Ming: I am fake, walking on thin ice

Chapter 167 Demon Queen: It’s all your fault. My legs are numb.
Outside the pass, Yesen’s camp.

Yesen kept Li Manwang and Tongshan for two days, and personally escorted them out of the camp on this day because they were going back to Jianzhou. After returning, according to the agreement, they would immediately lead their troops south.

"Goodbye, Khan!" Li Manwang and Tong Shan bowed to Yesen.

"I look forward to meeting you in the capital of the Ming Dynasty." Yesen laughed.

At this time, a small team rode hurriedly from the north road. When they were almost in front of Yesen, the leader jumped off his horse, ran to Yesen and knelt down: "Great Khan, it's bad. The Ming army attacked Yesibatur. Fortunately, Alazhiyuan was prepared and repelled them. However, we suffered a lot of losses. Alazhiyuan asks the Khan to send troops to support us."

Li Manwang and Tongshan were shocked when they heard this.

Damn it, Yesen, your old nest has been attacked by the Ming army, and you are still here talking to us about competing for the Central Plains? Are you kidding us?

"What nonsense!" Yesen kicked the spy who brought the news to the ground.

He turned to Li Manwang and Tong Shan and explained, "A small group of Ming troops are causing chaos in the rear, trying to lure me to retreat. This further proves that the Ming defense is empty. There is no other way. You two, let's set off. I will kill that Ming army group within half a day. We will meet in the capital of Ming Dynasty."

"Okay, goodbye." Li Manwang and Tongshan got on their horses and rode away.

After galloping for half an hour, they finally slowed down. Tong Shan snorted, "It seems that Yesen didn't tell us the truth. He wanted to use us to contain part of the Ming army."

"For us, this is an opportunity!" Li Manwang sneered, "Last winter, many of our cattle and sheep froze to death, and we are also short of food."

Tong Shan nodded: "The Ming Dynasty is no longer the same as before. There will never be another emperor like Emperor Taizong. Haha, the current Ming emperor is so shameful that he was captured by Yesen, and he still has the nerve to live."

Li Manwang chuckled: "Speaking of which, the fake emperor of the Ming Dynasty is quite bold! Who would have thought that he dared to pretend to be the emperor and sit firmly on the throne of the Ming Dynasty."

Tong Shan nodded repeatedly, his face solemn: "I have read the intelligence, this fake emperor is not simple! If things go wrong, he will become our great enemy in the future!"

Li Manwang took a deep breath and said, "After returning, call all the departments to discuss! It would be best if I could maneuver between the Ming Dynasty and Yesen."

……

At this time, Yesen's camp.

Yesen looked at the spy coldly, and after listening to his account of Yesibatur'er's situation, he asked in a deep voice, "In other words, the Ming army launched a surprise attack at night and retreated in less than half an hour. You don't know how many people they had?"

The spy nodded. "It was too dark to see clearly. I could only see many torches."

Snapped!
Yesen slammed the table angrily, his eyes burning with anger: "Nothing has been clarified yet, and Alazhiyuan sent people to ask me to divide my troops? I left 50,000 troops for him, can't he defend it?"

The spy knelt down, trembling, not daring to look up or answer, fearing that the knife would fall the next moment. It was Boyan who stepped forward and persuaded: "The Khan should calm down, Ala Zhiyuan is also worried."

As he spoke, he waved to the spies and said, "Go down and rest first. I'll come find you later."

The spies were relieved and hurriedly left the tent. Boyan walked up to Yesen and said in a low voice: "Khan, Alazhiyuan has long been rebellious. He wants soldiers, obviously to weaken our forces to attack the Ming Dynasty."

Yesen clenched his fists, his eyes full of murderous intent. After a moment of silence, he said, "I'll send him a letter to calm him down first! After this battle, I'll deal with him later!"

Boyan nodded and said, "I'll go have a drink with those spies and find out what's going on in the Alazhiyuan."

Yesen waved his hand and Boyan retreated.

scold!
Yesen was filled with rage, and he cut off the chair in front of him with a knife, his eyes piercing: "Ala, you have ruined my plan, I cannot let you go!"

He was talking about the alliance with the Jianzhou Jurchens. Everything was going well until this unexpected spy interrupted it. Now it was unknown. It was hard to predict whether the Jianzhou Jurchens would go south.

……

Northwest, Dunhuang.

Emperor Zhengtong closed the "Zizhi Tongjian" in his hand, walked to the window, and looked at the gloomy sky outside. During this period, he studied history books hard and gained a lot.

