After the net was closed, a total of more than 500 scholars were arrested, including nearly 40 key members, including Zhu Jihuang and other self-proclaimed "Xinming officials", as well as the newly promoted ministers Song Zhengbi and Zhou Maoyuan.
Although in terms of scale, the number of arrests was not as large as that of the previous arrests, which was almost half of the last time. However, this time Zhu Jihuang and others who took the lead in petitioning were caught, and the fish that slipped through the net last time were caught.
At present, Zhang Pu has not returned from his trip north, and Zhang Cai, Qian Shisheng, Zhang Wei, and Zhang Kentang have been appointed to official positions.
Qian Qianyi, Hou Xun, and Hou Fangyu were imprisoned. Although they were later released, they could only reflect at home.
Wu Yingji, Yang Tingshu, Shen Shizhu and others were not released, plus this time Zhu Jihuang, Zheng Fujiao, Shen Shoumin, Chao Mingsheng, Jiang Gai, Wen Bing and others.
Donglin almost collapsed due to the arrest of a large number of key members, and the weaker Fushe suffered a devastating blow.
Due to the departure of Xu Fuyuan and Chen Zilong, as well as Zhou Maoyuan and Song Zhengbi becoming second ministers, several societies had ceased to exist in name only, and Zhejiang Tuan was not much better.
In this confrontation with the imperial court and the emperor, Jiangnan Shilin, especially the main force in Nandu City, suffered unprecedented heavy losses.
Although many scholars were still unwilling to give in, they planned to recruit everyone to regroup and then compete with the dog emperor Chongzhen.
However, as banners appeared in the city, the scholars were all dumbfounded and did not dare to act rashly.
Without him, just eight words are enough to shock all scholars.
Helping the Qing Dynasty to destroy the Ming Dynasty is everyone’s responsibility!
Overnight, the streets and alleys were everywhere.
I don’t know who wrote it or who posted it, but the literal meaning is known to everyone.
Not only do you want to help the Qing Dynasty, but you also want to destroy the Ming Dynasty. This is two crimes in one!
He openly colluded with the Donglu and attempted to destroy the Ming Dynasty. Who dares to admit this?
Even if there are a hundred heads, they will all be chopped off!
After the beheading is over, the executioner will kill you!
Even if the Dog Emperor has 10,000 bad things and is a combination of Qin II, Sui Yang Emperor, and Tang Xuanzong, no one would dare to say such treasonous words as "helping the Qing Dynasty and destroying the Ming Dynasty".
Saying this is tantamount to voluntarily becoming Donglu's slave and a dog slave under Donglu's knees. In that case, he is not even a human being, he is just a running dog raised by Donglu.
"Now that the emperor is in power and the court is in darkness, what if we, as benevolent men and women, help the Qing Dynasty and destroy the Ming Dynasty?"
As soon as a scholar said this on the street, someone immediately reported him to a nearby factory guard and arrested him.
"Let go! I am a man with lofty ideals!"
"Hmph! Don't make any excuses! It's clearly a trick sent by Donglu!"
"How dare you slander me!"
"You yourself said that you would help the Qing Dynasty and destroy the Ming Dynasty. There are witnesses here, so don't deny it!"
"Ah??? You're a bastard! You're reporting me for money!"
"Cao Min is for the sake of the Ming Dynasty! You, a traitor to the East, deserve to be killed!"
"I am a man with lofty ideals!"
"Ah! Shameless!"
After the suspect was escorted to the prison, the reporter, Shi Min, had his fingerprints printed on the confession and was immediately rewarded with five taels of silver.
Jin Yiwei is particularly concerned about this kind of thing, and he does not hesitate to reward money. As long as he gets a confession and someone is willing to testify, he can directly receive the reward.
The five taels of silver you can get for reporting a person is not much, but the advantage is that it is very easy. With a little effort, it is enough for a family of three for half a month. If you buy some food and wine, you can also pay for two or three meals.
Before, many people might have sneered. Now all walks of life in Nandu City have almost come to a standstill. People who have lost their jobs can be seen everywhere. If you can get five taels of silver for free, that's a lot.
There are not many Jinyiwei clan members officially established, just over a thousand people, but the number of non-staff members exceeds five thousand.
These people do not receive monthly salary, but only receive information fees. They only need to report once a month, and they are guaranteed to survive starvation.
Not long after he was promoted to the commander of the Jinyiwei, Li Ruolian had to do something outstanding if he wanted to be noticed by the emperor. However, the Jinyiwei was not a field unit like the King's Division.
If you want to achieve meritorious service, you must attack the emperor's enemies. This enemy cannot be too strong. The feudal lords cannot defeat Huang Taiji's cavalry. Fortunately, there is no Donglu army in the south of the Yangtze River, but there are many scholars who are ready to make a move.
This gave Li Ruolian a good opportunity. The harder he suppressed Shilin's petition, the more effective the Jinyiwei was in doing things. Otherwise, it would be difficult for the Jinyiwei to gain a foothold in Jiangnan, and Li Ruolian would still have to be reprimanded by the emperor.
You can use eight characters to separate the scholars from the common people, and the next step will be much easier.
