Yongli Ming Dynasty

Chapter 89 Rebellion

In the backyard of the Governor's Mansion, Qu Shisi walked into the study and found that a group of ministers had gathered in the hall.
When the ministers saw Qu Shisi coming in, they all bowed and made way for him. Qu Shisi bowed to them and walked to the front of the crowd.
The ministers in the hall were arranged in order. There were five chairs on both sides of the desk, but no one was sitting on them at this time.
Lu Daqi and the other two stood in front. Qu Shisi was the last one to arrive, but it looked like Ding Kuichu had not arrived yet.
"Brother Jisheng, do you know what's going on?" Qu Shisi walked up to Chen Zizhuang and asked in a low voice.

Chen Zizhuang shook his head and was about to reply, but at this moment, footsteps suddenly sounded from behind the hall.
I saw His Royal Highness the Regent walking out from the back of the hall with Li Guoyong and Li Chengzhi, their faces were cold.

When everyone saw His Royal Highness the Regent appear, the discussions in the hall suddenly disappeared, and everyone's faces were solemn, standing in two rows in the hall.
His Royal Highness the Regent sat behind the desk, glanced at everyone in the hall, and then spoke in a cold voice

"Now that everyone is here, let's get started."

The ministers looked at His Highness who had a cold expression on his face, but their faces were somewhat surprised.
The position of the cabinet elders is in the front, and you can see it at a glance. Four of the five cabinet elders have come, and Ding Kuichu, the prime minister, has not come yet.
However, everyone looked at the gloomy face of His Royal Highness the Regent above, but did not dare to speak. Their eyes were all on Qu Shisi in front of them.

Qu Shisi was slightly stunned, but he quickly recovered, stepped out of the line, bowed, and spoke respectfully to His Royal Highness the Regent above him.

"Mr. Ding hasn't arrived yet. Should we ask someone to urge him? Maybe he's been held up by something."

"Let's not talk about this person first"

His Highness the Regent's expression became increasingly gloomy, and he spoke in a cold voice:
When the ministers below heard His Highness' words, their expressions suddenly changed. They looked at each other, as if they had noticed the expressions on the faces of others, and then quickly lowered their heads to prevent others from seeing their expressions.
Everyone's mind suddenly tensed up at this moment. Ding Kuichu was the Prime Minister. No matter which dynasty he was in, even the emperor would address him as "Lao Ge". Even today during the morning court session, His Royal Highness the Regent still addressed him as "Lao Ge".
But just half a day later, His Royal Highness the Regent actually referred to Ding Kuichu as that person. This was not a good sign.
When everyone thought of Ding Kuichu who had been missing for a long time, they felt even more nervous. Maybe something had happened to Ding Kuichu.

The ministers were tense, and the atmosphere in the palace became increasingly solemn. Everyone held their breath, fearing that any sound would attract the attention of His Highness.

His Highness' eyes were bloodshot from the moment he entered the palace, and his face was grim, like a beast that was ready to devour its prey. He was clearly extremely angry.
Everyone can see that His Highness is just trying to hold back, and no one wants to offend His Highness at this time.
Zhu Zhijian, Yan Yuncong and other direct subordinates of Ding Kuichu began to look panicked.

They are Ding Kuichu's direct descendants. If anything happens to Ding Kuichu, none of them can escape.
Qu Shisi obviously noticed that something was wrong and exchanged glances with Lu Daqi and others.

Qu Shisi's face turned serious, but before he could speak, the prince above him spoke in a cold voice.

"Li Guoyong, give them the letter and let the elders read it first."

His Royal Highness the Regent waved his hand, and Li Guoyong walked up to Qu Shisi holding a few letters and spoke softly.

"This is the letter found in the secret room of Wang Kun's mansion when we searched it today. Please take a look, elders."

Qu Shisi took the letter from Li Guoshou and looked at His Highness above.
I saw His Royal Highness the Regent still sitting in his seat without saying a word, his eyes looking at the empty space in front of him, I don’t know what he was thinking about, his face was grim.
Qu Shisi withdrew his gaze and then looked at the letter in his hand. There were four letters in Qu Shisi's hand, each in a blank envelope.
Li Guoyong retreated to one side of the hall. The Regent said nothing. All the ministers' eyes were on the envelope in Qu Shisi's hand.

"Read them one by one, and pass them on to the next one after you finish reading one."

The prince above suddenly said in a cold voice

"Yes"

Qu Shixi responded respectfully, placed the three envelopes on the table, and then opened the envelope with the word "horse" written on it.
Qu Shisi took out the letter and checked the contents in the dim candlelight. After reading only two or three lines, Qu Shisi's expression changed drastically and he suddenly stood up from his seat.

"This"

Qu Shisi's face was filled with shock, and he looked up at His Majesty the Regent.

However, His Royal Highness the Regent above had a gloomy expression and spoke in a cold voice:

"Let's talk after watching it"

Qu Shisi read the letter in two or three seconds, then handed the letter to Lu Daqi beside him, and then hurried to open the second letter.
When the ministers below saw Qu Shisi's expression, their hearts suddenly tightened. They looked at each other, and their faces became more solemn.
Everyone knew that something big must have happened, otherwise Qu Shisi, the deputy minister, would never lose his composure like this.

Everyone's eyes were fixed on the letter in Qu Shisi's hand. The ministers only saw the letter being passed from one to another. But after each one was passed, one of them stood up from the table with a look of shock, and looked at the Regent in shock. Then their faces turned solemn, and after handing the letter to the next person, they hurriedly took the next piece of letter from above. The eyes of the ministers in the hall were all following the letter from above. They all knew that today's events must have been recorded on the paper, but it was not their turn to read it at this time.
At the front of the hall, several elders had already stood up from their tables, looking solemnly at the letter paper in their hands. The atmosphere in the room was extremely heavy.

