Prince Chongzhen

Chapter 91 Persuasion
Since the Ming Dynasty had the precedent of the Baozong Sect, it would not be threatened by the Tatars because of the capture of Hongguang.

But then again, what caused the panic at the time was actually the fact that another big city fell into the hands of the Qing army, not the emperor who had already abandoned the city and fled.

For both the attacking and defending sides, Hongguang's appearance was actually of little use except for proving that what Duoduo said was true.

As for why Zhu Cilang responded only after Hongguang appeared.
It's probably because this is the only card he has that can stabilize the morale of the troops.

"Greetings to His Royal Highness the Regent."

Mr. Qian had already regarded Yu Qian's achievements as his goal, so he was the first to pay his respects as soon as Zhu Cilang finished speaking.

Immediately, all the officials and nobles as well as the military officers and soldiers in Yingtian City cheered loudly, and the morale that had been thrown into the abyss seemed to be boosted again.

Honestly speaking, the effect of this set of operations is probably limited to maintaining the situation, and it does not have much effect on the panic caused by these news.

But what Zhu Cilang needed was just to maintain the situation temporarily. As long as the morale of the defenders did not collapse on the spot, he would always find a way to "falsify" the news one by one.

Thinking about it this way, it seems that Hongguang's capture was the biggest blow to the morale of the defenders.

Afterwards, Hongguang was protected by several Tartar soldiers and was shot within an arrow's range. However, at this time, there were constant cheers from the Yingtian City, leaving him no time to speak.

Later, Duoduo saw that this method did not seem to have much effect, so he ordered people to bring Hongguang back.

At this point, the farce came to an end.

To others, a "fake prince" who has only been on the throne for more than ten days does not seem to have such a high prestige. However, if you look closely, you can find a saying: it is all due to the support of his peers.

Of course, Yingtian was special. During Hongguang's short one-year reign, the military and civilians of Yingtian had already become extremely fed up with him. After he abandoned the city and fled south, the people of Yingtian wished to drink his blood and eat his flesh.

According to historical records, Hongguang entered the city in a small sedan chair without a curtain, with his head covered, his body in blue cloth, and his face covered with an oil fan. The people on both sides of the road spitted and cursed, and some even threw rubble.

It can be imagined that without the support of the Qing army, Hongguang would probably not have been able to return to Yingtian alive.

Let’s put aside the gossip.

After the uncle and nephew of the Xu family made a commotion outside the city of Hangzhou that day, the news that Yingtian was still holding out did not spread due to the timely handling of the matter by General Ma.

On the contrary, Ma Shiying knew the general situation at the first time.

Why?

Maybe the son doesn't consider too much when talking to his father.

Otherwise, who would risk bringing bad luck to inform him of this news that clearly proved Ma Shiying wrong?
In any case, Ma Shiying learned that Yingtian was still holding out, and during the subsequent verification process, he also learned that Huang Degong was dead and Hongguang was captured.

He then completely blocked the situation in Yingtian, but allowed other news to spread in the city.

In this way, all the arrangements he had made in advance came in handy.

just
"Lord, please let Xiao Wang go."

Just when Ma Shiying led a group of important officials in Hangzhou to read the Empress Dowager's edict, Prince Lu Zhu Changxun not only did not obey the order to govern the country, but was so frightened that he burst into tears and kowtowed to them continuously.

"My lord, what are you doing?"

Ma Shiying had never seen such a situation before. He thought that Prince Lu would refuse again and again according to the rules handed down by the elders. However, those rules required the successor to the throne to be humble and courteous, and the ministers to behave gently. How could it be like now, with one side crying and yelling while the other side pulling and forcing?

"Your Highness, please stand up and talk. It is really inappropriate to behave like this."

"Yes, Your Majesty, the position of regent is yours." "My Lord, my Lords, I am not worthy of this important task. I hope you can show mercy and choose someone wiser."

A group of old ministers tried to persuade him, but Zhu Changxun just fell to the ground and cried.

In desperation, Ma Shiying handed the imperial edict in his hand to someone else, then lay on the ground and tried to communicate with him face to face.

"Your Majesty, what are you doing? If you are really imitating the ancient sages, then it is a bit too much."

"Lord, in terms of bloodline, I am already a distant relative, and in terms of ability, I am even inferior to other princes. How come you are attracted to me alone~~~~?"

Seeing him like this, Ma Shiying also became angry.

After becoming regent, he can directly inherit the throne if nothing unexpected happens. This is a good thing that many people cannot even dream of. Why does it seem like I'm begging him to do it here?
If the Tartars were not approaching and there was no one in Hangzhou who could take the blame, he would never have chosen such a fool as regent.

But this happened in public after all, and even if Ma Shiying was dissatisfied, he could only continue to persuade in a gentle voice.

"Your Majesty, how can your bloodline be considered a distant branch? Moreover, with a powerful enemy at hand, the country cannot be without a ruler for a day. For the sake of the people, you should take up the position of regent."

As he spoke, Ma Shiying changed his prostration to a kowtow, and then all the court officials followed suit.

"Your Majesty, please consider the people and the people."

"Your Majesty, please consider the people and the people."

If it were someone else, they would probably have agreed to this situation, but Zhu Changxun had already decided in his heart that being regent was a dead end, so how could he be willing to end his own life just because of a few words?

But allowing this old man to force him like this is not a long-term solution, so he thought it would be better to break off with these people, which is also a last resort.

"Ma Shiying! If I become regent, the Tartars will surely attack with all their might. By then, it will be up to you to surrender or flee. How can I survive?"

Hearing this, Ma Shiying reacted immediately.

He considered the ideas of all parties, but never thought about it from Zhu Changxun's perspective.

Only a few days after His Majesty fled to Wuhu, the Tartars sent a large army to follow him. If he really took the throne as regent, the Tartars would naturally regard him as the primary target to be attacked.

Thinking in this way, Ma Shiying immediately understood Zhu Changxun's idea.

But who said that Hangzhou would be in danger once the Tartars arrived?

"Your Majesty, you worry too much."

After realizing this, Ma Shiying naturally became much calmer. Although Zhu Changxun still looked like "I'll die in front of you if you want me to be regent", he still stood up leisurely.

"The Ming Dynasty just hasn't recovered from the successive attacks yet. If we can gain a chance to catch our breath, we will be able to drive the Tartars back to Jiangbei."

"That's easy to say. We took so long to stop the Tartars before the New Year, but we still couldn't stop them. Besides, how could the Tartars give you a chance to catch your breath?"

Zhu Changxun sneered at Ma Shiying's words, but Ma Ge Lao was not angry at his rudeness. Instead, he explained in a more friendly manner.

"The incident in Jiangbei was entirely caused by Shi Kefa's inappropriate actions. Now that many reinforcements have arrived, as long as the arrangements are made properly, the Tartars will not be able to make any progress!"

"But how can we gain this breathing opportunity?"

"I want to negotiate peace with the Qing army!"

(End of this chapter)