Chapter 227: Prison Visit

From early May to early July, in a short period of time, Huang Laifu issued Dongzheng bonds, which accumulated nearly four million taels of silver, which was much beyond the original expectations.

The civil servants who were waiting to see Huang Laifu make a fool of themselves and were scattered together! After this financing, Huang Laifu has become the golden signboard of the Ming Dynasty. Whether they have a good impression of him or have no good impression of him, they have to admit Huang Laifu's uniqueness in financial management.

This time Huang Laifu's financing and issuance of bonds also brought a lot of inspiration to officials and the public. It turned out that funds could be prepared and integrated in this way without taxes or disturbing the people, and they could also get silver. Everyone seemed to have opened up a new world in front of them.

Emperor Wanli was naturally very happy about this achievement, glad that he had read it wrongly. Huang Laifu was indeed his God of Wealth. In recent days, he has recruited Huang Laifu to the palace for banquets.

With money, it is natural to do things. These silvers become a continuous stream of ordnance materials, transported from both sides of the water and land to North Korea.

...

The preparations for food and wages in the Ming Dynasty were smooth, but in the current North Korea, the development of the situation is becoming increasingly tense.

Although the Ming Dynasty was determined to provide a large-scale assistance to North Korea and mobilized 70,000 infantry and cavalry to fight, in May, the Ming army had only 5,000 troops stationed in North Korea.

In mid-June, the main force of the Japanese army stationed in Busan attacked the North Korean army and killed the Korean county magistrate An Guohong. The war was about to begin. The North Korean king sent people to challenge the Ming Dynasty.

On July 7, Ma Gui, the general of the Japanese, led 30,000 troops to North Korea. He led 17,000 troops to Seoul, and ordered Yang Yuan to lead 3,000 troops to station Nanyuan, Chen Yuzhong led 3,000 troops to station Quanzhou, Wu Weizhong led 4,000 troops to station Zhongzhou, and Mao Guoqi led 3,000 troops to station Xingzhou.

The strategic deployment of the Ming army was to defend the fortresses of the above-mentioned troops. After Governor Xing Jie led 40,000 people to arrive, the Ming army immediately moved into a strategic counterattack, and launched a clamp-shaped offensive from Nanyuan and Zhongzhou to attack the enemy in Busan.

The arrival of the Ming army also gave the Korean monarch and ministers a reassurance, and the Japanese army retreated back to Busan.

Ma Gui, who had been through a long battle, judged that the Japanese army would launch an attack soon and he had not had much time to prepare for the war, but he did not expect that the Japanese army's attack would come so quickly.

Eight days later, on July 15, 25th year of Wanli, the day of the 25th day of the Wanli period, Kyugi Karokawa, who was known as the "pirate name" by the Japanese, led a huge Japanese fleet to attack the Korean naval army anchored on Qichuan Island. Unpreparedly, the Korean naval army suffered heavy losses, all warships were burned and soldiers were burned and drowned. The three naval commanders, Yuan Jun, were also beaten to death during the escape, and all the islands of Xianshan were occupied by the Japanese army.

Xianshan Island is very important. It is located in the Xihaikou of North Korea, right-blocked Nanyuan, and outer vassal Jeolla. Xianshan Island was occupied. Not only did North Korea lose its Pingfan, it also allowed the Japanese army to see Tianjin, Denglai and other places in the Ming Dynasty, threatening the local security of the Ming Dynasty!

After occupying Xianshan Island, the Japanese army controlled the important sea routes and began to launch an attack on land in a hurry.

On July 25, Toyotomi Hideyoshi ordered a full-scale attack. The Japanese army 120,000 troops took a clamp attack and rushed straight into the left and right directions.

The left-wing army was dominated by Ukita Hide's family and Governor Konishi was the vanguard. They led 49,000 troops to advance along the Yining and Jinzhou lines toward Jeolladao, intending to capture Nanyuan.

