Chapter 292: They Started Fighting, the Northern Barbarian Envoys Started Fighting!

Two envoys coming to Yingchang to see Qi Jiguang was actually a very taboo thing. The best thing for Qi Jiguang to do was not to see them.

San Niangzi's two visits were both approved by the Great Ming Emperor, to let San Niangzi know the current state of the Great Ming army, so as to avoid making strategic misjudgments. But these two envoys—the imperial court did not know about them, and it would be best for Qi Jiguang to do nothing and let them return to where they came from. This would be the safest for Qi Jiguang; otherwise, the court officials would at least impeach Qi Jiguang for the crime of "secretly colluding with the barbarians."

Doing nothing was beneficial to oneself.

Chen Dacheng tended toward not seeing them, but Qi Jiguang chose to see them.

This was a dangerous approach, but Qi Jiguang still saw them. There were many reasons for seeing them, the most important of which was to realize His Majesty's strategy for the grasslands: "Promote peace through war, and strive for reconciliation through struggle." If it was not for military expulsion, then necessary communication was still needed. And Qi Jiguang possessed the "Son of Heaven Sword" bestowed by His Majesty. It was bestowed when His Majesty first met him, and to this day, His Majesty had never taken it back. Qi Jiguang had the power to act as circumstances required while leading troops abroad.

For example, if the Jin Party launched a rebellion, Qi Jiguang could choose to put down his established goals and return to the capital to quell the rebellion.

Qi Jiguang had the power to see them and the reason to see them, so he chose to receive them. Chen Dacheng could not stop him and also knew that Qi Jiguang had never changed, exactly the same as Zhang Juzheng: public interest first, private interest second; first considering the national interests of the Great Ming, and as for his own honor and disgrace, he instead placed them behind.

"Pay respects to General Qi!" The envoys of Tumen Khan and Altan Khan stared at each other with wide eyes. They were arranged by Qi Jiguang to live next to each other, and not only that, but they were also summoned together. This arrangement almost made both sides start fighting.

Tumen Khan's envoy was Tumen Khan's heir, his eldest son Buyan, while Altan Khan's envoy was his eldest grandson Chelike. Chelike was in a bad mood; he had received news of his father's death on the way here. This mission must succeed; otherwise, he would face the qualification of losing his inheritance.

The inheritance of the grasslands is complicated with various rules, but to put it simply: whoever has the biggest fist is the boss.

"Sit, sit, sit." Qi Jiguang's expression was very gentle. One could not tell at all that he was the God of War who had slaughtered through Tumen Khan's defense line to recapture Danning Guard, and then sent troops again to drive Tumen Khan, the suzerain Khan, completely out of the grasslands. When Qi Jiguang was not fighting, he was always very gentle, humble, and polite.

"The Gyrfalcon has brought the enlightenment of the Eternal Blue Sky. Even the Eternal Blue Sky knows of General Qi's prestige." Chelike's first gift was a pile of gyrfalcons.

Upon hearing Chelike's words, Buyan immediately ridiculed, "Eternal Blue Sky? Altan Khan has already started to worship Buddha. If you mention the Eternal Blue Sky again, aren't you afraid of provoking the wrath of heaven? Traitor of the grasslands, how dare you say these things?"

"It wasn't us on the Right Wing who were beaten and fled in panic." Chelike retorted very calmly. The relationship between the Left and Right Wings was currently very poor. Both sides were arguing endlessly about whose responsibility the defeat was. The tug-of-war between the two was fundamentally a dispute over who should take responsibility for the defeat.

Buyan immediately said, "If it weren't for Altan Khan sending your father to lobby my father, and my father being bewitched, this Battle of Yingchang would not have happened."

Qi Jiguang's eyes flickered. Tumen Khan, who had been beaten and chased, running everywhere, was not licking his own wounds, but had brazenly launched an attack, intending to recapture Yingchang. Where did Tumen Khan get the courage?

The answer was revealed.

Sengge, the eldest son of Altan Khan who had died, had personally gone to lobby, and promised to combine forces to attack Yingchang. Tumen Khan naturally wanted to give it a try. After the defeat, Sengge paid the price of his life for the defeat, using his own life to prove once again Qi Jiguang's ferocity in military affairs.

"Wasn't it your father who found my father first! Now you are blaming it on us? With the Eternal Blue Sky above, do you dare not admit this fact!" Chelike slapped the table and stood up, talking about the past.

