Gou was a member of the imperial family in the late Ming Dynasty

Chapter 1206 Speaking out
After the Liaodong War, the court rewarded the officials who had made contributions to the war. Because the tactics proposed by Zhang Xianzhong played a great role, Wang Jinwu also recommended Zhang Xianzhong for this. Finally, Zhang Xianzhong was promoted from General Dingguo to General Huqi for this merit, and there was an extra gold star on his chest. In addition, the court also gave him a lot of gold and silver as rewards. Although his title remained the same and his actual power was not much different from before, it was very rare for a surrendered general.

Hearing that it was Zhang Xianzhong who raised the different opinions, Zhu Shenzhui immediately became interested and asked Wang Jinwu about the details. However, Wang Jinwu was not very clear about this. Although he was also in the General Council as the second assistant, he was basically on duty in the cabinet on weekdays. The specific work of the General Council was in the charge of the deputy general councilor Wu Xiang, so he needed to ask Wu Xiang about this matter.

After thinking for a while, Zhu Shenzhui stood up and said, "Are you two ministers all right? Why don't you follow me to the General Council Office?"

"Your Majesty, this...?" Wang Jinwu was stunned. Just as he was about to say something, Zhu Shenzhui waved his hand and said, "I have been very quiet and I am eager to move. I haven't been to the General Council Office for a long time. I will go over to take a look and take a look at their deductions."

Since the emperor said so, Hong Chengchou and Wang Jinwu naturally had no problem and immediately accompanied Zhu Shenzhui out of the Qianqing Palace and headed towards the General Council Office.

Zhu Shenzui did not participate in any ceremonial procession, nor did he ride in a sedan chair. He was accompanied by Hong Chengchou, Wang Jinwu, the great eunuch Lu Jiude, and a few imperial guards, who walked instead of riding in a carriage.

The Senate General's Office is not far from the Imperial Palace. It is located to the west of the Imperial Palace. You can reach it by going out of the west side of the Forbidden City.

This place was formerly called Xiyuan, where Emperor Jiajing lived and practiced. Earlier, it had a more famous name, the Leopard House. Emperor Zhengde also lived here for several years. After the Jiajing Dynasty, the emperor moved back to the Forbidden City, and Xiyuan resumed its royal garden layout. When setting up the Senate General's Office and the Military Academy, Zhu Shenzui deliberately marked out part of this area, half of which was used as the location of the Military Academy, and the other half, closer to the palace area, was the location of the Senate General's Office.

Not long after, Zhu Shenzui and others left the Forbidden City through Xihua Gate, and soon after they continued walking forward, they arrived at the General Senate Office.

As one of the highest military institutions in the Ming Dynasty, the General Council Office has no real power yet, but the framework has been set up. Therefore, the scale of the security here is basically the same as that of the Five Military Commandery, and since it is adjacent to the imperial palace, the security is even stricter.

When Zhu Shenzhui and others arrived here, the officers and Jinyiwei guarding this side hurried forward to greet them. They never expected that the emperor would come without any greeting, and even the chief minister and the second chief minister came.

Waving his hand and not asking the visitor to kneel and salute, Zhu Shenzui went straight to ask who was in the Senate Office today. When he learned that Zhou Anmin was away on official business, but Deputy Chief Senate Wu Xiang and several other councilors were there, Zhu Shenzui had someone take him inside. As soon as he entered the door, Wu Xiang, who had received the news, hurried out with several councilors to greet them, and bowed deeply after seeing the emperor.

"My dear ministers, you are all generals in the army. This is the General Council, a military organization of our Ming Dynasty. Just salute." Zhu Shenzhui waved his hand.

Wu Xiang responded quickly and led everyone to perform a military salute. After the ceremony, they invited the emperor to come in. Zhu Shenzhui nodded without saying anything and walked in. Wu Xiang lagged behind two steps and cast a questioning look at Wang Jinwu who came with them, as if asking Wang Jinwu why the emperor came suddenly?
Wang Jinwu shook his head slightly, smiled and said nothing, but this action made Wu Xiang feel relieved. It seemed that the emperor suddenly decided to visit the General Council. This situation had happened before. Wu Xiang calmed down and followed him in.

After entering the central hall, Zhu Shenzhui sat down in the main seat and waved his hand for everyone to take their seats. After everyone saluted, they took their seats in order of official positions and ranks. On his left and right were the chief minister Hong Chengchou and the second minister Wang Jinwu, followed by Wu Xiang and other councilors. At this time, Zhu Shenzhui also noticed that Zhang Xianzhong was among them. Although his title and rank were not low, he sat in the last seat in the General Council Office.

After the tea was served, Zhu Shenzhu first asked about the recent situation of the General Senate Office, and Wu Xiang, as the deputy general councilor, reported on it. After listening to his report carefully, Zhu Shenzhu asked him a few questions, and Wu Xiang answered them fluently, which made Zhu Shenzhu very satisfied. At least on the surface, Wu Xiang did a good job in the General Senate Office, and at least he, as the deputy general councilor, was competent.

Then Zhu Shenzhui asked about the situation of the war in Yunnan and their recent judgment on the war in Yunnan. Wu Xiang also explained this and told the emperor that the General Council had been deducing the direction of the war in Yunnan. The intelligence from Yunnan had been sent to the General Council in a timely manner. They were deducing the situation every day according to the content of the situation and the previous situation, and reporting the results to the Qianqing Palace in a timely manner. Before the emperor came today, Wu Xiang was gathering everyone to prepare for another deduction. According to normal procedures, the results would be reported tomorrow.

Zhu Shenzui knew all of this, and he received the deduction results from the General Senate on time. These results were basically consistent with the subsequent actual developments. This also shows that the people in the General Senate are not just sitting there doing nothing, but are very serious about their work.

