Saving the Ming Dynasty: I can exchange bodies with Chongzhen

Chapter 218: Let the officials and gentry suffer again, and I will bear the blame

September 19th,

Sun Kewang's troops entered Changde Prefecture.

Li Dingguo was truly brave and directly confronted the enemy in Changde Prefecture, broke into the city and annihilated the defenders. He killed General Dong Hanyong and former Vice Minister of the Ministry of Justice Liu Chengfeng in battle, and captured Changde Prefecture Governor Wang Jin alive. The whole country was shocked and officials in the capital rushed to the front.

As the two prefectures were conquered, many people came to surrender. They incorporated their young and strong people into the army, and the old, weak, women and children into the baggage train.

In just a few days, the reputation of the rebel army was once again greatly enhanced.

There were as many as three hundred thousand men and horses.

The government troops of the four provinces of Huguang, Nanzhili, Jiangxi and Zhejiang did not even dare to fight against them.

Huizhou prefect Zong Zhongda opened the city to surrender and wanted to negotiate with the Ming court on behalf of Shi Daoshen for amnesty, but Shi Daoshen chopped him on the neck.

Although his original purpose of starting the rebellion was not to change the dynasty, but just to have enough food to eat, it depends on who he follows. When he followed the Eighth King Zhang Xianzhong, he might have thought about getting an official position, but now he is following King Xin.

With Prince Xin's current prestige, changing the dynasty is not impossible!
September 21st,

The entire Huizhou Prefecture fell, and more than a thousand officials and gentry were beaten and killed.

At night, Chongzhen returned to the Qianqing Palace and listened to Wang Chengen talking about the ministers kneeling in the court and asking the court to send troops to wipe out the bandits. Then he looked at the memorials piled on the table that filled more than half of his body. He sat on the throne motionless, and the corners of his mouth could not help twitching.

He himself did not expect that Sun Kewang and Shi Daoshen were so good at fighting, and that Li Dingguo had originally rejected him.

Unexpectedly, he voluntarily joined Sun Kewang's camp, and in a short period of time the camp had grown to as many as 30,000 people.

And judging from his battle record, his military talent seems to be even more outstanding than Sun Kewang's.

I just don't understand why the generals in the court are all incompetent, but when they come to the peasant army, they are more brave than each other?
Could it be that I am really destined to be a traitor?
"Oh" Chongzhen couldn't help but sigh.

"Your Majesty, the troops from the five camps have already arrived. I don't understand why you have been keeping your troops in place?" Wang Chengen couldn't help but ask.

"It's not time yet."

"Isn't it time yet? The situation is like this. If Jiangnan is corrupted, many officials and gentry will be killed or injured. Moreover, the southeastern provinces are the foundation of the scholars of our Ming Dynasty. If the bandits kill too much, won't it shake the foundation of our Ming Dynasty?!"

"What is the foundation of the Ming Dynasty? Is it the scholars?"

"This..." Wang Chengen was suddenly stunned, "I dare not comment on this."

Chongzhen was silent for a moment and said nothing more.

Since the founding of the Ming Dynasty, Emperor Hongwu designed this system. No matter how magnificent the edifice of power built by the eunuchs was, the thickest supporting pillar was always in the hands of the emperor. Wei Zhongxian could not change this, and neither could Liu Jin and Wang Zhen before him.

Therefore, he did not spend too much cost to drive Wei Zhongxian to Fengyang to guard the tomb and gradually eliminate his influence.

After eradicating the eunuch party, he thought it was just the beginning of his political wisdom, but he found that it was actually his peak.

I was only seventeen years old at that time. I took it for granted that since the Eunuch Party was judged to be "evil", the Donglin Party, which stood on the opposite side of the Eunuch Party, naturally represented "light", so I began to support the Donglin Party without restrictions.

But later facts proved that blindly liquidating the eunuch party and unlimitedly supporting the Donglin Party would only bring one consequence - the Donglin Party would become the only dominant party, which was not much better than the eunuch party's autocracy.

When the emperor wanted to reform and eliminate malpractices, the Donglin Party jumped out and said that it was against the ancestral system. They stood at the commanding heights of public opinion and incited civil servants to launch a fierce attack on the court's policies. In the ten years of reform, there was no progress.

When someone wants to promote an official, they jump out and complain about this and that, and they also quarrel with the Eunuch Party, the Chu Party, and the Qi Party.

The emperor had no way to control the court without being in it.

As for the Donglin Party, until Chongzhen became a rebel, no solution had been found. He could only helplessly shout at night, "My ministers have misled me!"

But it's different now.

He has his own base. These 200,000 soldiers and horses have no interest in anything with the civil servants and literati.

Naturally, there is no need to consider whether the civil servants and scholars share the interests with them.

