Chapter 34 3.Alert from Shanhaiguan

Liu Zongmin, who was only in his early thirties, was in Wu Sangui's hiding place, even on the same bed, and finally got a taste of the charming face of Chen Yuanyuan, a famous Jiangnan prostitute—he fell headlong under Yuanyuan's white and tender pink neck , Immediately forgot the treacherous and treacherous situation around the city of Beijing, and also temporarily discarded the inexplicable melancholy in his heart. Thousands of words were condensed into one sentence: Damn, this rebellion is really worth it! At this time, the shadow of the candle is red, the cigarette smoke is thick, the brocade curtain is hanging down, and the spring is deep in the bridal chamber.On the diamond pillow, inside the fragrant quilt, Chen Yuanyuan, despite a hundred reluctances, could only lay out her jade body, like a small flower under a cliff, Liu Tiejiang, who was in the wind and rainstorm, who didn't know the day and night, was crazy and reckless, Have you ever noticed that the beauty below you has a clear tear rolling in the eyes full of autumn water?

At dawn and five drums, he was still lingering in the "landscapes in the south of the Yangtze River", or strange peaks protruding, or mountain streams singing springs, Liu Tiejiang was lost in the confused fairyland all night, at this moment, Liu Yi came to his window and asked He reported the shocking news: Luo Hu, the general of the Zuoying camp, was stabbed to death by the court lady Fei Zhen'e last night. When Liu Zongmin heard the news, he couldn't help but sit up straight.Luo Hu is the warrior brought out by him. Although he is young, he has a good martial arts. Have a blessed day.

He glanced at the beauty beside him, and jumped out of bed without paying any further attention to her. When they came to the front hall, several teenagers who had the best relationship with Luo Hu came, and when they saw him, they couldn't help but burst into tears.At this time, he realized that Luo Hu did not hand over the maid he had snatched first, but brought him to the residence, and he couldn't wait to marry her last night. He planned that when she was raped, she would be unable to resist, but she would not let it go when she had the opportunity - she actually took advantage of Luo Hu's drunkenness and killed him with his knife.

In fact, what is the death of a Luo Hu?Just last night, there was a large-scale rape activity in Beijing—those soldiers of the Dashun Army who hadn’t touched a woman for a long time were more active than the red-eyed Sao Tezi. Women, crying and clamoring resounded throughout the Nine Cities for a while, and women who could not bear the humiliation committed suicide one after another. In a single alley in Dongcheng City, there were hundreds of women who committed suicide. Sure enough, the imperial meeting was held again, and the place was still the Hall of Martial Arts.As soon as the meeting ended last night, Liu Tichun, who had already occupied Tongzhou, reported news that Wu Sangui, who had already arrived in Fengrun, led his troops back to Shanhaiguan after learning that Beijing had only been defended for two days before being captured.

Li Zicheng thought to himself, it seems that what Li Yan said was right, and Wu Sangui, the Ningyuan soldier, should not be underestimated.But at best, he is no more than 50,000 to 60,000 horses, a single army, no food and no salary, can the little loach make a big wave, besides, Beijing is broken, Chongzhen is also finished, you are a loyal minister, who are you loyal to?What's more, your father and family are still in my hands. It seems that whether it is to appease or suppress, I have every chance of winning, and I can command it as I wish. Thinking of this, he threw the memorial casually away, and sent a decree to summon the charming Dou family.At this time, the palace maid lit up the heart-stirring fragrance secreted by the Ming Palace. In the smoke, Emperor Dashun, who had been galloping for half his life, suddenly felt his body floating, as if he had entered a kind of fairyland. Realm, when Dou Shi's graceful figure appeared behind the curtain, he was half void and half a dream, and he didn't know his name for a long time. The news of the murder, that the majestic general was killed in the hands of a weak woman, made the relaxed and happy Emperor Dashun feel somewhat joyful and sad.

