Chongzhen dreamed that he personally led Wang Chengen and several other cronies and eunuchs to open a few black lacquer cabinets in the side hall of Fengxian Palace, and sure enough, he found a box, which was locked very firmly, with a seal on it, and covered with the seal of Emperor Yongle. There was also a note that read: "Don't open it lightly until you encounter a big change." ”

He immediately ordered the eunuchs to smash the copper lock open, took out a paper roll from the small box, and unfolded it to see that it was a picture of an emperor wearing a dragon robe, without a hat, with a cloak scattered, and a hanging beam to commit suicide, looking very terrible. When he looked at the portrait, he couldn't help crying, but now he was awakened, and he was still afraid. Wei Qinghui asked him again what kind of murderous dream he had, he refused to explain, but just sighed heavily, and at this moment, the drum sound of the fifth watch came from the Xuanwu Gate.

He listened to the sound of the drums, thought for a moment, and instructed the people of the Wei Palace: "Call other people to come too, serve me and get up quickly, and go to the front of the Ganqing Palace on time to worship the heavens." ”

After Emperor Chongzhen freshened up under the service of the palace maids, he changed into court clothes, came to the Dongnuan Pavilion of the Ganqing Palace in the embrace of the palace maids and eunuchs, sat for a while, drank half a cup of fragrant tea offered by the palace maids, and then went to the Danqi to worship the sky.

Every day at dawn, the emperor worships the sky, and does not play music as usual, but the bronze incense burners such as cranes on the Danqi are all lit with agarwood and spewed out curling cigarettes. Some of the eunuchs and palace maids of the Ganqing Palace knelt on both sides of the Danqi, and some knelt under the Danqi. No one in the entire palace courtyard dared to walk around casually, no one dared to whisper, no one dared to make a sound, it was solemn.

When Chongzhen knelt down to heaven three times and bowed nine times on the cigarette-filled dan pier, he was as reverent as before on the surface, but his mood was very different. Ever since he ascended to the pole at the age of seventeen, he has worshiped the heavens at dawn every day, regardless of spring, summer, autumn or winter. If there is a strong wind or rain or snow, he can't worship in Danqi, so he worships in the main hall of the Ganqing Palace.

He believes that the will of heaven is in line with the will of the people, and only by respecting heaven can he love the people, and he is determined to be a wise saint of the Ming Dynasty, so for 17 years, he has worked hard every day to govern state affairs, even if he reads documents at night for the sake of the province, approves and answers the chapters, and goes to bed late at night, but he gets up at dawn as usual, and the first major thing is to worship God. In the past, he either silently prayed for the victory of the thieves, or silently prayed for the lack of police, in short, he prayed for a wish, the country and the people.

Since Li Zicheng's army crossed the river into Jin in January this year, the content of his prayers at dawn has changed several times; he first silently prayed to heaven for blessing so that Taiyuan could hold on to and prevent the thieves from coming east; when Taiyuan was lost, he silently prayed that Ningwu and Datong could be fortified, Xuanfu could be fortified, and Juyong Pass could be defended; when Li Zicheng's army not only entered Juyong Pass, but also crossed Changping and Shahe without hindrance, his mind was completely confused, and the only content of the silent prayer was that Wu Sangui's tens of thousands of Qinwang Tieqi came quickly, killed and retreated the rebels, and turned Beijing into peace。

This morning, he reverently knelt down three times and bowed nine times, and prayed to God so that Wu Sangui could come today. After worshipping the sky, he didn't get up immediately, and continued to lower his head on the yellow satin embroidered dragon worship mat and stopped for a moment, suddenly thinking that this was probably the last time he worshipped the sky, his heart ached, and he secretly shed tears.

There were a few old eunuchs who stood relatively close, thinking that the emperor did not forget to worship the sky at dawn on such a day when the country was about to die, and that the emperor had worked hard for 17 years to govern the country and that he could not help but cry quietly; Wu Xiang, the eunuch in charge of the Qing Palace, could hardly help but choke up.

Wei Qinghui is the closest person to Chongzhen's side among the many palace maids in the Ganqing Palace, and the sorrow and pain buried in the emperor's heart are not only clearer than ordinary palace maids and eunuchs, but even the queen sometimes wants to know the emperor's diet and daily life and what new ideas the emperor has about state affairs, and also orders Wu Wanrong to ask her quietly.

Yesterday afternoon, because Emperor Yuan's concubine was in tears with the queen in Kunning Palace, the queen ordered Wu Wanrong to come to Ganqing Palace to ask Wei Qinghui about the situation, Wu Wanrong knelt down and played: "Order Wei Qinghui to come to Kunning Palace in person to play to the two mothers in person?"

The queen shook her head and said, "There is no need for Wei Qinghui to come in person, now that the time has come, the emperor needs to have someone who knows the cold and the warmth." ”

Wu Wanrong came to the palace people's residence behind the Ganqing Palace, and quietly told Wei Qinghui about the relative tears of the queen and the imperial concubine in Kunning Palace, and explained that the queen mother ordered her to ask the emperor about the situation.

