I'm really not doing business

Chapter 962 The elite troops have arrived, and the clear sky has appeared!

"Your Majesty, I am foolish. Why would these governors agree to come?" Li Changchun, the Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of Rites, asked with some doubt.

Ling Yunyi succinctly pointed out that there was a fundamental conflict between the Ming Dynasty and the various governorates of the Eastern Pacific—a conflict of survival.

When Spain's mainland power waned, how the viceroyalties of the Eastern Pacific could ensure their survival became an urgent issue.

Ling Yunyi could see it, the cabinet ministers could see it, the court officials could see it, and even a merchant who understood the situation at the open sea could see it.

The governors of the Eastern Pacific Governor's Office also went through all sorts of hardships to reach the position of governor. Can't they see that?
Thinking others are stupid is the biggest folly.

"Because in their hearts, there exists a false Ming Dynasty that is many times better than the real Ming Dynasty, a false Ming Dynasty that even the real Ming Dynasty cannot defeat," Zhu Yijun answered the question.

The Ming Dynasty was good. In an era where guns, gunpowder, germs, and killing were considered acceptable, the Ming Dynasty, which pursued high moral standards, possessed a certain order, and whose laws could be enforced, was truly good. However, the Ming Dynasty was not perfect.

However, in the eyes of the Westerners, the Ming Dynasty was too perfect to see its flaws; the Ming Dynasty they learned about from envoys and merchants was far too perfect.

For the governors, they did not need to worry about safety when they came to the Ming Dynasty. Even if the talks did not go well, they would not be killed by the Ming Dynasty directly.

Because an envoy named Rui De offended His Majesty the Emperor in the Hall of Literary Glory, the Emperor did not make things too difficult for him. In fact, after Rui De was buried alive with the city of Malacca, he was given a grand funeral. The Emperor specially ordered someone to investigate and add his life story to his epitaph.

The Ming Dynasty beheaded the Spanish envoy Soren because Soren was selling opium to the Ming Dynasty.

Even the morally superior and supreme emperor of the Ming Dynasty was bound by constraints; the emperor had to have a valid reason to kill someone!

Secondly, the governors themselves were pirates and plunderers. They understood very well that once they had amassed enough wealth, they would simply move to the Ming Dynasty to live. From the King of Ryukyu to the King of Japan, the Ming Dynasty allowed the governors to continue living as nobles.

After the Ming Dynasty captured the Governor-General's Palace in the Philippines, it did not disappear. It is still preserved in Davao City on Mindanao Island, but it is more like a trading office, responsible for facilitating the docking of large sailing ships and other matters.

The Ming Dynasty will not exterminate those who eat meat. If His Majesty wants it, then so be it. The governors may well become wealthy men in the Ming Dynasty.

This is what Zhu Yijun meant when he said that these Westerners have a false Ming Dynasty in their hearts that is many times better than the real Ming Dynasty, and that even the real Ming Dynasty cannot be defeated.

The Ryukyu kings and the Japanese kings could indeed continue to exist as nobles, but they would all die out within three generations, without even the emperor having to personally play the villain.

"Your Majesty is wise." After figuring out the key point, Li Changchun suddenly realized the truth.

"There is also good news," Zhu Yijun said, looking at his ministers. "The Governor's Office of Jinchi in Juezhou (Australia) and Da Tieling Guard have discovered a large silver mine in the northwest of Juezhou. Preliminary exploration has shown that if the mine is stable, it will produce three to four million silver coins per year."

There have been rumors about the Silver Mountain in the northwestern plains of Juezhou for a long time. This time, the existence of the Silver Mountain has been officially confirmed, and the Ming Dynasty plans to develop the silver mine.

Silver was very important to the Ming Dynasty. Gold notes and Luzon copper coins were supplements to silver, used to address insufficient liquidity. Silver was the main currency of the Ming Dynasty, and it would remain so for a long time to come. The more silver the Ming Dynasty acquired, the less impact the money shortage would have on it.

This is indeed fantastic news.

"Your Majesty, I congratulate you, and the Ming Dynasty!" Zhang Juzheng, along with his ministers, congratulated the Emperor on the new progress made in opening up the sea, and on a very important one at that.

The Ming Dynasty opened up the seas in search of silver. After eighteen years of searching, they finally found a silver mountain with abundant production.

