Tianning Temple Palace, in a very dimly lit side hall, Emperor Chongzhen of the Ming Dynasty sat upright on the throne. Yellow dragon robe, good wing crown, expressionless face, sacred and solemn, as if he is still the king of a country in power. It's just that the eyes that shoot out of his eyes are no longer as sharp as they used to be.

Outside the side hall, Emperor Chongzhen's Wu Xuanzhi was taking a few henchmen and palace maids, nervously watching the movements around him. As soon as there is a disturbance, it is necessary to report it quickly. Such arrangements are all for the purpose of coming to Tianning Temple today to meet the Son of Heaven's Nanjing garrison eunuch Han Zanzhou and the former Nanjing official secretary Zhang Shenyan.

The two visitors, one standing, the other sitting on top of an embroidered pier.

Standing was Han Zanzhou, the eunuch of the Nanjing garrison, and at this time he was crying and telling Emperor Chongzhen about the situation in Nanjing.

"The Emperor...... The nobles who stayed in the capital, the former garrison Wei Duke Xu Hongji, the current garrison Xincheng Bo Zhao Zhilong, the commander Cao Yun Fuyuan Marquis Zhu Guobi, the former garrison Cheng Anbo Guo Zuoyong, the Chinese military governor's mansion Shuan Yuan Marquis Liu Zuochang, Lingbi Marquis Tang Guozuo, Nanhe Bo Fang Yiyuan and others as the backbone, ready to raise troops Qin Wang. At present, 40,000 people have been rectified in Nanjing, more than 10,000 people have been trained in the river and water divisions, and tens of thousands of people from various families. He also contacted Ma Shiying, Huang Degong, and Lu Jiude in Fengyang, and Zuo Liangyu in Wuchang. Prepare to raise troops together to serve the king and support His Majesty to regain power! ”

Emperor Chongzhen listened carefully, but his brows tightened more and more. He now knows that his son is cunning and cruel, and he doesn't believe in the reincarnation of Emperor Taizu Gao, but he absolutely agrees when he says that Zhu Cihong is like Cao Cao and Sima is reincarnated.

Nanjing Jingying in the hands of those nobles in Nanjing...... Emperor Chongzhen is worried! Will these guys be wiped out by the prince?

Therefore, at this time, Emperor Chongzhen just didn't say a word about the good news reported by Han Zanzhou.

After Han Zanzhou finished speaking, he just waited quietly.

After a while, Chongzhen said: "The prince now has a total of six divisions of the New Army, each division has 8,000 people, and the command department of the New Army also has a lot of soldiers and horses, and the total number of people is no less than 55,000 people......

Zhang Shenyan, who had white hair and a very thin face, and had a sickly face, saw that Chongzhen was worried, and hurriedly opened his mouth to comfort: "Don't worry, the old minister knows, one division of the new army of the sixth division is stationed in Dengzhou, and the first division is stationed in Huai'an, both of which are soldiers who cannot be mobilized. There are also nine associations stationed in the nine provinces of Jiangnan, and at least one association must be left here in Yangzhou. This went to two and a half divisions, and the remaining strength was certainly less than two divisions, with just over 10,000 men. The soldiers of Nanjing are several times larger, and Ma Shiying and Huang Degong of Fengyang will also bring thousands of elite soldiers. So I'm still somewhat sure! ”

"You're going to go to war with the prince in Nanjing?" Emperor Chongzhen asked.

"It doesn't have to be a war." Zhang Shen said, "It's just a soldier's advice, as long as the prince is willing to return to His Majesty, he can let him raise the army in Jiangbei." ”

"Fujun Jiangbei?" Emperor Chongzhen will be skeptical, "It would be nice if he could agree......"

Zhang Shenyan sighed and said, "As long as he is willing to go to Nanjing, he can't help but agree." ”

"Are you still worried that he won't go to Nanjing?" Emperor Chongzhen's brows furrowed more and more.

Han Zanzhou replied: "Emperor, now it is not Ying Tianfu and Yangzhou Mansion that are facing each other, but Ying Tianyi Mansion is facing the eleven southeast mansions in the hands of the prince...... After a rough calculation, now the prince can harvest more than 10 million stones from the eleven prefectures in the southeast in a year, and more than 8 million taels of salt tax and commercial tax!

