After hearing what Zhao Junchen said, Zhang Shengde had a complicated expression, with both guilt and helplessness. He was silent for a moment, and then sighed: "Whatever the imperial envoy wants to know, just ask, and I will answer everything you know."
Zhao Junchen said slowly: "I want to know everything, especially the details about Wang Gong, Governor Wang Zheng's aide, and the appeasement plan proposed by Wang Gong. This is why I arrived in Shaanxi and Gansu.
Come... Also, just to make the Mongols retreat, they have to give away the court's disaster relief food and 100,000 victims to the Mongols. I think Governor Zhang is not a timid person, why would he agree to this?
Appeasement plan?”
Zhang Shengde shook his head and smiled bitterly: "To be honest with you, the imperial envoy, I also know that this plan is too selfish and cruel. No matter how much I criticize and criticize it, it is not an exaggeration. But there is really no other way. The more I understand the current situation of Shaanxi-Gansu border defense,
The more they tend to be weak and compromise... Since March of this year, the invasions of the Mongolian tribes have continued one after another, and the casualties of the border troops have increased. The entire Shaanxi-Gansu border has been exhausted to the extreme, morale has become increasingly sluggish, and deserters have become increasingly common.
More and more...
Imperial Envoy, you may not know how corrupt the Shaanxi-Gansu border has become. The figures in the account books are 350,000 military households and 80,000 recruited soldiers, but the actual strength of the troops is less than half, and the remaining
The quotas are all free of charge... and because of the frequent fighting this year, the casualties and deserters in the border army have increased, and the number of troops has become increasingly insufficient, especially among the military households in major military towns, with only some old and weak people left.
Sick and disabled, completely without fighting ability.
Sir, don't look at it. The cavalry of Shanxi Town and Guyuan Town did not lose at all in the battle with the Mongols this year. They even had the advantage of more sophisticated armor and more brave performance. However, the cavalry of Shanxi Town are all private soldiers of Shanxi Commander-in-Chief Niu Lu.
Soldiers and Guyuan town cavalry are all private soldiers of Guyuan general Zhang Dashou. They are all the most elite soldiers in the two military towns. If they are ordinary army town soldiers, after encountering these Mongolian cavalry, let alone outnumber them.
, even with twice the troop strength advantage, victory may not be guaranteed!
Some time ago, Xianguan went to live temporarily in a military fort under Guyuan Military Town. There were originally thirty military households in that military fort, but in fact there were only thirteen people left, seven of whom were already
There is one person who is over forty and is old enough to know his destiny, and two others have disabled hands and feet. Only four of them are still capable of fighting, but their morale is low and there is no hope at all! And the situation of this military fort is
, this is the common current situation in Shaanxi and Gansu!"
After hearing Zhang Shengde's complaint, Zhao Junchen did not interrupt. He just listened quietly and motioned for Zhang Shengde to continue speaking.
Seeing Zhao Junchen's signal, Zhang Shengde's wry smile became heavier, and he shook his head again and said: "Two months ago, when I learned about the sudden appearance and strong military power of the Junggar Khanate, I was so shocked and shocked.
Forget about despair! The Mongolian tribes that appeared in the early stage were just the defeated generals of the Junggar Khanate, but these defeated generals have already caused misery to the three sides of Shaanxi and Gansu. Today, the three sides of Shaanxi and Gansu have no fighting power, but
The real hard battle really began. After discovering this, Xiaguan had tossing and turning for several days in a row, racking his brains to turn the tide, but he still had no solution.
In fact, after the news of the emergence of the Junggar Khanate spread, it soon caused great panic on the three sides of Shaanxi and Gansu. Not to mention ordinary border troops, even the upper-level generals in the military town were seeking
There is no way to retreat, and there is no courage and confidence to resist. In this case, how can we count on them?
The situation this year is particularly severe. Due to the continuous invasion by Mongolian tribes, most of the villages on the border have been plundered. And due to successive years of disasters, people outside the city have fled. Therefore, once the Junggar Khanate begins
Invading, if you want to find food for the winter, you may have to attack the city! The Mongols are not good at attacking cities, but now the three sides of Shaanxi and Gansu do not even have the confidence to defend the city. The imperial court has not lost a city for decades.
, once the Mongols break the city, things will get out of hand, and no one dares to bear the consequences!
Therefore, after Governor Wang Zheng's staff proposed this plan, several frontier officials in Shaanxi and Gansu hesitated for a long time before they all agreed. Several military towns in Shanxi were funded by Shanxi merchants, and the situation was worse than that of the Shaanxi-Gansu army.
The town is much better. Zhang Xun, the governor of Shanxi, is willing to participate in this plan. I am afraid he just wants to retire and return to his hometown safely. However, the reason why several feudal officials in Shaanxi and Gansu support this plan is because they have no choice but to do so.
Abandoning the car to save the handsome man!"
After listening to Zhang Shengde's long speech of complaints and helplessness, Zhao Junchen's expression remained unchanged, and he just asked slowly: "So, you forgot your responsibilities as guardians of the land and herdsmen, and gave away the court's disaster relief food and the 100,000 victims.
Sue for peace with the Mongols? You said that you were just forced to do your best to distance yourself from the relationship, but this plan was promoted by you personally, so how could you separate the relationship? You just encountered some crises and difficulties, and you chose to sacrifice the people to save yourself.
