Southern Ming: A boy soldier at the beginning, supporting the world

Chapter 132: The Seal of the General

Yan Wei, the staff officer of the camp office, was from Changshu and the grandson of the Grand Secretary Yan Ne. He was humorous and had the talent for adaptability. At the beginning of the Dan Dynasty, he was sent as an envoy to Xunzhou to ask Chen Bangfu for the seal of the general who conquered the barbarians.

Xunzhou is located at the confluence of Qianjiang River and Yujiang River, and the famous Dateng Gorge is not far upstream. Going up the Qianjiang River, you can reach Liuzhou, and go north to Guilin, Guizhou, and Hunan. Turning to the Hongshui River, you can reach Si'en, Qingyuan, Sicheng and other prefectures, and west to Guizhou. Going up the Yujiang River, you can reach Nanning and Liuzhou, south to Guangdong and Jiaozhi, and west to Yunnan. Going down the Xunjiang River, you can reach Wuzhou and Guangdong.

Therefore, Xunzhou is well connected and is a place of war, which is a must-fight for military strategists. In addition, Guangxi is composed of seven mountains, one river and two fields, and arable land is scarce. The largest plain, the Xunjiang Plain, is located around Xunzhou.

This is also the lair of Chen Bangfu, the largest warlord in Guangxi.

Yan Wei and his party entered Xunzhou and carefully observed the situation in Xunzhou. They saw paddy fields connected to each other for hundreds of miles, the river was full of water, and the sails were like snow. Although the times were turbulent, the area around Xunzhou did not suffer much from the war and could be called a paradise.

If such places could be seized, with Cen Danchu's ability in military administration, he would surely be able to achieve great things. However, the reality was shocking: the most incompetent and shameless warlord, Chen Bangfu, seized the greatest power and occupied the largest territory.

After entering the city, Chen Bangfu first sent his subordinates to receive Yan Wei. Chen Bangfu was "rich and narrow-minded" and only used flattery as a means to achieve his current career. Following the example of his superiors, he had many villains around him, who were shameless and greedy for money and bribes. The Chen family army was weak and did not maintain military preparations.

Yan Wei brought 200 taels of gold with him and bribed Chen Bangfu's confidants. Soon, all of them gave advice to Chen Bangfu, who originally wanted to ignore Yan Wei, but had to order him to meet with him.

I thought Chen Bangfu would deploy soldiers to give Yan Wei a warning. But I didn't expect him to dress like a Confucian scholar and chat and laugh with a group of Confucian scholars in the lobby. When he saw Yan Wei, he pretended to be happy, got up from his seat to greet him, and said with a smile on his face: "Brother Boyu, I have heard of you for a long time."

It is said that Chen Bangfu likes to "wear a scholar's cap and big sleeves, and bow and salute lavishly as a gesture of appearance", and it seems that the rumor is true. Some Confucian scholars were deceived by him and were happy to serve him, but over time, they found that he was not worthy of his reputation. Most upright gentlemen stayed away, and those who stayed were all those who curry favor with the powerful.

Yan Wei bowed without kneeling, and said: "General Jue is approachable and unconventional, and he is worthy of being a Confucian general."

Chen Bangfu was self-aware. He was from Shanyin, Shaoxing, and was originally a rich family, but he had no official position and was not valuable. In the turbulent times, Chen Bangfu was good at flattery and was promoted to Duke, but in fact he was not valued by famous people.

Yan Wei is a famous family. His grandfather was a famous official during the Jiajing period. He served as the Minister of Personnel, in charge of the personnel administration, and also served as the Grand Secretary of the Wuying Palace, assisting in the administration of the country.

Being flattered by an old-timer like Yan Wei, a newcomer like Chen Bangfu was extremely happy. He immediately bowed in return and offered the old-timer a seat.

"As I traveled along the way, I saw that Xunzhou was a land of fertile fields and the people were living in peace and contentment. With such a happy land, the country will have a bright future, and this is truly the work of Marshal Jue."

The flattery was getting more and more outrageous, but Chen Bangfu was just fine with it. He smiled and said, "Bo Yu, you are flattering me! You are flattering me!"

He gave them tea and they had a very pleasant conversation.

Soon, Yan Wei talked about the business and said, "General, I am here on the orders of General Cen of Zhaoyong to present two great gifts."

There were several secret agents present, all of whom had benefited from Yan Wei, and they all said:

"Mr. Cen is very thoughtful. He must be sincere in making friends with the Duke."

"The commander's virtue is profound, and people from all over the world come to him."

"No wonder there were magpies flying into the palace today. It's a sign of good fortune."

……

Chen Bangfu smiled from ear to ear and asked knowingly, "What kind of gift is that sent by Lord Cen?" Yan Wei waved his hand and his followers brought two treasure chests. When he opened the chest on the right, he saw a glittering golden glow inside, which was exactly one hundred taels of gold.

