Emperor Chongzhen was too extreme.

Chapter 136 All those who stand in the way of the Empire's progress must die.
In just a moment.

Zhu Youjian had already made his decision.

The itinerary remains unchanged; the journey back to Beijing will proceed via Shandong.

As for how to take those disaster victims under his control, he naturally already had a plan in mind.

The reason why powerful and wealthy families dare to use such methods is essentially because they feel they cannot help those disaster victims.

Or.

They assumed that the disaster victims could not be easily mobilized by them.

Logically speaking, that is indeed the case.

After all, starving people have no time to listen to nonsense, even if the speaker is the emperor.

At that time, they only had one thought in their minds: to fill their stomachs first, and to think about everything else after they were full.

They would only listen to the emperor if he could provide enough food to feed them first.

Zhu Youjian had also experienced hunger, so he naturally understood what people were thinking.

But it's a pity.

The powerful and influential families faced Zhu Youjian, who had experience from two lifetimes.

Zhu Youjian saw this tactic as an easy way to break the deadlock.

For Zhu Youjian, he did not actually need to obtain a large amount of grain to relieve the disaster victims.

All he needed to do was make the people of the Ming Dynasty genuinely believe that the emperor of the Ming Dynasty stood with them.

This way, he can bring all the displaced disaster victims under his control.

And that's what we want to achieve.

The best approach would be to personally go to the disaster area and, as emperor, personally lead the rescue and relief efforts.

The power of a leader is immense.

Not to mention that this leader was an emperor of a feudal dynasty.

This emperor had just won a war of conquest that destroyed another country, greatly enhancing the nation's prestige.

It was to be expected.

Under the gaze of so many eyes.

As long as Zhu Youjian's figure, dressed in a dragon robe, appears on the muddy riverbank.

The minds of those disaster victims will be greatly shaken, and all the rumors and gossip from the outside world will be disproven. They will also temporarily ignore their physical hunger.

From ancient times to the present.

There were quite a few emperors who personally led the charge into battle and killed people.

However, emperors who personally went to the front lines of disaster relief and rescue were indeed extremely rare.

sometimes.

You don't need to say anything grand or impressive to stir people's hearts.

A thousand words are not as good as silence.

Actions speak louder than words; they are the best proof that you can lead them out of their predicament, just as he did in his past life.

He had to do it first before people were willing to listen to him.

And then we just need to take advantage of this opportunity.

Then Zhu Youjian could easily lead this large group of disaster victims to rob the instigators of all this, namely those powerful and wealthy families.

By then, no matter what other new ideas those families in Shandong come up with, it won't matter.

Whether it's donating grain for disaster relief to win people's hearts, or manipulating public opinion and relying on so-called righteousness, it doesn't matter.

Zhu Youjian's response could be summed up in just one word.

That is killing.

He would not hesitate to kill any of those families who dared to appear in front of him.

Let's kill them first.

After the killing.

There are ways to gradually deal with all the consequences of murder.

Anyone who stands in the way of the empire's progress must die!
There's a dark humor to it.

The more disaster victims the powerful families and clans went to great lengths to create, the more support Zhu Youjian could mobilize.

To put it more bluntly...

The more they cause trouble now, the deeper they are digging their own graves.

Hundreds of thousands of people were affected by the disaster, and more than 100,000 died of starvation.
With so many disaster victims, Zhu Youjian could take the opportunity to thoroughly deal with Shandong on his way back to the capital.

As for how to resettle these people afterward, it's actually quite simple.

If all the powerful and wealthy families in Shandong have been killed, how can they not be able to resettle these disaster victims?
Thinking of this, Zhu Youjian shook his head at Mao Wenlong and said, "No need, we can still return to the capital via Shandong as originally planned."

Mao Wenlong wanted to say something more.

But looking at His Majesty's calm and composed face, and the confidence that he seemed to have made in the middle of it, I could see that he was very confident.

He ultimately suppressed his words of advice.

After leaving the room.

Mao Wenlong immediately explained the current situation in Shandong to the rest of the imperial procession and instructed them to make preparations in advance.

When people heard that there were so many disaster victims in Shandong, they were shocked and advised them to change their route and return to Beijing.

However, when they heard that it was His Majesty's order, they stopped trying to persuade him.

As long as His Majesty is here.

Even if the place ahead is a den of dragons and tigers, they would dare to go and venture into it together.

Matters concerning the overall situation should be considered by His Majesty.

Their job is simply to ensure His Majesty's safety and then carry out his orders unconditionally.

……

The number of people who returned to Beijing with Zhu Youjian exceeded ten thousand.

