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

Chapter 216: Those who slander the imperial court and incite the people to resist taxes will be executed along with their entire clan! Kill!

Hou Gongchen stood at the door, looking at everyone calmly, then forced a seemingly warm smile and said:

"You all must have come all this way and worked hard. Please come to the palace for a gathering. This is also the way I, the Prince Consort, would like to welcome you all."

Hou Gongchen emphasized the four words "Fu Ma Du Wei" (the imperial son-in-law's ...

Seeing this, Jin Yichuan hurriedly stepped forward and said,
"Your Majesty, there is no need to trouble yourself. We are here only to collect taxes."

"As long as you pay the taxes you owe, we will leave immediately and will not disturb you for a moment."

When Hou Gongchen heard this, the forced smile on his face disappeared without a trace, and a surge of anger suddenly surged in his heart.

He had been planning to invite these people into the house, give them some silver and get the matter over with.

But I didn't expect that this group of people would be so unkind and have no idea when to stop.

Then, he immediately frowned and said in a cold tone:
"Humph, this prince consort is at least a royal relative, yet you're so audacious as to think of collecting taxes from me. You're simply courting death!"

"Besides, this prince consort has always been law-abiding. When have I ever defaulted on paying taxes?"

"You'd better get out of here right away, or I'll report you to His Majesty and make sure you don't get into trouble!"

If it were yesterday, Jin Yichuan might have been scared by these words. After all, this old guy's identity was indeed extraordinary.

But now, not anymore!
Jin Yichuan's face remained calm, and he responded with neither arrogance nor servility:

"Your Highness, there's no point in playing dumb with us. You should be aware of the Jinyiwei's capabilities. There's nothing we can't find out as long as we want to."

"We know everything you've done in Cangzhou over the years."

"Are you really not afraid that these things will reach His Majesty's ears?"

When Hou Gongchen heard this, his face instantly turned pale and he couldn't help but shout loudly:

"How dare you investigate this Prince Consort?"

Jin Yichuan just sneered contemptuously and said nothing, but the disdainful look on his face had already revealed his attitude.

I'm investigating you, so what?
Seeing this, Hou Gongchen was furious, but he also knew that the other party was well prepared, and if he really made a scene, he would not end up well.

In desperation, Hou Gongchen finally gave in.

Then he said to the servant beside him with a look of resentment:

"Go to the government office and get ten thousand taels of silver to pay the tax."

As soon as the words fell, a clear voice suddenly rang out from the crowd:

"Ten thousand taels? That's not right, is it? Your Majesty, you should pay one million and three hundred thousand taels of silver!"

Everyone looked in the direction of the voice and saw an official in green uniform standing out from the crowd.

This person was a minor official in the Ministry of Revenue, and he came with the troops to collect taxes.

Yesterday, based on the detailed information sent by the Embroidered Uniform Guard, he carefully calculated Hou Gongchen's land properties.

The result was shocking: one-third of the land in Cangzhou belonged to the Hou family.

Therefore, according to regulations, Hou Gongchen must pay at least 1.3 million taels of tax.

One million three hundred thousand taels???
When Hou Gongchen heard this number, he instantly became furious and his face turned red like a ripe tomato.

The next second, he couldn't help but yelled loudly:

"When has this prince consort ever owed so much in taxes? How is this any different from robbery?"

"If you don't want the ten thousand taels of silver, then don't even think about getting a cent. Do you dare to kill this prince consort?"

"This prince consort is a member of the royal family, and all his descendants are of royal blood. How dare you be so presumptuous!"

When Li Sanli heard this, a mocking smile appeared on his face, and he said slowly:

"My Lord, you may be able to deceive others with this, but why are you deceiving yourself?"

"Isn't your son the son of a concubine? He has no relationship with the princess at all. This is clearly written in the royal family tree."

As soon as these words came out, Hou Gongchen's old face turned redder, as if someone had poked the most painful scar. He was speechless for a moment and didn't know how to refute.

Because his son was not born to the princess, but to one of his concubines, so he is not of royal blood at all!
At this time, more and more people gathered around and watched the fun.

These people usually disliked Hou Gongchen very much because he often abused his power in Cangzhou by relying on his status as a royal relative.

Now that they saw him being humiliated like this, they were naturally secretly happy, and some even applauded.

Hou Gongchen saw that more and more people were gathering around him, his eyes rolled around, and he immediately had an idea in his mind.

Then he shouted loudly to the people around him:

"My fellow countrymen, this group of people are acting recklessly, relying on Your Majesty's imperial decree. They even dare to extort 1.3 million taels of silver from this Prince Consort."

"After you finish blackmailing this prince consort, maybe you will be the next one!"

"They don't even take me, a royal relative, seriously, let alone ordinary people like you?"

"They claim to be collecting taxes, but in reality they are extorting money. Everyone, be careful!"