In the third month of the fifth year of Wanli, after Tumen Khan failed to attack Zhangwu, he began to contact the various tribes of Altan Khan. The person who contacted them was Sengge, and Sengge finally persuaded the aging Altan Khan, which led to two ten-thousand-man teams arriving at Yingchang, eyeing it covetously.

This was Tumen Khan's self-rescue, but in the end, it harmed him, and it also harmed Sengge.

Qi Jiguang did not speak, just watched them argue, and did not feel it was noisy, only feeling it was interesting. His Majesty had said that in defeat, even breathing is a mistake. Therefore, every time Qi Jiguang used troops, he would put himself in the position of the defeated side to consider.

Qi Jiguang's foundation was his war record. He used one victory after another to block the mouths of all the court officials, but having too many victories was also a trouble.

And at certain times, one must appropriately make some mistakes to make oneself not so perfect. In this way, one would not reach the point where there were no more titles to confer and no more rewards to give, and the Emperor had to get rid of one to protect his own throne. Therefore, Qi Jiguang seeing the two envoys was also for self-preservation, to give the court officials a chance to attack. If one were too perfect, it would inevitably make people think of Wang Mang's humility before he usurped the throne.

The Emperor was also a bureaucrat, and the Emperor's first priority was also to protect and consolidate his own power from being infringed upon, or even challenged.

Qi Jiguang seeing the two envoys and listening to their arguing was to make mistakes, and also to consider his own survival. He was different from Li Chengliang; Li Chengliang had to be arrogant because he was in Liaodong. Qi Jiguang had to have flaws and shortcomings because he was in the capital. This was his way of survival.

Qi Jiguang was absolutely not a reckless man who simply sheltered under Zhang Juzheng and the Emperor without any political wisdom. On the contrary, he understood the imperial court very well.

Chelike and Buyan kept arguing, even arguing about seniority. Qi Jiguang still did not speak until the two ran out of words and had nothing left to argue about, so they sat down.

"Guests have arrived; have a bowl of hot tea." Qi Jiguang saw that they had finally stopped their inferior performance and said calmly.

These two were from the same family. If one viewed the Left and Right Wings as two completely differentiated collectives, it was a fallacy. In Qi Jiguang's eyes, they had a common name: Northern Barbarians.

Chelike and Buyan looked at each other. This Qi Jiguang was formidable in fighting, and his self-restraint was also first-class.

Compared to his military talent, Qi Jiguang's shortcoming was in this area. However, having seen too many exquisite performances in the Wenhua Hall and too many private secretaries who pretended to be confused while knowing the truth, the performance of these two was truly clumsy to the extreme.

Even if these two could act, could they be better than the high officials in the imperial court? Back then, in order to let his own dog eat a share of the imperial grain in the Beijing Camp, Wang Chonggu actually had to use Tan Lun's coughing to impeach Tan Lun away, just because Tan Lun blocked the list of generals Wang Chonggu recommended for the Beijing Camp. And he even discussed coughing at the Sun Altar with great fanfare.

"General Qi actually doesn't like fighting very much." Qi Jiguang sat up straight and said the first sentence.

"To be enfeoffed as a Marquis is not my intention; I only wish for the sea waves to be calm."

Qi Jiguang's purpose in fighting was never to build merit and earn a hereditary title for his descendants. In the 29th year of Jiajing, under the two major military crises of the Northern Barbarians and the Japanese pirates, it was said that the Great Ming was on the verge of collapse, and there were countless supporters. His purpose in fighting was "I only wish for the sea waves to be calm."

The slogan he put forward, "Report to the Son of Heaven, save the common people," was never empty talk, but a practice of fulfilling his words. He said so and did so.

This was probably the biggest common point between Qi Jiguang and Zhang Juzheng: public interest first, private interest second. In their main goals, there was never themselves.

When Chelike and Buyan heard this, it was like a big slap that made their faces ache. An invincible, fierce general who had run wild on the grasslands, slaughtered through Tumen Khan's defense line twice, and even used ten thousand troops to maneuver under the pincer attack of the Left and Right Wings, and won a great victory, opened his mouth and said, "I don't like fighting."

Then what should someone who likes fighting look like? If he fought like this without liking it, then if he liked fighting, what would it look like? And what an embarrassing situation the defeated side would be in?

"If one can live a good life, who would want to fight? In the second year of Longqing, seeing that only the Japanese pirate problem in Guangzhou had not been pacified, my department was planning to go south to Guangzhou to completely wipe out the Japanese pirates. I told my generals at that time that after this battle, I would lay down my armor and return to the fields."

