In the fourth year of Chongzhen, all the Donglu troops left the capital. After this battle, the Ming Dynasty was severely weakened.

Although Li Yi led the Iron Brigade to defeat the Donglu offensive one after another in this battle and killed thousands of enemy troops, most of these people were unarmored soldiers and some Mongolian herdsmen, which did not do much damage to the strength of the Donglu.

This time the Donglu not only looted a large amount of money and food, but also captured hundreds of thousands of people, the most important of whom were some craftsmen.

With the help of these craftsmen, the most important part of Huang Taiji's reform, the progress of making firearms can be greatly accelerated, and the threat to the Ming Dynasty will be even greater.

But now the ministers in the court have not paid attention to this matter. For them, the most important thing now is how to deal with the chaotic situation.

Yuan Chonghuan has been imprisoned, and what to do next is a big problem.

The Donglu were able to invade the Ming Dynasty through the Northern Great Wall this time, and they will definitely do so in the future. Therefore, in order to avoid making the same mistake again, it is necessary to come up with a plan to strengthen the defense capabilities of the north.

In addition to these two things, there is another thing: after Yuan Chonghuan is imprisoned, who should we rely on for the situation in Liaodong?

The impact of the first two things was too great, and no one dared to come forward easily, but the last thing was a good breakthrough.

Emperor Chongzhen knew that this was a good opportunity if he wanted to re-appoint Li Yi.

He looked at the officials below, frowning and said: "Yuan Chonghuan has been imprisoned. Jiliao's defense cannot be left without someone to take care of it. Please discuss with me how we should arrange it?"

Zhou Yanru lowered his head, but his ears were always paying attention to the movements around him.

The ministers discussed quietly, but they were unable to do anything about the current situation.

Since Zu Dashou left his post without permission and returned to Ningyuan, everyone knows that the generals in western Liaoning may only recognize Yuan Chonghuan as the governor. At this time, whoever takes over the job in place of Yuan Chonghuan and takes up the post may not be able to survive.

He Yaowen, the Minister of War, looked at the noisy ministers, thought for a while, stepped forward and said: "Your Majesty, in my opinion, the situation in Liaodong is not optimistic now, so the candidates must be carefully selected, otherwise they will only be ruined.

event."

The surrounding ministers looked at He Yaowen in surprise, not expecting that this originally low-key minister would take the initiative to stand up.

A smile appeared on Emperor Chongzhen's tired face. He didn't hate the ministers talking, but he hated the ministers talking endlessly in private while the court pretended to be mute and couldn't share their worries.

Now seeing He Yaowen standing up, he nodded with encouragement and said, "He Yaowen, what do you think we can do to avoid bad things?"

He Yaowen said: "In my opinion, Liaodong Zu Dashou and other generals were personally promoted by Yuan Chonghuan. In this battle, it seems that although they are proud and arrogant, they have some fighting power, so they cannot be punished. It is better to appease them with gentle techniques."

."

Emperor Chongzhen nodded, deeply agreeing with He Yaowen's suggestion.

Zu Dashou is the leader of the generals in western Liaoning. If he is punished for leaving his post without permission, it will definitely make Guan Ning's defense line unstable. This will only make the situation worse.

Cheng Jiming glanced at He Yaowen in surprise and said, "Your Majesty, what Shilang He said is absolutely true. His ancestors, Dashou, held official positions in Ningyuan, and his father even served as the deputy commander-in-chief of Liaodong. He is a loyal man.

Now that the country is unstable and the borders are in urgent need, military attaches like Zu Dashou, who are good at conquering and fighting and have heavy troops, should be magnanimous."

Before Emperor Chongzhen could speak, Zhang Weile came out and said: "Your Majesty, Cheng Ji Ming harbors evil intentions and condones rebellious ministers. This crime is unpardonable and should be severely punished."

Emperor Chongzhen's originally relaxed expression suddenly stiffened. He looked at Zhang Weile below and said in a cold voice: "Do you know your guilt in taking charge of a cabinet minister for no reason?"

Zhang Weile was not afraid. Instead, he knelt on the ground respectfully and said with a solemn expression: "Your Majesty, I speak from the bottom of my heart. Zu Dashou is a border general. He dared to lead an army to leave his post without permission from the court. That's all.

