On the 26th day of the fifth lunar month of the tenth year of Chongzhen.

Capital.

In late May, the sun was shining outside the palace, and the heat stroke in the palace was hot. Two little eunuchs next to him kept fanning. Chongzhen, who was sitting on the dragon throne, had patched thin silk bright yellow dragon robe, but was soaked in sweat. However, he, who was focused on watching the memorials in his hands, did not feel irritated by the heat. However, on his young and haggard face, a look of surprise and excitement appeared more and more clearly.

At the imperial table, Yang Sichang, the Minister of War, wearing a second-rank red official uniform, also knelt on the ground with joy.

Yang Sichang, who was slightly fat, was even more unbearable. In this heat-wave-wave-dreamed Ganqing Palace, sweat beads on his face were oozing out, and a large area of ​​his back was wet. He occasionally went to see Chongzhen's expression, and when he saw the smile on Chongzhen's face, Yang Sichang felt as if he was drinking honey.

Soon, Chongzhen threw the memorial in his hand on the table, and laughed and said to Yang Sichang, who was kneeling under the table: "Yang Aiqing, more than half a year has passed, and today you have finally brought me a rare good news. Quickly sit down and sit down!"

"Thank you, Your Majesty."

A trace of shame flashed across Yang Sichang's face. He stood up and bowed to Chongzhen again. Then he wiped his sweat from his face and then he turned his body down and sat on a straight chair brought by the eunuch.

"I am weak in writing. The memorial for the victory reported by the left governor Li Xiao is simply a bowl of iced sour plum soup in the summer, which makes me feel extremely happy." Chongzhen's face was bright and his pale and haggard face turned red.

"Report to Your Majesty, in addition to his troops' ability to achieve such achievements, Li Xiao is also entrusting his Majesty with great blessings." Yang Sichang hurriedly praised.

Chongzhen laughed a few times, leaned back on his back, leaned against the dragon throne, and said with emotion: "I really didn't expect that when the Dongjiang River was destroyed and North Korea was in danger, Li Xiao sent troops to save North Korea and forced the Qing army to fight with the Qing army. With all his strength, Li Xiao achieved such great achievements. I really rewarded him."

Yang Sichang immediately agreed and said, "Your Majesty is very much. I think our army sent Shandong General Liu Zeqing and Denglai General Chen Hongfan to North Korea for rescue, but these soldiers and horses were all afraid of the grand offensive of the Qing army and were afraid of the great offensive, and finally the situation in North Korea was deteriorating. If Li Xiao had not sent troops to save the crisis, I was afraid that North Korea would have to surrender to the Qing army and would no longer be a vassal state of our Ming Dynasty."

After hearing Yang Sichang's words, Chongzhen's face was filled with anger: "Liu Zeqing, Chen, Hongfan, and others are afraid of the enemy and cannot advance. They live in vain. I will punish him seriously!"

Seeing the emperor angry, Yang Sichang hurriedly lowered his voice: "Your Majesty, in the opinion of me, although these two people are mediocre and incompetent, their troops have not been damaged after all. It is the time when the state employed people, so it would be better to allow them to commit crimes and make meritorious service."

Chongzhen pondered for a while before saying to Yang Sichang: "Okay, Yang Aiqing sent these two people to the point of being the right way for the Ming Dynasty officials everywhere."

Yang Sichang bowed and said, "The emperor is wise."

Chongzhen nodded, as if he had thought of something, and asked Yang Sichang again: "Weak and weak, now in your opinion, how should I reward Li Xiaofang?"

After hearing Chongzhen asks himself questions like this, Yang Sichang was also very moved.

Since the Qing army launched a raid that day, destroying Dongjiang Town, and then attacking North Korea in a hurry, almost destroying North Korea, the heart of the Minister of War Yang Sichang was extremely dark.

I have only been the Minister of War for half a year and have been fighting with the bandits in China. I don’t know when the day of victory will be long. However, I didn’t expect that such a terrible event happened in Dongjiang Town and North Korea, which caused me to suffer a head-on blow.

Therefore, after learning that North Korea was extremely dangerous, Yang Sichang immediately sent Shandong General Liu Zeqing and Denglai General Chen Hongfan to lead troops to aid Korea urgently. However, they did not expect that both of them were afraid of the Tartars and were stubborn. After receiving the order from the Ministry of War, they all pushed for the three obstacles, either saying that the food and salary had not been fully prepared, or that the navy was still repairing, but in short, they tried their best to refuse to send troops.

Yang Sichang was extremely angry at these two people for being so passive and lazy, but he was worried that they had many roots in the local area and the army, and it was difficult to move for a while. He had not been in office for a while and his prestige had not been established, but he was not inconvenient to immediately dismiss these military leaders who held troops.

Although the emperor still trusts himself now and cannot remove himself from his post. However, as soon as he took office, he lost Dongjiang Town, causing the death of Shen Shikui, the general of Dongjiang Town, to the death of Pidao. If he later made Korea submit to the Qing Dynasty and leave the Ming Dynasty's vassal state, Emperor Chongzhen would definitely be disappointed with his Minister of War.

