Chapter 20 The twentieth chapter of Empress Xian's words to supress the inner palace and Emperor Ming severely punish eunuchs and slaves

It was already midnight when Kangxi returned to Da Nei from Niujie Mosque.This night of fierce fighting, I came to command in person, and I handled it very well. Although I was exhausted and exhausted, I was extremely excited.Not feeling sleepy at all, he told Zhang Wanqiang: "Prepare the sedan chair. I will drive to Chuxiu Palace tonight. It is said that the noble concubine Niu Hulu will also go." Zhang Wanqiang hurriedly agreed, and went out to make arrangements. The emperor was lucky that Hershey was not asleep yet, and he was sitting under the lamp playing cards by himself. Hearing that the emperor arrived in the middle of the night, he hurriedly put on makeup to greet him.

Kangxi said with a smile on his face, "I won the lottery tonight, so I'm so anxious if I don't talk to someone! After speaking, he took the queen's hand and entered the palace. After a while, the noble concubine Niuhu and Lu also came to see the emperor and the queen." After speaking, he knelt down and saluted. Kangxi nodded slightly and said with a smile: "Get up. " "Long live, what good have you got tonight? Tell the concubines to hear it, and we will be happy too." The queen hurriedly ordered someone to bring the ginseng soup to Kangxi.Kangxi took a sip.Then he recounted the farce at the Niujie Mosque just now vividly.The imperial concubine Niu Hu Shilu's face turned pale when she heard this, and then she covered her mouth and laughed.

The Queen said nothing.After listening to Kangxi quietly, he pondered for a while before laughing: "Long Live Lord, 'Those who know their fate love their bodies', even a small family pays attention to this, not to mention that the emperor is the king of ten thousand chariots, so it is better to take less risk in the future. Just send a general for such a thing. This is one of them." "Oh? There's another one?" The queen looked left and right to see how many court ladies and eunuchs were still serving at the entrance of the palace, then waved her sleeves and said: "You all step down, leaving only Mo Ju to serve. "

Mo Ju is the family servant brought by the queen from her natal family, she is absolutely reliable, after listening to the queen's order, she squatted down and said "yes", and then went out to urge everyone to avoid it.Standing outside the hall and waiting. "You're too careful." Kangxi smiled when he saw people retreating, "Could it be that there are unreliable people here?" "The second thing I want to say is this. Long live just said very carefully, and I listened to every word. Since the thief surnamed Yang knew that the emperor was coming to Niujie, he should have left without hesitation. Why? Still want to set fire? Isn’t that bold?”

Kangxi stood up vigorously. "Huh? 'Raising fire as a sign' was agreed in Qianqing Palace, why did the thieves know so quickly!" Kangxi stared at the outside of the hall with piercing eyes, gritted his teeth and said: "You are right, you think so It’s also very subtle—there are indeed spies in the palace.” Seeing that Kangxi was startled and angry, the empress quickly got up and smiled and said, "Long live, why bother to make such a big fuss? Fortunately, the thieves did not succeed in their tricks, so we are aware of it. Let the concubines and concubines be slow about this matter." Check slowly."

"No! Come, pass the decree, call Zhang Wanqiang and Xiao Maozi from the Hall of Mental Cultivation!" Mo Ju promised to send someone outside the door.But the queen hurriedly stopped her: "Long live, aren't you tired today? It's already past midnight, and you still want to ask questions here? Besides, the gates of the palace are locked. This alarm will be recorded again." "Record the file. The sooner this kind of thing is dealt with, the better. The palace gate is locked, and the few people who know it are better. It is better to spread the word, and anyone who dares to speak nonsense will be sent to the House of Internal Affairs to be locked up!"

"The emperor is holy, but it's late at night, and the concubine is afraid that he will be exhausted for a long time!" "Hey! It's not easy for me to be an emperor. According to the Han people, you and I are barbarians. What the emperor of the Ming Dynasty could do with a little effort, I have to spend half a tenth of my effort to do it!" "Yes, Long Live is telling the truth." "Now it's an eventful time for the country. If I don't have to do everything myself, I will tell my subordinates to do it. Don't worry, and it is easy to cause trouble. Mr. Wu wrote a letter to me, saying that we can't rule the people, we can't withdraw the vassal, we can't gather money, we can't. Talking about military matters—this is quite true! My treasury is so empty, and I still need to spend 20 million silver to support those three living treasures. How can there be such an unlucky emperor in ancient and modern times, but, to calm the people, gather wealth, and military affairs, We have to start by being close to the people, I am not close to the people, and I stay in the Qianqing Palace every day, not to mention better than Tang Taizong, I am afraid that even Song Huizong and Song Qinzong are not as good!"

