Chen Zizhuang continued to think, "Since I know, why did I let me serve as the chief minister temporarily? Oh, yes, Lin Cha holds heavy troops and follows me, and I am in the central position. Lin Jue and Haoer have soldiers in their hands. The emperor is afraid that one accident will cause a disaster. Now Lin Cha is abolished and the emperor is back, so he will naturally deal with me. However, Your Majesty, although I have selfish intentions, I will never dare or do anything rebellious."

"Jisheng, do you remember my comments on you when I first met me?"

"I will never forget it forever."

"If you will never forget it for life? Since it will never forget it for life, why don't you still be alert? I said that you have not fulfilled your loyalty as a minister. Haven't you thought deeply about it?"

"Your Majesty, I am guilty. The crime is not meritorious, and the crime is not fulfilling my loyalty. At that time, when bad news came, I felt sad at the first time, and then I thought of the interests of the family. In the cabinet, except for Lord Chen, everyone said that I should support the King of Tang to stabilize the court. After returning to the palace, I summoned Chen Shihao and Lin Jue to discuss, and indeed had selfish thoughts. Chen Shihao disagreed with my opinion, and my uncle and nephew had a dispute. Later, my concubine Yu Qiao risked his life to persuade him, saying that if he followed my advice, the harem would be difficult to protect. I regretted it when I heard it, and thought of Your Majesty's deep kindness, and felt even more at ease. Later, the cabinet meeting, I strongly opposed supporting the King of Tang, which was indeed sincere. I hope Your Majesty would be clear." Chen Zizhuang calmed down and knew that his next words were very important. If he could not impress Your Majesty, he would probably stay away from the court from now on.

The basic theme of Chen Zizhuang's words is to confess. He understands that he can no longer play tricks in front of this shrewd emperor, otherwise he will die even worse. In addition, he also secretly kept the little intention of protecting Chen Shihao and pulling Zhao Yuqiao.

He remembered Zhu Youlang's eyes when he first looked at Zhao Yuqiao.

Sure enough, after hearing Chen Zizhuang's words, Zhu Youlang's eyes became much softer.

Yes, the original anger had already made Zhu Youlang go to the verge of emotional collapse. He wanted to lock Chen Zizhuang up and let him, the "Three Loyals in Lingnan", think about his sins carefully. However, when Chen Zizhuang mentioned Zhao Yuqiao, he suddenly aroused his interest and successfully put out the fire.

"Zhao Yuqiao? This woman is really a mystery. Why is she always there at critical moments? Why does she have such deep feelings for the Ming Dynasty? In history, it was her who committed suicide, which led to Li Chengdong's death. Now, because of my arrival, it is impossible for her and Li Chengdong to persuade Chen Zizhuang again. It is so strange. A woman in the inner husband said that she knows so many great principles, it is really hard for people to believe. If she had not had a firm belief, how could she explain her behavior?"

Thinking of Zhao Yuqiao, Zhu Youlang thought of the scene when he first entered Guangzhou. At that time, he only brought a thousand soldiers into Guangzhou, and wanted to make trouble in the waters like gambling. Looking back now, it was indeed very risky. He had almost no chance of winning against one thousand soldiers against the Qing soldiers, not to mention that he was in the heart of the Shaowu Dynasty. If it weren't for Chen Zizhuang and Zhang Jiayu, his gambling at that time would definitely have lost.

Forget it, don't worry too much with him. Lin Cha really fought for his life in the battle of Zhangzhou, and then handed over military power. Chen Zizhuang had no threat except Lin Jue, his son-in-law.

None of these matters. The most important thing is that Chen Zizhuang is the famous "Three Loyals in Lingnan" in history. There is no problem with loyalty, but lack of concentration. He considers his own and family interests at critical moments.

I looked at Lu Daqi and Yang Qiaoran again, forget it, these two are also loyal ministers, Chen Zizhuang can forgive them, and they will not pursue them. Now that the external threat is getting bigger and bigger, the key is to maintain the stability of the court, and we cannot lose control of our emotions.

