Zhang Mingwei looked at Princess Kunxing and said, "Let's sit down and eat together!"
Wang Chengen stood beside Emperor Chongzhen with his hands down, but Princess Kunxing stood beside him and did not sit down at the table, which made him have to stop his chopsticks to say this.
In the end, the only people present at the table were Emperor Chongzhen, Zhang Mingwei and Prince Zhu Cixiang.
"Since I am your maid, how can I sit at the table with the master?" Princess Kunxing seemed to have quickly entered the role and replied immediately.
After hearing this, Zhang Mingwei said seriously: "Since you are my maid, then I have the final say. From now on, we will always eat together when we eat. I have the final say."
At this time, of course, it was impossible for him to summon Princess Kunxing immediately. After all, she is a maid, but she is also a princess, and there is always a difference between her and ordinary people.
Besides, no matter what, Princess Kunxing is the daughter of Emperor Chongzhen, even though Emperor Chongzhen himself took the initiative to ask his daughter to serve him. If he really treats Princess Kunxing as an ordinary maid, he will definitely feel uncomfortable.
But at this time, when Emperor Chongzhen saw Zhang Mingwei treating his daughter so politely, he immediately felt more favorable to her.
This is even more obvious with Prince Zhu Cixiang. The eyes staring at Zhang Mingwei were full of gratitude.
Princess Kunxing herself, after staring into Zhang Mingwei's eyes for a while, turned to look at his father. After all, she had never experienced anything in the world, and with her father around, she had to listen to what Emperor Chongzhen said in the end.
But needless to say, it can be seen that she is more grateful to Zhang Mingwei.
"Since your husband has said it, you must do what he said. Remember not to go against your will!" Emperor Chongzhen would not disagree whether it was because of Zhang Mingwei's words or for his own daughter.
After hearing this, Princess Kunxing was obviously a little more happy, gave Zhang Mingwei a slight blessing, and then sat down.
Next, of course, it’s time to eat.
No matter what, Zhang Mingwei couldn't let go completely. He was quite reserved when eating, but at least he was full.
This dinner was relatively silent.
Maybe it was because I was silent during the meal, or maybe it was because what I just saw and heard was very shocking to everyone, and they all need to take the opportunity to digest it.
………………
After eating and leaving the table, there were still a few of them in the hall, obviously wanting to talk by candlelight.
Emperor Chongzhen asked for advice with a solemn expression: "Now that the country's affairs are difficult, please give me some advice!"
Zhang Mingwei listened and said seriously: "Although I understand historical events, I am not familiar with the details. Please ask your Majesty to explain the current situation in detail so that I can speak according to the specific situation."
Instead of gushing immediately, he was cautious. This is what it means to do great things. This detail made Emperor Chongzhen look forward to the future even more. Therefore, he quickly asked Wang Cheng'en to introduce the current situation, while Zhu Cihong and Zhu Yuyao listened.
After listening, Zhang Mingwei didn't wait for Emperor Chongzhen to ask again, and took the initiative to say: "For now, the most important thing is the word "food", and then the word "money". With money and food, you can have soldiers and horses. We can also resettle the victims, stabilize the situation, and do other things!"
After hearing this, Emperor Chongzhen nodded immediately, but then said with a grimace: "What you said is very true, but where should the money and food come from? I have a headache every day because of this! I'm afraid you don't know, this money and food ……well……"
Having said this, he sighed heavily, showing a deep sense of powerlessness.
To be honest, during this period, not only the Ming Dynasty was short of food, but the Jianlu and Mongolian tribes were also short of food. However, there is no shortage of them.
After hearing this, Zhang Mingwei reminded Emperor Chongzhen: "Your Majesty, remember what was mentioned in the documentary, that thieves came to Beijing to recover stolen goods and pay them. Although it is debatable that a total of 70 million taels of silver were looted, it can be explained. One thing, the wealth in the capital is definitely a lot. And even if more people starve to death, can the dignitaries in the capital starve to death? They definitely have a lot of food reserves. "
Hearing this, Emperor Chongzhen's eyes lit up, but soon darkened again. He shook his head and said, "Sir, I don't know. I have borrowed money from nobles in the capital before, but... but what I got Not much!"
He was embarrassed to mention how much money he finally borrowed.
After hearing this, Zhang Mingwei couldn't help but remind him again: "Your Majesty, of course it won't be much if they are allowed to volunteer, but when the country is facing a national crisis, extraordinary means can be used..."
Before he finished speaking, Emperor Chongzhen understood what he meant and immediately shook his head and said: "No way, no way..."