As soon as these words were spoken, the people around them suddenly became agitated.

"Is what Prince Consort said true? Are these soldiers really going to blackmail us?"

"You never know! They even dare to blackmail a royal relative like the Prince Consort, let alone ordinary people like us."

"What do you think the emperor was thinking? We didn't assassinate him, so why did he have to make things difficult for us ordinary people?"

"Who knows! I used to think our emperor was a good one, but now it seems that may not be the case!"

For a moment, the people around began to talk at once, and their words were full of dissatisfaction with the court and Chongzhen.

Although there were some clear-headed people in the crowd shouting that this was the court collecting overdue taxes normally and there was no extortion of ordinary people.

But it was soon drowned out by other noisy sounds.

However, when Jin Yichuan, Lu Jiude, Li Sanli and others saw this scene, their expressions were as calm as water, and their eyes revealed an extremely pity look as they looked at Hou Gongchen.

That look was as if he was looking at a dead person.

You know, they didn't really think about killing Hou Gongchen at first. Firstly, he had a special status and was considered a top figure among the royal family.

Secondly, he was old, and it would not look good if the news of him killing an old man in his eighties got out.

But what they didn't expect was that Hou Gongchen not only refused to pay the arrears, but also slandered the court and incited the surrounding people to resist taxes together!
In this case, the nature is completely different!
Because this is a serious crime punishable by the extermination of nine generations of the family, and it has violated the bottom line of the court!

However, after a while of discussion, a few people decided to give Hou Gongchen another chance.

Jin Yichuan stepped forward again, looked at Hou Gongchen with a serious expression and said:

"My Lord, you can't say these things carelessly."

"If you regret it now, it's not too late. Just tell the people around you that what you just said was a lie, and then pay the taxes, and we'll pretend nothing happened."

When Hou Gongchen heard this, he thought that the group of people in front of him were afraid. He couldn't help but feel proud, and a sneer appeared on his face. He said:

"You bunch of bullies who only care about the strong and the weak, do you really think that this Prince Consort is easy to bully?"

"To tell you the truth, everything I said was true. You traitors are here to extort money. How can you even talk about collecting taxes?"

"Your Highness has already paid this year's tax bill. How can you collect taxes twice?"

"Don't you understand that this is extortion?"

As soon as these words came out, many gentry and powerful people hidden in the crowd echoed loudly:
"Yes, yes, we have already paid this year's taxes. Why should we collect more taxes? Even the emperor should be reasonable. How can we collect taxes twice?"

"That's right! We pay our taxes honestly, how can you treat us like this?"

"Even if the emperor comes, he still has to be reasonable, right?"

As these words were spoken, the crowd became even more chaotic and the situation began to get out of control.

When the people around saw them, they couldn't help but feel angry.

However, Hou Gongchen, the person involved, was very proud at the moment, because in his opinion, as long as the matter became out of control, these people who came to collect taxes would admit defeat and surrender.

Then he can just give some silver and the matter will be over!

But it was obvious that he really thought too much this time!

The next second, Jin Yichuan, Lu Jiude, and Li Sanli exchanged glances, and they understood each other, knowing that the matter was irreversible.

Without the slightest hesitation, Jin Yichuan shouted coldly:
"All officers, listen to my orders! The imperial consort, the Duwei Hou Gongchen, has evaded taxes, refused to pay them, and openly slandered the court, inciting the people to resist taxes."

"According to your majesty's decree, all nine generations of his clan shall be executed. Kill!"

As soon as he finished speaking, he drew out the sword from his waist with a "swish". The blade flashed and the cold air was intimidating.

Immediately afterwards, the surrounding Beijing camp soldiers also drew their swords.

For a moment, the cold light was so bright that it looked like a silver forest.

The people around were instantly frightened by this scene. The previous noise stopped abruptly, and the people widened their eyes with disbelief on their faces.

How could I have imagined that someone would be killed?

And you want to kill all nine generations of your family?
You have to know that Hou Gongchen is the son-in-law of the emperor!

At the same time, Hou Gongchen was also frightened and stood there in a daze. His mind suddenly went blank and he lost the ability to think.

He could never have imagined that he would be executed along with his entire clan for just saying a few words.
But before he could react, a large group of soldiers rushed towards him like a surging tide.

Then, he felt a flash of a knife before his eyes, and a sharp pain hit him like a surging wave.

But soon, the severe pain disappeared without a trace. Then his vision began to spin, and he saw his body lying straight on the ground, but this body had no head.

It turned out that just now, he had his head chopped off.
But before he died, Hou Gongchen's face was still full of disbelief, as if he had never expected that he would lose his life so easily.

He just celebrated his 80th birthday yesterday, and today he is a dead man.

But it's obviously too late to say anything now.
After killing Hou Gongchen, the soldiers of the Beijing camp rushed into the tall and majestic gate of the Hou Mansion like a surging tide with murderous intent, regardless of everything.