Wei Qinghui told Wu Wanrong everything she knew, but when she sent Wu Wanke to the side of Jiaotai Hall to break up, she quietly said: "Sister Wu, I just let you know some things, don't tell the queen mother." If the queen knew about it, she didn't know how she would be grieved?"

Wu Wanrong nodded tearfully: "I understand, I really didn't expect that there would be today? Niangniang, as the mother of the country, is well-read and very holy, but the emperor strictly forbids the concubine to interfere in politics, no matter what major affairs of the court and politics, he never tells the queen to know, and the queen is not allowed to inquire, but it is better for the poor couples of the people to discuss things together." ”

Wu Wanrong walked a few steps towards Kun Ningguan from the side of Jiaotai Palace, suddenly came back, grabbed Wei Qinghui's hand again, and asked quietly: "Sister Qinghui, you serve by the emperor's side day and night, according to you, can you last for a few days?"

The people of the Wei Palace approached Wu Wanrong's ear and said: "Now that the hearts of the people have been dispersed, no one is guarding the city, and Wu Sangui's rescuers cannot arrive in time, I am afraid that it will be ...... in the next two days."

Wei Qinghui's throat suddenly blocked, she couldn't help choking, and she didn't finish her words. Wu Wanrong trembled slightly, held Wei Qinghui's hand tighter, choked and said: "At that time, Niangniang will inevitably commit suicide and martyrdom, and we will also commit suicide for our master according to the agreement a few days ago, and we must not live to be humiliated." ”

Wei Qinghui said firmly: "Although we are not men with eyebrows, we can't kill thieves to serve the country, and blood stains the battlefield, but as innocent women, we have no reason to be humiliated and greedy. When the time comes, you will come to me, and we will feast together. ”

"There is also Fei Zhen'e, although she is young, she is very ambitious. She told me that she was determined to do her best for the emperor and queen at that time, and that she would never be greedy for life or afraid of death. ”

Wei Qinghui said: "I know that there are many ambitious people in the palaces, and I want to call my sisters to come with me, not far from Xihua Gate, and the moat is our burial place." ”

Wu Wanrong has always trusted and respected this housekeeper of the Qing Palace, and when she was about to die in the country, she connected their life and death together. She stared at her female companion's bloodshot phoenix eyes and pale and haggard face for a moment, then suddenly let go of Wei Qinghui's hand, wiped the tears from her eyes and cheeks, and turned to walk towards Kun Ningguan.

This was yesterday afternoon, and now, at dawn on March 18, there is no news of Wu Sangui's rescue troops, and the catastrophe of the destruction of the country is even closer. After almost a night of tossing last night, Wei Qinghui became even more haggard, she knelt on the ground, waiting for the emperor to hurry into the warm pavilion to rest after worshipping the sky, so that she could order the palace maids to offer white fungus bird's nest soup. But after a while, the emperor still did not get up, and seemed to continue to pray silently to the heavens.

She knew that the emperor had cried many times last night, and even cried loudly, and had terrible dreams, and never slept all night, and if she knelt like this, the royal body would not be able to support it. She also understood that at such a time, many eunuchs and palace maids knelt silently, no one dared to make a sound, only she could persuade the emperor to get up, so she kneeled forward, went to the emperor's back, and said softly: "Your Majesty, you have already bowed to the sky, please go to the warm pavilion to rest." ”

Chongzhen didn't seem to hear it, and still silently prayed in his heart that God would have mercy on him for seventeen years of respecting the heavens and ancestors, and he would eat and clothe for fear of falling, and bless him through the current difficulties. He also appealed to God to bless Wu Sangui's men and horses all the way unhindered and to be able to rush outside Beijing today.

Wei Qinghui said softly again: "The emperor has been sleeping and eating abnormally for days, and he has to deal with unforeseen events today, please hurry up and take a break in the pavilion." ”

Chongzhen was taken aback, thinking that the words of the Wei Palace people were very reasonable, so he got up from the mat and walked into the warm pavilion to rest. After eating the white fungus bird's nest soup and two dim sum, two palace maids came in, one brought a cup of warm tea with a silver tray and knelt in front of him, and the other knelt down with a palace maid holding an official kiln pastel lady gargle with a silver tray. Chongzhen rinsed his mouth with warm tea, spit it into the gargle, and then leaned back on the dragon chair and sighed deeply.

He glanced over to the Imperial Case, where the right end of the Imperial Case was stacked with many military documents, all of which had been sent before the siege. The day before yesterday, he was reviewing the documents, and suddenly got a report, knowing that Li Zicheng's men and horses had arrived outside the Desheng Gate and Xizhi Gate, he was shocked, threw down the red pen, suddenly stood up, kept wandering in the warm pavilion, and whispered: "Cangtian!

Now he glanced at the pile of documents that had not been approved again, shook his head slightly, and once again thought that seventeen years of food and clothing could not save the fortunes of the country, and he couldn't help but feel sad for a while, rolling out tears, and then asked in his heart: "How to deal with it today? How to deal with it?"

