Today is the day for Zhu Hengjia’s early morning court session.
There were no rules for the early dynasty of the Ming Dynasty, and it was based on the emperor's preference. Emperor Taizu and Chongzhen were diligent and had one dynasty every day; Emperor Wanli was lazy and did not go to court for thirty years. He hid in the palace to criticize memorials and still managed the government affairs properly.
Correct.
Zhu Hengjia was afraid of getting a bad reputation for being "neglectful in government", so he ordered the government to do it once a day.
However, there are some changes in the time and cycle of the previous dynasty.
In the colder days of the lunar month, the court meetings in the past started at three o'clock in the morning and were divided into major court, lunar court and regular court (morning court, noon court and evening court).
Zhu Hengjia was unhappy that he could not get up to go to court so early. With a stroke of a pen, he changed the date to go to court at 7:43 pm.
From the Han Dynasty to the Sui Dynasty, officials could have one day off from work after going to court every five days. In the Ming Dynasty, there was no such rule, and officials handled official business every day.
Zhu Hengjia was very distressed and worked day and night. What if these loyal ministers were exhausted?
With another stroke of his pen, the old system of Han and Sui Dynasties was restored, with one day off every five days. Of course, there must be rotating officials during the break.
Today is the Chang Dynasty, and there are not many officials here. Officials from the capital are above the sixth rank, and officials from other provinces who come to the capital to report on their duties are from the fourth rank and above. It is said that there are not many, but it is still a green place.
Participation means participation, but it does not mean that everyone can play.
Those who can perform the memorial are generally officials of the fifth rank and above who hold the wat tablet, and they are close to the throne; those below the fifth rank have very few opportunities to directly perform the memorial.
At the first sound of the drum, all the officials lined up according to their rank outside the Meridian Gate (the original Duanli Gate of Jingjiang City was renamed).
The second drum sounds, the civil servants enter from the left Ye gate; the military attaches enter from the right Ye gate, arrive at Fengtian Gate (the original Jingjiang Royal City Chengyun Gate was renamed, behind the Meridian Gate), stand facing each other on both sides of the imperial road and wait. The civil servants enter from the left gate.
, the military attache is in the right class, and the Xunqi class (gong, hou, bo, attached to the horse) is located in front of the military attache class but slightly away.
The third drum sounded, and the deacons of Honglu Temple began to prepare.
The censor in charge of the picket was supervising, and the officials did not dare to breathe. Anyone who coughed, spitted, was crowded or behaved improperly would be recorded and waited to be reported for processing.
Zhu Hengjia arrived at Fengtianmen, and the Bell and Drum Division began to play music. The powerful guards in Jinyi held five umbrella covers and four groups of fans, climbed up the Danqi from the east and west sides, and stood on the left and right behind the throne.
After Zhu Hengjia sat down, he played music, and the mountains shouted that they would live longer.
The praising officer of Honglu Temple kowtowed and shouted "Qian Sui", and all the officials put their hands on their foreheads and shouted "Qian Sui"; the praising official shouted "Shan Hu", and all the officials shouted "Qian Sui" in unison; the praising official shouted "Shan Hu" again,
All the officials shouted "Qian Qian Sui" again in unison.
After finishing, start to salute and play.
The performance is divided into four parts.
The first part: Receive the people entering and leaving Beijing. Honglu Temple officials were the first to go out and report to Zhu Hengjia that they had come to Beijing to express their gratitude. The number of officials who left Beijing to express their gratitude was decided by the Supervisory State whether they would see them or not. If there were foreign envoys, they would basically all see them.
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Part Two: Dealing with urgent matters at the border. "The big one announces the announcement, and the small one makes the announcement. They all announce it in the early dynasty before anything is done, so Zhang Guowei shows off his martial arts."
Part Three: Dealing with general government affairs. Before each official performs his duties, he should "cough in advance" to let other officials hear, so as to avoid confusion and embarrassment caused by two people leaving work at the same time. If there are really two people rushing to leave work
The officials of Honglu Temple will be responsible for guiding the performance.
