"Sir, please be kind..."
A skinny child was begging on the roadside with his sister.
There have been many people like him coming to Datong Prefecture in recent days. More and more refugees have entered Datong Prefecture, and it is difficult to make a living. They can only sell their children, become servants in rich families, or beg on the roadside like this.
However, the street begging business has long been monopolized by the Beggars' Gang in the city. If these people want to beg, they either have to join the Beggars' Gang or be beaten by the Beggars' Gang and have all the money they beg taken away.
But if you join the Beggars' Gang, you have to hand over 70% to 80% of the money you have worked so hard to beg for, and the remaining money is not even enough to fill your stomach.
Even so, in order to survive, the number of Beggars in Datong Prefecture continued to increase rapidly.
A carriage drove slowly by. A man in brocade clothes in the carriage lifted the curtain and looked at the scene in front of him. He sighed: "There is drought everywhere, famine is everywhere, and the people are living in misery. The people are living in misery..."
"So many families have been displaced, so many people have starved to death, I can't bear to see this the most."
The man showed a compassionate expression, sighed heavily, and then said to the servant beside him: "When you come back, notify them to drive away all the beggars near my Fan family. Don't leave any of them. I can't bear to see these poor people..."
The servant beside him nodded quickly: "Understood!"
The carriage left the Fan family mansion and came to a restaurant, which was one of the most luxurious restaurants in Datong Prefecture, named Yunshuijian. The name came from "Wild birds and swimming fish send and receive messages, and my body is suspended between the water and the clouds." It is very poetic.
There was singing and dancing in the restaurant, many celebrities and elegant people were drinking and chatting, dancers were dancing on the high platform, maids were serving diligently, and the wind blew the smell of wine and meat outside, making the beggars gathered at the door spit and swallow mouthful after mouthful.
More and more beggars gathered. They knelt on the ground, holding the broken bowls in their hands above their heads, hoping that a kind-hearted big man would give them some money so that they could buy some white flour buns and have a good meal. This was their biggest wish at the moment.
However, they did not wait for the kind-hearted big man, but waited for the servants from Shuiyunjian. They took bamboo brooms and drove away the group of beggars with force, as if they were sweeping away a pile of garbage.
This action has been repeated many times almost every day in recent days, so these restaurant servants are particularly impatient. Don’t these damn beggars know to beg somewhere else? They have to gather here, which is really annoying!
Just after they cleared away the beggars, the Fan family's luxurious carriage drove over. The servant hurriedly came up to greet them with a smile and welcomed Fan Yongdou into the restaurant.
In the only private room on the fourth floor, many wealthy businessmen had already arrived and were toasting each other. When they saw Fan Yongdou coming, they stood up, raised their glasses and said with a smile, "Brother Fan, everyone is waiting for you. You've kept us waiting for so long. You must drink three glasses of wine as punishment!"
Fan Yongdou bowed and said, "Sorry for keeping you waiting for so long, everyone. I'm really sorry to have kept you waiting for so long. I'll have to drink three glasses of wine as punishment. This is a must..."
After three glasses of wine, Fan Yongdou's face flushed slightly, and he said excitedly, "This time, there is a severe drought throughout the country, and famine is everywhere. The price of grain has risen to a sky-high level. If Brother Tian had not anticipated this and notified us of the large-scale grain collection at the beginning of the year, filling up all eight of our granaries, expanding hundreds of granaries, and even collecting grain from government warehouses, we would not have been able to make this money at all!"
"Yes, there was an unexpected change in the weather, so I didn't dare to gamble at all. But Brother Tian did it without hesitation. Seeing his heroic spirit, we followed him in. Brother Tian is truly a hero!" praised the wealthy businessman on the side.
"Brother Tian, ​​I have to toast you!"
"Brother Tian, ​​I'll toast you too!"
Tian Shenglan, who was being toasted, had a red face and laughed loudly, saying, "The eight of us are in the same boat and work together. We should advance and retreat together and make fortunes together. But I have to make it clear in advance that it is not the time to sell grain yet! The famine is just beginning. It is not the time to really make money yet, and we must not sell the grain we have worked so hard to collect at a low price!"
"We only make two or three times, three or four times the profit, which is really not enough to fill the gaps between our teeth. It is not worth our hard-earned money. We should make at least ten or twenty times the profit!"
Listening to Tian Shenglan's words, the other seven wealthy businessmen nodded in agreement and clapped their hands. They believed that this famine was a great opportunity for them to make money. Whether the family's influence could be further expanded depended on this year!
At this time, Fan Yongdou said with a smile: "Brother Tian will help you make a fortune, and I will also tell you a good news!"
As soon as these words came out, everyone else looked over.
"Appreciate further details!"
Fan Yongdou glanced at the maids beside him and drove them all out. Then he whispered, "Everyone, I have already made contact with the Later Jin. They founded the Great Jin a few years ago. The leader Nurhaci called himself 'The Great Jin, the Wise Khan who nurtured all nations' in Hetuala City and established reign title of Tianming."
