Chapter 13 The twelfth chapter, the prince has no intention to search for hidden places.The imperial concubine intends to see through her treachery

Zhu Yijun followed Sun Hai, slipped out from the back door of the Palace of Compassion and Ning, made many twists and turns, and came to the imperial garden behind the Chengguang Gate, ran excitedly to the old cypress tree, looked up but was dumbfounded.I saw the bird's nest hanging on the treetop yesterday, but it's gone now. Looking back at the ground, there are traces of being cleaned.Sun Hai said dejectedly: After all, it is still too late. Who is so bold, I'll ask someone.Zhu Yijun stamped his feet, ready to find someone. Sun Hai called him to stop, and said: "Prince, I don't need to ask, maybe someone knew that the prince was going to dig out the bird's nest, and asked someone to do it first."

It's rare to find something fun once a year, and it's impossible to be happy again.As he spoke, Zhu Yijun looked wistfully at the top of the cypress tree, with an unhappy expression on his face. At this time, in the imperial garden, there are colorful flowers, the water is clear, the leaves are emerald, and the birds are singing and the flowers are fragrant.The warm sun shines directly down, and even the rockery, which usually looks gloomy and cold, now becomes lively, bright and lovely.But Zhu Yijun no longer had the interest to play, and he and Sun Hai left the Imperial Garden disconsolately.Along the way, from time to time, passing eunuchs avoided the side of the road and respectfully greeted the prince, but Zhu Yijun didn't bother to answer.In order to avoid people, he turned to the West Fifth Office of Qianqing Palace, and decided to go back to the Palace of Compassion and Ning from Yongxiang, which is rarely visited by people.

Sun Hai, you come up. As soon as he turned into the corridor of the West Fifth Institute of Qianqing Palace, Zhu Yijun turned his head and shouted.As a slave, Sun Hai dared not walk side by side with the crown prince.Although he took two quick steps and shortened the distance between the two, he still dragged his feet and refused to move forward.Seeing that Sun Hai was still falling behind, Zhu Yijun simply stopped, turned his head and asked angrily, "Why don't you come up?" The servant dare not.Sun Hai said in a low voice. I want to ask you something, but you fall behind, how can I ask?

Seeing that the crown prince was angry, Sun Hai had no choice but to bite the bullet and step forward, walking side by side with the crown prince. how old are you?Zhu Yijun asked. Fifteen. You are five years older than me. Yes, prince. What year did you enter the palace? It's been three years since Longqing. Zhu Yijun suddenly stopped and looked up at the white cloudy sky.Ask: Is there anything fun outside the palace? When it came to playing, Sun Hai's eyes lit up, and the restraint that he had trained in usually disappeared all of a sudden.The voice of speaking also raised: back to the prince, there are indeed too many fun things outside the palace, too much!

ah, is it?Zhu Yijun glared at Sun Hai enviously, tell me what's interesting. Going to temple fairs, watching social dramas, playing with lions, walking on stilts, playing firecrackers, releasing river lanterns, fighting crickets, and playing house Sun Hai was very familiar, and he spoke clearly, and then he talked about every method and fun of playing.Hearing this, Zhu Yijun was elated and amazed.After Sun Hai finished talking, Zhu Yijun continued to ask: What are you playing outside at this time? fly a kite.Sun Hai opened his mouth and answered, when I was only five years old, my grandfather taught me how to sing a song.After speaking, Sun Hai sang in a low voice:

warm and cold april day The east wind is like a whip pumping all the flowers hey hey hey hey My centipede babble hi hi It made my centipede bite the dragonfly's tail and fly into the sky Sun Hai sang very attentively. After singing, afraid that Zhu Yijun would not understand, he explained: centipede and dragonfly are both names of kites.My grandfather is so skillful that all insects and beasts can be made into kites and put into the sky. Zhu Yijun said excitedly: "Come on, let's go back and make a kite and fly it." Sun Hai shook his head and said, "It takes a lot of open space to fly a kite. Where can I put it in the palace?"The square in the Huangji Gate is fine, but the Huangji Hall is the place where the Long Live Lord opened his court, and it is so majestic, how can people let people fly kites.

Zhu Yijun was discouraged when he heard this, and said sadly: Sun Hai, there are so many interesting things outside the palace, I really don't understand why you came into the palace. Sun Hai sighed and said: "My lord, the servant's family is poor, so it is predestined to enter the palace." Don't worry, I won't treat you badly. The two masters and servants stopped and talked like this, and they didn't realize that they had walked half of Yong Xiang.Suddenly, they heard the sound of weeping coming from a row of small tile-roofed houses behind Xianfu Palace, and they stopped in their tracks.After listening for a while, Zhu Yijun said: Let's go and have a look.Seeking the sound of crying, the two pushed open the door of a small tile-roofed house.

