Chapter 38 Section five

After Prince Hui and the others retreated, the empress dowagers of the two palaces continued to discuss with the Minister of Military Aircraft the unfinished business.First of all, someone must be appointed to carry out the decree, but the name is different. For Sushun, of course it is "supervising and beheading", but for Zaiyuan and Duanhua, because they are ordered to commit suicide, they are only called "delivering the decree". "It's better to send Renshou to supervise the execution." The candidate for Empress Dowager Cixi coincided with Prince Gong's plan. "I think so too." Prince Gong said, "The Ministry of Punishment needs to send someone to take care of her. Zai's age is fine. Please order!"

"Who is Zai Ling?" "He is the right servant of the Ministry of Punishment." "Okay." Empress Dowager Cixi continued, "Let Miansen deliver the decree on the side of the clan mansion." "Yes! Then please send Prince Youzong Zhengsu Huafeng of the Clan Mansion to pass on the decree, with Huafeng as the main and Miansen as the deputy." The Empress Dowager Cixi was already quite familiar with the imperial court and the Eight Banners' system. Upon hearing Prince Gong's suggestion, she immediately understood his intention for this arrangement.Zongzheng was in charge of the "housework" of the clan of the Eight Banners, the Zongzheng on the left and right of the clan's mansion, the Xianglan Banner was first stationed in Xicheng, and it was under the management of Zongzheng, so it was necessary to send Huafeng.Moreover, after Prince Taizong's eldest son Hauge, Prince Yi's status is relatively detached to Prince Yi Zaiyuan.

After all this was arranged, it was time to talk about Jing Shou, "Let's avoid the punishment of the sixth son-in-law!" Empress Dowager Cixi ordered. If so, how can it be convincing?So instead, Prince Gong refused.The result of the compromise was that "he was dismissed immediately, and Garn remained the duke and was at the rank of forehead, so that he would not be dispatched."His crime has also been changed to "keep silent as a relative of the state". The charges against Mu Yin, Kuang Yuan, Du Han, and Jiao Youying were that "Yu Zaiyuan and others had seized the political position and were unable to fight for it." The most unlucky thing was Mu Yin, who believed that he "had been on the military aircraft minister for a long time, and his shift was ahead of others." , the circumstances are particularly serious", he was dismissed from his post and sent to the army, but he was also given grace, from "sent to Xinjiang" to "sent to the military station to serve as atonement", and the rest were "dismissed immediately, and graced to prevent them from being dispatched".

After the discussion, the four of Prince Gong and the others returned to the Military Aircraft Department. There were already many officials from various yamen, poking their heads out to spy on them. They all came to inquire about news.It is expected that Sushun will not escape death, but Zaiyuan and Duanhua's plot is not as serious as Sushun's, and his identity is the prince who was granted the title, or there will be grace from the "superior".As long as they don't die, there is hope of recovery. Those who directly or indirectly rely on them as Olympic aid, or those who have other interests, can take the first step to plan for themselves.

Of course, King Gong knew what they were coming for, so he gave the order to be vigilant. King Chun, as the Minister of Internal Guards led by Zhenghuang Banner, sent guards from Qianqing Gate to guard the military plane between Longzong Gate and Inner Right Gate, keeping away the idlers and others from a distance. . At that time, Prince Rui Renshou, because he knew in advance that he would have an errand, stayed at the military plane and did not leave. Minister Miansen of the Ministry of Punishment and Zai Ling, the right servant, were on standby in the South Study Room west of Qianqing Gate. Prince Gong sent someone to invite them Come, convey the will, ask them to split up the work immediately, and must return before sunset.

So Renshou, Miansen and Zailing went to the Zongren Mansion in Hubu Street together.Hua Feng, Prince of Right Zong Zhengsu, had been waiting for quite a long time, Mian Sen told the story, and the four of them closed the door and secretly discussed the steps to implement the decree. Prince Rui Renshou is getting old, his anger is dissipated, and he handles things tactfully. First of all, he said: "I am the supervisor, so I don't need to meet Su Liu face to face. I will wait in the official hall of the half alley first. After the matter is over, I will verify my integrity." It’s time to return. You can discuss it! It’s none of my business here, I’ll go back and take a sip first.” Then, he yawned, stood up and bowed to everyone, and called Zai Ling’s alias and said: “He Feng, get ready, send me a letter. See you in the middle of the alley."