In other words, the rebels and bandits do not share a common interest with the civil service group, but they do share a common interest with the anti-king.

And the rebel king... is himself.

In the past, precisely because he did not have such a basic base, he could only choose the civil service group and become a member of their interest community. He could only use them as an intermediary. Once there was a sharp conflict between the imperial power and the civil service group in terms of interests, the civil service group would withdraw. Once they withdrew, the emperor would be left to be roasted on the fire.

Therefore, the current Chongzhen was not afraid of opposition from the civil service group at all, let alone that they would directly withdraw from the stage and undermine the imperial power. He could just let the rebel kings take charge.

This was also the first time that he felt that governing a country was not that difficult.

Moreover, the emperor's uncle Zhu Changgan had already firmly grasped the guns, and the strength and equipment of the five major camps were superior to those of the generals of the local garrisons and border guards.

It is enough to intimidate the generals of the border towns.

Chongzhen murmured, "Kill them. Kill a bunch of them. This will help balance the imbalance between the northern and southern scholars."

During the Ming Dynasty, starting from the Hongwu Emperor Zhu Yuanzhang, the Ming Dynasty used the North-South list to select scholars. The reason was that the southern provinces had less war and had long been formed with wealthy gentry, and the atmosphere was strong. After many years of inheritance, the literary skills were naturally higher. However, the northern provinces were constantly in war, and the literary skills of the scholars were much weaker.

“Almost…almost…”

Although he was not the one ruling the country, he knew that Sun Chuanting had formed an encirclement, and the troops and artillery of the five major camps were already in place. Whether the century-long crisis could be resolved would depend on the next period of time.

There is no room for error.

Mediocre people ruin the country! Treacherous ministers ruin the country!
These incompetent people in the court and the large number of officials and gentry in Jiangnan who are involved in intrigues are all rats.

The rats have to dig up the hole and kill all the rats inside to get rid of the problem once and for all.

No rush...

Today, Chongzhen is less anxious and more calm.

In his eyes, the powerful civil service group has become a cold dish on New Year's Eve. It doesn't matter whether you have it or not.

"Ah? Your Majesty, you just said..."

Chongzhen looked at Wang Chengen's confused expression, realized that he had let something slip, and changed the subject: "I say... make the officials and gentry suffer more, and I will bear the blame."

"It will be bitter." The expression on Wang Chengen's face was unusually wonderful, with turns of blue and purple.

Wang Chengen stood there in a daze with a confused look on his face. When he came to his senses, he found that the emperor had fallen asleep leaning on the throne. He quickly picked up his cloak and put it on.

He shook his head and tiptoed out of the hall. "The Ming Dynasty has always been about making the common people suffer. When did it become about making the officials suffer?"

Wang Chengen looked behind him and wondered if he should ask Imperial Physician Liu to come over and take a look.

But after thinking about it, he decided to let it go. He noticed the changes that the emperor had undergone in the past few days.

The Emperor had never slept so soundly and peacefully as he did now. He always couldn't fall asleep for a long time, or he would wake up suddenly after falling asleep.

Not only can he sleep now, but his physical strength in Chenghua Palace during the day is also obviously much better than before.

But he was still worried, so he simply sat on the steps and kept watch until the second half of the night. When there was still no movement in the house, he instructed a eunuch and went back to sleep.

"It's chaos, complete chaos. Shuangxi, go back and tell your stepmother, Liu Zongmin and the others to let them go and make trouble. Take advantage of the opportunity to gather troops."

"Yes!"

Li Shuangxi had just returned and was assigned by Li Zicheng to go back to deliver a letter.

Not only Li Zicheng, but also Lao Huihui and Li Wanqing released their troops.

In such a short period of time, Prince Xin's troops have grown to 300,000. How could they not be jealous?
So they decided to follow King Xin and go all in.

Put all your military forces into it, attack cities and strongholds, and develop your own troops.

As a result, Jiangnan was like the bottom of a boiling pot.

Despite the chaos in Jiangnan, officials and gentry in Nanzhili, Jiangsu and Zhejiang were still stubbornly resisting the investigation and land measurement by the Integrity Commission, and they sent their loyal soldiers from wealthy families to attack and kill officials from the Integrity Commission.

There is also a group of special people among them.

In the tall and spacious courtyard, dim lights were swaying. A group of officials and gentry gathered together, some standing, some sitting. Outside, the rain fell on the eaves and then on the ground.

When a maid got closer, she could hear a heated discussion inside. It seemed that the officials and gentry were asking their masters for something.
"What I want to say is, if the rebels attack the city, can the head of the mountain come and negotiate with the rebels? It would be great if we can recruit them."

"Rebellious officials and traitors are not a concern. What matters right now is that the Independent Commission Against Corruption can allow scholars to cause trouble. Why can't we allow scholars to cause trouble?"

