Chapter 3 The third time Li Youjie was transferred to the capital Zhang Hengchen to cover up the scandal

Qian Du was flustered, stepped forward to look at the clothes, and turned to look at He Li when there was nothing unusual, just in time He Li's gaze also swept over, and hurriedly asked under cover: "Is this Lord He's clothes?" "Yes..." Mrs. He Li lowered her head and wiped away her tears, and said, "This was sent back by someone from the Shen family's old store, who said it had been inspected by the government... I was in a daze at the time, and I felt dizzy, and the whole family was crying. In a mess, like a lost soul. Ask the person who is my master's long-term follower, he said that the case has been closed, and the long-term follower has been sent away.

"My master is a man. Although he is upright and strong, he has never moaned and sighed when he encounters embarrassing things. He can fall asleep as soon as he touches the pillow. He neither hurts anyone, nor is he greedy for money and lust. There will be something that can't be overwhelmed." How about going this way? The man who came was Xiao Luzi. I left him here, treated him well, and questioned him carefully, but he couldn't say anything. "It's also God's help! Xiaoluzi was caught in the rain on the road and became hot, so he couldn't leave for a while. I was afraid that these clothes would get moldy, so I hung them in the patio to dry. Who knew that this drying, something strange happened, and attracted people all over the courtyard. I couldn't get rid of the blowflies I couldn't get rid of. I looked carefully one by one, and found that there were blood stains on the collar, on the elbows, and even on the back shoulders of the court clothes. Come out——Master Qian, look at the red tassel on this hat, there is still blood scab on it, the murderer must have been too busy to wipe it off!

"I've never seen a man hanged. My sister hanged herself. I went to see it. It's ugly. But it's clean, let alone blood, and even phlegm can't come up—Master Qian, I was covered in blood at that time." The hairs are straight, and the heart, liver and lungs are about to burst! Turning around and looking for the small road, who knows that he is dizzy from the heat, and his mouth is full of delirium... saying, "He Daotai... I know... I know you are wrong... I I can't beat others... I can't save you..." "After discussing with our old lady, we found a family member who was similar in appearance and body to my master. We changed into the master's official uniform in the middle of the night, and woke him up under the lamp. Xiao Luzi was so scared that he fell to the ground. He even crawled and crawled under the bed and begged, "Your old Mingjian, I just saw it through the window. There are four strong men in the Liu Futai family, and they are all people outside... Please go... I promise Thirty-three altars, Luo Tianda wish to save you... If you don't come, I will see you every night. You scared me to death, who will support my old lady?..."

At this point, He Li was sobbing, holding his head and whining, just crying.The two children also wailed loudly.Qian Du thought about it, felt ashamed and anxious, nodded and said: "Send the clothes to Wuzuo for inspection. Now that there are witnesses, the case will be easy to handle. What about Xiaoluzi? Is he here too?" He He Mrs. Li cried hoarsely, and said intermittently: "He...he ran away overnight. Poor my mother got sick after hearing the terrible news. I was busy with the funeral and couldn't find anyone to chase me. I have no legs. Xie, I rushed from Ningbo to Jinan, and then went to Dezhou. I couldn’t find anyone from Shen’s old shop. When I sued the court, I was told that I was infatuated, and that I was poor and crazy. Stealing money—Emperor Heaven Bodhisattva! My man has been an official for fourteen years, and I didn’t expect him to make black money. He’s dead. Am I going to steal money? Ah..." Although she was reserved, when she said this, she never said anything. Unable to restrain herself, she leaned over the desk and grabbed her husband's belongings desperately: "My lord...you were a hero in life, and you will be a ghost in death. Why don't you show your spirit..."

"Mrs. He, don't be too hurt. I heard it all." Li Wei stood in front of the door and said melancholy.It turned out that he had been at the door for quite some time.His face was extremely pale, and he said in a muffled voice: "It's unreasonable to kill for life. If it's what you said, the murderer will definitely not escape the law. Although this case is no longer under my control, I still want to consult with Yue Jun. Ask them to re-trial. When I go to Beijing, I still want to play the Ming Emperor, and I will definitely seek justice for you." Seeing Li Shi staring at Li Wei with tears in his eyes, Qian Du hurriedly said: "This is our Li Zhitai."