What Yang Sichang didn't expect was that Li Xiao, the left governor of Chi Feng Guard, who had no friendship, became a life-saving straw to save his prestige.

This man sent troops to North Korea, defeated the Qing army's water and land divisions one after another, and saved the Korean royal family on Jianghua Island, and finally forced the Qing people to save the extremely dangerous situation in North Korea.

Li Xiao made such a wonderful achievement, which was like giving Yang Sichang timely help.

Moreover, this person had previously advised Chongzhen to discuss peace with the Qing emperors, and it coincided with his plan to reconcile the Qing emperors outside and destroy the bandits inside. It seems that Li Xiao was not only brave and good at fighting, but his strategy and thinking were also like-minded.

Then, for such an outstanding general who is consistent with his own ideas, he naturally has to promote this person so that Li Xiao can serve his loyalty while deeply grateful to him.

In the future, you can even mobilize troops from Li Xiao to go to Shanxi, Shaanxi, Huguang and other places to clear out bandits, so that your plan to eliminate bandits with "four fronts and six corners, ten sides" can be implemented smoothly.

Thinking of this, Yang Sichang was determined, so he stood up and bowed to Chongzhen, saying, "Your Majesty, Li Xiao relied on his own strength to save North Korea and force the Qing court to marry the Qing court. In the eyes of his humble ministers, Your Majesty should give him a great reward to comfort him and encourage him to make him happy, so that Li Xiao could better serve the country while thanking the emperor's grace, which would be a good thing."

"Well, what the weak said is very consistent with my heart." Chongzhen stood up from the dragon chaise with a smile. After walking back and forth for a few steps, his face was filled with thought. He murmured: "Li Xiao stationed in Shandong Chifengwei, so I will be granted the title of Li Xiao as Chifeng Bo."

Hearing that the emperor was willing to promote Li Xiao as a superb count, Yang Sichang sighed softly, then secretly happy, and praised him repeatedly: "Your Majesty is so generous in his title. I think that Li Xiao is so young, but he is as young as Li Chengliang at that time, and is now the leader of my Ming Dynasty's official army general. I think that Li Xiao will be grateful to Your Majesty and become more loyal and loyal."

Emperor Chongzhen was very helpful to Yang Sichang's words.

Chongzhen thought about it, coughed twice, and asked Yang Sichang again: "In the memorial, Li Xiao said that he wanted me to hand over Dengzhou Prefecture City to him for management so that he could build a shipyard and build a navy. I was still hesitant, but I didn't know what Yang Aiqing wanted?"

Yang Sichang pondered for a moment and said, "Your Majesty, from what I see, I will give this Dengzhou Prefecture City to Li Xiao!"

"Oh, why did you say this?"

"Your Majesty, I'm sorry to say that although it has been more than four years since the rebellion of the Confucius thieves, it has not been repaired and is still in ruins. Such a city has few people and is difficult to collect taxes. It would be better to just ask Li Xiao to build a shipyard and a navy. "

Yang Sichang paused and said, "Your Majesty, now Dongjiang Town has been destroyed, and all the Dongjiang islands have fallen into the hands of the Qing barbarians. In this way, without the barrier of Dongjiang Town, our northeast Zhili and other places in Shandong have been completely exposed to the military front of the Qing army. Therefore, it is urgent to form a powerful navy to fight against the possible southwards of the Qing army. Now Li Xiao is willing to invest in the formation of a navy on his own to fight against the Qing barbarians in the north. Isn't it a rare good thing for our Ming Dynasty?"

Emperor Chongzhen nodded repeatedly by Yang Sichang's words.

Yang Sichang finally said: "Your Majesty, in my opinion, the court is in short supply of money and food. If Dengzhou City can be rewarded with gold, silver and treasures instead of gold, silver and treasures, it can save the court a lot of silver. Furthermore, Dengzhou City can be regarded as an additional reward for the award of the title. In the future, after Li Xiao dies and gets rid of the title, it will not be too late for the court to take back the title with the title."

Chongzhen sighed lightly, but shook his head gently.

Yang Sichang thought the emperor refused and was about to persuade him. Suddenly, the emperor who was walking back and forth suddenly stood up, his face full of high spirits, and he said loudly: "Li Xiao is committed to loyalty to the country, with outstanding achievements and outstanding achievements. How can I be wronged by such a loyal minister and general? What kind of title is granted? I want to give him a hereditary title! Moreover, I not only want to give him Dengzhou City, but also hand over the entire Dengzhou Prefecture to Li Xiao for management! The original officials in various parts of Dengzhou were transferred to other places. As for the mediocre, incompetent and retreating fear of the enemy, Chen Hongfan, the general of Denglai, who was demoted to Laizhou."

After hearing Chongzhen's big move, Yang Sichang was also shocked.