Such a large group naturally attracts a lot of attention.

Not to mention that many other forces were secretly watching Zhu Youjian's movements.

So it was almost as soon as Zhu Youjian left North Korea.

Kong Yinzhi and his team then received the intelligence.

Upon learning of Zhu Youjian's movements, Kong Yinzhi immediately ordered the news to be spread among the disaster victims.

The starving people, who had been starving for several days, heard that the emperor was coming back, and the green light in their eyes caused by hunger turned into a light of hope.

They gathered in large groups and surged toward the port where, according to rumors, the emperor would land on his return journey to Shandong.

The disaster victims are no longer able to think about much.

They hadn't considered where the emperor would get so much food to save them, nor did they know how the emperor would settle the more than 100,000 starving corpses.

They didn't even know why they were going with the crowd.

This is purely a collective unconscious behavior.

These people only want to fill their own stomachs, so the current emperor has become their only hope.

And this time.

The previous decree that prevented disaster victims from wandering around for fear of disturbing the emperor's presence also conveniently disappeared.

Now, not only can the disaster victims roam freely, but even if they openly try to stop the emperor, no one will care.

Not only that.

The Kong, Tian, ​​and Zhang families even sent people under their own names to escort these disaster victims, and they also gave them porridge along the way.

This naturally evoked another wave of gratitude from the crowd, which goes without saying.

At this moment.

Standing atop the high-rise building, Kong Yinzhi, Tian Hong, and Zhang Zhuo watched the crowded, disheveled figures of the disaster victims, and an indescribable smile crept onto their lips.

on the one hand.

They were laughing at their scheme that was about to succeed, and that their greatest threat would soon be eliminated.

on the other hand.

They were also laughing at how easily the common people could be fooled.

After robbing them of their possessions, they would slip a little out between their fingers, enough to earn their gratitude and even turn them into weapons against the emperor. The thrill of manipulating people's hearts and trampling on the masses was truly exhilarating for the three of them.

However, the blame for this cannot be entirely placed on the disaster victims.

Well known.

The world's best actors will always exist only in officialdom.

Local officials and powerful families joined forces to play the victim, and some people in the crowd continued to incite unrest.

Which ordinary people, already lacking in knowledge and having been starving for days, could possibly be fooled like this?!
There's no way around it; there are bad people among the masses and the officials!

However, the three of them only drifted off into a daze for a moment before quickly calming down.

Before the dust has settled, indulging in unrestrained celebrations might just bring misfortune upon oneself.

It wouldn't be too late to hold a grand banquet for several days after the emperor has truly died.

Kong Yinzhi was the leader of the three, so he was the first to speak and ask the other two:
"Are all the soldiers ready?"

Zhang Zhuo nodded: "Brother Kong, rest assured, the clan's elite armored soldiers have already hidden in the nearby cities."

"We'll swarm in once the emperor is trapped by those lowly people."

"At that time, with a little manipulation, these lowly people will also cause great chaos."

"Even if the emperor is surrounded by skilled soldiers, we cannot capture and kill him in one battle."

"But as soon as the emperor shows signs of weakness, the powerful and ruthless clans from other regions will surely rush over and join forces to tear him apart."

Zhang Zhuohua's words sound nice, though.

But Tian Hong, after calming down, still frowned with some unease and said:

"As far as I know, the emperor's methods of inciting people are extremely powerful."

"My only worry now is that the emperor will use all sorts of means to bewitch those unruly people and then lead them to turn their anger against us."

"After all, that emperor of our Ming Dynasty was probably capable of saying anything to achieve his goals."

Hearing Tian Hong's concerns, Zhang Zhuo and Kong Yinzhi did not refute them.

Although they have taken various precautions in the past few days, and these measures have indeed been very effective.

But who can guarantee that nothing will go wrong during this process?

Just as no one expected that the emperor's visit to Shandong would lead to so many astonishing events.

After a pause.

It was Kong Yinzhi who spoke up: "Logically speaking, we have already made all the arrangements."

“If the emperor cannot provide that much grain, then no matter how eloquent he is, he will not be able to persuade so many disaster victims to serve him.”

"However, what Brother Tian said earlier is correct. Although we have made arrangements in advance, we still need to consider the worst-case scenario."

"Now that the disaster victims are on their way to the port to wait for the emperor, let's put on another show of suffering today to win over more people's hearts, and also send more people to mingle among the disaster victims."

"At the same time, the three of us continued to keep an eye on the area and prepare enough food and supplies for disaster relief."

