Transmigrating to the Chongzhen Emperor of the Ming Dynasty: Becoming a Great Emperor Through Idlene

Lu Wenzhao arrived half an hour later. When he arrived, Chongzhen was looking at a map.

The map of Beizhili (northern Zhili) marks the various passes along the Great Wall with symbols.

"Your subject Lu Wenzhao pays his respects to Your Majesty."

"Get up." Chongzhen didn't turn around. "Do you know why I summoned you?"

"I have heard that the Jurchens have entered the pass."

"Hmm." Chongzhen finally turned around and looked at him. "I need you to investigate a few things."

"Your Majesty, please give your orders."

"First, find out exactly how many Jurchens came this time," Chongzhen said, pointing to the map. "The Ministry of War says there were 80,000, but I don't believe it. Where did Huang Taiji get so many soldiers? I estimate at most 50,000, and most of them were Mongol vassals."

Lu Wenzhao nodded: "Your subject understands."

"Secondly, find out their true objective," Chongzhen said. "Will they just rob and run like they did the last two times? Or do they have other motives? For example... to scout out the defenses of the capital region in preparation for a future invasion?"

"Your subject will investigate."

"Third," Chongzhen's voice lowered, "investigate whether anyone in the court... is secretly colluding with the Jurchens."

Lu Wenzhao suddenly raised his head.

"You shouldn't be surprised," Chongzhen sneered. "The Jurchens broke through the pass so easily; internal and external cooperation alone wouldn't have been enough. Who was the commander guarding Xifengkou? Why did he collapse at the first touch? How did Wu Aheng, the Governor-General of Jiliao, die? Was he killed in battle or... murdered by his accomplices?"

Lu Wenzhao couldn't answer any of these questions. But he knew that the emperor was asking them so that he would investigate.

"Your subject... would gladly die ten thousand deaths."

"I don't want you to die, I want you to live and get to the bottom of this." Chongzhen walked up to him and said, "Lu Wenzhao, this is the Imperial City Guard's first mission. If you do it well, I'll trust you. If you mess it up... you know what will happen."

"Your Majesty, I understand." Lu Wenzhao knelt on one knee. "Your Majesty needs some manpower, and some... conveniences."

"If you need anything, ask Wang Chengen," Chongzhen said. "But remember, be discreet. Don't alert him before you've figured things out."

"Yes."

After Lu Wenzhao withdrew, Chongzhen returned to the map. His finger traced the place names such as Xifengkou, Zunhua, Qian'an, and Santunying, finally stopping at the word "Beijing".

Historically, Huang Taiji's invasion of the border would have lasted until April. He abducted hundreds of thousands of people and livestock, leaving the Ming army helpless. The Jurchens returned laden with spoils, and the Ming court suffered a humiliating defeat.

But now it's too late to stop it, it's unavoidable.

There are only two things he can do: First, minimize the losses. Second, take this opportunity to do something else.

"Wang Banban," he called out.

Wang Chengen agreed and came in.

"Has the money for the three main halls been allocated?"

"One hundred thousand taels have been allocated," Wang Chengen said. "The Ministry of Works has already begun purchasing timber and stone. Grand Secretary Wen is personally overseeing the process, and the efficiency is very high."

"Very good." Chongzhen nodded: "Go do one more thing: in my name, issue a secret edict to Dai Jun'en, the governor of Shanxi."

"Your Majesty, please speak."

"Tell him that this aid to Jizhou can be implemented as circumstances allow," Chongzhen said very slowly. "If the Jurchen forces are strong, we cannot fight them head-on; preserving our strength is the most important thing. But if there is an opportunity... we can harass their supply lines and burn their baggage. We don't need to win; we just need to delay them."

Wang Chengen wrote it down, but still had doubts: "Your Majesty, this... is not quite the same as what was said in court."

"The court is the court, and the battlefield is the battlefield," Chongzhen said calmly. "In the court, the more confused I am, the more Wen Tiren and his ilk will fight for power and interests, and they won't care about restraining the generals at the front. On the battlefield, the greater the freedom of the generals, the better they can perform."

That's true, but not entirely.

Chongzhen also had another consideration: he wanted to test how many of the border generals were truly loyal and how many were just saying one thing and meaning another.

Dai Jun'en wasn't particularly famous in history, but he was certainly no mediocre person to hold the position of Governor of Shanxi. His reaction after the secret edict was issued would reveal a great deal.

