My father is Chongzhen? Then I have no choice but to rebel.

Chapter 281 Chongzhen: Surrender? To hell with surrender! I won't accept it!
Just as the atmosphere became tense, Li Banghua suddenly spoke:

"My lords, please rest assured. Before I came here, I made a special inquiry with the Embroidered Uniform Guard who delivered the message."

"According to him, Sun Chuanting wrote two memorials in total, one of which has already been sent to the capital, and it is the one we just read."

"The other letter was sent directly to Xuanfu, presumably to the Crown Prince."

These words were like a thunderclap piercing through the gloom, exploding in everyone's hearts.

The previously somewhat depressed feeling instantly lifted, and I felt relaxed.

If what Li Banghua said is true, then the Crown Prince will definitely weigh the pros and cons after receiving this memorial, and then make a decision.

All they had to do was wait for the Crown Prince's reply!
However, despite this, the matter still needed to be reported to Emperor Chongzhen.

They also need to come up with a preliminary plan in case of unforeseen circumstances.

Once Zhu Cilang's reply arrives, the two sides will compare the two and then choose the most prudent solution to deal with the matter. This is the only foolproof plan.

Thinking of this, everyone turned their gaze to Wang Chengen, who was standing quietly to the side.

According to the rules of the imperial court, the Directorate of Ceremonial Affairs must be present when the Grand Secretariat handles government affairs.

As the Grand Eunuch of the Directorate of Ceremonial, Wang Chengen had always accompanied them in handling government affairs.

Now, Wang Chengen is their only link to Emperor Chongzhen.

Meanwhile, Wang Chengen had already grasped the general outline of the matter from the conversation just now.

Therefore, without Xue Guoguan's instruction, he immediately stepped forward respectfully and said:

"My lords, there's no need for further words. Please wait a moment, and I will go and invite His Majesty over."

Xue Guoguan nodded slightly, his eyes revealing an undisguised eagerness.

"Then it's my father-in-law."

Wang Chengen quickly bowed and replied:
"You're too kind, Your Excellency. This is simply our duty."

Having said that, he dared not delay for a moment and hurriedly headed towards the direction of the inner palace.

Prior to this, Emperor Chongzhen had specifically instructed Wang Chengen not to disturb him unless there was an extremely urgent matter, and that all state affairs should be handled by the cabinet.

However, this matter was quite unusual, and the cabinet was unable to handle it. In addition, the crown prince was not present, so they had no choice but to ask Emperor Chongzhen to step in and take charge of the situation.

It was afternoon, and sunlight streamed through the carved window frames, casting golden threads across every corner of the palace, adding a touch of warmth to this solemn place.

After having lunch, Emperor Chongzhen stayed in his room with Empress Zhou, enjoying this rare and cozy time together.

The two were deeply in love and were happily planning how to "add another member to the Zhu family."

Empress Zhou nestled in Chongzhen's arms, her cheeks flushed like the sunset, and said shyly:

"Your Majesty, what's wrong with you lately? Why are you suddenly 'bullying' me like this?"

Upon hearing this, Emperor Chongzhen's face flushed with excitement, and he said:

"Your Majesty may not know this, but the Taoist priest that Lang'er found for me is indeed quite skilled."

"I practiced according to his method for two months, and the results were excellent. If this continues, I estimate that we can have a few more children in the future."

Empress Zhou blushed again upon hearing this. Although she was already a mother of three, she still felt somewhat shy upon hearing these words.

She gently punched Chongzhen's chest and said reproachfully:

"His Majesty always teases me."

"Dong dong dong."

Just as Chongzhen was about to say something, there was a sudden, urgent knocking at the door.

The voice was very soft, but it sounded very urgent, instantly shattering the warm atmosphere.

Upon hearing the knocking, Emperor Chongzhen's face immediately darkened, a flash of displeasure crossing his eyes. He then angrily said:

"Didn't I tell you not to disturb me? Who's making a scene outside?"

