Flourishing of the Ming Dynasty Novel - Chapter 121

Chapter 121 First Arrival in Dijing (2)
Looking at the majestic capital city in front of him, Lu Zhen’s heart unconsciously flew farther away, thinking of many things that were closely related to Beijing City.

This was an ancient city with a thousand years of history and a thousand years of accumulation. It had been an important city in the north since ancient times. Zhu Prefecture, Yanjing, Nanjing, Zhongdu, and Dadu … and now Beijing, each name represented a period of glorious history. Countless romantic figures flourished here and died here, but Beijing was still silently guarding the North China Plain.

When Great Ming Taizu established his country and decided to set up his capital in Nanjing, this city seemed to have gradually moved out of the center of the world and was only a solid backer to protect the rivers and mountains of the Central Plains. Unexpectedly, after several decades, another storm surged. Swallow King Zhu Di, who was sealed here, suddenly raised the banner of the Fengtian Pacification Disaster. In the end, he swallowed up the whole country in a corner and became the new master of the Great Ming Empire.

Afterwards, they moved the capital and pulled Beijing back to its original lofty position, becoming the center of the world and the final destination for all nations to come to the dynasty.

Lu Zhen did not agree with Zhu Di’s decision to set up the capital. In fact, in his opinion, for the Central Plains Dynasty, especially for the Central Plains Dynasty, which had foreign invasion from the north and was always worried about the invasion of the grassland tribes, it would be too unsafe and unwise for Beijing to be the capital.

Although it still had several strong city passes to the north as a barrier, it had no place for itself. Once the grassland tribes broke through the passes in front of it, the vast and flat North China Plain would allow the enemy to enter without even the slightest hindrance. Often, once the enemy broke through to a border town like Xuanfu Datong or opened the Shanhai Pass, Beijing would be completely exposed to the enemy’s fast horse scimitar.

In the history of the Great Ming Dynasty, he had suffered many dangers when facing the city gates, and this was the fundamental reason. Hundreds of years later, when the Central Plains was ruled by a grassland tribe, Beijing was still exposed to the enemy’s powerful offensive after the Tianjin port was easily broken through by the foreign enemies, and there was practically no way to defend itself.

All of this was because Zhu Di had moved the capital to Beijing for his own convenience because of his own preferences. When Great Ming was strong, Beijing as the capital naturally had a hundred benefits, but once the strong and weak attacked and defended, everything would completely change.

The Great Ming Dynasty was called the strongest dynasty in China. It did not serve as a subject, pay tribute, or be close to others. The Son of Heaven guarded the country, and the Monarch died. But in fact, the latter two points were very questionable strategies. Everyone said that the Son of Thousand Gold would not sit in the hall while the dignified Son of Heaven would actually defend this most dangerous place. It was truly unwise.

If Great Ming did not set the capital in such a dangerous place of four battles, perhaps its history, its national elementary school would be very different. Far into the Han and Tang Dynasties, it might not just be a slogan, but a real history that existed.

Unfortunately, all of this could not be changed. Beijing had long been the capital for a hundred years, and it was already the center of the world.

With a sigh, Lu Zhen finally shook the reins and rode his horse towards the tall and thick city gate to meet his unknown fate.

There are nine gates in Beijing. Legend has it that Yao Guangxiao, the black-clothed prime minister of Emperor Yongle, built these gates with the image of a six-armed Nezha. Today, Lu Zhen and the others came from the west and entered Xizhimen in the northwest.

At this time, Beijing was naturally far from being comparable to the world’s premier metropolis, but its scale was the largest in this era. Millions of people live in this ancient city. Apart from the Forbidden City in the middle, it is also divided into two cities, inside and outside. This inner city was the residential area of the dignitaries, while the ordinary people, as well as the traveling merchants, could only find accommodation in the outer city.

Apart from that, Beijing had always been rich in the east and precious in the west, and poor in the south. As time went by, under the inertia of gathering people in groups, the east and west became more prosperous, while the north and south were mostly inhabited by poor people. Of course, this is only the conclusion of the comparison. As a world city, Beijing’s housing prices are far more ridiculous than any other city in the world, even though they are not as exaggerated as in future generations.

After entering the city, what Lu Zhen saw was a bustling scene. Countless people, horses, and livestock surged back and forth on the relatively spacious streets. Occasionally, he could see a group of soldiers holding spears and walking proudly past. That was the patrol team of the Five Cities Military Horses Division.

As the capital city beneath Emperor’s feet, the security work in Beijing was naturally extremely heavy. Not to mention major cases such as street fights and homicides, even ordinary thieves could cause chaos if they were not good enough. Therefore, the Imperial Court had specially set up a Five Cities Military Department Yamen outside the Shuntian Prefecture Yamen, Wanping County Yamen, and Daxing County Yamen to maintain law and order and to hunt down thieves and smugglers. Its function was roughly equivalent to the combination of local police stations and urban management departments in later generations.

