The Prosperous Era of Longwan

Wei Guangde didn't want to stay here any longer. He just wanted the money delivered to him. He didn't want to get involved in what happened later. If he was asked to contact the Yan family on behalf of Prince Yu's Mansion, Wei Guangde didn't have the courage.

After Wei Guangde returned to the Hanlin Academy, he found that the atmosphere in the Hanlin Academy was not right today. The scribes in each room gathered together and whispered.

In fact, Wei Guangde noticed on the way to his public house that the several public houses along the road were empty. Usually at this time, most people were in the room, either reading or taking a nap.

After all, it's already June. It's extremely hot outside, but it's cooler inside, but it just makes people want to sleep.

Although Wei Guangde was puzzled, he didn't stop and went straight back to his office to sit down.

When entering, the scribe Lu Bu naturally saw Wei Guangde coming back, so he hurriedly got out of the crowd of scribes, made another pot of tea and sent it in.

When he was about to go out after putting down the tea, Lu Bu was stopped by Wei Guangde.

"Did anything happen in the courtyard while I was out? What were you guys muttering about together?"

"Well, sir, nothing happened in the courtyard. Everyone was just talking about the news from Xuanfu in the north."

Lu Bu saw Wei Guangde frowning and guessed that he had gone out just now and might not be aware of the news coming from outside. He continued to explain: "There was news from outside that since last month, Xuanfu has been involved in many conflicts with The Tatars are fighting around Xuanfu."

"I've heard of this. It seems that they even warned the capital last month."

Wei Guangde had a vague impression that he had heard someone say this, and he didn't know whether it was Zhang Ke or who said it.

Now the Ming troops in Datong and Xuanfu have already had this habit. Once they discover a large group of Tatar cavalry, they must give an early warning to the capital.

This was also caused by the "Gengxu Incident" in the 29th year of Jiajing. At that time, the Tatars failed to attack Datong and chose to take a detour to attack the Ming Dynasty. As a result, their troops reached Huairou and Shunyi, and even almost captured Tongzhou, which scared the city of Beijing. .

From then on, war broke out in Bianzhen. The first important thing the Bianzhen leader had to do was to warn the city of Beijing. He was also frightened. This trend has even spread to the Liaodong front line. Tatars were discovered in Guangning, Shanhaiguan and other places. An emergency report will be sent to Beijing City.

But after he said the words, Wei Guangde was horrified, "Don't tell me, the Tatars invaded the Great Wall again?"

Because of Beijing's special geographical location, after Wei Guangde entered the Hanlin Academy, although he spent most of his time reading Taoist classics, he also found time to read relevant records about northern Mongolia. At least he understood that the so-called Mongolian Tatars were not him. The kind that understands.

When I was in Jiangxi before, or in later generations, there was actually no detailed introduction to the distribution of power in Mongolia during this period. Therefore, in the eyes of most people, the Mongols were usually divided into tribes of different sizes. Once a war broke out, They would gather under the Khan's golden-domed tent or black banner and launch an attack on the enemy.

However, after reading the relevant information collected by the Hanlin Academy, especially the various documents sent from the border, Wei Guangde discovered that what he thought was Mongolia was actually three forces bordering the Ming Dynasty at this time, and they seemed to be forces that did not like each other very much.

The weakest force among them was once the one that threatened the Ming Dynasty the most, that is, the so-called Little Prince Tribe. However, now the Little Prince Tribe is the weakest force among the Tatars, and their residence is also It has moved to Liaodong.

In the Hetao area surrounded by the dead towns of Ningxia, Yansui, Taiyuan and Datong, the Mongolian tribes entrenched are only slightly stronger than the Little Prince tribe and belong to the middle stream. This tribe is the Ji Nang tribe.

The most powerful Tatar force is undoubtedly the Anda Khan Tribe, which created the "Gengxu Incident". Between the Little Prince Tribe and the Ji Nang Tribe, they face the Ming Dynasty's heavily defended Xuanda Defense Line, that is, Datong and Xuanfu are on the front line.

Hearing Lu Bu talk about the Tatars, Wei Guangde suddenly thought that it might be the Tatars who had invaded the Great Wall again, so he was a little embarrassed.

Even though Wei Guangde had been on the battlefield, fighting in the north was not the same thing as suppressing the Japanese there.

At the very least, the Ming army still had a numerical advantage over the Japanese pirates, and the weapons gap was not big. The main reason was that the training was a bit behind, and the most important thing was that the soldiers did not dare to fight.

Just kidding, you don’t even have enough to eat, but you still make people work for you, is it possible?

In the North, the reputation of the Mongolian cavalry was still widely spread even in later generations, let alone the Ming Dynasty.

At least Wei Guangde knew that the Mongolian cavalry once invaded Europe and reached the Danube River Basin.

It can be said that two hundred years ago, the Mongolian cavalry was the most powerful combat force on the planet, bar none.

