In the anger and helplessness of the Son of Heaven, the one-day court meeting ended in a hurry.

Early the next morning, Zhu Youzhen took out a map of the capital in the Qianqing Palace and began to study the defense.

After looking at the map on the throne for a long time, Zhu Youzhen pointed to Chaoyang Gate and said, "Wang Chengen, you said that if I guard the capital with 20,000 new troops from the Beijing battalion, I can hold it for a few days?" ”

Where did Wang Chengen dare to answer when he heard this? He knelt on the ground with a thud and said, "The emperor is cautious, cautious!" Once you start a war with Li Zhi and tear your face, the situation will be irreparable. When Li Zhi really invades the Forbidden City, I'm afraid he will do something unspeakable! ”

"Holy Lord, those civil officials and gentry are not good. Maybe if Confucianism is abolished, the people of the world will still turn to the sacred? Li Zhi wants to abolish the imperial examination, so he will abolish it! ”

Zhu Youzhen was very dissatisfied with Wang Chengen's answer, and he looked at Wang Dehua.

Wang De trembled and said, "Emperor, forgive the slave and maid for speaking bluntly. Although the 20,000 new troops were equipped with Lumi guns and flowering cannons, I heard that King Qi's Tiger Ben army was already using tanks and rifled guns. The walls of the capital may not be able to stop a burst of bombardment by the Tiger Army. ”

"If there is a real fight, I am afraid that the new army will not be able to hold it for a day."

Zhu Youzhen frowned when he heard Wang Dehua's words.

After a long time, he slapped the map in his hand on the bookcase and sighed helplessly.

Looking at the south, he seemed to have the last glimmer of hope, and said, "Let's go, go and see what the civil officials can do." ”

"Go to court!"

Zhu Youzhen took the umbrella cover honor guard, set off from the Qianqing Palace, and walked to the Huangji Palace. Along the way, Zhu Youzhen was looking forward to it, and he didn't know if the civilian officials would come up with any effective methods to force Li Zhi to withdraw from the army.

Wang Chengen and Wang Dehua waited carefully behind Zhu Youzhen, but they were uneasy. The two were afraid that the civil officials would say something and Li Zhi would do his best to come out, causing the contradictions between Beijing and Tianjin to intensify.

Halfway through, Wang Chengen couldn't help it, and said: "Shengshang, if the civil officials break the jar and let the Shengshang take refuge in Jiangnan, the Shengshang will definitely not be able to rely on it." ”

Zhu Youjian's face sank like water, and he didn't say a word.

Wang Chengen said: "Shengshang, the civil officials hate Li Zhi's bones, that is, they hope that Shengshang and Li Zhi will die. If the saint declares Li Zhi a thief and takes refuge in Jiangnan, I am afraid that there will be no possibility of easing relations with the king of Qi. “

"The south was the stronghold of the gentry. None of those civil officials are reliable, and when the time comes, the emperor, when you go to the territory of the civil officials in Jiangnan, you will have no soldiers and horses in your hands, and they will be used as a useless tablet and thrown aside. I am afraid that when the time comes, the north will not listen to the emperor, and the south will not listen to the emperor, and the situation will be completely out of control. ”

Zhu Youzhen frowned and couldn't help but sigh.

Wang Chengen said: "Saint, the soldiers and horses of the King of Qi are so strong that even Siam and Burma, which are tens of thousands of miles away, have been defeated. If the saint tears his face with him, I am afraid that it will be a matter of one or two years for him to capture Jiangnan. Even if the saint avoids the south, he will eventually be chased by the Tiger Ben army. ”

"King Qi is now strong and strong, and whether he is against or not is just a matter of thought. The emperor should really hold his position, and he must not give Li Zhi a reason to rebel. No matter what the officials say below, the emperor can't listen to it. ”

Wang Chengen said as he spoke, knelt down on the road, and said in a hoarse voice: "Emperor, for the sake of the Ming Dynasty, you must endure this, and you can't fall into the trap of civil officials!" ”

Zhu Youzhen looked at Wang Chengen, who was bitter, and said slowly: "Wang Chengen, don't panic. I don't listen to Li Zhi for the sake of Confucianism, and let's see what the civil officials can do. There is a lot of power in numbers, maybe those civil officials can come up with a plan. ”

Wang Chengen, who no longer cared about kneeling, Zhu Youzhen shook his hand and walked into the Imperial Palace.