"Li Qingtian!" He Lishi took a child with one hand and knelt down on the ground with a plop, only weeping, unable to say a word.Li Wei thumped his chest lightly, stepped forward to check He Luying's bag of clothes, nodded heavily, and said with a sigh of relief: "Mrs. He, Xiao Luzi is on the run, and he is the only witness. It will be difficult to close the case for a while." In this way, I will take over your case, and I will return to my hometown to bury the old mother and raise the children. As soon as I have a letter, I will tell you not to stay here." After that, he called Geshha outside the door, "Take her Go to the accounting room and pay three hundred taels from my salary, Master Qian will send two proper people to take Mrs. He home tomorrow."

Sending He Li away, Qian Du immediately rushed to the signing room to see Li Wei.Li Wei was lying on the easy chair, seemed to be in a very bad mood, and coughed dryly one after another. Seeing Qian Du coming in, he closed his eyes and meditated after only one glance.Qian Dumang said with relief: "This is not a case in Dong Weng's hands, and the case has not been closed yet, you—" "It's over." Li Wei said coldly, "Don't look at my reputation and high prestige. In fact, the officials in Shandong and Liangjiang heard that I was going to be transferred, and they wanted to burn vinegar and charcoal! You have been involved in so many yamen, look They are happy? The magistrate surnamed Liu is a coat-coated slave under Prince Zhuang’s sect and a disciple of Yue Jun. As long as money is used, what can’t be covered up? I’ve already sent people to Dezhou again, and the shortfall has really been filled , you can’t disobey him. Hmph, you really deserve to be from a famous criminal master!”

Qian Du's eyelids trembled, only to realize that it wasn't about himself.He hurriedly said: "Sooner or later, this matter will be exposed. Even if someone wants to cover it up, they can't cover it up. The yamen are happy. I think it's because after you leave, they can fill in the vacancies one by one. How can they hate you? Dong Weng, you Too much heart." "That's right. There are people like the one I mentioned." Li Wei gritted his teeth and sneered, "I'm very picky about the word 'Lian'. It's true that people are relieved when I leave—I created it." The system of raising honesty and banking blocks their way to make a fortune in Huoyao, so they have to make decisions from the life lawsuit!"

Li Wei dressed lightly and set off with only two masters, Cai Ping and Qian Du, who were waiting on the messenger in the signing room.His body and bones were very weak, so he had to be carried to the Xinhe Wharf in a warm sedan chair, then abandoned the sedan chair and boarded the boat, and walked along the canal waterway to Beijing Chaoyang Gate.This delayed some time, and it was already the season of autumn.As soon as the group of people got off the boat, they felt the biting wind and cold, which was completely different from Jinan.In the twilight, I can only see the gloomy arrow tower of Dongzhimen standing straight up to Xiaohan.It's not dark yet, and "Qi Shi Feng" lights have been lit everywhere on the pier, flickering and faintly seeing boats moored everywhere in the water, and the bustling crowds on the shore are constantly flowing.Li Wei entered the post house to settle down a little bit, then called Qian Du, and said with a smile: "You look like an idiot entering the city, is this the first time you have returned to the foot of the emperor? Ask Cai Ping to take you around. If you get dizzy by boat for a day, evacuate ——If I wasn't afraid of the wind, I would also like to walk around!"

