The Prosperous Era of Longwan

It was understandable that the Ming army captured Wang Gao and held a prisoner ceremony, but Wei Guangde's requirements were a bit high, and both Zhu Heng and Tan Lun had to object.

That is, Wei Guangde was planning to execute Wang Gao as an enemy chief, rather than the Confucian way. In the end, a benevolent monarch should forgive the enemy chief's guilt and let him go.

In the end, neither Zhu Heng nor Tan Lun was as happy as Wei Guangde after the Ming army won the battle of Liaodong.

In their view, defeating the Jurchen tribe was a matter of course and not worth making a fuss about.

It would be strange and unacceptable if we lost the fight.

They don't know how ferocious the Jurchens will be in the future, so it's normal to have such a view, but Wei Guangde can't.

He knew that during the most difficult time of the Ming Dynasty in the future, the Jurchen tribe would stab Ming in the back and directly destroy the Han family.

As for whether Wang Gao is considered a rebel chieftain or an enemy chieftain, Wei Guangde actually prefers the latter.

The Jurchens have always only surrendered on the surface, but deep down they have no sense of belonging to the Ming Dynasty.

Therefore, Wei Guangde chose the highest-level prisoner gift this time, and also killed people, in order to deter those with ulterior motives in the Jurchen tribe.

In fact, it was Li Chengliang who brought Wang Gao back to the capital this time, and he left Qi Jiguang in Liaodong because he planned to directly let Qi Jiguang take over the job of the commander-in-chief of Liaodong after rewarding Li Chengliang here.

Qi Jiguang also has the task of arresting Wang Gao's sons, Atai and Ahai, in order to completely cut off Wang Gao's lineage.

Cutting off the roots is a hatred for the Han people, and it is also a very ruthless deterrent to the Jurchen tribe.

In fact, after the "Chenghua Liting", the Ming Dynasty did not eradicate the children of the Jurchen tribe leaders. As long as they were willing to surrender, most of them were granted the original position to reflect the emperor's grace.

However, Wei Guangde knew that it was useless to just show kindness. He had to kill the source of the trouble in order to make other Jurchen tribe leaders surrender and did not dare to easily launch a war against the Ming Dynasty.

They cannot afford the consequences.

"The prisoner gift can be carried out according to the specifications of the rebel chieftain, but Wang Gao must die."

Wei Guangde suddenly figured out that what he wanted was to execute Wang Gao, and there was no need to argue about the format of the prisoner dedication ceremony.

"Shan Loi, if you kill him on the battlefield, you will kill him, but if your Majesty orders you to kill him, then"

Zhu Heng hesitated and said, "If Wang Gao must be executed, we can ask His Majesty to issue an order at the ceremony and forward it to the Ministry of Punishment, which will sentence him to death."

"not good."

Wei Guangde answered directly: "Your Majesty is twelve years old, not even a child. He should be murderous."

However, Wei Guangde said something that made Zhu Heng and Tan Lun widen their eyes. Not only did they want to kill them, but they also wanted the little emperor Zhu Yijun to personally issue the order.

"It's not appropriate."

Tan Lun said immediately.

"I am not only a cabinet minister, but also the emperor's master. Your Majesty must not only learn to handle government affairs, but also act decisively. When encountering war, you must not hesitate. Fight when you should, and kill when you should.

As for what you are worried about, there is actually no need to worry about it. Uncle Zhang is shouting that he is a king, so what are you worried about?

What I can teach is actually how he behaves.

Zhang Shuda's education is mostly about thinking but lacks practicality. In the long run, it will only make His Majesty good at thinking but low-minded.

Let him issue an order to execute the enemy chief, exercise his courage, and also allow him to think about the difference between killing and not killing earlier. "

Wei Guangde said, "I will talk to Your Majesty about this matter, and I will also explain it to the Queen Mother."

In fact, Wei Guangde despised this group of civil servants. For their own selfish purposes, they wanted to make the emperor a caged bird without any deterrence.

Therefore, the idea that Zhang Juzheng instilled in the young emperor Wanli was to be kind and not to use weapons lightly.

The consequence of this is that after Emperor Wanli took charge, he was not decisive in doing things without Zhang Juzheng's restraint.

In addition to retaliating against Zhang Juzheng for deceiving him, his methods towards other courtiers were too gentle and did not have the skills of Emperor Jiajing.

For the civil servants, such an emperor is easy to bully and will keep it in his heart when he is angry.

But Wei Guangde didn't see it that way. After all, he came from a later generation, and the political skills of the head of state were very important and related to the strength of the country.

He never regarded himself as a member of the civil service group. Although he enjoyed the benefits brought by his status, he knew that after the collapse of the dynasty, everything was in vain.

He hoped that the emperor of Ming Dynasty could rise up and lead the empire to a bigger stage, instead of becoming a toy at the mercy of others.

He must be acting out of consideration for himself, but he is just taking advantage of the situation and will not damage the country.

So he taught the little emperor, in addition to normal lectures, he would also teach some other things.

He heard war stories from Yu Dayou, Qi Jiguang and others, as well as some geographical knowledge and customs of the earth.

