Chapter 769 The Crown Prince's Concubine
The news of the Siamese coup spread quickly throughout Nanjing. Just like Chen Ming and Chen Cong were shocked by it, countless important officials and people were also surprised by it.
It was too incredible.
After the initial shock passed, the next thought that came to mind was - what should they say about Siam?
Say that Zheng Xin was too good at courting death, or that Tong Luan was too stupid?
Zheng Xin wanted to be the leader of Siamese Buddhism, which was really courting death; and even if Tong Luan was in power for a while, Zheng Xin had Chen Han as his backer, unless Tong Luan could defeat the punitive army sent by Chen Han again and again, but this was impossible.
But no matter what, the news of the Siamese coup greatly took the limelight of the Grand Prince's wedding. Although it was impossible to completely suppress the waves caused by the Grand Prince's wedding in Nanjing, it at least gave Nanjing a new topic for conversation.
Chen Ding has a special status. He is both the eldest and the eldest son. The candidate for the eldest prince's wife is likely to be the future crown princess, and then the queen. This is crucial to the whole of China. Whether it is the noble family or the civil and military officials of the court, they are all eager to see the throne of the eldest prince's wife.
There is no way, Chen Ding's advantage is really great.
Because the position of the queen is as stable as a golden mountain, this inherently gives Chen Ding an advantage in competing for the throne. Although the deposed princes in history did not all die after losing their mothers, such as the deposed prince Liu Ju of Emperor Wu of Han, the existence of the queen, especially a queen who has a good relationship with the emperor, is still alive, which is absolutely helpful to the legitimate prince.
Yinreng of the Qing Dynasty is not an example, but Li Chengqian is a living example. The most obvious negative example is the case of Empress Dugu of the Sui Dynasty to the deposed prince Yang Yong.
The eldest prince has the support of the empress in the palace, but the only thing he lacks is the support of the important officials outside the court. Now the emperor has tacitly allowed the eldest prince to contact the two empress families of the emperor, the Huang family, and the Gao family, which can be regarded as making up for the biggest shortcoming.
No matter how far-reaching this will be, at least it seems that his momentum is even greater. Moreover, Chen Ding himself is smart and studious, and he is very favored by the emperor.
How could his position as the "empress" not attract the attention of the whole court?
Of course, although the civil and military officials in the court are all paying attention, no one will be too enthusiastic. You must know that the current emperor is only in his thirties and in his prime. He is like a mountain that suppresses everyone. Who would be so stupid as to chatter about the "prince"?
Let alone who will win now, it is still unknown. Even if there is really a "prince" god in the current court, how many people dare to invest in it?
The current emperor is in his prime of youth. Although no one would think that the emperor who started his army at a young age can live to be a centenarian, the whole world will still be shrouded in the power of the current emperor in the next thirty years.
Not to mention that the position of the crown prince is still undecided, even if the eldest prince really sits on the throne, the eldest prince himself is also very dangerous.
The current emperor is the founding monarch, wise and powerful. It is not only sad but also dangerous to have such a father pressing on his head.
Yinreng, who served as the crown prince for thirty-four years, is a good example.
Although the emperor is not a violent person, he does not kill meritorious officials, nor does he give up military power with a glass of wine, and is kind and generous to his subjects, but this is not because the emperor is a perfect saint, but only because he has added too many constraints to the power structure. Each official position is followed by multiple deputies, and the law stipulates the responsibilities that each deputy must bear, that is, each deputy has a certain "bottom line" of real power. The internal struggles and mutual surveillance and restraints alone are enough to waste people's energy, let alone squeezing others and monopolizing power.
Another thing is the separation of civil and military affairs. In the entire country, except for a few frontier governors who still hold the power to select troops and can dispatch local garrison troops, the inland provinces have all been separated. The phenomenon of governors holding standard camps like the Qing Dynasty has been completely eliminated. In addition to fiscal appropriations, the majority of financial power belongs to the central government. Those local tax surpluses can feed local officials and they are thankful. They don't even have the expenses to comfort the garrisons during festivals. They need to flatter merchants and enterprises to raise donations. How can they expect to win over the army?
Moreover, the current emperor holds several intelligence departments, including the Jinyiwei and the East and West Factories. He has sharp ears and eyes!
In the current situation of the country, even the chief minister of the cabinet can't become a domineering and powerful minister who blocks the emperor's ears. The current emperor can rest assured about his subjects, and in fact it is true. The dynasty has been in existence for ten years, and how many founding heroes have committed crimes? Not only are they honest and abide by their duties, but their descendants are also very obedient.
Looking through Chinese history books, there have never been such honest and obedient noble children in all dynasties.
