sovbooks Chapter 9 Hypocrisy and Deception
Chapter 9 Hypocrisy and Deception
"Hypocritical and treacherous, deceiving the world and stealing a reputation!"
Emperor Chongzhen, Zhu Youjian, suddenly stood up, trembling all over. He swept his sleeves and knocked over the memorials on the table, scattering the mountain of documents all over the floor.
boom!
"What is he planning to do? Is he perhaps plotting a rebellion?"
It is unclear who presented Si Chen's actions to the emperor, or perhaps the court officials needed a target to divert their attention.
Or perhaps the court officials have woven a trap called "the sage ruler."
This allowed the emperor to continue dreaming of being the superior nation of China.
Until everything was on the verge of collapse.
"Brother, I've been tricked by them!!!"
"My court officials have misled me!"
The hysterical roar of the dragon echoed throughout the Qianqing Palace.
Among the azure palace complex, only the Qianqing Palace gleams with gold.
The heavy snow covered the dilapidated palace, which was already in a state of disrepair inside.
Because the emperor was already bankrupt.
A figure entered the Qianqing Palace and picked up the purple-gold incense burner.
"Your Majesty, getting angry is bad for your health."
Zhu Youjian suddenly raised his head, his eyes seemingly burning with fire, "Luo Yangxing."
"Your subject is here."
"Summon the Duke of Ying! Bring the cabinet ministers along too. Let's see what these loyal ministers, whom the Emperor considers so devoted, are actually doing in Tianjin!"
"Go quickly."
Luo Yangxing, the Left Commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, remained steadfast regardless of political changes.
"My lord, I obey your order."
Luo Yangxing glanced up briefly, then bent down and left.
When Zhang Shize arrived late, dressed in a python robe, the hall was already full of people.
The following officials were dressed in white robes: Duke Zhu Chunchen of Chengguo, Duke Xu Yunzhen of Dingguo, Imperial Son-in-Law Gong Yonggu, Marquis Xue Lian of Yangwu, Left Commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard Luo Yangxing, Grand Secretary Chen Yan, and Left Censor-in-Chief Li Banghua...
The cabinet ministers, the heads of the six ministries, and the nobles of the five military governorates all gathered together.
Wang Chengen, Cao Huachun, and Gao Qiqian stood to the left and right of Emperor Chongzhen.
Zhu Youjian threw a memorial at Zhang Shize's face, "Speak, what exactly does Sichen want to do?"
Zhang Shize dodged aside, flicking the memorial with his toe and scoffing.
"defamation!"
"That's slander!"
Zhang Shize seemed to have suffered a tremendous injustice, "The Heavenly Official has received great favors from the country, how could he possibly change his allegiance?"
"To slay demons and eliminate evil is our sacred duty."
"Moreover, my glorious Celestial Empire has a reign of two hundred and seventy years."
"I humbly believe that the Holy Dynasty governs the world with filial piety; how can it not tolerate even a commoner?"
The British public harbored resentment.
This is equivalent to pointing your finger at the emperor and cursing him.
Of the five virtues—loyalty, filial piety, righteousness, benevolence, wisdom, courage, trustworthiness, and propriety—I lack all of them except for filial piety.
Imperial Son-in-Law Gong Yonggu rose and asked, "Zhang Shize, you have behaved improperly before the Emperor. What is your punishment?"
Luo Yangxing, the Left Commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, observed the emperor's expression.
Duke Cheng laughed and said, "Duke Yingguo was momentarily indignant and acted too bluntly, failing to understand His Majesty's benevolence. Ignorance is no excuse."
The Duke of Dingguo traveled the world in a trance, the reason for which remains unknown.
Cao Huachun and Gao Qiqian dared not look directly at him.
The cabinet ministers stood like wooden figures, eyes downcast and mindless, not uttering a single word.
It was like a silent film, with the emperor playing the lead role and everyone patiently playing along, the actors jumping around like monkeys.
Duke Zhang Shize of England surveyed the entire scene, taking in everyone's reactions. He couldn't help but smile and bowed respectfully towards the emperor's throne.
"No need."
"What kind of tree bears what kind of flower, what kind of person speaks what kind of words."
"I am a fine bamboo shoot, but my descendants are unfilial, bringing shame upon our ancestors."
"But thanks to your good fortune, my whole family is still able to breathe."
Zhang Shize turned and left.
"Royal Guards!"
Emperor Chongzhen's forehead veins throbbed, his heart clearly unsettled, and he couldn't help but call out.
Two ornate ceremonial swords crossed, blocking Zhang Shize's path.
The gleaming blade was right before my eyes.
But Zhang Shize seemed not to see it, and went straight for the blade.
Emperor Chongzhen gritted his teeth. "He's gone mad, truly gone mad. Let him go!"
Zhang Shize waved his hand behind him and laughed loudly, "Thank you for your mercy, Your Majesty."
Emperor Chongzhen's face turned pale and then green in turns, which was quite a sight. He even pressed two handprints onto his desk.
A cold wind blew by.
Duke Zhu Chunchen of Chengguo hurriedly stood up and said, "I beg Your Majesty to decree his merits and inscribe them on stone."
