My father is Chongzhen? Then I have no choice but to rebel.

Chapter 205: You are very good at martial arts, so I will leave the task of assassinating the emperor to you!
At this moment, Zhu Cilang spoke again.

"Father, think about this! What if, when we return to the capital, an assassin suddenly wants to kill the emperor, and the person behind this assassin is a gentry from the south?"

"By then, will we have enough reason to take action against those gentry in the south?"

"When the time comes, if you want to kill anyone, rob anyone's house, or exterminate anyone's clan, it will just be a matter of a word."

"We can even use this as an excuse to catch them all in one fell swoop!"

Regicide?

When Chongzhen heard this, his eyes widened with disbelief, then he shook his head and said:

“They wouldn’t dare do that.”

Chongzhen fell silent again when he had just finished speaking.

His eyes gradually became a little blurry, as if he remembered his brother, Emperor Tianqi, who died suddenly, and his son who was killed by the so-called 'Nine Lotus Bodhisattva'!

If you think about it carefully, these people are blinded by greed and might really do something like regicide!

Suddenly, Chongzhen suddenly realized something, and he came back to his senses and looked at Zhu Cilang and said:

"Wait, I understand what you mean! You mean to wait until we return to the capital and find someone to pretend to be an assassin and kill me!"

"And then, using this as an excuse, we can wipe out all the gentry in the south?"

As he spoke, Chongzhen's eyes became brighter and brighter, because this was indeed a good idea!

How come he didn't think of that?

If it was just tax evasion, it would be impossible to target all the gentry in the South. After all, over the years, the tax revenue in the South has become a mess.

But if assassins were sent to kill the emperor with the intention of rebellion, then this matter would be worth discussing!

And this matter can be expanded infinitely!

For example, the gentry in the south were worried that the emperor would ask them to pay the taxes they owed, so they were dissatisfied and hired someone to assassinate the emperor.

For example, the salt merchants in the south hired someone to assassinate the emperor because the court changed the salt law, which made them lose their way to make money.

What's worse, it can also be said that some officials in the court wanted to usurp the throne, so they hired someone to assassinate the emperor!

In short, as long as there is an assassin who wants to assassinate Chongzhen, and this assassin eventually falls into Chongzhen's hands, then no matter who Chongzhen wants to attack, it will be a natural thing!
And no one dared to stop Chongzhen from doing what he wanted to do!
how?

You want to stop me from dealing with the real culprit behind my assassination?

It seems that this matter must have something to do with you!
Are you one of the masterminds behind this?

very good!

The traitor jumped out on his own!
Then let’s wipe out the entire nine clans!
By then, anyone with a brain would obey any order of Chongzhen and would not dare to show any sign of resistance!
After figuring it all out, Chongzhen's eyes lit up with excitement.

Zhu Cilang didn't know what Chongzhen was thinking at the moment, but he knew that Chongzhen had understood what he meant.

Then he said:

"Your Majesty is wise, and this is exactly what I meant."

"We have returned victorious this time. The morale of the army is high and the people are full of respect. Whether in the army or among the people, your prestige has reached an unprecedented peak."

"But at this moment, if word spread that some people, in order to evade taxes, were to hire assassins to kill the emperor, how would those soldiers returning victorious feel?"

"They must be filled with rage, wishing to tear the traitor into pieces!"

"What will the people of the world think?"

"For the sake of the country and the people of the world, the emperor personally led the army to war, overcoming difficulties and obstacles and finally won the victory, bringing peace to the people of the world!"

"But there are some people who don't want to see the country prosper and the people live a good life! Do you think the people of this world can let these people go?"

"And aren't these people outright traitors and public enemies of the world?"

"When the time comes, we can use this as an excuse to exterminate them all. Not only will the people have no objections, they will applaud and praise our father for his wisdom!"

Fang Zhenghua, who was listening to the conversation between the father and son, felt his scalp tingling, as if countless ants were crawling on him.

He could never have imagined that the former prince could come up with such a bold and vicious plan!
If this plan is really implemented, I am afraid that all the gentry in the world will suffer.
At this moment, Chongzhen seemed to remember something crucial, then frowned and asked:
"I agree with this idea, but who do you plan to find to act as the assassin?"

Upon hearing this, Zhu Cilang curled up his lips into a mysterious smile, and then his eyes, like lightning, suddenly fell on Fang Zheng's body.

Fang Zhenghua was listening intently when he suddenly noticed Zhu Cilang's gaze on him. He was so scared that the hairs on his body stood up.

After hearing this, how could he not understand what Zhu Cilang meant?

The next second, Fang Zhenghua fell to his knees without the slightest hesitation, and kowtowed repeatedly like pounding garlic.