"That's right. Why are you investigating us? Our Zheng family has been abiding by the law for a hundred years. Our ancestors have three successful candidates in the imperial examinations. How can we accept such a great humiliation?"

"Let them make trouble!"

The senior from Donglin Academy stepped forward and said, "The situation in Jiangnan is precarious right now. The troops of the traitor Prince Xin are running around everywhere. Who knows, they might reach Suzhou and Hangzhou at any time."

"What are you afraid of? No matter who becomes the emperor, he still has to look at the faces of us gentry and need the assistance of scholars all over the world..."

When the door was opened, the sound of rain suddenly became louder, interrupting the people inside the room.

Everyone looked towards the door, and the maid lowered her head in fear when she saw this, "Master, the tea is here."

"Get out!" A man dressed as a gentleman waved his hand and asked the maid to put down the things.

This person was none other than Qin Bolu, the president of Donglin Academy.

The maid slowly left, and there was another round of arguing in the room.

When she came out, she met another maid. The other maid had a complicated look in her eyes and seemed a little absent-minded. She couldn't help but ask, "Xin'er, what's wrong with you?"

"My father asked me to go back?"

"Go back? Where to go? We have sold ourselves to the Qin family, how can we have such an idea?"

"My father didn't deny the indenture, but asked me to go back and hide for two days. A relative of mine from Changde Prefecture said that there are rumors that Prince Xin's troops will soon attack Suzhou Prefecture."

"Has the situation become like this? But... our master is not an official, he is a scholar, it shouldn't be that bad..."

Although she said this, her tone betrayed her at the end.

After a long while, she raised her head again, "I heard that Prince Xin's troops only target officials and gentry, and don't kill us maids, farmhands, and tenants."

Xin'er bit her lip, "But... who knows?"

"I hope those rebels won't attack scholars."

The fire in the south of the Yangtze River not only burned the wealthy families, but also their servants. On the contrary, the common people who could not survive before were not greatly affected and might even be excited about getting some land.

The quarrel inside the house continued, but the sound of wind and rain outside gradually became louder.

During the Ming Dynasty, after the Hongwu Emperor Zhu Yuanzhang conquered Dadu, academies such as the Bai Ludong Academy, Yuelu Academy, and Songyang Academy vigorously established official schools and promoted the imperial examinations.

The Imperial College in the north and south of Zhili enjoyed extremely generous treatment. Scholars were attracted by the generous treatment in official schools and the bright prospects of imperial examinations, and their interest in academies decreased greatly, so that academies in various places became quiet.

For nearly a hundred years thereafter, these large academies did not develop much.

But after Chenghua, the imperial examination system became increasingly corrupt, especially the eight-legged essay, which focused the scholars' attention entirely on how to write eight-legged essays in order to gain fame and fortune.

Official schools began to decline, while local academies began to rise and revive.

Take the Bai Lu Dong Academy as an example. In the early years of Chenghua, Li Ling, the Jiangxi Provincial Education Commissioner, ordered He Jun, the Nankang Prefect, to renovate the academy, gather students, hire famous teachers, and carry out large-scale teaching activities, which truly revived the academy.

After that, the academy was continuously repaired and expanded during the Hongzhi, Zhengde and Jiajing periods.

Donglin Academy was built in the 32nd year of Wanli's reign, destroyed in the 5th year of Tianqi's reign, and rebuilt again. This academy, which existed for only a little over 30 years, was the focus of great attention from both the government and the public in the Ming Dynasty.

It is no exaggeration to say that this private academy became a political force that could not be ignored in the late Ming Dynasty since its establishment.

Donglin Academy not only recruited students, but also reached out to several surrounding prefectures. For example, they held a large meeting every year (in spring or autumn) and a small meeting every month (from the 14th to the 16th) to invite famous academies (such as Huizhou's Ziyang Academy and Linli Academy) and great scholars from all over the Ming Dynasty to participate in a massive academic debate competition, which made Donglin Academy famous.

The status of many great scholars in Donglin Academy also increased, and they would always take some time every year to live in Suzhou city.

The two maids were still whispering to each other when they suddenly heard a scream of "Ah——" outside, followed by the sound of loud footsteps.

The noise was so loud that it was obvious that there was more than one person running.

Xiner stood up and asked, "What happened?"

The rain was heavy and the noise was loud, so the footsteps outside soon passed by. Just as they were hesitating whether to tell the master, the servants' warnings and the sound of gongs suddenly became louder.

"bang bang bang..."

"The bandits are coming... Prince Xin has come to Suzhou City!"

……

Thanks to everyone for the monthly votes. More than 30 votes were added yesterday alone. Well... there will be another chapter in the evening!

(End of this chapter)