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In the third year of Taichang, on December 21st, the earth dragon in the Forbidden City was burning vigorously, the charcoal fire crackled, making the palace warm and cozy, but it could not dispel the bone-deep chill in the study room of Qianqing Palace.

Emperor Taichang Zhu Changluo was holding the Tang newspaper that had just been delivered from the eight hundred miles express station in his hand. His knuckles were pale from excessive exertion, and his fingertips were digging into the rough edges of the paper, almost to the point of tearing it.His eyes were fixed on the four shocking black characters of "Guangning was lost". It was as if his backbone had been ripped away from his whole body. All his strength was gone in an instant, and he collapsed limply in the brocade-covered dragon chair. There was a fishy sweetness in his throat, which he swallowed back.

"Impossible... absolutely impossible!"

His voice was hoarse with an incredible trembling. Just half an hour ago, he was still thinking about the good news in Liaodong over and over in his mind, and even in his dreams he was looking forward to the good news of regaining the lost territory.Wang Huazhen's previous memorial was written with such high spirits!With sincere words and heroic spirit, he said that Mongolian Lin Dan Khan had agreed to unite his troops in mid-December, and the Ming Dynasty's 60,000 elite troops were ready to go.At that time, in the eyes of Emperor Taichang, Liaodong was the homeland that was about to return to the territory of the Ming Dynasty. It was the prelude to the prosperous age that the later Jin Dynasty could look forward to when the country was destroyed, and it was his unparalleled contribution that would shine through the annals of history since he ascended the throne.

How many days has it been?How come Guangning was lost in just ten days?I spent all the money in the treasury and mobilized an army of 100,000 people. Could it be that like the gravel blown away by the strong wind, it was instantly wiped out?

Before he could recover from the huge shock and panic, Wang An, the eunuch in charge of the ceremony, bowed his body, hunched his back, and tremblingly presented the apology memorial of Wang Huazhen, the governor of Liaodong. His steps were as light as a fallen leaf, and his breathing was extremely low.

Emperor Taichang took a deep breath of cold air, his chest felt tight, and he trembled as he unfolded the memorial.

"The guilty minister, Wang Huazhen, the governor of Liaodong, is here to report: Because of the fall of Guangning, I beg the Holy One for the axe..."

The memorial was written in tears, every word was filled with tears, and the ink marks seemed to be soaked in tears.In the excerpt, Wang Huazhen portrayed himself as a minister who was lonely and loyal to the country and unable to redeem himself. He claimed that Guangning fell and he would never be able to atone for his sins if he died. However, after careful investigation of the defeat, it was not a crime of war.He tried his best to defend himself and put all the blame on his subordinates, saying that the commander-in-chief Liu Qu had misdirected before the battle and the morale of the army was in chaos. The right-wing guerrilla Zu Dashou took the lead in escaping, shaking the morale of the army and leading to the complete collapse of the three armies.

What made Emperor Taichang feel most ridiculous and angry was that Wang Huazhen turned his pen and pointed directly at Xiong Tingbi, the Liaodong manager, with harsh words: "Xiong Tingbi has five thousand troops and is stationed in Luyang close at hand. He is facing Guangdong."He would rather sit back and watch the crisis, treating the state affairs as a child's play, and ridiculing the ministers, "What if 60,000 people were wiped out in one fell swoop?"Then he led the defeated people to burn food and entered the customs, and fled without fighting, thus delaying the state affairs!"

After Emperor Taichang finished reading, he let out a cold sneer from the corner of his mouth, and threw the memorial on the imperial case. The memorial fell to the ground, and the spread pages were messy.This Wang Huazhen, who lost his division, his city, and his territory, could not escape the death penalty. At this time, he is still desperately shirking responsibility and passing the blame on his subordinates and colleagues. His intention is to be punished, and his behavior is shameful!

"Your Majesty, this is Xiong Jinglue's memorial." Wang An's voice was lowered, with a hint of unnoticeable nervousness. He held the memorial in both hands and lowered his head so much that it almost touched the ground.

Emperor Taichang rubbed his temples that were swollen and painful, pressed his fingertips between his eyebrows, suppressed the anger in his heart, and picked up Xiong Tingbi's book.He originally thought that Xiong Tingbi, as a "Confucian general" with a civil servant background, had an upright temperament and would at least state the objective difficulties of Liaodong's defense or propose a strategy to remedy the situation, rather than shirk the blame like Wang Huazhen.However, when his eyes swept across the densely packed small regular script, an unknown fire instantly shot up from the soles of his feet to the Tianling Cap, burning his whole body.

"Xiong Tingbi, the guilty minister, is here to report on the strategy of Liaodong... I have been ordered to manage Liaodong, which is the strategy laid out by the three parties. I advocate strict defense and resistance to the enemy, and a steady and steady attack. I often say that '60,000 people can be wiped out in one fell swoop', which is nothing more than an idiot talking about dreams and overestimating one's own capabilities..."

The first sentence at the beginning is like a thin needle, accurately piercing the most sensitive nerve of Emperor Taichang that he least wants to touch.

Xiong Tingbi was scolding Wang Huazhen, and Emperor Taichang felt like a mirror. The four words "idiots talking about dreams" were all aimed at Wang Huazhen's unrealistic arrogance.Xiong Tingbi always advocated defensive counterattacks and looked down on Wang Huazhen's rash advances and underestimation of the enemy. This was no longer a secret in the court, and everyone in the court knew that the two had different political opinions.