At this moment, the mansion was already in chaos, with cries and pleas for mercy echoing in the air, as if it were hell on earth.

The soldiers had red eyes and held sharp blades in their hands. Whenever they saw anyone from the Marquis' Mansion, no matter if they were masters or servants, men or women, they would swing their swords at them without mercy.

He was ruthless and decisive in his actions, truly carrying out the strict order of "killing nine generations of the clan"!

Don’t say that it was only Hou Gongchen who disobeyed the imperial order, not his family. As vested interests, none of Hou Gongchen’s family members were wronged!
At the same time, the people who were watching outside had already been frightened out of their wits by the sudden bloody massacre.

Their faces were as pale as paper, their legs were weak, and some even collapsed to the ground, their eyes filled with fear and despair.

No one expected that this group of people would kill people without any hesitation!
And the one killed was a prince consort!
After recovering from the shock, some people immediately stood up in panic and stumbled away in all directions. Some people didn't even notice that their shoes had slipped away. They just wanted to escape from this horrible place as quickly as possible.

As ordinary people fled, the soldiers had neither the time nor the inclination to pay attention and allowed them to disappear deep into the streets.

However, those gentry and powerful people who hid in the crowd and tried to slip away during the chaos were not so lucky.

As soon as they tried to escape, they were noticed by the sharp-eyed Jinyiwei.

Then, several Jinyiwei rushed forward like lightning and grabbed these people.

Some of those who were caught tried to struggle, but were hit hard by the Jinyiwei and made to groan and instantly become subdued.

Li Sanli stood aside, watching all this coldly, his eyes as cold as ice, without a trace of warmth.

He glanced at the captured gentry and said in a cold tone:

"Your Majesty has issued an order to incite the people to resist taxes and execute their entire nine clans. Simply kill all nine clans and confiscate all their property!"

These few short sentences were like heavy hammers hitting the hearts of these gentry.

They had been hoping for a lucky break, but when they heard this, they were terrified.

The timid ones instantly became incontinent, their crotches were wet and emitted a foul odor, which became even more pungent in this tense and terrifying atmosphere.

But soon, someone reacted.

The man fell to his knees on the ground with a plop, kowtowed desperately, and begged in a tearful voice:

"Sir, I won't dare to do that again. I am willing to pay the tax. I am willing to pay the tax."

His voice was filled with fear and regret.

It's just a pity that it's too late.

Li Sanli didn't even look at him, but just waved his hand gently.

The soldiers of the Beijing camp received the order and dragged them away like chickens.

Afterwards, a large number of soldiers and horses quickly took action, rushed towards the homes of these gentry and powerful people, and began to execute the nine clans with great vigor and determination.

In just half a day, Cangzhou City was shrouded in haze, and the smell of blood filled every inch of the air.

This time, seven gentry were executed along with their entire clans, and the death toll directly exceeded 1,300 people.

The one with the most precious identity among them is naturally the son-in-law Hou Gongchen!
When the gentry and powerful people who did not participate in the riot heard the news, they were all trembling with fear.

They did not dare to hesitate any longer, and without waiting for the army to come and collect taxes, they anxiously took all the money and valuables in their homes and hurried to the gate of the yamen.

Then they cried and shouted for the tax to be paid, with endless panic and anxiety in their voices.

What's worse, some people even fought at the government office gate over the issue of queue-jumping, completely losing their usual politeness and decency.

There’s nothing we can do, they’re just scared!

He was a member of the royal family and the son-in-law of the Ming Dynasty. He was killed at will. His nine clans were exterminated at will. How could ordinary gentry like them dare to have any thoughts of resistance?
At this moment, their only thought was to pay taxes quickly to save the lives of their nine clans!

In this way, amidst the chaos and panic, all the unpaid taxes in Cangzhou were successfully collected.

Because they raided Hou Gongchen's house, the gains were huge.

The silver alone amounted to more than three million taels, and there were more than three hundred thousand dan of grain. There were also countless rare treasures, antiques, calligraphy and paintings of all kinds.

Overall, this time it went pretty smoothly!
However, because it involved royal relatives, the Jinyiwei immediately reported what happened in Cangzhou to the capital.

Three days later, in the capital.

The sunlight shines through the mottled glazed tiles and falls into the courtyard of Kunning Palace. For a moment, the light and shadow sway, and the atmosphere is quiet and peaceful.

In Kunning Palace, Empress Zhou was sitting around an exquisite sandalwood table with Zheng Xiaomei, Qiqige and one of Chongzhen's concubines, playing mahjong with great interest.

That’s right! It’s the Mahjong that has been loved by people in later generations!

But don't get me wrong, mahjong was not invented by Zhu Cilang, but has existed since the Ming Dynasty.

