The criminal law of the Ming Dynasty is quite severe, and Jinyiwei, as a spy agency, has all kinds of lynchings. In the records of the Ming Dynasty, there are 18 sets of commonly used torture tools of Jinyiwei, including clamping sticks, brain hoops, horse blocking sticks, nail fingers, etc.

Zhang Fan is now in a large prison in Jinyiwei, watching Wang Chen be tortured. Wang Chen didn't receive those punishments that were not commonly used, such as scrubbing, frying, pouring poison, standing on a heavy flail, etc., not to mention peeling, shoveling, hooking and intestines, and some criminal laws that make people's scalp tingle when they hear it. Wang Chen's crime is already very clear, the embezzled silver taels and his family property have also been confiscated, and now he is just given a very ordinary cane punishment according to the custom, but this very ordinary cane punishment is not easy to bear.

The cane punishment of the Ming Dynasty, whether it is the court staff or the torture staff, has unspoken rules, like the court staff, it is divided into two kinds: "beating with heart" and "beating with heart", and the eunuchs in charge of the punishment are all based on the emperor's orders. If the toes are open, that is "playing with heart", and it may be disabled, like Zhang Fan's style of play. If the eunuch in charge of the punishment closes his toes, it is a "real beating", and the minister who is tortured will definitely die. There were countless ministers who died under the court staff in the Ming Dynasty, from the three dukes and nine kings, to the eunuchs in the palace.

Jinyiwei's cane punishment is also good, for ordinary prisoners, he only says "asking", which means that it does not have to be too heavy; If you ask for a heavier shot, you will say, "Good students ask"; If you ask for a hard beating, whether you live or die, you will be "really fighting and asking".

Wang Chen had just entered the prison cell and confessed all the immoral things that his ancestors had done in the eighteenth generation, but this punishment was still to be suffered, so that even the factory guards were afraid of being underestimated by others. "Okay boy asked", and at that moment, a factory guard ripped off Wang Chen's pants, his smooth buttocks were exposed, and the canes fell one after another. Suddenly, the screams were endless, and Zhang Fan listened to the pig-killing howl coming from Wang Chen's mouth, and for the first time had an unbearable feeling, but he was right about things and not people.

Zhao Ming saw Zhang Fan's appearance on the side, and said: "Adults don't have to sympathize with this guy, if it is normal, it is not good to enter Jinyiwei's cell without using all eighteen sets of torture tools, and now he is just being tortured with a cane, which is cheap for him." ”

"Hasn't this Wang Chen already confessed all the money?" Zhang Fan saw that there were still factory guards interrogating Wang Chen if he still had money to hide, and asked suspiciously, "Why do you still press him so much?" ”

"There's no way around it, we just know that this guy has already explained everything, but this flesh and skin pain is inevitable." Zhao Ming said with a natural expression, "But since this is an execution, there must be a reason." ”

Zhang Fan didn't speak anymore after hearing this, Zhao Ming went over and told the factory guards not to beat Wang Chen to death, and Longqing also wanted to use him to kill chickens and monkeys.

It's over here, Zhang Fan got out of this prison, probably because he hadn't seen the methods of Quan Jinyiwei, and he wasn't disgusted with what he saw just now. Back at home, his mother Zhao didn't know what Zhang Fan was doing now, but she heard that Zhang Fan said that Longqing asked him to do some clerical work in the emperor's guards, and Zhang Fan didn't want Zhao to know his current situation, so as not to worry her.

In this way, Zhang Fan has a lot of free time. Feng Bao can be regarded as an acquaintance over there, and now he is thinking about how to sit in the first position of the boss and the supervisor, and he is also quite accommodating to Jinyiwei. Zhang Fan has nothing to do except go to the palace to accompany the crown prince Zhu Yijun in a few days. He is not like other Jinyiwei who deliberately went to find trouble with others, and the time is naturally free, but Zhang Fan always has a feeling that he doesn't have to go to work and only cares about getting his salary.

Speaking of Zhu Yijun, the young prince is pestering Zhang Fan more and more, and many people in the palace are very envious of Zhang Fan, but Longqing and Liu Guifei are very opposed to this situation, and no one dares to say anything. The Tao is that many courtiers know that Zhang Fan has entered the Jinyi Guard, and if they usually meet and greet them, Zhang Fan can hear a feeling of fear, envy, and disgust from their tones. "Looks like I've been defined as a traitor!" Zhang Fan thought helplessly.

