This world has not experienced the chaotic times of the late Ming and early Qing Dynasties. The population size is close to that of the mid-Qing Dynasty, and the capital is naturally very lively. The several city gates are usually busy with traffic, and there is an endless stream of people going in and out.
This time the imperial court welcomed Zhao Junchen with great fanfare, which had the advantage of saving the time of queuing up when entering the city.
Of course, it doesn't save much time.
When Zhao Junchen's team arrived at the West City Gate, they immediately encountered a second welcoming team. This welcoming team was mainly composed of common people, merchants, and scholars, but it brought together representatives from all walks of life in the capital.
According to the leader of this team, they spontaneously organized to welcome Zhao Junchen purely because they admired and admired Zhao Junchen's great achievements during this period.
Their formation to welcome Zhao Junchen was also huge, with loud gongs and drums, firecrackers, and various gifts given to Zhao Junchen by representatives from all walks of life, forcing Zhao Junchen to accept them in person. Naturally, there was a fuss.
What a big movement.
When the team finally entered the capital, Zhao Junchen raised his hand to lift the side curtain of the sedan and quietly observed the scene outside the sedan.
At this time, the surrounding scene was very lively. Countless people crowded on both sides of the road, vying to witness the scene of Zhao Junchen entering the city and the palace. Many people were excited, and from time to time there would be loud cheers; the Imperial Guards and soldiers
They formed a human wall, trying hard to maintain order on the scene, blocking all the people on both sides of the road, for fear that the people would rush into the road and disturb Zhao Junchen.
Zhao Junchen still remembers the scene when he returned to the capital after exterminating locusts last year.
At that time, Zhao Junchen was just a notorious minister of household affairs, and had not yet begun to form a party, so naturally not many people paid attention to Zhao Junchen's return to the capital.
Because of the congestion in front of the city gate, Zhao Junchen's carriage was forced to wait for a long time. However, Xu Qingyan was a little impatient and shouted loudly, "The carriage of Mr. Zhao, the Minister of Household Affairs, is here, everyone should make way quickly."
His words immediately caused a flurry of excitement among the people, and everyone scrambled to get out of the way with expressions of fear and hatred.
The expressions of fear and hatred on the part of the common people were still vivid in their minds, and Zhao Junchen was determined to reverse his reputation in the government and the opposition.
Today, just over a year later, Zhao Junchen's plan has obviously been successful.
Because of the lively scene before entering the city, the common people already knew the news of Zhao Junchen's return to the capital. They also knew that the reason why the government offices restricted access to the city gates and drove away the nearby people was to welcome Zhao Junchen's triumphant return.
The reason for returning to Beijing.
However, not many people resented Zhao Junchen for interfering with their normal lives. Instead, they rushed to witness the scene of Zhao Junchen returning to the capital and entering the palace. Many people could not help but express reverence and excitement after seeing Zhao Junchen sitting in a sedan chair.
state.
As the people watched, loud shouts such as "Master Zhao is a great hero" and "Mr. Zhao Ge is a great hero" would be heard from time to time. Whenever such a call was made, a large number of people would respond.
In such a scene, it is not an exaggeration to say that "everyone is expecting a return" and "the streets are cheering"!
Seeing this situation, Zhao Junchen's expression was a little emotional.
"It seems that the storytelling guild I secretly formed has indeed played a role during this period. For the people in the capital, whether it is to completely annihilate the Mongolian coalition forces or to recapture the Hetao, it is a very distant thing. It is just a matter of time.
It's just an anecdote. If it weren't for the propaganda and momentum created by the Storytellers Guild, the common people would never understand the true meaning of these things. They would never regard me as a hero, nor would they be so respectful and excited after seeing me!
The world is always forgetful, and lies become the truth after being told thousands of times. Therefore, it is often so simple to control people's hearts! In just one year, most of my energy was invested in the place where the flies are trying to control the dogs.
I just did a few good things and put more energy into publicity and publicity, and then I changed from a corrupt official with a bad reputation to a selfless Qingtian!
So, it doesn’t matter how many things you have done. The key is to let people see that you have done something. Building momentum and publicity is the key..."
While thinking secretly, Zhao Junchen frowned slightly and thought again: "However, this situation will soon reach the ears of Emperor Deqing, and I am afraid he will become even more wary of me. He is
They absolutely don’t want to see me improve my reputation. They will definitely use various means to suppress me in the future, but it is also a headache... From this point of view, it is inevitable to resign due to illness!
Also, the welcoming team in front of the city gate was also extremely strange! If they had not greeted me with great fanfare, the people would not have known about my return to the capital today, and Emperor Deqing would not have paid attention so quickly.
To improve my public reputation!