The right-wing army was dominated by Maori Hiromoto and Kato Kiyoshi as the vanguard. They led 65,000 troops along the Miyang and Daqiu lines to advance towards Jeolladao, intending to capture Quanzhou.

According to the plan, the two armies should meet in Seoul.

Compared with the battle of invading Korea, the Japanese army was relatively stable this time, and they only wanted to take steady steps and first occupied Jeolla Road, use this as a base, and then approached King Seoul.

...

The Japanese army's offensive went smoothly, and the left army conquered Sichuan, Nanhai, and Guangzhou, and finally attacked Nanyuan. Ming general Yang Yuan led three thousand troops to defend Nanyuan. After several days of persistence, he was captured by the Japanese army. Most of the defenders were killed. After breaking Nanyuan, the Japanese army massacred the city for one day.

At this time, Chen Yuzhong, stationed in Quanzhou, retreated due to the loss of Nanyuan. Kato Kiyomasa's right-wing army captured Quanzhou without bloodshed. Nanyuan and Quanzhou were trapped, and the main force of the two Japanese troops met in Quanzhou, and their morale was greatly boosted!

After the meeting, the total Japanese army had a total force of more than 100,000 troops, and they took the initiative on the battlefield. After a few days of rest, the 100,000 Japanese army rushed towards Wangjing. Soon, Huangshishan, Jinzhou, Gongzhou and other places were captured by the Japanese army again, and the barriers of Seoul were all lost. The capital of the Korean capital, Wangjing, was exposed naked in front of the Japanese army.

The situation in North Korea is once again in danger.

...

When the situation in North Korea was in crisis, there was also a sense of panic and uneasiness in the capital of the Ming Dynasty.

When the Xianshan Island of North Korea was defeated, the Japanese army could directly threaten Tianjin, Denglai and other places in the Ming Dynasty, and it was only one day to go to the capital. The capital has not had any war for more than 200 years, and the people have very poor tolerance for war. In addition, the terrible rumor of Japanese pirates, all parts of the capital can be said to be shocked three times a day, especially in Tianjin City, which is located in the sea, and many places in Shandong have closed several times.

Under this circumstance, Emperor Wanli was furious. He believed that the result in front of him was Shi Xing, the former Minister of War, who had an unshirkable responsibility.

On the fourth day of the September 19th, he ordered Shi Xing to be imprisoned by the Ministry of Justice: "Former Minister of War Shi Xing deceived the emperor and the country, and has been so abominable and unfaithful that he took him to the Jinyiwei. The court said that it was re-enacted!

Soon, Shi Xing, who was suspended from work in central Beijing, was arrested and imprisoned, awaiting the verdict of the Ministry of Justice.

Under such circumstances, ministers wrote letters to court affairs and suggested that on the sixth day of September, Li Zhen, the Minister of War, handed over five events to fight against Japan: "Defend the king's capital, use the vassal screen, and arrive at the Han River to prevent the madness. Prepare the Lushun to prevent the vassal invasions. Defend the Deng and Lai, and use the barriers to block the coastal islands and oceans to defend cunning attacks!"

Emperor Wanli said this.

At the same time, in addition to urging Governor Xing Jie to speed up his progress in the North Korea, the Ministry of War also mobilized troops from all over the Ming Dynasty to prepare for reinforcements. The North Korean discussion was that Huang Laifu, the general of Shanxi Town, was brave and good at fighting. Now that he was preparing for food and money in Beijing, he had already ended, and it was time to enter the North Korea to fight. Emperor Wanli also agreed with the ministers' views.

On the eighth day of September, the Ministry of War ordered Shanxi Town to send 3,000 troops to assist the Korean War. At the same time, Huang Laifu also wrote a letter with his own seal and quickly passed it to Shanxi Town with the official documents of the Ministry of War. He decided to transfer one thousand of his servants and two thousand soldiers from the Wuzhai Camp. He was led by Jiang Dazhong and quickly entered Beijing. At that time, he led them into the North Korea to fight!