He also realized how naive and ignorant he was as a king. Unfortunately, it was too late to regret now. However, his mood has calmed down now.

Recently, he often recites Mencius's "Born in Sorrow and Died in Happiness":
舜发于畎亩之中，傅说举于版筑之间，胶鬲举于鱼盐之中，管夷吾举于士，孙叔敖举于海，百里奚举于市。故天将降大任于是人也，必先苦其心志，劳其筋骨，饿其体肤，空乏其身，行拂乱其所为，所以动心忍性，曾益其所不能。

People always make mistakes before they can correct them. They are trapped in their hearts, weighed in their thoughts, and then they act; they are expressed in their faces and voices, and then they are understood. If you cannot rule your family at home and offend your people, and you cannot have enemies abroad and cause external troubles, your country will always perish. Then you will know that life is born in sorrow and death in comfort.

"Which great lord in history has not experienced hardships?" He whispered to himself, "Which great lord has never made mistakes?"

Every time he finished reciting, his resolve became more determined and his demeanor more calm.

"Your Majesty." Xu Bin came in with a piece of intelligence. "Shaanxi-Gansu Governor Liu Dingzhi is causing trouble again. Originally, Guanxi and Central Plains had mutual trade, but now Liu Dingzhi is disrupting it. If the mutual trade cannot be carried out, Guanxi will lack various supplies."

The Zhengtong Emperor frowned slightly, pondered for a while and asked: "What kind of person is this Liu Dingzhi?"

Xu Bin briefly introduced Liu Dingzhi, saying that he took his fellow villagers to Beijing to file a complaint with the emperor and brought down a vassal king. It was the pseudo-emperor who saw his courage and talent and appointed him as a county magistrate. Later, when the new policy came, the pseudo-emperor quickly promoted Liu Dingzhi to be the governor of Henan, where he successfully implemented the new policy. Later, he was promoted by the pseudo-emperor to be the governor of Shaanxi and Gansu.

"He is a loyal and righteous man." The Zhengtong Emperor smiled coldly, "How about this, I will issue him an imperial decree and see how he reacts? I am the emperor of the Ming Dynasty. What will Liu Dingzhi, who is well-versed in the books of sages, choose?"

Xu Bin slapped his head and said, "Yes, Your Majesty, you might as well issue him an imperial decree! Even if you can't win him over, you have to make him upset."

The Zhengtong Emperor did as he was told and took out the imperial seal.

……

Beijing, Qianqing Palace.

Today is the day when the King of Zhou comes to Beijing to pay homage. He first goes to the Palace of Heavenly Purity to pay homage to the emperor. Zhu Qizhen lived in the King of Zhou's mansion for a period of time three years ago, when the old King of Zhou passed away. Therefore, he is quite familiar with the current King of Zhou, Zhu Zihou, although he took away a lot of good land from the King of Zhou's mansion after the old King of Zhou's death.

Zhu Zihou was a wise man who knew how to keep a low profile to save his life. Zhu Qizhen received him warmly and asked him about the recent situation in Kaifeng. King Zhou said that Kaifeng was already very prosperous and he looked forward to the emperor's visit to Kaifeng again.

"Your Majesty, the prosperity of Kaifeng is still due to the efforts of the former governor Liu Dingzhi." King Zhou sighed, "Now the people of Henan still miss him."

"I am very pleased." Zhu Qizhen smiled.

The two chatted for a while, and then the King of Zhou took his leave. According to etiquette, he had to go to Kunning Palace to pay respect to the Queen Mother. Under the guidance of the eunuch, he came to Kunning Palace.

The Queen Mother was wearing a phoenix robe, dignified and majestic. She dismissed all the eunuchs and palace maids, leaving the King of Zhou to question him alone. The King of Zhou was obviously a little nervous, sitting there with his head down.

"You have received the imperial edict from Dunhuang, right?" the Queen Mother asked in a deep voice.

King Zhou was frightened and shook his head quickly: "I didn't...I didn't receive it. I don't understand what the Queen Mother said."

The Queen Mother chuckled, "Just like your father, you can pretend to be confused. Never mind, I won't embarrass you. I just want to tell you one thing, remember that you are a member of the Zhu family."

King Zhou knelt down immediately and said: "Of course I remember that I am a descendant of the Zhu family."

The Queen Mother was stunned for a moment, then waved her hand and said, "Back off."