The emergence of this welcoming team must be caused by someone hiding behind the scenes! You know, even the central court only received the news that I was returning to Beijing early this morning. It is impossible for people from all walks of life in the capital to respond in time.
The city gates have been controlled and no common people are allowed to enter or leave. If there is no one behind this welcoming team, it will never appear in front of me... And the person behind the scenes is probably the seventh prince Zhu Hejian, but Zhou Shangjing also has
Suspicion..."
Thinking of this, Zhao Junchen couldn't help but raise his hands and rub both sides of his forehead.
Just after returning to the capital, before Zhao Junchen could make any move, various forces in the temple had already prepared one trap after another for Zhao Junchen, but it gave Zhao Junchen a headache.
Not far away from Zhao Junchen's sedan chair, the seventh prince Zhu Hejian was still following him on horseback.
In fact, given Zhu Hejian's identity, he should have traveled in a sedan chair. However, in order to prove that his body had recovered, he did not miss any publicity opportunity. Even if his legs and feet were weak, he was unwilling to abandon the horse.
Riding in a sedan chair is just to let everyone see your energetic side.
At this time, after seeing Zhao Junchen lift the side curtain of the sedan and silently observing the people's reaction, Zhu Hejian drove his horse to the side of Zhao Junchen's sedan and said with a smile: "Zhao Gechen's great achievements and illustrious military exploits have long been spread throughout the world.
All the people from all walks of life in the capital admire and regard Zhao Gechen as a hero! Many people have already compared Zhao Gechen with Yu Shaobao, Mr. Yangming and others back then!"
Zhao Junchen sighed softly, shook his head and said: "How can I dare to stand side by side with these ancestors? This statement is too exaggerated. Once it is spread, won't it make people laugh? This is simply flattering me!"
Zhu Hejian seemed to have completely failed to understand Zhao Junchen's profound meaning. Instead, he said with a serious expression: "I think there is no exaggeration in this statement! Of course, Yu Shaobao and Mr. Yangming were famous officials in the previous dynasty, both civil and military.
Shuang Quan also had great achievements in turning the tide, but when they were as young as Zhao Gechen, their achievements were far inferior!
Zhao Gechen, you don’t have to belittle yourself. Let’s not talk about your illustrious military exploits this time. In recent years, our government’s money and food turnover and various restructurings, how can any of them be without Zhao Gechen’s contribution? With Zhao Gechen’s age, he can at least assist the Ming Dynasty.
Thirty to fifty years later, his achievements will only increase in the future, and he will definitely become a famous official who will be remembered for generations. By that time, it is natural that Zhao Gechen's achievements far exceed those of these predecessors!"
As he spoke, Zhu Hejian slightly emphasized the words "at least he can assist the Ming Dynasty for thirty to fifty years", but he hinted that he would still reuse Zhao Junchen after he ascended the throne.
Zhao Junchen seemed to have a look of longing on his face, and then shook his head again and sighed: "I hope so... If the king treats his ministers as his brothers and feet, then his ministers will treat him as his heart and soul! As long as the court and your majesty trust me and use me, how dare I
Is it because I don’t try my best? I have never hoped that my achievements can surpass those of Shaobao, Mr. Yangming and other seniors. I only hope that after I retire, I can have a clear conscience!"
Zhao Junchen's words were also full of hints, indicating that he did not have much ambition. As long as the emperors were willing to trust him and reuse him, he would serve the court loyally.
In this way, in order to reassure each other, the two of them told lies with sincere expressions that they did not believe, and at the same time they did not believe the other's statement at all.
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And just as Zhao Junchen and Zhu Hejian were playing tricks on each other, pretending to be submissive, the Forbidden City had already appeared far away at the end of the road.
*
When Zhao Junchen entered Beijing and entered the palace, Emperor Deqing and the court officials were not just waiting for Zhao Junchen's audience.
In fact, during this period of time, the government affairs at the center of the imperial court were quite heavy. Emperor Deqing and all the officials in the imperial court were unable to take time off. There were a lot of things that needed to be dealt with every day, and there were also many important things that needed to be discussed during the court meetings.
Emperor Deqing and his officials were busy mostly because the imperial court sent troops to regain the Hetao.
Just before Zhao Junchen returned to the capital, the imperial court had received a quick report of victory from Huamachi Camp, saying that the Shaanxi-Gansu army had broken through the royal tent of the Ordos tribe and captured nine Mongolians including Qiyan, the leader of the Mongolian right-wing alliance.
The tribal leaders also captured countless prisoners of war and supplies.
This is obviously an exciting victory, with great significance and far-reaching impact, no less than Zhao Junchen's record of annihilating one hundred thousand troops of the Mongolian coalition some time ago!
