The name of this manifesto is very famous. It is "A Manifesto on Behalf of the People of the World to Punish the Bandits in Xu". The author of this manifesto is Chang Suining.
As soon as this manifesto was published, it spread throughout the Jiangnan region in just five or six days. People rushed to pass it around and discussed it a lot.
At first, Xu Zhengye did not take it seriously. Since he asked Luo Guanlin to write the widely circulated "Exhortation to Punish the Ming Empress", the imperial court and various places had also written exhortations to punish him in counterattack, but none of them caused much splash.
With this precedent in mind, Xu Zhengye, who was busy with his work, was too lazy to even bother to review it personally.
It was not until a few days later that he clearly realized that the impact of this manifesto was different from before. Not to mention the public opinion, even the wealthy and powerful officials who supported him repeatedly sent people to him or wrote letters to question him.
Xu Zhengye was forced to take the matter seriously and asked someone to get the manifesto and go and see it in person.
The manifesto in his hand was obviously printed, but it also retained the original handwriting of the author.
His handwriting is sparse and open, yet upright and steep, showing three parts of character and seven parts of military spirit. Once you read it, you can see the momentum of sweeping away thousands of enemies in the hundreds of words.
This handwriting is very good and very rare.
Xu Zhengye was born into a noble family and was very talented in calligraphy and painting. Naturally, he could tell the quality of the calligraphy at a glance.
This article alone is enough to attract attention.
What's more, there are those extremely arrogant words "On behalf of the world"! "...On behalf of the world?" An aide under Xu Zhengye said angrily: "You little girl, how can you be so arrogant!"
Why should she represent the whole world? Who allowed her to represent the whole world?
Luo Guanlin stood by without saying a word, and his expression was not optimistic.
The word "manifesto" can capture people's hearts and minds and influence public opinion. As for how true or false the wording is, or whether it is "reasonable"... it cannot change one fact - the purpose she wanted has been achieved.
It was no coincidence that this manifesto spread so quickly and caused such a sensation.
He looked at the piece of paper in Xu Zhengye's hand, his brows furrowed for a moment.
This manifesto is very skillful. Every word and sentence is like a weapon that can hurt the enemy and is aimed at the vital points. The person who wrote this manifesto is very smart and has put a lot of thought into it... and as a writer who is also proficient in this field, he can sense that when the other party wrote this manifesto, he must have been able to foresee that this article would cause a sensation once it was circulated.
If it hadn't been written by a capable person, then this girl from the Chang family who suddenly appeared... really should not be underestimated.
The more Xu Zhengye looked down, the uglier his expression became.
As the "instigator", Chang Suining could well imagine Xu Zhengye's expression at this moment.
She had wanted to emulate Luo Guanlin and write an equally outstanding manifesto a long time ago.
To this end, she did a lot of homework and preparation, including but not limited to a careful analysis of the failures of previous manifestos attacking Xu Zhengye.
After careful study, she came to the conclusion that most of these manifestos were too conventional and stereotyped. They were the kind that could be directly applied by simply replacing the three words "Xu Zhengye", the target of the attack, with another person's name.
Or it was too boring and lengthy, which failed to arouse her emotions and instead made her sleepy.
She was eager to learn and study, but she yawned all the time while reading. What about other irrelevant people?
After summarizing, Chang Suining came to the conclusion that in this chaotic world where manifestos are flying everywhere, the most important thing to write a good and popular manifesto is the word "gimmick".
That's why she dared to "speak for the whole world".
She represents the whole world, so who is not a person of the whole world? Just hearing this title, no matter if one is curious or picky, one would want to find out and take a look, thus, the audience would be attracted first.
Having a good gimmick and attracting people is only the first step.
Next, you need to have something meaningful to say, with solid and eye-catching content.
Therefore, Chang Suining found hundreds of people from Jiangnan with different identities and situations, including officials, wealthy gentry, merchants, hungry refugees, and literati, and used the Xu Zhengye mentioned by them as a reference.
Aren’t they the “people of the world” who have personally witnessed Xu Zhengye’s “restoration efforts”?
This "Exhortation on Behalf of the People of the World to Punish the Bandits of Xu" was still being circulated rapidly everywhere, even beyond the Jiangnan area.
The emperor said, "Wherever Xu Zhengye went, the people were living in misery. Under the forced levies and looting, there was what Luo Guanlin called "the accumulation of warehouses without end". Under his ambitions and ambitions, the piles of bones he left behind were all innocent people. 】
[How can such a thief who is so cruel and inhumane, who kills innocent people indiscriminately, who steals from the people and the country, be worthy of the words "restore the right path"? ]
The charges against Xu Zhengye were also listed in detail. Although some of the words were exaggerated, they were all based on facts.