Now, what Wei Guangde wants to know most is whether the descendants of this group of people will really break into the Great Wall. If that happens, martial law will be imposed in the capital again.

"It wasn't the Tatars who invaded the Great Wall, it was the Xuanfu who reported their merits, saying that they had defeated the Anta tribe in recent battles."

Lu Bu began to ramble on about the news he had heard. Since the beginning of the year, Anda's tribe had invaded the south several times. In particular, Datong's commander-in-chief Yue Mao led his troops to patrol the border and encountered Anda while stationed at Mielu Fort. Under the siege of more than 10,000 cavalry, Yue Mao died in battle, and his troops were completely defeated, which shook the entire Xuanda defense line.

The imperial court urgently replaced Su You, the governor of Xuanda, and Hou Yue, the governor of Datong and the censor of the capital, who returned to Beijing to wait for him. They appointed the governor Xu Lunjiu, who was also the governor, and Chen Ru, the right minister of the Ministry of Punishment, and the right censor of the capital procuratorate in Datong to appease the morale of the army.

This time, Xu Lunfa sent back a memorial to the border town generals who had repeatedly performed extraordinary feats in recent battles, asking for reward promotions for guerrilla Ma Fang, commander Zhang Heng and other generals.

"This is a good thing. You guys are doing it so mysteriously."

Wei Guangde breathed a sigh of relief, as long as the Tatars didn't want another "Gengxu Revolution".

"The memorial mentioned that the Tatar soldiers retreated, but their direction of travel was very suspicious. They did not retreat to the north but to the east. Governor Xu was worried that they would repeat their old tricks and raid somewhere among the mountains. At the Great Wall pass, we entered the pass again."

Lu Bu said nervously.

Wei Guangde couldn't calm down at this moment. After reading about the battle a few years ago, he naturally knew that the Anta Division also failed to defeat Datong. They chose to take a detour through the mountains in the north, raid Gubeikou, enter the pass, and wreak havoc in the north of the capital. They robbed Huairou and Shunyi all over.

When Wei Guangde heard that his troops were heading east, he had already thought of this order. According to logic, going east would not be to go to the sea, not to mention that even if he went to the sea, he would not be able to find a place. The entire mountain range extends to Bohai, where he will be surrounded by Jizhen and Liaodong official troops, which is a path to self-destruction.

Wei Guangde suddenly felt a tremor in his heart. He couldn't be that stupid. He led his troops eastward. He must be trying to replicate the battle a few years ago. He was looking for weak points in the Great Wall Pass of the Ming Army to break through. He also wanted to do it again. The troops came to the city.

Wei Guangde understood that they, the scribes, and the Hanlin who had disappeared from the public office, were probably all gathering together to talk about this matter at this time.

Of course, what they were discussing was not Xu Lun's memorial, but whether the Anda tribe would break through the wall again and launch another "Gengxu Rebellion."

"Is there any news from the court?"

Wei Guangde asked, but after he asked this question, he felt a twinge of pain. These scribes knew all the major military and state affairs. It was the Ming Dynasty. It seemed that in the Qing Dynasty, a military aircraft department was set up to handle these major military and state affairs. , most ministers of the foreign court do not know the details and need to keep them confidential.

However, in this era, due to the inconvenience of transportation, even if the court makes some arrangements, it will still take a long time for the information to be collected and sent back by the other party's intelligence personnel, at least more than half a month. Especially in this era, are there Han people having fornication with the Mongols? ?

In fact, there really is one, and that is the White Lotus Sect.

There are records in the documents that Wei Guangde has read before. There are many White Lotus cultists at the border passes who are colluding with the Mongolian Tatars and passing on military intelligence inside the pass. However, it seems that they have not been discovered here in the capital.

Lu Bu also gave the answer, which was to shake his head.

At this moment, it is estimated that the cabinet is discussing this matter with the Six Ministers, the Supervisory Council and other senior officials of the Six Ministries and Nine Ministers. Even if the news comes out, it will probably be evening.

Wei Guangde planned to ask Zhang Ke when he returned to the guild hall at the end of his shift to see if he knew the details. It seemed that because of his position as a member of the Zhongshushe, it was easy for him to hear such news.

Wei Guangde couldn't sit still in the public room at this moment, so he got up and walked outside.

In the evening, Wei Guangde returned to the Jiujiang Guild Hall in a carriage. As soon as he entered the door, he asked the waiter, "Is Mr. Zhang back?"

"Master Wei, Master Zhang should not be back yet."

The waiter immediately bowed and answered.

"Make me a pot of tea."

After speaking, Wei Guangde found a table in the lobby and sat down, and then ordered Zhang Ji: "Zhang Ji, please take the tea back to the room."

Not long after, Lao Kan and Xia Kefan came back. When they entered the gate of the guild hall, they saw Wei Guangde sitting there, and they both walked over.

"heard?"

Wei Guangde pointed to the positions on both sides and asked in a low voice after they sat down.