The next second, a familiar voice rang out:
"Your Majesty, it's this old servant! An urgent military report from Shaanxi has been sent to the Cabinet. The Cabinet doesn't know how to handle it and would like to invite Your Majesty to come and discuss it."

Upon hearing this, Emperor Chongzhen did not immediately realize the gravity of the situation; he simply shouted instinctively:
"What's the use of coming to me about this? Go find the Crown Prince."

But at this point, Chongzhen suddenly froze, as if someone had poured a bucket of cold water on his head and instantly sobered him up.

He suddenly realized that Zhu Cilang was no longer in the capital.

So, Chongzhen swallowed the rest of his words, his expression becoming somewhat complicated.

Just then, Empress Zhou realized the seriousness of the situation. She quickly sat up straight and said with a serious expression:

"Your Majesty, such a matter of national importance cannot be delayed. You should go and discuss it with the cabinet as soon as possible! Even if you don't want to make any decisions, the necessary procedures still need to be followed."

"Otherwise, the court officials will have a lot of talk, which will also affect His Majesty's reputation."

Upon hearing this, Emperor Chongzhen could not say anything more, as he still cared a great deal about his reputation.

Then he could only reply:

"Okay, I'll go right away."

Then, with the help of Empress Zhou, Chongzhen slowly put on his dragon robe.

Empress Zhou carefully straightened Chongzhen's collar, while Chongzhen lowered his head slightly, his eyes filled with tenderness, as if he were enjoying this moment of warmth.

After putting on his dragon robe, Chongzhen strode out.

When Wang Chengen saw Chongzhen come out and noticed his flushed face, he knew what had just happened, but he couldn't say anything.

After all, Emperor Chongzhen was only thirty-two years old at the time, a time when he was full of energy.

Besides, he didn't understand the "pleasure" involved, after all, he was just a eunuch.

"Does Your Majesty wish to travel to the Cabinet by sedan chair?"

Just then, Wang Chengen cautiously asked.

Emperor Chongzhen waved his hand and said:
"No need, I will go there myself."

After saying this, Chongzhen strode towards the direction of the cabinet.

Wang Chengen dared not delay for a moment and hurriedly followed after him, secretly pondering how to report the situation to Emperor Chongzhen.

Along the way, Chongzhen naturally asked what had happened and insisted that he go and discuss it in person.

Wang Chengen naturally dared not hide anything, so he roughly recounted what he had heard before.

When he heard that it was because of Li Zicheng's surrender, Chongzhen's expression changed instantly.

As if struck by a bolt from the blue, he froze on the spot.

Because Emperor Chongzhen never expected that Li Zicheng would surrender again and again and again and again and again!

Isn't this treating him like a fool?
It should be noted that Li Zicheng had surrendered many times before, each time feigning surrender while actually rebelling. Like a cunning fox, he would always reveal his fangs when the court lowered its guard, causing huge losses to the court.

The Ming Dynasty has finally recovered and is even planning to take action against Li Zicheng next year to completely eliminate all peasant armies.

Then Li Zicheng surrendered again, which really showed they were treating him like a fool!
Thinking of this, Chongzhen was filled with rage.

Surrender? To hell with surrender! I won't accept it!

He has decided that he will absolutely not accept Li Zicheng's surrender this time!

Once spring arrives next year, we will gather our forces and wipe out Li Zicheng and his peasant army, and then it will all be over.

Thinking of this, Chongzhen felt a surge of pleasure, as if he could already see the Ming army beheading Li Zicheng.

After regaining his senses, Chongzhen walked towards the cabinet again.

Before long, he arrived at the cabinet.

Seeing the emperor, who had disappeared for half a month, finally appear before everyone, Xue Guoguan and the others hurriedly bowed and said in unison:
"See Your Majesty!"

Emperor Chongzhen waved his hand and said:
"My dear ministers, there's no need for such formalities. Please have a seat."

Then, Emperor Chongzhen strode forward and sat directly in the main seat.

The other cabinet ministers and Li Banghua also sat on either side, their expressions somewhat solemn.