In just a few hundred words, one can see the image of a shameless villain who is sinister, vicious, hypocritical and ambitious.
The last words are even more inflammatory, claiming that Xu Zhengye had told a huge lie, and his intention to restore order was fake, but his real intention was to deceive the world.
He listed many pieces of evidence, including the following: "Xu Zhengye gathered troops to defend Yangzhou and Jiangning because there were rumors that Jiangdu and Jinling had royal aura. He wanted to establish himself as king in Jiangdu. His wolfish ambition was obvious and everyone wanted to kill him."
Then instigate... No, I call on, I call on those who are traveling with Xu Zhengye to wake up in time, it is not too late to turn back now. If you insist on traveling with the thieves and are willing to be used by the thieves, the day of your own destruction will be approaching.
At that time, when Chang Suining had written to this point, he still felt that something more exciting was missing as a ending.
After thinking hard, a scholar named Lu reminded him: "…you should also take this opportunity to enhance the reputation of Lady Chang to consolidate people's hearts."
Chang Suining thought and blinked: "How to grow stronger?"
Of course it's boasting.
But it's always embarrassing to praise yourself, so it's natural to seek other people's opinions.
The scholar surnamed Lu bowed and said, "Since you are representing the people of the world, you should obey the words of the people of the world. Who doesn't know that Madam Chang is the reincarnation of a star general?"
"..." The other scholars who were brought here all looked at him, taking the opportunity to flatter him, right? This was simply undermining the pride of scholars!
But looking at the awe-inspiring young lady with an immeasurable future, and thinking of her courtesy and respect... more importantly, she praised them as pillars of society !
How could one...how could one allow a companion to endure such behavior that undermines the pride of a scholar?
Then, several more writers stepped forward and added to the discussion.
"We should borrow the words of destiny!"
"The destiny bestowed upon us is the right path in the world!"
“…”
Chang Suining waited in a serious tone: "Although I feel ashamed to accept this, at this critical moment of life and death, I will follow your advice."
The scholars immediately straightened their backs even more - she called them "sirs"! Therefore, Chang Suining picked up his pen and wrote a very arrogant and outrageous statement to end this manifesto.
[Although I am not talented, I have been blessed with the will of heaven. I have been instructed by the immortal who saves the world. I will kill the thief Xu within seventy-three days and let the world know.]
This sentence is extremely outrageous, but it has to be said that it has an extremely fatal attraction.
This sentence is full of gimmicks and involves the mysterious stories of immortals. It is hard for everyone, from an eighty-year-old old man to a three-year-old child, not to be attracted. The audience is very wide, and it is easy to spread in various forms on the streets.
Even the dogs passing by would tilt their heads to ponder after hearing this.
For example, where did the immortal who saved the world give advice come from? Could it be that he was really the reincarnation of a famous general?
Why was Xu Zhengye killed within seventy-three days? What does seventy-three days mean?
"Grandpa... I heard that Xu Zhengye only has seventy-three days to live. Is that true?"
Among a group of refugees, there was a pale and skinny girl who opened her big, clear eyes and asked the old man next to her.
The child did not have a clear understanding of good and evil, but she knew that on the day the rebel army broke into Jiangning City, her beautiful mother was taken away by those soldiers. Her father was hacked to death in order to save her mother. Her grandfather handed over all his belongings, knelt down and kowtowed to those people, and his head was broken, before he saved her.
From then on, her home was gone.
On the way of escape, she slowly learned that the rebel troops were working for a general named Xu Zhengye, but that general was not the general who saved people as the storyteller said, but a general who killed people.
She wanted the murderous general to die quickly.
Upon hearing this, the old man covered the girl's mouth in fear and said, "...Don't talk nonsense!"
"You're wrong!" A teenage boy came over and shouted with his fist clenched, "It should be sixty-five days. It's already been eight days!"
Without an adult by his side, no one could control him, and the other refugees began to whisper when they heard this.
They had already heard of the Ningyuan general's threat to capture the bandit Xu within the 73rd day.
If an ordinary person said this, it would be doomed to fall on deaf ears and no one would pay attention. However, General Ning Yuan, although a woman, had made many outstanding achievements and gained a great reputation, which in itself was shrouded in many magical colors.
Ordinary people cannot do extraordinary things, but extraordinary people may be able to do them!
