Take control of Wei Zhongxian at the start and confiscate 100 million from him!

Chapter 143 The Emperor has gone mad! He says he wants to establish a new Ming Dynasty!
It has been nine days since the "Edict of Self-Reproach" was proclaimed to the world.

In the capital, in the study of Qian Longxi, who was granted a residence.

Qian Longxi and Qian Qianyi were the leading literary figures of their time, the top scholars, and top figures who could influence the direction of the court.

But at this moment, they are more like two top chess players, reviewing a game that was strange from the very beginning and left them bewildered.

The Da Hong Pao tea in front of them had long since cooled, the steam dissipated, leaving only a cup of cold, bitter tea, just like their current state of mind.

The important matter of contacting gentry in Jiangnan and secretly colluding with local princes to deal with the emperor's critical illness under the pretext of "purging the court of corrupt officials" is no longer mentioned.

It wasn't that things were done; rather, they were horrified to discover that every step they had meticulously planned was very likely a trap that had already been set.

"Something's not right, nothing's right at all!"

Ultimately, it was Qian Qianyi, whose temperament was more impatient, who broke the suffocating silence first.

He suddenly stood up and paced back and forth in the study, his fingers nervously tapping repeatedly on the palm of his other hand, making a soft "tap, tap, tap" sound, like a death knell.

“Take another look at that ‘Edict of Self-Reproach’!” His voice was extremely low, yet it carried a hint of barely suppressed anxiety. “That doesn’t seem like the handwriting of someone who is ill, mentally unstable, or deranged! Every word is written with blood and tears, every sentence is a self-reproach, seemingly taking all the blame upon himself, but in reality… in reality, it’s a desperate tactic! By attributing the natural disaster to himself, he is telling all the people of the world, ‘My virtue is unworthy of my position, therefore Heaven has sent down this calamity.’”

In this way, if we try to direct public resentment towards the court, we will be going against the will of Heaven and the hearts of the people! The Emperor is cutting off our source of strength, putting us all in a precarious position!

Qian Longxi didn't speak. His usually calm face was now deeply lined with wrinkles, and his eyes were as deep as a dry well. He just listened quietly.

Qian Qianyi spoke even faster, as if he wanted to pour out all the fear and speculation in his heart: "And that 'Da Ming Yue Bao'! I only realized yesterday that this thing had quietly taken over the voice of the Imperial Gazette Office! In the past, the Imperial Gazette only circulated among officials and not among the common people, but now this monthly newspaper is everywhere, and even the common people may have a copy! And His Majesty has actually handed over this mouthpiece to... to the Embroidered Uniform Guard!"

"The Embroidered Uniform Guard!" He practically gritted his teeth as he uttered those three words. "A bunch of lowly soldiers who only know how to wield knives have now seized the pen! This...this is utterly contrary to the rules of our ancestors! Criticism and condemnation have always been the right of scholars like us. How dare they? What exactly is the Emperor trying to do?!"

Qian Longxi finally moved. He slowly raised his head, his cloudy yet sharp eyes fixed on the huge "Map of the Ming Dynasty" hanging on the wall.

His gaze swept from the nine border regions in the north to the Guangdong and Guangxi provinces in the south, from the coast of the East China Sea to the Gobi Desert in the west, and finally landed heavily on one place like a heavy hammer.

His fingers, thin yet strong, pointed to the words "Shaanxi".

“Shouzhi, you’re wrong.” Qian Longxi’s voice was hoarse and heavy, as if every word was soaked in molten iron. “We were all wrong. His Majesty… he’s not sick at all.”

Qian Qianyi stopped abruptly and looked at his old friend in astonishment.

"We always thought that His Majesty was young and would be thrown into disarray by the sudden upheaval, which would be the best opportunity for us to take control of him."

Qian Longxi's fingertips slowly traced the characters for "Shaanxi" on the map. His eyes no longer held a trace of despair; instead, they held the chilling fear of a venomous snake struck at its vital point.
"But we all miscalculated one thing. No matter what, he is still the emperor! The wrath of the emperor can cause millions to die and rivers of blood to flow! He wasn't sick at all; he... took a knife and left the capital!"