What's more, Zhao Junchen's illustrious military exploits in annihilating the Mongolian coalition were ultimately just a passive defense, but this time he captured the royal tent of the Ordos tribe, but he took the initiative to attack, which is even more inspiring!
Of course, without Zhao Junchen's record of annihilating the Mongolian coalition, the imperial court would not have had the chance to send troops to regain the Hetao. In future history books, these two great victories will definitely be written together in a special book, and will be scrutinized by future generations.
Praise.
This is of course a good thing. Emperor Deqing was also in a great mood, as if he had seen his historical status soar!
However, Emperor Deqing's excitement and joy did not last long. Just yesterday evening, he once again received an urgent message from Huamachi Camp!
This urgent report is no longer a report of victory, but a request for help in an emergency!
It turned out that on the third day after Zhao Junchen left Huamachi Camp, the main force of the Mongolian right wing chasing the Junggar army finally made an emergency withdrawal and returned to the Hetao Plain.
Then, the Ming Dynasty army that entered the Hetao Plain was met with a crazy counterattack by the Mongolian right-wing army!
During this period, both the Ming Dynasty army and the Mongolian cavalry were in decline and lost the glory of their ancestors. Every year when the two armies fought, it would not be an exaggeration to say that they were worse than each other, and their combat power was evenly matched.
However, the Ming Dynasty army and the Mongolian cavalry each had their own strengths. The Ming Dynasty army was stronger than infantry and city defenders, while the Mongolian cavalry was stronger than mounted archery and mobility.
In this way, due to the overall environment of the Hetao Plain, the Ming Dynasty army undoubtedly used short attacks to attack the Mongolian cavalry when they fought. However, they fell completely at a disadvantage in just two days. Not only did the soldiers suffer heavy losses, but even just now
The Ordos tribe king's tent that he had captured was also lost.
After receiving such news, Emperor Deqing's joy was immediately wiped away. He quickly summoned the court officials to discuss countermeasures and urged reinforcements from all walks of life to enter the Hetao area as soon as possible for support.
At the same time, all the major government offices in the imperial court were busy and chaotic in order to support the Hetao war.
However, although it is busy and busy, the achievements of the major yamen are hard to describe.
The most important thing is that in the past two days, the Household Department, which has always performed well, is still suspected of being lagging behind. It has been unable to mobilize food and military pay to support the Hetao War Zone. The work progress is obviously behind compared with other yamen!
Of course, Emperor Deqing must also be blamed for Hubu's poor performance.
Seeing that Zhao Junchen's power and reputation had soared, Emperor Deqing couldn't wait to suppress Zhao Junchen's cronies. The Ministry of Household Affairs had always been Zhao Junchen's favorite, and during this period, it became Emperor Deqing's key purge target.
, a large number of officials of the Ministry of Household Affairs have either been transferred away or have been convicted. The officials who have recently joined the Ministry of Household Affairs are not familiar with the operation of the Ministry of Household Affairs. It can be said that now is the most chaotic time for the Ministry of Household Affairs. They are just maintaining normal operations.
It's all a bit difficult, let alone a heavy responsibility.
As the saying goes, "Food and fodder must go before the soldiers and horses are moved." Seeing that the war ahead is unfavorable, the court has not yet prepared the food, fodder, and military pay. If this continues, the war ahead will inevitably worsen.
Seeing this situation, Emperor Deqing was extremely anxious!
This morning, while Emperor Deqing and the officials were waiting for Zhao Junchen to appear, they were also urgently discussing the situation of the Hetao war.
However, the capital was too far away from Huamachi Camp. Emperor Deqing and his officials could not receive news from the battlefield in time, nor could they clearly understand the changes in the battlefield. When the emperor and his ministers discussed it, they could not come up with many feasible solutions.
However, many times we can only act in a hurry!
Just when Emperor Deqing thought that all the officials were incompetent and couldn't help but want to get angry, Zhao Junchen finally went to the palace to see him.
After receiving the news that Zhao Junchen came to the palace to pay an audience, Emperor Deqing was immediately overjoyed.
Zhao Junchen had just returned to Huamachi Camp from Shaanxi and Gansu. The imperial court's plan to regain the Hetao was also formulated by Zhao Junchen. Emperor Deqing believed that Zhao Junchen must be able to make effective suggestions!
The most important thing is that the Household Department is now in a mess, and Zhao Junchen needs to take command to get the Household Department back on track!
Therefore, Emperor Deqing quickly summoned Zhao Junchen into the Hall of Supreme Harmony for an audience.
However, after seeing Zhao Junchen entering the Hall of Supreme Harmony, Emperor Deqing couldn't help being stunned!