Chapter Forty-Five: Return to the Capital

  Zijincheng

  The news of Jining's fall and the blockage of the canal route spread like wildfire, causing an immediate uproar among the officials in the imperial court.

  Left Censor-in-Chief Liu Zongzhou led the way out of the ranks and memorialized: "Your Majesty, Jining has fallen, the grain transport route is blocked, and the capital's nine borders will soon have to worry about cutting off rations. In my opinion, we should immediately arrest and bring to justice Liu Zeqing, the Commander-in-Chief of Shandong, as well as Chen Xinyi, who recommended Liu Zeqing for the position of Commander-in-Chief of Shandong."

  Liu Zongzhou was an honest and upright official, with a reputation for being uncorrupted. However, being an honest official does not necessarily mean being a good one! Sometimes, honest officials can be even more terrifying than corrupt ones when they make mistakes. For instance, in the current situation, these self-proclaimed righteous individuals are always thinking of investigating responsibilities first, rather than solving practical problems.

  The Chongzhen Emperor's face was gloomy and he remained silent.

  Chen Xinjia was so frightened that his face turned pale, but he didn't dare to defend himself for half a sentence.

  The current Chongzhen Emperor is no longer the Prince of Xin who was just supported to the throne fourteen years ago. The Chongzhen Emperor fourteen years ago was young and ignorant, with a fiery temper, able to easily believe Yuan Chonghuan's empty words that 'Liaodong can be pacified in five years', and also able to behead Xiong Tingbi and send his head to the nine borders in a fit of rage.

  However, Emperor Chongzhen would never again listen to or believe in anyone's words.

  The Chongzhen Emperor did not express any opinion, he was waiting, waiting for the wise ministers to guess his thoughts and then speak on his behalf.

  All officials were silent, and everyone's eyes were cast towards the Prime Minister of the Cabinet, Sung Ki-mun.

  Cheng Ji lowered his head silently, he really didn't know what was on Emperor Wu's mind, nor did he dare to express his opinion rashly.

  Finally, standing under the command of Cheng Ji, the Deputy Minister Zhou Yanru stepped forward and said: "Your Majesty, Jining is a critical point on the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal, which concerns the fate of the Ming dynasty. This matter is not trivial. In my opinion, the most urgent task is to quickly assemble heavy troops from the nine border towns to suppress the rebellion, recover the lost territory and unblock the canal."

  The Chongzhen Emperor nodded slightly, and among the officials in the court, only Zhou Yanru could understand his thoughts.

  Chen Xinjia's stone in his heart finally fell to the ground. Although yesterday, when he presented his memorial, the Emperor did not get angry, but only severely reprimanded him for deploying troops to suppress the rebellion. However, no one dared to confirm what would happen during today's morning court session. If all the officials in the court unanimously condemned him, it was hard to say whether the Emperor would protect him or not. The Emperor's thoughts... were becoming increasingly difficult to fathom.

  "Chen Xingjia." The majestic gaze of Emperor Chongzhen turned to Chen Xingjia, saying, "You heard all the words of Director Zhou?"

  "Long live Your Majesty." Chen Xingjia hastily stepped out of the ranks and knelt down on the steps, saying, "I have already dispatched troops to Shandong, and it will not be long before we recover Jining and unblock the grain route."

  "Report... Jinan Pond Report!"

  As soon as Chen Xingjia's voice fell, a small eunuch hastily entered the grand hall with a memorial in his hands. The chief eunuch, Wang Cheng'en, quickly stepped forward to receive it. Chongzhen Emperor waved his hand impatiently and ordered, "Read!"

  "The slave obeys the order." King Cheng En smiled and bowed, unfolded the memorial and read in a shrill voice, "Your Majesty's subject Wang Pu, the commander of Datong, presents a memorial to Your Majesty..."

  Wang Cheng's eyes sparkled with a hint of mischief as he deliberately paused at this point.

  The eyes of all the officials in the court suddenly focused on Wang Cheng'en, and even Emperor Chongzhen stood up from his throne, saying urgently: "Hurry up and read on!"

  Wang Chengen cleared his throat and continued to read: "Your minister led 5,000 troops in a bloody battle for three days and nights, defeating the White Lotus and bandit army of 50,000. We beheaded over 10,000 enemies, and the remaining White Lotus rebels fled in fear. Jining has been recovered, and the grain transportation route is now open! I wish my lord a long life, do not worry about the national affairs of grain transportation. Your minister Wang Pu, commander-in-chief of Datong, knocks his head to the ground twice."

  "Has Jining been retaken?"

  "The ferry route is also open!"

  "With just 5,000 government troops, we defeated a coalition army of 50,000 White Lotus and bandit rebels!"

  "Beheaded over ten thousand levels, worthy of General Wang indeed!"

  Suddenly, a whispering voice rose from the grand hall, and Emperor Chongzhen's face also showed a rare flush of excitement. At this moment, Emperor Chongzhen only had one thought in his mind: this Wang Pu was indeed a good general! This was truly a pillar bestowed upon the great Ming dynasty by heaven itself.

  However, Chongzhen Emperor's worries in his heart became even more severe.

  Wang Pu was too capable, far beyond his imagination, and he was a martial general who served as the Grand Marshal of the Border Towns, not a local governor born from the imperial examination system...

  ■■■

  Shandong, Jining.

  Huang Degong ultimately failed to catch up with Hong Niangzi and the White Lotus Sect Master, so Wang Pu had no choice but to order the secret passage to be blasted.