For one crime, you should be beheaded in public. I am loyal to the state and cannot bear the dignity of the court to be damaged. If the emperor allows the warriors to cause rebellion, I will stop it even if I die."

As he spoke, he even made a move to hit the pillar in the hall.

But there were many colleagues standing around him, why would they just sit back and watch, and they all stepped forward to hold him back.

Zhang Weile saw someone stopping him, and immediately shouted: "The generals are causing trouble, how can we restore the country's prestige if we don't kill them? Cheng Ji ordered to protect the rebels, and he was guilty of the same crime at that time." After saying this, he struggled even more fiercely, like a Qingliu Zhichen who was remonstrating to death.

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Some censors quickly knelt on the ground and shouted to Emperor Chongzhen: "Your Majesty, if the military attachés rebel, it will be a disaster. Yuan Chonghuan and the Donglu have colluded for a long time, and then they allowed the Donglu to invade the capital, burn, kill and loot. After he was captured

, Zu Dashou left his post without permission, he must have evil intentions, these two traitors cannot be spared lightly."

"Cheng Ji ordered to protect Zu Dashou. He must have colluded with the border officials. He was probably the backer of Yuan Chonghuan and Zu Dashou in the capital. I also ask the emperor to severely punish such treacherous officials."

The censors all came forward one after another to arrest Zu Dashou and punish Cheng Jiming, and the court suddenly became a mess.

Emperor Chongzhen's face became more and more ugly. He looked at these courtiers and said angrily with red eyes: "How can you make wild guesses without any evidence? If you still dare to make nonsense, don't you think I can't punish you?"

The censors were not afraid of the emperor's anger, and even said very proudly: "I am an official who speaks out. I dare not not speak up when I see a traitor in power."

Emperor Chongzhen suppressed the anger in his chest and said: "Who is the traitor? What evidence do you have?"

The censor said indifferently: "Cheng Jiming and Yuan Chonghuan are all traitors, and Zu Dashou is an ambitious traitor. These three are all traitors to the country, and the emperor should severely punish them. As for the evidence, you will naturally understand it by observing their actions.

All the ministers in the court think so, can we still be wrong?"

Emperor Chongzhen's face turned red with anger, but as an emperor, he naturally could not argue with the ministers, so he could only look at Zhou Yanru below.

Zhou Yanru felt the emperor's gaze, and looked at the censors who were messing around with confusion in his eyes, and said: "Your Majesty, it seems to me that Zu Dashou left his post without permission because of Yuan Chonghuan's arrest and panic.

He just made a big mistake. Although he acted without the will, the war was tense, and Zu Dashou also made many military exploits, which can be regarded as atonement. In my opinion, it is not appropriate to be too harsh at this time."

Zhou Yanru agreed not to pursue Zu Dashou, but he did not say that Yuan Chonghuan and Cheng Jiming would not be pursued.

Although Emperor Chongzhen was young, he was not a political idiot who didn't understand anything.

He was keenly aware of something. He looked at Zhou Yanru who was indifferent, and then at the censor who was messing around below. His eyes suddenly became very cold.

Zhou Yanru was always paying attention to Chongzhen's every move. After he observed the emperor's changes, he immediately understood what mistake he had made.

The emperor must have thought that the censors took the opportunity to attack Cheng Jiming, and it was all under his own instigation.

He suddenly felt a little panicked.

He really wanted to replace Cheng Jiming and clear all obstacles to the position of chief minister, but he did not want to abandon the Holy Family because of this.

As long as the Holy Family is with you, the position of chief minister will always be yours, but if you lose the Holy Family, your political career will come to an end.

Thinking of this, Zhou Yanru immediately said: "In my opinion, Jiliao's military affairs still need to be familiar with the situation, and it is better to be managed by people with outstanding talents. Looking at the situation of the court, there is only one person who has this qualification, and that is Sun Chengzong."

Emperor Chongzhen originally suspected that what happened today was deliberately arranged by Zhou Yanru to deal with Cheng Jiming. Now that he heard what Zhou Yanru said, he didn't bother to think about it carefully and said, "Where is Sun Chengzong?"

Cheng Ji ordered: "Sun Zhenggong is in charge of military affairs at Shanhaiguan and cleaning up the mess caused by the withdrawal of the Donglu."

Emperor Chongzhen nodded, lowered his head and pondered this suggestion.

