The Ming Dynasty began from Sarhu

Chapter 840: Not changing one's father's ways for three years is filial piety

In the first month of the ninth year of Guangde, Emperor Liu Kan of the Great Qi Dynasty, despite the opposition of his ministers, forced Velasco to leave for Manila.

On the eighth day of the first lunar month, the Velasco delegation boarded a ship at Xiaopaoshan Wharf and sailed down the river, planning to sail out to sea from Wusongkou.

The officials in Huguang were pro-peace officials, and most of them supported Emperor Guangde's new policies, so the delegation did not encounter any trouble on its journey eastward.

On February 20th of the ninth year of Guangde, Velasco arrived at Wusongkou. The magistrate of Huating personally led troops to escort the delegation onto the ship, and the ship sailed away from Da Qi.

Belasco stood on the deck and bid farewell to the Magistrate of Huating in tears. He knew that after he left, Da Qi would inevitably fall into division and a catastrophe was inevitable.

The news that the Spaniards were going to Manila to negotiate peace quickly spread throughout the country, and the struggle between the pro-war and pro-peace factions became increasingly intense.

On February 25th, rumors circulated that Emperor Guangde Liu Kan was not the retired emperor's biological son. The rumor, coined by a "Kaiyuan veteran," revealed that Liu Kan's mother, Empress Zhang Yan, was actually a "Zhongzhou prostitute" and that she was pregnant before meeting the retired emperor. Therefore, Emperor Guangde was not the retired emperor's biological son at all...

As soon as these words were spoken, they caused an immediate sensation in Tianxin City and became the main topic of conversation among the people of the capital.

"Have you heard? The emperor is not the biological son of the retired emperor?"

"I don't know where this bastard came from!"

"Yes, if he wasn't a bastard, he wouldn't have disobeyed the Emperor's order and sent people to negotiate with the Red-haired Barbarians. We, the Great Qi, punch the British and kick the Rakshasas. Who are we afraid of?"

Not changing one's father's ways for three years can be considered filial piety. However, after Emperor Guangde ascended the throne, he almost overturned all of his father's national policies. It is not an exaggeration to say that he is filial piety. It is not an exaggeration to say that he is a disobedient son.

The first day of March, the ninth year of Guangde.

Emperor Guangde summoned Jiang Liuer, the commander of the Suoyi Guard, and asked him to thoroughly investigate the source of the rumors and severely punish those who misled the people.

Jiang Liuer nervously told the emperor that the rumor had already spread throughout the capital and it would be difficult to investigate thoroughly, and he was worried that it would implicate many people.

"Don't be afraid of collective punishment. Arrest whoever we find! No leniency or tolerance!"

Jiang Liu'er wanted to say something but stopped himself. This third-generation leader of the Suoyi Guard was loyal to Emperor Guangde and was the sharpest knife in Liu Kan's hand.

"If you have anything to say, just say it!"

Liu Kan changed his usual calm and composed demeanor and seemed a little anxious.

"Your Majesty, what if the investigation leads to the Princess and the King of Han?"

Emperor Guangde was slightly stunned, and then deep hatred appeared in his eyes.

"What right does the Princess have to disrupt government? The King of Han should have gone to Xi'an to be a vassal long ago! If we find out that these two are responsible, I will use this as an excuse to eliminate them completely!"