Immediately afterwards, Chongzhen, too lazy for pleasantries, said directly:

"I am already aware of the matter that you ministers summoned me to discuss. Let me first state my opinion!"

"I believe we shouldn't have accepted Li Zicheng's surrender this time! As you all know, this is likely another of Li Zicheng's schemes!"

“Every time Li Zicheng surrendered before, he would rebel again, just like a fickle villain. This time will probably be the same.”

"So this time there's no need for such trouble. Just refuse Li Zicheng's surrender, and let Sun Chuanting continue to defend Shaanxi, while the troops around Henan continue to hold their ground."

"When spring comes next year, we will dispatch a large army to directly annihilate Li Zicheng, and then this matter will be over!"

Seeing that Emperor Chongzhen immediately expressed his opinion, and in such an extreme way, the ministers present looked at each other in bewilderment and exchanged glances.

They certainly knew why Chongzhen made such a decision; it was simply because he felt that Li Zicheng's repeated surrenders and rebellions showed no sincerity.

However, this matter certainly cannot be handled in this way.

After all, Li Zicheng really did send 10,000 civilians to Tongguan, and in the period that followed, there would definitely be a steady stream of civilians surrendering to the court.

If we refuse outright, wouldn't that cut off these people's livelihood?

It will also solidify the support of those who originally wanted to surrender to the imperial court, making them firmly stand on Li Zicheng's side.

From this perspective, Emperor Chongzhen was indeed somewhat inconsiderate.

Of course, no one dared to say this aloud, as no one wanted to offend Chongzhen at this time. But someone still needed to advise Chongzhen, and since no one else dared to speak up, it was up to Xue Guoguan, the Grand Secretary.

So Xue Guoguan first took a deep breath, and then mustered his courage to speak:

"Your Majesty, please forgive my bluntness, but I believe the court should not refuse Li Zicheng's surrender this time! Because when Li Zicheng surrendered, he voluntarily retreated ten miles and stopped attacking Tongguan. In addition, he also sent ten thousand civilians to Tongguan."

"Although these people are mostly old, weak, sick, or disabled, they are still citizens of the Ming Dynasty!"

"Now that these people are willing to submit to the imperial court, how can the court refuse them?"

"In addition, Lord Sun also said that in the future, he would set up soup kitchens outside Tongguan to attract peasant soldiers who could not afford to eat to surrender to the court."

"Leaving aside how many peasant armies will surrender to the court, these events have at least given those people who are unwilling to follow Li Zicheng in rebellion and want to submit to the court a way to survive!"

"They are already living in dire straits. If the court can accept them now, it will be a great fortune for them and will also demonstrate His Majesty's benevolence."

"But if the imperial court directly refuses Li Zicheng's surrender, wouldn't that be tantamount to cutting off these people's means of survival?"

"At that time, I'm afraid those people who wanted to surrender to the court will not dare to surrender anymore. They will only follow Li Zicheng down the wrong path and fall into an abyss of no return."

Therefore, Your Majesty, please reconsider!

Emperor Chongzhen was stunned upon hearing these words.

Yup!

How could he forget something so important?
If I really refuse Li Zicheng's surrender, wouldn't that be the same as refusing the surrender of the people who were forced to follow Li Zicheng in the rebellion to the court?
Moreover, after being rejected, Li Zicheng would most likely attack Tongguan or other places again.

In this way, more people will die, and the imperial court will have to spend a lot of manpower and resources to stop Li Zicheng.

For a moment, Chongzhen's face turned somewhat ugly, and a trace of regret flashed in his eyes. He felt that his previous thoughts had been too impulsive and had not taken the overall situation into account.

Immediately afterward, Chongzhen gave a wry smile and slowly said:

"I was a little angry just now and misspoke. Please don't take it to heart, my dear ministers."

Upon hearing this, the ministers present quickly bowed again and began to comfort Emperor Chongzhen.

"This matter is not Your Majesty's fault. It is only because that rebel repeatedly surrendered and then rebelled that Your Majesty is so angry!"

