Chapter 155: All strategies for Daning Guard are to be handled by Commander Qi

The scholars of the Ming Dynasty who do not read history books is not entirely the fault of the Ming Dynasty. Speaking of not reading history, one cannot bypass one person, and that is Zhu Xi, the saint of this Zhu-Cheng Neo-Confucianism.

The Four Books and Five Classics of the Confucian classics include the "Spring and Autumn Annals," which is the chronological history of the State of Lu, and also the national history of the State of Lu during the Spring and Autumn period.

And the commentaries that supplement, explain, and expound on this national history, the "Spring and Autumn Annals," are also the Confucian classics "Zuo Zuo Zhuan," "Gongyang Zuo Zhuan," and "Guliang Zuo Zhuan."

Zhu Xi believed that the "Spring and Autumn Annals" was enough. His attitude toward the Zuo Zuo Zhuan was: Zuo's work is that of a person who seeks profit and avoids harm, wanting to place himself in a stable position, but not knowing the truth, and there are mistakes in all the major ethics.

That is to say, the author of "Zuo Zuo Zhuan," Zuo Qiuming, is a villain. None of his words conform to the major ethics of the Three Bonds and Five Constants, and they are all wrong. Since then, the three commentaries of the Spring and Autumn Annals have also been completely expelled from the ranks of Confucian classics.

This view of Zhu Xi was widely recognized. For example, the great writer Zheng Shen Sixiao of the late Song and early Yuan dynasties extended this concept from the Zuo Zuo Zhuan to all history books, saying: Since the "Spring and Autumn Annals," the pen of history does not know where the major ethics are, but only records events. Recording events without clarifying the correct principles, treating the right as wrong and the false as correct, is the common drawback of later history books, and there is no way to clarify their gains and losses.

This is not the end. During the Yuan Dynasty, history was divided into "History of the Saint" and "History of the Historian." The Saint History is the "Book of Documents" and the "Spring and Autumn Annals." Yuan Dynasty Confucian scholars more clearly pointed out: Since the "Book of Documents," the governance of the Two Emperors and Three Kings has been as bright as the sun and stars, and the rest can be kept without discussion, and it is not a pity to be brief. Since the "Spring and Autumn Annals," the events of two hundred and forty years have been as clear as the palm of one's hand, and the rest can be discussed without deliberation.

The Book of Documents and the Spring and Autumn Annals are the history books of the saints. Even Tan Sima Qian's "Records of the Grand Historian" and Ban Gu's "Book of Han" were considered traces of emperors and kings, not worth mentioning. History books after the "Spring and Autumn Annals" are not worth reading.

This is the current Ming Dynasty scholars. If you read books, first read the Analects and Mencius, then the Doctrine of the Mean and the Great Learning, then read the Book of Documents, Spring and Autumn Annals, Book of Rites, Book of Songs, and Book of Changes. If you have not thoroughly read the Four Books and Five Classics, you should read history, and there will be no balance in your heart, and there will be many doubts.

Not to mention the Veritable Records of the Ming Dynasty, even books like "Records of the Grand Historian," "Book of Han," and "Comprehensive Mirror in Aid of Governance" are not on the list of must-reads, let alone the mathematics that Zhu Zhu Yijun has been learning.

Zhu Zhu Yijun reads history. In Zhang Zhang Juzheng's education for the little Emperor, he always summarizes the rise and fall and lessons of past dynasties, telling the little Emperor what can be done and what cannot be done. For example, Zhang Zhang Juzheng has always opposed the little Emperor using heavy punishments against the censors. These are the eyes and ears of the Ming Dynasty and an important corrective force for the Ming Dynasty. Hurting the eyes and ears of the officials will indeed hurt the foundation. This is based on history. All the wise monarchs of past dynasties have accepted good advice.

As for how to filter good advice from the sea of information, and what the standard of good advice is, Zhang Zhang Juzheng also taught the little Emperor, that is, truth. If you don't speak based on facts, it is hypocrisy, and that remonstrance must be carefully distinguished.

Hou Hou Yuzhao's way of speaking is like this, based on facts. This might have something to do with his nature. This is not the little Emperor defining Hou Hou Yuzhao.

