Why did the emperor rebel?

Late autumn has arrived, and the fallen leaves in the imperial city are spread on the ground in layers, making it feel quite desolate.

Zhu Qiyu stood on the corridor outside the Palace of Qianqing, with his hands behind his hands, listening to the latest news from Shu Liang, but his brows furrowed involuntarily.

The flooding of the imperial mausoleum was not a trivial matter. In addition, it was the inner treasury that was being repaired this time. Therefore, the craftsmen below naturally did not dare to neglect and worked overtime. It took less than three months to repair it.

Of course, this process was inseparable from the fact that Chen Jing, who had a guilty conscience, stayed in the imperial mausoleum almost every day, filling the holes for himself.

Logically speaking, this matter should have ended here. Although Chen Jing was brave, he was not afraid of death. As soon as he discovered that the underground palace was flooded, he filled in the originally dug path. Well, what is really difficult to deal with is the part of the entire underground palace that was damaged by flooding.

However, Chen Jing himself also knew that his family and life were at stake. In order to speed up the progress of repairs, he even paid for it himself and hired many craftsmen, just to eliminate the impact of this matter as soon as possible.

During this period of time, although Zhu Qiyu had been sending people to keep an eye on Chen Jing, he had not taken any action and was only waiting for the next development of the matter. What is strange is that until the repairs were almost completed, But there was still no abnormality, which made Zhu Qiyu feel very strange.

You know, if Nangong’s purpose in planning this game is Chen Jing, then he should find a way to break the news that the structure of the underground palace has been changed during this period of time. But until now, there has been no news in the capital. , On the contrary, as for the underground palace, as Chen Jing stepped up repairs, all traces of the underground palace's modifications have been basically erased.

According to the progress known so far, in another half month at most, the underground palace will be completely restored to its original state. By then, even if someone breaks the news that Chen Jing secretly changed the underground palace, it will be in vain because it is difficult to verify. .

According to the news from Zhu Yi, Zhang Xi arranged the matter and told him the ins and outs of the matter. The purpose was indeed to need him to help Wu Yu and others go further. But for some reason, now, Zhang Xi There is no movement at all...

"Your Majesty, I have another piece of news here, but I don't know if it is related to Nangong."

Seeing the Emperor's demeanor, Shu Liang hesitated for a moment, and finally spoke.

"In recent days, the news about the flooding of the imperial mausoleum has spread in the capital. Rumors seem to have spread throughout the capital, saying..."

"say what?"

Shu Liang had always been decisive, but this was the first time Zhu Qiyu had seen him look so hesitant, so he couldn't help turning his head and frowning at the latter.

So, Shu Liang thought for a moment, knelt down on the ground first, and then spoke.

"Since the emperor ascended the throne, various natural disasters such as earthquakes, constant rain, severe cold, etc. have continued. Now, the imperial court is building the Shouling Mausoleum, and water in the underground palace has inexplicably occurred. This shows... It can be seen that the destiny of the ancestors does not lie with the emperor, but with... …”

Although he had obtained the emperor's permission, at the end of his words, Shu Liang's voice became lower and lower, until he lowered his head so deeply that he did not dare to raise his head at all.

"If the destiny is not with me, then it is with Nangong?"

The expected rage did not appear, but Shu Liang could indeed hear a trace of anger from the emperor's slightly mocking tone.

So, he quickly spoke.

"Your Majesty, you must be aware that these are just rumors from ignorant people. In times of crisis, your Majesty worked hard to protect the country of the Ming Dynasty. Since he ascended the throne, peace has prevailed all over the world, and the country's strength has grown day by day. Although there have been disasters in various places, the imperial court has responded appropriately. There has never been any large-scale civil unrest, so it’s not destiny?”

"In my opinion, if there are such rumors at this time, there must be someone behind the scenes to slander the emperor's sage..."

"A rumor?"

Zhu Qiyu whispered something, as if he thought of something, and then he waved his hand gently and said.

"Be safe, and don't worry, I won't be angry because of these ignorant people."

This is true. If he had changed his previous life, he might have doubts and be anxious about this kind of thing.

However, facts have proven that no matter it is in the past life or now, the natural disaster will still come, and no matter what he or Zhu Qizhen did, it will not change.

Therefore, this has nothing to do with the so-called destiny at all, it is nothing more than far-fetched.

What really concerned Zhu Qiyu was the truth behind this matter, so after pondering for a moment, he then asked.

