Wang Zheng's expression changed sharply when he heard Zuo Menggeng speak out about Chongzhen's fault.
"General Zuo, as a minister, how can you speak of your father's fault?"
Zuo Menggeng's face was cold and he asked: "You are the king, what do you say, father? I have no blood relationship with Chongzhen."
Wang Zheng was stunned and speechless.
For a long time, ministers have always addressed themselves as "lord and father", and over time they have become accustomed to it. I didn't expect that Zuo Menggeng was so straightforward and did not think that the king and the father were one.
But looking at Wang Zheng, Zuo Mengeng was already prepared.
He took out a letter from his arms and handed it to Wang Zheng.
"Mr. Kui Xin, here is a letter from Mr. Deng Yuhan. He asked me to deliver it to you."
Wang Zheng looked happy and asked hurriedly: "General Zuo and Mr. Deng know each other?"
Zuo Mengeng told the truth bluntly.
"Mr. Deng is now in Linqing, preaching and teaching all kinds of knowledge. He is free and happy."
Wang Zheng was quite pleased to hear the news from his old friend.
After I opened the letter and read it, my expression became subtle again.
It turned out that Deng Yuhan, in addition to greetings in the letter, also invited him to Linqing to study together. Deng Yuhan made it clear that he was not suitable to be an official.
Now Zuo Menggeng attaches great importance to science and does not despise Western disciplines and teachings. This is a good opportunity for him to make great achievements.
Wang Zheng was not stupid. He had just heard Zuo Menggeng's disrespectful words towards Chongzhen. Now he read the letter and understood everything at once.
"General Zuo wants to do Meng De's old deeds?"
Zuo Mengeng shook his head.
"I never thought about it."
When Wang Zheng was inspecting him, he said again: "Cao Mengde is hesitant in doing things, and he has no intention and courage. I am not ashamed of it. If you rebel, you will rebel, why should you cover it up?"
Looking at the domineering young man in front of him, Wang Zheng showed no fear.
"The Ming Dynasty has inherited the virtues of Heaven, has a deep soil, and has great power. General Zuo did this treasonous and unethical act. Aren't you afraid that the people of the world will despise you? I heard that you also killed the enemy loyally and bravely at Qingshui Pass. Why is there such a disobedience today? Heart?"
Such words had no effect on Zuo Mengeng.
"Everyone in the world is busy revolting now. No one takes the Ming Dynasty seriously. I led the army to kill the enemy for the sake of this corrupt Ming Dynasty? Is it for the innocent people? Obviously they should They are well protected by this imperial court, but the imperial court just sits back and watches as their homes are destroyed by bandits, plundered, and turned into slaves. Since this imperial court cannot protect the people, why are they here?"
Wang Zheng frowned, turning a blind eye to the new soldiers around him who were armed to the teeth.
"My Ming Dynasty is only temporarily in trouble. After the new is replaced by the old, and the rulers are virtuous and the ministers are enlightened, who in the world can resist?"
Zuo Mengeng stared at him and commented very harshly.
"Mr. Kui Xin, you said a very correct nonsense. China has had so many dynasties rise and fall for thousands of years. Have you ever seen any dynasty rise from the dead?"
Wang Zheng was speechless again.
Everyone knows what history is like, and Zuo Menggeng can be said to have grasped the heel.
Zuo Mengeng waved his hand, his footsteps hurried in the distance, and after a while, a group of people ran in front of him.
But seeing these people, Sun Yuanhua and Wang Zheng were both dumbfounded.
"You... you..."
The three men rushed to Sun Yuanhua, all knelt down, holding Sun Yuanhua's legs and crying.
"Father, it's great that you are safe and sound."
It was his three sons, Sun Heding, Sun Hedou, and Sun Hejing.
The ones who ran up to Wang Zheng were two women.
"master……"
Looking at his son, Sun Yuanhua vaguely guessed something, but the luck in his heart still urged him to ask: "You are not in Songjiang, why do you come here?"
Sun Heding wiped away his tears and talked about the matter.
It turned out that on the day when the rebels captured Dengzhou City, at midnight, Xu Ji and Xu Erjue suddenly came quietly and brought several young people with them, claiming to be Zuo Mengeng's subordinates.
They talked about the incident in Dengzhou and told Sun Yuanhua that he would be liquidated by the court, which might harm his family.
As a relative, Xu Ji couldn't bear the Sun family to suffer such misfortune, and tried his best to persuade the Sun family to escape quickly.
Sun Yuanhua was not at home, leaving only his wife and three sons, none of whom had seen anything. When they heard the bad news about Sun Yuanhua, they all panicked.
That night, he quietly left Jiading with Zuo Menggeng's men, headed east, boarded a sea ship, drifted north, and finally arrived in Shandong.
The same is true for Wang Zheng's family.
Although his family was far away in Jingyang County, Xi'an Prefecture, Zuo Menggeng sent people to find him and brought his wife and concubines to Shandong.
After hearing what their family members told them, Sun Yuanhua and Wang Zheng were in agony.
Sun Yuanhua cried out sadly.
"Zhongheng, you are... you are trying to put me in a position of eternal destruction!"
