Prince Chongzhen

Chapter 114: The Old Ministers’ Calculations
Shen Tingyang's arrival is of great significance to Zhu Cilang.

From a small perspective, the opening of the water route will enable Yingtian to once again communicate with the outside world, making lifting the siege of Yingtian less urgent.

But in a broader sense, this powerful Ming navy might have some kind of reaction with Zhu Cilang, thus causing strategic changes in the war situation in Jiangnan.

It's funny to say that although the Ming army's inland navy was eventually completely destroyed by wind and waves, it had been defeated repeatedly by the cavalry general Li Chengdong before that.

The reasons are of course extremely complicated, but if we have to find a main reason, it is probably that there are still some major problems in the way naval officers use boats.

Take the Battle of Suzhou for example. Wu Zhikui and Huang Fei seemed to use the warships only as a means of transporting troops. After the troops entering the city were ambushed, the navy retreated into Taihu Lake in a panic.

Li Chengdong then blocked the river entrance and exit with small boats and set fire to them in the direction of the wind. Eventually, more than a hundred warships were burned down because the ships were too large to maneuver properly. The two generals and their troops were also wiped out in this battle.

However, in this time and space, this battle has not yet happened, and it is unknown whether their fate can be changed.

just
"How can this be absurd! Your Highness was personally appointed as the Crown Prince by the late Emperor, and now he is acting as the regent for his merits in defending Yingtian. How dare they disobey his orders?!"

At the welcoming banquet in the evening, after Shen Tingyang explained the details of Chongming Island, Xu Yu immediately stood up and scolded him.

"Mr. Xu, don't be upset." Zhu Cilang waved his hand at Xu Yu, and then said helplessly: "The situation is like this, there is no point in getting upset."

During the reign of Chongzhen, although some of the major military leaders had already refused to obey orders, the minor military leaders and local governors still remained obedient to the orders from the capital.

By the time Hongguang ascended the throne, military leaders, both big and small, had already done their own things, and the governors and governors-general had probably begun to behave in a lip service to the throne.

By this time, the authority of the imperial court had been greatly weakened, and Zhu Cilang would not expect to make these people obey his orders simply by being the regent prince.

Of course, the title of Prince Regent is of great use, but its usefulness depends on to whom it is used.

For example, Zhu Guobi needed to use this title to seize military power from Zhao Zhilong, while Zuo Menggeng needed to use this title to stabilize the morale of the army.

But for the generals on Chongming Island, with Prince Yi Yang in their hands, there was really no need to have a powerful mother-in-law above their heads.

So it is not difficult to understand why Shen Tingyang looked extremely embarrassed when Yue Qijie asked them to come and pay a visit to Zhu Cilang.

"Your Highness, the generals are still loyal to the Ming Dynasty, otherwise they would not gather on the island to plan a counterattack, but..."

Shen Tingyang explained a few words, but after the word "just", he didn't know what to say next.

In fact, Zhu Cilang could also figure it out. It was nothing more than a question of authenticity of the identity.

After such an incident before, no matter whether he was real or fake, as long as he was unable to control these military leaders, they would have reason not to obey Yingtian's orders.

"Mr. Shen, there is no need to say more. As long as we unite to resist the Qing Dynasty, there will be no problem here." Zhu Cilang said to relieve Shen Tingyang's embarrassment, and then he raised the wine glass: "Come, come, come, drink this glass."

Since His Highness had spoken, no one else said anything. But as soon as he picked up the wine glass, he heard Xu Yu's voice: "Your Highness, I will drink this glass for you."

Previously, Xu Yu was angry about the affairs of the generals on Chongming Island, and now he spoke out to stop Zhu Cilang and Shen Tingyang from drinking together. Combining the two factors, everyone would think that he was deliberately looking for trouble.

But Shen Tingyang was a civil servant after all, and he was a little dissatisfied with the generals' thoughts, so he decided to put it aside and have a drink with Xu Yu.

Xu Yu seemed to be unaware of this situation, so the task of smoothing things over fell on Yue Qijie: "Don't blame me, Lord Shen. Your Highness is injured and cannot drink."

Injured?

He is of royal blood, who dares to hurt him?
"This is.?"

Hearing this, Shen Tingyang immediately looked towards the main seat, but Zhu Cilang could only say something awkwardly.

"I was kicked by the Tartars before, it's no problem, it's no problem."

"Your Highness, please don't lie. We have heard from General Chang that the Tartars seem to be white-armored soldiers. Even among the entire Eight Banners, there are only a few hundred of them. How can they not cause trouble if they are kicked like this?"

Before Xu Yu finished speaking, Zhu Cilang felt a little confused: Mr. Xu was a little more straightforward, but he would not repeatedly contradict others in such an occasion.

