Daming: After self-explosive time travel, Lao Zhu's mentality collapsed

Hong Chengchou slowly stood up and looked around.

All the officials knelt down and waited respectfully for the emperor's instructions.

"My dear ministers, please stand up." Hong Chengchou said in a loud voice, "I have just ascended the throne and I still need your assistance."

"The foundation of a country lies in loyalty to the emperor and patriotism. From now on, anyone who is disloyal and unjust will be executed without mercy!"

"Yes!" All the officials responded in unison.

Hong Chengchou added: "Now the treasury is empty and the borders are constantly at war. My dear ministers, do you have any good ideas?"

Minister of Finance Tian Wenxiang stepped forward, bowed and said, "Your Majesty, I think we should first help the people."

"As long as the people live and work in peace and contentment, the foundation of the country can be stable. It is better to open the warehouses to provide disaster relief, reduce taxes, and let the people breathe."

"Good!" Hong Chengchou nodded approvingly, "Let's do as you say, my dear minister. I will issue an edict to the whole country and implement the new policy!"

"Thank you, Your Majesty!" Tian Wenxiang was overjoyed and kowtowed repeatedly.

Shen Rong also said: "Your Majesty, there are constant wars on the border, Xixia and Dajin are eyeing us covetously. Our soldiers are stationed day and night, and they are really exhausted!"

"Minister Shen is right." Hong Chengchou pondered for a moment, "I will order the Minister of War Yu Dayan to lead the army to reinforce the border."

"I and Lord Shen will lead the troops to the battlefield! Defeat Xixia and Jin in one fell swoop and return our land to the Ming Dynasty!"

"Yes!" Shen Rong agreed respectfully.

"And." Hong Chengchou's eyes sternly looked around at the ministers, "I am about to ascend the throne, but I don't see the queen and the crown prince. I wonder where they are?"

When these words were spoken, all the ministers looked at each other, not knowing how to respond for a moment.

Seeing this, Hong Chengchou became even more suspicious.

Could it be that there is another hidden reason behind this matter?

He looked around and saw that all the ministers had grim expressions on their faces, and no one dared to speak in response.

"Strange, how could the Queen and the Prince disappear for no reason? Could it be... Could it be..." The more Hong Chengchou thought about it, the more he felt something was wrong, and an ominous premonition arose in his heart.

At this moment, there was a sudden noise outside the hall.

I saw a little eunuch, panting, rushing in, crawling and tumbling.

"Your Majesty! It's bad! The Empress and the Crown Prince..." The eunuch almost bit off his tongue and said in a trembling voice, "When they were found, they were already dead..."

"What?" Hong Chengchou slammed the dragon throne suddenly, and he felt like he was struck by lightning.

"The Queen and the Crown Prince are dead? How is this possible?"

The ministers were in an uproar and talked a lot.

"Could it be that an assassin sneaked into the palace and assassinated the Queen and the Crown Prince?"

"That's not right. The palace is heavily guarded. How could we allow assassins to act recklessly?"

"Could it be... Could it be a palace coup?"

Before he finished speaking, Hong Chengchou was already furious.

"Come here, investigate this matter thoroughly! We must get to the bottom of it and give justice to the Queen and the Crown Prince!"

"Yes, Your Majesty!" His Highness's guards took the order and left.

Hong Chengchou had a gloomy expression and his eyes swept across the faces of his ministers.

"My dear ministers, do you know the inside story of this matter? Who can give me an explanation?"

After this question, all the ministers were even more silent, and no one dared to speak.

Hong Chengchou was so angry that he was shaking all over. Just as he was about to explode, a voice suddenly rang out.

"Your Majesty, I may know something about this."

The person who spoke was the eunuch chief who had not been seen for a long time—Li Lianying!

Hong Chengchou's eyes lit up, and he quickly said, "Li, tell me quickly, what happened to the Queen and the Crown Prince's death?"

Li Lianying knelt respectfully on the ground and whispered, "Your Majesty, the Empress and the Crown Prince were poisoned." "What? Poisoned?" Hong Chengchou was horrified, "Who did it? Tell me quickly!"

"Yes, yes." Li Lianying looked embarrassed and said hesitantly, "It was Wei Zhongxian. Commander Wei's hand."

