Chapter 65 Good News
"It seems that Wang Baobao's harassment may have interrupted Xu Da's progress. He should have gone very deep into the desert." Zhu Yuanzhang frowned and couldn't help but fall into deep thought.

At this time, Zhu Yuanzhang was unwilling to discuss with princes and ministers because there was no need!
Many times, everyone has his own opinions, which seem to make sense, but in fact, only Zhu Yuanzhang understands that such military and national affairs that are truly related to the country can only be judged by himself, and no one in the world can help him. This may be what the so-called lonely man means.

"Could it be that... the fake emperor is trying to lure the enemy in, using the fake emperor to lure Xu Da into the desert, and then Wang Baobao will intercept him from behind? If so, the army is in danger."

He pondered, and soon the thought flashed through his mind.

This idea is not impossible, but the commander-in-chief on the front line is Xu Da. Xu Da will never be greedy for merit and act rashly. He is a man as stable as a rock.

So Zhu Yuanzhang closed his eyes and thought about all the possibilities, but this time, something really happened that was beyond his expectations.

…………

Jiangning County Government Office.

Liu Ji was worried for several days, as he thought that stealing the seal would lead to revenge from Deng Jian. This made him uneasy for several days, so he began to act secretly.

But soon, he found that he was worrying too much.

Instead of retaliating, the new county magistrate was much more polite to him.

Liu Ji roughly understood that it must be that Deng Jian had his seal stolen, and he couldn't help but feel scared. Although he used some means to get the seal back, he also knew that Liu Ji was not someone to be trifled with.

Deng Jian couldn’t imagine what he could do tomorrow if he was able to secretly print the books.

Therefore, the county magistrate, who was a new official with three major priorities, had to show a weak attitude.

Even the task of auditing the treasury was handed over to Liu Ji.

Liu Ji couldn't help feeling proud. He took the county's chief clerk Zhang Hai to check the government treasury and then returned to the county government office.

As soon as they arrived, a clerk came over and said to Liu Ji, "Mr. Liu, the county magistrate invites you to the government office for tea."

"Okay." Liu Ji smiled, a bit proud.

Although this pirated printing did not put Deng Jian to death, at least... it made this guy restrain himself and start to understand how to behave.

Humph, it's a pity that Liu wants to replace you. If you stay in office for one day, Liu will be unable to sleep or eat. How can I tolerate you?
He was thinking in his mind, and at this moment, he was also thinking about how to ask for help from his superiors in Yingtian Prefecture, or even... to use his connections to various ministries, or even the Secretariat.

Although he was from just a small county, he was a native of Huaixi after all. Moreover, he had been employed by Hu Weiyong, the vice-chancellor of the Secretariat. Although he was not familiar with Hu Weiyong, he still recognized his face.

Hu Weiyong was a righteous man, especially kind to his subordinates. Anyone who followed him in the past, even if he was just a small clerk, has now risen to a high position.

However, it still takes some effort to figure out how to ask for favors and how to express one's thoughts.

He thought about this and went straight to the office in the back yamen.

"Mr. Liu, you are here. Come, sit down. I have something to ask you."

As soon as Liu Ji arrived, Deng Jian took Liu Ji's hand, looking very happy.

Liu Jipi said with a smile: "Sir, how dare I ask for your advice? I will die, I will die."

Deng Jian said, "We live under the same roof, and we are all for the benefit of the people. Besides, the sage said that one of the three of us must be my teacher. County Magistrate Liu has been in Jiangning County for a long time and is familiar with the county's situation. It is natural for me to seek advice."

Liu Ji laughed and said, "Please give me your instructions, sir."

Deng Jian personally poured Liu Ji a cup of tea, then turned around and sat upright, saying, "The matter of checking the treasury is of great importance. It has been going on for so long. You have read the court reports a few days ago. His Majesty is also very urgent about the county's treasury check. I also saw the court reports that His Majesty executed several county officials because of unclear accounts in the treasury. Originally, I planned to do it myself, but after all, I have only been in office for a short time and am not very familiar with the county's affairs. There are some mismatches in the treasury accounts. After thinking about it, I think it is better for County Magistrate Liu to handle this matter with full authority. Everything is up to you. What do you think?"

Liu Ji just wanted to laugh after hearing this. It seemed that Deng Jian was completely scared. The matter of checking the treasury was a half-hearted effort. Now handing this power to Liu Ji was actually just a way for him to save face.

So he was very pleased and said with a smile: "If that's the case, I will do my best."

"Very good." Deng Jian said emotionally, "With the financial support of County Magistrate Liu, I don't have to worry. But County Magistrate Liu has been working hard these days."

"Your Excellency, please do not do this. It will embarrass me."

The two sides had a cordial and friendly conversation.

Soon, the news spread in the county. The people in the county were all very smart and well-informed, and they all sensed the direction of the wind.

Therefore, in the chief clerk's office, the clerk vividly described the changes that had taken place in the county.

The chief clerk Zhang Hai couldn't help but say in his thick Jiangxi accent: "So, isn't this investigation all in the hands of County Magistrate Liu? How come the investigation, which was personally led by the county magistrate, ended up in such a whimper?"

The clerk lowered his voice and said, "Zhang Zhubu, I'm afraid it's not..."

His voice became lower and lower.