But Hou Hou Yuzhao's memorial is like this. Half of it is wheel-spinning words, but the content is still the real situation. Asking the Emperor to hold a court meeting is based on facts. The Emperor does not hold court. The Emperor Jiajing Emperor was nowhere to be seen for more than twenty years, and the Emperor Longqing Emperor didn't even see the cabinet ministers. Isn't this a bit too much?

Court officials can't see the Emperor, and the Emperor can't see the court officials. This is a real problem. Hou Hou Yuzhao also considered that the monarch is young, and said to hold one every third day of the month.

And this time, although his memorial is still a pile of nonsense, what he said is still the real situation. Discussing head merit is not objective and cannot truly and clearly reflect the situation on the battlefield. Is defending the city not a merit? Is repelling the enemy not a merit? A war that only looks at heads does not conform to the learning of benevolence.

Therefore, he remonstrated: divide military merit into five grades, and then list breaking the formation, attacking the city, seizing boats, and recruiting surrender as a kind of strange merit, giving merit plaques to soldiers, and specifying the type of merit on the plaque.

"How did Hou think of this?" Zhu Zhu Yijun asked with great surprise.

Hou Hou Yuzhao was silent for a long time. He actually wanted to be an ordinary censor, but since the Emperor asked, he had to bow and say: "I saw it from Commander Qi's military books."

"Commander Qi is worried about the country. I think head merit has several drawbacks."

"First, it is indiscriminate killing to invite merit.

"For example, in the border towns, in some places, the Tatars had already submitted, but troops rushed into the dwellings of the barbarian people and slaughtered them wantonly. Border conflicts arose again, smoke signals were everywhere. Killing barbarian people on the border, killing surrendered enemy generals, killing young boys of the tribes, and even killing the Hu people who had captured our Great Ming people—this is not uncommon."

Zhu Zhu Yijun nodded in approval and said, "Hmm, General Qi has said that before, when pacifying the Japanese pirates in the southeast, some soldiers, for the sake of head-count merit, even killed the commoners the Japanese pirates had coerced. In the end, Censor-in-Chief Hu had no choice but to adopt a strategy of combining suppression and pacification, dividing and disintegrating them, to establish that only the heads of Japanese pirates counted as military merit. Only then did this chaotic phenomenon end."

"Supervising Secretary Hou, your reading of military books is refined. Continue."

Hou Hou Yuzhao bowed his head and said, "Secondly, there is the buying and selling of merit. Your subject heard that in the 31st year of Emperor Jiajing, Yan Song's family member Yan Xiaozhong, because he beheaded seven people, was promoted two grades. But he claimed illness and did not take office, instead recommending Yan Song's grandson, Yan Gu, to take over his position. He was impeached by a censor, and Emperor Shizong was furious, ordering an investigation, only to discover that this Yan Xiaozhong's head-count merit was also bought."

"This head-count merit became a tool for fawning over powerful figures, turned into a kind of trade, and even turned into exploitation. Military generals would harass soldiers and then sell their heads for profit. Powerful disciples could buy some minor merit and take office immediately, yet they possessed absolutely no martial arts skills."

"If this continues for a long time, where will the morale of our Great Ming soldiers be? The soldiers lack the courage to break through, our Great Ming's military preparedness is not strong, the Ming army loses more and wins less, and the world naturally becomes exhausted."

Zhu Zhu Yijun looked at Tan Lun and asked, "Minister of War, is what Supervising Secretary Hou said true? Does our Great Ming have incidents of buying and selling merit?"

"Yes, and many," Tan Lun bowed his head and said, "Every word Hou Hou Yuzhao said is true."

Zhu Zhu Yijun nodded and said, "Supervising Secretary Hou, continue."

Hou Hou Yuzhao bowed his head and said, "Thirdly, cutting throats in the midst of battle is a great danger in war. One reason is that the thieves are treacherous and often use corpses as bait. Our Ming army only discusses merit based on heads, and being burdened by corpses, they will stop their pace, or fall into an ambush, or be unable to pursue and kill. In the end, there is no great victory, and if they lose, it is a great defeat. Secondly, in order to compete for the primary merit, they kill each other, or delay the opportunity for battle, or give the enemy an opportunity to exploit."

"Your subject does not understand military affairs, but every time General Qi mentions this problem in his memorials, he is heartbroken. It must be very serious."