When Renshou returned to the mansion to smoke opium, Zai Ling rushed back to the Ministry of Criminal Justice. The head of the "Prison Hall" in charge of the prison, and the doctor of the "Supervisory Division" in charge of arresting the escaped bannermen, had already ordered the executioners and the guards. After serving for a long time, Xuan came to the hall, handed over the errand, and went to the clan mansion together again. At that time, Zaiyuan, Duanhua and Sushun had been separated, and the brothers Duan and Su were moved from the left division to the right division.Zai Ling had already made up his mind on the way, when he got there, he would go to see Sushun alone.

Since the relocation, Su knew that something was wrong, and was alone in an empty house, helpless. His only hope was to survive the day of the enthronement ceremony on the ninth day of October, and he would have the hope of immortality. Watching the shadows of the sun disappear inch by inch, I really feel that the days are like years.Because of this, he was so nervous that he lost his normal state, and when there was an occasional noise, he immediately broke out in a cold sweat.However, there were so many rats in that empty room, and they ran around at night, which made him unable to sleep all night, and only lay down in his clothes to take a nap when he was too tired during the day.

When Zai Ling came, he was leaning against the wall and dozed off. When he heard the sound of the lock and key, he woke up in shock, opened his eyes wide, and asked in surprise and joy, "Hefeng, what are you doing here?" Zai Ling was transferred from Acting Minister of Rites to Minister of Punishment after Sushun was arrested, so when he asked this question, Zai Ling didn't say anything, but just called out: "Uncle Six!" Zailing is also a clan, one generation younger than Sushun, so he is called "Sixth Uncle".This is a very common thing, but at the end of the road, at the moment of life and death, Sushun, just such a title, is enough to warm his heart and move him unceasingly.

"It's hard for you to come to see me!" Sushun's eyes were red, "Hefeng, tell me, isn't Gong Lao Liu's method a little too ruthless?" "Uncle Six, life and death are a matter of fate, don't take it to heart. Let's go!" Sushun became suspicious: "Where are you going?" "The cabinet is in a meeting, please go and defend." "Okay!" Sushun was very excited, and immediately looked heroic again, "Just let me talk! In the past few years, no one knows my painstaking efforts except the Emperor Daxing, so I will tell everyone."

