Daming talker

Chapter 552: The Life of Gatekeeper Liu

Such a big thing happened in Xizhimen, and it immediately alarmed the senior officials.

The first big shot to arrive at the scene was Sun Yong, the junior supervisor of the secretariat of the Imperial Household Department and the commander of the nine gates including Zhengyang and Yongding, and four of the seven gates of the imperial city.

The length of this official title is comparable to that of an ordinary protagonist, and can be abbreviated as the Twenty-Gates Commander. Except for the four gates of the palace guarded by the imperial horse prison soldiers, all the city gates are under the supervision of Eunuch Sun.

The body of Eunuch Liu, the gatekeeper of Xizhimen, was fished out and placed in front of the watchtower inside the city gate.

Although Eunuch Liu had died at this time, his eyes were still wide open. This was his last bit of stubbornness.

Eunuch Sun frowned and looked at the body of Eunuch Liu.

Next to Eunuch Sun was Captain Pang, who was trembling with fear, as if he was standing on the edge of a deep abyss or treading on thin ice.

Now he finally experienced the dangers of officialdom firsthand, and understood the helplessness of the small people involved.

Not to mention anything else, the eunuch Sun, the commander of the Twenty Gates, could, in a fit of rage, turn a fourth-rank military officer like him into a small soldier and send him to a border town.

That’s right, although General Pang may seem like a small figure, I’m actually a deputy commander, a genuine fourth-rank official, but I’m completely worthless in the capital.

There are big and small captains in the Beijing camp. The small captains are all hereditary officials at the command level. Captain Pang is one of the small captains.

Originally, General Pang was guarding Xizhimen, far away from the political hustle and bustle. Although his life was dull and boring, it was also safe and peaceful.

Ever since I received a man who was exiled to Xizhimen, my life has been hard to describe.
After a moment, Eunuch Sun said, "It seems that he died with his eyes open."

Seeing that Eunuch Sun did not call a coroner to examine Liu Menguan's body, General Pang secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

Grandpa Lin said that as long as Eunuch Sun did not ask a coroner to conduct a detailed examination, it would be easier to handle.

While thinking, he answered: "Eunuch Liu was deeply moved by the world, full of resentment and indignation. Although he died a martyr, he still could not rest in peace against the world."

Eunuch Sun said coldly: "How could you know so much about his mental journey before his death?"

Pang Bazong immediately took out two pieces of paper and presented them, saying, "Before Liu Gonggong jumped off the city wall and committed suicide, he left a suicide note and gave it to me for safekeeping."

Eunuch Sun did not take the suicide note, and asked again: "What kind of person is Liu Menguan usually?"

Pang Bazong replied: "When Liu Gonggong was alive, he was quite cynical, a bit like a scholar who was full of complaints because his talent was not appreciated.

Even his habit of drinking and singing was the same. Whenever he received some silver, he would spend it on drinking and having fun. All the gatekeepers knew this.

I heard that Eunuch Liu studied in the inner library of the palace, but was demoted to Xizhimen because he offended someone."

"No need to talk about the past! Let's talk about now, recently!" Eunuch Sun shouted.

Pang Bazong then took the conversation back a little and continued, "Anyway, Eunuch Liu is very dissatisfied with the current situation and has been trying to move up and leave Xizhimen.

You, Lord Sun, also saw with your own eyes a few days ago that in order to seek an opportunity to get close to Empress Zheng, Eunuch Liu even wanted to give Lin Jiuyuan a hundred beatings, but he was beaten instead.

Perhaps due to long-term repression, Eunuch Liu's character is indeed a bit extreme. In order to rise and return to the palace, he would do anything, regardless of the cost. "

Perhaps thinking that General Pang talked too much nonsense, Eunuch Sun said impatiently: "So he was provoked and posted another denunciation?"

"Yes, yes." General Pang quickly continued, "The background information of Lin Jiuyuan being exiled to Xizhimen has also spread here.

Eunuch Liu thought that this was another opportunity to show off and gain power, so he decided to publish a denunciation to criticize the civil servants by name.

He thought that he could use this to muddy the waters, relieve the emperor's worries, and then attract his attention.

I was ordered to post the notice, and I cannot disobey the order of Eunuch Liu."

Eunuch Sun pointed at Eunuch Liu's body and asked, "And this is what happened to him?"

Pang Bazong explained: "As I said earlier, Eunuch Liu has an extreme temperament. He does things at all costs and has a strong gambling nature, so he wants to take a big gamble this time.

So he left a suicide note, made a suicidal gesture, and then fell into the moat, with a chance of life or death.

If he doesn't die, he will be extremely rich and will completely help Your Majesty solve his current troubles. Your Majesty will definitely use him in the future.

But unfortunately, he lost the bet this time and even his life.”

Eunuch Sun then reached out and took the suicide note from Eunuch Liu, saying, "It sounds reasonable."

He also ordered: "Buy him a good coffin, and then wait for the imperial decree."

Then Eunuch Sun turned around and left the watchtower. Before leaving, he glanced towards the city gate.

There was an extremely tall and strong man holding a spear, guarding the city gate as if he was doing his duty.

"You're pretending pretty well!" Eunuch Sun complained silently, then mounted his horse and left.

Lin Tailai also saw Eunuch Sun, the commander-in-chief of the Twenty Gates, and muttered to himself, "I've seen through you a long time ago."

The last time he had a "conflict" with the gatekeeper Eunuch Liu, when Eunuch Sun arrived at the scene, he only punished Captain Pang and then left.

This has already exposed Eunuch Sun's true nature, which is "seeking profit and avoiding harm" and "sophisticated selfishness."

