When Zhu Cihong heard that Liu Chang and others were outside asking for a meeting, he subconsciously said: "How dare Liu Chang come..."
As soon as he finished speaking, he stopped hastily, looked at Wu Laoliu and said, "Has anyone out of the ordinary come to see Liu Chang in the past two days?"
Wu Laoliu thought for a while and said: "After the Japanese military exercise yesterday, Liu Chang, Zhang Xin and others had a secret conversation. As for the abnormal person, the general has not discovered it."
Upon hearing this, Zhu Cixiang asked, "Besides the rumors about my father, is there any other news in the capital?"
Wu Laoliu shook his head and said: "No... Oh, I heard some rumors from Jinyiwei last night, saying that Zhu Jiaheng from Guangxi wanted to Qingjun..."
"Zhu Jiaheng wants to take over your side?"
A flash of panic flashed in Zhu Cixiang's eyes, and then he forced himself to be calm and said: "Where did you get this news? Why didn't you report it?"
Wu Laoliu said hesitantly: "The Jinyiwei also heard what the merchants from the south said. Because there were so many people at the time, he couldn't go forward to ask. When he wanted to trace it later, the merchant had disappeared."
"The general was about to send people to investigate, but he suddenly heard about your majesty. Because the news was too shocking, and the manpower was limited, the general was negligent for a while. Please punish me!"
Zhu Cixiang nodded and said: "That's right...Wu Laoliu, go and arrest the person who spread the rumors immediately. The bigger the noise, the better!"
"Well, after catching the rumor maker, except for the leader, everyone else will be killed on the spot... No, they will be taken to the West Fourth Gate and executed..."
He said, paused, and then gritted his teeth and said, "Cut your tongue, Ling Chi!"
"In addition, in order to maintain the stability of the capital, let Shuntian Prefecture post a notice offering a reward of one tael of silver to anyone who reports rebellion or spreads rumors!"
Hearing this, Wu Laoliu said with some worry: "Your Highness, will this be counterproductive? After all, the scope of the spread of rumors is limited now. If we act in such a big way, we will worry..."
"It doesn't matter!"
Zhu Cixiang waved his right hand, interrupted Wu Laoliu, and said forcefully: "I just want them to discuss it!"
"People's attention is limited. As long as they focus on their father, then Zhu Hengjia's matter will not attract attention!"
"As for my father's affairs, let them discuss it. As the saying goes, real gold is not afraid of red furnace fire. The more they talk, the more widely my father's deeds will be spread. When my father comes back to correct his name, they will be more interested in it. My father admires me even more!"
Seeing that Zhu Cixiang was right, Wu Laoliu bowed and left in a hurry.
Zhu Cixiang thought for a while and then ordered the young eunuch to take Liu Chang and others to the side hall.
And he deliberately waited for a cup of tea before going to see Liu Chang and others.
Liu Chang and Dai Ming said that after meeting Zhu Cihong, they changed their previous arrogant attitude and tried their best to please him.
Seeing this, Zhu Cixi couldn't help but feel a little confused.
At this time, Deming said he presented two memorials with a respectful look.
Zhu Cihong casually picked up the memorial and took a look at it. When he saw that he was actually asked to order Shen Zhanran to be killed, he immediately threw it at Dai Mingshuo's face with an angry look. He scolded loudly.
Unexpectedly, Liu Chang interrupted him calmly and asked him to check the second memorial.
Zhu Cixiang didn't want to look at it anymore, but when he saw Liu Chang looking confident, he picked it up and looked at it because he was suspicious.
He only read two lines and felt chills all over his body.
It turned out that this memorial used the reason that Chongzhen had been missing for more than a month to ask Zhu Cihong to ascend the throne and proclaim himself emperor to avoid turmoil in the world.
Zhu Cixiang forced himself to read the memorial calmly, and specifically checked the number of Japanese soldiers. When he saw that there were more than two hundred people, and nearly half of them were lieutenant generals, he felt even more worried.
Because if there are not many people who submit the letter, he can also ask his cronies to remove them secretly and hide the matter.