"Wei Zhongxian?" Hong Chengchou was struck by lightning. "Hasn't he been executed? How could this happen?"

"Your Majesty, you don't know," Li Lianying sighed, "Although Wei Zhongxian was executed, his followers are still stirring up trouble in the court."

"Some time ago, the Empress and the maidservants around the Crown Prince suddenly died. I suspect someone poisoned them."

"Asshole!" Hong Chengchou was furious. "Wei Zhongxian, this traitor, is still trying to harm me even after his death! All of his followers should be killed!"

"Come here, seal the palace gates immediately and thoroughly investigate the remnants of the Wei Party. Don't let any of them go!"

"Yes!" The guard took the order and left.

Hong Chengchou looked at the ministers again, his eyes like a torch: "My dear ministers, the Wei Party is in chaos, and the court and the country are shaken. I will take the throne today and start a massacre to clean up the court!"

"Anyone who is involved with the Wei Party will be severely punished and will not be tolerated! What do you think?"

All the ministers were terrified when they heard this.

They looked at each other and swallowed secretly.

Although he was worried, he had to express his opinion when faced with the king's questioning.

"Your Majesty is wise and wise. We agree with your decision. The Wei Party has brought disaster to the country and the people. Their death is not a pity."

"Very good!" Hong Chengchou nodded with satisfaction. "From now on, I will reshuffle the cards and appoint loyal and good people. My dear ministers, please share my worries!"

"Yes, Your Majesty!" All the ministers responded in unison.

"Shen, my dear minister," Hong Chengchou cast his eyes towards Shen Rong, "You are my confidant and a pillar of the Ming Dynasty. The country is in turmoil right now, and there is a war on the border. I am preparing to go to the battlefield myself, and I need you to assist me."

Shen Rong was overjoyed when he heard this.

He knelt down hurriedly and said loudly: "Your Majesty, I am willing to live and die with you and swear allegiance to you until death! I will definitely help you defeat Xixia and Jin Bang and return our land to the Ming Dynasty!"

"Good!" Hong Chengchou was delighted. "Your loyalty is deeply appreciated!"

"My dear Yu," he looked at Yu Daying again, "you are the leader of the current martial arts world, and you are highly respected in the martial arts world. I would like to ask you to come out of seclusion and lead the army. What do you think?"

Yu Dayan clasped his fists and bowed, saying in a deep voice: "Your Majesty, I am grateful for your kindness! But..."

"Just what?" Hong Chengchou asked with a frown.

"It's just that I'm a rookie, I'm afraid it's hard for me to take on this important task!" Yu Dayan sighed, "Besides, I have responsibilities and I have to preside over Wudang."

Hong Chengchou felt a little disappointed when he heard this.

But he thought again, Yu Daying was still young and it was his first time to serve as an official. It would be difficult for him to handle things on his own.

Thinking of this, Hong Chengchou no longer forced himself.

"Forget it. If you don't want to, I won't force you." Hong Chengchou waved his hand. "Then please go back to Wudang and take charge of the affairs of the martial arts world."

"Thank you, Your Majesty!" Yu Daying breathed a sigh of relief and thanked him repeatedly.

Hong Chengchou looked around at the ministers and said, "My dear Tian, ​​I will trouble you to take care of the position of Minister of Revenue. The national treasury is empty and people's livelihood is in decline. I need you to find a way to increase revenue and reduce expenditure!"

Tian Wenxiang accepted the order and said, "I obey your order. But where will the money and grain come from? Does Your Majesty have any good ideas?"

Hong Chengchou pondered for a moment and said slowly: "When I ascended the throne, I wanted to change the old problems of the previous dynasty. Why not start with the treasures in the palace and sell them off to the army?"

You know, the burial objects of emperors of all dynasties are priceless treasures.

If they were sold as soldiers, wouldn't that empty the national treasury?
The ministers looked at each other, not knowing what to do for a moment.

Hong Chengchou noticed the hesitation of the crowd and snorted coldly: "What? What are you still hesitating about?"

"The people of the Ming Dynasty live in poverty. How can I, who ascended the throne, be immune to it? Those burial objects are a waste of money and labor. Now that they are taken out to help the poor, it is exactly what I want!"

"Are you still going to disobey my will?"

The ministers were shocked when they heard this. (End of this chapter)