Gou was a member of the imperial family in the late Ming Dynasty

Chapter 655 Excited Li Xin

It was not easy to mobilize local garrisons to support the king. After more than 200 years of Ming Dynasty, the garrison troops were no longer useful. Except for Wang Rong's Luzhou Garrison, the rest of the garrisons were empty shells. The garrison officers had all become landlords, and the garrison soldiers were either tenants or servants of the officers. They did not even have daily training, let alone fighting. As for mobilizing a team to support the king, it was simply impossible.

Even if the commander ordered the mobilization of troops, the garrisons under him would not be able to gather people in a short time, and it was impossible for the garrison troops to dispatch troops within a few days. Even if they were forced to dispatch troops, their combat effectiveness was very touching. What's more, the garrisons did not want to fight at all. Even if there was urging them to do so, they could always find reasons to procrastinate and sabotage.

Just when Tian Shi ran to Jinan to ask the Command Headquarters to send troops to assist the king, news kept coming from the capital.

First, Zhu Shenzhui led his troops to besiege the capital and defeated the Beijing camp. The main force of the Beijing camp was completely wiped out in the south of the city. Then, You Shiwei, the general of Changping, was defeated halfway and fled back alone. The Changping reinforcements were destroyed, and the capital was even more terrified. Zhu Shenzhui's Jingnan Army's artillery was sharp and beat the defenders of the capital without raising their heads.

A few days later, an unexpected piece of bad news came. Even Huang Taiji failed to capture the capital, but was easily taken by Zhu Shencui. When the news came, Xu Xiancheng was shocked at first, and then overjoyed. He did not expect that Zhu Shencui could capture the capital so quickly. Now that the capital is in his hands, he didn't know what Emperor Chongzhen would do and what Zhu Shencui would do next.

Soon, new news came. Just when everyone thought that Emperor Chongzhen had died and Zhu Shenzhu would follow Zhu Di's example and replace him, they did not expect that Emperor Chongzhen was not dead, and Zhu Shenzhu did not ascend the throne.

After seizing the capital and controlling the emperor and the court, Zhu Shenzhu once again announced to the world that he was not rebelling but was trying to purge the emperor and pacify the country. He also announced to the world in the name of the emperor, the cabinet and the court that the Chongzhen Emperor was temporarily unable to handle government affairs due to health reasons, and the eldest son was young. At the request of the Chongzhen Emperor and the Empress Dowager's decree, Zhu Shenzhu, a descendant of the King of Jin and a member of the royal family, was restored to the title of King of Jiaocheng, and was given the salary of a prince, and was ordered to supervise the country.

This news stunned everyone. No one thought Zhu Shenzhui would take such a step. It was beyond everyone's expectation. However, Xu Xiancheng and Li Xin were surprised when they heard about it. They couldn't help but secretly applaud. In their opinion, Zhu Shenzhui's move was the most appropriate and the best move at the moment.

"I heard a few years ago that your brother-in-law is a rare talent among the royal family. He is not only good at both civil and military affairs, but also has a long-term vision. Xin wanted to meet him back then, but he never got his wish. Now he has made a stunning debut after ten years of silence! As a member of the royal family, he raised an army and not only took the capital in one fell swoop, but what is more valuable is that he has a clear mind. Not only is he not arrogant, but more importantly, he knows how to make choices. He can obviously replace the emperor and the throne is within his reach, but he can endure it and only serve as regent temporarily. I really admire him."

As he spoke, Li Xin showed an expression of admiration. He had always considered himself talented, but Zhu Shenzhui's decision was unexpected. He originally thought that Zhu Shenzhui would follow Zhu Di's example, but he did not expect that Zhu Shenzhui would not do so. Not only did he keep Emperor Chongzhen and the prince, he also continued to respect them as the Son of Heaven. He only took up the position of regent. Such a move was not something that ordinary people could do.

Li Xin and Xu Xiancheng were both capable officials, and they naturally knew the difference. It would be easy for Zhu Shenzhui to take over the capital, occupy the palace, and control Emperor Chongzhen, but he didn't do it. Was he afraid? Of course not, but Zhu Shenzhui considered it more comprehensively. Killing Chongzhen was easy, but once Chongzhen was gone, the world might be in chaos. You must know that the current Ming Dynasty is not the Ming Dynasty of the past, and Zhu Shenzhui is not the Zhu Di of the past, so he will continue to keep the emperor and only take power as regent.

Moreover, his rise to the position of regent was very clever. He first restored the title of Prince of Jiaocheng, thus solving the problem of titles within the royal family. Then he entrusted the position of regent in the name of the emperor, which was approved by the cabinet and echoed by the Imperial Household Department. There was no problem with the procedure at all.

More importantly, Zhu Shenzhu also brought up Li, the concubine of Emperor Taichang. Concubine Li Kang was the adopted mother of Emperor Xiantianqi. She was forced to leave the Qianqing Palace because of the palace relocation case, thus losing the opportunity to become the empress dowager. Now Zhu Shenzhu, based on the will of the two previous emperors, and the will of Emperor Chongzhen, issued an edict, and the cabinet agreed to confer the title of Empress Dowager Li, which immediately put this woman with a very low presence in the harem to the most honorable position in the world.

After Empress Dowager Li cleared her name, she issued an imperial decree ordering Zhu Shenzhui to be regent. In this way, the procedures involving the emperor, the empress dowager, the cabinet, and the Imperial Household Department were all complete. From a legal point of view, there was nothing wrong with Zhu Shenzhui being regent, and there was nothing to fault him at all. Even though everyone in the world knew that the actual manipulator of this matter was Zhu Shenzhui himself, they were powerless to do anything.