The land endowment of Yingtian Mansion is only a few hundred thousand stones, and the commercial tax is even less, which is almost insignificant. If there is a long-term confrontation, it will be very unfavorable to the corresponding Tianfu side. ”

"Eleven mansions can earn more than 20 million?" Emperor Chongzhen was taken aback, "Isn't it a rampant expedition?" ”

"Not anymore," Zhang Shenyan shook his head and said, "Master Chitose has already ordered the cancellation of the three salaries. ”

"What? After the cancellation of the three salaries, there will still be more than 20 million ......," Chongzhen said, tears dripping down.

When he was in power, he "desperately increased the faction" for this amount, and half of the world was forced to rebel. Now that it is replaced by Zhu Cihong, after the three salaries are exempted, the eleven prefectures can collect so much!

This is really more popular than people!

Chongzhen sighed and stood up from the throne, his expression was a little gloomy, obviously he had been hurt by the corrupt officials under him.

He has fallen to this point, in the final analysis, he has no money! Can't you corrupt officials be less greedy?

Chongzhen said slowly: "Zhang Qing, Han Zanzhou, now that the wind and rain are shaking, we still have to be cautious...... The crown prince is not easy to deal with...... Go back to Nanjing first, and be careful. Don't get involved directly in ......"

......

The streets of Nanjing, as bustling as ever, do not seem to have been affected by the chaos in the world at all. Ordinary people dressed in relatively decent silk or cotton clothes surged one after another on the bustling streets of Jinling. The scholars are romantic, and the merchants are rich. On the Qinhuai River, the exquisite and picturesque boats come and go, all to the point of succession. On the street, there are occasional rumors riding pond horses, and the knights on horseback are all hereditary Nanjing garrison old Xu family's family members, dressed in brocade clothes and high spirits.

Although the southeast is peaceful, the world is in chaos after all! The noble garrison holding the army in his hand became more and more noble, and even his family's family trembled and dared to make trouble in Nanjing.

A few healthy horses also rushed through the market, and the horses' hooves were tied with luan bells, and when the bells rang, the people stumbled away. When some passers-by dressed as scholars saw it, they couldn't help but shake their heads and muttered in a low voice: "The Son of Heaven is covered with dust, and the world is going down!" ”

After finishing speaking, there was only a sigh.

Now Nanjing's Sixth Ministry and the Procuratorate are almost disbanded, and the officials who originally served either went to Xingzai or went to Shandong to continue to follow Shi Kefa and Gao Hongtu. Some simply hung up their crowns and left, temporarily becoming idle clouds and wild cranes. Nanjing City is naturally up to the lords and the garrison eunuchs!

"Young Grandpa, Grandpa Han's letter!" The Xu family's family had entered the Dagongfang in a blink of an eye, stood outside a pavilion, and respectfully handed over an envelope.

Hearing this, the two people who were playing in the pavilion on a small island in the middle of the pool in the back garden of Da Kung Fu shook their bodies at the same time, and then glanced at each other. Xu Yunjue was dressed in a jade-white wide Confucian robe, and as soon as he threw away the chess pieces in his hand, he took the envelope and tore it open, took out the letter paper inside, first swept it at a glance and ten lines, and then read it word by word before he sighed.

Sitting opposite him was Zhao Zhilong, who was in charge of the Nanjing garrison, and he waved at the Xu family member to send him away, and then asked, "Young master, how is it?" ”

"The date is set!" Xu Yunjue said with a smile, "If you leave Yangzhou on the first day of September, you will almost arrive on the fifth day of September." ”

"The fifth day of the ninth month ......" Zhao Zhilong took a breath, and his face showed a bit of hideousness.

He is now stepping on two boats, on the one hand, he has made a recital to the prince and exposed the conspiracy of the Nanjing nobles - it is not necessary for him to expose it, no one knows about it! On the other hand, he is still participating in the conspiracy of Nanjing, and he is even the core backbone! If the crown prince is overthrown and the matter of returning to Chongzhen is successful, he will be a great hero of Emperor Chongzhen, and it is not a problem to be crowned a prince!

Bet on both ends, how can you not lose money!

Zhao Zhilong took a deep breath and asked Xu Yunjue, "Young Master, are you all ready?" ”

"Ready!" Xu Yunjue nodded, "My family's 2,500 families have all arrived in Nanjing, and the entire Beijing camp has been reorganized, plus the manpower put together by each family, 60,000 people will definitely be able to pull it out." Now it's up to Ma Shiying and Huang Degong......"

Zhao Zhilong said: "Huang Yushi went to urge three days ago...... Before the fifth day of the ninth lunar month, Huang Degong will definitely lead the elite soldiers to Nanjing! ”

Xu Yunjue said: "Then it's foolproof!" ”

。 m.