"Your Majesty is not at fault; it is all the fault of that traitor! Your Majesty must not blame yourself for this."

Upon hearing these words, Emperor Chongzhen finally regained some face.

Just then, Wang Chengen hurriedly handed the memorial that Li Banghua had brought earlier to Chongzhen.

Emperor Chongzhen glanced through it, his expression unchanged, because what was written there was not much different from what Wang Chengen had told him before.

Chongzhen casually placed the memorial on a fat man's back and said:

"What are your opinions on this matter, my esteemed ministers? Do you want me to agree to the conditions proposed by Li Zicheng?"

Xue Guoguan quickly said again:
"Your Majesty, we have just discussed this and we think it would be better to agree to Li Zicheng's conditions for now."

"Firstly, if we do this, the court will be in the right. Even if this is indeed Li Zicheng's conspiracy, the court will not have broken its promise to the people. Justice and righteousness are on the court's side, and the people will understand the court's benevolence. The court's reputation will not be damaged as a result."

"Secondly, this will appease Li Zicheng and prevent him from making any rash moves in the short term. Although the country is becoming stronger, if we can avoid an unnecessary war, the people will suffer less from the war, and the court will have more energy to develop people's livelihoods."

"Thirdly, as mentioned before, if we agree to Li Zicheng's surrender, we can attract more peasant armies to surrender to the court. Those peasant armies were originally coerced into rebellion by Li Zicheng. Now that the court has accepted them without regard for past grievances, they will definitely be grateful to the court and will be more loyal to the court in the future."

Emperor Chongzhen carefully considered the three reasons Xue Guoguan gave, and then nodded slightly.

At the same time, he secretly thought to himself, "Anyway, it's just a general's position. If I'm being 'played,' then so be it!"

Anyway, this wasn't the first time he'd been "tricked" by Li Zicheng.

Let's do this for the sake of all the people!

Just as Chongzhen was about to agree to the matter, he suddenly seemed to remember something, his brows furrowed slightly, and he asked:

"Wait, does the Crown Prince know about this? This matter concerns the overall situation of the court, and the Crown Prince must be informed."

Upon hearing this, Li Banghua quickly said:

"Your Majesty, I asked the Embroidered Uniform Guard who delivered the message, and he said that they sent two copies of the same memorial, one to the capital and the other to Xuanfu."

"Based on the timeline, His Highness the Crown Prince should receive this memorial within the next day or two."

Upon hearing this, Zhu Cilang secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

Because he always felt that Zhu Cilang might have a different opinion on this matter.

In all matters, Zhu Cilang's decision should prevail, which was something he had promised Zhu Cilang before.

Thinking of this, Chongzhen pretended to ponder for a moment, then said in a thoughtful manner:

"In that case, let's not rush to deal with this matter. Let's wait until the Crown Prince receives the memorial and makes a decision, and then the court will make the final decision."

"Furthermore, the cabinet will prepare on the premise of accepting Li Zicheng's surrender. If the Crown Prince also agrees to accept Li Zicheng's surrender, then this matter will be settled!"

Upon hearing this, none of the people present showed much emotion.

After all, their original plan was to wait for Zhu Cilang's decision to reach the capital before making a final decision.

Moreover, they believed that Zhu Cilang would most likely agree to Li Zicheng's surrender.

Immediately afterwards, everyone hurriedly cupped their hands and said:

"Your Majesty, rest assured, we will do our utmost to devise a foolproof plan."

Thus, the matter of Li Zicheng's surrender was finally settled with a preliminary resolution.

As for the final outcome, we can only wait until Zhu Cilang receives the news and makes a decision as soon as possible.

Of course, if Zhu Cilang did not agree to Li Zicheng's surrender, the cabinet would not say much.

After all, even Emperor Chongzhen had to defer to Zhu Cilang's decisions, so what could these ministers possibly say?

Two more days passed quickly.

The weather was quite nice that day; the sun shone on the earth, bringing a touch of warmth to Xuanfu.

Even the warm weather couldn't mask the tense atmosphere in the air.

