Emperor Chongzhen was too extreme.

Chapter 146 A Risky Journey: The Infernal Affairs

You, Zhu Changxun, dare to call yourself an "orphan" or "widow"?!
I, I, I! You dog-footed emperor!
This was the most genuine thought in the hearts of the princes in the Henan Provincial Administration at that time.

In comparison.

Zhu Youjian, who was originally seen by everyone as cruel and bloodthirsty and not like a ruler, now seemed to be the one destined by heaven.

After all, no matter what, he was a legitimate emperor who had gone through a series of procedures and was properly selected.

What even Zhu Youjian himself did not anticipate was...

After he issued this imperial edict, the opinions of the various vassal kings changed drastically.

There is no harm without comparison.

Originally, due to Zhu Youjian's execution of the Prince of Qin, the princes of various regions in the Ming Dynasty both hated and feared him.

But now that scoundrel Zhu Changxun has appeared.

The princes suddenly felt that Zhu Youjian was the true and well-deserved emperor, and he seemed much more pleasing to the eye.

Anyway.

He accomplished many great feats, including providing disaster relief in Shaanxi, repelling foreign tribes from the grasslands, and eliminating disloyal vassal states.

Although some of the methods may have been mishandled in the eyes of the kings, at least the original intention was for the good of the Ming Dynasty.

As for Zhu Changxun, that beast, his very intentions were evil.

Not only were their intentions bad, but what they did was even worse!

Therefore, upon receiving the imperial edict from the Forbidden City, Prince Fu was immediately seen as a clown by the other princes of Henan.

To make the clown, Fu Wang, even more thorough.

After a vassal king held his so-called "coronation ceremony" in his own territory.

He even specially ordered someone to deliver an "imperial edict" to the Prince of Fu's residence.

The imperial edict ordered Prince Fu to keep quiet and hurry up and crawl all the way from Luoyang to pay his respects to the emperor.

And at this moment.

Zhu Changxun was still indulging in his pleasures in Suzhou Prefecture, completely unaware of what was happening outside.

However, good times are always very short.

That night.

Zhu Changxun, who was snoring loudly, was shaken awake from his bed by his men.

"Your Highness! Your Highness! Something terrible has happened! Within a single day, three princes in Henan Province have successively declared themselves emperors in their respective territories!"

When the drunken Zhu Changxun first heard about being declared emperor and ascending the throne, he didn't react at all. He just looked sleepily at the dragon robe on the shelf in the room.

This dragon robe.

These were clothes that Zhu Changxun had always dreamed of wearing.

Three years ago, he devoted a great deal of effort to having hundreds of skilled craftsmen secretly sew this dragon robe.

I brought it out of my hometown of Luoyang this time specifically to fulfill a long-cherished wish of mine.

Half-awake, Zhu Changxun looked at the magnificent dragon robe beside his bed, feeling as if he were in a dream.

But when his subordinates repeated what they had just said to him again, he was completely taken aback.

Zhu Changxun, who weighs two to three hundred pounds, practically jumped off the bed.

"What did you say?!"

"It's absolutely true, Your Highness! The Prince of Tang, the Prince of Zhou, and the Prince of Zhao held a ceremony together today, and the news has already spread throughout Henan."

"And what?!" Zhu Changxun's eyes widened in anger.

"And they each sent messengers with messages, saying that you should come to see them!"

Listen to these words.

The fat on Zhu Changxun's face trembled with the intense emotions churning within him.

At this moment, Zhu Changxun had only one question on his mind.

How dare those people presume to declare themselves emperors?!
He declared himself emperor, but he gained the support of powerful families and clans all over the country. What gave them the right to do so?
Zhu Changxun practically clutched his chest as he forced himself to ask this seemingly brainless question.

The reply from his subordinates left him completely dumbfounded.

The emperor actually issued an edict allowing all princes to declare themselves emperors?!
How could he do such a thing?
The sheer rebellion and moral decay involved are beyond words.

Zhu Changxun was so angry that he almost fainted. He had to pound his chest to catch his breath before he calmed down a little.

It wasn't just Zhu Changxun.

Soon, the representatives of all the major families who remained here also heard this shocking news.

The reactions of the crowd were almost identical to those of Zhu Changxun.

Even after everyone gathered together again late at night, they still felt like they were dreaming.

Even during the most chaotic period in Chinese history, the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms, there was never a scene where three kings declared themselves emperors in a single day.
Moreover, the emperor's edict was so unbelievable, it was like a joke.