In the room, an old eunuch with gray eyebrows was sitting on the stilt, and a young eunuch who was about eleven or twelve years old was kneeling on the ground, sobbing and crying.Seeing Zhu Yijun push the door in, the old eunuch panicked and rolled off the bed, knelt down to pay his respects. what is your job?Zhu Yijun asked domineeringly. Back to the prince, the servant is the one who plays the drums in Jiaofangsi.The old eunuch replied tremblingly. Ah, from the theater in the palace, I have seen your plays.Zhu Yijun pointed to the little eunuch kneeling on the ground, and asked the old eunuch, why did you bully him?

The old eunuch didn't dare to raise his head, and explained in a low voice: The slave didn't dare to bully him, because he made a mistake, and the slave punished him according to the rules. What mistake did he make? This little bastard ate the gall of a leopard and went to the imperial garden to dig out a bird's nest. Ah, it turned out that you dug out the bird's nest. Zhu Yijun became angry when he heard that, kicked the kneeling little eunuch on the buttocks, and said bitterly, he deserves to be beaten! The little eunuch didn't pay attention to this kick, and immediately fell forward and gnawed at the mud.I wanted to howl loudly, but when I saw that the prince had a bad background, I held back the pain, got up and knelt down again.

The room was empty except for that stick.Sun Hai drew over and asked Zhu Yijun to sit down. What's in the bird's nest?Zhu Yijun moved his face closer and asked the kneeling little eunuch. There are bird eggs.The little eunuch replied shyly. there's a few? four. Where are the eggs? The little eunuch reached into his undershirt, took out four bird eggs the size of broad beans, and held them in front of Zhu Yijun with his hands. Zhu Yijun picked up one, and it was still warm. He held the egg up to the sun to shine a light on it, and asked: What are you doing with the eggs? Hey Toad.

What are you feeding?Zhu Yijun didn't hear clearly. Hey Toad.The little eunuch answered word by word. This inexplicable answer made Zhu Yijun stunned: Hey Toad, Hey Toad, he muttered, feeling incomprehensible. Sun Hai stood up and shouted: "Bold little slave, dare to lie to the crown prince, the crime is not lightly forgiven." The old eunuch knelt aside and said: Please calm the prince.This little bastard didn't deceive the prince, he really raised two toads. What are you raising toads for? fun. The little eunuch replied, still holding the egg in both hands.It seems that he has only entered the palace not long ago, and he doesn't know any etiquette yet. How to play, you play for me to see. Zhu Yijun suddenly became interested, seeing that the little eunuch was still kneeling, he couldn't help stretching out his hand to pull him. Get up quickly, Sun Hai shouted, you are so rude, you still want the prince to hold you. Then the little eunuch got up, put the four eggs back into his bosom, ran into the back room, and brought out a cloth bag and two bamboo tubes.He first poured two toads out of the cloth bag.I saw the two toads as big as teacup trays, one with red paint on the back, and the other with white paint on the back.As soon as the two toads landed on the ground, they jumped at each other, then turned their heads towards the little eunuch, and stood side by side in a row.The little eunuch poked the heads of the two toads with his finger, then pointed at Zhu Yijun with the other finger, and said, "Greetings to the crown prince!"I saw the two toads passing by, facing Zhu Yijun, stretching out their front paws, and poking their heads forward in unison.This seemingly clumsy but extremely spiritual movement caused the whole room to burst into laughter, and after laughing, they were amazed.When he first saw the toad rolling to the ground, Zhu Yijun was still a little scared, but after this performance, he suddenly became overjoyed.He pointed to the toad that was still lying on his stomach and asked Sun Hai: Are they toad spirits? Sun Hai didn't understand either, so he pouted at the little eunuch and said: You answer the prince. Back to the prince, they are not toad spirits, their movements are trained by slaves.The little eunuch replied. Can a toad still be trained?Zhu Yijun's eyes as black as lacquer were wide open, full of confusion, what else could they perform? Prince please look down. As the little eunuch said, he brought the bamboo tube over again.Place the toad separately and upside down, with the mouths of the bamboo tubes facing each other, with an open space more than two feet wide in the middle.As soon as the little eunuch clapped his hands, the red-backed toad crawled to the opening of the bamboo tube on the left, and the white-backed toad crawled to the opening of the bamboo tube on the right.The little eunuch clapped his hands again, and the two toads puffed their cheeks towards the mouth of the bamboo tube and jumped up, three times in a row.Then he slowly moved his body and lay down against the bamboo tube, with his head facing the open space in front of the bamboo tube.At this time, I saw two teams of ants crawling out of the bamboo tube.The red-backed toad crawled out of the red ants, and the white-backed toad crawled out of the white ants.The two teams of ants crawled straight into two lines, one red and