Li Zicheng first passed Luo Hu's two generals on the left and right, and asked about the process in detail. In fact, if there was any question, it was nothing more than "Everyone is just playing", and the unspoken words were "You can play us well." I can play too." Li Zicheng couldn't say anything more. At this time, the monarchs and ministers who participated in the meeting came to the hall one after another. He waved his hand to signal the two generals who were not enough to participate in the imperial meeting to go down. Then, he glanced at the ministers and shook his head helplessly. say:

"A weak woman should not be underestimated. Really, you have to be careful." Everyone looked at each other, as if asking: What are we careful about?The emperor's tone was so light, and everyone was even more casual, Li Yan couldn't help but glance up, at this moment, Li Zicheng began to talk about the business, which was naturally Wu Sangui's business, he said: "Just after the meeting ended last night, Liu Erhu sent news about Wu Sangui, let's discuss it first." After speaking, he repeated the situation reported by Liu Tichun. In fact, after Liu Tichun learned that Wu Sangui had withdrawn to Shanhaiguan, he did not realize the seriousness of the matter, and only reported the news to the military adviser's office as usual. So, this night, although the emperor was playing with the dragon, the two military divisions were holding candles in the court room, discussing while waiting for the emperor to call - what Li Yan was worried about really happened, and the discussion of Changping did not cause any trouble. It should be noted that Tang Tong was going to be sent there, but he didn't make it, and Wu Sangui was forced to retreat to Shanhaiguan. It's a strong enemy, not to mention being stuck on the strategic stronghold of Shanhaiguan. If you pull it, the mud pellets can be stuffed into the sea. If you are not careful, a hole will burst the golden embankment.

But when the report went up, the two waited quietly outside the palace, but they didn't get the following.Before this, Li Zicheng didn't have this kind of style. He was not far from the camp of the prime minister, the general, and the military adviser. In case of emergency military situation, he could see each other immediately; now that he has entered Beijing, he is about to formally ascend the throne. There are many palaces and gates, the names of the monarch and his ministers are determined, and the etiquette should be followed. The so-called curtain is far away, the hall is high, and the monarch's gate is thousands of miles away.It was so easy to wait until dawn, so easy to wait until the monarch and his ministers got together, Li Yan could hardly wait, the emperor just finished speaking, he stretched out his hand and pulled Song Xiance's clothes, motioning him to speak, Song Xiance had no choice but to say first:

"Liu Tichun's report, the minister and the general Li Yan read it first, and as expected, this Wu Sangui is quite ambitious. He retreated from the mountains and seas, which is clearly for sale. In addition, he has 50,000 to 60,000 Ningyuan soldiers in his hands. With Manchuria as a powerful enemy, if the court handles it properly, not only can the Ningyuan soldiers be used for me, but it can also eliminate a big hidden danger for the court; Decisions should be made quickly, otherwise, changes will happen later.” As soon as Song Xiance finished, Li Yan did not wait for the emperor to ask questions, and immediately answered: "Exactly what I said, according to my minister, Wu Sangui is indeed a man with both brains and ambitions. , but he was slow to go. Just when Chongzhen and other rescuers were desperate, he lingered in Kaiping and Fengrun. This shows that he still understands the general trend, knows the rise and fall, and refuses to be a moth. The city was broken, and my parents had already fallen into my hands. He didn't ask for surrender immediately, but led his army back to Shanhaiguan. All over the world, these people over the age of 20 have entered the customs, and they are constantly invading. We must guard against Wu Sangui, the Manchus, and even more, we must prevent them from joining forces to plot against me. Therefore, the emperor should send important officials to lead the soldiers. First, Sheng Chen Bingwei, Don't let him think of luck, and then give him righteousness, give him gold and silver, allow him a noble salary, and with the restraint of his parents and wives, the minister expects him to come back without difficulty."

When the two military advisers, Song and Li, were speaking, Liu Zongmin hadn't woken up yet. Last night's dream and this morning's bad news were enough for him to recollect and reflect endlessly. Therefore, at the beginning of today's meeting, he only listened briefly. It's a general idea, but one sentence is like a nail, wedged into his ear, "send one or two important ministers, and lead the soldiers." Although Ba Wazi didn't like it, he was very tempted by this suggestion. When he was still in Changzhou, he proposed it on his own initiative - the blacksmith brother is used to fighting head-to-head on the battlefield, but he is not used to being in a crowd of clothes. Take three steps and one foot, say a word and turn nine corners, especially since Zicheng has become the emperor, but he has to wait until five o'clock, calling Shanhu, he is a little dissatisfied in his heart, and on the surface he is even more afraid of mistakes, not to mention that he has fainted Aware of Zicheng's suspicion of him, it is a good thing to be able to lead troops to the front. The sky is high and the emperor is far away. He listens to the tune and does not listen to the announcement. Now Li Yan brings up this proposal again. This is a golden opportunity.So, he immediately knocked heavily on the table, frowned and said:

