Opening academic forums and giving lectures were all his hobbies in his middle and later years.

"Originally I planned to keep you in Xuanfu, but Ma Zhongxi is a bit stubborn in temper, but he still has abilities. People with abilities, even if they have different temperaments from ordinary people, can do things better than those who do nothing.

, the Ming Dynasty’s military desolation in the northwest in the past few decades was due to the inaction of many people!”

Although Zhang Zhou did not directly criticize Hong Han, the governor of Datong, he derogated Hong Han to the point of being worthless in every line.

After Wang Shouren heard this, in addition to empathizing with him, he also felt a sense of "admiration".

He was also thinking that this Zhang Zhitai looked young and was still considered a sycophant in the eyes of others. He had previously seemed competitive and wanted to argue with Ma Zhongxi, but he was also open-minded. It was clear that Ma Zhongxi had treated him as a sycophant, so he also

Although he was clearly qualified to replace Ma Zhongxi, Zhang Zhou was still tolerant.

Instead, it was Hong Han...

Such an inactive official, even if he flatters and fawns over him again, will still be ordered to get out early.

Originally, Wang Shouren was not very confident about being the governor of the northwest, but seeing Zhang Zhou's determination, he was encouraged and thought that he could do something big.

"As for sending troops to Maoerzhuang, forget it." Zhang Zhou said, "Unless we can transfer a large number of artillery and gunpowder from the side pass, this does not meet the strategic needs. Now I just want to see what the fire screen can do

Tricks.”

Zhang Zhou was very relaxed and content.

Wang Shouren also obeyed.

It was obvious that after Zhang Zhou arrived in the northwest, he did not fight a tough battle in person. He even talked and ran errands, but he did not go into battle in person. He avoided the battle when he clearly had the opportunity to fight with Huo Si. However, Wang Shouren was sincerely convinced by Zhang Zhou.

Wang Shouren said: "No wonder Marquis Weining made many recommendations to His Majesty before his death, saying that the future of military affairs in the northwest of the Ming Dynasty lies on the shoulders of Zhang Zhitai."

Zhang Zhou smiled and said: "Bo'an, you don't have to compliment me. We will work together from now on. How long can I stay in the northwest? You may not be able to return to Beijing in the next few years. It is more appropriate to say that the burden is on your shoulders. Let's work hard together."

"Um."

Wang Shouren did not say that he should be humble.

Wang Shouren is also happy to accept the idea of ​​working together.

…

…

As Zhang Zhou expected, a report came without warning at night, saying that Huo Si had withdrawn his troops from Mao'erzhuang and was leaving in a hurry.

The reason for the withdrawal is also very simple...

Zhang Zhou sent two thousand cavalry out of the Yanghe Pass. They did not go north, but went west along the north side of the Great Wall Pass to Fangshan. Huo Si fled in despair.

When Wang Shouren received the battle report, he couldn't help but smile bitterly.

Doesn’t this all match what Zhang Zhou predicted?

It’s not whether Ming Dynasty wants a decisive battle or not, but the sieve of fire...their confidence has been shattered.

In other words, even if Huo Si is still confident, Huo Si should know how to assess the situation. Why should the soldiers under his command have the confidence to fight against the Ming Dynasty?

It is clear that the grassland is being annexed internally, and most of its tribes and people are still captives. Will one of them represent the grassland to fight against the Ming Dynasty? Even without the rise of Zhang Zhou, without yellow gunpowder and those advanced artillery, the power of the Ming Dynasty would have been far away.

Chaoda Yanhan...

Now that Zhang Zhou is here, Huo Si is even less likely to take the initiative to hit the eggs with the stones.

Then an edict was sent to Yanghekou.

Zhang Zhou was promoted to the imperial censor of the left capital of the Metropolitan Inspectorate, the right minister of the Ministry of War, and the right governor of the rear army governor's office. While leading the military affairs of the Xuan Dynasty, he also controlled Xuanfu, Datong, Pianguan, Yansui, Ningxia, Shaanxi, etc.

Military affairs in various places... The emperor just wanted to hand over all the important towns on the nine sides to Zhang Zhou.

Zhang Zhou was temporarily promoted to the second rank in civil service and first rank in military service, which meant that he suddenly became the most powerful man in the northwest.

Although Zhang Zhou has not yet received the title, everyone seems to know that Zhang Zhou can obtain the title when he returns to the capital. The reason why Zhang Zhou is not given the title now is just to facilitate Zhang Zhou to control the northwest military affairs as a leading civil servant. If he becomes a military officer, then

Maybe Zhang Zhou will have to listen to Qin Hong's orders.