"Bad news came from the capital that Tumen Khan had invaded the capital region. I had no choice but to take my guest troops north to guard the Jizhen Garrison. Since then, the Japanese pirate problem in Guangzhou continued until the first year of Wanli, when it was wiped out by the surname Zhengmao." Qi Jiguang talked about the old events of the second year of Longqing. At that time, he and Chen Dacheng and others had already begun to discuss that after fighting the Japanese pirates, they would each return to their own homes and find their own mothers, because the sea waves were already calm.

Tumen Khan had invaded.

Now Qi Jiguang had driven Tumen Khan out of his old home, and at the gate of the Great Xianbei Mountain road, he established Yingchang, blocking Tumen Khan's way home. From then on, Tumen Khan was a homeless dog. If this were in a Central Plains dynasty, it would be a disaster of displacement.

This was the Great Ming's retaliation. You invade, I attack. Equal retaliation. This was the reason for the war. Now the Great Ming was strong and won.

The purpose of war is to make the enemy completely submit to one's own will. This is the fundamental purpose of war. It is a last resort when contradictions cannot be regulated under various factors such as politics, economy, and culture, and the contradictions have intensified to the most intense degree.

"Weapons are instruments of ill omen; a superior man uses them only when he has no other choice."

"Those who are good at fighting are subject to the highest punishment."

As the most shining military strategist of this era, when lecturing on military affairs to his martial arts disciple, the Great Ming Emperor, he said these two sentences. He truly did not like fighting; military action was the last resort.

"The fruit of today is the cause of yesterday." Qi Jiguang made a concluding statement. The fundamental reason for this meeting today was not the joint effort of Sengge and Tumen Khan, but the invasion back then was the cause, and the Great Ming army's expedition today was the result.

Chelike and Buyan had nothing to say.

"General Qi, we have come here this time to beg for peace." Buyan thought about it and found that Qi Jiguang's words were simply impeccable. Even Buyan felt that Tumen Khan deserved to be beaten. Altan Khan invaded during the Jiajing era, and you Tumen Khan invaded during the Longqing era, which awakened this behemoth, the Great Ming.

Then abandoning the cause and directly seeking the answer was the right path.

"This depends on the sincerity of the two of you. The Great Ming has traveled far on an expedition, and the expenses are quite heavy." Qi Jiguang was still very calm and chose to blackmail. A ceasefire was possible, but war reparations also had to be in place. If there were no war reparations, then use coercion and inducement.

"What does the Great Ming want?" Chelike clenched his fists and asked.

Qi Jiguang shook his sleeves, took out a letter, and said, "To assist with military expenses: three thousand cattle, one thousand five hundred breeding horses, thirty thousand war horses, one hundred thousand post horses, one hundred and twenty thousand sheep; surrendered population, no discussion; if there are any barbarians fleeing and defecting, no questioning; if a barbarian beats a Han Chinese to death, pay with a life, no shielding; if a Han Chinese beats a Northern Barbarian to death, fine one cow and one camel, and deal with it according to Chinese law."

"Also, when each tribe's Taiji inherits the title, it should be reported, and it will only take effect after receiving the imperial court's reply."

"Furthermore, Han Chinese who cross the border to steal the barbarians' horses, cattle, sheep, and clothing, capture and send them back, and deal with them according to Chinese law. If barbarians commit crimes in China, deal with them according to Chinese law, no arguing."

"Also, Northern Barbarians who privately cross the wall, kill them regardless, capture them and fill them into slave status."

"To the capital as a calculation, two thousand bags of wool every year, five thousand good horses, fifteen thousand pack horses. If there is a shortage without reason, it will be regarded as a provocation, and the great army will campaign against it."

"Deceiving people too much!" Chelike was furious when he heard this. This was completely different from the "Rules and Treaty of Altan Khan's First Submission and Enfeoffment as Prince of Shunyi" signed back then, far exceeding the effectiveness of that year.

Qi Jiguang finished reading the words above, then put away the letter in his hand, looked at Chelike quietly, and said with a smile, "You can choose not to agree."

Chelike immediately lost his temper. Indeed, he could choose not to agree, then continue to fight until he agreed.

This letter was obviously a letter from the Great Ming Emperor, and the content inside was for Qi Jiguang to set the conditions.

Assisting with military expenses was war reparations. In this clause, the Northern Barbarians and livestock were all part of the war reparations, including prisoners of war and fleeing barbarians.

