Chapter Nineteenth: The Great General Who Guards the Country and Punishes the Rebels

  Liu Ziguo immediately put on a solemn expression and said: "Your Majesty has what affairs to entrust? Liu will certainly die rather than refuse."

  The emperor was very pleased with Liu Ziguang's reaction: "I need silver, I need manpower, I need a lot of silver and many good men like you." He stood up, looking at the distant lake and mountain scenery, with an air of satisfaction.

  "Under the sky, nothing is not the king's land; within the borders of the land, no one is not the king's subject. All the money and people in the world are the emperor's. Why would Your Majesty say such a thing?" Liu Ziguang pretended to be puzzled. Who doesn't know that this court has been ruled by the nine-year-old for ages? He just needed to give the Emperor an opportunity to make a speech.

  The emperor slapped the pillar of the pavilion in grief and indignation: "Hmph, under the sky, everything is the king's land; on the shore of the earth, everyone is the king's minister. This world is no longer surnamed Zhu, half of it is surnamed Huang, a small half is surnamed Li, only this small island on Xuanwu Lake is my world. I don't know who among the people around me is the 9,000-year-old mole, who is the empress dowager's ear and eye."

  The emperor slightly calmed down his sorrow and anger, switching to a calm tone as he told Liu Ziguang: "My childhood was spent in the Cold Palace. Although my mother gave birth to me and my sister, she didn't have the privilege of being an empress dowager. Instead, she was framed by the empress, who is now the Empress Dowager, and was banished to the Cold Palace. My mother and I often went hungry and wore thin clothes, and we were bullied by those sycophantic palace eunuchs. After my father's death, there was a coup in which the empress colluded with Huang Jinrong, using the power of the Eastern Depot and the Embroidered Uniform Guard to poison the crown prince into becoming an idiot. Later, he was demoted to a duke and exiled to Xuzhou under house arrest. Since the country cannot be without a ruler for even a day, it was clear that I, as a young prince in the Cold Palace, would make the best puppet emperor. So, I ascended to the throne like this. Liu Ai Chen may not believe me, but in order to better control me, they didn't even allow me to have a teacher or learn to read and write! Luckily, I had learned the Hundred Family Surnames and the Thousand Character Classic from my mother since I was young. But after I ascended to the throne, my mother and sister were taken away by a great fire not long after! How could someone possibly sneak into the heavily guarded palace?! It must have been the Empress Dowager's doing! As the emperor, I couldn't even protect my own birth mother and biological sister... don't you think this is humiliating for me?"

  It started with a soft and gentle narrative, but later it became a roar. The young emperor's eyes sparkled with tears, his fists pounded against the pillar, as if there were endless blockages in his chest.

  "Brother Liu, what if it were you?" asked the Emperor.

  "Kill that old bitch Empress Dowager and the eunuch surnamed Huang! Avenge my family, restore the legitimacy of the Great Ming!" Liu Ziguang said with gritted teeth.

  The emperor strongly resonated with the old lady's words, "Yes! I have been thinking of this too, so we need to research and develop secret weapons and recruit dead soldiers. The current court is in a delicate balance, after years of operation, the old lady's natal family relatives control the palace guard and the five-city garrison, as well as several major government departments. Huang Jinyong controls the civil service system and the Eastern Depot Imperial Guards. The remaining Beijing military units, except for a few neutral ones, are also controlled by people from both factions. I, this nominal emperor, only have a few dozen guards, who were selected by the old lady and the eunuchs, and cannot be used at all. However, since childhood, I have been raised under the care of eunuchs and palace maids, and there are a few trustworthy people, such as Wei Zhongxian, who brought you here, serving me from a young age, although on the surface they have joined Huang Jinyong and become officials in the Eastern Depot. In addition, I have also recruited some Jianghu heroes, but their martial arts skills are not top-notch, top-notch masters either hide in deep mountains or are recruited by the Eastern Depot and Imperial Guards, so conventional methods cannot be used. That's why I thought of using science and technology to create a weapon that can defeat thousands of people, which would allow me to win with fewer numbers and catch them off guard."

  "So Your Majesty wants to fly and use the heavenly soldiers that have descended from heaven to seize the power that originally belongs to Your Majesty?" Liu Ziguo interjected.

  "It's true, only those with power in the air can smoothly enter the imperial palace. The Eastern Depot's Embroidered Uniform Guards have eyes and ears everywhere, trying to instigate a rebellion is equivalent to premature exposure. Summoning troops would also be too conspicuous. You know that the city walls of the capital are the strongest under heaven, it's impossible for large groups of people to sneak in."

  The emperor paused for a moment, made a gesture of drinking tea to Wei Zhongxian in the distance, and then continued speaking.

  Another aspect is to numb them, an emperor who spends all day indulging in strange skills and tricks will definitely be easier to control than one who is ambitious and eager to make connections with ministers and generals. However, they have also started preparing for a backup plan. I heard that recently, they have begun selecting concubines, saying they want to help me find a virtuous and talented empress. Humph, this trick will deceive who? The future empress will definitely be one of their people. Once there is an imperial son in the future (this word is very fitting), I, as the emperor, can complete my historical mission. Then, it will continue with my son or some infant they find to succeed to the throne, and they will continue to hold power over the court, or balance will be broken, and one side will directly overthrow the emperor, establish a new dynasty, which is also unknown.

