"Cough...cough...you misunderstood!"
Seeing Queen Zhou's confused eyes and Zhang Yan's slightly changed expression, Chongzhen quickly explained: "I really have something to talk to the Queen's Wife!"
"Fang Zhenghua, I don't want anyone to be within ten feet of this hall in the next time.
Anyone who dares to approach at will will be killed without mercy! "
Fang Zhenghua nodded and waved his right hand, and all the eunuchs and maids in the hall exited.
After seeing no one else in the hall, Chongzhen said: "Sister-in-law, how do you view the situation in the DPRK?"
"Your Majesty, the harem is not allowed to interfere in politics. This is the rule set by Taizu. I don't dare to speak nonsense!"
Zhang Yan suddenly knelt down and her face turned pale.
"Feng'er, help the emperor's sister-in-law get up!"
PS: The emperor should call the queen Zitong, but let’s not be literal.
Chongzhen was a little helpless: "Sister-in-law, I really want to hear your opinion. Just treat it as if we have a private chat behind closed doors. Common people can chat, why can't we?"
Seeing that Zhang Yan still didn't speak, Chongzhen had to change the topic.
"Sister-in-law, do you think I am weak and incompetent and did not seize the opportunity to get rid of Wei Zhongxian and others last night?"
Without waiting for Zhang Yan's reply, Chongzhen continued: "I know that Wei Zhongxian teamed up with the Hakka family to control the government, causing the death of my nephew and making it impossible for you to get pregnant.
You wish you could eat their flesh and drink their blood alive. "
"But do you know the current situation in the Ming Dynasty? First, the party struggle between North Korea and China is constantly escalating. The struggle between Wei Zhongxian's eunuch party and the Donglin party headed by Qian Qianyi has intensified.
Among them are the Qi Party from Shandong, the Chu Party from Huguang, and the Xuan Party and Kun Party from South Zhili. For their own interests, they are fighting against each other, regardless of the interests of the country;
Secondly, the people are increasingly taxed and the national treasury is empty;
Third, the army is underpaid and has low combat effectiveness, and troops in various places are becoming warlords..."
Every time Chongzhen said something, the expressions of Zhang Yan and Zhou Yufeng changed.
"On the night when I entered the palace more than twenty days ago, you asked me not to eat the food in the palace, so I spent the whole night hiding the palace's wheat cakes in my sleeves.
When I succeeded to the throne in the Huangji Palace, if the British princes and others had not carried the sedan in person, I might not have been able to ascend the throne. You hate them, and I hate them even more. "
"Wei Zhongxian is the commander-in-chief of Dongchang, and he is also the eunuch Bingbi, the eunuch in charge of etiquette. Moreover, the Jin Yiwei has also taken refuge with him. Half of the nine ministers in the six departments of the imperial court have taken refuge with him.
In such a situation, let alone killing Wei Zhongxian, I might not be able to leave the palace even with the decree. If pressed, I might rebel.
You should also have heard that after the emperor called me to the palace, Wei Zhongxian conspired with Tian Ergeng, the commander of the imperial guards, to launch a palace coup.
There are also rumors that he wants to imitate the civet cat and exchange for the crown prince, and establish a new crown prince, Zhu Yousong, to succeed him.
It is easy for me to kill Wei Zhongxian now, but when his gang members see that their boss is dead and they have done so many evil things, will they make a desperate move?
Kill us or a large number of officials? We can't bet on any of this. "
The expressions of the two women suddenly changed. It was not impossible for this kind of thing to happen.
Empress Zhou couldn't help but said: "Your Majesty, isn't there a British prince? He controls the Beijing camp and supports you. This..."
"Feng'er, you are too naive. The British are loyal to the imperial power. Who becomes the emperor is not important to them.
If it weren't for the imperial brother's edict, they could have supported Zhu Yousong, the crown prince of Prince Fu.
They have the capital camp in their hands and the title that has been passed down for eight generations. Whoever is the new king will follow the merits of the dragon.
Starting from the Wanli Year, you can discover that they are fundamentally neutral and self-interested, and do not participate in party struggles.
Otherwise, as long as the British public comes forward, will Wei Zhongxian's eunuch party and Donglin party fight so fiercely? "
Looking at the two women whose faces suddenly lost color, Chongzhen comforted them with a few words and continued his analysis.
"The longer I reign, the more stable the imperial power will be. Now I need time. Even if I take full power in the future, I will still not kill Wei Zhongxian."
Seeing that Zhang Yan wanted to speak, Chongzhen waved his hand and continued: "Now this is not a bad thing for me. Wei Zhongxian is in charge of the power of the vote, which also checks and balances the power of the Donglin Party.
If I kill Wei Zhongxian rashly, it will inevitably create a huge power vacuum. The Donglin Party will take advantage of this situation, and those Donglin Party members are not good people. "
Speaking of this, Chongzhen's eyes were filled with murderous intent.
In the early days, the Donglin Party really wanted to do something for the country, but now the Donglin Party says it's too much.
But 90% of them are just a group of literati who are rich on the outside and ruined on the inside.
They shout loud slogans but do nothing practical. They are very active in fighting for power.
Although he did not do any serious evil, he did not put forward any feasible program for saving the country and governing the country.