Kangxi was expressing his emotions in a long speech, Zhang Wanqiang and Xiao Maozi ran in panting, kowtowed to the emperor and empress one after the other, and greeted the concubine, before asking: "Long live Lord, the slaves are here, I don't know what's the purpose?" Kangxi said to the queen holding a teacup: "You are the master of the six palaces, tell them something, I want to rest for a while." "Yes!" The queen agreed, and sat diagonally opposite Kangxi and asked, "Zhang Wanqiang, the emperor is discussing matters in the Qianqing Palace today, which of you two is on duty?"

Zhang Wanqiang hurriedly knelt down and replied: "If you answer the words of the master and empress, it is the servant who is on duty." "Apart from the ministers summoned by Long Live, who else is present in the palace?" "There are also Liu Wei, Huang Sicun, Chang Baozhu, and Chen Ziying. Well, there are twenty-four in total. Ah, by the way, Wang Zhenbang from the Wenhua Palace has also been here." Kangxi couldn't make sense of what Zhang Wanqiang said, so he interjected and asked: "I said that the fire will be used as a sign, and the twelve mosques will do it together. Have you heard this?"

Only then did Zhang Wanqiang understand the emperor's intentions, and hurriedly kowtowed and replied, "I don't dare to say that I have heard the people around me, but I must have heard quite a few. At that time, the master discussed this matter with the ministers for a while before he sent it to the court." Lord Tuhai did it—Long Live God didn’t ask the servants to avoid him.” Zhang Wanqiang was talking, but the queen suddenly became angry: "The emperor speaks here, but the other side goes away. Is this plausible? Zhang Wanqiang, how do you get this job?" Although the voice is not high, but the voice is sharp.Even the little boy next to him turned pale with fright, knelt down and bowed his head, not daring to show his breath.Hearing the queen's reprimand, Zhang Wanqiang kowtowed repeatedly to say "yes", but was speechless.