"Your Majesty, in my opinion, Spain is more reliable than England." Shen Li, representing the Ministry of Rites, brought up a matter concerning the downgrading of Spain, a friendly nation.

There was considerable disagreement within the court regarding whether to remove Spain from the list of friendly nations.

On the one hand, the aging and senile Felipe has indeed done a lot of things that make each other unhappy recently; on the other hand, the Spanish are already the most humane of the Western barbarians, at least much better than the English.

“Even if Spain declines from the British Empire and is no longer the British Empire, it is still morally superior to England.” Shen Li did not hide the reason why the Ministry of Rites opposed the downgrading: morality.

Morality has no clear definition, and it may even change over time, but it still has bottom lines and standards.

To this day, the muddle-headed Felipe has not issued letters of marque, but merely used pirates to retaliate against the English. Even if he allows privateers to dock for supplies, he does not allow them to trade their plundered goods.

Not all the cargo on privateers was looted; some were local specialties, which were legal goods.

In the view of the Ministry of Rites, even without the glory of the British Empire, Spain was still a country worth getting along with, a country that had spent a thousand years in a reconquest movement, a country that had risen from obscurity to light, and had many similarities with the Ming Dynasty.

In the eyes of the Ming Dynasty, Spain was one of the few countries that had completed the construction of its own dynasty and could be put on the table.

“Since the governors of the Eastern Pacific have agreed to come to the Ming Dynasty, we will not downgrade them for the time being. If the Pan-Pacific Merchant Alliance is established and operates well, there will be no need to downgrade them.” Zhu Yijun thought for a moment and approved the Ministry of Rites’ idea.

Regarding Lanchilot's supply of saltpeter to Japan and Felipe's assassination attempt on the Sword Saint Marcus, the compensation demanded by the Ming Dynasty was the Pan-Pacific Trade Alliance.

Felipe has become senile, which is the main reason for the rapid decline in relations between the Ming Dynasty and Spain. We can wait and see if this relationship can be repaired after Felipe's death.

"Your subjects obey the decree." Shen Li, Gao Qiyu, and Li Changchun stepped forward, bowed their heads, and accepted the order.

His Majesty has assessed Spain. If Spain undermines the establishment and stable operation of the Pacific Rim Business Alliance, then Spain will be downgraded from a friendly nation. If Spain does not or is unable to undermine the operation of the Pacific Rim Business Alliance, then it will retain its status as a friendly nation.

Gao Qiyu did not return to his post. He bowed his head and said, "Your Majesty, I have a memorial to present."

Gao Qiyu submitted a very long memorial concerning the Blissful Religion.

Gao Qiyu had indeed been to Japan, and he possessed an understanding of the origins, development, and current scale of the Blissful Religion that was beyond the reach of the Ming Dynasty scholars and officials; he had witnessed it firsthand.

He spent a long time communicating with the Nagasaki Governor's Office and the Osaka Bay Garrison Command, analyzing the doctrines of the Gokuraku sect in detail, and came to a conclusion.

The Pure Land religion is doomed to perish.

After His Majesty finished reading the memorial, Gao Qiyu raised his hands and said, "Looking at the world, in all kinds of struggles, whether in religion, politics, culture, or social classes and groups, there is always compromise. In religion, this is manifested as forgiveness and redemption."

“When a person transforms from an opponent or heretic to a supporter, forgiveness and redemption are revealed. In religion, this is called conversion; in politics, it is called assimilation. For example, the Third Sister of Guihua City, the Northern Barbarians who were willing to submit to the king's rule, and Dao Lansheng and Dao Shigong of Laos, etc.”

"But the Blissful Church offers no compromise, forgiveness, or redemption. No matter the reason, when you change your identity and allegiance, that is, when you surrender, the Blissful Church will only demand that you reflect, reflect, reflect!"

"No matter how earnestly you swear or how tearfully you express your past mistakes, the Blissful followers will only demand reflection, a stronger, deeper, and more remorseful demonstration of your reflection, and a greater price to pay for these acts of reflection."

"Surrender is intended to reduce the cost and stop losses. For example, Toyotomi Hideyoshi signed the Treaty of Kyoto in exchange for the withdrawal of Ming troops. Ming only occupied the mining area and did not eliminate his shogunate. Surrender is intended to reduce the cost and stop losses."

"But the Blissful Religion is different. They only emphasize differences and create opposition, without pursuing any reconciliation or coexistence."

