"Lord Li, do you know who that young general is?"
Zhu Ping'an returned to the room and saw that Li Chunfang had just finished writing a poem. He sat down next to Li Chunfang, pointed to the young official standing at the door of Yan Song waiting to be summoned, and asked Li Chunfang for advice in a low voice.
Li Chunfang looked in the direction where Zhu Ping'an's finger was pointing. Because the distance was a bit far, she couldn't help but squint her eyes slightly to see more clearly.
After seeing the appearance of the young official standing at Yan Song's door, Li Chunfang smiled slightly and said, "I seldom interact with military officers in the court, but coincidentally, I happened to have met this general several times."
"Oh, I'd like to hear the details." Zhu Ping'an clasped his hands and humbly asked Li Chunfang for advice.
"This person is Qi Haibo, who became a little famous last year." Li Chunfang smiled slightly and spoke slowly.
Qi Haibo
Zhu Pingan was startled when he heard this. I have heard of Huang Haibo and Zhou Libo, but who is this Qi Haibo? He was a little famous last year? Could he be an unlucky general forgotten by history
Seeing Zhu Ping'an's confused look, Li Chunfang's smile widened. He stroked his stubble and began to chant a poem in a rhythmic manner:
I am temporarily resting in my small building, worrying about the old alliance. I call for wine to greet guests, and sit and talk about military affairs.
The clouds are full of toothpicks, and the stars contain swords. I don't want to be a marquis, but I hope the sea is calm.
When Zhu Ping'an heard the poem recited by Li Chunfang, he suddenly understood, "I have no desire to be granted a title of nobility, but I wish for peace at sea." As an ancient military enthusiast, how could Zhu Ping'an not have heard of this famous poem
Of course, Zhu Ping'an understood it in his heart, but he still looked like he didn't know the truth and wanted to hear more details.
After all, as a native of the Ming Dynasty, there is no reason for me to know who that person is just by listening to this poem.
Historically, this poem gradually became widely known after its author succeeded in resisting the Japanese invaders and gained fame.
Speaking of this poem alone, apart from the heroic line "I have no desire for a title of nobility, I only wish for calm seas", the level of the other verses is just so-so, and overall there is not much that is outstanding. If its author had not achieved success and fame, this poem would have been lost in the long river of history without causing a ripple.
"Zihou, you don't know that this poem was written by General Qi several years ago." Li Chunfang explained softly.
"I don't want to be conferred a title of nobility, but I hope the sea will be peaceful. This general has great ambitions." Zhu Ping'an nodded, then slightly curled the corners of his lips and deliberately asked, "Is this general named Qi Haibo?"
"No, no." Li Chunfang shook his head and smiled, then continued to tell Zhu Ping'an, "This general's surname is Qi Jiguang, and he is from Dengzhou, Shandong. His family has been officials for generations. When General Qi was ten years old, he inherited his ancestor's position as the commander of Dengzhou Guard. At a young age, he was already a genuine fourth-rank official. However, General Qi was not a mediocre person who relied on the grace of his ancestors. Last year, he came to Beijing as a military candidate to participate in the military examination, which was the examination before your special examination. His luck was not good. When he was taking the military examination, the northern Hu Khan's troops besieged the capital. The situation was critical, so the military examination was cancelled."
Yes, it is indeed Qi Jiguang.
Zhu Ping'an nodded in his heart and leaned forward to listen carefully.
After saying this, Li Chunfang looked around cautiously, and then lowered his voice, "At that time, there were 100,000 troops of Altan Khan of the Northern Hu outside the city, and it is said that there were 120,000 to 30,000 imperial guards inside the city. You also know what the imperial guards are like now. The soldiers are all fictitious numbers, with only 50,000 to 60,000 real numbers. Among them, there are many descendants of meritorious service who come here to gild their reputations, many old and weak, and many enslaved by the families of the internal and external governors. There are only less than 20,000 soldiers who can fight."
"So serious?" Zhu Ping'an smacked his lips in amazement. The situation during the Gengxu Rebellion was even more serious than he knew.
Li Chunfang nodded and continued, "Because the situation was serious, all the candidates who participated in the military examination were mobilized. Unlike other candidates, General Qi volunteered, and he was a rare talent with both cultural and military skills. When General Qi was defending the city, he wrote a "Preparation for Altan Khan" based on the actual situation."
When Zhu Ping'an heard this, he seemed to see the scene at that time before his eyes.
If Qi Jiguang's inheritance of his ancestor's fourth-rank official position was the first step for Qi Jiguang to step onto the historical stage, then this "Preparation for Altan Khan" was the key step for Qi Jiguang to shine in history. It was with this "Preparation for Altan Khan" that Qi Jiguang entered the vision of the bigwigs, was appreciated, demonstrated his talents in the Gengxu Rebellion, and earned a precious pot of gold for his rise.
"At that time, I was ordered by the emperor to go to the city gate to reward the troops. I had the honor of reading this "Preparation for Altan Khan". Although I am not familiar with military affairs, I also feel that this policy is very good. Zhang, the head of the Ministry of War, was also traveling with me. I gave this to Zhang as a reward. Zhang was amazed and immediately recommended General Qi to the Minister of War. General Qi was temporarily appointed as the flag officer of the nine gates of the capital. General Qi's "Preparation for Altan Khan" also became popular. That's how I got to know General Qi," Li Chunfang recalled.
"I still have a copy of General Qi's 'Strategy for Preparing for Altan Khan'. If Zihou is interested, he can take a look at it." Li Chunfang looked at Zhu Ping'an.
"Then I would like to thank you, Lord Li." Zhu Ping'an smiled and bowed to thank Li Chunfang.
"Zihou, why are you being so polite to me?" Li Chunfang also smiled, rummaged around on the table, found a volume of "Preparation for Altan Khan's Strategy" and handed it to Zhu Ping'an.
Zhu Ping'an took "Preparation for Altan Khan" and put it into his sleeve as if it were a treasure. Although he had searched for this work on Baidu in modern times, he had never read the original version.
"Although the military examination was cancelled last year, the emperor has granted General Qi and other military candidates who participated in the defense of the capital the same status as Jinshi to commend their contributions. Because of General Qi's outstanding performance, the Ministry of War transferred him to Jimen to guard the border. I guess there was an urgent military situation in Jimen today, and General Qi came back to report."
As Li Chunfang spoke, he glanced outside and saw the closed door of Yan Song's office. He frowned slightly, but then he looked calm again.
Although Li Chunfang's frown was small and fleeting, Zhu Ping'an still noticed it and knew what was going on. Of course, Zhu Ping'an was not stupid enough to point it out.
"Oh, by the way, Zihou asked me about General Qi, it's..." Li Chunfang turned to look at Zhu Pingan and asked, as if he suddenly remembered something.
"Just now, I saw General Qi, who was so handsome and heroic, and I became curious." Zhu Ping'an touched his nose and smiled.
"Haha, so that's how it is. If there is a chance in the future, Zihou and I will introduce you to each other." Li Chunfang smiled slightly and nodded.