Chongzhen snorted, interrupted Feng Yuanyang, who was about to ask for retirement, and asked: "Feng Qing, you are an old minister. You must be very familiar with the ministers of the Manchu Dynasty. Please tell me who can take on the important task?"
Of course Feng Yuanyang knew who could take on the important task...it was Prince Fujun! But he also knew about the prince's palace coup at Huangjimen, and of course he could understand Emperor Chongzhen's mood.
Seeing that Feng Yuanyang didn't speak, Chongzhen sighed again: "Why don't you all tell me your true feelings...are you still afraid that I will be unhappy after hearing this and order you to be arrested and sent to prison?"
I’m not afraid of this... Chongzhen no longer has the power to arrest and kill people!
Feng Yuanyang felt sad when he saw Chongzhen, the emperor's father, being wronged. He could only comfort him and said: "Your Majesty, the capital has suffered a drastic change. Most of the ministers have dispersed, leaving no one available. Fortunately, there are six officials in the capital, including many Someone who can rule the world and put an end to chaos. As long as His Majesty can reach the capital, there is hope for the Ming Dynasty to be revived."
"Yes, yes, my loyal ministers are all in Nanjing..." Chongzhen seemed to have heard some clever tips, stroking his hands and said, "Feng Qing is indeed my humerus! What a word to wake up the dreamer!"
ah? Feng Yuanyang was stunned again and again. What did he say wrong? Why did the emperor become excited all of a sudden?
Chongzhen was still rubbing his hands and said to himself: "Why didn't I think of this? Nanjing, the capital, also has six corps, with nobles, dozens of guard posts, and tens of thousands of loyal and brave soldiers in the capital camp. .....They are all loyal to me. As long as I arrive in Nanjing, I will be able to take on the responsibility of reviving the Ming Dynasty!
Feng Yuanyang, you are the governor of Tianjin and have the responsibility of supervising water and sea transportation. Please ask the prince when can you start driving south? I want to arrive in Liudu as soon as possible! "
...
After Feng Yuanyang received Chongzhen's order, when he arrived at the Fujun Grand Marshal's Mansion where Zhu Cihong was located (just next to Chongzhen's palace), Prince Zhu was summoning the guilty minister.
The so-called guilty ministers are of course guilty ministers, and such people were rare in the Chongzhen Dynasty. It is not easy to be a minister for the emperor Chongzhen. If you are not careful, you will be arrested and imprisoned for questioning.
It is all nonsense to say that Chongzhen abolished the factory guards and destroyed his minions. Chongzhen is not that stupid! Chongzhen just put those who should be arrested in Jinyiwei in important positions, and arrested many ministers who could do things and locked them up...
The guilty minister summoned by Zhu Cixiang now is a fairly capable minister named Hou Xun. He is the legendary Donglin gentleman, promoted by Zou Yuanbiao, one of the three Donglin monarchs. He was dismissed from office due to tit-for-tat confrontation with Wei Zhongxian in the "Red Pill" and "Yigong" cases. After Chongzhen ascended the throne, he was promoted to minister of the Ministry of War. During his tenure at the Ministry of War, he promoted Zuo Liangyu from a low-level officer to the high position of deputy general, which was regarded as a blessing.
In the ninth year of Chongzhen's reign, Hou Xun, who had served as Minister of the Ministry of Revenue for many years, was impeached by Song Zhipu, the Left Minister of the Ministry of Revenue, who was trusted by Emperor Chongzhen, and others for excessive salary and harming the country. He was later demoted and imprisoned for seven years. It was not until June of the fifteenth year of Chongzhen that because no one could command Zuo Liangyu, he was released and used the body of the Minister of War to oversee the military affairs of Baoding and other seven towns. Later, because he failed to rescue the siege, he went back to jail and was released until Zhu Cixi launched the Huangjimen rebellion... Now he has to be reused!
The image of Donglin bosses on the Internet in later generations is not very good, even worse than that of the eunuchs. In the eyes of many people, the Donglin Party members are responsible for the fall of the Ming Dynasty!
Zhu Cixiang also read a lot of information in this regard in his previous life, and believed that the Donglin Party members had unshirkable responsibility for the demise of the Ming Dynasty.
But now, Zhu Cihong still wants to promote, reuse, and win over a Donglin boss!
Because he is not Chongzhen who can't get rid of the dirt in his eyes, he will not use simple "black and white loyalty and traitor" to distinguish the courtiers of the Ming Dynasty. In his opinion, no matter loyal ministers, treacherous ministers, capable ministers or mediocre ministers, they are all valuable, it is just a question of how to use them well!
And Hou Xun, the Donglin boss who had been imprisoned by Emperor Chongzhen for almost ten years, was an even more useful minister.
Because Zhu Cixiang does not have the power to destroy the Donglin Party in one fell swoop. Considering that Li Zicheng would soon rush to the streets, and the Donglu would move south in a blink of an eye, he did not have time to slowly fight against the Donglin Party members with deep roots in Jiangnan - at least before repelling the first wave of Donglu's offensive. , he couldn't spare any time to eliminate the Donglin Party.