He still didn't understand, but Zuo Mengeng was using a trick to drain money from the bottom of the cauldron.
Originally, he went to the capital on his own, and although he might not be able to escape the death penalty, his reputation would be intact after his death. As a result, Zuo Mengeng now tricked the Sun family into absconding. Needless to say, the news should have reached the capital by now.
The imperial court will definitely judge that this was his idea, and I am afraid that it won't be long before the sea fishing document will be issued to the world.
Sun Yuanhua and Wang Zheng suddenly became fugitives and traitors who could be punished by everyone.
Even if they rush to the capital now, it will be useless.
After all, if their family members are on the run, the court will only think that they are afraid of crime and want to save their families. Their crimes will be listed in the history books, making them even more infamy for thousands of years.
Sun Yuanhua is better off, after all, he and Zuo Mengeng are uncle and nephew.
Wang Zheng is the craziest.
"General Zuo wants to save Zhong Cheng, but his heart is pitiful. I and the general have never met each other, why did you harm me like this?"
Zuo Mengeng looked solemnly and looked at Wang Zheng with regret, saying: "I want to save Mr. Kui Xin because of his talent, which is rare in the world. He should not be reduced to a sacrifice in political strife. Put aside his official career, Mr. If you can fully display your talents, your merits will be far greater than those of the sages."
Zuo Menggeng's biggest regret about the late Ming Dynasty was that many technical talents went to become officials.
Although in this era, you can't get anything done without becoming an official. But even though you don't have the political means or talent, you still enter the officialdom. As a result, you waste your time, and many people lose their lives in political struggles.
This is what happened to Sun Yuanhua and Wang Zheng in front of them.
Wang Zheng was responsible for compiling Deng Yuhan's "Illustrated Notes on Strange Weapons of the Far West", and there are a lot of things he independently developed.
Through these works, it can be clearly seen that Wang Zheng is a rare academic power in this era.
How could Zuo Mengeng let such a person go?
Hearing his words, Wang Zheng was stunned.
I never thought that my usual hobby would be so valued by Zuo Mengeng.
You must know that in today's Ming Dynasty, the Four Books and Five Classics are the king.
He can only ponder his hobbies in private. Occasionally, he only gets ridicule from others when he brings it out.
Wang Zheng lamented countless times that it was hard to find a true friend.
He never expected that so many well-educated scholars would ridicule him, but on the contrary, a general on horseback would highly praise him.
But when he thought about his situation again, Wang Zheng couldn't laugh.
"Now that I have sinned upon my body, I stand shameless between heaven and earth. What's the use of talking about anything else?"
Wang Zheng lost his energy at the thought of being wanted all over the world. For a scholar-official like him, reputation was more important than anything else.
Zuo Mengeng didn't see it that way.
"Mr. Kui Xin, Zhu Ming's lack of justice has just caused people with lofty ideals to be wronged and humiliated. When this old dynasty is overthrown and the world is enlightened, today's hardships will be nothing more than yesterday's clouds."
No matter what charges the current court lists against Sun Yuanhua and Wang Zheng, will these charges still be meaningful when the Ming Dynasty ceases to exist?
How to evaluate the two of them is a matter for the new dynasty.
Sun Yuanhua and Wang Zheng were stunned.
They have never looked at the problem from this perspective.
But it is not easy to make them suddenly abandon their inherent positions.
Seeing Sun Yuanhua struggling in every possible way, Zuo Mengeng took out his trump card.
"Uncle, do you know Lu Zhenfei, Yu Yinggui, and Li Mengchen?"
Sun Yuanhua was puzzled, but he still said: "These three people have always been wise and fair. Although I have no contact with them, I admire their conduct."
Zuo Mengeng sneered.
"Uncle, do you know that these three people have often been in and out of Wen Tiren's mansion recently, and they are plotting to frame my uncle."
The shocking news made Sun Yuanhua petrified on the spot.
He did not think that Zuo Menggeng would deliberately deceive him, but it was precisely because of this that the news Zuo Menggeng said was so difficult for him to accept.
What shocked him even more was that the person who wanted to kill him happened to be a gentleman who was recognized as a good minister.
Yes, Lu Zhenfei, Li Mengchen, and Yu Yinggui are all really good officials. Not only were they upright and upright when they were officials, they were not afraid of power. Even in the process of resisting the Qing Dynasty, they also fought endlessly and were brave in the end. Martyrdom for the country.
But the reality is so ridiculous.
The one who wanted to frame Sun Yuanhua was such a good official.
why?
Because what these people want to deal with is not Sun Yuanhua at all, but Zhou Yanru behind him.
In fact, Lu Zhenfei and the other three were not in the same party as Wen Tiren, but were closer to Dong Lin.
However, when it came to dealing with Zhou Yanru, they and Wen Tiren had a common position.
However, when the Wuqiao Mutiny broke out, Sun Yuanhua became the best person.
All I can say is that in the whirlpool of politics, good or bad really doesn’t matter.
Due to his interests and position, if Sun Yuanhua had not been intercepted by Zuo Mengeng, once he went to the capital, he would have become a piece of cake on the chopping board.