Part 4: Dealing with officials who misbehaved. After the report was completed, the censor and officials from Honglu Temple went out to report the officials who misbehaved during the early dynasty, and then punished them all.
It sounds terrible. What should the ministers do if they are exhausted after standing at the imperial gate for so long?
Don't worry, major national affairs in the Ming Dynasty were basically handled by the emperor's review and memorials. The early court meeting was just a formality and generally did not last long.
If something really happens, it will take a long time. Don't be afraid, Emperor Yongle has already considered it for his ministers.
In the seventh year of Yongle's reign, it was stipulated that after the Shanhu salute was completed, ministers should go to the reception hall to report something if they had something to do, and return to their respective yamen offices if they had nothing to do.
For some ministers who are highly respected, old and infirm, the emperors will even grant them seats when they live there. Don’t worry, they won’t be tired.
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Zhang Jian, the Right Shaoqing of Honglu Temple, said: "In charge of the country, two officials came to Beijing today. One is Wu Zunzhou, the chief envoy of Jiangxi Province, and the other is Hong Zheng, the envoy of Zhongxiao Bo Zhu Chenggong. Do you want to summon them?"
Although Jin Shengheng surrendered to Zhu Hengjia, he had the intention to separate Jiangxi; Zhu Chenggong refused to surrender at all.
Therefore, Zhu Hengjia, the King of Jing who oversees the country, deliberately met with his envoys when he went to court to let them know what the imperial authority is and that it should not be offended.
"Xuan!"
Zhu Hengjia shouted this word majestically.
Wu Zunzhou and Hong Zheng arrived at the foot of Danqi from the Meridian Gate and Fengtian Gate.
Along the way, I saw the majesty of the palace, and the officials were tight and orderly. "Generals of the Han Dynasty" in armor were lined up between the pillars of the palace gate. On the left and right sides of the royal road and behind the civil and military officials, there were captains standing with swords in their hands.
Wu Zunzhou was originally the shogunate secretary of Jin Shengheng, and Hong Zheng was just a mountain warrior. Neither of them had seen such a scene. They were overwhelmed by the majestic momentum and the vast imperial power.
Zhu Hengjia sat on the golden throne (throne) and opened the Golden Mouth majestically.
Let me first ask Wu Zunzhou: "Wu Qing, you have come to Xijing (Guilin). Do you have anything to report to me?"
This is called asking questions knowingly. The Qing army has entered Nanchang Mansion, why did Jin Shengheng send him here? It must be to ask for help.
Wu Zunzhou cried and begged: "The superintendent of the country, the puppet Qing Dynasty's southern general Tan Tai, has entered Nanchang Prefecture. Please send reinforcements quickly to rescue Nanchang!"
We do have soldiers and horses, but it’s a pity that the treasury is empty and the summer grain is not collected, so we can’t fight alone!
Of course, if you think so, you can’t say that. You have to encourage the civil and military officials in Nanchang.
Zhu Xiangjia said proudly: "I have ordered Yan Zungao to attack Wuchang and contain the Qing army in Wuchang; I have also ordered Li Chengdong, the Marquis of Guangchang, to send troops to rescue Nanchang. Wu Qing, please return to Nanchang immediately and tell Jin Shengheng, Wang Deren, that reinforcements will arrive soon, and they must help."
Defend Nanchang City alone!"
After Wu Zunzhou resigned happily, Zhu Hengjia thought that historically Nanchang City had persisted for more than eight months, which was long enough to wait for the summer grain harvest. This time and space must not change!
"Hong Zheng, Uncle Zhongxiao sent you to see me. What's the matter?"
Zhu Chenggong was reluctant to surrender to Zhu Hengjia, so Zhu Hengjia spoke harshly to his envoy.
This Zhu Chenggong! It’s really worrying!
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Everything has advantages and disadvantages.
