"Your Majesty, there is news from Fengyang Mansion that Zhu Yousong, the son of the former Fu King, has died." Liu Wenbing came in a hurry and reported.

Zhu Youzhen was stunned for a moment: "How did you die?" ”

In the seventh year of the Apocalypse, the blessed king Zhu Changxun "plotted rebellion", Zhu Youzhen sent Lu Xiangsheng to lead the newly established Praetorian Guard New Army to Luoyang to quell the rebellion, and after capturing Zhu Changxun's father and son, he was not executed, and was locked up in Fengyang Prison (the Ming Dynasty's clans were generally locked up there after committing crimes), which has been four years ago.

"It is said that he got a carbuncle in the middle of the night, and the eunuch who guarded the prison did not take it seriously, and died before dawn." Liu Wenbing said.

Zhu Youzhen nodded: "Got it." ”

For Zhu Changxun and his son, Zhu Youzhen did not have a good impression at all. In the last life, when Zhu Changxun was the king of Fu, the silver of the Fuwang Mansion was millions of taels, and the grain was piled up in the granary, but when Li led the army to attack Luoyang, Zhu Changxun was not willing to take out even a little silver to reward the soldiers, and the soldiers who defended the city were dissatisfied with the opening of the city and surrendered Li Zicheng. If Zhu Changxun could be willing to take out money and grain to defend the city like King Zhou in Kaifeng, with the solidity of Luoyang City, Li Zicheng, who had just come out of the mountains, would definitely not be able to break Luoyang. And without the money and food in Luoyang City, without Luoyang troops to join, Li Zicheng's strength would not have developed so fast. With the two cities of Luoyang and Kaifeng, the situation in the Central Plains still has a chance to be reversed, and the Ming Dynasty may not die......

As for Zhu Yousong, after the city of Beijing was broken, this guy ascended the throne in Nanjing under the support of the four towns in Jiangbei, that is, he could not control the four towns, and he could not stop the party struggle. When Duoduo and Azig led the Eight Banners to the south, the small court of the Southern Ming Dynasty was still busy with internal strife. Zhu Yousong's guy is just a waste! You deserve to die!

Just after a moment in his mind, Zhu Youzhen put the matter behind him, and as for Zhu Changxun, the king of the abolished blessing, he didn't even ask. There's so much to take care of right now, where there's energy to focus on what doesn't matter.

"Emperor, Lord Hong is here." Wang Chengen said.

"Let him in." Zhu Youzhen put down the note in his hand.

"Your Majesty, something happened in Suzhou. Thousands of lake bandits attacked Hushu Pass at night, killing more than 50 tax officials and tax collectors, and looting 200,000 tax silver in the tax customs. Hong Chengchou said with a serious expression.

"Hushu Pass is more than 20 miles away from Taihu Lake, and Suzhou City is separated by it, how did the lake bandits get to Hushu Pass?" Zhu Youzhen said angrily.

According to the report of Mei Baohua, the governor of Yingtian, the lake bandits used the mouth of the lake at night to enter the canal and sneaked 20 miles to Hushu Pass. Because it was too hasty, Mei Baohua did not have time to recruit the army, and by the time the army was gathered at dawn, the lake bandits had already fled into Taihu Lake, and they did not know what to do. ”

"Thousands of lake bandits, such a large scale, there is no protection against them, Suzhou has the Yamen of the Ying Tian Patrol, and there are Su Song's soldiers, what are they eating?" The more Zhu Youzhen said, the more angry he became, the tax official of Hushuguan was sent from the Taxation Department, and 200,000 taels of tax silver would be escorted to Zhenjiang to be used to pay soldiers. Now it has been robbed by lake bandits.

"It's not just that," Hong Chengchou sighed, "just yesterday during the day, the branch of the royal people's newspaper in Suzhou City was besieged by the rioters, and someone set fire to the newspaper office during the day, and Chen Zilong and they didn't know what to do." At the same time, thousands of weavers gathered in front of the weaving yamen in Suzhou to protest against the weaving eunuchs' arbitrary expropriation and purchase of silk from the weavers at low prices, and wanted the weaving eunuchs to get out of Suzhou. The weaving eunuchs were so frightened that they closed the door, and it was only after the governor yamen sent soldiers that the weavers slowly dispersed. ”

With a crisp "bang", Zhu Youzhen slammed the tea cup on the ground, and three things happened at the same time in one day, even if he was sluggish, he could detect that something was wrong.

"Okay, I haven't done it yet, but they'll do it first!" Zhu Youzhen snorted coldly.

The weaving yamen only belonged to the inner court, and it had always been in charge of the eunuchs sent by the palace. Although the royal newspaper was founded, it was also directly under the royal family, Chen Zilong, Xia Yunyi and others were personally sent to Suzhou, and those people dared to incite the people to besiege the weaving yamen, and they dared to set fire to the newspaper! It's clearly for himself, the emperor.

