"Killing stick?" Meng Guzhezhe asked in confusion: "What's the difference between the two?"
"The difference between life and death."
Gao Pragmatic snorted coldly and explained: "Concubine Zheng wants to play some tricks. If she is just playing in the palace, whether the nature is serious and how serious it is is only in the emperor's mind. According to the emperor's favor for her,
Of course, big things can be reduced to small things, and small things can be reduced to small things.
But if it is not limited to the harem, but involves the outer court, or even the army, it will be difficult to deal with. Even if the emperor wants to protect him, sometimes he will inevitably be unable to do anything, and even arouse opposition from the outer court.
Do you think, the emperor has just sealed the heaven and the earth this year, prayed for the people, visited the Xiaoling Mausoleum, offered sacrifices to the Taizu, and then cleaned up the northern border to ensure the peace of the Ming Dynasty... At this time, he would be willing to plot for a concubine in the harem
Is it serious to interfere in government affairs, even launch a mutiny, and have a stalemate with civil and military officials?
Of course not. Once this matter breaks out, no one can save Concubine Zheng. But our emperor still can't let go of this beloved concubine in his heart, so he leaves this difficult task to me as usual
This unlucky chief assistant...
He wants to use my killing stick to frighten this rebellious imperial concubine, but he also doesn’t want me to be so ruthless that I can kill the entire Zheng family in one fell swoop, without the outside court being able to know the inside story, or even if
I had some doubts, but could not find any real evidence, and it has become a mystery from now on. Haha, I really want it, I want it, and I want it..."
Meng Guzhezhe was astonished when he heard this, and said in astonishment: "I don't understand what the master is saying anymore."
It stands to reason that the queen and her entourage have already arrived. Gao Jingshi should end the conversation quickly and ask the queen, the prince and Concubine Zheng to come in for a "visit". But the strange thing is that Gao Jingshi does not seem to be in a hurry at all, and even seems to be doing it on purpose.
As if to show off, he asked Meng Guzhezhe with a smile: "What don't you understand? Just ask."
"Concubine Zheng said she was coming to admit her mistake, which no one believed. But judging from the current situation, we can only guess that she is going to use some clever tricks, but why does the master seem to already know what she is going to do, and even
Did you know that this matter was so serious that you used the accusation of 'conspiracy to interfere in government affairs, or even launch a mutiny'?"
"What do you think of the Tieling Li family?" Gao pragmatic asked with a slight smile.
Meng Guzhezhe's eyelids twitched subconsciously, and he lowered his head and said: "The Li family of Tieling is the pillar of the imperial court. Ever since Ning Yuanbo came out to control Liaodong, he has been one of the most relied-upon generals in northern Xinjiang. After that, Ning Yuanbo returned to the imperial court with honor and dignity.
, his son Li Rusong was able to continue to control Liaodong with his contribution to the northwest, and the Li family can be called the Qiancheng of Liaodong."
"Is there any more?" Gao pragmatically continued to ask calmly.
"There is also my uncle Li Rumei. He has been fighting for many years under his father and brother, and has many military exploits. Especially in the war to aid Korea and fight against the Japanese, he succeeded his brother as the commander-in-chief of the Ping Japanese Army. He followed my father through the entire battle, and his military exploits were even more impressive.
Therefore, after the war, he was promoted to deputy commander of the Guards, becoming the most promising young general in the army."
"Is there any more?" Gao Pragmatic asked again.
"Well, there are also the other brothers of the Li family..."
"There is no need to elaborate on the rest." Gao Pragmatic shook his head and waved his hand: "You only talked about some situations that everyone knows, but you didn't mention the key points."
"The key point?" Meng Guzhezhe was puzzled, but he really couldn't think of what the key point Gao Pragmatic was referring to, so he could only say: "I really don't know, please give me some advice."
Gao Pragmatic said: "First of all, the Li family is the leader in Liaodong. Even though I have mixed some sand in Liaodong over the years and supported some Liaodong generals other than the Li family, it is undeniable that without the cooperation of the Li family in Liaodong, nothing can be done
Even the imperial edict must be implemented with some discounts.
In the previous war to aid Korea against the Japanese, Li Rusong's losses were not small, but not necessarily huge, but he immediately returned to Liaodong to lick his wounds and replenish his strength. Later, as the military reform progressed, Ming Dynasty established ten
There are 1 Type A Army, 18 Type B Army, and an irregular number of Type C Army.
In this reorganization, Liaodong only had one Liaodong First Army, but no Liaodong Second Army. In other words, there was only one Type A field army, but no Type B garrison as a supporting defense. But for this, I had to
This left Liaodong with the temporary establishment of three Type C troops...
The external explanation for this is that as the residual Yuan Dynasty rushed west, North Korea moved in, and the Jurchens moved to town, the defense pressure in Liaodong dropped sharply. Therefore, it only needed to maintain an elite field force to deter Horqin and the Jurchen tribes.
There is no need to set up an additional Type B garrison. The three Type C armies are set up for the purpose of clearing up wasteland and developing the economy of Liaodong.