Li Chengdong returned to the Ming Dynasty anyway, allowing Zhu Hengjia to regain the entire Guangdong province, but it also made the matter of recruiting Zhu Chenggong into obsolescence.
The Qing government once ordered Zheng Zhilong's old troops to accompany Li Chengdong to attack Guangzhou. Marshal Li treated these Fujian soldiers very badly. He not only used them to charge into battle, but also demoted them as worthless in his memorials to the Qing government. He even sent his general Hao Shangjiu.
Plot to annex them.
After these people returned to Fujian and defected to Zhu Chenggong, they said a lot of bad things about Li Chengdong.
Now that Marshal Li has surrendered to Zhu Hengjia and been granted the title of Marquis, Zhu Chenggong naturally does not want to eat in the same pot as Marshal Li.
Of course, there is a more important reason. Zhu Chenggong is a staunch orthodox. Zhu Hengjia is not a direct descendant of Taizu, so naturally he cannot win his support.
He was also unwilling to submit to Lu Jianguo, whose territory was too close to his, and his cousin Zheng Cai was ambitious, so he submitted to Lu Jianguo for fear of being annexed by Zheng Cai.
An uprising cannot be carried out without a banner, and if the name is not correct, the words will not flow smoothly.
Zhu Chenggong wanted to support Emperor Longwu's younger brother, the Tang King Zhu Yuxuan, to supervise the country. But Zhu Hengjia sealed the Tang King in Nanning, Guangxi, and monitored him under his nose. Overtly and secretly, the Jin Yiwei followers were watching day and night. He wanted to remove the Tang King from
Guangxi receives Fujian, it is more difficult than reaching the sky.
Zhu Chenggong had no choice but to welcome Zhu Shugui, the descendant of the Liao vassal, into Anping City and offer him delicious food and drink.
Zhu Hengjia sighed after learning that Zhu Chenggong welcomed Zhu Shugui into Anping City.
As a time traveler, he knew that King Ning Jing was a tragic figure. Historically, after Zheng Keshuang surrendered to the Qing Dynasty, he and his five concubines hanged themselves to die for the country. He also left a desperate poem: "It is hard to avoid overseas, but always
Just a few stems of hair. Now that this matter is over, I will no longer pick weeping ferns."
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Hong Zheng reported: "There is a famine in the coastal areas of Fujian. A bucket of rice costs nearly a thousand yuan, which is about ten times the normal price. Uncle Zhongxiao sent me to buy grain from the prison country and ask for the prison country's permission."
Zhu Hengjia sneered.
Although I don't have the power to take care of Fujian's affairs for the time being, I know the situation in Fujian clearly. Spending so much money on Jinyiwei every year is not in vain.
After Zhu Chenggong raised his army, the cost of raising troops was huge. Most of his subordinates were navy and gold-eating beasts.
He is short of money. Although the Zheng family's overseas trade has brought huge profits, it is still not enough. They have to impose high land taxes and labor in the areas they occupy. Although this solves an urgent need, it can easily lose the support of the people. There is no way, the power has just risen. , you can only drink poison to quench your thirst.
Not only is there a shortage of money, there is also a shortage of food. In the Quanzhou and Zhangzhou areas of Fujian, food production is not high, so it is necessary to purchase food from other places to make up for the shortage.
However, Chen Tai, the Qing Jingnan general, had entered Fujian and imposed a grain blockade on the rebels. It became increasingly difficult to purchase grain from Jiangsu, Zhejiang, and Fuzhou.
This year, it is even more difficult for him. The grain output in the area he occupied was not high, and there was also a disaster. The price of grain rose to ten times that of previous years.
I have no choice but to buy food from myself.
He controls grain-producing areas such as Hunan, Guangdong, and Annan, and even grain-producing countries such as Annan, Siam, and Champa are all under his influence. There is no shortage of food.
This Zhu Chenggong, despite such difficulties, still refuses to submit to his father, he is really stubborn!
To sell or not to sell? Zhu Hengjia pondered.
