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

Exaggerated! Too exaggerating!

Zhu Chunchen watched the show performed by Emperor Chongzhen and Zhang Zhiji, father and son, and his beard almost stood out with anger.

Zhu Chunchen and Zhang Zhiji had been fighting since they were young, and he knew him very well. Even though Zhang Zhiji looked like he had lost his parents, Zhu Chunchen was very sure that he was just pretending.

But he couldn't say it, so he just sat there and ate his food angrily.

The other nobles and relatives also roughly realized that Zhang Zhiji was probably acting. Although the nobles and relatives could distinguish the truth from the false due to their age and experience, those words meant something completely different in the minds of their young descendants.

In the eyes of this group of young people, they only saw that Zhang Shikang stood up bravely and was willing to turn against his father in order to help His Majesty solve problems. In the end, he was appreciated by His Majesty and was given an important position.

As for the donated silver, these young men usually spend money lavishly and have no idea about the value of money at all.

They also agreed with Zhang Shikang's words. Could it be that in their father's eyes, they were not even as good as a bit of rotten silver?

What is the position of the Governor of the Beijing Camp? Their fathers did not hold such a high position. They are the emperor’s personal army!

What an honor!

Many people's eyes were red with jealousy. They were really jealous. If their fathers could be the first to stand up, maybe that position would be theirs.

But no matter how much they thought about it, no one dared to stand up, after all, that would mean facing the wrath of their father.

Many people were hesitating, but Xu Wenyuan suddenly stood up. When Duke Dingguo Xu Yunzhen saw his son standing up, he felt like his head was about to explode.

"I, Xu Wenyuan, the son of Duke Dingguo, am willing to donate 310,000 taels on behalf of my father! I have also asked my mother and brother, and my family does have that much silver!"

Xu Wenyuan followed suit and said with great certainty.

Xu Yunzhen was so confused that he finally understood why his son had been so well behaved in the past two days. It turned out that he was just pretending, sending away the rabbits and reading Zizhi Tongjian.

But with the previous experience of the Duke of England, Xu Yunzhen naturally understood that he could not escape this disaster. He thought that his son had already figured out the family's financial situation and might even have colluded with Zhang Shikang.

Although I feel sad, there is nothing I can do now. If I don't admit it, I will not only offend His Majesty, but also disappoint my son.

Xu Yunzhen had no choice but to stand up and follow the play:

"Your Majesty, what my son said is true. The country is in trouble, and I am very pleased that my son has such awareness. I am willing to donate 310,000 taels to help Your Majesty overcome the difficulties!"

These words were spoken beautifully, and Xu Wenyuan's eyes narrowed into slits. He originally thought that his father would be angry, but now it seems that he really has a good father.

"Great! Duke Dingguo is worthy of being the descendant of King Zhongshan. Duke Dingguo's son is even better than his father and can be of great use!"

Emperor Chongzhen looked at Xu Wenyuan with a particularly gratified look, which made the other sons of nobles feel even more uncomfortable.

Before Xu Wenyuan had a chance to express his gratitude, Wang Jingduo, the son of Xincheng Marquis Wang Guoxing, could no longer sit still.

"Your Majesty, I also heard my brother tell my father that my family... my family also has silver. I am willing to donate fifteen... no, one hundred and eighty thousand taels on behalf of my father!"

Wang Jingduo was so excited that his voice was shaking a little, and Wang Guoxing's legs in the distance were really shaking, and the wine glass he had just picked up fell onto the table.

Like Xu Yunzhen, he immediately realized that his son had planned this. But what was the use of seeing through it? Xu Yunzhen had already admitted defeat. How could a mere marquis like him dare to confront the emperor head-on?

However, Wang Guoxing was so angry that his legs were shaking. He didn't know how much silver the Duke of Yingguo and the Duke of Dingguo had, but his Xincheng Marquis Mansion did have only 150,000 taels of silver in cash.

This kid actually falsely reported thirty thousand taels, and he wants to increase the bet even more to cheat his father?

Wang Jingduo secretly glanced at his father and found that his father was staring at him with a frown. He quickly retracted his gaze and quietly stuck out his tongue.

His elder brother and Xu Wenyuan donated three or four hundred thousand taels at a time, and he felt that donating only 150,000 taels was a bit too much, so he simply reported a little more.

