Yongli Ming Dynasty

Chapter 5 Surveillance
On the right side of the Guiwang Mansion, across a wall, is a courtyard similar in shape to the Guiwang Mansion.
The Guiwang Mansion was originally in the Gui Province. When the Jingjiang Prince rebelled, the Guiwang Mansion and his people fled to Zhaoqing, Guangdong Province. Naturally, it was impossible for anyone to build a new house for them.
The courtyard where Zhu Lang and others are now living is just an ordinary three-courtyard courtyard in Zhaoqing City. There are many courtyards of similar shapes on both sides of the Guiwang Mansion.
But since the news came out that the Gui Wang would be appointed as regent, the courtyards on both sides of the Gui Wang Mansion were quickly requisitioned by the court and turned into temporary offices for some government offices.
In the main hall of the courtyard, a middle-aged man wearing a bright red official uniform and a Liangguan on his head sat in the first seat.

The man has his eyes slightly closed, his face is white and beardless, and his temples are slightly gray.
The middle-aged man in red robe is named Wang Kun, and he is the eunuch in charge of the Imperial Household Department during the Longwu Dynasty.
Emperor Longwu was killed by the Qing army, and Fuzhou in Fujian Province was also captured by the Qing army. Wang Kun followed Lü Daqi and other old officials of the Longwu Dynasty to Zhaoqing to prepare to support the King of Gui.
Below Wang Kun was a young eunuch in a blue eunuch uniform, standing beside him with his head lowered and a respectful look on his face.

"Xiao Luzi, is His Royal Highness Prince Gui still doing those push-ups?" the man opened his eyes and spoke in a somewhat feminine voice.

"In reply to godfather, after breakfast this morning, King Gui did push-ups in the backyard again. After that, he ran around the yard for fifteen laps, and then practiced a set of swordsmanship."

The young eunuch Wang Lu in blue robe still lowered his head and whispered back
"What was the reaction of the Gui King after he received the imperial edict this morning?" Wang Kun took the teacup beside him and blew gently.
"My son doesn't know that the people around the Prince of Gui are all old people in the palace. The people my son arranged can't even enter the backyard. They can only do some rough work such as buying and washing clothes in the front yard. When the Prince of Gui is exercising, the old people in the palace guard the courtyard, and no one else is allowed to get close."

"When the King of Gui received the imperial edict, he was exercising in the courtyard. My son could not approach me. My son is useless. Please punish me, godfather."

The young eunuch in blue robe knelt down as he spoke.

Wang Kun snorted coldly, and his face became a little gloomy.
The Guiwang Mansion was on the run, and the old people in the mansion were already scattered. After arriving in Guangxi Province, the abandoned king of Jingjiang rebelled, and the old people in the mansion who came to Zhaoqing became even fewer.

After he arrived in Zhaoqing, he had already arranged for his eunuchs to stay in the Guiwang Mansion.
But ten days ago, he went to the Guiwang Mansion to pay a visit to the Guiwang. His original intention was to advise the Guiwang to be more polite and not to do indecent things that would affect the reputation of the ministers in the court.

Who knew that when the King of Gui heard him say the word "push-ups", his face changed instantly.

He didn't realize it at the time, but when he said goodbye and returned home, all the people he had planted in the Prince Gui's Mansion were swept out to the front yard.

In the Guiwang Mansion, the backyard where the Guiwang and the concubine lived was guarded by the old people in the palace. Only the old people in the Guiwang Mansion could go in and out. The people he arranged could not even get close to the backyard.
Afterwards, he gradually came to his senses. He had never heard of the word "push-ups" before. It was probably a training method that the Guiwang Mansion had figured out. He, an eunuch who had just arrived in Zhaoqing, could actually say it. I'm afraid it aroused the suspicion of the Guiwang at that time.
"He is quite clever, a little different from what has been rumored."

As soon as Wang Kun arrived in Zhaoqing, he sent people to inquire about the information of the King of Gui. According to the old people in the palace, the King of Gui was a typical prince of the Zhu family. He was good at eating, drinking and having fun. He declined to read the classics of sages and was fond of antiques. He looked like a real dandy.

But after some contact that day, he found that the King of Gui was completely different from the rumors. He had been practicing martial arts every day these days. He didn't know what kind of stimulation he had received.
Wang Kun narrowed his eyes slightly, and a hint of coldness was revealed in his narrow eyes. Although he was caught by the King of Gui accidentally, he didn't care much.