"The analysis of the chief and deputy military advisers is reasonable. However, Wu Sangui wants to ask the imperial court a sky-high price with the little soldiers in his hands. This is wishful thinking. If we promise him gold and silver, we will be tricked by him. Besides, Ning Yuan Once we withdraw, the door will be opened, and we must guard against the Manchurians. Therefore, I asked the emperor for troops. He has 50,000 cavalry from Ningyuan, and I only need 50,000 children from Qinzhong. If you don’t stay, I won’t come back to see you.” Although Li Zicheng nodded frequently, he glanced at the group of officials with his piercing eyes, and finally stopped on the faces of Li Jin and Gao Yigong, and said, "Well, that's what you said, what's your idea?" Seeing that his uncle was looking at him, Li Jin immediately understood what his uncle was thinking, and hurriedly said: "General Liu's idea is good, but it is not worth moving the general to suppress a Wu Sangui, let the minister go, this is called killing chickens without using it." Bull knife." Gao Yigong was also eager to try, and said, "I'm one too." The three of them wanted to go, but Li Zicheng seemed a little embarrassed. He glanced at Song Xiance and Li Yan. Song Xiance was turning his head to talk to Gu Junen, but Li Yan met the emperor's eyes, so he called his name and said: "Ren Zhi, who do you think is suitable?" In Li Yan's mind, there are two things that are urgently needed at the moment. One is that Wu Sangui should take precautions, and the other is that the soldiers stationed in the city should be withdrawn. If the army is sent to Shanhaiguan, wouldn't the two things be combined?It is the best thing for Liu Zongmin to take the initiative to invite Yingying. I don't want Li Jin and Gao Yigong to compete to go.He thought that these two were far worse than Liu Zongmin in terms of their ability to stand alone. Besides, Li and Gao couldn't command Liu Fangliang, Liu Tichun, Hao Yaoqi and other commanders in terms of seniority, but he only Thinking about this, but ignoring the other, let alone thinking about the emperor's intentions, he said: "I believe that the battle of the Eastern Expedition is very important. If we fail, our army will have no place to stand and can only return to Guanzhong. Besides, Ningyuan's soldiers are brave and good at fighting, and Wu Sangui's cunning is unpredictable. We should not take it lightly and be cautious. Of course, it must be General Liu." When Li Zicheng heard this, he couldn't help but stamped his feet secretly—the story of Changping happened again. Back then, Niu Jinxing took a good look at his face and turned around in time. How could he repeat the same mistakes today?Fortunately, Niu Jinxing responded quickly at this time, and he said: "I remember that at the Changping meeting, everyone saw the same thing, that is, there is no need to exaggerate Wu Sangui, or to suppress or appease, our army took the initiative, why did he get nervous and serious when he withdrew to Shanhaiguan? Yichen Look, Li and Gao don't have to fight anymore, and the general doesn't dare to work anymore. Isn't he just a lone army? It's better to send Tang Tong there. But there is absolutely no need; besides, aren’t his parents in the capital? Tell him that if he comes to surrender, the official will be restored to his original post, and Chongzhen will make him an earl. Our new dynasty will also make him an earl. In addition, his parents are safe, and his family property and mansion will remain intact. return." When Li Zicheng heard this, he nodded repeatedly and said, "I think what the prime minister said is very reasonable. Chongzhen's army of one million is gone, so what is Wu Sangui's fifty or sixty thousand soldiers? Besides, does he not want his parents and wife? Immediately sent an order to Tang Tong, ordering him to take his troops to Shanhaiguan as soon as possible. If Wu Sangui can understand the current affairs, Tang Tong will guard the pass on his behalf and let Wu Sangui come to Beijing to participate in my ascension ceremony; When the pro-unification army comes to conquer and suppress, not only his parents and wife will be lost, but his own life will also be difficult to save." When everyone heard the emperor's arrangement, they all nodded and said yes. Among them, only Liu Zongmin and Li Yan wanted to say more. Liu Zongmin murmured his lips for a long time, but he didn't know why he didn't make a sound. But he was firmly suppressed by Song Xiance. Liu Zongmin stepped out of the Wenhua Palace one step at a time, feeling very uncomfortable. Li Zicheng's arrangement certainly made him unhappy, but he was even more dissatisfied with Niu Jinxing, because he almost became the emperor's answerer, as long as there was something that the emperor didn't like to say, he would say it for him, and he didn't think about others at all. .I thought to myself, could it be that Niu Jinxing has peeped into my mind, and I am afraid that everyone is slandering me in Zicheng's ears. In order to tie my hands and feet, he actually