A eunuch came in, knelt down and said, "Please have breakfast for the emperor." ”

Chongzhen was thinking that Li Zicheng might attack the city on a large scale today, and the city might be broken, so not only did he not hear the words of the imperial sign asking for breakfast, but he didn't even notice that this eunuch was kneeling in front of him. When the eunuch invited him to breakfast for the second time, he understood in his heart, shook his head and said, "Excuse me!"

The eunuch was startled, afraid that he didn't hear clearly, and was about to invite the emperor to the main hall for dinner again, but seeing that the emperor was in an extremely irritable mood, he waved his hand and said, "Breakfast is free, go down!"

The royal sign did not dare to speak, and kowtowed and withdrew. Wu Xiang, the eunuch in charge of the palace, who was waiting outside the main hall of the Ganqing Palace, knew that the emperor refused to have breakfast, so he sighed in his heart, and there was no way, and it happened that Wei Qinghui came from behind the Ganqing Palace.

Wei Qinghui, out of the woman's beauty-loving nature, had hurried back to her room, washed away the tears, faced the bronze mirror, re-applied fat powder to hide the haggard look on her face, and inserted a crimson rose silk flower from Suzhou on the sideburns, and then took the two palace maids to the Ganqing Palace with light steps to wait for breakfast. When she arrived at the gate of the main hall, the eunuch in charge stopped her and whispered to her that the emperor did not need breakfast.

"Look, the capital is the most tight today, and the emperor doesn't need breakfast, so how can he deal with major matters? Girl, listen to your words, please persuade the emperor to eat!"

Wei Qinghui was suddenly startled, stunned at Gonggong Wu, and couldn't say a word. But she didn't lose her mind, and couldn't help but sigh in her heart: "God, I didn't expect the emperor to be so discouraged about big things?"

She nodded to Wu Xiang with tears in her eyes, indicating that she understood in her heart, and then left the two palace maids who came to serve the meal outside the hall, and she herself crossed the high threshold of vermilion lacquer, turned around and walked towards the East Warm Pavilion.

Since the day before yesterday, the people of Wei Palace have had an ulterior fantasy in their hearts because they understood that the disaster of the country had come to them. She imagined that if the rebels broke the city, the emperor would be able to take off his dragon robe, change into civilian clothes, and be served by Wang Chengen and several other loyal eunuchs, escape from the Forbidden City and the imperial city, hide in a small household in a secluded place arranged in advance, and escape from the capital in a few days, and flee south, there will be a way to escape to the south of the Yangtze River.

Now, when she walked lightly to the warm pavilion in the innermost room, this fantasy came to her mind again, and this fantasy developed again yesterday. She thought that since Wu Sangui's Guan Ning soldiers had entered the Guannei, as long as the emperor could escape to Wu Sangui's army or to Tianjin, the holy car could escape to Nanjing safely. Because of this fantasy, she must persuade the emperor to eat, so that the emperor can maintain a good body in case of unforeseen changes.

When she knelt in front of the emperor and persuaded the emperor to have breakfast, Chongzhen looked at her and did not speak. He thought that today Li Zicheng might storm the city, maybe break the city, and he and the Ming Dynasty for three hundred years, as well as his family and many royal relatives and ministers, would all die together. Ever since he worshipped the heavens, he had been thinking about this imminent catastrophe repeatedly, and his heart was so anxious and troubled that he did not think about eating or drinking.

Now he looked at the people of Wei Palace, and saw that her eye sockets were sunken, her expression was sad, and her eyes were red, which moved him, and sighed in his heart: "In the past few days, you have been bitter enough. ”

The people of the Wei Palace begged the emperor to eat again, and they couldn't help but choke up in their voices. Chongzhen's heart felt even more sad, and he whispered: "You get up, my heart is very stuffy, and I don't want to eat." ”

Wei Qinghui had an idea, and then said: "The emperor should reluctantly eat for the subjects of the world, the slave maid just washed his hands and burned incense, prayed to the gods, used money to divinate a hexagram, and asked if Wu Sangui's rescuers could come today." The two coins fell on the table, one against the other, it was the Qinglong auspicious hexagram. Wu Sangui knew that Beijing was under siege, so he would definitely lead the cavalry in front and the infantry behind, hurrying day and night, and he would definitely come to the outside of Beijing today. Please relax and dine, don't be sad about the Holy Communion. ”

Chongzhen asked, "Is your money divination spiritual?"

"Enlighten the emperor, as the saying goes, sincerity is spirituality. Since three years ago, the emperor rewarded these two coins, the slave and maid wrapped it in yellow silk, put it in the brocade box, respectfully treasured, only when there is a difficult matter can not be decided, then wash the hands and burn incense, invite the money out, pray sincerely, and then hold it in the hand in vain, shake it three times, and throw it on the dressing table of one to two, every time the divination is Turin, all because this money was the old thing in the palace, the emperor gave the slave and maid to play, the slave and the maid did not dare to treat it as a plaything, respectfully treasured, and in each divination, and very pious, so the divination is always very spiritual. ”

Chongzhen looked at the people of Wei Palace and didn't speak, but thought in his heart: "If Wu Sangui's rescue troops can arrive today, Beijing City can turn the corner." ”