Lu Yi is the capital secretary of the Yongwei Battalion (Note 1), and has just turned 30 this year.

He is a hereditary thousand households of Jingwei, and he has a relationship with Wu Weiying, the Marquis of Gongshun, who has successively commanded the Beijing camp, and Li Guozhen, the prince of Xiangcheng, who has been the lord of Chongzhen for three years.

But unlike most of the officers of the Yongwei Battalion who were hereditary, Lu Yi participated in his first battle outside the Desheng Gate from the beginning of the change in the second year of Chongzhen. It was Lu Yi who personally opened the city gate and welcomed Man Gui, the chief soldier covered in blood and arrows, into the Deshengmen urn city to rest.

After that, Lu Yi followed the great eunuchs in the palace to supervise the armies of Guangning, Xuanfu, and Yongping, and ran all over the mountains and rivers in the north of the Ming Dynasty.

In the eighth year of Chongzhen, Lu Yi followed the eunuch Liu Yuanbin to break the thieves in Wusha Mountain on the Chuzhi border, and was promoted to garrison because of his merits;

In the ninth year of Chongzhen, Lu Yi followed Gao Qiqian, Zhang Yunhan, and Han Zan to reinforce the troops from all walks of life, and was promoted to the capital division with meritorious service.

At the end of the eleventh year of Chongzhen, the Tartars entered the army, and Lu Yi once again followed the soldiers of the Qin Wang of the world.

The Tartars went all the way south, and the momentum was like a bamboo. Lu Yi followed the high potential and led the Guanning army to be stationed in Julu Jize, less than fifty miles away from Jiazhuang, where Lu Xiangsheng, the governor of Shanxi, Xuan, and the Great Governor Lu Xiangsheng was stationed.

Lu Xiangsheng and Tatar fought fiercely at the Artemisia (AO) Water Bridge, and Gao Qiqian and the Guanning army were cowardly and did not save the enemy. The Qing army annihilated Lu Xiangsheng, but before the transfer of troops, Gao Qiqian and the Guanning army had already collapsed without a fight. Lu Yi, who was a military attache of Gao Qiqian's attendants, said something that should not have been said in anger, which offended the emperor's favored Daju.

Han Zanzhou, a eunuch with an upright personality, left the palace to leave Nanjing (Note 2) and asked his adopted son (Note 3), the imperial horse eunuch Li Guofu, to send a message to Lu Yi and ask him if he was willing to follow.

Of course, Lu Yi hopes to get out of the big quagmire of the Beijing army and get a chance to show his skills. Just like Sun Yingyuan, Huang Degong, and Zhou Yuji, who were promoted from the general officer of the Beijing camp to the general army, they opened a government and built a government and crisscrossed the territory. Although Gao Qiqian was reprimanded by the emperor for the defeat of the giant deer, the energy in the palace was still there. Gao Qiqian's words that are neither yin nor yang make Lu Yi's dream come true. Li Guofu soon lost his military power and left the palace for Nanjing.

This time he followed Ma Wenke, the eunuch of the Qianqing Palace, out of Beijing and into Shu, which was another opportunity for Lu Yi.

Wang Chengen, who was appointed by the emperor to supervise the Yongwei battalion, sent capable men to assist Ma Wenke, and the little prince naturally did not dare to slack off. Because the holy decree was a secret investigation, the prince did not dare to make an open selection, so after thinking about it, he ordered Lu Yi, who was experienced in prison.

In order to live up to the emperor's order, Xiao Wang promised Lu Yi a reward in advance: if he makes a contribution to Shu this time, he should be rewarded for his meritorious deeds. Ma Wenke also promised Lu Yi that he would be willing to protect him in front of the emperor in the future and send a battalion of generals.

Starting from Beijing, passing through Beizhi, Shanxi, and Shaanxi to Sichuan, Ma Wenke and his entourage pretended to be the escort of the eunuchs who announced the decree, and they quickly whipped their horses and traveled unimpeded. When they arrived at Boryeong, they disguised themselves and left the brigade.