prevented me from leading troops to go out, is it because I am afraid that I will be shocked by my achievements ?Moreover, in order to befriend Wu Sangui, he actually wants to return his family property and mansion. Doesn't this require me to hand over what I got? Does he even have to return Chen Yuanyuan? Thinking all the way, the depression in my heart is hard to get rid of, I wish I could kill a few people to vent my anger.Seeing that he was outside the Xihua Gate, Liu Yi, his personal companion, was already waiting outside. When he saw Liu Yi, he suddenly remembered something, and asked: "Are those jigs ready?" When Liu Yi heard this, he nodded quickly and said, "Let the people below do the bidding, and the goods will be available tomorrow." Liu Zongmin said: "There will be tomorrow, how many are there?" "One hundred and fifty copies." Liu Zongmin stared, and said: "What, only one hundred and fifty pairs? It's missing, at least two hundred pairs. There are so many corrupt officials in his mother's mouth, I want to catch them all, no, two hundred pairs are missing, come on. Three hundred, I want it tomorrow, tell them, if there is any delay, the military law will do it!" Liu Yi hurriedly agreed to leave.Li Jin who followed behind didn't know what Liu Zongmin was going to do, so he asked: "Brother Blacksmith, what do you want Liu Yi to do?" Liu Zongmin glanced at the group of civil servants who were walking behind when they dispersed, blinked at Li Jin, spat again and said: "What are you doing? Didn't you agree? Those corrupt officials are fine right now. We can let them get away with it?" When Li Jin heard that it was used to torture corrupt officials, he found it very enjoyable, so he clapped his hands and said, "Yes, yes, I thought you forgot a lot these two days. There is no time to make jigs, and the board is the same, anyway. Let the skin and flesh suffer, and after the beating, spray him with cold water, and let him hurt his muscles and bones." At this time, Gao Yigong and Yuan Zongdi also came over, and Li Jin told Gao and Yuan about Liu Zongmin's plan. My nephew suggests that you seek advice from an expert." "Who?" Gao Yigong said: "The heart of a king." Liu Zongmin was startled, and said, "Which king's heart?" Gao Yigong said: "Isn't that the trusted eunuch of Chongzhen? Before that, he was in charge of Dongchang, and he was specially involved in embarrassing matters for the ministers. He has the best way to punish people. If you don't recruit him, he will let you survive. Please." Can't die." Liu Zongmin was reminded at once, and hurriedly slapped his thigh and said, "Really, why didn't I think of it." Wang Zhixin opened the city gate to welcome the surrender, thinking that he would be reused, but when he guided Emperor Dashun into the palace, the new emperor pointed to his nose and said, Chongzhen was killed by your eunuchs, and now Chongzhen died for the country, you But you still have the face to stay in the world, you all deserve to die.Although he prevaricated at that time with the words "I know the fate of fate early, and I am willing to contribute to the new dynasty", but afterwards I was always uneasy. Now seeing General Liu's invitation, I couldn't help but feel thumping, for fear that General Liu would take him to the knife.Liu Zongmin took his thoughts into his eyes and wanted to scare him, so he opened his eyes and looked at him, saying: "You used to be in Dongchang?" Wang Zhixin replied cautiously: "Yes, this servant used to be the eunuch in charge of Dongchang." Liu Zongmin said: "Ah, it's still the palm print, so it must be good at interrogating prisoners." Wang Zhixin didn't know what kind of medicine he sold in the gourd, so he nodded slightly. Liu Zongmin smiled and said: "When you are trying the case, what good way can the prisoner keep silent?" Wang Zhixin became more and more suspicious. He knew the allusion that Lai Junchen wanted Zhou Xing to confess, and he would "please enter the urn", but let's not talk about it. General Liu was aggressive in front of him. He was afraid that he would not be able to pass the test, so he hesitated for a long time, so he had to He answered hesitantly: "Although the slave is in charge of the East Factory, he seldom interrogates the prisoners himself. Everything is done according to the order and left to the subordinates. However, he still knows a thing or two about the method of torture." Seeing him like this, Liu Zongmin knew that he had frightened him, and was happy, but in order to get something out of his mouth, he had to slow down and say, "Don't be afraid, I tell you, the emperor has a decree to punish a group of people. The guys in the class are all stones in the latrine, hard and smelly, if you want to get them to talk, you have to find some ways, my father was born in a war, and there are not as many ways to try cases as you, so I want to ask you for advice." Only then did Wang Zhixin feel relieved, and said: "General, there are ways, but I don't know if it is a literati or a warrior who needs to deal with it?" Liu Zongmin