Gao Qiyu used vernacular language to fully explain the logic behind the inevitable demise of the Blissful Religion.

The result of surrendering to the Blissful Religion is constant self-reflection, constant paying the price, constant self-weakening and self-punishment. Even if you surrender, you will continue to pay the price and cannot stop the loss, so why surrender at all?
Although the Japanese lost their worldly desires, they gained the power to eat their fill by working, which was a way to minimize their losses.

However, the Blissful Religion does not allow surrender.

If things continue like this, the Blissful Religion will inevitably attract widespread opposition and will be digging its own grave.

"So Toyotomi Hideyoshi's compromise will only bring greater humiliation, and in the end, it will still come down to military encirclement and suppression?" Zhu Yijun closed the memorial and asked Gao Qiyu if his understanding was correct.

Toyotomi Hideyoshi backed down this time, but the Blissful Cult will not assimilate him. Instead, they will try every means to make him continue to back down, and even force him to his death.

If Toyotomi Hideyoshi realized that the Gokuraku sect did not allow surrender and that its ultimate goal was to force him to his death, would he continue to back down?

Although Toyotomi Hideyoshi was a monkey and not as good as Oda Nobunaga, he was still a farmer who climbed to the position of shogun step by step on the battlefield. Would he swallow his pride and commit suicide?
Gao Qiyu said with great certainty, "I believe that if Toyotomi Hideyoshi were still a human being, he would choose to fight to the death if the Paradise Cult were to press him step by step."

Both sides are going to die, so a lose-lose situation is better than a win-lose one. Toyotomi Hideyoshi wasn't made of clay; even a clay figure has some temper.

"Your memorial is excellent. I think it is appropriate to issue a decree to the Momoyama Shogunate and circulate it to Toyotomi Hideyoshi. What do you think, my dear minister?" Zhu Yijun pondered for a long time and felt it was necessary to let the monkey clearly understand his own situation and the state of the struggle.

Don't even think about kneeling!

The doctrines of the Blissful Religion contain no forgiveness or redemption. As long as you have ever been an opponent, you will always have original sin and must reflect on your actions, constantly giving up benefits and paying the price until death.

The Ming Dynasty was lawful because everyone in the Ming Dynasty could obtain enormous benefits from lawfulness. The Ming Dynasty naturally abhorred the chaotic and evil forces of the Blissful Religion. It would be best if Toyotomi Hideyoshi could resolve the issue.

If he can't solve it, the Ming Dynasty will also carry out a full-scale extermination to prevent the maggots from the Japanese from crawling onto the Ming Dynasty's dining table.

"Your Majesty is wise." Gao Qiyu bowed his head again, acknowledging the emperor's decision. He had taken out this memorial to persuade the emperor to issue a petition to the Japanese shogunate.

"Does Minister Gao intend to destabilize Japan?" Zhu Yijun flipped through the memorial, and between the lines he could only see the words "cannibalism".

Japan is already in chaos enough. Gao Qiyu's memorial has been sent to the Japanese shogunate by the emperor, which will only make the situation in Japan more chaotic. This chaos will allow the Bliss Sect to expand even more rapidly in Japan.

Regardless of Toyotomi Hideyoshi's choice, Japan will only become more turbulent.

Gao Qiyu was that wicked. He devised a cunning plan: he openly sowed discord and caused internal strife in Japan, leading to continued warfare and self-weakening.

"I am simply following the trend," Gao Qiyu stated directly and frankly, admitting his purpose and thoughts.

He is eager to advance; the Pan-Pacific Trade Alliance was his creation; his mission to Japan, risking his life to force Toyotomi Hideyoshi to surrender, was also for the sake of advancement; and now he is disrupting the situation in Japan, also for the sake of advancement.

If the Blissful Sect weren't so insane, they wouldn't have resorted to such a move.

"Minister Gao is indeed a scholar," Zhu Yijun said sincerely after reviewing the memorial.

Look how wicked these scholars are! They can stir up trouble in Japan just by trying to reason with them.

No matter how clever Toyotomi Hideyoshi was, he had no way to deal with it. He could only follow the path laid out by Gao Qiyu and fight the Blissful Sect to the death. He could still fight to the death now, but if he knelt for a while longer, he would not even have the strength to fight to the death.

"I have presumptuously studied the classics for several years." Gao Qiyu bowed again, shook his head, and returned to his seat.

If it weren't for the mistakes of that year, he should be a cabinet minister now, not just a junior minister or vice minister.