This is probably because the emperor took out the carrot of "enfeoffment of the country and division of the land" to whet everyone's appetite, and the world has changed.
The Ministry of State Security and the Military Intelligence Bureau in the hands of the emperor, plus the news media all over the country, and the large number of fearless officials of the Supervisory Commission, as well as the accountability system of officials at all levels, are like a dense skynet, hanging down from everyone's head, covering every noble family and every inch of land in the country.
Therefore, although Emperor Chen seems to have divided a lot of power and actively paved the way for "Shanzhu", the imperial power in China is still so supreme, and the glory and power of the royal family are naturally supreme.
As a veteran who had been in the Chen Han army for many years, Wei Xiuzhi certainly hoped that his family could ascend to the shining throne. He was even more urgent about this matter than his current job.
Although he was far away in the northwest, he asked his family in Nanjing to send letters by carrier pigeon whenever they had news, and delivered them to him as soon as possible.
This feeling was simply not comparable to the money spent on exchanges.
The court established post offices in the local area, and there were pigeon nests under the post offices, in which well-trained pigeons were raised. Now not only official urgent reports, but also ordinary people, as long as they can afford it, can use carrier pigeons to send letters to convey news.
But the latter is very expensive.
From Nanjing to the northwest, there are more than 20 stations to and from, and it costs two or three hundred yuan each time. However, since the opening of this business, along with the rapid development of China's economy in recent years, it has become an indispensable part of the annual income of the postal system.
The number of rounds per day, this pigeon is far from comparable to land and water mail, but it is really expensive, and the cost is really low.
Wei Xiuzhi, who was thinking about such things in his heart, didn't care about Kazakhstan.
The breeding of fine wool sheep has been gradually spread in Qinghai, Mongolia and the mainland, but Kazakhstan is still one of the important sources of wool and livestock in China. With the development of time, China's economic influence on Kazakhstan is getting bigger and bigger. The economy promotes politics, and sinicization is becoming more and more effective.
But these are nothing in front of the Nanjing incident.
When I first heard the news of "the eldest prince's selection of concubines", I knew that the emperor was also involved, and Wei Xiuzhi also thought of his own daughter. But unfortunately, he didn't have a legitimate daughter of the right age, and it was impossible for a concubine's daughter to become the eldest prince's main wife.
Moreover, he was a general in the army, and marrying him was related to military power and involved very sensitive aspects.
As for Wei Xiuzhi himself, the emperor was in his prime now, and it was not a good time to bet. But the selection of the eldest prince's concubine was a big deal, which was almost equivalent to opening the curtain of the struggle for the throne. In the future, the relatives represented by the Liu family will not "let go" of the eldest prince.
But Wei Xiuzhi himself was labeled as the Grand Master, and now he might have been classified as the eldest prince by some people.
...
Chen Ming would not consider Wei Xiuzhi's feelings. He only needed to know that the Wei family would use pigeons to fly northwest every now and then. And the letters were all in code.
This is just a small matter. As an emperor, you can never face only one thing, and you can never do only one thing in a period of time. It is the normal state for the emperor to handle government affairs on a daily basis.
Chen Ming also has to pay attention to the progress of naval shipbuilding. The rockets have been leaked, and it is not appropriate to build too many clipper ships. It is better to play battleships honestly. Of course, the hardness of the battleship shell will be a common concern. Is it better to use a single wood board or composite armor [composite plate]? This is a problem.
Chen Ming also needs to pay attention to post-disaster affairs in the northern region, Siam, the school enrollment rate of school-age children this year, immigration points in the northeast and coastal areas of the Greater Khingan Range, immigration in the Xinjiang region, immigration in Nanmingzhou, Nanyang, Myanmar and North America, as well as the upcoming imperial promotion, and the replacement of the army and the formation of combat effectiveness...
It is now the spring of the year, the beginning of the year, and the whole country has a lot of things waiting for Chen Ming to make decisions and set the tone. How can he focus all his energy on choosing his eldest son and concubine? The opinions of the queen and Chen Ming himself also account for a large proportion of this matter.
So, don't think that being an emperor is easy.
Especially for those who are determined to be a good emperor, it will be more tiring.
Chen Ming's heart is divided into countless petals, so if you want to say how much of Chen Ming's attention is on his son's marriage, then you can only say that the proportion is really very small.
Perhaps, in the eyes of Emperor Chen, Siam's affairs are more important than Chen Ding's engagement. Chen Ming has no intention of using Zheng Xin as a urinal.
Didn't you see that he had given up the plan to annex Siam after the Burmese war?
In the power structure he constructed, Zheng Xin was an outward extension of Chinese power and an example set by China. The geographical location of North Korea determined its annexation, but Siam was not so.
