Prince Chongzhen

Chapter 262: Inheriting the throne to appease the people

The calculation of the army's expenses is quite complicated.

Not only does it involve the consumption of food, wages, rewards and logistical supplies, but there is also a factor that is easily overlooked and plays a key role.

That is the distance the combat troops were sent.

Take the Jiangxi campaign that is being prepared, for example.

If Zhu Cilang only planned to open up the connection between the east and the west, then the farthest place that this battle might involve would be Fuzhou, which is only five or six hundred miles away from Zhejiang. If the daily travel speed is thirty miles, the baggage and food sent from Zhejiang would only take about twenty days to arrive at the front.

With this distance and time, not only does it not require too many troops to protect the food route, but it also does not require too many civilians to transport supplies.

But if we want to take back Jiangxi in one battle, the situation will be completely different.

Not to mention how many troops and militiamen would be needed to fight such a war, nor how many troops would be needed to protect the food supply routes as the combat radius expanded.

In the process of transporting military supplies alone, the food and necessities for the huge number of militiamen and their horses might have been enough to cover the money and food needed for the entire plan.

You have to know that transportation capacity is limited these days. Even if there are enough vehicles, the transportation capacity of a single laborer is not that strong.

Based on this, if supply is guaranteed to the front while the supply lines are too long, the number of shifts of civilian laborers sent out from the rear will have to increase dramatically, and the consumption along the way will far exceed the needs of the army itself.

Therefore, when Zhu Guobi heard that His Royal Highness the Crown Prince wanted to take back Jiangxi in one go, he simply said, "We can't afford to fight."

Of course, if the system of the Ming Dynasty is efficient enough, and can ensure that seven or eight taels of silver out of ten taels can be used for important matters, then the remaining silver in Hangzhou can be used more sparingly and should probably last for a while.

By the time the war is halfway through and we have some spoils of war, we might be able to finish the battle.

But Zhu Cilang knew very well that the administrative system of the Ming Dynasty at that time was already rotten. If even four or five taels out of ten taels were used in the right places, it would be considered as the officials' loyalty to the emperor and the country.

Under such circumstances, how could he dare to launch a war and risk running out of food and money?

In the end, Zhu Cilang only asked the two ministers Zhu and Yue to do their best to prepare, but did not determine the scale of the battle.

Afterwards, he did not stay in Hangzhou for long. After Empress Dowager Zou was ready, he went to Yingtian along the canal.

There is no need to elaborate on what happened next. Since he was returning with Queen Mother Zou, the journey had to be carried out with great fanfare, and officials along the way had to make full preparations to welcome him.

Under such circumstances, the journey that was supposed to take only three or four days took nearly half a month. By the time they saw the royal relatives, noble officials and officials coming out of the city to greet them, it was already December.

"Your Highness has sent someone to say that Qian Qianyi, Ma Shiying, and Yuan Jixian, three cabinet ministers, have led all officials to welcome the emperor ten miles outside the city."

"Well, I don't want to keep you waiting for so long. Let's make the carriage go faster."

As soon as she finished speaking, the eunuch left. However, Empress Dowager Zou's mood was far from as calm as her voice.

She left Yingtian with Hongguang and Ma Shiying on the night of May 15th.

Originally, Queen Mother Zou thought that given the situation at that time, she might not be able to return to Yingtian in this lifetime.

But who could have imagined that the "fake prince" imprisoned in the prison of the Ministry of War could rely on a few weak garrison troops to capture Zhenjiang, save Hangzhou, kill Nikan, and defeat Duoduo.

When he returned to the court this time, he not only had hundreds of thousands of troops under his command, but he had even taken Guangdong, Guangxi, Hunan and Jiangxi into his possession. If we take into account his arrangements in the southwest, as long as he could drive the Qing army in Jiangxi back to the north of the Yangtze River, then this half of the country would be firmly in his hands.

The situation changed so drastically that even though Queen Mother Zou knew every step of the process, she couldn't help but have a thought in her mind from time to time.

How did this kid do it?
This cannot be blamed on Empress Dowager Zou. She had only struggled in the royal palace for the first half of her life. After retreating to Jiangnan, she helped Hongguang with her palace fighting skills, but in the final analysis, this was the limit of her ability. If she wanted to understand the reasons behind it, it was far beyond her ability.

It is said that when viewed horizontally, it looks like a ridge and a peak on the side, with different heights from near to far.

As to why Zhu Cilang was able to turn the tide, everyone will have different opinions based on their own standpoints and insights.