Lao Kan and Xia Kefan both nodded. The yamen in the capital were concentrated. On weekdays, scribes were running around in various yamen delivering various official documents. Naturally, the news spread easily.

The two of them obviously wanted to wait for Zhang Ke to come back and ask about the situation.

"Sit down for a while. I'll order some food and drinks when you come back."

Wei Guangde said.

"That's good, I'm not hungry now."

Lao Kan nodded and looked outside the door.

Well, for these new scholars, none of them had experienced the "Gengxu Revolution". Suddenly, they heard that the Mongolian Tatars might attack Beijing again. It was impossible not to be afraid.

Let alone them, even Wei Guangde was actually a little scared.

Xia Kefan calmed down a little. After all, he had been surrounded in Beijing, but no matter what he said at this time, the impact on Wei Guangde and Lao Kan would be limited. It was better to hear what Zhang Ke could bring back. what news.

However, it was not good to wait like this all the time. Wei Guangde still called the waiters and ordered a few dishes first, but asked them to prepare them. Don't be in a hurry and wait for Zhang Ke to come back to serve the food and wine.

After waiting for a long time, I heard the creaking of the wheels outside, and then Zhang Ke walked into the Jiujiang Guild Hall wearing a blue official uniform.

Don't talk about why the four Jinshis always stay in the Jiujiang Guild Hall and don't rent a house in the capital. In fact, everything is possible before they are officially awarded the title.

Even if you are a second-class Jinshi, you cannot be promoted to an official position. Some of the unspoken rules for appointing officials in the officialdom are not explicitly recorded.

Seeing Zhang Ke come in, Lao Kan waved to him impatiently, signaling him to come quickly.

Zhang Ke naturally saw the three of them, and walked over happily without going back to the yard behind.

"Are you looking for information from me?"

After sitting down, Zhang Ke asked with a smile.

"Nonsense, you are the only one here who is closest to the center and can get the news the fastest. If not you, who else can I ask?"

Lao Kan said eagerly.

There is nothing to hide, and there is no need to worry about the occasion of the news about the An Dabu Movement. It is estimated that many people in Beijing already know about it. Tomorrow, I am afraid that not all the people in Beijing will hear about it. .

"There is really no news yet. It is said that the cabinet talked for a long time and then went to Xiyuan. I am under the impression that there is no news yet."

Zhang Ke smiled bitterly.

"What else can you say about this? Send your troops and generals immediately. No matter what, we have to block the Tatars outside the Great Wall. Otherwise, it will be another disaster of weapons. I don't know how many people will lose their lives for this."

Lao Kan frowned after hearing Zhang Ke's words and said very dissatisfied.

"It's okay. I just told you not to worry. The adults will take it into consideration. It is estimated that the imperial edict will be drafted and sent out directly in Xiyuan."

Seeing Lao Kan's anxious look, Xia Kefan smiled and said, after what happened in Jiajing's twenty-nine years, he was the calmest among the four.

"By the way, I heard a rumor, but it may not be accurate."

At this time, Zhang Ke suddenly said with a smile on his face.

"If you have any news, tell me quickly and don't keep it secret."

Lao Kan said dissatisfied.

"I seem to have heard something from someone in the cabinet. When he went to deliver documents, he overheard discussions inside. He planned to send Weng Pu to inspect the passes of the Great Wall to strengthen defenses and guard against Tatar sneak attacks."

Zhang Ke pouted and smiled.

"Master Weng?"

Neither Lao Kan nor Wei Guangde knew who Weng Pu was, but Xia Kefan muttered as if he knew this person.

"Who is Lord Weng Puweng?"

Wei Guangde asked curiously.

"It's only normal that you don't know each other. Zhang Ke should have met him in Jiangxi."

Xia Kefan smiled.

Zhang Ke smiled and nodded after hearing his words.

"Lord Weng served as Zuo Buzheng in Jiangxi a few years ago. He hosted the deer singing banquet between Jin Qing and I."

Xia Kefan told the story of Weng Pu's relationship with Jiangxi, "He must have been transferred back to the capital at the end of last year, and now he is the right minister of the Ministry of War."

Having said this, Xia Kefan asked strangely: "Guangde, aren't you visiting the Liubu Yamen and Shuntian Mansion? Don't say you haven't been to the Ministry of War or met Mr. Weng."

Hearing this, Wei Guangde scratched his head in embarrassment. He had never been to the Ministry of War. In fact, he just followed him when he went to the Ministry of Household Affairs last time, and he didn't go much after that.

When I left the Hanlin Academy with Secretary Zhang, I asked him to go do some errands, and I wandered around the streets in the inner city. After all, I was going to move into Nanxunfang soon.

In fact, the location of Liubu's official office is also part of Nanxunfang. It's no wonder that the landlords here don't bargain when selling houses. The craftsmanship in the yard is also first-class. Most of the surrounding houses are residential buildings. Can an official not be picky?