Zhu Changxun opened his dry lips and looked at everyone: "Gentlemen, what should we do now?"

Unlike the previous two days when everyone was eager to speak, this time everyone in the room fell into a deathly silence.

After a while.

Seeing that no one spoke up, Qian Qianli of the Suzhou Prefecture Qian family forced himself to stand up and say, "None of us expected that person to act so unreasonably."

"And so, our plan to launch a northern expedition by invoking public opinion has completely failed."

Qian Qianli appeared to be struggling to say these words.

He was extremely reluctant to face the fact that the plan they had painstakingly devised had been thwarted by the other side in such a shameless manner, almost like a child's fight.

Someone sighed and added, "That's not all."

"The news of the three princes declaring themselves emperors will soon spread throughout the Ming Dynasty, and at that time, the vassal princes who originally had no intention of declaring themselves emperors will probably follow suit."

"From this moment on, all provincial administrations of the Ming Dynasty will be plunged into chaos, and everyone will blame it all on His Highness Prince Fu, who first spread the news of his ascension to the throne."

Everyone understands the principle that "one's momentum may wane after a single effort."

"At that time, let alone manipulating public opinion, we would be lucky if we weren't drowned in the people's curses. Prince Fu will likely bear the greatest pressure from public opinion."

Zhu Changxun didn't react with any further emotion upon hearing this.

From the moment he decided to declare himself emperor, he was prepared to be criticized.

Let them curse, it's not like we can really do anything to them.

If he can't even handle this little setback, how could he possibly join the others in undertaking this earth-shattering act of establishing a separate central authority?
Under immense pressure.

Zhu Changxun was not pessimistic at all; on the contrary, he gradually adjusted his emotions.

Seeing the grieving elders of the noble families, Zhu Changxun got up from his chair and went to the center of the room.

After scanning everyone present, he slowly said, "Gentlemen, things have developed to this point, and there's nothing left to be discouraged about."

"Although my nephew's unexpected move did catch us off guard."

"But no matter what, the advantage is still on our side."

Hearing Prince Fu's words, the pessimism in everyone's hearts gradually subsided.

Yes.

Although the emperor defeated their offensive through intrigue and trickery.

However, the emperor's true base of support is currently only the capital city.

Shaanxi, Shandong, and North Korea—these three provinces, which have just emerged from turmoil, are only partially crippled and cannot be of much help.

What this group of people controlled was the most prosperous and vast core territory of the Ming Dynasty.

Xu Guangxu from the Xu family stepped forward and added, "His Highness Prince Fu is right; the tide of the world still rests on our side."

"The emperor's actions are merely a way to prolong his own life. As long as we work together, it's only a matter of time before we take him down."

Then he looked at Zhu Changxun and said, "Your Highness, please feel free to give us any instructions."

Zhu Changxun knew that the more critical the moment, the more everyone needed a pillar of support.

The total strength of the Prince Fu's mansion may not be comparable to some second-rate aristocratic families, but his status allows him to become the leader of an aristocratic group.

Therefore, Zhu Changxun gave the order without any hesitation:
"The most important thing to do right now is to make the Hebei area withstand the pressure from the capital and prevent it from continuing to expand its influence to the south."

at this time.

Huang Ze and the elders from the other three families in Hebei looked troubled.

What made them so emboldened before was their knowledge that powerful families from all over the country would soon be coming to Hebei to provide support.

As for now
Me, attack the emperor?!
Definitely lose!
They keep calling him "emperor" and "little son" all they want to say.

Everyone was genuinely terrified of the emperor's fighting prowess.

Zhu Changxun could naturally see the inner struggle of the four people, and then he continued:
"I know that you four have some concerns about this, but please rest assured, elders. Although we are no longer able to successfully gather a large army to support Hebei, we will certainly provide as much assistance as we can."

"I propose that all military supplies and provisions needed for the war between Hebei and the capital be provided by me and the various southern aristocratic families."

"Not only that, we will also continuously send small numbers of elite soldiers to Hebei to bolster Hebei's prestige."

"If the four of you can keep the situation deadlocked for a while, then the emperor's head will still be ours! The credit will still go to Hebei!"

The others nodded silently upon hearing this, indicating that they would support Hebei as the Prince of Fu had suggested.

After a moment of serious contemplation, Huang Ze and the other three finally nodded slowly in agreement.

They were on the front lines of the battlefield, and they had no choice but to fight with all their might.

However, there is an advantage now: the prominent families in the south and the Shanxi merchants will provide them with tremendous logistical support.

