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

Chapter 687 Blame
Seeing that Emperor Chongzhen was speechless and unable to answer this question, Zhu Shenzhui continued to ask: "Your Majesty just mentioned Yue Wumu. Since Your Majesty praises Yue Wumu so much, then I would like to ask Your Majesty, how did Yue Wumu die? How did the Southern Song Dynasty survive in a corner?"

"Everyone knows about Yue Wumu's injustice. If Zhao Gou had not trusted Qin Hui, how could Qin Hui have executed Yue Wumu on a trumped-up charge? How could the following events have happened? Don't I know about this?"

"Since Your Majesty knows this, then I would like to ask Your Majesty, is Zhao Gou a tyrant? Is Qin Hui a treacherous minister?"

"Of course! What? Does the Regent have a different opinion?" Emperor Chongzhen asked with a sneer.

Zhu Shenzhui shook his head and said, "I share the same view as Your Majesty. Yue Wumu is a loyal minister through the ages, there is no doubt about that. It has long been said that Qin Hui will be infamous for eternity. As for Song Gaozong Zhao Gou, he was naturally a tyrant."

Emperor Chongzhen was stunned again. Since Zhu Shenzhui had the same opinion as him, why did he ask this question? At this time, he heard Zhu Shenzhui continue to say: "Your Majesty has such a clear understanding of history, but why can't Your Majesty see the things in front of you clearly? Your Majesty, think carefully about what you did before. Is it no different from what Zhao Gou did back then?"

"How outrageous! How bold! How arrogant!" Emperor Chongzhen was furious. At this moment, he forgot his identity as a prisoner and stood up suddenly.

Na Hai, who was standing by, was about to step forward to stop him, fearing that Emperor Chongzhen would lose his mind and do something to his master. But Zhu Shenzhui stopped him and waved his hand to let him leave, not moved at all. In his opinion, what could Emperor Chongzhen do? Not to mention that he was an emperor who became a prisoner and had no fighting power, even if he was given a knife, Zhu Shenzhui could subdue him with one hand.

Emperor Chongzhen stared at Zhu Shenzhui angrily, his face flushed with anger: "How could I be such a tyrant as Zhao Gou? Zhao Gou appointed treacherous ministers like Qin Hui and unjustly killed Yue Wumu. How could I have done such a thing? Don't say that Yuan Chonghuan is Yue Wumu. Yuan Chonghuan is guilty and unforgivable. It is only right for me to kill him!"

"When did I mention Yuan Chonghuan?" Zhu Shenzhui asked back. Seeing that Emperor Chongzhen was stunned, he waved his hand and said, "Your Majesty should be calm as a ruler. Why are you so excited? Could it be that Your Majesty thinks that killing Yuan Chonghuan was wrong? That's why you are so angry?"

"Nonsense!" Emperor Chongzhen gritted his teeth in anger. This Zhu Shenzui was a piece of shit. He actually used such words to deliberately provoke him. Moreover, Yuan Chonghuan deserved to be put to death. Emperor Chongzhen believed that he had done nothing wrong.

Zhu Shenzhu didn't care about Emperor Chongzhen's reaction at all, and continued: "Your Majesty, since Your Majesty knew that Yue Wumu was wrongly killed, then why didn't Your Majesty know that Mao Wenlong was wrongly accused? Didn't Your Majesty acquiesce when Yuan Chonghuan killed Mao Wenlong? What is the difference between the crime Yuan Chonghuan charged Mao Wenlong with and the unfounded crime Qin Hui used to kill Yue Wumu? And how did Your Majesty deal with it at the time? What was your attitude afterwards? Isn't this the same as Zhao Gou's behavior?"

"I..." Emperor Chongzhen was speechless for a moment. Zhu Shenzhui's question hit his soft spot. When Yuan Chonghuan killed Mao Wenlong, Emperor Chongzhen was angry, but he did not punish Yuan Chonghuan. Instead, he announced to the public that Yuan Chonghuan's actions were his instructions. His purpose was nothing more than worrying about the war in Liaodong. Since Mao Wenlong was dead, what would happen to Liaodong if Yuan Chonghuan was punished? Faced with this situation, Emperor Chongzhen was unwilling in his heart, but he could only accept it.

Later, because of the Ji Si Rebellion, Emperor Chongzhen held Yuan Chonghuan accountable and executed him. However, when Yuan Chonghuan was convicted of all crimes, the only crime he faced was the crime of killing Mao Wenlong without authorization. As a result, there has been no conclusion on Mao Wenlong's death until now, which made Mao Wenlong's old subordinates in Dongjiang Town feel resentful.