On the tenth day of September, the capital was in the prison of the Ministry of Justice.

Since being arrested and imprisoned on the fourth day of the lunar month, Shi Xingji has completely broken his hair, and his expression is even more old and haggard. From the former Minister of War, a prominent official position, to the current prisoner, this far-reaching identity comparison has completely wiped out his spirit.

He leaned against the wall blankly, staring at the window, and did not move for a long time. He had no hope for the future. No one in the court had spoken for him before, and now the emperor was furious, no one dared to say a few words for him. Perhaps it would not take long to wait for the serious crime sentenced by the Ministry of Justice, maybe... it would be inevitable to die!

At this time, Shi Xing had already seen his future destiny, perhaps his fate of death. If he couldn't let go, he didn't know what the fate of his old wife and son would be like in the future, whether he would be beheaded together, or be exiled thousands of miles away?

While he was thinking about it in a daze, suddenly the voice of Zhudian sounded outside and said, "Shixing, someone is here to visit you..."

...

Huang Laifu, with Gu Dadao and Azhi, looked at the inside of the Ministry of Justice with some curiosity. This can only be described as gloomy and terrible, with strict vigilance. The ghostly aura is full of ghosts, and the smell of mold and blood makes people sick.

Although it is broad daylight, there is a wind lamp inside, and a few feet away is hung. The light seals appear to be full of ghosts. Both sides of the corridor are made of stones, one by one single cell, and a cold air comes from time to time, making people feel creepy.

Azhi was fine, but Gu Dadao couldn't help but sneeze several times and cursed: "This is a ghost place!"

As the Prison Dian walked, he smiled flatteringly at Huang Laifu and said, "I heard about Lord Huang's name for a long time. I saw him today, it was a blessing. I really didn't expect that Lord Huang was so young!"

Huang Laifu nodded.

Prison Dian mustered up the courage and smiled at Huang Laifu: "I wonder if the adults still want to issue bonds. If so, can you reveal one or two?"

Huang Laifu issued a large-scale bond expropriation, which caused a sensation in the capital. The prison order paid all his money and bought 200 taels of silver. Now that he saw this famous legend standing in front of him, he naturally got the first to ask about it.

Huang Laifu smiled and said, "It's easy to say, Liu Yudian, if I still have to issue bonds in the future, I will not forget you!"

Liu Yudian was overjoyed and said repeatedly: "Thank you, thank you sir!"

Soon, everyone came outside an iron gate. Liu Yudian took out the key and opened the door. There was a cell inside, with a table and a few chairs. The skylight shone in, and several prisoners were guarding here. Half of the cell was a thick wooden fence. Inside the wooden fence, there was another stone room, and Shixing was imprisoned.

Huang Laifu smiled at Liu Yudian and said, "Liu Yudian, I'm sorry for you!"

Azhi also came forward at the right time, took out a ingot of silver, about five taels, and handed it to Liu Yudian. Liu Yudian took the silver greedily, and smiled and said, "It's easy to say, but please Mr. Huang quickly, after all, he has a small responsibility!"

He took out the key again, opened the door of the wooden fence, and shouted to the person inside: "Shixing, someone is here to visit you, come out quickly!"

Then he signaled to several jailers in the house. Several people retreated and closed the iron gate. Huang Laifu heard the urgent voice of a jailer outside: "How is it, I haven't heard any inside information?"

Huang Laifu saw Shi Xing curled up inside, as if he was dead, and did not move. Gu Dadao wanted to say hello, but Huang Laifu stopped him. After a while, Shi Xing inside seemed to be alive again. He turned his head and looked out for a while. Finally, he dragged the torture instrument and walked out of the wooden fence with difficulty.

Huang Laifu bowed to him deeply and said, "Huang Laifu, the general of Shanxi Town, Xiaguan, has met Lord Shixing!"

