Late Ming Dynasty: Starting with the overthrow of the county magistrate, a rebellion was launched to

After such a long and rambling speech, not only were the jailers, Zhang Wen, and Zhou Wenqu dumbfounded, but even Zhang Da himself was filled with shame and anger, his face turning completely dark.

At this moment, Zhang Da felt his blood surging in his chest. After the shame and anger, he was shocked and furious. He was actually speechless in this dark and sunless prison because a female assassin used the wisdom of sages to refute him.

Is this still available?

Zhang Da looked around and noticed that everyone was glancing at him from time to time. Even the irritable Zhang Wen was hoping that Zhang Da would say something to refute the woman.

If I don't refute it, I'm afraid it will be difficult to convince the public.

"Hehe, you talk a lot about the way of heaven and the will of the people, and the classics of sages, but you only know one side of the story and not the other!"

Yes, the Great Ming Dynasty certainly had its flaws, officials were indeed corrupt, princes were indeed extravagant, and the people were indeed suffering—I never deny that! But the pain of a chaotic world and the turmoil caused by bandits should be the first things to be addressed!

You say that Chen Sheng, Wu Guang, the Green Forest and Red Eyebrows were acting on behalf of Heaven, but do you know that after they raised their army, they burned, killed, looted, and ravaged the world, causing the country to be depleted, the population to be halved, and the people of the world who died in the war far outnumbered those who died under oppressive government!

You say that Zhang Xianzhong and Li Zicheng were saving people from suffering, but do you know that wherever they went, not a blade of grass was left behind? They coerced the people like cattle and sheep, abandoned the old and weak by the roadside, forced women and children into prostitutes, looted all the gold and silver, and burned houses to the ground. They called themselves righteous armies, but in reality they were just bandits!

When Zhang Xianzhong entered Sichuan, he massacred the people, causing rivers of blood to flow. The prefectures and counties were devastated, and thousands of miles were deserted. I don't believe you haven't seen it! As for Li Zicheng, well, when he first rose to power, he still had some discipline. But after things went smoothly, he became arrogant, extravagant, and licentious, torturing and plundering officials and poisoning the people. He was defeated and died in an instant. How could he have acted in accordance with Heaven and the people?

The world is vast, and the people are numerous. What we need is not war and bloodshed, but stability, food and clothing, and a chance to recuperate and thrive!

Even if the imperial court has a thousand faults, it still has laws and regulations, and there are still soldiers on the frontier to resist the Manchu cavalry and protect the Chinese nation's culture!

Huang Taiji of the Manchu Qing Dynasty changed the name of the country and proclaimed himself emperor. His wolfish ambitions were obvious. The Eight Banners cavalry repeatedly broke through the Great Wall, plundered the Central Plains, and slaughtered the people. Hundreds of thousands of Han people were enslaved. This was the greatest disaster in the world and the most serious threat to China.

You are blind and deaf, unable to see the barbarian cavalry pressing in from beyond the Great Wall, unable to see the imminent peril of China, focusing only on the corrupt practices of the court, thus aiding the bandits in wreaking havoc in the Central Plains, destroying your own Great Wall, and causing internal and external troubles to afflict you one after another!

Mencius said, "There were no righteous wars in the Spring and Autumn period; if one side was superior to the other, then there were." Today, the world is in turmoil, with bandits running rampant. How is this different from inviting wolves into the house, when the Manchus invade? What you are doing is not acting on behalf of Heaven, but bringing disaster to the country and its people, harming your compatriots, and serving as a vanguard for the barbarian cavalry!

My loyalty to the Ming Dynasty is not to one family or clan, but to the Chinese nation, to protect the people of the Central Plains, to resist foreign aggression, to prevent the land from sinking, and to prevent barbarians from ruling the Central Plains!

I offered my plan to suppress the bandits in order to quell the internal strife as soon as possible, allow the people to return to their fields, and enable the nation to concentrate its strength to fight against the Manchus! What wrong have I done? Your assassination attempt on me is to aid the bandits, create chaos in the country, harm the people, and ultimately allow the Manchu cavalry to trample the Central Plains, turning millions of Han people into slaves of a conquered nation!

You claim to be a sage, with the people at heart, yet you commit such acts that bring disaster to the country and its people. How laughable, pathetic, and lamentable!

"Good! What you said, Dalang, is right!"

"That's right, that's right! I told you my brother was right! How dare you, you bitch, insult my brother like that? Do you really have a death wish?"

Hearing the words of agreement from those around him, Zhang Da breathed a long sigh of relief after finishing his sentence. He hadn't expected that his purpose of interrogation had turned into a debate between the two of them.

Thank goodness I didn't lose...