one white, straighter than ink fountain lines.The little eunuch clapped his hands again, and the two toads puffed their cheeks and jumped again beside the bamboo tube, and the two groups of ants also seemed to have received the order, and hurriedly climbed up the opposing line, and the formation suddenly became chaotic.I saw the red and white ants each catching a pair and fighting each other, with their heads raised and their legs raised, and they summed up their horns.After fighting for a while, the ants of the white team obviously couldn't resist and began to rout.The red team ants became more and more courageous as they fought, taking advantage of the victory to pursue.At this moment, the little eunuch clapped his hands again, and the two toads began to crawl up the open space.And the two teams of ants that were fighting also hurriedly retreated, each returned to the team, and slipped back into the two bamboo tubes. The two toads were still the same as before, with their heads facing the prince, lying there obediently. Not to mention the ten-year-old prince, even the sixty-year-old drum-playing old eunuch had never seen such a strange thing.I was so surprised that I couldn't speak for a moment. Prince, is it fun?The little eunuch asked innocently. Fun, fun, Zhu Yijun asked, as if waking up from a dream, what kind of game is this? Toad commands the ant soldiers.said the little eunuch. who taught you my grandpa. Zhu Yijun looked at the little eunuch, then at Sun Hai, and said in bewilderment: "Why are your grandfathers so capable? One can make kites, and the other can train toads and ants." After being praised, the little eunuch immediately became excited, clapped his hands and said: "My grandfather is really capable, just because he knows this game, and he will never beg for food empty-handed." What nonsense are you talking about?The old eunuch stopped the young eunuch, and said with a smile on Zhu Yijun's face, this little bastard just entered the palace, and he doesn't understand any rules, please take care of the prince. Zhu Yijun already liked this little eunuch very much in his heart, so he asked him: What's your name? Guest use.The little eunuch answered. What to do in the palace? It is divided into bell and drum division.The old eunuch rushed to answer. What bell and drum division?The guest asked in confusion. Sun Hai was amused, hehe said: You can't even understand your own errands, how did you become a eunuch? I am not a eunuch. When the guest said these words, everyone in the room turned pale with fright.It should be known that in the deep forbidden palace, except for the emperor and the underage prince, any man who trespasses inside will be killed with a stick. You are not a eunuch, how did you come in?Zhu Yijun asked. A few nights ago, they put this suit on me, stuffed it into a small sedan chair, and carried it in. them?who are they? I don't know, Ke Yong blinked his eyes, pointed to the old eunuch, and said, you ask him. Say, who are they?Zhu Yijun questioned the old eunuch again. The old eunuch was so scared that his face turned ashen. At this time, he knelt on the ground and sifted the chaff, and he replied: Eunuch Meng just confessed that the slaves should take good care of these boys, and the other slaves don't know anything about it. Ah, not just one?Zhu Yijun searched the house again, and asked, what else? In the next room. Let's go and have a look. The prince spoke, but the old eunuch did not dare to neglect, led Zhu Yijun out, and took out the key to open the door lock of the next room. Zhu Yijun probed in and saw three little boys who were about the same age as the guest, huddled in a corner of the room, screaming with frightened hands. He looked at the luxurious prince in front of him. The prince is young, but the rules in the palace are generally known: who brought these boys in?He was about to ask for clarification, but Sun Hai said first: I'm going to report to the imperial concubine. Zhu Yijun nodded, and the two quickly ran back to the Compassion Palace. After a while, an apricot-yellow female sedan chair stopped in front of the small tile house of Xianfu Palace. Concubine Li Gui stepped down from the sedan chair and asked the prince who followed the sedan chair: Jun'er, but here? Exactly.Zhu Yijun replied. A row of small tile-roofed houses are already locked and closed.The accompanying eunuchs knocked on every door, but no one answered. Concubine Li Gui ordered the doors to be kicked open, but there was no one there. Escaped so quickly? Li Guifei raised her eyebrows and said.It turned out that after Zhu Yijun returned to the Compassionate Ning Palace, he immediately reported to her what happened in the small tile-roofed house behind the Xianfu Palace.She suddenly realized that these little boys were most likely the child molesters that Meng Chong secretly sought out for the emperor, so she decided to take advantage of it and punish Meng Chong severely.Unexpectedly, the old eunuch moved quickly, and within a short time, he transferred the person without a trace.At this time, Feng Bao, who had received the message from Concubine Li Gui, also brought a group of eunuchs to come quickly. Seeing Concubine Li Gui was angry, he quickly said: Please return to the palace to rest. I will leave this matter to the servants. They