"Fourthly, it is killing the innocent to claim merit, slaughtering the innocent. This is a great evil, no need to discuss it further."

"Fifthly, it damages Your Majesty's benevolence."

"Troops are ominous tools; the sage uses them only when there is no other choice. The sage army should reflect on this three times as a warning. Although a king may establish order through military merit, he must eventually use civil virtue to achieve governance."

"The imperial army mourns the people and punishes the guilty to settle disasters and chaos. If merit is discussed only by heads, that is encouraging killing rather than stopping it. Unless one can kill the other side until they have no descendants, it will be an endless disaster. In terms of contradiction theory, discussing merit only by heads cannot resolve contradictions, but is deepening and creating the opposition of contradictions."

"Your subject will not speak of the benevolence of those who are good at fighting being punished with the highest penalty; other censors speak much of this. Your subject only judges by contradiction theory: if merit is discussed only by heads, one can only conquer but not settle. This is a great omen of disaster."

Zhu Zhu Yijun looked at Zhang Zhang Juzheng, then at Hou Hou Yuzhao, and said with some emotion, "The analysis is very comprehensive, very good. Attendant Zhang, drape the cloak I bestowed upon Supervising Secretary Hou."

Zhang Hong unfolded the cloak. It had a lapel with a Qilin cloud pattern. This was specially designed by the Directorate of Imperial Apparel, with extremely rich details, and it abandoned the various flashy colors of the past, using pure white, making it look even more majestic.

"Good, good, good, not bad." Zhu Zhu Yijun looked at Hou Hou Yuzhao and said, "Then what is the standard for the five-grade merit system that Supervising Secretary Hou mentioned?"

Hou Hou Yuzhao thought for a moment and continued, "Taking this campaign as an example, recovering Danning Guard is a victory. Danning Guard is the key location outside the frontier. If Danning Guard exists, the capital is safe, and the Yanshan Great Wall has no worries. This is a second-grade primary merit. Yingzhou Guard Xingzhong, although not as key a location as Danning Guard, is still a vital point. If Yingzhou Guard exists, then Danning exists. This is a third-grade primary merit. Again, like the Fumin Post and Kuanhe City outside Xifengkou, they are not as good as Yingzhou Guard, but they are vital locations. This is a fourth-grade primary merit. And the Battle of Pinglu Fortress, where our Great Ming army resisted the enemy, is fifth-grade. The Earl of Hou Jue Ningyuan leading the army to pursue and kill is third-grade primary merit."

"And Assistant Regional Commander Li Li Rusong had the merit of breaking the formation, which is an extraordinary merit."

After hearing this, Zhu Zhu Yijun asked suspiciously, "Then what about the first grade? There are only second, third, fourth, and fifth, and the extraordinary merit of breaking the formation. How should the first-grade merit be measured?"

Hou Hou Yuzhao said tentatively, "Destroying a country."

"Destroying a country?" Zhu Zhu Yijun was stunned.

"Destroying a country." Hou Hou Yuzhao said with more certainty, "This is a first-grade primary merit."

"Very reasonable." Zhu Zhu Yijun found Hou Hou Yuzhao more and more pleasing to the eye. One person's wisdom is short, many people's wisdom is long. Look at this whole set of combination punches from Hou Hou Yuzhao. He not only asks questions based on facts, but he also provides solutions, and the solutions are quite good.

Zhu Zhu Yijun looked at Zhang Zhang Juzheng and said, "What does the Grand Secretary think?"

Zhang Zhang Juzheng glanced at Hou Hou Yuzhao and said with a smile, "Hou Hou Yuzhao is loyal to the sovereign and considers the state. Your subject thinks what he said and memorialized is not inappropriate; it is a great and good strategy. Your subject thinks it can be sent to the nine border towns to ask the viceroys, regional commanders, assistant regional commanders, and assistant regional commanders to discuss it together. If there is no objection, then implement it; if there is objection, then modify it before implementing."

Zhu Zhu Yijun said with a smile, "Then let the Grand Secretary, the Minister of War, and Supervising Secretary Hou discuss this matter, with the end of the year as the deadline, how about that?"

"Your subjects accept the decree." Zhang Zhang Juzheng, Tan Lun, and Hou Hou Yuzhao bowed their heads to accept the decree.