For defeated generals like Duoduo, he attributed most of the defeat in Jiangnan to underestimating the enemy and the navy;

Ministers like Qian Qianyi and Ma Shiying, who were good at calculating, saw in the Crown Prince's actions his ability to see through people's minds and his ability to make clever calculations.
Yue Qijie saw that His Highness was determined to hold on to the military power and would not let it go; Yuan Jixian saw that His Highness acted uprightly and had few evil intentions;
The military generals watched every detail of how the Crown Prince interacted with the soldiers. Some, like Xiang Rensheng, had already taken the Crown Prince's performance in the army as his own role model, and would constantly examine where he went wrong all day long.

But Zhu Cilang himself knew very well that his greatest reliance was nothing more than the summary of hundreds of years.

Don't underestimate these summaries. You must know that in his era, he was able to surpass the ancient times not only in natural sciences, but also in social sciences.

Take Zhang Juzheng for example, who valued silver more than money. This rare genius only understood the basics after experiencing decades of ups and downs in officialdom, and finally resorted to the method of drinking poison to quench thirst.

But if he could understand the right to mint coins and the monetary system, which even children in later generations can talk about, then his approach would not only be a hundred times safer, but he would also be able to figure out early on how to prevent the interruption of the silver flow and extend the life of the Ming Dynasty.

Based on this, Zhu Cilang now does not become complacent because of his initial achievements, nor does he become anxious because of the gradual changes in the trajectory of history.

Even when the welcoming team that was as huge as a mountain and as vast as a sea appeared in his sight, his heart was only surged for a moment before he returned to his normal state.

At this time, not only had all the civil and military officials lined up on both sides of the road under the leadership of the cabinet ministers, but tens of thousands of people also flocked to the scene, making this not-so-busy suburb bustling.

From afar, the civil officials were dressed in gorgeous court robes, standing upright in a solemn manner, trying to show their dignity. In front of them, where they had already been lined up, colorful flags were fluttering. On their sides, they were protected by burly generals in golden armor. Against the backdrop of the gate that had already been set up, the scene looked magnificent and solemn.

Looking at both sides of the road, it goes without saying that there are huge crowds of people. Among the people, there are even many people holding flowers and brocade balls, but it is not known whether they are distributed by the government or prepared by themselves.

As the team returning to Beijing appeared, the clear sounds of whistles, the melodious sounds of trumpets, and the powerful sounds of gongs and drums intertwined into a magnificent piece of music.

The team slowly moved along the trail, with colorful and purple flags glittering in the sun, presenting an incomparable spectacular sight. The swords glittering in the sun, each shining with a fascinating brilliance.

Unlike the previous time, this time the court officials not only released the news that His Royal Highness the Crown Prince would be returning to Yingtian three or two days in advance, but also decorated the road leading to the palace with flowers in the name of the official.

This is how such a grand scene came about.

"Your Majesty! We respectfully welcome the Queen Mother back to the capital!" "Your Majesty! We respectfully welcome His Royal Highness the Crown Prince back to the capital!"

As Zhu Cilang approached to welcome the team, not only did all the civil and military officials bow down to him, but even the common people in the distance all prostrated themselves on the ground.

If it were an ordinary time, Zhu Cilang would have asked everyone to leave, but now the empress dowager was by his side, and as the crown prince who was the regent, he could not make the decision.

So, when the cheers came, he rode his horse to the side of the Queen Mother's carriage and asked softly.

"Empress Dowager, do you have any instructions for the officials to come and welcome you?"

"I am tired from the journey, so please thank all the officials for welcoming me, Your Highness."

"Then the Queen Mother should go back to the palace and rest first. I will go to pay my respects to you after I have dealt with the matters here."

After a conversation, Zhu Cilang rode his horse to the welcoming team. Then a set of complicated regulations came to him, and he continued to accept the welcome from the officials according to the procedure.

It is true that the royal etiquette was really complicated, but it was just a welcoming ceremony. Not only did it have a set of procedures ten miles outside the city, it also had a set of procedures in the outer city of Yingtian. The inner city and the imperial city were more complicated and lengthy than the previous ones. By the time Zhu Cilang actually arrived at the Fengtian Palace, nearly three hours had passed.

Walking through it, you feel like you are in the deep palace, as if you are at the bottom of a thousand feet, surrounded by the magnificent spirit.

In the center of the hall stands a tall yellow dragon, its body like a ring of pearls, majestic and imposing, as if it is ready to take off at any time. The surrounding walls are inlaid with exquisite gems, reflecting the brilliant lights, colorful and magnificent.

Rows of lanterns hung from the eaves of the palace, golden as blood, casting warm light and illuminating the palace. The ground was paved with fine bluestone, which made crisp sounds when stepped on.

According to Zhu Cilang's understanding, this Fengtian Hall would probably be his future meeting room.

However, after seeing this magnificent hall, he couldn't help but feel a little resistance in his heart.

According to later rumors, Chengzu used a large amount of materials containing mercury when building the Forbidden City in Beijing, which led to the Ming emperor's difficulty in having offspring and a short life after the capital was moved.

