Nanzhili, Yangzhou, government office.

Deng Shiqiu never dreamed that in such a short time, he could take on such an important task, liquidate the Donglin Party members in Yangzhou and search for merchants who were closely colluding with the Donglin Party members, which showed that he had completely gained the trust of the emperor.

Sitting upright in the lobby of the government office, Deng Shiqiu looked serious. His thoughts flew far away. They were still those soldiers and officers. But the changes in the army were unprecedented. The military discipline and military rules established by the emperor were engraved into the minds of every soldier. No one dared to violate them. No one forgot the scene of the emperor killing 32 soldiers who violated military discipline and military rules at one time. No matter who they are or who they are in the army, they will be severely punished if they violate military discipline and military rules.

The training on weekdays is almost devilish. Many people grit their teeth to survive. They sweat more on weekdays and bleed less during wartime. This principle is easy to understand. No one wants to lose his life in vain when fighting. Training hard and enhancing their combat capabilities is the best way to save lives.

Cheng Zhongdi, Hu Huashan, Liao Yuanjie, Sun Mingkai and others had the same ideas as Deng Shiqiu. When they entered the army, they just thought they had gained the trust of the emperor and could gain a foothold in the army. They did not expect that the army would undergo such a huge change.

The notices pasted outside the government office caused a huge sensation in Yangzhou City. When the notices were pasted, five hundred soldiers had already taken action. Deng Shiqiu personally led 100 soldiers to search the largest merchants in Yangzhou City, and the remaining 400 soldiers were divided into five groups, two of which were responsible for searching the other two large merchants, and the other three groups were responsible for searching the governments and places at all levels, including the Yangzhou Government Office.

Deng Shiqiu was very cautious and afraid that his actions would be problematic due to his own mistakes. After all, Nanzhili is the birthplace of the Donglin Party, and there are a large number of Donglin Party members gathered in Nanjing, Suzhou and Yangzhou. Many of the Donglin Party members are fame-minded scholars or wealthy merchants. If they take action against these people, no one will be allowed to act publicly or secretly.

Five days passed, and Deng Shiqiu found that he was still worried. No one dared to resist and his actions were extremely smooth. All the more than 60 people on the list were arrested, and no one even wanted to escape.

The money seized from the homes of three great merchants was piled up like a mountain. Fifty soldiers counted all day long, and money worth more than 20 million taels of silver would be transported to Nanjing. In addition, it was more than 50,000 stones of grain. For the army, these foods were extremely precious.

Some thoughts passed through Deng Shiqiu's mind. The consumption of ten thousand soldiers was huge. The monthly salary of officers and soldiers required nearly 500,000 taels. These were paid in full to the hands of officers and soldiers to ensure that officers and soldiers could support their families. The consumption of food was about 10,000 stones. In addition, the consumption of war horses was also a lot of silver required every month. The emperor would definitely not be able to rely solely on these ten thousand soldiers. He also had to expand the army on a large scale. The consumption of this money was astronomical.

The deposit of the Ministry of Revenue in Nanjing was less than one million taels, and this amount of money was not enough for the army to consume for two months. Where did the remaining large amount of money come from? These rebellious merchants were searched, and the money they obtained was enough to maintain the army's expenses.

Deng Shiqiu knew very well that Yangzhou was not the main battlefield, and the most critical point was Suzhou, where the three salt merchants were located. Yang Wencong, a doctor from the Ministry of War, personally led 500 soldiers to Suzhou, which explained everything.

The emperor decided to end all operations within ten days. Deng Shiqiu only took five days to rush from Nanjing to Yangzhou to take one day. He returned from Yangzhou to Nanjing. It is estimated that it will take about two days, eight days before and after, which is equivalent to completing the combat mission ahead of schedule.

Looking at the Yangzhou Prefect and the General Administration and other officials standing in the lobby, Deng Shiqiu showed a sarcastic expression on his face.

"My dear lords, there are several officials in the Yangzhou Prefecture and County Office. There are more than 30 officials in the prefecture and county offices under the Yangzhou Prefecture and Government. The emperor is kind and has opened up the Internet to scholars who are involved in the local corruption and not arrested them all. As local officials, you are responsible for the responsibilities of education, but unexpectedly, such a matter will happen. What kind of responsibility should you bear? I won't say much. The army will set off tomorrow and escort a group of criminals to Nanjing..."

Deng Shiqiu had just finished speaking, his face turned pale and his forehead was covered in sweat. The prefect of Yangzhou clasped his fists and spoke.

"I am guilty, and I am guilty of the emperor and the court. I will write a memorial to apologize and ask Lord Deng to bring him to Nanjing. I am in Yangzhou to wait for the imperial edict..."

