Shuncheon Fucheng committed suicide by taking poison?

Moreover, it was a suicide on the spot, how much energy did the person behind this have, and he could make a Jingshi Mansion commit suicide!

Zhu Houzhao couldn't help but look at the ministers and scholars present, thinking that maybe only high-ranking officials of this level could have such energy.

Now, Zhu Houzhao only looked at Xu Guangzuo, the Duke of Dingguo who came with him: "Now, you believe it, it wasn't these craftsmen who killed Xu Yanqing, are you old and confused!" How dare you really think that these craftsmen are going to kill your son! What kind of enmity can they have with your son! ”

"Your Majesty! Kechen's son can't just die so inexplicably! Dingguo Gong Xu Guangzuo replied.

"Murder pays for life! I will naturally let people check it, not to mention that he is still the eldest son of your Guogong Mansion! However, I want you to answer me first, why do you suspect these craftsmen, who bewitched you! Or who instigated you! I deliberately want to use this matter to interfere with the new policy of the imperial court! Answer me! ”

When Zhu Houzhao said this, although his tone was very flat, it was murderous, which frightened Xu Guangzuo, the prince of Dingguo, trembling for a while, and hurriedly crawled on the ground: "Your Majesty, please listen to the minister's explanation, the minister just listened to the people in the palace say that these craftsmen were released lawlessly, because they were dissatisfied with the court, so they took revenge on the court dignitaries, and the minister was angry and lost his mind, so he blamed the craftsman's protégé!" ”

Zhu Houzhao snorted:

"Passed the decree and punished the Duke of the Kingdom Xu Guangzuo for being grounded for three months! Allow him to mourn his son in the house! In addition, give me the few people in your house who are arguing about national politics to Dongchang! Before today's hour, it must be delivered! Otherwise, I will let the people from the East Factory come directly to the door to get it! ”

"Yes! Thank you, Your Majesty, for your innocence! ”

Xu Guangzuo, the Duke of Dingguo, replied, now he can't help but be grounded, but he is afraid that Zhu Houzhao will really punish him for the crime of conspiracy to interfere in politics in anger, so he is also relieved, but at the same time, he also began to think in his heart, who did not hesitate to kill his son to provoke the relationship between these nobles and the emperor?

Zhu Hou looked at the corpse of Shuntianfu Chengdang Haiwu lying on the ground, and didn't know what to say for a while, so he only asked the cabinet members: "You say, how to deal with this matter now, how to track down the murderers behind the murder of court officials and the murder of the eldest son of Dingguo Gong!" ”

"Your Majesty! Now there is no doubt that the crux of the problem is here in Shuntianfu, when Shuntianfu lied about the information of the murderer, so as to mislead the court, but unfortunately now Shuntianfu has committed suicide, and this case has become a headless public case!

From the minister's point of view, the person behind this matter is definitely not simple, this person is not only bold but also careful, calculating what the court will do, if we continue to investigate, I am afraid that more people will die, and even more and more important people! ”

Marven replied.

"Your Majesty, what the chief said is extremely true, he was an official of the imperial court before, and now he is the eldest son of the prince of the country, and it is difficult to guarantee that he will not be an important minister in the court, and even endanger the saint!" Xu Jin also agreed.

"If you don't investigate this matter, you can't do it! You can't let the people behind this scene go on so rampant! I really don't believe that he can really turn the sky upside down, unless the people in the East Factory, the West Factory, and even the Jinyi Guard, the Five Cities Terracotta Division, and the Shuntian Mansion are all eating dry rice! In the first good district of the Beijing Division, they dare to create murders one after another, are they laughing at me and the incompetence of the imperial court, and laughing at the fact that I and the Ming Imperial Court can't find out the people behind the scenes, if we can't even do a good job of the stability of the Beijing Division, how can we govern the world! ”

"This case must continue to be pursued! And it must be checked in the shortest possible time, otherwise, the east and west factories will be replaced, and the city patrol will be replaced! All officials at all levels in the Shuntian Province were deposed! ”

As soon as Zhu Houzhao said this, the pressure on Ma Yongcheng, the commander of Dongchang, was even greater, and he had to grit his teeth and come out and say, "Your Majesty! The people who did this have been targeting the imperial court to ban the craftsman registration system, which shows that the interests of these people have a lot to do with this craftsman registration system. Interrogate them severely! I'll be able to find out! ”

"Your Majesty, no! How can there be a reason to take people first if there is no evidence", Ma Wensheng, the first assistant of the cabinet, hurriedly stopped.