Emperor Chongzhen turned his head away. "These traitors are rampant and lawless. Doesn't this just embolden them?"
Duke Cheng got up.
"Hehe, Your Majesty, you are sorely mistaken."
"You are the ruler, he is the subject. What rebellion is there?"
"His Majesty's intentions were good, but the people below carried them out poorly."
"Tianjin has been abandoned for a long time, with few soldiers and no preparations. With the Imperial Censor in charge, there is no need to worry about rebels raiding. The court can protect the right wing of the capital without spending a penny."
"This should have been a win-win situation, how did it turn out like this?"
Luo Yangxing, the Left Commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, looked at the Duke of Cheng in surprise and asked, "Are you fucking serious?"
"What do you gentlemen think?"
"We second that proposal!"
"Since what Duke Cheng said makes sense, then let him handle it." Chongzhen straightened up, clearly having accepted this explanation, which was much better than a complete falling out.
Grand Secretary Chen Yan, with his hands tucked into his sleeves, said, “Your Majesty, Tianjin is a strategic point between the north and south, where the Haihe River and the Grand Canal intersect. If we want to go south, I’m afraid it’s not possible.”
Only then did Emperor Chongzhen realize the malice behind this.
It's like a knife pressed against your waist.
They can neither retreat nor advance.
They have malicious intentions. They have malicious intentions.
Marquis Xue Lian of Yangwu bowed and said, "Your Majesty should summon all the armies in the land to serve the king and make plans as soon as possible."
Emperor Chongzhen took a deep breath, forcing himself to muster his strength, and said, "Granted."
The Duke of Dingguo stepped forward: "Tianshou Mountain is the location of the imperial mausoleum, and bandits frequent it. I request to guard the mausoleum."
"The Duke may leave."
Emperor Chongzhen waved his hand, as if he was about to say something.
But he didn't seem to have anything that could help the Duke of Dingguo.
The Duke of Dingguo turned and left.
A sudden plague struck the capital, killing tens of thousands of soldiers in the surrounding garrisons, leaving nine out of ten houses empty and the outer city walls piled with corpses, with no one to collect them.
Every household had white banners, and the ancestral halls and family temples in their homes were filled with incense burning for several days.
The Earl of Xuancheng had already prepared his own coffin and made a cenotaph.
The air was filled with the stench of a corpse.
The river channel has not been dredged for a long time.
The pedestrians on the street hurried along, their expressions tinged with sorrow.
Large numbers of refugees gathered in camps around the capital froze to death in the snowstorm.
The roaming rat-men appeared and disappeared among them.
If one could see the faces of ordinary people, only one word could describe them: numb.
As the Duke of Cheng walked out of the gates of the Qianqing Palace, he gazed at the snow-covered palace walls and watched the snowflakes melt in his hands. He turned to his trusted confidants and said, "It's getting cold. Send the tiger skin I've been keeping to the Heavenly Official."
Nashan-kun was originally a great demon with a pure white body.
Even after death, he can still ward off all evil spirits.
It is truly priceless.
"What does Your Excellency mean by this?"
"You all need to think more and understand more."
"But you're not..."
His trusted confidants did not understand his meaning; the night scouts he had sent out a few days ago were still alive.
Back at his residence, the Duke of Cheng touched his head, confirming that the head still existed, "Because I was afraid too."
But the thought of Si Chen occupying such a crucial position in Tianjin came to mind.
He was happy.
"Good job blocking the road, excellent job blocking the road."
"Now that the emperor has gone south, what use are we to him?"
The hereditary succession of imperial honors was built upon a vast military force centered around the Beijing Garrison, but this foundation had been completely destroyed by bandits and the Jurchens since the Chongzhen era.
The martial arts academy of the capital has fallen into disrepair, and a large number of warriors from the Embroidered Uniform Guard have left.
The Five Military Commissions existed in name only, but were ineffective.
Their land is here, their ancestral temple is here.
Are we going to go south and be controlled by that big landowner, the Duke of Wei?
That makes sense. The south can finally shake off the enormous military pressure from the north and doesn't have to pay a single penny or item, so naturally they're happy.
The Han dynasty was divided into East and West, and the Song dynasty had two dynasties.
Why not make the Ming Dynasty?
But the emperor would not be content to be a puppet.
They were unwilling.
Losing power is no different from death!
Duke Zhu Chunchen lay on his bed, secretly plotting.
"My lord, it's time for dinner."
A screen partition.
On the other side of the table, plates were already set out, and a faint glimmer of light could be seen.
"Hmm, what's the schedule today?"
"Recently, the silver melons in the cellar have ripened and fallen to the ground. This is newly mined mithril. Look at its quality, my lord, it contains not a single impurity! The texture is soft and melts in your mouth, truly the finest of the fine. And this longevity gold is even more beneficial for prolonging life."
The Duke of Cheng's biggest worry was that the money would still be there, but the people would be gone. He suddenly remembered something and looked up.
"Oh dear, our poor emperor, what can he possibly eat?"
"Could it be, just boiled tofu in plain water?"