I founded a heavy industry group in the late Ming Dynasty.

Chapter 161 The Left Army Commander Who Was Forged

In Chapter 160, the atmosphere in the main hall was even more tense than on the day of the Wanggongchang explosion.

Censor Zhou Ruolian stood in the center of the hall, holding his imperial tablet, and declared indignantly: "I impeach Chen Ying, the Commander-in-Chief of the Great Ning Army, for ten major crimes! First, embezzling grain tribute; second, colluding with pirates; third, abusing his power; fourth, plotting rebellion; fifth, using strange and ingenious tricks to bewitch and confuse the people; sixth, corrupting the simple and honest folk customs; seventh, flooding the market with industrial products, causing countless merchants to go bankrupt; eighth, engaging in price wars with refined snow salt, causing salt merchants to lose everything; ninth, overstepping the authority of civil officials and interfering in court affairs; tenth—"

"He has used miscellaneous learning to corrupt the teachings of the sages, thus devaluing all scholars! For these ten crimes, Chen Ying deserves to die; otherwise, he will not be able to atone for his sins!"

Chen Ying stood in the ranks of military officers, his face ashen. He listened as the accusations were listed one by one. At first, he wanted to offer some defense, but as he listened, he realized that this wasn't reasoning at all; it was labeling. If you presented evidence, he would talk about morality; if you talked about morality, he would talk about tradition; if you talked about tradition, he would talk about ancestral laws. In short, they were always right, and others were always wrong.

"Lord Zhou!"

Chen Ying finally couldn't hold back any longer, stepped forward, and cupped his hands in a gesture of respect: "What evidence do you have for what you're saying?"

Zhou Ruolian sneered, "Evidence? In the streets of Beijing, who doesn't know about your evil deeds, Chen Boying? Do you really need evidence?"

"Among the common people?"

Chen Ying's anger was building up; his fists were clenched, ready to smash a punch into his face. "Based on a few rumors, you want to impeach me for ten major crimes?"

Zhou Ruolian's expression changed: "You—you're being insolent! I am an imperial censor, and reporting rumors is a power granted to me by the court! How dare you, a mere military man, question me?"

"Reporting based on hearsay?"

Chen Ying stepped forward, his gaze sharp as a knife: "What rumors and hearsay? Isn't it just baseless speculation and fabrication? Where were you when I was fighting bloody battles in Liaodong? Where were you when I was building ships in Lushun? What were you doing when I was settling hundreds of thousands of refugees? You were writing impeachment memorials! You were supplying grain to the Jurchens! You were a lackey of the Donglin Party!"

"you!"

Zhou Ruolian trembled with rage, pointing a finger at Chen Ying and shouting, "You—you're spouting nonsense!"

"Making false accusations?"

Chen Ying sneered, "Ask everyone here whether the Donglin Party's claim of sending grain to the Jurchens is true or false. Do I need to produce the evidence?"

An uproar erupted inside the hall. The Donglin Party officials had varying expressions; some lowered their heads and remained silent, some glared angrily, and some were eager to stand up for Zhou Ruolian.

The problem is, they dare not. Chen Boying has evidence that the Shachuan Gang has collectively betrayed them and sided with him. Others might not have evidence, but Shen Huai'an certainly does. Chen Ying hasn't presented this evidence, actually for the sake of the bigger picture. The Ming Dynasty, like a broken ship, can't withstand any more turmoil. If the Donglin Party is pushed too far, they might really dare to throw the entire Jiangnan region into chaos. For them, it would be too easy, just like Kong Youde in history. Why did he rebel? He didn't really have a choice. The court wouldn't give him military rations; he had silver but couldn't buy food. His soldiers were starving, their eyes practically glowing with hunger. He had no other way out but to rebel.

The worst thing Kong Youde could have done was to surrender to Huang Taiji. Even if he had ruined the whole of Shandong, if he had been defeated and died, history would have given them a fair and objective assessment. But history doesn't offer so many "what ifs." Chen Ying is not alone now; he still needs grain from Jiangnan and time to develop.