In terms of justice, the Great Ming manages Great Ming criminals, and if Northern Barbarians commit crimes in the Great Ming, they are still managed by the Great Ming.

Those who privately cross the wall into China are slave status if caught, but they can enter the Great Ming through legal channels, such as mutual markets, customs passes, etc. The Great Ming and the Northern Barbarians had proper circulation channels. Most of those who insisted on climbing the wall had identities that could not be seen, and were all spies. If caught, they were "low status," and could be sent to the Jiekuyuan to be dissected.

What cannot be obtained on the battlefield will absolutely not be obtained at the negotiating table.

And Qi Jiguang could obtain it on the battlefield, so what he said had more deterrent power. The reason the Emperor wanted him to say it was actually a typical "one white face, one red face," setting up a stage to sing a play. The high officials in the capital were responsible for setting the direction of reconciliation, while the specific terms were told by the front line. This was the link of coercion and inducement.

Could Chelike and Buyan refuse? Qi Jiguang was threatening them with a bright knife.

Qi Jiguang did not force them to agree immediately. The Great Ming Emperor also indicated that it could be discussed. For example, the matter of the Taiji reporting, the Great Ming still had to fight the Northern Barbarians, so this reporting was optional. For example, assisting with military expenses could also be discussed. Actually, the Great Ming had also received the assistance for military expenses, which was land and natural endowments, as well as many prisoners of war and livestock.

Qi Jiguang let them discuss it themselves. When the moon climbed the willow tips, Qi Jiguang was handling the rewards. Chen Dacheng walked in with excitement, saying as he walked, "They started fighting, Chelike and Buyan started fighting!"

"Let's go and watch the fun!" Hearing this, Qi Jiguang stood up immediately and went to watch the fun with Chen Dacheng, full of joy.

The envoys of Chelike and Buyan each had more than twenty people. At night, when the two discussed the Great Ming's conditions, they shirked responsibility. This time it was a dispute of interests. They argued fiercely and started to move their hands. From the two fighting each other to the envoys collectively taking action, fortunately, their weapons were confiscated before they entered the camp, and there were no sharp weapons at hand; otherwise, it would not be a scuffle.

When Qi Jiguang and Chen Dacheng arrived, it was already three layers inside and three layers outside, blocked tightly. When Qi Jiguang arrived, everyone made way, letting General Qi also watch the fun together. There were no patrolling soldiers here; they were all full and ready to rest. Watching the fun after a meal, Qi Jiguang had arrived and had not left, obviously they had not violated military discipline.

When not violating military discipline, Qi Jiguang was amiable; when violating military discipline, Qi Jiguang was iron-faced and ruthless. The soldiers all knew Qi Jiguang very well, and even his disciple, the Great Ming Emperor, had this personality.

"This 'Black Tiger Digs the Heart' is not used well. The force is too old. If it hits, there will be no force. If you exert force later, this person will inevitably suffer internal injuries."

"That fat guy is slacking off. He has nothing wrong, lying on the ground pretending to be dead. Look, look, his eyes are still open."

"This wrestling is done well! A leg trip, a waist twist, and a hand pull—it's a back throw. Amazing! Worthy of being from the Kheshig."

"Hit, hit his eyes! Digging the crotch would win. That stupid one!"

"General Qi?" Chen Dacheng asked for Qi Jiguang's opinion. Are we just watching the fun like this? Should we persuade them to stop and pull them apart?

"Chelike is no match for Buyan. Don't look at Chelike moving left and right, appearing flexible. Buyan has the advantage in weight. As long as he is caught by Buyan, Chelike will inevitably lose." Qi Jiguang thought Chen Dacheng was asking him to evaluate the martial arts of Chelike and Buyan, and gave a very sincere evaluation. Chelike moved quickly, but Buyan was heavy and had enough strength.

Chen Dacheng held his forehead. His own Commander also liked to watch the fun!

Liking to watch the fun is human nature, not just for Great Ming people, it is a common human trait.

Before the words fell, Buyan grabbed Chelike's arm, pulled with force, stretched out his foot to hook and trip, and Chelike fell to the ground like a dog eating mud. Buyan twisted Chelike's arm and sat on Chelike, winning the victory of this brawl.

"Lost, lost, let go, it hurts, it hurts!" Chelike could only beg for mercy. This Buyan's hand strength was great. This twist almost broke his arm!

Buyan sat on Chelike, satisfied with himself, and raised both hands, drawing cheers from the guards. The Great Ming soldiers were just happy; they didn't care who won or lost, as long as it looked good.

