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

Chapter 328 This Little Ice Age is fucking cold!
Thus, without any military resistance, Li Zicheng's army began to slowly advance towards Sichuan.

According to their route, they will first enter Shangluo, then Hanzhong, and finally Sichuan.

The journey was fraught with challenges, with rolling hills and rugged roads. Adding to the difficulty was the fact that it was winter, with freezing temperatures and frequent snowfalls, making it a truly arduous trip.

But for the sake of his "great cause," Li Zicheng had no choice but to grit his teeth and persevere.

He rode on his horse, his gaze fixed firmly ahead, his heart filled with anticipation and longing for the future.

It seemed as if he could really reach Sichuan smoothly.
Time flies, and half a month has passed in the blink of an eye.

During this period, things were relatively peaceful in the capital, with all matters proceeding smoothly and no major incidents occurring.

The most pressing issue was the matter of the Ming Dynasty's national debt.

Since the official issuance of these government bonds, the level of enthusiasm they have generated has far exceeded everyone's expectations.

In just two days, the national bonds issued locally in Beijing were snapped up by the people.

The buying frenzy even left many who failed to snag a bargain feeling regretful.

Despite the overwhelming success, Zhu Cilang continued to follow his original plan and did not choose to increase the issuance quota.

At the same time, he deliberately spread the word that those people and merchants who had not been able to buy the Ming Dynasty bonds should go to other prefectures and counties to continue buying them.

In this way, we can take advantage of this momentum to accelerate the circulation of Ming Dynasty bonds in various regions, and make it easier for these bonds to gain local recognition and trust.

After all, the people and merchants in the capital have all gone to other places to buy Ming Dynasty bonds, so how could this thing not be a good thing?

According to reports coming from various places, the sale of national bonds is progressing very smoothly, which means that the huge amount of money needed for road construction next year has finally been secured.

In addition, the matter of the various Mongol tribes submitting to the Ming Dynasty was finally settled.

According to the proposed regulations, the imperial court will dispatch troops to various Mongol tribes, with the number of troops depending on the size of each tribe, ranging from as many as 50,000 to as few as 20,000 or 30,000.

These garrison troops, apart from some recruited from various places, were all directly transferred from the nine important border towns such as Xuanfu.

Once they arrive at the destination, they will recruit some locals to strengthen the border defense force.

Ultimately, to truly establish a foothold on Mongolian soil, one must rely on the strength of a portion of the local population for long-term stability.

In addition, the imperial court bestowed generous favors upon the leaders of the various Mongol tribes in order to appease them.

The various items bestowed as rewards were countless; the glassware alone filled several large carts.

Although Zhu Cilang considered these items to be nothing special, with costs so low they were practically free, to others, especially the leaders of the Mongol tribes, these crystal-clear glass artifacts were extremely precious treasures, enough to demonstrate the court's sincerity and generosity.

In addition to these rare and precious items, various silks and satins, newly issued Ming Dynasty banknotes, as well as Ming Dynasty gold and silver coins were also among the gifts.

However, in total, the amount of paper money is still greater, while the amount of gold and silver coins from the Ming Dynasty is not much.

This was not because Zhu Cilang wanted to "trick" them, but because he wanted to better promote the Ming Dynasty Treasure Notes among the Mongol tribes, so that the Ming Dynasty Treasure Notes could take root there and lay a solid foundation for future trade and governance.

After all, according to Zhu Cilang's long-term plan, the Ming Treasure Notes were to be promoted all over the world in the future.

Let's test it out in Mongolia now!
Besides these two things, the most attention-grabbing news recently is that Emperor Chongzhen is preparing to celebrate his birthday.

At first, Chongzhen was somewhat worried, fearing that the people might blame him for being extravagant if they heard that he was going to hold a grand birthday banquet.

But the reality was far beyond his expectations.

When the people learned that the emperor was going to celebrate his birthday, they expressed their support and congratulations.

After all, in the more than ten years since Chongzhen ascended the throne, he had never properly celebrated a birthday.

Now that the country is gradually improving and the national treasury is becoming increasingly full, and all undertakings are progressing vigorously, it is truly a joyous occasion for the emperor to hold a birthday banquet under such favorable circumstances.

Of course, the most important thing was that Chongzhen decided to take advantage of his birthday to 'stir up some trouble'!
The first thing was to grant a general amnesty.