"On September 1st of the year before last, Huang Taiji ascended the throne, burned incense and prayed to heaven, declaring the following year to be the first year of Tiancong. We are now in the first year of Chongzhen, and they are already in the second year of Tiancong."
"That Huang Taiji, wise and brave, with an extraordinary bearing, is definitely not an ordinary person. I met him last year and was shocked..."
"Do you know what I saw?"
Tian Shenglan, who was standing by, asked quickly, "What did you see?"
"I saw a real dragon!" said Fan Yongdou.
"A real dragon?!"
"you mean……"
"This fate of the Ming Dynasty..."
Fan Yongdou said seriously: "The moment I saw Huang Taiji, I concluded that his future achievements would be limitless. Now that the Ming Dynasty is gradually declining, if we can support a new master and have the merit of following the dragon, then we can achieve true glory!"
When these words were spoken, the others were not afraid. Instead, their eyes were full of greed. They were moved, very moved.
"Brother Fan is absolutely right. We are still worried when selling grain and we can't make much money at all. But if we support a new master and have the merit of following the dragon... our future will be limitless!" Tian Shenglan nodded heavily and said.
So many years have passed since the Ming Dynasty, but there are still many people who miss the former dynasty.
Especially this group of merchants, they dream of returning to the Yuan Dynasty.
The Yuan Dynasty was an era of freedom.
Although the Yuan Dynasty divided people into four classes.
But in fact, the lowest class of Han people, the wealthy merchants and the landlord class among them are the happiest group of people. Throughout the dynasties, there has been almost no period when their lives were better than theirs.
Although on the surface their political status was low and it was the Mongols who ruled the Yuan Dynasty, the real power in society was in the hands of these people. To put it bluntly, the Mongolian nobles and other upper-class people only needed to be responsible for a life of debauchery, which gave a feeling of separation of sovereignty and governance.
The Yuan Dynasty adopted a laissez-faire policy. As long as you gave them enough money, they would not care about anything. This allowed many Han landlords and aristocratic families to completely let themselves go and do whatever they wanted.
This is what is called "Yuan lost the world because of his leniency."
Not only were the landlords and gentry laissez-faire, but many Yuan operas also satirized the Yuan Dynasty. Why were the Yuan Dynasty rulers so tolerant of them? The reason is simple: they spoke Mongolian, ate mutton, drank yogurt, and were even unwilling to come into contact with Han culture, so why would they care about your satire?
Later, when the Ming Dynasty was established, these landlords, gentry and wealthy families no longer had such a good life.
Therefore, there have always been many people who have the idea of ​​overthrowing the Ming Dynasty and restoring the Yuan Dynasty. Even after so many years, there are still many businessmen, gentry and wealthy families who have this idea.
At this moment, when Fan Yongdou said these outrageous words, the other people were not shocked or panicked. Instead, they were full of greed and expectation. This is the reason. Everyone had this idea!
They are very dissatisfied with their status and the restrictions they are subject to!
Why should merchants be restricted everywhere? Why!
Under the leadership of Fan Yongdou, they began to conspire to sponsor Huang Taiji with various supplies, food, weapons, armor, and cannons.
In return, Huang Taiji had already promised to give them the looted gold and silver.
For Huang Taiji, these gold and silver are of no use if they cannot be exchanged for various supplies.
Even natural hard currencies like gold and silver are no different from stones in the absence of economic trade. What Huang Taiji lacked was not money, but food, weapons, and cannons!
…
at the same time.
After Su Che left the capital, he felt as if the sea was wide enough for fish to leap and the sky was high enough for birds to fly.
These ten thousand elite soldiers advanced in an orderly manner.
Everyone held their own weapons and stayed in their own camps without any chaos.
Occasionally, the route changed, and the chariot team, cavalry team, artillery team, and infantry team each changed their formation, and soon returned to their previous formation.
Just from the point of view of the march, any general with a discerning eye could see at a glance that this is a strong army rarely seen in the world!
Since taking office, Su Che has been eating and sleeping with them, practicing repeatedly, forming various formations, and even using the "Military Formation Strategies" that have been lost in this era.
When an army has no shortage of equipment or food, the only thing they lack is faith, a faith that they are willing to die for.
Over such a long period of time, in addition to training, the most common thing I did was various ideological work.
The appearance of Su Che is like a ray of light in their lives. Since ancient times, it has been an old tradition that a gentleman will die for his confidant.
The emperor appreciated them so much that he ate and lived with them, and often explained some simple truths to them and told them why they were fighting. Naturally, these soldiers were willing to die for their country.
Originally, Su Che was in a good mood as the army rode at a high speed and marched continuously. But gradually, as the army left the capital, his mood no longer improved.
On both sides of the road, there were mostly refugees fleeing famine. These people were skinny and their clothes were tattered. It was obvious that they had not eaten for many days.
This group of refugees fleeing famine were like zombies, stimulated by their own desire to survive and moving forward mechanically. When they saw the army, they subconsciously moved away.