Sun Chengzong once served as the governor of Liaodong and was in charge of the affairs of Guan Ning and Jin Yiying. He has rich experience.

But he is old and frail, and his current views are very conservative. What he needs is someone who can actively go in and bring him victory.

The most suitable candidate in Emperor Chongzhen's mind is his confidant-Li Yi.

Li Yi had previously defeated Liaodong one after another in Liaodong. Not only did he kill Tabai, the son of Nurhaci, but he also captured Jirhalang, the general of the Donglu. He was really a deputy general.

However, his qualifications are too junior, his age is too young, and his relationship with the ministers is tense. It may not be that easy for him to appoint him.

Zhou Yanru looked at Emperor Chongzhen and naturally understood what he was thinking.

Li Yi is indeed a suitable candidate, but the way of officialdom is about qualifications and background. Although Li Yi is extremely capable and is best at military affairs, he has no help at all in the court and has a lot of enemies.

Moreover, he is too young. When he was the censor of Qiandu, all the officials were criticized verbally and in writing. If he is now appointed as the governor of Liaodong, a group of officials who have struggled for more than ten years in the officialdom will have a falling out.

Therefore, even if he received many benefits from Li Yi, Zhou Yanru, who was allied with Li Yi, did not dare to recommend him.

Zhou Yanru did not dare, the other ministers were unwilling, and Chongzhen was dissatisfied with the choice of Sun Chengzong. No one was surprised that the political discussions were deadlocked.

Emperor Chongzhen understood that if he did not make a decision as soon as possible, this matter would continue to be delayed.

He opened his mouth and said: "The case of Yuan Chonghuan will naturally be handed over to Yousi for interrogation. Now the court will not discuss it yet."

Zhang Weile was pulled by a group of colleagues. When he heard the emperor say these words, he loudly said: "Your Majesty, you are a dear minister and a distant man. This is the code of conduct for the emperor. The words from the heart of the minister and the words of loyalty to the emperor, the emperor must

I understand."

Emperor Chongzhen was very disgusted with Zhang Weile, but he had nothing to do with these officials. He could only suppress the anger in his heart and said: "This case has not been investigated clearly, so naturally I cannot easily hold people responsible. When there is a result, I will naturally want to

Punish those who have done wrong.”

Zhang Weile secretly glanced at Wang Yongguang in the front and said, "I am willing to share the emperor's worries."

Emperor Chongzhen nodded and said, "Please step back first."

After temporarily appeasing Yan Guan, Emperor Chongzhen felt a little tired, but in order to make up his mind as soon as possible, he could only work hard.

Chongzhen said: "He Shilang said before that the candidate for the governor must be familiar with the situation in Liaodong and understand military affairs. In my opinion, there are two suitable candidates."

The officials were silent because they already understood the emperor's plan.

Sure enough, Chongzhen said: "Of these two people, one is Sun Chengzong, who has served as the governor of Liaodong and has a high reputation. He has rich experience and is steady in his work. Unfortunately, he is already over seventy years old. I really can't bear the fatigue of such a loyal minister. There is another person.

, is Li Yi, the former censor of Qiandu who made successive military exploits in Liaodong. Although this man is young, he is familiar with military affairs and has a good understanding of the situation in Liaodong. If he is in charge of the situation in Liaodong, I and all my ministers will naturally be able to sit back and relax."

Zhang Weile heard the words and immediately stood up and objected: "Your Majesty, Li Yi is arrogant and has no father. He is a madman. How can he take on such a big responsibility?!"

As soon as Emperor Chongzhen spoke, Zhang Weile was choked in his throat. He clenched his fists and stared at Zhang Weile below.

Zhang Weile was not afraid and continued: "As for Li Yi's military exploits, like Mao Wenlong's, who knows whether they are true or false? But I heard that they mostly used the heads of common people to receive rewards for promotion. I believe that before Li Yi

Military achievements are all suspicious and should be investigated strictly."

The ministers all agreed after hearing this.

They had studied hard for more than ten years and worked in officialdom for decades, and now they were able to stand in the hall to discuss national affairs. That Li Yi was able to serve as a fourth-rank official at a young age, so they were naturally dissatisfied.

In their opinion, Li Yi was able to assume the position of censor of Qiandu because he used tricks to deceive the emperor's trust, which made the emperor value him very much.

Such aliens should be driven out of officialdom.
To be continued...