As soon as there is more time, people will feel bored, and people will be cranky when they are bored, Zhang Fan is no exception, he wants to see Ru Xue now. Since I got married to Ru Xue, I haven't seen each other for more than half a year since I came to the capital. Although the two exchanged letters, the pain of lovesickness not only did not solve, but became more intense.

Before, Zhang Fan was going to study in Guozijian, and when he first entered the office, he had to be in the palace often, and when he was better, this thought became stronger and stronger. Zhang Fan and Zhao mentioned this matter, and Zhao was also very happy, now that there is plenty of time, it is a good time to get married. sent a letter to Anhua, and Chen Wenchuan replied and agreed, and now Ru Xue is on the road.

Speaking of getting married, Zhao was troubled again. At that time, marriage customs were very troublesome, but the two families had no relatives. There is only one Chen Wenchuan left in the Chen family, and at most it is the righteous brother of Ma County. Zhang Fan also mentioned to Zhao whether to inform the people in Yangzhou's hometown, but Zhao didn't think about it and refused. This really made Zhang Fan a little at a loss, the two families got married, but they didn't even have any relatives, Zhang Fan felt that it didn't matter, but he was worried that Ru Xue didn't look good.

The team to send off relatives is still a few days away from the capital, and Zhang Fan's side is worried about the Zhao family, but there is nothing to do with him. In the afternoon of that day, he came to the palace again, showed his waist card, and the guards did not stop him, and he walked directly to the East Palace.

Now that it is the lunar month, the fleet that went to sea to trade has also returned, and naturally there are many rare objects to be presented to the palace for the royal family to enjoy. Zhu Yijun looked curiously at an object on the table in front of him at this time, which also made a "tick, tick" sound from time to time. Seeing Zhang Fan coming, Zhu Yijun immediately pulled him over and watched the object together.

"Your Highness, what do you want your subordinates to see?" Seeing that Zhu Yijun was so enthusiastic, Zhang Fan asked curiously.

"Teacher, come and see. This is the dedication of the merchants who went to sea...... What's going on? Zhu Yijun couldn't remember the name a little, and asked the eunuch on the side. Although Zhang Fan no longer teaches him, Zhu Yijun still insists on calling Zhang Fan that.

"Back to Your Highness, this is called the bell." The eunuch said from the side.

"Yes, yes, Zhong. But isn't the bell hanging high for people to ring, and why is this bell so small and not loud? Zhu Yijun said.

Zhang Fan looked at the things in front of him and drank, it turned out to be a mechanical clock, and the sound was obviously a clockwork powered by a clockwork. The clock has only one hand and the face is divided into four parts.

"But listen to them, this thing can keep time." Zhu Yijun continued, "It's just that it doesn't need the sun like a sundial, nor does it need water like a leak, but it can move around on its own, which is unusual." ”

"Your Highness, this thing is made by the people of the Great West who are thousands of miles away, and it can indeed remember the time, but it is a little inaccurate." Zhang Fan knows a little, "This thing is all rolled up by a long piece of steel, and it wants to bounce back to its original shape to move around." ”

"Have you ever seen it?" Zhu Yijun saw what Zhang Fan said and asked.

"Your Majesty has only heard people talk about it, but this is the first time I've seen this thing." Zhang Fan didn't lie, it was indeed the first time he had seen such an ancient clock tower.

"It seems that the people of the Great Western Kingdom are not all reckless people, and these things can also be concocted." Zhu Yijun said, "This palace has seen the Fulong cannon, it is indeed powerful, and the speed is extremely fast. ”

The so-called Furlong cannon is a breech gun, but it is very primitive. The shell is loaded in a sleeve, and once a shell is fired, the sleeve can be replaced and fired again. At that time, the Ming army saw that this Furlong cannon was more advanced than its own, so it bought two, and it didn't take long for the Ming army to be able to produce it in large quantities. Now the most obvious thing is that Qi Jiguang has a lot in his hands. Although the Furlong cannon could only be fired within 500 paces, and could not release flowering shells, it was better because the firing interval was short and several degrees faster.

Zhu Yijun's words made Zhang Fan think that the Ming Dynasty already had such weapons now, but three hundred years later, foreign powers came to invade China with more powerful weapons, and the Manchu government at that time did not even have these weapons. This is not a question of development, but of people's hearts. The current Ming Dynasty has many problems, but at least there are a group of people such as Zhang Juzheng, Qi Jiguang, and Li Chengliang, which can stand up.

"The teacher is a little absent-minded, what are you thinking?" Zhu Yijun saw Zhang Fan pondering there and asked.

"It's nothing, Your Highness, it's just that Your Majesty is going to get married." Zhang Fan shook off those thoughts in his mind and replied.

