At the Pudong wharf, in addition to all the group's senior executives in Jiangnan, the former Nanjing Minister of War and Yingtian Governor Jin Xuezeng and Zhejiang Governor Tang Hezheng had also been waiting for a long time with Shi Kunyu and other uprising officials.

After Zhao Hao got off the boat, Jin Xuezeng, on behalf of all the rebellious officials and citizens, submitted to him a petition titled "A petition for the Jiangnan Group to take over Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Fujian and Guangdong to rebuild China".

After the classic three refusals, Zhao Hao accepted the "Rebuilding China Watch" and then delivered his famous "Dockside Speech" at the Pudong Dock.

The paper cone speaker carried his powerful voice throughout the dock.

"My fellow countrymen, thank you for your welcome and your trust in the Group. But today is not a day for celebration. It has been less than a month since Lord Hai left us, and we still have not avenged our great vengeance. Zhu Yijun is still sitting in the Golden Throne Hall, madly persecuting our comrades and people in the north."

"Ordinarily, we should put everything aside at this time and focus on ending the civil war. But there are some things that I think are better to say before they are said, and it is better to say them sooner rather than later. Let me just say this as a warning!"

Hearing Zhao Hao's thunderous voice, the crowd, who were originally very excited, could not help but become nervous, and the venue was completely silent, making the buzzing sound of the electric speaker become very obvious.

"To be honest, the changes in the past month have surprised me. In less than a month, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Fujian and Guangdong have all successfully revolted, and I heard that the riots have been quelled and people's livelihood has been restored. Except for abandoning the emperor who had been kneeling to him for more than 200 years, everything seems to have returned to normal."

Zhao Hao's words made everyone feel ashamed, especially those former Ming officials who were still wearing black gauze hats and round-collared official robes, their faces flushed.

"I say this with no intention of offending you. I just want you to think about a question. Think back to more than 200 years ago, when the Hongwu Emperor commanded the support of hundreds of people, and the people of the country were united. Why has the Ming Dynasty now reached such a state where people have lost their hearts and become a pile of loose sand?"

"In my opinion, the reason is not complicated. Because when Emperor Hongwu was not yet Emperor Hongwu, he took it as his mission to 'expel the Tartars and restore China', which was in line with the well-being of our entire Chinese nation. It was he who turned the people from animals back into human beings, so our ancestors held him high and worshipped him as a god!"

"But after he became emperor, he embarked on the path of a family-run empire. He said, 'I am building a business for my descendants.' Then there is no such thing as the empire, no such thing as a country, it is all just a family! When one family rises, millions of people become its slaves!"

“So later emperors only thanked their own bloodline and the inheritance left by their ancestors. They didn’t think about who lifted their ancestors to the throne. They rode on the heads of their subjects and thought everything was natural and that they were born to enjoy this inheritance.”

"This is why the emperor is so stupid and stupid that it makes people astonished. I am wasting my own property and abusing my own servants. I am happy with it. What does it have to do with you?"

"This is also the reason why the civil and military officials, the military and civilians, all don't care about the rise and fall of the Ming Dynasty. Its rise is the rise of this family, and its fall is the fall of this family! What does it have to do with slaves like you and me? Why do you ask slaves and masters to be 'of one mind'? As long as you are a human being, you are not that mean!"

"Today, our people are in trouble because of a tyrant. We not only want to overthrow Zhu Yijun, but also the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty and future emperors! The way of the world is to prosper, and the way of the world is to perish. No one can change this!"

"But more importantly, gentlemen, we must forever abandon the imperial ideology of succession from father to son and build a brand new nation-state!"

"What is a nation-state? In simple terms, it is the country of our entire Chinese nation. Such a country does not belong to one person or a small group of people, but to all of us Chinese people. Everyone is the master of the country! Only in this way can we 'every man has a share of responsibility for the rise and fall of the country'! Let's unite as one and defend the country!"

"Every man has a share of responsibility for the fate of his country!" The people were so excited that they cheered loudly. "Let's unite as one and defend our country!"

"Only in this way can our anti-imperialist revolution be considered a success! Only in this way can we look up to others with a clear conscience and bring peace to the world for all eternity! We will create a prosperous era for China that far surpasses the Han and Tang dynasties!"

"Today, I swear with all the kings that anyone who wants to restore our family empire will be defeated by the whole world!"

"Whoever dreams of restoring the family monarchy should be attacked by the whole world!" The roar of the mountains and the sea rang out again, even drowning out the roar of the Huangpu River merging into the Yangtze River.

Shi Kunyu and other old bureaucrats had their eardrums buzzing, and they all clearly realized that times had really changed.

Listen, as loud as the sound of the collapse of the old era is, as powerful is the momentum of the new era roaring in!

No matter what the final outcome of Zhao Hao's anti-imperialist revolution was, he successfully sounded the death knell of the imperial system...

~~

"Ding ding ding..." The Jingyang Bell in Beijing City rang again.

It was deserted outside the Meridian Gate, without a single minister in sight.

This made Wanli, who was feeling the cold wind in the Wufeng Tower, feel even colder.

After imprisoning all officials at the beginning of the month, he had thought about easing the situation. At least he had to pull in the Grand Secretaries such as Shen Shixing and let them help persuade the people below.