Chen Ming, who had already obtained Burma and Annan, did not have too much desire for Siam. He had this idea before, more based on the fact that Zheng Xin was seized by the Thais, and not only Siam, but also Phnom Penh, Vientiane and Luang Prabang.
Zheng Xin shoulders the role of role model and benchmark. His "loyalty" and "role", the treatment and rewards he enjoys, have very important definitions in diplomacy. This is by no means comparable to a urinal.
…
Thonburi in February is still at the end of the ‘cool season’, which is the best time of the year in Siam. In half a month, Siam will enter the rainy season, which lasts for half a year. 85% of the annual rainfall is concentrated in the rainy season, and the monthly average temperature is maintained at around 27 or 8 degrees Celsius. However, Thailand’s rainy season has its own unique side, that is, the rain of the day will be concentrated in a certain period of time. After this rain, the day will be very cool.
Although it is a cool season, the weather in Siam is not bad. It is located in the tropics and the temperature will not be lower than 20 degrees throughout the year. The cool season is only relative, not really cold.
But now the city of Thonburi is filled with winter chill. It was like a cold front swept through the entire city, the wind was biting, much colder than the coldest time.
Thong Luan controlled the military and political power of Siam, but his attack on Chen Han and Wen Ma did not go smoothly. Both of them were supported by the Chinese. Although the Chinese army in Myanmar had not officially intervened, the Nanyang Navy did not launch an attack on Thonburi, which was close at hand, after capturing Bangkok. It only provided a large amount of arms to Chen Han and Wen Ma.
But the foundation of Thong Luan's "power" was already shaking.
It just rained a little the day before yesterday, not much, but Chao Phraya Chakrimu was sick.
Thong Luan's first reaction after receiving the news in the palace was - what was Chao Phraya Chakrimu going to do? He didn't believe that Chao Phraya Chakrimu would really be sick and bedridden.
As a veteran under Taksin, Chao Phraya Chakrimu's initial status was much higher than Thong Luan's. At the beginning, Chao Phraya Chakrimu was the main general, and Tong Luan was one of the three deputy generals in the army, with the same status as Wen Ma.
But after 10 or 20 years, Chao Phraya Chakrimu is old and frail, while Tong Luan can still hold on to the tail of his prime, he is only 47 years old.
Chao Phraya Chakrimu has handed over his military power long ago, but as an old man who exists as a mascot, Chao Phraya Chakrimu still has his own meaning and value of existence.
For Tong Luan, now is the most critical moment, he must pay attention to every change. Except for his brothers and nephews, he dare not trust anyone now.
Zheng Xin trusts Phraya Sankha, but Phraya Sankha betrayed him?
At the critical moment, only his own blood relatives can be trusted.
Tong Luan will not ignore Chao Phraya Chakrimu, because with Chao Phraya Chakrimu's connections and prestige in the army, at this moment of internal and external pressure, it may not be impossible to really stir up trouble.
Tongluan didn't think Chao Phraya Chakrimu would really fall ill at this critical moment. And this old tiger, even if it fell ill, could still eat people.
Tongluan sent his son Isharasongtun to Chao Phraya Chakrimu's house in person, and then found that Isharasongtun was not the first person to visit. Who is Chao Phraya Chakrimu? He is an old veteran in Zheng Xin's army. Although he has retired now, his reputation is high.
How could a person who even Tongluan, who holds great power, not dare to underestimate have so few visitors?
This made Tongluan more vigilant.
The monks of Yuefeng Temple showed disappointment on their faces. Tongluan was really vigilant about Chao Phraya Chakrimu.
"Amitabha, if Tongluan wants to relax his vigilance, the old general needs to really lie down for a while..." Fan Wei, dressed as a Siamese Buddhist disciple, said to Chao Phraya Chakrimu.
Since he came to Viet Pho Temple three years ago, Fan Wei seems to have become a pure monk. But his inner qualities cannot be changed.
As one of the ambush laid by the Military Intelligence Bureau in Siam, Fan Wei also built his own network. But he failed in this great change in Thonburi.
Although the elders of Viet Pho Temple went out of the city to communicate with Phraya Sankha when the rebels approached Thonburi and Taksin failed to escape, Taksin abdicated and became a monk, and was imprisoned in the temple to save his life.
But this has nothing to do with Fan Wei, and this is even more because the rebel group dare not do anything to the extreme.
The coup in Siam happened this time, and the Military Intelligence Bureau did not notice it at all before the incident broke out, which caused serious dissatisfaction from the emperor. At present, the military intelligence personnel of Siam have two important tasks-first, to find out who is involved in this matter; second, to rescue Taksin with all their strength.