just slipped into the ground Son, the slave also picked him out. Concubine Li Gui thought for a while, and said: "Alright, you, the admiral of the East Factory, will come in handy this time." Press Concubine Li Gui took Zhu Yijun back to the Palace of Compassionate Ning in a sedan chair, but Feng Bao immediately gave an order to the eunuch in charge of the East Factory who accompanied him: quickly mobilize personnel to seal all the exits in the palace, and every eunuch who goes out , No matter how big or small, whether it is an ebony card or a tooth card, I will strictly interrogate them.Don't miss a single suspect.The eunuch in charge took the order and left.Feng Bao also called an eunuch Yapai Dang to find out the whereabouts of the old eunuch playing drums.The tooth card master Dang hesitated a little, showing a embarrassed look.Feng Bao saw it, his face turned cold, and he scolded sharply: What are you dawdling for?Let me tell you, this is the order of the imperial concubine and the prince, if you make a mistake, be careful that I will peel your skin!Yapai Dadang no longer dared to delay, and ran away. Feng Bao arranged all the affairs properly, he just sat down and drank a cup of tea when he returned to the duty room of the Rites Supervisor, when he saw Li Houyi, who was led by the head of the Jiaofang as the eunuch, ran in anxiously.As soon as the two knelt down to salute, Feng Bao couldn't wait to ask: "Where's the person?" Back to Eunuch Feng, the old eunuch playing drums you were looking for was Wang Fengchi. For some reason, he hanged himself in the spare room behind the Bell and Drum Division. It was Li Houyi who answered, Feng Bao was not surprised when he heard that, he just smiled coldly and said: He died at the right time, let's go and have a look. Having said that, they got up, and the group of people came to the Bell and Drum Division courtyard beside the imperial garden, and walked into the idle room where broken drums, rotten bells and other sundries were piled up in the back corner, and saw that the old eunuch Wang Fengchi had a bell rope tied around his neck. Hanging straight on the roof beams.Feng Bao ordered people to untie Wang Fengchi, squatted down and rolled over his eyelids and lips, got up and walked around the corpse twice, and suddenly ordered the two Dongchang black boots who were traveling with him: tie up Li Houyi for me. ! Li Houyi was so panicked that he knelt down on the ground and begged, "Eunuch Feng, you really did nothing wrong, why do you want to tie me up?" Pointing at the dead body, Feng Bao said murderously: "Everyone who hanged has his tongue stretched out, why is this Wang Fengchi clenching his teeth?"Seeing that there are blood marks on his neck, it was strangled. It seems that someone deliberately killed people to silence them. You are the head of the Jiaofang, and the first one can't get away with it. Eunuch Feng, I am wronged. Wronged or not, you will know when you enter Dongchang, you are tied! With a wave of Feng Bao's hand, the two schoolboys threw Li Houyi to the ground, and tied his hands behind his back. Li Houyi still struggled to resist, howling like a pig. At this moment, another group of eunuchs rushed in, the leader was wearing a black tunic with a boa constrictor turned upside down, he was short and fat, with a protruding chest, a face full of fat, and a distilled nose. It's dazzling. This person is Meng Chong, the eunuch who is in charge of the office and the supervisor of ceremonies. Meng Chong is also in his fifties, and in terms of the age of entering the palace, he is about the same as Feng Bao.But the promotion was not as fast as Feng Bao's. When Feng Baodong was in charge of the factory, he was only mixed into the position of the prime minister's eunuch in the Xihuamen Neili under Shangshan Supervisor.In the last years of Jiajing, Feng Bao had been the eunuch of Bingbi for several years before Meng Chong became the supervisor of Shangshan.This Shangshan supervisor is responsible for the food of the emperor and the harem.In the inner prison yamen, although it is not prominent, it is extremely important.Meng Chong was born with a naive face, and when he was studying in the inner school, his grades were not good.But as soon as he talked about eating, drinking and having fun, he was beaming and articulate.Especially eating, he seems to be particularly researched.Give him a sheep, and he can make you twenty or thirty dishes with different colors, flavors and styles, such as cold sliced ​​sheep tail, stir-fried sheep tripe, oily kidney, sheep lips and dragon whiskers, and sheep intestines. people will never forget.Therefore, it is most appropriate for him to be in charge of Shangshan Supervisor.Meng Chong is a simple person, but he still has narrow eyes.After Emperor Longqing ascended the throne, Meng Chong served him very carefully.Every time he had a meal, he would deliver it himself, and stand by his side to see what dishes the emperor ate and what dishes he would not eat;He memorized it in his heart, and within a month, he found out the taste of the emperor, and every time the meal was delivered, the emperor ate it with great appetite.Sweet, sour, salty, all just right.The emperor will inevitably have to praise a few words, and Meng Chong is even more attentive.Once, the