The sun was shining brightly and the warm breeze was blowing, but the entire capital city was shrouded in gloom and mist. Chang Yu closed his eyes and rested under the flower tree. However, everyone in the city, from the royal nobles to the street vendors and street vendors, were in panic. The Qing army was cutting wood, building carts, and sharpening knives outside the city. The news that Huo Huo was preparing to attack the city spread throughout the capital, and no one could sit still.
In the streets and alleys, there are various discussions in teahouses and restaurants. Some people think that the Qing army may not be able to defeat it. It is not that the Qing army has never been surrounded or beaten in the past. Some people think that today is different from the past. Both the national and military power of the Ming Dynasty is deteriorating, and the court is incompetent. There are no strong generals in the army and the capital is empty at this time. It is really hard to say.
What made them even more uneasy was that the God of War in their minds was seriously injured and his life and death were unknown. The soul of Dongchang was also the spiritual pillar of the Ming Dynasty and a god among ordinary people. With him, he could defeat the enemy and defend the capital. No worries, but now...
Is something going to change? The warm sun is clearly shining in the sky, but many people feel it is bone-chilling and creepy.
Most unity requires external force. When the news of the Qing army's entry came, the Octopus Chamber of Commerce took the lead in launching merchants to raise funds in the capital. Businessmen are shrewd. Octopus is an imperial merchant and has a strong background. They want to build relationships with them, and they are even more aware of the dangers of overthrow. Many people responded one after another, and even ordinary people lent a helping hand and expressed their sincere feelings. As the situation outside the city became more serious, many business tycoons made additional donations of food and supplies.
It can be said that in terms of initiative and enthusiasm for donating money, the business community is more serious than those noble and wealthy families, but Wu Mengming has also achieved fruitful results. This guy uses public opinion in his own name to force donations to the noble and wealthy families, and some are thin-skinned. His family's wealth was paid almost as soon as he took action. He was the kind of person who couldn't be humiliated when people blocked the door and yelled at him while talking about benevolence, justice and morality.
Of course, there are also those dead pigs who are not afraid of boiling water. They can just take out a few hundred taels of silver and either cry poor and show off their acting skills with Wu Mengming, or they can stay behind closed doors and let you toss them around.
But this will not stop the most money-grubbing commander of the Imperial Guard in history.
Does not!
Wu Mengming's motto in life is, as long as you give money, no matter how hard you look! He acted wildly and led hundreds of people to block the door one day. First, he scolded these nobles for being unfaithful to the emperor and his ancestors. Now he stood up for his injustice and made the nobles unable to retaliate. Then he scolded the streets like a shrew. Of course not. He alone is scolded by hundreds of people...
In the end, many people couldn't stand it anymore. They couldn't talk back because of their righteousness. Impeach him. The emperor rolled his eyes. Why don't he beat him? This guy is the commander of the Imperial Guard. Whoever gets into trouble will have to pay the price obediently.
Is Xungui rich?
Of course there are some, a few with a million taels, but there are many families with tens or hundreds of thousands. Although many people were previously fined tens of thousands by Chang Yu on the pretext of using Beijing soldiers for private purposes, in fact it was not even a drizzle. It hurts the skin, but there are indeed a few people who have been injured by him and even their families have been ruined.
Of course, there are some misers who won't shed tears without seeing the coffin, but today Emperor Chongzhen took them up to the city to see the coffin. After circling the city, many went down to the city and silently handed over the money.
There are tens of thousands of Tatars outside the city, and the imperial reinforcements are lingering in the south and do not dare to approach. Ma Ke and Tang Tongni Bodhisattva outside the city are not safe when they cross the river. The little eunuch was seriously injured and couldn't afford it... If we don't provide money and food to boost morale at this time, I'm afraid it will really be bad.
Who would have thought that Wu Mengming would be the happiest person smiling in this gloomy mist. Although he was hated by the nobles, he would gain both fame and fortune. The evil spirit in the eyes of ordinary people would be praised by everyone in the blink of an eye, not to mention Chongzhen. The emperor favored him. Of course, what he was most happy about was the commission from these donations.