"Although there is no empirical evidence, it is difficult for them to clear the suspicion that it has nothing to do with this matter, and the two murder cases are directly implicated in the craftsman registration system. Admiral Ma Wensheng of the East Factory replied.

"I don't take people, but Dongchang does have the right to suspect others of suspected crimes, so, I am approved, now I will first detain Ye Heng, the left attendant of the Ministry of Works, and Chi Zong, the young eunuch, into the East Factory for interrogation, including other officials of the Ministry of Industry and the War Bureau, if they are not guilty, they will be released again, as long as they do not die! The government can still detain people who have no actual evidence of guilt into the class room and interrogate them before determining their guilt or innocence, and Dongchang can also do it! ”

As soon as Zhu Houzhao said this, Ma Wensheng had nothing to say.

At this time, Ma Yongcheng, the commander of Dongchang, reminded again: "Your Majesty! Others are okay, but the Ministry of Industry Shangshu said that he is sick, does he need to be arrested! ”

"Your Majesty! Since the Ministry of Industry Shangshu said that he was sick and he was an old minister, he had never been involved in government politics these days, and when it had nothing to do with this matter, could he not be detained! Just wait until healed to ask? Ma Wensheng couldn't help but feel sorry for his old colleague Zeng Jian.

"Yes!"

Zhu Houzhao smiled slightly, but only Ye Heng, the left attendant of the Ministry of Works, felt wronged, because he was not involved in this matter at all, and only cried: "Your Majesty! The minister is wronged! The minister really has nothing to do with this matter! ”

And although Chi Zong, the young eunuch of the War Bureau, was a little scared in his heart, he was still shouting injustice: "The emperor spares his life!" The minister is your slave, and it is impossible for the minister to do anything contrary to your will! ”

Of course, no one cares about them now, and Zhu Houzhao can't believe that they are guilty or not.

At this time, Zhu Houzhao was still thinking about the West Factory's recent report on Zeng Jian, the secretary of the Ministry of Industry, and wondered if Zeng Jian really did not participate in this matter.

The more Zhu Houzhao thought about it, the more strange he felt, he believed that if he was the main messenger behind the scenes, he should be able to guess that he, the emperor, dared to directly send the officials of the entire Ministry of Industry and the War Bureau into the Dongchang workshop, just as he dared to directly execute a large number of civil officials and dismiss a large number of gentry and famous officials in Jiangnan.

In that case, as the main messenger behind the scenes, he will definitely find a way to pluck himself out and become the person who is least likely to participate in this matter.

At this time, Zhu Houzhao suddenly remembered something and asked Liu Jin: "According to the scheduled arrangement, are I going to the Ordnance Bureau tomorrow, that is, the original Ordnance Bureau, to check the inventory and the Daming Weapons Manufacturing Workshop?" ”

"Back to the emperor, yes! The original plan was to let the Ministry of Industry Shangshu accompany you, but now that the officials of the Ministry of Industry and the War Bureau have been arrested in the East Factory, and the Ministry of Industry Shangshu Zeng Jian is also sick, it seems that this matter will need to drag on for a while! ”

Liu Jin replied.

"No need to delay! Weapons manufacturing is a major event of the imperial court, and it is also an important matter related to the recovery of the Hetao, since the Ministry of Industry is left with his Ministry of Industry Shangshu Zeng Jian, pass on the decree to Zeng Jian, and accompany me to the Ordnance Bureau tomorrow! Zhu Houzhao said.