"Okay, no one is saint, so who can do nothing wrong? I will not pursue it too much. However, it is impossible to say that such a big omission will not be punished. Qu Shisi, Chen Zizhuang, Lu Daqi, Yang Qiaoran's salary is fined for one year, Chen Bangyan, Wu Bing, and Huang Zongxi are loyal and upright, and have a lot of hard work, and each rewards of 1,000 taels of silver. From now on, Wu Bing will be promoted to the Grand Secretary of Wenhua Palace and become the chief minister of the cabinet. The other ministers will still hold their original positions." Zhu Youlang made the final decision.

"I will obey the order."

The emperor raised his board high, but gently put it down. Qu Shisi, Chen Zizhuang, Lu Daqi and Yang Qiaoran didn't expect to pass the test so easily. They all wiped their cold sweat and felt very grateful.

Wu Bing successfully became the chief minister and was naturally very happy to get his wish. Huang Zongxi had no desires and no desires, and knew that even a good thing would not fall on him. It was a good thing to get a thousand taels of silver for nothing.

Chen Bangyan made the most contribution, but he only received a reward of 1,000 taels of silver. There was no promotion in his official position, but he was not disappointed at all. Because only he knew in his heart that the emperor had only given a bowl of fish head tofu soup at the beginning, which meant that his role was in the future.

Yes, Wu Bing, Qu Shixi, Chen Zizhuang, and Yang Qiaoran are all over fifty years old. In terms of age, only he and Huang Zongxi are young. The emperor does not let himself be too dazzling, which is a kind of protection. What's more, he has two important positions in the Ministry of Revenue and the Ministry of Internal Affairs. These are two official positions that the emperor refuses to change hands. This is a heavy trust, which is more important than the Chief Minister and the Grand Secretary of the Wenhua Palace.

...

"Your Majesty, the situation on the western front is getting worse and worse. Guilin and the whole province have been surrounded for more than a month, so it is better to think of a solution to the siege. Sun Kewang, Yunnan, is still waiting to see, as if he is watching the movements of the Qing soldiers. What is strange is that Haoge has retreated back to Guiyang, and I don't know what the purpose is. Du Yonghe led 20,000 troops to Yudu, which is east of Ganzhou, and fought with the Qing soldiers several times. Although there were small victories, the Qing soldiers suffered little casualties. According to Du Yonghe's report, the main reason is that the Qing soldiers had already had countermeasures against grenades, abandoning horses and fighting in infantry battles, and the formation was scattered, which effectively weakened the power of the grenades. In addition, the grenades were not replenished, so the offensive was not fierce and the speed of advancing westward was slow. Now the two armies are in a stalemate." Wu Bing was mentally prepared for the promotion to the chief assistant. He wanted to fire the first shot, so his homework was very detailed.

"Your Majesty, it is a good omen for Haoge to retreat back to Guiyang. According to my opinion, he may not be able to supply food or grass, or something happened in the court, which made him unable or unintentionally join forces with Kong Youde to attack Guilin. Yang Guodong, He Tengjiao are in Quanzhou, Wang Huacheng, and Jiao Lian are in Guilin, and it is estimated that it will be difficult to do anything in the short term. In my opinion, the enemy in Jiangxi should be quickly resolved, and the key is to restore the supply of pig iron." Chen Zizhuang said.

Zhu Youlang was satisfied that Chen Zizhuang could quickly adjust his status and become the Minister of War.

"There are thousands of things, and we have to choose the most important thing. The Qing army's attack was so urgent that we didn't want us to have enough room for development. In the whole province, Guilin, I don't think it will last too long. If Guilin loses, the Qing army can go straight to Wuzhou and threaten our western gate. However, if the matter in Jiangxi is not solved, the ammunition problem cannot be solved. You all discuss whether to take care of Jiangxi first or save Guilin first?"
Chapter completed!