“These rumors have Nangong’s influence?”

"We haven't found out the details yet, but from the news from the two Mongolian guards sent by the Supreme Emperor to the British Palace, this matter should be related to the British Palace."

Shu Liang stood up carefully and then replied.

"Previously, the British government had recruited many people from all walks of life. In addition to alchemists like Tongyin, there were also many storytellers and singers. According to the two Mongolian guards, during this period, the British government There are a lot fewer guests living in the mansion, but more money has been spent, so I think these rumors are most likely caused by Zhang Shi."

Hearing this, a trace of doubt flashed across Zhu Qiyu's face.

Could it be that Nangong was actually making a false shot, and his real purpose was not to imprison the internal officials, but to create rumors and build momentum for regaining the throne in the future?

After this idea briefly arose, it was quickly dismissed by Zhu Qiyu, because things like building momentum are generally the prerogative of the dominant side of the confrontation.

Just like now, Zhu Qiyu can slowly boil the frog in warm water, constantly sending out signals that he will definitely deal with the Nangong problem, and paving the way for such a situation in the future.

However, if Nangong does the same thing, it will only expose his disobedient thoughts. The more secretive the better, the better. As long as it succeeds in the end, there will naturally be plenty of time to correct public opinion.

Moreover, if this guess is true, it means that Zhu Qizhen even concealed Zhu Yi's identity. Of course, it is not impossible, but at least for now, Zhu Yi's identity is well hidden. Zhu Qi The town has no reason to do this.

But if it's not to build momentum, then what's the point of these rumors?

Shu Liang on the side looked at the emperor's appearance and felt a little uneasy. After hesitating for a moment, he spoke.

"Your Majesty, why don't I go there personally to settle the issue of the Imperial Mausoleum and these rumors, so that Your Majesty won't continue to worry..."

Ok?
Zhu Qiyu glanced sideways at Shu Liang. This sudden gaze made Shu Liang a little uncomfortable. However, he was also a little confused for a moment, wondering where he had said the wrong thing.

Zhu Qiyu, on the other hand, seemed to have thought of something, but that thought passed away in a flash, and when he tried to catch it again, it disappeared without a trace.

"First..." After pondering for a moment, Zhu Qiyu decided to stay put for the time being. Anyway, he has the advantage now, and waiting to see what happens is the best strategy.

However, just when he was about to give the order, he caught a glimpse from the corner of his eye of Wynn walking over anxiously from the corridor on the other side.

You know, Wynn has always had a calm personality, which is what Zhu Qiyu values ​​​​most about him. In the past, no matter how big things happened, Wynn could always remain calm. What happened to make him panic like this?

Soon, Shu Liang also noticed Wynn's situation, so he quickly made way for a passage and stood aside. After a moment, Wynn stepped forward quickly, knelt down on the ground and said.

"Your Majesty, it's not good, the imperial mausoleum... the imperial mausoleum..."

Seeing Huaien who couldn't speak clearly, Zhu Qiyu's heart sank and he said in a deep voice.

"What happened to the imperial mausoleum?"

It was only then that Wynn finally recovered, his lips trembled, and he kowtowed.

"The news just came that the underground palace of Shouling... collapsed!"

"what?"

A voice mixed with shock and anger rang out. Even while kneeling on the ground, Wynn could feel the emperor's rage. At this moment, it seemed that the sound of the wind around him had stopped, and the entire Qianqing Palace fell into a dead silence. among.

Wynn trembled and knelt on the ground, feeling unprecedented fear in his heart. As the emperor's personal eunuch, he naturally knew that this incident was caused by Chen Jing, regardless of whether Chen Jing was It was set up, but in the final analysis, these are the people he promoted.

When the underground palace was flooded before, the emperor did not blame him. It was because the emperor missed his old relationship. However, if the underground palace collapsed this time and was still related to Chen Jing, I am afraid that even he would be implicated. How could he not be afraid?
"What's going on? Tell me clearly!"

In the midst of the depression, Wynn could feel that the emperor was trying hard to suppress his anger and squeezed out these words from between his teeth.

While screaming in his heart, Wynn had no choice but to kowtow again and say in a trembling voice.

"Returning to the emperor, the specific situation is unclear for the time being. It is said that the heavy rain caused the rocks to collapse and destroyed the underground palace. However, just before the servant came to report, a young eunuch next to Chen Jing secretly came over to report, saying... ...It is said that the collapse of the underground palace started from within..."