"As soon as the disaster victims show even the slightest unusual behavior, we will immediately appear in the name of disaster relief to distribute food to them."

"In this way, even if the emperor really gains popularity, we can still use the greater good to suppress him."

"Then, after just two or three days, things will still proceed as planned."

After Kong Yinzhi finished speaking, the other two nodded in agreement.

Although this move will cost the three families more money, it also adds another layer of insurance to the matter.

Things have come to this point, and there's no need to care about those few measly things anymore.

If you win, you can naturally take back everything you've lost in an even more extravagant way.

Those who lose will face utter ruin.

Now they have even considered the possibility that the emperor might resort to any means to deceive the people, and have made corresponding arrangements accordingly.

That's all there is to it, no matter how you look at it.

After making the decision, the three of them immediately set to work and began making arrangements for various matters in a very busy manner.

Soon, as night fell.

Under the planning of the Kong, Tian, ​​and Zhang families.

Those famine victims who fled to coastal cities and eagerly awaited the emperor's relief efforts finally had their first full meal in a long period of time.

For the more than 100,000 starving people who had traveled a long and arduous journey to this place, this meal was truly a hard-won treat.

During the day, Kong Yinzhi first appeared before everyone with Tian Hong and Zhang Zhuo, looking disheveled and unkempt.

When the three men saw so many disaster victims in Shandong.

The three men, led by Kong Yinzhi, immediately knelt down before the crowd.

After kneeling down, she cried so heart-wrenchingly, as if her heart was breaking.

While crying, she slapped herself in the face with all her might.

He kept cursing and saying things like he was incompetent and that as a descendant of a sage, he couldn't protect the disaster victims in Shandong.

This scene truly moved the disaster victims, and many of them even cried along with them.

Although Tian Hong and Zhang Zhuo are not very familiar to everyone.

However, the name of the Duke Yansheng is still very well-known in Shandong.

This naturally resonates with everyone.

After she finished wailing and crying.

In front of a crowd of disaster victims, Kong Yinzhi and his two companions announced that they would open the granaries and distribute grain, ensuring that the people of Shandong would have a full meal.

At that moment, several stewards stepped forward, looking troubled, and said that the mansion's food reserves were running low and probably not enough to feed so many people.

Kong, Tian, ​​and Zhang immediately flew into a rage, stood up, and slapped him across the face.

If we're still thinking about these things at a time like this, are we even human?!

I don’t care!
Even if it means selling everything in my mansion and going bankrupt, I cannot stand by and watch so many people in Shandong starve!
The butler was so ashamed that he covered his face and left, crying.

After overcoming numerous hardships and through the tireless efforts of the three families, they finally managed to provide the disaster victims with a full meal.

The play has gone this far; the three dignified heads of century-old families have slapped themselves in the face in front of everyone.

Not to mention that many people with ulterior motives have taken the opportunity to infiltrate the disaster victims and continuously manipulate public opinion.

Those disaster victims must have been deeply moved.

After everyone had finished eating.

Kong Yinzhi then stood up again and, together with Tian Hong and Zhang Zhuo, delivered an inspiring speech.

Its main message is that everyone must persevere.

The Emperor should arrive in Shandong tomorrow. He will surely find a way to save everyone. The Emperor is wise and mighty; this minor flood is nothing to worry about.
With the heartfelt speeches by Kong Yinzhi and others, the previously lifeless group of disaster victims became much more lively.

If you only look at this scene...

The Ming Dynasty was indeed a nation united as one.

With such unity, what difficulties could the Ming Dynasty not overcome?
But it's a pity.

As soon as they left the crowd, Kong Yinzhi and the other two immediately changed their demeanor.

Their swollen faces showed disgust.

It was a deep-seated disgust.

The disgust they felt was not because they had slapped themselves in public.

The three of them viewed this as merely a tactic, and there was nothing to be indignant about.

What truly disgusted them was...

It's because they spent too much time with those lowly people today.

Let alone someone like them, one of the top figures in the Ming Dynasty.

Even the lowest-ranking jailer in a county government wouldn't spend his days mingling with ordinary people.
Confucius once said: "The virtue of a gentleman is like the wind, while the virtue of a petty person is like grass."

Although it is not explicitly stated, it actually implies that there are social classes among people.

So for the three of them, the scene they were performing today was pure torture.

Fortunately, I won't have to endure this torment anymore.

The three of them had just received intelligence.

The emperor's fleet showed no signs of changing course; on the contrary, it headed straight for Shandong.

It should make landfall in Shandong around noon tomorrow.

This is absolutely fantastic news!
(End of this chapter)