It was just that after Hou Hou Yuzhao accepted the decree, he always felt that ten thousand gazes were looking at him like knives. If gazes could kill, Hou Hou Yuzhao would have been cut into a thousand pieces by now.

These gazes came from many court officials. In the eyes of these officials, Hou Hou Yuzhao had been completely classified as a sycophant.

Whatever the Emperor worries about, you solve it. And you still say you are not a sycophant? Such a big matter, such a good plan, if it wasn't instructed by Zhang Zhang Juzheng or Tan Lun, how could you, a mere Supervising Secretary, think of it!

Why do the court officials hate Hou Hou Yuzhao so much? Because the head-count merit system started in the Emperor Hongwu and Yongle eras, but it became the written and only standard for measuring military merit during the Tianshun era.

After Emperor Emperor Jingtai repelled the Oirat people at the end of the 14th year of During Zhengtong, he established three grades of merit: "extraordinary merit," "primary merit," and "cooperative merit," to reward the army. Besides the primary merit being a reward for heads, the extraordinary merit plaque was also a merit reward based on purpose.

The highest merit was extraordinary merit, which was above head-count merit.

The head-count merit system was one of the major achievements of promoting civil culture and suppressing martial arts. You must know that those who evaluated head-count merit were the viceroys and military advisors in various places. If they said the heads cut by this martial officer were killing the innocent to claim merit, this martial officer could only accept the impeachment. This head-count merit could be bought and sold.

If head-count merit is not discussed, wouldn't the power to evaluate the merit of military generals return from the local governors, censors, viceroys, and military advisors to the hands of the martial officers themselves!

Hou Hou Yuzhao is a traitor!

And what Zhang Zhang Juzheng asked was not the court officials, but the viceroys, regional commanders, assistant regional commanders, and assistant regional commanders, asking the border viceroys and generals if they agreed to change from head-count merit to a purpose-based frontline merit and task merit.

The officials in charge of the border naturally were ten thousand times willing, after all, they were the ones fighting the war, and if they lost, they were the ones who died.

Zhu Zhu Yijun looked at Hou Hou Yuzhao and was more and more satisfied. Then he reached for the next memorial. When he opened it, his expression turned from sunny to cloudy. It was another memorial that made one's scalp tingle. He held the memorial in his hand for a long time, then suddenly his eyes lit up, and he said with a smile, "Is Right Assistant Censor-in-Chief Meng Zhong here?"

"Your subject is here." Meng Zhong hurriedly stepped out and bowed his head.

Zhu Zhu Yijun held the memorial in his hand and said, "You memorialized that you want to negotiate peace with the Tuman, and bestow tribute on the Tuman to pacify the border conflicts. You mentioned five benefits of bestowing tribute. Your Majesty thinks it is extremely appropriate, so I will follow your words."

"Uh..." Meng Zhong was completely stunned. He never expected that he wouldn't be scolded. Previously, when he submitted this memorial, the Emperor just put a cross on it. How could he suddenly say that bestowing tribute was allowed? Where exactly did the problem arise?

"Why, I have already followed your words, are you still not satisfied? What else do you want?" Zhu Zhu Yijun looked at Meng Zhong and asked.

Meng Zhong said extremely strangely, "Your subject is confused."

"You Confucian scholar are very strange. If I approve, it's not right; if I don't approve, it's not right. I think what you said makes sense, isn't that the end of it?" Zhu Zhu Yijun looked at the Minister of the Court of Ceremonial, Chen Chen Xuehui, and said, "Minister of the Court of Ceremonial, send a message to the Danning Guard Capital Battalion, send a messenger, and let the Tuman Khan send an envoy to the capital."

"Today's court discussion ends here. Dismiss the court." After Zhu Zhu Yijun finished speaking, he stood up, left the Huangji Hall with his hands behind his back, and headed for the Zhao Wenhua Hall.

He had already greeted Zhang Zhang Juzheng in advance, so there was no need for a court discussion. Zhang Zhang Juzheng had to go to the Zhang Wenyuan Pavilion for duty, and he also couldn't figure out the pulse of the young Emperor, so he requested an audience in the side hall of the Zhao Wenhua Hall.

Zhu Zhu Yijun soon summoned Zhang Zhang Juzheng into the hall.