The merchants were all taxed and now they were much more honest and no longer dared to collude with scholars and become enemies of the imperial court.
As soon as the banner "Help the Qing Dynasty and destroy the Ming Dynasty" came out, all the people became silent, for fear of being affected, and even sat down.
The charge of colluding with Donglu is no joke. If you have certification, you will be imprisoned. If there are both witnesses and physical evidence, no one can save you.
In the past, the common people followed the scholars and merchants to participate in the petition, based on the mentality and principle of taking money and making noise. If they really encountered the possibility of losing their heads, they would all retreat.
The emperor has to abdicate before the Donglu attack. Such an action is not much different from rebellion.
The only difference from the rogue bandits is that they did not use force and did not attack the imperial city on a large scale.
If we really take action, there is a lack of armor and artillery here, so it is impossible to successfully attack the city.
Now it seems that it really fits that sentence.
Scholars' rebellion is far away...
The petition army that Fushe and the remnants of Donglin had finally gathered together fell apart in an instant as the backbone of the force was missing, and it was no longer possible to reunite and fight against the imperial court.
Zhu Jihuang and other "Twelve Good Faithfuls" are now lying in bed, having difficulty getting up. The biggest drawback is kidney deficiency...
It's easy for a young man like Jiang Gai, who is just in his twenties, to say that it is just a serious illness and he will be able to recover after a while.
And Zhu Jihuang and Zheng Fujiao, who were over forty, had experienced three consecutive days of fighting, especially when they were given more weight by the Dog Emperor in the end, which was equivalent to walking through the door of hell.
If we do it again, we can go directly to see the Lord of Hell. Fortunately, Chongzhen has no medicine in his hand. Even if he is indirect, using similar medicines will directly kill these people.
However, the extremely wonderful feeling was really unforgettable for Zhu Jihuang. If his body could recover, he would try it again if he had the chance.
These words can only be buried in the bottom of my heart, because it is really hard to say it, especially since this medicine is probably only available to the Dog Emperor and cannot be bought in other pharmacies.
It is not that Zhu Jihuang and others have never taken similar medicines, but none of them can achieve such a miraculous effect. It can be called a fairy medicine. If it was really created by the Dog Prince, it is undoubtedly a fairy medicine.
"Chief Assistant, we have already done something like this. If word spreads about it, we may be ridiculed by the scholars!"
Jiang Gai was still very young and had a long way to go. Because of this, he was so worried that he lay in bed and prayed to seniors like Zhu Jihuang for advice.
"Alas~! The matter has come to this and is irreversible. I also regret it, but what can I do? For the sake of scholars, I intend to retire. If you are not yet 30 years old, you should cheer up!"
Zhu Jihuang didn't want to bring trouble to everyone present, and he didn't want to bring trouble to Shilin in the future. Since he couldn't go back to society, he might as well just go into seclusion and take care of himself.
"Chief Assistant, I do this intentionally!"
Zheng Fujiao felt that if he could save his life, this was the only way he could go.
"Shi Jing, please don't call me the first assistant. The situation is over. Let's call him the title of his name!"
After a bloody battle, Zhu Jihuang finally calmed down and admitted that he was no match for the faint king.
"I am willing to treat you with sincerity and sincerity in the future!"
Zheng Fujiao said it very implicitly, but the meaning was also very clear, because the two of them had already had in-depth understandings many times, and there were still no secrets between them.
"Shi Jing, if you can escape this disaster, I am willing to do the same, and we will be together through thick and thin in the future!"
Zhu Jihuang also thought this was good. At least he would not feel lonely after retiring.
"Two seniors, this junior also wishes to do the same!"
Shen Shoumin tried his best to sit up from the bed and greeted the two people in the distance.
The room is large enough to accommodate six double beds, just enough for the "Twelve Loyalties".
"This junior also wishes the same!"
"This junior also wishes the same!"
"This junior also wishes the same!"
After Shen Shoumin, the people present and his contemporaries expressed their opinions one after another, because there was really no way out.
If you go out again, you will definitely be ridiculed by the scholars and become the laughing stock of others after dinner. It is better to just retire.
Even if you can sacrifice your face, it doesn't mean you can endure the constant criticism and ridicule. It would be too shameful.
More importantly, no one wants to be Ling Chi, beheaded, or mined!
Even if he escapes the death penalty and is sent to a mine, he will still be exhausted to death.
It's not as simple as just talking. First, you have to be stripped of your title and have your household registration changed.
If there is no major meritorious service, it will be like this for generations to come, and everyone will have to mine.
This is what we call descendants and descendants, and we have infinite deprivation...
For the sake of future generations, I can’t go!
"Senior, will that Hunjun really spare us?"
This is also a new problem for everyone. Once the emperor wants everyone to die, no one will survive, let alone retire.
"For today's plan, I'm afraid there is only one way to go!"
"I dare to ask senior, where else can we go?"
"Pleas guilty!"
"ah???"
Everyone was shocked, and then fell silent. This was really hard for everyone to accept.
Previously, he had vowed to force the emperor to abdicate and revitalize the court, but now he has reduced himself to voluntarily confessing his crimes.