First, I inquired in Baoning Mansion and learned that Zhu Pingjin, the son of Shu, was sick and recuperated in the Panlong Pond Pavilion. The important ministers of Sichuan gathered in Baoning Mansion to hold a conference. Lu Yi investigated in many ways, but because the Shu Wangfu was heavily guarded and kept secret, he could only inquire about some public news and folk rumors.

On the shore of the Jialing River, Lu Yi saw with his own eyes that Zhang Jimeng, the former prefect of Baoning, together with 379 local tyrants, endured the torture of thousands of knives, and then broke his bones and scattered ashes into the surging river;

In front of the carrier gate of Shouwang Mansion, Lu Yi and many crowded people kowtowed to Zhu Pingjian, the son of Shu who was happy with the people, and his concubine Luo girl, and then watched the song and dance troupe's performance of "Xiao Erhei's Marriage". Although it was too far away for him to see or hear clearly.

However, these were not the things that shocked Lu Yi the most.

In the streets and alleys of Boryeong Province, Lu Yi disguised herself as a variety of professions and talked with peddlers, pawns, tea merchants, and merchants. In the mouths of these people, Shu Shizi and Miss Luo are the reincarnation of immortals! If you don't think so, the people will try to convince you with a whole bunch of plain evidence:

For example, a girl who has lived in Shu since she was a child, how does she know what the sea is like? What are the treasures of the Underwater Dragon Palace? You don't know, but Miss Luo knows!

It is said that Miss Luo also knows what it feels like to fly in the clouds!

Know how to lead down the thunder male and electric mother!

I even know that the earth is not square, but a ball that can spin!

If Miss Luo is an immortal, how can the son of the world not be an immortal? Since ancient times, the turtle married the eighth king, and the seven fairies can look at the cowherd? Dream on! Besides, the nuns of Guanyin Temple have built a new temple to worship the statue of the prince and the girl Luo, and the name of the temple is "Two Immortal Palace"!

The more Lu Yi inquired, the more frightened she became.

Since childhood, she has been immersed in the political city of Jingshi, and Jingying is the main way for political rumors to spread (Note 4), which gives Lu Yi a political sensitivity that is difficult for ordinary people to reach. He had already subconsciously felt that this trip to Shudi would give him an experience that was completely different from his previous career as a military supervisor.

Lu Yi carefully diluted the news and reported it to Ma Wenke, for fear of stimulating the young attendant beside the emperor.

After learning that the prince had returned to Baoning Mansion and came back to summon the clan, ministers and students of Shu, and that Kong Sheng had even written to praise the prince of Shu as the "reincarnation of a saint", Lu Yi immediately decided that Ma Wenke could not continue to stay in Baoning Mansion. If this young eunuch who grew up in the palace learned these news, God knows if he would lose control of his emotions and go straight to the Shu Palace, and reprimand the Shu prince for his lawlessness!

In the next few days, Lu Yi and others disguised themselves as foot merchants and escorted Ma Wenke to Chengdu. The reason why he wanted to rush to Chengdu was that Lu Yi gave a good reason to Ma Wenke:

One needs to send personnel to meet with Yang Shen, the Tianguan of Qiongzhou Zhishi, and Xu Kongtu of Zhizhou to learn more about the situation. These two men have written to the ministers of the DPRK and China many times, and they have many objections to Zhu Pingjian, the son of Shu, and the tycoon of Liao Fu, Sichuan;

Second, it is necessary to meet with Dongchang Fanzi, who entered Sichuan from Huguang, to understand the situation of Shu Wangfu's intervention outside Sichuan and recruiting displaced people as soldiers;

When Chen Qichi and others returned to Chengdu with the decision of the Boryeong Conference, they must have been impatient to announce the administration. In that way, all the conspiracies of Shu Shizi and Liao Tycoon will be revealed to the world. Once these circumstances are mastered, the conclusive evidence of Shu Shizi's lawlessness is mastered. When I return to Beijing in the future, I will definitely be relieved by the sacred heart and happy with the dragon's face!

