Panic!
All the civil and military officials in the dynasty were panicked.
Even the five ministers headed by Ning Wen were panicking at this moment.
Isn't it just a donation of some money?
It’s better than having your house confiscated!
"Your Majesty... I am willing to donate ten thousand taels to the imperial court. What do you think?"
One of the ministers couldn't bear it anymore and was the first to take the initiative to donate money.
"I am willing to donate fifteen thousand taels of silver!"
"I am willing to donate twenty thousand taels of silver!"
"And I!"
"..."
The civil and military officials of the Manchu Dynasty rushed to donate money, fearing that if they were slow, their homes would also be confiscated.
The entire Jinluan Hall became a donation site.
And one more than the other.
When things have reached this point, anyone with a discerning eye can see clearly.
If some blood is not shed, it may not only be as simple as giving out money, but also the heads may be lost.
Seeing this scene, Li Yi just smiled and remained silent.
Sun Tingzong was even more impressed, and his eyes of approval never came back.
He relaxed and controlled the civil and military affairs of the dynasty with ease. Your Majesty has become a hero, and the revival of the country is just around the corner!
Just as the ministers were rushing to donate money, Li Yi suddenly shouted.
"Somebody come!"
Just heard a deafening "No!"
Outside the Jinluan Palace, a group of fierce Imperial Guards, led by Lu Hancheng, rushed in, holding long knives and full of murderous intent.
Things are almost done, and it’s time to wrap up!
"Hahaha!"
"I already know the loyalty of all my dear friends. For the sake of Dafeng Dynasty, I would rather endure hunger than donate money. Okay, very good!"
Li Yi suddenly changed his style, "Drag the two young ministers and the two censors down, show their heads to the public, and all the clan members will be sent to the border areas and will never be hired!"
Accompanied by bursts of screams, the four people were dragged out directly. Only the civil and military officials of the court were left in fear, but no one stopped them.
"Preach my will, and from now on, no one in the world will receive any more gifts!"
"Retreat!"
After Li Yi finished speaking, he left without any hesitation, leaving only a group of powerful officials still in shock.
"well!"
"The little emperor has grown up and already has the power of a tiger!" Ning Wen looked at Li Yi's leaving figure and sighed secretly.
Looking at the frightened expressions on the faces of the civil and military officials of the dynasty, he felt unspeakable worry in his heart.
But then, he thought: "The little emperor doesn't have this ability. Could it be that someone is secretly giving advice to the little emperor? Who could it be?"
…
After resigning from the court, Li Yi met with Sun Tingzong alone in the imperial study.
Today, Sun Tingzong no longer regards Li Yi as a little emperor, but a true iron-blooded emperor.
"Your Majesty, what you did today really impressed me, admired me, admired me!"
Hearing Sun Tingzong's praise, Li Yi was not surprised. Instead, he shook his head and said: "It's just a small plan that can't be brought to the table. What I care about now is the traitor Zhu Chongyuan outside Tongguan!"
"Without killing Zhu Chongyuan, I always feel that I cannot sleep well."
"Now I need a capable general to put down the rebellion. I wonder if Sun Aiqing has a suitable candidate?"
Sun Tingzong thought deeply: "It is not difficult to put down the rebellion, but what is difficult is that now our Dafeng Dynasty has no soldiers available."
Li Yi took a deep breath and said in surprise: "How is it possible? Where is my army from Da Feng Dynasty?"
"Your Majesty, the elites of the Nine Borders are stationed at the border to guard against the grassland tribes and cannot be easily moved. The elites of Liaodong are stationed in Liaodong to deter the four sides. Although they can mobilize troops, they are not many. It is a drop in the bucket and does not help. As for the troops in the capital, although there are many people and horses, they are of no use. The formations have been sparse for a long time and cannot be put to great use."
Li Yi nodded. It doesn't matter if the battle formation has been sparse for a long time. It's enough to practice. If it's not a big deal, just pull it to the battlefield and train the troops in battle.
"Sun Aiqing, I would like to know how many soldiers and horses there are in this capital?" Li Yi asked in a deep voice.
Sun Tingzong thought for a moment and sighed: "Reporting to Your Majesty, there are three major camps around the capital, the Five-step Horse Camp, Shuntian Mansion and so on."
"A rough estimate is no less than two hundred thousand!"
"Oh, so many!" Li Yi's eyes were filled with heat, as if he had seen the scene of 200,000 soldiers and horses arrayed.