emperor asked Meng Chong to go to the market outside the palace to buy some fruit cakes.Meng Chong didn't dare to be negligent, he ran to the food store on Qipan Street, bought more than a dozen boxes of pine, hazelnuts, rice dishes, etc., and sent them to the Qing Palace.The emperor asked while eating: How much are these worth?Meng Chong replied: Fifty taels of silver.The emperor laughed and said: These only cost five qian ren at most. If you don't believe me, go to Goulan Hutong on East Chang'an Avenue to buy them.It turned out that the emperor lived in Yuwang Mansion before he became the throne, and when he had nothing to do, he occasionally went to Goulan Hutong to buy sweets, so he knew the price.Meng Chong originally wanted to report more money and embezzle a little bit of silver, but he didn't expect the emperor to be so familiar with the price, his face turned pale with fright, and he prostrated himself to plead guilty.Fortunately, the emperor didn't care about it, and still smiled and said: There are not many profiteers in the capital, but you, an idiot, came across it.Be careful in the future.With this experience, Meng Chong no longer dared to be cautious in front of the emperor, but used all his eighteen skills in the kitchen to please the emperor's appetite.After two years like this, the big chef suddenly had a fortune and turned into the palm seal of the supervisor of ceremonies.It should be said that his promotion this time was entirely due to Gao Gong. Chen Hong, the former supervisor of rites, resigned because he offended the emperor. According to the usual practice, he should be succeeded by Feng Bao, the eunuch who had been a pen-holding eunuch for many years, but Gao Gong looked at Feng Bao. Where it feels uncomfortable, he insists on recommending Meng Chong to push Feng Bao down.Although the emperor knew that Meng Chong was greedy for petty gains, but he was as simple as a big horse bear, and he was cute, so he agreed to Gao Gong's recommendation.After Meng Chong took office, because he was good at understanding the emperor's psychology and doing what he liked, starting from paying tribute to the slave Huahua, he specially selected handsome women and men for the emperor's enjoyment, so he won the trust of the emperor.Recommending Wang Jiusi to the emperor this time was originally another extremely lucrative matter, but unexpectedly, Zhang Juzheng shot out, and the matter suddenly became difficult to deal with.After the emperor met with Gao Gong in the Wenhua Palace this morning, he ordered him to go to the prison of the Ministry of Criminal Justice to release Wang Jiusi immediately.He had just settled Wang Jiusi so that he could make alchemy quickly and not miss the emperor taking medicine, but he didn't want such a big event to happen again in the palace, so he hurried over.Although he is the chief executive and a powerful inner minister, he is not easy to offend Feng Bao.Although his current position is higher than Feng Bao's, Feng Bao is ahead of him in terms of qualifications and scheming.Therefore, as long as no matter big or small, as long as it does not involve his own interests, he will never stop Feng Bao from doing whatever he wants. Li Houyi was about to go out after being pushed and shoved by two small schoolboys, when he caught a glimpse of Meng Chong, Li Houyi suddenly seemed to have met a savior, and shouted loudly: "Meng Gonggong, please save me." According to the rules, arresting eunuchs in the palace, not to mention Li Houyi, a big peng with a dental card, or a small fireman with an ebony card, without him Meng Chong nodding, it is absolutely not allowed.Seeing Li Houyi being tied up, Meng Chong felt that his power was being challenged, and his face suddenly grew long. He asked angrily, "Eunuch Feng, what kind of Dafa has Li Houyi violated that deserves to be tied up like this?" Feng Bao also knew that he was acting beyond his authority, but he believed that he was backed by Concubine Li Gui, and he spoke in a tough tone: he was suspected of killing someone to silence him. What kills and silences, that's it?Meng Chong pointed to Wang Fengchi's corpse on the ground, sneered, and said, "Eunuch Feng, when we entered the palace, this Wang Fengchi was playing drums in the Jiaofang Division, and he was most timid and fearful."The last time I rehearsed "Jade Phoenix Tower" for the emperor, I always hit the drums wrongly, and the emperor was so angry that he wanted to beat him thirty times.Li Houyi quickly knelt down to intercede for him, and this disaster was avoided.You were in front of me at that time, and you could see clearly.Wang Fengchi was over seventy years old, not to mention thirty boards, even three boards down, and he would blow out the lights. If Li Houyi wanted his life, why did he save him at that time? At this moment, at that moment, Feng Bao stood with his hands crossed. He was not frightened by Meng Chong's aura. The boy trespassed in the palace, which is a violation of the ban on beheading.He, Wang Fengchi, is just like what your eunuch Meng said, if the leaves fall from the tree, he is afraid of breaking his head. How can he have such courage?Unfortunately, this incident was inadvertently bumped into by the crown prince, revealing the truth.Now the imperial concubine and empress order strictly