According to some records, it is speculated that mahjong was most likely created by Zheng He.

It is said that when Zheng He sailed to the West, in order to find something to do for the crew during the long voyage, he cleverly used the bamboo on the ship to make more than 100 small wooden pieces as game tools. This was the original appearance of mahjong.

After more than two hundred years of development and evolution, mahjong today is almost the same as it was in later generations.

Before this, when Zhu Cilang and Chongzhen personally led the army to war, Zheng Xiaomei would come to the palace on time every day to pay her respects to Queen Zhou. Over time, the two became closer.

When we are bored, we often get together to play mahjong.

As for why Qiqige appeared here?
It turned out that Queen Zhou heard that there was a princess from Mongolia in the Eastern Palace, and out of curiosity, she summoned her to meet her.

Later, for some reason, Queen Zhou fell in love with Qiqige very much. In her spare time, she taught her to play mahjong, which led to the lively scene we have now.

At this moment, Queen Zhou was seen stroking the jade plate in front of her lightly with her fingers, her eyes focused, a faint smile on the corner of her mouth, showing her dignity and elegance.

She gently played a card, and the crisp sound echoed in the room:
"Seventy thousand."

Zheng Xiaomei scanned the cards, thought for a moment, picked up a card and played it:

"bump!"

Then he took back the 70,000 yuan that Queen Zhou had given him.

Qiqige frowned, looking at the cards in front of her with a confused look.

She had only been in the Ming Dynasty for a short time, and although Empress Zhou had patiently taught her, she still had only a vague understanding of the complicated rules of mahjong.

This resulted in her not knowing which card to play after she drew a card.

"How do I play this card?"

Qiqige muttered quietly, a hint of confusion in her voice.

Seeing this, Zheng Xiaomei smiled gently, then turned her head to look at Qiqige's cards, and pointed, saying:

"Look, if that's the case..."

Qiqige listened attentively, nodded continuously, and gradually a look of understanding appeared in her eyes.

Along with the sound of mahjong hitting the table, the atmosphere in the room was relaxed and cheerful, with bursts of laughter coming from time to time, adding a different kind of vitality to this slightly dull harem.

At the same time, the imperial garden is full of colorful flowers and shady green trees. The fragrance of flowers penetrates people's nostrils from time to time, making people feel relaxed and happy.

Not far away, Chongzhen and Zhu Cilang sat in a quiet pavilion, sipping fragrant tea leisurely.

Each of them held a memorial in his hand.

The document in Chongzhen's hand was submitted by the Ministry of Revenue, and its content concerned the recent collection of unpaid taxes.

What Zhu Cilang had in his hand was sent urgently from Cangzhou, and it was about Hou Gongchen.

After a moment, Chongzhen looked at the memorial in his hand and couldn't help laughing out loud:
"Hahaha, I didn't expect this matter to go so smoothly! My previous sins were really not in vain!"

It is no wonder that Chongzhen was so happy, because in just a few days, the Ministry of Revenue received more than 20 million taels of unpaid taxes.

You should know that these are only the taxes owed in the areas surrounding the capital. The taxes owed in areas farther away are still being collected and transported and have not yet arrived in the capital.

If all the unpaid taxes of the Ming Dynasty were gathered together, Chongzhen could hardly imagine how huge the amount would be.

But a rough estimate shows that several hundred million is no problem!

Looking back to the past, Chongzhen was worried about a few million taels of silver. Now the Ministry of Revenue has at least 70 million taels of silver in stock, and the treasury has accumulated hundreds of millions of taels of silver.

Unpaid taxes from all over the country continued to arrive, and the Ming treasury suddenly became full. How could Chongzhen not be ecstatic?
Zhu Cilang listened quietly to Chongzhen's unbridled laughter, without any big fluctuation on his face.

Because all this was within his expectations.

After a while, when Chongzhen calmed down a little, he handed the memorial in his hand to Chongzhen and said:

"Father, look at this."

Chongzhen reached out to take it, glanced at it casually, and his face instantly became gloomy and ugly.

After a moment, he cursed angrily:
"Well done! This old guy should have died long ago!"

Obviously, Chongzhen also knew something about Hou Gongchen and was extremely disgusted with him!
But think about it, after all, Hou Gongchen was on the side of Prince Fu. If Prince Fu gained power, it would not be Chongzhen's turn to sit on the throne. How could he possibly be nice to Hou Gongchen?
What's more, the memorial detailed Hou Gongchen's property. You should know that this guy embezzled a lot of money in Cangzhou, so he deserved to be put to death.

Seeing Chongzhen's reaction, Zhu Cilang secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

Because he was originally worried that Chongzhen would blame him for killing the royal relatives, but now it seems that he was worrying too much.

Chongzhen also hated these arrogant, greedy and evil royal relatives with gnashing teeth.

(End of this chapter)