"Xie Dongweng!" Qian Du smiled happily, and said with a bow, "This place is really eye-opening, and Lao Cai and I will come back after going out for a walk." When he was walking out happily, Li Wei stopped and ordered: "Don't delay The time is too long, I will see the emperor tomorrow, there are many things to play, and you still need to make an abridged table of contents—go.” Here, Li Wei ordered people to go to the city to inform the two prime ministers, Ertai and Zhang Tingyu, Report that he has arrived in the capital. After dinner, Li Wei rinsed his mouth with green salt water, asked for hot water, and was about to burn his feet for a rest, when Yi Cheng trotted in and said, "Master E and Zhang Xiang have come to visit Lord Zhitai." Li Wei hurriedly Putting on socks and boots, and ignoring the robes, he greeted him out of the living room.Seeing that the two of them were equally thin, they were both red-capped first-rank officials in their sixties, and they walked in hand in hand from the main entrance.The taller one is Ertai, and the shorter one is Zhang Tingyu.Seeing that Li Wei was about to come down to greet him, Zhang Tingyu said to Ertai with a smile: "Look at this man, he still wants to make a fuss with us!" Ertai also smiled and said, "You Jie, you think we are disturbing you. Drive us away?"

"Where is it?" Li Wei was in high spirits at the moment, and he didn't look like a patient at all. He laughed and let the two of them enter the room and sat down. He ordered them to "watch tea" and said: "I want to get closer , look at the faces of the two prime ministers and add more dimples!" As they spoke, the three raised their heads and laughed. The three chattered happily and seemed to be very good friends.But those who know the inside story know that they have a deep grudge against each other.Back then, Zhang Tingyu's cousin, Zhang Tinglu, presided over the Shuntian Mansion Tribute Examination, greedy for ink and selling officials.The deputy chief examiner, Yang Mingshi, walks out of the Thorn Court with his sleeves in a flick of his sleeves, and Kui Ye meets with Li Wei and seals the Gong Court.Because of this incident, Zhang Tinglu was killed by Yongzheng's order in Chaishi Hutong.Yang Mingshi and Li Wei originally had a very good friendship. Later, when Li Wei was the governor of Liangjiang, he tried to "return the fire to the public" and offended Yang Mingshi and a large group of bureaucrats. He was ordered to investigate and deal with the deficit in Zhejiang Province, but he was tricked by Li Wei. After three months of exhaustion, he returned to Beijing empty-handed. Xian Jian was able to recommend himself, but Zhang Tingyu secretly recommended his disciples to be selected, which made Yang Mingshi very unhappy. Later, Ertai was a Manchu nobleman who had the credit for overcoming barriers and conquering passes. Naturally, I have a secret grudge against Zhang Tingyu... These public and private grievances are clear in their hearts. It's just that everyone has come out of the officialdom and is deeply familiar with the mystery of the invisibility of emotions. Moreover, Yongzheng is the most vicious party rivalry, and his mistakes will be inevitable. After all, no one dares to touch this bad luck. Therefore, even if there is no use in their hearts, they are each strictly guarding the city. If there is no chance, it is difficult for outsiders to see the slightest bit. The three of them exchanged affectionate greetings for a while, Li Wei changed his face and asked: "Master is in good shape. How are you?After Mr. Fu Liu came to Beijing, I got two approvals from my master. The emperor said that I had pimples on my cheeks and asked me to recommend a doctor, but I didn't get any good ones.I'm really thinking about it outside! " "Your Majesty is in good health." Ertai clasped his fists together, and said with a frown, "It's just that since February, due to the unsatisfactory affairs of the Miao border reform and land return, the master is not in a good mood. Um—Hengchen and us I also intend to discuss with you, whether you are not going to take office at the governor's office of Zhili for the time being, go to Gubeikou first, and still parade the army as the governor of Zhili to see what is still lacking in military supplies. If you can, I will tell the emperor." It turns out that southwest Guizhou is a place where Miao and Yao live together. It has always been hereditaryly ruled by local chieftains and officials. Moreover, merchants in the past and even imperial post offices were also harassed