  A large army stayed in Jining for three days, and Liu Zeqing, the commander-in-chief of Shandong, led 500 light cavalry horses to arrive without stopping. This guy had been paying attention to the situation in Jining all along, and when he heard that Wang Pu had defeated the enemy in Jining, he rushed back at the first time to prepare for some credit. He was not good at leading troops to fight, but he was a master of snatching credit.

  Unfortunately, Wang Pu was not a good guy either. He had already sent a report to the capital, exaggerating the results of the battle by five times. Even if Liu Zeqing wanted to take credit for it, he would only be left with a bowl of soup.

  Wang Pu is a transmigrator, Zhen Youcai has been living outside the pass for a long time. Neither of them knows how deep and muddy the water in the Ming dynasty's officialdom is. They don't know that having too much merit in today's Ming dynasty's officialdom isn't necessarily a good thing! The two are still thinking hard about making more military achievements for the court, for Emperor Chongzhen.

  After handing over the defense of Jining to Liu Zeqing, Wang Pu led his troops to continue advancing towards the capital. When they passed through Dongchang Prefecture, they were attacked several times by the White Lotus bandits, but these were just small groups that did not pose a threat to Wang Pu's large army.

  All the way, half a month later, the large army finally arrived in Tongzhou. The three thousand Beijing camp officials and soldiers who were sent by Chen Xinxia, the Minister of War, had been waiting for a long time in Tongzhou to receive them. These three thousand Beijing camps should have gone to Jining to receive Wang Pu, but the leading generals were afraid of the White Lotus Sect and stopped advancing after arriving in Tongzhou.

  The naval fleet moored at Tongzhou Wharf.

  Chang Yanling and Li Zushu were directing the two thousand brocade-clad guards, who were busy transporting goods to the dock. From Tongzhou onwards, they would no longer need to travel by water to reach the capital, and Huang Degong's naval force was an external garrison army that, according to Ming law, could not enter the capital. Once they reached Tongzhou, they would have to turn back to Nanjing.

  On the dock, Huang Degong was bidding a reluctant farewell to Wang Pu.

  "Huang Degong said: 'General, we have already arrived in Tongzhou. The Beijing garrison that came to meet us has also arrived. My mission is complete and I should return to Nanjing to report to Minister Shi.'"

  Wang Pu handed the Ronin war knife in his hand to Huang Degong and said solemnly, "Huang Canjiang, General knows you don't love money, but please accept this Ronin war knife! This is what General extorted from the King of Korea, it's also a little thought from General. If you insist on not accepting it, that means you look down on General."

  "Alright." Huang Degong took over the ronin's sword with a refreshing speed and said loudly, "Then I'll just take it."

  Wang Pu patted Huang Degong's shoulder and said in a deep voice: "Take care!"

  "Take care, General." Huang Degong clasped his fists and bowed, saying solemnly, "I bid you farewell now."

  Huang Degong finished speaking and turned around to leave with a flourish.

  At some point, Zhen Youcai sidled up to Wang Pu and said in a low voice, "General, this man is good at both leading troops and fighting."

  "Did you notice it too?"

  "It's clear." Zhen Youcai nodded, "The people of Jiangnan are weak and timid, the troops of various guards have no fighting power to speak of, but the three thousand naval forces under his command can be called a tiger wolf army!"

  ■■■

  Palace of Heavenly Purity

  Chongzhen Emperor was reviewing the memorials when eunuch Wang Cheng'en suddenly rushed in, knelt down and reported: "Your Majesty, he has come, he has come."

  "Who's come?" Chongzhen Emperor continued to focus on reviewing the memorials, without lifting his head, and asked, "Look what you've done."

  Wang Chengen gasped: "General Wang, Commander-in-Chief of Datong, Wang Pu has arrived."

  "Is it?" The Chongzhen Emperor was overjoyed and quickly stood up, asking "Where did General Wang go?"

  Wang Chengen said with a smile: "We have already passed Tongzhou and will soon arrive at Guangqumen."

  "Grant the favor, draft the edict immediately." Chongzhen Emperor said loudly, "Wang Pu and the accompanying officers can temporarily stay outside Guangqu Gate. The campsite and all grain supplies will be properly arranged by the Five Armies Commander's Office, no mistakes are allowed."

  Wang Chengen happily said: "Your humble servant obeys your orders."

  Chongzhen Emperor said: "You let people redecorate the Huangji Temple again, tomorrow at noon, I want to summon Wang Pu in the Huangji Temple!"

  "Ah, Huang Ji Temple!?" Wang Cheng'en was taken aback for a moment, then responded in a gentle voice, "Yes, I will obey."

  The Hall of Imperial Supremacy is the highest-ranking imperial building in the Forbidden City, where grand ceremonies are only held on significant occasions such as the coronation of a new emperor, the enthronement of an empress, consorts, crown prince or royal princes, and major festive days like New Year's Day and Winter Solstice. Normally, Emperor Chongzhen would receive foreign ministers on the platform, but this time he chose to hold the meeting in the Hall of Imperial Supremacy, showing how much importance he attached to it.

  However, Wang Cheng'en understood that Chongzhen Emperor's attention to him was not so much a sign of respect for himself as it was a sign of respect for the slave leader Huang Taiji.

  Since the incident in Liaodong, the mighty Ming Empire has been defeated by the small Jurchen tribe, and Emperor Chongzhen has been harboring a deep resentment. Today, he finally has the opportunity to choose the magnificent Huangji Hall to display the national prestige of the great Ming Dynasty to Huang Taiji.

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