"The Grand Secretary must be a bit confused as to why I suddenly agreed to Meng Zhong's proposal to negotiate peace with the Tuman and bestow tribute, right." Zhu Zhu Yijun said with a serious expression, "Altan Khan is not the first to raise the prices of horses, cattle, and sheep. Now he wants to raise the price of wool. I think eggs cannot be put in one basket."

"Altan Khan is a smart man. He knows that if there are more sheep, there will be fewer horses. If this continues for a long time, he will lose the mobility he is proud of, and if Great Ming's economic control over the grassland increases, his authority will be weakened."

"Therefore, he wants to raise the prices of bentonite and wool. And by agreeing to bestow tribute on the Tuman, if Altan Khan raises prices, we won't buy his, we'll just buy the Tuman Khan's."

"Whether the peace negotiation and tribute bestowal can be successful or not, Altan Khan must have some idea in his heart that the imperial court is not his only choice. This is the first point."

Altan Khan thinks he can use furs and other goods to coerce the imperial court, which is very similar to the trade treaty initially proposed by Li Li Yashi, who demanded that Great Ming only trade with Spain and not with Portugal.

This is also why Antonio, this Portuguese heir to the throne, was able to obtain a certain investment from Great Ming.

Zhu Zhu Yijun narrowed his eyes and said, "Secondly, there are many in the court who question the merit of the Earl of Qian'an and the Earl of Hou Jue Ningyuan outside the frontier. What could be more direct than the victims appearing in person to prove the damage General Qi did to them? This kind of questioning will then collapse on its own."

"Thirdly, I want to see what interesting things will happen when there are two princely titles in one grassland."

Qi Qi Jiguang stood in front of Mount Taotu. Why did he want to change the previous strategic goal from coercing the five Khalkha tribes to withdraw their troops to completely driving the Tuman Khan out of Liaodong?

The thing Qi Qi Jiguang worried about most happened. The imperial court clamored with public opinion for peace negotiations, and the imperial court, considering costs and other factors, agreed to this public opinion.

Then, is there still a possibility for Qi Qi Jiguang to go out of the frontier to fight again?

Therefore, Qi Qi Jiguang must judge if this is the only opportunity. Even Liang Liang Menglong, who is familiar with the court, was so pessimistic and agreed with Qi Qi Jiguang to continue moving north.

Ma Fang believed that the Emperor was fond of great achievements and had abundant martial virtue. Since the During Zhengtong era, after the Emperor stopped practicing martial arts, where else in Great Ming was there such an Emperor with abundant martial virtue?

In the end, Qi Qi Jiguang chose to trust the Emperor one more time. But the Emperor seemed to have failed Qi Qi Jiguang's trust and agreed to the court officials' request for tribute and peace negotiations. The Capital Battalion was formed, costing five million silver, and the final result was that after one battle, it ended here.

Did it really end?

Zhu Zhu Yijun looked at Zhang Zhang Juzheng's still solemn expression and said, "The Earl of Hou Jue Ningyuan, Li Li Chengliang, made a good start. When the enemy provokes, stop the tribute market and go out of the frontier to pacify the bandits. Does the Grand Secretary think the Tuman Khan will honestly accept the tribute and not easily start border conflicts? He won't be honest. He will definitely think Great Ming has softened and doesn't want to fight, and then he will push for more."

"These dogs are best at climbing up the nose."

"In other words, does the Grand Secretary think that the contradiction between our Great Ming and the Tuman tribes will reach a stable state of harmony because of the tribute bestowal?"

Zhang Zhang Juzheng was slightly dazed. The Emperor was very clear. This logic was very simple. Great Ming and the Tuman Khan hadn't fought enough and had to continue fighting. This was just an interval.

"The Grand Secretary wouldn't think I really don't want to fight? That's not something I can decide; it's decided by the contradiction. The contradiction between Great Ming and the Tuman is already deep-rooted and won't end after one battle. We haven't fought enough, there is still more to fight."

"I have studied contradiction theory!" Zhu Zhu Yijun handed a letter he had just written to Zhang Zhang Juzheng, a letter to be sent to General Qi at the front.

In the letter, Zhu Zhu Yijun explained in great detail the reasons and purposes for why he had to agree to peace negotiations and tribute bestowal, especially what kind of scene it would be when one grassland and one Borjigin Golden Family produced two princely titles.

