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

"Fang Zhenghua, how dare you slander my humerus?"

Emperor Chongzhen's expression suddenly became extremely cold, and the veins on the back of his hand holding the handle of the dragon throne bulged, and it was obvious that he was really angry.

Fang Zhenghua's forehead immediately broke out in sweat. He felt an invisible pressure instantly filling the hall, as if if he dared to speak nonsense again, the emperor would make him bleed within five steps.

In the solemn atmosphere, Fang Zhenghua gritted his teeth and insisted under pressure:

"Your Majesty, I have received great favor from you. As the Supervisor of the East Factory, it is my duty to supervise all officials. Naturally, Prince Wuying is also among those under my supervision.

If I conceal what I have discovered because of Prince Wuying's contribution or the emperor's favor, I would be disloyal to the emperor.

This is what the East Depot's officers saw and heard in Yongping Prefecture and outside the Great Wall. Please review it, Your Majesty."

As he spoke, Fang Zhenghua presented a letter to Emperor Chongzhen with both hands, and then continued to kneel in the hall.

When Fang Zhenghua first received the news, he didn't believe it, so he hesitated for a long time before deciding to tell the emperor about it.

Emperor Chongzhen opened the letter with a cold face, but found that the letter not only listed what Zhang Shikang had done in Yongping Prefecture, but also deliberately made the people only grateful to the Grand Marshal of the Army and ignore the court, so that the people only knew Zhang Shikang but did not know the emperor's merits.

In addition, all the middle and senior generals of the Imperial Guards and the Tiger Guards were appointed by Zhang Shikang. Fang Zhenghua received reliable information that those middle and senior generals only obeyed Zhang Shikang's orders and had apparently lost their respect for the court.

Before this, nothing had happened in the interior of the country, but in the past month, for some reason, people everywhere suddenly began to praise the reputation of Marshal Zhang Shikang.

If a person's reputation is only in the military, it may be tolerable, but if his reputation is so high both among the people and in the military, it is definitely not a good thing for the Ming Dynasty.

Emperor Chongzhen's expression was still very ugly, but Fang Zhenghua still said in a deep voice:

"I know that the Emperor values ​​Prince Wuying. The Ming Dynasty can have its current glory because of Prince Wuying's contributions. I admit this, and I believe that all the civil and military officials in the court cannot deny it.

But, I still have to say, Your Majesty, this is too dangerous."

Fang Zhenghua's eyes were filled with tears as he spoke almost word by word.

Emperor Chongzhen stared coldly at Fang Zhenghua and said in a very indifferent tone:

"Do you also want to tell me about the Chenqiao Incident?"

Even though Fang Zhenghua provided more detailed evidence than the court officials, Emperor Chongzhen remained unmoved.

He had long ago sworn to heaven that he would not do such a thing as abandoning the dog after the rabbit was dead. He still remembered the disappointed look on Emperor Taizu's face when he appeared in his dream. Even if he had a great talent, it seemed that he did not believe that he could use it well.

Perhaps he is still an indecisive person, but he has already made up his mind on this matter.

He has gone all in. Either the Ming Dynasty will be revived, or he will die as an atonement. That's all.

Fang Zhenghua seemed to have understood the emperor's determination, but as a servant, loyalty was his duty. He cried and pleaded:

"Your Majesty! Your Majesty, please think twice!

Prince Wuying may not have that intention, but given the current situation, if the Imperial Guards and the Tiger Guards unite..."

“Manager Fang, the incident hasn’t happened yet, and we can’t make assumptions about politics.

If everyone is suspicious of others, then would all the civil and military officials in the court have the opportunity to assassinate someone during court meetings?

So should we cancel the court meeting for the emperor's safety?

We think that Manager Fang should stop talking about this."

Before Fang Zhenghua could finish his words, he was interrupted by Wang Chengen.

Wang Chengen knew Fang Zhenghua's temperament, and he was worried that if Fang Zhenghua continued to be so upright, the emperor might really kill him.

It was also for this reason that Wang Chengen did not hold an external position. As the seal holder of the Imperial Household Department, he was almost always by the side of Emperor Chongzhen, knowing that Zhang Shikang was a potential threat to the emperor.

Of course, Wang Chengen was not talking nonsense. He did not think that Zhang Shikang had any rebellious intentions, and he had sufficient reasons to prove it. He just felt that most of the evidence had only appeared in the past month.

It's so weird.

Fang Zhenghua was about to continue his desperate protest, but Wang Chengen sighed and interrupted him again:

"Eunuch Wang, you've read history books, so let me ask you this: during the Chenqiao Rebellion, did you really believe that Zhao Kuangyin's subordinates forced him to become emperor?"

This sentence was so powerful that Fang Zhenghua was stunned for a moment, and Emperor Chongzhen also nodded slightly, understanding the implication of Wang Chengen's words.

Those subordinates forced Zhao Kuangyin to wear the yellow robe, just to make Zhao Kuangyin look better. After all, it would be very embarrassing to say that Zhao Kuangyin bullied the orphans and widows of the Chai family to ascend to the throne.

Zhao Kuangyin wanted to save face and become emperor, so the yellow robe was forced upon him and the Chenqiao mutiny took place.

“Wuji is the laziest and most afraid of trouble.

If he doesn't want to do something, even I can't force him to do it." Emperor Chongzhen finally relaxed his brow. His tone was not loud, obviously speaking to Fang Zhenghua.

Just now, he really wanted to kill. If Zhang Shikang had not mentioned Fang Zhenghua's loyalty, Emperor Chongzhen might not have hesitated.

"Do you understand it?"

Emperor Chongzhen's words were profound. Fang Zhenghua wanted to say something else, but was interrupted by Wang Chengen's support.

Wang Chengen saw that Emperor Chongzhen looked much better, and then he spoke:

"Your Majesty is right. Your Majesty's temperament is indeed different from that of ordinary people. Even if I believe that a beggar on the street would rebel, I would never believe that Your Majesty would rebel.

But I have a question. Most of this news has only been circulating in the past month. Who spread it? And for what purpose?

Upon hearing this, Emperor Chongzhen snorted coldly and said:

"Who else could it be except some people in the court with ulterior motives?"

"Your Majesty, I have had this matter investigated repeatedly, but the person behind this is very shrewd. Even the folk articles praising Your Majesty cannot be traced back to their author.

I can only speculate based on my own interests: either there are those in the court who are dissatisfied with the military power being in the hands of one person, or there are those among the generals of the three armies who have ulterior motives."

The uprightness is the truth.

All the ministers in the court knew that the emperor trusted Zhang Shikang, so they secretly praised him, for example, they widely publicized Zhang Shikang's merits and reputation, making the emperor suspicious of Zhang Shikang. After all, his merits were too great to be trusted by the emperor.

The generals of the three armies naturally refer to those who hope that Zhang Shikang will rebel and become emperor. To become emperor, one naturally needs to create momentum, so they have motivation.

Fang Zhenghua's analysis may seem reasonable at first glance, but upon closer listening, it is not as reasonable as it first sounds.

Those who want to bring him down should praise him.

If you want to push him further, you should also praise him.

If Fang Zhenghua's guess is true, it means that both the pros and cons have used the same method. Otherwise, Zhang Shikang is said to be a wonderful person!

Emperor Chongzhen fell into deep thought again. He also felt that if there really was a mastermind behind the scenes, it could only be one of these two groups.

While he was thinking, he heard footsteps outside. Wang Chengen went to check and came back.

"Your Majesty, it's the Marquis of Xinle and the Duke of Huaiguo. They come together to see Your Majesty."

……