However, he sent eunuchs to convey his instructions several times and even summoned Shen Shixing to the palace to persuade him personally. However, Shen Shixing, who had always been easy to talk to, started to practice silence and did not say a word.

What else can I say? He is a native of Suzhou, and his whole family lives in Suzhou. His second son, Shen Yongjia, even worked for the Jiangnan Group and became the mayor of Penang, an administrative level 7...

Keeping silent now is the greatest loyalty to the emperor.

How paranoid was Wanli? Seeing that they were so ungrateful, he decided to let all officials live in the imperial prison permanently, so that they could communicate better after they had enough of the prison food.

But the court cannot be empty, as that would be too disgraceful and a laughing stock.

Moreover, Wanli was in particular need of help from the civil service group. When he calmed down, he realized that it was impossible for him to recapture Nanjing by relying on a group of eunuchs.

When he thought about the fact that he had lost Nanjing, he was so sad that he couldn't sleep all night. He felt so sorry for his ancestors!

So he issued another imperial decree, appointing subordinates of the imprisoned officials to replace them so that the court could be restored to function as soon as possible.

In Wanli's view, this was a piece of cake. Who would miss the opportunity to be promoted several levels? Why not take office?

However, in the middle of the month, he rang the Jingyang Bell, hoping to meet his new dynasty class, but he didn't see a single person.

Wanli was so angry that he sent eunuchs to warn every household that if they did this again, they would all be arrested!

As a result, today, at the first day of the twelfth lunar month, Wanli was stood up again...

At this moment, he finally understood how the ministers felt when they were stood up by him in the past few years.

You can swear for an entire hour without repeating any different swear words.

"Your Majesty, are you going to arrest him or not?" Zhang Jing asked sternly. He was having a blast these days. Since the opening of the East Factory, business has never been so hot.

"Catch them all!" Wanli gnashed his teeth and said, "Appoint their subordinates again! This time, if they don't know how to behave, they will all be beheaded!"

"Yes!" Zhang Jing responded and walked down quickly.

"A bunch of ungrateful wolves!" Wanli cursed angrily, shaking with anger.

"Your Majesty, please go down, otherwise you will freeze to death." Wei Chao quickly put a sea dragon cloak on Wanli.

Wanli tightened his cloak and felt a little warmer. He then turned his frozen neck, glanced coldly at Wei Chao, and uttered two words through his teeth: "Slap!"

Seeing that his flattery hit the horse's legs, Wei Chao knelt on the ground in shock. Two eunuchs held him down, while the other put on a cowhide glove and started slapping him in the face.

While being beaten to a pulp, Wei Chao vaguely heard Zhang Cheng, who was helping Wanli down the stairs, say, "Your Majesty is steady..."

Then he realized why he was slapped.

~~

But putting aside the annoying issue of an empty court, the situation in the north is still much better than that in the south.

Except for the Jiaodong Peninsula and Tangshan, the Jiangnan Group has not yet controlled any area in the north.

Moreover, the Jiangnan Group's large-scale retreat from the northern provinces gave people the feeling of fleeing in a panic, which inevitably made people underestimate it.

After the Special Operations Group stopped its blocking operations, the eunuchs sent out by Wanli also took their positions one after another... So far, the civil and military officials in Northern Zhili and other provinces have all expressed that they are in a stable mood and firmly support Emperor Wanli. They are irreconcilable with the Zhao Hao Group, which openly turned the tables.

The situation in the capital is even more optimistic.

Because of their swift actions and deliberate planning, the eunuchs had already taken control of the Imperial Guards and the Beijing Camp. Not only did they send military supervisors to each camp, but in order to prevent military commanders from defecting, the East Factory also concentrated the families of lieutenant generals and above to live in the imperial city.

At the same time, the factory guards went all out and sealed off Jiangnan Bank, Xishan Group, Dashilan Stock Exchange, Xiangshan Academy...even Xishan Hospital was not spared...

It would be fine to seal off other things, but sealing off Jiangnan Bank and the Stock Exchange is sheer stupidity.

How many families in the capital have their money in Xishan Bank and the Stock Exchange! If they just seize it, wouldn't that be a direct revenge for the murder of their father?

There is an even more serious problem. If you seal up Xishan Bank, can the silver notes still be used?

It is now the end of the 18th year of the Wanli Emperor. How many years has it been since there has been a cash transaction on the market? Regardless of whether they are rich or poor, everyone has silver notes in their hands! If they can't cash them, everyone will go crazy!

The time bomb that Zhao Hao had been worried about actually blew up Wanli himself...

So many times, it’s not that we are so wise, but that the enemy is so stupid!

But now there are troops all over the streets, and spies everywhere, arresting people frantically. No matter how angry the people are, they can only hold it in for now.

People in the capital are in a panic. All transactions on the market require cash, and the prices of all daily necessities such as rice, flour, grain, and oil have skyrocketed!

Don't think it's expensive, it's good to have it for sale now. I guess you won't be able to buy it after the New Year even if you have money——

~~

But Wanli no longer cared about so many things. He was furious at the news coming from the south!

Now not only Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Fujian and Guangdong, but even Jiangxi, Huguang have announced their response to the uprising!

Moreover, Nanchang and Wuchang were opened without bloodshed...

"Ancestors, I am guilty!" In the middle of the night, there were still endless wailing sounds in the Yikun Palace.

p.s. Please think twice before speaking, thank you.