At this moment, the prefect of Yangzhou was eager to cut the local Donglin Party members into pieces. He knew very well the power of the Donglin Party members in Nanzhili. Many people entered the government and turned a blind eye on their daily lives. Many times they had a good relationship with the Donglin Party members. A few years ago, the Donglin Party members directly interfered in the provincial examinations in Nanzhili. The prefect of Yangzhou already felt that it was a bit too much. You should know that the imperial examination was the foundation of the country and the way for the emperor and the court to select talents. If the Donglin Party members intervened in it, there must be problems.

This time the retribution came, and the Donglin Party members actually intervened in the major matter of inheritance of the throne. You should know that this is a crime of rebellion, and after being found out, it can be implicated in the nine tribes.

The Yangzhou magistrate is quite familiar with Qian Qianyi. If Qian Qianyi comes to Yangzhou, he will come to receive it specifically. Yangzhou is next to Suzhou, and occasionally Qian Qianyi will come to Yangzhou for a trip. A few years ago, Qian Qianyi married Liu Rushi, a brothel woman, and was ridiculed by many scholars. The Yangzhou magistrate didn't care much about this matter, but unexpectedly, Qian Qianyi actually wanted to support His Royal Highness Lu as the emperor. Isn't this profitable and unconscious?

What's even more hateful is that Qian Qianyi's bones were too soft. After being captured, he confessed everyone. This move was tantamount to triggering the earthquake in Nanzhili. Whether those who were confessed by Qian Qianyi really participated in the rebellion was somewhat suspicious. After all, it was impossible for more than 200 people to plan such a major matter without any news.

The Yangzhou prefect would not say these words, and the notice only said that these people were arrested, and did not say that they were executed immediately.

Thinking of the past rumors and thinking about the emperor's actions, the Yangzhou prefect's back felt cold. He realized that the emperor is the heroic ruler and at this time of crisis, he must do something big. His smartest move is to follow the emperor's steps closely, do things faithfully, and never have other ideas of seeking death.

As long as these ideas are written into the memorial, the emperor will definitely be able to see them.

...

Suzhou, government office.

Yang Wencong, with a tired face, looked cold and looked at the prefect and the magistrate in the hall, and remained silent.

Yang Wencong never expected that the largest salt merchant in Suzhou would be more than 30 million taels of silver and nearly 200,000 stones of food. It would be no exaggeration to describe wealth as a country.

As a doctor in the Ministry of War, Yang Wencong was a man who had seen the world. He never thought that the salt merchants in Suzhou were so rich. What is certain is that this salt merchant must have somewhere to hide his money and would never say it until the last moment.

The salt merchants were so rich that they thought that the many refugees in the north and south were, and that the imperial court could not afford to pay the military pay to the soldiers. Let’s take a look at these wealthy merchants. The difference between the previous and after is too big.

The emperor denounced some people in the court against the collection of trade taxes. Their reasons were very simple and clear. The court collected trade taxes to compete with the people for profit. Yang Wencong didn't understand it very well before, but now he finally understood that these merchants who were firmly colluding with the Donglin Party members were crazy about accumulating wealth while crying for poverty. What they cared about was their own interests, and the court had nothing to do with them.

From this, Yang Wencong thought of the Donglin Party members. The Donglin Party members have always appeared in front of the world in a positive image. They opposed the eunuch party controlling the government, cholera and damaging the people, and even sacrificed their lives to fight and play against the eunuch party represented by Wei Zhongxian. Many measures are indeed worthy of everyone's respect and even the support of the old emperor.

However, judging from the situation found in Nanzhili, things are far from that simple.

From blur to clarity, from blind obedience to rational analysis, Yang Wencong finally understood the emperor's painstaking efforts. Judging from the current actual situation, the Donglin Party members were the biggest threat to the court. They have been entrenched in the south for many years, remotely controlled the government affairs, interfered in the imperial examinations, safeguarded the interests of merchants, and obtained huge wealth for many years of operation. Now they are going to take out these wealth.

As long as the court cleared the influence of the Donglin Party members, it could quickly purify the court's principles and do its best to deal with the upcoming crisis.

He snorted heavily, and Yang Wencong looked at the people in the hall and spoke.

"Qian Qianyi is from Suzhou and has a close relationship with you. You also regard him as a guest of honor. These emperors are clear about it. The emperor did not directly punish you. That is the emperor's kindness. Don't have the mentality of being confused. If you really think that way, you may not be able to save your head."

"You all know that the Donglin Party members are bold and reckless, and they dare to rebel. Their crimes are serious. As ministers of the court, we must do our best to safeguard the court's principles and not allow the slutty to succeed."
Chapter completed!