Since ancient times, bandits have been like combing the air, and soldiers have been like rakes.
A flea comb is a denser comb that can be used specifically to remove fleas.
The meaning of this sentence is self-evident.
Su Che looked at this group of numb refugees and said to his deputy beside him, "Send a message and tell them to follow us to Datong Prefecture. The granaries there will be opened to distribute food and relief porridge."
The deputy quickly bowed his head and replied, "Yes!"
Soon, the news spread, and this group of almost desperate refugees suddenly felt hope, and began to follow the group of soldiers from a distance.
Let me explain this on two sides.
In the capital, ever since Su Che, the Chongzhen Emperor, came to power, he no longer cared about state affairs and handed over all matters, big and small, to Wei Zhongxian. The Donglin Party's upright members nicknamed the newly appointed emperor "the Soldier Emperor", just like the Tianqi Emperor's "the Carpenter Emperor".
These important officials are all confused. Why is this emperor more unreliable than the other?
We finally killed Emperor Tianqi, why is the new emperor still like this?
Can the Ming Dynasty ever be restored to good condition?
In this case, they could only go on to kill Emperor Chongzhen and then support a foreign king to be the emperor.
Of course, these outrageous words cannot be spoken out loud and can only be hidden in the deepest and dirtiest corners of one's heart.
That damn eunuch party, instead of collecting taxes from the common people, they target the virtuous and loyal officials in the court to collect taxes, using all kinds of tricks, one after another, making it impossible for them to evade taxes. This is simply too much and we cannot tolerate it anymore.
They must take some measures. If they continue like this, the country will no longer be a country!
After enduring the Tianqi reign, Chongzhen came. Will this ever end?
This group of important court officials tacitly began to collude again, trying to create an accident again, so that the emperor who did not please them would "fall into the water" and die. Anyway, the emperors of the Ming Dynasty were easily soluble in water, and there were more than one or two who died, so one more would not matter.
However, just as they began to prepare for all this and were about to take action, a piece of news came late.
Emperor Chongzhen led 10,000 soldiers and horses out of the capital, and no one knew where he went...
After hearing the news, the court officials were stunned and could not believe the truth of the news - how could the emperor run away? !
They have prepared all the plans and set the stage, just waiting for the emperor to fall into the water, but where is the emperor?
After their repeated confirmation, they finally confirmed that it was not just some rumor, but the real situation. The emperor took 10,000 troops out of the capital and ran away!
If it were in the past, they would receive the news as soon as the emperor ran away and make corresponding preparations.
However, as Wei Zhongxian became more powerful and received the support of Emperor Chongzhen, he was at the peak of his power. He acted more recklessly and attracted more and more people to join him. His power was even greater than before.
So they only received this belated news after the emperor had already fled, and it was obviously too late to stop the emperor from leaving.
The emperor left the capital. Such a big thing happened that the important officials of the court were completely numb. They had no idea what the damn Emperor Chongzhen was going to do next.
Is this going hunting?
Or go fight the barbarians?
This is nonsense!
It's ridiculous!
Since ancient times, there have been so many emperors, but there has never been such a ridiculous emperor!
Now, the world is in desolation. At such a critical moment, the emperor has not done anything and has instead left the capital!
This group of important court officials were cursing loudly. They had set up the game with great difficulty and were just waiting for the protagonist to fall into trouble, but in the end the protagonist actually ran away?
However, when they understood the cause and effect of the incident, they changed their attitude again.
Although the emperor's departure was not a good thing, the fact that he took away an army of 10,000 soldiers was actually a good thing!
The army that the emperor took away was the absolute main force controlled by the eunuch Wei Zhongxian, and it was also the military force that these ministers feared the most.
They have always been wary of this power.
Now that the eunuch Wei Zhongxian has lost this power, they can take advantage of the situation to counterattack and execute the main culprit and purge the court!
This group of people never expected that such a good opportunity would arise. This is God’s help!
So.
Not only the Donglin Party, but also the Qin Party (people from Shaanxi), the Jin Party (people from Shanxi), the Xijiang Party (people from Jiangxi), the Chu Party (people from Huguang), all major parties among the court officials, united tacitly at this moment, with a precise goal, that is, to purge the emperor's side and kill the eunuch party!
It is not an exaggeration to say that this was a coup.
The capital city on this day.
Especially solemn and murderous.
On both sides of the street, all the residents closed their doors and windows and hid in their houses shivering. From time to time, miserable screams could be heard from outside.
The armies of the eunuch party and the court officials fought each other, and blood flowed like a river.
Yuan Chonghuan was wearing armor and fighting frantically. For a time, he was invincible and his armor was completely dyed red with blood.
As the battle situation became clearer, he raised his sword and roared, "Kill the leaders of the eunuch party, and spare the rest if they surrender!"
His voice was deafening, and the soldiers under his command shouted:
"Those who surrender will not be killed!!"
"Those who surrender will not be killed!!!"