"But Your Majesty, Zeng Jian is now saying that he is sick at home, but he is afraid," Ma Wensheng said.

"After raising it for so many days, it should be fine, besides, I also need him to be an old minister who has been managing the Ministry of Industry for a long time to guide me, otherwise I can't see anything, let the people of Jinyi Wei go and invite, if he is still sick, carry him to follow me, for the sake of him as an old minister, I will allow him to sit on the same jade chariot as me!"

Zhu Houzhao said.

……

At this time.

Zeng Jian, the secretary of the Ministry of Industry, also learned about the situation outside from his confidants, and after hearing that the officials of the Ministry of Industry and the War Bureau were arrested in the East Factory, he really clenched his fists: "This Zhu Houzhao really dares to do it!" It can be seen that the incompetence of Ma Wensheng and other civil officials is really a shame for our civil ministers, and they can't control the emperor! ”

"They were all bribed by His Majesty with silver, and they were also blown up by His Majesty's people as selfless and virtuous ministers, so they naturally flattered His Majesty!" The confidant replied.

"Regardless of them, since Zhu Houzhao is still insisting on pursuing it now, in order to prevent Chi Zong and others from confessing to us under the torture of Dongchang, we have to do the act of killing the king, although we risk being punished by the ten clans, but I believe that most of the civil officials in the world are willing to see this, as long as we do it seamlessly, we are not afraid of something, is there any news in the palace, will Zhu Houliang go to the Ordnance Bureau tomorrow?"

The Ministry of Industry Shangshu Zeng Jian asked.

"Will go! Although we can't find out the specific news, the Luan Honor Division is already starting to prepare for tomorrow's honor guard! The brocade-clothed pro-army below has also been notified of the news", the confidant replied.

"And are our gunpowder and the person who lit the fire ready?"

Zeng Jian asked.

"Ready, we have already let our dead soldier infiltrate the Guangji Warehouse, as long as he Zhu Houzhao comes to the Ordnance Bureau, it is enough to blow him up! Even if Liu Jin and other eunuchs and Ma Wensheng and other traitors go together, they can be blown up together! When the time comes, you can also directly get rid of the traitor, once and for all! ”

The confidant replied.

"When the time comes, there will be no monarch in the court, just choose an obedient vassal king to enter Beijing!" Zeng Jian said with a smile.

At this time, there was a sound of hurried footsteps outside, which was the voice of the housekeeper of the Zeng family: "Master, there are many brocade guards outside, saying that they are here to read the will!" ”

Zeng Jian heard the movement and hurriedly walked out of the secret room, although he had some doubts in his heart, he still asked calmly on the surface: "Jinyiwei?" What are Jinyiwei here for? ”

"I don't know, I'm about to come in!" The steward replied.

Zeng Jian nodded, and then groaned.

At this time, Guo Rong of Jinyiwei came over: "There is a will!" Zeng Jian, the secretary of the Ministry of Industry, will accompany me to inspect the Ordnance Bureau tomorrow! ”

"What!"

Zeng Jian instinctively screamed, his heart sank, and he secretly thought that there would be a big explosion in the military ordnance bureau tomorrow, and if he followed, he would be blown to pieces, so he hurriedly pretended to be suffering from illness and said:

"Ouch! Ouch! Guo Dudu, you see that the old minister's illness has not been cured, can you ask Your Majesty to let the minister continue to recuperate at home! ”

"Not allowed! The emperor said, if you are not well! I'll carry you there! Give you a place to sit on the jade chariot! We still have to guard you here tonight, and carry you to see the emperor tomorrow morning, so let's rest! Doctor! Let's continue to take the pulse of Da Sikong! ”

Guo Rong said.

Immediately, the imperial doctor came, and the Ministry of Industry Shangshu Zeng could only continue to scream in pain when he saw this, and at the same time he was a little panicked in his heart, secretly thinking about how this could be good, he just wanted to blow up the emperor to death, but he didn't want to blow himself up too! I want to live a few more years and join the cabinet!