However, the debate did not end there. Instead of being frightened, the woman laughed even more fiercely, her eyes filled with even deeper hatred.

"What a fine promise of loyalty to China and protection of the people! What a predicament of being beset by internal and external troubles! Zhang Da, you are the most shameless and despicable person I have ever seen! Your ability to deceive yourself is simply unparalleled!"

Let me ask you—if the court truly protects the people, why does it levy exorbitant taxes, leaving them with nowhere to go? Why do princes occupy vast tracts of land, leaving the common people with nowhere to stand? Why do government troops kill innocent people and claim credit for their crimes, even more ruthless than bandits?

You say that bandits slaughtered civilians, but did the government troops not slaughter villages, towns, and cities? You say that they coerced refugees, but wasn't the court's forced conscription of laborers and forced recruitment of able-bodied men also coercion?

You claim to be resisting the Manchus, yet Yang Sichang and Hong Chengchou, who commanded large armies, didn't go beyond the Great Wall to fight the enemy. Instead, they focused all their efforts on suppressing the rebel army. They claimed that internal strife was necessary before external resistance. But who were they stabilizing? Corrupt officials, powerful princes and local tyrants, and the Ming dynasty itself, not the common people!

When ordinary people can't even afford to eat or save their lives, what's the point of talking about the traditional Chinese attire or the nomadic cavalry beyond the Great Wall? When the granaries are full, people know etiquette; when they are well-fed and clothed, they know honor and shame. When people are starving and freezing, dying in ditches, who cares whether it's the Ming or the Qing Dynasty? Whoever gives them food is their only hope for survival!

You accuse me of inviting a wolf into the house, but the Ming dynasty abandoned its people and treated them like dirt. How are they any different from beasts? The emperor treats his subjects like dirt, the subjects treat the emperor like an enemy, and the people treat the court like a foe. Why can't they find another way to survive?

In ancient times, Tang and Wu's revolutions were in accordance with Heaven and the people's will. Today, the people rise up in rebellion to punish tyranny. This is the way of Heaven, the norm, not chaos!

You accuse me of bringing disaster to the country and its people, but how is your role in guarding Hunan, killing corrupt officials, eliminating local tyrants, distributing land, and exempting taxes any different from what my army has done? You clearly know that the Ming Dynasty is dead and the Mandate of Heaven has changed, yet you insist on going against the will of Heaven, calling yourself a loyal minister, but in reality, you are foolishly loyal, pedantic, and aiding and abetting evil!

Our paths diverge, our beliefs differ. You died for the Ming dynasty, while I pave the way for the people. Our ways are incompatible; if you wish to kill me today, so be it. I have no point in arguing with you!

This won't do!

Zhang Da noticed that everyone around him was looking at him again.

Even if it means killing her, we should win first.

So Zhang vehemently refuted.

"Nonsense! Utterly wrong! I killed corrupt officials, eliminated local tyrants, distributed land, and exempted taxes in order to support the Ming Dynasty, rectify officialdom, save the people, and bring peace to the world. It was not for rebellion and separatism, nor for changing dynasties!"

The current state of the world is that unity brings peace, while division brings chaos. The Yellow Turban Rebellion at the end of the Han Dynasty led to the division of the world, a century of war, and the loss of one-tenth of the population.

The Huang Chao Rebellion at the end of the Tang Dynasty, the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period, brought immense suffering and devastation to the land.

At the end of the Song and Yuan dynasties, wars raged on, people were displaced, and nine out of ten houses were empty!

When bandits rise up everywhere and the world is divided, it is always the common people who suffer in the end! Millions of innocent lives!

I quelled the internal strife for the sake of national unification, for the peace of the people, and for the unification of China, not for the sake of any one family or clan!

You say that the people are starving and freezing, and whoever gives them food is their only hope of survival. But do you know that a meal for a short time is like drinking poison to quench thirst? A period of chaos is a catastrophe for all time!

"In a moment of anger, you aided the bandits in wreaking havoc, ultimately leading to the fall of the land, the loss of its dignity, and the enslavement of its people. You...you...you! You are the true sinner for all time, you...you deserve to die a thousand deaths!"

Zhang Da was now extremely angry, his words becoming incoherent. He pointed at the woman, who gave a cold laugh, seemingly seeing Zhang Da's desperate situation, and then said...

"A sinner for all time? Hahahaha... The real sinners for all time are the Ming imperial family, corrupt officials, and powerful gentry, not us ordinary people who were forced to rise up in rebellion!"

The cycle of Heaven, the rise and fall of dynasties, the Xia, Shang, and Zhou dynasties lasted only a few hundred years, while the Ming dynasty lasted for more than 270 years. Its fate has run out and the mandate of Heaven has shifted. This is the way of Heaven, which cannot be defied by human power!

