The twentieth year of Chongzhen has arrived.

Jinling City is full of lights, gongs and drums are noisy, and it is still very lively.

Even if the Qing army has killed Yangzhou, most of the territory in Huaibei has been lost, and it may even be lost forever. The gentry and bureaucrats lived their own leisurely little life.

Even if there are people in this Jinling land who are talking about the affairs of the Northland, the defeat of the Northern Expedition, and the rebellion of Zheng Zhilong, no one will really associate these things with their own lives.

No matter how sorry people say, how indignant or compassionate they are, life is still that life. The drunken gold fans are still spending all day drinking, and the dogs and horses continue to walk the horse Zhangtai.

The singing on the Qinhuai River continued to be loud.

Merchants are still going about their business.

Even if Emperor Chongzhen has been in bed for a while. They don't think it's a big deal, the negotiations between the Ming and Qing dynasties have begun. The Qing army had already gathered its troops and horses and stopped attacking.

What else do they have to worry about?

As for the emperor's illness, it is even more of a joke. Emperor Chongzhen is less than forty years old and in the prime of life, what are you worried about?

Some people even think that the emperor's illness is not really sick, but purely a big defeat, losing face, and being ashamed to see people.

But what about the facts? The failure of the Northern Expedition not only dealt a heavy blow to Emperor Chongzhen's heart, but also traumatized his health.

It's not easy.

Because Emperor Chongzhen is very durable, psychologically strong, and has a strong ability to bear. Again and again, after defeat, he persevered.

But this time the failure was too great. He originally came to the Northern Expedition with great expectations and beliefs, but his obsession with recovering the Central Plains was too strong, and when the news of the defeat came, the deep disappointment annihilated his whole person.

But this was only a temporary bruise. It's a minor illness that will be cured in a few days if he is in bed, but God doesn't give him any good.

This thing is weird, the more you are afraid of bad things, the more you can't avoid it. Seeing that Emperor Chongzhen was about to recover, Jinyiwei sent a secret report, saying that Zheng Zhilong was going to rebel!

It wasn't one stone that stirred up a thousand waves, and Emperor Chongzhen lay back on the bed on the spot.

"Minister Zhang Guowei knocks to see Your Majesty!"

"Come in."

Emperor Chongzhen's voice came from the warm pavilion, and after Zhang Guowei came in, he saw that there were really a lot of people who came here today. Not only are Zhou Yanru and Jiang Dejing both present, but the prince is also present, and Hong Chengchou, a criminal official, is also there.

plus Zhang Shize, Xu Wenjue, Li Banghua, Qian Qianyi, Ni Yuanlu, Liu Zongzhou, He Tengjiao, Lu Zhenfei, Qu Shiyun, etc., and even Luo Yangxing, Zhu Dadian, etc.

Zhang Guowei looked up at Emperor Chongzhen again, which surprised him. I saw that Emperor Chongzhen's face was pale and gray, but he was like blood, his cheeks were red, and his hands were still trembling uncontrollably......

"Your Majesty, you have to take care of your dragon body. The minister knows that you are angry, but the enemy is strong and I am weak, and the general trend is majestic. Why did Your Majesty hurt the dragon's body? Zhang Guowei subconsciously linked the current situation of Emperor Chongzhen with the negotiations that had ended in the Ming and Qing dynasties.

Of course, it won't work out very well. Although he was not as humiliated as Zhao Song and did not have a year coin, he really cut off a large part of Jiangbei's territory. But Li Banghua and Qian Qianyi really tried their best.

The enemy is strong and I am weak, so what can I do?

Emperor Chongzhen smiled, and there was a chill in his voice that made Zhang Guowei chill. "Prince, you go and explain to Zhang Qing."

Zhu Cihong clenched his fists and took orders, carefully retreated from the couch, and then walked to Zhang Guowei's side, whispered a few words, and Zhang Guowei's face changed greatly.

"Zheng Zhilong,......, how dare he ...... like this?"