Seeing that he was panicking, Kangxi breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Zhang Wanqiang, I also know that you have always been careful, but today this loophole is a big one, do you know that?" "The servant deserves to die! I beg the master to punish me!" "It's not just punishment. In your opinion, who spread the news?" "This..." Beads of sweat rolled down Zhang Wanqiang's forehead, and he said after a while, "I really can't figure it out at the moment, so I dare not speak falsely to deceive the master." Xiao Maozi suddenly interjected: "Master, Madam, I know all these people. According to my servant, there will be no one else except Wang Zhenbang, Huang Sicun and Ah San who set the fire in the imperial teahouse." Zhang Wanqiang heard this, and hurriedly said: "Little Maozi , This is not a joke, it will kill the head!" This statement scared the little Maozi so much that he dared not speak. Unexpectedly, the queen slapped the table: "Zhang Wanqiang, he wants to take care of the master, you stop him—how do you know that the master is about to wrong someone?" "Zha——" Zhang Wanqiang trembled in shock, and said in a trembling voice, "This slave is confused, this slave deserves to die!" "Humph"!From tomorrow onwards, stop serving in the Hall of Mental Cultivation and go back to the Palace of Compassion and Ning! " Kangxi knew in his heart that going back to the Palace of Compassion and Ning to wait for the Empress Dowager was not regarded as punishment, but he was sent back.Not only himself, but even the empress dowager's face is not good-looking.But the queen was furious, and she had to save face for her, so she said to Zhang Wanqiang and Xiao Maozi: "You two go out first!" Zhang Wanqiang and Xiao Maozi got up, stepped out of the hall with trembling legs, In the courtyard, he knelt anxiously, waiting for his release. Kangxi turned his face around, saw the queen was full of anger, and persuaded her with a smile: "I can't see that you are a housekeeper, you are really amazing!" "Your Majesty, don't forgive them easily this time. If you can't keep your family together, you can't govern the country and the world." "Well, of course what you said is good, but Zhang Wanqiang cannot be punished right now. I have thought about it. The leak of the news this time is not because the eunuchs tried to imitate their tongues, but someone deliberately spread it. How can Zhang Wanqiang prevent it? Only these two people can do things. If the old country is not destroyed, you must not harm yourself. The queen should spare Zhang Wanqiang." "Yes, then alright, Mo Ju, let them come in!" "tie!" In a blink of an eye, the Double Ninth Festival came.Biyuntian, Huanghuadi, and the cool water on Danfeng Mountain arouse people's desire to climb high.The literati in the capital carried pots and wine one after another, and climbed high to enjoy the autumn.The winter affairs in the palace are prepared earlier than the folks, repairing the heated kang, setting up the fireplace, and the people in the upper and lower classes are very busy.On this day, Xiao Maozi got up early, wiped his face with cold water, and rushed to the main room of the Hall of Mental Cultivation.Kangxi has woken up.He was busy waiting for the emperor to get up and put on clothes, and stood back with his hands down.In the past few months, it seemed that Kangxi didn't like Xiaomaozi very much, and he would show him off every now and then, so he was extra careful in serving him. Dressed neatly, Kangxi took his little boy, first went to the Qin'an Hall of the Hougong to burn incense and worship, then went to the Cining Palace to greet the Empress Dowager, and then went to Yangxingzhai to meet Mo Luo, the Minister of the Ministry of War who was newly transferred to Beijing. Zhu Guozhi and Fan Chengmo.Only then did Kangxi order to drive to Chuxiu Palace to have breakfast with the queen. Kangxi said while eating: "The few ministers summoned today, Mo Luo and Zhu Guozhi are nothing more than that, but for some reason, Fan Chengmo has a sad expression on his face." The queen paused and asked, "Did Long Live ask him?" "No," Kangxi said with a smile, "this is just my suspicion. He will go back to the south tomorrow, and it's normal to love his family and his master." Kangxi was startled, and then laughed, "There is no need to worry too much. Fan Chengmo is an upright gentleman. Being loyal and good for generations is different from Hong Chengchou and Qian Qianyi." The Queen was about to speak, but the little Maozi who was standing beside him suddenly smiled and said, "Long Live Lord just asked the master about the Empress, but the servant knows a little about the festival!" "Huh? What do you know?" "Master Fan ran into a tiger a few days ago—" "Nonsense! It's not the beginning of the founding of the country, and there are still tigers in the capital?" "Really. Master Fan lives in the Jade Emperor Temple, very remote. I heard that the local hunters found a nest of tiger cubs in Xishan a few days ago. The tigress went crazy and went down the mountain day and night to find trouble. If he didn't want to, he ran into Mr. Fan's garden, killed one of Mr. Fan's horses, and asked his servants to surround him and beat him to death. "Is he unhappy because of this?" Kangxi's face was a little unhappy.Xiao Maozi didn't notice it, and went on to say: "Later, Mrs. Fan asked Monk Shuiyue to make a fortune, and the monk only said one sentence: the big worms in the mountains are free to fight, and the big worms inside the door are not to be provoked-Master Fan came back , I must be unhappy when I know about it." "What is the 'big bug inside the door'?" the queen asked. "I heard that Fujian is called 'Min'. The word Min is a worm in the door, not a worm in the door—Master Fan is going to Fujian to work..." Before he finished speaking, Kangxi turned around abruptly, and slapped the bastard on the face with a "slap" sound!He staggered Xiao Maozi, staggered back a few steps, fell to his knees with a plop, and kowtowed repeatedly.The queen and the surrounding eunuchs and court ladies were all listening with great interest, when they suddenly saw Kangxi getting angry, they were all stunned and their faces turned pale. "You bastard! Where did you learn all this nonsense?" "Yes, slave bastard!" Xiao Maozi's face was flushed with half of his