He entered the palace as a eunuch in the Chongzhen period. Over a period of more than ten years, he climbed up step by step from a small eunuch who carried wine and vinegar jars to the position of Chief Eunuch, Junior Eunuch, and then Eunuch. He took advantage of the opportunity of the establishment of the Longwu Emperor and became the eunuch in charge of the Imperial Household Department, second only to the emperor in the inner court.
He had defeated countless people along the way and served countless difficult nobles in the palace. Although the King of Gui had some misunderstandings about him now, he had plenty of ways to make the young man obey his orders and be obedient.
The King of Gui is just an idle prince of the royal family. Without the help of these eunuchs who are well versed in political affairs, how can he fight against the ministers of the previous dynasty?

If we don't fight with the ministers of the previous dynasty, the Zhu emperor's edict will be nothing but waste paper once it leaves the palace!
"What have Li Guoyong and Wu Jisi been looking for in the city these days? Have you figured it out?" Wang Kun said in a faint voice.
"Yes, Commander Ma Jixiang's men have been sending Jinyiwei to keep an eye on them. Those two have been trying to gather information in various parts of the city in recent days. The strange thing is, they seem to be gathering information about everything."

"One moment they are investigating the civil and military officials in the court, the next they are investigating the rice and salt prices in the city, and the next they are asking which ceramic craftsmen are skilled in the city. They are even investigating where there are iron and carbon mines in Guangdong Province. My son really has no idea what they are trying to do," the young eunuch in the blue robe replied.

"It's just a trick. The King of Gui must be looking for information about the civil and military officials in the court. The others are just a cover."

"It seems that the King of Gui is also a restless person. It's good to be restless."

Wang Kun showed a smile. He was not afraid that the King of Gui would be ambitious. As long as the King of Gui had ambitions, he would definitely fight for power with the ministers of the previous dynasty.
The people in the Guiwang Mansion are all mediocre people. How can they fight against those cunning old foxes in the previous dynasty?

When the King of Gui is overwhelmed by those ministers, who can he rely on? He has to rely on Wang Kun to fight against those ministers of the previous dynasty.
Thinking of this, Wang Kun's smile became even bigger.

"There is no one available in the Guiwang Mansion. No matter what the Guiwang wants to do, he has to rely on these two people. Tell Commander Ma to keep an eye on these two people."

Wang Kun picked up the teacup and blew gently at the clear tea soup. A light fragrance immediately lingered in his nose.
"Son, I understand. I will report this to Commander Ma right away."

The blue-robed eunuch kowtowed to Wang Kun and hurried out.

Early in the morning, in the study of Prince Gui’s mansion
Zhu Lang sat at the desk, holding a brush and writing. Although he had the memory of his previous life, he still felt a little awkward using the brush.

It is for this reason that the words written on the straight surface are sometimes light and sometimes heavy, and sometimes crooked.
If the elders of the previous dynasty saw Zhu Lang's handwriting, they would probably frown.
But Zhu Lang didn't care about these at all.

Zhu Lang put down his brush and blew gently on the paper on the table. This was the memorial he had been working on all night.

In this era, everything must be done with a legitimate reason. He wanted to transfer Jiao Lian from Guangxi Province to Zhaoqing, so he had to have a reason.
"I heard that Jiao Lian, the deputy general of Guangxi Province, is loyal to the king and disciplined the army. His soldiers fought bravely. The country is in turmoil. This is a crisis of survival. The court must build a new army to deter the Chinese and foreigners and restore the country.
I have heard of General Jiao Lian’s reputation in Guangxi Province, and I have the courage to advise the court to order General Jiao to lead 3,000 soldiers under his command to Guangdong to rebuild the imperial army and protect the royal family...” Zhu Lang looked at the letter paper and found that the main idea had been clearly expressed, so he gently blew the ink on the paper dry.
"Li Daban, please re-copy this document, seal it, and give it to Master Qu Shisi."

Li Guoyong responded, took the letter and started copying it again at the desk.

Zhu Lang stood by the window. In the courtyard stood a tall osmanthus tree, covered with tiny golden flowers.
Zhu Lang looked at the osmanthus tree in the courtyard, frowning as he thought about something. The air was filled with the faint fragrance of osmanthus flowers, and the only sound in the room was the brush strokes.

"Your Majesty has already copied it. Please take a look. If there is no problem, you can print it."

After an unknown amount of time, a voice suddenly interrupted Zhu Lang's meditation.