  What a heavily burdened little emperor, what a little emperor bearing countless hardships and hatred. Liu Ziguang heard this earth-shaking secret, and for a long time he didn't speak, lost in thought.

  A gamble, a high-stakes gamble, with many lives and fortunes on the line. Now it's time to make a decision. The young emperor has chosen himself as the leader of the coup, but what are the chances of success? If we bet on the young emperor's side, we'll have to use all our resources: the 500 mercenaries are a given, they're the elite troops; the other soldiers and weapons from the iron factory, such as the ironclad war chariots... We can try to persuade Peng, the owner of the iron factory, to lend us some. The Duke is dissatisfied with Huang Jinrong, so he's likely to be neutral, and his 5,000 elite soldiers are not far from the imperial palace... That big guy we drank with the other day, what was his name? Ah yes, Bai Wenyuan, he seems to be neutral too, with 1,500 giant soldiers under him, all over 1.8 meters tall, they're intimidating just standing there. And then there's the emperor's own power: human resources are almost negligible, but technological research and development is a significant force. Those designers can take on several divisions; when the time comes, they'll manufacture powered wings and hot air balloons, and directly parachute into the imperial palace - what walls, what guards? All useless. Hmm, it's worth a gamble, fortune favors the bold.

  Liu Ziguang considered all available resources and tactical methods in an extremely short period of time and made the decision to support the emperor.

  Wei Zhongxian brought over a pot of Mingqian Biluochun and left after putting it down. The emperor personally poured a cup of tea for Liu Ziguo, saw his contemplative look, smiled and said: "Of course, Brother Liu can also report my words to the empress dowager or Jiuxiao, that is ready-made wealth and glory, within easy reach."

  Liu Ziguang's face changed as he said, "Your Majesty, what do you take me, Liu Ziguang, for? A great man does things openly and honestly. Even if I were to gain wealth and honor, and be enfeoffed with a title, it would still depend on loyalty to the monarch and reporting to the country. With sword in hand, I would fight openly and uprightly. As for surrendering to a usurping rebel, Liu Ziguang would never do such a thing."

  "Good, I knew I wouldn't misjudge someone." The emperor was overjoyed. "Liu Ziguang, come and receive your title!"

  Hehe, time to be an official now, not the time to show off, Liu Ziguang quickly knelt down and made a respectful gesture. "Humble subject is listening." Although he was the deputy commander of the iron factory, after all, it was a civilian armed organization that the imperial court did not recognize at all, not even as a militia.

  "Grant Liu Ziguang the title of General of Protecting the Country and Suppressing Rebels, concurrently serving as the Minister of Imperial Guards in the Forbidden City. So decreed." The Emperor dictated a imperial edict himself.

  A blank check will eventually become cash, Liu Ziguo knocked his head in gratitude. He had never performed the ritual at the Ministry of Rites and didn't know the rules, so he just imitated what he saw on TV and knocked three times. On one side, he shouted: "I... thank you for your great kindness! I don't know what rank this general and minister are?"

  The Emperor smiled, it seemed that this General Liu was an official enthusiast, which made things easier. Money, beauty, power - everyone has some weakness, right? He hardened his heart and blew another big bubble for Liu Ziguang: "Of course, the Great General of Protecting the Country and Punishing the Rebels is a first-class official, in charge of the national army, do you know about the Five Armies Commander's Office? That will be your workplace from now on. The Imperial Guard Minister of the Forbidden City is also my personal bodyguard, but currently there isn't anyone reliable, so Liu Ai will temporarily take over, and that's a second-class official too. Once I eliminate the rebels, relying on your merit in supporting me, becoming a first-class duke isn't impossible either. By the way, do you have any achievements or honors to your name?"

  "What is official rank?" Liu Ziguang did not understand this.

  The young emperor also saw it, but still patiently explained: "It's just the examination of xiucai, juren, jinshi and so on. In our dynasty, we have always taken eight-part essays as the way to select officials. Although the previous dynasty began to emphasize industry and commerce, the identity of scholars is still the highest. Without official rank, it's easy to be looked down upon."

  Liu Ziguang replied honestly: "I, your humble servant, have no merits or fame. However, I can recognize characters, and I am proficient in foreign languages, mathematics, chemistry, physics, accounting, and far surpass those bookworms."

  The young emperor said, "Never mind, I will grant you the title of Jinshi and let you pass. From now on, you will also have a reputation among those literati. Once I am firmly established on the throne, I will invite you to be the Minister of Works and design new and ingenious things for me. Haha."

  What a wonderful future it is! The great general who guards the country and reverses the situation, the commander-in-chief of the five armies, the minister of the imperial court, the grand marshal of the imperial guard, the minister of works, the first-class duke... equivalent to what? Let me calculate again, vice chairman of the military commission, of course, the emperor himself is in charge, director of the central guard bureau, minister of construction, minister of industry, postdoctoral degree, founding meritorious general, maybe later I can get an iron plaque for my descendants, haha! Each wife at home has a noble title...

  "My dear subject, I have one more thing." The Emperor interrupted Liu Ziguang's pleasant imagination.

  Updated to Volume 3, starting from Chapter 10