Not long after, the eunuch party's army was quickly wiped out, and the army of the court's important officials quickly occupied various positions in the capital. The speed of the fall was unexpectedly fast. The eunuch party was not a monolithic entity, and there were also various disputes. There were many people with ulterior motives. When they saw that the situation was not good, they surrendered directly.
In addition, because the eunuch party was powerful, they acted recklessly and there were also many people who were dissatisfied. This was not resentment that had accumulated in just one or two days.
When the court officials united as never before, the explosive power was terrifying. Within just one day, they almost controlled the entire capital - except for the imperial palace.
Wei Zhongxian never dreamed that he would continue to enjoy great power after surviving the test of Emperor Chongzhen. However, after the emperor left, the counterattack of this group of court ministers was so quick!
Previously, he thought that this group of civil officials were spineless and not to be feared at all. As long as Emperor Chongzhen trusted him, he would still be second only to the emperor and above everyone else!
But in the blink of an eye, all parts of the capital fell!
This group of important officials and loyal people in the court actually had the courage to rebel!!!
Inside the palace, Wei Zhongxian organized the remaining troops to defend the palace and refused to leave.
Wei Zhongxian personally came to the city gate and patrolled back and forth. Seeing that the morale of the palace guards was low and the army was demoralized, he suddenly became anxious.
He shouted in a shrill voice: "These rebels will not be able to attack us in a short time. We just need to wait until His Majesty returns to the capital, and then these rebels will all surrender!"
"We just need to wait here for His Majesty to come back!"
"Your Majesty's 10,000 imperial guards are well disciplined and will easily capture these rebels!"
Wei Zhongxian personally encouraged the soldiers, but the effect was not obvious.
At this moment, among the dozen or so people under Wei Zhongxian's command who were there to report the news, only one managed to break through the siege. He was determined to deliver the message to Su Che at all costs. After all, in Wei Zhongxian's view, the emperor was his only means of turning the tables!
As long as Su Che brings these ten thousand strong troops back to the capital, coupled with the emperor's righteousness and status, everything will be back on track!
But such an idea is obviously too naive...
The important officials of the court had long been fed up with the eunuch party. Because of the eunuch party, they were unprecedentedly united and put aside their own party struggles. This matter was not something that Su Che could easily resolve by returning.
And Su Che had no intention of going back.
Outside the capital.
As Su Che's army advanced, more and more refugees followed him, reaching hundreds of thousands. At a glance, they were so densely packed that they seemed countless!
Not long after, a young eunuch rode at full speed and finally caught up with the main force. He delivered the letter to Su Che.
This eunuch Su Che looked very familiar and played an important role in Chongzhen's memory. He was none other than Wang Chengen.
It is said that when Emperor Chongzhen was young, he accidentally fell into a pond.
When the eunuchs around him saw this, they panicked and shouted loudly, but no one dared to jump into the water to save the prince.
Only Wang Chengen, when he saw the young prince fall into the water, jumped into the water and tried his best to protect the young master.
After the young prince was rescued, he developed a liking for this brave eunuch and became very close to him from then on.
When the little prince grew up, he successfully inherited the throne and became the emperor. He also became one of the most popular people around the emperor.
"Wang Chengen? Why are you here?" Su Che asked curiously without opening the letter.
"Your Majesty, the sky is falling...! Just after you left, a big event happened in the capital. Those court officials colluded with the army in the capital, saying that they wanted to purge the emperor's side. They have now taken control of various key points in the capital. Now only a few parts of the imperial palace have not been lost. Lord Wei is leading his troops to defend the palace. He hopes that you can go back to take charge of the overall situation!" Wang Chengen had clear ideas and quickly gave a general idea of ​​what happened.
Su Che also opened the letter casually. The letter was written by Wei Zhongxian himself. It described the current situation in detail and urged Su Che to come back to take charge of the situation. Otherwise, once the palace fell, the capital would be completely lost. If Su Che wanted to go back at that time, it would be difficult for him to go back.
This is a fact.
Once the capital is completely controlled by the rebels, even if Su Che returns, these ministers will probably not let him go!
Su Che looked at the letter, shook his head, and tore it into pieces.
Wang Chengen, who was standing by, asked cautiously, "What is the emperor's plan?"
Su Che glanced at him and said with a smile: "If they want the capital, then give it to them. I don't care about it anyway."
As soon as these words came out, Wang Chengen's eyes widened and he said in astonishment: "You...you don't want the capital anymore?"
Su Che nodded and said casually: "Since you followed me, don't go back. Even if you go back, you will die. Follow me, we will reach our destination soon."
"Destination?" Wang Chengen subconsciously looked up and glanced at the direction the army was advancing. There was a city not far away, which was the border of Datong Prefecture in Shanxi.
Su Che’s idea is very simple—all tactical converters!
If these ministers want the capital, then give it to them. The Ming Dynasty’s world cannot be represented by just a capital or a palace.
After all, Su Che was the legitimate emperor of the Ming Dynasty. This group of court officials controlled the entire capital in the name of clearing the emperor's side, so what? Could they establish another emperor? That would be really treasonous!