However, when Emperor Taichang looked at these words, he felt extremely uncomfortable and had mixed feelings.When Wang Huazhen put forward this slogan, Zhang Heming, the Minister of War, highly praised it and talked about it in the court. All the civil and military officials in the court agreed and applauded it, and no one raised any objections.Even he, the emperor, was full of expectations and convinced that the 60,000-strong army was enough to wipe out the Jiannu and regain Liaodong. For this reason, he did not hesitate to cut the military pay for counterinsurgency in the southwest, forcefully fill the holes in Liaodong, and devote all his country's energy to betting on this victory.

Now Xiong Tingbi denounced this in the memorial as "an idiot's dream" and scolded Wang Huazhen for "having no experience in military training, despising the enemy, and talking nonsense about war." Although the emperor was not mentioned at all in the text, in the eyes of Emperor Taichang, the arrogance and disdain between the lines clearly implied: You guys sitting in the temple are all blind and ignorant. I, Xiong Tingbi, am the only one who can see the situation clearly!

Emperor Taichang suppressed the discomfort and anger in his heart and continued to look down, his face getting darker and darker.

"However, Governor Wang Huazhen is stupid and stubborn. He is stubborn and refuses to listen to loyal advice. His close confidant, the military grandson, has already secretly sent Hou Jin to serve as an internal support for the enemy. Huazhen is unaware and does not know people well. How can he be undefeated?"

What a "unknown person"!Xiong Tingbi was scolding Wang Huazhen for improper employment, being deceived by traitors, and ruining the war.But who promoted Wang Huazhen?It was jointly recommended by the Ministry of War, and I personally agreed with Zhu Pi and entrusted him with the important task of governor of Liaodong!Xiong Tingbi analyzed Wang Huazhen's incompetence and mediocrity word by word, but to Emperor Taichang's ears, it seemed like he was pointing at his nose and mocking: Your Majesty, are these tricks of yours just for show?How dare you entrust such an arrogant and incompetent fool with such an important task and entrust the overall situation of Liaodong?

Emperor Taichang's face was so gloomy that he could drip water, his breathing became rapid and heavy, and his chest kept rising and falling.He could not have an attack in public, because everything Xiong Tingbi said was true, and he was scolding ministers such as Wang Huazhen and Zhang Heming.If the emperor is angry because his ministers scolded his treacherous ministers for harming the country, wouldn't that mean that he personally admits that he is ignorant and ignorant?

"I am called Liaodong Economic Strategy, but all the 100,000 elite troops in Guangning are under the control of Wang Huazhen. I only have 5,000 reinforcements for Liao troops stationed in Youtun. I only have the false name of "Liaodong Economic Strategy" and no real power. Zhang Heming, the Secretary of the Ministry of War, is attached to Wang Huazhen and takes revenge.The ministers, Hua Zhen, all obeyed, and they were not under the control of the ministers. They also deliberately deducted the military pay and food from the ministers.If the ministers wanted soldiers, they would not have them. If they wanted silver, they would not have them. If they wanted grains, they would not have them.

Seeing this paragraph, Emperor Taichang felt as if his chest was blocked by a ball of cotton wool soaked in oil. He was so suffocated that it was difficult to even take a breath.

Xiong Tingbi was stating the facts and accusing Zhang Heming, Secretary of the Ministry of War, of forming a clique for personal gain and deliberately restricting the front line.But who does Zhang Heming belong to?That is the head of the Ministry of War who I personally promoted and relied on as my confidant. He is an important minister in charge of the military in the court!Xiong Tingbi said, "I follow everything Hua Zhen said." Doesn't the implication mean that I listen to slander, listen to partial beliefs, and condone party strife?He said, "If you want soldiers, you will have none, and if you want silver, you will have nothing." He even hinted that the central government of the imperial court was giving random orders and making blind arrangements, regardless of the actual situation on the front line. As a result, the soldiers on the front line had no blood but no rice to cook, and ultimately ended in a disastrous defeat!

Where is this apology memorial?This is clearly a "crying out against thieves" full of resentment!Xiong Tingbi picked himself apart and molded himself into a tragic hero who was framed by the ignorant court, mediocre and treacherous ministers, and even the ignorant emperor.His condescending tone, in which everyone is drunk and I am alone, seems to be bluntly declaring: Does Liaodong's failure have anything to do with Xiong Tingbi and me?It's all you civil servants who don't understand military affairs and only know how to fight among themselves, and the man sitting on the dragon's throne, who completely ruined a good situation!

Emperor Taichang couldn't bear it anymore and slapped the memorial on the imperial desk. The paper made a crisp sound, which was particularly harsh in the quiet study.

He didn't yell or smash anything. His extreme anger brought him to death.He just stared at the memorial, his face was frighteningly gloomy, and the air pressure around him was so low that it was breathless.

"Okay, very good." Emperor Taichang whispered, his voice so cold that it made people tremble, without any warmth. "The country is at risk. Guangning is lost, Liaodong is in danger, and the slave cavalry can knock on the gate and enter at any time. These two feudal officials guarding one side do not think about how to kill the enemy to serve the country, how to save the defeat, and clean up the mess. They are still attacking each other in the memorials and trying their best to shirk responsibility!"

Wang An was so frightened that he fell to his knees with a plop, his forehead pressed tightly against the cold floor tiles, and he didn't even dare to breathe: "Your Majesty, calm down, the dragon body is important, don't get angry!"

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