Shangzhizi asked the emperor for a prince, or the king of Qi, what did he want to do?

China has its own set of rules and regulations.

The title and the name of the founding of the country, and even the territory of the founding of the country, are closely related. Zheng Zhilong was named the Duke of Quanguo, which is equivalent to being confined to Quanzhou, and he didn't even get his hands on Fujian.

The courtiers did not agree to reward him with the "Duke of Fujian", on the one hand, they disgusted him, and the other reason was that they were afraid that he would entrench in Quanzhou, and then entrenched in Fujian, and then not leave.

In addition to the land, there is no shortage of people and things in that place in Nanyang? If the Zheng family stays in Fujian for thirty or fifty years, the Jinling Imperial Court will not be suffocated to death.

But Zheng Zhilong is now asking the emperor for the title of King of Qi, what is this for?

This is not just a matter of the prince, but a matter of him not leaving Qilu.

Although Qilu is no longer the land controlled by the Ming Dynasty, although the Ming army has just returned from the defeat of the Northern Expedition and suffered heavy losses in military strength and national strength, the Ming Dynasty still has to hold high the banner of recovering the Central Plains in the north, and still shouting the slogan of rejuvenating the Ming Dynasty.

From the perspective of righteousness, Qilu cannot be abandoned, just as some countries in later generations will not give up such and such a place in legal theory, regardless of which country controls that such and such a place, such as China's South China Sea Islands, the four northern islands of the little devils, etc.

Daming is now similar to it.

And more importantly, Zheng Zhilong, who was going south to seal the country and called himself a lonely widow, is now seeking the king of Qi, what is this?

I can't help but think about it.

Because the king of Qi is the king of Qilu, the lord of the mountains and the east.

Is this a signal that he is showing that he will not leave Qilu? Is this a signal that he is showing that he will not leave China and the Central Plains?

Is this a sign that he is also interested in the world?

Zheng Zhilong wants to rebel, he wants to rebel!

After a series of equations, Zhang Guowei came to the conclusion that Zheng Zhilong wanted to rebel.

"No wonder I want to call back myself who is sitting in Yangzhou."

After Hong Chengchou was defeated, he returned to Huaishang, and was immediately relieved of his military power, and then put in prison to await his crimes. Emperor Chongzhen ordered Shi Kefa to go out of Fengyang and Zhang Guowei to go out of Yangzhou.

Now that the Ming and Qing dynasties have reached an agreement, Emperor Chongzhen summoned Zhang Guowei to see him, it is not without any risk.

But the current incident made him understand that compared with Zheng Zhilong's rebellion, Yangzhou Mansion is certainly a Jinling barrier, but there are Cao Bianjiao, Liu Zhaoji and others there, and Zhang Guowei's departure is really not a problem.

"Zheng Zhilong has already reversed. The troops under his command have occupied Dengzhou and Zhangzhou in Fujian, blocked the official roads, closed the city, and did not connect the north and south. Jinyiwei's spies in Denglai and Quanzhou have not been reported back for many days. Zeng Ying and the others didn't see half of the news coming. This thief has self-respect and divides one side, I'm afraid he really has thoughts that he shouldn't have. Emperor Chongzhen said angrily.

Since the decline of the Ming Dynasty, he has gradually lost control of the military and Xinjiang ministers, and in the face of Zuo Liangyu's soldiers earlier, he sighed day and night, like a sharp edge. Unexpectedly, now that Zuo Liangyu is dead, Zheng Zhilong is 'anti'.

"Zheng Zhilong Haikouer, does not cultivate morality, does not know benevolence and righteousness, is incorruptible and shameless, and ungrateful. If there is no Ming Dynasty, how can he become big? Emperor Chongzhen gritted his teeth angrily.

No one in the room dared to speak.

