On October 31, the 21st year of Hongwu's reign, which was the eighth day after Zhu Yuanzhang's birthday party, the imperial edict finally arrived at Datong Mansion.
Zhu Gui, Xu Miaoqing and Liu Jing welcomed the imperial edict together.
The imperial edict was also very simple, it was to summon Zhu Gui now, but the reason was not even explained.
Everyone present, including the eunuch who delivered the order, looked at the acting king Zhu Gui with some concern.
But Zhu Gui himself looked relieved.
That's right, Zhu Gui had been making preparations since he guessed that this outcome might be possible. In those few days, he had made many preparations, but in the end he just gave up on the imperial edict.
Zhu Gui ordered Butler Wang to receive the eunuch of the ship, and money was naturally indispensable.
And he took the other two people to the backyard, and at the same time sent someone to invite Xu Yingxu again.
Soon after, the five people gathered together again.
Zhu Gui took the lead and said: "Mr. Liu and General Xu will discuss and decide on the relevant matters in Datong Mansion. This time, I will take the princess and Princess Yan to Nanjing."
"That's great." After hearing this, Xu Miaoqing not only did not worry, but became happy.
However, the other three looked worried.
Xu Miaoyun pulled Xu Miaoqing and whispered something in her ear.
The joy on Xu Miaoqing's face suddenly solidified. She turned to look at Zhu Gui and asked, "Zhu Gui, will it be dangerous to go to Nanjing?"
Princess Yan's original intention was to hope that Xu Miaoqing would not go to Nanjing. After all, her life or death was uncertain, and Zhu Gui might not be able to protect herself.
But she herself was deeply in love with the King of Yan Zhu Di, but she did not realize that Xu Miaoqing had developed posthumous feelings for Zhu Gui.
Zhu Gui looked at Xu Miaoqing and said with a smile: "Don't worry, it's just a routine investigation, nothing will happen."
Xu Yingxu said at this time: "How about I escort the prince back to Nanjing? Although I have written a letter to my father, I am still a little worried."
Zhu Gui stretched out his hand to stop Xu Yingxu from continuing: "General Xu, as the general of the garrison of the garrison, cannot leave easily without an order from the court. Don't make it difficult for Duke Xu because of this trivial matter."
"But..." Xu Yingxu wanted to say something else.
Liu Jing also said: "The prince is right. Although the emperor is decisive in killing and has some opinions about the prince, the main responsibility for this matter still lies with the deceased King Jin, and the death of King Jin can make people
The emperor dismissed the royal guards in anger, which shows that the emperor still has feelings for all the princes."
Liu Jing's words calmed the atmosphere in the room.
So Zhu Gui explained to Liu Jing and Xu Yingxu one by one what he had prepared during this period.
Except for the Datong Chamber of Commerce and Datong Bank, which were managed by Liu Jing, Xu Yingxu mainly made decisions on other matters.
The most important thing among them was the nearly a thousand Mongolian cavalry that Zhu Gui recruited during this period.
They had already divided into three routes and headed deep into the grassland a few days ago, with the purpose of exploring the Mongolian forces in other areas along these three routes.
It would be best if we can negotiate peacefully. Secondly, we can also exchange goods and prepare for the Datong Chamber of Commerce to go deep into the grassland in the future.
Of course, if the Mongolian power in those areas is very weak, Zhu Gui would not mind using some means to gain actual control of those areas.
After hearing Zhu Gui's words, the expressions on Liu Jing and Xu Yingxu's faces can be said to be very wonderful.
They never expected that Zhu Gui's vision was so far-term, that he could look beyond the Ming Dynasty even when the situation in Nanjing was unclear.
The two immediately promised to ensure that Zhu Gui's plan was foolproof during his absence.
Zhu Gui was then satisfied and went to prepare the things to go to Beijing. Xu Miaoqing quickly chased him out, leaving only the three of them looking at each other in the house.
When Liu Jing saw that neither Xu Yingxu nor Princess Yan had any intention of leaving, as an outsider, he immediately left first and wisely.
After Liu Jing left, Princess Yan Xu Miaoyun looked at Xu Yingxu with tactful eyes and said: "Second brother, I can see your change in attitude towards the king. Is this related to my little sister?"
Xu Yingxu was stunned for a moment, and then said with a wry smile: "In the beginning, it was indeed because of my little sister that my father asked the emperor to invite me to come here to repair the palace. However, with the contact during this period, I feel that before Dai Wang
The name may be a misunderstanding."
Xu Miaoyun listened to Xu Yingxu's words with a complicated expression. After a long while, she said: "If one day, there is a conflict between King Yan and King Dai, whose side will you stand on?"
Xu Yingxu looked at Xu Miaoyun in surprise and asked: "Sister, no, Princess Yan, why did you say this? The last time King Yan came here, he had a very happy talk with King Dai. There would be no conflict between them.
Yes, you should also be able to see that King Dai does not have much ambition for power."
After hearing what Xu Yingxu said, Xu Miaoyun smiled noncommittally and shook her head: "Maybe things are not as simple as you see. I value my own intuition more. I am not interested in the power struggle of the king or many royal families, but
His ambition is definitely not small."
When Xu Miaoyun spoke, she turned around and looked at the huge world map posted on the wall.
In Xu Miaoyun's view, Zhu Gui's ambition is exactly this so-called world map.
Xu Yingxu followed Xu Miaoyun's gaze and looked at the map, and suddenly realized something.
However, as a general, he admired Zhu Gui's behavior of opening up territories very much.
"Maybe it's what you said, sister, but as a general, I don't have a strict personal stance. Everything is based on the interests of the court and the nation. If that day comes true, as you said, this is what I will stick to.
in principle."
After Xu Yingxu thought for a while, he said very calmly.
Although she did not respond directly to Xu Miaoyun's question, she already had the answer.
Xu Miaoyun was also a smart man and did not continue to ask questions. She just hoped that such a day would not come and left the meeting hall silently.
As Xu Yingxu looked at the map on the wall, some questions he had never thought about before suddenly found answers.
It turns out that this seemingly harmless young prince went to great lengths to do business with the Mongols even at the risk of being punished by the court. Is this the reason why?
Originally, he was still a little confused about Zhu Gui becoming the nominal owner of the large grassland outside Datong Mansion.
But now if this grassland is placed on the world map, Xu Yingxu suddenly understands the importance of this grassland.
They are an important transportation route from the Ming Dynasty to the vast territory in the west. As long as they can control this grassland, coupled with the road construction plan that the Dai Palace has been implementing, sooner or later, the flag of the Ming Dynasty will be all over this entire area.