……

In the scorching sun, Lu Yi pretended to be a resting merchant and sat in an open-air tea shed outside the East Gate Bridge, vigilantly scanning all kinds of people around him.

Pedestrians look hurried and rarely stop. Under the shade of the trees at the opposite bridge sat an old beggar with a gray beard, holding a broken straw hat and begging for copper from passers-by. A few feet away on the side of the street, there was a blind fortune teller, babbling at no idea what to say.

There was no sign of abnormality, and Lu Yi gradually relaxed. He slowly sipped his tea, reassuring himself as he waited for his target to appear.

Suddenly, a man wearing a crepe hat and a blue coarse cloth with a gray cloth belt around his waist appeared in the crowd on the bridge. He looked calm, carrying a bamboo food box, like a servant of a large household who went out to deliver vegetables.

It turned out that he was the fan sent by Dongchang! Lu Yi recognized Zou Zhenggang, the big block head of the East Factory, at a glance.

It turned out to be an acquaintance! Now it's okay, Lu Yi is overjoyed.

As long as he showed up to introduce Zou Zhenggang to the riverside teahouse and met Ma Gonggong, the lines of the two sides were all connected. The two sides will match the situation, and Lu Yi can escort Ma Wenke back to Beijing as soon as possible. The only one who stayed in Shu to continue to investigate was Zou Zhenggang from Dongchang, not Ma Wenke from the palace.

As for how the emperor and courtiers used the evidence they brought back after returning to Beijing, that was not Lu Yi's concern.

Lu Yi's only concern is where to get a battalion!

……

Speaking of Lu Yi's acquaintance with Zou Zhenggang, there is really a fate that does not fight and does not know each other.

It was the fifth year of Chongzhen, and the emperor listened to the suggestion of Cao Huachun, the former minister of the Xindi, and merged the four guard battalions with the warrior battalion to form the Yongwei battalion, and recruited some brave generals from the border army to enrich the Beijing camp.

Lu Yi, who was in his early twenties when he was a thousand households in the Yongwei Battalion, was at the age of boiling blood.

One day, when he was off duty, he invited a few brothers from the Yongwei Battalion to eat and drink at the restaurant outside the front door. The little two in the restaurant are eccentric, obviously they arrived first, but they kept serving food to the next neighbor's table.

Most of the young officers of the Yongwei Battalion are gentlemen in the mansion of the noble generals, where can they stand such filth? The two sides first had a quarrel, and then the fists and feet were added, and the nose and eyes were swollen, and the corners of the mouth were blue.

Lu Yi has always boasted of his bravery in the army, but he fought with Zou Zhenggang in the restaurant. Maybe it's a hero who cherishes a hero, and the two get acquainted with each other as soon as they come and go.

Later, Cao Huachun supervised Dongchang and Jingying Rongzheng as the eunuch of the ceremonial supervisor Bingbi, and the two had more contacts with each other. It was only later that the personnel in the palace changed unpredictably, and the two gradually became estranged.

This time out of Beijing and into Shu, the two sides went their own ways. Zou Zhenggang was sent by Dongchang; Lu Yi was nominally sent by the Imperial Horse Supervisor, but in fact he obeyed the command of Ma Wenke, the eunuch of the Qianqing Palace.

Ma Wenke belonged to the former eunuch Gao Shiming (Note 5), and Wang Chengen belonged to Cao Huachun, and Gao Shiming and Cao Huachun both belonged to the old eunuch Wang An, who was killed by Wei Zhongxian, and Wang An belonged to Feng Bao, the prime minister of Wanli years. Therefore, if you talk about teacher Chengenyin, Wang Chengen and Ma Wenke are both Feng Bao's great-great-grandsons and Wang An's godson, and the two have a very close relationship.