Anything unusual is a demon, but no one knows where this demon is pointing to.

"Have the Tartars entered the city?"

"Your Highness is guarding the city personally, how can the Tartars get in?"

Just as Zhu Cilang was thinking, a conversation came into his ears. However, Xu Yu's words sounded a bit weird, and he didn't know whether he did it on purpose or not.
At this point, Shen Tingyang also understood why His Royal Highness the Crown Prince was kicked.

Honestly speaking, he had the same idea as Xu Yu and did not support Zhu Cilang's costly act of personally going to the battlefield.

But at the same time, he also knew what impact it would have on the situation if he had a commander who was not afraid of life and death and was willing to brave arrows when the emperor fled and people from all over the country surrendered.

"No wonder Yingtian was able to fight the Tartars with its weak and remnant troops."

With this in mind, Shen Tingyang slowly stood up from his seat, and then, under the gaze of everyone, he walked to the center of the hall and bowed to Zhu Cilang.

"God has not forsaken us, and Your Highness has managed to turn the tide. However, swords have no eyes after all. I hope Your Highness will take care of your health for the sake of the Ming Dynasty and the people."

龙体
When Zhu Cilang heard this word, he roughly understood the reason why Xu Yu behaved out of character.

To put it bluntly, isn't it just that he wants to win Shen Tingyang's heart with his "glorious deeds" without any effort?

"Mr. Shen, please stand up quickly. My father has died in Beijing. I am just trying to do a little for the country."

Zhu Cilang followed the plan of the two old ministers and had a good relationship with Shen Tingyang, and the atmosphere at the banquet became harmonious again.

Only then did he have the opportunity to ask what he was most concerned about: "As far as I know, Chongming Island seems to be not far from Hangzhou by water. Does Mr. Shen have any news about it?"

"Reporting to Your Highness, we have been on Chongming Island for less than ten days and have not yet made contact with Hangzhou."

Hearing this, Zhu Cilang couldn't help feeling a little disappointed, but he didn't notice that Shen Tingyang's expression seemed a little unnatural.

Hangzhou is a very important place. Once it falls into the hands of the Tartars, it would be equivalent to blocking the Ming army in eastern Zhejiang in the mountains.

If a few more obstacles can be taken, even the Taihu Plain will completely fall into the hands of the Tartars.

By then, no matter how many rebel forces Zhu Cilang's plan could arouse, the Tatars would be able to easily deal with them, and Yingtian would become a truly isolated city.

Previously trapped in Yingtian, Zhu Cilang could only try to find a way out. Now with the help of Shen Tingyang's navy, he was thinking about whether he could do something.

But then again, when the enemy comes, we will fight him with our soldiers; when the water comes, we will block it with earth.

Being able to establish contact with the Chongming Island Navy today is already an unexpected gain. How can we expect to exert any influence on Hangzhou, which is thousands of miles away?

"It's beyond my reach, I have no power to do anything."

Zhu Cilang let out a long sigh and was about to drink the wine in the glass when he realized that Mr. Xu was staring at him. He had no choice but to put down the glass and change the subject again.

"Then please ask Mr. Shen to tell us about Su Song's situation."

Shen Tingyang couldn't explain the situation in Hangzhou, but Susong was the reason why he came to Yingtian, so he could talk about the situation there. After a while, the civil and military officials present roughly understood the reasons for Shen Tingyang's visit, and everyone had different thoughts.

"Your Highness, I think we should send a team of useful people to help Lord Shen stabilize the situation on Chongming Island."

Since the Liang Yungou incident, Qian Qianyi rarely expressed his opinions on military matters. But who would have thought that as soon as Shen Tingyang finished speaking, he would be the first to stand up as if he had been injected with chicken blood.

"Sir, the generals just don't believe that Yingtian is still alive, but Yu Daming is loyal to him."

Although Shen Tingyang's official position was the director of the Imperial College, he had served in the Ministry of Revenue and the Ministry of War. He was not an old scholar like Xu Yu who had spent half his life teaching.

So when he heard the words "stabilize the situation", he immediately became nervous.

Qian Qianyi was indeed a little anxious. Not to mention that Shen Tingyang had no such thoughts, even if he did, how could he say it so bluntly in public?

What's more, this is just Chongming Island. If we really send troops to capture the generals, who would dare to have anything to do with Yingtian in the future?
If you do this, wouldn't you be truly isolating yourself from the world?

At least half of the people in the hall could think of this, but when Zhu Cilang refused before, there were not many people present. Unsure of His Highness's thoughts, they could only keep their mouths shut and act according to circumstances.

As a result, the atmosphere that was about to liven up suddenly became awkward again.

