In December, the ice and snow drift.

No matter how precarious the world is, you can still feel a different kind of prosperity near the city of Beijing at the feet of the Emperor.

At least in the current winter of the seventh year of the Apocalypse, there is still peace and prosperity outside Beijing.

On both sides of the official road from Tongzhou to Chaoyang Gate in the east of Beijing, there are shops, restaurants and warehouses, which are almost the same as those in Beijing. This official road is the "golden passage" of Beijing and passes through it every year.

The millions of stones of grain sent to Beijing by the Grand Canal and other items transported by the Grand Canal all have to be unloaded at Tongzhou Wharf. From Tongzhou to Beijing, you have to take the official road outside Chaoyangmen.

If officials entering and leaving Beijing want to take the canal to the southeast, they must go to Tongzhou through Chaoyangmen.

Over time, the twenty-mile official road from Chaoyangmen to Tongzhou has become more and more prosperous and lively. Even in the coldest months of winter, there is still a constant flow of cars and horses coming and going on the road, creating a lively atmosphere.

Scenery.

A group of soldiers wearing red narrow-sleeved military uniforms, double-breasted armor, and flying saucer hats on their heads. They all carried waist knives, long spears, and bows and arrows. They formed a team and marched toward the Chaoyang Gate in a swagger.

Behind them was a group of carriages and horses, including more than a dozen carriages with many large boxes bundled in them, several caravans filled with people, and men wearing traveling gear and riding horses.

People who were making a living on the official road outside Chaoyang Gate saw these soldiers' carriages and horses, and knew which frontier commander must have come to the capital. Looking at the heavy carriages again, they knew they had brought gifts...

..However, this frontier commander is a bit low-key. He did not ask anyone to play his official title card or blow the gong to clear the way. He seemed to just want to enter the city quietly. And the more low-key the frontier commander and his ministers are, the more powerful they are.

The good thing is that the overlord has a large number of troops.

Nowadays, the situation in the court is undergoing drastic changes, and the turmoil is rising suddenly, and it is inevitable that the generals far away will be involved. At this sensitive moment, the man summoned to Beijing by an edict will of course have to kowtow more, give more gifts, and cause less trouble...

..

The person who came here was none other than someone who was very controversial in later generations. He was sometimes regarded as the Optimus Prime of the Ming Dynasty, and sometimes he was said to be the Mao Shuai of Dongjiang who deserved to lose his head. He was honored as the Commander-in-Chief of Ping Liao, bestowed with Shang Fang's sword, and given the title.

Mao Wenlong of Zuo Dudu.

During the period from the Tianqi period to the early Chongzhen period, Dongjiang Mao Shuai was a very different kind of frontier commander. He did not follow the normal promotion path and climbed up to the position of the chief military officer of a town.

But after the defeat in Guangning, the fall of Liaodong, and the collapse of Ming Dynasty's power in Liaodong, he took a small group of one or two hundred Ming troops to sneak attack behind the Donglu by sea, broke through Zhenjiang City, and killed everyone.

The few Donglu officers and soldiers who stayed behind continued to recruit the Liaodong Han'er and the remnants of the Liao army who were unwilling to be ruled by the Donglu, and raised their own troops. Later, they borrowed an isolated island on the sea from the Koreans as a base and occupied it.

He visited many islands along the coast of the Liaodong Peninsula, opened up a Dongjiang Town, and became the general military officer.

In other words, Mao Wenlong fought his own territory and pulled up his troops... Other frontier commanders also raised some servants as minions of eagles and dogs, while he, Mao Wenlong, owned the entire Dongjiang Army!

The other frontier commanders were watched by a group of civil servants and eunuchs, and who could control Mao Wenlong? There were no prefectures or counties on the Dongjiang River! Although Governor Denglai controlled Mao Wenlong's salary, Mao Wenlong's men claimed to have 200,000 men.

In fact, there were nearly 30,000 soldiers and generals, but he could not afford to support them with the more than 300,000 taels of silver and 200,000 shi of grain actually given to him by the imperial court.

Sea trade between the Ming Dynasty and North Korea is Dongjiang Maoshuai’s main source of wealth!

So this Dongjiang Mao Shuai has soldiers, land, and financial resources...and he is still alone overseas. He is a warlord and a hero in troubled times!