When their navy has grown stronger and when he can obtain a large amount of grain from Southeast Asia, that will be the time to settle accounts with them. Now, the Donglin Party is overturning the table and artificially creating millions or tens of millions of refugees. Chen Ying has no strength to cover them. Just like the Ming Dynasty in history, from a military point of view, Li Zicheng and Zhang Xianzhong were defeated, but they did not have the food and silver to settle their bandits. Without food and water, they would definitely have to make choices.

Seeing the situation was turning sour, Zhou Ruolian quickly changed the subject: "Chen Boying, don't try to change the subject! I've impeached you for ten major crimes, and you haven't defended yourself against a single one! You're just feeling guilty!"

Chen Ying stared at him, enunciating each word clearly: "You want to defend yourself? Fine, I'll give you a defense."

He turned to face the Tianqi Emperor, cupped his hands, and said, "Your Majesty, may I ask Lord Zhou, do you have any evidence that I embezzled the grain tribute? That batch of grain tribute was sent to the Jurchens by the Donglin Party. I intercepted it to use as military supplies. Is that embezzlement? Do you have any evidence that I colluded with pirates? The Shachuan Gang has been building ships for the Ming Dynasty for generations. They are not pirates, but craftsmen! Do you have any evidence that I am hoarding troops? My troops are fighting in Liaodong against the Jurchens! Do you have any evidence that I am plotting rebellion? If I were plotting rebellion, would I be wasting my breath talking to you here? As for strange and frivolous skills, corrupting public morals, disrupting the market, and engaging in price wars, Lord Zhou, where did you get the cotton cloth you wear at home?"

Where does the salt you eat come from? Where does the iron pot you use come from? If it weren't for the artisans working day and night, you wouldn't even have enough to eat, let alone have time to impeach me.

Zhou Ruolian was rendered speechless by the rebuttal, his face turning pale and then flushed. He opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but found himself unable to refute it at all.

"You—you're just making excuses!" he finally managed to utter.

Chen Ying laughed: "Soliciting nonsense? Lord Zhou, you say I'm soliciting nonsense? Then I'll show you what real sophistry is."

He strode up to Zhou Ruolian and looked down at him. Zhou Ruolian instinctively took a step back, but Chen Ying grabbed him by the collar.

"What are you going to do?" Zhou Ruolian's voice changed.

Chen Ying did not answer. He swung his right fist and punched Zhou Ruolian in the face.

"Bang!"

Zhou Ruolian's body spun in the air before crashing heavily to the ground. His nose was broken, blood was streaming down his face, and two teeth were flying out. He lay on the ground groaning like a dog that had been beaten senseless.

The entire court fell silent instantly.

Everyone stared wide-eyed at Chen Boying, then at Zhou Ruolian on the ground, and for a moment no one reacted.

"Chen Boying!" A censor was the first to recover, shouting sternly, "How dare you assault a censor in the imperial court! Do you have no respect for the law?"

Chen Ying flicked the blood off his hands and said calmly, "He slandered me, so it's only right that I beat him. The law? Is the law only for people like him?"

"Rebellion! Rebellion!"

Another official jumped in, "Everyone, charge! Take down this madman!"

Fighting in the imperial court was a glorious tradition of the Ming Dynasty. Civil officials often brawled with each other. A dozen or twenty civil officials rushed up and surrounded Chen Boying. Some threw punches, some kicked, and some grabbed their official tablets as weapons. Chen Boying neither dodged nor avoided them, letting the fists and tablets hit him. As a second-rank military officer, he wore a set of bright, fish-scale armor. Although it was not heavy armor, the blows from the civil officials were like tickles.

"Keep fighting! Keep fighting!"

Chen Ying crossed his arms and sneered, "I'd like to see what kind of tricks you can pull off."

An imperial censor rushed forward and threw a punch at Chen Ying's face. Chen Ying turned his head to the side, grabbed the censor's wrist, and twisted it gently.

The censor screamed and fell to his knees.

Another official lunged at Chen Ying from behind, trying to grab him. Chen Ying dodged to the side, and the official missed, falling headfirst to the ground and scraping his forehead. One, two, three—Chen Ying toyed with them like children; the civil officials couldn't get close to him at all. Occasionally, a few would grab his arms or legs, but he would easily flick them away, sending them flying far away.

