Rule over Ming Dynasty

Forbidden City, Xihua Gate.

Jin Wuwei's mental outlook took on a new look, perhaps because he often met the emperor. Everyone's back was unusually straight, and his eyes scanned every visitor coldly.

"Master Song, you must abide by the rules in the palace!"

"You can't move too fast, and you can't leave our eyesight!"

"This time we are entering the inner palace. Except for the area passed by Concubine Shu, you are not allowed to look around in other palaces!"

……

Guo Yong personally took several eunuchs from Yangxin Palace to Chengxi Palace, responsible for keeping an eye on Song Cheng and investigating the case in the palace, while Guo Yong seemed to be chattering and reminding him.

There was no expression on Song Cheng's face, and his eyes were still unadulterated. He looked straight ahead and followed Guo Yong to the harem.

Originally, he was focused and focused on efficiency, so he walked a little faster than ordinary people, but now he had to control the frequency of his steps and accept the constraints of the palace rules.

Although he has been to the palace several times, each time he has to walk in a specific area under the supervision of eunuchs. Today is the first time he has entered the harem area.

Chengxi Palace is one of the three western palaces, located in the northwest of the harem.

Since concubine Shu Zhang Yujiao was not favored, this place usually seemed deserted. Now that Zhang Yujiao suddenly passed away, the place became a bit more desolate.

There was an apricot tree growing in the courtyard, and all its leaves had fallen off.

Even if Concubine Shu was not favored, she was still a high-ranking concubine of the Ming Dynasty. Now the body was also enshrined in the coffin, but the face that was always aggressive had lost its motor function forever.

Two candles as thick as arms were burning in the center of the mourning hall. Zhu Youtang had come to pay his respects yesterday.

In the original history, concubine Zhang Yujiao was indeed the big winner in life. Not only did she honor the world as a mother, but she also created monogamy in the history of Chinese emperors, and even gave birth to a well-deserved heir to the Ming Dynasty.

Although she can only be regarded as coming from a scholarly family, her great-grandfather was a Jiaocheng magistrate and her cousin was a governor of Liaodong, which gave her strong genes of the civil service group.

She was loved by the Empress Dowager Zhou internally and supported by the civil service group externally, which made her feel like a fish in water in the queen's position, and made Hongzhi dare not touch other palace maids.

But when Zhu Youtang's spirit returned, everything quietly changed.

Success is also a civil service group, and defeat is also a civil service group. Zhu Youtang no longer believed in the rule of thumb and had no intention of co-ruling the world with the civil servants. However, Zhang Yujiao was too imprinted with the civil service group and soon became a victim of political struggles.

Although the civil service group wanted Zhang Yujiao to take charge of the harem and give birth to a prince who was close to the civil service group, Zhu Youtang chose to banish Zhang Yujiao into the cold palace in disguise.

Nowadays, Zhang Yujiao's glorious life is gone, and she has also suffered the tragic fate of the beauty's early death, which can't help but make people feel sad.

woohoo...

Xiao Zi and other palace maids knelt in the mourning hall and burned paper money. On the one hand, it was for the death of Concubine Shu Zhang Yujiao, and on the other hand, it was for their own sudden gloomy fate.

Before the burial, the corpse had been inspected. The bleeding from Zhang Yujiao's facial features was indeed caused by arsenic poisoning. The cause of death was the table of non-palace cakes.

"Since the pastries were brought back from outside, then the pastries were probably poisoned from outside!" Song Cheng also made some judgments after learning this limited information.

Although when he learned about the case, he first suspected that the poisoning site was Zhang Mansion, he had never been a careless person, so he insisted on going to the first crime location to look for clues.

With respect for the deceased, Song Cheng came to the mourning hall and laid a stick of incense in a polite manner.

Guo Yong knew that Zhu Youtang was eager to know the truth, so he pointed to the room next door and said, "Sir Song, the first crime scene is in front of you. The Zajia family was cordoned off yesterday!"

Song Cheng nodded with satisfaction and just followed Guo Yong to the next room when he saw a beautiful palace maid holding a little cat and crying.

The pastries have become the most important evidence, so no one can act rashly.

It's just that things always happen to be a little unexpected. It's a woman's nature to join in the fun, and the one who loves the fun the most in the entire palace is undoubtedly the non-mainstream palace maid Niu Mengmeng.

Niu Mengmeng couldn't leave yesterday because he was in Qianqing Palace, but now he finally had some free time, so he was naturally curious and came to take a look at the situation.

Because he had just stood relatively close, the cat in his arms ran away quickly, and when he looked up, he saw the cat eating a piece of cake in the food box.