After all, as long as Su Che, the legitimate emperor, is not dead, they can only wait for Su Che to return to the capital before taking other measures.
And Su Che also started to steal chickens, starting from Shanxi!
Ten thousand troops and hundreds of thousands of refugees, this huge scene scared the prefect of Datong Prefecture in Shanxi Province so much that he thought bandits had entered the country and swept the whole world.
Not long after, when the prefect heard that it was Emperor Chongzhen who had arrived, he was stunned. The emperor was coming with refugees?
This made the prefect of Datong Prefecture unable to believe it, and also alarmed Datong's Prince of Dai Zhu Chuanhuoqi.
This name is very strange, but it is also the tradition of the Zhu family. They created various characters and made great contributions to the periodic table. Later generations really didn’t know what this word was called, so they gave him a four-character name Zhu Chuanhuoqi.
At the Yonghe Gate, the prefect of Datong Prefecture received a decree from the emperor, ordering him to quickly open the city gates and place everything in Datong Prefecture under military control. Looking at the aura of the Ming Dynasty on the decree, it did not seem to be a lie, so the prefect of Datong Prefecture quickly opened the city gates, and then was captured.
The prefect of Datong Prefecture was directly placed under house arrest, awaiting interrogation. In addition, all officers and soldiers in Datong Prefecture were under the control of Su Che. Once the military power was taken, the political power was seized. In this way, Datong Prefecture was basically under Su Che's control.
But Su Che was not satisfied. He directly issued an edict, asking all the governors and provincial governors of Shanxi to come and pay a visit.
The governor is of the second rank. If he is given the title of vice minister of the Ministry of War, he will be of the second rank and will be in charge of the military and civil affairs of a province, usually focusing on military affairs.
The governor was of the second rank, theoretically at the same level as the governor but slightly lower in rank, and was in charge of the civil affairs of a province.
Let these two come over to pay their respects directly. If they dare not come, it would be considered disobeying the order and committing treason. Then Su Che's next move would be justified.
If they really came, their fate would be the same as that of the Datong prefect, being placed under house arrest by Su Che and not being able to issue any orders.
This is an open conspiracy!
After completing these steps, Su Che gave the order:
"Open the warehouses, release the grain, and help the disaster victims."
Su Che said this lightly, as if it was a matter of course, but the Tongzhi and Tongpan of Datong Prefecture were terrified.
Tongzhi Yuan Shiheng said with a stiff upper lip:
"Your Majesty, there isn't much food left in the government warehouse in Datong Prefecture..."
"Opening the warehouses and releasing grain at this time will not be enough to satisfy so many refugees..."
"Your Majesty, please think twice."
Su Che glanced at him and asked with a smile, "Is there not a single grain of rice left in the market?"
The deputy governor Yuan Shiheng said with a stiff face: "Your Majesty, that's right! There is a severe drought everywhere, natural disasters have occurred in various places, and there is almost no food to buy on the market. We are also very troubled, but there is no way. We can't open the warehouse to release food, and we can't buy food..."
As soon as these words came out, Su Che smiled faintly: "Are you treating me like a child?"
"I dare not!" Yuan Shiheng, the co-governor, knelt down on the ground and kowtowed until his head was bleeding. He said in panic, "But this is the truth, Your Majesty. I dare not hide it from Your Majesty, and we have no other way!"
The judge Bao Ang, who was standing nearby, also knelt down on the ground, not daring to breathe.
"Since you are determined to die, then die." Su Che said calmly, "Drag him away and kill him."
As soon as these words were spoken, soldiers immediately dragged Yuan Shiheng away.
Yuan Shiheng's eyes widened. He couldn't believe that the emperor was going to kill him. As he was dragged away, his eyes were filled with fear. He couldn't help but shout loudly: "Your Majesty, you can't kill loyal ministers by mistake. You can't listen to the words of treacherous ministers and kill loyal ministers by mistake..."
"I am a loyal minister and a pillar of the country. If you kill innocent people like this, the country will be ruined and the world will be in chaos!"
"Your Majesty, please allow me to say one more word!"
Su Che waved his hand and Yuan Shiheng was brought back.
"What do you want to say? Just say it."
"Your Majesty, loyal ministers are not afraid of death, so they can accomplish great things in the world. Warriors do not care about their own lives, so they can become famous in the world. I, a monk, am free from life and death, and I am not afraid of danger and destruction, so I can establish the rules and regulations of the Buddha." Yuan Shiheng stood up and said righteously, "I am not afraid of death, but I don't want Your Majesty to be deceived by treacherous ministers and listen to rumors to kill loyal people indiscriminately. It is not my life that is in danger. I will only die, but the king's reputation will be affected. This is what I absolutely do not want to see."
Su Che paused, nodded and said, "You are right. Since you say so, I will spare your life..."
Yuan Shiheng was delighted when he heard this, but before he could be happy, Su Che continued, "Just wait for me to check the granaries in Datong Prefecture. If I find any grain merchants who deliberately hoarded grain and didn't sell it, and deliberately raised the price to profit from it..."