The flags cover the sky, the spears are like a forest, the soldiers are wearing armor and riding horses, and they are looking at the whole army. This is such a high-spirited spirit.
Before Li Yi could be happy, Sun Tingzong suddenly poured cold water on him, "Your Majesty, these are the numbers on the books."
"Hey, what do you mean?"
Li Yi himself was stunned, "What does Sun Aiqing mean by this? Is there something fishy in this?"
"Sun Aiqing, just say it, I just want to know how many people there are in the entire capital."
“Want actual numbers!”
Li Yi frowned and felt worried.
"What about this?"
"Reporting to your Majesty, the total will not exceed 50,000, a little over 40,000."
What?
A little more than 40,000?
Two hundred thousand troops and horses, actually only a little over 40,000.
What a concept.
Fully four-fifths of the troops disappeared out of thin air.
Although I had already guessed a little bit, I didn't expect the gap to be so big.
Counting on such a small army to suppress the rebellion is simply wishful thinking.
Seeing Li Yi's furious expression, Sun Tingzong couldn't help but sigh.
Although he was a civil servant, he had the heart to serve the country and kill the enemy, but he sighed helplessly until the end.
He hasn't said yet, or to be precise, he doesn't dare to say that these more than 40,000 soldiers and horses are all old, weak, sick and disabled.
Not to mention going into battle to kill the enemy, there are not many who can even run onto the battlefield.
Li Yi took a deep breath, narrowed his deep eyes slightly, and his eyes stayed on Sun Tingzong for a long time.
Sun Tingzong was furious when he saw it.
Your Majesty, this... look like a wolf.
Just when Sun Tingzong wanted to say something to comfort Li Yi, Li Yi shook his head and smiled, "This is not surprising. My court is in such a smoky atmosphere. It is really strange that the army can recover."
"That's all, let's end this matter. It's my fault, I know it."
Sun Tingzong was shocked and hurriedly knelt down to plead guilty, "Your Majesty, I am incompetent."
"Okay, Sun Aiqing, I don't blame you for this. It's my fault. Get up."
There was no trace of panic on Li Yi's face, but he was calm, "Well, since the troops stationed around the capital are not of much use, I want you to secretly select a few capable people to go to Zhili and recruit troops in the Dongshan area."
"Remember, it is my private army. It is not under the command of anyone. It only listens to me."
Having said this, he reached out and grabbed Sun Tingzong's hand, which frightened Sun Tingzong's face.
"Sun Aiqing, this army cannot be made public and can only be conducted in secret. I will give you the training methods later."
"Do you understand?"
Sun Tingzong withdrew his hand and nodded: "Old minister, I understand, but how many people do you need to recruit for your private army?"
"One hundred thousand!"
Sun Tingzong's eyes widened, "Your Majesty, are you trying to play something big?"
Li Yi raised his thin lips and said, "At this stage, one hundred thousand, what I need is an army of one million!"
"hiss……"
"By the way, Your Majesty, the wages needed to recruit troops and horses..."
Hearing this, Li Yi smiled lightly and said, "Don't worry about the money. Someone will bring it to me in a moment."
"Just do it. If you need anything, just ask me. But one thing is, this army must be an iron army that can fight tough battles!!"
Sun Tingzong nodded, and suddenly thought of something, "Old minister, I have another suggestion. I wonder whether I should make it or not?"
"There are no outsiders here, just say so."
"Since it is a new army, we can no longer use military honors and dignitaries, otherwise it will be too powerful to lose its power, and it has clues to the powerful officials in the court. If you want to use it, use new generals."
Li Yi seemed to have opened up a new world and nodded: "Well said."
Then he frowned and asked: "New generals are good, but where to find them is another problem."
Sun Tingzong seemed to have already had an idea, "Your Majesty, I recommend a place."
"explain?"
"Guozijian Academy."
"Old Man An, the governor, is an old friend of mine. Although he has a hot temper, he can teach very good students. Your Majesty, why don't you go to the Imperial College when you have time? Maybe you will meet a good minister and a fierce general."
Li Yi nodded and secretly wrote down in his mind, "Guozijian, Old Man An."
At the same time, he suddenly remembered that wasn't Lu Hancheng a student of the Imperial Academy?
Just in time to go there tomorrow.
At this moment, a person came running outside the door, "Your Majesty... Your Majesty..."
It was Cao Qingyan who had returned from ransacking his home.