Such a person, at a time of drastic changes in the court situation, would naturally be frightened when he received the order to go to Beijing to meet the emperor.

Therefore, he did not go to Beijing immediately. Instead, he took thousands of soldiers to Lushun by water and then sent people to Denglai to inquire about the news. When he learned that his old superior Yuan Keli had also been summoned to Beijing by the new emperor Zhu Youjian, it seemed that

After he needed a lot of help, he felt relieved and took a boat to Tianjin Wei. He waited in Tianjin for more than ten days. When Yuan Keli, who had slowly traveled north from Henan, arrived, he shamelessly greeted him, first gave him a big gift, and then joined him.

Enter Beijing.

Looking at the tall and majestic Chaoyang Gate in front of me under the sunlight, it exudes an aura of majesty that cannot be offended.

Mao Wenlong, who is 52 years old this year and has lived on the island for many years, has already tanned his originally fair complexion. With a big beard and a big beard, Mao Wenlong looks a bit fierce, but he still feels a little uneasy.

While he was waiting for Yuan Keli in Tianjin, he heard a lot about how to kill decisively today!

I also heard about Jinshang’s method of ransacking homes and selling indulgences to make money!

I even heard that Jinshang has set up a front-end army and sent people to the northwest army to recruit warriors who are good at riding and shooting. No matter what their previous status was, as long as they are selected to become a knight in front of the account, they will be able to fight immediately.

Allocated 500 acres of Kinki land as a job field!

This kind of treatment is not comparable to that of ordinary soldiers, even the closest servants of the Marshal of Bian Town!

If this treatment is true, it is indeed enough. As long as the people below are capable enough, the emperor will soon have 10,000 servants!

Mao Wenlong, who has been in the army for many years, certainly knows the power of 10,000 horseback servants.

I remember that when Li Chengliang dominated Liaodong, he only had less than 5,000 servants on hand... Don't think that Li Chengliang's 5,000 servants are so powerful. They are also people with two hands and two legs. As long as the Holy Emperor can really give him enough treatment, he will give him enough

With the equipment and strict supervision by capable people, his 10,000 servants will be able to practice it in less than three years.

At that time, can a military leader like me, a separatist leader, still have a good life?

Yuan Keli, who was riding next to Mao Wenlong, was already an old man in his 60s. He had been an official for decades, and he became very angry. In addition, his family was very rich, so he simply resigned and returned to his hometown to enjoy his life.

Blessed... So when he received Zhu Youjian's summons to return the imperial edict, Yuan Keli did not set off northward, but submitted his resignation.

But how could Zhu Youjian let him go so easily?

Zhu Youjian also wanted him to be Governor Yuan!

Yuan Chonghuan can no longer be the governor, but Yuan Keli must work for Zhu Youjian!

It's not because of anything else, it's because only Yuan Keli can cooperate with Mao Wenlong, a big thorn at the moment... So Zhu Youjian wants Yuan Keli to be the governor, and he will also be in charge of military affairs in Liaodong, North Korea, and Denglai.

Go cover up Mao Wenlong and smooth things over in Liaonan.

Therefore, after Yuan Keli resigned for the first time, Zhu Youjian issued several edicts in succession, with sincere words, asking him to go out and serve the country.

Forced by the emperor and I, Yuan Keli had no choice but to go north to Shuntian and then serve the Ming court.

Now seeing the melancholy expression on Mao Wenlong's face, Yuan Keli felt a little happy... This Mao Wenlong had made him suffer a lot in the past!

"Zhennan," Yuan Keli stroked his white beard and said with a smile, "The Holy Father said in his decree to me that I should be the governor of Liaodong and take care of everything in Denglai.

The Holy One is not interested in this old man, but he is obviously interested in you Zhennan, so you can rest assured."

Mao Wenlong smiled bitterly, "The general's possessions on Pi Island are really not worth much. If it weren't for a group of children, I would have resigned long ago..."

While he was talking, Mao Wenlong suddenly heard the sound of galloping horse hooves, which startled him. This was a conditioned reflex. When he was fighting with the Tatars in front of the Liaodong Army, he heard the thunderous sound of hooves and was right.

Nothing good happens!

He turned around and looked at the sound, and saw an unknown number of cavalry not far from the south of the official road, in groups of dozens, galloping back and forth on a flat land covered with ice and snow.

This must be training, right?’
Chapter completed!