Gao Qiyu worked so hard because he wanted to prove to Zhang Juzheng that he was a capable and upright official.

However, Zhang Juzheng no longer cared much about Gao Qiyu. In this anti-corruption inspection in the capital, Shen Shixing, Wang Xiyuan, and Li Le, all close associates of Zhang's faction, were on the first list of those to be investigated. Gao Qiyu didn't even qualify for that list. The Anti-Corruption Bureau had been investigating these three important officials for eighteen years, conducting rigorous reviews. If the three of them passed the test, this second major anti-corruption campaign in the capital would spread throughout the entire city.

All of the prime minister's direct disciples had to pass the test; no official in the capital was exempt.

The Anti-Corruption Bureau's third move will target all officials, starting in the capital and spreading to major cities like Yingtian Prefecture, Songjiang Prefecture, and Guangzhou Prefecture, eventually reaching the entire Ming Dynasty, and will become a regular part of the anti-corruption campaign.

This large-scale and high-profile anti-corruption campaign was intended to ensure that the Wanli Reforms would not be exploited by rebels during the period of weakness that arose after the death of the authoritarian Zhang Juzheng.

The emperor could use the Anti-Corruption Bureau to directly overturn the table and carry out a major purge.

On the 23rd day of the seventh month of the 18th year of the Wanli reign, Li Rusong received an imperial edict and a fire token from the emperor and mobilized 3,000 troops.

The Zhenwu Cavalry Battalion, ready for battle at any moment, loaded three months' worth of provisions, firearms, gunpowder, side-mounted chariots, nine-pound field cannons, mother-and-child cannons, tiger crouching cannons, iron armor, and nine thousand horses onto the train after a day of preparation.

On the 25th, Li Rusong led the Beijing garrison to Rongcheng County, stationed troops outside the county, announced that Rongcheng would be under military control the next day, and issued a public notice to reassure the people, demanding that they not gather in the streets, and that those who disobeyed would be punished as traitors.

The following morning, the magistrate of Rongcheng ordered that the city gates not be opened and refused to accept the control of the Beijing garrison.

One hundred and twenty side-mounted chariots and one hundred and twenty nine-pound cannons were positioned below the city. Before the cannons could fire, the county magistrate of Rongcheng County led eight hundred yamen runners to open the city gates.

The county magistrate bound himself and left the city. He was a hereditary centurion, and he hadn't been the one to ambush the imperial envoy Xu Chengchu when Qingma Bridge collapsed. Now he had incurred the wrath of the emperor and was being asked to lead his constables to fight against the capital garrison?!
With sufficient logistical supplies, the 3,000 troops of the Beijing Garrison could fight a full sprint through the entire territory of Beizhili and make one round trip!
Looking at the dark, menacing cannons, the county constable lost all courage and knelt on the ground, weeping bitterly. He cursed the county magistrate mercilessly, saying that the yamen runners of Rongcheng County hadn't received their salaries for a full year and a half! Weren't the yamen runners human? Didn't they need to eat, drink, and relieve themselves?

It's like the Japanese did the work and were even given food!

"The Vanguard Battalion, change your uniforms." Li Rusong gave a strange order. The Ming Dynasty's capital garrison mainly fought external conquests, but it was constrained when dealing with internal affairs, even when suppressing rebellions.

The firearms they carry will not be used unless absolutely necessary.

In two quarters of an hour, the thousand soldiers changed into new clothes, cloth armor, which consisted of six pounds of cotton that was repeatedly pounded and hung on iron plates.

The only weapon was a long stick, a solid iron stick that was 1.6 feet long and weighed 3.4 pounds. The iron was 1 inch thick and the core was made of hardwood.

Besides a long staff, there was also an arm shield, which was two feet long and nine-tenths of an inch thick. It was made of steel and fixed to the arm with hemp rope. Both the upper and lower arm were fixed with hemp rope, while the handle was in the hand. The bottom of the shield was shovel-shaped, and a cold glint flashed by, indicating that it was sharpened.

Suppressing an internal rebellion presents an unsolvable problem: how to deal with the civilians who have been coerced, deceived, and are unarmed?

Using the people to their advantage was the only way these local officials and gentry could deal with the imperial court.

The answer lies in the riot control vanguard battalion. Without weapons of mass destruction or lethal force, the riot control vanguard battalion was able to counter such shameless tactics of coercing the people to bolster their own power.