from time to time.Therefore, since the fourth year of Yongzheng, an edict was issued to be presided over by Ertai, and the superior system was abolished.In the Miao District of Guizhou, there are offices, prefectures and counties, which are unified with the mainland government orders.This is the so-called "returning the land to the stream".Zhang Guangsi, Ha Yuansheng and others slaughtered and hacked in Miaojiang. After several years of operation, they opened up three thousand miles of land and set up eight halls and counties, accounting for almost half of Guizhou Province.Unexpectedly, in December last year, there was an old bag among the Miao people, who spread the news about the birth of the "Miao King", and gathered people to make troubles to drive out the court officials. "Since the two middle halls said so, of course I, Li Wei, have to share the worries of the emperor." Li Wei subconsciously stroked his chest and sighed: "At that time when the hall was set up, I had a letter to the study. Son, I’m not easy to mess with. I’ll send the most capable officials there. I’m not complaining face to face. What kind of people have you got? Han Xun is the commander in chief, with 3,000 troops. The magistrate Zhu Dongqi is full of energy when he reaches out to make money by knocking and stripping the Miao people, but he resigns because he is sick. There is also Qiu Zhongtan, the magistrate of Qingping County, who is even more surprising. His mother hopes that the Miao people will be killed, and he orders all the officials. Can't escape', but his feet were slippery, Zhang Guangsi wanted to control Ha Yuansheng, Ha Yuansheng refused to obey Zhang Guangsi's order, the chief general was in charge of the tired soldiers of the two provinces, but the deputy general was sitting on the four provinces' soldiers and did not move... Sigh! I won't say anything, this mouth is already full..." After finishing speaking, he glanced at Zhang Tingyu and Ertai, and he did have something more difficult to say: Zhang Guangsi, the chief general, was on top of Zhang Xi, an imperial envoy who was pacifying Miaojiang. , is a famous talent.He is good at everything in poetry, poetry and Fu, but he is neither Zhang Tingyu's disciple nor Ertai's personal friend.In order to avoid suspicion, the two actually recommended this white-faced scholar to reconcile the two armies of Zhang and Ha.Zhang Xi supported Ha Yuansheng to suppress Zhang Guangsi, but Ha Yuansheng did not listen to Zhang Xi completely.The 100,000 heavenly soldiers in Miaojiang were brought down by a mob without a leader! Zhang Tingyu was silent for a long time, then sighed, "Young Master Yu said yes, I don't shirk, this is my responsibility. Every family has a hard-to-read scripture!" Ertai immediately continued: "I didn't expect Zhang Xi is incompetent, losing his teacher and humiliating the country is not the responsibility of Hengchen alone. Youjie, Mr. Zhang and I have written a self-impeachment letter and sent it up. Naturally, the imperial court will punish it. Up to now, the only thing left is to fight again with the whole army. In your opinion, who is the best general?" After speaking, Zhang Tingyu stared intently at Li Wei, and Zhang Tingyu also turned his gaze over.The two thought that Li Wei must recommend Ha Yuansheng or Zhang Guangsi, but Li Wei smiled and said, "I think Yue Zhongqi is good."While we were still waiting to talk in detail, we heard a commotion outside the door.The three of them were stunned, but they saw Gao Wuyong, the eunuch of the Hall of Mental Cultivation, striding in, his face was blue and gray, ugly like a dead man, he rushed to stand in the south of the center of the central hall, his strange voice was pulling the throat of a male duck Said: "There is a decree, Zhang Tingyu and Ertai kneel and listen!" The sudden change made the three of them stand up with a "huh", Li Wei hurriedly retreated to the side, Zhang Tingyu and Ertai plopped their robes and knelt down , Kowtow said: "Slaves Zhang Tingyu and Ertai respectfully listen to the oracle!" "According to the orders of Prince Zhuang Yunlu, Prince Guo Yunli, Prince Bao Hongli, and Prince Yi Hongxiao, I am leading Zhang Tingyu and Ertai to the Yuanmingyuan to meet you. I respect you!" "The servant obeys the order!" The two kowtowed their heads together.Gao Wuyong turned around and left without saying a word.Li Wei, who was very familiar with Gao Wuyong, grabbed him and asked with a half-smile: "Old dog, didn't you see me here? Are you rebellious or the sky is falling?" Gao Wuyong Wuyong