Shi Xing was still wearing torture instruments, and his turbid gaze was staring at Huang Laifu in a daze. After a while, he seemed to be alive and said in surprise: "Are you Huang Laifu?"

Although we have heard of the names of both sides for a long time, we have not visited each other yet. No wonder Shi Xing does not recognize Huang Laifu.

Huang Laifu bowed and said, "That's right!"

Shi Xing stared at Huang Laifu in a daze and sighed repeatedly: "Young, so young, so amazing!"

He then sat down and sighed miserably: "Since I was imprisoned, all officials have avoided it, let alone come to visit me. I didn't expect that the first person to visit was General Huang!"

Huang Laifu ordered Azhi to place the food, wine and food he was carrying, and then serve him to eat and drink. Shi Xing was not polite, and he swallowed it like a starving ghost reincarnated.

Huang Laifu looked at him with a smile and said, "Why should you be pessimistic? Although you are in prison now, you will always see the light of day again!"

Shi Xing smiled miserably and said, "Does General Huang think I still have the day to see the light of day again?"

Indeed, in the original history, three days later, Shi Xing was established as a "law of concealing military intelligence error". In terms of death, his wife and son were always exiled to serve as troops, and two years later he died of illness in prison. If he had not had his own rescue, he would have been killed.

Huang Laifu said lightly: "The adults are being implicated by villains. They must have concealed military affairs on purpose. They should not die. Laifu is willing to tell the emperor a little bit!"

Shi Xing's whole body trembled. He knew that Huang Laifu was very favored by the emperor at the moment. Moreover, in the past few months, he had heard the prison guards talk about Huang Laifu's issuance of bonds for the emperor, and it was very popular. The preparation of food and money went smoothly. I believe Huang Laifu had increased a lot in the mind of Emperor Wanli. He was willing to lobby and he was indeed very likely to be out of prison.

However, Huang Laifu took a lot of risks. After all, Emperor Wanli is now furious and accidentally knocks himself over.

A sense of hope rose from Shi Xing's heart, just like catching the last straw to save lives. He trembled and said, "General Huang, I think I don't have a deep friendship with you, why did you save me?"

Huang Laifu said seriously: "The kindness of a drop of water should be repaid with a spring of water! This is my principle of being a human being. Lord Shi once told me in the court that Laifu will never forget this kindness!"

Tears surged in Shi Xing's eyes, and he suddenly sighed to the sky: "I, Shi Xing, can also be said to be a disciple and an old official all over the world. I didn't expect that the last person who came to save me was a martial artist. I couldn't imagine, I couldn't imagine..."

...

Three days later, Shi Xing was released from prison. Emperor Wanli ordered him to investigate. Shi Xing, the former Minister of War, made major mistakes in military information, but he did not intend to hide, seized the position of Minister of War, demoted him to the people, and left the capital within a specified period of time, and would never be reused.

When Shi Xing was released from prison, the feeling of escaping from death made him feel very moved. His family took him home. His mansion had been confiscated. His family only rented a small house in Beijing. When Shi Xing was not tried, they were not allowed to leave Beijing.

When he saw his wife and son, his family sighed. The old wife also told him happily that in the morning, Lord Huang Laifu sent someone to send 1,000 taels of silver. When he left Beijing and returned to his hometown, he would not have to worry about spending money on life.

His son also said that it was spread in the capital. Huang Laifu faced the palace and pleaded for his father. Emperor Wanli was furious at that time. Huang Laifu couldn't stand up for a long time, and finally persuaded the emperor. It can be said that it was to save Shi Xing, and Huang Laifu took a big risk. Regarding this matter, all officials also had different opinions and complicated discussions.

The family was full of joy, only Shi Xing stood still, and finally bowed deeply to the sky.

A few days later, Shi Xing and his family left the capital.

...

The Jinyiwei reported the gift of Huang Laifu to Emperor Wanli. Emperor Wanli pondered for a long time, finally sighed and said, "This Huang Laifu is also a person who values ​​love and righteousness."
Chapter completed!