Qianmen Street in Beijing.
As soon as the Jinyiwei who posted the notice left, people gathered around the notice.
The people behind were blocked from seeing and pushed forward.
The people in the front were squeezed and felt uncomfortable, and they shouted: "Stop pushing, people in the back, people in the front are stuck to the wall."
"You're already leaning against the wall and you don't even move away. You deserve to be crushed to death."
"Where are my shoes?"
Seeing that the scene was becoming increasingly chaotic, a student from the Imperial College nearby stood up.
He turned around, raised his hands and shouted, "Dear fellow villagers, please stop crowding. I will read it to you all."
As soon as these words were spoken, the scene suddenly became quiet.
"Don't say those fancy words, we don't understand!"
The student nodded and said, "This is a notice from His Majesty."
"Isn't His Majesty's notice an imperial decree?"
"Oh, it's not important. There's no seal on it, so just treat it as a notice." The student stroked his beard with a serious look on his face. "The emperor said that corruption is rampant in the court, which has led to an empty treasury and a lack of pay for the army."
"Yesterday, the emperor chopped off the head of the cabinet's chief minister Wei Zaode and exterminated his three clans. He also arrested the left vice minister of the Ministry of Revenue, Wang Zhengzhi, and raided the house of Chengguogong Zhu Chunchen."
When the people around heard this, they were immediately furious.
"The Prime Minister of the Cabinet was chopped off by His Majesty?"
"Not only was he beheaded, but his entire clan was exterminated. I've long said that he was unworthy of his position, and that he climbed to the position of Prime Minister by just talking. Now, his talking has cost him his head."
"The Prime Minister of the Cabinet is nothing. Didn't you hear that Duke Cheng's property was also confiscated? Your Majesty, it's time to get serious!"
The student was a little surprised by the people's reaction. After everyone calmed down, he continued, "The Emperor said that a group of high-ranking officials will be beheaded at noon today and tomorrow."
The people were silent at first, and then burst into warm cheers.
"It's so fucking satisfying! All corrupt officials deserve to die, there's no pity for them at all!"
"When will we cut the trees at noon? Where will we cut them? I'll go ahead and reserve a spot."
"You're from out of town, right? Where else in Beijing can people behead people except Xisi Pailou? Come on, don't just stand there, go watch the fun!"
"Isn't it always 15:30 for beheadings? Isn't it too early to go now?"
"It's too late, there's no room left!"
As they spoke, everyone clamored to rush to Xisi Pailou.
The student waved his hands and said leisurely: "Don't get excited, there's more to come!"
"Anything else?" The common people stopped immediately and pricked up their ears to listen carefully.
"His Majesty has also said that the money from beheading and confiscating property is not enough to raise military pay, so he wants to sell the things in the palace. I hope that those who have money can support him financially, and those who don't have money can support him physically."
When these words were spoken, everyone was shocked.
During the Ming Dynasty, when did the emperor become so poor that he had to sell his property?
In their minds, the whole world belongs to the king, and all the people in the world are his subjects. As long as the emperor is willing, all the money in the world belongs to him.
"Old man, are you kidding us?" someone asked in surprise.
"It's written in black on yellow paper, how dare I make up something?" The student glared at him.
"Where are they for sale? When can I buy them?" asked a middle-aged man dressed as a businessman. "They are all treasures from the palace. Not to mention buying them, it's worth just taking a look at them!"
"Yes, where can I buy it?"
"Next to the West Fourth Archway, at the beginning of the afternoon."
"Let's go, let's take a look."
"Yes, even if you don't have money to buy it, it's worth taking a look. The things His Majesty sells must be not expensive. You might be able to find a bargain if you go there."
Just as everyone was about to leave, a team of officers from the Shuntian Prefecture government came over with a notice.
Two of them were responsible for posting, while one read aloud.
"Today, there is a plague in the capital. Nine out of ten households are sick, and those infected die one after another. If a family of several people is infected with the plague, one or two out of ten may even have to leave the whole family."
"After investigation, it was found that this was caused by the plague!"
"He submitted a memorial to the emperor, who was greatly shocked and allocated hundreds of thousands of silver taels from the treasury to treat the disease."
"The plague is spread by fleas. If you want to cure the plague, you must first cure the rats. If there are rats in your home, do not touch them. Beat them to death with sticks and burn them. Do not eat food raw. Cook it over a high fire for a long time before using it."
"Bedding and clothing at home should be smoked with straw; the floor and walls should be sprinkled with lime water; the livestock pens should be smoked with straw first, then sprinkled with lime water, and this will eliminate fleas."
"From now on, anyone registered in the Yellow Book can receive half a tael of silver as money for killing rats. The money will be collected by the Baozheng at the Shuntian Prefecture Office, and then each household will go to the Baozheng's home to collect it."
"Anyone found to be corrupt will be put to death immediately."
"Also, the government sincerely invites talented people to deal with the plague and offers a reward of silver."
After the officer finished reciting, he explained it again in vernacular.
After listening to the explanation of the yamen runners, the common people looked at each other, feeling as if they were dreaming.
The high and mighty Emperor actually cares about these insignificant people.
Not only do they care, they even give money!
Emperors of all dynasties only knew how to collect silver and never gave it out.
His Majesty is truly a blessing from heaven!
They are like the land that has been dry for a long time and suddenly encounters a good rain; they are like a wanderer who suddenly receives a letter from home.
The feeling I had at that moment is indescribable.
Before they had time to be moved, the officers from the Ministry of War arrived.
"The bandits are coming, prepare for battle!"
Recruitment notices were posted on the wall, clearly stating the physical conditions, salary, and ration standards.
As the recruitment standards were lowered, people with limited financial resources stepped forward to sign up for the army.
For a while, the entire capital was busy.
......
Palace of Heavenly Purity.
Secret letters were delivered into the palace by the eunuchs of the East Factory. Looking at the numbers on them, Chongzhen relaxed his frown.
Now that he had the money, he felt relieved.
From the mansion of Duke Chengguo, 110,000 taels of gold, 930,000 taels of silver, and other properties worth nearly 3 million taels of silver were seized.
Two hundred years of savings turned out to be so rich...
The results of last night's battle were even more impressive. All the things he "robbed" from the noble ministers were worth more than four million taels of silver.
It is also possible that some nobles buried their property somewhere and did not load it onto a truck to take it away.
Including those, there must be at least seven or eight million taels.
"Lord Li!" In the Palace of Heavenly Purity, Chongzhen sat firmly on the dragon throne.
"I am here."
Li Banghua was called back just after he returned to the cabinet and drafted the edict.
"Where is the prince? Is the journey smooth?"
"Your Majesty, we arrived in Tongzhou last night and are heading towards Zhigu. We are having a smooth journey."
"Well, where is Wu Sangui?"
"This..." Li Banghua didn't dare to look up at Chongzhen.
He was afraid that Chongzhen would be angry. For Wu Sangui, leading 300,000 soldiers and civilians, walking fifty miles a day was already the limit.
You can't count on them at all.
"Forget it. Let's use this time to purchase the wages and food owed to Tang Tong. As for the wages of the Guanning Army..." Chongzhen pondered for a moment.
"Tell Wu Sangui to come to the capital to pick it up. There is no manpower available in the capital to transport money and grain now."
"As you wish."
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