It is shameless to use the people to one's advantage. To drag people with limited information and narrow-mindedness into complex and cruel political struggles is unacceptable. As His Majesty has decreed: Using the people to one's advantage is something that will be abandoned by both gods and men.

According to previous rules, officials and gentry who used the people to their advantage would be sent to the Jieku Yuan (a place for punishing corrupt officials). Unfortunately, the Jieku Yuan no longer accepts people from the Ming Dynasty. Beheading and public display of heads is the lightest punishment, and their families will inevitably be implicated.

"Enter the city!" Li Rusong, dressed in the same attire, stood at the very front of the queue. The thousand-strong riot control vanguard began to enter the city.

Following the vanguard battalion is a thousand-strong line musket unit. Once they encounter a large force with powerful crossbows and armor, the central army's line musket unit will immediately replace the vanguard battalion and begin a forceful suppression of the rebellion.

Li Rusong's gaze sharpened, and anger burned like a raging fire in his chest.

As he entered the barbican, he saw a group of people blocking the gate, with several others shouting loudly to prevent soldiers from entering the city.

The very scenario that Li Rusong hated most—using the people to his advantage—had unfolded right before his eyes!
"Central Army, listen to my command! Three shots to disperse them!" Li Rusong suppressed his anger and signaled the central army's line musket squad to fire warning shots into the air. If the crowd did not disperse after the three shots, the riot control battalion would physically disperse them.

A servant-looking man stood in the crowd and shouted, "Three taels of silver! If we can stop these soldiers outside the city today, each of them will get three taels of silver!"

“They are elite soldiers of the Beijing Garrison, the emperor’s personal guard. The Beijing Garrison is extremely disciplined and will not lay a hand on the people, because they are soldiers and we are civilians!”

"Don't be afraid! Don't retreat! As long as we block them here, they can't enter the city!"

"So what if they come on strong! So what if they're well-trained? We're here, they can only stop in their tracks!"

"The elite troops have stopped! They've stopped!"

……

Shouts of encouragement rang out from the crowd. It was clear that the servants and thugs who had been inciting the people to block the city gates were rallying the crowd, offering them money and telling them not to be afraid.

The elite soldiers of the Beijing garrison were disciplined and would only back down rather than retaliate even if they were constantly humiliated.

The common people had never dealt with the elite troops of the Beijing Garrison, but the gentry were well aware of the garrison's weaknesses.

Li Yashi referred to the elite soldiers of the Beijing Garrison as the Holy Temple Warriors. After he made this statement, he wondered how such a morally superior army could suppress internal rebellions.

You may be strong, but the spirit of your Beijing garrison is to report to the emperor and save the common people. If you attack the very thing you're supposed to redeem, how will you redeem it?
This is also why some gentry were not afraid of the Beijing garrison. So what if you are strong enough to tear a hole in the sky? I can ride on your head, as long as I am a civilian and you are a soldier, you can do nothing about it.

Should good people be held at gunpoint? But good people are often held at gunpoint.

The purpose of the riot control vanguard was to solve this problem. If you use the people to your advantage, I will use non-lethal weapons and not enter the homes of ordinary people. In this way, we can greatly avoid moral accusations, the deterioration of discipline in the Beijing garrison, and moral decline.

"boom."

"boom!"

"boom!"

Three gunshots rang out, and the crowd had not yet dispersed.

"Vanguard Camp, listen to my command! Follow me to drive out the traitors!" Li Rusong tapped his long staff on his shield and ordered the advance.

Public proclamations and three warning shots failed to disperse the crowd; these were not ordinary people, but rebellious traitors.

Once is never enough. We've already warned you twice, and if you still try to stop us, then we can't blame the elite soldiers for brandishing their long sticks.

Li Rusong took the lead, walking at the very front, followed closely by a thousand vanguard soldiers, heading towards the crowd.

A sharp explosion erupted from the crowd! Amidst shouts and screams, they scattered and fled.

Servants and thugs are liars!
These elite soldiers will not be morally coerced; they took action!
The vanguard battalion for suppressing riots had one hundred inspectors who were in charge of military discipline. During the suppression of riots, the head was an absolutely forbidden target. A powerful blow to the head could easily kill a person, and there was no option to pursue the perpetrator.