After finishing speaking, he strode away, but Zai Ling grabbed him again: "Sixth Uncle, wait a minute, if you have anything to say, do it now!" "Hey! What?" "It's not easy for me to come in." Zai Ling hurriedly said again, "If you have something to tell the family, I can take it for you." It turned out that there was no other intention, and Sushun's nervousness disappeared, "'Fu Shang'? Humph," he sneered, "The house has been copied, so why say 'Fu Shang'?" "Liu Xu, this is not the time to complain. If you have nothing to say, then go!" "I have something to say," Sushun nodded repeatedly, "What happened to my two concubines?" "It's released. I don't know where it is." "Please send someone to look for them. My two little ones are at odds with each other. Please enlighten them. We must help each other and live a good life. My two children must be taught to work hard. Everything is wrong. Inferior grades, only reading is higher'." "I'll definitely bring it with me." Zai Ling then asked, "Anything else?" What he meant was that Sushun might have hidden property, and he could find out where it was hidden. Sushun thought for a while, shook his head and said, "There's nothing else to say!" "Then let's go!" Zai Ling was ahead and hurried away, Sushun followed closely, passed through a narrow alley, turned left, and there was a large yard with more than a dozen guards standing, some with knives, some Holding iron rulers, some with ropes, and a small cart without a roof, a strong and big yellow ox has been yoke. Su Shun's face changed drastically when he saw it, he looked around nervously, and shouted loudly: "Zai Ling! Zai Ling!" Zai Ling had gone nowhere, and only an official came out and greeted Sushun and said, "Zhongtang, please get on the bus!" "Where?" Sushun asked angrily. "Caishikou, of course." "What?" Sushun jumped up, his eyes were as red as fire, as if he was desperately looking for someone. That official—the head of the prison hall, nuzzled his mouth, and a group of guards rushed up, hurriedly took off Sushun's hat, pushed him into the car, and held him tightly together with his seat. Bie Zhu Sushun didn't say a word, just closed his eyes, his face was ashen, but he still held his head high, with a feeling of looking down on everything. The head of the prison hall was a step-by-step official who had never entered the ranks. After more than 20 years in the North and South of the Ministry of Criminal Justice, I saw a lot of prisoners who were in prison. Get paralyzed, this is the best kind of cooking.Some grievances are soaring, jumping wildly, and it's okay to vent that energy.The most difficult thing to serve is the resentment in the heart, the deep silence, before the head hits the ground, I don’t know what tricks to vent the anger, so I have to take precautions. Judging by Sushun's appearance, he is the most difficult type to serve.What was especially troublesome was that the hall official, Mr. Zhao, had already ordered Su Shun to be unruly, to prevent him from swearing, but not to stuff anything in his mouth.When stuffed, the cheeks will bulge, and the common people watching the excitement must think that he is trying to seal his mouth, which will inevitably lead to many nonsensical rumors. This is not a good job!The master thought about it, and the only way was to trick him, so when those fan servants were tied up for Sushun, he kept yelling: "Tie up a little, loosen up a little!" In fact, he had already told the fanboys, No matter what he says, don't bother, just do whatever you want.What he said was just intentional, so that Su Shun could see his feelings. After tying it up, he walked up to Sushun again, holding a piece of chestnut the size of an egg in his hand, and shouted: "Su Zhongtang!" Sushun opened his eyes and did not speak. "You old Mingjian!" he said, "I was sent by destiny, and I couldn't help myself. The hall official told me that I was afraid that you would lose your temper on the old road, so I asked you to use this thing. Why bother? It's uncomfortable to stuff it in your mouth! I just It’s useless to be bold and disobedient. But I also have feelings for you, you always have to be sympathetic to us, this way, don’t shout out loudly. Otherwise, you will send me to be disobedient!” Sushun still didn't answer, looked at the piece of chestnut wood, and closed his eyes as usual. "Let's go!" The principal strode out of the side gate of the clan's mansion, stepped on a horse, and the ox cart was rolled and guarded by the guards. He crossed the Nanyu River Bridge from Dongchenggen of Zhengyang Gate, exited Chongwen Gate, and walked along Luomashi Street. , Go straight to West Market. Once Sushun leaves, Prince Su Huafeng will take care of Zaiyuan and Duanhua's affairs.He and Miansen have already discussed the steps and split up the work. Miansen drove into the palace to receive the Ming Dynasty's edict, Huafeng prepared a feast and sent someone to invite Zaiyuan and Duanhua. When they met Huafeng, Zaiyuan called him third uncle, and Duanhua called him third elder brother, their voices were a little choked. "Sit, sit!" Hua Feng ushered them into the guest seats, and said calmly, "I never thought I would be asked to pick up the 'You Zongzheng' errand! I have always