Luo Yang fell to his knees, "Your Majesty, Zheng Zhilong's heart of rebellion has been around for a long time, and there are many rumors about the minister's brocade clothes, but he has never had conclusive evidence, and he didn't dare to talk nonsense and slander the generals of the court." This time caused this catastrophe, the minister's crime is unforgivable, and His Majesty is asked to punish him. ”

Jiang Dejing had already made up his mind to only be a dumb man, but at this time, he couldn't help but glance at Luo Yangxing. This guy is obviously asking for his own guilt, but in fact, it is a matter of Zheng Zhilong's rebellion.

But he still won't say a word.

"You can't take precautions, you can't take precautions, now that you know that you are guilty, what use do I want from you!" Emperor Chongzhen spoke harshly at Luo Yangxing, but everyone knew that this was just a show.

Luo Yangxing is Emperor Chongzhen's confidant.

"Now that Zheng Zhilong has shown his back, what should the court do? Those of you here today are all important ministers of the court, and I will allow you to express your opinions. ”

Chongzhen is asking for plans today.

Zheng Zhilong doesn't look at it, but the threat to Jinling is not big for the time being. After all, didn't the Zheng family's sailor enter the Yangtze River? And Shen Tingyang entered Beijing alone before, and he also expressed his loyalty to Emperor Chongzhen. If Zheng Zhilong dares to come to Jinling, he will not take a step back even if he is broken!

Emperor Chongzhen felt that he could still solve this problem very calmly.

"The merit is as high as the King of Zhongshan and the King of Kaiping, who is still posthumously crowned after his death, how can Zheng Zhilong be able to be born and receive the king?" Qian Qianyi was the first to stand up and object. "If it is at his request, where will the majesty of the court be placed?"

Zheng Zhilong is really named the king of Qi, he can vomit sick.

"If such a wolf ambition is not enough to kill, how can he be awarded the title of king?" He Tengjiao shouted. This guy is a fellow villager with Ma Shiying, but now he is actively getting closer to the Donglin Party.

"What the Great Sect Uncle (the Book of Rites) said is very true. If the king of Zhongshan and the king of Kaiping are still posthumously crowned after his death, how can Zheng Zhilong be virtuous! ”

Immediately, there was a cheer in the hall.

But there are those who agree and those who oppose it, Zhang Guowei immediately said: "Your Majesty, the minister thinks that the great uncle is wrong. Zheng Zhilong has a heavy army in his hand, and he is very important, how can he be light? If there is anger and an outburst, what will happen to the court? Therefore, the minister thought that he should be gentle. "The imperial court has bowed to the Tartars, why can't they bow to Zheng Zhilong anymore?

As for using literature to control martial arts, and suppressing martial arts with literature, hehe, in troubled times, it's better not to speak.

"Zhang Ge is old and serious, and the minister seconded it."

"It is imperative that the imperial court put the restoration of military strength first. It is the best to have fewer incidents, and Zheng Zhilong should be appeased by Huairou! ”

The two factions were at a stalemate, and the third faction appeared on the stage.

The first one was the huge greedy Zhu Dadian at the end of the Ming Dynasty who was recruited into the dynasty by Emperor Chongzhen. stroked his beard and said, "Your Majesty, Elder Zhang Ge's words are wrong, and what Uncle Zong said is also not thoughtful. In the opinion of the old minister, Zheng Zhilong's playing left and right is just a test of the court. Today's righteousness lies in Your Majesty, and the reward is from above, how can there be a courtier asking for a lord? Your Majesty should be the second most serious one. However, Zheng Zhilong swept Qilu, fought in the river, and worked hard, why don't you be knighted as the Duke of Laiguo? ”

The latter is much more formal than the funny Izumi Guogong.

It was the ancient kingdom of Shang and Zhou. The Shang Dynasty was the first feud, and the Western Zhou Dynasty was a princely power. The title was Marquis, later changed to Duke. Du Ruhui in the Tang Dynasty, Lu Mengzheng and Kou Zhun in the Song Dynasty were all named Lai Guogong. And the place is just right, too.

It can be said to be a middle way that combines the views of the two schools. Emperor Chongzhen's grim face showed a touch of ease, compared to Zhu Dadian's heart.