However, this is only a superficial statement. The actual reason is that I want to reduce the weight of Liaodong's military power in the Ming Dynasty. Liaodong originally had an army of 180,000. Although it was not full, it was still pretty good. There were always 15
Sixty thousand. This
Among them, Li Rusong's own troops numbered over 40,000, and they were the elite of the Liaodong Army. In addition, there were also quasi-direct descendants led by generals who were favored by his Li family, or even originally from the Li family, and there were about 40,000 to 50,000 people.
So many.
In this way, more than half of Liaodong's actual army of 150,000 to 60,000 is directly in the hands of the Li family. At the same time, no matter how much I add some sand, the commander-in-chief of Liaodong's army is still Li Rusong. If the Li family really wants to make some big splash, he will have plenty.
Means to deal with threats in advance——
For example, in the name of convening the generals for a meeting, first deceive the generals to go to Guangning for a meeting, then detain the generals, and at the same time send people to control the non-direct armies. If you are worried that the armies are still unwilling to obey, you can also send troops at the same time
Approaching threats... In short, this is not difficult to do.
Therefore, even if the emperor has great faith in Li Rusong, as the chief minister of the cabinet, I still have to be on guard. Therefore, I only give Liaodong an A-type army establishment, so that the direct and quasi-direct lines of the Li family can only be divided into eight.
The 90,000 people were reduced to 50,000 - after all, they are not willing to become the C-type army, so they can work in the fields with peace of mind from now on? If they are really willing, then I would be happy to see it."
Meng Guzhezhe suddenly realized: "So that's it. However, since we have successfully weakened the Li family's strength in Liaodong..."
This chapter is not over, please click on the next page to continue reading! "How can things be so simple?" Gao pragmatic shook his head and said: "If I do this, even if Li Rusong doesn't say anything on the surface, how can he be happy in his heart? So this time Horqin
With the birth of Nu Zhen, I gave the Li family an establishment of the Longjiang Second Army as compensation."
"Ah, wouldn't the previous weakening be in vain?" Meng Guzhe wondered.
"How can it be in vain?" Gao pragmatic shook his head and said: "Eighty to ninety thousand people are concentrated in Liaodong, which is a huge threat, but if thirty to forty thousand of them are dispersed to Longjiang, which is underpopulated but has a vast territory, the threat to the court will not be
Much smaller?
Moreover, the Longjiang Second Army is a mixed army, and not all of it is from the Li family. There are also people from Horqin and Sheng Jurchen mixed in. The Li family cannot be as hands-on as the Liaodong First Army."
"Oh... that is to say, on the surface, the Li family's strength was very limited, but in fact, the master spread their strength and introduced some checks and balances." Meng Guzhezhe understood now.
.
Gao Pragmatic nodded and began to continue his analysis: "Secondly, Li Rumei, the deputy commander of the Guards, did not enter the camp alone. He has some strength in the Guards.
The Imperial Guard adopts a recruitment system, but the sources of troops are not entirely recruited from the private sector. Some of them are selected from various guard posts, especially the towns in Jiubian. In this process, Liaodong, as a place where elite soldiers emerge in large numbers, naturally also recruits many soldiers.
Less. And as far as I know, Li Chengliang played a big role in this matter... albeit very covertly.
You don't need to know the details. In short, there are currently about 12,000 troops from Liaodong in the Imperial Guard. These people naturally tend to unite around Li Rumei, and objectively form Li Rumei's basic base in the Imperial Guard.
Of course, the same is true for the generals from Liaodong in the Imperial Guard."
It is very common in Chinese history to form factions based on regions. Even if the Imperial Guard has some systems to control this, it cannot be said to be completely unaffected. This is against the will of the people and is impossible to achieve.
When Meng Guzhezhe heard this, he seemed to understand Gao Pragmatic's meaning to some extent, and he was a little shocked and said: "Master, are you... are you doubting my uncle?"
"The person who holds the power in the world should regard everyone in the world as suspicious." Gao Pragmatic said calmly: "I am not targeting Ziqing, and I have always been very optimistic about him, otherwise I would not marry my sister to him. But after all, he was born in Tieling Li
His father, Uncle Ning Yuan, has been 'retiring' even though he has been raised in Beijing for many years, so I naturally have to be on guard and take precautions."
Meng Guzhezhe was silent for a moment and then asked: "What do you mean, Master Zheng, is Concubine Zheng planning to use Uncle Ning Yuan...or the power of the Tieling Li family in the army to launch a mutiny?"
When she said this, she shook her head repeatedly and said: "This is impossible, how can she have the confidence to convince Ning Yuanbo and Deputy Commander Li? How can Ning Yuanbo and Deputy Commander Li have the confidence to rely on twelve thousand guards?
The army successfully mutinied? You know, although these 12,000 people are loyal to Deputy Commander Li, they are not dead soldiers of the Li family! Not to mention Commander Youma is stationed in the Beijing North Camp, how many people are willing to give Deputy Commander Li’s military orders?
Listen, I’m afraid you’re still talking about it!”