In essence, war is all about logistics.

In this respect, they can completely outperform the capital.

Moreover, they generally understood this as well.

Even if you add up all the people in the capital who are capable of fighting, the number would only be around 30,000.

However, after gaining the support of powerful families in various regions, they were able to muster an army of approximately 150,000.

With 150,000 to 30,000, the advantage is in my hands!
Moreover, their mission wasn't simply to overthrow the emperor in Hebei; they just needed to defend their territory and prevent the emperor from advancing south. This didn't seem like a losing proposition for them.

only.

The initial excitement that had just begun to rise in the hearts of the four was largely extinguished by a cry of urgent news from outside the hall.

"Report! News has come from Hebei overnight that its border towns and counties have been invaded by troops sent by the emperor, and the gentry of three counties have already been slaughtered by the cavalry sent by the emperor!"

It wasn't just the four main victims who experienced emotional distress.

The others also twitched slightly upon hearing this news.

Even at this point, he still dares to take the initiative to attack?!
Huang Ze lowered his eyes and ordered with a gloomy face, "Tell them to shrink their battle lines first. We'll deal with the rest when I get back."

"Yes!" The subordinate hurriedly responded and left, not daring to waste a single moment.

Zhu Changxun narrowed his small eyes slightly.

My dear nephew is truly unpredictable and never disappoints.

Why couldn't I have encountered a fool like Emperor Jianwen, just like Emperor Chengzu did back then?!

This is a ruthless character who has no principles whatsoever.

It seems that the troops in Hebei alone are not enough to completely contain them in the capital.

Think of this.

A resolute glint flashed in Zhu Changxun's eyes as he stood up again and addressed the crowd:

"Ladies and gentlemen, you have all witnessed my nephew's methods once again."

"So if we want to keep it locked up in the capital during this period and prevent it from moving south even a little, we'll probably need to deliver another blow."

The group exchanged glances: "Prince Fu, please speak your mind. As long as that tyrant can be killed and peace restored to our Great Ming, we are willing to do anything."

Zhu Changxun looked at Xu Guangxu: "Brother Xu, I've heard that Xu Guangqi, a member of the nobility, has many dealings with those foreign devils?"

Xu Guangxu paused, then said, "That is indeed true."

He immediately understood: "Does the Prince of Fu mean that he should recruit those people and then use them to deal with the Emperor?"

Zhu Changxun nodded: "Not bad."

"Although I have never left the Ming Dynasty, I have heard that the Portuguese are skilled in the research of artillery."

"In that case, we might as well recruit a Frankish artillery army to serve us."

Someone hesitated, "Your Highness, if we really allow those Frankish people to enter our Great Ming, wouldn't that further threaten the stability of our Great Ming?"

Before Prince Fu could speak, Xu Guangxu stepped forward to retort:
"Why bother with these things now? Killing the emperor is the top priority. Everything else can wait until later!"

Because of Xu Guangqi.

The entire Xu family has some close ties with various foreign forces.

To put it bluntly, it's about worshipping foreign things and fawning over foreigners.

Therefore, Xu Guangxu certainly hoped that foreign forces would enter the Ming Dynasty.

Seeing that Xu Guangxu had said this, the others did not raise any further objections.

What they said makes sense.

In any case, getting rid of the emperor is the most important thing.

Thus, the initial plan for recruiting foreign troops into the Ming Dynasty was established.

Zhu Changxun, however, still felt that this measure alone was not safe enough.

Although the foreign army is strong, my nephew is also quite formidable, so I must give him another push.

Zhu Changxun then looked at the managers of the eight major Shanxi merchants inside the room:
“Eight managers, if you really want to bring down my nephew, you will need to put in a lot of effort.”

The eight Shanxi merchants exchanged glances: "Whatever we can do for Prince Fu, just give the order."

In fact, the Shanxi merchants did not want to get involved in this matter; they only wanted to do business and make money.

But the emperor posed too great a threat, and Shanxi wasn't too far from the capital.

So there's no way to avoid getting involved in this mess.

Zhu Changxun spoke calmly, "I need your material assistance to the Later Jin."

"In this way, with Hebei and the Later Jin attacking from both sides, we can more easily deal with that person in the capital."

The Shanxi merchants weren't bothered by this, as they had been doing business with the Jurchens all along.

So be it, we'll just provide aid. At most, it'll just cost us a little money.

The others were quite unsettled by these words.

Especially the representatives from Yangzhou Prefecture.

