The Kong family branch, which had migrated to the south as early as the Song Dynasty, was extremely frightened after hearing the news, for fear of being implicated by the main branch and suffering disaster together.
Although they relied on the name of the Kong family, they lived a prosperous and wealthy life, enjoying a transcendent status and treatment in the local area.
But the main branch has been destroyed, and whether their branch exists or not is not a matter of a word from the emperor.
To this end, he spent a lot of money and connections, inquiring about information to find out if he was implicated. At the same time, he also made preparations for the younger members of his family to flee.
But days passed by, and until the entire Kong family in Qufu was raided, nothing happened to them.
And the money and connections spent were finally not in vain, and the emperor was not guilty of his branch.
Until this time, they breathed a sigh of relief, thankful that their branch had long been disconnected from the main branch in Qufu.
Naturally, Zhu Youxiao would not let go of this branch of the Kong family far south.
But now is not the time to liquidate them. The top priority is to eliminate Jiannu and Horqin.
Zhu Youxiao planned this northern expedition for nearly half a year.
Logistics such as grain and grass supplies have also been put in place.
Regarding the defense of the capital, Wang Zaijin, Xu Guangqi and the British public, supplemented by Dongchang, Xichang and Jinyiwei, are also very stable.
The next step is when to send out troops.
To this end, he once again convened a military meeting with the generals of the four major battalions of the Yulin Army, and finally agreed that the time for the expedition would be the first day of May.
This battle will involve all the elite main forces from Xuanfu, Datong, and Liaodong towns. At the same time, he will personally lead 40,000 elite troops of the Yulin Army out of Shanhaiguan and sit in Liaoyang, the capital of Liaodong, to personally deploy and supervise the battle.
The storm was about to come, and news spread like wildfire that the Ming Dynasty would once again launch a large-scale campaign to conquer the slaves and grasslands in the north.
When everyone was still intoxicated with the idea of killing the entire Kong family, the news of war spread again.
This was naturally Zhu Youxiao’s intention.
Today's Ming Dynasty court is no longer the court full of loopholes two years ago.
As long as he doesn't give instructions, it will be difficult for the court affairs to be spread, especially such important matters.
The purpose of doing this is naturally to divert everyone's attention. After all, the Kong family is the first aristocratic family, and its influence and popularity are not just bragging.
But what does it mean to talk about dead people all day long?
In particular, there are even more comments about whether Kong's crime is true or false, whether the emperor's punishment was too severe, etc.
If you don't care and let it develop, and if these remarks spread to more people's ears and become deeply rooted in the hearts of the people, something will happen if time goes by.
Therefore, it is more important to come up with more breaking news and suppress the Kong incident.
Zhu Youxiao's method was also effective very quickly. Within three days after the news was released, everyone from the court officials to the gentry and students were discussing the matter in the streets and alleys.
Except for some people, no one cares about the affairs of the Kong family.
In the more than two years since Zhu Youxiao ascended the throne, the hottest news in the capital has been breaking out every five days and once every ten days.
And everyone from the common people down to the officials and gentry are concerned about it.
For example, killing court officials, destroying generals, conquering Monan, and conquering the southwest are all like this.
Therefore, in the past two years or so, the busiest thing in the capital is not the vegetable market or the market, but the teahouses, restaurants and roadside stalls.
If a person who is new to the capital spends a day strolling here, he will be surprised to find that people from all walks of life are everywhere, passionately discussing government affairs.
And when the news spread to the market that the imperial court was about to mobilize elites again, and that the emperor would once again go on a personal expedition.
The largest teahouse in the inner city of the capital was already overcrowded.
Of course, what they knew was that the imperial court was conquering Mongolia in the north, and they had no idea whether Jiu Nu was among the targets of the expedition.
"I heard that His Majesty the Emperor is conducting another personal expedition this time. He is leading more than 100,000 elite soldiers and horses out of the border, with the intention of clearing out the northern troubles in one fell swoop. I don't know if he can succeed in the end, or it will be another Saarhu."
Everyone in the capital still has fresh memories of the imperial court's Northern Expedition of hundreds of thousands of elite troops, and the disastrous defeat in Saarhu seems to have happened just yesterday.
During the Wanli Dynasty, the court also said the same thing. At that time, all the talk was about when the army would regroup and what the outcome would be.
But who would have known that in the end, almost all of the imperial court's hundreds of thousands of troops were wiped out, with less than 20% of the survivors.
Hearing such negative remarks, a young scholar immediately lost his temper and put down the teacup in his hand. He didn't even care about the dignity of the scholar, and directly cursed:
"Fuck you, His Majesty the Emperor is wise and mighty. He was sent by the gods to help us revive the Ming Dynasty. How can we be defeated?"
"Besides, at the beginning of last year, when His Majesty had just ascended the throne, there were internal and external troubles, and he led 50,000 soldiers and horses to sweep across the Monan Grassland."
"In my opinion, the Tartars are just grasshoppers in the autumn. They won't be able to jump around for a few more days. We just have to wait for the good news from the front."
The old Confucian scholar who was scolded was not angry. He was obviously in a good mood and just said slowly:
"Young man, don't get excited."
"Do you know how long we, the Ming Dynasty, have been fighting against the Tartars? It has been almost three hundred years since Emperor Taizu raised his army. We have come and gone, but no one has been able to completely win."
"In the past, General Lan Yu also captured the ministers of the Mongolian and Yuan royal families in one fell swoop and destroyed the Northern Yuan Dynasty. I thought this problem was over, but who knew that within twenty years, it would come back again."
"Although its strength is no longer what it was before, it is still a powerful enemy that cannot be underestimated. During the Jiajing Dynasty, the Tartar chief led tens of thousands of troops to the city."
Hearing these words, the young scholar felt that he had been too rude just now, so he immediately bent down and bowed with a junior salute and replied:
"What you said is true, but the younger generation has a different view. How can the Jiajing Dynasty be compared with the Tianqi Dynasty?"
"Emperor Sejong succeeded Xiaozong. Although he reigned for more than thirty years, he spent most of his time and energy on stabilizing the country and stabilizing the people."
"Especially when he was young, he had a big ceremonial dispute with the court officials, which lasted for several years, and the military and political affairs were already in ruins."
"The current emperor is the grandson of Emperor Shenzong, and he is also the eldest son of the previous emperor. His succession to the throne is destiny and is justified."
"What's more, His Majesty the Emperor is far from ordinary. Although many people say that he is too bloodthirsty, in the eyes of the younger generation, these corrupt officials, those who illegally honor the nobles, and those who harm the government should be treated with such severe punishment."
"What's more, the wealth gained from confiscating homes is used for military expenses and is returned to the people. Shaanxi, Shandong, Liaodong and other places have suffered from natural disasters. Without the money and food obtained by Your Majesty from confiscating homes, how many people would have died."