And the attack on Hushuguan to kill the tax officials and tax soldiers is even worse, it is already a rebellion! Although the matter was done by the lake bandits, more than a thousand lake bandits can appear in Hushu Pass, and the local government is unaware of it, and there must be countless people to cover for it! Perhaps the entire gentry of Wuzhong were involved.

The three things seem to be unrelated, but if you think about it carefully, they must be from the same behind-the-scenes mastermind, the same person or the same group of people behind the scenes!

"What are they going to do? Did you force me to lead my troops to Suzhou? Zhu Youzhen sneered.

Hong Chengchou sighed: "Maybe I saw the Juntian slave release carried out in Zhenjiang Mansion, and the dog jumped over the wall in a hurry." ”

The emperor led people to release slaves in Zhenjiang Juntian, confiscated all the fields of the gentry and landlords in Zhenjiang Prefecture, and distributed them equally to the people. Zhenjiang is so close to Suzhou, how can the gentry of Suzhou not panic? Naturally, there should be a reaction.

But after all, these actions are all petty fights, and they can't shake the overall situation at all, that is, the attack on Hushu Pass, and this side will soon be able to send new tax officials and more people. And these actions will inevitably anger the emperor and bring great danger to themselves, and sooner or later they will be liquidated, what do these Wu gentry think, even Hong Chengchou is a little confused.

"Your Majesty, how should we deal with it?" Hong Chengchou asked.

Zhu Youzhen asked, "What do you suggest?" ”

Hong Chengchou said: "From the perspective of the ministers, let's respond to all changes with immobility, and don't pay attention to them first." First complete the land in Zhenjiang Mansion, and wait until the people of Zhenjiang get real benefits, everyone is grateful for His Majesty's kindness, and the news spreads to other places in the south of the Yangtze River, and the people everywhere will inevitably yearn for it. At that time, the recruited scholars had also matured through experience, and there were thousands of mature officials at that time, and when the time was ripe, they could carry out the entire Jiangdong Equalization. ”

"Very well, let's do it." Zhu Youzhen agreed.

"By the way, Liu Wenbing, why don't you send someone to Suzhou to find Chen Zilong's traces? Also find out who did it! Zhu Youzhen thought about it and commanded.

Chen Zilong is a rare talent, and Zhu Youzhen doesn't want him to have an accident. And for those who dare to make a move to the royal newspaper, Zhu Youzhen will not let them go. Let Jin Yiwei secretly find out the truth first, and then slowly settle the account later!

There are always a lot of troubles, and on the second day, when Zhu Youzhen was watching the recital, Liu Wenbing hurried in again.

"Your Majesty, a large number of scholars have entered Zhenjiang City and are kneeling outside the mansion, begging Your Majesty to stop Juntian from releasing slaves."

Zhu Youzhen frowned: "Since you know, why do you want to let them into the city?" ”

Liu Wenbing said: "Those people have the reputation of showing off their talents, and they entered through the city gates in batches, and the guards of the city did not take precautions. ”

"Who led the way?" Zhu Youzhen asked.

Liu Wenbing said: "The leader is Dong Qichang, the former secretary of the Nanjing Ministry of Rites, which is Dong Qichang's recital. ”

Nanjing Ministry of Rites, a senior official of the second grade, although Zhishi, but the status is still there, no wonder the soldiers guarding the city gate did not block, after all, it is not wartime, the city gate of Zhenjiang is not closed during the day, and it does not prevent the people from entering and leaving.

"Send someone to tell Dong Qichang where he came from, I don't have time to see him. Tell those scholars to disperse immediately, or they will all be arrested and punished to repair ditches! Without even looking at Song Shu, Zhu Youzhen casually commanded, he didn't have time to deal with these people now.

"Yes!" Liu Wenbing took the order and left.

On the street outside the palace, two or three hundred scholars knelt on the street, provoking passers-by to watch. Dong Qichang, who was full of white hair, knelt in front of him, looking at the gate of the mansion, but he was very worried in his heart.

"Your Majesty's dictation, you should retreat immediately, otherwise you will be punished as making noise." Liu Wenbing walked out and said loudly.

"Master Dong, go back too, Your Majesty doesn't have time to see you." Liu Wenbing walked in front of Dong Qichang and said condescendingly.

"Juntian is really tyranny, and everyone is equal is even more fallacious, Your Majesty, you should never do such a thing." Dong Qichang shouted angrily, "If Your Majesty refuses to see the minister, the minister will kneel and die here." ”

"Your Majesty doesn't give up Juntian, I won't leave when I wait!" The other scholars also shouted.

Liu Wenbing's face suddenly changed: "You dare to threaten Your Majesty!" Arrest all the people who come. ”

With Liu Wenbing's words, hundreds of brocade guards who were waiting solemnly outside the government quickly rushed out, and the two of them were responsible for pressing these scholars to the ground and tying them with ropes, even the old Dong Qichang was no exception.