investigate.But after a short time, Wang Fengchi died, and the four wild boys were also hidden without a trace.Eunuch Meng, tell me, is this someone trying to kill someone? No matter how naive Meng Chong was, he could hear Feng Bao's bad tone, so he endured it and asked, "Even if someone wants to kill someone to silence him, how do you conclude that this person must be Li Houyi?" He is the director of the teaching workshop, and Wang Fengchi is in charge of him. Of course, he is the first person to be suspicious. As soon as Feng Bao finished speaking, Li Houyi yelled again: Eunuch Meng, I was wronged! Meng Chong scanned the room with his eyes, there were about twenty eunuchs, big and small.If Feng Bao were to take Li Houyi away in front of them, who would listen to what he, the supervisor of ceremonies, and the eunuch in charge of seals, would say in the future?What's more, he was the one who brought the four molesters into the palace and handed them over to Wang Fengchi to take care of them.He has always been unwilling to turn his face against Feng Bao, but now it seems that he can't care about it anymore, and his heart is overwhelmed, and he speaks in an orderly tone: Eunuch Feng, you must let Li Houyi go! Meng Chong was always loose, but suddenly his attitude hardened, Feng Bao was unexpected, he was slightly taken aback, and replied: I have obeyed the imperial concubine's order. I have the emperor's will! Meng Chong, riding a tiger and not afraid of a donkey, yelled at Feng Bao with his belly shy.The atmosphere in the room was already very tense, and this time it was even more like an enemy. The eunuchs present saw the two most powerful figures in the twenty-four prisons in Ouchi standing on top of the bull, and they were all frightened and kept silent. . Feng Bao could hear the weight of Meng Chong's words. Compared with the emperor's imperial decree, the Imperial Concubine's decree is nothing short of mustard.I can't bear it and I have to bear it.Feng Bao rolled his eyes, changed his murderous look into a smirk, and said: Since Eunuch Meng has obeyed the imperial edict, I will leave Li Houyi to you.He waved at the black boots school, and immediately untied Li Houyi. Meng Chong gained the upper hand and shouted at the eunuchs present: "What are you doing in a daze, why don't you clean up Wang Fengchi and carry him to the incarnation field." The eunuchs got the order, and they became busy all of a sudden, Meng Chong was afraid to stay where he was and get entangled with Feng Bao, so he stepped out the door, but Feng Bao was reluctant, so he chased him out and asked: Please tell Mr. Meng, are those four wild boys looking for them or not? No, Meng Chong originally wanted to say that he would not look for it, but when he thought it was wrong, he changed his mind and said, I will ask the emperor for an order on this matter. Emperor Longqing had seen Gao Gong from the Wenhua Palace and returned to the Qianqing Palace. He was bored, lying on the couch in the Xinuang Pavilion, and while letting the little eunuch who waited beside him knead his legs, he chatted with Zhang Gui. . Zhang Gui, look at my complexion, is it much better than before? Zhang Gui had already been given a seat, but when he heard the emperor's question, he rolled off the stool and knelt down again, glanced at the emperor, and replied: I see that the complexion of Long Live Lord is much better than before. Oh, you follow me every day, and you know the details best, so take a closer look.Emperor Longqing bowed his body, and because of his excitement, his face really showed a little light. Zhang Gui just said casual compliments, but in fact his eyes were bright: the emperor's complexion is as withered and yellow as fallen leaves in late autumn, which is a sign of a serious illness.The reason why he has been hyperactive these days is because he took Wang Jiusi's Yin-Yang Nourishing Pill.Zhang Gui also knew that what Wang Jiusi prepared for the emperor was an aphrodisiac, although he was worried in his heart, but he dared not reveal it lightly, Zhang Juzheng took Wang Jiusi in the street, Zhang Gui was secretly happy.Thinking that in this way the emperor would have no chance of running into evil, so he still came back to take the medicine from the imperial physician, so that his condition might really get better. Why are you looking at me like this? Zhang Gui stared blankly at the emperor, actually thinking about his own thoughts.When Emperor Longqing asked such a question, Zhang Gui woke up with a start, and replied against his will: "Go back to Lord Longevity, the servant just looked at it seriously, and Lord Longevity's complexion really improved a lot." Well, Emperor Longqing nodded in satisfaction, leaned his head back on the pillow, and said comfortably, Wang Jiusi's medicine has miraculous effects, and you are a witness. Zhang Gui knelt down and remained silent. At this moment, the eunuch on duty at Xinuange came in and reported to Meng Chong for a visit.Let him in quickly.As soon as Emperor Longqing stood up and sat up, his spirit immediately lifted up a lot. Immediately there was a rush of footsteps passing through the veranda, and Meng Chong knelt down as soon as he entered the door, panting and said: "Slave Meng Chong greets the emperor." How did you make the donkey