Chapter Three Hundred and Twenty Six: Yu Qian's Status
In the Wenhua Palace.
All kinds of eyes fell on Yu Qian standing in the hall, some were regretful, some were worried, some were worried, and so on.
The shock brought by the military report to the ministers was only temporary after all.
After a brief moment of confusion, the elders quickly regained their senses.
It should be said that when things have developed to this point, the situation is already out of control.
Logically speaking, Wang Ji may have had his own selfish motives when he sent troops to Chenzhou and Yuanzhou, but the reason why he was never blamed by the court shows that he still had certain strategic considerations.
The Miao uprising started in mid-April. At first, the imperial court thought it was just a small local rebellion, so it sent Gong Ju and 20,000 troops to put down the rebellion.
Gong Ju led his army to Miaoland at the end of May. However, after arriving, he discovered that the Miao rebellion had spread widely and not only surrounded several cities one after another, including Pingyue City, which was trapped deep in Miaoland. The number of rebels
It even reached a terrifying number of nearly 100,000 people.
Twenty thousand versus one hundred thousand, the disparity in strength is too great.
So the palace gathered on horseback to report to the court for help.
The military report arrived in Beijing in mid-June, which coincided with the tense situation on the border. The emperor was secretly preparing for his own expedition, so it was not appropriate to use the Beijing camp.
Therefore, the imperial court approached Wang Ji's army, which had ordered to conquer Luchuan, to reinforce the army.
Wang Ji received the order in July and diverted from Luchuan to Huguang. The army had a large amount of provisions and baggage, and the march was slow. It did not arrive in Chenzhou until the end of September.
Therefore, Wang Ji chose to stand still on the grounds that the army had just arrived and the terrain and situation were unfamiliar.
So in fact, the time he has been in charge of Chen Bing until now is about more than two months and less than three months, and it is winter, so it still barely makes sense logically.
Of course, since the impeachment of Wang Ji by your nobles some time ago, there have been rumors in the capital that Wang Ji is watching the turmoil in the court, supporting his troops, and observing the situation. However, there is no actual evidence for this statement.
Just rumors.
This is also the reason why the courtiers were arguing so much just now. From a strategic point of view, Wang Ji's approach is not completely unreasonable.
But court disputes are sometimes illogical.
No matter how great a reason you have, a love letter filled with blood and tears will be enough to overcome everything.
Facing this military report, which was almost written with the lives and perseverance of the soldiers and civilians of Pingyue, even the countless words of defense seemed pale and weak at the moment.
What's more, Yu Qian is not a person who can speak eloquently.
Facing the emperor's angry questioning, Yu Qian had a heavy look of guilt on his face, and he bowed to the ground.
"Your Majesty, I have no excuse. In the matter of Pingyue, I was negligent in my duties and did not know the people well. I trapped the army and people of Pingyue in misery. I am willing to plead guilty and shamelessly stand in the court. Please remove me from my official position."
, go to jail to discuss the crime.”
After saying this, Yu Qian took off his official hat and kowtowed to the ground, as if he was asking for forgiveness.
“Shaobao...”
“Yu Shangshu…”
Yu Qian's move obviously startled all the ministers present. After they realized what they were doing, all the senior officials stepped forward to stop him.
Zhu Qiyu was sitting on the throne, looking at Yu Qian below, he couldn't help but sigh in his heart.
He could see that Yu Qian's words were sincere. He was sincere and felt deeply remorseful for what happened to the soldiers and civilians of Pingyue.
Huang Hao's military report shocked the officials, but made Yu Qian feel guilty and self-blame.
Before this military report was announced, no one in the imperial court, except Zhu Qiyu, including Yu Qian, had a particularly clear understanding of the situation in Miaoland.
This is also the reason why Zhu Qiyu insisted on immediately replacing the commander-in-chief. Pingyue could not hold on for much longer.
But Yu Qian is Yu Qian after all.
To this day, his status, reputation and prestige have determined that even if he wants to resign, he will not do so easily.
Chen Yi, the censor of Zuodu, immediately stepped forward and said.
"Your Majesty, Pingyue has been besieged for nearly seven months. It is actually due to the imperial court's faulty decision-making and improper command by Wang Ji. The so-called general is outside and the emperor's orders are not accepted. Wang Ji is the general officer of the Miao Army, and the frontline strategies are all based on his discretion.
It is determined that the Ministry of War can only try its best to ensure logistical supplies."