"How can you be like this, how can you be like this......" Dong Qichang said tremblingly, not knowing whether he was angry or frightened.

"Immediately take them out of the city to dig a canal and force them to work according to the treatment of criminals!" Liu Wenbing commanded.

Although the water network in the south of the Yangtze River is dense, but many of the canals are in disrepair, just take advantage of the winter to renovate them, Zhenjiang Prefecture all over the land after the households, in addition to each household to transfer young and strong soldiers as village soldiers, but also organize the remaining strong men to repair the canals, just to send these scholars to forced labor, so that these scholars who are not diligent and do not distinguish between grains and grains know the people's suffering.

The petitioners were suppressed by the thunder, but before Zhu Youzhen could feel relieved, the news came from Suzhou again. Ying Tian Governor Mei Baohua led the army to suppress the bandits and was defeated, and the whole army was annihilated!

"Eight thousand troops, including three thousand elite standard battalions, were stewed with a spoonful, and Governor Mei Baohua and Bingbei Dao Qiu Yu were all buried in the fire, but it really works!" Looking at the report in his hand, Zhu Youzhen sighed.

"Mei Baohua was too careless and fell into the trap of the lake bandits." Hong Chengchou sighed. He was also a man who led troops, and one can imagine the situation at that time from the battle mentioned in the report, the army was all in the reeds, on fire on all sides, and there was indeed nowhere to escape.

"It turns out that this is their big move, and there are all small fights ahead." At this time, Zhu Youzhen was very calm, not angry at all, his fingers tapped on the table, and said slowly: "After pit 8,000 officers and soldiers, Suzhou should be very empty now, and in the next step, those lake bandits should rush out of Taihu Lake and start attacking the city, right?" ”

Hong Chengchou nodded: "Your Majesty said yes." ”

"But I don't understand, just with some bandits, do they think they can fight against me?" Zhu Youzhen said coldly.

Hong Chengchou said: "If the gentry of Wu Zhong are all involved, it should not be underestimated. ”

The land south of the Yangtze River is no better than other places, and the gentry here are very powerful! In particular, land annexation has reached its peak. There were almost no yeoman farmers around Suzhou, and most of the land belonged to the gentry, except for the common people who cultivated the official fields, most of the other people either worked as hired farmers for the gentry to cultivate the fields, or worked in the workshops run by the gentry.

Every great gentry had thousands of hired servants, and they could summon thousands of strong men at will. If these gentry were to join up with the lake bandits, they would be able to organize an army of tens of thousands in an instant, and they would have money and food. The armies of Suzhou were annihilated, and they were able to easily occupy the cities of Suzhou, while the Praetorian Guards in Zhenjiang were only more than 5,000 people, and the Fujian Navy Division of Li Yanzhi was only 15,000 troops, and the difference in strength between the two sides was not very large, at least on the surface!

"Do you want to persecute me with all this, do you want to deal with me? What a joke! Zhu Youzhen sneered.

Not to mention anything else, just the five thousand Praetorian Guards in their hands, that is the real division of a hundred battles, and it is a strong army that has killed Jiannu in Liaodong! Well equipped and morale high! And Li Yanzhi's Fujian Navy Division may not be as good as these 5,000 people, but it is not far behind, and in terms of equipment, it is no worse than the Praetorian Guard. What's more, the dozens of Fu ships in the Yangtze River are equipped with hundreds of red-coated cannons!

Even if tens of thousands of thieves defend the city, they can easily blast the city with artillery!

The gentry may be able to amass tens of thousands of troops, but what is the use of such a rabble of 100,200,000? Zhu Youzhen really couldn't understand, what confidence did the gentry in Wuzhong have to fight against him?

"Maybe these gentry are holding back other big moves, right?" Zhu Youzhen said coldly.

Hong Chengchou couldn't figure it out, and said slowly: "Unless there is a sudden big change, they will definitely lose!" ”

As long as the Janissaries of Zhenjiang go to Suzhou, an army of 15,000 people can put down any kind of rebellion! If you want to rely on those lake bandits, there is no hope at all.

As for the big changes, where will they appear? That is, Henan and Jiangxi.

In Henan, Wen Tiren took over government affairs after arriving in Kaifeng, Zhang Shize was already able to free up his hands to suppress the bandits, and was leading the army to attack the red turban thieves, and had successively captured the two cities of Qixian and Taikang. According to the report, the 30,000 border troops led by Sun Chuanting have arrived at Weihui Mansion and are about to cross the Yellow River into Henan. Although the momentum of the Henan red turban thief is huge, there are not many waves!

Then, the only change can only appear in Jiangxi, unless the Jiangxi rebels capture Nanchang, and then go down the river to attack the city of Nanjing, otherwise the gentry Wu has no hope at all.

But hundreds of miles away, how could the gentry of Wu Zhong know about the Nanchang battle situation?

"Da Sima, should we send troops to suppress the bandits and quell the rebellion?" Zhu Youzhen asked.