However, the face of Chief Clerk Zhang Hai became worse and worse. He seemed to be a little frightened and had no intention of paying attention to what the clerk said.

…………

The south gate of Nanjing City is the historically famous Yuhuatai.

In order to deliver urgent music, the court set up a special express delivery station here. Almost all the fast horses and urgent music were transferred from here.

At this time, someone rode a horse to the Yuhuatai Express Delivery Shop.

The man had a miserable look on his face, as if he had gone through countless storms. Behind him, he was carrying a sealed bamboo tube. As soon as the man and his horse arrived at Yuhuatai, the horse seemed to have died.

The man on the horse quickly jumped off the horse, not caring about the life or death of the horse, and just shouted: "Look for the horse, look for the horse, the army in the front camp is urgently reporting, the general is urgently reporting..."

After hearing this, the postmen dared not delay and quickly prepared new horses.

This person did not stop, but just gulped down a mouthful of the cold tea handed to him by the postmen, and then climbed up.

"My friend, what happened in the front camp?"

Some curious people couldn't help but ask.

The man on horseback had already sat down. He looked exhausted, but at this moment, his eyes were shining: "Great victory!"

After leaving these two words behind, he reined in his horse and sped away in a cloud of dust.

…………

"Your Majesty, Jiangning County has an urgent report."

He should have bent his waist slightly, carefully held a report, and handed it to Zhu Yuanzhang.

Zhu Yuanzhang opened the report. Some days ago, he ordered people to pay attention to the developments in Jiangning County, especially Liu Ji. Therefore, the news in this county would be reported to him from time to time.

After looking down at the report, Zhu Yuanzhang's eyes were dim and there was a smile on his face.

"Haha...it's quite interesting." Zhu Yuanzhang said slowly.

Having said this, he casually put the secret music aside.

He should also step forward and help Zhu Yuanzhang tidy up the imperial desk.

Zhu Yuanzhang, however, had his hands behind his back. He said nonchalantly, "This Deng Jian looks a lot like his son. They look like they were carved from the same mold. It's true that if they are not from the same family, they will not marry in the same house."

I should have listened first, not knowing whether I should respond. After considering it, I said carefully, "Father and son, father and son, aren't they of the same bloodline?"

Zhu Yuanzhang said: "Yes, it's the same lineage. We are all damn good at using people as guns."

He was confused at first, so he became cautious but didn't dare to say anything more.

After tidying up, he said, "Your Majesty, Vice Minister Hu Weiyong and Vice Minister of War Le Shaofeng request to see you."

After hearing this, Zhu Yuanzhang's expression changed slightly. Although Hu Weiyong was the fifth-ranking person in the Secretariat, in fact, he was mainly in charge of military and food matters, while Le Shaofeng, the Assistant Minister of the Ministry of War, was also responsible for the dispatch of food.

These two people suddenly asked to see me, could it be that...something happened before?

In this expedition, Xu Da led the elite troops of the Ming Dynasty.

Although there are only tens of thousands of people, they are all elite soldiers who have experienced many battles. They are the vast majority of the force that the Ming Dynasty can mobilize in field battles.

If we fail, then... if we want to launch another Northern Expedition, we will probably need at least ten years of rest before we can accumulate strength again.

Zhu Yuanzhang said: "Send it."

It seemed that even the eunuchs could hear the impatience in Zhu Yuanzhang's voice, so they hurried out of the hall and after a while, brought in Hu Weiyong and the Minister of the Ministry of Revenue Le Shaofeng.

The two of them bowed deeply.

Zhu Yuanzhang shouted, "What do you want to see me for?"

Hu Weiyong kowtowed but said nothing. He waited for Le Shaofeng to come and report.

Le Shaofeng had no choice but to say, "Your Majesty, there is an urgent report from Anding County that the Ministry of Revenue's grain team has been cut off by Wang Baobao's army, and 70,000 shi of grain has been burned by the rebel army. Now not only has the grain route been cut off, but news of the army has also been..."

Zhu Yuanzhang pressed his hand, indicating that Le Shaofeng didn't need to continue.

Le Shaofeng was very worried, thinking that the emperor would be furious.

But who would have thought that Zhu Yuanzhang would be surprisingly calm at this moment? He even said calmly, "Now that the news has been sent back, it means that the grain route has been cut off. It should be that Wang Baobao cut off Xu Da's retreat four or five days ago. Wang Baobao is indeed a powerful person, but Xu Da..."

He stood up and paced, pondering, and continued slowly: "Xu Da has never been a person who is eager for quick success, so what is his plan? Now that he has entered the desert, he must have thought of the dangers of cutting off the grain route. Isn't there any movement and news of the front camp army yet?"

Only then did Hu Weiyong say, "Your Majesty, no."

Zhu Yuanzhang took a long breath. Obviously, under his calm appearance, he was still restless. However, he was surprisingly restrained: "If something is abnormal, it is a demon. The Secretariat and the Ministry of War don't need to panic. Try your best to continue to transfer food to me. No matter what, we must continue to supply this food. As for..."

After a pause, he continued, "As for the movement of the army... now it's all mixed up, and since the battle situation is unclear, there's no need to find out in detail. With Xu Da here, no matter how bad the situation is, he can turn the tide."

(End of this chapter)