Of course, Nanjing is not Beijing, and Zhu Yuanzhang may not have used much poison here. Moreover, the problems of difficulty in having offspring and a short life span must have other reasons. If Zhu Cilang was unwilling to live in the palace just for this reason, it would be a bit paranoid.

just
The palace is full of other people's minions.

With this in mind, Zhu Cilang's eyes became more gloomy as he looked at the Fengtian Hall. After seeing the eunuchs and guards standing everywhere, he couldn't help but regret not making some preparations in advance.

This is not just a figment of the imagination.

Not to mention the suspicious cause of death, just the fact that Jiajing had been assassinated several times was enough to make Zhu Cilang extremely wary of the deep palace.

Like the Renyin Palace coup.

It is said that Emperor Jiajing always recruited girls aged twelve or thirteen into the palace in the name of selecting concubines, and treated these girls cruelly in the hope of achieving immortality.

Afterwards, led by a palace maid named Yang Jinying, these palace maids, unable to bear Jiajing's torture, conspired to strangle the cruel emperor to death.

But after Jiajing died, Yang Jinying and the two concubines ran to the Queen to plead guilty in panic, which makes people wonder whether they were pleading guilty or reporting.

Perhaps it was because the women were not strong enough, Jiajing finally survived this incident. After a lot of trouble, even though there were many doubts about the matter, he could only kill these palace maids in the end.

You must know that at this time Jiajing had been in power for more than 20 years, and after several confrontations with civil officials, he had already gained a certain degree of control over the court.

Even Jiajing, who was known to be the smartest among the emperors, could not avoid such an assassination plan with so many loopholes. How could Zhu Cilang, a greenhorn, not be afraid?

"Your Highness, the Crown Prince, please come to the court!"

Just as Zhu Cilang's thoughts were drifting, the civil and military officials led by Qian Qianyi and others saw him standing outside the palace gate but not entering, so they called out to him.

Well, the big storms have passed, how can a little bit of evil tricks cause trouble?

At worst, we can just not go to the lake, not find the imperial physician, and even replace the palace guards with the royal guards, and see what they can do!

Thinking of this, Zhu Cilang did not delay any longer. He took a few steady steps into the hall, and then, without waiting for the ministers behind him, he went directly to the chair placed next to the dragon throne.

Seeing this situation, Qian Qianyi and others naturally breathed a sigh of relief. They were really afraid that this gentleman, who never played by the rules, would cause trouble again at such a critical juncture.

"Your Highness! Qian Qianyi, the Grand Secretary of the Eastern Pavilion! Lead all the officials to congratulate His Royal Highness the Regent Prince on his triumphant return!"

Following Qian Qianyi's powerful shout, the ministers knelt three times and kowtowed nine times outside the hall before entering the hall one after another according to their official status and rank.

Afterwards, the officials lined up on both sides of the hall according to their civil and military positions. When everyone was standing still, Zhu Cilang said in a clear voice, "I'm sorry that you have been busy with state affairs during my absence."

"Your Highness, you only needed a few thousand soldiers to lift the siege of Ganzhou while you were fighting outside. How can we, who are in the capital, dare to say that we are working hard?"

As soon as Zhu Cilang finished speaking, Qian Qianyi stepped forward to answer, and the others did not make any other comments. It was obvious that although he did not get the position of Prime Minister, his position among the cabinet ministers was recognized.

It is worth mentioning that in Qian Qianyi's description of Zhu Cilang's trip to the south, he only mentioned the battle of Ganzhou, but did not mention Guangdong, Guangxi and Hunan. Zhu Cilang was also aware of their taboos. After hearing Qian Qianyi's words, he did not say much, but asked a question according to the rules.

"I have spent quite a bit of time on this, but I wonder if the ministers in the court have anything to report."

When the news spread, all the ministers present knew what would happen next. When the merit of following the emperor was about to come to them, those ministers who felt they were qualified to receive this heaven-shattering achievement could not help but feel a surge of excitement in their hearts.

"Your Highness, a family cannot be without a master, and a country cannot be without a ruler. Now the Supreme Emperor is in trouble, and the country is without a master. I, Qian Qianyi, the Grand Secretary of the Eastern Pavilion, ask Your Highness to inherit the throne to calm the people's hearts!"

"Your Highness! Ma Shiying, the Grand Secretary of the Eastern Pavilion, asks Your Highness to inherit the throne to calm the people's hearts!"

"Your Highness, I, the Grand Secretary of the Eastern Pavilion, Yuan Jixian, ask Your Highness to inherit the throne to calm the people's hearts!"

"Your Highness, please take over the throne to calm the people's hearts!"

It's late today. I have a mixed cold that not only makes me feel uncomfortable, but also makes my thoughts very confused. Forgive me.
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(End of this chapter)