Seeing that Zhu Hengjia was silent, Hong Zheng said anxiously: "In charge of the country, Uncle Zhongxiao is willing to pay twice the normal price to buy grain."
Humph, the price of food in Quanzhou and Zhangzhou has risen to ten times the normal level, so why are you giving twice as much?
Continue not to speak.
Hong Zheng was about to cry: "In the supervision of the country, Uncle Zhongxiao is willing to pay three times the price to buy grain. Now the military expenditure is huge, and Uncle Zhongxiao does not have much money. Please help the country in the interest of resisting the Qing Dynasty and restoring the Ming Dynasty. The rebels of Quan Erzhou!"
Zhu Hengjia blushed. He regarded Gu as a profiteer. Gu hesitated not to make money, but because this food was an important military material. If it was given to others, he would have less.
However, officials from the Ministry of Household Affairs said that this year is likely to be a good harvest year. Although the price of grain is high at this time, the summer grain will be cheap as soon as it is harvested. Now the grain is sold to Zhu Chenggong at a high price, and when the summer grain is on the market, he will buy it at a low price. You can make a lot of money, and you can also support the Fujian Rebel Army and create obstacles for the Manchu Qing Dynasty.
This is possible.
Zhu Hengjia figured it out and said to Hong Zheng very politely: "The matter of purchasing grain has been settled. General Hong, after you retire from the court, you can go to the Hubu Yamen and talk to Guan Shangshu about this matter."
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"What! Jin Shengheng and Li Chengdong broke up anyway? Quick, invite Dingxihou and Mr. Huang."
Hearing that Jin Shengheng was in Jiangxi and Li Chengdong had performed righteous acts in Guangdong, Lu Supervisor Zhu Yihai immediately became excited.
During this period, he was under too much pressure.
Originally, he caused a stir in Fujian and Zhejiang, and even once besieged Fuzhou with great momentum.
The first rafter died first, and the Qing court focused on him.
Chen Tai, the general of Jingnan of the Qing Dynasty, led the generals of Mele Zhangjing, Dong Alai, Li Yanling, Li Shutai, Ji Xiha, and Zu Zeyuan to go south to Fujian. After joining the army of Chen Jin, the governor of Zhejiang and Fujian, they launched a massive attack on Lu Supervisor State. Little court.
This Qing prisoner was very cunning and focused on beating him, but he pulled and hit Zhu Chenggong, mainly pulling him.
There was no unity within him, and the founding father Zheng Cai blindly wielded power, framed Zhongliang, and excluded dissidents.
Lu Jianguo ordered Zheng Cai to rescue the rebels in Jian'an, Fu'an and other places many times, but Zheng Caixu responded with no more than the north of Luoyang Bridge.
I had no choice but to ask Zhu Chenggong for help. Zhu Chenggong agreed very well, but neither sent troops nor provided food.
The Qing army fought fiercely. They surrounded Jianning on March 29 and broke the city on the fifth day. Zhu Changhu, the king of Yunxi in the Ming Dynasty, and Wang Qi, the national counselor, etc. died for their country.
In the same month, the main force of the Qing army entered Fuzhou, the provincial capital.
Immediately afterwards, the Qing army stormed Fu'an, Luoyuan, Ningde, Zheng'an in Fujian and Jingning, Qingyuan, Yunhe, Songyang and other counties in Zhejiang. After the defeat, the bachelor Liu Zhongzao committed suicide and died for his country.
Chen Tai's army approached Xiamen, and Lu Jianguo was under great pressure and could not sleep at night.
"Jian Guo, you are the direct bloodline of Taizu. That Jin Shengheng, Li Chengdong did not submit to you, but went to King Jingjiang. Damn it!"
Huang Zongxi was filled with indignation.
"Alas", Zhu Yihai smiled bitterly, "The King of Jingjiang has a vast territory and a vast army. Those who want to find a big tree to rely on are still in troubled times."
Zhang Mingzhen looked happy.