King Zhou stood up respectfully, bowed again, and then walked out. Walking on the imperial road, he looked back at the Qianqing Palace and Kunning Palace, frowned, and whispered to himself: "Fake emperor, empress dowager, haha, how ridiculous."

……

dusk.

Zhu Qizhen came to Kunning Palace and saw the empress dowager tidying up her potted plants. It was summer, and she was wearing a thin long skirt. Her body was graceful and her skin was whiter than snow. When she leaned over, the arc of her perfect curves was breathtaking.

"King Zhou sent him away?" she asked without raising her head.

"No, he fell ill. He might be tired from traveling for days." Zhu Qizhen spread his hands, "It's okay for him to rest in Beijing for a few days."

The Queen Mother leaned down again, her hair falling down, accompanied by the fragrant breeze, and said with infinite charm: "There are strict regulations on how long the princes can stay in Beijing. Don't break the rules. The princes after you will break the rules."

Zhu Qizhen looked quite helpless: "You can't chase someone away just because he's sick, right?"

He knew that there were so many rules because they were to prevent the princes from colluding with the ministers. It was said that Zhu Yuanzhang did not know the risks of enfeoffment. How could he not know, as he was so smart? So he set many rules to restrain the princes. However, the princes now had almost no power and were not to be feared.

After watering the flowers, the Queen Mother stretched out her delicate hand to gather a strand of hair behind her. She moved her slender waist slightly, walked over to sit beside him with her long legs, picked up the teacup on the table, drank a sip elegantly, and sighed softly: "When will the war in the northern border end? I will perform a few more rituals at the Fahai Temple for the soldiers who died in the battle."

"The war situation has become more complicated." Zhu Qizhen said.

He lay down skillfully, resting his head on her legs, and closed his eyes: "Please help me rub them. My eyes have been hurting all day, and sometimes I even cried. The ministers thought I was moved."

The Queen Mother chuckled, stretched out her hands and gently pressed her brows, rubbing them lightly, and said, "Did you ask the imperial physician to take a look?"

Zhu Qizhen held her other hand, squeezed it, and said, "Forget about the minor illness. Ask the imperial physician to take a look at any condition. They thought that the emperor was in poor health and was about to die."

"Nonsense!" The Queen Mother tapped him on the forehead.

She continued to rub gently, and soon she heard Zhu Qizhen snoring. She didn't know whether to laugh or cry. You can fall asleep while lying on my legs? Am I so unattractive to you?

"What a bad fate." She sighed with anger and shame in her eyes.

Zhu Qizhen really fell asleep and had a beautiful dream. He was chasing a fairy and finally caught her and started to bite her.

Snapped!
He woke up, and when he opened his eyes, he saw the demon queen's beautiful face of shame and anger. She said angrily, "You can't even sleep well. Where are you chewing?"

"Ah?" Zhu Qizhen was stunned and saw that he was hugging her waist with both hands.

"Are you still not going to open it?" The Demon Queen glared angrily.

Zhu Qizhen quickly let go, rubbed his eyes, and sat up: "I'm sorry, I'm too sleepy."

The Demon Queen glared at me unhappily, thinking, If you weren't so tired, would I let you sleep for half an hour with your head resting on my legs?
"I'm hungry, let's eat." Zhu Qizhen stood up awkwardly. The demon queen's long legs fell from the mat. Just as she was about to stand up, she felt her legs go numb and she stumbled and fell. Zhu Qizhen was quick to reach out and hug her slender waist, and she fell into his arms.

She raised her bright and mature face, her dark eyes flashed with panic, and a strand of hair fell beside her red lips. When Zhu Qizhen lowered his head, he saw her pursed lips, and their eyes met. The demon queen lowered her head quickly.

Duang!

Her ears turned red from the collision with Zhu Qizhen's chest.

Zhu Qizhen held her waist with both hands and smiled: "Just hit me to death!"

The demon queen buried her head, and angrily slapped him twice with her hand, saying shamelessly: "Isn't it your fault? My legs are numb!"

She buried her head in his arms for a long time before she felt recovered. She took a few careful deep breaths and found that she seemed to be craving for his scent.

"Are you feeling better?" Zhu Qizhen helped her sit down on the chair next to the dining table.

He called out to Shuangxi outside the hall and asked her to serve the food.

He was really hungry. He ate heartily without paying any attention to his image. The Queen Mother looked at him with contempt and ate elegantly. Zhu Qizhen looked up while eating and asked, "It feels like the harem is dead. You are in charge of the harem. Why don't you hold a dance party?"