Unlike an organization that was said to be the strongest in the world and could destroy the universe in just three thousand years, the current Five Cities Military Department was an extremely bitter existence. Their official positions were low, their powers were not great, and they were in Beijing, a city filled with high-ranking officials and nobles, so they could hardly manage anything. The only thing he could do was to try his best to maintain order, and at the same time take a few big blame.

However, because of this prickly profession, they had no choice but to patrol around in high spirits all day long. It could be said to be a double pressure of physical and mental energy.

Lu Zhen, who knew the duties of this government office, did not think that he would have any contact with them. He only took a glance and continued forward, intending to find a post or inn nearby to stay first.

Because Eunuch Qin did not reveal his specific plans, he did not know how long he would stay in Beijing City. This accommodation problem had become the most troublesome one. With the density of officials entering and leaving the capital, it was obviously unrealistic for a small county magistrate like him to get a place to stay in an official post. Therefore, it seemed that he had to find some large inns to settle down, or even rent a courtyard from the Tooth Shop to settle down first.

Just as he was thinking about this, a group of patrolling soldiers who passed by them suddenly stopped. Immediately after, a military attach é walked over and sized up Lu Zhen. After a few glances, he asked a question that surprised him, “Are you from the same place?”

Lu Zhen was stunned that the other party was too divine to reveal his origins with just a single word. Many soldiers even subconsciously placed their hands on their weapons, fearing that these fellows would suddenly harm them.

However, Lu Zhen still nodded, “Yes, this official is from the Great Harmony Guang Ling. I wonder what advice the general has.” He had purposely pointed out his identity as an official, fearing that the other party would bully him.

He didn’t want the other party to bow his hands and say, “It’s indeed County Magistrate Lu. I’m sorry. The younger one is from the Military Department of the Western City. I was ordered to wait for County Magistrate Lu here today and guide you to the residence that I’ve prepared for you.”

“Oh?” Lu Zhen was stunned again, and then he understood. Obviously, this should be Wang Zhen or his subordinates’ arrangement. They may have done this to win themselves over as a sign of grace, or to hold themselves in their hands, or both. However, regardless of the purpose, Lu Zhen was unable to reject the other party’s arrangement.

“Then I’ll have to trouble General to lead the way.” Lu Zhen also cupped his hands and signaled for the other party to lead the way.

As a result, Lu Zhen and his group, who had just entered the capital, accompanied by a group of soldiers and horses, headed forward. On the surface, it looked a little strange, as if they were being escorted by these people.

After walking for a while, they turned into a rather deserted alley and arrived in front of the fifth house. Only then did everyone finally stop.

This was a small courtyard that took up quite a bit of space. The neighbors on the left and right were quite a distance away from this courtyard, making it seem quiet and unnoticeable.

Not long after the military attache knocked on the door, several capable men opened it. Upon seeing the situation, the few of them smiled and bowed to Lu Zhen and the others, “County Magistrate Lu, you’ve come. We’ve been waiting here for a long time.”

Lu Zhen also bowed and asked about their identities. The few of them only said that they were servants and housekeepers here, and that they had served him during this period of time. Lu Zhen was naturally well aware of this. They were afraid that Wang Zhen and the others had arranged to monitor their subordinates.

From the looks of it, the other party was very concerned about him. Ever since they entered the capital’s borders, people had been in constant contact with him. Not only did they probe his intentions, they had also grasped his movements so clearly. In the end, they had even arranged for such a place to control him. It seemed that they were determined to succeed in this matter.

Thinking of this, Lu Zhen’s heart felt even heavier when he entered the courtyard. Right now, his situation was getting worse and worse. If it really ruined Wang Zhen’s good fortune, with this domineering personality, he and Chu Yunrong’s fate would not be too good.

But even so, his thoughts did not change!

Since the other party had arranged it so well, he would be able to enjoy it here. In any case, he could not come up with any ideas now. He only waited for the other party to send people to contact him and explain the specific strategy to him.

In this way, Lu Zhen, who had just entered the capital, lived a life that many Beipiao people dreamed of but could not get. Not only did he have a big house to live in, he did not have to rush about for his own livelihood every day. It was a relaxing day.

As for the soldiers who escorted him all the way to the capital, they only stayed here for two days before returning. After all, they belonged to the Great Harmony garrison, so it was naturally impossible for them to stay in the capital for too long. Although Lu Zhen really wanted to keep Li Xian by his side, he could only let him leave in the end. He only hoped that the two of them would meet and cooperate in the future.