Within half an incense stick's time, more than a dozen civil officials lay in the hall, some covering their faces, some hugging their arms, and some rubbing their knees, groaning incessantly. The rest stood on the periphery, looking at each other in bewilderment, no longer daring to approach.

The Tianqi Emperor, seated on his dragon throne, watched this scene without showing any anger. Instead, he whispered to Wei Zhongxian beside him, "Wei, do you think Chen Boying has the same flair as Zhao Zilong from the opera, charging in and out seven times?"

Wei Zhongxian suppressed a laugh and whispered, "Your Majesty, Zhao Zilong is on horseback, while Chen Boying is on foot. In my opinion, he is—he is Guan Yu going to the meeting alone with his sword."

The Tianqi Emperor laughed, and his laughter echoed in the empty hall.

The civil officials, hearing the Tianqi Emperor's laughter, were filled with both shame and anger. They couldn't defeat Chen Boying in a fight, they couldn't out-argue him, and even the emperor sided with Chen Boying. What could they do?

Finally, an elderly censor knelt down with a thud, wailing and crying, "Your Majesty! You must do justice for us! Chen Boying assaulted an official who dared to speak out in court—this is unprecedented! If Your Majesty does not punish him severely, we—we will kneel here and die!"

Other civil officials also knelt down, some crying, some shouting, and the hall was in complete chaos.

The Tianqi Emperor's smile faded. He looked at them and said calmly, "My esteemed ministers, how severely do you wish me to punish them?"

"Remove Chen Boying! Imprison him and punish him!" someone shouted.

"Remove Chen Boying? Imprison him?"

The Tianqi Emperor slowly said, "Then tell me, who will guard Lushun Pass? Who will fight the Jurchens? Who will feed the hundreds of thousands of military households and civilians in the Sixteen Garrisons of Yongning?"

No one answered. What a joke! Donglin Party officials are good at talking, but if you put them in charge of a county, they'd be in charge of everything. Looking at the entire Donglin Party, there are almost no people who can manage ordinary affairs. Sun Chengzong is one, and Yuan Chonghuan is another. Of course, Yuan Chonghuan wasn't a loyal minister of the Ming Dynasty, but he was much better than most of the Donglin Party members. At least he did some decent work.

From an objective and fair perspective, Yuan Chonghuan actually made contributions to the Ming Dynasty. In the second year of the Tianqi reign, after the disastrous defeat at Guangning, the Jurchen cavalry was unstoppable, and everyone in the court was in danger. Only Yuan Chonghuan, who was still a minor official at the time, rode out of the pass alone. After inspecting the strategic points, he volunteered, saying, "Give me troops, horses, money, and grain, and I alone can defend this place." In August of the fifth year of the Tianqi reign, after the defeat at Liuhe, Sun Chengzong was dismissed from his post, and Gao Di replaced Sun Chengzong as the commander-in-chief of Jiliao. His first act upon taking office was to completely reject Sun Chengzong's strategic plan. It was Yuan Chonghuan who withstood the pressure from Gao Di to withdraw his troops, held the isolated city of Ningyuan, and achieved the Ming Dynasty's first major victory against the Jurchens.

Unfortunately, Yuan Chonghuan was both the one who made him and the one who ruined him. Like countless officials in the Ming Dynasty, when he first entered officialdom and before he was corrupted by the corrupting influence of the political system, he was an official with ideals and integrity, and he also had the moral requirements of Confucianism: to cultivate himself, regulate his family, and bring peace to the world. Unfortunately, the higher the official rank, the more concerns he had, and in the end, he became a victim of politics.

The Tianqi Emperor stood up, his voice suddenly turning cold: "I know you dislike Chen Boying. He opened schools, allowing ordinary people to study, and you were unhappy; he opened workshops, allowing artisans to earn money, and you were unhappy; the salt, ironware, and cotton cloth he produced were cheap, affordable for the people, and you were even more unhappy. You are unhappy because he has threatened your interests, but have you considered that the people of the Ming Dynasty need to eat their fill, wear clothes, have houses, and use affordable, high-quality goods? Chen Boying is doing these things, and what are you doing? You are writing impeachment memorials."