It was too late for Niu Mengmeng to stop him, but he saw that a piece of pastry had been eaten by the little cat. He hugged the little cat Lihua and cried with rain: "Xiaoxiaohua, don't die, wuwu..."

At this moment, on the one hand, she was afraid that she would get into trouble and ruin the evidence, and on the other hand, she was heartbroken that her little tabby cat had been poisoned to death.

Guo Yong knew that Niu Mengmeng was the emperor's most favored maid, and it was difficult to say too harsh words, but he looked at Song Cheng with a bitter face and said: "Song Cheng, this matter will not hinder the investigation, right?"

Song Cheng kept staring at the crying Niu Mengmeng, but he didn't even blink.

cough……

Guo Yong couldn't help coughing heavily when he saw Song Cheng being so disrespectful.

"No problem!" Song Cheng shook his head gently at first, and then solemnly requested: "Eunuch Guo, please find some living animals. I want to verify whether other cakes contain arsenic poison!"

"Why is this?" Guo Yong was stunned when he heard this.

Song Cheng's eyes fell back on Niu Mengmeng, who was still crying, but he helplessly pointed at the little cat in Niu Mengmeng's arms and said: "Not all these pastries are necessarily poisonous with arsenic! If the pastry the little cat just ate If there was arsenic, he would have been poisoned to death by now!"

He didn't think so deeply at first. After all, Concubine Shu died of arsenic poisoning from eating cakes, so it stands to reason that the whole box of cakes was poisoned by arsenic.

But after seeing this oolong caused by Niu Mengmeng, and especially seeing that the little tabby cat was safe and sound so far, I knew that I had almost missed very crucial information just now.

Although this discovery cannot help him find the murderer, having this discovery will undoubtedly help him make inferences and find the real murderer.

what?

Niu Mengmeng looked at the little cat in his arms as if belatedly, and then he realized that the little cat was really fine, and he couldn't help but burst into laughter.

Only then did Guo Yong understand, but he told Niu Mengmeng to accept the punishment from His Majesty and then go to the kitchen to make arrangements.

Although the palace does not engage in breeding, there are fresh poultry in the kitchen every day, so with some coordination, a batch of poultry can be quickly arranged for testing.

Song Cheng is a person who likes to do things himself. After labeling the pastries, he feeds the pastries separately to determine which other pastries contain arsenic poison.

This kind of investigation method using poultry for experiments is beyond the reach of ordinary families, but naturally it cannot include the imperial palace, but none of these poultry seem to have died.

"Strange!"

"Master Song, what's wrong?"

……

Guo Yong didn't react much when looking at the poultry, so he was very sure that the other pastries here did not contain arsenic, but Song Cheng's "strange" whetted his appetite.

Song Cheng did not answer Guo Yong's question, but instead approached Concubine Shu's personal maid Xiao Zi.

Xiaozi was a palace maid who had followed Concubine Shu since she was in the East Palace. Faced with Song Cheng's interrogation, she immediately revealed the origin of the food box: "This box of pastries was brought back from the Zhang Mansion. The slaves have always carried it in their hands. The Jubilee Palace is only placed in the east room! The east room is the residence of Concubine Shu, so no other unrelated personnel can enter at will without her instructions!"

Song Cheng nodded noncommittally and asked again: "When was Concubine Shu poisoned?"

"Shu... Concubine Shu went to Kunning Palace to say hello and stayed there for a while. When she came back... she was poisoned by eating cakes!" Xiao Zi's eyes were erratic, but she said cautiously.

Kunning Palace?

Song Cheng frowned slightly, but he could tell that this bun-faced palace maid didn't look like she was lying.

Judging from the current investigation results, he found that the problem probably had nothing to do with the maids and eunuchs of Chengxi Palace, and immediately turned his suspicious eyes to Zhang Mansion.

In the east of the city, Zhang Mansion is like mourning an heir.

This was originally the most prestigious home of relatives. As early as when Zhang Yujiao was still the princess, the Zhang family had already been favored by many powerful people in the capital.

It's just that things have changed, and China has created a precedent for a crown princess not being canonized as a queen. Because Zhang Yujiao did not become a queen, but was instead canonized as Concubine Shu, she was even more ignored by the emperor, and the Zhang family was also destitute.

Fortunately, a piece of wisdom from Dongfang Wudao saved the declining Zhang Mansion. Zhang Yujiao became the emperor's only hope to continue his heirs, and the Zhang Mansion has become lively again recently. Although there has been no news about the canonization of Zhang Yujiao as queen by the palace, they always believed that the emperor would eventually succumb to the destiny of heaven, and sooner or later they would have to obediently treat their daughter as queen.