Well, actually he knew little about the latter, but the Ming Dynasty actually already had the foundation.

Since Zheng He's voyages to the West, generations of Ming emperors have actually known that the world is huge and boundless. Although Ming calls itself "China", it actually knows that there is land ten times or a hundred times larger than Ming's overseas.

When Wei Guangde took out the geographical atlas found by the Ministry of War, which was said to be drawn by Zheng He and explained it to the young emperor, Zhu Yijun was surprised and asked why the Sanbao eunuchs did not establish more propaganda sites since there was such a vast land outside. Wei Division, but only the Xuan Wei Division of Jiugang was established.

Wei Guangde's explanation for this is that today's transportation technology limits the connection between the two places and cannot communicate well. Sometimes it is difficult for the court to respond in time, which delays major events.

Of course, what Wei Guangde said was not meaningless. It was mainly to instill in the little emperor the idea that overseas lands should be taken as long as conditions permit.

Explaining the old port is also a move to send the navy to take the lead in Nanyang later, so that the little emperor knows that there is actually a forgotten land in Nanyang left by his ancestors.

As for the overseas territories, Wei Guangde told him according to what he remembered from Western colonies. The imperial court appointed governors and only determined the tributes to be paid every year. They arranged regular visits by the navy, delivered news and transported tributes. The overseas governors were responsible for everything else. .

Wei Guangde even suggested that willing vassal kings be allowed to join the vassal overseas and be given the right to open a government office, set up a flag, and handle military and political affairs of their own.

A vassal king with such power could only occupy territory overseas rather than on Ming Dynasty territory.

The income can only be the supply of that land. If you can hold it or even expand it, it's your own ability. If you can't hold it, you can run back, but you will lose the king's title and become a commoner.

For clan reasons, the royal family will still support them, but they are just common people.

However, Wei Guangde also knew that no vassal king would be willing to go with such a suggestion.

The unknown risk is too great. Unless the imperial court sends troops to occupy it and take care of it, they may not consider it.

The next day, after Wei Guangde handled some government affairs early in the morning, he entered the palace with Zhang Juzheng.

"The prisoner presentation ceremony is condescending, but Wang Gao must die by His Majesty."

Wei Guangde said while checking in with Zhang Juzheng.

"There is no correction, which is not conducive to His Majesty's good reputation."

Zhang Juzheng just said.

"Wang Gao has killed too many generals. It will be difficult to convince the public if he is not executed."

Wei Guangde continued.

The military generals hoped to execute Wang Gao to avenge his colleagues, but the civil servants thought it didn't matter. They hoped that the emperor would not kill anyone.

As for the execution of the rebellious chief, it depends on the emperor's decision.

Of course, the emperor was young and they were in control of everything.

"There are so many unruly people in the Jurchen tribe, and killing them can make them fear the imperial court."

Wei Guangde continued.

Zhang Juzheng knew that this was Wei Guangde's hope that when he saw the Queen Mother of the two palaces later, he could stand by him and support his decision.

After only a moment of hesitation, Zhang Juzheng nodded and said, "Okay."

Meeting the two empress dowagers and the young emperor today is about three things.

The first was Dongfan Island, the second was to execute Wang Gao as a prisoner, and the third was to keep Li Chengliang in the court to prevent changes in the southwest.

The empress dowagers of the two palaces hesitated when they learned that the cabinet's plan violated the ancestral system and wanted to regain Dongfan Island.

However, Wei Guangde's attitude softened after he explained that the geographical location of Dongfan Island could effectively protect the coasts of Zhejiang and Fujian, and that there were countless resources to support the development of the navy.

After all, both cabinet ministers support the occupation of Dongfan Island, so there is nothing wrong with it.

But it took a lot of effort to execute Wang Gao.

After all, the queen mothers of the two palaces still hope that the young emperor Zhu Yijun can have a reputation for kindness and be a good emperor, so when it comes to killing the rebellious chief who has been caught, they feel that they can just lock him up and there is no need to execute him.

Wei Guangde dug up the list of generals who died at the hands of Wang Gao forty years after Jiajing. After more than ten names appeared, from deputy commander-in-chief to guerrilla generals, the two empresses realized that Wang Gao's evil deeds were obvious.

"Wang Gao was cruel by nature, refused to obey the king's rule, and committed unforgiving crimes. The generals in Liaodong would like to eat his flesh raw.

This time Governor Li captured him, and many of his soldiers wanted to execute him on the spot. However, because of his heinous crimes against the chieftain, he had to be sacrificed as a prisoner before he was spared.

Such a villain should have been cut to pieces with a thousand swords, but it would still be difficult to extinguish the anger in the hearts of the soldiers. "

When Wei Guangde said this, he glanced at the two empress dowagers and the young emperor above, and then continued: "However, it was His Majesty who personally issued the order to deal with Wang Gao this time. In order to clear His Majesty's name, he changed the punishment from punishment to execution. Very kind, enough to spread our emperor’s name around.”

Originally, in history, Wang Gaoxian was sent to the Ministry of Punishment for interrogation after being captured. The final conviction was due to his relationship with the generals such as Li Chengliang and Qi Jiguang. They had access to Zhang Juzheng, and finally sentenced him to the most brutal punishment among ancient tortures. - Punishment.