"Don't worry, Lord Shen. The elder is just worried about your situation. There is no other intention."

Under such circumstances, Yue Qijie, who was considerate and insightful, stood up again.

Then, without waiting for Qian Qianyi to say anything else, he changed the subject and continued, "But the elder's concerns are not groundless."

As soon as the words fell, the scene suddenly became silent.

The previous "stabilizing the situation" sounded like Yingtian was taking the initiative, but now "worrying about your situation" is another matter.

Judging from the current situation, Shen Tingyang will support Zhu Cilang after learning about the situation in Yingtian. Will those on Chongming Island who originally planned to support King Yi Yang change their minds because of this?

If not, then it is probably reasonable that some unspeakable things would happen.

"Dangdang, no way."

"I know that most of Lord Shen's subordinates are craftsmen and civilians. If someone really has evil intentions, how will you respond?"

Having said that, even if Zhu Cilang has other plans, he cannot help but consider Shen Tingyang's safety.

However, how many troops to send depends on the situation on the island.

"Mr. Shen, how are the troops on the island?"

"There are probably more than 10,000 naval and land forces."

"Where's the combat power?"

"About. About a little weaker than the surrendered army."

Some?
How much is some?

If they are really only slightly weaker than the surrendered army, I don't think they would hope that Yingtian would send the army to help.

Seeing Shen Tingyang's hesitation, Zhu Cilang had some idea in his mind.

But then he changed his mind and something else made him feel a little embarrassed.

Who should be sent to lead the troops?
To be specific, personal ability is secondary for this mission. The key is that one's status cannot be too low, but also not too high.

If it is too low, people will easily look down on it, which may cause trouble; but if it is too high, it will seem like sending an "imperial envoy" to supervise the army, which will cause unnecessary hostility among the generals on Chongming Island.

"Your Highness, why don't you let my brother lead the troops?"

Just as Zhu Cilang was considering the candidate, Xu Yinjue, who had not spoken a word all night, took the initiative to plead for Xu Renjue.

In terms of status, Xu Renjue is indeed a good choice. As the cousin of the contemporary Duke of Wei, his status is neither high nor low.

In terms of his ability in battle, he can be considered the best under Zhu Cilang.

However, the situation on Chongming Island is complicated. If the response is wrong, not only will Yingtian fall into siege again, but this anti-Qing force will also suffer losses in vain. It is not known whether a rookie like him with no experience can cope with it.

"Your Highness, my brother is smart yet steady. There is no better choice."

I don't know whether Xu Yinjue saw through the current situation or was just flattering his younger brother, but what he said was really full of confidence.

In this situation, Zhu Cilang had no other choice. After obtaining Shen Tingyang's consent, he ordered Xu Renjue to lead 200 guards and 100 Zhutang young men to accompany Shen Tingyang back to Chongming Island.

At this point, the main business was considered finished, and everyone then toasted each other and left. However, when Zhu Cilang came out of the Xincheng Earl's Mansion, he saw Zhu Guobi still standing at the door.

"Why is the Duke of Baoguo still here?"

"Your Highness, I have something to say."

Seeing that he looked like he wanted to open up to her, Zhu Cilang suddenly became alert.

To be fair, he did not make any difference between the two dukes from the beginning, but in their subsequent interactions, both the information from Wang Fuping and his own feelings made him think that this man was not trustworthy.

Therefore, in subsequent arrangements, Zhu Cilang eliminated all opportunities for him to have access to military power, and even considered leaving him idle along with other nobles.

But then again, Zhu Guobi did not completely break off relations with him like Liang Yungou did, and he still had to maintain the appearance.

"Oh? What the Duke said is mature and prudent. I will listen attentively."

"Your Highness is serious."

Zhu Guobi bowed his hands and bowed his waist as a way of saying goodbye. Then he said with a serious face: "I, Your Highness, hope that you will forgive me for my previous behavior."

Although Zhu Cilang could not explain his purpose clearly, he had some guesses.

At first, Yingtian looked like a dilapidated ship that was about to sink, so the nobles naturally had no interest in coming up.

And now.
It is still a broken ship, but at least someone is repairing it, and judging by the level of the repairman, it seems that there is hope that the broken ship can continue to sail. So it is not difficult to understand why the nobles want to get back on board.

"Even now, the relationship between the ruler and his subjects can be considered harmonious. Why do we have to create more trouble?"

Since the other party had already said everything, Zhu Cilang did not intend to guess the answer anymore. He said something calmly and looked at Zhu Guobi expressionlessly.

"Your Highness, if the Ming Dynasty can last long, we, the nobles who are closely tied to the country, must be more reliable than military generals and civil officials."

(End of this chapter)