Emperor Chongzhen was also half happy and half worried. Two of his confidants, Chang Yu and Wu Mengming, joined forces to create a situation. One created the situation and the other took advantage of the situation. He earned nearly a million in less than three days. This was done a few months ago. This was something that was unthinkable before. You must know that he used the dignity of an emperor to launch a fund-raising campaign the year before, and the income he received was shameful. .
In terms of means and shame, I am miles away from these two confidants. Emperor Chongzhen had to accept it, but he still had a dumbfounding feeling in his heart. They said that the war was about money, and they were stuffing into a bottomless pit. How come he was still making money? It’s over.
In the afternoon, Chang Yu took a nap in the room. Although he has a strong self-healing ability, the injury to his blood this time was not a trivial matter. The recovery time of half a day only slightly reduced the pain. If he wanted to heal, he would have to wait a little longer.
Fang San reported outside the door: "Master Wu, commander of the Jinyi Guards, wants to see you."
Chang Yu got up and went outside the hall. When he saw Wu Mengming admiring flowers in the courtyard, he chuckled and said, "The spring breeze is blowing on my face. Is Mr. Wu in spring or getting rich?"
Wu Mengming grinned and laughed: "Thanks to the governor, I have gained weight."
Chang Yu sat down on the recliner: "It's a nice day, why are you here here instead of asking for money? Not to mention visiting a doctor, you are empty-handed."
Wu Mengming smiled awkwardly: "When you encounter a problem, come to the factory supervisor for help."
"Who? The three princes?" Chang Yu narrowed his eyes, and Wu Mengming waved his hand quickly: "Those are nothing, they are the princes!"
Ha, Chang Yu couldn't help but laugh: "Mr. Wu, you have a big appetite. Even he wants to take a bite. That's not just a hard stubble, but a complete iron rooster. Be careful of knocking out your teeth."
"How can I know that he is a tough guy even though he is in a humble position? However, the father-in-law's house is rich and rich. If we don't take advantage of this situation to make a move for him now, we will have no chance in the future." Wu Mengming chuckled.
Chang Yu sighed: "One is greedy for money, and the other is desperate for money. Now you two are playing against each other."
"There is no match for me in chess. I am still at a disadvantage in my lowly position. I just went to the father-in-law's house and I can't get enough of it. He is the emperor's father-in-law. I can't go too far in my lowly position... but I really can't bear not to take a bite." Wu Mengming said The face is sad.
This flesh is so chewy, Chang Yu sighed, the patriarch of the country, Zhou Kui, is simply a very shameless weirdo. He is not only greedy for money and stingy, but in history, when Li Zicheng invaded Beijing, he was rewarded by Liu Zongmin, and his wife and daughter-in-law were killed. , he was unwilling to give even a cent, but when he was about to be killed, he confessed more than 500,000 yuan, and in the end, he was found to have more than 200,000 yuan...
Of course, this is not the darkest thing about him. When Emperor Chongzhen launched a fund-raising campaign, he asked him to donate 100,000 to set an example. This guy cried out, "I'm so poor, how can I have so much money..." Zhou The Queen couldn't stand it anymore, so she sold her jewelry and got 5,000 taels of silver and gave it to him privately for him to donate. However, he withheld 3,000 and only donated 2,000...
Wu Mengming wanted to take advantage of such a person, it was just a dream.
"Go and ask him for one hundred thousand taels!" Chang Yu squinted his eyes and smiled. Wu Mengming looked up to Lao Gao as if he had been shocked by electric shock: "Mr. Factory Supervisor, are you joking? I even thought of getting him five thousand taels for my humble job." To peel off the skin, these one hundred thousand taels... how is it possible, he won't even give up his life!"
"Don't ask for five thousand taels if you want it so much. He won't even give you fifty." Chang Yu curled his lips and said, "Just go over and say that our family wants it. One hundred thousand taels won't be a penny less."
Wu Mengming was confused: "What do you mean by the factory supervisor, if you mention your name when you are in a humble position, he will give it to you? No other tricks are needed?"
Chang Yu chuckled: "Yes, go ahead, he will give it to you."
Wu Mengming was doubtful.