Suddenly, a troop of fast horses galloped directly from the direction of the capital, their thunderous hooves echoing along the official road and raising a cloud of dust.

The person who came was none other than the Embroidered Uniform Guard who had come to Xuanfu to deliver a message!

The Imperial Guards all looked travel-worn and exhausted, but their eyes revealed a sense of urgency.

They knew that the memorial they carried was of great importance and had to be delivered to the Crown Prince as soon as possible.

Meanwhile, inside the Xuanfu government office, Zhu Cilang was also receiving a guest from the grasslands.

This guest was none other than Omubu, the leader of the Tumed.

There's quite a story about Emubu.

He was originally the leader of the Tumed, but after the Tumed were defeated by the Jurchens, he submitted to them.

At first, the Jurchens did not take any action against him and allowed him to remain the leader of the Tumed. However, not long after, the Jurchens abolished his position as the leader of the Tumed and made him only a minor military officer.

From then on, he lost his former power and suffered endless scorn.

However, after the Ming Dynasty defeated the Jurchens, Omubu actually became the leader of the Tumet tribe again!
From this perspective, he can be considered a very capable person.

In fact, Omubu himself deeply hated the Jurchens and did not want the Tumet region to be occupied by them again.

This is because the Jurchens not only plundered a large number of cattle and sheep from the Tumet, but also took away more than 50 percent of the Tumet population.

And half of these people died in the Battle of Songjin!
However, he always felt that the Jurchens would come back to fight, so he never chose to submit to the Ming Dynasty.

He was worried that when the Jurchens returned, they would exterminate the Tumet people because of their submission to the Ming Dynasty!
However, with the Ming Dynasty beginning to take action against the Mongols, he seemed to have no other choice.

So not long ago, he sent a group of envoys to Xuanfu to meet with Zhu Cilang and then expressed his intention to surrender.

What Omubu didn't expect was that the Ming Dynasty wanted more than just a nominal surrender; it wanted a real surrender!

However, after a brief period of consideration, Emubu finally agreed to all of Zhu Cilang's requests.

The reason is simple: the Tumet people are simply not qualified to challenge the Ming Dynasty!
To put it bluntly, we don't even need to wait for those 70,000 cavalry to return. The 10,000 cavalry and 30,000 infantry that Xuanfu has now are enough to easily wipe out the Tumet!

Given that, what reason did he have to hesitate?

If they remain stubborn and refuse to surrender, then only annihilation awaits the Tumed!

Having figured this out, Omubu came to Xuanfu in person with utmost sincerity to discuss the surrender with Zhu Cilang.

The conversation between the two sides went quite smoothly, and Emubu agreed to almost all of Zhu Cilang's requests.

His attitude was very humble, as if he was afraid that he might accidentally offend Zhu Cilang and ruin this hard-won opportunity.

However, they also made their own demands, namely that half of the tariffs on future trade cooperation between the two sides must be eliminated.

In addition, because the Tumet people had been plundered too badly by the Later Jin, they did not have enough food this year and needed to borrow food from the Ming Dynasty to get through the winter.

The final demand was that he retain his status as the leader of the Tumed and some of his rights.

Zhu Cilang naturally agreed to all of these requests.

In fact, Zhu Cilang initially thought of completely eliminating trade tariffs, but after thinking about it, he felt that it seemed a bit inappropriate.

After all, the commercial tax system of the Ming Dynasty has already taken shape. Except for medicines, which are exempt from tax during years of famine, there is no such thing as tax exemption for other goods.

If Tumed were suddenly granted tax exemption, wouldn't that be letting down all the other "law-abiding" businessmen?
Since the commercial tax reform, those merchants have always abided by the laws of the Ming Dynasty and paid their taxes on time. If the Tumet are treated specially, it will inevitably make them dissatisfied.

Therefore, Zhu Cilang ultimately only agreed to exempt half of the trade tariffs, which could be considered as a reward for the Tumet's surrender to the Ming Dynasty.

(End of this chapter)