At this time, the imperial court in the capital was in complete chaos.
Sitting directly above him was Zhu Jianshen, who had been made crown prince, and next to him was Zhu Qiyu, the regent.
Below are the five cabinet ministers.
And numerous court officials.
"His Majesty went on a hunting expedition to the east, and his army was wiped out. The capital is now empty. What should we do?"
"I think the capital is extremely dangerous."
"Your Majesty!"
......
Inside the main hall, cries and wails filled the air.
Zhu Qiyu, who was sitting on top, and Zhu Jianshen, who was thirteen years old, were also at a loss when faced with this news.
Seeing the ministers below crying, he was also flustered and didn't know what to do.
Zhu Qiyu, acting as regent, descended directly from above and addressed the assembled ministers:
"What should we do now?"
"My lords, please think of a solution!"
As Zhu Qiyu, the regent, descended from the throne, the numerous ministers before him continued to wail in despair.
Not a single person stepped forward to offer a solution.
The chief officials of their respective departments had all gone on the expedition with the emperor, and now they are probably either corpses or prisoners of Li Qin.
Each department has lost its leader.
The most powerful figures in the imperial court right now are the five cabinet members in the Grand Secretariat.
At this moment, Xu Youzhen and Sun Zhixie, two of the five cabinet members, exchanged a glance.
Finally, Xu Youzhen stepped forward and said to Zhu Qiyu, the regent:
"Your Highness, the capital is now extremely empty. The number of old, weak, sick and disabled gathered together is no more than 20,000."
How can we fight against Li Qin, who has hundreds of thousands of rebel troops?
At that time, the entire situation will be completely overturned.
I suggest Your Highness that we move the capital.
They moved the capital back to Jinling to temporarily avoid the enemy's advance, and then summoned troops from all over the country to attack the traitor Li.
Ultimately, we will surely succeed in one fell swoop.
Suppress the rebels and welcome His Majesty back.
Zhu Qiyu, who was acting as regent, heard this suggestion.
They also became hesitant and indecisive.
Because he knew very well what Xu Youzhen's advice meant.
That means running south.
They ran to Jinling.
However, he didn't quite believe the second half of Xu Youzhen's statement.
Running south was tantamount to fleeing for one's life, which would have meant handing over the north to Li Qin.
Therefore, Zhu Qiyu seemed very conflicted when faced with Xu Youzhen's suggestion.
He didn't want to abandon the northern half of the country, but he was also extremely afraid.
At this moment, his years of education told him that the legacy of his ancestors should not be abandoned, but he was also filled with extreme fear.
His reason told him to run; staying here meant certain death.
Run! Escape to Jinling as quickly as possible.
Just as the civil and military officials in the court, as well as the regent Zhu Qiyu and others, were considering moving the capital to Nanjing due to their fear of Li Qin's army.
Suddenly, a deafening voice rang out.
"The capital cannot be moved."
The capital city is the foundation of the nation.
One wrong move and the tide will turn."
Once they retreat to the south of the Yangtze River, the morale of the army and the people in the north of the river will be completely lost.
It's tantamount to voluntarily giving them up.
They must be filled with anxiety.
And Li the traitor has His Majesty in his hands.
With the help of His Majesty's prestige, he may very well be able to take all of Jiangbei without a fight.
That's half the country, tens of millions of ordinary people.
Those who advocate moving south should be executed.
As soon as Yu Gan, the second-ranking minister of the cabinet, stepped forward, he roared at Zhu Qiyu, the regent, and all the civil and military officials in front of him.
His voice was exceptionally firm, as if piercing the hearts of everyone present.
Zhu Qiyu looked at the roaring Yu Gan and fell silent.
Finally, having made up his mind, he said:
"I am a descendant of the founding emperor, and I should live and die with the nation."
I'm not leaving.
I will face the military might of that traitor Li Qin in the capital.
"Your Highness."
"Your Highness, a wise man does not stand under a crumbling wall."
"Your Highness, please reconsider."
"Your Highness."
........
As soon as Zhu Qiyu finished speaking, everyone present surrounded him, crying and trying to comfort him.
I urge him to think it over.
It is clear that Xu Youzhen's suggestion just now expressed the sentiments of most officials in the court.
That was to flee south to Nanjing.
After all, you are a descendant of the founding emperor, and you must live and die with the nation.
But they aren't.
He's just someone who takes a salary from the Zhu family and works for them.
His academic achievements were all earned through decades of hard work and studying.
They owned mansions, estates, and beautiful concubines in the region.
They don't want to be buried with you.
After all, only you, the regent prince, managed to escape south with the crown prince.
Only then could these officials legitimately flee south under the guise of protecting the emperor.
Otherwise, neither the regent nor the crown prince would have fled; they would have stayed and fought to the death with Li Qin.
What are these officials going to do?
He abandoned the regent and the crown prince, amidst the overwhelming force of the rebel army.
He abandoned his official position and fled for his life alone.
In case the Zhu family manages to catch their breath by then.
They're doomed.
Therefore, to be on the safe side, it's best to advise the regent and the crown prince to flee together.
Some of the ministers who were kneeling in front of Zhu Qiyu had already reached out to tug at his clothes.
Zhu Qiyu remained resolute in the face of these people's actions.
He has made up his mind.
He stopped running; he would live and die with the capital.
At this moment, Yang Shizhong, who was the Grand Secretary, could not stand it any longer and stepped forward.
My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