pulled it away in a hurry, and said: "Hurry up! Hurry up!" As he said that, he ran away, but he tripped over the threshold and fell to the stone steps in front of the hall. Pulling the horse in the courtyard and riding with a whip, he hurried away without a trace! Ertai and Li Wei knew that a big change was imminent, and they stood facing each other with their backs straightened up nervously, and they both kept the posture of saying goodbye to Gao Wuyong.Zhang Tingyu has never encountered such a thing in the 30 years since he entered the cabinet, and his face is pale, but after all, he is a veteran minister of two dynasties, and he has suffered from frequent changes in the palace. He yelled sharply on the steps: "Who is the post office? Are there any horses? You can do it with a mule!" The post office crawled out and kowtowed: "This is a waterway post station, and there are no horses. But tonight there will be a delivery." The coal man lived in the back room, and saw a few walking mules..." "Who heard you chewing your wife's tongue?" Zhang Tingyu's voice changed agitatedly, "Quick, quick..." The postman ran to the backyard without touching the ground.In an instant, he pulled the two mules himself, and said with a mournful face: "Without a saddle, how can you ride these bare-backed mules..." Zhang Tingyu and Ertai didn't say anything, they went down the steps, took a horse each, and rode up the steps of the main room.The two looked at each other, shook the rope and rushed out the door.The guards and guards of the family members brought by Zhang and E Erfu left one by one.When Li Wei took out his pocket watch, it was already the end of the century and the beginning of the Hai Dynasty. Cai Ping and Qian Du had just returned to the station. They witnessed this scene with their own eyes.He saw Li Wei leaning forward and sitting on the easy chair in a daze.Qian Du murmured for a while and swallowed the words back. The Old Summer Palace is located in the north of Changchun Garden, forty miles away from Xizhimen. It was originally a garden rewarded by Kangxi before Emperor Yongzheng took the throne.Yongzheng was naturally afraid of heat and liked cold, so he saw that there was a big sea in the east of the garden.Outside the garden, there are court offices, inside which there is a "bright and upright" hall, and on the east side of the main hall, there is also a "diligent government and virtuous" hall.Zhang Tingyu and Ertai rushed here from the Dongcheng mules for about seventy li. It took more than half an hour until they reached the side of the chariot road at the gate of the Grand Palace. There were more than a dozen little sura attendants with their lamps on, looking at the south side eagerly.The two threw away the slow rope and hurried forward, Ertai asked, "Where is the emperor now?" "At the Xinghuachun Pavilion." Gao Wuyong agreed, only holding the glass lamp and walked quickly, but said nothing.Ertai opened his mouth, then swallowed the words back.Zhang Tingyu suddenly had an ominous feeling that a big event was imminent, and before he could change his mind, he saw Yunlu, Yunli, Hongli, and Hongxiao, four princes, young and old, greeted him at the entrance of the palace, their faces were livid.Busy and Ertai knelt down to pay their respects, and said: "Long live, I summoned the ministers to enter the palace late at night. I don't know if there is anything important to tell me?" "It was a meeting of our four lords. In order to prevent any shocking comments, I specially summoned you here." Yunlu said slowly, word by word. He has always been fluent in speech, and I don't know how many times he has considered this sentence. Just say it.Seeing Ertai and Zhang Tingyu staring at each other in astonishment, Yunli said in a heavy tone, "Long Live Yongzheng has already been the guest of honor—you will know when you come in and take a look. We haven't moved anything here." After hearing this, Zhang Tingyu felt his legs go weak Trembling, they glanced blankly at Ertai, and saw that his face was also as white as a ghost—they didn't dare to say or think about anything, and tiptoed into the palace like thieves, and they were suddenly shocked like wooden sculptures and clay sculptures. Beside the high threshold is a pool of blood, along the speckled blood stains, there is a female corpse lying on the ground, her eyebrows are frowned, her face is as beautiful as life, the corners of her mouth are slightly raised, her face is full of tears, it seems that she cried before she died one game.She had wounds on her