Chapter 102

Far more useful than being alive.

Once the Zhu family obtains the Jiangshan, the Zhu family bears the duty to protect the land and defend the borders for all Han people under heaven!

With the blood of 250,000 Zhu clan members, we exchange for the unity of all Han people under heaven to weather this national calamity.

Great virtue!

Even Li Zicheng could not help but be deeply shocked.

And the righteous army behind Li Zicheng, looking at the weapons in their hands, each one gritted their teeth in hatred.

"Why must we keep fighting Han people!"

"Fight more, fight more and we will become slaves to those Tatars!"

"Great King, we cannot fight anymore; let us go beyond the pass and fight the Tatars!"

"We still have ancestors, we still have our clansmen! If this world perishes in our hands, we will not even be able to enter our ancestral graves in the future!"

"..."

Zhu Cunji's words.

Completely shook the minds of all the righteous army.

How could Li Zicheng lack even a shred of national righteousness?

Even in the original history, until the eve of breaking the capital in the seventeenth year of Chongzhen.

Li Zicheng still sent a letter to Zhu Youjian.

The Dashun army could go beyond the pass to jointly exterminate Li Zicheng with the Ming army, and Li Zicheng would only need a corner of the northwest to be granted land and made a king.

It was just that when this letter reached Zhu Youjian's hands.

The entire Great Ming court was no longer under Zhu Youjian's control.

Zhu Youjian summoned the Grand Secretary to the palace several times to discuss affairs and deliberate on peace talks.

Wei Zaode even directly played dumb.

No matter how Zhu Youjian spoke, Wei Zaode stubbornly did not utter a single word.

Forcing Zhu Youjian to smash the dragon throne into pieces.

Help Li Zicheng.

They would all be meritorious ministers with the merit of supporting the dragon.

Help Zhu Youjian.

Where would they get the chance to rise several ranks at once and bless their descendants?

In the end, Zhu Cunji slumped to the ground, his eyes empty.

"With this single battle, our Zhu family's illustrious clan, every family wears mourning; only a few minor branches over sixty years old and young children who cannot yet speak remain in the various princely fiefs."

"The power of the Zhu family is exhausted!"

"The affairs of the world now rely on the people of the world!"

Having spoken, Zhu Cunji slumped before the coffin as if all strength had been drained from his body.

Only the people of Mancheng remained.

Staring woodenly at the coffin before them.

And at this time in Xingshan, the coffin of the Jin Prince also began to be transported, followed by the Zhou Prince, the Chu Prince, and the Qi Prince.

In an instant.

The world trembled!

All Han people were thinking of one question.

The imperial family has been fought to extinction.

Does this mean the Han people's Jiangshan can be handed over to the Tatars?

The first to react was the northwest where Li Zicheng was entrenched.

According to camp statistics, in just one night, more than ten thousand righteous army soldiers fled the camps.

The women, children, and elderly accompanying the camps fled in even greater numbers.

The court has already prepared land, plow oxen, rice seeds, and enough grain to sustain them until the summer harvest next year.

The righteous army is not righteous.

Li Zicheng has already lost the soul that once united his troops.

Today's Great Ming.

Rising with a bamboo pole cannot be called righteousness.

Only dying in battle in Liaodong is called righteousness!

Dressed in white clothes and white armor heading to Liaodong; many people in Jiangnan brought their own white clothes to join the army, becoming a widespread trend!

It was also at this time.

Some rumors gradually began to appear in various places.

The messy affairs of the Shanxi Jin merchants were finally exposed in the mouths of some retainers, partners, and accountants who still possessed a conscience.

As soon as the coffin of the Jin Wang Fu arrived in Taiyuan, the local people immediately began smashing the properties of the Eight Great Jin Merchants.

Countless pieces of evidence, and countless antiques and paintings looted by Huang Taiji, were "miraculously" searched out from the homes of the Eight Great Jin Merchants by the angry people.

The court and the country were greatly shocked.

And at this time, Zhu Youjian's gaze had already fixed on this last stubborn disease of the Great Ming.

As the "Liaodong Cotton Case" continued to expand.

Nearly three thousand officials in the Northern and Southern Capitals were implicated.

The military affairs in the capital were even more taken over by the noble families whose sons had died on the battlefield.

At the court assembly.

Duke Ding, Xu Yunzhen, gazing at the empty court hall, as if mustering all his courage, stepped forward from among the few remaining court officials and said in a low voice,

"Your Majesty, regarding the Liaoning cotton case, if we continue investigating like this, I fear our Great Ming will soon have neither officials nor clerks!"

Zhu Youjian coldly stared at the memorial presented by the Eastern Depot before him, not even blinking an eyelid.

"Last year, our Great Ming's national treasury held only thirty-two taels of silver."

"Regarding the Liaoning cotton case, does Duke Ding know how much silver our Great Ming's national treasury currently holds?"

Upon hearing this, Xu Yunzhen was stunned, then lowered his head and said,

"Your subject does not know..."

Zhu Youjian suddenly rose to his feet, his expression twisted as he roared,

"Now, the national treasury still holds forty-three million taels of Bai Yin and sixty million shi of grain and fodder!"

"If our Great Ming's Jiangshan has only such officials and clerks, it would be better to perish just like this!"

Hearing this number,

even Xu Yunzhen could not help but draw in a sharp breath of cold air.

This number,

was the remaining foundation after Zhou Kui had been swindled and deceived!

According to Zhu Youjian's estimate,

if the capital officials in Nanzhili were killed once more, perhaps ten million taels of Bai Yin could be gathered.

Such officials,

which Emperor would dare to employ them?!

Zhu Youjian's face was solemn, staring fixedly at the few remaining ministers before him and said in a low voice,

"Marquis of Xinjian."

"Your subject is here."

Zhu Youjian took a deep breath and said,

"This year, I intend to hold an additional special imperial examination; I trouble Marquis of Xinjian to serve as the chief examiner for this special examination."

Upon hearing this, Marquis of Xinjian, Wang Xiantong, shuddered.

"Your Majesty, this would likely violate the established regulations..."

Zhu Youjian snorted coldly and said,

"Our Great Ming has already reached this state; what use is there in speaking of whether regulations are followed or not?"

Among the current court officials, the only one who could be counted as half a civil official and who still held some influence among scholars throughout the land,

was none other than Marquis of Xinjian, Wang Xiantong.