Bianliang, Tokyo.
Zhu Meng was killed in the city of Suzhou by Sun Tu and the soldiers and horses from all walks of life to quell the chaos!
Although this news has only been reported from the DPRK for only two or three days, it has already caused a stir in the city. There are countless official and private opinions. It is definitely the biggest hot news this year!
Who is Zhu Meng? He was deeply favored by the emperor, colluded with the powerful officials in the court, but caused countless harm, and was called one of the "six thieves" by the people of the world. With the power of one person, the originally prosperous and peaceful Jiangnan area was full of wars. The people are in dire straits; even countless officials and censors are trying their best to impeach, but they can't damage it at all. On the contrary, many people lose their official positions because of it. The emperor's family is always there!
Such a big shot, a guy who would never fall in the eyes of ordinary people, causing trouble for thousands of years, died so suddenly! And he didn’t die at the hands of the rebels, but was actually killed by his own subordinates during a mutiny! This kind of thing is really surprising, and it makes people want to know the inside story too urgently. However, the imperial court has been keeping this secret for several days, which has led to various theories among the people -
Some people say that it was because Zhu Meng was greedy and misappropriated all the army's food, grass and logistics, which finally made his soldiers intolerable and launched a mutiny; others said that this was the result of the secret struggle between Sun Tu and Zhu Meng... Various rumors and conspiracy theories Very loud. But generally speaking, the meaning is the same. Zhu Meng's death was really his own fault, and he was completely undeserved!
Unlike the people who only care about why Zhu Meng was killed, the important officials in the Song Dynasty were concerned about the impact behind the incident. Zhao Ji was really furious this time. No matter how generous he was and if he put the Taoist theory of inaction above politics, he would not be able to accept this result.
Zhu Meng was a close minister whom he valued and promoted, and was the commander-in-chief of the armies in the south of the Yangtze River. But now Sun Tu and the others actually killed people. What is the difference between this and treason? This has seriously trampled on his bottom line as a king, so after receiving this report, Zhao Ji's first reaction was to send people to Suzhou to arrest Sun Tu and other relevant people, and deprive him of his official position for treason. His life may even cost his entire clan.
But fortunately, the Song Dynasty was not the later Braided Dynasty after all, and the imperial power had not yet reached the point where it was easy to follow the rules. There were also people in the court who were mature and shrewd enough to see the problem and quickly dismissed this angry decree. As Zhao Ji's most trusted minister, Cai Jing even went to the palace overnight to persuade the emperor to temporarily calm down his anger. However, they still had to come up with a charter for this matter.
So in the past few days, a group of important ministers and powerful ministers put aside other government affairs and kept discussing how to deal with this matter. It's just that after three days, there is almost no conclusion. This time, even Cai Jing can't make a decision at will. After all, the stakes in this matter are too high, and one mistake will get him into trouble.
Today, after the court meeting, several officials got together again to discuss countermeasures in the political hall. But without saying a few words, everyone fell into silence again, staring at each other with big eyes and small eyes, some not knowing what to do.
Liang Shicheng's eyes quickly swept across the faces of more than a dozen colleagues in the hall, and finally settled on Gao Qiu, giving him a wink. The latter coughed knowingly: "The concerns mentioned by the Grand Master and everyone before are indeed quite reasonable. Now the situation in Jiangnan is unclear, and Fang La's rebel army is getting stronger. If the imperial court suddenly orders all the generals to be killed,
Taking them all will definitely affect the situation of the war. When the rebels become stronger, the consequences will be extremely unpredictable. But have you ever thought about it, what Sun Tu and other criminals did has had a great negative impact on the Song Dynasty court. If the court does not investigate, the consequences will only be more serious!
"Since the founding of the Song Dynasty, we have learned from the lessons of the previous dynasties, promoted culture and suppressed military power, and this has allowed us to have peace in the world for more than a hundred years. But even so, today's situation still occurred, and some subordinate generals brazenly murdered their superiors. What is the difference between this and rebellion? If this trend spreads, all military generals in the world will follow this example, and the country will be unstable and the country will be in danger!
"So I believe that the imperial court will not spare these generals lightly just because of concerns. Especially the leader, Sun Tu, has committed an unforgivable crime. We should exterminate his entire family as a warning to others!"
After what he said, he won the approval of many officials. Even Zou Zheng, the imperial censor who had always been unwilling to deal with these treacherous people, also echoed: "What Gao Taiwei said is indeed an old man's remarks to seek the country. The military attache acted recklessly." The wind must not be blown, serious offenders must be severely punished with thunderbolts in order to warn future generations. I believe that not only Sun Tu, but also other generals must be executed! As for the situation in Jiangnan, as long as the imperial court sends capable generals southward at the same time, the overall situation will be controlled! And! After this incident, I believe that the local officers and soldiers will understand the majesty of the imperial court and work together to put down the Fang La Rebellion!"
There is nothing wrong with this Zou Yushi as a person. He has always been fair and strict, and he has never been swayed by others. He is even more powerful than Cai Jing and other treacherous ministers. But as a top civil servant who came from the imperial examination, he looked down upon those military generals who only knew how to wield swords and guns. In his eyes, fighting with soldiers was just a sideshow, and just sending some generals casually could put down the rebels in Jiangnan.