But who could have imagined that their fantasy of becoming the uncle's family would be completely shattered. Now that Zhang Yujiao is dead, let alone the top family of relatives, they will not even be able to stay in the circles of the capital.

You must know that although the Zhang family is a relatively large clan, it is the Zhang Qi lineage that is truly prosperous. The Zhang family can only be a side branch of the larger Zhang family at best.

"Daughter, why did you leave us?"

Zhang's mother was a very ambitious woman, but now she saw all the glory and wealth that was about to reach her mouth fly away, and she cried in great pain.

Song Cheng himself is the Yin of Shuntian Prefecture, and now he is ordered to investigate the case. Naturally, he can walk into Zhang Mansion at will, and he can interrogate any member of Zhang Mansion.

"Concubine Shu is the hope of our Zhang family, how can we poison her?" Zhang Luan asked with tears in his eyes when faced with Song Cheng's inquiry.

Song Cheng knew this was the truth, but found that something was obviously wrong with Zhang's mother's expression.

"Master Song, you don't suspect that it's my wife who did this, right?" Mother Zhang saw Song Cheng looking at her, but she immediately stopped her sadness and asked.

Although Song Cheng didn't believe that tigers are poisonous and don't eat their seeds, Zhang Yujiao and her parents had highly aligned interests, so they changed the subject and said, "I want to know who made that box of cakes?"

"My wife has never touched Yang Chun Shui since she was a child. That box of pastries was made by my cook!" Zhang Luan immediately excused his wife and pointed to his cook.

Song Cheng knew that the case would be solved step by step, so he made a request: "In that case, please invite the cook here. I have a few words to ask her!"

"Sir, my cook has watched Jiao'er grow up. There is absolutely no way she could poison her!" Zhang Luan said confidently, patting his chest.

"Sir, Jiao'er's milk was fed by the cook when she was a child. She has already treated Jiao'er as a daughter. It is absolutely impossible for her to poison her!" Zhang's mother also stood up to guarantee her vote.

Song Cheng had already developed a pair of fiery eyes. When he realized there was a problem, he glared at the couple who obviously had something to hide.

Although he didn't think that the case would be so simple and that it was really the work of a little cook, the cook was undoubtedly the first suspect in this case, so there was no reason not to ask questions.

"Sir, what do you mean by this?" Zhang Luan saw that Song Cheng had not spoken for a long time, and finally spoke out uncontrollably.

Song Cheng met the couple's eyes and said very seriously: "I am the Yin of Shuntian Prefecture. This time I am investigating the case of the murder of Concubine Shu! I hope you will cooperate fully, not to mention you." The Zhang family is the most suspect, once your majesty convicts you, none of you can afford it!"

Zhang Luan was immediately excited, but he knew that the Zhang family was no better than a phoenix in the water, so he immediately arranged for the housekeeper to bring the cook over.

At this moment, he suddenly realized that his Zhang family had been suspected, and now he had to clear his suspicions, otherwise the entire Zhang family might face catastrophe.

The Zhang family's cook, a MILF, is indeed quite pretty.

At this time, she was dragged up by two servants. Her clothes were torn and her body was stained with blood. She had obviously been lynched by the Zhang family.

"Sir Song, I also suspected her of poisoning for the first time, so I couldn't help but lynched her and threw her into the woodshed yesterday!" Zhang Luan saw that he couldn't hide the matter, so he immediately explained with a smile.

Song Cheng's heart moved slightly, but he said deliberately and deceitfully: "Cook, your husband and wife have just explained everything, why is there arsenic in that box of cakes?"

"My lord, you are unjust! The peasant woman put a piece of walnut cake on the top floor according to the lady's instructions. I really don't know how it turned into arsenic! The lady grew up under the guidance of the peasant woman. The master is kind to the peasant women. How could a woman throw arsenic into her?" The cook immediately said that she was wronged.

cough!

cough cough...

When the Zhang couple heard what the cook said, they suddenly started coughing non-stop.

Song Cheng first glanced at the Zhangs and his wife, then looked at the cook seriously and said, "You just said there was a piece of walnut cake on the top? What's going on?"

"This..." The cook was dumbfounded when she heard Song Cheng's question.

Song Cheng's face suddenly darkened, but he turned his gaze to Zhang Luan and said, "Master Zhang, do you want to go to the Shuntian Mansion Office to explain, or do you want to tell me the truth here?"

Zhang Luan knew that the matter could no longer be concealed, so he sighed heavily and then told the whole story.

Ever since the anecdotal saying that "the emperor's calamity, after two queens, Zhang is like Qin, always a new one" appeared, Zhang Yujiao seemed to have returned in good times, and she was able to control Zhu Youtang again.

It's just that things didn't develop in the direction she expected. Not only did Zhu Youtang not come to see her, he didn't even have any intention of abolishing her.