"General, it is a time of war and the journey is not peaceful. I am here as an envoy and cannot bring any supplies. This is the most vulgar thing, but it also best demonstrates Lord Cen's sincerity. I hope you will accept it with a hundred taels of gold."

One hundred taels of gold, worth more than one thousand taels of silver, is not a small amount. Everyone present showed greed and envy.

Chen Bangfu was not satisfied. Needless to say, Yan Wei came here for the seal of the General of Conquering the Barbarians. The seal itself is not valuable, it is made of silver, but it is a symbol of national power and has been passed down since the early Ming Dynasty. Famous generals of the Ming Dynasty such as Fu Youde, Mu Ying, Yu Dayou, Gu Xingzu, and Liu Xian have all worn the seal of the General of Conquering the Barbarians.

In front of everyone, Chen Bangfu still smiled and said, "Mr. Cen's kindness is unworthy of my acceptance."

In the officialdom of the Ming Dynasty, "student" was a self-deprecating title. When facing superiors, elders or people with higher qualifications, civil servants would call themselves "students" to show humility and respect.

Chen Bangfu was pretentious, but still accepted the gold.

When the second wooden box was opened, a fishy smell spread out. Although Yan Wei had warned everyone in advance, everyone present was still startled and covered their mouths and noses.

"Marshal, this is the head of Nguyen Phu Quang."

Chen Bangfu pretended to be relaxed and said self-deprecatingly: "I sent troops twice, but I couldn't capture the five garrisons. On the contrary, Lord Cen defeated them with one strike. The young are really to be feared."

Yan Wei smiled and said, "Mr. Cen was just relying on Marshal Jue's reputation. When our army attacked Wutunso, we claimed that we were following Marshal Jue's orders and attacked Wutunso three times. When the soldiers and civilians in the city heard Marshal Jue's reputation, they immediately panicked. In addition, due to the shortage of food and weapons, the rebels surrendered without a fight."

"Really?" Chen Bangfu asked doubtfully, "I heard that Nguyen Phu Cuong plundered the rich and amassed countless treasures. Lord Cen seized the five villages, how many treasures did he get?"

"Alas!" Yan Wei shook his head and sighed, saying, "There is a shortage of food in the city. Most of the soldiers and civilians, rich and poor, have fled. I don't know how much money Nguyen Phu Cuong has amassed. When our army broke into the city, the rebels fled in panic, and there was little gold and silver left. Fortunately, thanks to the reputation of the commander, our army caught up with Nguyen Phu Cuong, cut off his head, and recovered more than a hundred taels of gold. Wutunso has been destroyed by Nguyen Phu Cuong for a long time, and the population in the city has dwindled, with only more than a hundred elderly and weak households left."

Chen Bangfu was deeply disappointed and could only scold Nguyen Phu Cuong: "This traitor gathered a crowd to rebel and brought disaster to the country and the people. He really deserves to be put to death. Mr. Cen captured and killed Nguyen Phu Cuong, which is really justice for the heaven."

After a moment of silence, Yan Wei got to the point and said, "General, I am here as an envoy. In addition to presenting gifts, I am also here to ask for a seal. In February of this year, the Emperor appointed Lord Cen as the General of the Barbarian Expedition, and it has been more than half a year.

"Due to the chaotic situation, the seal has been left here with Marshal Jue. If the seal is separated, it will not be in harmony with the emperor and will also be detrimental to Marshal Jue's reputation. Therefore, I beg Marshal Jue to give up the seal, obey the will of heaven and make friends with Lord Cen. Isn't it wonderful?
"Otherwise, Lord Cen's troops stationed in the five garrisons would not be convenient for him to return to Zhao and Yong, which would be very inconvenient for our two armies."

The last sentence is the most important. Cen Danchu stationed his troops in Wutunso, recruiting craftsmen and soldiers. Chen Bangfu did not dare to neglect it either, and stationed a large number of troops in Teng County across the river, confronting him across the river.

At present, Chen Bangfu is fighting with Xu Biao for Nanning, and most of the elite troops are deployed on the southern front, so it is not convenient to start a war again. Cen Danchu was able to capture Wutunso, and he is a young man who is determined to get the seal of the General of the Barbarian Expedition. Don't underestimate him anymore.

People on both sides of the court gave advice, and Chen Bangfu was also concerned about Qu Shisi, Li Chengdong, Jiao Lian and others. In addition, many censors in the court had long disliked him and had impeached him many times.

So Chen Bangfu asked someone to take out the seal of the General of Conquering the Barbarians and gave it to Yan Wei for inspection, and said: "I have long intended to return the seal, but due to the chaotic situation and blocked roads, I have delayed it until now."

Yan Wei took it and took a look. It was made of silver, with a crouching tiger button and willow leaf seal script. The strokes were sharp at both ends and thick in the middle. It was undoubtedly the seal of the general who conquered the barbarians.

Yan Wei was overjoyed that he had accomplished his mission. He stood up and saluted Chen Bangfu, saying, "Thank you, Marshal, for your help."

(End of this chapter)