"Thank you for your hard work, generals. I established the General Senate not only for the purpose of consultation. You will be of great use in the future. I hope you will keep up the good work and don't let me down!" Wu Xiang and others were overjoyed when they heard this. They quickly stood up and saluted, saying that they would do their best to serve the Ming Dynasty and the emperor.

Hong Chengchou on the side seemed to be thinking about something with a calm expression.

He had already made a judgment about the General Council, and before becoming the Prime Minister, Hong Chengchou had a deep understanding of this emperor. He knew that Zhu Shenzhui was not Emperor Chongzhen. Zhu Shenzhui's methods and strategies were outstanding among all the emperors of the Ming Dynasty. He always thought three steps ahead before doing anything. This seemingly inconspicuous General Council looked ordinary, but upon deeper thought, it was not simple. As expected, apart from anything else, the emperor's emphasis on the General Council showed what the future status of this institution would be.

Although he knew that the General Council would inevitably replace the Five Military Commandery in the future and take over the military power from other departments of the court, Hong Chengchou did not want to intervene in this matter, let alone stop it. Hong Chengchou was a smart man. He knew that the current cabinet was completely different from the previous cabinet. With the emperor having real power, including military power, the role and weight of the cabinet had declined a lot. Moreover, the former Prime Minister Wen Tiren had been in the cabinet for so long and had helped the emperor to subtly rectify the court. In addition to the crackdown and division of the various parties in the court, the imperial power of the Ming Dynasty was now firmly in the hands of Zhu Shenzhui.

Since this was the case, Hong Chengchou could not change it with his ability, so he might as well assist the emperor in carrying out the reform. Moreover, Hong Chengchou's ambition was to become a famous official. At present, he was the chief minister, second only to the emperor. In terms of official position, he had reached the pinnacle of his life and it was impossible for him to advance any further.

Hong Chengchou had no intention of becoming a powerful official. He also knew that the emperor was an excellent ruler. There was no need to go against the emperor as the chief minister under the wise ruler. This would not be beneficial at all. Moreover, after Zhu Shenzhui reformed the system a few years ago, he stipulated that the cabinet elders, including the chief minister, could serve for a maximum of two terms, and they must be replaced at the end of their term. Therefore, Hong Chengchou could not always sit in the position of chief minister. When the time came, he would withdraw from the cabinet and take up another position. In this way, Hong Chengchou only hoped that he could assist the emperor in making some tangible achievements during his term. After he retired, he would be evaluated as a famous official, and after a hundred years, he would have the posthumous title of Wenzheng, and he would be satisfied.

After praising the people in the General Staff, Zhu Shenzhui suddenly changed the subject and mentioned the results of the deduction of the current war in Yunnan. He asked, saying that he heard that there were different opinions within the General Staff on the views of the Yunnan war, and whether he could explain it in detail.

Hearing this question, Wu Xiang was stunned for a moment and did not react for a moment. At this time, Wang Jinwu said, "Your Majesty would like to hear the rebuttal suggestions mentioned in the previous deduction. By the way, is Dingbian Bo available?"

"I'm here!" When Wang Jinwu directly called out the Earl of Dingbian, Zhang Xianzhong, who had been playing bystander at the end, was stunned for a moment. After he reacted, he hurriedly stepped forward and saluted the emperor on the throne.

"Dingbian Bo! I heard that you have different opinions on the war in Yunnan? And you even had an argument with your colleagues about it? Is that true?"

"This..." Zhang Xianzhong looked embarrassed and subconsciously glanced at Wu Xiang. Wu Xiang frowned slightly at this time. As the deputy chief counselor, he naturally knew this matter best. After all, he was the actual person in charge of the General Council. Wang Jinwu was the second assistant and was often in the cabinet. Zhou Anmin had other errands, so he was responsible for the daily work of the General Council.

Zhang Xianzhong did have different opinions on the deduction of the Yunnan war, and he had debated with everyone. However, the matter was resolved internally, and Zhang Xianzhong did not say anything in the end. The final deduction result was submitted according to the most appropriate plan discussed by everyone, and the debate was not reported.

But why did they suddenly mention this? And Wang Jinwu said that the emperor came here today just to know about this. Could it be that Zhang Xianzhong complained privately? This shouldn't be the case! Wu Xiang has been in the General Council for several years, and Zhang Xianzhong is also a councilor. From his understanding of Zhang Xianzhong, this guy is always cautious and careful because he was born a bandit. He dare not let others catch him. He has always been very obedient in the General Council. Except for discussing military affairs, he can't help but say a few words. He basically avoids other things. With his intelligence, he should not do such a stupid thing, but the question is how did the emperor know?

"Zhang Xianzhong, you don't have to worry. I was the one who informed His Majesty of this matter. After His Majesty learned about it, he had the idea of ​​coming to the General Council. Since you have a different opinion, just say it boldly. It's okay if you are wrong." Wang Jinwu explained with a smile.

At this time, Zhu Shenzhui nodded slightly, looking at Zhang Xianzhong with an encouraging look. Zhang Xianzhong felt relieved because of the explanation of the emperor and Wang Jinwu. It seemed that they were not here to cause trouble for him. Zhang Xianzhong thought for a moment, took a step forward, saluted the emperor and the first and second assistants, and then spoke.

"Your Majesty, I do have a different opinion. I think the current situation in Yunnan may seem problematic, but in fact it is fraught with dangers and is not as stable as imagined. I suggest that the court should be more prepared for Yunnan. If something happens, the rebellion in Shading Prefecture may not be quelled, but may even intensify!"

(End of this chapter)