Emperor Chongzhen looked at Wang Guoxing. Wang Guoxing knew he could not escape, so he simply accepted the big iron pot given by his son.

As usual, Emperor Chongzhen commended Wang Guoxing and his son, and stated that once the donated money was in place, his son Wang Jingduo's talent would not be buried in obscurity.

Wang Jingduo was so happy that he couldn't stop smiling.

Next came Zheng Chong, son of Marquis Wu'an. Zheng Chong was only sixteen years old and was somewhat nervous when he stood up. When Marquis Wu'an Zheng Zhijun saw his son stand up, he became even more nervous.

He knew that Zheng Chong had been fooling around with Xu Wenyuan, Zhang Shikang and others. He knew that his son had also been involved in the scandal. In order to prevent his son from speaking out like Wang Jingduo, Marquis Wu'an quickly took the lead and said:

"I am willing to donate 200,000 taels to help the country overcome the difficulties. Your Majesty, my son has long wanted to join the army!"

After saying this, Zheng Zhijun did not forget to take credit for his son.

Zheng Chong was stunned. He originally wanted to donate 180,000 taels, but he didn't know that his family had another income last night.

However, he soon heard Emperor Chongzhen's praise for them father and son, and he was extremely happy.

Make great achievements and bring honor to your family!

After Zheng Zhijun sat down as if he had lost his parents, Liu Kongzhao, the Earl of Chengyi, stood up:

"Your Majesty, I am willing to donate 100,000 taels to help you solve your problems."

Liu Jiawei looked puzzled and stood up and said:

"Father, I've checked the accounts at home. There are only 86,000 taels. Didn't you teach me to be honest? How dare you make false reports?"

Upon hearing this, Earl Chengyi looked at his son without changing his expression and said:

"In ancient times, there was a man who fought for grains with a tu, and he destroyed his own family to help the state of Chu. Although I am not as good as him, I am willing to follow his example. My son, remember that without a country, there is no home. This is saving the country, but also saving the family."

Liu Jiawei seemed to have realized something, and the father and son immediately bowed down. Emperor Chongzhen was filled with emotion and said with great satisfaction:

"If your ancestor Liu Bowen knew about this, he would also know that there is someone to succeed him. Although Liu Jiawei is young, I have heard of his talent. The prince is ten years old and needs a companion. Liu Jiawei, are you willing?"

Liu Jiawei was overjoyed. Influenced by his father, he was already interested in classics, history, and literature. And those responsible for teaching the prince must be the famous scholars of the dynasty.

He was only fourteen years old and might not have thought so much, but other older children of power and nobility were very jealous. They looked further ahead and believed that the prince would definitely inherit the throne in the future, which could be considered as the merit of following the dragon.

They envy Liu Jiawei for having a good father who was willing to sacrifice his family for his son. They also envy Wang Jingduo and others. They all have good fathers. Why can't their own fathers live up to their expectations? Are they really not as good as a little money in their father's eyes?

Seeing that Xu Wenyuan and others had a bright future, the views of other noble sons towards their fathers changed from disappointment and loss to complaint and resentment.

Among them, Song Liangzu, the third son of the Xining Hou family, showed the most obvious behavior. This guy was only seventeen or eighteen years old, and his rebelliousness was at its strongest.

He was looking at his father Song Yude with some resentment, but Song Yude kept his head down and turned a deaf ear to the affairs of the noble son.

Xu Wenyuan felt that he had to add fuel to the fire, so he quietly nudged Song Liangzu with his elbow. Song Liangzu, not knowing the truth, thought that Xu Wenyuan was showing off to him, and frowned.

"Liang Zu, listen to my advice. We are not the eldest sons, so we can forget about inheriting our father's title.

This is your only chance. If you miss it, you will never get it again. You must seize it!"

Song Liangzu was extremely hesitant when he heard this. Of course he wanted a good future, but...

"It's already this late and you're still hesitating, isn't it just some stinky silver?

How can your father disown you? At most, you will be beaten. Why, for your own future, are you afraid of being beaten?

I was wrong about you."

Xu Wenyuan hit the snake at its most vulnerable part, and Song Liangzu's eyes suddenly lit up.

Yes, is it possible that his father really doesn’t acknowledge him as his son just because of a little silver?

It was nothing more than a beating, it was not like he had never been beaten before.

Thinking of this, Song Liangzu stood up from his seat suddenly.

……