The voice trembled:
"My Lord, please forgive me. Even if I had the courage of heaven, I would not dare to do such a heinous and unjust act!"

Chongzhen also reacted at this moment, followed Zhu Cilang's gaze to look at Fang Zhenghua, and then smiled:
"Yes, how could I have forgotten you? Fang Zhenghua, if I remember correctly, your martial arts skills are extraordinary. You are the perfect person to play the assassin."

When Fang Zhenghua heard this, he immediately said with a sad face:
"Your Majesty, please don't embarrass me. I was born to serve you. How could I do anything that would harm you? Please forgive me, Your Majesty!"

Chongzhen waved his hand and said nonchalantly:

"I only asked you to pretend to assassinate me, not to really assassinate me. What are you afraid of?"

As soon as he finished speaking, Chongzhen suddenly took a deep breath because Fang Zhenghua suddenly knelt down and no one helped him cover his wound, which started bleeding again.

I didn't feel anything just now, and I didn't feel any pain.

But now, it really hurts!

At this moment, the eunuch's shrill voice came from the door:
"Your Majesty, the imperial doctor has arrived."

Chongzhen was about to call in the imperial physician when Zhu Cilang said:
"Father, it's best not to rush to treat this wound. Keep it for later use in the performance. This wound is the key. We have to make it look real."

"After all, it was an assassination. There can't be no scars at all. Otherwise, how can we convince the world?"

When Chongzhen heard this, he was stunned for a moment. After careful consideration, he felt that what Zhu Cilang said made sense.

Then he gritted his teeth and said:

"I understand! For the sake of the Ming Dynasty, and to thoroughly punish those powerful gentry, I must perform this scene realistically and not reveal any flaws!"

"Call the doctor in!"

Immediately afterwards, the imperial physician walked in hurriedly from the door.

When he saw Chongzhen's right hand covered in blood, he was so frightened that his face turned pale and he almost couldn't stand.

After coming to his senses, he rushed over and carefully began to treat Chongzhen's wounds.

But at this moment, Chongzhen endured the pain and said to the imperial physician:
"Do you have any method to temporarily prevent this wound from healing without endangering my life?"

what?
When the imperial physician heard this, he thought he had misheard and looked up at Chongzhen in astonishment, as if to confirm whether the emperor was talking nonsense!
Chongzhen did not get angry when he saw this, but asked in a more serious tone:

"I'm asking you, do you have any way to temporarily prevent this wound from healing without endangering my life?"

"Just tell me straight, I won't blame you!"

The imperial physician heard it clearly this time. Although he didn't know what Chongzhen was trying to do, he still quickly replied:
"Your Majesty, there is indeed a way to temporarily prevent the wound from healing without causing further bleeding!"

"That's good."

Chongzhen breathed a sigh of relief, and then continued:
"Then use your method to stop the bleeding for me. I will keep this wound for now."

The imperial physician didn't know what Chongzhen was going to do, but he didn't dare to ask. He could only take out a box of silver needles and some special herbs and began to treat Chongzhen.

While the imperial physician was concentrating on treating Chongzhen's wounds, Zhu Cilang had already walked out of the room with Fang Zhenghua.

The moonlight tonight is as bright as water, and the bright moonlight pours down without reservation, covering the entire camp with a layer of silver gauze.

The breeze blows gently, like a pair of gentle hands, caressing your face gently and bringing a hint of coolness.

In the distance, the densely packed tents looked like a white ocean, rising and falling one after another.

Laughter and joyful chatter continued to flow from the other side like a cheerful stream.

The soldiers were immersed in joy and cheering for their victory, as they had received a lot of silver.

Zhu Cilang looked at the lively scene in the distance, a faint smile appeared on the corner of his mouth, and then he turned his head and said to Fang Zhenghua beside him:
"Fang Zhenghua, what do you think the future of the Ming Dynasty will be like?"

Fang Zhenghua quickly bowed, a respectful smile on his face as he said:

"Your Highness, I don't know what national affairs are, but I know that under your leadership, the Ming Dynasty will surely create an even more glorious future!"

Zhu Cilang smiled, then reached out and gently patted Fang Zhenghua's shoulder and said:

"So, for the sake of a more glorious future for the Ming Dynasty, I have to trouble you to stage a scene of 'assassinating' His Majesty."

"You must not let me down when the time comes."

When Fang Zhenghua heard this, the smile on his face froze instantly, and then he forced out a smile that was uglier than crying.

"My Lord, I am truly terrified! Let alone doing something like this, even just thinking about it makes me feel so sorry for Your Majesty and the trust you placed in me!"

"Why don't you let someone else do this job?"

"I think Master Li Ruolian is a good choice. His martial arts skills are almost the same as mine, and he will definitely be able to complete the task!"

