Qianqing Palace, outside Dongnuan Pavilion.
Chongzhen looked in the direction of Ciqing Palace with his hands behind his back, his expression gloomy.
A eunuch actually extended his hand into my harem. He simply didn't know how to live or die.
After the anger, Chongzhen calmed down, but he was even more confused in his heart.
According to historical records, Chen Derun broke into Ciqing Palace after the fall of Wei Zhongxian. At that time, Chen Derun was so bold that he broke in while Queen Yi'an was bathing and wanted to dominate the palace.
As a result, Queen Yi'an resisted desperately and was discovered by others. Chen Derun did not succeed. Queen Yi'an told Chongzhen afterwards.
Emperor Chongzhen was eager to consolidate his throne and did not dare to kill Chen Derun, but sent him to Xiaoling to guard the tomb.
But how could it happen earlier now? Did he travel through time and cause the butterfly effect, or did it happen twice. This was the first time, and Queen Yi'an didn't tell Chongzhen?
In Kyoto in September, the night was as cold as water. Chongzhen stood quietly like this. The four sturdy eunuchs in front of him looked around vigilantly. The long knives in their hands shone coldly under the lanterns.
A quarter of an hour later, Wang Tiqian and Wei Zhongxian came and knelt on the ground. Chongzhen ignored them.
Another quarter of an hour later, Tian Ergeng and Xu Xianchun arrived.
"The commander of the Jinyi Guards, Tian Ergeng, and the commander-in-chief, Xu Xianchun, are here to see Your Majesty!"
Chongzhen didn't even look at the two people kneeling on the ground, nor did he speak.
The four of them looked confused. They were sleeping soundly when someone woke them up. When they heard that the emperor was looking for them, they rushed over without stopping.
Another quarter of an hour later, Fang Zhenghua came back, followed by a tightly bound man in civilian clothes.
"Your Majesty, Chen Derun has been captured!"
Tian Ergeng and Xu Xianchun, who were kneeling, were shocked when they heard it was Chen Derun. They knew the hobbies of this eunuch very well.
Now that the emperor is furious, it means that Chen Derun may have been molesting a certain empress in the harem, and the emperor knew about it.
But what does this have to do with the two of them? It’s good that the Jinyiwei are responsible for the security of the palace, but they are only responsible for the front court and peripheral security. What does the security of the harem have to do with them?
"Chen Derun, you are so brave!"
"Your Majesty, I just entered Ciqing Palace by mistake. I hope your Majesty will forgive me!"
"Enter by mistake? Haha..."
Chongzhen laughed angrily: "Are you saying that Queen Yi'an, my royal sister-in-law, is framing you? Or is she deceiving me?"
Wei Zhongxian, who was kneeling, whispered: "Your Majesty, maybe..."
"Shut up, did I ask you a question?"
Chongzhen shouted angrily, interrupted Wei Zhongxian's words, and continued: "Fang Zhenghua, drag this thief down and torture him, and make him explain all the crimes he committed. I allow you to use all means."
Fang Zhenghua grabbed Chen Derun and walked outside. A moment later, Chen Derun's miserable howl came over, making everyone tremble.
How could the pampered Chen Derun, who had tender skin and tender flesh, endure such pain? He just beat him a few times and then started to explain like he was pouring beans.
After just a cup of tea, Fang Zhenghua came over with a stack of paper. Chongzhen took it and took a look, and the suppressed anger was ignited again.
This man actually married nine wives. Not counting that, there were dozens of maids who were partners with him in the harem, and they used their power to collect hundreds of thousands of taels of property.
"Come here, tie up this thief. I will use it tomorrow. If he dies at night, I will kill all three of you!"
"Wang Cheng'en immediately led people to ransack his house. All the male family members were executed, and the female family members were exiled. The property they obtained was put into the internal coffers. All the maids in the palace who were paired with each other were also exiled."
After Chongzhen finished speaking, he looked at Tian Ergeng and Xu Xianchun kneeling on the ground and said coldly: "Get warm in bed!"