"What?!" Qian Qianyi was struck dumb, his face turning deathly pale.

"You still don't understand?" Qian Longxi's voice carried a hint of frustration and lingering fear at his plans being completely disrupted. "The moment that 'Edict of Self-Reproach' was issued, I felt something was wrong! I compiled and read through all the memorials submitted from Shaanxi, along with the messages relayed by merchants and students from various places. Do you know what I saw?"

He stared intently at Qian Qianyi and said, enunciating each word clearly, "Shaanxi is a ready-made hell on earth! Starving corpses are everywhere, and popular uprisings are rampant! Alas! This was originally our best card. If we had just held onto it and let it ferment slowly, within three months, we could have forced him to issue an edict of self-reproach, which would have been the least of our worries, and perhaps even..."

At this point, Qian Longxi's tone shifted from excited reminiscence to extreme resentment and fear.

"But what about the emperor?! He actually dared to go there himself! The 'Edict of Self-Reproach' used 'natural disaster' as an excuse to absolve himself and shift all the blame onto 'divine will'! And that hell on earth in Shaanxi became the backdrop for his 'personally braving arrows and stones'! Add to that that damned 'Da Ming Yue Bao' newspaper, which delivered his 'good intentions' directly to the ears of the peasants! These two combined are a knife he's using to kill us! What he's going to strike isn't some natural disaster or man-made calamity..."

Without waiting for Qian Qianyi's reply, he roared, "It's us, damn it! The emperor wants to kill us ministers who have been forcing him to submit at every turn!"

“The eye of the storm is right here!” Qian Longxi pointed heavily at the three characters “Xi’an Prefecture”, his voice filled with anger and resentment at being devoured by his prey.

At that moment, all the warmth in the study vanished.

It was as if an invisible hand was gripping their throats, making even breathing incredibly difficult.

Qian Longxi's most trusted confidant, a skilled tracker and investigator who had previously served in the Southern Garrison Command and was proficient in tracking and investigation, had already left the capital on horseback on the third day after the emperor's "serious illness."

But Qian Longxi knew in his heart that even if they traveled day and night for nine days, the fast horse would only have just entered the Tongguan territory.

As for the emperor, the young emperor they thought was bedridden in the deep palace, he had probably already accomplished countless great things in Xi'an!

They are now blind in the capital and deaf in the world. All they can do is wait like prisoners awaiting sentencing in this capital shrouded in power and conspiracy, for an unknown, yet premonitated, earth-shattering outcome.

……

In a side hall of the Wenhua Hall, the power center of the Ming Empire—the Grand Secretariat—several Grand Secretaries were engaged in their routine but fruitless wrangling over the issue of grain transport in the south. The atmosphere was as heavy and tedious as ever.

Suddenly, a series of hurried and chaotic footsteps came from outside the hall, along with the guards' hushed reprimands.

"This is a restricted area of ​​the Cabinet; trespassing is strictly prohibited!" "Get out of the way! Urgent dispatch! 600-li express! 600-li express from Xi'an Prefecture!!"

A hoarse, cracking roar pierced through the door.

"Oh!"

The palace door was violently shoved open from the outside, and a messenger dressed in a postman's uniform, covered in mud and frost, practically rolled in on his hands and feet.

His lips were cracked like parched earth, his face was covered in a mixture of sweat and dust, and he held aloft a scroll of leather document sealed with sealing wax, the red feathers on it signifying the highest level of urgency of this military report.

"Urgent report from Xi'an!" The messenger collapsed to the ground, using his last ounce of strength to scream, "The King of Qin... has passed away!"

"death of a prince"!
This word struck like a silent bolt of lightning, hitting the crown of everyone in the hall.

Everyone froze instantly.

“薨” is the term used to describe the normal death of a prince or high-ranking official.

If someone dies suddenly, the word "卒" should be used; if someone is killed, the word "死" or "伏诛" should be used.

The character “薨” should have meant a national mourning, which, although significant, was within the bounds of custom.

