The Ming Dynasty began in the seventeenth year of the Chongzhen Emperor's reign.

Everyone agreed that each person was jumping more enthusiastically than the last.

Although Li Yan was very unhappy, he dared not object on his own.

If he were to stand up against the torture, he might be beaten to death on the spot by this group of brutes.

For these generals of the Great Shun River bandits, cutting off their source of income was tantamount to killing their parents.

Of course, there's nothing wrong with them cutting off other people's livelihoods, because they have knives in their hands!

Zhu Cilang's prediction was entirely correct. Li Zicheng was short-sighted and lacked ambition. If things continued like this, who would still be loyal to the Great Shun?

Li Yan felt utterly disheartened and disappointed in Li Zicheng and the Da Shun dynasty.

Li Yan was unaware that, under Zhu Cilang's influence, he began to regret joining Li Zicheng's gang.

Li Zicheng's one eye lit up, and he immediately approved it and issued an edict to establish the Donation-Based Town Pacification Office.

No one expected that the first government office established by the Da Shun army after entering the capital would be the Donation and Stamp Garrison Office.

Liu Zongmin, the highest-ranking official of the Zhenfu Division, was assisted by Gao Yigong, Li Zicheng's brother-in-law.

Clearly, in order to raise money as quickly as possible, Li Zicheng became somewhat reckless.

Upon entering the capital of the Ming Dynasty, he originally intended to ascend the throne and become emperor in the Forbidden City.

Upon ascending the throne, the new emperor granted a general amnesty and bestowed official titles and ranks upon meritorious officials.

For example, Liu Zongmin and Tian Jianxiu were granted the title of Duke, and Li Guo and Li Shuangxi were granted the title of Prince...

In addition, he has many important generals under his command, and a marquis or earl should certainly be given one of them.

Because of the lack of silver, the army's pay could not be paid in full, and there was not a single penny of reward money!

If Li Zicheng were to propose the idea of ​​ascending the throne at this time, his brothers might turn against him.

Now everything is fine; once Liu Zongmin's torture is over, everything will fall into place.

Thinking of this wonderful prospect, Li Zicheng immediately urged Liu Zongmin:

"Jiexuan, everything is ready. Start the torture as soon as possible. The soldiers are waiting for your good news."

Liu Zongmin bowed and accepted the imperial decree:

"As you command, Your Majesty, I will never disappoint you. Long live the Emperor!"

After the establishment of the Great Shun Dynasty, Liu Zongmin always called Li Zicheng the "Chuang King".

When the army entered the capital, Li Zicheng referred to himself as "朕" (Zhen, meaning "I" or "I"), and the others were very tactful, calling him "Long Live the Emperor" and "Your Majesty," which made Li Zicheng very happy.

However, there was an exception, which occurred with his closest brother Liu Zongmin. This rough and uncultured man refused to change his address and continued to call him the King of Chuang.

Li Zicheng didn't know whether Liu Zongmin did it on purpose or was simply not used to changing his address.

The two had a very good relationship, almost like brothers. Although Li Zicheng felt uncomfortable, he would not blame Liu Zongmin.

Today, the order was given to Liu Zongmin to be tortured. Thinking of the piles of silver, Liu hurriedly accepted the imperial decree and expressed his gratitude.

Overjoyed, he thanked His Majesty, addressed himself as a subject, and exclaimed "Long live the Emperor!" Li Zicheng was speechless.

It turns out this fool knew what he meant. He hadn't changed his mind earlier because the money hadn't arrived. Money really is everything!

He waved to Liu Zongmin:

"No need for formalities, go and get on with your business!"

"Alright, I'm off!"

After saying that, Liu Zongmin turned to leave.

Seeing that Liu Zongmin was about to torture Xiang, Li Yan remembered Zhu Cilang's words that Wu Sangui might surrender to the Qing, so he hurriedly stepped forward to submit a memorial:

"Wait, I have something to report!"

Liu Zongmin gave Li Yan a disapproving look, but didn't leave immediately; he wanted to see what Li Yan was planning to do.

When Li Yan was about to speak, Li Zicheng's heart skipped a beat.

From the moment the Ningwu Pass was breached, the scholar began to chatter incessantly in his ear.

No matter what Li Zicheng wanted to do, Li Yan always had something to say, and most of the time he opposed him.

When Li Yan first joined the rebel army, Li Zicheng knew he was a talented man and thought everything he said made sense.

Perhaps it was a change in status, or perhaps Li Zicheng himself became arrogant.

Now he feels that Li Yan is his nemesis, always publicly contradicting him, and he is getting annoyed with Li Yan.