But now there were more than two hundred people, and it was impossible for him to kill them all quietly.
Especially since many of them are also lieutenant generals in the army, if he takes action rashly, it is very likely to cause a fight.
And once this matter is exposed, regardless of whether he is involved in it or not, he will
Being labeled as having evil intentions.
Then he thought of Wu Laoliu's order to publicize Chongzhen's replacement, and he complained even more.
While Zhu Cixiang was secretly thinking about countermeasures, Liu Chang picked up the first memorial from the ground and placed it respectfully on the case.
When Zhu Cihong saw this, he knew that they were going to use this as a blackmail and asked him to order Shen Zhanran to be killed.
He originally wanted to use a delaying tactic, but seeing Liu Chang's sneer, he knew that if he didn't agree to the other party's request today, he would never be able to escape.
So he bargained with Liu Chang on the grounds that the rebels were powerful and the sudden killing of Shen Zhanran would cause the army to lose morale.
In the end, Zhu Cihong, in accordance with the previous agreement with Shen Zhanran, wrote in his own hand the decree to kill Shen Zhanran fifteen days later.
Liu Chang and Dai Ming said that after careful inspection, they found nothing unusual and left proudly.
Zhu Cixiang stayed alone in the side hall for a long time without thinking of a solution, so he had to send someone to inform Wu Laoliu to postpone the arrest of the rumor mongers.
But what Zhu Cixiang didn't expect was that Wu Laoliu came back and told him that the rumors about Chongzhen had disappeared out of thin air.
When Zhu Cihong heard this, he knew that Liu Chang and others were planning all of this, and he felt even more pressure in his heart.
At the same time, he was also a little confused, that is, the other party clearly took the initiative, so why did he suddenly stop?
Just when he was puzzled, Zhu Aao sent someone to deliver a message, saying that Zhou Hou had woken up.
After hearing the report, Zhu Cihong hurriedly cheered up and went to visit Empress Zhou.
Although he had deliberately hidden his state of mind, he was still discovered by Zhou Hou after he woke up.
Zhu Cixiang was already distressed, and after Zhou Hou asked repeatedly, he told the matter.
Unexpectedly, Zhou Hou actually told him with a smile that with Chongzhen's wisdom, he would be able to see through the female gangster's conspiracy, and asked him not to be restrained by Liu Chang's threats and just follow his plan.
Otherwise, Liu Chang and others will press harder and harder, and even if he ascends the throne, he will only be a puppet.
Zhu Cixiang also understood the consequences of this matter, but he also knew that Chongzhen was very suspicious and did not quite believe what Zhou Hou said.
However, he immediately thought that Hou Zhou had been with Chongzhen for more than ten years, and he knew Chongzhen's character best. Moreover, during the months when Chongzhen left Beijing, Hou Zhou also showed extremely high political talents, so he put down some of his original worries.
Then he suppressed the worries in his heart, pretending to be relaxed and chatting with Zhou Hou for a while, before returning to Duanben Palace with a sad look on his face.
Unexpectedly, when he returned to the palace, the young eunuch presented him with four or five memorials.
Zhu Cixiang opened it and saw that they were all memorials written by Liu Chang and his group of important officials and soldiers, and he was immediately furious.
However, he didn't want to stir up conflicts, so he stayed silent.
Unexpectedly, Liu Chang and his group asked to see him again the next day. After their request failed, a group of censors came to visit him. At the same time, rumors spread in Beijing that Zhu Hengjia wanted to oust the emperor.
Enraged, Zhu Cixi reprimanded several of the imperial censors on the pretext, and was preparing to further warn Liu Chang and others. However, Zhu Yuyao suddenly came to Duanben Palace and said that Zhou Hou asked him not to confront Liu Chang tit for tat, and suggested that he pick a fight. To cope with some insignificant official positions.
Although Zhu Cixiang was angry, he also knew that this was the best way at the moment, so he had no choice but to accept it. At the same time, he hoped in his heart that Zhu Yuanzhang would come back soon.