Buyan saw Qi Jiguang in the crowd and immediately felt embarrassed. On someone else's turf, fighting like this with his own relative, it was really shameful.

"Compensate for the damaged items according to the price." Qi Jiguang smiled, finished speaking, and flicked his sleeves and left.

He still had work to do. After watching the fun, he could continue to do things.

Qi Jiguang was checking the rewards, and he also let the order officer and the junior officers visit and ask the soldiers if the rewards and grain pay had been issued in place, how much money and grain His Majesty issued, whether they received it in full, whether the battalion commander and junior officers had conveyed His Majesty's grace and rewards, and other questions.

Qi Jiguang would also suddenly ask the soldiers he met. He was ensuring that the Great Ming's military pay, grain, and rewards were effectively issued to the soldiers.

The imperial court having money and grain does not mean the soldiers can get money and grain. The imperial court having money and grain does not necessarily mean it can be directly transformed into combat power. This requires execution.

There are two typical examples. One is the Southern Song. The Southern Song, rich as oil, still could not beat the Jin and Mongols in the north. And another example is the Qing Dynasty. The Qing Dynasty in its late years was truly very rich.

During the Shunzhi era, the Qing imperial court's annual revenue was 24 million taels of silver. At that time, the Regent Dorgon had not yet unified the world. In the 24th year of Kangxi, the court's annual revenue reached 35.85 million taels. In the 18th year of Qianlong, it grew to 40 million taels, and then it continued until the Daoguang era, all around 40 million taels.

From the Guangxu to the Xuantong era, the Qing imperial court's annual revenue began to climb steadily. In the 11th year of Guangxu, it was 77 million taels, and by the first year of Xuantong, the Qing court's annual revenue exceeded 260 million taels of silver. Even after paying the annual reparations, there was still great abundance.

The Great Ming's most prosperous annual revenue was in the 26th year of Hongwu and the 6th year of Wanli, totaling about 28 million silver.

The Qing Dynasty collected taxes after entering the pass, and collected Liaoxiang for nearly three hundred years. In the third year of Xuantong, Puyi announced his abdication.

By the late Qing Dynasty, the Qing, holding massive amounts of silver, absolutely did not dare to strengthen its troops. But without strengthening the troops, how to face the changing international situation? The Qing tried to strengthen its troops once. This one time was Yuan Shikai's training of the New Army. Later, Yuan Shikai overturned the Qing court's stall.

Court officials had always let the Emperor be wary of Qi Jiguang, because the Emperor truly gave Qi Jiguang too many things to handle, letting him lead troops on expeditions, which was very likely to lead to a similar situation. This kind of thing had also happened once in history, which was Song Taizu's "Yellow Robe Added to the Body," bullying orphans and widows.

To this day, even the most critical court officials could not pick out a single fault in Qi Jiguang. After Qi Jiguang went beyond the Great Wall, he was an invincible fierce general who made the enemy tremble with fear. After returning in triumph, Qi Jiguang became very introverted and excessively tolerant.

Therefore, how to issue money and grain to the soldiers became the biggest problem in the Great Ming imperial court's practice of enriching the country and strengthening the army. And this problem was jointly completed by Qi Jiguang, Tan Lun, and Wang Guoguang. Qi Jiguang was of the Zhang Party, Tan Lun was of the Zhe Party, and Wang Guoguang was of the Jin Party. The three parties joined forces to complete the "last mile" of military pay through issuing physical goods, issuing pay in advance, visiting and asking, and other means.

The next morning, the bruised and swollen Chelike and Buyan started negotiations with the Great Ming again. Finally, a result was obtained. The number of cattle and sheep was greatly reduced, and the reporting of Taiji to the imperial court was no longer forced, but for other matters, Qi Jiguang would not give an inch. Finally, a temporary ceasefire treaty was reached. This treaty officially took effect after Chelike and Buyan signed it.

As for this "temporary," how long it would be temporary, that was not something Qi Jiguang could decide.

Chelike and Buyan would take the five copies of the treaty back for Tumen Khan and Altan Khan to use their seals, and then Tumen Khan and Altan Khan would each send envoys to the capital to obtain the Great Ming Emperor's seal, which would be the end of the peace talks.

Ten days later, Zhu Yijun received Qi Jiguang's letter. After reading it happily, his face was full of smiles. With such harsh conditions, the Northern Barbarians were willing to agree. It seemed they were truly beaten into fear by Qi Jiguang. Then he could actively prepare for the next step.