But as soon as he entered the Imperial Palace, Zhu Youzhen was stunned.

Standing at the inner door of the Imperial Palace for a long time, Zhu Youzhen didn't react.

Wang Chengen saw that the Son of Heaven was standing at the door of the inner door and did not move, and did not understand what was happening. He got up, walked quickly to the Son of Heaven, and looked inside the Imperial Palace.

The Imperial Palace, which should have been full of civil and military officials, was empty, except for Yang Guozhu and other military attachés in the Beijing camp, who were still standing there, none of the hundreds of civil officials who should have been in the court came.

It can't be said that none of them came, but Cui Changwu, the deputy assistant of the cabinet, and Zhang Guanghang, a scholar of Wenyuan Pavilion, came. There is also a person who should not come, it is the leader of the secret guards of one town and nine provinces, Han Jinxin, the Ming Anping Bo.

When Zhu Youzhen saw the empty court meeting, his heart suddenly cooled. He staggered a step forward, nearly stumbling on the threshold. Finally, he sat down on the throne with an embarrassed face.

"Zhang Guanghang... Manchu civil officials... Why is it all gone? ”

Zhang Guanghang bowed helplessly and said, "I don't know. ”

Han Jinxin walked to the center of the hall with a tooth card in his hand and said loudly: "Chen An Pingbo Han Jinxin has something to say. ”

Zhu Youzhen looked at Han Jinxin and sneered.

The civil officials did not come to the court, and in this empty court meeting, Li Zhi's secret guard leader took the etiquette seriously.

"Say it."

"Shengshang, according to the informant whistle of the minister, the civil officials of the Manchu Dynasty did not sleep all night yesterday and gathered at the home of Hu Yongnian, a scholar of Dongge University, to discuss countermeasures. Chen Yuanbu, the secretary of the household department, said that if Li Zhi invaded the capital this time, he would definitely bloody the civil officials and repeat the bloody massacre by the Tonghui River. So as soon as the gate of the capital was opened this morning, the civil officials fled in the direction of Shanxi with their wives, concubines, children, property and silver. ”

"At this hour, I'm afraid the civil officials have fled fifty miles away."

Hearing Han Jinxin's words, Wang Chengen couldn't help but widen his eyes like copper bells.

He also thought that the civil officials would fight to the death at the critical moment when it was related to the life and death of the imperial examination and the rise and fall of Confucianism, and even took the Son of Heaven to the south to fight Li Zhi to the death. However, unexpectedly, these civil officials were greedy for life and afraid of death, and they were all frightened by Li Zhi's massacre in March.

Seeing Li Zhi's army coming to the capital again, these civil officials were like mice seeing cats, and they were so frightened that they could only flee to save their lives.

At this time, there were only a dozen people standing on the huge Imperial Palace, which looked so embarrassing.

Zhu Youzhen closed his eyes helplessly, his face was red and white.

It took a long time for him to open his eyes.

"The abolition of the imperial examination by the king of Qi has something to say. I thought about it repeatedly, and I also felt that the current affairs had changed, and the law of the ancestors was not immutable. I intend to stop the imperial examination for one year to see the after-effects. ”

Cui Changwu's face was overjoyed, and the Son of Heaven finally figured it out and abolished the imperial examination according to King Qi's recital.

Looking at the gate of the Imperial Palace, Zhu Youzhen said again: "Cui Changwu, the second assistant of the cabinet, is loyal and conscientious, and he is worthy of a great responsibility. From now on, Cui Changwu will enter the cabinet and preside over cabinet affairs! ”

Choi Chang-woo and Han Jin-shin glanced at each other.

The two knelt down and shouted, "Long live my emperor, long live, long live!" ”