Prince Chongzhen

Chapter 4 Ascend to the throne?

"I should have brought more people with me!"

At this time, Chen Si was extremely annoyed.

He originally thought that there were only a dozen or so jailers in the prison, and that bringing these hundred or so people would definitely be able to take the prince away.

But as the noise outside grew louder, Chen Si realized that if he could think of "using the emperor to control the other lords", how could others not think of it?

If the visitor is from other civilian forces in the city, it would be fine. At most we would just have a fight. But if the visitor is an official.

Thinking of this, Chen Si, who had been standing in front of Zhu Cilang with his head held high, suddenly knelt on the ground and said anxiously: "Your Highness, the identity of the person who came is unknown. It is possible that he wants to kidnap Your Highness and surrender to the Tartars."

As he spoke, Chen Si looked up at Zhu Cilang's expression. Seeing that he seemed frightened, he continued, "As long as you give the order, I, Chen Si, and my brothers will not let you be captured by the Tartars even if we risk our lives!"

Chen Si could see clearly that in terms of combat power, this group of brothers of theirs was definitely the best in Yingtian City. If their numbers were equal, even the soldiers in the garrison were no match for them.

But why are they the most oppressed people in the city?

The root cause is that they are intimidated by the power of the government and dare not do their best.

Now that the emperor has run away, as long as they can put on the prince's tiger skin, these poor people who are used to being submissive will dare to take action no matter who comes!

At that time, he will send three or two trusted aides to cut off his contact with the outside world on the grounds of protecting the prince's safety. Then his words will become the prince's words.

Chen Si’s plan went well, but reality once again knocked him out.

The fallen phoenix was not frightened by his words. Instead, it took a few quick steps to a man, snatched the whistle stick from his hand, raised it halfway in the air and shouted:
"Brothers, follow me to meet the enemy!"

A group of people rushed out of the cell, and in a flash, Chen Si was the only one left in the cell, kneeling on the ground in a daze.

To others, the prince's orders seemed to be obeyed by all, but he understood that these brothers were more obedient because of his prior instructions.

"Why is it different from the plan?" Chen Si was confused.

Ever since he had those ideas, his plans have been going smoothly.

But ever since seeing the fallen phoenix, things have gone further and further away from what was originally expected.

However, he did not give up the idea. After all, he had known these brothers for many years. As long as he handled it properly, there was still hope of "using the emperor to command the princes".

"The person who came is Wang Fuping!"

Zhu Cilang's shout came from outside the prison. Chen Si was startled and quickly stood up and ran outside. When he ran to the door, he saw dozens of people dressed as officers standing in the yard, and the leader was kneeling and bowing to the prince.

"I, Wang Fuping, and the 246 servants from various departments pay my respects to His Royal Highness the Crown Prince!"

As Wang Fuping's voice fell, all the people dressed as servants in the courtyard knelt in front of Zhu Cilang.

"Meet His Highness the Crown Prince!"

After this greeting, those of Chen Si's men who had not been able to enter the jail were stunned and realized that the young man in front of them, covered in blood, was the prince they were going to welcome to take charge of the situation.

Seeing the real master, how could these poor people who usually had to greet Wang Fuping dare to stand there without hesitation? Before the officers' shouts fell, they knelt on the ground, shouting, "Greetings to His Royal Highness the Crown Prince!"

At this point, besides Zhu Cilang, the only person still standing in the yard was Chen Si, who had just escaped from the cell.

According to Chen Si's original intention, the right thing to do would be to defeat these officers and tie up the fallen phoenix, but he was not sure whether his brothers would join him in doing such a heinous act.

"None of the people above are good guys. Let's wait until my brothers see his true face before making any plans." Having made up his mind, Chen Si no longer stood there stiffly. He let out a sigh and knelt down on the ground quickly.

"No need to be polite." Zhu Cilang raised his hand slightly, and after everyone in the courtyard stood up, he continued, "You all saved me from danger, and the country needs your help. This is a great favor both publicly and privately. I would like to thank you all!"

As Zhu Cilang spoke, he bowed and saluted to everyone in the courtyard.

When he behaved like this, some people immediately knelt on the ground, while others kept saying they dared not to do it. The yard, which had been quiet, immediately became noisy again.

"Your Highness is kind and benevolent. It is a blessing for the country. However, the city is leaderless now. How can we stop the Tartar army? Please think of the people and ascend the throne as soon as possible to calm the people's hearts!"

While everyone was still talking, Wang Fuping knelt down in front of Zhu Cilang again.

In his mind, it was only natural for Hongguang to abandon his subjects and for the former crown prince to ascend the throne. By that time, with his merits, he would be rich and powerful, and bringing honor to his family would be a piece of cake.

"Your Highness, please consider the lives of the people and ascend the throne as soon as possible to reassure the people!"

Before everyone could react, Chen Si cursed inwardly and knelt down in front of Zhu Cilang, but his ideas were somewhat different from Wang Fuping's.

At this time, he had figured out the key point. Although Wang Fuping also had more than 200 people, how could he not know what these officers looked like?
After all, the only ones the prince can rely on now are these brothers!
As long as the prince becomes the emperor, with his prestige among his brothers and with various plans, he will be able to "use the emperor to command the princes" in the near future!

"No."

Zhu Cilang's voice sounded a little weak, but it made everyone present freeze in place.

"There is no two suns in the sky, and no country has two masters. Now that Your Majesty is on a tour, I have agreed to lead the fight against the Tartars, which is already an act of usurpation. If you still want to do this, aren't you making me disloyal?!"

The more Zhu Cilang spoke, the harsher his tone became, and his voice even broke at the end.

In theory, he was the legitimate crown prince of the Ming Dynasty. However, although there are various rumors circulating among the people, officially he has become a fake crown prince of Chongzhen.

Just as Chen Si needed the order from the Crown Prince to have the courage to lead his men against those in power, Wang Fuping needed to use his name to summon the officers, and he also needed recognition from all parties to become the real Crown Prince.

After all, Chen Si and Wang Fuping's vision is limited, and their understanding of the title of emperor is still superficial.

In their opinion, Zhu Cilang was the crown prince of the late Emperor Chongzhen, and now Hongguang had fled, so as long as Zhu Cilang ascended the throne, he would be a legitimate emperor.

But they don't know that only with the support of absolute power can one be called an emperor, and the number of people they have is far from being an absolute force.

Given Zhu Cilang's current situation, even if he ascended the throne with the support of more than a thousand people, he would not only arouse hostility from those in power, but might also lead to attacks from the defenders in the city.

Of course, he would not tell this reason to the people in front of him, otherwise he would be exposing his greatest reliance.

"There is no need to mention this matter any further. I have a few things that need your help."

(End of this chapter)