For some reason, they suddenly felt a chill on their necks, as if an extremely strong killing intent had suddenly attacked them.

Immediately, someone objected, saying, "The Jurchens are cunning and skilled in battle. If we were to give them aid, wouldn't that be like adding wings to a tiger?"

"If the Jurchens really do breach the capital, wouldn't that mean our Ming Dynasty has been handed over to them?!"

The eight Shanxi merchants remained unmoved by these words.

Before the Jurchens entered the pass, they were the Eight Great Merchants; if the Jurchens had actually entered the pass, they would still be the Eight Great Imperial Merchants.

Scared!
The Shanxi merchants immediately retorted, "Please rest assured, even if the Jurchens enter the pass, with our efforts, you will still enjoy wealth and prosperity for generations to come."

But this time, the people weren't so quick to agree.

The Jurchens were no ordinary foreigners; once they entered the pass, they could very well have caused the entire land of China to sink.

One side felt it was possible to provide aid to the Golden Man, while the other side felt it was absolutely unacceptable to provide aid to the Golden Man.

The two sides then began to argue.

but.

Ultimately, the voices of those who provided aid outweighed those who refused to provide aid.

Therefore, just like recruiting foreign troops, a preliminary plan was set for this matter.

Only then did everyone breathe a sigh of relief.

The threat from the Later Jin, the concerted efforts of powerful families across the land, and the advanced artillery of the foreigners.
This time, surely we can finally take over that tiny capital city?

This is no longer a conspiracy or trickery, but a pure crushing of strength.

If anything unexpected happens again this time, they might as well all find a block of tofu and smash their heads against it and die.

A duck that's already ninety percent cooked is impossible to let escape this inescapable net.

at the same time.

In the capital city.

Before dawn, Zhu Youjian arrived at the Qianqing Palace to handle various state affairs.

Wei Zhongxian carefully served him from the side.

While Zhu Youjian was resting for a moment, Wei Zhongxian handed him a cup of tea and reported, "Your Majesty, news came from the palace last night."

"Yesterday alone, three princes in the Henan Provincial Administration declared themselves emperors, and today the number will probably be even greater."

"In this way, the conspiracy of Prince Fu and others has been completely thwarted, and the capital has been temporarily relieved of its urgent crisis."

Although this was exciting news for the royalists.

But Wei Zhongxian showed little joy on his face.

Given the current state of the Ming Dynasty, there's really no reason to be happy.

Zhu Youjian could naturally see what Wei Zhongxian was thinking.

With the mindset that listening to both sides leads to clarity, he said to Wei Zhongxian, "Tell me your concerns."

Wei Zhongxian would naturally not hesitate at such a time, for His Majesty was not a master who could not listen to honest advice.

"Yes!"

"What I'm worried about right now is that after the Prince of Fu and the various noble families see their schemes fail, they might resort to even more heinous methods."

"For example, colluding with the Later Jin."

The shrewd Wei Zhongxian had a clearer understanding of the current situation.

The capital city has long faced pressure from the Later Jin.

Meanwhile, Liaodong and Shanxi were constantly exchanging glances with the Later Jin.

Furthermore, those powerful families were even willing to establish a separate central government in order to overthrow His Majesty.

For them, colluding with the Later Jin was probably a foregone conclusion.

Zhu Youjian nodded slightly upon hearing Wei Zhongxian's words.

He saw further than Wei Zhongxian.

It is estimated that, in addition to the Later Jin, those people will also rely on more forces from other ethnic groups.

For example, the Portuguese, who currently occupy Macau and have extensive dealings with the southeastern coastal areas of the Ming Dynasty.

After all, for the sake of profit, powerful families and clans sell out their country for personal gain as easily and naturally as eating and drinking.

Seeing Zhu Youjian's thoughtful expression, Wei Zhongxian couldn't help but ask, "Your Majesty, if those scoundrels are indeed secretly colluding with the Later Jin, how do you plan to deal with this matter?"

How to deal with it?

Zhu Youjian couldn't help but recall the agreement he had made with Huang Taiji that their two countries would open trade a month later.

Now, less than a month has passed, and it's estimated that Huang Taiji will soon discover the changes on the Korean border.

In addition, the Ming Dynasty is currently in a state of dire straits.

I might be able to exploit various information gaps to play a counter-espionage game with the Later Jin.

They allowed the Later Jin to be used by them temporarily.

This allows them to take advantage of the situation and achieve their goal of profiting from the disaster.

(End of this chapter)