face, trembling all over, "The slave is a bitch. But the slave is telling the truth!" Kangxi sneered and said: "Fan Chengmo came to give his majesty's speech, reluctant to give up, with a sad face. I just talked casually with the queen, and you just said such a big thing! You are called the internal supervisor, and you know that you slandered the ministers? Master Fan is still on his way, you slave dare to slander him, huh?" "I dare not speak ill of Master Fan. It is really what Monk Shuiyue said!" Kangxi was so angry that his hands were shaking, and he said to the queen: "Listen, what is the rule! I am talking to the queen, why do you come to interrupt, come on! Drag him out and whip him a hundred times to see if he dares Talk back!" Seeing the guards standing still, Kangxi became even angrier, "What are you still doing? Drag them out!" Now, the eunuchs guarding the door didn't dare to be negligent, and set up the teary-eyed little Maozi and left.Xiao Maozi glanced at Zhang Wanqiang who was standing next to the queen with an aggrieved face.Zhang Wanqiang didn't feel his heart soften, so he bowed and smiled and said, "Long live, how about the slaves go to torture?" "You don't need to go-look at me. I don't know the tricks of your eunuchs? Taizu Taizong has already set the family law. There are many things between me and the queen. I didn't care about governance, and you are getting more and more arrogant. Presumptuous! How can it go on like this?——Send an edict to the Department of Punishment, and make a plaque of Emperor Taizu's edict about "inside prison concubines and others interfering with court officials and beheaded" and put them up under the corridors of the palaces! "All the people knew that Kangxi was using a young man to do it today, and everyone was terrified. At this time, the torture had already been carried out outside, and the sound of whips and people howling came in.Xiao Maozi cried out in pain, crying for help: "Master, master, mistress—oh, my slave doesn't dare anymore! Ouch!" The queen couldn't bear to hear that, and while adding food to Kangxi, she laughed and said: "What the Lord Long Live said is true, and the lesson is correct. But this little guy has always been diligent in his job, and for this little affection, a few lessons will be fine. Besides, being not too big or too small today is also a matter of solar terms, it would be much worth it if the emperor is angry." "Okay then, I'll take thirty lashes off him for your sake! Ask him to return from the Hall of Mental Cultivation to wait in the imperial tea room——Zhang Wanqiang, did you see that? That's what it looks like, tell the eunuchs to pay attention to each of them. Those who make irresponsible remarks about government affairs and leak palace secrets, I will deal with them like a little boy! I will never forgive them lightly. After speaking, I stood up, and walked away without saying hello to the queen. On the second day of the night, when Kangxi finished approving the memorial and returned to the Hall of Mental Cultivation, Zhang Wanqiang silently unloaded the court beads for Kangxi, except for his robes, and waited on him half lying on the kang, bowing cautiously when he was about to retreat, but Kangxi stopped him: "Zhang Wanqiang, have you ever heard the saying 'A companion is like a tiger'?" Seeing Kangxi's bad words, Zhang Wanqiang thought that he was looking for his own business again, and he didn't know what to do in a panic, and he stuttered: "Where, where, no, no, the little boy is because he doesn't make progress, and he is angry with the Long Live Lord. If he is not killed, he will By the grace of the lord." Kangxi saw that there was no one around, and suddenly laughed happily: "Ha, Zhang Wanqiang, you are so scared? I am a dragon, not a tiger!" "Long Live Lord, do you mean...?" "What I mean is, get some golden sore medicine and send it to Xiao Maozi quietly. See if he can come. If he can, bring him to see me. But don't let others see." Zhang Wanqiang opened his mouth wide in surprise, and it took a long time before he tentatively said: "Long live Shengming, I have been beaten hard today. I'm afraid I can't come if I can come. If I can come, it's easy to hide it elsewhere, from the Hall of Mental Cultivation." No one can hide it!" "Well, you're right. Then, take me there!" "Ah?" Zhang Wanqiang was surprised again, seeing Kangxi's serious face, not like joking, he hurriedly said: "Zha——". Kangxi stood up and walked out of the palace gate, and said loudly: "Zhang Wanqiang, I am upset, take me for a walk in the palace!" At this time, the third watch had just arrived, half the moon was hanging in the sky, trembling and appearing and disappearing in the dark clouds flying fast, and the Forbidden City was also completely silent. Turning around a few dark alleys, I saw a row of low houses in the distance, and heard Xiao Maozi's intermittent groans.Kangxi stopped and asked Zhang Wanqiang: "There will be no outsiders here, right?" "Master, he just got beaten today, who would want to mess with him? Long live, don't worry!" Then he stepped forward and tapped on the window lattice, and whispered: "Little boy, little boy, little boy!" Xiao Maozi received seventy leather whips, and his back was beaten to pieces.He was a smash hit person, but now he is beaten more often to fulfill his wishes, and less distressed.Today's unforeseen misfortune wiped away all his face, he was in pain and didn't dare to complain, so he limped back to his original residence in the royal tea room, and when he heard someone calling him, he stretched his arms and raised his head to ask He said, "Is that Eunuch Zhang? The door is not locked, and it will open as soon as you push it. Please come in by yourself - ouch!" Kangxi heard that there was no one inside, so he signaled Zhang Wanqiang to watch the wind outside, took the medicine for sores, and gently pushed the door open.Under the solitary lamp, Xiao Maozi lay sideways on the bed with his eyes closed, his eyes were red and swollen, and his face was burnt yellow.Xiao Maozi didn't open his eyes, he patted the edge of the bed with his hands and said, "Elder-in-law, please sit down. If you think it's dirty, there is a stool over there. Hey, how can this place compare to the Hall of Mental Cultivation——ah, Your Majesty!" His eyes widened, and he froze on the bed.