At the same time, Li Ruolian, who was patrolling nearby, suddenly sneezed without warning.

He touched his nose, his eyes full of confusion, as if someone was saying something bad about him behind his back?
In fact, Zhu Cilang had considered Li Ruolian. After all, the initial candidate was between Li Ruolian and Fang Zhenghua, but in the end he chose Fang Zhenghua.

Because Li Ruolian was the commander of the Jinyiwei who accompanied the army to the war, he was responsible for protecting Chongzhen. He should always follow Chongzhen and not leave him even a step.

If Li Ruolian was not by Chongzhen's side when he was assassinated, people would definitely notice something.

On the other hand, although Fang Zhenghua was the eunuch commander of the Western Factory, he was just a eunuch after all and would not attract much attention.

Of course, the more important thing is that Fang Zhenghua's martial arts skills are relatively high. After completing the assassination, he can escape unscathed. Otherwise, if he is caught on the spot by accident, things will become very troublesome!

Thinking of this, Zhu Cilang put away his smile and said seriously:

"This is an order from His Majesty and me! You cannot refuse!"

Hearing this, Fang Zhenghua instantly understood that he could not shirk this matter.

He could only grit his teeth and said:

"In that case, I will obey your command!"

Seeing that he agreed, Zhu Cilang nodded with satisfaction and said:
"That's right! Don't worry, once this matter is successfully completed, I will definitely reward you handsomely."

Fang Zhenghua smiled wryly and nodded, but his heart was filled with helplessness.

Because, in his mind at this moment, the so-called reward was far less real than being able to stay out of it.

But what's the point of saying this at this moment?
Thus, this eunuch who was supposed to die for his country in history would assassinate Chongzhen not long after.
After a while, Zhu Cilang stepped into the house again.

At this time, the imperial physician had completed treating Chongzhen's wounds.

Seeing Zhu Cilang come in, the imperial physician bowed slightly and saluted, then retreated quietly.

Chongzhen raised his bandaged right arm slightly and said:
"The imperial physician just said that his method can temporarily stop the bleeding from the wound, but it can also prevent the wound from healing."

"Even after two or three days, the wound will look just as fresh."

After hearing this, Zhu Cilang nodded slowly, then turned his gaze to Fang Zhenghua and said:
"Go and tell everyone who was here just now to stop talking!"

Fang Zhenghua nodded solemnly. Just as he was about to leave, Zhu Cilang seemed to have thought of something and quickly added:

"I'm not asking you to kill them, I'm asking you to warn them! And give each of them some silver!"

Obviously, Zhu Cilang was overthinking it. He thought Fang Zhenghua would misunderstand his meaning and kill everyone who was present!
Fang Zhenghua was stunned when he heard this, because that was exactly what he understood. Why did the prince need to add more?
But he didn't know what to say, so he left.

Immediately afterwards, only Zhu Cilang and Chongzhen were left in the room.

Chongzhen raised his eyes and looked at Zhu Cilang. Seeing that he seemed to have something to say, he said:
"If you have anything else to say, tell me everything! I can't sleep tonight anyway!"

Zhu Cilang nodded, then sat down directly opposite Chongzhen, and then spoke:

"Father, have you ever thought about why the Ming Dynasty has fallen to this point?"

When Chongzhen heard this, the expression on his face instantly dimmed, as if shrouded in a layer of haze.

After a moment of silence, he spoke in a slightly low voice:

"There are many reasons why the Ming Dynasty has become what it is today, but in my opinion, the main reason is that the court cannot collect taxes."

"During the Hongwu era, the imperial court's tax revenue was roughly 20% to 1%. At that time, the court was able to collect approximately 27 million dan of grain annually."

"During the Wanli reign, the tax rate was raised to 15%, but we were still able to collect around 25 million dan of grain."

"But when it came to my turn to govern, even though I had raised taxes to 10% and even added three additional taxes, the taxes I collected were still not as much as during the Hongwu and Wanli periods!"

"By this year, the summer tax is only 5 million shi!"

"What does this mean? It means that those people in the south don't want to pay taxes at all. They own a lot of land, but they are unwilling to pay taxes to the country, and they are completely eroding the foundation of the Ming Dynasty."

"I must kill them!"

At the end of the conversation, Chongzhen was almost gritting his teeth.

After listening to Chongzhen's analysis, Zhu Cilang couldn't help but feel moved and began to look at Chongzhen with admiration.

He originally thought that Chongzhen was not aware of these drawbacks, but now he realized that Chongzhen actually understood everything.

It's just that he was powerless to do anything about it before, so he pretended to know nothing.

In this case, the subsequent conversation will go much more smoothly.