wanted to see you two, but there have been many things these days, and finally I can meet you today." Take some time to talk to the two of you. Come on, have a quick drink for two minutes!" Zaiyuan and Duanhua thanked each other repeatedly, brought the wine glass to their lips to touch, Zaiyuan quickly put down the glass and asked, "Third Uncle, the cabinet meeting is over, what do you say?" "It hasn't been decided yet. It depends on the meaning of the above." "Boss?" Zai Yuan immediately asked again: "What does Sixth Uncle Gong mean?" "Who knows? I haven't heard from him, so it's inconvenient for me to inquire." "Let us talk!" Duanhua was still so reckless, "Could it be that he was convicted just because he was ignorant? How can it be convincing?" Huafeng smiled and didn't answer, but just tried to persuade him to drink, and then brought the topic to the weather, from the late autumn weather to the red leaves in the Western Mountains and the many joys between autumn and winter.Zaiyuan and Duanhua were as anxious as they were roasting, but the aristocrats under their banners valued calmness and elegance, so they had to force their composure at this time and deal with it with great effort. After finally finding an opportunity, Huafeng mentioned the enthronement ceremony on the ninth day of October, Zaiyuan hurriedly seized the gap in the conversation, and shouted: "Three narrations!" , look, can we make an excerpt to congratulate you?" Hua Feng understood his intentions. This booklet was called Kouhe, but it was actually begging for mercy. Up to now, it was useless at all, but there was no need to stop his interest, so he slowly replied: "During the funeral, there is no congratulatory booklet. But , your situation is different, so there is no need to have any scruples about etiquette." "Third Uncle, do you agree with this statement?" "It's not impossible." "Since that's the case," Zai Yuan left his seat and greeted him, "I have to ask my third uncle to help me!" "Please get up, please get up!" Hua Feng hurriedly left his seat to help him, "I'm afraid I won't be able to exert myself." "As long as the third uncle nods, it will be enough. Please ask the third uncle to give me a good hand, and write a down-to-earth note. I will use this as an embellishment pen." As he said, he dug out a diamond-encrusted, dazzling flower from his purse. Gold watch, hand it over. "You keep it for now, wait until I find someone. But..." "What?" Zaiyuan asked extremely uneasy. "Wait a minute, wait a moment." Hua Feng made a calm and calm gesture, "We'll talk later." It didn't take long to wait, a person came in, quietly walked to Hua Feng's side, and softly reminded: "My lord, it's almost time!" "Oh!" Huafeng took out his watch slowly to have a look, and asked at the same time, "Has Mr. Mian come back?" "coming!" "Okay!" Hua Feng stood up and waved to Zai Yuan: "You two follow me!" Zaiyuan and Duanhua, full of doubts and fears, followed Huafeng to a remote courtyard with heavy steps. When they entered the door, Miansen stood and waited solemnly with a group of officers and pen notes. Just as Zaiyuan was about to speak, Miansen cupped his hands and said, "There is a decree. Kneel down and listen, both of you!" So Zaiyuan and Duanhua knelt facing north, and the two who had been ordered to deliver the decree glanced at each other. OK," read out loud. The first paragraph is the announcement of the charges, and the second paragraph is the meeting to convict. When they read the words "Lingchi execution", Zaiyuan and Duanhua all trembled at the same time, unable to kneel properly.Someone wanted to go up and hold him hostage, but Hua Feng waved his hand and stopped. Seeing this, Mian Sen didn't need to be too rigid. He read Cao Yuying's meticulously structured article in a correct and precise manner. As soon as his mouth tightened, he read it like water. Yuan and Duanhua could hear clearly. This is the most important part. Miansen raised his voice and said: "I think that Zaiyuan and others belong to the clan, and they have committed a felony, so they should abandon the market. How can we not shed tears? But Zaiyuan and others all before and after Being domineering and domineering is really a conspiracy to endanger the country. They are all sinners of the ancestors. They are not guilty of bullying me. In Zaiyuan and others, they do not think that they are ministers who take care of life. Even if they do a lot of evil, they invite forgiveness. , Huang Kao did not have such a decree. If the crime is not severely punished, why should the vice emperor be entrusted with the heavy responsibility? And how to order the law and discipline to show it to the world? That is, according to the plan of the king and ministers, they will be executed immediately. It is a true crime. But the country has the rules of discussing nobles and relatives, and the amount can never be reduced. I am in the midst of nothing to borrow, and I am exempted from the market. Both Zaiyuan and Duanhua wrote gifts and ordered them to send them out from Jingjing. Prince Huafeng and Shangshu Miansen of the Ministry of Justice immediately went to the clan's mansion to deliver a decree ordering them to take care of the state from Jingzhou, and it's not