RPAGF Chapter 2 The Great Apocalypse Explosion
Chapter 2 The Great Apocalypse Explosion
"I heard you all clearly."
"After the explosion, the site was immediately sealed off, the city gates were secured, and all unrest was suppressed."
"What I want is absolute stability."
Zhu Ming had previously given instructions to Luo Sigong, the commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, and several generals from the Five Cities Garrison.
Luo Sigong and the others felt a chill run down their spines.
What explosion?
After more than two months of artillery drills, they have become immune to explosions!
What size explosion would warrant their attention?
Therefore, they did not understand why Zhu Ming would issue such a seemingly superfluous order on this joyous day.
But they dared not ask, nor dared they disobey.
"Your Majesty, we obey!"
Overconfident, they thought it was just a bomb that was a little more powerful than the ones used in gunpowder cannon demonstrations.
At this very moment, at the beginning of the Si hour (9-11 AM), the explosion had already occurred.
Zhu Ming knew that history would remember this massive explosion!
At the same time, Zhu Ming instantly pulled Empress Zhang Yan, who was watching the ceremony with him, into his arms and covered her ears tightly with both hands.
"Your Majesty, this isn't the place..."
Zhang Yan was startled by this sudden intimate gesture. Normally it wouldn't have been a problem, but now it was in front of everyone, so she prepared to say something.
"boom--!!!!!"
The sky tilted to the northwest, and the earth sank to the southeast.
That deafening roar, powerful enough to tear the sky apart, finally arrived, albeit belatedly.
The entire city of Beijing trembled and throbbed violently at that moment!
All that could be heard by everyone was the deafening buzzing; there was no other sound!
On the parade ground, the hundreds of thousands of jubilant people instantly fell into a deathly silence.
Everyone froze in their tracks.
Their faces still bore the smiles and fervor of the previous second, but their eyes were filled with bewilderment and terror.
Time seemed to have been paused at that moment.
Everyone instinctively looked in the direction from which the sound came.
then.
They then witnessed a scene they would never forget in their lifetime.
A gigantic mushroom cloud, composed of gray-black smoke and dark red flames, is rising unstoppably from the southwest corner of the capital, towards the Wanggongchang gunpowder depot!
It obscured the southeastern sky.
The silence on the parade ground lasted for less than a breath...
"What...what is that?"
"Another artillery drill??"
"No, that loud noise... Could it be... could it be an earthquake?"
"Southwest...isn't that the direction of the capital?"
"Oh my god..."
Just when everyone was gripped by fear and completely out of control.
Zhu Ming made a move.
He released Empress Zhang Yan from his embrace, and as she was still terrified and pale from the horrific sight, he gently said, "Don't be afraid."
His voice wasn't loud, but it carried an undeniable power, clearly reaching Zhang Yan's ears.
"With me here."
Those four simple words seemed to possess a certain magic, instantly stopping Zhang Yan from trembling.
She looked up blankly at Zhu Ming's young yet unusually calm face, and her chaotic heart miraculously calmed down.
After calming the Empress down, Zhu Ming released his grip and quickly stood on the reviewing stand.
Standing before the elaborately designed megaphone, he took a deep breath, channeling all his strength into his dantian, and spoke in a powerful voice to the chaotic crowd below.
"I am here! The Ming Dynasty is safe and sound!"
This reassuring voice, like divine thunder from the heavens, surpassed all screams and cries, instantly drowning out all the noise in the world.
The common people who were weeping and wailing, and the officials who were behaving themselves, all stopped abruptly the moment they heard that roar, as if they had been frozen in place.
They instinctively looked up, staring in astonishment at the solemn and majestic reviewing stand.
Their emperor, the monarch of the Ming Dynasty, stood alone, proudly atop the high platform.
Its form is like a mountain, and its aura is like a dragon.
It gave hundreds of thousands of ordinary people, civil and military officials, and soldiers a sense of reassurance—as long as he is still standing, the sky will not fall down!
The chaos came to an eerie halt at that moment.
His gaze, like a sharp sword, instantly locked onto the Imperial Tutor Sun Chengzong, who was also in shock not far away.
"Grand Secretary Sun!"
Zhu Ming's voice rang out again through the loudspeaker, carrying an overwhelming and authoritative tone.
"Parade abruptly ended! All troops, listen to my command!"
"Immediately transform into a rescue force! Deploy to the disaster area in the southwest to save lives and extinguish the fires!"
"Anyone who dares to take advantage of the chaos to commit crimes or inflate prices along the way will be killed on the spot!"
Sun Chengzong was jolted awake from his shock.
He looked at the young emperor on the high platform who remained calm and composed, issuing orders with clear logic, and his eyes were instantly filled with an indescribable awe and fervor.
This...this is a true ruler! This is the emperor that the Ming Dynasty should have!
"My lord! I obey the order!"
Sun Chengzong mustered all his strength and let out a roar.
He suddenly drew the imperial sword from his waist and pointed it in the southwest direction.
"Three thousand battalions, listen up! Maintain order on site!"
"Fifth Battalion, listen up! Form ranks for disaster relief!"
The soldiers of the three battalions, who had just been in chaos, quickly regained their military instincts under the successive orders of the emperor and the commander-in-chief.
They regrouped, transforming into an iron torrent. A portion of the army charged out of the training ground without hesitation, rushing towards the city shrouded in death.
