When he got into the sedan chair, Zhang Tingyu's face was as heavy as water. In fact, he had not finished what he said to Ma Qi just now, but when he saw Ma Qi looking in a state of dismay, he swallowed the last sentence back.

The current situation in the Qing Dynasty is not only that, in addition to what he said, there is another one that is more important, and this is also a fatal problem.

This is the issue of food and grass. Since the end of last year, the Ming army attacked Guanzhong. Although it has been learned that the Ming army has used a plan to build a plank road and secretly cross Chencang, which has attracted the attention of the Qing Dynasty in the direction of Guanzhong, it actually concealed Yue Zhongqi's actions towards Sichuan.

Now Yue Zhongqi has attacked Sichuan, and the Qing army has lost more than 10 of the territory in central Sichuan, only to curb the passage from Sichuan to Shaanxi.

However, at this point in the war, coupled with the loss of Sichuan, this made the situation of the Qing Dynasty worse. Not to mention the military consequences, the economic blow was fatal.

Shaanxi and Gansu provinces were not wealthy provinces. During the prosperous Qing Dynasty, there were disasters almost every year, and tax-free disaster relief was common. In other words, in later generations, these two provinces were places where they lived by eating relief grain and relying on poverty alleviation funds. It is impossible for these two provinces to support the entire Qing Dynasty finances.

Before, the Qing army advanced westward to attack the Western Regions. By relying on the plunder from the Western Regions, they could barely stabilize the disaster and have the spare energy to face the Ming army's attack on Guanzhong. But now, after several battles, not only did they lose territory, but they even spent almost all the money, silver, food and grass in their hands. As the minister of Shangshu, Zhang Tingyu naturally knew the country's financial situation. Even if this battle could be fought in the future, it would probably not last long.

Zhang Tingyu didn't say this, and thought Ma Qi would realize it later. So from these points, the Qing Dynasty was already terminally ill and had no cure. If there was still a glimmer of hope, then as Zhang Tingyu suggested just now, the heroic man cut off his arm and retreated westward and fled far away.

Unfortunately, Emperor Jianxing is absolutely unwilling to do this now. Even if he wants to do it, it is probably time for the news that Shanxi has been defeated.

But by then, what else can the Qing Dynasty leave? Relying on these forces in Guanzhong and the forces of Gansu and the Western Regions? Furthermore, the Ming army will definitely chase them all the way, and the last precious power of the Qing Dynasty will continue to be consumed under this situation. At that time, the Qing Dynasty, as a complete political group, may face a collapse and become a residual local force.

Thinking of this, Zhang Tingyu couldn't help but feel a lot of emotion. For a moment, he couldn't help but recall the scene of accompanying Kangxi to meet the Mongolian princes in Beijing. At that time, the Qing Dynasty was rich and extremely powerful. Who would have expected that it would be like this in just a few years?

Before he knew it, Zhang Tingyu's two lines of tears couldn't help but fall down. These two lines of tears were either shed for the Qing Dynasty, or perhaps for himself. There is a saying that when a bird is about to die, its singing will be mournful! And Zhang Tingyu is this mourning bird.

Although Xi'an is an ancient capital, it has long disappeared from the scene when he was the strong Han Dynasty. Even the current imperial palace of Emperor Jianxing was rebuilt with the previous Shaanxi-Gansu Governor's Office. Coupled with the financial problems of the Qing Dynasty, even after several years of expansion, it can only be barely called an independent palace.

Even the palace is like this, not to mention the residence of the ministers. When Zhang Tingyu first arrived in Xi'an, he was beaten up because of his identity as a Han minister and Kangxi's heavy use back then? If Emperor Jianxing hadn't thought of Zhang Tingyu and cherished his talents, he took the initiative to pardon his sins and let him regain his post, he would probably have frozen to death in the woodshed in the wind and snow at that time.

Even now, the house where Zhang Tingyu lives is just like an ordinary wealthy family. Houses of this size are naturally incomparable to Zhang Tingyu when he was in Beijing. I'm afraid that his housekeeper's outer house was better than this house at that time.

But now, this is already very good. You should know that many of the imperial officials are not as good as him. Some small officials of the seventh and eighth ranks even squeezed into a small courtyard to live, which shows the situation of the entire Qing Dynasty.

The sedan chair soon arrived at the ground, and there was a wind blowing again at some point. There was a lot of wind in the northwest, and this year there was more wind. The wind squeezing the cold air, which hurts people's faces like a knife, and it was extremely uncomfortable to roll up the dust in the sky.

With a slight squinting, Zhang Tingyu looked at the sky, then immediately lowered his head, covered his face with a hat and raised sleeves, and quickly stepped into the yard. After passing the main hall, Zhang Tingyu came to the back hall. The servant brought water to him. Zhang Tingyu washed his face, which made him feel better.

"Prince..." The butler who was serving the side waited for the servant to leave, then stepped forward and whispered: "Someone came to the door to give the prime minister just now..."

"What's the note?" Zhang Tingyu asked casually.

The housekeeper took out the note from his arms and handed it to Zhang Tingyu. Zhang Tingyu took it and opened it and was stunned when he saw it. There was a poem written on it. Zhang Tingyu was naturally very familiar with this poem. This is a poem by Li He.

The black clouds are pressing against the city and are about to destroy it, and the armor light opens toward the sun and golden scales.

The sound of horns is everywhere in the autumn scenery, and the swallow's fat is filled with purple night.

Half a roll of red flag is approaching Yishui, and the frost is heavy and the chill sounds cannot rise.

I will repay you on the Golden Platform and support Jade Dragon to die for you!

Zhang Tingyu remembered this poem by Li He in his heart when he was young, so he was naturally familiar with it. Moreover, only this poem was left on the note of writing this poem, and no other words were left. However, Zhang Tingyu was extremely familiar with the words. For a moment, he was a little stunned, and then his heart sank.

"What does the person who came here look like?" Zhang Tingyu folded the note into his hand in an unintentional manner and asked the butler.

"When I go back to the prime minister, the person who came claimed to be the old master of the prime minister, and his clothes were very ordinary. As for the others, I didn't say much, but just told the younger one to hand it over to the prime minister." The housekeeper replied in a low voice.

"Have you read the contents in it?" Zhang Tingyu asked casually.

"I have read it, a poem." The housekeeper said calmly: "The little guess is maybe it is an old friend of the Prime Minister's Hanlin Academy before, so the little one took it over. You know that the little one is just a little one, but the little one is just a good word. As for the little one, the little one is just a ten orifice that opens the nine orifices."

Hearing this, Zhang Tingyu nodded slowly. The housekeeper was from his family and was not young. When Zhang Tingyu's father was alive, he was naturally reliable. Moreover, the housekeeper was also a smart person. You can hear it from the words he said just now, so Zhang Tingyu naturally felt relieved.

Then Zhang Tingyu stopped talking about this, and the housekeeper was very tactful as if this had never happened. After changing his clothes, Zhang Tingyu walked into the study, closed the door and took out the note and looked carefully under the lamp. He looked over and over again for a long time, and finally sighed, lit the note on the candle, and then watched it blankly as the note gradually burned to ashes.
Chapter completed!