"Ball?" The Queen was curious. "What ball?"

"Masquerade?" Zhu Qizhen explained with a smile, "It's when everyone dresses up beautifully, but wears masks, and then dances together. Uh, it's just dancing. On the day of the ball, all the rules in the harem are waived, and everyone can have as much fun as they want. Don't you think my idea is great?"

The Demon Queen blinked her beautiful eyes, pondered for a while, and nodded: "Okay!"

"Then you will be in charge of planning and arranging the affairs." Zhu Qizhen put down his bowl and chopsticks. "Everyone can relax on that day and look forward to it. Well, I have to get busy. I'm going to the Ministry of War to watch those rough men's deductions."

He stood up and walked away. The Queen's dark and lively eyes blinked: "Masquerade? Interesting."

……

Hiss…Boom…

There were thunder and lightning, and heavy rain. Zhu Qizhen stood in the corridor of the Qianqing Palace after the court session, looking at the heavy rain outside. Xu Youzhen stood behind him and reported: "Your Majesty, there is plenty of rain this year, but there are fewer rainstorms. So far, there has been no major flood. The river government has made sufficient preparations, and Wang Lai is a man who can get things done."

"God has finally helped me this time." Zhu Qizhen smiled, "Otherwise, with the war in the northern border, the resistance against Japanese invaders in the southeast, and a few more floods, it would be really troublesome."

"Your Majesty is kind and benevolent, and God must see it." Xu Youzhen said.

Zhu Qizhen smiled and turned to ask, "Has Yu Qian arrived?"

He summoned Yu Qian to discuss the issue of resisting the Japanese pirates in the southeast. Although the imperial court could not provide many troops, it could provide sophisticated weapons and equipment.

"Your Majesty, look, Master Yu is coming in the rain." Xu Youzhen pointed to the imperial road below.

Yu Qian ran up with an umbrella in his hand, walked up to Zhu Qizhen and bowed: "Your Majesty!"

Zhu Qizhen wanted to go into the palace to talk, but after taking a few steps, he turned around and said, "Old Yu, let's go to the Ministry of War. I suddenly remembered a formation."

Yu Qian was stunned.

Formation? Your Majesty, do you think this is cultivation? Most formations are unreliable.

"It's raining, Your Majesty." Xu Youzhen shouted.

However, Zhu Qizhen had already walked out, and he and Yu Qian looked at each other and had to follow. Yu Qian grumbled in a low voice: "Your Majesty is young and healthy, it's okay to get wet in the rain. I am already in my 50s, and I will get sick if I get wet in the rain."

"Your Majesty didn't ask you not to hold an umbrella." Xu Youzhen rolled his eyes.

"Even the emperor is getting wet in the rain, how dare a minister not get wet?" Yu Qian spread his hands.

Zhu Qizhen, who was walking in front, held his forehead with his hand and said, "What are you talking about? From now on, you can do anything that is not prohibited by the Ming Dynasty Law. Don't use me as an excuse."

Soon, they arrived at the Ministry of War, where the rough men were making deductions again. When they saw the emperor coming in, they all bowed to him. Zhu Qizhen raised his hand and said, "All of you please stand up. I am here to discuss with you the matter of resisting the Japanese invaders in the southeast."

……

After discussing for an entire hour, there was no perfect solution. However, the latest muskets and artillery could be provided to the Southeast. We just hoped that Zhang Lun could hold on.

"I have a formation, let me tell you about it." Zhu Qizhen stood up.

The rough men in the Ministry of War were all very self-righteous and did not take the formations the emperor talked about seriously, but when the emperor wanted to explain, they could only come closer to watch.

The formation Zhu Qizhen mentioned was actually the Mandarin Duck Formation that Qi Jiguang used to fight against the Japanese pirates. The Mandarin Duck Formation played a huge role in Qi Jiguang's war against the Japanese pirates, defeating the enemy with fewer troops and inflicting heavy damage on the Japanese pirates. For example, in the Battle of Taizhou, Qi's army repelled more than 1500 Japanese pirates with only 2000 soldiers, while only suffering more than 20 casualties. The reputation of the Mandarin Duck Formation spread far and wide, and frightened the Japanese pirates.

Basic composition: The Mandarin Duck Formation is composed of 11 or 12 people as a combat unit. The specific composition is slightly different, but it basically includes the captain, shield bearer, wolf-whip bearer, spear bearer, short weapon bearer and other roles.

