"Two hundred thousand taels of silver?"
"Yes, in order to attract the bandits' attention and slow down their attack, I had people scatter 200,000 taels of loose silver in the city."
"I see." Huang Degong was about to turn around when he suddenly remembered something and asked Li Xingzhong in a low voice, "Xingzhong, it is said that there is a lot of money in the palace of the two princes of Zhao Zhou. Did you not leave that money to Li Chuangzi?"
Li Xingzhong shook his head: "No, before leaving the city, the two kings of Zhao and Zhou only kept a small amount of gold and silver for their own use, and distributed the rest to the people. When the people fled, they took all the silver with them, and Li Chuang was left with an empty city."
"That's good! That's good!" Huang Degong breathed a sigh of relief.
As long as not much silver was left for Li Zicheng, the strategic goal of the Battle of Damingfu would be achieved.
Huang Degong sorted out his thoughts and began to calculate in his mind.
In this battle, the Ming army suffered about 5,000 casualties, while the bandits suffered about twice that.
Judging from the losses, the Ming army won this battle.
But judging from the results, both sides won and lost.
"Everyone!" Huang Degong lowered his voice and said, "In this battle, we suffered 5,000 casualties and killed more than 10,000 enemies. Judging from the casualties on both sides, it was a great victory."
“But judging from the results, it wasn’t a big win, there were even some failures!”
Wang Yongji was a little surprised: "Why do you say that, Brother Huang?"
"Although we rescued King Zhao, King Zhou and the people in the city, we lost Daming Prefecture. As a military commander, not only did we fail to capture cities for the country, but we also lost cities. If this gets out, I will be scolded to death by those scholars in the court."
After hearing this, all the generals fell into deep thought.
Judging from the current situation, both sides can claim victory or failure.
The bandits' victory would mean they would successfully capture Daming Prefecture, while their defeat would mean they would suffer heavy casualties.
same.
The victory of the Ming army was the successful rescue of the two kings of Zhao and Zhou, Li Xingzhong and the people in the city.
The defeat meant the loss of Daming Prefecture.
"Everyone!" Huang Degong interrupted everyone's thoughts, "Put aside the question of whether we win or lose for now, and help me think about how to write the Tangbao."
"Also, what should we do next? Should we continue to fight against Li Chuang thieves, or go to Shandong to fight against Jian Nu?"
Wang Yongji stood up and coughed softly: "It is not up to you and me to decide who to beat. Ask the court for permission."
“That’s right!”
Huang Degong smiled helplessly.
These military generals have no right to choose, only the right to execute.
The next morning.
The Damingfu Tangbao and Huang Degong's secret letter were sent to the capital together and handed over to Wang Chengen.
"Your Majesty, the Damingfu Tangbao! There is also a secret letter from the Earl of Jingnan."
"Win or lose?" Chongzhen asked anxiously.
He didn't care whether the two kings of Zhao and Zhou were dead or alive, he only cared about the whereabouts of their property.
If all that gold and silver fell into the hands of the cash-strapped Li Zicheng, the consequences can be imagined.
Wang Chengen first glanced at the newspaper, then frowned and read it again carefully.
Finally, he stammered, "Your Majesty, the content of the newspaper is... if it's good news, it's a great victory; if it's bad news, it's a failure."
"Slap yourself in the face!" Chongzhen didn't even raise his eyelids.
I am the emperor!
Are you kidding me?
"Your Majesty, please forgive me. This report does not record the victory or defeat. It only records the process and results of rescuing the two kings of Zhao Zhou, as well as the capture of Liu Fangliang alive."
Chongzhen put down the brush in his hand and took the newspaper.
After reading the contents of the newspaper, Chongzhen seemed to smile.
The artistic level of this newspaper was so high that he admired it from the bottom of his heart.
"Have the Ministry of War and the Cabinet known the contents of the Tangbao?"
"Your Majesty, the Ministry of War and the Cabinet have been informed and are discussing countermeasures."
"Okay, let them discuss it slowly. Send a letter back to Huang Degong and ask him to rest and recruit soldiers. Also, transfer Li Xingzhong back."
"Leave the bandits to Gao Jie and Liu Liangzuo for now. As for the Jiannu... I have other plans, so let him not worry about them for now."
In fact, Chongzhen had no plan at all!
He was afraid that Huang Degong was eager to make a contribution and would take the initiative to attack the Jiannu.
After continuous fighting, the soldiers were already extremely exhausted and in urgent need of rest.
Huang Degong first traveled thousands of miles from Fengyang to the capital, and then confronted Dorgon in Miyun.
Then he went to Huailai Wei to fight with Duoduo.
Then he rushed back to Juyong Pass overnight and fought a bloody battle with Dorgon.
After defeating Dorgon, he went to Damingfu and fought several battles with Li Zicheng.
It is a miracle that the system has been maintained until now!
No matter who you want to beat next, you have to let Huang Degong have a good rest for a while.
Only by getting sufficient rest can we maintain our combat effectiveness.
Tired soldiers cannot win a battle!
"Besides..." Chongzhen hesitated.
He is thinking.
Isn't it a bit early to do this...
Forget it, never mind.
It will come sooner or later, so it is better to face it early and learn more experience.
"Also, send an order to King Zhao and King Zhou, asking them to take refuge in Beijing with their entire families."
"Ah?" Wang Chengen couldn't help but shout out.
The Ming Dynasty had a rule that vassal kings were not allowed to enter the court without an imperial edict. If a vassal king dared to move without an imperial edict, he would be imprisoned and convicted.
Although the princes could request to come to the court for an audience, the emperor would reject these requests since the Xuande period.
Chongzhen not only allowed Prince Zhao and Prince Zhao to come to Beijing, but also allowed the entire family to come to Beijing!
This incident will cause a huge stir in the court!
"I want you to spread this news, quickly."
"I obey your order." Wang Chengen received the order and turned to leave.
In Wenyuan Pavilion, several cabinet ministers were discussing the contents of Damingfu Tangbao.
Although Qiu Yu, the youngest, is the Minister of Personnel, he is not respected enough among the people in the cabinet.
Especially in front of Li Banghua, he basically took on the job of serving tea and water.
Qiu Yu read the contents of the newspaper again in front of everyone.
"On the fifth day of the seventh month in the seventeenth year of our dynasty, our ministers Huang Degong, Wang Yongji, Gao Jie, and Li Xingzhong led their troops to fight against the bandit Li Chuang inside and outside the city of Daming Prefecture."
"Thanks to the timely deployment of armor by the Ministry of War, the distribution of money and food by the Ministry of Revenue, and the day and night production of new weapons by the Ministry of Works, our army killed more than 10,000 enemies on the battlefield, and used an empty city as bait to successfully rescue the King of Zhao, His Royal Highness the King of Zhou, and tens of thousands of civilians in the city."
Li Banghua raised his head and wanted to laugh but couldn't.
Huang Degong's letter of greeting is very interesting.
The cabinet has the final say on victory or defeat. If we win, the credit will be shared equally by everyone; if we lose, the blame will be shared equally by everyone.
Let the cabinet decide whether it is a merit or a fault!
Fan Jingwen couldn't help but ask, "Qiu Yu, did Huang Degong really write this?"
"Absolutely true!"
"Huang Degong is a rough man. When did he learn how to use open strategies?" Fang Yuegong frowned, shook his head and sighed.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