Facing this result, not only Li Xin was moved, but even Xu Xiancheng was also moved. He did not expect Zhu Shenzhui to take such a step, but this step was the best choice at the moment. As long as Emperor Chongzhen was alive, the Ming Dynasty would not be in chaos for the time being, and the government was controlled by Zhu Shenzhui, which could also achieve the goal of change.

Everyone knows that one can use the emperor to control the princes, but it is difficult to do it specifically. Now Zhu Shenzhu has taken the most appropriate approach. It seems that the waves caused by the incident in the capital will soon subside, and the Ming Dynasty will also undergo a good change.

"Once this decree is issued, there will be much less trouble in various places. Even if some people are unwilling to accept it, they can't do anything about it." Xu Xiancheng smiled and pointed at the imperial edict placed beside him. This decree was just sent from the capital. The content was nothing more than Zhu Shenzhui's regent and the order to cancel the previous order to support the king, letting the local governments do what they should do.

This decree was legal and not an imperial decree. In addition to the emperor's seal, it also had the approval of the cabinet. It was a true imperial decree. With the issuance of this decree, everything was settled. Even if someone said that this decree was a forged decree and did not approve it, it would be useless. Not only would it not get the support of the world, but the court could directly suppress it on the charge of treason and mobilize troops to capture it in Beijing.

This is the power of justice and orthodoxy. Don't underestimate it. For the Ming Dynasty, it has come to this point. It is useless for local officials to refuse to obey. Zhu Shenzhu has firmly established his position as regent. He is in power and cannot be shaken. "Do you think your brother-in-law will follow the example of Wei Wen?" Li Xin asked in a low voice. Instead of being nervous, he looked a little excited.

"How do I know this?" Xu Xiancheng rolled his eyes at him. He was not Zhu Shenzhui, so how could he know Zhu Shenzhui's thoughts? However, judging from the current situation, it was hard to say how long Zhu Shenzhui could be the regent. Moreover, as a member of the royal family, Zhu Shenzhui had an innate advantage. He was not Cao Cao, let alone Cao Pi. He was a direct descendant of Emperor Taizu and a descendant of King Jin. At present, he was not only the King of Jiaocheng, but also the regent who held all the power. Once time had passed and the world was stable, he would implement the "abdication" and it was very likely that he would ascend to the throne of the emperor.

"What? Don't you want to be General Wei Qing?" Li Xin asked with a smile.

"Forget about Wei Qing. How about you be Huo Qubing? Haven't you, Li Xin, always wanted to ride a horse across the country, wipe out the bandits and conquer the Wolf's Lair? Isn't such a great opportunity right in front of you? How about I write a letter and ask my brother-in-law to make you a General of the Cavalry?"

Li Xin burst into laughter: "That's great. Qi Wuyi wrote a poem in the past, in which he said: I don't want to be a marquis, I just hope the sea waves are calm. Now I am borrowing the words of this poem, I don't want to be a marquis, I just hope the world is peaceful!"

When these words were spoken, Xu Xiancheng was also very happy, and the two of them looked at each other and laughed.

Just as I was feeling happy, I heard footsteps outside, and in the blink of an eye, Sun Yuanhua arrived.

"Brother Chuyang is here. Come, come, take a seat." Li Xin invited him to take a seat with a smile.

Sun Yuanhua was not polite either. The three of them were good friends. Although Xu Xiancheng currently held the highest official position, Sun Yuanhua was almost held accountable because of the previous Shandong mutiny. Thanks to Xu Xiancheng's efforts to protect Emperor Chongzhen, he was not imprisoned. However, his previous position as governor was lost. Now Sun Yuanhua became Xu Xiancheng's counselor, demoted but retained.

"There's news from Jinan." Sitting down, Sun Yuanhua took the tea in front of Li Xin and drank it. After taking a big sip, he wiped his mouth and spoke.

"How?" Xu Xiancheng asked intently.

"What else can we do?" Sun Yuanhua said with a smile, "Once the imperial court issued the order, all the worries will vanish. The provincial government was hesitant, not to mention the military command. After a few days, the garrison troops have not been fully mobilized, let alone the king's support. Now that the capital has been settled and there is an imperial order, they are eager to go with the flow. Who wouldn't go with the flow? Now that they have a way out, who would be willing to take risks again?"

"Hahaha, these cunning guys really are heroes who know how to adapt to the changing times!" Li Xin shook his head and laughed. He had anticipated this situation, but he didn't expect these guys to be so decisive.

"It's just human nature." Xu Xiancheng said calmly. This result was not surprising. Shandong was the closest to the capital, so it was normal for it to react first. Moreover, Zhu Shenzhui was now the regent, and Emperor Chongzhen had become a figurehead. It seemed that all the court officials had also sided with Zhu Shenzhui. The overall situation had been decided, and even if the local governments wanted to support the emperor, they had no status or reason. It was natural for them to do so under such circumstances.

"It is estimated that within a few days, there will be results in other places. Once the local areas stabilize, I wonder what the court will do next." Sun Yuanhua took over the topic.

This sentence made Xu Xiancheng and Li Xin agree that the most important thing for Zhu Shenzhui now is to stabilize the situation in Ming Dynasty. Regardless of the superficial or actual recognition of the local government, the position of regent is already real. When the situation stabilizes, Ming Dynasty still has many things to do, among which internal and external troubles are the most critical. Huang Taiji in Liaodong, local rebellions, etc., these problems are all troubles facing Zhu Shenzhui.

(End of this chapter)