neigh and pant like this?Emperor Longqing reprimanded him gently, and then asked, did Wang Jiusi pick it up? Back to Lord Long Live, the servant has sent Wang Jiusi back to the alchemy place, and Wang Jiusi asked the servant to tell the emperor that he will refine today's elixir before it's time. so good. Emperor Longqing gave Meng Chong an appreciative glance, and ordered him to sit down. Meng Chong thanked him, shrank and sat on the stool, and glanced at Zhang Gui.Zhang Gui understood that Meng Chong had something to report to the emperor alone, and it was difficult for him to speak up because of his presence, so he knelt down and left Xinuang Pavilion wisely. After the sound of Zhang Gui's footsteps disappeared, Meng Chong played in a low voice: Long Live Lord, something happened in the palace. What's the matter? For some reason, the crown prince wandered to the back of the Xianfu Palace, and met those four little prostitutes. What's the big deal? Emperor Longqing smiled disapprovingly. After hearing Meng Chong tell the whole story, Emperor Longqing felt that the problem was serious.Although he is flirtatious and lustful, he is cowardly by nature, and now he reproaches and says: You too, why do you want to get four at a time, it's better now, you have made such a big mistake. The servant didn't handle things carefully, and he deserved to die. Meng Chong shrank his head and neck, looking trivial, and muttered, the original intention of the servant is to get more, one is for the emperor to choose, and the other is to meet the emergencies . Where are these four children now? Still in the palace, Feng Bao ordered the gates of the palaces to be closed, and if an ant goes out, it must be seen clearly whether it is male or female. How did the old eunuch die? The person in charge was afraid that revealing his secrets would be detrimental to the emperor, so he dealt with him boldly. This Feng Bao was so aggressive that he must kidnap Li Houyi, and it was the servant who saved him. Zhang Juzheng came out of the cabinet, and Feng Bao came out of the big house. They deliberately opposed me! When Emperor Longqing said this, his tone was not angry but sad.With that dejected look, it seems that he is not the Ninth Five-Year Supreme, and he does not hold the power of life and death in his hands.Meng Chong felt desolate after hearing this, and begged: Please ask the emperor to issue an order to remove all the palace bans arranged by Feng Bao. Well, you go and do it quickly.Emperor Longqing waved his hand, Meng Chong knelt down to thank him and was about to withdraw, Emperor Longqing added another sentence, "Wang Jiusi's elixir, you should also urge it, I am still waiting to eat it." Yes, the slave remembers. Meng Chong withdrew obediently, and Emperor Longqing was a little hungry, so he ordered to pass on the meal.There were twenty or thirty dishes on the table, looking at these delicacies, Emperor Longqing lost his appetite.The eunuch serving food added a small bowl of fragrant parrot rice to him, he took a bite, but it was tasteless like chewing sawdust, put down the bowl again, picked a piece of sesame pancake and ate it.Let's take care of this lunch. The dinner table was removed, and Emperor Longqing was rinsing his mouth in the water bowl held by the little eunuch, and another eunuch came outside to report: Empress Chen and Concubine Li Gui asked to see her.Upon hearing this, Emperor Longqing sprayed all the water on the little eunuch's face.The matter of Meng Chong's kneeling performance made him uneasy. He knew that it was not a good thing for the two concubines to come to see him. He wanted to send an order to keep them out, but he couldn't make up his mind for a while.While hesitating, Empress Chen and Concubine Li walked lightly with lotus steps, and both walked into Xinuang Pavilion. Concubine pays respects to the emperor! Empress Chen and Concubine Li Gui said together, then knelt down together.Emperor Longqing stepped forward to help them up himself, and ordered the eunuchs to move up cushioned embroidered chairs to sit on.Emperor Longqing looked at the two concubines who had not been summoned for many days, and saw that Empress Chen was wearing a lotus leaf-colored gauze skirt woven with gold and phoenix patterns, and because of the cold, she also wore a red silk shawl with the word "cloud" on her face. There is also a thin layer of pearl powder made of steamed jasmine kernels, which looks more graceful and luxurious.Concubine Li still wore the same attire she wore when she met Feng Bao in the morning, but she took off her soft silk boots and changed into a pair of cat-toed shoes embroidered with animal heads.The upper is made of red satin, lined with a white dress, very novel and unique.Emperor Longqing stared intently at Concubine Li Gui. Although he had been with her for more than ten years, he had never found her as beautiful and charming as she is today. He immediately wanted to make out with her, but it was not good for Empress Chen to be present. Confidentially, he pointed to the shoes on Concubine Li Gui's feet and said: "Your shoes are very beautiful. I have never seen you wear them before." Being praised by the emperor, Concubine Li Gui got up and gave a blessing, and replied, these shoes are called cat shoes, and they are Su-like. There