In the letter, Qi Jiguang also complained about a lowly scholar. Chen Xingrui, a Hanlin of the Hanlin Academy and a Jinshi of the second year of Wanli, arrived at Danning Guard and still wanted to drink Qingqian Longjing tea. He was directly thrown into the construction camp by Tan Lun to work for two days, and he was very happy drinking big bowls of cold tea.

Tan Lun had two wishes. The first was to recover Danning Guard, and the second was to recover the Hetao. The next step was to recover the Hetao.

Danning Guard was the gateway to the Great Ming in the northeast and a strategic location to prevent the Northern Barbarians and the Eastern Barbarians from joining forces. The Hetao was the only way to solve the grain shortage in the three border garrisons. "The Yellow River has a hundred harms, only the Hetao is rich," which refers to the Hetao Plain. Recapturing the Hetao would guarantee the military grain for the Yansui, Gansu, and Ningxia garrisons.

Even if the public opinion changed later and the Great Ming imperial court was so poor that it had to pawn its pants, the Great Ming soldiers and common people could still farm on their own and would not starve while guarding the border.

Tan Lun thought that the day he died, he would not be able to fulfill his wish. Now, hope was right before his eyes.

Zhu Yijun happily handed Qi Jiguang's letter to Feng Bao and said, "After the Inner Secretariat copies it and stores it in the Ancient and Modern Collection Library, bring the original back to me. I still need to keep it properly."

His letters with Qi Jiguang and his memorials with Zhang Juzheng were things that would follow him into the coffin after he died. Zhu Yijun specially made a mold filled with pine resin to preserve the letters and memorials for a long time.

Even if he were to be dug up and whipped by later generations, these letters and memorials could prove that Zhang Juzheng and Qi Jiguang were not treacherous ministers, and what they thought and worried about was always only the Great Ming, only the interests of China.

"Your Majesty, the Grand Minister of Revenue Wang Guoguang and the Minister of Revenue Zhang Xueyan are at the door, requesting an audience." Zhang Hong said with some hesitation. Zhang Hong knew why these two came—they came for the Tax Audit Institute.

"Proclaim them." Zhu Yijun nodded and sat up straight.

Wang Guoguang and Zhang Xueyan submitted a memorial, "Discussion on the Tax Audit Institute's Tax Audit Regulations," which translated meant the Tax Audit Institute's code of conduct. Zhu Yijun rejected it with a vermilion comment and issued an edict that this matter would not go through court discussion. Not allowed.

The tax audit of the Tax Audit Institute was extremely extensive, even abstract, and a bit like a tax farming system, but only like it, not tax farming. The Tax Audit Institute only audited taxes and did not punish the wicked. Not paying taxes was the greatest evil. After paying taxes, the Tax Audit Institute did not care what business you were doing at all.

And Wang Guoguang and Zhang Xueyan's memorial was for the extensive tax audit.

"See Your Majesty. Is Your Majesty's holy body peaceful?" Wang Guoguang brought Zhang Xueyan into the Imperial Study of the Guanghan Hall and bowed very respectfully.

"Ministers, no need for formalities. Sit." Zhu Yijun signaled Zhang Hong to give them seats. Looking at the two, he said with great certainty, "I have said more than once that the matter of the Tax Audit Institute is my breach of promise. Wait until the Grand Secretary returns to the court to change it."

"Your minister went to the Yicheng Bo's mansion yesterday. Grand Secretary Zhang saw your minister and signed the memorial." Wang Guoguang replied immediately upon hearing this. He had found Zhang Juzheng, and Zhang Juzheng was willing to sign and submit it jointly.

"Grand Minister, don't you know the Grand Secretary yet? I am afraid that the Grand Secretary will run away and refuse to return to the court again." Zhu Yijun shook his head, clearly stating his reasons.

Zhang Juzheng already had the idea of permanent mourning. As national affairs proceeded smoothly, this idea became more and more intense. Zhu Yijun went every month, and Zhang Juzheng's performance of wanting to retire and become a hermit became more and more obvious.

Revitalizing the Great Ming is such an exhausting thing, and Zhang Juzheng wants to run away after starting it? No way!

"Your Majesty, is there a problem with your minister's memorial?" Zhang Xueyan asked with some confusion.

Zhu Yijun said with great certainty, "No problem."

Begging for monthly tickets, Awoo!!!!!!!!!!

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 293 =====