Simulates history, but Chongzhen is the Divine Emperor at the beginning

Chapter 88: Misfortunes often go hand in hand with blessings!

[A child prodigy who had passed the imperial examination actually stood up for the common people!]

[For a time, your fame spread throughout northern Shaanxi, and countless people were amazed by you...]

"Whenever you arrive in a place, you wipe out the local bandits and thrash the local tyrants and evil gentry. Then you distribute all the money and land you get to the local poor people, but you don't take a penny yourself!"

[Wherever you go, your fame spreads everywhere. In the eyes of the people, you are like a god sent down from heaven to rule for the people...]

Tenant farmers from all over the country are looking forward to you: When will Master Zhou's heavenly soldiers come to rescue us?

[The landlords and wealthy families were terrified: Where did this mad dog come from?!]

[Indeed, you are a mad dog in their eyes: normal people do good things, but they definitely need a reason, especially in today's world, where there is no soil for good people to grow.]

"But you're different. You're like a madman driven solely by love. No matter what benefits you offer, you refuse to accept them. All you want is to play the spinning top..."

[If this continues, wealthy families everywhere will be driven crazy by you: Damn it! Where did these Beyblade Warriors come from?!]

Amidst this public outrage, many wealthy families approached the government and jointly requested they punish you!

However, the government was also troubled: If you had robbed and killed people, or harmed officials, they could have convicted you... But you never robbed or killed anyone. All those you killed were bandits and the like. They deserved death, and some even had bounties on their heads. You killed them, and that was justice...

[And those wealthy families whose spinning tops you pulled out weren't clean either. If the government were to investigate, they would only find that they were already committing crimes, whether it was extorting tenants or illegally seizing the land of self-cultivating farmers. These are all blatant violations of the Ming Dynasty Code!]

[The reason they didn't care before was simply because the government was too lazy to intervene, or simply because they were deliberately ignoring it. If they really took it to the extreme, none of these wealthy families would be able to escape...]

[Furthermore, your targets have always been the wealthy, not corrupt officials, so this does not constitute a crime of infringing on official interests...]

[Furthermore, as a Juren (a juren), you are qualified to help the government maintain local law and order. Therefore, your actions are not illegal, but should be commended...]

[After a set of smooth and effective immunity combos, the government is completely paralyzed! ]

[However, you did manage to offend some of the local officials. While they couldn't do anything to you openly, they still warned you privately: "That's enough! It's rude if you keep doing this!"]

[But you've always only superficially accepted the government's warnings. Once the government officials leave, you gather a group of eager and thirsty brothers and head out without a care in the world to continue randomly drawing today's lucky spinning tops...]

[Guan Fu: what can I say? 】

[County magistrates across northern Shaanxi are having a real headache, having no idea how to deal with you, this eccentric creature.]

[Finally, they had no other options but to report the matter to the prefect, then to the provincial governor...]

When Governor Liu Yizhao held up the pile of reports, he couldn't help but frown.

[“What on earth is this kid trying to do?”]

[A mere Juren (a juren) would normally not leave much of an impression on the provincial governor. But you are different. You are the prodigy Juren (a juren) he personally appointed at great risk. It would be hard for him to forget you...]

[But he really didn't expect you to do this kind of thing for him. For a moment, even he didn't know how to deal with you.]

Should we just find a crime and bring him to justice? Or should we just ignore it and pretend we know nothing?

Liu Yizhao shook his head unconsciously: "Capturing him is easy, but this guy has never done anything illegal. If I capture him, it might just spark a civil uprising..."

[Given the current state of the people in the Ming Dynasty, you, the Master of Spinning Tops, are simply the only light. The common people from all over northern Shaanxi are eagerly awaiting you. You have already naturally been shrouded in a layer of holy light!]

If anything were to happen to you, there would undoubtedly be people who, fed up with your actions, would rise up in rebellion. If a civil uprising were to break out, the imperial court would surely suppress it quickly. However, as the culprit who instigated the uprising, the imperial court would definitely not let him off…

Liu Yizhao isn't stupid, why would he take the blame? So he definitely can't do anything to you. "So... turn a blind eye?"

He thought about it and shook his head again.

"This guy's getting too much. If I don't do anything about it, wouldn't that just be announcing to the world that I'm his protector?"

【This is even worse! 】

"You've offended so many people, and they're just looking for somewhere to vent their anger. If they think Liu Yizhao is your backer, then they'll definitely direct their anger at him..."

[He's not your biological father, why should he protect you from harm?!]

[So after Liu Yizhao thought about it, he felt that neither method would work. If he wanted to deal with you, a weirdo, perfectly, he couldn't use conventional methods. He had to do something a bit more unusual...]

[Thinking of this, he gradually came up with a plan...]

Soon, a letter of commendation signed by the provincial governor spread from Xi'an Prefecture to all of Shaanxi!

[In the commendation, the Governor praised you as the "Star of the Ming Dynasty" and highly praised your courageous actions in northern Shaanxi!]

Then, he enthusiastically encourages you to punish lawbreakers throughout Shaanxi, even telling you not to limit your focus to the common people... Aren't there so many corrupt officials in this world? As the "rising star" of the Ming Dynasty, your vision must be broad! Your ambitions must be lofty!

[There is so much to do in this world! ]

【…】

"Is there much to be done?"

When you received this widely circulated letter of commendation, you couldn't help but laugh: Isn't this just flattery?

"You've been limiting your struggles to the common people in order to avoid conflict with the government. If you really follow his lead and make enemies everywhere, even targeting the government, you're probably finished..."

[This is a trick to provoke someone, and it’s also a blatant form of flattery! ]

[But you have no choice but to do what he praises, because he clearly encourages you to clean up this corrupt world. You can't just continue to make small moves among the people, right?]

If you deliberately retreat, the image you've painstakingly built up among the people will be shattered: "So Mr. Zhou isn't that great! He's only dared to use small tricks to gain fame, while ignoring the elephant in the room..."

【This is fatal! 】

Although you don't care about your image, you have to maintain it right now because your only protection is the people's expectations... While the people's hearts can't stop the Divine Emperor's iron fist, they can help you ward off the court's hostility.

Once this amulet falls off, you become a toy at the mercy of the government, and your fate is self-evident.

[So after thinking for a long time, you still haven't made up your mind...]

[Ding! Faced with this letter of flattery that leaves you in a dilemma, what is your choice: (?)]

[A: Stay put and develop! Although a broken image is detrimental to your subsequent development plans, it's better to be safe. Everything will be decided once you're strong enough to fight the Divine Emperor.]

B: Just be reckless! While impulsiveness can easily lead to disaster, a breakdown in your image is unacceptable... Besides, misfortune often brings good fortune. Perhaps this is your chance?

……

(End of this chapter)