because I have personal interests for Zaiyuan and Duanhua." The following is about Sushun's execution from Ling Chi, and Jia En's change to Ju Lijue. Mian Sen stopped reading and just shouted: "Thank you!" Can Zaiyuan and Duanhua still hear his words clearly?The two burst into tears and burst into tears.Huafeng checked that it was all right, paused his feet, and said anxiously: "This is not the time to cry! Make up your mind, leave a few words, and I will make it better for your family members!" This statement finally had an effect. Zaiyuan wiped away his tears, kowtowed to Huafeng and said, "Third Uncle, I don't have a son, so I don't need to leave any words. I just ask Third Uncle to act on his behalf and say that Zaiyuan repents. The title of Prince Yi Please, be kind and keep it safe, and wait for the emperor to choose the worthy ones to inherit. If the title is changed again, how can I have the face to see my ancestors go underground?" He cried bitterly again. Duanhua didn't have a son either, so he stayed in a daze for a long time, and suddenly shouted: "I won't accept it even if I die!" "Fourth brother!" Hua Feng yelled sharply: "Up to now, you are still confused. Even though you have no descendants, don't you think about your relatives?" This is to warn him not to say "rebellious" words again, so as not to cause harm to his relatives.Duanhua didn't make a sound anymore, gritted his teeth and struggled to get up, then he went up to help him up with a stroke of a pen. At this time, Miansen was half coaxing and half threatening to deal with Zaiyuan, and finally managed to make him stand upright. He was also supported by two pens, and entered the empty room separately from Duanhua. If you are ordered to commit suicide, as usual, you can choose the method of death, but you can't hang the beam to take the poison, so the two empty rooms have the same layout, a white silk ribbon hanging on the beam, a stool underneath, and a tea table on the other. A bowl of poisoned wine was served, and an empty couch was next to it. Huafeng and Miansen waited for them to turn around and enter the house, then retreated quietly. At this time, only a few pen posts were left watching.Zaiyuan's legs were trembling, and he picked up the bowl of medicinal wine, but his hand shook so badly that he dropped his hand and broke the bowl with a thud. Zaiyuan was crying again, it was sobbing and sobbing, like the sad voice of a child daughter-in-law who has been greatly wronged and hid in a secluded place.At this time Miansen had already sent someone to check twice, to see that it was getting late and it was important to return to life, everyone couldn't help but feel a little anxious. So an impatient pen and post style, impatiently questioned, said loudly outside the window: "My lord, please hurry up! There will be no future, don't wait! The time is fine now, you just stretch your neck Go to heaven!" After saying this, he found that Zaiyuan straightened his chest and held his head up, as if he wanted to cheer up, pretending to be ashamed of death, but he took a step, and suddenly stopped moving, and took a pen waiting outside the window. Tie Shi, so anxious that he sighed and didn't know what to do. Just then, Miansen sent another person to inquire.Seeing Zaiyuan wandering and looking around, greedy for life and hating death, he also felt that the business was tricky and he had to think of a way early.So the two discussed it, and were going to report to the officer to "make an appointment" for Zaiyuan. If the person who is ordered to commit suicide refuses to obey orders readily, or if his life-loving will is so strong that he cannot kill himself, so that the officials in charge of the prison cannot return to his order, he can take decisive measures as usual.Before the Qing Dynasty entered the customs, in similar situations, bowstrings were often used to strangle people to death, but this became hanging, not "self-neck". Later, a jailer who had accumulated many years invented a method to use tissue paper pasted on windows, also known as leather paper, Cover the whole face, and spray sorghum wine on the ears, eyes, mouth, nose, etc. After a while, you will die. This method is called "opening and adding officials". Perhaps Zaiyuan had heard the plan outside the window, and actually took action himself. The people outside the window heard the sound and quickly peeked in, only to see him walking towards the stool tremblingly step by step, but his body was trembling, his legs were weak, and he couldn't help it. able to climb up. It was necessary to support him, the guard pushed the door straight in, walked up to him and said, "My lord, I will help you up!" Zaiyuan closed his eyes, let out a long sigh, stretched out his hand, let him lead him to step on the upper stool, holding the white silk snare with both hands, slowly put his head in. Standing on the ground, he opened his mouth wide and looked at Zai Yuan without a moment's notice. When he had just fallen into the trap, he suddenly realized that he immediately pulled out the square stool under his feet with extraordinary agility, and Zai Yuan's body Immediately, he fell down, his feet were in the air, his hands were drooping, and he was dangling like a pendulum.