Li Rusong quickly completed his task of dispersing the crowd. He felt that the stick in his hand was still a bit heavy. It wasn't that it was too physically demanding, but rather that it was too heavy to hit people. He thought he could consider reducing the weight and replacing it with a wooden stick to prevent accidents.

Qi Jiguang advocated using wooden sticks in the riot control camp, but in the end, the emperor ordered the use of heavy iron sticks made of wood coated with iron.

The emperor believed that the lives of ordinary people were lives too, and the lives of soldiers were lives too. They wouldn't be hurt by being beaten, and they wouldn't run away. If there were a moral judgment, it should be the emperor himself, not the soldiers who carried out the imperial orders.

If you want to criticize someone, criticize the tyrant; there's no need to blame the soldiers who were just following orders.

The elite soldiers of the Beijing Garrison acted with great restraint, striking with three blows to shatter the spirit of the rebellious people. "Sir, I am a citizen of the Ming Dynasty."

These rebellious civilians who used silver to obstruct the Beijing garrison lay on the ground wailing, but none of them were in any danger.

It really hurt, it was excruciating.

Li Rusong revealed a cruel smile, but it was hidden by his mask and no one could see it. Li Rusong highly approved of reporting to the emperor and saving the common people. He even personally trained a great man like Zhang Xinhe. However, he did not approve of the common people who were blocking the elite troops.

Are these people receiving silver really the common people that the Beijing garrison is supposed to protect and save?
"Bang!" A gunshot rang out, and a figure fell to the ground.

Li Rusong's expression changed drastically. He removed his mask and demanded sharply, "Who fired the gun?!"

"Lieutenant General Luo Shangzhi!" Lieutenant General Luo Shangzhi of the Central Army's Line Musketeer Unit stepped forward and shouted, "That man has aimed his crossbow at the deputy commander. If you have a crossbow, kill him without hesitation!"

"A crossbow?" Li Rusong then looked at the man lying in a pool of blood. He was dressed as a servant, holding a crossbow, and had fallen behind a doorpost.

"Kill anyone with crossbows or armor without exception!" After confirming that Luo Shangzhi had not fired the gun without cause, Li Rusong loudly reiterated the riot control regulations.

Those wielding powerful crossbows and wearing armor are rebels; they can be executed by firing a nine-pound cannon.

The Beijing garrison came to quell the rebellion, not for a day trip.

"Forward!" After Li Rusong had dispersed the crowd and brought the traitors under control, he headed towards the county government office.

This time, Li Rusong did not lead the way, but advanced in a line formation. When he reached the gate of the Rongcheng County Magistrate's Office, three side chariots were pulled to the front of the county government office. The gate was tightly closed, indicating that he was determined to fight to the end.

The elite soldiers would not attack the common people, but when it came to officials and other officials who were selected through a system of appointment, they were no longer considered common people and had no taboos!

Before the nine-pound cannon was even fired, the county government gates were wide open, and a group of yamen runners came out to surrender. The magistrate wanted to fight against the Beijing garrison, but the yamen runners didn't want to. They weren't rebels, so why should they risk their lives for a magistrate who hadn't received his salary for a year and a half?
The yamen runners were hoping that the elite troops from the capital garrison would arrive and pay the owed salaries.

The resistance of the Rongcheng magistrate lasted only an hour before he was arrested by the elite soldiers of the Beijing Garrison in the latrine of the county government. In the afternoon, the doors of four wealthy and powerful families were broken into, and all the criminals were arrested.

On July 27th, the Longyou Gang and Qingtang Gang, located in the east and west of Rongcheng County, were wiped out. Two hundred elite soldiers from the Beijing Garrison were dispatched and they wiped out the two gangs, which had been around for twenty years, arresting everyone from top to bottom.

On July 29th, elite troops from the Beijing garrison went out of the city to arrest seven gentry families outside the city, and incidentally wiped out two bandit gangs that had been harassing Rongcheng County for many years.

When the elite troops arrive, the clear sky will appear.

On the third day of the eighth lunar month, the ban on the watchtower in Dashilan, Rongcheng County was lifted, and Rongcheng County returned to its former bustling state. Li Rusong arrested all the suspects in Rongcheng in less than ten days.

This is also why Li Changchun, the Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of Rites, opposed the dispatch of the Beijing Garrison. The Beijing Garrison didn't care about the truth at all; as long as someone had the ability to commit a crime, they were all targets for arrest. It was better to arrest everyone and interrogate them slowly.

(End of this chapter)