I'm really afraid of what will happen... Xiaopang was anxious, "Does the Emperor want to conquer it himself?"
Yu Qian was startled for a moment and shook his head slightly, "The emperor did not say that he would personally conquer the country. He just asked His Highness the Crown Prince and Li Shangshu to go to the imperial study to discuss matters."
"Let's go!" Li Qing was very calm. He had participated in Zhu Di's two previous personal expeditions. Tatar and Oara suffered serious setbacks. They could not threaten the Ming Dynasty in such a short period of time.
~
When they arrived at the Imperial Study Room, Xia Yuanji from the household department and Jian Yi from the official department had already arrived. Both of them looked ugly, and Zhu Di also had a bad face. Obviously, the three of them had broken up.
When Zhu Di saw the two coming over, he got straight to the point: "What do you think of the Tatar invaders?"
Li Qing glanced at Xiaopang, who shook his head slightly, indicating that he should speak first.
"beat!"
Li Qing's words were concise and concise, giving Zhu Di the answer he wanted.
Jian Yi and Xia Yuanji hurriedly said: "We can't fight!"
When Zhu Di, who had just started to look happy, heard this, his expression turned gloomy again, "How can I not fight?"
"Not enough money."
“Not worth it.”
The two of them spoke one after another.
Zhu Di looked at Xia Yuanji coldly and said, "Treasury expenditures have been greatly reduced in recent years, and you told me that I have no money?
Can I not know whether there is money in the treasury?"
His tone turned cold, "Do you think I can be bullied?"
Xia Yuanji was stunned and quickly changed the subject: "Your Majesty, the treasury expenditure has been reduced in recent years, but new crops will be planted in the Ming Dynasty. Just in case, it is necessary to set aside money and food to deal with the risk of failure in planting new crops;
Also, planting new crops requires a large number of manpower and support from local governments. It is necessary to train planting experts and teach people planting experience... all of which require money and food."
Jian Yi cupped his hands and said, "I second your opinion!
The Ming Dynasty had strong city walls and powerful cannons, so why attack them?
As long as we stick to the city wall, it is impossible for the Tatars to invade, and the imperial court can achieve maximum results at the minimum cost by simply waiting for work."
Zhu Di sneered, looked at the elder, and said in a strange tone: "Prince, do you mean this too?"
"My son..." the little fat man said sarcastically, "Father, it is clear to me that my father is old and it is not suitable to fight in person to protect the dragon body. Even if we really need to fight, we can just send a general."
"Haha." Zhu Di looked at Li Qing and the three ministers with a smile, "The prince is trying to point me out, but also... I, it's time to move away."
Although he was smiling, there was no smile on his face.
"Father, that's not what I mean." Xiaopang quickly leaned over and saluted, feeling anxious, angry, and aggrieved.
"Do you understand what I mean?" Zhu Di hummed, and then pointed to Jian Yi and Xia Yuanji, "Don't think that I don't know what you are thinking. I wish that I would return to the west as soon as possible and let the prince take the throne for your benefit."
"emperor……"
The two of them were horrified and quickly knelt down and bowed their heads, "I never meant this."
Zhu Di sneered again and again, not giving him any face, "I must fight this battle."
"Li Qing!"
"I'm here!"
"Instructions are given to order Shan.dong, Shan.xi, Liaodong... to select elites and gather in Beijing within two months. Later, they will go out to attack Arutai."
"I obey." Li Qing bowed his hand.
Jian Yi and Xia Yuanji played again: "Your Majesty, think twice."
"I have thought twice about it," Zhu Di said lightly, "If you have any further words, please step aside!"
…
The Yamen of the Ministry of War, the back hall.
"Master Shangshu, does the emperor really want to go to war in person?" Yu Qian asked.
"Well, I have finished delivering the order." Li Qing nodded.
"Alas..." Yu Qian sighed and stopped talking.
Li Qing smiled and said, "Just say whatever you have to say, don't worry about anything."
Yu Qian hesitated for a moment, then cupped his hands and said, "The lower official thinks that there is no need to go on an expedition. The Tatars can't invade at all. The emperor's own expedition is really... a waste of people and money."
"You only know one thing but not the other. It is true that you are right, but many things cannot be judged by their appearance." Li Qing sighed and asked, "What kind of person do you think the emperor is?"
Can this be said... Yu Qian was startled and thought about it: "He is a man of great talent and great strategy, and he is wise and powerful."
Li Qing smiled and said, "There is no one else here. What you say can be heard in my mouth."
"Your Majesty has made outstanding achievements, but it is too much work for the people and money." Yu Qian added.
"The so-called wasting money and wasting people is just what the civil servants said." Li Qing shook his head, "Don't just believe the rumors among the people. The Yongle Dynasty spent a lot of money, conquering Jiaozhi in the south, and conquering Mobei three times, including two expeditions by the emperor himself.