Zhu Cilang nodded first, then said:

"Your Majesty is right, but not entirely. In my opinion, all of this is actually due to land annexation."

Land annexation?

When Chongzhen heard these four words, he frowned instantly because he had never heard of them before.

Immediately afterwards, Zhu Cilang explained in detail to Chongzhen the meaning of land annexation.

Chongzhen listened very attentively, nodding slightly from time to time, obviously he had heard it all.

Then Zhu Cilang said bluntly:

"As for solving the thorny problem of land annexation, the solution is actually quite simple: to implement a policy of equalizing the land tax and levying taxes on all gentry, collecting taxes and grain according to the amount of land they own."

"I've roughly estimated that if this policy can be promoted, the court's annual land tax will basically be no less than 30 million taels of silver!"

"If converted into grain, it would be around 40 million dan!"

Zhu Cilang was not bragging, because he remembered very clearly that ever since Emperor Yongzheng implemented the system of equalizing land tax and requiring all gentry to pay taxes together, the Qing Dynasty's taxation had been very stable.

Basically, it was over 30 million taels of silver! At its peak, it even reached 40 million taels!
After hearing what Zhu Cilang said, a light suddenly flashed in Chongzhen's eyes, shining like a torch in the dark night!

As the king of a country, he naturally knows the profound significance of this policy!

If it can be implemented, it will benefit the country in two ways.

First, the country can obtain a stable source of tax revenue to enrich the treasury.

Secondly, the tax burden borne by ordinary people will be greatly reduced, especially those who do not have land, who will be able to get rid of the heavy shackles of taxes.

Whether from a national perspective or for the welfare of the people, this is undoubtedly an extremely beneficial decision.

Of course, the only ones who would suffer losses would be the gentry and powerful people.

However, compared with the Ming Dynasty's country and the interests of millions of people, their losses are nothing to worry about.
But in a flash, Chongzhen frowned again, and then said worriedly:

"But have you ever thought about one thing? If you really do this, I'm afraid you will completely offend the entire civil service group."

"I'm afraid that the reputations of you and me, father and son, will be infamous in history books forever!"

When Zhu Cilang heard this, he was speechless for a moment.

Not
Brother, are you kidding me?

It's already this fucking time and you still care about your future reputation in history books?

really!

Even now, Chongzhen still wants a good reputation!

At this time, we have to bring Yongzheng out and praise him again.

When Yongzheng decided to implement these policies, didn't he think that his reputation would be infamous in history books forever?

He must have thought of it!

But he doesn't care!

He just wanted to do what he thought was right and right for the people of the whole world!

Hey!
At this point, Zhu Cilang couldn't help but sigh in his heart. He was moved by Yongzheng!
Then, just when he couldn't help but want to pull out his 40-meter-long machete to hit Chongzhen, Chongzhen suddenly changed his tone and said in a firm voice:

"But compared to the disaster of national destruction, what does the gain or loss of this little reputation mean?"

"I have decided. I will fully implement this policy of allocating taxes to each acre and requiring all gentry to pay taxes together!"

"Even if history books in the future write nonsense and insist on portraying me as an eternal tyrant, what can I do?"

"The people of this world will remember my wisdom, bravery, and great talent."

"I don't believe that my great achievements can be easily erased by a few words in the history books!"

When he finished speaking, the haze in Chongzhen's heart instantly dissipated, and he felt enlightened.

Seeing this, Zhu Cilang could only silently retract the forty-meter-long machete he had just pulled out.

Afterwards, the father and son discussed the matter in depth for a while.

It was not until midnight that Zhu Cilang got up and said goodbye.

That night, Zhu Cilang lay in bed, tossing and turning, unable to fall asleep.

He had planned everything well.

First, he won the Battle of Songjin, then dealt with Li Zicheng and Zhang Xianzhong, and finally began to implement the policy of equalizing the land tax and requiring all gentry to pay taxes.

But plans are always good, reality is always cruel, and his plans were eventually disrupted!
But it doesn't matter, it's just a matter of changing his original plan.

Anyway, no matter how his plan changes, it will not affect the final result!

The Ming Dynasty will surely become glorious again!

Thinking of this, Zhu Cilang fell into a deep sleep.
Time flies like a white horse passing by, and in the blink of an eye, it’s three days later.

And this day is the big day when the emperor returns to Beijing.

The civil and military officials who had received the news long before had already gathered outside Zhengyang Gate, eagerly waiting.

After all, this was a great victory that the Ming Dynasty had not experienced in more than a hundred years!

This scene was extremely grand.

The roadsides were lined with dense crowds of people, their faces filled with joyful smiles, making the surroundings even more joyous.

What no one knew was that an assassination attempt on Chongzhen was about to take place!
(End of this chapter)