chest, but there were no blood spots on the ground.Nothing else in the temple was disturbed.Only a seat was overturned on the ground, and on the table was a purple-red pill, which was about the size of a walnut and could be identified at a glance as the "Nine Turns Returning Pill" refined by Taoism.The scene in front of the imperial couch was even more astonishing. Yongzheng was still sitting on the couch and was dead. The dripping spots in front of the imperial couch were covered with blood stains, congealed into blood scabs.Emperor Yongzheng had a knife wound under his chin, with a scratch about one minute deep, and a knife wound on the back of his shoulder, which was stabbed in.But the strange thing is that the dagger, the murder weapon, was tightly held in Yongzheng's own hand, and it went straight into his heart!As if in a dream, the two of them leaned closer and looked down at the emperor who had met him with a smile that day. There was no look of panic or anger in his brows, his lips were slightly parted, as if he was still talking before he died, and his wry smile was on his face. Eyes closed.Zhang Tingyu tried his best to hold his breath and calm himself down.When he looked closely, he saw that Yongzheng's left hand was tightly clenched, but he didn't dare to break it. He took a candle and lit it, only to see that he was holding a long-lived stone lock in his hand.Zhang Tingyu was frowning and pondering why he couldn't explain it, Ertai exclaimed softly at the side of the case: "Hengchen, come and see!" Zhang Tingyu hurriedly walked over holding a candle, only to see a few words written in blood on the Qingyu case: Don't make it difficult for this girl, give her a good burial! Both of them are powerful ministers who serve Yongzheng every day, and they can tell at a glance that this handwriting is indeed the last handwriting written by Emperor Yongzheng dipped in blood with his fingers! "Death!" Ertai murmured softly, but when he looked at Zhang Tingyu, Zhang Tingyu gritted his teeth and shook his head, "You must not speak out." He pointed at the elixir with his finger and said nothing.The two of them winked and walked out of the hall together.Zhang Tingyu said to the four idiots standing outside the palace like a prince: "Please enter the palace to talk—Gao Wuyong guards this door, no one is allowed to eavesdrop, regardless of the palace guards." The four princes filed in one by one, avoiding the female corpse as if they were afraid of disturbing the dead, and followed the two prime ministers carefully to stand in the southwest corner of the hall.Zhang Tingyu's eyes danced faintly in the candlelight, and he said after a long time: "Your lords, everyone must have carefully read the situation here. It is obvious that this concubine killed the king. But the emperor is sage and righteous, and he has a blood edict that does not allow it to be difficult. Therefore, the here Not only can things not be studied in depth, but they can’t be publicized." He said, his tone has become extremely serious, "We are all people who have read the history books, and this is the critical moment for the survival of the country. Ting Yu thought that the first priority is to obey the first emperor. Last order, Xingye went to the Qianqing Palace to dismantle the edict to pass on the throne, and the new king will have everything to rely on. Otherwise, there may be misfortune!" After hearing this, Yun Lu said: "What the prime minister said is very true. But read the edict as usual, and call The kings of Qi and Baylor, do you want to separate the meetings and gather at the Qianqing Palace to announce the edict?" "It can't be like this." Ertai's face was as cold as a layer of frost, "This is an extraordinary change. Rituals have rules I also have the right, but now I can only follow the right. Now let’s seal the main hall of the Xinghua Pavilion, and the guards will imprison the eunuchs and palace ladies here. Waiting for the new king to be positioned, everything will be handled according to the will." When everything is agreed upon, it's time to pay Yinchu.The seven princes and nobles rushed back to the Forbidden City on horseback.At this moment, Zhang Tingyu felt a pain between his thighs.When I touched it, the mule's back had already stained my clothes with blood. When I saw Ertai, I gritted my teeth when I got on the horse.But he said nothing.When everyone saw them get on their horses and let go of the reins, dozens of horses immediately disappeared into the cold, windy and moonlit night together with their guards.