This includes criminals sentenced to exile or less, commoners who owed taxes and grain, exiled officials who were reinstated, and some less serious crimes.

Of course, serious ethical crimes such as treason, rebellion, corruption, patricide, and witchcraft are not included!

In addition, Emperor Chongzhen also issued an edict to distribute "longevity rice" to elderly people over sixty years old in the capital!
One dou of rice and three jin of meat per person!
The people were naturally overjoyed to have benefited from it.

Apart from that, nothing else major happened in the capital.

The main reason for this is that in ancient times, during the cold winter months, the pace of life slowed down significantly due to the low temperature and less farm work.

Even the most hardworking and busy farmers will enter a relatively leisurely period at this time of year.

After all, it was freezing cold, and there really wasn't much work to do.

Therefore, even the massive national machinery of the Ming Dynasty seemed to operate somewhat sluggishly.

Overall, however, this winter has been infinitely better than in previous years!
With the widespread use of honeycomb briquettes, ordinary people can now afford to heat water and eat hot meals, and no longer have to endure the cold and hunger in the wind as they used to.

In addition, the prices of various daily necessities remained relatively stable, so people were able to make ends meet.

Therefore, the capital has been unusually peaceful and tranquil recently, resembling a prosperous era.

Of course, this kind of thing only happens in the capital.

As for areas outside the capital, Zhu Cilang's reach was temporarily limited.
The scene shifts to the Eastern Palace.

It has to be said that Zhu Cilang has been incredibly bored lately.

Sometimes he would be too lazy to go out for several days in a row, and would just stay in the East Palace to spend the winter.

The reason is simple: it's just too cold at this time of year!
He was so cold that he didn't want to go out.

He ultimately underestimated the power of this Little Ice Age. It's no exaggeration to say that the temperature has dropped to minus thirty degrees Celsius in the past few days!
Although he was a northerner before he traveled through time, the temperature back then was not as extreme as it is now; the lowest temperature in winter was only minus ten degrees Celsius.

The temperature suddenly dropped to minus thirty degrees Celsius, and he really couldn't bear it.

So basically, unless there's something important, he stays in the East Palace and doesn't want to go anywhere else.

At that moment, he couldn't help but feel a surge of emotion.

Fortunately, he had transmigrated into the body of the crown prince. If he had transmigrated into an ordinary person, he would probably have frozen to death long ago in this turbulent and cold late Ming Dynasty.

Suddenly, Zhu Cilang's thoughts shifted, as if he had thought of something important, and he turned to Ma Bao, who was standing to the side, and asked:

"Has the memorial from this morning arrived?"

Upon hearing this, Ma Bao nodded hurriedly, like a chick pecking at rice.
"It's here, it's here, I'll go get it right away."

After saying this, Ma Bao hurriedly opened the door and slipped out like a nimble little mouse.

As soon as the door opened, a gust of cold wind rushed in. Fortunately, Zhu Cilang was far from the door, and the door was quickly closed again, so the cold wind did not reach him.

Recently, Zhu Cilang's biggest concern has been whether anyone in the capital has frozen to death.

After all, in the original history, many people would freeze to death in the capital every winter.

For example, records from the first year of the Chongzhen reign state that the capital was covered in snow, more than ten feet deep, which collapsed houses. Hundreds of frozen corpses were carried out from the nine gates every day. Poor people had no charcoal or firewood, so they broke open coffins to cook.

The translation is:
A heavy snowfall hit the capital, with snow accumulation reaching over three meters deep, causing many houses to collapse.

Every day, hundreds of frozen corpses were carried out of Beijing's nine city gates. Poor people could not afford charcoal for heating, so they could only split open the coffin boards to use as firewood for cooking.

For example, a record from the seventh year of the Chongzhen reign states that on a winter night, beggars gathered to burn willow trees along the moat outside the Forbidden City for warmth, and by morning they were all frozen stiff as statues.

The translation is:
On a cold winter night, a group of beggars gathered by the moat outside the Forbidden City, burning willow branches to keep warm.

But when morning came, they found that they had all frozen to death, their bodies stiff as statues.

These things are heartbreaking just to think about!

So ever since the snow fell, Zhu Cilang issued a special decree ordering the Five City Garrison and the Embroidered Uniform Guard to strengthen patrols and to write a memorial similar to a 'work summary' every morning.

The contents of these memorials were very simple, all concerning the winter conditions of the people in the capital.