"More than a dozen corps stationed in Huguang, Jiangsu and Zhejiang will soon enter the capital. I will allocate more men to you then. As long as I am still here, the Great Qi will remain untouchable."

~~~~~~~~~
Although Emperor Guangde was the ruler of the Great Qi, he never completely controlled the government. Only about half of the ministers truly supported the emperor, mainly distributed in Huguang, Jiangsu and Zhejiang, Sichuan, Guizhou, Yunnan, and Fujian, south of the Yangtze River.

Every time the State of Qi went to war, it consumed a large amount of food and supplies, and the people responsible for producing these supplies were mainly concentrated in Huguang, Jiangsu, Zhejiang and other places.

According to the system of the Great Qi Dynasty, the food and supplies needed by the army would be distributed to the southern counties, especially Suzhou, Hangzhou and Taicang, because the agriculture here was developed and the grain harvest was abundant. As the saying goes, if Suzhou and Hangzhou are prosperous, the world will have enough food.

Although the Agricultural Bureau improved seeds and increased fertilizers, and although large tracts of wasteland were reclaimed and grain production continued to rise, the southern provinces were unable to supply the needs of the army. As the scope of the empire's conquests expanded, the supply of food and fodder became increasingly insufficient.

The northern provinces recruited men to join the army, and the southern and northern provinces of Sichuan and Bashu provided money and food. As the benefits of imperial conquest became increasingly lower, this system finally came to an end.

If Emperor Guangde did not reform, the North-South split was inevitable, a situation that the pro-war faction would not see coming. Liu Kan's base was in Jiangnan, Bashu, Huguang, the cabinet, the Imperial Household Department, the governors of the southern provinces, the county chiefs, and over twenty elite military corps, totaling 500,000 troops. Beyond that, all other forces were opponents of Emperor Guangde, and their ranks were growing.

Before deciding to send Velasco to Manila, Emperor Guangde notified the commanders of the corps stationed in the southern provinces in the form of a secret decree, ordering each corps to set off immediately for Tianxin City.

The smarter generals had guessed that something might have happened in the capital, and they rushed to Junzhou without stopping after receiving the imperial edict.

Although Emperor Guangde wanted to delegate power and build a parliamentary system similar to that of the British, the current situation was that he had to survive first. Only those who survived were qualified to talk about change.

All the officers above the rank of centurion in the Suoyi Guard were replaced by the confidants of Emperor Guangde. The Suoyi Guard realized that the situation was critical, and the chief officer of the Wucheng Bingmasi, Lin Zhenyu, was also summoned by Emperor Guangde alone.

Liu Kan solemnly told Lin Yu's son that there was a small group of traitors who wanted to discredit the emperor and usurp the throne! From today on, entry to Tianxin City was restricted, and a curfew was in effect at 3 p.m. He also told the soldiers to kill anyone they encountered who looked suspicious.

Lin Zhenyu nodded repeatedly.

In addition, all officials of all ranks living in Tianxin City were under close surveillance. Liu Kan was worried that someone would take the opportunity to incite rebellion.

~~~~~
After completing these preparations, Emperor Guangde went to the Cining Palace as usual to pay his respects to Empress Dowager Cisi.

As soon as the emperor walked out of the hall, he was surrounded by more than a dozen guards, protecting Liu Kan in the center. The straw raincoat guards received intelligence that more than one group of assassins had sneaked into Tianxin City and were preparing to assassinate Emperor Guangde.

Fortunately, everything was calm and no assassin appeared.

When he arrived at the Cining Palace, he found out that the Empress Dowager Cisi and the Emperor Retired were both there. Liu Kan didn't know how to face his father, but since he was already there, it would be bad to refuse to meet them.

Led by the old eunuch Dongfang Zhu, Emperor Guangde stepped into the main hall of Cining Palace.

Liu Zhaosun was quite surprised to see Liu Kan come in, but the emperor soon regained his composure.

Liu Kan bowed and greeted his father.

"Father, may I ask if the Holy Lord is safe and sound?"

Liu Zhaosun hurried forward and helped Liu Kan up personally:
"Blessings from me."

Liu Kan paid his respects to the Empress Dowager Cisi again, and the Empress Dowager Cisi asked the palace maids to bring tea and offer it to the emperor.

The father and son exchanged a few pleasantries, and then the Emperor suddenly asked, "I heard you sent someone to Manila?"

Liu Kan replied respectfully, "That's right. We set out last month."

"So, the rumors outside the palace are all true?"

"Ah?" Liu Kan was slightly shocked. He thought his father was talking about the rumors about his life experience.

Liu Zhaosun knocked on the table, his tone suddenly becoming stern. "There's a rumor going around that you sent the Spanish to Manila to negotiate peace with the Europeans and stop the southern expedition?"

Jin Yuji glanced at Liu Zhaosun and comforted the emperor not to be angry.

Liu Kan said calmly, "The Great Qi is on a warpath, and it is no longer sustainable. Father, I am doing this for the sake of our country and our people, and for the sake of our dynasty for generations to come."

Liu Zhaosun looked at his son who was always against him in surprise. After a long pause, he suddenly asked:

"Are you here to vent your anger on Liu Yufei, Liu Qian, and the others? Or do you want revenge on your father and your deceased mother?"

(End of this chapter)