him.
At this time, Yang Sichang continued: "However, the enemy forces are very strong now, so we must still be cautious. There is no guarantee of victory in the battle."
Lu Xiangsheng heard this and replied loudly: "As long as the emperor and ministers of the imperial court work together, encourage the soldiers, and the troops and horses of King Qin come from all directions, they can be put to use. As long as the enemy's situation is slightly weakened, they will retreat."
Seeing that Yang Sichang had no reaction, Lu Xiangsheng continued: "In the eyes of students, the only way to repay God's grace is to fight to the death to defeat the enemy!"
Yang Sichang did not answer at this moment, and the two of them rode in silence to the right gate of Chang'an on the west side of Chengtian Gate, dismounted, and entered the imperial city on foot.
Yang Sichang and Lu Xiangsheng sat in the court hall, waiting for the eunuch next to the emperor to come and summon him. Yang Sichang no longer mentioned the Tartar invasion, and Lu Xiangsheng was inconvenient to mention it again. The two of them talked about some recent events in the court.
Things got chatty.
The governor Lu Xiangsheng and the cabinet minister Yang Sichang had been chatting for about a meal when a young eunuch came out and read out the oral edict of Emperor Chongzhen: "It is said that Lu Xiangsheng hasten to the platform to see the emperor."
After receiving the order, Lu Xiangsheng hurriedly said goodbye to his cabinet minister Yang Sichang, and followed the young eunuch towards the palace.