When she originally learned that Jiang Wei was the reincarnation of Jinfeng, her heart had dropped to freezing point, but fortunately, King Xing successfully "robbed the bride" with the help of the eldest princess.

However, there was still no movement from Zhu Youtang, but Zhang Yujiao took advantage of Zhang Luan's birthday to stage a cruel trick.

She took advantage of her allergy to walnuts and pretended to go to Kunning Palace to meet the Queen for some refreshments. After returning, she ate cakes containing walnuts to frame the Queen.

Once there is a rift in the relationship between Zhu Youtang and Chang Yourong, the emperor will canonize her, the former princess, as the queen.

The original plan went very smoothly, but something went wrong. The pastry Zhang Yujiao ate was not the walnut pastry she was allergic to, but the arsenic that directly caused her to bleed to death.

Song Cheng did not expect that there would be a palace fight in this case, and Zhang Yujiao seemed to be suing for her own death, but she asked very seriously: "Apart from the three of you, is there anyone else who knows about this plan?"

"Xiao Zi, the palace maid next to my daughter, I heard that she came up with this idea!" Zhang's mother seemed to know more about the truth, and immediately revealed

Song Cheng glanced at Zhang Mu suspiciously, but judging from various signs, I am afraid it was not the cook who poisoned her, but someone who took advantage of Zhang Yujiao's plan.

"Sir, where are we going now?" Headcatcher Zhao Dayan followed Song Cheng away and asked curiously.

Song Cheng quickly walked out of the Zhang Mansion, got on his horse and said, "Let's go to Chengxi Palace again!"

"Sir, it's impossible for the murderer to poison the palace, right?" Zhao Dayan had been with Song Cheng for a long time, and he also mounted his horse to express his opinion.

Song Cheng clapped his horse forward, but gave his own guess: "Maybe not in the palace, nor in Zhang's mansion!"

"Sir, where else could it be?" Zhao Dayan was immediately dumbfounded, but Song Cheng had already ridden away.

Since Song Cheng was ordered to investigate the case, the palace guards did not stop him, and the eunuchs led Song Cheng to Chengxi Palace.

As if something suddenly occurred to him, Song Cheng asked Qianhu, the Jinwu Guard in charge of the palace gate, "Did Concubine Shu return to the palace through this gate yesterday afternoon?"

"Exactly!" Jin Wuwei Qianhu Huangfu Xu, who was the founding general of the country, nodded without knowing why.

Song Cheng immediately asked: "Who was on duty here at that time!"

"As long as your Majesty goes to the Yangxin Hall, our commander-in-chief will be on duty here for your Majesty in the afternoon!" Huangfu Xu raised his chin slightly, showing admiration.

Song Cheng knew that Zhu Youtang had such charisma, but he asked doubtfully: "Why don't you see anyone now?"

"Huh? It should be coming soon!" Huangfu Xu realized that Chang Feng should be coming, and looked towards the palace road to the south.

Song Cheng did not want to doubt Chang Feng, but wanted to collect more information to restore the entire truth of the case. Who wanted to prevent the emperor from giving birth to an heir?

The palace maid Xiao Zi has been waiting in the mourning hall, trying hard to recall what happened yesterday: "When it comes to food, we palace maids pay special attention to it even in the palace, let alone the food outside the palace. The cook handed the food box to the slave, and the slave I kept carrying it, but..."

"But what?" Song Cheng asked seriously after observing that Xiao Zi didn't look like he was lying.

Xiao Zi recalled yesterday's scene and revealed seriously: "Since everything brought from outside the palace needs to be inspected by management, the food box is no exception. Because they tampered with the precious gold pants that Concubine Shu brought back, the slaves also followed They argued for a while, so the food box left the slave’s sight. Although it’s not clear how they checked it, the food box was indeed opened by them!”

At this point, her lips moved again, but she suddenly thought of her current situation, and finally closed her mouth silently and sensibly.

Song Cheng glanced at the palace maid thoughtfully, and after leaving Chengxi Palace, returned to Xihua Gate.

Although Concubine Shu's death was not closely related to Queen Chang, the current leader of the Jinwu Guard is Chang Feng. In order to keep Queen Chang's position and for the prosperity of their Chang family, they might indeed kill Concubine Shu.

Song Cheng returned to Xihua Gate, but Chang Feng was still missing: "Where is your leader?"

"The news just came that our commander has not returned home since yesterday and is now missing!" Faced with Song Cheng's inquiry, Huangfu Xu had no choice but to say bravely.

No one expected that the final finger would be pointed at the Chang family and Chang Feng, the leader of the Jinwu Guards. (End of chapter)