The two subsequent civil unrests in Dongjiang Town, plus the later Shandong Rebellion, were ultimately the consequences of this incident.

There was no other reason why Emperor Chongzhen did this. He certainly knew that Mao Wenlong was wrongly accused, but if he included Mao Wenlong's death in the killing of Yuan Chonghuan, then the matter could not be covered up. You must know that Emperor Chongzhen said in front of everyone that Yuan Chonghuan killed Mao Wenlong at his own will. Although Mao Wenlong did not rebel, he wanted to die. Such a person should be killed.

If the case is reopened later, wouldn't it be the same as telling the world that Mao Wenlong's death was his fault? How could the face-conscious Emperor Chongzhen do such a thing? So Yuan Chonghuan had so many serious crimes, but he was not guilty of killing Mao Wenlong without authorization. This stain could not be covered up.

"I was deceived by Yuan Chonghuan back then. I didn't want to kill Mao Wenlong..." Emperor Chongzhen no longer had the anger he had just had. Instead, his eyes became slightly evasive.

"Haha, Zhao Gou was also deceived by Qin Hui back then. Zhao Gou did not want to kill Yue Wumu..." Zhu Shenzhui said slowly.

How could Emperor Chongzhen bear this? Zhu Shenzhui was pointing at his nose and scolding him. He was just like Zhao Gou, an absolute tyrant.

"Your Majesty, don't be upset. Mao Wenlong is not Yue Wumu, and your Majesty is definitely not Zhao Gou." Just as Emperor Chongzhen was about to get angry and scold, Zhu Shenzhui said this again. The anger that had just emerged was suppressed in an instant, and Emperor Chongzhen calmed down a little. But then Zhu Shenzhui said: "But I think that compared with Zhao Gou, your Majesty is far behind. At least Zhao Gou killed Yue Wumu unjustly and destroyed the Great Wall himself, but he was still able to hold half of the country, repel foreign enemies, appoint wise officials, and appease the local people. This is how the Southern Song Dynasty lasted for two hundred years."

"People have their own opinions on world affairs. I don't need to discuss mistakes, but people have their own standards. Your Majesty may say that your intention was not to do so, but that your ministers did it. These ministers deceived their superiors and lied to their subordinates, so that your Majesty was deceived by the ministers and handled the matter improperly."

"But I want to ask your Majesty, if a general leads his troops to an expedition, but they return in defeat or even the entire army is annihilated, is the responsibility on the general? Or is it the soldiers' problem? Can the general shirk responsibility by saying that the soldiers are cowardly and incompetent? Your Majesty is the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty, the ruler of the world. Since you are a monarch, how you employ people and how you govern are all your responsibilities. Shifting the responsibility to others is not what a monarch should do, let alone what a wise ruler should do!"

"By the way, does Your Majesty still know about the closing of the post stations?" Zhu Shenzhui sneered, "Your Majesty thought it was a good idea to solve the financial problem and ordered the closing of all post stations in the country to reduce expenses and ease the financial situation. But does Your Majesty know the consequences of doing so?"

"After the post stations were closed, hundreds of thousands of people lost their livelihoods. If one person supports one family, the number is more than a million. Can the Ming Dynasty's finances be relieved by the closure of the post stations? For a few hundred thousand dollars of money and grain, millions of people were abandoned. This is your majesty's "benevolent rule"!" "In addition, your majesty doesn't know about Li Zicheng, a general under Gao Yingxiang, right? I will tell you today that Li Zicheng was a postman at the post station. It was your majesty who made Li Zicheng desperate and rebellious. There are more than one person like Li Zicheng in the world now. In addition, your majesty has increased the Liao salary many times, which has made the people of the world live in misery. Under natural disasters and man-made disasters, people can't even survive by exchanging their own children for food. How can there not be rebellion?"

"Your Majesty may have the will to turn the tide and the wish to save the collapsing empire, and Your Majesty has indeed been extremely diligent and hardworking in recent years. But things have not gone as planned. The political situation has reached this point. Your Majesty has never reflected on his mistakes?"

"Tang Taizong Li Shimin once said: A man can use copper as a mirror to adjust his clothes and hat; he can use the past as a mirror to understand the rise and fall; he can use people as a mirror to understand gains and losses. Confucius also said that I should examine myself three times a day. But Your Majesty is stubborn and self-righteous, impatient, suspicious and suspicious. Even if there are wise ministers and good generals, they are useless in Your Majesty's hands. This is Your Majesty's biggest problem. As a monarch, Your Majesty is far from the previous emperor. You don't know the principle of governing a big country like cooking a small fish. You are always seeking urgent things, don't know how to weigh the pros and cons, and don't care about people's livelihood. How can the world not be in chaos?"