"When the time comes, you will definitely not be the only one to be killed. All three clans of your family will be executed. No one will be left alive."
"Of course, if I really have wrongly accused you, then I will give you a promotion."
"What do you think?" Su Che asked with a smile, "Isn't this fair?"
As soon as these words came out, Yuan Shiheng was sweating profusely, his body was shaking like a sieve, and he almost fell to the ground. He hesitated for a long time but couldn't say anything. After a long while, he gritted his teeth and said, "Your Majesty, I have no regrets. You can go and check..."
"Do you think so too?" Su Che suddenly asked.
However, this question was not directed at Yuan Shiheng, but at Bao Ang, the judge who was kneeling on the ground beside him.
As he listened to the emperor's questions, a layer of cold sweat broke out on his back and goose bumps appeared instantly.
The judge Bao Ang kowtowed and said, "That's not how I see it!"
"Oh?" Su Che perked up. He raised his eyebrows and asked with a smile, "Then tell me, what's going on?"
Yuan Shiheng, who was standing by, heard what the judge Bao Ang said and his eyes widened. He said angrily, "Bai, the judge, stop talking nonsense and deceiving His Majesty!!!"
The judge Bao Ang glanced at him coldly and said calmly, "It should be you, Master Yuan, who deceived His Majesty, rather than me."
As soon as these words came out, Yuan Shiheng felt as if he had fallen into an icy cave, his whole body was cold, his eyes were full of despair, and he stammered , "You...you...you framed your colleagues, you will not have a good death!"
The judge Bao Ang ignored Yuan Shiheng and turned a deaf ear to his words. He said seriously: "Your Majesty, I want to report Yuan Shiheng and the prefect Hou Chong. The two of them colluded with grain merchants and secretly resold the grain in the government warehouse, causing the government warehouse to be out of grain and unable to sell grain at a fair price!"
"In addition, those grain merchants have gone even further, only taking out a little grain every day and selling it in limited quantities, causing grain prices to rise day by day. However, they still do not sell the grain in their warehouses. They are planning to make a fortune from this disaster!"
"Yuan Shiheng and the prefect Hou Chong were both aware of this matter, but they accepted bribes and did nothing. Instead, they became the sun umbrella for these merchants, protecting them from the wind and rain, and even sent soldiers to guard the granaries!"
"I know the locations of all those granaries and have secretly recorded them in a book. If Your Majesty wants to conduct a thorough investigation, this book is enough for Your Majesty to check thoroughly!"
Having said this, Bao Ang took out a booklet from his arms and handed it over respectfully.
Yuan Shiheng, who was standing by, was already extremely desperate after hearing what Bao Ang said. He said viciously, "Your Majesty, Bao Ang has ulterior motives. He clearly knew about this matter, and he also accepted bribes and took benefits from those businessmen. He was also involved in this matter!"
Bao Ang said calmly: "If I hadn't accepted those benefits, would you and the prefect let me go? If I hadn't gone along with the corrupt, would I have been able to survive in Datong Prefecture? What's the point of you saying this now?"
Su Che flipped through the booklet presented by Bao Ang, which detailed the Shanxi merchants' outrageous operations, the bribes they received, the locations of the granaries, and the grain purchased from the government granaries. Everything was written out in great detail.
Each number represents countless lives, and the number is really shocking.
After quickly reading it, Su Che raised his head, looked at the two of them, and said calmly: "Tongzhi Yuan Shiheng will be dismissed from his post, his property will be confiscated, and he will be executed, and his entire clan will be exterminated."
As soon as these words were spoken, Yuan Shiheng, the Tongzhi who had been able to maintain his stubbornness just now, collapsed all over, lost all his strength, and could not utter a word.
Su Che glanced at Bao Ang next to him and said calmly, "Tongpan Bao Ang will temporarily serve as the acting prefect of Datong Prefecture."
When the appointment was announced, Bao Ang's face instantly turned red. He suppressed his ecstasy and immediately knelt on the ground, shouting: "Thank you, Your Majesty! I am willing to sacrifice my life for Your Majesty, no matter what it takes!"
"Send people to confiscate all the granaries listed in these books, and then open them to release the grain." Su Che continued, "Also, organize manpower to open thousands of relief porridge sheds to help the disaster victims who have come from afar."
"I understand!" Bao Ang had just surrendered himself, and now he had no choice but to follow Su Che to the end. There was no turning back, so he accepted the order without hesitation.
Su Che was not worried about resistance from those aristocratic families.
The reason is very simple. Since the establishment of the Ming Dynasty, most of the aristocratic families have been almost dead. Huang Chao and Zhu Wen killed a lot of people, and the aristocratic families have since disappeared.
As for those landlords who own hundreds of hectares of land, those businessmen with connections, and those gentry and wealthy families who have produced ten Jinshi (imperial examination candidates)?
How can a family of scholars like them, who have to take exams to be selected as a sixth or seventh rank official, be qualified to be considered a powerful family?