, an army of half a million people went out for battle each time;
Building the Grand Canal, compiling the Yongle Grand Canon, and building the city of Beijing... Throughout the ages, which emperor has spent as much money as the current emperor?
But did the Ming Dynasty die?
Can the people really not survive?"
Yu Qian was speechless, cupped his hands and said, "Please give me some advice, Shangshu."
"The Ming Dynasty is rich!" Li Qingdao said, "The Ming Dynasty's money was all exploited from the rich gentry, and most of the officials came from aristocratic families, which caused discord between the emperor and his ministers."
"But...does this have anything to do with the expedition?"
"Of course there is." Li Qing sighed, "If the officials and gentry refuse to obey, they will definitely create chaos, force the emperor to make concessions, burn down the weaving bureau, burn down the three main halls, block the canal, and Tang Sai'er's uprising... are all written by the officials and gentry;
The energy of these people is too great. If it is not curbed in time, the Ming Dynasty will be in chaos;
If you want to prevent the officials and gentry from causing trouble, you can only control the army and centralize power by controlling the army to control the situation;
In fact, as the emperor gets older, his authority is not what it used to be, and he is no longer very effective in speaking."
Yu Qian said calmly, "Isn't this... right?"
"You will understand in the future." Li Qing smiled bitterly, "The emperor is not the one who keeps his word, and those ministers who speak sharply and remonstrate are not all loyal to the emperor. Most of the time, they are just for profit."
Yu Qian still didn't believe it, and Li Qing didn't explain it anymore. He would understand all these things after he stayed in the officialdom for two years.
…
It didn't take two years at all. In just one day, Yu Qian saw the power of the civil service group.
There are four ministers from the Ministry of Personnel, Ministry of Punishment, Ministry of Works, and Ministry of Household Affairs, and eight ministers; Hanlin bachelors, censors from the Imperial Procuratorate, cabinet ministers, and officials... Wu Yang Yang kneels at the palace gate.
Please ask the emperor to put the people first and put the people first, and give up personal conquest.
If it weren't for Li Qing's words, Yu Qian would have felt that they were extremely loyal and thinking about the people of the world.
But now...he somewhat doubts the true purpose of this group of people.
The emperor and his ministers were at odds, and the emperor wanted to control the court by controlling the army... Yu Qian thought of Li Qing's words, looked at the officials who couldn't kneel, and thought to himself: "Could these people be like this just to prevent the emperor from controlling the army?"
, thus weakening the imperial power?"
But the ministers were all loyal and upright, and Yu Qian felt that he had thought too badly of his colleagues.
Let's see... Yu Qian thought so and did not participate.
~
The ministers could not kneel down and said: For the sake of the Ming Dynasty and the country, if the emperor does not take back his order, I will kneel and die here.
Zhu Di said: Then you can just kneel down and die.
However, the ministers were not good at it and immediately carried forward the old tradition of civil servants.
——Criticize the emperor!
Why did the peasants revolt in Shandong?
The people's resistance to your tyranny!
Why did Taizu send down thunder as a warning?
I’m dissatisfied with you moving the capital!
Why did the Tatars come to invade the border?
It's the result of you putting Kyoto in a dangerous position!
All in all, all in all, it's all your fault, the emperor, and it's all the fault of moving the capital...
The ministers made impassioned speeches, especially Yan Guan, all of whom spat and scolded Zhu Di for nothing.
If you can, beat me to death. Anyway, I can get a good reputation. As long as you are not afraid of leaving a bad reputation, just do it... This is their psychological portrayal.
Since the Tang Dynasty, every Han emperor has been scolded, especially after Song Taizu, it was even more common for emperors to be scolded.
Because, this dear friend has set a rule: you cannot kill officials who advise you, especially officials, and you will kill them for unknown reasons!
Of course, his intention was good, and he wanted the emperor to accept his advice, but this also became a source of confidence for the officials.
Even Lao Zhu has been scolded by officials, so imagine how rampant these people are.
Zhu Yuanzhang killed many officials, but rarely killed officials. Even if he did, he would always find other reasons, not just because he was scolded.
This is also their confidence!
What's more, if the law does not punish everyone, if all the ministers and ministers are scolding them, how can you kill them all?
It really can't.
Although Zhu Di was very angry, he also knew the importance of the situation. The situation was unstable now. If the civil servants were involved again, chaos would really break out.
He has broken the rules and tasted the consequences of breaking the rules. He also knows the consequences of cutting off all these ministers, ministers, doctors, and censors...
However, Zhu Di was not helpless.
For the crime of neglecting government affairs, one month's salary was deducted from all the officials who knelt in the palace. He also said: If you don't handle government affairs for one day, one month's salary will be deducted!
Aren’t you saying that the treasury has no money?
Well, don’t take the salary, let’s see who can’t stand it first!