Zhu Lang took the letter, glanced at it, and asked Li Guoyong to stamp it.
"I will send it over right away."

Li Guoyong used the seal, put the letter into the envelope, and then bowed and left. However, just as he reached the door, he was suddenly stopped by Zhu Lang.

"Wait, let me think about it," Zhu Lang frowned as he stood in front of the window.
Although Li Guoyong was a little confused, he didn't say anything and just waited quietly at the table.
The court structure in Zhaoqing City is vaguely divided into three parts.
One was Ding Kuichu, the governor of Guangdong and Guangxi, who had 20,000 elite troops and governed the two provinces. The second was Qu Shisi, the governor of Guangxi. The third was Lü Daqi and Li Yongmao, the grand secretaries of the Longwu Dynasty who rushed to Zhaoqing from Fujian Province.
Among the three parties, Ding Kuichu has the strongest strength with elite troops.

Qu Shisi was the first minister to propose the idea of ​​enthroning the King of Gui. It was also Qu Shisi who contacted all parties to reach a consensus on enthroning the King of Gui.

Lü Daqi and Li Yongmao represented the orthodox recognition of the Longwu court officials in Fujian Province.

The three forces in the court are wary of each other and check and balance each other. Any one of them has the power to overturn the table.

Jiao Lian's entry into Beijing will cause changes in the power of various parties in the court, so this transfer order must be handled with extreme caution.
After an unknown amount of time, Zhu Lang suddenly walked back to the table, tore open the sealed envelope, took out the letter, and then took a blank piece of letter paper and started writing again.

After a while, the letter paper was already filled with words.

"Guangdong and Guangxi are in a situation where one's teeth are in danger of losing the other. Without Guangdong, Guangxi will have no way to advance. Without Guangxi, Guangdong will lose its way back. We must stabilize Guangxi so that we can use Guangdong as a base and make gradual progress."

"I heard that there are three generals in Guangxi Province, General Chen Bangfu, Deputy General Jiao Lian, and Lieutenant General Zheng Wenxiong. These three are wise and brave, commanding large armies. The safety of Guangxi Province depends on these three. At this extraordinary time, we should summon these three to the court to report on their work, reward them for their achievements, and ensure the safety of Guangxi Province."

"In addition, I heard that Jiao Lian, the deputy general of Guangxi Province, is loyal to the king and disciplined the army strictly... He should lead his troops into Guangdong to rebuild the imperial guards and protect the royal family."

Zhu Lang read the new memorial, which was basically the same as the previous one. The only change was that instead of dispatching Jiao Lian to Zhaoqing alone, he summoned three generals from Guangxi Province to Guangdong to report on their work, and also asked Jiao Lian to lead 3,000 troops to Guangdong to form the Imperial Guard.

Last night, when he learned about Jiao Lian's situation from Wu Jisi, he found a new piece of information.

During the process of suppressing the rebellion of Prince Jingjiang, Ding Kuichu joined forces with Chen Bangfu, who was then a lieutenant general, to launch a frontal attack. Qu Shisi, who was captured by Prince Jingjiang, secretly contacted Jiao Lian, who was also involved in the rebellion, and started an uprising from within.
It was precisely because of the simultaneous attacks from both inside and outside that the Jingjiang Prince Rebellion was quickly quelled within a month.
If we simply understand it from the logic of civil officials commanding military generals, Jiao Lian is from Qu Shisi's faction, and Chen Bangfu is from Ding Kuichu's faction.

Of course, the actual situation cannot be so simple. Take Chen Bangfu as an example. He has been entrenched in Guangxi Province for many years. It is not an exaggeration to say that he is a warlord in Guangxi Province. Ding Kuichu has to consult with him before he can do anything.
Despite this, the civil and military officials of the two provinces were closely connected, and in the eyes of outsiders, they seemed to be one and the same.

If Zhu Lang dispatched Jiao Lian, who was close to Qu Shisi, to Beijing alone and ignored the other generals from Guangxi Province, it would be very likely that Ding Kuichu would misjudge that Qu Shisi wanted to mobilize troops to seize power, thus causing Ding Kuichu to take a risk.

Zhu Lang read the newly written memorial again, and after confirming that there were no problems, he asked Li Guoyong to re-copy it three times and submit it to the former court.
As this letter was delivered to the Zhaoqing government office, the court officials who had just reached a consensus in the previous dynasty began to have waves again.

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(End of this chapter)