Late Ming Dynasty: Oops, I am surrounded by the Donglin Party

Not only these few former cabinet ministers, but also dozens of colleagues dismissed by the emperor were also banned from leaving the capital.

At first Liu Yuliang didn’t think there was anything wrong, but now the New Year is approaching and he can’t even go back to his ancestral home, which makes him uncomfortable.

"Perhaps it's because the emperor doesn't have much confidence in this struggle." Zheng Sanjun said.

In Zheng Sanjun's old impression of the current emperor, this emperor is not only eager for quick success, but also always indecisive on major issues.

The implication is that the current emperor is betting on both sides. If the tax reform is successful, the emperor will probably allow them to return home immediately.

The emperor is very concerned about his reputation, and if he is happy, he might even bestow an honorary title on them, allowing them to return in glory, which can be considered a peaceful parting.

But if the imperial court ultimately fails to withstand the pressure, or is worried about provoking another popular uprising, it may eventually compromise.

By then, the court always needed scapegoats, and Zhang Shikang and Li Banghua were the first to bear the brunt.

But the various departments of the imperial court cannot remain half-paralyzed forever. By then, the emperor will inevitably re-employ those who have been dismissed in order to ease the relationship with the court officials.

This process would not take long. If officials were allowed to return home, the trip back and forth between the two places would take several months, which is really inconvenient.

"What Yong Zhang said makes sense. Now all the government offices in the court are in a semi-paralyzed state. With us here and all the colleagues united as one, the emperor will definitely feel uneasy." Xiong Mingyu took over the conversation.

“Humph, even if the emperor really decides to employ us, we can’t just go back quietly.

The emperor must be made aware that there is a price to pay for doing something wrong."

Zheng Sanjun said with a snort.

"Doesn't our emperor like to write edicts of apology?

This time, let the emperor write another edict of apology to the world!"

Everyone present nodded when they heard this, believing that this was the way it should be.

The emperor is still too young. Only by paying a sufficient price can he know that there are some things that even the emperor cannot touch.

"When the time comes, we must not let Zhang Shikang off easily!

This kid has caused chaos in the court by himself. In my opinion, the emperor should deprive him of all his titles." Liu Yuliang said bitterly.

"Yes, but simply depriving him of his title is not enough. This kid killed Qian Rulong and other generals in the Beijing camp without authorization. He also committed the Shanxi merchant incident. He should be executed for any of these crimes!"

When Fang Fengnian was working in the Ministry of Works, he was severely tricked by Zhang Shikang. He was often laughed at by his colleagues because of this, so he was always filled with indignation when mentioning Zhang Shikang.

"And the Duke of England, although he doesn't care about court affairs, he always ruins our plans at critical moments.

Since we are going to settle accounts, we must put pressure on the emperor to bring this Duke of England and his family to ruin!" Liu Yuliang denounced again.

Zheng Sanjun nodded slowly and said in a deep voice:

"As long as the tax system issue is settled and the emperor compromises, these are all minor matters.

I think the biggest variable this time is the Beijing Camp.

Although the Beijing troops can't help us with our conspiracy, everyone, every failure makes you wiser.

If we can return to the court in the future, the military power must not be taken away easily by others.

I was too careless at the beginning.

We are just one step away from becoming the sinners of Donglin."

Zheng Sanjun said with some fear.

Ever since Zhang Shikang was promoted to the commander-in-chief of the Beijing camp, they had failed to stop him. They made one mistake after another and even allowed the emperor to regain military power.

Although most of the reasons here are due to Yang Sichang’s incompetence, no matter what, such mistakes must not be made again in the future.

After Yang Sichang confessed his guilt, the emperor suddenly appointed Zhang Shikang to take over his army and conferred him the title of Marshal of the Army.

Zheng Sanjun believed that they were still a little timid at the beginning. If the fight continued until death, the emperor at that time might not dare to really dismiss all the officials.

If we had been strong all the time, perhaps we wouldn't have so many troubles now.

“Yong Zhang’s words make sense, but Yong Zhang doesn’t need to blame himself too much.

Although we made the mistake of underestimating the enemy, as long as we win this struggle, we will still be the leaders of Donglin in the world, and our prestige in Donglin may be even higher.

If you lose something in one place, you will gain something in another." Liu Zongzhou said with a smile.

"That's true, but Qidong, there have been a lot of factory guards monitoring my residence recently. I wonder if it's the same for you?" Fang Fengnian frowned.

Previously, when Luo Yangxing was in charge of the Jinyiwei, the Jinyiwei had always only monitored the nobles and relatives, and was very confident in these pillars of the country.

Now that Zhang Shikang was in charge of the Jinyiwei, the situation was reversed, which made Fang Fengnian very unhappy.

"That must be the case, but Shutian, don't worry about it. We are upright people and haven't done anything illegal. So what does it matter if they are monitoring us?" Liu Zongzhou replied.

"But these days, we often have to send messages to Jiangnan. These guys have been watching us, and I always feel uneasy." Fang Fengnian stroked his beard and said.

Zheng Sanjun shook his head, as if he was somewhat dissatisfied with the other party's cowardice.

"Our correspondence is just normal communication with our colleagues in Jiangnan Donglin. Even if those factory guards dare to be presumptuous, they will definitely not be able to find any evidence.

However, the Censorate is indeed disgusting. Once this matter is concluded, we will submit a petition together and request that the Emperor abolish it.

There are already many of us in the court, and the three judicial departments are conducting self-investigations. Your Majesty still opens the factory guards, which shows that you do not trust the court officials.

If we can't even trust the people in the court, how can we revive the Ming Dynasty?" Zheng Sanjun said with a bit of arrogance.

"That's true. When the time comes, just give the order from Brother Zhang and we will attack together. With the help of our colleagues from the six ministries, it will be easy." Liu Zongzhou nodded.

"In short, the court has its own rules. We have served in the court for many years, and no one knows these rules better than us.

Zhang Shikang may have some ability, but within the rules of the court, it is still a bit presumptuous for him to be an enemy of us."

Zheng Sanjun concluded.

As he said, they have been in officialdom for decades and are familiar with the rules and regulations of officialdom and even the entire court.

Naturally, they have run a lot of businesses privately over the years, but as Zheng Sanjun said, they have not violated the rules.

The imperial court did not allow officials and their immediate family members to engage in business, but this did not apply to their collateral relatives, not to mention other merchants who voluntarily came to them and were willing to do business for them.

This is the rule. They understand the rules and use them. Everything is reasonable and legal.

Zhang Shikang is a little clever, but if things really get serious, they have the support of the court above them and the support of the scholars and the people below them. Within the rules, they are almost fearless.

"The New Year is coming soon. You have all worked hard these days. You should all take a good rest during these few days.

After the New Year, we will make a concerted effort to restore order to the court."

Speaking of this, Zheng Sanjun became a little excited. After all, for them, this was also a very important event in their official career.

Upon hearing this, Liu Zongzhou immediately picked up the wine glass, circled it, and said happily:

"Come, come, everyone, raise your glasses and drink this wine together. I wish us a successful start in the coming year!"