Tricks like sowing discord are not only something the thieving British are good at; the young Emperor is also very good at them.

Altan Khan is also Borjigin, and the Tuman Khan is also Borjigin. Who is the suzerain Khan of the grassland will be a matter of debate. Great Ming can help whoever has the advantage, or help whoever is at a disadvantage.

Most importantly, based on contradiction theory, Zhu Zhu Yijun analyzed that the main contradiction between Great Ming and the Tuman is a survival contradiction. Great Ming recovering Danning Guard is like a nail driven into the heart and lungs of the Tuman Khan. The Tuman Khan will inevitably want to recover Danning Guard, and the war will definitely continue. Similarly, Zhu Zhu Yijun also asked Qi Qi Jiguang not to return to the capital, but to stay in Danning Guard. Firstly, to let the Capital Battalion adapt to grassland warfare, and secondly, to guard against the Tuman Khan's counterattack.

In the letter, Zhu Zhu Yijun specifically urged Qi Qi Jiguang to be careful. When necessary, drive them completely out of Liaodong. Moreover, citing the reason that military opportunities are fleeting, he issued a clear decree: All matters in Danning Guard are to be handled by General Qi at his discretion. Anyone who dares to obstruct or interfere will be reported and severely punished.

This letter was a personal imperial decree from Zhu Zhu Yijun, which would be stamped with a seal, and a copy would be kept in the palace.

That is to say, from the moment this letter arrives at Danning Guard, Qi Qi Jiguang has absolute command over the war. He does not need to report to the court and can fight. Everything is based on Qi Qi Jiguang's judgment. If Qi Qi Jiguang feels he can fight and it is necessary to fight, then he fights.

It is just like the authority Yin Yin Zhengmao had in Liangguang to tear down the gates of powerful households and move their beds.

What is Qi Qi Jiguang in Danning Guard? In terms of power, Qi Qi Jiguang is the de facto Prince of Ning from the Emperor Hongwu era.

"Your Majesty, isn't this giving too much power?" Zhang Zhang Juzheng read the letter and frowned, saying, "It's not that your subject is sowing discord, but with a military general having such authority, I'm afraid that even if General Qi has no thoughts, others will give birth to some thoughts that shouldn't exist, just like Gao Zhu Qiyu."

Zhang Zhang Juzheng had actually experienced a similar "yellow robe being put on him." Sometimes, if you don't move forward, there are plenty of people forcing you to move forward.

Therefore, Zhang Zhang Juzheng had always refused to accept the title of Grand Preceptor and refused to go any further. No matter what merit or reward the Emperor gave, Zhang Zhang Juzheng refused. He could not go any further.

Zhu Zhu Yijun and Zhang Zhang Juzheng were not always in step and had differences. Zhang Zhang Juzheng was very dissatisfied with Yin Yin Zhengmao's corruption, while Zhu Zhu Yijun felt it was nothing. How can there be such a good thing as making a horse run without giving it grass?

Now, Zhang Zhang Juzheng also did not approve of giving Qi Qi Jiguang such heavy authority. The fear of regional warlords was Zhang Zhang Juzheng's biggest worry in enriching the country and strengthening the army. With the living example of the Northwest Jin Party, Zhang Zhang Juzheng really did not want Great Ming to have another regional warlord that was too big to control.

Zhu Zhu Yijun spread his hands and said, "Grand Secretary, General Qi governs the army strictly. He won't do that. Good, good, good, human hearts are separated by skin. Don't judge things by human hearts. Before General Qi can even think of the yellow robe, there are still the titles of Hou Jue, Hou Jue hereditary certificate, Duke, Duke hereditary certificate, and above military merit, adding the nine bestowals and being crowned king, etc. If General Qi wants the yellow robe, can he walk such a long road?"

"Grand Secretary, General Qi is just an Earl of Qian'an, and even his hereditary certificate is still on the way."

After hearing this, Zhang Zhang Juzheng thought for a moment and said, "It's still better to set a deadline. One year, next October, he must set out to return to the capital and no longer lead the affairs of Danning Guard, handing them over to the troops moved from Yongping Guard."

"It cannot be any longer. If it's any longer, people's hearts will scatter, and the Capital Battalion soldiers will only know General Qi and not Your Majesty."