knew that he was setting his tone, so he said, "Most of them are literati, but I wonder if you have any good ideas?" Wang Zhixin used to be in charge of the East Factory. He tortured criminals on weekdays. To the best of my knowledge, offer advice. It turns out that since the Taizu Zhu Yuanzhang in the Ming Dynasty, Jinyiwei was established, prisons were opened, and torture was used to deal with so-called guilty officials.After Chengzu, the East Factory and West Factory were added, and there were groups of slaves and fanzi who rode all over the urban and rural areas.Although Wang Zhixin was the last eunuch of Dongchang Palm Seal, when it comes to torture, he is still familiar with it. Before this, Liu Zongmin only knew that the poor people were caught by the generals at every turn, beaten with boards, poured cold water, and narrowly escaped death.But I don't know that after becoming an official, there are times when the emperor takes off his pants and spanks in public. Isn't it said that the punishment cannot be a doctor?But Wang Zhixin shook his head again and again, saying that being an official of the Zhu family, it is common to be punished, and there are so many criminal laws in the court that he has never heard of.General instruments of torture include court sticks, flails, weapons, shackles, sticks, shovels, clamp sticks, sticks, brain hoops, irons, etc., tortures include rats playing the piano, horse sticks, swallows flying or stuffing noses, finger nails, and whips. Injuries to the back and ankles, use of lazy rods with a diameter of one inch, and bamboo slices without removing edges, etc.When it comes to the details, even Liu Zongmin, who can kill without blinking an eye, feels numbness on his back and shudders. Wang Zhixin went on to say that the court rod alone began in the eighth year of Hongwu. There were several kinds of big sticks, small sticks, and whips, ranging from twenty to eighty. Anti-beating medicine can prevent death after being beaten; but if you don't know it beforehand and you have a grudge with the eunuch who is in charge of the punishment, you will definitely die.When carrying out the execution, the captain only looked at the toes of the eunuch's boots, if the toes of the boots turned outward, it was a signal not to beat the person to death, if the toes of the boots were turned inward, the person would not be able to survive.Like Yang Jisheng in the Jiajing Dynasty, he was imprisoned for impeaching Yan Song. His family knew that he would be punished by the court, so they managed to get him the gall of anaconda snakes. , What is the reason for the boa snake—refuse to take the snake gall.Sure enough, after being imprisoned, Emperor Jiajing decreed to give him a hundred sticks.After the one-hundred-stick beating, the buttocks and thighs were all broken. Yang Jisheng smashed the porcelain bowl in the middle of the night, and asked the jailer to cut off the carrion with porcelain chips. The thigh meat was almost exposed. The jailer was terrified, and his hand holding the lamp was shaking, and he almost smashed the lamp. Hearing this, Liu Zongmin nodded and sighed, "This Yang Jisheng is really a hero." Wang Zhixin said: "Yes, the more loyal the minister, the less afraid of death, watching the one in front of him being beaten, he didn't listen to dissuasion and followed him; but if he was a corrupt official, he would be afraid of beating him and begged for mercy." Wang Zhixin talked enthusiastically, and Liu Zongmin listened attentively, thinking, the emperor is too hot-hearted to beat his courtiers so cruelly;He also thought, this group of eunuchs who cut their dicks is really inhumane, they can think of this kind of torture, this Wang Zhixin is probably a cruel official, when the matter is over, I want him to try his own torture tools. Wang Zhixin also said that all these instruments of torture are still stored in the Dongxiliang Factory and Jinyiwei. With these instruments of torture, the general is still afraid that those stinky literati will not confess? Liu Zongmin patted him on the shoulder happily, and said: "Okay, this Chongzhen is really good. He has prepared so many thugs and instruments of torture for the Dashun Dynasty. If he is still alive, we should really treat him well." thank him." After Wang Zhixin was sent away, Liu Zongmin began to calculate: the six ministries of the Ming Dynasty, the nine ministers, how many ministers, how many ministers, how many ministers, how many relatives of the emperor, how many heroes and senior generals, who are in Beijing, serving, living, and retired. Yes, he has a roster collected from the Ministry of Officials in his hand. There are as many as 3,000 officials in Beijing who are easily captured and above rank six. He thought, more than 3,000 people can't be arrested at once, and they can't be dealt with if they are caught. They should be prioritized, who should be caught first, and who can't be arrested.Before this, they said we were rogues, but this time, we have to see, who is the thief? I made up my mind, and I was very happy.