is a female servant in the concubine's palace, who is from Suzhou, and her hands are very skillful. It was her who passed it on. I don't think it looks like a cat's head is embroidered on the toe cap. This is the head of a tiger. Since ancient times, cats and tigers have been inseparable.Women on the ground in Suzhou wear this kind of shoes, the original intention is to ward off evil spirits. Avoid evil?Emperor Longqing asked subconsciously, what kind of evil should be avoided? Concubine Li Gui didn't answer, but just glanced at Empress Chen.Empress Chen was also looking at her at this time, her eyes met, and the emotions that stirred up each other were silent.It turned out that after returning from Xianfu Palace, Concubine Li Gui came to Ciqing Palace and told Empress Chen what happened.Empress Chen was angry with Concubine Li Gui.Feng Bao rushed over to report Wang Fengchi's death and Meng Chong's arbitrarily obstructing the search, which made Concubine Li very angry. The matter is up to me and the queen.Concubine Li Gui knew that the reason why Meng Chong acted so boldly was because of the support of the emperor.Now that this matter has already exploded, it must be seen that the mountains are high and the waters are low, so I decided to bring in Empress Chen to take care of it.But he said that Feng Bao had gone for less than an hour, and then turned back to Kunning Palace and said, "Reporting to the Queen and the Imperial Concubine, those four little bastards were hiding in the warehouse of the Huanyi Bureau and were found out by the slaves."What about people?Li Guifei asked.Closed in the inner factory, please don't worry, my mother, even ants can't get away.The sub-administration of the East Factory in Da Nei is called Neichang, which is an institution that specializes in supervising and punishing eunuchs and eunuchs.Concubine Li Gui felt relieved when she heard this, and said to Empress Chen: Sister Empress, let's go to see the emperor together now.Although Empress Chen was afraid of things, when she thought of child molestation, the anger in her heart couldn't be dissipated, so she nodded and replied: "That's fine, we sisters go to the emperor to ask for an explanation."So Chengyu came to Xinuang Pavilion. When Emperor Longqing saw the empress and concubine looking at each other, his heart began to beat.After all, he was guilty of being a thief, so he quickly changed the subject and asked Concubine Li Gui: Where is Jun'er, why didn't he come together? He is studying.Li Guifei leaned back to answer, then glanced at Empress Chen again, and said, besides, the concubine and the empress want to report something to the emperor, and it is difficult for the prince to speak in the presence. If you have anything to say, let's talk about it another day, I am a little tired today. Emperor Longqing faltered and wanted to get up to see off the guests.Concubine Li quickly knelt down and said: What the concubine said was just a few words.Empress Chen also knelt down. Emperor Longqing originally wanted to avoid it, but when he saw the concubine deliberately pestering her, he felt unhappy.He could have forced the guest away, but he lacked the courage, so he had no choice but to cry and sit back on the embroidered couch. Concubine Li knew that the emperor was not happy, but at this point in the matter, she couldn't care less, she asked straight away: "Meng Chong got four little villains to hide in the palace, did the emperor know about it?" Is there such a thing?Won't!Emperor Longqing denied it categorically, thinking about it, it might be inappropriate to be so arbitrary, and said, he can call Meng Chong to ask about this matter.Maybe it's a new eunuch, but everyone doesn't know him and don't know. It is absolutely impossible to be the new eunuch.Concubine Li Gui said decisively. How dare you decide? Those four little villains have been found in the warehouse of the Huanyi Bureau, and are now locked up in the inner factory. oh!Emperor Longqing's shock was no small matter, he complained in his heart about Meng Chong's ineffectiveness, and asked, who caught them? Feng Bao. Those four um, what did those four kids say? Not interrogated yet. Emperor Longqing breathed a sigh of relief, and said in a veiled way: You go back for now, and after Feng Bao interrogates and understands, let him come to play me. Emperor Longqing once again hinted at the expulsion of guests, and Concubine Li Gui wanted to find out the truth, and asked deliberately: I really don't understand why this Meng Chong brought some small villains into the palace.What's more, some gossip secretly circulating in the palace is not good for the emperor. What gossip? Some people said that these little villains brought by Meng Chong were all prepared for the emperor. for me?What are you doing for me? 隆慶皇帝裝糊塗，陳皇后沒有李貴妃那樣玲瓏心機，說話不知婉轉，這時忽然插進來冒冒失失說道： 前些時就有傳言，說孟沖偷偷領著皇上去了簾子胡同，皇上的瘡，就是從那裡惹回來的。 nonsense! 隆慶皇帝一聲厲喝，忍耐了半日的怒氣終於歇斯底里爆發了。他氣得渾身打顫，伸出手指頭，指點著跪在面前的陳皇后和李貴妃，哆嗦著說道： 你們你們給、給 他本想說給朕滾出去，但一句話竟未說完，就因怒火攻心、血湧頭頂而雙腳站立不住，頓時只覺天旋地轉，身子一歪，直挺挺地倒在繡榻之上。 這突如其來的變故，把陳皇后與李貴妃嚇壞了，她們趕緊起身奔到繡榻旁，只見隆慶皇帝兩眼翻白，口吐白沫，兩手握拳，身子抽搐，已是人事不省。 快來人！李貴妃喊道。 門外守值太監搶步入內，見此情狀，慌忙去喊日夜在皇極門外值房裡當值的太醫。 太醫匆促趕來，一看隆慶皇帝的狀況，便知已深度中風。但他還是裝樣子拿了拿脈，然後對陳皇后與李貴妃跪下哽咽奏道：皇上要大行了。 一聽此言，皇后與貴妃一起大放悲聲。這時張貴也三步併作兩步跑了進來，伏在繡榻之前失聲痛哭起來。 張貴，你不能在這裡哭了，李貴妃強忍悲痛，擦著眼淚說道，你快去通知內閣成員來乾清宮，不要忘了通知張閣老。