The weather in June can change at any time. It is still sunny in the morning, but in the afternoon it is covered with dark clouds, making it dull and uncomfortable.
Shaoxing City was completely silent at this time.
Lu Wang Zhu Yihai stayed silently in the so-called palace, feeling extremely depressed.
The flowers outside the window lowered their heads, the branches swayed, and the candles in the room also danced. The atmosphere was particularly gloomy.
"Your Highness, several pavilion elders would like to see you!"
Suddenly, a serving eunuch spoke softly.
"Let them in!"
Zhu Yihai shook his head, his face full of unwillingness.
Soon, senior officials from the small imperial court in eastern Zhejiang came in one after another.
After the Qing army captured Nanjing, Qian Sule, Zhang Huangyan and others launched an army in eastern Zhejiang. Zheng Zunqian, Zhang Guowei and others brought Zhu Yihai from Taizhou to supervise the country in Shaoxing.
Immediately, he appointed and removed Zhang Guowei, Zhu Dadian and Song Zhipu as Dongge University Scholars, and soon appointed his old assistant minister Fang Fengnian as the chief assistant.
These four people were the core of the small imperial court in eastern Zhejiang.
Since Zhu Yihai did not have his own direct army, he had to rely on the two generals Fang Guoan and Wang Zhiren.
"Your Highness!" Fang Fengnian, as the first assistant, saluted awkwardly.
Likewise, the other three cabinet ministers also saluted solemnly.
As for Fang Guoan and Wang Zhiren, as military generals, they saluted carelessly, which seemed quite rash and wanton.
This made Zhu Yihai angry, and the fists in his sleeves clenched tighter and tighter.
Damn warrior.
"What's up?"
Zhu Yihai forced a smile and spread his clothes, as if to dissipate heat.
Fang Fengnian sighed and shook his head silently.
Several cabinet ministers looked at each other, and Zhu Dadian had to stand up, cupped his hands and said:
"Your Highness, there is news from Hangzhou that King Yu's army has captured the city of Hangzhou."
"King Yu——"
Zhu Yihai clenched his fists tighter, his face filled with grief and indignation.
"What King Yu? He is the emperor of Ming Dynasty!"
Zhu Yihai smiled bitterly.
Seeing everyone's expressions of deep understanding, he didn't understand that these people had decided to betray him in exchange for a new life in politics.
Perhaps, the moment I came to Shaoxing from Taizhou, it was already doomed!
However, I am not willing to give in. Why didn't I win Nanjing?
"Your Highness, there is news from Hangzhou that the soldiers leading the army are Qin Yiming and Zhao Guangyuan, the commander-in-chief of Sichuan, with a total of 20,000 troops."
Wang Zhiren couldn't help but said.
He missed King Yu's meritorious service of following the dragon and boarded the broken ship of King Lu. Politically, he was already scarred.
At this point, we can only persuade King Lu to surrender and clean up as much as possible!
"Twenty thousand? Our navy has ten thousand people, and there are as many as forty or fifty thousand soldiers and horses——"
Zhu Yihai knew it was impossible, but still had illusions.
"Your Highness, what kind of army are we?"
Zhu Dadian snorted coldly and said without caring about the mood of the two warriors: "I'm afraid we will flee as soon as they come."
Fang and Wang Er turned their faces into the color of pig liver.
But at this time, the situation was stronger than the people, and it was not their turn to speak at all.
"Time is pressing. If you have anything to say, Master Zhu, please go and tell us as soon as possible!"
Fang Zhiren gritted his teeth and said.
Zhu Yihai looked at the people and was shocked.
After talking so much, is it finally time to lift the fig leaf?
"Your Highness!"
Zhu Dadian was also a little embarrassed, but he could only bite the bullet and said:
"On June 1st, King Yu ascended the throne in Nanjing and changed the next year to the first year of Shaowu. People from all over the country came to celebrate..."
"Should I go on the watch too?" Zhu Yihai said with a bitter smile.
"Your Highness, there are no two days in the sky and no two masters in the country. Now that King Yu has become the emperor, the Ming Dynasty naturally does not need so many supervisors."
These words were too straightforward. Zhu Yihai was said to be confused and remained silent.
Seeing King Lu like this, Fang Fengnian had no choice but to take action himself and said:
"Your Highness, let's not mention the troops and horses in Hangzhou for the moment, which is imminent. Let's talk about the situation in eastern Zhejiang. Do you want to go to Fujian and join the Tang Dynasty King?"
"Instead of taking refuge in the Tang Dynasty, it is better to surrender to Nanjing. In the end, we will still have a better destination."
"King Yi was supervising the country in Jianchang Mansion, but later he took the initiative to cancel it, and even came to Nanjing for an audience. King Yu didn't care about it, and he was obviously a broad-minded ruler..."
Fang Fengnian didn't care about losing face, so he could only persuade him with spitfire.
Zhang Guowei saw King Lu's numb expression and knew in his heart that he was still worried.
But as the chief assistant said, the situation is compelling, and for the sake of Ming Dynasty and them, we have to do this.
"Your Highness, if the emperor is oppressing you, just say it was caused by our coercion. I won't make it difficult for you if you think about it."
At this moment, everyone's eyes were focused on him, as if they wanted to cut him into pieces and eat him.
According to the previous discussion, I am ready to hand over all the responsibilities to King Lu.
However, the effect of this sentence is still good.
King Lu came back to his senses and showed a forced smile:
"In order to fight against the slave establishment, I had to sacrifice my life to supervise the country. Now that there is a rightful master in the world, it is time to abdicate and make way for the worthy."
With these words, everyone instantly breathed a sigh of relief.
…
Compared with the decisiveness of King Lu of Shaoxing, the King of Tang in Fuzhou, Fujian was a little helpless.
The king of Lu, Zhu Yihai, was supported by civilian officials and still had some autonomy, although he relied on the army.
But the King of Tang was completely held hostage by the Zheng family, trapped in the palace, and basically had no say.
Even if a few scholars spoke for him, it would have no effect.
He finally understood that the Zheng family was planning to rely on his name to supervise the country and expand its power from the sea to the entire Fujian.
Zheng's plan was also very effective. Except for Xiamen, the huge Fujian Province was almost left to its own devices, and its power expanded several times.
His ambitions were dampened, but that was all. Suddenly, news came from Nanjing that King Yu had ascended the throne and proclaimed himself emperor, which made him extremely panicked.
Ten years ago, he would have been courageous and unafraid, but after several years of Fengyang's torture, he was mentally and physically exhausted and could no longer compare to before.
Compared with the decisiveness of King Lu of Shaoxing, the King of Tang in Fuzhou, Fujian was a little helpless.
The king of Lu, Zhu Yihai, was supported by civilian officials and still had some autonomy, although he relied on the army.
But the King of Tang was completely held hostage by the Zheng family, trapped in the palace, and basically had no say.
Even if a few scholars spoke for him, it would have no effect.
He finally understood that the Zheng family was planning to rely on his name to supervise the country and expand its power from the sea to the entire Fujian.
Zheng's plan was also very effective. Except for Xiamen, the huge Fujian Province was almost left to its own devices, and its power expanded several times.
His ambitions were dampened, but that was all. Suddenly, news came from Nanjing that King Yu had ascended the throne and proclaimed himself emperor, which made him extremely panicked.
Ten years ago, he would have been courageous and unafraid, but after several years of Fengyang's torture, he was mentally and physically exhausted and could no longer compare to before.