“Now that the Pingyue army and people are in this situation, it is actually due to Wang Ji’s improper strategic planning and ineffective suppression of the rebellion. It is definitely not the fault of Shangshu alone. How can it be entirely blamed on the Ministry of War?"
Obviously, in just a short moment, Chen Yi had made a decision.
Compared to Wang Ji, Yu Qian was obviously more important to the court.
What's more, once this military report from Pingyue was made public, Wang Ji's accusation of improper command and fear of avoiding war was finally confirmed.
Instead of both of them falling into trouble, it would be better to let Wang Ji bear the blame.
The first assistant, Wang Ao, also spoke out.
"Your Majesty, since the Civil War, we have been pressing forward step by step. The situation in the imperial court is extremely critical, and a border war is about to break out. Yu Shangshu was ordered to reorganize the capital camp and assist in border affairs. The government and the public have worked together to focus on the border war.
"
“In this war, the affairs of the Ministry of War were complicated. In addition, after the civil war, most of the officers in the Ministry of War were promoted temporarily and were not familiar with the affairs of the Ministry. Only by working hard and working hard to maintain the affairs of the Ministry of War, our army could achieve a great victory."
"At that time, the country was in danger and the sacred weapons were in danger. The imperial court used troops on both sides, so it was inevitable that it would not be taken care of at the same time. I sincerely ask your majesty to be kind and forgiving, and to think carefully."
This actually makes sense.
Since August last year, the civil war has been approaching, the emperor has ascended the throne, and the Bauhinia War has begun. It was not until the end of October that things finally settled down.
However, in the next month, the Ministry of War was not idle, assisting the Ministry of Works in renovating the border wall, taking inventory of soldiers, distributing pensions, replenishing border troops and horses, and defenses also started to come back first, and they were busy going around.
Compared to the southwest corner, the security of the border is obviously more important.
By the time everything is sorted out here, the Chinese New Year will be here, and all the officials will know what will happen next.
The emperor summoned Yu Qian into the palace on New Year's Eve and was determined to replace the chief military officer recruiting Miao soldiers...
Wang Ao’s statement was recognized by many officials present.
“Yes, Your Majesty, Yu Shangshu has worked hard for the imperial court, working hard and sleeping hard at night. After the Civil War, the imperial court was in danger, and Yu Shangshu was ordered to do so at the critical moment. All the princes in the imperial court are in charge, and there is no one who can surpass the prince."
"Your Majesty, what happened in the Miao region was actually Wang Ji's fault, not the fault of the Ministry of War. The matter was prioritized. I asked the minister to help your majesty protect the country and relieve the danger on the border. He did not take into account the southwest. Even if he neglected his duty, it is excusable."
Countless officials stepped forward to intercede on behalf of Yu Qian.
Facing such a scene, Li Xian swallowed his saliva and quietly stood back in the distance.
He was only ordered to take it back to the capital camp from Yu Qian.
But he never thought about driving Yu Qian out of the court.
This is simply impossible!
You must know that after the Battle of Tumu, the situation faced by the court can be called the greatest crisis since the founding of the Ming Dynasty.
Two major events that changed the crisis were: first, the establishment of the emperor, and second, timely preparation of border defenses, proper command, and the victory at Zijingguan Pass.
As for the first of these two things, although it was Li Xian who initiated it, it was Yu Qian who ultimately contributed the most.
The last one, repel Wala.
The emperor naturally deserves the most credit, but among the ministers, in terms of merit, Yu Qian, who is based in the capital and is responsible for various defense mobilization and logistical support, is no less important than Wang Wen who is commanding on the front line.
With these two great achievements at his side, no one can do anything to Yu Qian unless he gets confused and plots rebellion.
Even if he wanted to resign, the entire court would not agree.
So Li Xian had his sights set on the power of the capital from the very beginning.
Who would have thought that Yu Qian, a foolish young man, would resign and go back.
Li Xian recalled that the last time this kind of scene where the Manchu court begged for mercy occurred, it was when the ministers fought against the former Heavenly Official King.
At this time, it is better not to talk.
However, in the face of the court's pleas, the emperor, who had always been receptive and merciful, became silent this time and did not open his mouth to forgive.
At this time, Chen Xun, the minister of the Ministry of Industry, stepped forward and spoke.
“Your Majesty, I think that although the Ministry of War has done something about this, it is far from the level of guilt. The person who should be blamed should be Wang Ji, the chief military officer of Chen Bing Chenzhou, who was unable to move forward!”