This kind of punishment was mainly used during the Five Dynasties period. Its execution method included first cutting the flesh and separating the bones, then breaking the limbs, and finally cutting the throat, which is commonly known as mutilation.

In fact, Wei Guangde didn't care much about the method of executing enemy chiefs.

By beheading, the head can be circulated to nine sides, so that the leaders of various Jurchen tribes can see the consequences of rebelling against the imperial court.

Wei Guangde felt that this kind of treatment would have a more deterrent effect.

If Wang Gao's sons Atai and Ah Hai can be caught as soon as possible, the heads of the three father and son will be passed down together, and the deterrent effect will be even greater.

Originally, after Li Chengliang captured Wang Gao and sent them to the capital for disposal, he let Atai and Ah Hai go. He had no intention of eradicating the trouble forever, and perhaps he also deliberately wanted to cultivate the bandits' self-respect.

But this time, Li Chengliang was asked to take Wang Gao to the capital and asked Qi Jiguang to stay in Liaodong to arrest Wang Gao's two sons. The history of Liaodong has actually changed drastically.

If Li Chengliang had not raised troops to attack again a few years later, naturally there would not have been the tragedy of Nurha Chizu and his father dying in the rebellion.

Without the support of Li Chengliang, it would be difficult for him to easily stand out from the Jurchen tribe and complete the unification of the Jurchen tribes.

Wei Guangde finally said that the emperor's benevolent reputation would be spread among the neighboring countries, which finally impressed Empress Chen.

After Wei Guangde prayed for the Queen Mother's Holy Judgment, she just glanced at the little emperor and saw a resolute expression on his childish face. She actually understood the little emperor's attitude.

"Okay, the Ai family agreed to Elder Wei Ge's suggestion and executed Wang Gao."

As for leaving Li Chengliang in the capital, neither queen mother paid much attention to it.

However, it was Wei Guangde's judgment that something might be wrong when he mentioned Southwest, which caused a look of worry to appear on the faces of the two queen mothers.

The last thing they want to face is something big happening to the court, and if there is a war in the southwest, even though it is a border area, it will also shake up the Ming Dynasty.

When he heard that Wei Guangde wanted to keep Li Chengliang on guard, he naturally agreed with both hands.

This General Li had just established his meritorious service in Liaodong and was obviously a capable warrior. It was a good thing to stay in the court as a backup.

"Since Mr. Wei Ge thinks there may be trouble in the southwest, it would be better to send General Li to the southwest to take charge earlier. If there is any abnormal movement in the outer vassal, it is better to suppress it this morning."

The person who spoke was the little emperor’s biological mother, Queen Mother Li.

Although they were in the harem, she and Empress Dowager Chen had not read the imperial memorials. They also noticed that it took a lot of time to get the memorials sent from various places to them.

Neither of them were stupid, and they easily figured out the reason.

"Queen Mother, all this is just speculation. We have to wait for the Jin Yiwei to send back the information before we can make an accurate judgment."

Wei Guangde said.

"I remember it has been a long time since Mr. Wei Ge mentioned this matter last time. Has Jin Yiwei not received the news yet?"

Even though Wei Guangde and Liu Shou had a good personal relationship with each other, they did not dare to make the decision without authorization.

Therefore, this matter was reported to the Queen Mother of the two palaces, and permission was obtained, that is, Jin Yiwei could be arranged to spy on foreign affairs.

For this reason, a large number of Jinyiwei personnel have already secretly gone to Nanyang and Myanmar to spy on intelligence, and there are even arrangements for North Korea and Ryukyu.

If I were a native of Ming Dynasty, I would think that foreign vassals have nothing to do with me, but after all, Wei Guangde comes from a later generation, and history has proven the importance of intelligence, so Wei Guangde will naturally not neglect it.

Wei Guangde just shook his head at Queen Mother Li's words.

"What does the cabinet think is Myanmar's best interest for Ming Dynasty?"

At this time, Queen Mother Chen asked.

Hearing this, Zhang Juzheng glanced at Wei Guangde and nodded to him.

When talking about this matter, Wei Guangde emphasized that since the six major Xuanwei divisions were entrusted back then, naturally according to the ancestral system, a unified Myanmar would not be in the interests of the Ming Dynasty.

"Since the Hongwu period, Taizu Gao Guangdi sent general Mu Ying to attack Yunnan and defeat the remaining Mongolian forces. Mu Ying was granted the title of Marquis of Xiping, and his descendants were granted the title of Duke of Guizhou, and he was the ruler of Yunnan.

The Ming Dynasty established six major Xuanwei departments in the extreme areas to the west and south of Yunnan, namely Mengyang, Mubang, Burma, Babai, Cheche and Lao Xuanwei departments.

He also granted the chieftain the title of Xuanwei envoy, accepted the imperial title, and obeyed the three divisions of Yunnan.

I secretly believe that the rule of the Six Divisions is the ancestral system and will remain the same no matter in the past, present or future. "

Wei Guangde said, but what he didn't say was that the best management was to divide and conquer, and merging would be troublesome.