Gao Pingshi smiled and said: "You are right. If everything is as usual, things should of course be analyzed in this way. However, you missed two possible variables."
"What variable?" Meng Guzhezhe was greatly surprised.
"The first variable is, what if I die of illness this time, or at least I can't take charge of the overall situation?" Gao Pingshi smiled and said: "Look, what was Ma Gui's first reaction when he heard that I suddenly became seriously ill?
Immediately order the entire army to return to the camp and wait for orders, but close the camp door tightly - do you know what this means?"
Meng Guzhe thought for a moment, then shook his head and said, "I can't say for sure."
"It's okay to say it's not sure." Gao Pragmatic said calmly: "He just wants to make people think 'it's not sure' - that is, he wants everyone to not know what he means.
Of course, based on my understanding of him, he was trying to prevent anyone in the Imperial Guard from being involved in a power struggle, so he withdrew his troops back to the camp, closed the camp gates, and pretended to remain silent and still without imperial edicts or cabinet orders.
Come on.
This is because for him, only the orders of the Emperor and me can be obeyed and executed at this moment, and any other orders may get him into trouble-perhaps he will be wearing the hat of conspiracy and rebellion.
The nine tribes are not protected."
"What about the Li family?" Meng Guzhe asked.
"Uncle Ning Yuan sent someone to see Zi Qing, but Zi Qing made no move." Gao pragmatically said, "Judging from the time, when Uncle Ning Yuan sent someone to see Zi Qing, even if Concubine Zheng had the intention, she had no time to inform him.
That is to say, sending people to see Ziqing this time was just Uncle Ning Yuan’s own intention and not the instigation of Concubine Zheng.”
Meng Guzhezhe said in surprise: "Then doesn't she rule out the suspicion?"
"Don't worry, I haven't finished speaking yet." Gao Jingshi stretched out his hand to signal her to calm down, and then continued: "Uncle Ning Yuan's actions can only show that he is well-informed and may intend to fish in troubled waters, but he does not
I can't be sure of what he must do. Even if I go to confront him now, I can say that he is just out of friendship between Qin and Jin, telling Ziqing that he is ready to visit me, and so on.
As for Concubine Zheng, if she really wants to take action, she should have sent someone to contact Uncle Ning Yuan at this moment... I just asked Uncle Mo to strengthen the monitoring of Uncle Ning Yuan's house just to see if this is really possible.
.As for what you asked before, how Concubine Zheng persuaded Uncle Ning Yuan and Zi Qing...this is actually very easy to guess."
"Ah?" Meng Guzhezhe was a little disbelieving: "Once this kind of thing fails, it will be a serious crime. Why is it so easy to guess?"
Gao pragmatically said: "Is it difficult to guess? If I were Zheng Guifei, I only need to make a promise at this moment. After the event is completed, I will reward my uncle with the government, reward Ziqing with the Imperial Guard, and Liaodong will be formed by the Li family, such as Mufu in Yunnan.
For example…isn’t this price enough?”
Meng Guzhe was stunned for a long time, and felt a chill running down his spine. He couldn't help but said, "But if everything fails..."
"How could it fail?" Gao Pingshi smiled and said: "As long as I, Gao, are gone, this matter is not certain, at least it is a certainty. It is completely worth the gamble."
"Ah?" Meng Guzhezhe was a little in disbelief, frowning and said: "It shouldn't be, even if, even if it is according to what the master said... But there is Commander Ma sitting in the Imperial Guard, and he will not allow Deputy Commander Li to lead his troops out.
Camp. How can this mutiny be carried out if the Praetorian Guards do not leave the camp?"
"Have you forgotten my analysis of Ma Gui just now?" Gao Pingshi shook his head and said, "I have no order to give him, and the emperor is here."
"Your Majesty? Your Majesty, is it possible that your Majesty can cause your own rebellion?" Meng Guzhezhe's eyes widened and he couldn't believe it at all.
Gao pragmatic shrugged: "Who said that the emperor's imperial edict must be issued by the emperor himself?"
"Ah?" Meng Guzhezhe was a little unable to turn around: "What do you mean by this?"
"If the great eunuch of the Supervisor of Ceremonies goes to the imperial guards to announce the emperor's oral order, and the order does not require Ma Gui himself to do anything, but just mobilizes Li Rumei to lead the army into the city - not even saying to enter the city, just let him
Lead the army to Deshengmen or Andingmen and wait for orders. At this time, do you think Ma Gui will refuse to obey the imperial edict? Does he have any reason to refuse to obey the imperial edict?"
Meng Guzhezhe was puzzled: "Are you saying that Concubine Zheng found someone to falsely pass on the imperial edict? But it is impossible for Chen Zhangyin to seek refuge with her!"
"Chen Zhangyin is not the only eunuch who serves as the Chief Eunuch." Gao Pingshi chuckled, shook his head and said, "Have you forgotten that there is a master who has a special status and is always unwilling to settle down?"
Meng Guzhezhe's mind flashed through the names of several eunuchs in charge of rituals, and he was suddenly shocked: "Li Wenjin?"
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