"Bastard!"

After the words fell, Zhu Qiyu, who was already very angry, suddenly felt furious.

Although Wynn didn't say it directly, what else could it mean to start from within?To put it bluntly, someone deliberately collapsed the underground palace.

You must know that the Imperial Mausoleum is the resting place of Zhu Qiyu after his death. Although he has been reborn for another life and has become very indifferent to matters of life and death, this kind of behavior is tantamount to provoking his authority head-on. How can he not angry?
At that moment, he turned his gaze to Shu Liang and said.

"Shu Liang, I order you to go to the imperial mausoleum immediately and take over all matters. All people involved, including Chen Jing, will be detained. I will give you three days to get to the bottom of this matter!"

"The servant obeys the order..."

Shu Liang naturally knew the seriousness of the matter. After listening to the emperor's instructions, he hurriedly handed over his hands to receive the order, and then went down to do things.

After Shu Liang left, Zhu Qi Yufang turned his attention to Wynn and said.

"As for you... give up your errands first and go back to the harem! Let's wait until everything is cleared up!"

As soon as these words came out, Wynn secretly breathed a sigh of relief. What he feared most was that the emperor would expel him from the palace in anger. Now he just asked him to hand over his errands and wait for the results of the investigation, which means that, Everything could still turn around, so he didn't dare to complain at all and kowtowed quickly.

"Thank you, Your Majesty for your grace."

Afterwards, Huaien did not dare to stay longer. After thanking him, he quickly left, leaving Zhu Qiyu alone, standing in the bleak autumn wind, frowning, not knowing what he was thinking...

The news of the collapse of the imperial mausoleum quickly spread throughout the court. In fact, there was no way to hide it. As soon as he learned the news, the emperor sent Shu Liang, the eunuch of the East Factory, with hundreds of followers. Go to the imperial mausoleum in person and take everyone in custody.

Immediately afterwards, within half a day, the Imperial Guards were ordered to go to the imperial mausoleum to investigate, and together with the Ministry of Punishment, they temporarily detained all the officials involved in the construction pending trial. Now the entire Shouling Mausoleum is surrounded by officers and soldiers blocking the way.

Such a huge momentum can be seen how angry the emperor was about this incident. At the same time, in the morning court, the officials could also clearly sense that the emperor was in a bad mood these days, so his daily routine changed. I have to be a lot more cautious.

Of course, although this matter caused a lot of fuss, it did not have much to do with most officials. What really concerned them more was that the eunuch in charge of building the imperial mausoleum, Chen Jing, was promoted by Huai'en. Therefore, this matter This incident directly involved Huaien, the chief eunuch in charge of rituals, who was directly suspended from his post by the emperor and sent back to the harem to serve. The emperor handed over the supervision of the eunuch Xing'an, who had just been transferred from the harem.

At the same time, it is said that all the eunuchs related to the imperial mausoleum, even those who were only responsible for the design of the drawings and the procurement of building materials and were not directly involved in the matter, were imprisoned one after another. Suddenly, the palace was full of chaos. It's the changing winds and the surging waves.

In such an unstable situation, the capital city received its first snowfall.

The goose-feather-like heavy snow slowly floated down from the sky, and immediately melted without a trace when it landed on the ground, turning the ground into mud. The north wind howled, causing pedestrians on the road to wrap up their clothes tightly, and hurriedly tried to catch up as soon as possible. Come home to the warmth of the fire.

Under such cold weather, Shu Liang wore a large cloak and rode back to the imperial city at full speed. He entered straight from the palace gate and soon arrived in front of the emperor.

"This servant comes to see His Majesty and wishes you His Majesty's greetings!"

In the main hall, Shu Liang bowed to the ground respectfully and spoke.

On the throne, Zhu Qiyu put down the memorial in his hand, his eyes fell on Shu Liang, who was dressed in snow and wind, and asked straightforwardly without too much verbosity.

"Ping Sheng, how is the investigation going?"

So, Shu Liang stood up carefully, took two steps forward, and cupped his hands.

"Your Majesty, I have ordered people to conduct a detailed investigation of the underground palace site, and the conclusion is that the collapse of the underground palace... was indeed caused by man."

"Someone buried gunpowder in the underground palace in advance, and then set it on fire, causing the entire underground palace to collapse!"