"Once Jiangxi, Guangdong and Jiangxi are in control, the pressure on Fujian will be reduced. As long as Chen Tai's army can be blocked, Fujian's foundation can be defended."
"Zhang Qing, the Jianning and Fu'an rebels who were loyal to Gu have been dispersed. The rest of Xiamen and Kinmen are the forbidden areas of Zheng Cai. Where does Gu have any foundation in Fujian?"
Zhang Mingzhen encouraged Lu Jianguo: "Don't lose heart in the supervision of the country. When Emperor Taizu Gao rebelled against the Yuan Dynasty, he only had a few hundred soldiers. You have tens of thousands of troops, where can you not build a business? The top priority is to preserve your strength and sit back and watch. The success or failure of the battle between the Zheng family and the Tartars".
Zhu Yihai became interested: "Zhang Qing, tell me how to preserve your strength and wait and see whether you succeed or fail?"
Zhang Mingzhen knew it well: "The area around Jiantiao Station on the border of Fujian and Zhejiang can station troops. If the Qing army attacks Xiamen, the Supervisory State can lead troops to garrison here. The Xiamen area is the home base of the Zheng family, and Zhu Chenggong and Zheng Cai will not allow the Qing army to capture Xiamen." The two sides will definitely fight fiercely. You only need to watch the battle. If the Zheng family wins, you can attack Jianning, Funing, and Fuzhou directly from Jiantiao Station; if the Zheng family loses, you can return to Zhoushan and march into eastern Zhejiang. It is you who raise the army in eastern Zhejiang. It’s a place where people’s hearts are turned toward you.”
Zhu Yihai suddenly enlightened and said with great joy: "I have a wise and resourceful person like Zhang Qing, so why worry about failing to accomplish great things!"
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After buying grain from Zhu Hengjia, Zhu Chenggong's confidence greatly increased.
In the past two years, he has expanded his army a lot, but the area occupied is very small.
It’s time to go out and fight some battles and grab some territory. Otherwise, we won’t be able to support so many troops!
On the tenth day of April in the 21st year of Chongzhen reign in the Ming Dynasty, Zhu Chenggong led his generals Hong Xishan, Gan Hui and others to attack Tong'an County, Fujian Province. Qing deputy general Lian Biao and guerrilla Ji Guangqiu led troops out of the city to fight and were defeated. On the 18th, Zheng's army arrived directly at the city. Conquering Tong'an. Zhu Chenggong appointed Ye Yiyun as the magistrate of Tong'an County and Chen Ding as the eunuch, calling on all living beings to revolt and the Qinwang, and advising the people to pay food and wages.
Niu Hulu and Chen Tai were furious after hearing the news. This forty-year-old Manchu warrior with a yellow flag defeated Liu Zhongzao, a scholar of the Lu Supervisor State, and his military force was at its peak. He was preparing to wipe out the remaining troops of the Lu Supervisor State:
Cao Dahao and Zhang Yaoxing from Pinghe County; Zheng Cai from Xinghua Prefecture and Xiamen area; Gu Shichen from Changle and Lianjiang area.
Unexpectedly, Zhu Chenggong actually dared to stroke his tiger beard.
In July, the Qing Jingnan general Chen Tai, the governor of Zhejiang and Fujian Chen Jin and the Fujian admiral Zhao Guozuo sent troops to attack Tong'an.
On August 16, the city was captured. Guards Qiu Jin, Lin Zhuangyou, and Jin Zuoyu were killed in battle. The county magistrate Ye Yiyun ordered Chen Ding to die for his country unyieldingly after he was captured. The Qing soldiers massacred the city and "the ditches were filled with blood."
Zheng Chenggong received an emergency document from Tongan in Tongshan, and the boatmen of the pro-unification brigade came to help. Due to the strong north wind, the ship's movement was blocked, and it took five days to arrive at Kinmen. When the news of the fall of Tongan came, he cried bitterly for the victims and paid tribute in the distance. He returned sadly. Learn from Tongshan.