Such a gap is too big, especially bowing to that foolish king, it is really unacceptable!
"We are not timid people, we just have to take care of our families. What's more, we have tried hard many times before, but the weather didn't go as planned. That's all."
In order to appease everyone, Zhu Jihuang found a reasonable excuse as a prevarication. In short, it was just psychological comfort. Even if he didn't say it, it was already a done deal.
"Yi Fa and I are no longer as good as before, and we are no longer able to lead you. If someone can continue to do things, of course you can. Otherwise, you can find other ways. This is voluntary, everyone has his own ambitions, and we will never force it."
Zheng Fujiao naturally spoke to Zhu Jihuang. They were different from young people and had to think about their own future.
"Alas~!"
At this point, no matter how unwilling you are, you have no choice but to admit defeat, otherwise this body will really be played to death by that foolish king.
After everyone thought about it, they all agreed to come down and go out to make waves. What they would encounter might be the dragnet laid by the dog emperor.
If you don’t die this time and die next time, isn’t this the same as asking for death?
Although everyone was physically injured and their minds were a little confused from time to time, they were not yet like fools.
At this time, you must choose to save your life, not only to save your own life, but also to save the lives of your family.
Zhu Jihuang replaced the vassal who came to visit him and asked Jiang Gai, who was in better health, to write the confession.
Afterwards, everyone signed on it one by one and pressed their fingerprints. This was regarded as bowing their heads to Emperor Chongzhen and admitting their mistake.
It is not known whether the other party will be able to grant amnesty to these twelve people and their families, and one has to bet on their luck.
"Those thieves still know how to be afraid? Hum hum! This should have been the case! Li Aiqing, what do you think should be done?"
After using up so many elixirs to make him soft, Chongzhen felt that the cost was too high.
But I finally faced these thieves and won a round, and I felt very good.
"I dare not speak nonsense!"
"But it doesn't matter!"
"Your Majesty, I think that the confession of these thieves can be used to divide the scholarly community again. This is just my foolish opinion!"
The commander of the Jin Yiwei, Li Ruolian, wanted to directly execute the twelve thieves who were leading the trouble, but in order to completely defeat the Jiangnan Shilin, especially the army of thieves in Nandu City, he had to keep them for his own use.
"Yes! My dear, what you said makes sense, and I also think it must be so."
After Chongzhen finished speaking, he picked up a bound book of tips and tricks and quickly flipped through them, trying to find a way to make himself vent his anger and get what he wanted.
"That's it! Wonderful! Wonderful!"
Li Ruolian was confused by the emperor's praise.
Immediately, he heard the holy edict with his own ears, leaving Li Ruolian dumbfounded.
Is this considered severe punishment?
But it’s a bit original!
The book your Majesty was looking through was probably presented by the Crown Prince.
This is probably the prince's idea. If it were anyone else, His Majesty might not adopt it.
"Your Majesty, please feel at ease. I will take care of it now!"
Li Ruolian has already written down the relevant content with a pencil, so there will be no mistakes.
This punishment is easy to say and funny to say, but it has rarely been done throughout the ages.
Chongzhen decided to pardon these twelve key criminals to show that he was not a foolish king, but a wise king, and would not harm his family.
As the price of amnesty, first of all, everyone must be deprived of their honors and no longer enjoy preferential treatment. They can only be regarded as commoners, that is, common people, and the same is true for future generations.
Secondly, they must be supervised by Jin Yiwei, especially everyone must live in a house, but there is no restriction on entry and exit, and everyone can be arranged to live in a house.
Thirdly, key offenders must wear women's clothing and shoes year-round, day and night, regardless of the season, and are no longer allowed to show off in men's clothing. Those with beards must shave, and all key offenders must apply grease and toner.
Fourth, after the body recovers and can get out of bed and walk, everyone must take medicine on time and cannot shirk it for any reason.
Fifth, all key criminals must be loyal to Jinlan, write articles, and publish them in newspapers!
"Do you understand?"
After his men finished reading the edict in public, Li Ruolian looked at the thieves present with great interest.
"Sir, Cao Min and others already understand!"
Zhu Jihuang never expected that Chongzhen would humiliate him so much, but it was better than going to mine or even being Ling Chi, so he had no choice but to accept it.
"That's it, just sign and put your fingerprints on it!"
Li Ruolian couldn't help but smile to herself, from now on, you can dress up as a woman and become the "good loyal and good" of the Ming Dynasty!
"Senior, I'll wait..."
"That's it! That's all! From now on, when we all live together, we can study music, chess, calligraphy and painting!"
Zhu Jihuang was a little scared at the thought of continuing to take medicine, and at the same time there was a wave of emotion in his heart.
Looking at Zheng Fujiao, who had the same problem as him, another sentence came to mind.
Hold your hand and grow old together!
"Senior, you must wear women's clothing from now on!"
"Women's clothing is soft and soft, and is most suitable for the skin. Sima Yi wore women's clothing back then, and the talented Tang Yin also wore it. What's wrong with me wearing it?"
Zheng Fujiao felt that even that was done below the imperial city, so he was still afraid of wearing women's clothing?
If you wear it at home and don’t go out, who can see it?