The Tianqi Emperor grew increasingly angry, pointing at Zhou Ruolian, who had lost two teeth, and said, "Minister Zhou, the Yongning Military Command is still short of a fourth-rank commander. Do you want to take his place? You're currently a seventh-rank official; how about a promotion of five ranks to a fourth-rank official?"

"Your Majesty—what virtue or ability do I possess!"

Zhou Ruolian was so frightened that she shook her head and quickly refused.

"Liu Aiqing————"

"This old minister is old and requests to retire—"

None of them were fools. The Tianqi Emperor's biased stance was too obvious, and they could see it too. If they dared to take up official positions in Yongning, they would be killed unexpectedly the next moment. Don't underestimate Chen Boying's determination to kill them. The Tianqi Emperor sat down again and waved his hand: "All of you, step down. I know about the Wanggongchang matter. We'll discuss it later. Now, let's focus on providing relief to the disaster-stricken people and make sure they have houses to live in, clothes to wear, and food to eat as soon as possible!"

The word "disaster" perfectly encapsulates Emperor Tianqi's attitude and serves as a final verdict. No matter how dissatisfied they were, what could they do? Fight Chen Boying in the main hall? Oh dear, this was truly a difficult task for them. They had tried; Chen Boying was as strong as an ox. Perhaps he couldn't fight a top-tier general, but he could easily defeat these civil officials. The civil officials looked at each other, and in the end, they could only retreat in sullen disappointment.

Chen Ying was about to leave when the Tianqi Emperor called out to him, "Minister Chen, you stay."

Only Emperor Tianqi, Chen Ying, and Wei Zhongxian remained in the hall.

Emperor Tianqi leaned back on his dragon throne, looked at Chen Ying, and suddenly smiled: "Minister Chen, you did well today. I've been putting up with them for a long time."

Chen Ying smiled wryly and said, "Your Majesty, I feel relieved, but what about what happens next—"

"I'll take responsibility for what happens next," the Tianqi Emperor interrupted him, laughing dismissively. "Don't worry, I won't let you suffer. However, you should prepare yourself—I grant you permission to wear a sword and shoes in the palace. Next time, make sure you don't just lose two teeth. I'm annoyed by them too. You'd better severely injure them so they can't bother me for several months to six months!"

Chen Ying stared dumbfounded at the Tianqi Emperor: "Your Majesty, you really love stirring up trouble! What if I were to cause someone's death—"

"I hereby deduct six months' salary from your pay as a punishment!"

Wei Zhongxian also laughed and said, "Boying, that punch of yours really gave the Donglin Party a hard time. They've lost face today, and they won't let it go easily. You'd better be careful."

Chen Ying nodded: "This humble official understands."

This was only a temporary victory. The Donglin Party members would not give up easily; they would find another opportunity to retaliate. He knew this very well. The Tianqi Explosion was finally over, but he knew the real storm was yet to come.

As Chen Ying prepared to take his leave, Wei Zhongxian said, "Your Majesty, Chen Boying is currently only the second-rank Commander of the Daming Army. He cannot attend court assemblies without an imperial edict."

"What Wei Banban means is—"

"Promote him to the position of Commander-in-Chief of the Left Army Commandery —"

The Tianqi Emperor's eyes lit up: "Excellent!"

In order to allow Chen Boying to attend court and fight in court, the Tianqi Emperor promoted Chen Boying again to the position of Commander-in-Chief of the Left Army, which is a first-rank military officer and can be considered the pinnacle of military rank.

Upon hearing this, Chen Ying nearly collapsed: "Your Majesty, what virtue or ability do I possess—"

"You deserve it!"

The Tianqi Emperor waved his hand and exclaimed, "I am overjoyed! I wish I could personally go down into battle against them!"

Wei Zhongxian laughed and said, "Lord Chen, why don't you thank His Majesty!"

"Your Majesty, I thank you for your great kindness!"

He never imagined that a fight in the imperial court would lead to him becoming a first-rank military officer.

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