Chongzhen then said, "The secret edict will be delivered by the Embroidered Uniform Guard, but it cannot go through Lu Wenzhao's line. Use...use the name of the Eastern Depot."

Wang Chengen was increasingly confused: "The Eastern Depot?"

"Yes, the Eastern Depot." Chongzhen smiled. "Who is the current head of the Eastern Depot?"

"It is Eunuch Cao Huachun."

"Alright, issue it in Cao Huachun's name," Chongzhen said. "But let him know that this is my will."

Wang Chengen was completely out of sync with the emperor's thinking. Using the Eastern Depot's name, yet sending the Imperial Guards instead? And letting Cao Huachun know it was the emperor's order? This… wasn't this deliberately creating chaos?

But he dared not ask, and could only reply, "This servant obeys."

"Go. Remember, be quick."

After Wang Chengen left, Chongzhen went to the window.

The snow has stopped, but the sky is still overcast.

The sounds of clanging and banging could be heard from the construction site of the three main halls in the distance; the craftsmen had already begun their work.

Eight hundred thousand taels of silver. To build a palace.

Everyone thought he was crazy.

But he knew in his heart how much of the money was going to be used to repair the palace, how much would end up in the pockets of people like Wen Tiren, and how much... would go through Zhou Kui's channels and become his "seed fund".

Forty thousand taels is too little. He needs more.

Therefore, he needs this war.

War is the most expensive activity, but also the easiest to make money from.

The Ministry of Revenue needs to raise 500,000 taels for military pay? Fine. Let's raise it. But in the process, how much can be embezzled? How much can be misappropriated? How much can… be laundered clean through Zhou Kui's bank?

Emperor Chongzhen gazed at the gray sky outside the window, a cold smile curving his lips.

Thank you, Huang Taiji.

Thank you for providing this opportunity.

I will make good use of it.

In the evening, Lu Wenzhao delivered the first intelligence report.

It's short, but very important: Three days before the Jurchens breached the pass, Wang Yinghui, the garrison commander of Xifengkou, secretly met with a group of merchants. The leader of the merchants was a member of the Fan family, a Shanxi merchant clan.

The Fan family. It's the Fan family again.

After reading the note, Chongzhen unconsciously began tapping his fingers on the table.

It is a well-known fact that Shanxi merchants colluded with the barbarians.

But to have reached this point, clearing a path for the Jurchens before the war, this was no longer ordinary smuggling.

This is an act of treason.

"Continue the investigation." He told Lu Wenzhao, "Investigate the Fan family, investigate all officials and generals who have dealings with the Fan family. Especially those in the Ministry of War and the Ministry of Revenue."

"Your subject understands."

After Lu Wenzhao left, Chongzhen burned the note. The firelight illuminated one half of his face, while the other half remained in darkness.

The chess pieces were placed down one by one.

Wen Tiren openly repaired the palace, thus drawing the enemy's attention to himself.

Lu Wenzhao secretly investigated the traitor and sharpened his blade.

Wang Chengen played a role in connecting the dots and transferring resources.

Zhou Kui set up Qianwang (a money-making platform) behind the scenes to accumulate funds.

He sat in front of the chessboard, watching the game become increasingly complex.

not enough.

There is still one important piece missing, and that piece is technology.

He needs craftsmen, scholars, and people who can turn the "ingenious skills" in his mind into reality.

But not yet. He must survive first. Until the time comes for him to make that move.

night.

Emperor Chongzhen lay in bed, listening to the noise from the construction site in the distance, and suddenly remembered another sentence from Li Wei's graduation thesis:

"Chongzhen's tragedy was that he saw the problem but lacked the means to solve it. He possessed imperial power, but in that era, imperial power was no longer able to shake the entire corrupt system."

Now he has a new tool.

It is not imperial power, but a determination to survive by any means necessary, transcending the understanding of this era.

He will use these tools to activate the system.

Smash this system.

Snowflakes started falling again outside the window.

On the nineteenth day of the first month of the seventh year of the Chongzhen reign, news of the Jurchens breaking through the pass and entering Beijing spread throughout the city.

The emperor withdrew from court due to "dizziness," and the chief minister seized power. Meanwhile, the construction of the three main halls was in full swing.

Inside the Qianqing Palace, a young man was weaving a large net, but no one knew it.

A vast net that encompasses heaven and earth.