Even if you possess extraordinary talent and the ambition to bring peace to the world, you cannot go against the will of Heaven. In the end, it is like a mantis trying to stop a chariot, overestimating your own strength!

Don't worry, I believe you will personally witness the fall of the Ming Dynasty and the ascension of my lord, the Eighth Prince, in your lifetime, hahaha...hahahaha!"

The woman burst into laughter, then suddenly remembered that Zhang Da was still beside her, and resigned herself to her fate.

"Today, there's no need for us to argue about right and wrong, no need to discuss the will of Heaven and the people. My assassination of you is for the greater good; your killing of me is for personal desire. Further discussion is pointless! Just kill me."

"Your mother!"

In the end, Zhang Da was speechless and could only slowly utter these words.

He lost.

Zhang stared blankly at the woman behind the wooden fence, her body covered in wounds but her eyes blazing with intensity. His heart was in turmoil, filled with a complex mix of emotions.

Zhang Da was simply unable to argue anymore.

In truth, he himself didn't want to work for Ming...

The Ming Dynasty was indeed corrupt and had lost the hearts of the people. The people were truly desperate, bandits were causing chaos, and the people were indeed forced to rebel by the officials.

He himself was contradictory, going against the will of Heaven, killing corrupt officials, pacifying the people, and reducing taxes on one hand, and being loyal to the Ming Dynasty and suppressing rebel armies on the other.

He could previously console himself with the idea of ​​serving his country. But that was ruthlessly exposed by this cultured assassin…

For a moment, the prison was deathly silent, with only the crackling of the lights and the heavy breathing of the two men.

After uttering that curse, Zhang remained silent for a long time, ceasing all debate and instead getting to the point.

"Saying all this is useless! I won't discuss lofty principles with you anymore. I'll only ask you—Zhang Xianzhong has now divided his forces into two routes, feigning attacks on Daning Pass and Jiudaoliang. What is his real breakout route? Tell me the truth, and I might spare your life, or at least give you some face!"

Upon hearing this, a flicker of surprise flashed across the woman's originally sharp eyes, which quickly transformed into deep sarcasm and disdain, a mocking smile playing on her lips.

"Come in, come in and I'll tell you..."

"Will you tell me or not...?"

Zhang Da was very impatient, then gestured with his eyes, preparing to drag him out for torture.

"Haha, Zhang Da, Zhang Da, it's one thing to be unable to argue with me, but how can you be so stupid? How dare you presume to speculate on my lord's military strategies? My lord's military tactics are unpredictable, beyond the comprehension of even gods and ghosts; how could a treacherous villain like you possibly fathom them?"

Zhang Da stared into her eyes.

The woman's eyes held such a death-defying resolve that Zhang Da's initial intention to use torture instantly vanished.

However, Zhang Da suddenly had a change of heart and smiled confidently.

"You won't tell me? I already knew!"

"I suppose your master Zhang Xianzhong's feigned attacks on Daning Pass and Jiudaoliang were actually to draw away the main forces of Zuo Liangyu and He Renlong, while you yourself are planning to lead your elite troops along the ancient salt road in eastern Sichuan, directly attacking the Fangxian and Zhushan line in Huguang, avoiding the Ming army's main force, and quietly break through!"

Upon hearing this, the woman's expression changed drastically!

The initial sarcasm and mockery vanished instantly, replaced by utter shock, panic, and disbelief, before returning to that defiant, death-defying expression.

But that's enough.

Zhang Da's heart sank, but he immediately breathed a sigh of relief—that was indeed Zhang Xianzhong's true breakout route!

People always want to try again after they've tasted success, and Zhang Da was no exception. So he continued talking along this line of thought.

"After your master breaks through the salt route, he will simply sail down the Yangtze River, take Xiangyang directly, destroy Yang Sichang's headquarters, then march south, invade central Hunan, first capture Baoqing, then take Changsha, occupy the heart of Hubei and Hunan, establish a separatist regime, and divide the world with the Ming Dynasty!"

Zhang Da slowly recounted his entire plan, then stared intently at the woman's changing expression.

However, the woman's face returned to its mocking and sarcastic expression, her eyes even carrying a hint of pity and disdain, as if she were looking at a clown.

What? Isn't that right?

After Zhang Xianzhong broke through the salt route and entered Huguang, if he didn't advance east to Xiangyang or south to central Hunan, where the hell could he have gone?!

He probably didn't want any of these things, and came all the way to my place after arriving in Huguang...

Zhang Da suddenly felt a chill and terror.