Captain: Take command from the center, coordinate attack and defense timing, and observe the enemy situation.

Shield bearers: holding long shields or rattan shields, responsible for blocking the arrows and spear attacks of the Japanese pirates and providing protection for the rear team.

Wolf-whip Hand: Holding a wolf-whip (a special weapon made from southern bamboo), use the branches and blade of the wolf-whip to stab or slow down the enemy.

Pikeman: holding a spear, responsible for attack and flank protection.

Short weapon operator: holding short weapons (such as waist knives, javelins, etc.), responsible for close combat and vigilance support.

Features:

Combination of long and short weapons: The Mandarin Duck Formation combines long weapons with short weapons, which allows it to attack from a distance as well as in close combat.

Both offensive and defensive: shieldmen and spearmen are responsible for defense, while spearmen and short weaponmen are responsible for offense, forming a strict offensive and defensive system.

Flexible and maneuverable: The formation can be flexibly changed according to the situation on the battlefield, such as changing the vertical column into a horizontal column, or dividing into two small formations on the left and right.

In combat, the mandarin duck formation uses shieldmen and wolf-whipmen to provide cover, spearmen use the distance advantage to assassinate, and short-weaponmen are responsible for vigilance and support. The various arms work closely together to form a strong combat force.

When Zhu Qizhen finished explaining the Mandarin Duck Formation, the rough men in the Ministry of War were all shocked. Yu Qian saw its power at a glance and praised it:
"Your Majesty, I will immediately practice this formation and then send someone to the southeast to teach it to Zhang Lun. I believe that with this formation, our army's combat effectiveness will be greatly improved."

"I never expected that your Majesty's attainments in military tactics are so high!"

In Yu Qian's view, His Majesty the Emperor was not only strong in government affairs (various new policies), but also understood river management (controlling water and attacking sand), and he also made concrete and drew the schematics of advanced muskets.

Your Majesty knows too much!

……

Zhu Qizhen arrived at Kunning Palace, his clothes were still wet, and his hair was wet and messy. The Queen, who was enjoying the rain, glared at him and said, "What happened? You are soaked like this."

"Oh, my headache." Zhu Qizhen pretended to touch his head.

The Demon Queen hurried over and put her hand on his forehead to see if he had a fever. She frowned, as if she couldn't feel it. Then, she hugged his arms with both hands and put her forehead against his.

Zhu Qizhen could feel her breath when he was so close to her. Looking at her rosy lips, he almost kissed her. The Queen didn't seem to notice anything unusual: "I don't feel any fever."

Zhu Qizhen took the opportunity to lean on her shoulders, put his arms around her waist, and said weakly and helplessly: "Maybe you are too tired, let me lean on you for a while, just a little while."

"Oh." The Demon Queen let him hug her. "No, we still have to call the imperial physician."

"No, I'll just lean on it for a while." Zhu Qizhen exerted a little force.

The demon queen felt his naughty dog ​​paws and reacted.

"You lied to me!"

"No, whoever lied to you, you are a puppy."

The demon queen raised her foot to kick him away, but he dodged flexibly and ran quickly to the back hall, shouting as he walked: "Shuangxi, bring me a robe. Your queen mother is drooling all over me, you are born in the year of the dog."

"asshole!"

The Demon Queen gritted her teeth and whispered, feeling angry and ashamed.

Not only was I cheated, I was also taken advantage of.

Chest pain.

Zhu Qizhen changed his clothes and washed his hair, letting it fall on his shoulders, looking fresh and warm.

The demon queen held up her slender waist, showing a graceful curve. She stood in front of him angrily. She actually had the brightness of a young girl, delicate and charming. Her cold and beautiful eyes were fierce: "Little bastard!"

She is obviously a mature lady, why does she act like a girl sometimes recently?
Zhu Qizhen suddenly moved closer, scaring her so much that she took several steps back. He laughed, "Okay, no more fussing, let's get down to business. How is your masquerade going? Do you need my advice?"

“No need!” The Demon Queen shook her head. “Isn’t it just to make everyone crazy for a day? I am just the Queen Mother. Otherwise, I would be the craziest person in the harem.”

Zhu Qizhen nodded repeatedly: "I believe this! Emperor Xuanzong married you because his head was squeezed by the door."

The demon queen's pretty face instantly turned cold.

(End of this chapter)