The elite army that was just showing off its military might has transformed into a rescue force rushing to the aid of the nation in times of crisis.
Immediately afterwards, Zhu Ming's gaze fell on Wei Zhongxian, who was pale with fright, and Luo Sigong, the commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard.
"Wei Zhongxian!"
"Your...this old servant is here!" Wei Zhongxian was startled and scrambled to his knees.
"Immediately mobilize all agents from the Eastern and Western Depots to seal off the nine gates of the capital! Entry is permitted, but exit is not!"
Zhu Ming's voice was icy cold.
"Investigate! Conduct a city-wide manhunt! Anyone spreading rumors or taking advantage of the chaos need not be interrogated!"
"Act first, report later!"
Wei Zhongxian's heart clenched violently, and a chill ran from the soles of his feet straight to the top of his head.
But more than anything, he felt a surge of elation and excitement at being entrusted with such an important task.
He finally understood the profound meaning behind the emperor's previous arrangements, and finally saw his own position in this game.
Hounds! The Emperor's sharpest hounds!
"Yes, Your Majesty! I will do it immediately!"
Wei Zhongxian kowtowed loudly, got up, and led a group of equally fanatical foreigners, rushing down from the reviewing stand like madmen.
"Luo Sigong!"
"Your subject is here!" Luo Sigong, the commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, knelt on one knee.
In the instant of the explosion, Luo Sigong realized that this was the explosion Zhu Ming had been talking about. So while everyone was still in a daze, he quickly calmed the people and generals around him and at the same time ordered the Embroidered Uniform Guard and the Five Cities Garrison to move.
After all, this was something His Majesty the Emperor had agreed to beforehand; if it went wrong, his entire family would be wiped out.
At that moment, the fear of death and his professional ethics brought him back to his senses amidst the deafening roar of the explosion.
"Send your most elite men to the epicenter of the explosion immediately! Find out the true cause of the explosion at all costs!"
"At the same time, coordinate with the five city garrisons to block all streets, maintain order within the city, and suppress all rioters! I want the capital to return to peace in the shortest possible time!"
"Your subject obeys the decree!"
Without uttering a single wasted word, Luo Sigong accepted the order and vanished into the crowd in a flash.
The commands were clear and decisive.
Departments were quickly mobilized.
An invisible net, under Zhu Ming's will, swiftly enveloped the entire chaotic capital city with overwhelming force.
In the midst of this brief restoration of order, a discordant voice suddenly rang out.
An elderly editor from the Hanlin Academy, with white hair and beard, broke free from his companions' grasp, rushed to the front of the stage, knelt down, and wept bitterly.
"It's divine retribution! Your Majesty! This is divine retribution!"
At this moment, his face was deathly pale, and he ran out of the line in a frenzy, shouting loudly, which caused the surrounding people to stir up trouble again. Many people looked frightened and whispered about the word "divine retribution".
The officials, who had just settled down, began to stir again.
Many Donglin Party officials had strange glints in their eyes, clearly having other ideas.
Zhu Ming's gaze turned cold, and his tone became authoritative: "Insolence!"
These two words, carrying the majesty of the emperor, instantly drowned out all other discussions.
"Without knowing the reason, to presume divine retribution—what crime should one be punished for!"
"Guards! Seize him! Throw him into the imperial prison!"
As soon as he finished speaking, two imperial guards rushed forward, instantly subdued the editor, and pinned him to the ground.
"Your Majesty, spare me! Your Majesty, spare me!" The editor was so frightened that he kowtowed repeatedly, begging for mercy in a pitiful voice.
"Hand this person over to the Northern Garrison Command for interrogation to find out if anyone was behind it. If there are accomplices, arrest them all and punish them severely as a warning to others," Zhu Ming said, his voice devoid of any emotion.
Then, in front of all the civil and military officials, two imperial guards dragged the old Hanlin Academy editor, who was still struggling desperately, off the reviewing stand like a dead dog.
This scene completely stunned all the officials with ulterior motives.
Looking at the young emperor on the high platform, whose eyes were cold and whose actions were decisive, a chill ran deep in their hearts.
They realized that the "Carpenter Emperor" hiding behind the scenes was a thing of the past, and now standing before them was a true, iron-blooded monarch!
Zhu Ming coldly glanced at the silent officials below, then withdrew his gaze.
He stood on the edge of the high platform, with the awe-inspiring gazes of the officials behind him, and in the distance, the army rushing to the disaster area and the imperial guards shuttling through the city to maintain stability.
He knew that he had successfully taken control of the situation.
The batch of craftsmen and research materials that he had moved in advance were safe and sound.
The most core technological spark of the Ming Dynasty was preserved.
There were no large-scale casualties among the people near Wanggongchang who were driven there by Wei Zhongxian, and most of the people in the capital!
The most important thing for the Ming Dynasty, the hearts and minds of the people, were also preserved.
Although the disaster was shocking and bizarre, it was an unprecedented opportunity for Zhu Ming.
He understood that the real war was not here.
Rather, it will take place in the imperial court tomorrow.
A deep, unfathomable smile appeared on Zhu Ming's lips.
He already had an even bolder plan in mind.
Because he knew that the Donglin Party would not stop there, and would definitely use the disaster to force him to bow down and admit his mistakes to the vague and illusory will of Heaven.
So, those pedantic scholars wanted him to issue an edict of self-reproach?
snort!
Even dogs wouldn't post this!