"..." Zhang Mingwei was speechless after hearing this. What else could he do?
Seeing his expression, Emperor Chongzhen hurriedly explained: "A few years ago, Li Guorui, Marquis of Wuqing, had 400,000 silver left by his father, but he didn't give any of it to his concubine brother Li Guochen, so Li Guochen submitted a petition willing to give him half of it. The silver was donated to the imperial court. I was happy at the time, so I decided. As a result...it turned out that the Queen Mother Xiaoding had been promoted to the Nine Lotus Bodhisattva, and she appeared to punish my fifth son. Alas..."
At that time, this matter was a big deal. Li Guorui said that he had no money, and your emperor must have money, so he went to the streets to sell pots and pans to collect money. Then Zhou Kui, the head of the state, actually suggested that if the emperor needed money, he would also help raise it.
After doing such a shameless thing, the then Emperor Chongzhen was naturally furious and deprived Li Guorui of his title. A few days later, it was said that Li Guorui died of fright.
Subsequently, rumors began to spread in the capital that Li Guorui was the grandson of Empress Dowager Xiaoding's brother, and that Empress Dowager Xiaoding had been promoted to the Nine Lotus Bodhisattva. She was reproaching the emperor in heaven for despising his relatives. Each of the emperor's sons would die young, and retribution would come first. It came to the emperor's fifth son.
Soon, the fifth son of Emperor Chongzhen died. This made him very frightened. He hurriedly made Li Guorui's seven-year-old son Cunshan a marquis, returned all the gold and silver he paid, and then never mentioned asking Xungui again. Money matters.
At this time, when Emperor Chongzhen put it off for so long before talking about this matter, it was obvious that he still felt scared.
Zhu Cixiang and Zhu Yuluo also had a look of fear and awe on their faces. If their father hadn't stepped back from the brink, they might not have survived to this point.
Zhang Mingwei wrote the history of the late Ming Dynasty, and he has checked this information. Therefore, when he heard it, he burst into laughter, as if he had heard a very funny news, which immediately diluted the terrifying and heavy atmosphere in the hall.
"I wonder why you are laughing, sir?" Emperor Chongzhen was a little embarrassed. It was obvious that something was wrong with him, so he had to ask.
Zhang Mingwei stopped laughing, then said with a serious face: "Your Majesty, just keep a respectful distance from the talk of ghosts and gods. Let's put it into perspective, what happened to your Majesty is definitely the result of nobles colluding with the palace to murder your son."
His conclusion made Emperor Chongzhen open his mouth in surprise. This was really beyond his expectation. Even Zhu Cixiang and Zhu Yuluo beside them looked very shocked.
On the other hand, although Wang Chengen was also shocked, he acted slightly better than them. It may not be due to the person involved, but it may also be due to more life experiences.
Emperor Chongzhen came to his senses and said seriously: "Sir, this is no joke!"
Whether it is Empress Dowager Xiaoding being promoted to Jiulian Bodhisattva or collusion inside and outside the palace, it is a very important matter. It is impossible that Emperor Chongzhen would believe it just because Zhang Mingwei said it.
After hearing this, Zhang Mingwei smiled slightly and said: "Your Majesty, I still have the last bit of battery on my phone. You can watch another documentary and we will talk about this later."
After finishing speaking, he turned on his mobile phone, called up the cosmic documentary, projected it on a white cloth, and pulled it from time to time, mainly to show them what the earth is like, what the moon is like, and what the solar system roughly looks like.
Before I finished watching the movie, my phone completely ran out of battery.
Zhang Mingwei felt regretful in his heart, then turned to look at the stunned Emperor Chongzhen, and said to him: "There is no Chang'e or Wu Gang on the moon! In my time, you could go to the moon by taking a spaceship. Gods and ghosts say, I I dare not say 100% that it does not exist, but historically speaking, there is no so-called manifestation of gods at all. And some of the so-called magic techniques are actually deceptive tricks, and they are all deceptive things."
This statement was so novel, and it was a good thing that they had watched historical documentaries before. Otherwise, their worldview would have collapsed when they suddenly saw this.
After Zhang Mingwei finished speaking, no one expected that it was the prince who questioned his words first: "I have only seen one. I saw it with my own eyes. If it is not possessed by a god, it is impossible!"
As soon as he spoke, everyone turned to look at him.
After Zhang Mingwei heard this, he said "Oh", thinking he would be slapped in the face, right? If that were the case, that would be so embarrassing!
With this thought in his mind, he asked the prince: "What kind of immortal possession is it?"