Some ministers below looked at each other in bewilderment, with a trace of cold sweat on their foreheads. A few thin pieces of letter paper were so overwhelming that everyone in the room could hardly breathe.
Chen Zizhuang took the letter from He Wuzuo. Under the bright yellow light, the words on the paper were clearly visible.
"Jinyiwei reported on the 23rd that the Gan Province spies have learned that the Qing army has broken through Ganzhou, the commander Wan Yuanji has died, and the whole city has been slaughtered. The subsequent movements of the Qing army are unknown."

"Another secret report from the Imperial Guards said that the Qing army had captured Fujing. Secret agents learned that the late emperor's brother, Prince Tang, had fled Fujing and crossed the sea. He will arrive in Guangzhou soon."

"The Tang King has a special status. These two matters are of great importance. I dare not take the initiative. Do I need to report these two matters to His Royal Highness Gui, the Regent? Please give your instructions, Eunuch Wang."

This was the content of the first letter with the word "马" written on it. Chen Zizhuang looked at the content on the paper and thought about the situation in the hall tonight. It was as if an electric shock came into his mind. An idea suddenly arose on his face. His face was first unbelievable, and then his face suddenly became solemn.
Chen Zizhuang handed the letter to Su Guansheng below, and then hurriedly took the second letter. On the envelope of the second letter, there was also a word "马" written on it.

"I have already put the two matters on hold as Eunuch Wang said, and all the relevant personnel have been cleared out. As Eunuch Wang said, now that Ganzhou has been conquered, Guangdong Province can no longer be defended."

"Zhaoqing is now a hopeless place. If Regent Gui is really as the eunuch said, and is violent and tyrannical, and wants to defend Zhaoqing to the death, then we should make plans early."

"The world belongs to all people, not to one man. The ruler chooses his ministers, and the ministers choose their ruler. Now the world is in turmoil. If the ruler is virtuous, follow him; if he is not, leave him. Eunuch Wang has profound insights, and these words are true."

"This traitor deserves death"

Chen Zizhuang's face was filled with anger. He shouted angrily, handed the letter to Su Guansheng below, and then hurriedly took the next piece of letter.

The handwriting on the third letter finally changed from "马" to "丁". However, Chen Zizhuang looked at the "丁" on the envelope with a more serious expression on his face.

"Gui Jianguo is frivolous, relying on his military might and boasting. He has no idea of ​​the strength of the enemy and ourselves, and is even more eager for glory and success. He does not look like a ruler."

"If we follow the eunuch Wang's probing, the Gui Regent actually wants to use our Guangdong Army to march north. If the Gui Regent suddenly knows that the Qing Army has broken through Jiangxi, he will definitely use the Guangdong Army to resist the Qing Army's iron cavalry."

"The troops of Guangdong Province are the only elite troops left in the Ming Dynasty. As long as the Guangdong Army survives, the Ming Dynasty still has a chance of survival. If the Guangdong Army does not survive, how can the Ming Dynasty continue to exist?"

"We were careless at that time, and we allowed this incompetent ruler to ascend the throne. After he ascended the throne, he did not favor our wise ministers, but trusted Qu Shisi, Lu Daqi and others who stood idly by. He even recruited Cantonese people like Chen Zizhuang and He Wuzuo, and promoted them left and right, dividing the power of our good ministers. He was dreaming of the Northern Expedition all day long."

"Even if the Qing army didn't come, with this incompetent ruler in power, our Ming Dynasty would have been destroyed one day. How can we allow this incompetent ruler to move the military's sacred weapon and overthrow the country?"

"Eunuch Wang should try his best to persuade Gui to change his mind. If he is still stubborn and unrepentant, we, as the elders of the country, should also make plans for the court as soon as possible. Guangdong Province is already in a desperate situation, and the Guangdong Army must not be thrown into such a dangerous place."

"The King of Tang is also the legitimate heir to the country and has the legal right to rule. You can order Commander Ma to send someone to Guangzhou as soon as possible to secretly bring the King of Tang to Guangxi Province."

"If the Regent of Gui still wants to resist the army, we can lead the army away. When this foolish ruler is overthrown, we can support the King of Tang and re-establish the country in Gui Province."

Chen Zizhuang put down the letter, his eyes were already cold, and his expression was even colder and colder. He handed the letter down and took the fourth and last letter.

The fourth letter had a single word "Chen" written on it. Chen Zizhuang's expression froze, and then he thought of something. A sharp light flashed in his eyes. He took out the letter and
"We have received great favors from the late emperor. The King of Tang is his younger brother. After the late emperor is gone, the King of Tang is the legitimate heir to the throne. If Lord Ding and Eunuch Wang want to support the King of Tang, I will take the lead in raising the flag to restore the legitimate heir to the throne to repay the late emperor's great favor."

"Guizhou Province is full of mountains and the Qing army can only rely on its sharp cavalry. If the Qing army enters Guangxi, they will lose the advantage of the cavalry. If the King of Tang is the regent, I am willing to lead the army to garrison in Guangxi Province and never let the Qing army cross the border."

After reading the last letter, Chen Zizhuang handed it to Su Guansheng below. His expression suddenly calmed down, but his eyes were terribly cold.

Several ministers had finished reading the letter, but the four of them stood by the table, silent for a long time, with solemn expressions on their faces.
Qu Shisi had no expression on his face, Lu Daqi looked shocked with a hint of disbelief, Chen Zizhuang looked cold, He Wuzuo looked shocked and angry, and Su Guansheng was shocked with a hint of realization. He secretly glanced at His Highness the Regent above him, and then quickly looked away.

The ministers in the room looked at each other in bewilderment at the expressions of the elders, and dared not speak any more. The hall fell into a strange silence.

(End of this chapter)