In the entire Ming Dynasty, there were only two families that were qualified to be called aristocratic families. One was the Kong family of Qufu, and the other was the Zhang family of Longhu Mountain. These two families had a long history and had stood for thousands of years. They were considered true aristocratic families.
As for those gentry and wealthy families who rely on education, they cannot be considered aristocratic families. After all, they do not have tens of thousands of family soldiers, nor do they have fortresses that can resist the government soldiers. How can this group of insects try to stop the rolling wheel of history?
It's really ridiculous!
Also sealed off was the Shuiyunjian Restaurant in Datong Prefecture. In that year of disaster, there was singing and dancing here, with delicious food and a happy life. It was said that every time Shuiyunjian threw out leftovers, a large group of beggars would scramble for them.
In order to prevent the beggars from fighting over the food and making a mess, Shui Yunjian simply fed the leftovers to pigs and dogs instead of sharing them with the beggars.
After searching the Shuiyunjian Restaurant, Su Che unexpectedly received a piece of news that the owners of the eight major merchants of Shanxi merchants were actually gathering here.
The names of the eight Shanxi merchants are: Fan Yongdou, Wang Dengku, Jin Liangyu, Wang Dayu, Liang Jiabin, Tian Shenglan, Zhai Tang, and Huang Yunfa.
When they heard that Emperor Chongzhen had come to Datong Prefecture in person for disaster relief, they hurriedly expressed their loyalty and donated all the grain in their warehouses, in addition to several million taels of silver, to set an example for this disaster relief.
When hearing these names, Su Che felt they sounded familiar, as if he had heard them somewhere before... Thinking carefully, aren't they the eight businessmen who continuously funded the Qing Dynasty?
Long before the Qing army entered the pass, they often traveled back and forth between the pass and outside the pass, engaging in various smuggling operations. Even though the imperial court conducted strict investigations, they still had their own smuggling routes.
They continuously provided various supplies, ranging from food, salt, and tea to weapons and cannons. In addition to various military supplies, they also provided various intelligence from within the country and informed the Qing army of all the situations of the Ming army.
As the Qing army entered the pass, Huang Taiji's son, Aisin-Gioro Fulin, also known as Emperor Shunzhi, naturally did not forget the Eight Great Families who had made great contributions to his rule over the Central Plains. He held a banquet in a side hall of the Forbidden City, summoned them personally, and bestowed clothing on them.
At the banquet, Shunzhi wanted to confer titles on them, but the eight families were flattered and tried their best to refuse.
Therefore, Shunzhi named them "imperial merchants" (affiliated with the Imperial Household Department).
Fan Yongdou was ordered to be in charge of trade affairs and was "granted property in Zhangjiakou as hereditary inheritance."
The other seven families also received rewards.
To put it nicely, they are political speculators; to put it bluntly, they are pure traitors.
After hearing these names, Su Che said to Acting Prefect Bao Ang with a blank expression: "I don't need to meet these eight families. I know what they mean. In that case, let's confiscate all their property and check if they have any other problems."
When these words came out, Bao Ang was a little dumbfounded, but he didn't ask any more questions and just nodded.
Fan family.
The servants of the Fan family are following the boss's instructions and driving away all the beggars near the Fan family. The boss is kind-hearted and can't stand these beggars!
A thin boy was kicked to the ground with force, and the servant said viciously: "Get out of here! Do you really think I'm kidding?"
The kick was so powerful that the boy was almost knocked unconscious. His skinny sister immediately threw herself on him, "Woo woo, don't hit my brother! Don't hit my brother!"
"I told you to get out, so just get out!" the servant of the Fan family said arrogantly, raising his foot to kick them hard again.
The girl protected her brother tightly, but before the kick could land, the servant was kicked to the ground by someone.
“Ouch!”
The servant of the Fan family fell to the ground, cried out in pain, and immediately yelled: "Damn it, do you know who I am? I am from the Fan family. Do you know what position the Fan family holds in Datong Prefecture? How dare you kick me, your master!"
When he raised his head cursing, he was shocked to find a group of soldiers in front of him. The leader was a young soldier in armor, and it was this soldier who had kicked him just now.
"General, these officers, what are you doing?" The Fan family servant's face changed instantly, and he asked in a flattering manner.
"Are you from the Fan family?" The soldier's name was Lu Sheng, and he was a small soldier among Su Che's 10,000 imperial guards.
Originally he was just an ordinary soldier, without any ideals or ambitions. He just lived a life of idleness and waited for death every day. When he had more money, he would go to restaurants and brothels with others.
However, all this changed with the appearance of Su Che.
During those few months, Su Che trained with them. In addition to better food and treatment, Su Che also told them many truths every day.
Different from the profound theories given by teachers, Su Che's theories are simple and easy to understand.
Sometimes Su Che also told them some stories.
Some possible stories about the future.
For example, the famous " Ten Days of Yangzhou" and "Three Massacres of Jiading".
For example, the massacre in Kunshan and the massacre in the Jiaxing Uprising.