Empty talk will harm the country, but hard work will prosper the country. If the government is controlled by the Donglin Party, it will be a major blow to the entire social atmosphere.
Feeling Chongzhen's rage, Queen Zhou walked to Chongzhen and held Chongzhen's hand. Chongzhen gradually calmed down.
According to historical records, it took more than three months after Chongzhen succeeded to the throne to use the power of the Donglin Party to destroy Wei Zhongxian's eunuch party, which fully shows the power of the imperial power and the Donglin Party.
But now Chongzhen doesn't want to do this. He wants to kill everyone involved in the party struggle.
"Therefore, I must slowly transition the core of power while ensuring the imperial power and my own safety, so that Wei Zhongxian can play the role of "watchdog" and "thug".
There is a popular saying in the folk saying that if you are not afraid of doing something wrong, you are afraid of not doing something.
Although Wei Zhongxian's eunuchs are not good at anything, they are good at confiscating homes, exterminating clans and making money.
Let the fight between him and the Donglin Party be dog-eat-dog, and I will reap the benefits.
Moreover, I removed Tian Ergen's position as commander of the Jinyi Guard last night. With this kind of shock, some people in the Jinyi Guard are still loyal to the imperial power.
Although we cannot control all the Jin Yiwei, we can at least ensure the safety of the palace.
The situation in the court is like this, and I have no choice but to endure it. Therefore, Sister-in-Law, I hope you can understand my painstaking efforts. "
From the beginning to the end, he never mentioned the arrival of the White Guards in Beijing and the new commander of the Imperial Guards. If one less person knew about this kind of thing, the success rate would be higher.
At this point, Chongzhen stopped talking, giving Zhang Yan time to digest, and at the same time lamenting Zhu Youjian's stupidity.
Before his death, Zhu Youxiao told him that one should be kind to the palace, and the other two should be loyal and worthy. The first point was that Chongzhen did a good job. After he succeeded to the throne, he immediately named Zhang Yan Queen Yi'an and lived in Ciqing Palace.
The second point was not achieved. Although his brother Zhu Youxiao was obsessed with carpentry, he was not stupid. He supported Wei Zhongxian just to balance the party struggle.
But Zhu Youjian couldn't wait to get rid of Wei Zhongxian as soon as he came to the throne. Although it could inspire people, it broke the balance.
Let the Donglin Party take advantage of the loophole and control the government, causing harm to the country.
To be honest, it is wrong to blame Wei Zhongxian for the demise of the Ming Dynasty. Although he did many bad things,
But at least when he was there, the treasury was full and he never owed the Liaodong army pay.
Only with military pay can the combat effectiveness of the army be guaranteed, and some foreign enemies such as Hou Jin failed to break through the Guanning line of defense.
Moreover, he was born a commoner and knew the sufferings of the people. He promoted taxes on mining and handicrafts and reduced agricultural taxes.
Zhou Yufeng's eyes lit up when she heard this, and she looked at Chongzhen with eyes filled with admiration.
After a while, Zhang Yan took a deep breath and made up her mind.
"Your Majesty, I know this. You don't need to consider my feelings. Just do whatever you want. The destiny of the country is important!
As long as the prestige of the Ming Dynasty can be restored, the personal grudges between the ministers and concubines are nothing. "
Hearing Zhang Yan's response, Chongzhen breathed a sigh of relief.
When Zhu Youxiao was critically ill, Zhang Yan urged Zhu Youxiao to pass the throne to Zhu Youjian.
At that time, Zhu Youxiao said that two people in the harem were pregnant. If a boy was born in the future, he could pass the throne to Zhang Yan as his son.
But Zhang Yan disagreed and kept persuading Zhu Youxiao to pass the throne to Zhu Youjian.
Then Wei Zhongxian and others sent people to inform Zhang Yan and wanted to prevent Zhu Youjian from succeeding to the throne, but Zhang Yan clearly refused.
He also said: Obeying orders or disobeying orders is death, so if you don't obey, you can still see the spirits of your ancestors.
On the night Zhu Youjian succeeded to the throne, Zhang Yan sent someone in advance to tell Zhu Youjian not to eat food in the palace.
Even a few days after he succeeded to the throne, the food Zhu Youjian ate was cooked by Zhang Yan himself.
Furthermore, the eldest sister-in-law is like a mother, and Zhang Yan personally chose Queen Zhou for him.
If it weren't for Zhang Yan, Zhu Youjian might not be able to ascend the throne, or he might not survive if he ascends the throne.
In this harem, there are only two people who are really good to him, one is the queen Zhou Yufeng, and the other is the emperor's sister-in-law.
Therefore, he did not want Zhang Yan to be upset about the eunuch matter.
He came to talk to Zhang Yan today just to open up Zhang Yan's heart.
"I can't kill the emperor's sister-in-law, Wei Zhongxian, for the time being, but I can still kill the Hakka family. Firstly, I can collect some interest, and secondly, it can be considered as a deterrent to Wei Zhongxian."
"But don't worry, I will kill Wei Zhongxian when the situation in the court is stabilized!"
When Chongzhen said this, a trace of cruelty flashed in his eyes.
It would be unkind to kill others after using them, but Wei Zhongxian had committed crimes and killed him a hundred times, so it was extremely kind to allow him to live a few more days.
"Uncle Huang...wuwu..."
