Emperor Chongzhen was too extreme.

Chapter 85 Ouch, rejoice! ! !

Zhu Youjian looked at Sun Chuanting and gave the order directly:

"I'm allocating five hundred men to you. You will immediately lead them to the Yansui military town. You only need to accomplish one task."

"Not a single person shall be allowed to leave the pass and pass on intelligence to the nomadic tribes of the grasslands."

Sun Chuanting took a deep breath: "Your humble servant obeys the decree!"

Just as Zhu Youjian finished giving instructions to Sun Chuanting, he summoned another person and said:

"Draft an imperial edict and send it to the officials in Yan'an Prefecture, instructing them to clarify the population and land area of ​​the people in Yan'an Prefecture from this day forward."

"At the same time, tell them that the Emperor will arrive in Yan'an Prefecture in three days, and that they should bring all officials of rank from the prefecture to pay their respects."

"This slave takes the order."

The eunuch in charge of delivering the imperial decree accepted the order and left.

But Sun Chuanting couldn't help but feel a little anxious.

He understood His Majesty's intention in ordering a clarification of the population and land area.

To save Yan'an Prefecture, you need to know how much land and people there are in order to make overall plans.

But the problem is, it's impossible!

Are we expecting the officials of Yan'an Prefecture and Qiao Yingjia's group to handle this matter?
Under the pressure of being beheaded, this group of people would absolutely be loyal and swear oaths to take on the task.

But given the nature of these beasts, they will definitely sabotage the process and drag things out indefinitely.

Can Yan'an Prefecture withstand such delays?
Not a single day can be wasted!
If these people had even a shred of humanity, Shaanxi wouldn't have fallen to this state.

Therefore, in a moment of urgency, Sun Chuanting directly intervened, saying, "Your Majesty! This matter absolutely cannot be handled by those officials."

Zhu Youjian waved his hand, interrupting Sun Chuanting.

"I know what you're trying to say, but don't worry about it. Just go and get your business done."

Sun Chuanting wanted to say something more, but seeing His Majesty's calm demeanor, he couldn't help but feel relieved for no reason.

Sun Chuanting bowed and said loudly, "Your humble servant obeys the decree!"

"Then I will immediately set off for the Yansui military town and ensure that no intelligence reaches the grasslands!"

Zhu Youjian nodded, then picked up the border defense map of Yansui Military Town and began to look through it.

Several hours after Sun Chuanting left overnight.

Inside Yan'an Prefecture.

Although the sky was just beginning to lighten with the first hint of dawn.

However, the group of Shaanxi officials, led by Qiao Yingjia, appeared quite spirited.

There is no other reason.

Just now, they received an urgent reply from the capital.

The letter told them that once Shaanxi was in chaos, the inland powerful families would join forces with the Shanxi merchants to block the emperor's escape route.

By then.

They only need to subtly incite the people, saying that Shaanxi's current state of decline is due to the new emperor's "eagerness for quick success and instant benefits, and emptying the granaries."

Then armored soldiers will mingle among the crowds of refugees and launch a fatal attack on the emperor!
Afterwards, they will be guaranteed wealth and prosperity for three generations.

The officials were all extremely excited when they read the letter.

Hong Chengchou, though outwardly pleased, was inwardly terrified.

He just betrayed this group of people, so why hasn't the emperor in Xi'an made a move?!

He didn't even reply to a single letter.

Wasn't the pledge of loyalty they offered enough?! That was a complete list of corrupt officials, including everyone from top to bottom!

What exactly does the emperor mean?!

If this drags on any longer, Shaanxi will really be in complete chaos!

Hong Chengchou had already made his decision in secret.

If things don't improve in a few days, then he will do everything in his power to kill the emperor.

After all, if others saw those ledgers and the pledges, he would be killed by his colleagues.

In this regard.

Hong Chengchou felt no guilt whatsoever. He could pledge allegiance to the emperor today, and he could betray him tomorrow as well.

Besides, Hong Chengchou felt he had done enough. He had given you the account books and written the letter. What more did you want?

Only the dead will not betray themselves.

Under this ideology.

Hong Chengchou also changed his previous hostile attitude towards Qiao Yingjia and began to fawn over him.

Qiao Yingjia glanced at him indifferently, but didn't say much. Instead, he asked, "How long can the grain reserves in the various counties of the prefecture last for relief?"

As soon as the words were spoken, an official stepped forward and said, "Sir, if we include the grain stored in the homes of the gentry and wealthy families, the granaries in all counties will be completely empty in no more than twenty days!"

Upon hearing this, the joy on the faces of everyone present deepened.

Victory is within reach!

Not only will his life be saved, but he will also be able to go to the mainland to enjoy a better life, far away from the barren and troubled land of Shaanxi!

Ouch, rejoice! ! !

Qiao Yingjia nodded slightly: "Increase the intensity."

That damned emperor, he likes making us do disaster relief, doesn't he?!

Then we'll do exactly as you instruct!

And those lowly people, they like to eat, don't they?!
Let's take advantage of this opportunity to stuff ourselves with more food, because we won't have this chance again later.

Everyone was overjoyed and began to imagine a bright future.

But right now.

A servant crawled in on his hands and feet.

"My lord! No...something terrible has happened!!!"

Qiao Yingjia's heart sank: "What is it! Explain yourself!"

"The Emperor... The Emperor has exterminated the entire Qin clan in Xi'an Prefecture!!"

"What did you say?!"

When Qiao Yingjia heard the news, his heart skipped a beat, and the huge shock almost made him faint.

"It's absolutely true, my lord! The messenger saw it with his own eyes! The entire Qin Prince's mansion was slaughtered, and their corpses were dragged out and burned as sky lanterns!"

Upon hearing this news, the officials who had just been celebrating were now dumbfounded and their legs trembled.

The emperor has gone mad!!!
At first, everyone just wanted to divert the emperor's attention to the Qin royal family.

Unexpectedly, the emperor had the Prince of Qin killed!
Is this...is this even human?!

If even the King of Qin was killed, what about his own life?!

Could I possibly be more noble than the King of Qin?

Thinking of this, Qiao Yingjia, who had been calm and collected just moments before, suddenly trembled with fear.

He was convulsing, and it looked like he was about to pass out.

Fortunately, several officials noticed something was wrong and immediately patted his chest and back, and gave him two bowls of ginseng soup to prevent him from suddenly dying.

Seeing that he had recovered, one of the more composed officials immediately spoke up: "Sir! The situation is not yet hopeless! There is still hope!"

As soon as he said this, everyone's attention was drawn to him.

Their eyes were filled with anxiety; everyone had only one thought in mind at that moment: How to save them? Tell me quickly!

The man took a deep breath, gritted his teeth, and said, "If we can just hold out for these last few days, we'll be safe and sound."

"In that case, why don't we contact the Yansui border army directly and cooperate with them?"

"If the emperor dares to touch us, then let them release the foreign tribes into the pass, and fight to the death!!"

“The emperor even killed the King of Qin, so they will be next after we die. Under such pressure, they will surely agree to this move.”

In their haste, no one had time to consider the consequences of their actions.

Upon hearing this, Qiao Yingjia immediately pointed tremblingly towards the door: "Quickly! Send someone to the Yansui military town to explain the situation!"

At this moment, everyone's hopes were pinned on the Yansui military town.

(End of this chapter)