Since there is no spare power to eliminate the Donglin Party for the time being, it is necessary to win over a Donglin boss who can compete with Shi Kefa and Qian Qianyi. With the support of this Donglin boss, Zhu Cixiang's reforms also have the endorsement of the Donglin Party to a certain extent.
Moreover, the Donglin Party’s fortress can also be disintegrated from within!
In addition to building a mountain within the Donglin Party that can fight against Shi Kefa and Qian Qianyi. Zhu Cixiang has another reason to win over Hou Xun, that is Zuo Liangyu! Historically, the Nanming Society collapsed rapidly, and Zuo Liangyu's Battle of King Qin can be said to be an important reason.
And Hou Xun is a figure who can stabilize Zuo Liangyu! He was kind to Zuo Liangyu, and with him as a matchmaker, Zuo Liangyu might also become Zuo Guozhang...
"I know that Mr. Hou was unjustly accused! My father is the one who is sorry for me. He is dedicated to serving the country. Even if he has no merit, he still has toil. My father has imprisoned me for ten years, so that he cannot keep his filial piety for me. Isn't it right?" Mr. Zhu is extremely loyal! I will now apologize to Mr. Zhu on behalf of my father..."
"Master Chitose...Old minister, old minister...woo woo!"
In the lobby of the Fujun Generalissimo's Mansion, the drama of kindness and loyalty between the emperor and his ministers was being played out at this time. Zhu Cixiang shouted like a gentleman and apologized to Hou Xun on behalf of Emperor Chongzhen.
Hou Xun didn't know whether he was moved, felt aggrieved, or was pretending, but he broke down in tears.
Zhu Cixi said warmly: "Sir, please don't cry. I know all about your grievances. Now that I am Fu Jun, I will never allow a loyal minister like you to be imprisoned for no reason. I will soon issue an order to collect the factory guards to investigate the matter." Right. As long as the officials appointed by the imperial court are not suspected of treason, the factory guards have no right to arrest them! From now on, officials who violate the law should be investigated by the imperial censor!"
is this real?
Hou Xun felt unbelievable. Aren’t they all saying that the prince is cruel and cunning, killing people without batting an eyelid? Why are you so reasonable now that even the power of factory guards and investigation officials must be greatly restricted?
"Thousand-year-old master is benevolent and righteous," Hou Xun said thoughtfully, "it's just the factory guards' ancestral system to detect illegal officials..."
Zhu Cixiang shook his head and said sternly: "This is not the system of Taizu. In the 20th year of Hongwu, Emperor Gao of Taizu ordered the Jinyi Guard torture instruments to be burned, and the prisoners in custody were transferred to the Ministry of Punishment for trial. At the same time, he ordered that all internal and external prisons be transferred to the Three Justice Department for trial.
I was entrusted by Emperor Taizu Gao to save the world from danger, so I should take it as my own responsibility to restore Taizu's system! Sir, you are a gentleman of Donglin and a great Confucian from the Central Plains. Are you willing to serve as an official in the East Palace and teach and assist me at all times? "
"This..." Hou Xun's slender donkey face was uncertain, and his right hand habitually picked up the goatee under his chin.
Zhu Cixiang fed him the ecstasy soup for a long time, and now he finally got the real deal!
Restricting the power of factory guards and Taizu's dream theory are connected together - that is to say, the prince restricted the factory guards in exchange for the Donglin Party's recognition of his "dream theory".
And this "theory of entrusting dreams" is also the prince's official title to support the army and supervise the country. The prince was appointed by Emperor Gao of Taizu, so he could of course be superior to the current emperor.
In other words, Zhu Cixiang wanted to use restrictions on factory guards in exchange for the Donglin Party recognizing his power... At least that's how Hou Xun understood it.
As for Hou Xun personally, Zhu Cixiang also made an offer that was hard to refuse - to serve as an official!
Now that the prince is mobilizing the army, he has great power, and the emperor has been sidelined. So the prince’s teacher is the emperor’s teacher! And Hou Xun's official qualifications are much deeper than those of the three imperial masters Chen Rui, Lin Zengzhi, and Li Shichun.
He is the Minister of the Transfer Department and the Supervisor of the Seven Towns! If he becomes a lecturer again, won’t he still be able to do it?
Hou Xun said slowly: "The prince was ordered by Taizu Emperor Gao to save the Ming Dynasty. It was really a blessing for hundreds of millions of people in the world. I should have done my best to encourage you. But my father died in the fourteenth year of Chongzhen, and I died. As a son of man, one should observe filial piety for three years. Previously, he was imprisoned and could not fulfill his duty as a son of man. Now that he is released, he must make up for the three years..."
Zhu Cixiang listened to Hou Xun's words and nodded repeatedly, but he snorted coldly in his heart: No wonder later generations belittle your Donglin Party so much. It turns out that there are indeed many traitorous officials in Donglin! You, Hou Xun, are just one of you... and you're even quarreling with me! Humph, you want to be a bachelor of Dongge University, right? for you!