Since the empress ascended the throne, Taoist temples and Buddhist temples were built all over Dasheng, and people at that time began to worship them. As for the mysterious stories about ghosts and gods, they generally "would rather believe them."
Some people began to spread the news with confidence, some were skeptical, and some sneered at it, but none of this prevented them from silently counting the days to come.
Whether it is true or false, we will know it after sixty-five days.
At this time, an old monk with patches on his robe passed by the group of refugees, sighed and said "Amitabha".
"Master, you said... did that lady Chang really get the guidance of the savior immortal?" The old monk was followed by a young monk, who asked at this time: "Or is she just bragging?"
"Perhaps, it is saving people." The old monk walked slowly and spoke slowly: "The evil thieves get this 'warning', like a knife hanging high, their power will be difficult to gather for a while, and their way forward will inevitably be blocked. But the people in distress get this dawn of hope, and they will have hope and life, and they can keep the thought of living and look forward to the future."
The little monk seemed to understand, but he was still more curious: "Is there a savior immortal?"
"Of course." The old monk said, "If she can make her big words come true, she will be a savior."
"What if she can't do it?"
The old monk shook his head and sighed: "That would be a bad thing..."
If she fails to do so, she will no longer be a savior, but a liar known to the world. Her reputation will be ruined. Once the hopes of those who regard her as a ray of hope are shattered, she will become a sharp arrow of public anger, which will backfire on her and cause her to be doomed.
Hearing this, the young monk suddenly became worried about the female donor.
However, he was still a little curious: "Master, why must it be seventy-three days?"
The old monk looked thoughtful, thought again and again, but still shook his head, unable to comprehend the mystery.
Not only they couldn't figure it out, Xiao Min, who read the manifesto three times every day, also couldn't figure it out and was very upset.
There was a purpose in every part of this manifesto. He understood everything else, but the deadline was the only thing that puzzled him.
One day, taking the opportunity to discuss military affairs, Xiao Min finally couldn't help but ask Chang Suining about this matter.
Chang Suining said quietly but honestly: "I just wrote it casually."
Xiao Min was stunned: "...then how come there are still zeros and integers?"
"This will make it more credible and more eye-catching." Chang Suining said, "Hasn't Commander Xiao figured it out?"
Xiao Min was speechless for a moment.
"Xiao Suining, is this a lie?" Adian asked Chang Suining in a low voice.
Chang Suining: "Once I make it true, it won't be considered a lie."
Xiao Min: “…”
What a novel idea.
But, "How confident is Madam Chang that she can kill Xu Zhengye?"
More than sixty days, a little over two months...but now they can't even find Xu Zhengye's shadow.
"It's hard to say." Chang Suining threw a piece of intelligence he had read into the brazier: "But there's no rush. They're already killing people."
What she is killing now is Xu Zhengye's name.
Killing his name first will make it easier to take his life.
Watching the flames devouring the intelligence, Chang Suining's eyes flashed with the endless procession of refugees filled with grief, anger and despair. He whispered, "I want all the provinces in Jiangnan, and even the entire Dasheng, to count down to his death."
Xiao Min subconsciously looked at Chang Kuo again. He was worried that Madam Chang would take such a risky action, which would destroy the reputation she had fought so hard for.
Chang Kuo's expression was more certain, "With so many people counting when he will die, maybe the King of Hell has been alarmed. This man is now surrounded by evil spirits. We don't need to do anything, he is already half dead!"
Xiao Min: “……!”
He trusted General Chang and Madam Chang very much, but sometimes, listening to these unreasonable and harsh words, he felt really helpless alone.
Fortunately, Chang Kuo still cared about him: "Coach Xiao, can you still hold on?"
Xiao Min put on a serious expression and whispered, "The capital is urging us to send troops..."
Chang Kuo knew his dilemma and provided him with a way to avoid responsibility: "General, just send a message back to the capital and tell him that everything was arranged by me, Old Chang, and you can just complain without worry."
Xiao Min sighed: "But if this happens, the court and the emperor will definitely hold you accountable..."
"That's fine." Chang Suining said, "Once we get Xu Zhengye's head, they will shut up."
Chang Kuo laughed and said, "That's exactly the point!"
Who else understands better than him the joy of having a lord to back you up?
…
At the same moment, Cui Jing, who was far away in the northern border, also saw this manifesto.
Before the article had even had time to circulate, Yuan Xiang had someone deliver it to the northern border at full speed.
"So... is it a provocation?" Cui Jing whispered, as if talking to himself, with a hint of worry hidden between his usually indifferent brows.
Good night!
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