Good guy, it would be fine to give Dengzhou City to Li Xiao, but he would also have to hand over the Dengzhou Prefecture, including Ninghai Prefecture, Penglai County, Fushan County, Qixia County, Laiyang County and Wendeng County, as well as the Dengzhou Prefecture, the four major garrisons of Weihaiwei, Chengshan County, Jinghaiwei, and Dasongwei, to Li Xiao for management in the future. Such an illegal practice that violates the ancestral system is really terrifying.

"Your Majesty, this..."

Seeing the young emperor's actions as if he was on a whim, Yang Sichang suddenly felt a strange feeling in his heart.

Although he hoped that the emperor would reward Li Xiao greatly, the emperor's radical and unsystematic approach was too unexpected.

"You are weak, don't persuade me anymore, I have my own opinions."

Chongzhen waved his hand to stop Yang Sichang's persuasion. He said excitedly: "I think since I ascended the top, the situation in the middle school of the country has become increasingly corrupt, wars have continued, wars have continued, people have been displaced, and life has been devastated. The current situation is getting more and more difficult, which really makes me regret it! What makes me most sad is that the Ming Dynasty's official army has been defeated repeatedly, lost cities and land, resulting in the rampant Tartars and bandits have been showing off. However, the country's national power has become increasingly decayed, and it is difficult to cure it. Such things are enough to make me unwilling to eat and sleep and restless! Is there no one in my Ming Dynasty who can save the crisis at this point? Whenever I think of this, I feel like a knife to cut it!"

When Chongzhen said this, tears flashed quietly in his eyes.

"His Majesty......"

"And since the sixth year of Chongzhen, I have seen Li Xiao start from a small household. With his own efforts and military merits, he has been promoted to a thousand households, commanding the commander, commander, general, and the first-rank military officer. It can be said that the helpless Li Xiao can be promoted to the title of Bo, which is entirely based on his own strength, and the achievements of one person are not easy! And such an excellent tiger general who started from the bottom of the road is indeed a great gift from the Ming Dynasty! Li Xiao is able to be loyal to the country, of course, I will use it more and more to him, and also set an example for all the Ming government troops! If Li Xiao can use the example of Li Xiao to inspire our Ming soldiers to work hard, make contributions to the country, eliminate bandits, and expel the Tartars, then what's the harm in handing over the entire Dengzhou Prefecture to Li Xiao for management?"

"The emperor has done a good job, but the minister has been too worried." Yang Sichang squeezed out a smile and said.

Chongzhen stared at Yang Sichang's somewhat uneasy eyes and continued, "Last year, when Li Xiao entered the capital, I summoned him to the Imperial Garden to inquire about his plan to govern the country. Li Xiao told me that he would impose commercial tax on wealthy families in the south of the Yangtze River to ensure the national treasury. I think this move is of great significance and cannot be used lightly. Moreover, there are many ministers in the court, so I did not agree. However, I have always taken Li Xiao's suggestion to heart and never forgot. Therefore, I handed over Dengzhou Prefecture to Li Xiao's management, and wanted to see if Li Xiao could implement his commercial tax on wealthy families in Dengzhou Prefecture first. If Li Xiao could implement this strategy smoothly, I would learn from and refer to this plan in Jiangnan in the future."

After hearing the emperor's hopeful words, Yang Sichang was smiling bitterly.

The emperor is still young and he is too ideal about things.

I think I came to Dengzhou and suffered from military disasters and was destroyed. How many rich families could they have and how many taels of taxes could they be taxed? It would be inappropriate to go to such a barren land compared to the fertile place in Jiangnan.

Moreover, many powerful ministers in the court were from Jiangnan. Most of them had industries in their hometowns, so how could they sit down and watch the emperor collect taxes from their own heads? They would definitely try their best to oppose and confront them. I am afraid that by then, Emperor Chongzhen would not beat him, but he would be embarrassed.

However, now the emperor is in full swing, but Yang Sichang is not good at buying cold water for him, but has to follow the emperor and say, "The emperor's move should be tried. In the opinion of his ministers, after Li Xiao governs Dengzhou, he needs to pay taxes according to the amount of prefectures and counties every year to encourage him to manage the local area well. If Li Xiao's governance is not effective and the results are not obvious, please ask the emperor to take back Dengzhou Prefecture and re-arrange the officials to take over."

Chongzhen nodded: "What the weak-minded people say is very much. I also know that Li Xiao was born as a military general, but now he is only in Shanxian and Chifengwei, and his governance experience is insufficient. If he really does not manage Dengzhou Prefecture well, I will not blame him, and he will take it back."

Chongzhen paused, but suddenly smiled on his face. He slowly said, "Weak, in my opinion, you should not underestimate Li Xiao. Perhaps, Li Xiao can be stronger than those civil servants and manage Dengzhou Prefecture more prosperously."

Yang Sichang squeezed out a smile on his face: "If Li Xiao really has such achievements in governing, then I will congratulate the emperor first."

Chongzhen laughed a few times and shouted: "Where is the eunuch who is responsible for the matter?"

"I am here. Please give me instructions."
Chapter completed!