Such people will not seek trouble if there is no benefit, and will assume that things will develop in a direction that is beneficial to them.

General Pang called Lin Tailai aside and whispered, "I have said everything you said." Lin Tailai nodded and said calmly, "That's fine."

General Pang asked nervously, "Will Eunuch Liu's suicide reveal any flaws?"

Lin Tailai said in surprise: "He committed suicide anyway, how could there be any flaws?"

At that time on the top of the city wall, Eunuch Liu had two choices. The first choice was to be thrown down, but it was hard to say where he would be thrown down.

The second option is to shout and then jump down. If you jump into the moat, you might still have a chance of survival, and if you survive you will be rich and powerful.

Eunuch Liu finally chose the second option and jumped down to seek wealth and fame.

So Lin Tailai really didn't lie, Eunuch Liu did commit suicide, he just had bad luck.

Pang Bazong was still very nervous: "And the suicide note, this evidence has been delivered to someone else."

Lin Tailai said calmly, "The suicide note was originally written by Eunuch Liu himself, so what's the problem?"

He just asked Eunuch Liu to write some cynical words to express his indignation and curse the civil servants, similar to the words on the poster.

Eunuch Liu, who had been hungry for three days, happily picked up his pen and wrote in exchange for two pancakes.

If these words are regarded as a suicide note, then let it be considered a suicide note.

General Pang was getting nervous, "What if Mr. Sun doesn't believe me?"

Lin Tailai said angrily: "If Eunuch Sun doesn't believe you, the factory guards will probably come looking for you!
But you didn't want to suffer at the hands of the factory guards, so you also went to the top of the city wall and committed suicide!

The conclusion of this case is that you killed Liu Menguan, and you committed suicide out of fear of punishment!"

Pang Bazong suddenly felt his legs go weak again. Oh my god, it turns out that a dull and boring life is also a kind of happiness.

After leaving Xizhimen, Twenty-Gate Commander Sun Yong rode his horse at full speed to Dong'anmen, where the famous East Factory Office was located.

Factory manager Sun Xian was sitting in the yamen, waiting for Sun Yong's report.

Perhaps it was because they both had the surname Sun, Mr. Sun adopted Sun Yong as his godson a long time ago and sent him to the inner study hall to study.

This is very normal in the eunuch profession. For example, the current fourth eunuch Chen Ju is the godson of the chief eunuch Gao Zhong during the Jiajing period.

After meeting Mr. Sun, Sun Yong told him everything he had heard from Mr. Pang.

After listening to this, Mr. Sun said the same thing as Sun Yong just said: "It sounds reasonable."

Sun Yong asked: "How do I report this to the Emperor?"

Sun Changgong ordered, "I will first report the truth to the emperor alone, and then you can report it with your heart. Do you know how to speak with your heart?"

Sun Yong replied: "I know."

Of course, there should be a distinction between telling the truth and speaking with all one's heart.

So Mr. Sun went into the palace first to meet Emperor Wanli, and Sun Yong was waiting there.

It was unknown how long it had been, but the Wanli Emperor, who had been in a bad mood recently and was recuperating in the Yude Palace, summoned Sun Yong to meet him again.

When Sun Yong came before the emperor, he found that the emperor had summoned more than a dozen eunuchs to his side, and almost all the eunuchs of high rank in the palace were there.

In front of so many people, Sun Yong played very attentively:

"After investigation, it was found that Liu, the eunuch guarding Xizhimen, had been taught by sages in the inner study hall since he was young, and he was loyal and righteous, with a strong character.

Recently, Liu saw that many foreign officials were deceiving the world and stealing fame, disturbing Your Majesty, so he angrily posted a notice to denounce and persuade them.

I also saw that the Grand Secretary Xu Guo ignored the advice and went out for fun, and in anger he jumped off the city wall and committed suicide, wanting to sacrifice himself to warn the world. He is indeed a rare loyal and courageous person! "

There was a eunuch in the Imperial Household Department named Wei Shen, who was a senior eunuch and had been promoted to junior eunuch during the Jiajing period.

After the original factory manager Zhang Jing fell, Wei Shen was unable to defeat Sun Xian to succeed the factory manager, and he always felt a little dissatisfied.

After hearing the report from Sun Yong, Sun Xian's adopted son, Wei Shen couldn't help but criticize him, saying, "How could there be such a righteous and loyal eunuch? I have never heard of this before. Could it be that Sun Yong was just making it up?"

Emperor Wanli, who was lying on the couch, suddenly spoke up and shouted at Wei Shen, "What nonsense! Can't there be loyal and brave people among the eunuchs?"

Wei Shen was stunned, then knelt down to apologize, and no one else said anything.

Emperor Wanli then issued an order: "Gentle burial beside Gaoliang River outside Xizhimen! Build a temple to commemorate him, and I will personally write the words 'loyalty and bravery' on the plaque!"

The emperor’s words are golden, and the life of gatekeeper Liu is finally judged!
Sun Yong hurried forward to receive the order, and Emperor Wanli added: "You don't have to do it yourself! You can pass the order to the cabinet and let the outer court officials do it, and you supervise them!"

Sun Yong was very happy. Generally, when the emperor paid attention to important matters, he would send a eunuch from the Imperial Household Department to convey his orders and supervise.

I have been assigned this kind of task today. Isn't it like I am enjoying the treatment of a eunuch who holds the pen?

There is nothing wrong with the godfather's approach. He first lets the emperor know that Liu Menguan is not a loyal and brave man, but a man who used all means to climb up and ended up in trouble.

Then let the emperor know that he was very sensible and deliberately portrayed Liu Menguan as a loyal hero, so that the emperor could truly recognize him!
(End of this chapter)