For example, have you found any cases of people starving or freezing to death?

He thought to himself, "I've already transmigrated, and I've become the Crown Prince of the Ming Dynasty. If people freeze or starve to death right under my nose at this time, that would be a huge embarrassment!"
Fortunately, thanks to his efforts, no cases of people starving or freezing to death have been reported recently.

Every time Zhu Cilang saw such a memorial, he would breathe a sigh of relief, feeling that his efforts over the past period had not been in vain.

Sure enough, after Ma Bao brought over the two memorials, Zhu Cilang glanced through them and then nodded in satisfaction.

Because today is the same as usual, everything is fine.

This is probably the best consolation for someone who has traveled through time.

However, Zhu Cilang also knew in his heart that these were just scenes within the capital city, and other places certainly wouldn't be as good.

In those remote areas, many more people may still freeze or starve to death, but that's beyond his control at the moment.

After all, he has only been in this world for a year, and it is already quite remarkable that he has managed to manage the Ming Dynasty to this extent in this short time.

As for other things, we'll have to talk about them later.
Just as Zhu Cilang was feeling quite emotional, a voice suddenly rang out from outside the door.

"Your Highness, a soldier has delivered an urgent memorial from Shaanxi!"

Shaanxi?

Sun Chuanting?
Is Li Zicheng up to something again?

Upon hearing this, Zhu Cilang instantly perked up. Without saying a word, he grabbed a cloak from the side, draped it over his shoulders, and headed straight for the door.

As he walked, he said:
"Bring them in quickly!"

Upon hearing this, the palace guard who came to report at the gate quickly responded:
"As ordered!"

He then hurriedly left before Zhu Cilang could even step out.

Immediately afterwards, the door was opened again, and a gust of cold wind rushed in, making Zhu Cilang's face sting a little, but Zhu Cilang didn't care at all and walked straight out.

He couldn't wait to find out what had happened in Shaanxi.

Seeing this, Ma Bao quickly followed, anxiously calling out:

"Your Highness, slow down! The ground is slippery, be careful not to fall!"

But Zhu Cilang ignored it and strode out anyway.

Before long, Zhu Cilang encountered a weathered-looking soldier and two guards from the Eastern Palace on the way.

The soldier was wearing a tattered cotton armor, his face etched with fatigue and hardship, clearly having endured a long journey.

The moment the soldier saw Zhu Cilang, he knew without a doubt that he was the Crown Prince, and immediately cupped his hands and said:

"This humble general pays his respects to the Crown Prince!"

The soldier was about to kneel after saying this, but before he could, Zhu Cilang quickly stepped forward to support him and asked anxiously:

"Don't be so polite, tell me quickly, what exactly happened in Shaanxi?"

The soldier dared not delay and quickly took out the secret box containing the memorial from his back, handing it to Zhu Cilang as he said:
"Your Highness, a major upheaval has occurred in Shaanxi. Internal strife has broken out within the peasant army, and Luo Rucai has surrendered to the court. The details are all in this memorial. I request Your Highness to review it."

Upon hearing this, Zhu Cilang felt a surge of excitement.

He never expected such a good thing to happen in the dead of winter.

Immediately afterwards, he reached out and took the secret box, opened it, and took out the secret letter from it.

Just as Zhu Cilang was about to check the message from the believer, he suddenly thought of something and looked at the soldier who had delivered the message, saying:

"Go and rest first, you must be tired from the journey."

Then he looked at the guard beside him and said:
"Take good care of them."

The guards quickly accepted the order:

"As ordered!"

The soldier who delivered the message also hurriedly kowtowed in gratitude:
"This humble general thanks Your Highness!"

Zhu Cilang stopped talking and hurriedly returned to his study.

After sitting down, Zhu Cilang couldn't wait to open the memorial. He wanted to see what was going on and how such a big change had happened out of nowhere.

However, after reading the general content, Zhu Cilang couldn't laugh anymore.

Zhu Cilang didn't really know much about Luo Rucai, only that he was a relatively famous peasant army leader at the end of the Ming Dynasty.

Moreover, it seems that in the original historical records, he was later killed by Li Zicheng. How come he suddenly betrayed Li Zicheng and surrendered to the court?

The reason behind this left him somewhat puzzled.

Perhaps it's because of the butterfly effect caused by his time travel?

(End of this chapter)