When Li Yan presented his memorial, Li Zicheng knew he would object again, and he was somewhat displeased.

Li Zicheng was unhappy, but some people were very happy.

This person is Niu Jinxing. He plans to find loopholes in Li Yan's words, create trouble for Li Yan, and distance him from the center of power.

……

Seeing Li Zicheng's expression, Li Yan knew what he was thinking, and Li Yan suddenly felt very sad.

If what Zhu Cilang said is true, Liu Zongmin's actions led to Wu Sangui's surrender to the Qing, thus ruining China for hundreds of years.

Li Yan is determined to fight for justice today. Even if he is killed, it doesn't matter. The Ming Dynasty can be overthrown, but China cannot perish.

Li Yan glanced at the generals of Da Shun and found that they all had unfriendly eyes. For the first time, he felt lonely.

Without further hesitation, he bowed and said:

"Your Majesty, the establishment of a new dynasty should be a time of universal celebration, not a time for widespread torture. Such an act would lead to disunity and division within the court."

"Since Your Majesty has made your decision, I will no longer object. However, I must protect one person: Wu Sangui, the General of Ningyuan."

"Wu Sangui's hundreds of thousands of Guan Ning cavalry were the main force in the fight against the Jurchens outside the Great Wall. If Wu Sangui's father were interrogated, it might lead to the Guan Ning cavalry surrendering to the Qing."

"Once Wu Sangui surrenders to the Jurchens in anger, there will be no protection outside the Great Wall, and the Jurchen Eight Banners will directly march on Shanhaiguan."

Zhu Cilang was a time traveler, and he knew very well that even if Liu Zongmin hadn't touched Chen Yuanyuan or tortured Wu Xiang, Wu Sangui might still have surrendered to the Qing.

The Wu family and the Zu family are cunning; they bet on both the Ming Dynasty and the Jurchens.

Wu Sangui and Zu Dashou were the mainstays of Liaodong and the absolute main force in resisting the Jurchens. They were also the direct beneficiaries of the Jurchens' rebellion against the Ming Dynasty.

Wu Sanfeng, Zu Zeqing, and others had long since surrendered to the Jurchens and had been serving in the Qing Dynasty for many years.

The Jurchen Eight Banners invaded the border several times, and they were once at the forefront of these invasions.

Given the actions of these two dynasties, I ask you, in the history of China, apart from the Ming Dynasty, which dynasty could have been so tolerant?

The result of this tolerance was that Wu Sangui opened the Shanhaiguan Pass and surrendered to the Qing Dynasty, and Emperor Chongzhen ruined the Ming Dynasty...

Li Yan was unaware of history, since nothing had happened yet. He believed that if the Wu family were treated better, Wu Sangui might not surrender to the Jurchens.

Niu Jinxing thought Li Yan was going to stop Liu Zongmin from interrogating him, and he was ready to start a tirade, hoping to take the opportunity to kick Li Yan out of the game.

Li Yan's emergence had a significant impact on his official career. With Li Zicheng ascending the throne as emperor, his position as prime minister was likely in jeopardy.

Unexpectedly, Li Yan did not firmly oppose the torture, but instead tried to protect Wu Sangui's family for the safety of the Great Shun Dynasty, which greatly disappointed Niu Jinxing.

Li Zicheng was surprised that Li Yan hadn't stopped the torture plan this time. He immediately breathed a sigh of relief and burst into laughter:

"Minister Li's words are reasonable; permission is granted."

"Issue the imperial decree: No one is to be harmed by Wu Sangui's family. Anyone who disobeys will be executed without mercy."

After a moment's thought, Li Zicheng continued:

"For the sake of the safety of the region beyond the Great Wall, the torture is over. The soldiers of Guan Ning will be rewarded with 500,000 taels of silver, and Wu Sangui will be granted the title of Earl of Pingdong. What do you think, my dear minister?"

Li Yan's cold heart finally felt a sliver of warmth, and he hurriedly bowed in respect.

"Your Majesty is wise and sagacious! Long live the Emperor!"

……

The torture officially began. On Li Yan's advice, Wu Xiang temporarily escaped death, while Liu Zongmin regretfully missed out on Chen Yuanyuan...

Driven by greed for silver and military pay, the 50,000-strong Shun army immediately mobilized, hunting people down like hungry wolves...

It must be said that the army, which was originally composed of bandits, was extremely efficient at doing this kind of thing.

Within a single day, all the Ming officials, high and low, in the capital were arrested and taken to the torture chambers, where five thousand sets of torture instruments awaited them…

At Liu Zongmin's command, Wei Zaode, the Grand Secretary of the Ming Dynasty, was given priority and became the first person to be tortured.