There is also the story of the Jiangyin Uprising, in which the entire city was massacred after it was captured, and only fifty-three people in the entire city survived.
In a city, only fifty-three people were left after being killed.
What kind of feeling is this?
Just thinking about it gives me chills.
As a product of ancient warfare, city massacre has always existed.
In the case of a massacre caused by a foreign invasion, there is naturally no psychological burden. All it takes is one word: 'kill'!
Everyone, whether they were soldiers, civilians, or officials, were killed without any distinction, not a single one was left alive.
This is the cruelty of war, especially in ancient times.
There are many, many more examples like this, simply too numerous to count and too numerous to count.
The death toll is more than hundreds of thousands, millions? It is so shocking!
Every time Su Che told these stories, the soldiers whose consciences he awakened would be filled with righteous indignation and would wish to sacrifice their lives for the country and the people!
During the days living in the military camp, Su Che felt like he had returned to the days when he was a great sage. The phrase he said most often was:
"What crime have the people committed?"
What guilt have the common people committed?
It was during that period that Lu Sheng, an ordinary soldier, became extremely jealous of evil. His eyes widened with anger as he asked word by word, "Are you a servant of the Fan family?"
"I...I am." The servant of the Fan family said weakly.
"That's good!" After saying that, Lu Sheng drew his knife directly, and the next moment, the head of the Fan family servant rolled to the ground, and blood gushed out, all spilling on the ground.
This scene stunned the passers-by nearby, and the officers and soldiers behind Lu Sheng were also stunned. This general had such a strong murderous intention!
The next second, Lu Sheng raised the bloody knife and shouted, "Surround the Fan family! I don't want to see a bird fly out!"
When the brother and sister on the ground saw this scene, they trembled in fear and dared not speak.
However, Lu Sheng ignored them and went straight to kill the Fan family.
The thin boy was very envious when he saw this scene. He couldn't help but sighed: "A real man should be like this!"
After surrounding the entire Fan family.
Of course, Lu Sheng did not forget his mission here. He searched for evidence of the Fan family's crimes as soon as possible. He was quite capable and arrested all the members of the Fan family and interrogated them one by one.
Every time he interrogated someone, he would say, "The man in front is called Fan Chengyuan, right? He has almost confessed everything. You should also confess. If what you confess is different from what he confessed, you'd better watch out for your head!"
"Your Fan family has committed a serious crime! Do you need me to tell you? Come on, tell me now!"
This is a simple prisoner's dilemma. The members of the Fan family were imprisoned one by one, and they had no idea what the others had confessed.
After a while, all the details of the Fan family's collusion with the Later Jin were confessed.
Then Lu Sheng collected evidence of the Fan family's collusion. With the evidence gathered, it was clear that the Fan family had indeed colluded with foreign races!
When he saw the evidence and recalled the stories the emperor had told them, Lu Sheng wanted to kill all the members of the Fan family, leaving no one alive! He wanted to see a river of blood!
But he still endured it. Although he felt great pleasure in killing for a while, this group of people did not get the judgment they deserved!
Lu Sheng believed that His Majesty would definitely give this group of people the ending they deserved!
Afterwards, Lu Sheng detained all the members of the Fan family and handed the evidence to Su Che.
This was done beautifully.
After taking a look at the evidence, Su Che directly ordered the trial of all members of the Fan family, hundreds of people in total. After the trial, all of them were beheaded in public, and Lu Sheng was promoted to the rank of centurion.
Su Che has sent out many capable young people like Lu Sheng, and he needs to promote some fresh blood!
Then none of the other seven businessmen can escape, they will all die!
In addition, all other grain merchants in Datong Prefecture and those who deliberately refused to sell grain were also arrested, and several thousand people were implicated!
Because of the lack of executioners, after all, beheading requires the head to fall to the ground with one blow, cleanly and quickly, and not many people have this skill.
Su Che also couldn't let his army serve as executioners, because that wasn't what they were designed for.
After thinking for a while, Su Che, in order to show the emperor's grace, left these people with intact bodies and ordered them to be strangled to death!
Hang them all!
This saves a lot of trouble!
In front of the Wenchang Temple, the most lively place in Datong Prefecture, there were hundreds of thousands of spectators who came to watch the fun. They packed the place so tightly that no one could get in or out. Every time a verdict was announced, it caused cheers from the crowd. Some of these people were locals from Datong Prefecture, and more were people who had wandered here.
…
In the world of heroes.
In Zhu Yuanzhang's palace.
Zhu Youjian felt everything in the picture of the Heavenly Dao, and his expression became very interesting for a moment, because he had hanged himself, and now Su Che actually sentenced these people to death by hanging...
The scene before his eyes was extremely spectacular. It wasn't just one person being hanged, but hundreds and even thousands of people were being hanged!
"Why stop? Tell us how to judge these people!" Zhu Yuanzhang hurriedly urged, like a spectator eating melon seeds and watching the fun, "What's with that expression on your face? Tell us quickly!"
Zhu Youjian: "..."
He is really so wronged!!!