Today, Wang Dehua, the celebrant eunuch of the East Factory, is different. He is a native of Datong, Shanxi, and has little to do with the line of Feng Bao-Wang An. Wang Dehua was tortured cruelly, and he made many enemies among the courtiers, and the only one who was good was Chen Xinjia, the secretary of the military department.

Dongchang Fanzi has the responsibility of supervising the courtiers, and he is not very compatible with the soldiers of the Beijing camp. Therefore, after the unpleasant trip to Julu, Lu Yi, who didn't want to cause trouble, stopped contacting Zou Zhenggang. Maybe Zou Zhenggang also knows Lu Yi's difficulties, and there will be less contact between the two.

……

Lu Yi saw Zou Zhenggang, and Zou Zhenggang, who is a professional fan, of course also caught a glimpse of Lu Yi.

However, at the same time that Zou Zhenggang saw Lu Yi, he also caught a glimpse of another person: the old beggar sitting at the head of the bridge.

At that moment, Zou Zhenggang's heart was grabbed suddenly, almost suffocating him. He wanted to shout to everyone on the street: This is full of agents from the Shu'an Bureau! Run! Run!

However, this sentence was blocked in Zou Zhenggang's throat. Because according to Han Wendou's rhetoric, Zou Zhenggang's wife and a pair of children have been controlled by the people who were installed in Beijing by the Shu'an Bureau.

Han Wendou did have the possibility of lying and deceiving people, but all kinds of strange appearances before leaving Beijing disturbed Zou Zhenggang's thoughts. Especially when colleagues saw them off, why did they look like they were looking at a dead person?

Is there also someone from the Shu'an Bureau in the East Factory?

The Shu'an Bureau doesn't need to bother to install people at all! All they had to do was take out the money and buy a few of them! Even Wang Dehua himself can be bought with silver!

What to do?

When the matter came, several sets of response plans that had already been thought of jumped out of Zou Zhenggang's mind.

That's it, keep going and pretend you don't see anything!

If Lu Yi followed, he would find an opportunity to give him a warning from afar and let him leave quickly. In this way, he is in Cao Ying's heart in Han, his family can not be implicated, and he has also done his best to be loyal to the emperor, the prince and Dongchang!

Note 1: The four guards, that is, the Tengxiang left and right guards and Wu Xiang left and right guards under the jurisdiction of the Imperial Horse Supervisor, do not belong to the pro-army command envoys. The Four Guards Battalion, the Warrior Battalion, and the Banner Army are all composed of warriors drawn from the Four Guards, and they are the forbidden soldiers among the forbidden soldiers. His main responsibility is to "change his position", that is, to serve as a guard.

Note 2: "Later Collection of Shikui Books" (Zhang Dai) records that Han Zanzhou went out of Nanjing, in August of the sixteenth year of Chongzhen, at the same time as Wang Chengen inspected Jingying Rong Town; Li Guofu left Beijing for Nanjing, presumably after Han Zanzhou left Nanjing. Liu Yuanbin's punishment was October of the fifteenth year of Chongzhen. The plot needs to be changed here.

Note 3: Under the name, that is, the so-called "pull the name" system among the eunuchs of the Ming Dynasty. The relationship between the eunuch under his name and the eunuch or the eunuch in charge is that of master and apprentice, love is father and son, and the management relationship is that of superiors and subordinates. The eunuch under his name should send the eunuch or the eunuch in charge to the end of his life, inherit the property and status, just like a normal person's family. So eunuchs are not monsters, they are also human beings, and they also have emotional needs.

Note 4: Many memoirs of close servants and pro-soldiers from the last years of Chongzhen mention that Jingying is a rumor bazaar for Jingshi. It is not surprising that it is not surprising that it is not uncommon for a group of second- and third-class princelings and their minions to get together and brag and fight.

Note 5: The tomb of the eunuch Gao Shiming, who is the master of ceremonies, has been unearthed.