, why should the court reuse officials like you? Where is your responsibility as a parent official? "
After Zhang Shengde was silent for a moment, he knelt down in front of Zhao Junchen, bowed his head and said: "I also know that I am guilty of a serious crime, and I will let the imperial envoy punish me. What I said just now is just to explain to the imperial envoy the relationship between Shaanxi and Gansu."
It’s just a rotten status quo, and I don’t dare to defend myself.”
Zhao Junchen looked at Zhang Shengde quietly for a moment, then slowly said: "You just talked about the current situation and difficulties of Shaanxi and Gansu. I also want to know more information, such as the situation in Governor Wang Zheng's Mansion.
Wang Gong, a staff member, and the Wang family to which Wang Gong belongs... This time Wang Gong arranged for the Mongols to enter the country and intercept and kill me. This matter must not be left alone!"
This time Wang Gong arranged for Mongolian cavalry to enter the country to intercept and kill Zhao Junchen, and almost killed Zhang Shengde as well, so Zhang Shengde naturally would not cover up anything for Wang Gong, and immediately told all the information he knew: "Wang Gong is
It was after Governor Wang Zheng took office that he took the initiative to work under Governor Wang Zheng. This man was not very old and had just entered his thirties, but he was known for his talent and had always thought highly of himself.
After contacting this person, I thought that this person was quite powerful and that he would do whatever it took to achieve his goals. He had always been afraid of him. His methods were also very clever and he easily gained the trust of Governor Wang Zheng. Now he has vague control over the three cities.
Border situation...
As for the Wang family, they are one of the best merchant families in Shaanxi and Gansu. They have always been engaged in border business and have extremely rich financial resources. Even compared to those Shanxi merchants, they are not inferior to those of Shanxi merchants, or even worse. Today, the Wang family has a long name.
His name is Wang Ming, and he is Wang Gong's brother. The reason why Wang Gong can control the overall situation of Shaanxi and Gansu is largely due to Wang Ming's support."
Zhao Junchen nodded thoughtfully, and then sneered: "The Wang family started from border trade, which means that their business targets are the Mongols... In this way, Wang Gong's plan may not be
For the sake of the Ming Dynasty, maybe just so that his Mongolian masters can easily obtain large sums of food, grass and slaves, you are still willing to support his plan, it is really ridiculous!"
Hearing Zhao Junchen's sarcasm, Zhang Shengde did not answer, but remained silent.
After Zhao Junchen took a deep look at Zhang Shengde, he said: "Your performance today is pretty good. Now is the time to employ people. I don't want to make a big fight, but I am also willing to give you another chance to make meritorious deeds...According to the
According to your statement, the Shaanxi-Gansu border has been completely corrupted, so this imperial envoy must take over all matters on the Shaanxi-Gansu border with full authority, not only to resist the invasion of the Mongolian Tatars, but also to reverse the corrupt status quo of the Shaanxi-Gansu border in one fell swoop.
!...Are you willing to support this imperial envoy?"
Zhang Shengde did not immediately express his support. He just raised his head and asked Zhao Junchen: "In addition to asking for peace from the Mongols, does the imperial envoy have any other strategies to resist?"
Zhao Junchen said with a serious face: "Not yet, but that doesn't mean there won't be in the future! I only know one thing! Even if you want to seek peace with the Mongols, you must not use this method! Compromise in exchange for peace,
Then there will be no peace, and the enemy will press forward step by step, and he will be despised in his heart! Only by seeking peace through struggle can peace be stable! Even if I want to seek peace with the Mongols, I must fight a battle first to defeat the Mongols.
Don’t worry until the person is beaten until it hurts! Maybe, after the beating, it’s not us asking for peace from the Mongols, but the Mongols taking the initiative to ask for peace from us!”
After hearing what Zhao Junchen said, Zhang Shengde's body shook slightly.
"If you exchange for compromise for peace, peace will not exist; if you seek peace through struggle, peace will be stable..." After murmuring and repeating Zhao Junchen's statement, Zhang Shengde gritted his teeth and said to Zhao Junchen: "Since the Imperial Envoy has such a
If you have great ambitions, then I will accompany the imperial envoy to fight for once! From now on, regarding all matters concerning Shaanxi and Gansu, I will only obey the imperial envoy!"
After seeing Zhang Shengde's statement, Zhao Junchen looked satisfied, stretched out his hand to help Zhang Shengde, and said: "Since Governor Zhang is willing to support this imperial envoy, the matter will be much simpler. The most important thing now is...
Let’s liquidate the Wang family! Whether it’s for today’s revenge or to control the situation in Shaanxi and Gansu, the Wang family must not be allowed to stay! This matter needs to be discussed in detail between you and me before we can be foolproof..."
Zhang Shengde nodded and was about to say something when he suddenly saw Mao Jiadong coming back in a hurry.
After arriving in front of Zhao Junchen, Mao Jiadong reported to Zhao Junchen: "Your Majesty the Imperial Envoy, news came from the reconnaissance cavalry that reinforcements from the nearby guard station have finally arrived, totaling 500 people."
Zhao Junchen nodded, looked up to the west, and said, "In that case, with the protection of these people, we can continue on our way!"