But... the urgent military report from 600 li away, the messenger's seemingly mad demeanor—this was definitely not a peaceful death!

A huge cloud of doubt rose in everyone's mind.

Han Kuang was the first to react. He forced himself to remain calm and walked shakily down the steps. He took the document, which was still warm from the messenger's hand, his fingers turning slightly white from the force. His hand trembled so much as he tore open the sealing wax seal that he could barely hold the thin few pages of paper.

He unfolded the report and his gaze fell upon it.

Just one glance.

Han Kuang's eyes widened suddenly, his pupils contracted violently, and the color drained from his face at a visible speed, turning him into a deathly ashen gray.

He opened his mouth, but it looked like a chicken with its neck being choked.

The next moment, this senior cabinet official, who had weathered the storms of three dynasties, suddenly collapsed backward, his legs giving way, and he landed hard on the cold gold brick floor.

"Grand Secretary!" Li Biao, who was closest to him, exclaimed in surprise and rushed forward. His eyes subconsciously glanced at the report scattered on the ground.

The handwriting was done in a style unique to the military, each character sharp as a knife, each stroke carrying a point, and the core message was just one shocking sentence:
"Prince Zhu Cunshu of Qin hoarded goods and engaged in speculation, colluding with unscrupulous merchants and gentry to wreak havoc in Shaanxi and harm the common people. His crimes are unforgivable. He has been executed on the spot in the granary of the Prince of Qin's residence in Xi'an by imperial decree!"

"Oral instruction".

"Rectify the law on the spot".

The combination of these two words is more terrifying than the charge of a thousand troops.

The emperor's personal will has superseded all the legal principles and procedures that have sustained the Ming Dynasty for more than two hundred years, even on the surface, and has transformed into the most direct and unquestionable state violence!
There was no joint trial by the three judicial departments, no deliberation of the crime by the Imperial Clan Court, and not even a single imperial edict.

There was only an "oral instruction".

The emperor they thought was bedridden not only arrived in Xi'an, but also... killed the vassal king!
Li Biao felt a chill run from the soles of his feet to the top of his head, as if the blood in his body had been frozen instantly. He staggered back a step, knocking over the chair behind him with a loud crash, which also startled the other cabinet ministers in the hall who were like clay puppets.

The news spread like an unprecedented plague, centered on the Wenhua Hall, instantly engulfing the entire Forbidden City. It then burst out of the palace gates, spreading wildly among the highest levels of officialdom in the capital!
When the news reached Qian Longxi's residence, he and Qian Qianyi were sitting facing each other in silence. After listening to the servant's trembling report, the two remained speechless for a long time. Finally, Qian Qianyi picked up the cup of tea that had long since gone cold and drank it all in one gulp. The slightly cool tea slid down his throat, but it was far less chilling than the coldness in his heart.

"Heh..." Qian Qianyi let out a laugh that was more like a cry. "We guessed he went to Shaanxi, but we didn't expect... he would dare to kill a prince! He's overturning the table! Overturning the rules of our Great Ming Dynasty that have lasted for more than two hundred years! He's gone mad... the emperor has really gone mad!"

Qian Longxi slowly closed his eyes, his face now deeply wrinkled, no longer from strategic planning, but from extreme shock, his face stiff and twitching.

He suddenly opened his eyes, and his gaze was now filled with a terrifying clarity.

“He’s not crazy, Shouzhi…” Qian Longxi’s voice was hoarse like the rubbing of withered leaves. He stared at Qian Qianyi, the fear in his eyes almost overflowing. “A madman will only hack and kill indiscriminately. But every step he took was meticulously planned, every step… stepped on everyone’s hearts!”

He interrupted Qian Qianyi's raging torrent, speaking slowly and deliberately, as if using all his strength:

"You're wrong. He's not flipping the table..."

Qian Longxi forced a bitter smile that looked worse than crying.

"What the emperor wants is to reshape the world! He wants to smash this table and then use all of our bones and blood to forge a brand new Ming Dynasty that he desires!"

(End of this chapter)