"Really!" When Zhu Yijun heard the news, he was very excited and said loudly, "The teacher is going to get married?" ”

Zhu Yijun was saying happily when a voice sounded: "Jun'er, what's the matter with making a loud noise, have you forgotten your identity?" ”

"See Father!" "See Your Majesty!" A room full of people knelt down and saluted when they saw the comers.

"Excuse me, get up." The person who came was Longqing, he looked at Zhu Yijun and said, "Jun'er, when the emperor heard your shout, what made you so happy?" ”

"Father, my son heard that the teacher is going to get married." Zhu Yijun said.

"Oh?" Long Qing looked at Zhang Fan on the side and said, "Zhang Qing's family is getting married?" ”

"Exactly." Zhang Fan replied.

"Which family's daughter is so blessed and captured the heart of Zhang Qing's family?" Long Qing made a joke and asked.

"It's the daughter of Lord Chen Wenchuan, the border inspector." Zhang Fan said.

"Dingbian ......" Long Qing thought about it, looked at Zhang Fan with some playfulness and said, "There is a way that rabbits don't eat the grass by the nest, but Zhang Qing's family has no scruples!" ”

"......" Zhang Fan listened to his words, didn't know what to say, and held back a sentence for a long time, "Your Majesty has praised it falsely." ”

Long Qing listened to his answer and burst into laughter. Zhu Yijun looked at his father suspiciously.

Long Qing smiled, calmed down, and said, "How?" Is the wedding date set? ”

"Your Majesty Xie cares." Zhang Fan said, "The invitation team is still on the way, and the wedding date has not yet been set, but it should be able to catch up before the end of the year." ”

"Well, hurry up, if it is past the New Year, it will take a long time. Otherwise, the girl's family can stand it, and Zhang Qing's family probably won't be able to wait. Long Qing laughed again. The palace maids and eunuchs on the side also covered their mouths and snickered when they heard this, but Zhang Fan was embarrassed.

"You are also an official of the imperial court now, and you have also taught the prince in the East Palace, and someone will definitely go to congratulate you at that time, and the place where you live now seems stingy." Long Qing thought for a while and said, "In this way, I will reward you with a big mansion and entertain guests." ”

Zhang Fan had long heard that Longqing's daily life was quite extravagant, but he didn't expect to reward his own house, he was a little surprised, and said busily: "Your Majesty, the minister has only been an official for three months, not only has not done the size of the merit, but also served the prince dereliction of duty, how can he bear the reward of Your Majesty." ”

"There is no need to talk about the dereliction of duty, I and you both know the reason." Long Qing said, "As for the credit, didn't you just help find out the corruption case of the right servant of the household department a few days ago, how can you say that it is useless!" ”

"But Your Majesty, that case is ...... Weichen" Zhang Fan was interrupted by Long Qing before he could finish speaking.

"This matter is settled, and I will send someone to help you do it when you go back." Long Qing said.

Zhang Fan looked at his posture, and he was determined to reward himself, so what could he do, he had to thank him.

"It is inconvenient for me and the crown prince to go to your marriage, and when the time comes, the cabinet will take me to greet me." Long Qing said.

Zhang Fan was really frightened by his words, Zhang Fan was just a matter of Siping, and he was still working in Jinyiwei, which was the object of disgust for hundreds of officials. If you want to say that someone is sure when she goes to congratulate the newlywed, after all, Longqing's favor to him, and the prince's liking for him is on the surface. However, several scholars in the cabinet do not need to be afraid of him, but Longqing's move may make the Manchu civil and military think that the cabinet is afraid of Jinyiwei, or that he is afraid of Zhang Fan, which will immediately arouse the disgust of the Manchu civil and military, and directly make countless enemies.

Zhang Fan didn't know why Longqing had such a move, but since the emperor's words could be withdrawn at will, Zhang Fan had to smile bitterly and thank him.

The house that Longqing gave to Zhang Fan is in the east of the city, but it is indeed further out. The house is not very large, but there are no other houses around, most of them are empty land. Zhao was unhappy when he heard that it was the emperor who rewarded Zhang Fan. The house is full of everything, all brand new, apparently just arranged. This can't help but make Zhang Fan feel that power is really a fascinating thing.

After two days, the procession gradually approached. And Longqing's reward to Zhang Fan has also been passed out, which can be regarded as a hornet's nest, and the ministers are all talking about it, and some people even speculate that Longqing's new favorite recently thought that the nobleman was Zhang Fan's send-off and so on. A few people in the cabinet didn't talk too much, but Xu Jie hated Zhang Fan even more.