Then he stepped forward and kicked Xu Xianchun, who was kneeling on the ground, to the ground: "The late emperor and empress, some people dare to break into the palace of my sister-in-law. What do you, the royal guards, do?"
"Did someone break into my palace one day and kill me, and why did you come here?"
"Your Majesty, our royal guards are just..."
"Are you trying to say that your royal guards are only responsible for peripheral security, and that the harem is not under your control?"
Chongzhen sneered: "Let me ask you, what time do the Jingyun Gate and Longzong Gate of the harem lock every afternoon?"
Tian Ergeng and Xu Xianchun understood the problem instantly, and their foreheads were covered with big beads of sweat.
Chen Derun is not a member of the harem. Jingyun Gate and Longzong Gate have been locked. So where did Chen Derun get in?
"Your Majesty, I am guilty of death, please forgive me..."
"Your Majesty, I am not strict with you, I will investigate thoroughly immediately!"
Tian Ergeng and Xu Xianchun quickly kowtowed and apologized.
After Chongzhen vented his anger, he looked at Wang Chengen: "Wang Chengen, how should the mistakes committed by these two people be dealt with according to Ming law?"
"Your Majesty, the Imperial Guards are the emperor's personal soldiers. His Majesty has the final say in appointing and declaring killings. According to their faults, they will be punished with death!"
"capital offense?"
Chongzhen repeated something softly, and Fang Zhenghua instantly drew out his long knife and looked at Tian Ergeng and Xu Xianchun. They were trembling all over, kowtowing and shouting for mercy.
"Come here, pull him out and chop him!"
When Chongzhen said this, he glanced at Wei Zhongxian who was kneeling on the ground. These two people had taken refuge in Wei Zhongxian. He wanted to see if Wei Zhongxian wanted to intercede for these two people.
Sure enough, as soon as he finished speaking, Wei Zhongxian, who was kneeling on the ground, raised his head and said, "Your Majesty, may I say a few words?"
"explain!"
"Your Majesty, there are 24 yamen in the palace. As of yesterday, there were 14,835 eunuchs and 3,216 maids. It is impossible for the Jinyi guards in charge of Jingyunmen and Longzongmen to know all of them. It is normal for a slight negligence;
Secondly, Chen Derun entered before the two doors were locked but did not come out. The guards on duty at the two doors failed to observe, and Master Tian and Master Xu were not strict. If they were killed because of this, it would make the soldiers of the Jinyi Guards panic and easily lead to accidents;
The main responsibility for this matter lies with the internal guards patrolling the harem. As the last barrier of the harem, they did not notice the danger. This shows that the internal guards are loose.
Therefore, I beg your Majesty to forgive the death penalty of these two adults! "
After hearing this, Chongzhen sneered in his heart. The harem has the operating mechanism of the harem, how could it be ignored just because there are so many people.
Furthermore, you failed to do a good job in peripheral security, but you blame the internal guards. This is simply unreasonable.
And the sentence that can easily provoke changes is simply a naked threat to him.
From this we can see Wei Zhongxian's unwillingness.
Is he loyal? This is for sure, but his loyalty is to Emperor Tianqi, not him.
He understands this principle, and Wei Zhongxian understands it even better.
Wei Zhongxian said so much, not because Tian Ergeng and Xu Xianchun were one of his five brothers. If these two died, he would lose most of the control of Jin Yiwei.
It was very frustrating for him to be the emperor, but whoever asked him to take over would be a mess. There were few people in the palace that he could trust. The unnatural deaths of his father and brother were a lesson.
Chongzhen pretended to be silent for a while: "Today, all the Jinyi guards who were on duty outside Jingyun Gate and Longzong Gate were dismissed from their posts for investigation and will never be hired. They will also receive twenty military sticks!"
"Tian Ergen, Xu Xianchun, due to your faults, I can kill your entire clan, but because you two are loyal and Wei Zhongxian intercedes on your behalf, I will not kill you for the time being, but..."
"Death penalty can be avoided, but living crime cannot be avoided!"