Zhu Shenzhui said these words bluntly. No one had ever dared to say these words to Emperor Chongzhen, and Emperor Chongzhen had never thought that someone would evaluate him in this way.

Zhu Shenzhui was about to point his finger at Chongzhen and scold him, saying that he was an absolute tyrant and a fool who didn't know how to be an emperor. At first, Chongzhen was so angry that he almost stood up and fought with Zhu Shenzhui. But as Zhu Shenzhui kept talking, Chongzhen felt like he was being poured with a bucket of cold water, chilling him from the top of his head to the soles of his feet.

“I...I...” Emperor Chongzhen wanted to refute, but he didn’t know where to start. He was angry, furious, ashamed and annoyed, and his face turned blue and red.

"I shouldn't have said this today, but I saw that Your Majesty was upset and still thought he had done nothing wrong, so I had to say this. If my words were offensive, please forgive me. Your Majesty is now recuperating in the palace, so I ask Your Majesty to calm down, think carefully about the past, and think deeply about the gains and losses. I came here today and brought some books for Your Majesty. Your Majesty can read these history books more often, and perhaps you will gain some insights."

"I am very busy with official duties. Today, I am relieved to see that Your Majesty is in good health, Wang Chengen!"

"Your servant...I'm here..." Wang Chengen, who had been standing by as a background figure, heard Zhu Shenzhu calling his name and quickly responded.

"You are an old man by His Majesty's side. You are loyal to His Majesty and should take good care of His Majesty's daily life. If His Majesty makes any mistakes, I will definitely not forgive you. Do you understand?"

"I know...I understand..."

"Well, I have been here for so long, I have drunk tea, and talked. It is time for me to leave. I will come to visit Your Majesty again in some time." With that, Zhu Shenzhui stood up, saluted to Emperor Chongzhen, and turned to leave.

But when he reached the door, he suddenly thought of something, stopped, turned around and said to Emperor Chongzhen: "I almost forgot another thing. I want to inform your majesty that half a month ago, Huang Taiji led 300,000 troops to invade our Ming Dynasty, intending to imitate the Jisi Rebellion and bypass Mongolia and enter the capital directly..."

"What!" Emperor Chongzhen was stunned, and even Wang Chengen beside him showed a look of astonishment.

In an instant, an idea flashed through the mind of Emperor Chongzhen. Emperor Chongzhen even thought that Huang Taiji's army would approach the capital just like the Ji Si Rebellion. How would Zhu Shenzhu face it if that happened?

Although he is now the regent, Emperor Chongzhen knows that he is the real ruler of Ming Dynasty. Zhu Shenzhui has not been the regent for long since he took over the capital, and he cannot control the entire Ming Dynasty in such a short time. Ming Dynasty is so vast, and there are countless loyal subjects and people in the two capitals and 13 provinces. If foreign enemies invade, can he still hold on as the regent?
If the situation changes, doesn't it mean that my chance has come? If someone can suddenly take action and pull Zhu Shenzhu off his horse, won't I be able to rule the world again? Thinking of this, Emperor Chongzhen's eyes lit up, but then he thought again, Huang Taiji is the biggest threat to the Ming Dynasty, and he dreams of solving the foreign enemy. Once the foreign enemy invades, what will happen to the Ming Dynasty? He couldn't help but get tangled up again.

Zhu Shenzhui saw all the changes in Emperor Chongzhen's expression. How could he not know what he was thinking? He looked at him with a smile and said, "But I have already solved this matter. Your Majesty, don't worry."

"Solved? How was it solved?" Emperor Chongzhen asked anxiously.

"I stopped Huang Taiji at the Great Wall and led my troops to repel his 300,000-man army. Huang Taiji lost many soldiers and retreated to Liaodong in a panic. He dared not invade the border again. The problem was solved naturally. How do you think? Is your Majesty satisfied?"

Upon hearing this, Emperor Chongzhen was dumbfounded, and Wang Chengen was also stunned. They did not expect such an outcome.

Huang Taiji's 300,000-man army! Were they stopped just like that? And they were defeated and returned in disgrace? How is this possible? Emperor Chongzhen thought Zhu Shenzhui was talking nonsense and was simply lying. But the problem was that Zhu Shenzhui didn't need to lie to him about such a big thing, and there was no need to lie to him. Could it be true?
"Haha! Hahaha!" Seeing their expressions, Zhu Shenzui laughed loudly towards the sky, waved his sleeves, turned around and strode away. In a blink of an eye, he was out of the side hall and his figure was no longer seen. Only the laughter was still heard and gradually faded away, making Emperor Chongzhen stand there in a daze, with mixed feelings in his heart.

(End of this chapter)