This is a matter of priority.

Although the emperor could also issue an edict to let Zhang Zhou control the northwest military affairs as Wu Xun, it would set a bad precedent, just like Wang Yue had to step down from the post of Minister of War after being promoted to Wei Ningbo in Chenghua.

The emperor is trying his best to silence others.

Wang Shouren was promoted to be a doctor in the Ministry of Punishment, a censor of Zuoqiandu, and the governor of Datong's military affairs.

Hong Han, the former governor of Datong, was dismissed on the spot and transferred to the capital...

Everything was done under the premise that Zhang Zhou had never met Hong Han.

After the decree is issued, the next step is to perform their respective duties.

Fire Sieve withdraws troops, and Zhang Zhou currently does not have enough firearms to send troops. What Zhang Zhou needs to carry out is mining and reassuring the people, which requires someone to help him carry out... Pianguan is more similar to a military base, and there is no mining around.

There was no way to go to farm, and the task of reassuring the people basically had to be left entirely to Wang Shouren.

Zhang Zhou immediately wanted to bid farewell to Wang Shouren and send him to Datong Mansion to take over.

"You're not in a hurry, are you?" Tang Yin looked a little annoyed after learning about it.

I'm obviously Zhang Banxian's junior brother, so why do all the good things happen to others?

The head of the Sixth Department also came here, so why was he promoted to governor?

Next to him, Wang Shouren seemed to feel that even if he became the governor of Datong, he did not have to go to Datong to perform his duties. The situation in Datong was different from that of Xuanfu. As an important town in Shanxi, Datong Town itself integrated urban functions such as economy, culture and military.

.

Being the governor of Datong is much more complicated than being the governor of Xuanfu or Pianguan.

Wang Shouren felt that he was not up to his task when it came to communicating with local officials and other yamen.

He is confident in the military, but to manage such a complex system as a new scholar like him, no matter how high your confidence is, if you can't do it based on seniority, you just don't have enough confidence.

Zhang Zhoudao: "Bo'an, I will ask Sun Qianhu, the Jinyi Guard, to accompany you there. At the same time, I will mobilize a thousand troops from the Shenji Camp of the Beijing Camp and a thousand troops from the Xuanfu Town. After passing by, I will try my best to avoid conflicts. Wait until everything has settled down.

After that, these people withdrew one after another."

In addition to considering Wang Shouren's political pressure, Zhang Zhou also had to consider his personal safety.

If a young governor takes office and carries out rectification and reform, he will easily suffer the dissatisfaction of local bosses.

These two thousand soldiers and horses are regarded as Zhang Zhou's personal soldiers for Wang Shouren. It is easier to do things if there are talents around him.

Wang Shouren also understood that Datong was now a dragon's pond and a tiger's den for him. He would not refuse to accept it like a stupid young man. On the contrary, he might feel that... two thousand people were a bit too few.

"In addition, I will give you another ten thousand taels of silver." Zhang Zhou said, "This is the start-up capital, you can allocate it by yourself. Don't worry, these silvers are mine and self-raised. It does not involve the allocation by the court. You can use it how you want."

"

It was Wang Shouren's turn and Tang Yin next to him to be speechless again.

Tang Yin asked: "Zhang Zhitai, didn't you give the imperial court more than 10,000 taels of silver as salary notes?"

Zhang Zhoudao: "At that time, I almost contributed all my wealth, but recently I have made a lot of money from opening a coal mine in Xishan, and the workshop business in Beijing is also very good. I have made a little more, so I can use it."

Tang Yin frowned.

He wanted to say that he had seen others move money from the court to their home, but he had never seen you move money from your home to the court like this.

"If there is no investment, there will be no return. Ten thousand taels of silver is not enough to do much. The key is to recruit some people and open the coal mine. I will find someone to communicate with you about the specific location. I will go there myself when I have free time."

Zhang Zhou continued, "As for the reward for military merit, the imperial court is already implementing it. If the first merit is not enough, it will be cashed in salt, farmland, houses, military positions, etc., which are not within the scope of the use of this ten thousand taels of silver."

If it is really not enough, after the mining is opened in the future, part of the income from the mining will be used to give some rewards to the soldiers. Make the best use of everything."

Tang Yin said: "Does the imperial court allow us to raise the rewards for our military merits by ourselves?"

Zhang Zhou shrugged and said: "We may not need to raise funds ourselves, so why not owe it first? It is not good for us to run the army if we owe it. The treasury is short of money, so we can help find a way to ensure stability for the army. There is nothing wrong with it."
Chapter completed!