Nowadays, there are many people in the court who have similar views. Today, several people in the hall also thought the same as him, and they nodded and said: "What Dr. Zou said is true. This trend cannot be broken. It must be dealt with as soon as possible, quickly and strictly." !”
"What do you think, Grand Master?" Liang Shicheng was delighted when he saw this, but he still respectfully asked Cai Jing for his opinion.
In fact, no matter what these people say, they can't really affect the emperor's final decision, because the one who can really decide all this is Cai Jing.
Cai Jing had half-closed his eyes before, looking as if he was asleep. It wasn't until Liang Shicheng asked him that he said oh and said in a low voice: "What you all said is indeed true. Our Song Dynasty has been promoting culture and suppressing military power for hundreds of years, and we have the current situation. How can we repeat the mistakes of the previous Tang Dynasty? Sun Tu and others A general who is good at killing important officials in the court is indeed guilty of an unpardonable crime!"
After a pause, when everyone looked happy, he continued: "However, the Jiangnan war situation is of great importance after all, so there must be no mistakes. After all, we are only civil servants, and our knowledge of this is limited, so we should listen to the sect. What do you think, General?"
Zongze, a famous general of the Song Dynasty who fought with all his strength in the great chaos a few years later and is famous in history, is now over sixty years old, but his status is not high. He is only an assistant officer in the Privy Council, and he does not have much real power in his hands.
Originally, with his status, it was impossible for him to participate in today's important ministers' deliberations, but because of Cai Jing's special permission, he was able to accompany him. Just now, when the courtiers said in a disdainful tone that they could execute Sun Tu and other generals at will without affecting the battle ahead, there was an angry look on his face, but due to his low status, he did not dare to speak. It was only now that Cai Jing asked him by name that he found the opportunity.
Without any hesitation, Zongze stood up and said: "Although I have never been to the south of the Yangtze River, I know that what you said is completely wrong! Since ancient times, it has been a taboo in the army to change generals before the battle, let alone kill the general before the battle. Many generals are going to be executed. Now all the troops in Jiangnan are subordinates of these generals. If they are really sentenced to death for this matter, the morale of the army will definitely be shaken. And once the rebels seize this opportunity to send troops, the entire Jiangnan will be completely destroyed. It’s in their hands!”
"Zongze, are you being alarmist? Do you really think that no one here understands military affairs? Our army of the Song Dynasty is brave and good at fighting. We have been able to easily retake Suzhou before. Even if there is some trouble this time, how can those rebels compare? "What's your intention in wanting to protect Sun Tu and others so much?" Gao Qiu asked with a sneer.
Liang Shicheng also said: "In my opinion, if the court does not deal with this matter strictly, the morale of the army will be unstable. Zhu Meng was the commander-in-chief of the army, but now he has been killed. This will have an impact on the officers and soldiers of the Song Dynasty." It must be extremely serious, and now the only way to end the chaos as quickly as possible is to cut it with a sharp knife!"
What these two people said was completely confusing right and wrong, and they only wanted to kill Sun Tu.
Zongze was not a person who was willing to swallow his words. Seeing that their words became more and more outrageous, he gave up and said, "Do you really think it will be easy to kill Sun Tu and others? Have you ever thought about what would happen if those soldiers Ma is loyal to them, but what if they refuse to be bound? I am afraid that by then, the chaos will not only be in the corner of Jiangnan!"
These words immediately made the expressions of Zou Zheng and other officials suddenly change. They really had not considered this. Because they took it for granted that those generals would not dare to rebel, even if they kept shouting that Sun Tu's act of killing Zhu Men was rebellion.
But after Zongze broke through the layer of window paper, these people finally discovered in horror that with the courage of Sun Tu and others who dared to kill the coach, they would definitely do more lawless things in order to protect themselves. And once something like this really happens, they can't say what will happen to Jiangnan, but as the culprits who forced a hundred thousand troops to rebel, their end will definitely be very tragic.
After thinking about it, Zou Zheng and others immediately stopped saying anything, and even forgot to retort to each other. Even Gao Qiu stopped talking. The matter was too big and the water was too muddy. Self-preservation was the most important thing.
Cai Jing glanced at everyone with a half-smile, and then said: "Although my officers and soldiers of the Song Dynasty have always been loyal to the court and have almost never heard of rebellion, this matter must be guarded against. Of course, this is not a case where the court treats them lightly. The reason, in my opinion, the most important thing is whether Zhu Meng was at fault and whether he should be killed!"
After a pause, he winked at an attendant next to him, who immediately presented the dozens of documents he was holding to every official. When they opened the document to read its contents, Cai Jing continued: "Just last night, I received a document from Jiangnan, which listed the seven major felonies Zhu Meng had committed in Jiangnan over the years. If the above is true, The words are true, he is indeed worthy of his death, even if Sun Tu and others do not take action, I will ask the officials to kill this thief!"
I don't know whether it was because of hearing these words or reading the content in the article, the faces of these officials turned pale and solemn in an instant. And Cai Jing's last words shocked them even more: "And it is said that these seven crimes have been spread from all over the south of the Yangtze River, and maybe they will be introduced to the capital in two days!"