When the Capital Battalion was in the capital, the Emperor would go to review the Capital Battalion every five days, without fail. The Capital Battalion soldiers knew the Emperor and recognized the Emperor. The soldiers all knew that they ate the Emperor's food, wore the Emperor's clothes, and served the Emperor.

Human hearts naturally need a cohesive force. If this cohesive symbol is dim, and a guest star usurps it, that is a huge trouble.

In the whole world, is there anyone else who can defeat Qi Qi Jiguang's ten thousand elite troops?

"Then follow the Grand Secretary's words." Zhu Zhu Yijun thought seriously for a long time, agreed with Zhang Zhang Juzheng's idea, and shook his head, saying, "With General Qi's temperament, I'm afraid he won't tell others about this secret edict, unless the military order cannot be executed or there is an urgent need to attack, then he will take it out."

"General Qi has a submissive heart. What he really wants is not much; he just wants an opportunity, an opportunity to use his own military talent in exchange for a stable north."

"The first half of his life was in the southeast, building a stable southeast for Great Ming. The second half of his life, he wants to build a stable north for Great Ming."

"That's all."

"Yes, what he wants is indeed not much." Zhang Zhang Juzheng was Qi Qi Jiguang's mentor. With twenty years of friendship, how could Zhang Zhang Juzheng not know what kind of person Qi Qi Jiguang was? How could he not know Qi Qi Jiguang's ambitions? But as the Emperor's teacher, Zhang Zhang Juzheng absolutely could not let the Emperor develop the habit of judging matters based on human hearts.

Even if it was Qi Qi Jiguang, it wouldn't do.

Zhu Zhu Yijun added a few sentences to the letter, setting a one-year deadline, and then handed it to Zhang Hong. After Zhang Hong copied it on the side, he requested the Emperor to stamp it.

After the Emperor checked it, he stamped it across the seam, put it in an envelope, sealed it with wax, and had Xu Jue send it to the post station to be sent to Danning Guard.

"Xu Xu Zhenming and Fu Fu Yingzhen are from the same hometown, same list, and same teacher. Grand Secretary, are you still angry with Xu Xu Zhenming?" Zhu Zhu Yijun brought up Xu Xu Zhenming.

Zhang Zhang Juzheng shook his head and said, "Your subject is not angry. When I recommended Xu Xu Zhenming to the Baoqi Office, I knew that he couldn't do anything but farm. I gave him the waist plaque of the Quanchu Club so that he would have help if he was in trouble."

Xu Xu Zhenming is not a Chu Party member; he is a solid vermilion-red Emperor Party member!

Zhang Zhang Juzheng giving Xu Xu Zhenming the waist plaque was just to give Xu Xu Zhenming a background to rely on, making it easier for him to do things.

Zhu Zhu Yijun signaled Zhang Hong to move over the agricultural books that had been prepared long ago and said, "Xu Xu Zhenming compiled agricultural books from past dynasties and edited an agricultural book, totaling forty-four volumes, to encourage agriculture and sericulture. It was written in vernacular, summarizing experiences and lessons. At least north of the Qin Ling Mountains and Huaihe River, it can be applied. As for the south, it only goes as far as Zhejiang. Further south, Xu Xu Zhenming hasn't been there, so he is powerless."

"From breeding to storage, everything is covered."

"Considering that Xu Xu Zhenming has made merit, Grand Secretary, don't mind the small mistakes Xu Xu Zhenming made."

Zhang Zhang Juzheng opened it and looked at it for a moment. A sense of familiarity rushed over him, and he said suspiciously, "This was written by Your Majesty, right."

"Xu Xu Zhenming wrote it, it's his handwriting!" Zhu Zhu Yijun shook his head repeatedly.

Zhang Zhang Juzheng finally confirmed that most of this agricultural book was likely the young Emperor's hard work. He said with a smile, "Then it was written by Your Majesty. The phrasing and wording are too familiar."

Zhang Zhang Juzheng was all too familiar with the question-and-answer format used to compile the book. At night, he would dream of the words "I have confusion."

In the Ming Dynasty, living people are not crowned as kings of different surnames, so General Qi only has such great power in terms of authority, which is the authority of the Chief Military Commission. Begging for monthly votes, awoo!!!!!!